06/17/2003 Archived Entry: "BLOARRRRRG!"

Time to do the update! Update, update, update.

BikeQuest 2003 continues. Based on the feedback I got, I'm going to go ahead and buy the service plan. It seems like a good deal, and even if I only use two of the prepaid service visits, the plan will have paid for itself.

Thanks to forumgoer Darktan, I spent most of yesterday fiddling with Connectix VirtualPC. Macintoshers should be well familiar with Connectix's products, but I wasn't aware of their PC version. It seems to be a lot like VMWare--in fact, I couldn't tell you what the differences are. I can tell you, though, that I had a hell of a lot of fun last night with this thing. There's a full-featured, 45-day trial version available off of the web site for free, so I pulled it down and fired it up.

Within ten minutes, I had DOS 6.23 installed (got it in .IMZ format off of news://alt.binaries.warez.ibm-pc.old) and was fiddling around with EMM386 and LOADHIGH statements, just like the old days! I didn't actually try running any programs, but I did yank down an OAKCDROM.SYS file from the web and set up my CD-ROM drive with MSCDEX so that I could use it in DOS. Ahhh, memories! Tonight, when I get home from work, I'll play with it further. I've got a ton of old games I want to pull out and try, to say nothing of old utilities. Oh, XTree Gold, how I've missed you!

I had a dream last night that I was in a choir song and dance performance at my old elementary school, except that I was just as old as I am now and the choir performance was being directed by Dr. Peterson, my band director from high school. It involved white tuxedos and cowboy hats, and I didn't know any of the songs or any of the dance numbers, so I sort of got up on stage and flailed around. It seemed to be working--it looked like I was fooling everyone--but then I realized that my shirt wasn't tucked in and I wasn't wearing the same kind of jacket as was everyone else. So, I ran off the stage to get my jacket, and while I was off stage, I was struck by a revelation: "Wait a minute. I fucking graduated from college. Dr. Peterson can't tell me what to do anymore! It's not like he can fail me, or anything!" So, I walked out the front door, and there, next to the building, was my motorcycle!

I jumped onto it and turned the key, but the engine sounded funny. That's when I realized that it was a totally different kind of bike from the bike that I wanted--it was a lot smaller, and all rusty, and looked kind of used and crappy. But, hey, it was transportation, and I needed to get the hell away from the elementary school before Dr. Peterson got wise to my act and ran out to attack me with, I dunno, his gay beams or something. So, I drove very professionally and properly away from the school, through several stop signs--obeying all traffic laws--and out onto the highway, where I kicked it up to cruising speed and was enjoying the wind in my hair when my alarm started going off.

Ha. Stupid Dr. Peterson.

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