Iraq Body Count

To continue along with the theme. Here is Iraq Body Count which attempts to keep track of the number of Iraqi civilians killed in the war.

Iraq-o-meter

The Iraq-o-meter gives you displays continuously updated stats on the war in Iraq, including the number of bombs dropped, civilian casualties, oil wells aflame, Iraq soldiers surrendered, W.M.D. sites uncovered, and territory control. It was created by Russel Ginns, an artist, author, and ukulele player. Link [via Boing Boing]

Moneydance - a new personal finance solution

"Moneydance 2003 has just been released for Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows. This program is a completely cross-platform replacement for ... [Slashdot]

This looks pretty neat. I've been shopping for something to replace MS Money. Maybe this is the application for me.

PalmInfocenter.com: Bluetooth and WiFi SD & Memory Sticks in Development

PalmInfocenter.com: Bluetooth and WiFi SD & Memory Sticks in Development Hagiwara Sys-Com, a Japanese semiconductor company, have announced they are developing four wireless cards for Palm OS devices. The company plans to release both Secure Digital (SD) and Memory Stick (MS) Bluetooth and WiFi cards this summer.

Freedom to Tinker: Use a Firewall, Go to Jail

Freedom to Tinker: Use a Firewall, Go to JailThe states of Massachusetts and Texas are preparing to consider bills that apparently are intended to extend the national Digital Millennium Copyright Act. (TX bill; MA bill) The bills are obviously related to each other somehow, since they are textually similar. Here is one example of the far-reaching harmful effects of these bills. Both bills would flatly ban the possession, sale, or use of technologies that "conceal from a communication service provider ... the existence or place of origin or destination of any communication". Your ISP is a communcation service provider, so anything that concealed the origin or destination of any communication from your ISP would be illegal -- with no exceptions.

Idiot Congress Critter

Congressman Darrell Issa, Republican from San Diego, is outraged, outraged! he says, that plans for Iraq's post-war telecommunications infrastructure includes building a cellphone network that runs on GSM, a standard developed by... surprise, surprise, the newly-loathed French! Ever the patriot, Issa proposes that the American-made CDMA standard be adopted instead:

It is outrageous that these agencies are planning to spend taxpayer dollars on a competitive foreign technology, when we have a superior U.S. technology (CDMA) available to us. This news is especially offensive given the French opposition to U.S. diplomatic and military initiatives related to Iraq.

Of course it doesn't hurt that this would benefit CDMA creator Qualcomm, which has its headquarters in Issa's district and kicked him some cash for his last election campaign.
Read [via Gizmodo]

Designtechnica News

Designtechnica News has a story about the future fate of the Replay TV from Sonic Blue. As reported earlier, SonicBlue is filing for chapter 11. I'm really pissed about this whole thing, since Jenna and I just spend several hundred dollars for a lifetime subscription for our ReplayTV unit. Sonicblue said its ReplayTV television recording service will operate as usual through late April as the courts mull the company's proposed bankruptcy and related sale of ReplayTV. Should the sale of ReplayTV be approved by the District Court in San Jose, California, its future would then lie in the hands of Japan's D&M Holdings Inc.

O'Reilly Network: Top Ten Digital Photography Tips [Oct. 22, 2002]

O'Reilly Network: Top Ten Digital Photography Tips [Oct. 22, 2002]You've heard this before: Digital cameras do all the work. You just push the button and great pictures magically appear. The better the camera, the better the photos. Isn't that right? Heck no! The truth is that you can make great photos with a simple consumer point-and-shoot camera, or take lousy shots with the most expensive Nikon. It's not the camera that makes beautiful images; it's the photographer. With a little knowledge and a willingness to make an adjustment here and there, you can squeeze big time photos out of the smallest digicam. To help you down the road to great image making, here are ten tips that will enable you shoot like a pro (without maxing out your credit card on all that expensive equipment).

Senator calls for copy-protection tags | CNET News.com

Senator calls for copy-protection tags | CNET News.comWASHINGTON--Software, music and movies that employ copy-protection schemes must be prominently labeled with consumer warnings, according to a bill introduced in Congress this week. The measure, sponsored by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., would grant the Federal Trade Commission the power to establish labeling methods for technology that limits the ability of consumers to freely copy, distribute or back up digital content.

Wired News: India Begins Lost Temple Dig

Wired News: India Begins Lost Temple Dig LUCKNOW, India -- Indian archaeologists prepared on Tuesday to start digging in search of a lost temple whose disputed existence lies at the heart of India's tense and often violent Hindu-Muslim divide. Archaeologists put up tents at three places at the site in the northern holy town of Ayodhya to maintain secrecy as they search for remains of a temple which some Hindus say was buried under a 16th-century mosque.

