Hmm, the Intel Core 2 Duo is shipping? WWDC is next week?
Looks like my new Mac Book Pro will be ready in August.
My new Mac Book Pro
Category: stuff
Software, toys, gadgets and computers
Microsoft iPod moneypit
An interesting article came via iLounge about Microsoft’s investment in Zune.
I wonder if they sunk “hundreds of millions of dollars” in order to get flash RAM at a competitive price? If so and the Zune is a bomb, that’s a big fucking write-off.Continue reading
I guess the GPS works
As part of my evil plan for world domination and assorted avoidance of doing real work, I purchased a GPS. (There is a reason, but that’ll be a future blog entry.)
During my failed commute, I accidentally had the tracklog turned on. Well I have the data, I better do something with it:
Uploading maps onto a Garmin “x”
I ended up wasting a lot of time trying to get my Garmin 60CSx working on a PC when it turned out I didn’t even need it now. So for one of you out there trying to get maps to work on Mac OS X, this might save you a lot of websearching.
How to get maps onto your Garmin GPS “x” series (microSD-enabled) GPS:
Continue reading
Solve sudoku
Mark Frauenfelder inadvertantly shows his egotism and stupidity.
I clicked on the linked article expecting to learn something. What a mistake! This is the sort of methodology anyone who has completed the simplest puzzle has stumbled upon. This strategy doesn’t even solve any puzzle that is halfway interesting…assuming you find sudoku halfway interesting, which I don’t (because I’m bad at logic puzzles).
Solve this! (without even thinking)
Is there a better way to scream, “I’m a moron!” then to link that instructable article and add a comparison to solitaire: an entirely different game since not all solitaires are winnable and there is no single strategy to winning determined by logic alone. Hmm, Mark, maybe you find this stuff “boring” because you don’t know how to solve them. Let’s face it, the only reason you held crossword puzzles up on a pedestal is because Sundance told you to. Why don’t you join Cory and switch to Ubuntu. You’ve become exactly the sort of egotistical latte-sipping Gen-X dickhead that you rail against.Continue reading
Keynote makes a movie
I’m finally starting to gear up for my two OSCON talks. This is why I found this article about how Al Gore used Keynote to create his movie interesting.
As many of you know, I love this program. I had Caitlin experiment with using this program to make her website, which is sort of like the way Al Gore used it in the movie. I actually think that maybe Keynote will make a good storyboarding device.
Continue reading
Digital blending multiple exposures
I received a request on Flickr a couple days ago:
you mentioned taking 3 exposures in one of your shots (a stream in big basin) and combining them together in photoshop. how do you do that?
I can only assume he meant this one:
Redwoods and West Berry Creek
Big Basin State Park, Santa Cruz Mountains, California
Big Basin State Park, Santa Cruz Mountains, California
Nikon D70, Nikkor 12-24mm f/4G
Vari-ND filter, Gitzo 1228LVL tripod, RRS BH-55 ballhead
(3 exposures at 1/4″, 1.3″ and 3″) @ f/16, iso 200, 12mm (18mm)
Here’s how I did it.
Continue reading
Why I switched back to Gizmodo
A while back I decided to choose between subscribing to Gizmodo and Engadget, because they’re very similar and I’m not that gadget-obsessed.
First I removed both hoping friends would forward me the interesting stuff. That didn’t happen because I guess I’m a really big know-it-all jerk. I then picked Gizmodo, but switched to Engadget because they leave commenting on.
Gloss on, Gloss off
There has been a lot of comments about the glossy finish in the new MacBooks, many of them link John Siracusa’s article approvingly.
This is a reminder why a Mac fanboy like myself hates Mac zealotry: “Reflections! Glare! These are not good things!â€
Continue reading
So this is what passes for Creative-ity in the music player market
If you remember from an earlier post, I pointed out that Creative’s strategy just doesn’t understand the iPod market. With over $1 billion in iPod-related accessories sold last year alone, the iPod is not just a device, it is a platform.
It seems Creative has given up trying to compete with Apple, and is suing Apple on the “Zen Patent.†This smacks of desperation to me.
One thing not noted by a lot of blogs linking this lawsuit: although the patent was only recently awarded, Creative applied for this patent before the iPod existed (they applied for the patent in January 2001, the iPod was released that October). Back then, Creative had the Nomad: a shitty player if there ever was one—I borrowed a friends at the time and decided to stick with my Rio and wait it out. It was probably the first hard-drive based MP3 player (there may have been one other).
It is fine debating prior-art and the triviality of the patent (how else are you going to navigate a hierarchical menu except sequentially?), but don’t dismiss the lawsuit out-of-hand.Continue reading