Gumstix Computers (Linux Computing)

Gumstix are computer motherboards that are 3.1 x 0.8 x 0.3 inches (20 x 80 x 8mm), and are suppose to weigh "less than a tablespoon of water," according to Gumstix. They're powered by XScale (ARM-based) Intel PXA255 SoC (System-on-Chip) running at 200MHz or 400MHz. They include 64 MB of SDRAM, 4 MB of Flash, and a complement of peripherals and I/O that includes an LCD controller, two RS232 serial ports, a USB 1.1 device port, I2C, two NSSP PWMs, AC97, and a JTAG port.

These are very impressive little computers. They run a Linux OS, and are designed for specialized applications. For example they can be used for controlling different types of robotics.

See the web site for more information

Lockheed CEV Proposed Shuttle Replacement (Article)

Popular Mechanics reports: "When NASA requested designs for a Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV), two major teams--one headed by Lockheed Martin and one by Northrop Grumman and Boeing--took on the challenge. The winning concept will be chosen in 2008, and the manned vehicle flown in 2014."

Its about time that NASA is replacing the space shuttle. It has been a great space vehicle, but now its time to see what is next. What I really want to see is warp drive engines, and phasers on the next shuttle. :-)

The new safety systems for the new proposed design are pretty cool. Althought they probably add a lot of extra wieght to the shuttle. I believe the final design of the shuttle will problably not include all the proposed safety systems to save on weight and money.

But this is just my humble opinion...

Gadget of the Week: The Get Off The Phone Excuse Machine

Real Tech News's - Gadget of the Week: "We’ve all been there. Miles from home, trapped in an endless cell phone conversation with no way out. Luckily there’s a handy little gadget called the “Get Off the Phone Excuse Machine” that with the press of a button will send an array of interruptions to your call. Six sample sounds include: doorbell chime, crying baby, static interference, dinner call, siren, and crashing car. Price: About $18."

This is a new use for a really old technology as far as gadgets go, but its a pretty funny device. It includes some useful sounds (like a doorbell, baby crying, and some others) and useless sounds (like: 'Can’t let the chop suey go cold can you?'). I don't know how real the device sounds on the other end of the phone, but I can imagine it might work.

Whistleblower Faces FBI Probe (Article)

Wired News reports: "The FBI is investigating a computer security researcher for criminal conduct after he revealed that critical routers supporting the Internet and many networks have a serious software flaw that could allow someone to crash or take control of them."

This is a real interesting article. It doesn't reveal any technical exploits about Cisco router, but it discusses how Cisco and ISS tried to stop Mike Lynn from speaking at DefCon.

Track the Space Shuttle and International Space Station

Want to know where the Space Shuttle or International Space Station is in orbit. Check out the following site, it allows you to do live tracking of these crafts in orbit with Google Maps. The map is updated every minute with new data from NASA.

When you go to the site, you will see two markers on the map. The white marker and line represent Shuttle Discovery, and the red marker and line represent the International Space Station.

Yahoo! Buys Konfabulator, and Gives It Away for Free...

Yahoo! recently bought a great little company called Pixoria. They make a wonderful utility called the Konfabulator. This application allows you to add special little applets called Widgets to your desktop. Widgets are cool little desktop programs that can perform a specialized function, such as displaying the weather, allowing you to search the internet, and there are literally hundreds more.

This program use to cost about $20-$30 to buy. Anyone who owned this software would probably tell you it is well worth the price. Apple was so impressed with this technology that they included the functionality in their newest version of the Mac OS. This program has been available on the Macintosh for years, and only recently made it to the Windows world.

Well here is the good news, Yahoo recently bought this company and is giving away the software for free. So for that I want to say, "Thank you, Yahoo..." My hope is that Yahoo will continue to enhance the application so that we can all enjoy it.

So, if you have not already downloaded it, the question is what are you waiting for...

Firefox 1.1 Scrapped, 1.5 Due in Sept

BetaNews reports that the Mozilla Foundation will scrap the Firefox 1.1 label, and release Firefox v1.5 sometime in September. They felt the feature set of the v1.1 title didn't do the new browser justice, so they decided to hold off and release the v1.5 browser later in the year.

Going Totally Retro Today

I was surfing the web today, and I noticed a came across a lot of sites that had to deal with the past. So today I decided to theme today's post with links to sites that having something to do with the past:

• CNET.com: Top 10 Web fads - Do you remember some of these Internet fads?
• The History of the Internet - Before the World Wide Web, there was just the Internet.
• Visit an old Arcade - Do a virtual fly though of a 80's arcade (.MOV video, 33MB).
• Virtual Apple 2 - Play older Apple II games in your browser.
• RetroJunk - Take a trip back in time to the 70s, 80s, and 90s.

Congress to add 2 months to Daylight Savings Time

Did you know Congress is proposing to extent the U.S daylight savings time (DST) by two months (from March to November). The Chicago Sun-Times reports the PROs and CONs of this proposal, and why different groups are for and against it.

One thing that isn't mention in the article impact this change could have on modern and older computers, OSs and their applications. There still are lots of older computers running older OSs, and applications that just won't be updated.

No computer is immune to this change. It could be another Y2K scare all over again. It is hard to predict all the problems a change like this can cause for different software applications. So we will have to just wait and see what happens...

Riot control ray gun worries scientists (Article)

CNET News.com reports: "Scientists are questioning the safety of a Star Wars-style riot control ray gun due to be deployed in Iraq next year.

The Active Denial System weapon, classified as 'less lethal' by the Pentagon, fires a 95GHz microwave beam at rioters to cause heating and intolerable pain in less than five seconds."

I always find it interesting to see what people will think of next when it comes to developing energy based weapons. Make sure to check out the slideshow its pretty interesting, because it shows some of the different devices and vehicles that are equipped with this technology.

Google Moon (New)

In honor of the first manned Moon landing (on July 20, 1969), Google has released Google Moon. Its a new web application that uses NASA imagery, and the Google Maps interface.

It allows you to pan and zoom over an image of the moon surface to view all the Apollo landing sites. If you really want to have a quick laugh, set the zoom magnification to its maximum setting.

A Dual Everything System

I generally don't talk about motherboards, but this system was just too cool not to talk about.

