Software updates

Several major updates just came out. Most of them are worth the upgrade, but others should be considered first... I'll keep those seperate.

Update for sure - no reason not to get these

• OpenOffice 2.0 - It's finally out of beta and the Windows version now has an installer!
• nVidia Forceware 81.85 - Latest video drivers for nearly all current nVidia cards
• WinAMP 5.11 - Most bugfixes
• WinZip 10 Beta 2 - Adds some features, nothing to get excited about
• Skype 1.4.0.78 - Has call forwarding, but still won't pop up the chat window for incoming messages
• Ethereal 0.10.13 - Still the best packet sniffer around
• Paint.NET 2.5 Beta 4 - More powerful than MSPaint and easier to use than PhotoShop
• VMware Player - A free tool that can run existing VM setups created with VMware workstation or server
• Thunderbird 1.5 beta 2 - Very stable (I use it all day every day). It's now easy to manage multiple identities per acct (quite handy). For reference, 7 of my 16 extensions work, the others haven't yet been updated, but that's not too bad, TB is quite usable without any extensions.
• Flash Player 8 - It may not appear different to the user, but for developers, it's a major change. As they start developing content using the new Flash8, you'll eventually need the player.

Worth considering - some good points, but not shiny-happy all the way 'round

• ACDSee 8.0($50 or free trial) - They keep adding more features and it keeps getting slower. Some of those features are very nice and quite powerful. But if you only want a viewer, try ACDSee 3.1 (Irfan view doesn't cache next/prev so scrolling with the wheel is slow)
• Firefox 1.5 beta 2 - It's a nice upgrade, but if you depend on extensions, you may want to wait... many extensions aren't yet FF 1.5 compatible. I'm still using 1.0.7 because I'd rather have all 31 extensions work than upgrade to 1.5 and only have some of them. I'll check again when 1.5 is released.

Coming soon - the highlights of what to expect in the next several weeks.

• Firefox 1.5 - Drag tabs to reorder, built-in SVG support, many other new features
• Thunderbird 1.5 - Spell-check as you type, built-in phishing detection, ability to delete attachments and more

Lost: spoiler alert!

If you haven't yet seen up through 2x03 "Orientation", finish watching, then come back here. As I write this, I've also seen 2x04, but it doesn't change any of my theory, nor do I spoil that episode.

There are several unexplained things that have been happening on the island. Maybe some of them can be tied together... I now have a theory that explains some key plot points:

• How Locke can walk
• Why the people in the orientation video were on the boat
• Why Walt was abducted and how he appeared to Shannon in the forest

I'm moving away from the alien abduction theory and going with ... they're
in the Matrix!

How can Locke walk?
"Is it really so hard to believe? Your clothes are different. The plugs in
your arms and head are gone. Your hair is changed."
Locke can walk because he's in the matrix.  He's not burdened by "residual
self image"... he wanted to walk and explore so badly that when plugged
into a virtual reality, he envisions himself without the paralysis.

Same people showing up?
The people in the orientation video who started project Dharma showed up on
the boat and kidnapped Walt... they created the matrix and are free to come
and go as they please.  They came and took Walt... they unplugged him.  The
people who were on the raft (Michael, Jin and Sawyer) haven't seen the
video yet... when they do, they'll recognize the kidnappers and that will
bring them one step closer to realizing that there is no spoon.

Why did they take Walt?
"We have a rule.  We never free a mind once it has reached a certain age.
It's dangerous, the mind has trouble letting go."
Walt is still young enough to have a malleable mind.  They're afraid that
he'll quit believing and wake up.  Apparently, he figured out how to
communicate with people on the inside and sent the message to Shannon (her
hallucination).

This all still leaves the questions of how and why.  Are they still on the
plane?  Were they ever on the plane?  Perhaps they're in a simulator at the
Sydney airport.  What exactly do the numbers mean and why are they in
ascending order?  What happens if they don't press the button?  Will they
wake up?  It certainly doesn't explain everything, but I think it's
consistent and doesn't conflict with anything we've seen so far.