Acer Aspire One model D255 Review

Hello Human Beings!

Today I wrote a review on a product that I have been using for more than one year. It is not the coolest or most expensive product but it has one feature that I think suites university students. Or 2009 university students.

 

Acer Aspire One Review

Photo Credit

This a review for the Acer Aspire One Netbook model D255.

The Acer Aspire comes packaged with a one 1 GB ram stick, a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom processor and a 150 GB harddrive. These are very minimal compared to today’s standards. It also comes with three USB ports, an Ethernet port, a VGA port, an SD card reader, and headphone and microphone jacks.  Add to that the fact that the netbook comes with Windows 7 Basic installed on the harddrive, not much of a help for the performance. And then you have the manufacturer installed applications, they were annoying at best and I noticed that the netbook’s performance improved greatly without them. In reality, the performance is utter rubbish when dealing with software that is not from 2009. A simple task such as rendering a YouTube video at 240p resolution is difficult on the computer’s hardware. In addition to that the netbook’s performance drops significantly when using multiple Java applets on one browser page (please do your mastering Chemistry assignments CHEM-1050 before the last minute). The laptop struggles to do anything without lagging or freezing, opening a new webpage or changing to a different tab after not viewing it for a length of time is very slow and unacceptable by today’s standards. For this category, the netbook gets a 3.5/10.

The new technological devices of today are very efficient when it comes to power consumption and don’t require big batteries. This is not the case with the Aspire. If you hover the mouse over the battery button the computer should give you an estimate on how much more time can you use your laptop before it runs out of battery. On the Aspire, its way off the number of minutes given by the computer, it feels as if the netbook defines a minute as 30 seconds. The netbook should operate for two continuous hours in power saver mode, as it states, what I am finding is very different. For instance the battery empties after a slightly more than an hour of use. I was doing an online assignment once with around 77% charge when I started; I finished it in a little more than 30 minutes, the battery reading was around 20%. Such power change while performing a minimal task over a not too long period of time is staggering, in a bad way. For power consumption the Aspire scores a 2/10.

Photo Credit

One of strong selling points of the Acer Aspire is its size. The size is very convenient on the netbook, it is slightly smaller than a normal iPad with an accessory keyboard attached (the netbook's screen has a less than 10" diagonal). It is actually slimmer than the iPad and accessory keyboard that I used. The netbooks weight is also very light to the point of being able to move it around with one hand. I found that using it, along with the tasks of taking it out of and putting it back into to my backpack to require less effort. I don’t have to close it and keep it shut or worry about scratching it, just close the lid and put it in the backpack. The hinges on the screen are capable of handling the weight of the laptop, which makes moving it around much easier than the iPad with an accessory keyboard. It reduces your chances of messing up your workspace due to not wanting to move the netbook. I personally like to rearrange my papers, sheets etc. so I can use all the space on my desk. When I have a huge laptop on my desk moving things requires additional effort that is better spent on continuing my work. With the Aspire netbook I could simply put my hand in between the hinge and the body and move it without any disturbances to anything around me. In this category, the Aspire scored 9/10. The 10 is reserved to devices the size of a smart phone.

All of this adds to the equivalent score of 48%. As the score shows the netbook is not recommended and I agree with that. But that only applies to the Aspire D255 model. This netbook is great if you are stuck in 2009, and I have nothing more to say about this model. But truth be told, I will consider buying one that has more powerful specifications.

Thank you for reading! I hope that this harsh review did not kill your interest in my blog.

Pics or it didnt happen!

Oh, well the Hello fellow Humans!

Today I get to show you, fellow Human followers, something related to one of my hobbies. I am a photography enthusiast, and because of this I take pictures of the smallest of details, striving for a good picture. I do feel a need to documenting every change that happens to anything, so I can look at the past and tell my stories with a clear memory. I mainly have interest in nature photography, I try as much as I can to hide any traces of Human presence or colonization in my photos (with all respect that have within). I honestly find the obvious presence of Humans in a nature photo kills all of its value. After all, it is a photo about nature not humans. I honestly think that pictures of humans in nature should be kept private or for family viewing only.

