February 28, 2007

Google Maps traffic information

Check out this post from Lifehacker

"Google Maps has just rolled out an exciting new traffic feature, that provides traffic data for major interstates and freeways." (from: Google Maps traffic information)

 Nice! One more reason to LOVE google

February 25, 2007

What would happen if Venezuela invaded Curaçao

Yeah a weird thought. So when I came across an analysis called The Dutch Defend Their World Empire, I was fascinated, in a sick sort of way.
"[snip...]The Dutch problem can best be described with the words, "not enough". Not enough forces to successfully repel an invasion of Aruba, Curacao, and Bonaire; not enough naval power to carry out operations to retake the islands; their fighters do not have enough range; and not enough logistical support to support an operation.[snip...] (from The Dutch Defend Their Empire)
Also, from the comments:
"[snip...]The United States would love nothing more than to see Chavez booted from power, whether that means he takes a long exile in Spain or ends up against a wall wearing a blindfold.  That said, you can guarantee that the United States would suddenly be the Netherlands' biggest ally in getting its islands back.[snip...]" (from comments to The Dutch Defend their Empire)

[GEEKY] Alternative to Yahoo Pipes? Looks really interesting...

Check out this post from Lifehacker:

"Want to play with RSS feeds? Try xFruits, where, according to tech enthusiast Steve Rubel, you can "teach your feeds all kinds of new tricks."

He's not kidding around, either: you can create a PDF file from an RSS feed, send an OPML to your mobile, aggregate, and lots more. I played with it a little bit and was suitably impressed by all the options; it looks like they're even adding the option to create RSS feeds for your desktop files soon. — Wendy BoswellxFruits [via MicroPersuasion]" (from: Mash up RSS feeds with xFruits)

I haven't looked at this yet, but it is quite intriguing.

Oh... Why haven't I looked yet? Well ever since xFruits was mentioned on LifeHacker, it has been unable to be reached. The server is probably getting overwhelmed by loving interest like mine.

I say "server" singular? I am just assuming that we are talking about a single server. But even if that's not the case, the fact that the service is unavailable right now says something about how hard it is to build a scalable web service, especially if you are giving it away for free. It is why it's nice to see Yahoo, Google and Amazon publishing services.

February 22, 2007

FeedBurner's View of the Feed Market

If you are a blogger then you probably keep an eye out on the 'circulation' of your blog. It's a black art full of subjetivity and highly detailed technical tidbits that have to be understood and then interpretted before you really know what the data means. Still if you are interested, check out this post from FeedBurner Weblog (Burning Questions):
"[snip...]While it's always encouraging to see feed subscription numbers go up (Google's recent inclusion of subscription data for Google Reader and Google Homepage increased the number of feed subscriptions FeedBurner can report to publishers by 53% alone), these subscription numbers in a vacuum only tell part of the story. Equally important is the extent to which people are reading feeds and interacting with them. In today's post we'll take a look at one aspect of the feed aggregator market - the web-based aggregators - and draw some conclusions about how audiences are consuming content in new and different ways. [snip...]"

(from: FeedBurner's View of the Feed Market)

Good tip: Bald-headed Britney and the Lost Art of Linking

If you blog, you might appreciate: loose wire blog: Bald-headed Britney and the Lost Art of Linking

 

February 21, 2007

[SEMI-GEEK] Are activation emails needed - and if so - how do we convince you they aren't spam?

Here's an odd but important problem, at least for us here at BlogBridge.

When you sign up for a BlogBridge account, we, like many other sites, send you a confirmation email to verify that your email is for real.

Truthfully from a security point of view, I am not even exactly sure what it proves. That at one moment in time the person creating the account also was able to receive emails at an arbitrary email address. So what? It's so easy to get a temporary free email account, that I am not sure what it does.

So that's question one: does an activation email really provide any benefit to anyone? Any comments?

Now a question that has come to our attention is that in many cases a person's spam filter intercepts the activation email so the person never even sees it, and hence the account is never activated, and hence the account appears not to work.

So scenario: The sender and recipient both want the message be received, but there is a a big-brother spam filter (like Google Mail, which I think is the bestest) that insists on sidelining the email into the spam filter.

So that's question two: Is there any way to assure a non-junk email actually makes it through? Any answers?

February 20, 2007

Amazing flash film

I got this with an email claiming on a stack of bibles that it was real not faked, but I don't believe it for a minute!

