Apparently the O'Reilly 2nd annual Web 2.0 Conference is entirely sold out. I went to the Learning AJAX tutorial at OSCON this year, so I'm not entirely surprised. The tutorial was packed, wall to wall, standing room only. Maybe this is the answer to the critics of the Web 2.0 meme, after all, this many smart people surely can't be wrong?
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Google fear and loathing...
Seth Jayson recently wrote about why he fears Google in an article for the Motley Fool. He said a lot of stuff that people have been thinking for a while. The idea of Google cross-correlating the keywords from my web searches, my GMail inbox and my blog postings along with the associated AdSense keywords is a nightmare scenario.
Interestingly however Robert Scoble sees a different threat, directly to Microsoft. An interesting take on things, and not one that had occurred to me...
Apple Matters is also carrying what I think is a related article right now. They talk about how people's frustration at Microsoft will probably always exist, so long as Microsoft is in control of the desktop operating system market. You have to wonder what that means for Google? With the desktop becoming irrelevant if they end up in control of Web 2.0, will they have to face the same fear and loathing?
Update: Fixed the incorrect attribution. Err, whoops...
Interestingly however Robert Scoble sees a different threat, directly to Microsoft. An interesting take on things, and not one that had occurred to me...
Apple Matters is also carrying what I think is a related article right now. They talk about how people's frustration at Microsoft will probably always exist, so long as Microsoft is in control of the desktop operating system market. You have to wonder what that means for Google? With the desktop becoming irrelevant if they end up in control of Web 2.0, will they have to face the same fear and loathing?
Update: Fixed the incorrect attribution. Err, whoops...
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
PSP firmware 2.0 to 1.5 downgrader
For those of you who upgraded to version 2.0 of the Sony PSP firmware and are now regretting it, it looks like there is now a working downgrader to take you back to version 1.5 of the firmware. As always, your milage may vary!
Update: C.K. Sample has tried it and it works for him...
Update: Both Slashdot and the Register have more...
Update: There is now a video to walk you through the downgrade process...
Update: There is now also a downgrader from the newer 2.5 or 2.6 firmware versions back to the homebrew friendly version 1.5.
Update: C.K. Sample has tried it and it works for him...
Update: Both Slashdot and the Register have more...
Update: There is now a video to walk you through the downgrade process...
Update: There is now also a downgrader from the newer 2.5 or 2.6 firmware versions back to the homebrew friendly version 1.5.
The "Kliper" ship, redux
It's been a long time coming, the mockup of the Kliper was rolled out almost a year ago, but it now looks like the Russian Energia Corporation has actually found a partner who might be able to pay for construction of the new spacecraft.
Update: More from the Register...
| ||
| The Kliper's unveiling in December 2004 |
Update: More from the Register...
Web 2.0 Meme Map
 | Posted via Flickr by aallan |
| Tim O'Reilly's meme map, which he posted on Flickr, from the "What is Web 2.0?" brainstorming session at FOO Camp 2005. |
Update: More O'Reilly Flickr goodness via their O'Reilly Clusters...
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
Orange launches SPV M5000
The long awaited HTC Universal was released today in the UK on Orange badged as the SPV M5000. However with a hefty price tag of over £400, depending on tariff, the new handset is obviously being targeted at business users who aren't really as sensitive to price as the consumer market.
Despite its release being announced today, Orange don't expect the handset to ship before October...
Update: Engadget has picked up the story...
Update: I just ordered one, stand by for the review...
Despite its release being announced today, Orange don't expect the handset to ship before October...
Update: Engadget has picked up the story...
Update: I just ordered one, stand by for the review...
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
The human condition
We all go through life clutching the illusion that our own small part of the world is important, especially if you come from a first world country. Those of us lucky enough to grow up in the first world tend to travel wrapped in technology, and with a corresponding false sense of invulnerability, from place to place using our cars and our planes, and our chains of virtually identical hotels, as a shield against the "other" world.
But nothing rubs in the fact that most people lead little, unremarkable, lives than being crammed into a metal tube with several hundred people you don't know, and who don't care about you, but are all heading to the same place as you anyway.
Because, you see, for just a few hours, if you're on a trans-atlantic flight, you might as well not exist. You can't be contacted, you're not in the loop, and funnily enough the world gets on just fine without you. This affects some people worse than others, the ones that it hits worst are the ones reaching for their cell phones as soon as the wheels touch runway. The ones that make phone calls before you've even reached the terminal. There are very few people in the world that are going to be missed so badly that they need to turn their cell phones on before they reach the gate, they don't travel in economy.