Below are two pictures that I selected from my gallery. Though these photos are not my best, I believe that they are unique when compared to the rest of my gallery. 

This is a picture that I took of a place in the northerly side of earth, the area is mentioned in one of the blogs that I have read. Contrary to the birds, the blue sky, the water and the trees; this place is artificial. It is staggering that such place achieves the qualities of natural scenery. I took this photo to give the viewer an idea of what it might be like swimming in the pond with the fish and ducks, or being on a boat, that kind of thing.

I took this picture through a very risky method of taking level shots. I placed the camera over the water and tried to the best of my ability to position it vertically so the photo becomes level. My gallery has many images of similar style, and I picked this one because it is the most recent one. I do experiment with angles most of the times when I am near a body of water. It just something different from the usual nature imagery that I see on the internet. I have to say, however, that I recently found out that if you zoom in on the trees you could see pixelated people. Oh what a shame…

This other photograph is an example of my experimentation with photography. Though the subject is cliché, I chose to post this photograph because there no other attempts in my gallery that are as successful in mimicking this style of photos. These successful experimentation photographs are nothing like my serious ones since they satisfy my expectations without setting up the camera for the environment. I do have a boat load of them but this one stands out. I am not a fan of edited photos and all my gallery is the way the image processor processed them. This picture however appears to be edited; there is very minimal color in it, and the dirt contrasts with the green of the dead leaf. If I remember correctly, I basically adjusted the zoom and focus for the camera then pressed the shoot button. Too much professional work! And to this day, I am still trying to photograph a similar scene that rivals this photo. (Tells you much about my photography skills, huh?)

Thank you Berries as much for tolerating these photographs. I hope that I won your visit this time too!

Analysis of Michael Rosen's Rap

THE MICHAEL ROSEN RAP

You may think I'm happy,
You may think I'm sad,
You may think I'm crazy,
You may think I'm mad,
But hang on to your seats and listen right here,
I'm gonna tell you something that'll burn your ear.

Hip, hop, the hip hop hap,
I'm giving you all the Michael Rosen Rap rap rap rap.

I was born on the 7th of May,
I remember very well that awful day,
I was in my mother, curled up tight,
Though I have to say it was dark as night.
Nothing to do, didn’t want to breathe,
I was so happy didn't want to leave!

Then I heard some people give a shout:
One push, Mrs. Rosen, and he'll be out!
I'm telling you, that was a puzzle to me!
I shouted out: "How'd you know I'm a he?"
The doctor shouted "Good Lord, he can talk!"
I popped out my head and said, "Now watch me walk."
I juked and jived around that room,
Balam bam boola, balam de ditty boom.

Hip, hop, the hip hop hap,
I'm giving you all the Michael Rosen Rap rap rap rap.

When I was one, I swam the English Channel.
When I was two, I ate a soapy flannel,
When I was three, I started getting thinner.
When I was four, I ate the dog's dinner!
When I was five, I was in a band playing drums,
When I was six, I ate a bag of plums!
When I was seven, I robbed a bank with my sister.
When I was eight, I became Prime Minister!
When I was nine, I closed all the school
When I was ten, they made me King of the Fools.

So that's what I am, that's what I be,
With an M, with an I, with a K, with an E.
That's what I am, that's what I be
Mr. Mike, Mr. Michael, Mr. Rosen, Mr. Me.

Hip, hop, the hip hop hap,
I'm giving you all the Michael Rosen Rap rap rap rap.

Lyrics taken from this site.

Hello again fellow Human beings!

I am back again with analysis of one of my favourite songs. I hope that you like it and please don’t forget to start reading the analysis without checking out the performance on the YouTube video.

The lyrics of Michael Rosen’s song “The Michael Rosen Rap” have a unique form. It is seen that the rhyme scheme for example, doesn’t follow any rules for poetry. It instead follows the style of a rap, often alternating the rhyme each stanza. It is noted that the first stanza has the following rhyme scheme a b a b c d; but the third stanza for example has a different rhyme scheme, a a f f c c. Refrains are also used in the song as separate stanzas instead of stanza enders. The refrains mentioned are stanzas two, five and eight. It is also noted that the stanzas mentioned have line ending words that end with the letter “p”, and these are exclusive to them. They hold the purpose of sending the message that “Michael” Rosen’s is “giving” us information about himself.

