Home networks are a pain to set up…either you need a finicky wireless router that will probably not be able to stream high def content…or you need to string ethernet cable all over your house.

TJFKAK was telling me she set up a network for her Slingbox with a powerline adapter.  That’s a step in the right direction…but ultimately the bandwidth of a powerline ethernet solution is limited.

D-Link has an interesting solution, however.  The company will soon release a home networking solution that uses coax cables for high speed home networking.

The benefit?  Well, most homes nowadays already have coax outlets in each room.  That means you don’t have to string cable to have a high def ready connection - all you need is your existing coax outlet.

Interesting, right?

I’m pretty excited about this solution, because I stream lots of video over my network.  And with products like Apple TV and Windows Media Center the home network is being used more and more for video, making a high speed network pretty important.

No word what the bandwidth on this thing will be, but D-Link says it will support HDTV and DVD quality video.  All you need to do is attach an adapter to your router, then plug in the coax cable.  Then, plug in a coax adapter at any coax outlets where you want an ethernet connection.

It is expensive however, with a 2 adapter kit starting at $200 and individual adapters costing another $110.  But until homes come wired with ethernet, this seems like its the way to go.

The D-Link Coax Ethernet Adapter Kit will be available in Q3 of this year.

Ok, NBA finals are here.  NHL finals are here.  And I can’t help but cringe every time I see an NHL game on Versus, channel 82 while NBA games litter the big 3, TBS and ESPN.

I love hockey, but it’s hard to see the sport relegated to an infomercial channel…while previously second tier sports like NASCAR and even golf attract the big networks and big ad dollars.

Part of the problem is that the strike a couple years back really pushed the NHL to the brink of irrelevance.  And although the game came back with new rules like no two line passes and *gasp* shootouts, the NHL hasn’t been able to pick up where it left off.

Why?

Well, first of all, I don’t understand why the NHL Finals are on at 5pm Pacific Time.  That means the beginning of the game will be missed by a good portion of the US.  Why not push the start time back to 9pm like the NBA does?  So, you know…the few Californians who still watch are able to see the whole game.

And this leads to a bigger issue.  Why the hell are NHL playoffs scheduled during the NBA playoffs?  I mean, this year we had a Detroit Pistons game AND Detroit Redwings game on AT THE SAME TIME.  It’s ridiculous and means that fewer ad dollars are available for the NHL.

If you’re the NHL, struggling to gain an audience and suffering from a lack of funds, why have important post season games during the NBA playoffs?  You know the NBA, one of the most popular sports in the US?

Sure, hockey is a winter sport…yeah, I get it.  But there are franchises in Phoenix, Florida, Nashville and Texas…I think we’re beyond the winter sport thing already.

I do think the game has become more exciting with new rule changes.  And shootouts are great.  But there’s still a lot of room for improvement.

Like fighting.  In any other sport, fighting gets you a suspension.  In the NHL, fighting gets you a five minute penalty.  Why not let the fights continue for a bit?  Let the players really slug it out before having the refs step in and break things up.  I mean, I know we don’t want to turn the NHL into Slap Shot…but hell, it’s a great contrast to the NBA where you get a stoppage of play for touching an elbow.

It’s kind of a bummer, because this year’s NHL finals are turning out to be pretty great…and I think a lot of people are missing it because of a lack of interest in the NHL.

And even if more people do watch, they’re watching it on Versus…where the commercials are more like infomercials than high paying ads you see on the big networks.

The NHL is struggling to survive…and there should be a lot more that’s done to fix the league.  Goal for next year:  get the finals on a major network…and get the playoffs on a channel in the lower 50s.

Admittedly I don’t know or care a lot about basketball.  I mean, you watch these games for like two hours, and it turns out that really only the last ten minutes or so really matter in most cases.

Still, even I can appreciate that this finals will be pretty interesting.  I mean, the Celtics were in dead last place last year…and now they’re in the finals?  I haven’t seen a turnaround like that in years.

Then you have the Lakers in the finals for the first time Shaq left.  And I’m no expert, but this seems like mostly Pau Gasol’s doing.

In any case, this finals will have a bunch of marquee players…Garnett, Pierce, Kobe and Gasol.  It may be worth watching this year.