ExtremeTech: "Builds a system that multiplies everything by two. They take a dual-core CPU, dual graphics cards, dual two-drive RAID arrays, dual channel memory, and dual-layer DVD burning to the max."

System Administrator Appreciation Day

Have you hugged your system administrator today? Coming Friday, July 29th, 2005 is the 6th annual System Administrator Appreciation Day. I guess this day was created by some I.T. people who were feeling unappreciated.

I have worked in I.T. for more then a decade, and it really can be a thankless job a lot of times. Although, at the same time I don't care to have some day of the year set aside trying to point out that it is thankless. In my humble opinion, we are all just doing our jobs and generally being paid to do it, we don't need some day to remind us that we need to thank someone for doing what they're paid to do.

The only people I think that we need to be thanking is our troops in Iraq. I don't believe that most of them want to be there, but they're doing their job. So, all I can say is God Bless them and keep them safe... Amen

In the Beginning There Were Weblogs

Wired has published an interesting article about a man Jorn Barger, as they introduced him in the article as 'another homeless blogger'. Jorn has a semi-famous web site, which still exists called RobotWisdom.com. His site is an eclectic collection of interesting links.

For a real brief history of Jorn, he is currently homeless, and living on the streets in America somewhere. His claims to 'fame' are he was an avid Usenet poster who maintained the James Joyce FAQ. But the reason why I am mentioning him here, is that he was the person who coined the term and concept of the modern Weblog (aka Blog).

For more information read the Wired article.

Favorite Geek Quotes...

Below are some of my favorite geek related quotes, if you're not a geek you might not understand them. Although there is a chance that you might...

Binary People
There are 10 types of people in the world: Those who understand binary, and those who don't...

Geek Love Poem
roses are #FF0000
violets are #0000FF
all my base
are belong to you

SQL query
SELECT * FROM users WHERE clue > 0.

127.0.0.1
There's no place like 127.0.0.1

Odeo: Listen, Sync, Create Podcasts

Odeo allows you to listen, synchronize, or create Podcasts for your iPod or MP3 player. If you're into podcasting, you need to check out this site. It is a portal of popular Podcasts. One of the great features of the site, is that you can play the podcast you want to listen to without having to leaving your browser.

Military's Energy-Beam Weapons Delayed (Article)

Associated Press reports: "For years, the U.S. military has explored a new kind of firepower that is instantaneous, precise and virtually inexhaustible: beams of electromagnetic energy. 'Directed-energy' pulses can be throttled up or down depending on the situation, much like the phasers on 'Star Trek' could be set to kill or merely stun."

Drive Me Insane! (Internet Classic Site)

'Drive Me Insane!' is a web site that has been around for a number of years, it should become an Internet classic. The basic story behind it is some guy setup this site to allow people over the Internet to turn lights on and off in his house for fun.

When you first go to the site, you will see a view from the web cam (you will even occassional see people walk by). There are also links off to the side of the page that say on and off. These links will allow you to turn the lights on and off in the view of the web cam.

The FAQ on site says that it is real, but if it is fake it is a pretty elaborate hoax. I hope you enjoy it...

Happy Birthday Amazon, Your 10 Years Old...

Amazon.com is now almost 10 years old. It started its humble beginning in Jeff Bezo's garage selling just books. Ten years later, it had $7 billion in sales last year, and sells just about everything you could ever want.

I have always respected Amazon.com as a company, and they're one of the few online retailers that have a pretty good reputation for being reputable and reliable. I know in my personal dealing with them we have been pretty happy with the service that we have recieved.

So to Amazon.com and its employee, may you have many happy years of retailing, and keep up the good work.

Europe rejects patent proposal (Article)

CNET News.com reports: "The European Parliament has rejected a controversial measure that would have legalized software patents in the European Union.

A government representative said that 648 out of 729 members of the European Parliament voted Wednesday to reject the proposal, called the Computer Implemented Inventions Directive, which would have widened the extent to which software could be patented ."

This is awesome news! This new patent law would have created a nightmare patent system in the E.U. The U.S. is already having a problem with its system because people are already patenting very general ideas, then suing people over them. I believe in patent law, but they have to stop giving patents for stupid stuff.

Thorium Fuels Safer Reactor Hopes (Article)

Wired News reports: "Fueling nuclear reactors with the element thorium instead of uranium could produce half as much radioactive waste and reduce the availability of weapons-grade plutonium by as much as 80 percent. But the nuclear power industry needs more incentives to make the switch, experts say."

I think the summary says it all, but now all we have to do is convince the people who pay for the reactors to switch to thorium instead of uranium. The retooling costs seems to be one of the big obstacles here in the US.

Regular Showers May be Health Risk (Article)

DailyMail in the UK reports: "Taking regular showers could pose a health risk and even result in permanent brain damage, it has been claimed."

Why post such a weird article, because it makes an excellent point about everything we do for ourselves because we think it is healthy. It seems that everyday science is telling us to do something someway because its suppose to be good for us (such as: drinking lots of water). Then a few years later they find out by doing what they originally told us could be really bad for us (for example: water intoxication from drinking too much water).

My point is not about drinking water, or taking showers being bad for us. My point is we have to be really careful about what we read and do. Just because one day we read that scientist have now discovered the dangers of something, or that this or that is more healthy. Don't fall into the trap of believing everything you read, you might find out one day that it was really wrong.

My only real point is we need to live our lifes with the philosphy of 'all things in moderation' (such as: eating, drinking, loving, etc...) So just enjoy your life, you will live longer and be happier. We are all going to die someday, so enjoy every moment of everyday that you have.

For more reading, see: 'We should never have survived!'

"Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself." (Matthew 6:34)

A lesson to be learned from typing the wrong e-mail address! (Humor)

For all my U.S. readers, I hope you have a happy and safe 4th of July...

I am going to try something new, every so often I will publish a clean, and humorous story or joke. I will use the following guidelines for publishing this content, it must be appropriate to be viewed or repeated in just about any office environment.

---

A couple from Minneapolis decided to go to Florida to thaw out during one particularly icy winter. They planned to stay at the very same hotel where they spent their honeymoon 20 years earlier.

Because of hectic schedules, it was difficult to coordinate their travel schedules. So, the husband left Minnesota and flew to Florida on Thursday, with his wife flying down the following day.

