Karlo.Org - Weblog

I've been playing around with an Xbox 360 for a few weeks -- if you have an HD television, it's definitely worth checking out. The graphics and interface on a 720p TV are amazing (I haven't seen it on a 1080i, but I can only assume it's just as good if not better.) Kudos to Microsoft for the full wireless controller support -- with the couch now farther from the TV than ever in most homes, it's about time. Support for Internet play is also great -- although the initial batch of games are probably not utilizing the system to its fullest, nor do they offer the quality of design for online play seen in say, Halo 2.

However, if you're not using a large-screen HD television, it's probably not worth upgrading quite yet; my guess is that on an s-video connection, the marginal gain in quality is probably not worth the money. With the price of 42" HD televisions dropping 30% or more each year, it's time to upgrade the display if you haven't already.

Posted by Tom at 1:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Posted by Tom at 7:24 PM | Permalink

Cryptonomicon author Neal Stephenson's essay for the NYT links the final trilogy episode with our somewhat strained relationship to high tech.

"Nothing is more seductive than to think that we, like the Jedi, could be masters of the most advanced technologies while living simple lives: to have a geek standard of living and spend our copious leisure time vegging out."

Although he links it to the very first episodes, thirty-odd years ago, I'd argue that the societal issues he's pointing to are really recent -- and probably go hand-in-hand with the increasing presence of computers in daily life rather than any other technology. It's not that the technology is so high tech -- nobody stress over the tech in their airplane or cell phone -- it's that the interface is often so bad. The experience most of us have with technology is not improving as fast as our need to utilize it.

Posted by Tom at 10:28 AM | Permalink

There are some industry analysts claiming that a price war is breaking out in the market for plasma and LCD-based "thin" televisions. I'm not sure this is really a "price war" or simply the start of some real competition.

A lot of consumer electronics suffer from deliberate price-inflation during the first few years, as manufacturers try to extra higher margins from consumers willing to pay a premium for new products. Take DVD players -- the first 3 years they were out, they ran $300 or more, but they've now dropped to sub-$100 now that everyone willing to pay more than that has already bought one. The price hasn't dropped because of a price war, or because it's gotten much cheaper to build them (and it's not a volume issue either.) It's gotten lower because there aren't people out there willing to pay $300 for one any more, so to maintain volume you have to lower the price.

LCD/plasma televisions are almost certainly about to start on that same downwards road. They've largely saturated company conference rooms, fancy sports bars and that one guy you know who is willing to spend $6000 on his television (and Ian, I don't say that to knock you.)

I was at Circuit City in Union Square on Thursday buying a Tivo 2 (far and away my favorite consumer electronics product, having owned a Tivo 1 for years.) I noticed they're now doing something very smart -- offering free wall installation for people who buy plasma televisions. I'm glad they figured out this has been a major question for people considering buying one.

Given how valuable New York real estate is, Manhattan should be the best market in the world for a television that takes up no floor space at all. I know I'm going to be in the market for one, probably within a year.

Posted by at 4:11 PM | Permalink

If you're one of the many people in the market for a combination PDA/Cell phone, details leaked yesterday about the upcoming Treo 600 from Handspring (which is now part of Palm). It'll hit the market in September/October. Given that the leak was done by the head of Handspring during the press conference announcing the merger, I'm fairly sure it was intentional. This "leak" follows the announcement earlier this week of the Blackberry 7230, the first color Blackberry unit.

Posted by at 8:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

The New York Times has an article covering recent discussions that perhaps technology as an industry (an amazingly broad generalization of a very homogenous group) has become just another commoditized factor of production. Apparently, the Harvard Business Review published an article arguing just that:

"That assumption about technology's special role is questioned in a provocative article this month in The Harvard Business Review, titled 'IT Doesn't Matter.' The article asserts that information technology, or I.T. for short, is inevitably headed in the same direction as the railroads, the telegraph, electricity and the internal combustion engine — becoming, in economic terms, just ordinary factors of production, or 'commodity inputs.'"

Putting aside the absurd extension from the bsiness tools of IT to the whole of the technology business, I think this assessment ignores the major difference between tech and those products -- with some exceptions, technology is based on leveraging and multiplying intellectual property, rather than changing the physical world or overcoming its limitations (geography, etc.) in the way that previous technologies did. Once software is written, it can scale and be reused infinitely, without cost (assuming it remains useful.) That's a fairly fundamental violation of the basic tenet of economics that resources are limited, and it's a major reason why technology will continue to have an outsized impact on the way we live, and do business.

