Recent Posts

2001

Living Room / Re: 2007: My 'Best of' list

« Last post by zridling on December 27, 2007, 09:32 PM »

jgpaiva, vim? Damn, and just as I was getting into emacs, you had to ruin it.

2002

Living Room / Resolutions for 2008? Shout 'em out

« Last post by zridling on December 27, 2007, 09:29 PM »

I never resolve anything because I'm so, so lazy. However, I'm considering a Groundhog Day Resolution this year. If you have any for next year, share them!

2003

General Software Discussion / Open Source Living software list — vera nize!

« Last post by zridling on December 27, 2007, 08:36 PM »

London-based Andrew brings us an elegant site titled, Open Source Living, which lists free software on various platforms. It's still in beta, but he's onto something nice, even though I noticed a couple of programs were freeware, not FLOSS. No big deal. Check it out.

2004

Living Room / Re: 2007: My 'Best of' list

« Last post by zridling on December 26, 2007, 04:05 PM »

Same here, I subscribed to the German channels on DishNetwork here in the US until a couple of months ago. I really enjoyed following their actors around the world in Hollywood movies, TV series, and other films. Too bad that Dish jacked up the price so I could no longer afford to subscribe.

2005

Older Newsletters / Re: --> Newsletter for December 24th - Codename "Here Comes Your NANY"

« Last post by zridling on December 26, 2007, 03:33 PM »

Love the chat, too. Between the newsletter and the DC blog, thank you guys for all your hard work.

2006

Living Room / Re: 2007: My 'Best of' list

« Last post by zridling on December 26, 2007, 03:29 PM »

Wow, thanks for the recommendation, Nosh; I added it to my Netflix queue. Here's my 2007 BEST OF short list.
________________________________________________
BEST MOVIE I SAW
The Bicycle Thief (1948)

BEST TV I WATCHED
Cowboy Bebop

BEST BOOK I READ
Dinosaurs in the Attic: An Excursion into the American Museum of Natural History

BEST SITES DISCOVERED
think or thwim
Chess Teaching
PoopReport.com

BEST SOFTWARE I USE
XYplorer File Manager
Finally making the switch (right now, it's SimplyMEPIS Linux)

BEST TECH BLOGS OF 2007
nixCraft (Linux)
i started something (Windows)

BEST TECH ACHIEVEMENT
OLPC, one laptop per child

BEST FAILURE
MS-OOXML Fails to Gain ISO Approval

2007

General Software Discussion / Re: 11 Top New Web Apps of 2007 - from lifehack.org

« Last post by zridling on December 26, 2007, 02:40 PM »

I mean, I don't understand why desktop application replacements are all over the place, and most web 2.0 applications are just that.... Who uses those? they are always inferior to the desktop counterpart... and you cannot do nice GUI things like assign keyboard shortcuts, no matter how much AJAX you did.

-urlwolf (December 22, 2007, 10:39 AM)

Great points, urlwolf, as these apps are limited by what you can do inside a browser. Though J-Mac pointed to cost savings, let me go further with the advantage of Web 2.0 apps for some:

• it's a great idea for small businesses whose employees are out of the office each week for some time (travel days, trips, etc.)
  
• saves HD space, although the best Web 2.0 apps come with local versions that sync automatically, like Zoho
  
• you never have to upgrade, download an update, or even buy another version — ever (no muss, no fuss)
  
• all data is backed up online, on top of being synched on your HD, even versions of your data are backed up, thus
  
• if your local computer crashes, your data is safe, and there's no reinstalling and customizing (except for your browser perhaps)
  
• of course, Web 2.0 is great for file sharing. Getting everyone on the same agenda, calendar, project, and so on saves a lot of "splainin."

The qualifier "for some" fits for light or ordinary users of those apps. For example, in any given office, there's only a handful of people who need and use the power of MS Word 2007. Many others are stuck in PeopleSoft, Oracle, or whatever database the company runs, and communication is tied to customer accounts. The rest could use a local version of a Web 2.0 suite and be happy. For example, students can now write full Univ. of Chicago Style papers with Zoho Writer now.