The husband checked into the hotel. There was a computer in his room, so he decided to send an e-mail to his wife. However, he accidentally left out one letter in her email address, and without realizing his error, he sent the e-mail.

Meanwhile, somewhere in Houston, a widow had just returned Home from her husband's funeral. He was a minister of many years who Was called home to glory following a sudden heart attack. The widow decided to check her e-mail expecting messages of condolence from relatives and friends. After reading the first message, she fainted. The widow's son rushed into the room, found his mother on the floor, and saw the computer screen which read:

To: My Loving Wife
Subject: I've Arrived
Date: 16 January 2004

I know you're surprised to hear from me. They have
computers here now and you are allowed to send e-
mails to your loved ones. I've just arrived and have
been checked in. I see that everything has been
prepared for your arrival tomorrow. Looking forward
to seeing you then! Hope your journey is as
uneventful as mine was.

P.S. Sure is hot down here.

Pig Manure Converted to Crude Oil

National Geographic reports: "Crude oil and gasoline prices are near an all-time high. But don't despair. One scientist has found an alternative source of energy: pig manure."

It seems that we can make alternative fuels from corn (Ethanol), vegetable oil (Biodiesel), and now pig manure. It is absolutely amazing what they're making fuels out of these day. One day we will be able to run our cars on just s (wait, that has already been invented too).

National Budget Simulation

This is an interesting site, it allows you to simulate what would happen if you were in control of the national budget. Try to see if you can do better then the elected officials.

To use the site: use the pop-up menus to increase or decrease as many of the budget items as you'd like. When you're finished, press the button at the end of the web page.

The Space Elevator (12 minute video)

I have been a big fan of space elevators for years. I believe it will be one of the best ways of moving people and cargo into space economically.

The idea of space elevators has been around for a long time. Although it has only been within the last few years that the scientist believe that with advancements in material technologies like carbon nanotubes, the elevator concept is made possible.

If you don't understand the advantages of a space elevator over conventional rockets. Think of this way, right now it costs about US$10,000 a pound to move cargo into space via the space shuttle. With the space elevator the cost would be reduced to a few hundred dollars to a thousand dollars a pound.

The space elevator would also allow an economical platform for inhabiting other planets such as the moon, Mars, and beyond.

For more information on the space elevator, watch the following video.

New email address registries for "do not contact" (Utah and Michigan)

StellarBay.com News reports: "Utah and Michigan are the first two states to have both passed the legislation which is aimed at minors having access to otherwise unwanted, sexually explicit or violent electronic communications."

A 'do not contact e-mail and instant messenger address' list, makes as much sense as creating a 'do not rob list' to tell thieves not to rob your homes or businesses. The original 'do not call list' made a great deal of sense because most telemarketers are legitimate businesses that have to obey the law. I believe that 99% of spammers are probably not a legitimate business, so they don't have to answer to the law unless they're caught.

If you read the article the law looks like it has holes in it big enough to drive a large truck through. This law is a good idea, but bad in execution. I really believe this law can create more problems then it can correct. Its not that Utah and Michigan did a bad job in writing the law, just the problem its trying to address is very difficult legislate, prosecute and enforce.

Free and Legal Movies, TV Shows and More... (Bittorrent Not Required)

Are you looking for a free and legal alternative to Bittorrent for downloading video content (such as: movies, TV show, etc.) off the Internet? Your prayers have been answered.

Below are two sites that allow you to access different types of video content, from old cartoons and movies to documentaries and more.

• Open Media Network: OMN is a free public service designed to help you enjoy a broad selection of movies, public TV and radio, video blogs and podcasts while protecting producer's copyrights. (Note: requires you to download a special application to view the content.)
  
• Internet Archive: Feature Films: This collection houses a number of classic public domain feature films and shorts.

New Video Search Site
Google has launched a new video search service, called 'Google Video Search'. The Google Video search service enables you to search a growing archive of televised content – everything from sports to dinosaur documentaries to news shows. (Note: requires you to download a special application to view the content.)

Google Earth - A 3D interface to the planet

I just downloaded Google Earth, and I have been using it for a little while this morning. It has been an absolute blast playing with it. If you're into maps, geography, or just playing with very cool applications, this is worth the download.

The bigger and more popular areas have more detailed pictures available. Although, if you live on rural farmland somewhere out in the middle of nowhere, then the high level detailed pictures of that area could be limited.

To download it, go to the following site. Note: this application does require a high speed Internet connection, fast computer, and a good video card.

Warning: In Five Seconds, This PC Will Self-Destruct (Article)

The Wall Street Journal reports: "Companies looking to protect sensitive data on stolen gadgets are taking a page from Hollywood, with hard drives that destroy themselves when picked up by a thief, software that remotely zaps documents from a desktop computer and technology that scrubs clean handheld devices when the wrong password is entered too many times."

It sad that technology has to come to this point, but it is the next generation of data security (physical data destruction). Hopefully this will prevent personal and private data from being stolen, when people lose or forget about their laptops. I think they're going to need to incorporate this technology into desktop hard drives as well.

The author of this article also points out a major problem with this technology, and that is its dependence on passwords. If the user forgets their password, they can accidentally activate the self-destruct technology. I believe this problem can be overcome with the use of biometric technology.

Lifestyle Drugs, Who Needs Them...

New Scientist recently published and article called 'This pill will make you smarter.' It talks about a new category of drugs called 'lifestyle drugs.' This is medication that is used to enhance your physical or mental performance.

Personally the idea of these types of drugs scares me, because of the long term social and biological effects that they can have on the body. I personally believe that as a society we need to learn that all things that come in pill form are not always good for us. How many miracle drugs have been pulled from the market, because they're too harmful.

What is Ajax, and Does it Matter?

For the last few months, I have been seeing a lot of different articles on the Internet about a technology called 'Ajax'. No, its not the stuff you use for cleaning your toilets. Ajax is a set of technologies that are being used together. The word Ajax is an acronym for 'Advanced Javascript And XML' or 'Asynchronous JavaScripting and XML'.

Ajax is composed of the following web technologies:

• HTML + CSS: displays the information in the browser.
  
• JavaScript: dynamically displays content, and allows the user to interact with it.
• XML + XSLT: Using the browsers XMLHttpRequest function data can be requested, sent, or changed on the Web server.

