Email: Jack of all trades, master of none

http://weblog.infoworld.com/udell/2004/04/28.html#a986

E-mail is the jack of all trades, but the master of none. There are better ways to transfer files, hold discussions, deliver notifications, broadcast newsletters, schedule meetings, work collaboratively, and manage personal information. But even though e-mail isn't the best tool for any of these tasks, it provides a single interface to all of them. Here's a challenge: Let's improve the various functions performed by e-mail without multiplying the interfaces people must learn in order to use those functions. [Full story at InfoWorld.com]

This is dead on! I've been whining at work about how email sucks for lots of things, multi-way discussions most recently. I haven't read the full article (yet), only the excerpt above. The article is now in my reading queue on the PDA.

Ending email forgery

http://weblog.infoworld.com/udell/2004/04/21.html#a980

In our July 18 feature, Canning Spam we mentioned an Internet draft proposal from Hadmut Danisch, called RMX (Reverse Mail eXchange). It was an elaboration of an earlier proposal by Paul Vixie, architect of BIND (Berkeley Internet Name Domain), who in turn attributes the idea to Jim Miller of JCM Consulting. The idea is elegantly simple. In addition to publishing the MX (Mail Exchange) DNS records that identify inbound mail hosts, an organization also publishes reverse MX records that identify outbound hosts. A receiving server queries the DNS to find out if the sending host is so authorized. The name yahoo.com is easy to forge, but the IP addresses of Yahoo's outbound servers are not.

Something more to read... sigh. I'm so far behind...

Furl

http://www.tinyapps.org/blog/2004_04_01_archive.html#108274258685352726

Furl sounds like a neat idea. It "helps you save, share, and recall anything you find online," essentially acting as your personal database of saved webpages.

Something else to check out in my non-existent spare time.

Ann Winblad: Emerging Technology Trends

http://www.itconversations.com/shows/detail110.htmlI listened to this the other day, as I do with all the stuff that Doug Kaye posts to the site. I'm very heartened by Winblad's belief that we're on the verge of an upturn in the software industry. One quote that really struck me (as best as I can remember because the transcript link seems to be broken):

It's not enough to have a big brain, we've all got big brains or we wouldn't have survived in this industry

Too true. It's not enough to be smart or even to have a bright idea. The old adage about the world beating a path to your door just isn't true. Sitting back and waiting for the world to discover just how smart you or your ideas are is a recipe for being poor.

Spacewalk Required to Fix Circuit Breaker on Gyroscope

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A34857-2004Apr22.html?nav=rss_nation

One of the international space station's massive gyroscopes has tripped a circuit breaker and shut down, leaving the station without a backup gyro and forcing ground controllers to schedule an extra spacewalk to replace the damaged part, NASA officials said yesterday

Sigh. I spent 10 years working in the space biz for a now sold off division of IBM. Among other things I oversaw some software design for a more ambitious space station called Freedom. Alas, Freedom never made it off the ground,so to speak.

The ISS is a very poor substitute, barely more than the first "space station", Skylab. A friend of mine works for NASA on the ISS. He tells me that it's "one or two failures from having to be abandoned". And once it's abandoned there's not much rush to get the Shuttle fleet flying again. And there goes government sponsored manned space flight in America.

Working in the space biz is rather like seeing sausage made. As Larry Niven said in Fallen Angels

...and if it weren't for NASA we'd be on the moon by now...

Unison File Synchronizer

http://www.cis.upenn.edu/~bcpierce/unison/

Unison is a file-synchronization tool for Unix and Windows. (It also works on OSX to some extent, but it does not yet deal with 'resource forks' correctly; more information on OSX usage can be found on the unison-users mailing list archives.) It allows two replicas of a collection of files and directories to be stored on different hosts (or different disks on the same host), modified separately, and then brought up to date by propagating the changes in each replica to the other

Discovered via closed group file-sharing summary on taint.org. This looks like a must-try to get files back and forth and round and round among the systems I use for work.

Brewster Kahle on Universal Access to Human Knowledge

http://www.corante.com/copyfight/archives/003351.html

When Brewster Kahle sees a problem -- preferably a big, hairy, audacious problem -- he's likely to ask, without blinking, "Where do we start?" That's the approach he's taken to his (and our) current task, providing "universal access to all human knowledge."

Where most of us would be overwhelmed by the sheer size of the task, Brewster sees a challenge to be categorized and attacked systematically: Why can't we as a society share with all of our members the learning we've produced? What does that mean? Well, let's say there are 26 million books in the Library of Congress; 2-3 million sound recordings; maybe 100,000-200,000 theatrical releases and as many more video ephemera; 50 million websites; 1000 channels of television. For each chunk, the Internet Archive has a project: The Internet Bookmobile and million book project; live music archive; moving image collections; and, of course, the Wayback machine.