The reality, post-bubble, is that the people who are serious are still in the field, still trying to build new companies. They were there before the bubble and they'll be there for the rest of their lives. Last night I had drinks with a bunch of guys I worked with at my last tech startup, iKena. They're all still in the industry, several of them at KubiSoft, which has recently released a great add-on groupware client for Outlook that is being tested by a good number of large companies.

Meanwhile, the free-riders and quick-buck artists have moved on to new hunting grounds, leaving the industry better able to concentrate on the business of developing new tech.

[Via Techdirt]

Posted by at 9:11 AM | Permalink

I don't usually write about viruses here, but I've gotten no less than 3 phone calls about the email going around telling people to delete the file JDBGMGR.exe with the teddy bear icon from their computer and pass the warning onto everyone in their email address book. The thing is causing a lot of people to waste each other's time, so here's my public service announcement for the year.

It's a hoax, folks. A social virus, so to speak, that is designed to get people to spread it rather than computers. The 21st-century version of good old chain mail.

If you don't believe me, go check the Symantec Security Response article on the email hoax. (It's over a year old, so I guess it's just random chance that everyone's seeing it now.) I recommend checking Symantec's library whenever you get an email telling you to do something because of a virus. Don't assume that the person who sent it to your researched it. All three of the people who talked to me are intelligent, and comfortable with computers, but the real problem was that for some reason when it came to this email, their fear of inaction outweighed their natural skepticism.

Posted by at 9:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (6)

HP is finally going to update the 12C Financial Calculator, long the workhorse of business students... I just spent a whole year carrying one, and I remember my uncle using one when he went to business school a decade ago.

It's about damn time, frankly. Calculating a bond yield with the 12C can leave you waiting 15-20 seconds, even when it's so simple a calculation you could do it on paper in that time.

The Businessweek article is a bit, well, silly. "What accounts for such amazing longevity in an industry where product lifetimes are typically measured in months? ...The answer is that it does one job both inexpensively and exceptionally well."

Um, the thing costs about $70, ludicrous considering that you can buy a refurbished Palm Zire and HP12C simulator software for about $90. Yes, it's built like a tank - but it also has 1970's technology on the inside. If I had to guess, the internal electronics probably aren't more complex than a $15 scientific calculator.

The real reason it's lasted so long? I'd say because it's such an unbelievable pain in the ass to use. Once you've spent the time learning it, you have a vested interest in keeping in it around. Reverse Polish Notation, anyone? The owner's manual is a hefty 216 pages -- and you'd better carry it if you want to do more than algebra.

The reality is that the HP12C is like a secret society decoder badge. Bankers and other finance people carry it because it's such an effort to learn, that nobody else would use it. Much like audiophiles who still own a tuner, carrying the 12C shows you're a tough guy who doesn't need newfangled stuff.

Don't get me wrong: this is my second HP calculator and I love them both. They're built like tanks and they always work. But it's way, way overdue that HP updates this relic to catch up to the evolution of electronics.

Unfortunately, the update is little more than cosmetic. They're going to change the entry method (perhaps the end of RPN) and increase battery life. I think they're missing a major chance to improve a 20-year old design -- the simple addition of a multi-line display, or dot-matrix display (instead of fixed digits) would be a huge improvement in the device's utility.

[Via Gizmodo and Rodent Regatta]

Posted by at 6:36 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (3)

Howard Reingold, noted futurist (and author of Smart Mobs) gave the keynote at this year's O'Reilly conference, arguing that the freedom to technological innovation by individuals is under attack.

Rheingold warned that attempts to stifle innovation would have dire consequences. He reminded the audience that Unix, the Internet and the Web were all open systems built collectively, by collaborating parties. If the government or big corporations had been charged with building the Web, they'd still be struggling with it in our grandchildren's lifetimes, he said.

Companies in general benefit greatly from individual innovations in technology, but often forget this fact and seek to squelch that innovation in order to protect intellectual property or market dominance. Like many folks my age, I learned to use computers by playing around with them for years, poking under the hood and listening to the ideas of other tinkerers. If the tech companies and media groups manage to "weld the hood shut" on computers and consumer electronics, it will be at tremendous cost to the intellectual energy devoted to moving technology forward, and innovating beyond immediate commercial needs.