For my money I think the Celtics are gonna beat the Lakers pretty handily.  And I’m not really a Kobe fan…it’s pretty hard to root for the guy.  I mean actually, the NBA in general is often pretty annoying.  I hate all the chest thumping and show boating, but really that’s part of the NBA’s appeal and I guess I understand that.

But I really hate all these play stoppages and fouls.  Then, in the final minute or so it always takes like 20 minutes for the game to end as each team calls timeout after timeout, with each play stoppage filled with a bunch of commercials.

I’d say that’s the most infuriating part of the game, but at the same time it’s pretty brilliant, because you know advertisers are paying up the anus for 30 second spots.

Game one in Boston on Thursday.  Check it out.

Here’s a decent deal for all you PS3 owners - Amazon is having it’s summer Blu Ray sale, with lots of titles offered for 40% to 50% off.

Sure, it’s Blu Ray, so even Good Luck Chuck still costs $24 on sale…but there are a few other good deals in there.

Black Hawk Down looks and sounds great on Blu Ray, and you can get it for only $15 - it’s a must have.  Other good prices, Terminator for $15, Full Metal Jacket for $16, The Last Samurai for $14.45, GoodFellas for $16, Blood Diamond for $16, and Donnie Brasco for $16.

Also, Jessica Alba in Into the Blue must look great in full 1080p…especially for only $16.

Now, I’ve been accumulating a few Blu Ray discs here and there, and it really is worth it if you have a 1080p TV and surround sound.  I’d suggest that you buy action movies only though - comedies don’t need a thousand lines of resolution.

I was expecting this Stanley Cup Finals to be the best in at least a decade.  But after the first two games, the series has proven to be surprisingly one-sided.

The Pens have been blanked in the first two games, while the Wings have scored a combined 7 goals.  I don’t think anyone predicted this…especially since the Pens have the game’s top two forwards, Malkin and Crosby.

But so far, the Pens have been completely shutdown by the Wing’s tough D.  They have been outshot by nearly 30 shots combined in the first two games, and in today’s Game 2 the Pens didn’t get their first shot on goal until halfway through the first period.

The Wings, on the other hand, have been poised.  They’ve controlled the puck and the pace of the game.  Not only that, but the Wing’s have gotten goals from a bunch of different lines, including 2 from Mikael Samuelsson in game 1, and goals by Stuart and Filppula in game 2.

Oh yeah, and the Wing’s goalie, Chris Osgood, has been spectacular.  Sure, he hasn’t needed to make a ton of saves, but he’s been solid when the Wings needed him.

On Wednesday, the series moves back to Pittsburgh.  I expect the Pens, who have won 18 straight games at home, to put up a much better fight.  Plus, Detroit has a history of blowing early leads in the playoffs.  But at this point the Stanley Cup finals have been totally dominated by Detroit.

Go Wings!

Business Week has an interesting article on the differences between cheap and high priced vodka.  The verdict?  Lots of times the price doesn’t make a difference.

First, what differentiates a high price vodka from the cheaper varieties?  According to the article:

“The goal of vodka distilling, according to the spirits executives and distillers I have spoken with over the years, is to come up with a spirit that is as pure and clear as possible. The taste notes of vodkas can be so slight and subtle, most often depending on the grain used, and the number of times the spirit is distilled, that they really only exist when drunk straight with purified ice, at room temperature, served straight up or frozen straight up.”

So if you’re drinking vodka mixed with say, cranberry or orange juice, the quality of the vodka will probably be masked by the flavor of the mixer.  Even the addition of ice itself can taint the taste of a high quality vodka.  In other words?  If you’re not order it straight up, then don’t spend the extra money for a top shelf brand.

The article’s author also tested vodka experts, and guess what?  They couldn’t pick out different brands in a blind taste test, either.

So what was the best vodka?  Actually Ketel One and Citron tied for number one with 4 stars each.  Grey Goose and Belvedere both got three stars, along with…surprisingly…Smirnoff.

Popov, a bottom shelf vodka received two stars, as did Skyy and Vox (which costs $30 a bottle compared to $8 per bottle for Popov).

Interesting, right?