The speaker in the song is obvious, it is explicitly stated in the seventh stanza that speaker is “Mr. Rosen.” The addressee of the poem is the reader in this case, whom Rosen tells them about himself. The tone that is present in the song is playful. Onomatopoeia, a poetic device found in the song, is a major contributor to this tone. Supporting evidence can found in stanza two, where Rosen imitates the “hip” and “hop” sounds associated with jumping. Further evidence is found at end of stanza four, where Rosen imitates the sounds produced by various musical instruments; such as the “boom” and “bam” sounds produced when a drum is struck. The presence of these sounds suggests that Rosen is not treating the topic in a serious manner, thus supporting a playful tone. The song is also littered with many poetic devices, such as repetition, imagery, and parallel structure. For repetition, the song opens with the word “you”, and it is repeated in the stanza three more times. Another example is the repetition of the word “I” in the rest of the song. Thus emphasising that the song is about Rosen. Some strong examples of imagery are located in the third stanza. For instance Rosen describes his mother’s womb as “dark as night” and his position as “curled up tight,” thus establishing the image of the situation. Parallel structure is found in stanzas one and six. The example in stanza one where Rosen states that “you may think” serves as the main point of the song, which is that this is who Rosen is no matter what he appears to be. The other example is stanza six where he states “When I was” repeatedly. This stresses that these events are of great importance to Rosen.

The song is intended for an audience that is below the age of twelve. The content of the song is composed of things that are associated with the childhood of Rosen. Such things include the story of his birth and his first ten years on earth. Such topics often attract children because there is a great storytelling element that is found within the song. I personally prefer this song over any of the so called popular songs because I do find it very entertaining. Mostly due to the fact that the Rosen himself appears in the song and interacts with his lyrics, and looks civilised while doing so. He doesn’t scream like a raging parrot nor does he behave like a sloppy monkey; and most importantly in my opinion, is that he achieves musical qualities without the use of any musical instruments. And let us not forget, the song is not about relationships!

This marks the end of my analysis of the “Michael Rosen Rap.” I hope that I won your next visit this time too, fellow Human being.

Thank you for reading!

Introduction

Hello human beings!

I personally welcome you, human beings, to my English 1080 Blog. This Blog is administrated by a fellow human being, just like you! I will post every week with new content that relates to the course till December, in which we sadly part ways. Since we don’t know each other much, allow me to write about myself so you, fellow human being, know me better.

I was born on planet Earth, in a once beautiful heaven. Known historically for its resources and kind people. Some reports and surveys even state that the area was surrounded by beautiful trees, sheltering many beautiful birds and other animals. The water came from the heart of the earth, which is odd for its region. Now, well… it’s a desert.

 That’s enough background info. I think mentioning my interests is a faster way to win your weekly visit to my blog! Being a human, I love power. And I mean actual power, the kind you would find in a 6.0 L V12 engine! I’m a big car enthusiast and no sports other than Auto Sports interest me. Lamborghinis and Ferraris are not a big deal in my opinion unless they were race cars. A race car is as raw a car can get, and that is good by my standards. Driving at wrist breaking speeds and lung deflating cornering forces. Other things that I love involve thinking. Like Math, it always gives me that satisfactory feeling when I solve problems. Sometimes I just do math for fun, it works my brain! Scientific topics like Physics are part of my interests as well, particle physics to be particular. Those small particles and their interactions is what we are composed of, a simple change in their configuration results in a completely different set of properties. C He m I S tr Y does not trail much behind. Learning about the atomic formations and how they form is interesting. 

One topic that I dislike is politics, you have to listen and learn from it though, so you know when someone is ripping you off in the future. It makes you think differently. Another topic is littering, the problem that gets on my nerves. I get annoyed whenever I see people doing it, I just don’t know why they do it. They transform the place to a dumping ground full of plastic containers.

That is all I wanted to say. I hope that I won your weekly visit by now. I will try to include Motorsports and science related content in my assignments as much as I can.  

Thank you for reading!