Strix Systems - News

Strix Systems - News WESTLAKE VILLAGE, California – Strix Systems, Inc. unveiled today the Access/OneÔ Network, its wireless LAN system technology which moves wireless switching, routing, and mesh networking out of the wiring closet and into the air. The Access/OneÔ Network combines multiple radio technologies – 802.11b/a/g and 802.15.1 BluetoothÔ – and uses innovative system software in a mesh architecture, providing an intelligent and secure network. “Now is the perfect time to unveil our technology” said Bruce Brown, company Chairman and CEO. “We have developed a systems approach that distributes intelligence and eliminates centralized points of failure. We deliver smart, flexible and secure networking for the wireless Enterprise marketplace.”

Red Hat Linux 9 - World's First Look at Shrike - OSNews.com

Red Hat Linux 9 - World's First Look at Shrike - OSNews.com Here is a very nice review of Redhat's new version 9 linux.

PalmInfocenter.com: Rumor: New Zire and Tungsten Models

PalmInfocenter.com: Rumor: New Zire and Tungsten Models There are rumors about a Wi-Fi palm coming out soon.

InfoWorld: Nokia catalyzes handset evolution: March 21, 2003: By Mark Jones: Wireless

InfoWorld: Nokia catalyzes handset evolution: March 21, 2003: By Mark Jones: WirelessNokia executives have revealed plans to deliver high-end cellular handsets that seamlessly switch between 802.11b and public carrier networks in an effort to transform handsets into terminals capable of consuming composite applications. The switching technology, expected to be deployed in handsets for beta trials toward the end of the year, is designed to extend the reach of enterprise applications and to create new collaboration environments. Although the company has not yet unveiled names for the forthcoming devices, Nokia in April will announce a set of rich applications for vertical markets, including real estate and transportation, executives said.

Former Vice President Al Gore Joins Apple's Board of Directors

Former Vice President Al Gore Joins Apple's Board of Directors Apple has announced that Al Gore is joining their Board of Directors. According to this report Bush wants a recount.

Gizmodo : SONICblue to declare bankruptcy?

Gizmodo : SONICblue to declare bankruptcy? Gizmodo has a rumor on it's site that SonicBlue is going declare bankruptcy. Say it isn't so... I love my ReplayTV.

Technorati: Current Events, with context

Technorati: Current Events, with context Technorati maps the blogosphere. In a new site, you can see where they use that data for tracking current events through data / link spikes. Neat.

Yahoo! News - Cisco Acquiring Linksys Group for $500M

Yahoo! News - Cisco Acquiring Linksys Group for $500M Wow. I really didn't see this one coming.

Letters From Exile: Bush at War

Letters From Exile: Bush at War My latest book review for Bob Woodward's Bush at War. Bush at War is an in-depth look at the Bush White House during the war in Afghanistan. The book is very well written, and easily a page turner. In reading this book, I gained some new respect for President Bush, which for me is saying quite a bit. The book describes several meetings between of Bush's war cabinet, and Woodward has done an excellent job of tackling something that could be very boring to read about. He describes the intrigue and the politics behind the united front that the war cabinet put forward. In light of all that is happening today, with the US about to go to war again, I think Bush at War is an excellent read for anyone who follows the politics of the United States. It was an eye-opener for me, and has given me a new perspective on the Government.

Mozilla 1.3 Release Notes

Mozilla 1.3 Release Notes Mozilla 1.3 is out now. I still think this is a great browser, and this new release has some very interesting things in it.

William Gibson

William Gibson I saw a pointer to William Gibson's blog today over at boingboing. He's one of my favorite authors, and has some really interesting things to say on his blog.

PalmInfocenter.com: Samsung Announces Palm OS 5 Smartphone

PalmInfocenter.com: Samsung Announces Palm OS 5 Smartphone This looks preatty neat, it works on GSM networks and has many of the features of the traditional palm. I'm still not sold on the idea of a palm/phone combo device. They never seem to keep up with technology as well as the stand alone palm devices do. However, it would be one less thing to carry around, and that could be worth it all by itself.

CBS News | 'Do Not Call' Is Law | March 11, 2003 14:49:40

CBS News | 'Do Not Call' Is Law | March 11, 2003 14:49:40 This is great. Now, I need to figure out how to sign up.