If you're not a Web application developer, most of these words and acronyms may not mean anything to you. Although, if you're like me, to understand a complex technology you need to see a good working example of it to really understand its full potential. Check out Google Maps. Search for a location, zoom-in on it, then click-and-drag on the map to see other parts of the map that are off the screen. The technology behind this marvel, is Ajax.

Now the question, does Ajax really matter? If you're a web developer, the answer is yes it does. If you're just a web surfer, the answer is still yes.

Ajax allows for the creation of interactive web applications that were not possible before without the use of some external plug-in technology like Flash, Java, etc. If you're just a web surfer, it means that you will be able to use feature rich applications without the use of external browser plug-ins.

To learn more about Ajax, check out a site called 'Ajax Matters'. This web site is one of the primary reference places for this technology.

Spectacular Mammatus Clouds (Hastings, Nebraska)

You have to check out these pictures (I hope this is real). These are Mammatus Clouds over Hastings, Nebraska. They're the weirdest clouds I have ever seen.

Miscellaneous Links

Videos

• Want to do some budget rocketeering? (WMV)
• Do those cement vehicle barriers really work? (WMV)
• Funny Aussie TV ad called MetalOldies. (WMV)

Weird Stuff

• Amazing things people painted people's hands.
• The Annals of Improbable Research did some funny postal experiments!
• Cause a disaster on your favorite website.

Introduction to Perpendicular Recording

Everyday I see more and more new hard drives being introduced that use 'Perpendicular Recording' to store data on the disk (for example see this article). Perpendicular Recording is a new method of storing more data on the disk then ever before.

If you want to know how this technology works, Hitachi Global Storage Technologies has released a great flash video that does a great job of explaining it. This video is designed for people who are not technical, it also makes the subject matter fun and easy to understand.

Star Wars - Revelations

If you like the fan film 'IMPS - The Relentless', then you might want to check out this film from Panic Struck Productions called Star Wars - Revelations.

Revelations is a independent film created by Star Wars fans on a low budget. The film is about 47-minutes, and it took three years to complete.

There are several ways to get and view the film, go to this page to see the download options.

AMD Details Early Quad-Core Plans

ExtremeTech reports: "Executives confirmed that the company plans to enhance its Opteron enterprise processor line to four cores in 2007, adding focused optimizations to manage power and improve throughput."

Wow, Quad-Core CPUs. I bet after this there will probably be eight-core CPUs, then sixteen core, and so on... This could start a whole new CPU revolution. Also check out the slide show that is included with the story, it contains a cornucopia of new buzzwords.

Classic Video Game Commercials

This site contains a huge collection of classic video game commercials, including ones from: Atari, Nintendo, Sega, and more. I personally have an interest in computer history, and this is a great trip back into the video game part of that history.

Build your own MythTV box

Kevin Rose and Dan Huard former members of the 'The Screen Savers', have started a new site/show called 'Systm'. So far the theme of the show has been hardware hacking. Its not the criminal activity type of hacking, but modifying hardware devices to do something more or different from what it was originally designed to perform.

In episode #2 of their show Systm, they demonstrate how to build a MythTV box. I have been wanting to put one of these to together for a few weeks now, I just have to make the time. Now that I have seen their show, I am sure that they have saved me several hours of time trying to customize my configuration.

Note: You will need BitTorrent to download the show.

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Infocom Adventure)

Here is a blast to the past... Play the original text adventure game for 'The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy'. It's great fun, but its requires a Java-based browser to play.

To access the game go to the web site. Go to the bottom of the screen, type "851108" and press the the OK button.

If your browser supports Java, it will load within your browser. Then read the page for the basic instructions on how to play the game.

Speakwire RSS newsfeeds

Speakwire is a interesting web site that reads RSS newsfeeds to you with the PanaVox Speak Perfect Speech Technology. The voice is clear, although it has a British type accent.

To use this application, pick a newsfeed category and then pick the feed you want to listen to. Press the Start button to listen to the newsfeed.

Windows Command Line to be overhauled

Tom's Hardware Guide reports: "Orlando (FL) - The command line interface to the Windows Server OS will be changed to the new Monad Shell (MSH), in a phased implementation to take place over the next three to five years. This confirmation comes from Microsoft senior vice president Bob Muglia in an interview published today by Microsoft."

This is good and bad new for scripters, and CLI gurus. Read the article to get all the news.

I hope that you will still be able to perform more powerful system functions as they upgrade this component. I would hate to see this functionality be taken away.

The Alternative Digital Media Landscape

Blogs, Podcasts, BitTorrent and Peer-to-Peer (P2P) technologies, are taking on traditional media (such as: newspaper, radio, and TV) and at least making them pay attention to the potential of the technology. Blogs now allow the average person a forum to express their views and opinions. Podcasts allow the average person the ability to create and host their own radio show without a log of expensive hardware. BitTorrent and other P2P technologies allows the distribution of large files without the need for a central server to host and distribute them.

All these technologies empower people, and all these technologies have good and bad purposes. They empower the people by giving them an equal voice in the world of electronic publishing. They also, can and will be abused by performing tasks they were not intentionally created for.

For example, a hammer is a good demonstration of a technology that can be used for good or bad purposes. The hammer can be used to build houses, or kill if misused. P2P technologies is a great technology for distributing large files at a low cost, but it can be used to share copyrighted content as well. If the MPAA and RIAA had their way, this technology would be taken off the Internet and destroyed forever.

The problem here is just because a technology can be used for wrong, doesn't mean that the whole technology is evil. So you don't need to throw the baby out with the bath water, but this is what the RIAA and MPAA want. If they can't control how the content is used, then they don't want anyone too.

Problems with the Status Quo
Here is the problem, all of these technologies exist as separate software application that have to be installed and configured separately only to somewhat work together. Personally, I would like to have one application that does it all for me.

I also believe a lot of people miss out on these technologies because they don't understand how to install, configure, or use them. If you want something to succeed, then it has to be simple to use, non-proprietary and open so that anyone can expand it. I believe that most new consumer products fail because they use proprietary technologies, this formula doesn't work any more (maybe with the exception of the iPod).

All of these technologies could grow by leaps and bounds if they were all integrated together, because it would open them up to more people. Personally I would like to see the cable industry go obsolete, and I would like to watch and record all my audio and video content on my desktop or laptop computer.

