Fri - April 30, 2004
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Posted at 02:32 PM
Thu - April 1, 2004
Professor Succeeds in New Area
Professor Ahmed
Elmagarmid has recently been
working in the new area of "reversible computing."
There is a interesting
story about Professor Elmagarmid posted on the CERIAS web site.
Hopefully, his research will lead to new advances and efficiencies in computing...
Hopefully, his research will lead to new advances and efficiencies in computing...
Posted at 09:47 AM
Tue - March 30, 2004
Topix.net expands new sources
Topix.net is now trolling for news
from 6,000 sources.
Topix.net has expanded their
sources at a time when most news items are available online and often
before most broadcast outlets can report
it.
I am one that takes advantage of the availability of news on the Net. Other than listening to NPR in the morning, I no longer rely on the mainstream outlets for news. (Yes, I put NPR in the mainstream category. Shame on me.) I read through news through RSS feeds and occasionally through a web page or two. This works well for me since I am connected to the Net throughout the day.
I am one that takes advantage of the availability of news on the Net. Other than listening to NPR in the morning, I no longer rely on the mainstream outlets for news. (Yes, I put NPR in the mainstream category. Shame on me.) I read through news through RSS feeds and occasionally through a web page or two. This works well for me since I am connected to the Net throughout the day.
Posted at 09:35 AM
Sun - March 7, 2004
Local library confirms fix for telemarketer avoidance
About a year ago, I read a Wired magazine article on foiling
telemarketers using your answering machine. Basically, you download
a copy of the telephone company's "special information tone" (filename: sit.wav)
and use that at the very first sound in your answering machine's message. The
premise is that you fool the automated dialing systems that the telemarketers
use. If the system hears the special information tone, it assumes that the
number is no longer in use or temporarily unavailable. After a enough attempts,
it will remove that number from the dialing rotation. No more calls, you have
an "invalid" number as far as the telemarketers are concerned. Well, that's the
theory at least.
A few days ago, the Tippecanoe County Public Library sent me a message in the mail that a book I placed a hold on was available. This was a snail mail message. Yesterday at the library, the librarian asked me if my phone number had changed or if I had voicemail. Nope. Turns out that their automated system had tried to call me to let me know that the book was available. It failed. I believe that this is preliminary proof that the idea works. I will put some more books on hold and see if it happens again.
A few days ago, the Tippecanoe County Public Library sent me a message in the mail that a book I placed a hold on was available. This was a snail mail message. Yesterday at the library, the librarian asked me if my phone number had changed or if I had voicemail. Nope. Turns out that their automated system had tried to call me to let me know that the book was available. It failed. I believe that this is preliminary proof that the idea works. I will put some more books on hold and see if it happens again.
Posted at 03:37 PM
Sun - February 22, 2004
Advice for Social Software
Christopher Allen
provides some advice on social
software.
I am a member (I guess that's what you'd call it)
of Linkedin. I have been
invited to join Orkut but
haven't done it yet. I am not exactly
highly
connected. I think this is because I don't
really care about these services. They don't offer me anything that really
interests me (yet).
I have been watching discussions on social software and thinking about these services. As several people have pointed out, these very generic services are doomed to fail because of their generality. They try to make connections and friends using weak connections (i.e. someone I have met once at a tradeshow). There is little incentive to communicate with some of these people socially. I only use some of these connections when I want something from them (or through them). Personally, they are business associates with which I would rather not associate.
It seems to me that real value comes from linking groups with strong ties. Family groups, church groups, political associations, farm bureaus, school boards, city councils, fraternities, sororities, cooperative houses, etc. would benefit from a specialized social software service because the members have strong ties to each other and the communities they serve. Imagine if a school board group could offer unique accounts for teachers, parents, school administrators and employees, and students. All of the members of this unique group would be able to view school board meeting minutes, view calendars of events and receive notification of upcoming events, communicate with the board, voice opinions of policies and rules, and participate with the activities and decision-making of the school. Take about a great use of social software -- connecting the members of a very specific and unique group!