Posted by at 4:31 PM | Permalink

The Washington Post reported yesterday that mobile phone companies, in particular Verizon, are fighting number portability, which will allow US cell phone subscribers to keep their number when switching providers.

Europeans have had this for a long time, and were were supposed to get it on this side of "the pond" over a year ago, but it's been pushed back once already due to industry lobbying. Obviously, it would radically change the US cell phone industry, removing the last major barrier to switching providers (aside from onerus one-year contracts some folks have.) Cell phone companies already lose up to 30% of subscribers each year (their "churn rate"). This would probably also mean the end of those "free phone for subscribing" promotions we see now, perhaps in favor of lower actual rates.

There will probably also be industry consolidation, with number portability accelerating process. Industry watchers estimate that the 6 or so major cell phone providers will drop to 3 in the next year or two, bringing their cost structures more in line with providers in other countries. That's fine with me... I'm tired of every other ad on television featuring the Sprint guy or Catherine Zeta Jones.

One detail in this story I wasn't previously aware of: the rule would allow you to take a land-line phone number and have it pointed to a cellular phone.

Posted by at 9:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (2)

In his book The Invisible Machine, Donald Norman argued that computing technology must follow the same evolution as phonographs, cars and wristwatches -- away from expanding feature complexity and towards consumer values like style, form and personalization. Alienware, which has built itself a tremendous niche market in an industry overshadowed by the mighty Dell by catering to gamers, has the new case design show at left. It reminds me of some exotic car detailing, and it's definitely an indicator that what's motivating purchases is changing.

Posted by at 10:25 PM | Permalink

Bless my techie (yet security-naive, or security-indifferent) neighbor whose wireless internet drifts into my apartment from one of the hundreds of windows visible from my apartment in lower Manhattan. They save me the need to turn on my modem for the occasional home email check or weblog post. It's a tenuous connection so I can't download anything bigger than a web page, but it's still far more convinient than dialup.

These "serendipitous" connections are oh so common in Manhattan now. They were also all over in Boston (often a more tech-saavy city in general.) Just another advantage of living in urban population center.

Posted by at 8:27 PM | Permalink

Two simple, intelligent and cost effective uses of technology to ensure public safety: the Kuwaiti government is sending war-related alerts to its population via text (SMS) messages on their cell phones, and Israel has the "silent channel", a radio station that is continually mute until urgent information is being broadcast, allowing residents to leave their radio on but silent while they sleep or work, while still ready to receive alerts.

As one of the most technologically sophisticated nations on earth, why hasn't the US started implementing things like this? I live in New York... if there was an attack, would someone have the sense to send text SMS broadcasts to the cell phones nearly everyone here carries as a way to quickly spread disaster information?

(Interestingly, the Israeli "silent channel" was institute during the first Gulf War, when it was discovered that much of the country was afraid to go to sleep for fear of missing warnings of an imminent attack.)

Posted by at 3:20 PM | Permalink

Sony's released the T610, a replacement for their previous flagship T68i. The T610 is well overdue, and it's got most of the "standard" high-end features we're seeing in new phones: a built-in camera, high resolution screen, joystick control, Bluetooth, etc. It's also got a fairly nice, clean design, which will appeal to the "soap bar" crowd. Not sure yet on the exact size, but it looks to be one of the best for a phone with a fairly large color screen. Figure they'll come in at the standard $400 price point then fade down in to the more consumer levels.

Posted by at 10:14 AM | Permalink

Hats off to my old co-workers now at Kubisoft, Nate, Issam and Feiyu, whose company was one of six selected as "DEMO Gods" at the high-tech DEMO showcase in Arizona this week. Not only that, but their CEO's joking around got them some WSJ coverage. Seems he poked a little fun at Sprint's "spokesmodel" Gabrielle Reilly, who was a little out of place at this largely "geek-only" gathering.

Sprint's "spokewoman" has her own web site. Where was that guy in the trenchcoat?

I hope Sprint isn't letting her write her own material. ":)", as she would say.

Posted by at 11:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I've seen a few laptop stands while touring corporate offices, but the new Oyster laptop dock appears to be a real innovation over previous "pedestal" designs. It holds your laptop in the fully open position and offers a built-in USB hub. Insert your laptop, plug in a single USB connector and the power connector, and you've got a desktop setup with full-size keyboard and mouse (not included.) This should be very popular with both home users and corporate buyers worried about the ergonomics of heavy laptop use.