Most people lead unremarkable lives, but on top of those people's shoulders stand others, people who lead a life slightly more interesting than average. On top of their shoulders stand others, and on top of theirs still others. At the top of the pile stand a handful of people, you could probably name them all, we probably all could. They have the lives we all should have if life were fair, because they get to do things that are not just interesting, but unique.
It's easy to see why people want to be counted amongst the elite group, a group of people probably no larger than a couple of hundred out of the massed billions on our tiny, insignificant little planet. The sports and movie stars, the politicians, the heads of corporations and uncounted millionaires, all of those would like to think they belong, they don't. They're failures, comfortably off failures I'll grant you, but they aren't unique.
I remember quite vividly queuing for a flight out of Heathrow heading for LAX, being pushed aside by some self important guy. "Don't you know who I am?", he said. "No", I admitted, "I don't". "What? I play for England", he retorted. "Which sport?", I asked politely. The look of confusion on his face was almost comical.
So who are these people? They're the explorers, the astronauts and the people smart enough to be pushing forward the frontiers of human knowledge.
Despite my doubts about NASA's Shuttle progamme, and unlike a lot of scientists who believe it could all be done faster, better and cheaper with robots, I have no doubts about the manned space programme. The manned space programme is something we should be pouring money into, it's one of the few things the human race is doing that's worthwhile. There will always be inequality, and depressingly, there will probably always be poverty and hunger. The only way to make things better for the little people, people like you and me, who don't really matter, is to funnel resources towards those people doing unique things, because they're the people who, by pushing themselves forward, take the rest of us with them.
They're going to be introducing cell phone service on planes soon, so people will be able to hide even during those long trans-atlantic flights. That probably isn't a good thing...
Update: Talking about cell phones on planes...
But nothing rubs in the fact that most people lead little, unremarkable, lives than being crammed into a metal tube with several hundred people you don't know, and who don't care about you, but are all heading to the same place as you anyway.
Because, you see, for just a few hours, if you're on a trans-atlantic flight, you might as well not exist. You can't be contacted, you're not in the loop, and funnily enough the world gets on just fine without you. This affects some people worse than others, the ones that it hits worst are the ones reaching for their cell phones as soon as the wheels touch runway. The ones that make phone calls before you've even reached the terminal. There are very few people in the world that are going to be missed so badly that they need to turn their cell phones on before they reach the gate, they don't travel in economy.
Most people lead unremarkable lives, but on top of those people's shoulders stand others, people who lead a life slightly more interesting than average. On top of their shoulders stand others, and on top of theirs still others. At the top of the pile stand a handful of people, you could probably name them all, we probably all could. They have the lives we all should have if life were fair, because they get to do things that are not just interesting, but unique.
It's easy to see why people want to be counted amongst the elite group, a group of people probably no larger than a couple of hundred out of the massed billions on our tiny, insignificant little planet. The sports and movie stars, the politicians, the heads of corporations and uncounted millionaires, all of those would like to think they belong, they don't. They're failures, comfortably off failures I'll grant you, but they aren't unique.
I remember quite vividly queuing for a flight out of Heathrow heading for LAX, being pushed aside by some self important guy. "Don't you know who I am?", he said. "No", I admitted, "I don't". "What? I play for England", he retorted. "Which sport?", I asked politely. The look of confusion on his face was almost comical.
So who are these people? They're the explorers, the astronauts and the people smart enough to be pushing forward the frontiers of human knowledge.
Despite my doubts about NASA's Shuttle progamme, and unlike a lot of scientists who believe it could all be done faster, better and cheaper with robots, I have no doubts about the manned space programme. The manned space programme is something we should be pouring money into, it's one of the few things the human race is doing that's worthwhile. There will always be inequality, and depressingly, there will probably always be poverty and hunger. The only way to make things better for the little people, people like you and me, who don't really matter, is to funnel resources towards those people doing unique things, because they're the people who, by pushing themselves forward, take the rest of us with them.
They're going to be introducing cell phone service on planes soon, so people will be able to hide even during those long trans-atlantic flights. That probably isn't a good thing...
Update: Talking about cell phones on planes...
Monday, September 19, 2005
The thing about Web 2.0
Tim Bray came out a while ago now and said how much he dislikes the Web 2.0 meme. This got a robust response from none other than Tim O'Reilly, and a followup article in reply from Tim Bray.
Just before the weekend Tim O'Reilly posted a link to a podcast of an interview between himself and John Battelle about Web 2.0 as part of the lead up to the O'Reilly 2nd annual Web 2.0 Conference in San Francisco this October.
