brainwagon

Microsoft propaganda minster Robert Scoble has remarked that news that Longhorn will prevent playback of DRM’ed video unless it is to a sufficiently “secure” or “digital” device has provoked a strong “anti-reaction”. Just what the hell is an anti-reaction? It generated a strong reaction: a reaction that should tell Microsoft that anyone intelligent enough to […]

I snapped a picture of my Pac Man t-shirt using my Motorola MPx220 cell phone in its “self portrait” mode: where the viewfinder is echoed onto the screen that is on the outside of the flip phone. Thinking about it for a second, I had a moment’s inspiration and took another picture. This error apparently […]

Not content with merely screwing up one minor job, I had to go back to the well of human despair for a second time today. One of my larger popup sprinkler heads was apparently stuck: spraying water in only a single direction rather than circulating back and forth in the 90 degree arc that it […]

I, of course, meant “sheet metal” screws. Ever notice how the simplest tasks can become annoying because of abject stupidity? Consider this mornings tiny project: one of the fans in my server box has become noisy, so I decided to go out and replace it with a new one. I bought a spiffy Antec fan […]

I really like the convenience of having a camera phone for taking snapshots, but unfortunately, there is a vast gulf in capability between what a modest digital camera can do and what is standard on camera phones. My Motorola MPx220 (despite it’s quoted 1.3megapixel capability) is just pathetic. Witness the following two pictures, the first […]

Where your host sings Happy Birthday to his wife and then goes on to discuss the recent Supreme Court decision regarding Grokster, and his feelings on the cult of personality that seems to be forming around blogging, as is exemplified by Gnomedex. Links from the show: The best blog on the doings of the Supreme […]

Take a look at their announcement, especially concentrating on the What is Gnomedex… section. Someone, please, explain it to me. Why is Gnomedex significant? Useful link: Technorati: gnomedex2005 Addendum: Just what here requires a license at all, much less a Creative Commons License? We don’t need licenses for other data formats like HTML.

Every once in a while, you read something that makes you just shake your head. Dave Slusher mentioned David Coursey’s anti-podcasting article. I’m not so opposed to his opinions on the grounds that he’s a knee-jerk-off (although he does seem to fit the description) but rather from the simple fact he’s hopelessly off target in […]

For those of you with a sense of humor, try reading this account of a young man who was suspended for reciting his own pledge of allegiance to the Federation of Planets. On a more serious note, I wonder why exactly schools choose to force participation in these silly patriotic enterprises. It’s like when you […]

Some things just make you blink. A Day in the Life is reporting that MSN is only blocking the words democracy and freedom in the name of a blog, the post title, and the URL, but NOT in the body copy. Hmmm. So much for the censorship charge if this is true. Robert, did you […]

I like Wikipedia. I think it is a great resource, maintained by the efforts of many talented and knowledgeable individuals, even in the face of what amounts to continuous attempts at vandalism. Wikipedia has been subject to some criticism. John C. Dvorak thought that Google’s involvement in the project spelled its demise. Wikipedia cofounder Larry […]

In one of his recent posts, Robert Scoble reveals a certain pragmatism when it comes to human rights. When doing business in various countries and, even, various states here in the US, we must comply with the local laws if we want to do business there. And, as a shareholder in Microsoft, I think it […]

I worked most of the day getting my garage door primed, and decided to accelerate the process of finishing the job tomorrow by spending more money. So, I trundled my body, covered with white flecks of paints to the Home Depot, and picked up a new Wagner Pro Power Paint Sprayer. I figure that it […]

Tiger Woods is not a nerd.

But sadly isn’t right for the second time. Pundit Dvorak (just how does one get to be a pundit anyway) muses that the announcement that Apple will shift to Intel chips is somehow more harmful for Linux than for Microsoft. His reasoning? Let’s face it, Linux is free, useful and powerful. That alone says that […]