Internet Digital Media Browser
Personally what I would like to see is a new type of digital media become available, that is solely based on existing concepts and technologies. For lack of a better name, I will call it the 'Internet Digital Media Browser' (IDMB). I envision this as an application that integrates the best of all technologies, such as: web browsing; watching, listening, and recording (time-shifting) digital media off the Internet; P2P file sharing, and an RSS reader.

Imagine only to have to launch one application to perform all these tasks. I would personally like to see IDMB, as a decentralized P2P client for hosting of audio/video media that can be watched live or recorded for later viewing. All without the need to have one organization, or company controlling the technology or the media that is available. IDMB could use a BitTorrent infrastructure, to make this live media available to everyone.

This would open up a new market for independent media producers to distribute their content. Imagine all the content that people could distribute, but have no medium to distribute it. By utilizing the P2P client file sharing abilities, these media producers will not have to pay for expensive file hosting infrastructure for people to see their content. People watching the media in the IDMB will make it available to others by sharing their bandwidth.

Although, there will still be the problem of different formats for handling all the different types of audio/video digital media that is available. There eventually will be a need for Digital Rights Management (DRM). But all these issues can be addressed by plug-in technologies.

Is the Mac Safe from Virus?

This article made me mad, "MacDailyNews has an editorial which summarizes reports from various research groups that analyzed the number of computer users affected by viruses. The conclusion was that 16 percent of all computer users are not affected by viruses because they use Macs."

There is an old joke about if builders built building the way programmers write programs the world would be destroyed by the first woodpecker that came a long. I believe the Mac platform is very vulnerable to a virus right now, mainly because Mac users believe that they're so safe. Just because you think you're safe doesn't mean you are!

I believe that someday soon, there will be a lot of unhappy Mac users when some virus writer gets around to writing something (I hope this never does happen, but it always does). Virus writers are pretty predictable, they always go after the biggest targets, and right now that's Microsoft. Once the Mac user base gets large enough, the virus writers will attack them as well.

A good example is of this is Firefox. When it was introduced it was pronounced more secure then IE. Then a few months after its release, people started finding all sorts of big gapping holes in it.

There is no such thing as a perfect security technology, and the best thing that we can do is educate users about how to protect themselves online. If people stopped practicing unsafe computer habits (such as opening email attachment, and giving out there personal) there would be a lot less infected computers in the world.

Triumph vs Star Wars Geeks (Video)

Triumph the insult comic dog takes on Star Wars geeks waiting to see Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones. In Windows video format. (This is one of the funniest things you will see on the Net.)

Russia rattles sabre over space weapons (Article)

The Register report: "Russia has warned that it will take 'adequate retaliatory measures' against any deployment of space-based weapons. Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov used a trip to the Baikonur facility in Kazakhstan - celebrating its 50th birthday - to indulge in a bit of sabre rattling against Moscow's old adversary the US."

Welcome to Star Wars v2.0 (no, I am not referring to the movie)! Do you remember all the Star Wars initiatives back in the 80s (aka 'Strategic Defense Initiative')? It is believed the Star Wars programs only existed to scare the Russians, and was fundamental in ending the Cold War. Well, I looks like Star Wars initiatives are going to be starting all over again.

Wired News: Biomass Adds to Ethanol Debate

Wired News reports: "Federal subsidies have made growing corn for ethanol a profitable venture for Corn Belt farmers while irking free-market advocates. Now, new technology for processing biomass from widely available plant and tree residue could increase Beltway bickering over ethanol funding."

With gas prices as high as they are, I have been trying to keep a close key on different alternative fuel technologies coming into style. This is one of the newest ones that I have seen.

Our petroleum fuel reserves are not going to last us forever, so the sooner we find an alternative the better. Some experts estimate our supply of petroleum fuel will only have a few decades more.

Psychic Mind Reader (Fun)

This is a Flash-based Mind Reader Game that will amaze your friends. It is pretty accurate as far as guessing correctly, I think we are all too predictable (or maybe its just me).

If you most know the answer on this mind reader works, Adrian Ziemkowski published an article entitled 'Psychic Mind Reader Demystified' that explain how the game works.

Get a GMail Account, Without an Invite

Google has updated their 'Google Accounts' page some time ago, this time with an interesting feature. When you subscribe for a Google Account, which entitles you to the use of Google Alerts, Froogle Shopping List, Google Groups, My Search History, and most of all GMail.

Now you don't have to wait to get an invite for a GMail account.

IMPS The Relentless: Chapter 1, Now Available (Video)

Several years ago a Star Wars parody video hit the Internet by storm called 'TROOPS'. It portrayed the life of Storm Troopers in a 'Cops' like parody on the desert planet where Luke Skywalker grew up.

If you have not already seen the video TROOPS (download it here), then you should watch it. This video is incredibly funny and very well done, its worth the download.

Now there is 'IMPS - The Relentless: Chapter 1', this project was formerly known as 'TROOPS 2', is now available for download. IMPS is a Star Wars fan project that has been in the making for 6 years by the people who created the original TROOPS video.

IMPS is no longer a specific parody like the TROOPS video, but is more akin to a Discovery Channel documentary of a US Navy Aircraft Carrier. The story is the life and missions of the crew aboard the Imperial Heavy Carrier the 'Relentless.'

Note: In case your wondering what IMPS stands for, its 'Imperial Military Personnel Stories'.

Attack of the Drones (Article)

We can send machines kill people or destroy just about any target we want anywhere in world without risking harm to our own people. Then we can send more machines to verify that the target was properly destroyed.

A new modern age of warfare that almost sounds like science fiction is now reality. Check out this article for more information.

Flight Training Video with Floating Dog

This is one of the funniest videos that I have seen in a little while (this video is real). Don't pay attention to the two guy in the front you have watch for the floating dog in the background.

HD Xbox Game Trailers (Video)

View Xbox 360 game trailers in high definition. Warning these files are very large.

Kiss your old SSN goodbye (Article)

Tech News on ZDNet reports: "Politicians are starting to realize that permitting data brokers like Acxiom and ChoicePoint to buy and sell your Social Security number like a raffle ticket may not be that wise after all."

Identity theft is a growing problem, and it's exacerbated in the U.S. by the evolution of the social security number - originally intended only for keeping records of government retirement accounts and not for identification - into a defacto national I.D. number. Now there are legislative movements afoot to return the SSN to its original use and prevent it from being used by other government agencies, schools and private companies to identify individuals.

