llib.org

From plasticbag.org - “Clutter is my favourite new OSX toy. It starts off as a tiny little window that links in with iTunes. While you’re listening to music, it pops online and grabs cover images from Amazon.”
This is really cool.

English Sans French
By the way the Monitor has a very interesting history and a really well designed site (and RSS feeds).
Another interesting blog about the ‘war’ - Kevin Sites

Glad it’s Friday. Now I can actually get some of my work done in the quiet of the weekend.
New link/post on our company site - The Tyranny of Email.

The behaviour of highly meshed systems…
“The behaviour of highly meshed systems is why I’m unsure about direct genetic modification. Change by selective breeding uses the mechanisms that have evolved to change the genome by environmental feedback (set methods?) — the data return path from the phenotype to the next iteration. New GM methods play with […]

Natalie Merchant Jumps Ship
“Following the tradition of Ani Difranco and (to a somewhat lesser degree of success) Prince, the former lead singer of 10,000 Maniacs and successful solo artist Natalie Merchant has completely severed her relationship with the commercial recording industry. Her new album, to be released this June, won’t be released by a major […]

“So here’s a hypothetical situation for you. Let’s say that there’s a Starbucks in the high street. Let’s say that this Starbucks runs a wireless network in association with T-mobile. And let’s say that they charge for access to this wireless network. Now let’s say that above this Starbucks is a flat. And let’s say […]

“The Washington post looks to online newspapers from various UN members to gauge opinion: “As the United Kingdom seeks a… [David Galbraith]”
I noticed that too. Weird. In a presentation today I actually showed NetNewsWire to customers to show the potential of aggregated data coming from multiple sources. It was clicking I think. […]

One of the most frustrating things about the whole Iraq debate is the apparent lack of alternatives. The use of the word ‘peace’ as an alternative to invasion offers nothing to help the people of Iraq (who’s leader as we all know has directly caused the deaths of over a million people since 1980) […]

From on op-ed in today’s New York Times -
The French Connection, by WILLIAM SAFIRE”
“A shipment of 20 tons of HTPB, whose sale to Iraq is forbidden by U.N. resolutions and the oil-for-food agreement, left China in August 2002 in a 40-foot container. It arrived in the Syrian port of Tartus (fortified by the Knights […]

John Ralston Saul commented in the Globe and Mail today about a recent speech given as part of the La Fontaine-Baldwin Symposium. The full article is linked here, one particular section I liked -
“What we are still pretty unconscious of is just how original our Canadian experiment is. The common discourse of most […]

I try to watch 60 minutes when I can (I always take comfort in the fact it’s so highly rated in the U.S.). Anyways I missed it yesterday, more importantly I’m so mad I missed this - “The Bill and Bob Show.”
Of course Dole was funnier. Did you see him on Saturday Night […]

Although much admired (including by me on this blog for what its worth) Jimmy Carter’s record of late in diplomatic matters is waning (see North Koreas last agreement not to develop nuclear weapons); Former President Carter discussed the concept of just war in a New York Times op/ed piece on Sunday. Christopher Hitchens takes […]

Why is so much business still conducted with paper?
“‘The paperless office is as useful as the paperless office’, so goes the saying. Since computers have become ubiquitous, paper consumption has actually increased.”
[David Galbraith]

“This is a very interesting article that may be the key to understanding the US strategy. It reflects my thinking on the issue in that it focuses on the right thing: what is the long term solution to the loose nuke problem? The answer, of course, is to work on extending the […]

“I forgot to write this last night. While working with my Mom on her computer, we had an amusing conversation:
My Mom says to me: “Russell, do you know if you type in Russell Beattie into Google, you’re the first one to come up?”
I say: “Have you typed in just ‘beattie’?”
She did… and I came up […]

Crazy couple of days. Guests in town. Big things to plan and think about. Was down in Portland yesterday. New friends made.
Oh, and I have 9000 messages in my email client. [9031 to be precise]

Dell and Sun Trade Jabs Over Unix Viability (c/o Slashdot)
“To get out of the rut of obsolescence, Mott recommended a cultural shift. Rather than spending 85 percent of a company’s resources on the status quo or keeping the lights on, and 15 percent on development and innovation, the ratio should be turned around….
…This is where […]

Boeing Future Combat Systems FAQ
“4. Q) COMPUTERS - What Operating System will FCS use? Windows? VX Works? Lynxos? Linux? Other?
A. FCS C4ISR has selected the Linux OS.”

“Halley - Is a blog a start-up?
A blog is a slate and chalk — a drawing board for innovation. A wonderfully forgiving, fluid, networked place to think and collaborate with colleagues. Is it any surprise so many entrepreneurs and entrepreneuses are using this interface to create new ways of working and thinking and sharing information?” […]

While travelling doesn’t bother me too much I have to stop pretending that I am not affected by jetlag.