I went camping this past week. It wasn’t bad, apart from the rain, and I did get to indulge in all those manly stereotypes that are often associated with the great outdoors. Hell, I didn’t even shave, and I may have wrestled a bear or two. All around, good times.

But one advantage of the unusually wet weather was the ability to burn through but another book on my list of things to read, the latest being Neil Gaiman’s American Gods. If you haven’t read any Gaiman yet, you most definitely should. He’s done some superb fantasy work with the likes of Stardust and Coraline, and is also responsible for the critically acclaimed Sandman series of graphic novels, which I’ve yet to get to as of yet. But if anything, read American Gods.

The concept is unique, and surprised me with the amount of depth and research Gaiman put into this particular tale. Think of all the old Gods, from Hindu traditions, to Norse mythology, brought to America by some of its earliest settlers. Now, imagine these same deities, struggling to exist in a modern day America, confronted by the so-called “new” Gods – television, media, and the rampant materialism so seemingly worshiped today. Naturally, there is conflict. And while it’s neat to see this conflict play out between the old beliefs and the new, what truly steals the show is Gaiman’s detailed, winding narrative, turning conventional religious idols into something far more familiar, as mortal faces in a human world. It’s an interesting manner of portraying religious traditions, and one that’s far less religious than you may think, focusing instead upon the ideas of beliefs and followers in a more abstract, and less-distinct fashion.

But the coolest thing about reading this on a wet, wilderness weekend? “A storm is coming”, says Wednesday, one of the novel’s main characters – a storm that the text steadily builds towards at its climax. Lying in my tent, just a little past midnight, a storm came as well – rolling clouds and skies of thunder. And as pages turned, and the climax neared, the storm that raged above the trees was what really made American Gods for me. Indeed, a storm was coming, and boy, did it ever rain.

What’s this, you say? An earlier than usual podcast? While it is almost 1AM, I can assure you, you’re not going crazy. Both Anand and myself are opting to escape the technological world for the next few days, for a yearly ritual that scientists often refer to as “vacations”. I’ll be warding off bears and similarly-armed wildlife in some northern Canadian forest, while Anand will be traveling to Wisconsin to make the spiritual successor to “Talking to Americans”. Well, at least, he should be. There’s comedic gold in that idea.

Things covered on this edition of the Not-So Horrible Podcast…

• New developments in Palm’s Pre/iTunes syncing snafu. Believe it or not, Palm strikes back.
• The Microsoft retail stores we discussed last week are explained in more detail, courtesy a lovely presentation leak.
• Anand gives his impressions on Wii Motion Plus, and Tiger Woods ‘10
• Sony sends a couple more jabs at Microsoft’s Natal and the Nintendo Wii, championing it’s own advanced motion sensing tech.
• Youtube – in 3D!
• …and much, much more!

The Not-So Horrible podcast is always a great way to start or end your week, so give it a listen and tell us what you think. In the coming weeks, you’ll have RSS functionality and iTunes downloading of our podcast to look forward to as well! Exciting times, friends.

Note: I’ve already had a few people notice that the audio is off for this particular episode. The problem should be fixed by the time you read this, unless you’re one of them early-adopter types who likes to check things out early.

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Episode one has arrived! And seriously, this is probably the best episode one you will ever witness. There’s not even a single mention of Jar-Jar Binks, much to the relief of jaded Star Wars fans everywhere. But I digress.

As I mentioned last week, both myself and Anand Ram of the Not-So-Much news have launched what we like to call the Not-So Horrible podcast – not only a portmanteau of both of our respective websites, but of our awesome conversationalist skills as well! While episode zero was very much an impromptu learning experience for the both of us, the launch of episode one brings with it a whole new layer of polish. There’s even fancy introduction music, just to set the mood (implying that our combined voices aren’t already capable of such feats).

This week on the podcast, we touch upon a few of the bigger developments across the net this week, including…

• Ubisoft’s new venture into Toronto
• Chrome OS and the latest Chromium builds
• Wii Vitality madness, and other Nintendo goodies
• Apple lays the smack-down on the Palm Pre’s iTunes sync
• Microsoft retail, 7 upgrades, and more!