Facilitating group action and participation is where the future of social software lies.
I have been watching discussions on social software and thinking about these services. As several people have pointed out, these very generic services are doomed to fail because of their generality. They try to make connections and friends using weak connections (i.e. someone I have met once at a tradeshow). There is little incentive to communicate with some of these people socially. I only use some of these connections when I want something from them (or through them). Personally, they are business associates with which I would rather not associate.
It seems to me that real value comes from linking groups with strong ties. Family groups, church groups, political associations, farm bureaus, school boards, city councils, fraternities, sororities, cooperative houses, etc. would benefit from a specialized social software service because the members have strong ties to each other and the communities they serve. Imagine if a school board group could offer unique accounts for teachers, parents, school administrators and employees, and students. All of the members of this unique group would be able to view school board meeting minutes, view calendars of events and receive notification of upcoming events, communicate with the board, voice opinions of policies and rules, and participate with the activities and decision-making of the school. Take about a great use of social software -- connecting the members of a very specific and unique group!
Facilitating group action and participation is where the future of social software lies.
Posted at 04:26 PM
Wed - February 4, 2004
Sunset Blvd. Opening Shot
Sunset Blvd. (1950) has
an opening scene with William
Holden face down in a pool. It's interesting how the directors from
the old Hollywood studio era film difficult shots.
The original opening scene was shot in the morgue
with the corpse of Joe Gillis (William Holden) talking to the other corpse next
to him. The test audience laughed through the whole thing so it was scrapped.
Billy Wilder
decided on the pool scene. The camera would need to be shot from the "fish
perspective". In the foreground we see the lifeless Joe Gillis. Behind him the
police officers and the mansion (Joe's prison) are visibly distorted by the
waves in the water. It is a great shot and from here Gillis tells the story of
how he got there.
On the Special Collector's Edition DVD, there is short video segment on the making of the movie. It's a very fascinating look at the whole film. The techniques used in the opening shot are simple and yield an impressive result.
The crew didn't have underwater equipment to use, so they improvised. The cinematographer, John F. Seitz, experimented with dolls to find the right technique. In the end, they placed a large mirror at the bottom of the pool and dipped the camera lens in the water. They filmed off the reflection of the mirror. Pretty simple and very cool.
The reason I bring this up is that remembered a Wings TV episode where they recreated that shot. In modern times, they use a diver and an underwater camera. If you compare the two, you'll notice that it's just not the same.
On the Special Collector's Edition DVD, there is short video segment on the making of the movie. It's a very fascinating look at the whole film. The techniques used in the opening shot are simple and yield an impressive result.
The crew didn't have underwater equipment to use, so they improvised. The cinematographer, John F. Seitz, experimented with dolls to find the right technique. In the end, they placed a large mirror at the bottom of the pool and dipped the camera lens in the water. They filmed off the reflection of the mirror. Pretty simple and very cool.
The reason I bring this up is that remembered a Wings TV episode where they recreated that shot. In modern times, they use a diver and an underwater camera. If you compare the two, you'll notice that it's just not the same.
Posted at 08:00 AM
Tue - February 3, 2004
BYOB: Build Your Own Browser (article)
O'Reilly's MacDevCenter has an interesting
article on using Apple's WebKit to build a web browser without writing
any code.
Apple released Safari, it's own web
browser for Mac OS X, and included the WebKit
Framework. It is an integrated web browsing component framework that
provides the basis for Safari and other Cocoa/Carbon applications. You can embed
the browsing components into your own applications. For example, Netflix
Freak and NetNewsWire use the
framework for cookie management and HTML
rendering.
This article shows you how you can use the Xcode IDE to create a web browser without writing a single line of code. Check it out.
This article shows you how you can use the Xcode IDE to create a web browser without writing a single line of code. Check it out.