February 19, 2007

[GEEK] Deploy your Rails app in subdirectory with Apache and Mongrel

If you are a Ruby On Rails developer you might want to check out this post from dzone.com: latest front page:
"It’s not particularly hard to deploy your app in a subdirectory, but I’ve found that figuring out how to can be. So, I decided to put together this short little write-up."

(from: Deploy your Rails app in subdirectory with Apache and Mongrel)

 

February 18, 2007

Interesting item about outsourcing to India...

Check out this post from GigaOM:
If you are an investor in one of the many U.S.-listed technology outsourcing giants such as Infosys, then I have some bad news for you: they are no longer the cherished destination for the brightest and the smartest in India.

(from: Troubling Signs for Indian Tech Outsourcers)

 

The New York Times looks at the Chavez Royal family

If you keep up with what's going on in Venezuela, you might want to check out this post from The Devil's Excrement: The New York Times looks at the Chavez Royal family

 

February 17, 2007

Is desktop search over? 20 years late!

People are really crowing about Vista's new "instant serach" and how wonderful it is and better than the old Windows XP Search functionality. Yeah I can't disagree, but it's amazing how it's 20 years on before that glaring-glaring-glaring hole in Windows was fixed. (And sure, Mac OS X has had Spotlight for a while now, but I am not in love with it. I have only a decent amount of disk space and a fast processor and a lot of memory, and I can't say it's fast. In fact when I want to search for an email I always go into my browser and use Google Mail's search feature...Anyway... Check out this post from Geeking with Greg:
"In his remarkably detailed review of Windows Vista, Paul Thurrott wrote:
One of the most impressive features in Windows Vista ... is instant search.

Anyone who's struggled with the lousy search functionality in Windows XP or previous Windows versions will be happy to hear that the Vista version is fantastic, delivering near-instantaneous search results while providing the types of advanced features that power users will simply drool over."

(from: Is desktop search over?)

February 15, 2007

A nice panoramic photo of Curacao

This is the Seaquarium beach area. It's very beautiful as you can see. Click on the photo if you dare. It's huge but impressive.

Curacao Seaquarium Pano

February 14, 2007

I fear for the gullible user

I received this email from "Bank of America". It obviously a phishing attack but it sounds so legitimate and straightforward that I can easily see lots of people (including some I know) to fall for it. Scary, look: even the URL looks real:

Dear Customer:

Recently there have been a large number computer terrorist attacks over our database server. In order to safeguard your account, we require that you update your ATM/Debit card PIN.

This update is requested of you as a precautionary measure against fraud. Please note that we have no particular indications that your details have been compromised in any way.

This process is mandatory, and if not completed within the nearest time your account may be subject to temporary suspension.

Please make sure you have your ATM/Debit card and your login details at hand.

To securely update your ATM/Debit card PIN please go to:

http://www.bankofamerica.com/state.cgi?section=signinpage&update=&cookiecheck=yes&destination=nba/signin

Please note that this update applies to your ATM/Debit card - which is l! inked directly to your checking account, not credit cards.

Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter !

Regards,
Bank Of America Customer Support

And when you go to it, the URL is: "http://148.217.2.29/~magallanr/cgi/cgi-bin/sso.login.controller/SignIn/"

Scary!

February 13, 2007

wis.dm now in beta - A social network of ideas

Picture 2-26
A little while back I mentioned wis.dm, a site that I've been helping with for about the last year. Rafe Needleman refers to it as a "Social Network of Ideas"

"This is a new web 2.0 business aiming to change the perceptions of social networking - how? - by encouraging original thinking, creative collaboration and innovative self promotion." in Martin's words, who started the whole thing. 

Or, from their team blog, a more catchy bit:

"...Finally, Zarathustra joyfully mused, I am free from the dull-eyed prisons of other social networking sites. It is not the HunyBaby123 or the Raiders_Fan1986 I seek.

Companions, the
creator seeks, not corpses, not herds and believers. I seek those who write new values on new tablets, and new tags on new ideas.

Zarathustra rose from his bed and logged onto wis.dm.