Anti-Chain Letter Message (Flash)

If someone you know sends you one of those annoying chain letter messages, send them a copy of this link. It points to a flash file that will open up in their browser, that will deliver a great message to them. Hopefully, they will get the point or a clue.

Its also fun to watch if you have never seen it before. I saw this a few years ago and its still fun to watch.

Ghost in the Maze (Computer Prank)

This flash-based game looks like just about every other flash-based game out there, but it has a surprise inside.

Warning: Do not let young children play this game, unless you want to be paying their therapy bills for years to come.

Web Ransom Notes

Here is a web application that can generate 'Web ransom note' (aka Web of Letters). Its built with the Yahoo API. All you have to do is enter the text of your message, and the application builds your ransom note with images of letters found in Yahoo's search.

Visible Human Browser

View the insides of a dissected human female body (it sounds sick, but its science), but its is really interesting move through the different slices. (Note: if you have a weak stomach, you may want to avoid this site.)

Swearsaurus (Mature Content)

It seems the first thing that we all want to learn when we are learning a new language are the cuss words. For this reason, I am providing a link to the 'Swearsaurus'. Here is an excerpt from the site: "Learn how to insult, swear, cuss, and curse in 165 languages! "

All in the name of cultural diversity!

Warning: This site does contain mature content that is not appropriate for children.

FAA: Space billboards don't fly (Article)

CNET News.com reports "The United States government does not want billboards in space."

This is litteraly a law that exists before the problem is created. Can you say 'putting the cart before the horse'

Miscellaneous Internet Links

Here are some miscellaneous links that I found on the Internet today that I thought I would post.

• Music Video: 'I am Nerd' Its a nerd singing in a Stormtrooper suit. I call this video the 'The Nerd National Anthem', were 'Geeks and were Proud'.
• Commercial: 'Spicy Paris', this commercial is another one of those viral marketing videos that I think is too sexy for TV (NC-14).

'BOTS Roomba Repurposed (Article)

Newsweek reports: "The sequel to the successful Roomba—1.2 million sold, the most ever for a home robot—will stick a little closer to familiar territory: it's an automated mop called Scooba, which looks and sounds like the Roomba but wets, washes and dries floors."

One of these days I will buy myself a Roomba, but now I also want the new Roomba Mop (Scooba). I think it would be awesome to have my little robot minions running around the house performing my menial tasks while I sit on the coach, watch TV, and surf the Net.

To be honest, I bet they're more trouble then they're worth, but the coolness factor is hard to ignore.

Hot chips chilled with liquid metal (Article)

New Scientist reports: "Piping hot processors could be cooled more efficiently and quietly using liquid metal instead of using fans to blow away the heat, says a Texan company which has developed such a system."

This is a real 'cool' technology, it replaces the older less efficient heat sinks, fans, and other forms of liquid cooling. If you want more information on this subject, here is a more detailed article.

Best Tips For Finding a Job on the Internet

Are you currently out of work and looking for a job or just looking for a new job? Well, I don't recommend using Monster.com. All you will get is the occasional call from a contracting company wanting to hire you for a short-term job that pays you next to nothing or some company trying to get you to sell insurance and other financial products.

If you find a job at Monster.com that you want and submit your resume, you will never hear back from the hiring company. If you do hear back from them, then you're really lucky.

Here is some advice for finding a new job:

• This is the most obvious, create an up-to-date professional looking resume and cover letter. Have several people review it, and use their suggestions to improve it. Make sure that your resume is loaded with relevant keywords that are related to the job you're looking for. This will help you later as companies look through their resume database looking for possible candidate.
  
• Tell all your family, friends, associates, and strangers that you're currently looking for a job. Also be prepared to tell them the type of job you're looking for in clear and understandable terms. You should prepare an 'elevator speech', that describes what you do and what you're looking for in under 30 seconds.
  
• Submit your resume directly to companies web sites if they allow you to, you will have a much better chance at getting a job that way.
• If you have to use a job search engine, use the small niche based web sites, such as Dice.com. Employers generally don't get overwhelmed by resumes from these sites.
  

I recently found a great job search engine called 'Indeed', it is like the Google of job search engines. It allows to search for jobs from over 500 job sites, newspapers, associations and company career pages.

As a bonus, here are some interview tips. Note, some of these are going to be obvious but I have meet several people who need this clue:

• Dress as professionally as you possiable can, as the old saying goes 'you only get one first impression'. The first impression will make you or break you.
  
• Know how to get to where you're going to be interviewing before the interview date, don't assume you know where it is you will probably be wrong. I generally drive to the interview location a few days ahead of so I know how to get there before the interview date.
• Leave in enough time to get to the interview early, also be prepared with extra copies of your resume. Don't forget to bring a pen with you, you will be filling out a lot of paper work.
  
• Turn off your cellphone during the interview process. I don't feel I need to explain why.
• Make sure that you know something about the the job you're interviewing for, and the company you're interviewing at. You can generally find this information on the company web site.
  
• Keep your opinions to yourself, and only speak when spoken to. This will help you from sticking your foot in your mouth at a critical time.
• Be confident in what you know, and who you are. You're selling yourself during this process. Above all do not be cocky or lie, this will only ruin your chances of getting the job later during the selection process.
• Don't be afraid to ask the interviewer questions about the job, but keep the questions relevant to the topic at hand if possible.
• Be prepared to answer personal questions about yourself, and what you have done in your last job. I always hate questions like, "Give examples of ideas that you had or that you implemented."
• Finally, there is always the questions about salary, try to save these questions for the end of the interview if possible. I realize that how much money you're going to be paid for the services you provide is going to be important, but do not make it your first priority. Also know how much you have to make in order to survive, you might get into some type of salary negotiation and you don't want to under cut yourself. Be careful not to price yourself out of the job, if you request too much money the company will sometimes go with the candidate that will take less money.
• Bonus: Try to send a thank you letter to all the people who interviewed you; this can only work to your favor. To the interviewer's contact information. ask for their business card.

Other Job Interviewing Resources:
I know I trashed Monster.com at the beginning of this post, but you should check out their Interview Center. This site has some good information and tools, a great tool is called 'Random Question Generator'. This question generator asks you real life questions that you might actually get during an interview. There is another great tool on the site to get salary information (the basic information is free).

