We have achieved babytude!

I think I'll call her Pinky.
--Z.

Before I depart…

Tomorrow is Baby Day.

Okay, I’m not sure if that is a wholly crumulent holiday, but it is when I expect the arrival of the latest edition to the Family Z. But before I begin boiling water and gathering clean towels, let me take care of a few last minute announcements.

First and foremost: Nerdapalooza ’08! Hot off the (virtual and/or totally imaginary) press is info from my pal Hex. According to the press release I have in-hand, last night on the live Nerdapalooza podcast, “it was announced that both LogicOne and MC Frontalot are confirmed for the July show of Nerdapalooza Southeast 2008; that the other tentative large-scale nerdcore show (INFO2k8 ) will be merged with Nerdapalooza; and that tickets [are now on sale and have been set for] $25 for the entire weekend.” Be forewarned that there are only 300 tickets available for purchase and that ticket prices will certainly rise as the event’s date draws nigh. Check out the Nerdapalooza blog for further details.

Next, let us take a moment to mourn the loss of another geek icon. Visionary sci-fi author Arthur C. Clarke passed away yesterday evening. At 90, he had lived a full and exciting life, and, as the writer of such nerdy touchstones as 2001: A Space Odyssey, he no doubt trashed better fiction than most of us will ever even conceive, much less commit to paper. Clark was a futurist who wrote about our tech-heavy era years before even the faintest glimmer of this digital world took shape in the public eye. Moreover, he always endeavored to keep the science in science fiction. Not that's nerdcore.

And lastly, on what I at least hope is a happier note, the latter half of this week should see not one, but two births within my little family. No, Em isn’t having twins. (And damn you for even thinking that!) In addition to a new baby, we will also be welcoming to the world a brand new podcast. With the help – and, indeed, at the urging – of Ken Denmead, my friend and editor from Wired, GeekDad and Hipster, please! have activated their Wonder Twins powers to bring you another geeky music podcast. GeekDad’s HipTrax is a bi-weekly mini-cast that features a small, family friendly selection of songs from the realms of nerdcore, geek rock, chiptunes, VGM, and Wizard Rock, as well as a little dialog about the artists and their respective scenes. I like to think of it as a more accessible alternative to my long-running Radio Free Hipster: the Nintendo Wii to RFH’s Sega Dreamcast, if you will. Episode 1 should premiere later this week with a kick-ass new theme song from Canadian Beat Ninja Snake Eyes. Keep an eye on the Geekdad blog in rapt anticipation.

Wherein I beg for assistance

Dear Internet,

Please don’t revoke my geek card or anything, but I need your help. You see, the new firmware update for the EZFlashV, my DS slot 1 solution of choice, is now available and it includes auto DLDI patching for homebrew games. I love me some homebrew games and I’m really, really jazzed about the option of not having to patch the damn things manually.

Unfortunately, I’m currently using version 1.66, and the 1.7 kernel (AKA: the new hotness) includes the bootstrap loader updater that requires I follow some very specific instructions so as not to brick my card.

Said instructions are, sadly, less than clear. Observe:

Bootstrap loader upgrade instruction

Don't extract the EZ5SYS.BIN in the 1.68 package to your MicroSD root folder unless you already meet the condition 1 and 2

1. Your EZ5 cart must already updated to boot from EZ5SYS.bin. if you used the EZ5SYS.bin rename to EZ5UPLDR.bin update before. please update the smaller EZ5UPLDR.bin in the 1.68 package. the bootstrap loader update will not start unless the cart use the EZ5SYS.bin boot method.

2. Charge your DS power to full, connected with a charger will be better.

3. After you meet the above two conditions, extract the EZ5SYS.bin to your MicroSD root folder, put MicroSD into EZ5, EZ5 into DS, power up EZ5 as usual, the upgrade process will automatic start check the bootstrap loader version and upgrade. the process cost 3-5 seconds, Don't power off warning will displayed on the screen. power off DS while upgrade in the processing will cause your EZ5 cart bricked permanently. EZ5 will boot in desktop after upgrade. you can safe power off your DS now.