OysterDock was announced a while ago, but it's now available for pre-order at Amazon, which has become the de-facto Internet indicator that a product is about to arrive.

Posted by at 12:39 PM | Permalink

It hasn't come soon enough: leading computer maker Dell has announced that it will start making floppy drives option on its higher-end systems, and will likely phase out floppy drives as standard equipment by the end of 2003.

Forward thinking Apple did this years ago, realizing that as soon as we all had email, 1.44 MB storage devices were largely moot. That's before you realize that most files over 1 MB are now much, much larger than that (think mp3s, video, etc.), making floppies useless as a transfer method anyway.

Posted by at 3:52 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (1)

Pentax has managed a new digital camera that's small enough to fit inside an empty Altoids tin, while retaining a zoom lens and 3.2 megapixel ("effective") resolution. Part of the way this was managed was with a creative optical arrangement that moves some of lenses out of the way when the camera retracts its lens to shut off. If it holds up in reviews, it may be something I want to replace my current Canon Digital IXUS snapshot cam.

Posted by at 5:45 PM | Permalink

Worried about getting your Xbox hooked up to your broadband connection so you can run Xbox live? Avoid running ethernet across half your house by connecting your Xbox to your wireless network (you do have a wireless network, right?)

I've managed to get Xbox Live connected wirelessly using an Linksys WET11 wireless ethernet bridge. Works great. There are only two tricks (and I believe not knowing about them is why people are saying this won't work.)

1. You can't use DHCP (automatic IP configuration.) You'll need to manually set the IP on both the WET11 and the Xbox. Yeah, it's a pain but it's a one-time thing.
2. Get the WET11 connected and working with a computer, then transfer the setings to the Xbox. This isn't necessary, but it saves time.

Now all I have to do is find time to actually play... there does seem to be a few open slots in my schedule in late December or so... sigh.

Posted by at 1:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (44)

Research in Motion has announced a new version of their Blackberry connected organizer, the Blackberry 6710/6720. It's a nice evolution of their already immensely popular line, taking the phone capabilities of previous versions and simply adding an earpiece and microphone directly into the unit so that you don't have to use a seperate headphone to make calls. This addresses a major complaint from many people considering the previous model (including me.)

I'll be interested to see where they price this device. Hopefully, some US carriers will offer it with discounts for service activation.

Posted by at 9:39 AM | Permalink

Microsoft's new version of MSN Messenger features web co-browsing. A start-up I worked with three years ago in Boston, ikena, created and applied for patents on co-browsing technologies... it will be interesting to see if the current owners of those patent applications reacts to this.

Posted by at 7:55 AM | Permalink

(Via KFG) I just can't resist a poke at Windows, especially when I'm using it all day long.

Outlook Express flaw speeds hacking - Tech News - CNET.com

"Outlook Express ships with every Windows system, or rather as part of IE, so it's on every system. But unless it is configured to receive mail, you are not at risk," said Scott Culp, manager for Microsoft security response.

KFG adds: Please also note that, in the 2.1 release of Microsoft SpiceRack™, the jar labeled "Black Pepper" is, in fact, filled with jellied gasoline and razor-sharp needles. Naturally, you shouldn't experience any deleterious effects from the pepper as long as it is never opened or used under any circumstance.

Posted by at 3:50 PM | Permalink

Mmmm.... so I tried to use the new Microsoft Windows Media Player tonight. And I think they may have rushed it out before the tech writers were totally done.

Posted by at 11:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (1)

The New York Times has a major story on how many national governments are encouraging their own agencies to use open source / Linux solutions rather than proprietary Microsoft offerings.

More than two dozen countries in Asia, Europe and Latin America, including China and Germany, are now encouraging their government agencies to use "open source" software — developed by communities of programmers who distribute the code without charge and donate their labor to cooperatively debug, modify and otherwise improve the software.

Posted by at 1:05 AM | Permalink

USA Today has an extensive report up today on Linux's progression into key financial and creative markets.

"Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse First Boston and others are scoring results like Dresdner's with Linux pilot projects. IBM -- an early and big backer of Linux -- recently opened a Manhattan office to promote Linux among its financial services clients. And Reuters is deploying Linux servers to process the data and news widely used on Wall Street to make real-time trading decisions. 'It's the start of something big,' says Mark Hunt, Reuters' director of standards. 'If you can use Linux in financial services, you can use it for anything.' "

Posted by at 1:30 PM | Permalink

Ran into the MoodLogic 2.0 MP3 organizer this morning, and I think it's the best answer I've seen to everyone's growing MP3 libraries. Moodlogic scans your MP3 collection and matches the files to songs based on analysis of the waveform audio rather than fileneames or ID3 tags. It then categorizes them, and lets you build playlists by selecting based on mood, artist, tempo, genre or even year. Plus, it will fix your ID3 tags. The database itself is generated by other users of the service manually adding new songs when they hit one that's not in the database.

One nice feature is the ability to create an instant playlist simply by selecting one song and asking for whatever else you have that's similar. Seems to work well, although I only have 25 songs to test with in the trial version.

It's $20 right now to get the full service, but I'm seriously thinking about joining if it means I can finally sort out my large but awkward-to-navigate MP3 library. (Figure it's cheaper than two CDs, eh?)

Posted by at 8:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (2)

Doonesbury did a great Sunday comic on "wardriving" (the practice of driving around searching for Wireless networks.) Between this and his recent stabs at the Bush administration, I'm going to have to start reading the strip again (missing comics is definitely one downside to switching from the Boston Globe to the Wall Street Journal and Times.

Posted by at 1:08 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (1)

Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced a wave of new Apple products at yesterday's MacWorld Expo keynote. They included higher-capacity, smaller-form, and Windows-compatible iPods, a new 17-inch-LCD iMac, and a number of OS X applications.

I was at Job's first keynote after returning to Apple, at the 1997 Boston expo. That was the one where he scored a coup by having Bill Gates teleconference in. To those in the room, it was like having Darth Vader pop up on the screen during a meeting of the Rebel Alliance. Still, it gave no clue to the amount of turnaround Jobs would produce at Apple. I don't think there's any corporate CEO of late whose amazing arrogance and personality is matched by raw strength in product development. I can't think of any other company that has ever released in one year the number of well-designed, innovative products that Apple regularly debuts at the MacWorld expo keynote.

(For those of you who didn't catch the title reference, Insanely Great is a book about the early days of Apple computer and the design of the Macintosh computer. )

Posted by at 8:38 AM | Permalink

I'm going to have to start an "Apple Computer" category at this rate (and no, I don't presently own a Mac -- I gave up my Dual G4 at work after we stopped developing for the Mac.) Here's an interesting exercise in technology journalism. David Coursey, executive editor of ZDnet's AnchorDesk (a thoroughly Windows-centric publication) authored an interesting seven-part series on trying out the Apple iBook.

It's a nice piece of personal technology journalism that probably earned him a wall of flame mail from both Windows and MacOS X users, if my own experience reporting on Apple applies. Still, I think he did a really evenhanded, honest evaluation of the experience that's worth reading about even if you'll only leave Windows when they pry it out of your RSI-gnarled fingers.

Posted by at 8:37 AM | Permalink

The first alpha release of KDE 3.1 is out and looking amazing. Eye candy city (I'll say if it's stable only after using it.)

I'm still on KDE 2.0, which is pretty sad compared to this package. But given it's running on my server, I'm reluctant to run around installing alpha stuff. Maybe it's time to get Partition Magic 7.0 and put a Linux partition on my laptop to play around with. Just wish I didn't have the XP drive in NTFS mode.

Posted by at 8:53 AM | Permalink

Too often, designers and engineers assume that to build something really innovative, you have to create it from the ground up. Especially for technology start-ups, this is a very dangerious ideology to entertain. Many of the best products are the intelligent merger of proven technologies. Regardless, it's still rare to see a really beautiful design come from a consortium of companies -- too often it devolves into design-by-committee.

Electronics Design Chain Magazine has a terrific story on the development of Apple's portable MP3 player: Inside the Apple iPod Design Triumph. Not only did Apple create a groundbreaking product with relatively little custom design or production, but they accomplished it by leveraging the intellectual power of a consortium of technical firms, leveraging the unique experience of each company. Amazing to read about, and something to keep in mind if you're at a company that builds consumer products.