The future was looking bright..."
(from wis.dm team blog)

Just the other day Rafe Needleman wrote a kind summary of what we've built:

"At the MIT Enterprise Forum event last week, I talked to the founders of Wis.dm, a new site that's a blend of social bookmarking and social networking. I'd call it a social network for ideas. I like it a lot." (from WebWare)

If this looks interesting to you, (IT SHOULD :) I will be very glad to send you an invite by return email! The sooner you join the more likely you will get your very own actual name. Sorry, wis.dm/pito is already taken :)

February 12, 2007

LG Says Apple Copied the Prada Phone. Also, Apple's Mother is Obese

Actually the funniest part of this was the headline... "Also, Apple's Mother is Obese"

Check out this post from Gizmodo:

"It seems that LG's not taking all this "iPhone clone" talk lightly. LG's Head of Mobile Handset R&D, Mr. Woo-Young Kwak, had this to say when the press uttered the painful phrase one too many times:
We consider that Apple copycat Prada phone after the design was unveiled when it was presented in the iF Design Award and won the prize in September 2006."
(from: LG Says Apple Copied the Prada Phone. Also, Apple's Mother is Obese)

rethinking gladwell's model of influence

Check out this post from Influx Insights Weblog: rethinking gladwell's model of influence.

My first reaction was that indeed the paper referenced in fact refuted one of The Tipping Point's key assertions, the importance of connectors. But I am not so sure it does now that I've had a little more time. Anyway, it's worth taking a look.

February 09, 2007

Fun article for airplane buffs

"Isn't that cockpit a little drab? Perhaps a spider plant, or a simple lithograph, would liven it up!"
 
Check out the article, it's interesting, especially click on the links to the photographs, they are cool too.

February 08, 2007

Question to ponder...

"How is it that many times we forget how to spell a word, so we write it down and then pick the spelling that seems to "look right"?

Anyone out there know the answer or have a link to an answer?

February 07, 2007

Venezuela's lost human capital

Really interesting article about what is going on in Venezuela and the impact of Hugo Chavez' policies...

"Our gain is Venezuela's loss. These newcomers represent the human capital of Venezuela, something that Chavez, grounded in Marxist materialism, can't understand. He views these talented people as political pawns — traitors." (from Investors Business Daily)

Read the whole thing.

February 05, 2007

I was away when Boston and Fox both embarassed themselves

Check out this post from Bostonist:
mooninite.jpg Attorney General Martha Coakley announced today that the Boston area cut a deal with Turner Broadcasting and Interference, Inc., the brains behind the marketing campaign for Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theatres that made life in Boston a little nutty last week.

Boston will receive $2 million dollars for its trouble. In return, Turner Broadcasting and Interference won't face charges. Here's the basic breakdown - $1 million goes to reimbursing state and local law enforcement for their troubles. Another $1 million will go to "goodwill" funds.

Here's a more detailed breakdown of which agency gets what from the attorney general's press release:
State Police - $691,126
Executive Office of Transportation /Mass. Highway Dept. - $45,466
MBTA - $630,396
Massport - $8,380
City of Boston - $484,590
City of Somerville - $69,113
City of Cambridge - $24,794
US Coast Guard - $46,136

Of special note: The MBTA will get $132,772 in additional restitution and $315,198 in "homeland security and community initiative funds." This is your chance for more green, MBTA. Use it wisely.

The budget for the movie is listed on the Internet Movie Database as $750,000. Even if settlement is a drop in the bucket for Turner Broadcasting, that's still a hefty marketing campaign budget.

The settlement also came surprisingly fast, which suggests that all parties involved wanted to move on. Boston is embarrassed and Turner is embarrassed. Neither group wants the words "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" and "terror attack" tied together in the press anymore.

The only unresolved issue involves the fates of Sean Stevens and Peter Berdvosky. Bostonist says Coakley should let 'em off the hook. She probably doesn't want those two hanging around the courthouse, anyway.

Image of Mooninite in action from The Trades, which debates the Mooninite fallout.

(from: Where the Mooninite Money Is Going)

 

Neat Bank of America site security feature doesn't do anything !

If you use the Bank of America online banking site  you've seen what they call the 'Site Identity' feature that is supposed to save you from being phished:

"...  online banking customers are asked to select an image, like a dog or chess piece, that they will see every time they log in to their account.

The idea is that if customers do not see their image, they could be at a fraudulent Web site, dummied up to look like their bank’s, and should not enter their passwords." (from NYT)

Well I use it (and, hmm, my image is a chess piece!) and it seemed like a reasonable idea. But not according to this study:

"The premise is that site-authentication images increase security because customers will not enter their passwords if they do not see the correct image,” said Stuart Schechter, a computer scientist at the M.I.T. Lincoln Laboratory. “From the study we learned that the premise is right less than 10 percent of the time.”

"He added: “If a bank were to ask me if they should deploy it, I would say no, wait for something better,” he said."  (from NYT)

Oh well... Read the whole article!