So the next time you see someone ordering a grey goose cosmo, you can be assured that they are, in fact, an ignorant asshole.  And when your date asks for a vodka cranberry with top shelf?  Don’t let her waste your money.  Give her some Popov instead.

Lots of people have been pushing Hillary Clinton to bow out of the democratic primary race.  But she won’t quit.  Why?

In an interesting interview Clinton cited the assassination of RFK in June as a reason not to bow out too early.

Hmmmm.

As a candidate who is triumphing her experience in the white house, this is a big, dumb move for Clinton.  Not only is it crass, she says it in such a calm, calculated manner that you know the topic has been discussed in her camp many times.

Some in the press have interpreted the comment to be an attempt by Hillary to suggest that Obama is the weaker candidate because there is a higher probability that he will be assassinated.  But after watching the video, it seems like Hillary is saying that she should stay in the campaign because there is a chance that Obama will not make it through the primary, just like RFK, due to an assassination.

Now, I’m not naive enough to think that politicians never think of factors such as the chance that a black candidate will be assassinated.  But I do think that a candidate for president should not be so incredibly stupid as to voice this strategy on national TV.

Yet another fuck up in a long line of fuck ups for Hillary,the self proclaimed more experienced candidate in the democratic primary.

Who else thinks it’s time for Hillary to make an exit before she embarrasses herself further.

Normally spending at least $1,000 for a short dress worn by an 18 year old would be creepy.  But not for Hayden Panettiere.  Buying the dress she wore in this picture will make you an environmentalist.

If you didn’t know, Hayden is big into saving the whales.  I don’t know how she got into this, but as a Japanese person I’m inclined to defend our right to eat whales, rather than preserve them.

And not only that, but in 2008 how important are the whales?  Troops in Iraq, Afghanistan…tens of thousands dead following an earthquake in china and possibly hundreds of thousands dead following the Myramar typhoons.

But Hayden is raising money to save whales.

I guess compared to other celebrities…especially those in their 20s, you have to respect Hayden’s resolve.  But on the other, I kind of wish she’d just be driving around drunk, f’ing guys on night vision film, and partying in short skirts commando.

Hangovers are rough.  Especially on a week day.  I mean, just think about sitting at your desk with a pounding headache.

Alka-Seltzer thinks it has the answer.  Enter Wake-Up Call, an effervescent solution to the headaches and fatigue associated with a hangover.

What’s the secret ingredient?  It’s actually pretty simple:  Aspirin and caffeine.  Kind of like drinking a cup of coffee and popping a few pills, it seems.

This is actually Alka-Seltzer’s second anti-hangover drug.  They also released Morning Relief, a similar drug with essentially the same ingredients, a while back.

I haven’t tried Wake-Up Call, but I have tried Morning Relief, and the results are mixed.  Sure, the caffeine does help to wake you up and aspirin works on your headache, but really the drug did little for those really harsh hangovers.  At that point I think the only real solution is time and sleep.

Another thing is after a night of heavy drinking the last thing your stomach and liver wants to handle is aspirin.  It can cause stomach pain, internal bleeding and all sorts of nasty stuff, which is waaaay worse than a hangover in my opinion.

I’ve found that the best answer to a hangover is filling up with water before you sleep, and chugging some gatorade…or better pedialite during the night or in the morning.

But hell, I suppose Wake-Up Call is worth a try.  If any of you try it let me know.

As a long time Howard Stern listener, I’ve always tried to predict the new directions this ever expanding show is trying to take.  For those that listened to the Wrap up show on May 13th, you got a glimpse into something that I’ve been thinking about for a while.  I think Howard is setting up Jon Hein to be his successor for the Stern show.

Think I’m wrong?  Don’t you think its strange that Howard suddenly gave a show to an ex website operator without explaining why he was qualified to have a show.  I know, Howard frequently doles out shows to wack packers but in my experience those were mostly goofs with the host himself being 50% of the joke.  It seems that Jon has really proven his skills with the Jerry O Connell interview on the 13th and the Artie Lange drug interview on the 14th.  I think he’s coming into the zone and will eventually start getting longer and longer shows.

Well done John.

So whatever happened to the Hawaiian Kingdom Government that occupied the Iolani Palace grounds last week?  Well, they’re still there…but now they’re there legally.