2008

General Software Discussion / Re: 11 Top New Web Apps of 2007 - from lifehack.org

« Last post by zridling on December 26, 2007, 02:26 PM »

two quick things:
1) this is lifehack.org not lifehacker.com

-mouser (December 25, 2007, 02:34 AM)

Thanks for the correction. I should really start reading things before ranting. Still, LifeHacker pisses me off half the time. Their tips mix in too much fluff a lot of the time.

2009

General Software Discussion / Re: Leopard is the New Vista, and It's Pissing Me Off

« Last post by zridling on December 26, 2007, 02:22 PM »

Good detective work indeed, nontroppo. I respect columnists who change their mind on an application or OS and give it a second look — even if their second look confirms their feeling of "meh." But I read a lot of "audience-tailored" writing throughout 2007. This is apparently quite common to several of the bloggers at ZDnet who've been caught by their own words.

2010

General Software Discussion / Re: Current IE8 build renders the ACID2 Test correctly!

« Last post by zridling on December 26, 2007, 02:12 PM »

nontroppo, thanks for the Opera tip to mimic IE7's auto menu-hide feature! 

2011

General Software Discussion / Re: 11 Top New Web Apps of 2007 - from lifehack.org

« Last post by zridling on December 25, 2007, 01:53 AM »

Damn, that sounded harsh. Sorry.

2012

General Software Discussion / Re: 11 Top New Web Apps of 2007 - from lifehack.org

« Last post by zridling on December 24, 2007, 11:37 PM »

The one thing I hate about LifeHacker is how their apparent direct links actually link to Lifehacker itself. In this article, for example, their "links" to these apps only link to the png files! IDIOTS. I agree with housetier on the overwhelming choice of flash apps. Seems the author, Dustin Wax, likes eye candy more than function. I see that a lot these days. With pretty, it often brings bloat, and the last thing I need on my computer is another slow app, no matter its location.

2013

Living Room / Re: Happy Festivus everyone!

« Last post by zridling on December 24, 2007, 12:07 PM »

Ah, thanks for the perfect reference, Renegade!

2014

Living Room / Happy Festivus everyone!

« Last post by zridling on December 23, 2007, 08:00 PM »

I'm not a god-believer, so I don't do the whole Hannukah/Christmas/Kwanzaa thing, but I do enjoy fattening up for the holidays without the guilt-load in tow. Festivus is it! I wish all DC-ers health, meaning, and few bugs in '08. (The vidlit video explains it well.)

2015

Living Room / Re: The Canonical LCD Thread at AnandTech.com

« Last post by zridling on December 23, 2007, 03:51 PM »

This page might help narrow the content down.

2016

General Software Discussion / Re: Current IE8 build renders the ACID2 Test correctly!

« Last post by zridling on December 23, 2007, 03:49 PM »

The best idea in IE7 was hiding the Menu bar automatically, using the ALT key to display it. I rarely go to the menus, and this saves valuable screen space. I wish Opera would do this.

2017

Living Room / Re: Find secret Amazon discounts with Deallocker

« Last post by zridling on December 23, 2007, 03:44 PM »

Must be the "beta" in them. Where's a mathematician when you need one! Between poor spelling and lack of math skills, the planet is devolving.

2018

Living Room / Find secret Amazon discounts with Deallocker

« Last post by zridling on December 17, 2007, 11:51 AM »

[via LifeHacker]

Search for and locate incredible Amazon discounts with DealLocker's secret Amazon Discount service. It even has a UK section, too, since I've found items there not on the US site, along with sections for Germany, France, and Canada.



Input an optional keyword and then choose the range of desired discount — anywhere from 10% off to 99% off. Unlike previously mentioned JungleCrazy, the secret finder gives much more comprehensive results and allows you to browse through Amazon directly after you perform your search. Still, if you're looking for some amazing deals through Amazon, both sites complement each other nicely.

2019

Living Room / 15 Biggest Tech Disappointments of 2007

« Last post by zridling on December 17, 2007, 08:37 AM »

No surprise that Microsoft heads the list of tech disappointments for 2007. Apple comes in second with its iPhone price cut and multiple Leopard faults.



