Ok, being mostly computer literate, except when I have a brain-fart (wait, can I say that on the blog-o-sphere?), I was perplexed by my computer's behavior.

Firefox (browser of choice, thank you Ad-Block): The close, maximize/restore, and minimize buttons were hidden by a weird half-covering. No extra toolbars (I checked), no weird extensions, etc.

Internet Exploder (I think I'm running 8.something): No real definite visible change.

However, every so often, I'd get a pop-up window, in whatever browser I had open. Strange. The first time, I wondered if I had clicked on a Google result that had been taken over. No, I went back, and it was fine.

Then, it happened enough times that I was getting annoyed. The pop-ups didn't happen so fast that I could barely close them. To me, this is actually pretty smart; if the computer is unusable, a non-techie just shuts it down, and gets someone to fix it. Spyware / malware / virus eliminated, no more income for the scumbag. However, for this one, if I were a non-techie, it didn't happen frequently enough that I would have thought too much about it.

So, I started doing some searches for this, and when I went to certain sites, I didn't get the actual site, but some advertisement. I could click on Google to get the preview window, but when I tried to bring up the site, it was an ad. Now, remember, these sites were all about different virus / spyware problems, so the spyware / malware / virus may actually be smart enough to detect this. I don't know, and I don't care at this point.

So, I run my anti-virus (which is always resident anyway, but I give it another chance). Nothing found. Grr.

Run Ad-Aware, always there for me, to find stuff like this ... Nothing. Double-grr.

Ok, Spybot Search and Destroy ... oops, it's not installed yet (did a full re-install several months ago, must have missed that one). Run the scan, and, "Ooooh, that's a BINGO!" (if you recognize the quote, give yourself 100 internets).

I don't know where I picked it up (I normally run anything that MIGHT be a problem in a VM, so if it infects something, it will only be around until it shutdown that VM, which I have setup to reset the VM back to the last snapshot). I guess I was lazy this time, or didn't realize the risk.

Bad me. But good Spybot S&D -- usually between it and Ad-Aware, they catch everything I've been tagged with.

Hey, no rant today, in honor of Earth Day. Instead, I'm "recycling" an old song by creating a parody! This is sung to the tune of _Pinball Wizard_, by The Who.

Yes, it's still a work in progress -- I don't really like the JROTC bit, but haven't found a better phrase, and didn't want to offend anyone with "deaf, dumb, and blind." Or have Pete track me down and beat me senseless for stealing even MORE of his lyrics.

I also don't like the "flinger" part, but it's better than it was (trust me, you don't want to know).

Ideas to make it better? Leave 'em in the comments.

_Angry Birds Wizard_
Music (c) The Who, Pete Townshend, et al.
New Words (c) 2011 Prosthetic Lips

Ever since I was a young boy
I've played on my iPhone
From Angry Birds to Bejeweled
I'm always sure to pwn
But I ain't seen nothing like him
in a crowd or all alone
That Junior ROTC kid
Always bring the birds home!

He walks like a zombie
Keeps shuffling his feet
He's always looking down
Even walking 'cross the street
Sees by his peripherals
Sunglasses? Obsolete
That Junior ROTC kid
Always bring the birds home!

He's an Angry Bird wizard
He really is a flinger;
An Angry Bird wizard
With an awesome index finger.

How do you think he does it?
(I don't know)
What makes him so good?

Ignores all distractions
Like, Timmy's in the well?
Or the cute girl in homeroom
Or even that funny smell
Never tilts at windmills
Even when they're made of stone
That Junior ROTC kid
Always bring the birds home!

I thought I was
Pretty good against those pigs
But I just handed
My bacon kilt to him

Even on my favorite level
He can beat my best
Starts flinging those birds around
And gravity does the rest
He goes crazy tappin', tappin'
And the pigs they start to moan,
That Junior ROTC kid
Always bring the birds home!

She's back...
In a previous post (how many years ago was that?), I was listing artists that had fallen off the face of the earth. One of them was Miss Angie, or Angie Turner for those "in the know."

Boom! She puts out some demos, a short album, and now has a new recording contract with Transform Group. And, she's recording some songs and talking about a full-length album coming out later this year (2011). Sweet!

For now, follow her on twitter, like her on facebook, or just check out her web page. Give her some love to encourage her, because she looks like she is back for another try at the big leagues.

I know I'm saving my pennies!

erk: C0 CE FE 84 C2 27 F7 5B D0 7A 7E B8 46 50 9F 93 B2 38 E7 70 DA CB 9F F4 A3 88 F8 12 48 2B E2 1B
riv: 47 EE 74 54 E4 77 4C C9 B8 96 0C 7B 59 F4 C1 4D
pub: C2 D4 AA F3 19 35 50 19 AF 99 D4 4E 2B 58 CA 29 25 2C 89 12 3D 11 D6 21 8F 40 B1 38 CA B2 9B 71 01 F3 AE B7 2A 97 50 19
R: 80 6E 07 8F A1 52 97 90 CE 1A AE 02 BA DD 6F AA A6 AF 74 17
n: E1 3A 7E BC 3A CC EB 1C B5 6C C8 60 FC AB DB 6A 04 8C 55 E1
K: BA 90 55 91 68 61 B9 77 ED CB ED 92 00 50 92 F6 6C 7A 3D 8D
Da: C5 B2 BF A1 A4 13 DD 16 F2 6D 31 C0 F2 ED 47 20 DC FB 06 70

And that is all I have to say about THAT.