Yahoo! News - McDonald's to Offer Wireless Internet

Yahoo! News - McDonald's to Offer Wireless Internet Like I need another excuse to go to McDonalds. My friend Ike once told me that WiFi would become something that companies had to provide as a cost of doing business. Just like light, environmental control, and electricity. It seems that he was right.

Philadelphia Inquirer | 03/05/2003 | Unearthed military secret brings new life to old case

Philadelphia Inquirer | 03/05/2003 | Unearthed military secret brings new life to old case A fascinating story about the apparent lengths the Air Force went to in the 40's to avoid blame in a plane crash. The case went all the way to the Supreme Court, and now it looks like the Air Force lied when it said that the crash report had to stay secret due to "National Security".

Ronin no Sakurakai

Ronin no Sakurakai I have been looking for an application like forty-two forever. It let's you rip a DVD straight to a DivX movie. All in one step and easy. I was never able to find something like this for windows. If anyone has a pointer email me.

perl.com: Apocalypse 6 [Mar. 07, 2003]

perl.com: Apocalypse 6 [Mar. 07, 2003] Want to know how subroutines will be handled in Perl 6? Read all about it here.

AOL Is Planning a Fast-Forward Answer to TiVo

AOL Is Planning a Fast-Forward Answer to TiVo AOL is going to make a crippled TiVo and hope people will be dumb enough to pay for it.

Salling Software - Sony Ericsson Clicker

Salling Software - Sony Ericsson Clicker This is so cool. I've just ordered a Mac with bluetooth built-in. I can't wait to try this out.

Quote Collection

I was reading a post from Dave Farber on his excellent IP list. He had the following quotes in his signature, and I thought they made a unique statement together. "Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." Bible, John 8:32 "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." Benjamin Franklin Historical Review of Pennsylvania 1759 "You and I are told we must choose between a left or right, but I suggest there is no such thing as a left or right. There is only an up or down. Up to man's age-old dream -- the maximum of individual freedom consistent with order -- or down to the ant heap of totalitarianism. Regardless of their sincerity, their humanitarian motives, those who would sacrifice freedom for security have embarked on this downward path." Ronald Reagan "To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public." Theodore Roosevelt (1918) "During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act." George Orwell "If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen." Samuel Adams, speech at the Philadelphia State House, August 1, 1776.

Just War — or a Just War?

Just War — or a Just War? Here is a link to Jimmy Carter's Op-Ed in today's New York Times. Profound changes have been taking place in American foreign policy, reversing consistent bipartisan commitments that for more than two centuries have earned our nation greatness. These commitments have been predicated on basic religious principles, respect for international law, and alliances that resulted in wise decisions and mutual restraint. Our apparent determination to launch a war against Iraq, without international support, is a violation of these premises.

Some Evidence on Iraq Called Fake (washingtonpost.com)

Some Evidence on Iraq Called Fake (washingtonpost.com) A key piece of evidence linking Iraq to a nuclear weapons program appears to have been fabricated, the United Nations' chief nuclear inspector said yesterday in a report that called into question U.S. and British claims about Iraq's secret nuclear ambitions.

Web Site Hears From Dick Cheney After Parody Involving Wife

Web Site Hears From Dick Cheney After Parody Involving Wife

Mall Wants to Drop Peace T-Shirt Charges

Mall Wants to Drop Peace T-Shirt Charges Well, it seems that the Crossgates Mall have come to their senses.

Visa moves to improve customers' privacy -- The Washington Times

Visa moves to improve customers' privacy -- The Washington Times Usually I do all my purchasing on a card from one of Visa's competitors, but with this news maybe it's time to switch to a Visa card. Visa International will introduce a new company policy today that prohibits the display of all but the last four digits of a credit-card number on consumer receipts, a move intended to better protect customers' privacy.

Change to archives

I had to change the archives from weekly to monthly. The list was just getting too long. I'll leave the old weekly pages on the site for now, so that you can still find things with search engines. As always you can find the archives down and to your right.

Linksys releases dual-band Wi-Fi card | CNET News.com

Linksys releases dual-band Wi-Fi card | CNET News.com Linksys has released a duel-band (a/g) WiFi card.

Wired News: Lexmark: New Fuel for DMCA Foes

Wired News: Lexmark: New Fuel for DMCA Foes Another story illustrating how the DMCA is evil.

Letters From Exile: Evolution

Letters From Exile: Evolution I just finished Evolution by Stephen Baxter. Click through to my review, but basically I gave it a four out of five.

PCWorld.com - Toshiba May Bid Laptop Batteries Goodbye

PCWorld.com - Toshiba May Bid Laptop Batteries Goodbye Could this really be it? Could this be the first consumer fuel cell for a laptop? Would you be allowed to carry it on an airplane?

