August 2003

Problem with Apple and Canon

August 24, 2003

While waiting for the umpteenth disk reconstruction recently I came across this knowledge base article on Apple's site. They indicate it may cause some inconvenient problems. For me it's cost the data on the disk several times. The incompatibility seems to cause the master data block on the disk to be so corrupted that the only recourse is to begin anew. I'd love to do as the article suggests and call Canon. I wonder when I'll get a response? The problem seems to be primarily the ZR-40, ZR-45 and ZR-50 cameras.

Things you forget you've done

August 23, 2003

I was reminded by stumbling across this page about some testing work I did a few years ago. Funny how a few years can pass and something that was so urgent and important at the time is no longer even on my list of memories.

Email Solutions

August 21, 2003

Dave Winer has a solution for his e-mail problems. I use a slightly different variation on the same theme.

1) I use a domain that designed for only a few people.

2) E-mail for most any address in the domain is routed to the default account

3) When I give out an e-mail address (either on the web or in person) I give a different version of it. If you are ABC CO then my address will be ABCCO@domain.com.

4) The Variation for webistes is that the address changes fairly frequently and includes a date. If you click a mailto in March 2003 there will be a 0303 in it. If you mail that address after March 2003 you'll get instructions on how to make it a current address. (A very simple challenge-response type system.

Jonestown Story from NPR

August 17, 2003

Scripting News: According to Google Answers, they didn't actually drink Kool Aid at Jonestown. Wow. There is a good (if disturbing) NPR story from 1998 with an interview with Deborah Layton who escaped Jonestown on the flavor-aid based mass suicide.

Good article about wireless access

August 13, 2003

Paul Boutin: "If wireless Internet access is such a hot technology, why is it such a dud business?" - Paul points out what I've told several people lately. Starbucks, Borders etc. have the wrong business model. When I'm traveling I don't want to pay $30 a month on an annual contract to catch up on e-mail, but if there is a place that offers free access I'll go there and spend plenty of money to make it worth their while. Would I do it for a small one-time fee? Yes, when I'm traveling. But I've got much more time (and money) to spend when I'm at home. And the expense of the applications to setup the micro payments and run a timer is greater than the return. The normal trips to the local library for a place to connect and work in a place other than the office would quickly be replaced by sitting in Starbucks or Borders or somewhere else spending for a $5.00 coffee.

Mouse faster than a keyboard

August 13, 2003

This Ask Tog column has some interesting points about mousing being faster than keyboarding. I definitely fit the model of the people described in the article with my steadfast belief that the keyboard is faster. I wonder if there is research outside companies' R&D departments that might shed light on this question.

Alex King's Photos

August 12, 2003

Alex King has renamed his Gallery project to Photos and released a new version. The software takes full advantage of the power of a database to organize photos.

Seabiscuit

August 10, 2003

We went and saw Seabiscuit last night. I thought it was a pretty good movie, especially for a movie that had received so much criticism. I've not been in a theater in some time where the theater broke out in applause. The movie tried too hard when it came to showing Seabiscuit's representation of the entire age. Too little credit is given to the audience's ability to understand this and it's done in an in-your-face sort of way. The audience in the theater applauded not only at the end of the movie, but also as Seabiscuit won the match race with War Admiral.

Tired of Shark Week

August 8, 2003

Maybe it comes from being a little too young to be a Jaws fan, but I'm tired of TLC's "Shark Week" already. It doesn't start until next week, but I'm already tired of the sensational hype. When will they have Raptor week? Badger week? Why are we so fascinated with sharks to begin with?

More on the upgrade

August 7, 2003

I've been spending a lot of time lately upgrading PHP and drupal. My mistakes of a few days ago were due in large part to not copying the new .htaccess file over. It contains the rewrite rules for all the old formats as well as the much more readable (and indexable) clean URLs.

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