This definitely looks to be worth following. There is an RSS feed.
This looks like a great site to follow: unmediated “unmediated is a group blog that tracks the tools, processes, and ideas being used to decentralize media production and distribution.”
Not only a good math joke, but evidence of some nice lateral thinking.
I just got this via email and don’t know the copyright or the origin of this. If someone knows whether I should give credit to someone, please let me know. But it’s too funny not to blog.By Joichi Ito joi_nospam_@nospam_ito.com. [Joi Ito’s Web]
Not many good math jokes out there. [A Man with a Ph.D. – Richard Gayle’s Weblog]
Ready for Anything: 52 Productivity Principles for Work and Life
Allen, David
I’m definitely a fan of David Allen. His first book, Getting Things Done, should definitely be on your reading list, as should his new blog. Ready for Anything is an organized collection of David’s periodic essays and reflections on getting things done. Each is only a page or two long, but contains distilled wisdom and helps prod backsliders like me into action.
The Man Who Folded Himself
Gerrold, David
This is a book that’s been recommended to me off and on over the years. It’s in print again and after getting hooked on Gerrold’s War Against the Chtorr series last summer I read this back in January. I think I like Heinlein’s “By His Bootstraps” a little bit better, but this is definitely a keeper in the time-travel sub-genre. What it does nicely is to explore the human dimension relentlessly.
Deception Point
Brown, Dan
More from Dan Brown. He’s not Tom Clancy quite yet, but he’s working in territory that I find interesting in its own right. Here he explores how power and scientific knowledge interact. For those, like me, who bias toward science and the rational and don’t naturally pick up on the human and the natural, Deception Point helps you remember why those with high EQs are typically in charge of those with high IQs.
Digital Fortress : A Thriller
Brown, Dan
I thought The Da Vinci Code was ok but ultimately implausible and I thought the ending was pulled out of a hat. On the other hand, there’s no question that Dan Brown can write a good page turner, so I went looking for his earlier books (what can I say, when it comes to reading I am a gourmand not a gourmet). Digital Fortress was Brown’s first book, I believe, and I found it much more satisfying than the Da Vinci Code. What I found particularly interesting is how he explores how technical plausibility collides with the human dimensions of fear and paranoia in large organizations. His canvas here is the NSA, but the lessons are worth thinking about in more mundane contexts. So you get a nice thriller that moves and some food for thought about how digital technology affects big organizations. A nice twofer.
I continue to track Mark Hurst's thoughts about bit literacy with interest. I came across this originally reading Richard Saul Wurman's Information Anxiety 2, which should definitely be on your reading list if you haven't read it already.
Good Experience: Bit literacy: an overview. Obviously, bits have become more important to the average technology user since then. In fact, I find that the essay – although it predates those developments – is even more relevant in 2004. Thus I plan to write more about bit literacy this year. [Tomalak's Realm]
Here's the key graf:
To have a chance to survive the infinite bits in the future, we'll need a lot of bit literacy: in our behavior (letting go of bits), in our beliefs (searching for the meaning behind the bits), and in our technology — with simpler tools granting us control over the bits, and working with bits in their simplest formats. And as we shift to becoming not just consumers but *creators* of bits, the discipline of bit literacy will show us how to *create* bits differently: mindfully, meaningfully, and with an acceptance of their essential emptiness.
In a world where information is carried in physical containers (e.g., books, reports, papers), the containers set limits for us. With bits, we need to exercise explicit managerial control.
Another resource to have for a rainy day
Turning Search Into a Science. If you're looking for scientific information on the Web, Google might not be the best choice. Many researchers instead turn to Scirus. By Kristen Philipkoski. [Wired News]
Another tidbit to keep handy for that not too distant day when I will need it.
PDASmart offers superior iPod battery replacement. PDASmart.com is offering an iPod battery replacement kit that’s much better than the Apple original, offering 35 percent better battery life than the stock iPod, and a decent price. ” The Do-It-Yourself kit comes complete with very detailed instructions and all the right tools to do the job without damaging your iPod (please don’t pry open that case with a flat-tipped screwdriver!). We had this battery developed with the same lithium-ion polymer battery technology as the original and it is rated at 3.7 volts and 850mAh.” Looks good. [Paul Thurrott’s Internet Nexus]
It must be frustrating to be a corporate lawyer with a technological clue. You know that sending a cease and desist letter will immediately trigger the proliferation of copies across the net and around the world, as well as generating all sorts of unwanted publicity. On the other hand, if you don’t you violate your responsibilities to your shareholders. I think “bullied” is a bit inflamatory. IANAL, but this strikes me as yet one more piece of evidence that the DMCA is bad law.
Playfair bullied offline by Apple, reappears on Indian site. PlayFair, the free software project that allowed you to strip the copy-restriction wrapper off of your iTunes Music Store tracks, has been removed from SourceForge in response to a threatening letter, apparently from Apple. It has been relocated to a server in India, and development continues apace. Link (Thanks, Jonathan!) [Boing Boing]