I knew about the Wayback Machine but only recently stumbled across references to the live music and video archives. I've pulled down a couple of Grateful Dead albums. I was never a serious Deadhead and I don't generally like country music but there's just something about their stuff...

I blame my old college room-mate, MF, for getting me semi-hooked on the Dead.

Nanowire nanomemory

http://www.boingboing.net/2004/04/23/nanowire_nanomemory.html

This image depicts a novel design for a nanomemory device that its inventors believe can store 40 gigabits of data per square centimeter. Developed by scientists at the University of Southern California and the NASA Ames Research Center, the self-assembled molecular memory consists of a nanowire coated with a layer of transistors. In traditional computer memory chips, each transistor holds one bit of information. The beauty of this nano-enabled approach is that the transistors can be put in eight distinct states depending on the voltage applied. That means each "memory cell" can hold three bits of data. Link

Sweet! Molecular memory. Maybe we are in the 21st century after all!

The image above is borrowed from Russ Lipton's Coffeehouse at the End-Of-Days blog entry on this same subject

SimpleScript Part Five: Named Items and Modules

SimpleScript Part Five: Named Items and Modules

THE AUGMENTED SOCIAL NETWORK: BUILDING IDENTITY AND TRUST INTO THE NEXTGENERATION

THE AUGMENTED SOCIAL NETWORK: BUILDING IDENTITY AND TRUST INTO THE NEXTGENERATION INTERNET

Could the next generation of online communications strengthen civil society by being better at connecting people to others with whom they share affinities, so they can more effectively exchange information and self-organize? Could such a system help to revitalize democracy in the 21st century? When networked personal computing was first developed, engineers concentrated on extending creativity among individuals and enhancing collaboration between a few. They did not much consider what social interaction among millions of Internet users would actually entail. It was thought that the Net's technical architecture need not address the issues of "personal identity" and "trust," since those matters tended to take care of themselves.

This paper proposes the creation of an Augmented Social Network (ASN) that would build identity and trust into the architecture of the Internet, in the public interest, in order to facilitate introductions between people who share affinities or complimentary capabilities across social networks. The ASN has three main objectives: 1) To create an Internet-wide system that enables more efficient and effective knowledge sharing between people across institutional, geographic, and social boundaries. 2) To establish a form of persistent online identity that supports the public commons and the values of civil society. 3) To enhance the ability of citizens to form relationships and self-organize around shared interests in communities of practice in order to better engage in the process of democratic governance. In effect, the ASN proposes a form of "online citizenship" for the Information Age.

Technology Benefiting Humanity

http://www.acm.org/ubiquity/views/v5i5_fruchterman.html

Technology is all about helping people. However, technology development is not driven to maximize all of society's goals. Applications that make money get built, while applications that don't make money don't get built. Bridging the gap between the possible and the profitable in socially beneficial applications of technology is critical, and it's an important effort that requires the attention of the technology community.

The social sector needs more technology tools, and the barriers to using technology in this sector are shrinking daily. Market failure is not the final word: just because something isn't financially lucrative is no reason not to do it. Technology is quite easy to replicate cheaply: that's why software companies are often so profitable. This same leverage can be put to use in social applications of technology. The need is acute for nimble social entrepreneurs to bridge these gaps: between possibility and profitability, between business and government, and between technologists and disadvantaged communities.

Coffeehouse at the End-Of-Days: Seek Quiet

Coffeehouse at the End-Of-Days: Seek Quiet: "While we give lip service to a life of peacefulness, most of us (Christian or non-Christian) drink a stressful life-style like the addicts we are"

Outlook Email Extractor Pro (OEE) - Extract Messages From Outlook Folders

Outlook Email Extractor Pro (OEE) - Extract Messages From Outlook Folders: "Outlook Email Extractor Pro (OEE) designed to extract and save messages from Microsoft Outlook folders in the text files (format .eml, RFC822). It allows to expand the opportunities on processing and storing the messages: you may archive message's base, import messages into the great quantity of other programs for the further processing, extract data from messages, process and analyze them. The program saves the messages fully with all internet headers, attachments, HTML and text parts"

Free legal downloads for $6 a month. DRM free. The artists get paid. We explain how� [printer-friendly] | The Register

Free legal downloads for $6 a month. DRM free. The artists get paid. We explain how� [printer-friendly] | The Register: "Analysis Imagine a world where music and movies could be freely exchanged online, where artists are recompensed and the labels don't lose a cent, and where 12-year old girls need not fear harboring an MP3 of their favorite TV show theme tune on their PC."

drupal.org | community plumbing

drupal.org | community plumbing

Drupal is an open-source platform and content management system for building dynamic web sites offering a broad range of features and services including user administration, publishing workflow, discussion capabilities, news aggregation, metadata functionalities using controlled vocabularies and XML publishing for content sharing purposes. Equipped with a powerful blend of features and configurability, Drupal can support a diverse range of web projects ranging from personal weblogs to large community-driven sites.