Here are some more resource sites that you should check out:

• Yahoo HotJob - Career Tools
• CareerBuilder.com - Career Advice

(Note: As I get more information, questions, and feedback about this post, I plan to update it over the next few days so you might want to check back again for more information).

BBC Motion Gallery

This is an incredible web site, where you can find and access thousands of different types of video clips from the BBC and CBS News. The library spans over 70 years of BBC content, and encompasses more than 300,000 hours of footage.

The only other source of this type of video footage that is publicly available, is Archive.org. They also have an amazing collection of different types of videos.

The Sith Sense

Darth Vader challenges you to a game of twenty questions (more or less), he will use the darkside to guess what you're thinking of. It is a fun viral marketing site produced promotion for Burger King.

Personalize Google's Home Page

Google now allows you to personalize their home page. You can now add news feeds from several different services (such as BBC News, SlashDot, etc.), you can also add other information like weather, stock quotes and more. It is not as comprehensive as my.yahoo.com, but its Google so it has to be cool (I say this jokingly).

I hope Google will expand its content; if it is going to compete with Yahoo it will have to. The personalization feature will also be important for Google to begin to tying all of its services together more cohesively.

Google Inc. Factory Tour

If you're a fan of Google, then you should view the Google Factory Tour web cast. It will introduce you to new technologies and services that Google has released, and is going to be release in the near future. On this web page, you will find some pictures of their new personalization services like Google Personalized Homepage (it kinds of looks like a ripoff of the 'My Yahoo', forgive me Google).

Online Information Sellers: How to Opt Out

Protect your privacy, learn how you might be able to remove your personal information from public online databases that people can use to find out information about you. There are many websites that sell or provide for free, personal information about individuals. This information is gathered from many sources including white pages listings (directory assistance), publicly-available sources and public records.

For example checkout ZabaSearch.com, you can quickly find your (and other people's) current address and phone number within a few seconds. Scary...

PlayStation 3 vs. Xbox 360: Tech Head-to-Head (Article)

This is a great article if you want to see a head-to-head specification comparison of the two consoles. When you look at the specifications at the bottom of the page, they both look like their going to be powerful consoles. But what is going to really make one console better then the next is the available games. The console with the best games will win.

X-Rays of Stuff Kids Swallow (Weird Stuff)

Hospital X-rays showing open safety pins, forks, batteries and in one instance, a magnetic toy that reconnected in a child's stomach, often amaze doctors over what children are able to swallow, according to a Local 6 News report. This X-ray shows a car key swallowed by a child.

Note: It is a little unnerving if you're a parent.

Xbox 360 Specs

There is some awesome hardware in the new Xbox 360. It is expected to be shipping about December 2006, and sell for $300-$400 (I can hear the parents yelling 'ouch' out there). It is expect that Microsoft is going to take a lose on the hardware again like it did with the original XBox to increase sales of the hardware and make the real money on the games.

Here are some of the hardware specifications:

• 20GB hard drive, that is detachable and upgradeable. (Original Xbox only had an 8GB non-removable hard drive.)
• (3) dual-core CPUs running at 3.2GHz each (these CPUs are water cooled). (Original Xbox only had one 733 MHz CPU).
• 512MB of RAM (Original Xbox only had 64MB of RAM).
• (3) USB ports and (2) memory cards slots (each memory card can hold 64MB). (Original Xbox only had none of these ports) The memory cards can be used to used to save your games to play them on other people's consoles.
• Built-in extender for Windows XP Media Center. It can also play CDs and DVDs and supports HD.
• Support up to four wireless controllers.
• Removable front faceplate.

See the following web site for more XBox 360 specs.

Flying Snakes, What the ...! (Video)

I live in an area where we have some of the most dangerous snakes in the US, when you're out in the woods you learn watch where you're going and stepping, because you wouldn't want to step on a Copperhead or Cottonmouth. I just learned about a new snake today, it is called 'Chrysopelea', also known as the 'Flying Tree Snake'.

This snake doesn't really fly, but glides from tree to tree. I am thankful, that these snakes are not in my area, they're indigenous to South and Southeast Asia. I could not find an accurate reference to find out if they're venomous.

This web page has some great videos, that show how it jumps. It is really amazing to watch these snakes in action.

Xbox 360 Video

This video has the best information that I have seen on the new Xbox 360. The video talks about the potential, and the technological features of the gaming console.

Centrifugal weapon could deliver stealth firepower (Article)

There is a promotional video on the web page that talks about the features, capabilities of the weapon. It is a pretty amazing device if it works that way it says. This isn't your dad's BB gun.

Weather balloon or UFO you decide

Google Maps has an interesting anomaly in one of their photographs maps. To be honest it look like the top of a rounded bolt, or maybe a dense cloud, but it can also look like a flying disk (aka UFO). I am not sure what to make of it, you can draw your own conclusions.

I would have never have posted this if I found it on another site, but its Google and there it is there. Personally I don't believe in aliens, but I do believe that there are flying objects that we can't explain (be it weather balloons, new aircraft, or whatever else). I know this sounds like a contradiction, but before I can belief in 'intelligent life' outside our own planet I would like to see proof. So far the only proof that science has produced of life on other planets is microbial.

Now this is a monitor...

9X Media is offering their 'X-Top Modular mult-screen display' in 5x5 configuration. Imagine playing racing game or flight simulator on this. The price for these monster displays start at $16,400.

Note: I hope this is not a joke, I have seen promotion like this in the past only to find out it was fake.

Checkout the Latest Firefox Videos

Here are the latest Firefox videos, they're interesting to say the least.

End of the Game Industry?

I am not a big fan of John C. Dvorak's column, but I believe his basic prediction that the game industry could collapse may be true. Like any industry that gets too big, it eventually out grows it market. I saw video came industry collapse in the late 80's, I also saw the same thing happen to the Internet industry in 2001.

How To Build A Stormtrooper Costume

You, the fan, know you've wanted a Stormtrooper armor since the first time you saw them on the big screen at your local Movie Theater. You've swooned over them ever since and untill now had no idea how to get your hands on one. Well my freinds, it's time you learned how to use those hands and brains, and built something.

IE 7.0 Alpha Revealed?

