I'm Not Working

Taking Control of Your Future by Becoming an Open Source Developer

2005-08-01T08:32:00.000-08:00

Brian W. Fitzpatrick explains why working on open source project can be better than an internship. Public portfolio, more important work, and real life experience all contribute to a more enjoyable and more beneficial work experience.

read more | digg story

What is Vlogging (and How to Get Started)

2005-07-28T08:50:00.000-08:00

Joshua Paul describes video blogs and explains how to create your own.

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Microsoft and Mountain Dew to give away a 360 every 10 minutes for 9 weeks

2005-07-27T07:51:00.000-08:00

Microsoft has announced that starting on August 28, if you buy a mountain dew or other pepsi product and get a code, you can win an Xbox 360, one of which they are giving away every 10 minutes for 9 weeks straight.

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Server: Day One

2005-07-25T19:04:00.000-08:00

Well, this is the first time I've proposed to do a "series", so we'll see if I even stick with it. I'm out to make a Gentoo/Apache server, just to store some files on, and I'm already over my head.

My box is a Gateway 2000, and I don't really know what is inside it. I'm at a serious disadvantage here, but I've installed Gentoo with little more knowledge than I have now, so I think I'm okay.

I'm going with the minimal install CD. I intend to run off a stage 1 tarball.

So, I burned the image onto the a CD, and inserted the CD into the Hitachi CDR-7930 cdrom drive. It didn't take long to get an error.

ISOLINUX 2.13 2004-12-14 isolinux: Loading spec packet failed, trying to wing it
...
isolinux: Failed to locate CD-ROM device; boot failed.

Being the newbie I am, I didn't have much of a clue of what to do at this point. I googled and found a site with information on ISOLINUX, which is a Linux bootloader. For some reason, it is failing to locate the CD-ROM device. I'm kind of lost at this point. I'm hoping the error is inaccurate, so I'm following a fairly illogical route. Instead of burning the image from my iBook, I booted up Debian and am trying to download the image again. I intend to burn the CD from Debian, but I don't really know how that is going to work out. So far, I'm having trouble just downloading the damn thing.

Tags: linux, Computers, servers, gentoo

Apple releases GarageBand 2.0.2

2005-07-25T15:46:00.000-08:00

Apple's newest iteration of GarageBand addresses various issues, including time signature handling and Apple Loops authoring. Get it over software update or on the Apple update site.

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10 Reasons Why a Resurgent Mac is Great for Linux

2005-07-25T08:00:00.000-08:00

Some stunningly good examples of how Mac OS X's resurgence is actually beneficial to Linux.

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What If, Apple?

2005-07-24T09:17:00.000-08:00

In a recent TWiTcast, it was proposed that Microsoft should just "call it a day", pay everyone off, and quit the business.

This made me wonder: what would happen to Apple if there was no Microsoft? While I don't believe Microsoft intends to quit anytime soon, it is curious what Apple might do in that case.

I suspect that Apple would lose the "sexy" edge it pushes today. I think you know what I'm talking about. The smooth white chasse (or gray, depenpending on which Apple product you own), the flashy but accessible interface. These are the things that superficially set Apple apart from the competition. Windows does the bloated but works thing, and Unix (save for Mac OS X) does the access/change everything theme. But Macintosh is sexy.

With no Microsoft to compete with, the neccessity of a sexy product would drop. Apple could get away with less appealing designs. If it costs less money, and judging by the price of Apple products, I think it does, then Apple would simply stop "designing" their computers.

I know it is superficial, but I happen to like what my iBook looks like. I'd hate to go to a PC-style design (if that makes sense). So, Microsoft, if you can hear me: please keep on competing with Apple. Give them hell.

Tags: Apple, Microsoft

[Blogger Interview] "Brain Dribble's" Vocidy

2005-07-23T13:15:00.000-08:00

A lot of blogs these days center themselves around painstaking detail or are just plain confusing. However, there is a special blog out there you may not know of. This one has that wonderful care-free clarity of Boing Boing without so much inter-linking. That special blog is Brain Dribble, a log of the personal thought processes of the beautiful Vocidy. This has been in the works for awhile, but I finally got a chance to interview her.

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Richard Moriarty: How long have you been blogging?

Vocidy: On Blogger? Only a few monthes but, I've had "online diaries" for years. maybe five.

RM: haha I guess blogs are largely online diaries, aren't they? Actually, how would you describe a blog in the most general sense?

Vocidy: depends ont he type I think. If you're whinning about the latest shitty thing your boyfriend did and how good it feels to bleed, it's a diary. Political minded things=Blog. I think, in general, they're places to think into the cosmos. That's how I look at it.

RM: Now that blogs are mainstream, do you think there is a place for a private diary anymore? It seems that people are willing to rely on hiding behind various monikers over the internet. After all, that's what I've been doing until I decided that I could just blog during breaks at work, and even you call yourself "Vocidy".