Dan Tynan of PC World has the full list, but Microsoft leads everyone with Zune, Office 2007, and of course, Vista. Just to go back in the time machine, here's what PC World teased us with Vista back in late 2006. The silver lining in the software cloud that was 2007 is that more people tried — and stayed with — their new OS. Most every new OS X and GNU/Linux user was a former Windows user. The rest of the list is interesting, as Tynan explains how relevant Net Neutrality is now.
________________________________________________
THE 15 BIGGEST TECH DISAPPOINTMENTS OF 2007
15. Box Unpopuli: Amazon Unbox
14. Screwed up to the Max: Municipal WiMax
13. Web 2 Woe: Social Networks
12. Just Another Oxymoron: Internet Security
11. Singing an Old Familiar Zune: Microsoft Zune
10. Is Anyone Listening?: Wireless Carriers
09. Sorry, We Already Gave: Office 2007
08. Needs To Change Its Spots: Apple "Leopard" OS 10.5
07. Cannot be Completed as Dialed: Voice Over IP
06. Un-Neutral: The Broadband Industry
05. The Great, The Bad, The Ugly: Apple iPhone
04. In a Sorry State: Yahoo
03. The Anti-Social Network: Facebook Beacon
02. What Is It Good For: The High-Def Format War
01. No Wow, No How: Windows Vista

2020

Living Room / Re: Any old Amiga users among us?

« Last post by zridling on December 11, 2007, 12:17 AM »

Heck, I didn't even see this ars technica series on the history of the Amiga, up to Part 5 now!

2021

General Software Discussion / Re: Free Software brings affordability, transparency to mathematics

« Last post by zridling on December 10, 2007, 12:09 PM »

If you get a chance to use Sage, report back and share your findings, and thanks for the additional links, urlwolf.

2022

General Software Discussion / Free Software brings affordability, transparency to mathematics

« Last post by zridling on December 09, 2007, 08:35 AM »

This is big:
Until recently, a student solving a calculus problem, a physicist modeling a galaxy or a mathematician studying a complex equation had to use powerful computer programs that cost hundreds or thousands of dollars. But an open-source tool based at the University of Washington won first prize in the scientific software division of Les Trophées du Libre, an international competition for free software. The tool, called Sage, faced initial skepticism from the mathematics and education communities.



"I've had a surprisingly large number of people tell me that something like Sage couldn't be done -- that it just wasn't possible," said William Stein, associate professor of mathematics and lead developer of the tool. "I'm hearing that less now." Open-source software, which distributes programs and all their underlying code for free, is increasingly used in everyday applications. Firefox, Linux and Open Office are well-known examples.

The benefits of using free software for maths extend far beyond the usual ones:
The frustrations weren't only financial. Commercial programs don't always reveal how the calculations are performed. This means that other mathematicians can't scrutinize the code to see how a computer-based calculation arrived at a result.... "Not being able to check the code of a computer-based calculation is like not publishing proofs for a mathematical theorem," Stein said. "It's ludicrous."

2023

General Software Discussion / ShortcutGuide.com - keyboard shortcuts of popular programs

« Last post by zridling on December 09, 2007, 07:27 AM »

ShortcutGuide.com offers an easy way to learn (and print) the keyboard shortcuts of 15+ popular programs, most of them internet programs like browsers, chat, search engine shortcuts. A good idea and free.

2024

General Software Discussion / Re: Which app stays open on your desktop all day?

« Last post by zridling on December 09, 2007, 07:12 AM »

EmEditor text editor
XYplorer file manager
Opera browser
(...and AutoHotkey, of course)

2025

Living Room / Re: Microsoft Publishes Detailed Vista SP1 Changelog

« Last post by zridling on December 09, 2007, 07:06 AM »

I don't think so. Believe that will come with the Longhorn (Windows Server) in the Spring. No matter, based on this changelog, this will be a good step toward solidifying Vista and perhaps quieting its loudest critics like myself, who've suffered through its x64 version this year.