For many people the "Web 2.0" phenomenon first became really obvious with the introduction of Google Maps, which meant that for a lot of people it became synonymous with location based data. To a Web 2.0 proponent this is obviously nonsense, and to a real GIS person like my wife it's sheer heresy.
However at least for me, Web 2.0 will take a while to shake off that image, even with rumours of a Google OS on the horizon. I don't think I'm alone here, as despite the growing number of publically available web service APIs most of the interesting mash-ups I've seen recently centre around Google Maps and Google Earth, although there are exceptions.
Of course no matter what happens, I doubt many people believe that Microsoft can control the direction of Web 2.0, apart from Microsoft themselves of course. For many, the map has become the interface...
Just before the weekend Tim O'Reilly posted a link to a podcast of an interview between himself and John Battelle about Web 2.0 as part of the lead up to the O'Reilly 2nd annual Web 2.0 Conference in San Francisco this October.
For many people the "Web 2.0" phenomenon first became really obvious with the introduction of Google Maps, which meant that for a lot of people it became synonymous with location based data. To a Web 2.0 proponent this is obviously nonsense, and to a real GIS person like my wife it's sheer heresy.
However at least for me, Web 2.0 will take a while to shake off that image, even with rumours of a Google OS on the horizon. I don't think I'm alone here, as despite the growing number of publically available web service APIs most of the interesting mash-ups I've seen recently centre around Google Maps and Google Earth, although there are exceptions.
Of course no matter what happens, I doubt many people believe that Microsoft can control the direction of Web 2.0, apart from Microsoft themselves of course. For many, the map has become the interface...
Identity 2.0
I just stumbled across a video archive of Dick Hardt's excellent OSCON keynote address on "Identity 2.0"...
Dick Hardt and "Identity 2.0"...
As I blogged at the time Dick discussed how our identity online is constrained inside walled gardens, and how we'll need to move away from this model, and away from centralised identity providers. It was an interesting presentation, and if you weren't at OSCON you might want to go take a look.
Dick Hardt and "Identity 2.0"...
As I blogged at the time Dick discussed how our identity online is constrained inside walled gardens, and how we'll need to move away from this model, and away from centralised identity providers. It was an interesting presentation, and if you weren't at OSCON you might want to go take a look.
Friday, September 16, 2005
Video Podcasting
Yesterday Apple announced the release of Video Podcasting support for iTunes. Can this mean a video iPod is just round the corner?
Update: Of course if you're willing to install podzilla on your iPod you can have video on your iPod right away...
Update: Only a month on and we have our video iPod...
Update: Of course if you're willing to install podzilla on your iPod you can have video on your iPod right away...
Update: Only a month on and we have our video iPod...
Return to the Moon?
Amongst others, Slashdot is reporting on NASA's plans to return to the Moon by 2018. Return to the Moon? They can't even return to flight...
I guess I find it somewhat ironic that it's actually going to take NASA longer to go back than it did for it to go the first time round.
I guess I find it somewhat ironic that it's actually going to take NASA longer to go back than it did for it to go the first time round.
No nation which expects to be the leader of other nations can expect to stay behind in this race for space... We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.Update: The BBC has more on NASA's current plans...John F. Kennedy speaking at Rice University, Sept. 1962
Petrol protests, redux
It looks like the threatened fuel protests and the resulting panic buying has had some effect. Asda has placed a ceiling of 89.9p per litre on petrol from its pumps as of yesterday evening, and Tesco is promising to knock 4p per litre off its prices from this morning. Hopefully the other big retailers will now follow the supermarkets and cut their prices...
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
Google blog search
As mentioned breifly in The Register, Google launched its new Blog Search service today. The first reviews I've seen give it a mixed response.
It looks like this probably isn't the killer blog search engine we've been waiting for, and it's certainly not going to kill Technorati...
Update: BBC News have picked up the story...
It looks like this probably isn't the killer blog search engine we've been waiting for, and it's certainly not going to kill Technorati...
Update: BBC News have picked up the story...
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Petrol protests
For some reasons I'm don't have much sympathy for Brad, who's been complaining about gas prices in Hawaii "spiralling" past $2.90 per US gallon.
With petrol prices in the UK edging past £1 per litre for the first time, for the metrically challenged that's $6.90 per US gallon at the current exhange rate, the threat of fuel protests this week have tipped the British public into panic buying.
I just spent three quarters of an hour queuing to fill my tank up this morning. The staff at the station where I finally managed to buy my petrol were talking about closing soon, and on the drive into work I passed several stations that had run dry entirely.