Hm... Another possibility for a collaborative develoment suppor tool.

Bookcrossing, the Evil Genius and space-hogging p books

TeleRead: Bring the E-Books Home

If you're looking to swap books with other booklovers, try Bookcrossing. Old news. But somehow I haven't mentioned the site before. Most traded writer: John Grisham. Too bad that stupid DRM schemes would presumably get in the way of BC fans using the site to trade e-book editions of best-sellers.

CutePDF Writer - Create PDF documents easily from any Windows application for absolutely free

CutePDF Writer - Create PDF documents easily from any Windows application for absolutely free

Portable Document Format (PDF) is the de facto standard for the secure and reliable distribution and exchange of electronic documents and forms around the world. CutePDF Writer (formerly CutePDF Printer) is the free version of commercial PDF creation software. CutePDF Writer installs itself as a "printer subsystem". This enables virtually any Windows applications (must be able to print) to create professional quality PDF documents - with just a push of a button!

FREE for personal and commercial use! No watermarks! No Popup Web Ads!

SimpleScript Part Four: Finite State Machines and Script Engines

SimpleScript Part Four: Finite State Machines and Script Engines: "Last time I said that I'd discuss finite state machines (also sometimes called finite state automata, same thing.) The FSM is a fundamental idea in theoretical computer science because it models computing machinery in a very simple, abstract and general way. Basically it goes like this: an FSM has a finite number of states (duh). Each state accepts a finite number of inputs. Each state has rules which describe the action of the machine for every input. An input may cause the machine to change state. "

$14 Steady-Cam

$14 Steady-Cam

Steadycams (or camera stabilizers) are attachments used to capture smooth looking video even when the camera and camera operator are in motion. The camera operator may walk (or even jog), move through tight hallways and doorways, and even climb up and down stairs without shaking the camera. Unfortunately, professional steadycams cost around $1500. Even the cheap 3rd party ones cost $600+. Not exactly a bargain considering many of us use cameras in that price range. So, I decided to make my own version. It turns out, it only costs $14. Not too bad. And I'll show you how to build your own right here (or you may simply buy one from me). Whether you are an aspiring filmmaker, a videographer, the family documentarian, or just want more utility out of your video camera, you'll appreciate a steadycam.

Very cool. I always wondered if there was some magic component in the $900 Steadicams. Apparently not.

TIP: Removing MSN Messenger From Outlook Express

By Diana Huggins

Windows Messenger (Instant Messenger, that is) is tightly integrated into Windows XP as well as many other programs such as Internet Explorer and Outlook Express. If you're an instant messenger guru or don't mind the program always being there, this may be fine. However, many find this integration with other programs more of an annoyance than anything. Fortunately, you can make a few configuration changes to disable, remove, or completely get rid of the chat program altogether. For example, you can remove MSN messenger from Outlook Express using the following steps (you may also find that Outlook Express starts faster after doing so).

Open the registry editor and navigate to the following system key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Outlook Express.

Right click the Outlook Express folder, click New, click DWORD value, and name the new registry key Hide Messenger.

Right click the Hide Messenger key you just created and click Modify.

In the Value data box, type 2 and click OK.

News Map: Another Way to Look at the World

The News Map visualizes the news flow on Google News in a way that is very similar to financial information tools such as The Map of the Market as described by Martin Dodge on his beautiful Mappa Mundi site. Always worth a visit. (For the news map, a tip o' the hat to Barry Parr and Dieter Bachmann.)

Interesting. Not sure I understand the size relationships yet. But interesting.

UML Tool - Model-Code-Deploy software development platform

UML Tool - Visual Paradigm for UML

Visual Paradigm for UML (VP-UML) is a powerful, cross-platform and yet the most easy-to-use visual UML modeling and CASE tool. VP-UML provides software developers the cutting edge development platform to build quality applications faster, better and cheaper! It facilitates excellent interoperability with other UML CASE tools and most of the leading IDEs which excels your entire Model-Code-Deploy development process in this one-stop-shopping solution.

I have the same fascination with UML that a snake has with a mongoose.

Free SMTP Server

Free SMTP Server

Free SMTP Server is a SMTP server program for Windows that lets you send email messages directly from your computer

It really ticks me off that Windoze doesn't come with one built in.

My Avatar, My Self

My Avatar, My Self

It's a quiet day over here. The ground outside my window is caked in snow. The driveway is icy, the car waiting to be freed. Short of the UPS guy or maybe the neighbor walking his twin dachshunds, the chances of chatting up someone about last night's episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm seem slim.