Posted at 11:27 PM
Tue - January 27, 2004
CDs? We don't need no stinkin' CDs!
If you have a large collection of CD and you want
to go digital, check out RipDigital. These guys take your
music CD collection and convert them to a digital format. Now, why would I want
to pay somebody to rip my CDs for me? Maybe I don't have the time needed to do
it? Maybe I have 400 CDs? Maybe I'm lazy?!
Personally, I think this is a great idea. Save
time, space, peace of mind.
Let's face it CD ripping takes time. On my little iBook it can take over twenty minutes to rip a single CD. I have just over 220 CDs in my collection, which is pretty small in comparison to others. If I worked non-stop at ripping all of them, it would take 73 straight hours to do it. Do you have 73 hours to devout to CD ripping? I know I don't. I started this process a few months ago. So far, I have 68 albums (30%) ripped.
CD cases take up a lot of space. Just before I moved from California to Colorado, I needed to reduce my stuff to make the move go smoother. I made a decision to toss all of my CD jewel cases. Every single one of them. I bought two CD sleeve cases that held 72 CDs each and filled them up. The CD liner notes and inserts were retrieved from the cases and filed away. The empty, separated jewel case pieces were tossed in a copier paper box (I didn't put them back together). That box went to the dumpster three times. Now all my CDs are in sleeve cases. Only occasionally have I needed to look at the liner notes. Those may go next. They occupy several hanging folders in my filing cabinet.
Of course, CDs take up space too. I don't carry any CDs with me anymore. I used to have a CD player that went to work with me along with 20 CDs in a case. No more. The iBook is now my preferred music player. I ripped CDs containing music that I wanted to listen at the office. I also have access to a large collection of music thanks to iTunes and Rendezvous Music Sharing. Fewer things to carry around is always nice.
An interesting footnote to the RipDigital service is the unique watermark placed upon the customer's audio files. A Wired article mentions that the watermark is currently not shared (yet). RipDigital is merely protecting themselves from the record labels. That's a good strategy. We all know what happens to companies that are seen to be facilitating illegal music sharing.
I think it is a useful service to people and organizations with a large collection of CDs. Is it worth the money? The market will decide.
Let's face it CD ripping takes time. On my little iBook it can take over twenty minutes to rip a single CD. I have just over 220 CDs in my collection, which is pretty small in comparison to others. If I worked non-stop at ripping all of them, it would take 73 straight hours to do it. Do you have 73 hours to devout to CD ripping? I know I don't. I started this process a few months ago. So far, I have 68 albums (30%) ripped.
CD cases take up a lot of space. Just before I moved from California to Colorado, I needed to reduce my stuff to make the move go smoother. I made a decision to toss all of my CD jewel cases. Every single one of them. I bought two CD sleeve cases that held 72 CDs each and filled them up. The CD liner notes and inserts were retrieved from the cases and filed away. The empty, separated jewel case pieces were tossed in a copier paper box (I didn't put them back together). That box went to the dumpster three times. Now all my CDs are in sleeve cases. Only occasionally have I needed to look at the liner notes. Those may go next. They occupy several hanging folders in my filing cabinet.
Of course, CDs take up space too. I don't carry any CDs with me anymore. I used to have a CD player that went to work with me along with 20 CDs in a case. No more. The iBook is now my preferred music player. I ripped CDs containing music that I wanted to listen at the office. I also have access to a large collection of music thanks to iTunes and Rendezvous Music Sharing. Fewer things to carry around is always nice.
An interesting footnote to the RipDigital service is the unique watermark placed upon the customer's audio files. A Wired article mentions that the watermark is currently not shared (yet). RipDigital is merely protecting themselves from the record labels. That's a good strategy. We all know what happens to companies that are seen to be facilitating illegal music sharing.
I think it is a useful service to people and organizations with a large collection of CDs. Is it worth the money? The market will decide.