PCWorld.com - Toshiba Spreads the Wi-Fi Wealth

PCWorld.com - Toshiba Spreads the Wi-Fi Wealth Toshiba is going to get into the WiFi hotspot business.

Wired News: Privacy Activist Takes on Delta

Wired News: Privacy Activist Takes on Delta Another article on the Delta boycott.

Color change to $20 bills imminent - Mar. 5, 2003

Color change to $20 bills imminent - Mar. 5, 2003 It looks like they are going to start changing the currency again. The new 20 is to be announced on March 27.

BOYCOTT DELTA - less leg room, no privacy

BOYCOTT DELTA - less leg room, no privacy Delta has adopted an incredibly invasive plan for doing customer background checks. I personally don't plan on flying Delta until this plan is reversed.

t r u t h o u t - Arrest Me

t r u t h o u t - Arrest Me William Rivers Pitt has an interesting opinion piece over at truthout.org. Ask Andrew J. O'Conner of Santa Fe, New Mexico if it sounds crazy. Mr. O'Conner, a former public defender from Santa Fe, was arrested in a public library and interrogated by Secret Service agents for five hours on February 13th. His crime? He said "Bush is out of control" on an internet chat room, and was arrested for threatening the President. Ask Bernadette Devlin McAliskey of Ireland if it sounds crazy. She was recently passing through Chicago from Dublin, where she passed security, when she heard her name called over a loudspeaker. When she went up to the ticket counter, three men and one woman surrounded her and grabbed her passport. McAliskey was informed that she had been reported to be a "potential or real threat to the United States." Bernadette Devlin McAliskey has spent the better part of her life struggling for the Irish nationalist cause. She did not lob Molotov cocktails at police. Instead, she became a member of British Parliament at age 21, the youngest person ever elected to that post. In 1981 she and her husband were shot by a loyalist death squad in their home. She has traveled to America on a regular basis for the last thirty years, and has been given the keys to the cities of San Francisco and New York.

FBI acknowledges mystery flights

I got this message from the Cypherpunks mailing list. There was no attribution, so I don't know where it originally came from. Allen Friday, February 28, 2003 Posted: 6:32 PM EST (2332 GMT) BLOOMINGTON, Indiana (AP) -- The FBI acknowledged that a small plane whose frequent, unexplained flights over the city had raised fears among some residents is being used by the agency to monitor people who might have terrorist connections. Residents in this city of 69,000, home to the flagship campus of Indiana University, where more than 3,300 foreign students attend, have seen the white, single-engine Cessna 182 at least since February 19 making passes overhead about noon, in the late evening and after midnight. Earlier in the week, when aviation officials disclosed that the aircraft was conducting surveillance, the FBI had denied any link to the plane. Agent Thomas V. Fuentes said the FBI issued the denial because a reporter asked if the airplane is doing electronic surveillance, which it is not. Fuentes and agent James H. Davis said the FBI is not aware of any threat to Bloomington or the state, but is watching many foreign nationals. Several students at Indiana University have been questioned by FBI agents, university and agency officials confirmed. Agency spokesman Doug Garrison, however, would not say if those interviews were related to national security or the airplane's flights. Besides individuals, Fuentes and Davis said, the aircraft is monitoring vehicles and businesses -- particularly those open late at night from which faxes or e-mails can be sent. Fuentes said the aircraft is conducting surveillance flights over several communities near Indianapolis, the state capital. Bloomington is about 40 miles (65 kilometers) south of Indianapolis.

Peace T-shirt leads to man's arrest

Peace T-shirt leads to man's arrest. Sounds like it's time for people in Albany, NY to take their business away from the Crossgates Mall, which is apparently run by a bunch of idiots.

Wired News: Going to Extremes to Fight Spam

Wired News: Going to Extremes to Fight Spam The folks who brought us AvantGo are now going to solve our Spam problem. They are doing white listing. I tried that for awhile, but it's such a pain to keep the white list up to date. I much prefer SpamKu, at least then I get something amusing out of my Spam.

Letters From Exile: SpamKu -- SPAM Haiku

Letters From Exile: SpamKu -- SPAM Haiku. I was looking at my SPAM mailbox the other day. As I was reading the countless subject lines, I started hearing Haiku in my head (this could be a sign that I'm losing it). I thought it would be neat to put together a script that would write Haiku out of my SPAM subject lines. What you see below are the results of this experiment.

Wired 11.03: VIEW

Wired 11.03: VIEW In this article Bruce Sterling compares Lockheed's Skunk Works with the business practices at Enron.