So much for a revolution.

The Hawaiian Kingdom Government has received a permit to demonstrate on Iolani Palace grounds, as long as they remove guards from the palace’s entrances.  The group had actually applied for a permit last week, but that application was denied when it was discovered that the Hawaiian Kingdom Government was collecting money on the property.

Really, at this point who cares.  A bunch of mokes slumming around palace grounds?  Since when did you need a permit for that?

I do have to say though, it is kind of BS how the HPD has been dealing with these people.  I mean, I agree that there should be some respect for Hawaiian culture…but there has been WAY too much coddling of these people.  They’re occupying state grounds, parking in the red zone in cars with no state plates, using their own security forces…why do they get any respect at all?  What’s next?  Will they take over government offices?  Kahala Mall?  How much does 1/16 of Hawaiian blood and a cheap aloha shirt get them?

Not only that, but there is already an office for Hawaiian legal crap.  Is each Hawaiian able to create their own Hawaiian government and get treated like they’re legit statesmen instead of loiterers?

And doesn’t applying for a permit for your splinter government’s demonstration defeat the purpose?  It’s kind of like the US applying for a license to drops nukes on Hiroshima.

Someone needs to kick these mokes out and tell them the war is over.  The Hawaiians lost.  Get over it.  You can tell because there’s a $10 billion tourism industry on your sacred grounds that reduce your culture to hula skirts, coconut bras and drinks with paper umbrellas and you don’t get a fucking cent for it.  Now go home.

For athletics at least.  And although this is not ranked, I’d say their carnival ranks pretty high up there too.

In any case, Sports Illustrated has chosen Punahou School’s athletic program as the Best in the United States.  The school beat out over than 38,000 other high schools across the nation.

Seems like Jak left the islands just in time…he would never have been able to deal with all his Punahou friends patting themselves on the back this week.

And to be sure, there will be lots of back patting.  Just another reason for the rest of the islands to hate.

It’s interesting actually, the SI article brings up Punahou’s reputation for being a snobby, rich white kid’s school.  Yet, the tuition at Punahou is, according to the article, half of what similar schools on the mainland cost.  At $15k per year it’s a bargain compared to most private schools over here.

So why so much hate?  Well, I’ll say one thing…those Punahou lovers are pretty irritating.  Kind of like the Yankees…Punahou has the best because it has the most money.  We can have Jeter and A-Rod in the same infield and still afford to buy a Giambi and Matsui.  And everyone outside of New York HATES the Yankees.

I mean, why is Punahou’s athletic program so good?  Because they have the funds to spend on core sports like Football, Basketball, Baseball and Soccer and still field fringe sports like water polo and tennis.  It’s not that hard to figure out.

Why is Punahou so strong academically?  Because they have the money to recruit better teachers, pay for a wide range of educational and extra curricular programs and invest in college prep guidance.

The thing is though, Punahou snobbiness is not unique.  Wealthier more education people tend to act as such because…well, that’s who they are.  It can be interpreted lots of ways, either confidence or arrogance but at the end of the day hating a rich white kid doesn’t take any money out of his pocket…and doesn’t put any cash in yours.

I mean, if Punahou haters in hawaii ever lived on the mainland they would wish they were back home surrounded by Punahou kids.  Snobbiness is at an entirely new level over fear…far beyond reminiscing about million dollar proms or carnivals.

So, props to Punahou.  This is a pretty big feat for the school to receive national recognition.  I can’t help but wonder though, what role did Obama play in this?  At the very least, he has put the school on the national map in a whole different context.  And just wait till Punahou is able to say that they educated a US President…

There is lots of hype with every Apple release…especially when it comes to the iPhone.  But after months and months of speculation it appears that we have a solid launch date for the 3G iPhone.

According to Gizmodo, which in turn quotes someone ‘very, very close to the 3G iPhone,’ the device will be launched on June 9th at Apple’s WWDC…just a few weeks down the road.

Following the announcement, the 3G iPhone will be available immediately.

Now, who knows if this report is legit, but Gizmodo seems to think their source is pretty credible and the site is risking lots of credibility on this prediction.  We’ll find out for ourselves very soon.