Flexbeta.net reports: "According to a screenshot making its rounds on some forums, Microsoft's answer to Mozilla's Firefox, Internet Explorer 7, might be in its alpha stage."

BSOD upgrades to RSOD in Longhorn

Get ready to add a new term to your computer vocabulary. Joi Ito's blog reports: "Microsoft Longhorn has upgraded from the 'Blue Screen of Death' to the 'Red Screen of Death'."

Buzz Grows for Microsoft's Mobile 'Magneto' (Article)

Microsoft is getting ready to announce 'Windows Mobile 2005', it specifications sounds really cool (read the article for more information). The GUI is suppose to be totally resigned. The press is calling it a 'BlackBerry Killer'.

Design your own keyboard...

This device allows you literally allows you to move or change the keys on the keyboard to any configuration you want.

The Pepsi-G Stove

This is a neat project for making a mini stove from a Pepsi can.

Court Nixes 'Broadcast Flag' (Article)

Wired News reports: "In a blow to the entertainment industry, a federal appeals court on Friday found that federal regulators overstepped their authority by requiring consumer-electronics manufacturers to help restrict digital home recording."

The digital 'broadcast-flag', is a technology mandated by the FCC designed to prevent digital equipment from recording certian shows and movies when the flag is enabled. The content providers had to choice to enable or disable the flag to allow the recording of the show.

How Lightsabers Work

Have you always wanted to know how lightsabers work? Howstuffworks has the most to update article on the technology, and includes many practical uses for the technology :-).

Star Wars Episode III Spoiler with Pictures

A nearly complete Star Wars Episode III spoiler with pictures.

Is Email Worst For You Then Marijuana?

From the May 5, 2005 edition the Wired newsletter: "Remember Reefer Madness, the 1936 anti-pot propaganda flick that warned of marijuana's ability to wreck lives? It might be time for The Evils of E-Mail: A new study claims that addiction to electronic messages is twice as harmful to the intellect as smoking dope. "This is a very real and widespread phenomenon," said Glenn Wilson, a psychiatrist at a British university who measured a 10-point drop in the IQs of people who juggled e-mail throughout the workday. "We have found that this obsession with looking at messages, if unchecked, will damage a worker's performance by reducing their mental sharpness." Getting high shaves a mere four points off a dope fiend's IQ (although nobody's recommending doing bong hits in the company kitchenette)."

Scott Pakin's automatic complaint-letter generator

Automatically generate a complaint-letter about a: person, company, organization. This is a great fun for the first time you use it, after that it starts to get real boring.

South Park Character Generator

This is an awesome flash application, it allows you build existing and new South Park characters.

What is Grafedia?

Grafedia seems to be a new Internet trend, I wonder what is going to happen to it. If you don't know what Grafedia, here is an except from the site: "Grafedia is hyperlinked text, written by hand onto physical surfaces and linking to rich media content - images, video, sound files, and so forth. It can be written anywhere - on walls, in the streets, or on sidewalks. Grafedia can also be written in letters or postcards, on the body as tattoos, or anywhere you feel like putting it. Viewers 'click' on these grafedia hyperlinks with their cell phones by sending a message addressed to the word '@grafedia.net' to get the content behind the link."

Microsoft Adds a New Wrinkle to 'Genuine Advantage' Initiative (Article)

Microsoft Watch reports: "Microsoft is offering Windows Professional users a new incentive to turn in those selling allegedly counterfeit product: A free replacement copy (with a few strings attached)."

The catch is that you have to identify where you got the disks and provide the receipt. Read the article for more information.

Ethanol Grows as Gas Alternative

Wired News: "Workers are clearing Iowa fields, hoping that if they build it, cars will come. The "it" is a processing plant that turns corn into ethanol, a fuel that is increasingly replacing gasoline today and may help to power the fuel-cell vehicles of tomorrow."

Could ethanol replace our dependence on petroleum? Only time will tell...

Revelation! 666 is not the number of the beast (it's a devilish 616)

The Independent reports: "A newly discovered fragment of the oldest surviving copy of the New Testament indicates that, as far as the Antichrist goes, theologians, scholars, heavy metal groups, and television evangelists have got the wrong number. Instead of 666, it's actually the far less ominous 616."

This is a funny article, the last paragraph is the most hysterical. It also has humorous implications for people who have tattooed this number onto their skin.

Seeking the real Antonia Bayle

CNet reports: "Sony Online Entertainment has announced a real-life quest for a woman who looks like eye-catching 'Everquest II' heroine Antonia Bayle, Queen of Qeynos."

This is kind of strange virtual meets reality situation. They develop a computer character, then try to find a woman that matches what she looks like.

Windows x64 Lacks Major Anti-Virus Coverage

eWeek reports: "Customers testing the newly released Windows XP Professional x64 Edition have been getting startling error messages that anti-virus protection from at least two vendors—Symantec and McAfee—is not yet available."

You might want to follow the general I.T. rule of thumb with any new Windows OS. You generally have to wait a few months before load it, so Microsoft can address the most dangerous bugs.

CineCopia - Online DVD's Trading Service

CineCopia is an interesting idea, its an online DVD trading service. It works by allowing you and others to contribute and make DVDs part of a national searchable database. Members can search the database and request movies that they want to view by clicking on the title on the CineCopia web site. Cinecopia then will generate an e-mail requesting the owner to send the DVD to the requester. Then they will provide a pre-paid envelope to the owner to ship the DVD to the requester.

This is not a free service it costs about .99 cents per request, but it could prove to be cheaper (or more expensive) then the alternatives. The nice thing is that there are no monthly service fees.

Although, I see some possible problems with the whole online DVD trading concept:
- The condition of the DVDs that you receive. DVDs are not the most durable medium, so as they're shipped around they're going to get scratched. Eventually they will become un-playable.
- The quality and quantity of the movie titles made available. If people are going to be making these movies available, then they're probably not going to be the best selections. They're probably going to be duds of their collection. Although, I could be wrong, this is just what I assume about human nature.

For more information about the service check the FAQ page. To see the title in their database, check out this page.

amaztype (seeing is understanding)

It is an interesting web site, that uses images from amazon products to create letters. It is more interesting then my description.

Star Wars Episode III Website (w/Trailers)

This is a cool Star Wars site, it has a music video called 'A Hero Falls', it also has some great picture and movie trailers for Episode III.