Tag: technology
-
and so it begins…
So much for “don’t be evil” – this guy [ link dead, no archive ] got locked out of Gmail because he uses Firefox with the Greasemonkey extension that lets him add content and functionality to web pages that isn’t provided by the authors. In a world governed by contracts – like ULAs and SLAs…
-
iTunes update redux
So as I was installing the upgrade to iTunes 4.9 this morning (with all the associated non-background actions it requires) I noticed something strange – a system restart is required after the installation. It made me reflect on how odd a system restart requirement is in the Linux / UNIX world for a userspace software…
-
yes, I know what to do with that screwdriver…
I have seen the insides of my iBook. I have seen what happens when a hard drive fails while you are logged in and using it. And I can tell you that the screws are that long for a reason, and that it is easy to to tear the ribbon cable that connects the touch…
-
software distribution redux
I’ve said before that I really like the ease and convenience of tools like apt, gems, darwinports, cpan, and portage which let you ask for an application and then simply install it along with any dependencies in one fell swoop. Which brings me to today’s whiny rant: Apple. Now, i like Apple a lot, I…
-
technology, utility, the chasm, and the long-tail
There are two ideas out and about concerning the progression of a technology to adoption, and the consumption of something that has already been adopted. The first, the adoption chasm, is about there being a chasm between early adopters and mass consumption. There is a book. The second, the long-tail, is about there being nearly…
-
google versus del.icio.us
ok, I knew this would happen eventually, and it just did. I found better results to what I was looking for using http://del.icio.us/tag/REST than using Google to search for “REST” ( http://www.google.com/search?q=”REST” ). (I was looking for articles about REST – Representational State Transfer – a way of using existing web infrastructure to do more,…
-
the virtues of software distribution
I just have to smile whenever I use an on-line software distribution system that “just works” to install or update a tool. CPAN, gems, darwinports, apt – these are things of beauty and I just love how something as simple as sudo gem update rails makes my life better. No big heavy expedition to the…
-
AOL is arrogant AND stupid
ok, it looks like someone Ben Stanfield of MacSlash [ archive.org ] actually read the AOL Instant Messenger Terms Of Service and he blogged what he found [ archive.org ]. They basically say that they own every thing you type into an AIM message, and they you have no rights to it whatsoever, and specifically…
-
who watches the watchmen?
This article is over in the new (to me) Policy DevCenter at O’Reilly: O’Reilly Network: Protect Your OSP with logfinder It references a new white paper put out by the EFF to aid system admins in finding log files on their systems with the idea that you can’t be bothered by the Feds serving you…
-
Divide And Conquer Yourself
Marcus Ranum has this little rant on his web site and it got picked up by Slashdot, so I read it. Divide And Conquer Yourself His basic premise is that the n-flavors of Linux, BSD, and System V kernel based operating systems make it easy for Microsoft to play the various vendors against themselves and…