Posted by at 2:12 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (1)

Apple Computer has instructed its PR company to revoke MacWorld Expo Press Passes distributed to certain online sites [slashdot], reportedly because it considers them "rumor-mills." Blacklisting otherwise positive enthusiast sites simply because they might get overeager and publish details of upcoming products is a mistake for Apple, especially if these sites aren't violating NDA (non-disclosure agreements) or press embargoes. Mostly, these sites feed Mac-enthusiasm and community, providing Apple with free PR and user culture on a daily basis.

It seems to me this is a poor call made by a new Apple PR rep who's simply unfamiliar with enthusiast-reporting in the tech sector. It's simply not as clean, or organized, as mainstream media relations. But it's also a much more intense, vibrant media with a better link to its readership. Unless Apple rescinds this decision, it's only going to be ugly for them.

Posted by at 7:45 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (1)

There's an amusing and reasonably concise critique of basic technology-related plot holes in Spielberg's Minority Report by the author of umamitsunami.com, Jane Pickard. Worth a gander, although I'll maintain my position that this was the best "big" movie of the year so far.

Posted by at 3:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Those of you who downloaded recent security updates to Windows Media player (and if you cared about security, you pretty much had to) may have missed a nice shiny new addition to the product's EULA (end user license agreement):

You agree that in order to protect the integrity of content and software protected by digital rights management ('Secure Content'), Microsoft may provide security related updates to the OS Components that will be automatically downloaded onto your computer. These security related updates may disable your ability to copy and/or play Secure Content and use other software on your computer.

Ouch. Basically, they're saying they reserve the right to send updates to your computer (without asking permission) that may "disable your abilility to copy and/or play Secure Content and use other software on your computer." That's a pretty large license, so to speak.

Hmm. Maybe it is time to finally switch over to Mandrake on the desktop for real work, and leave Windows for gaming time.

(Via The Register)

Posted by at 7:24 AM | Permalink

So I complained the other day about Microsoft's inability to create decent themes... seems like someone agreed. TGTSoft's XP Style application basically grafts onto the semi-comatose Microsoft XP themes system and breathes new life into it, allowing user-contributed skins that work as well as the original XP GUI, without the speed hit of other skinning utilities. Works really nicely... $20 for the full item, but a 30-day trial is free.

Posted by at 9:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

Given some of the amazing desktop themes coming out for KDE 3.0, I'm wondering if it's time to go back to a dual-boot system on my home machine. I alredy had Linux Red Hat 7.3 on my laptop last week but I ended up using that drive for something else. As Apple and Linux continue to produce increasingly aesthetic windowing interfaces, it's amazing (and appalling) to me that Microsoft still can't get decent themes for Windows. They made a half-hearted attempt in XP, but then failed to really support it at all (besides releasing a really weak "olive" variant of the standard blue or silver default looks.)

[Added June 12, 2002] If you want an aqua-style theme like above, visit this site to get a theme module for KDE that has coded support for it.

Posted by at 4:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Future project: disk-less Smoothwall Linux router

I'm putting this entry in partially so I don't forget it myself, but also because it may be of interest to a lot of other people.

For about $150, it's possible to assemble a number of components into a very advanced firewall for your house, one that allows for multiple security areas, VPN access, web proxying, and support for dynamic IP services (like no-ip.com, which I use to maintain the karlo.org domain.)

The critical parts:

• Smoothwall Linux (Free, but a donation is suggested.)
  
• VIA Eden low-power, miniature all-in-one computer ($90)
  
• Compact Flash to IDE adapter ($20)
  
• 32 or 64 MB Compact Flash ($30, but I own one)
  
• Ethernet Card ($15, but again I have one around)
  

Why replace my trusty Linksys BEF4 router with a computer? This option provides better security, with far more features. Also, given that much of my house operates off a wireless network, having a more configurable router will allow me to reduce the security risks associated with wireless networks.

For now though it's just an idea... I have a Boundless Webplayer sitting at my place that I need to work on rebuilding first... I guess I could use it for the above, but it seems a waste of the Webplayer's 10" LCD screen.

Posted by at 7:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Although it's a foregone conclusion for most Windows users to depend on the ubiquitous Internet Explorer (especially if they've tried the last adware Netscape releases), Linux users remain a fragmented lot when it comes to browser choice. Personally, I haven't settled on one -- I just use whatever's close at hand.