It’s a pretty tech-centric episode, but with so much going on in the past week, it’s made for what we believe to be a very solid launch! So listen in, enjoy, and tell us what you think!

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Last week, I bought a legal copy of Windows. I couldn’t help but laugh inside. I hadn’t bought a Windows product legally since the days of 98.

Think about it – when was the last time you actually bought Windows for your PC? Case in point…

People treat Windows as being free not because they didn’t have to buy the copy that came with their computer. People think of Windows as free because when they need a copy, they can get it from a guy they know. Someone has a copy they can just burn to a CD for you. Or you can get it on the peer-to-peer networks.

The previous quote was taken from a very interesting article I read a few years ago, via Digg. While the author was largely proving a point regarding the differences in pricing between Linux and Windows, I’ll never forget how he describes the relationship between Windows and consumers.

To be fair, pirating Vista proved to be a slightly more frustrating affair. Even today, the ability to crack Vista doesn’t come close to rivaling the ease with which XP could be freely disseminated. And yet, despite all this, I think the author’s sentiments still hold true; whether it be Vista or XP, there’s someone out there with a disc just for you.

Last week, however, I took advantage of Microsoft’s Windows 7 pre-order, and bought a copy of Windows Home Premium for $64.99. So what ‘s changed?

Those who were around during XP’s launch might remember all of the “Xtra-Pricey” puns that were attributed to its name.  Vista’s launch proved no different – and if anything, was more confusing, what with the five-or-so different product tiers, all expensively priced.

It’s a scenario that even Apple seemed to recognize, promising to offer it’s Snow Leopard OS upgrade for just $30 – a clear shot across Microsoft’s apparently over-priced bow.

The Windows 7 preorder was ultimately a smart move on Microsoft’s part. Offering what’s generally been regarded as an over-expensive operating system to early, eager users has made the pre-order wildly successful worldwide. Already, Amazon was showing the Windows 7 Preorder as the top electronics seller, just days into the pre-order period. In other countries, the pre-order has even been sold-out.

But is that all that’s made Windows 7 something worthy of purchase? Considering how disappointing Vista has proved for both consumers and manufacturers, those that have tried 7 know it to be a much-needed improvement over its predecessor.  The system is faster, the code more efficient, and the user experience a better affair than what Vista tried to offer.

The question is, are all these elements enough to change the habits of consumers? For an operating system that’s been regarded as “free” for so long, will the promise of lower pricing and better functionality convince users that this is the Windows they should finally buy? More so, will pirates face the same troubles with 7 that plagued Vista in its early days of release?

Time, of course, will tell, and you can be sure Microsoft will be keeping a close eye upon these very same statistics. For now, however, I know that I’m convinced that it might finally be time to start paying for Windows again.

Anand Ram. Matthew Braga. Together.

Well, in podcast form, anyhow, which brings me to the very first episode of our newly minted show, The Not-So Horrible Podcast. The sharp-eyed among you might realize that this is a clever portmanteau of our two respective websites – the very funny Not-So-Much News, and my own Horrible Fanfare. What that means is that you’ll now get two-times the usual quality from both of our sites, in an audio package so amazing that we’re offering it to you for free!

All joking aside, this is a new podcast that should be a lot of fun, both for yourselves, and us as well! Everything’s fair game, though you can expect the very best in tech, and maybe a few surprises in between; we’ll be keeping things fresh with news and events from the past week, complete with good conversation and even better insight. And worry not – there’s humour to be had as well, and we hope you’ll be laughing with us.

What can you expect form Episode 0? If you can’t already tell, this is a bit of a test episode for both of us. Bear with us as we work out the technical kinks, and have sympathy for Anand as he deals with my awful cough. But most of all, enjoy. There’s some cool tech to be talked about this episode, and we hope we’ve piqued your interest enough for our first episode next week.

The Not-So Horrible Podcast airs every monday. And remember, it’s not as bad as you think.

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