4. to verify the bootstrap loader version. just check the EZ5 boot menu by boot up EZ5 while R key pressed.
Black BG and big white font means older version, deepblue BG and small white font means new version.

5. Upgrade prcess only show one time, once you upgraded sucessful, it never show up again. please use 1.68 kernel as usual. even rename it and flash it to chip will be ok.

Since I don’t speak English as a second language as a second language, that all seems a little opaque to me. Anyone care to explain ‘em to poor little clueless me?

Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi. You’re my only hope.

Nerd News in Brief

Two words, folks: baby imminent.

Yep, apparently that little gal is coming out this week whether she wants to or not. Whether by her own volition or through the medical wonders of induction, the family Z. should have a new member by week’s end.

And I am terrified.

Li’l X. is 3, which means I’ve had just enough time to totally forget all the shit you need to know when you have an infant around. Plus, she’s a girl! There’s a whole new bunch of stuff I’ve gotta learn right there! It’s a logistical nightmare! Like that whole front-to-back thing. Who knew?! I certainly didn’t.

But I digress.

Just let me explicitly state that you folks probably won’t be hearing a lot from me this week. I’ll do my best to keep you in the baby loop, but I can’t promise too much more.

I’m sure you understand.

• CongressMonkey?: Leave it to Church to send me a link to a post from this CNet blog about Democratic Representative Bill Foster of the 14th Congressional District of Illinois. Not only is Foster “a physicist with a Ph.D. from Harvard,” but apparently dude’s got teh mad coding skillz. (Note the z.)
• No sleep ‘til: Brooklyn’s The Depreciation Guild will be performing on Thursday, March 20th at Galapagos (70 N6th St, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY) at the first of this week’s Crashin’ In parties. The party runs from 8:00 PM to 1:00 AM with a meager $8 admission. The Guild takes the stage at 9:30. See the Crashin’ In site for more details and a full band list.
• Feed the tree: In less sunny gig news, Matt, otherwise known as Wrocker The Whomping Willows, is looking for a little fan assistance re: his Easter weekend gig in Columbus, Ohio. Whompy says, “I booked next week's show at Skully's literally three months ago. I assumed everything was cool, and I've been really excited about it because Skully's is a great place to play. However, they apparently just realized that next Sunday is Easter and that might affect attendance. So, the booker sent me an email stating that we, the bands, have to pay the club's production costs upfront if we want to play the show, otherwise they will cancel.” As anyone who’s ever gigged independently can attest, pay-to-play is shit, so Matt is hoping that Columbus area fans that are planning to attend will contact Skully’s at 614.291.8856 to let them know that Wrock does have a following in Ohio and that he won’t be playing to an empty house. Help a brother out.
• The Prodigal Son: Those of you hoping to catch the high-toned honky known as mc chris live and in concert are in for a treat. Not only will mc be playing this year’s Warped Tour, he’ll also be touring before and after the festival. Perhaps most surprisingly, mc chris will be returning to the PAX stage this year! Crazy, no?! Personally, I’m positively dizzy with questions, the most obvious of which is, of course, will Optimus Rhyme also be on the bill? Keep a keen eye on the PAX site for more news.
• So indie that his shirt don’t fit: Are you wondering where Drown Radio’s Me Geek Pretty One Day album is? You ain’t alone! Doc recently posted an update about the project and it’s delayed release at his site. Check it out and reap the rewards of another free single. That oughta curb your bellyachin’! ;)
• Your dreams were your ticket out: Don Vito has dropped a new demo at his profile over at thesixtyone that you definitely need to hear. It features The Ranger, T.Y.T. and MC Gigahertz and it is called “Welcome Back to the Web.” Take a listen and then feel free to let me know what clever Welcome Back, Kotter headline you would’ve attached to this piece.
• Why I love The Moaning Myrtles – Reason # 467: Today’s vid come compliments of Matt, my direct link to the wonderful world of Wizard Rock. It features The Moaning Myrtles, a group whose praises I have sung in the past, getting their groove on at the Hallows & Horcruxes Ball. Pay close attention around the 4 minute mark, when Wrapping commences.