For those who want to pick a single Linux browser and stick with it, Rob Valliere has published an excellent Linux browser comparison. He examines Konqueror, Mozilla, Galeon (Ximian's Mozilla-derivative) and Opera, both subjectively and in terms of raw performance. I guess I'll have to take a closer look at Galeon for use on lower performance machines -- the memory requirement of KDE make employing Konqueror expensive, especially if you've already got the Gnome desktop loaded.

Posted by at 7:27 AM | Permalink

Trillian 0.725 is a very sweet solution for those of us who juggle 2 or more IM accounts all the time. This unified messenger has come a long way since early versions (which had some major bugs, including problems with the "away" detection.) I spent a lot of time at work examining instant messenger design, and for a multi-headed client this is definitely the best I've seen so far.

My only complaint: they ignored Jabber, which merits inclusion if not for popularity, then for it's open standard/network stance. Still, it's not something that 99% of users will notice.

Posted by at 7:19 AM | Permalink

Forwarded to me by my QA manager at work. Makes me proud to be a software designer. I'm sure out there somewhere, a business guy is saying "why didn't we do that with our product?"

Posted by at 2:35 PM | Permalink

"The remote-controlled "roborats" can be made to run, climb, jump or turn left and right through electrical probes, the width of a hair, implanted in their brains. Movement signals are transmitted from a computer to the rat's brain via a radio receiver strapped to its back. " -- Reuters

So some scientists at SUNY Downstate have managed to wire up rats to allow them to be controlled remotely, like some biological version of $20 Radio Shack toys.

They say they're working to develop the rats for "rescue and security uses" (Wonder if they thought of that after 9-11?)... but you know they race them around a track in the lab, when nobody's looking.

This could have great potential for my dog... forget that, I know a few people who I think might be good candidates. Where can I sign them up?

Posted by at 7:49 PM | Permalink

Apple sure knows how to make it hard to ignore their laptops... they just announced a new PowerBook G4, with adds a higher resolution 1280x854 screen, Radeon 7500 video processor, and 800 MHz G4 processor... all within the thin, 5.4 lb titanium casing. There really isn't anything comparable in the Windows laptop market, as usual. It really makes me think about whether I could do all of my office applications on a Mac under OS X, or perhaps by putting Linux on this machine... but I'm not sure I'm willing to deal with the hassles of moving to a non-Windows platform. If only money were no object...

Posted by at 7:46 AM | Permalink

In the odd but vaguely intriguing category of computer hardware design is the Greencoputer PowerElf (right) which is a Linux-based network appliance/computer. It's maybe twice as high as my SV24, but it definitely wins points for its sleek design. I still kind of prefer Cobalt's Qube design, though.

Posted by at 2:34 PM | Permalink

I've been testing out the Mozilla web browser release candidate 1 lately. It's a really nice alternative to Internet Explorer, although IE has really reached the point where it's nearly transparent as an application -- you don't realize you're using it, which I think is generally a compliment for a browser. Still, Mozilla offers integrated mail and news support that's in my view better than Outlook Express, plus it's available on any platform (since you can build it yourself from source if it's absolutely necessary.) All in all, a very nice alternative to Internet Explorer. I'll have to try it side-by-side KDE's Konqueror browser to see how it compares to that mostly Linux-only package.

Posted by at 7:49 AM | Permalink

The Boston Globe has a good article on the impact of CD burning on the music industry. It seems that direct CD-to-CD copying is probably having a greater effect on record sales than MP3 trading, especially as these practices become more widestream and spread beyond those with broadband access. Contains a lot of whining from the record industry about how they can't charge $20 any more for a CD. Tough... they've been able to do sinister things like reverse discounting (increasing the price as albums get older) and overcharging everyone (to neither the musicians nor the fan's benefit) for years, simply because of their control over the distribution medium. Now that technology isn't on their side any more, they're desperate for help from the legislature, etc.

We don't need laws taxing CD burners or media -- why should people who are not going to use these devices for music copying, like me, pay for the problems of the music industry. If you feel the same way and want to protect your rights, check out DigitalConsumer.Org

The article closes with quotes from Elvis Costello (a great artist, I've got tons of his MP3s, natch), who is anti-copying, but notes that "...at least in terms of the big record companies, 'They've loaded the game so the house has been winning for a long time. Now it's time maybe for the house not to win for a while. Maybe they have to take some losses.'"