Vocidy: I do, but I'm not hiding. My picture and profile are there for all to see. If you really wanted to be private you wouldnt post your life online. People who have blogs are looking for attention.

RM: Earlier you stated that "polical = blog". Is there room in the blogsphere for content outside of political punditry?

Vocidy: Oh, definetly. "political=blog" was too...too exact I guess. I meant that if you have something to say besides "feel sorry for me" then it's not just an online diary.

RM: Seeing as how blogs do share that connotation of self-pity, why did you choose a blog over other forms of media? Not only are there books and television, but the new reign of podcasting and videocasting offers many opportunities outside of plaintext.

Vocidy: Honestly? I don't want to put that much work into it. I'm only interested in haveing a place to, like I said, send my thoughts out to the cosmos. I suppose if I cared that much about other people seeing it or had something really valuable to say, then i would look into it. My blog is an outlet for my crazy head. Drip, drip remember?

RM: For those of you who don't get that reference, you should be visiting her blog, damnit! Seriously, where have you been the last few months?

RM: What is the most important thing in your life?

Vocidy: Obvoisely, it's not spelling... the people in my life. My family, my friends, my lover. It's cliched but the truth is, I can't live wothout them.

RM: If money were not an option, what would your ideal life be like?

Vocidy: A nice house near my family, two stories, pool, yard, big fence, a couple kids with the man I love by my side. I would like to see the world but, when it comes down to it, I want love and peace in my life.Maybe a little excitement. That's what kids are for. oh, nice care with big stereo.

RM: If we could only see one of your blog posts, which would it be?

Vocidy: Wow... I would have to look over them again. Definetly not the first "I Believe" post. That was a mistake of too much passion and not enough thought.

Vocidy: Well, after a scroll down Memory Lane, I think it would have to be "I'm Not Working Either." I actually had something to say that day. I had always meant to fill my blog with thoughts like that. Unfortunetly it's difficult to blog from the shower.

RM: I find that most bloggers tend to read blogs themselves. Care to plug your favorite blog?

Vocidy: I knew this question was comming. Hoestly, the only other blog I ever read is yours, Professor. However I rarely understand it without a little research. I'm lazy when it comes to the internet. I want to log on, have a little fun and get off. Mmm, sounds dirty. heh

RM: I guess my blog is a bit technically minded.

Vocidy: Si, senor

RM: Speaking of which, I am somewhat obligated to ask you a few tech questions, but I'll keep it light for you. Which operating system do you use?

Vocidy: Windows XP. I have no preferance as to systems. Some hate Windows or Mac (or Linux I suppose) but I'm not the only one who uses this computer and Windows seems to be the most user friendly to my dear, computer ill-literate parents.

RM: What is your primary need for a computer?

Vocidy: Compilation. All my music, writing and pictures are all here. A very very close second would be the people again. I likes me MSN Messenger.

RM: Well, here is your chance to say anything about you, your blog, or anything you want.

Vocidy: Umm... moo? I don't really know. or should I say "quack"? I am Vocidy, Voice of the Duck.

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Now, who doesn't want to read a blog written by the Voice of the Duck? Please check out Brain Dribble. Thanks to Vocidy for allowing me to interview her.

Welcome to Our Internet

2005-07-23T11:52:00.000-08:00

The Internet evolves as all things do. The Internet is a special case, however, as it embodies the spirit of growth. Think about it. Everything you can find via the Internet is interconnected (therefore the term) by hyperlinks and content referencing more hyperlinks and content. As more hyperlinks and content are added, the Internet grows. If it can be said there is a single purpose, it would have to be growth. Where does the Internet stand today? Today is the Internet of "We", a wholly unsurprising development. After all, growth stems through production and spreading of thought, and that is exactly what the Internet has been doing. It is totally natural for the Internet to have reached it's new stage of social networking.

By social networking, I mean the various new applications that seem to spread not unlike a virus throughout the Internet today (the Internet is perpetuating itself!). Many people are now familiar with del.icio.us and digg. These sites, and many like them, share the goal of having users take a piece of content, whether they authored it or discovered it, and share it. This content is then loosed to all the other users that choose to partake in this ritualistic spreading of thought. It is then up to the Internet as a whole to deem the content "worthy" (in digg, this is done by voting on a piece of content, where the higher-rated content appears on the front page).

The Internet has always centered around sharing content. However, this newest phase in Our Internet is different. With Our Internet (am I killing that term yet? How about parantheses? I bet I killed those about a paragraph back), we not only share content, but judge it and spread it in an automated manner. Where once we would simply recommend content, we are now allowed to "pass" it through a barrier.

tags: internet

14" PowerPizza

2005-07-23T11:12:00.000-08:00

Desirable laptops are desirable to thieves too. Disguise your laptop with a PowerPizza and reduce the risk of getting it stolen.

Now, I like a PowerBook as much as the next macgeek, but I mean.. Pizza! I would much rather steal a nice pizza pie than a Powerbook.

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Mac OS X 10.5 to contain 'Red Box' for running Windows applications?