Take a look at this picture and try to say this guy shouldn’t be president.  Alright, that’s not a great criterion, but shit…what other politician can draw a crowd of 65,000 supporters…in Oregon of all places…with another 15,000 trapped outside waiting.

Obama has what appears to be an insurmountable lead at this point…and he is expected to do well in Oregon and Kentucky tomorrow.  With a strong enough showing, Obama could secure a majority of elected delegates…making any argument for Hillary pretty difficult to buy.

And here’s one thing about Hillary that really bugs me.  For more than a year ago she has touted her experience in the White House…experience that she will supposedly use to be a better president.  But why then, with all this experience, has she run such a shitty campaign?

I mean, she can’t have it both ways.

Like Hillary has had ‘experience’ in the White House, she has also had experience on two victorious Presidential Campaigns with Bill.  Not only that, but she has Bill’s big balling donors behind her as well…giving her easy access to millions of campaign funds.

But what was previously a 100 delegate lead for Hillary is now a 100 delegate deficit.  She’s loaning money to her own campaign, and she’s facing pressure to finally throw in the towel.

I read an interesting article in Time that detailed her mistakes, and they really do seem pretty troubling.  She blew her big lead due in part to a lack of effort in key states early on in the campaign.  Her advisors at times seem lacking in experience.  And although she has many donors that max out at $2,300 she didn’t focus on online donations like Obama, and as the primary dragged on she wasn’t able to match Obama’s funds.

Oh well.

I can’t say that I know a lot about any candidate’s policies…and at this point I don’t think it really matters.  Winning the election does not depend on formulating a policy that experts will back…most likely this policy will face rounds and rounds of compromises when it actually is up for passage.  I mean, I think winning the election means appealing to the average man…that is someone who doesn’t read the Economist every week, but perhaps hears a speech here or there on the news.

In any case, I’m betting that after tomorrow it will be over for Hillary.  She can keep up with her campaign till the end, but at this point she’s just burning bridges.  I think she’d do more for her political future by bowing out gracefully and giving the democrats a chance in November.  Her continued campaign will just burn Obama’s funds while digging into her own wallet, while making it less likely that a democrat will be elected.

It’s Stanley Cup finals time, and we’re in for a spectacular series people.  In what is likely to be one of the best finals matchups that we’ve seen over the past decade, the Redwings are gonna meet the Penguins.

Now, let me say that I totally called this back in April.  And really, I can’t wait.  The Pens have two of the best forwards in the league, Malkin and Sid the Kid Crosby.  In only his third year in the NHL Crosby made it to the finals, which is incredible.  And throughout the playoffs, the Pens have only lost 2 games, while clinching the Eastern Conference championship with a 6-0 win over the Flyers.

From the West, you have the Redwings.  Led by forwards Zetterberg and Datsyuk, the Wings have only lost 4 games in the playoffs.  Not only that, they have a veteran goalie with Chris Osgood, who has led the Wings to a championship before.

So who’s gonna win?

The Pens have star power, but they are young.  Crosby and Malkin have only been in the league for a few years, and this is their first finals.  Their goalie, Marc-Andre Fleury is also young, and while he has done a great job in the playoffs he hasn’t face too many quality teams.

The Wings on the other hand are led by veterans with lots of Finals experience.  They put out four lines that can score and also play tough D.  My guess is that the Wings will be able to match up well against the Pens’ stars, while their other lines will be difficult for the Pens to counter.  The only question for the Wings is if they will have Franzen, their leading goal scorer in the lineup.  He has been out with a concussion, and they could really use him in the finals.

But if you look at the stats so far during the playoffs, you’ll see why this is gonna be such a great series.  The Pens have allowed 1.84 goals per game, while the Wings have allowed 2.0.  The Pens have scored 3.61 goals per game, while the Wings have scored 3.39.  These two teams are very evenly matched, and I think each game will be very close.

Still, I think the Wings will take the series in 6 games.  Sure, I’m a huge Wings fan so I’m a bit biased.  But really, I can’t deny that I’m looking forward to seeing the Pens impressive offense as well.

Game one this Saturday…don’t miss it.  This will be the Stanley Cup Finals of the decade.