Hopefully the panic buying will stop when people realise that the Fuel Lobby aren't planning to blockade the refineries like last time. So long as the tankers keep rolling, the shortages shouldn't be too bad...
Update: According to BBC News,
With petrol prices in the UK edging past £1 per litre for the first time, for the metrically challenged that's $6.90 per US gallon at the current exhange rate, the threat of fuel protests this week have tipped the British public into panic buying.
I just spent three quarters of an hour queuing to fill my tank up this morning. The staff at the station where I finally managed to buy my petrol were talking about closing soon, and on the drive into work I passed several stations that had run dry entirely.
Hopefully the panic buying will stop when people realise that the Fuel Lobby aren't planning to blockade the refineries like last time. So long as the tankers keep rolling, the shortages shouldn't be too bad...
Update: According to BBC News,
...fuel suppliers have said they are struggling to cope with demand for petrol after filling stations saw a week's worth of demand in a single day.
Representatives of petrol giants said the issue was one of getting the tankers to the filling stations rather than one of supply.
It is feared predictions of shortages have become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Monday, September 12, 2005
Splicing del.icio.us
Those of you subscribed via my Feedburner RSS Feed will have noticed that, in addition to the Flickr feed, I've started splicing my del.icio.us bookmarklet feed in amongst the normal blog postings. On the other hand, those subscribing via the native Blogger Atom feed won't have seen any difference, you should probably move to the RSS Feed.
I've always been a bit dubious about the utility of the del.icio.us, so I'm not convinced that the splice will be a permanent fixture. I guess we'll see if it turns out to be useful...
I've always been a bit dubious about the utility of the del.icio.us, so I'm not convinced that the splice will be a permanent fixture. I guess we'll see if it turns out to be useful...
Saturday, September 10, 2005
But I don't want to...
Both Home Secretary and the Head of M15 are warning that civil liberties will have to be traded for safety in the war against terrorism.
But what if I'd rather be free than safe?
But what if I'd rather be free than safe?
Friday, September 09, 2005
Thursday, September 08, 2005
Inside the iPod nano
| Update: Pictures of the "remastered" second generation iPod nano, released at the Apple special event on the 12th September 2006, being disassembled. |
Looks like someone managed to pick up an iPod nano at the Ginza Apple store in Tokyo, and has already gone ahead and disassembled it (via TUAW). I'm not sure I could have brought myself to do it if I'd managed to get my hands on one...
Update: Slashdot has just posted an article pointing us towards another dissection of the iPod nano, this time by Ars Technica...
Update: The MAKE: Blog has a good article on iPod nano hacking...
Wednesday, September 07, 2005
The new Apple iPod nano
Good-bye iPod mini, hello iPod nano...
The new iPod nano...
Unlike the long awaited iPhone, also announced today, the new addition to the iPod family has that Apple magic.
The new iPod nano comes in two models, 2GB and 4GB. It has a 1.5 inch colour display, and the traditional click wheel. However it's only 60% the size of the iPod mini, weighing just 42 grams, and comes in black as well as the more normal iPod white.
The two models will be priced at $199 and $249 for the 2 and 4GB models respectively...
Update: I'm not alone, the iPod nano is getting good press, while the iPhone is almost universally viewed as somewhat disappointing...
Update: Apparently the iPod nano will be sold at £139.99 and £179.99 for the 2 and 4GB models in the UK...
Update: Slashdot has picked up the story...
Update: Inside the iPod nano...
 |
| CREDIT: Apple |
Unlike the long awaited iPhone, also announced today, the new addition to the iPod family has that Apple magic.
The new iPod nano comes in two models, 2GB and 4GB. It has a 1.5 inch colour display, and the traditional click wheel. However it's only 60% the size of the iPod mini, weighing just 42 grams, and comes in black as well as the more normal iPod white.
The two models will be priced at $199 and $249 for the 2 and 4GB models respectively...
Update: I'm not alone, the iPod nano is getting good press, while the iPhone is almost universally viewed as somewhat disappointing...
Update: Apparently the iPod nano will be sold at £139.99 and £179.99 for the 2 and 4GB models in the UK...
Update: Slashdot has picked up the story...
Update: Inside the iPod nano...
The new Apple iPhone
Well the first images of the new Apple iPhone are out, and like many, my initial impression of the new phone is that it is somewhat underwhelming. The clunky Motorola user interface is very obvious, and there is a distinct lack of Apple magic. I guess it just looks, well, boring...
The new Motorola ROKR E1, a.k.a. the Apple iPhone...