2005-07-23T10:27:00.000-08:00

Could Apple's decision to move to Intel processors be motivated by something more than IBM's inability to meet the company's processor demands? Now that Apple has chosen to go x86, is the rumored Red Box project back on? "Though the marketing terms later changed, back when Apple took over NeXT... (or the other way around...

A nice bit of spec. I can't speak for it, because I don't seem to have the magical sources that all the other internet writers/hacks have. Am I the only one who isn't related to the brother of the cousin of the grandmother of Steve Job's illegitamate son?

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The Moral Implications of the Powerpuff Girls

2005-07-23T02:36:00.000-08:00

This is what I get for watching The Island (I recommend it, by the way). I'm in the living room right now, where my baby sister is watching "The Powerpuff Girls."

For those of you not in the know, the Powerpuff Girls are a trio of superhero children. Their origin is, when actually analyzed, a bit dark.

Okay, here it is: a scientist combines Sugar.. Spice.. and Everything Nice with some chemical called "Chemical X." Now, you'd think this would be great. But think about this for a moment. He artificially created these girls. He didn't just imbue girls with magic powers.. he made them. From scratch.

Doesn't that creep anyone out?

Congress: TSA Broke Privacy Laws

2005-07-22T17:55:00.000-08:00

Congress decides that the TSA has broken privacy laws by collecting information on travelers.

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Game Over for Modders?

2005-07-22T14:41:00.000-08:00

When the smoke clears around the Grand Theft Auto sex scandal, the innocent bystanders of the collision between politics, puritans and corporate dissembling may prove to be the community of "modders" who tinker with game content for their own amusement.

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What to say if you get caught sleeping at work

2005-07-21T18:27:00.000-08:00

A list of excuses to use for those of you who slack off at work - Add your own to the comments.

aka more relevance

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$200 Billion loss in productivity

2005-07-21T18:25:00.000-08:00

$200 billion in productivity is lost due to employees surfing the web on work hours with work resources.

Seemed kind of relevant somehow...

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Modding your iBook's Apple Logo

2005-07-21T18:23:00.000-08:00

How to modify the color of the Apple logo on the back of your iBook...

This is very simple, and any iBook owner who can do something as simple as shave can probably pull this off. I'll definetly be giving it a try after I get the latch on my iBook repaired.

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Handheld Console Makes You Look In A Mirror

2005-07-21T17:17:00.000-08:00

I have to take a moment to digest this one.

Okay, I'm ready.

GENIUS! PURE GENIUS! Why have two screens when you can simply force the player to look at a reflection of the first screen!

bandai will buy "kidtendo" in 5 years!!!!!!11

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What OS X Could Learn From Windows

2005-07-21T17:10:00.000-08:00

It's true, Macintosh OS X is an awesome operating system. However, there are things more practical than market share that Microsoft Windows has over it.

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Spam King gives up spamming

2005-07-21T15:32:00.000-08:00

Anti-spam experts believe Scott Richter, the man dubbed the Spam King, has stopped sending junk email.

"The King is dead! Long live the King!"

Up until this point, I had no idea one man had such an effect on the "spamming market." This is really exciting.

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Google is changing things...again!

2005-07-21T15:25:00.000-08:00

A web design firm analyzes new methods for Google to enhance the accuracy of their search services. The collateral damage of this is increased data-mining and more secretive tactics. Extremely interesting article.

There's some good news and some bad news inside. I love Google dearly, but it looks like they are trying to manipulate the way the internet is perceived through the use of their search engine. They aren't doing anything illegal, but it shows they have the power to tip scales people shouldn't be allowed to tip.

read more | digg story

What is Podcasting?

2005-07-21T08:32:00.000-08:00

This article features an brief introduction to Podcasts as well as in-depth information on how to start your own Podcast.

This is something I've been considering pursuing. Audio is definetly more interesting than text. However, it is also more expensive to produce, and the demand for an interesting topic is greater. With my blog, I can say what I want, and I get what I'm paying for (it's free), even if no one listens. However, the cost of audio equipment and the like means that I would need an audience to make it worth my time and money.

read more | digg story

Grand Theft Auto goes 'Adults Only'

2005-07-21T06:55:00.000-08:00

Well, I've been avoiding the GTA "Hot Coffee" controversy, but now that it has reached it's conclusion, I suppose it's worth mentioning.

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Perplex City

2005-07-19T16:19:00.000-08:00

Perplex City is a game I heartily recommend. It is an "Alternate Reality Game", a game of immersion that reaches out to the player through e-mails, phone calls, websites, and what have you. Perplex City is looking to have an interesting and engaging style of play unique to the ARG genre. Check out Perplex City.

Now.

GENTLEMEN!!!!

2005-07-19T15:27:00.000-08:00

I present the PODROLL, my list of PodCasts that I am listening to you. I highly recommend anything that goes on that list, so please check them out. You can find them to the right and below the BLOGROLL!