But as always, there’s plenty happening over There. The dune buggy racers are kicking up dirt on their way to the track. The hoverboarders are flying. A surfer dude flirts with a raver in a halter top and neon green micro shorts. And Lexxa, someone who has greeted me within seconds of my materialization, is offering to show me the way to the spa. “You look like you could use a makeover,” she says.

WorldChanging: Another World Is Here: Free Data. Big Picture. Very Cool.

WorldChanging: Another World Is Here: Free Data. Big Picture. Very Cool.

I have just found my favorite get-the-big-picture, track-global-trends, follow-the-money-and-everything-else site ever.

It's called Gapminder.

Go ahead, just click on that little underlined word there. And be prepared to spend a very satisfying several hours. Learning.

Utah's New Project Planning Methodology by Phil Windley:

Dave Fletcher, acting Director of ITS at the State, talks about the new ITS project planning methodology. I like that the methodology includes a "roles and responsibilities" matrix. Dave reports that they're using DotProject, an open source project management tool to do the planning.
Discuss this :: Email this :: Blog this :: Print this

Lockergnome - Windows Fanatics - April 5, 2004

Lockergnome - Windows Fanatics - April 5, 2004

There are several trusted Web sites you can visit that will offer free tools to scan your computer and detect any existing security weaknesses. For example, GRC.com has various tools that can be used to scan your computer. Another one that I like is the Symantec Security Check. In any case, once you have your firewall enabled, don't assume you are safe and clear from Internet attacks. You may be surprised to see the results of a security check and all the holes that may still exist.

SimpleScript Part Three: Engine Skeleton

SimpleScript Part Three: Engine Skeleton

I've uploaded two new files, engine.cpp and engine.h (and hooked it up to the class factory). Right now the engine code just knows how to create and destroy itself; no interfaces other than IUnknown are implemented. As you can see, over the next few entries I'm going to flesh out IActiveScript, IActiveScriptParse, IActiveScriptParseProcedure2 and IObjectSafety. I already covered the purpose of IObjectSafety in detail in my series 'Script and IE Security', which you can read in full by going to my security archive. Part Two has a description of the interface. Why are there three script interfaces instead of one, and what's with that '2'?

washingtonpost.com: The Other Side of the Outsourcing Debate

washingtonpost.com: The Other Side of the Outsourcing Debate

Ron Hira, chair of the career and workforce policy committee for IEEE-USA, the Washington policy and lobbying unit of New York-based Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc., was online to field questions about outsourcing and its effect on tech companies and workers in the United States.

All us aging geeks are wondering if we'll be able to remain employed until we're financially able to retire.

FREE CULTURE by Lawrence Lessig (and friends):

FREE CULTURE by Lawrence Lessig (and friends):

On Thursday, March 25 2004, Lawrence Lessig's new book "Free Culture" was released to the world as a printed hardcover as well as a free download, under a Creative Commons license.
On Friday, A. K. M. Adam asked a simple question: "Anyone feel like recording a chapter of Lawrence Lessig's new book?"

Boing Boing: Everyone In Silico, licensed for remixing

Boing Boing: Everyone In Silico, licensed for remixing: "My friend Jim Munroe is a brilliant sf writer, author of Angry Young Spaceman (which I reviewed for Wired), Everyone in Silico, and Flyboy Action Figure Comes With Gas Mask. Silico is a particularily interesting novel about the corporatization of public spaces (Jim used to be a managing editor at AdBusters), and among Jim's publicity stunts for the book was a letter-writing campaign to corporations mentioned in the book, shaking them down for money for 'product placement.' "

SimpleScript Part Two: Class Factories Are Also Boring

SimpleScript Part Two: Class Factories Are Also Boring: "Before I get into it, a Lambda poster pointed me at the NullScript project, which is a very interesting illustration of how reverse engineering works. It's an implementation of a 'null' script engine -- an engine with no language -- in ATL, which the intrepid developer created in order to try and understand how ASP works. Typical programmer! They could have just asked me, but where's the fun in that"

SimpleScript Part One: DllMain is Boring

SimpleScript Part One: DllMain is Boring: "In talking with our support engineer it's just become more muddled. I'm pretty sure now actually that the customer does not want to build a script engine, but whether they want to build a script editor, a script host or a script debugger is unclear."

Economic Scene

Economic Scene

IF you are reading this column, it is clear that you are interested in economics and economic policy. But what about the rest of the population? How do people learn about the economy and economic policy? How much do they know? How does it affect their views?

These are questions that my Princeton colleague Alan S. Blinder and I ask in a study just completed for the Brookings Papers on Economic Activity. Last spring we surveyed a random sample of 1,002 people on their views about economic policy. As part of the survey, we administered a quiz on basic facts, like the size of the federal budget deficit, the level of the minimum wage, the share of income paid in taxes, and the percent of Americans without health insurance.