Posted by at 5:35 PM | Permalink

Charmed Technology, a startup founded by MIT Media Lab alumni, has released a CharmIT Pro, a new open-design testbed for wearable computing, based in part on a Transmeta low-power processor and Linux. Although folks have been home-brewing wearables for years (I remember early models in the mid-90's when I worked in the media lab as an undergraduate) this is one of the first commercially available wearables.

Although it's chunky, the size is actually the result of a major advantage - this system is built largely out of fairly standard parts, and it's easy for experimenters to hack, modify and adapt to new uses. Along with the fact that all information about the hardware is public (down to all the wiring), this means that it will likely foster an entire community of software and hardware developers who now can join their effort around a single basic platform. Very compelling.

Posted by at 7:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Charmed Technology, a startup founded by MIT Media Lab alumni, has released a CharmIT Pro, a new open-design testbed for wearable computing, based in part on a Transmeta low-power processor and Linux. Although folks have been home-brewing wearables for years (I remember early models in the mid-90's when I worked in the media lab as an undergraduate) this is one of the first commercially available wearables.

Although it's chunky, the size is actually the result of a major advantage - this system is built largely out of fairly standard parts, and it's easy for experimenters to hack, modify and adapt to new uses. Along with the fact that all information about the hardware is public (down to all the wiring), this means that it will likely foster an entire community of software and hardware developers who now can join their effort around a single basic platform. Very compelling.

Posted by at 7:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

image I've never really seen Microsoft as a "skaterat" kind of company, but apparently they've decided to adopt the term "Freestyle" for their new media station version of XP. Tom's Hardware condenses the concept well: "Freestyle - this is just a media focused customization of a Windows XP PC with the added twist of moving the control from WIMP to a remote control. It's a set of technologies that will allow you to use remote control and move your PC with a remote control, which is another way of saying of using your PC as a media server for your consumer electronics needs. Streaming video, and audio; digital picture frames on a network. High-tech stuff.

The remote control of Freestyle helps to take your mind off the fact that you are using a $1,000 PC to do the job of a $100 CD player, but that's not the point. The point is to get consumers to view the PC in a new light, and not just as a tool or geeky game box. "

Amazing. Microsoft's only say 6 years behind the average college student on this one in figuring out that you can use use your computer as a substitute (albeit poor) for the standard TV and stereo, thanks to some speakers and a remote control. The mind reels.

Microsoft Preview Image of the Freestyle Interface

Posted by at 9:03 AM | Permalink

For the moment, it's hard to tell, but I've moved Karlo.Org from our trusty Pentium 2 / 300 web server to a new Celeron 850 machine, custom built as a small form factor server! Right now I'm only using it for web serving, but once everything seems okay, I'll switch over mail service as well and decommision the old machine ("jeeves") and everything will depend on this one ("cube").

To get an idea of how small the new server is physically, it's sitting on top of a standard stereo receiver in the photo at left. The front face is only a little larger than a CD case.

Posted by at 9:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

For the moment, it's hard to tell, but I've moved Karlo.Org from our trusty Pentium 2 / 300 web server to a new Celeron 850 machine, custom built as a small form factor server! Right now I'm only using it for web serving, but once everything seems okay, I'll switch over mail service as well and decommision the old machine ("jeeves") and everything will depend on this one ("cube").

To get an idea of how small the new server is physically, it's sitting on top of a standard stereo receiver in the photo at left. The front face is only a little larger than a CD case.

Posted by at 9:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Whoops Microsoft and Unisys had a web site critical of Linux up earlier this week -- until folks noticed they were using FreeBSD to run the server, not a Microsoft Operating System. So they quickly changed it to Microsoft's IIS platform yesterday -- and now it's down. Last time I checked, I got a 404 (Page Not Found) error at the home page, but you don't have to believe me: Cnet's also saying the site has kicked the bucket.

Yet another reason when I upgrade my web server (hopefully this weekend) I'm going to upgrade to Mandake Linux 8.2. I've been running Mandrake 7 on this server for ages, and I can't remember it ever crashing on me.

Posted by at 10:04 AM | Permalink

SV24 Media Cube Accelenation.com did a good article last month on turning the Shuttle SV24 into a mediaCube for your living room. Interesting read.

Posted by at 4:08 PM | Permalink