Posted at 04:43 PM
Fri - January 23, 2004
Topix.net
A friend of mine is co-founder at a new
aggregration service company called Topix.net.
Bryn Dole, fellow Purdue grad and all-around good
guy, has joined the original guys that started Newhoo! (aka Dmoz.org) in a new venture. Bryn,
Rich, and Bob left Sun at the height of crazy times in the Sili Valley to form a
company around this web site that they put together in the evening. Tom
Markson, also from Sun, has joined them to create Topix.net.
This site gathers news feeds from 3000 sources and categorizes the stories based on some proprietary technology they developed. It's a pretty cool site, just as NewHoo was. I am sure this will be a big success.
This site gathers news feeds from 3000 sources and categorizes the stories based on some proprietary technology they developed. It's a pretty cool site, just as NewHoo was. I am sure this will be a big success.
Posted at 11:03 AM
Mon - January 12, 2004
Mars clock software from NASA
Mars24 is a Java
application that displays a map of Mars, the locations of the various Mars
missions, and Mars time.
This is a pretty cool, cross-platform tool that shows a very detailed picture of Mars complete with time zones and Mars mission landing points. I look forward to a Meteorologist app for Mars weather.
Posted at 11:09 AM
Tue - January 6, 2004
Wanna join my GarageBand?
How cool is this? Apple introduces a new application in
the iLife suite. Oh, and
there were other things announced too.
GarageBand makes it
possible for normal folks to create music with a click here and a drag there.
Simple, eh? What else would you expect from
Apple?
Actually, no one expected this one. All of the rumor sites and some newspapers foresaw the iPod mini. Some looked into their crystal ball and saw a new G5 Xserve. Others wished that the iLife apps would get an update. All true. But no one saw GarageBand coming.
I was tingling when GarageBand was announced and described. My first thought was, "I know some musicians who would love this." As John Mayer demonstrated on stage, it was quite easy to create music. But, of course it is. Mayer's a pro. He played some stuff on a keyboard. He played some licks on his guitar. Steve and John put together a simple little song that sounded good in just a few minutes. Wow! But then Steve, who claimed not to be a musician, put together some simple loops and created an entirely different song. By himself... without assistance.
The other neat trick is that once you have your song you can export it to iTunes. It gets added to your collection and you can carry it on your iPod. Pretty sweet.
I was a percussionist in school. I have no real training in music other than percussion music. Basically, I know rhythms and percussion fundamentals but not notes, chords, or much else. I can't play piano, trumpet, bassoon, or any other instrument. But yet, I think I could make some interesting music with GarageBand. In fact, it may be possible that most anyone can make music with it.
Well, I look forward to giving it a try.
Actually, no one expected this one. All of the rumor sites and some newspapers foresaw the iPod mini. Some looked into their crystal ball and saw a new G5 Xserve. Others wished that the iLife apps would get an update. All true. But no one saw GarageBand coming.
I was tingling when GarageBand was announced and described. My first thought was, "I know some musicians who would love this." As John Mayer demonstrated on stage, it was quite easy to create music. But, of course it is. Mayer's a pro. He played some stuff on a keyboard. He played some licks on his guitar. Steve and John put together a simple little song that sounded good in just a few minutes. Wow! But then Steve, who claimed not to be a musician, put together some simple loops and created an entirely different song. By himself... without assistance.
The other neat trick is that once you have your song you can export it to iTunes. It gets added to your collection and you can carry it on your iPod. Pretty sweet.
I was a percussionist in school. I have no real training in music other than percussion music. Basically, I know rhythms and percussion fundamentals but not notes, chords, or much else. I can't play piano, trumpet, bassoon, or any other instrument. But yet, I think I could make some interesting music with GarageBand. In fact, it may be possible that most anyone can make music with it.
Well, I look forward to giving it a try.
Posted at 10:23 PM
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Published On: Sep 22, 2004 09:33 AM