We’re spending the weekend in Hakone with the family. Last time I came here was probably April last year, if I remember correctly. It suddenly started snowing a lot on the way to the hotel, and now it is sunny again.

It’s going to be an interesting weekend.

Well, not really. It’s just the Humax Pabillion building.

I just got this very official-looking mail in my main address:

It reads like this:

Dear javi@lavandeira.net, (19 – September – 2014)

This message is to therefore warn you that your iCloud and Apple Account (javi@lavandeira.net) has been temporarily locked until we can validate your Apple Account details. This protective measure to secure your iCloud Account from unapproved usage. We apologise for any inconvenience you’ve been caused.

You will be unable to use iTunes or iCloud sync/backup or the iTunes/App Store & App Store until you verify your Apple Account ownership, we urge you to finish verification as soon as you can. Failure to validate your details within a 48 hours can cause termination of your Apple/iCloud ID to safeguard our system.

How to verify my Apple ID and restore access?
Just proceed to the link underneath to prove ownership of your Apple ID. Log-in in using your Appe/iCloud ID and password, then read the instructions.

> Certify My Apple Account

While using Apple devices and services, you’ll still sign in with your main email address as your Apple ID.

If you have questions and need help, visit the Apple Account Care site.

Thanks again,
Apple Account Maintenance Team

Case Support ID: #Y10FHK10419-EU10

It sounds very scary and serious. Should I click the link and log in with my Apple ID and password?

No.

This is just another phishing attempt. You are likely to receive a similar email. Do not, under any circumstances, click on the link and enter your details. I repeat: it’s just another phishing attempt.

Looking a bit closer we can see that the message’s reply-to header points to an address in the ioscareteam.co.uk domain. This domain doesn’t belong to Apple:

The link in the body of the message also points to the same domain. Just place the mouse pointer over the link (without clicking) and wait a couple seconds:

They ask for your ‘Appe’ ID :-D

Clicking the link would take you to a very convincing fake Apple site that copies Apple’s real site. Looks like they even copied the country/language selection code.

However, this fake site will send your login details to the idiots who are trying to scam you:

Summary: if you get an email like the one I got, ignore it.

Blizzard:

Thanks for the invitation to the public beta of Warlords of Draenor. When I saw the invitation email in my iPhone I initially thought it was just another phishing attempt to get my Battle.net ID and password. However, this time I didn’t see any suspicious links in the content, so I went ahead and logged in to my account and confirmed that yes, there it was:

Without thinking much about it I installed the client and downloaded the content, then gave it a try for a few minutes. Yes, it looks fantastic. However, this time I’m not staying. Azeroth won’t be seeing me again anytime soon.

I received my Oculus Rift DK2 yesterday morning. I ordered it on March 19th, within hours from the announcement. Here are my first impressions.

Click to read the whole review.

Let me tell you a little secret about myself: I can sense the ghosts of dead people, and I’m not using a metaphor here. I really mean ghosts, or souls, or spirits of other dead people. Call them whatever you want. I can feel them, and they used to scare the shit out of me.

This started when I was a kid. The apartment where my parents raised me had a badly-lit corridor with the living room on one end, my parents’ bedroom on the other, and my own bedroom and a bathroom in between. Often, on my way back from the bathroom, I would have a slight feeling that someone was behind me, just standing there looking at my back. I would turn, and each and every time I was unable to see anyone or anything. However, I felt, I knew there was somebody there, some presence staring at me. I would hurry up, run back to my room, and close the door behind me.

Read more ›

If you live in Tokyo get your ass off the couch and head for Tokyo Midtown now and get some delicious free ice-cream.

Ben & Jerry’s is celebrating an event in the basement of the Tokyo Midtown Galleria. Here you can enjoy free ice-cream, have your photo printed in a tub of the delicious thing, sit and relax while you eat under a (fake) tree…

…and also become a happy cow in a virtual reality experience using the Oculus Rift:

So where and when is this happening? Here you go:

Tokyo Midtown Galleria B1F
Saturday, March 15th 11am-8pm
Sunday, March 16th 11am-7pm

The even was put together by our company, Wieden+Kennedy Tokyo. Keep reading for the fun details.

Yesterday (February 9th 2014), the Copenhagen Zoo murdered Marius, a 18-month giraffe baby by shooting him in the head. They then proceeded to dismember his corpse in front of the zoo visitors and feed the corpse to the lions.

Social networks and news sites are all echoing this crime. Just a few examples:

• ABC.es (Spanish newspaper): El zoo de Copenhagen sacrifica a una jirafa sana pese a una intensa campaña online (The Copenhagen zoo kills a healthy giraffe in opposition to a heated online campaign)
• The Independent: Danish zoo to kill ‘surplus’ young giraffe and feed him to the lions
• BBC News Europe: ‘Surplus’ giraffe put down at Copenhagen Zoo
• The Guardian: Copenhagen zoo sparks outrage by killing healthy giraffe named Marius
• TIME: Did Marius the Giraffe Have to Die?
• The Mirror: Zoo bosses who approved killing of  Marius the giraffe should be sacked say campaigners

There was nothing wrong with Marius. He was a completely healthy animal. However, Bengt Holst, Director of Research and Conservation at Copenhagen Zoo, decided that Marius wasn’t genetically valuable enough. Other zoos offered to adopt Marius, but Holst declined the offers and decided that it would be a better show to kill the baby giraffe and carve the corpse in front of the public.

This is a photo of this fucking son of a bitch (it’s the dude on the left, the elephant is innocent):

In my opinion, this bastard, together with all the staff involved in the killing, should be immediately fired, forbidden to ever work with animals again, and put on trial for cruelty against animals. Under his direction, the Copenhagen Zoo sacrifices 20-30 animals per year.

There are several petitions online to get Holst fired or force him to resign. Here are two of them:

• Petition at Change.org for the resignation of Bengt Holst
• Petition at thepetitionsite.com to have him fired

You should sign these, but you know how these things work: online petitions will most likely be ignored. Please share this in all your social networks. It may also be effective to write a letter directly to the Copenhagen Zoo and express your feelings about this killing. Here’s the address:

WARNING: what follows are the photos of the killing and dismembering process. There are lots of blood, so don’t read the rest of the post if you’re sensitive to this stuff.

I’ve been following Scott Adams’ Dilbert comic stripg for many, many years now. I have most of the Dilbert comic strip books, several of Scott’s books (including his just-released How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big) and I’m an early member of the DNRC. Translation: I’m a huge Scott Adams fan.

Usually Scott’s comics are apolitical, but in his February 7th comic strip he takes a very clear stance against homophobia:

Scott, my respect for you has now officially gone through the roof.

On February 4th 2014 there was a debate between Bill Nye (American scientist known for his The Science Guy educational program) and Ken Ham (the creationist behind the Creation Museum and Answers in Genesis). The topic was:

Is creation a viable model of origins in today’s modern, scientific era?

The whole debate is available online here (warning: it’s over two hours long), but this is not what I want to write about this time. During the debate, Matt Stopera from BuzzFeed asked 22 creationists to write a message or question to the other side. Most questions were quite dumb. This one is my favourite:

I thought it would be fun (for me) to reply these questions, so here are my answers (keep reading).