Update: Both BBC News and Slashdot have more...
Update: The Unofficial Apple Weblog is reporting that the UK release date of the ROKR E1 will be September 16th, and you should be able to pre-order the phone on O2 Pay As You Go for £209.99. Yawn!
 |
| CREDIT: Gizmodo |
Update: Both BBC News and Slashdot have more...
Update: The Unofficial Apple Weblog is reporting that the UK release date of the ROKR E1 will be September 16th, and you should be able to pre-order the phone on O2 Pay As You Go for £209.99. Yawn!
Tuesday, September 06, 2005
Smart pegs
Talking about ubiquitous computing I stumbled across a BBC article on Oliver MacCarthy's final year design project at Brunel University, the "intelligent" clothes peg...
It's one of those things that will just never take off, for blatantly obvious reasons like the cost-benefit analysis, but it's something that definitely appeals to the geek in me...
| |||
| The intelligent clothes pegs will predict the weather and lock themselves shut when they forecast rain, stopping you hanging your washing on the line just before the sky opens up... |
It's one of those things that will just never take off, for blatantly obvious reasons like the cost-benefit analysis, but it's something that definitely appeals to the geek in me...
Ubiquitous computing
Wired have a good article talking about the emergence of ubiquitous computing in the home and the new Home Heartbeat system. It looks interesting, better yet, it looks commoditized. There have been a lot of homebrew systems around, but this is the first commercial product I've seen that allows you to do things like automatically shutting off the water if the system detects a leak...
The digital divide
Apparently the UK government feels that the so called digital divide is self correcting. I don't think they get it, the divide isn't about what they seem to think it's about...
I'm used to having instant access to breaking news, data and information. Even when I'm sitting on a plane or a train, I'm used to being better informed about most subjects than the typical man in the street, because amongst other things, I have access to the wire services that most news stories are based around. Access to primary sources is what divides the information haves and have-nots, not access to the underlying infrastructure.
I've stood several times in railway stations knowing exactly how long a train is delayed, and which station it passed last, and how much longer it's going to be when even the station staff themselves don't seem to have access to this information. Access to the Internet isn't the issue, the issue is access to information, you can't just give someone broadband access and expect them to close the divide on their own.
I'm used to having instant access to breaking news, data and information. Even when I'm sitting on a plane or a train, I'm used to being better informed about most subjects than the typical man in the street, because amongst other things, I have access to the wire services that most news stories are based around. Access to primary sources is what divides the information haves and have-nots, not access to the underlying infrastructure.
I've stood several times in railway stations knowing exactly how long a train is delayed, and which station it passed last, and how much longer it's going to be when even the station staff themselves don't seem to have access to this information. Access to the Internet isn't the issue, the issue is access to information, you can't just give someone broadband access and expect them to close the divide on their own.
Sunday, September 04, 2005
SPV M5000 (a.k.a. HTC Universal)
The HTC Universal, which I've talked about more than once before now, looks like it's coming real soon now into the UK as the SPV M5000 on Orange. Coincidentally Engadget has just posted a series of question & answers, and pictures, of the new PDA.
The HTC Universal
Update: The SPV M5000 has now been launched...
Update: I just ordered one, stand by for the review...
Update: My first impressions...
 |
| CREDIT: Engadget |
Update: The SPV M5000 has now been launched...
Update: I just ordered one, stand by for the review...
Update: My first impressions...
Friday, September 02, 2005
Geotagging images
Right now everyone seems to be talking about Geotagging images and other data. However despite the fact that it's being talked up as the next big thing, for the early adopters amongst us, geotagging is already here and has been around for a while, and like a lot of early adopters I've been playing around with mobile phones and location based data.
Using Python for Series 60 I've hacked together a useful little application that tags every camera phone image taken with the GSM Cell ID at my current location, these can then be mapped to an approximate latitude and longitude using a look up table. A poor man's GPS, but none the less it's an interesting hack. Of course, it's a little bit on the bespoke side so if you're interested you might have to wait a few weeks so I can get a free weekend to tidy it up...
 |
| CREDIT: Catt Family |
| 61,344 Geotagged images... |
Using Python for Series 60 I've hacked together a useful little application that tags every camera phone image taken with the GSM Cell ID at my current location, these can then be mapped to an approximate latitude and longitude using a look up table. A poor man's GPS, but none the less it's an interesting hack. Of course, it's a little bit on the bespoke side so if you're interested you might have to wait a few weeks so I can get a free weekend to tidy it up...
Thursday, September 01, 2005
It's good to talk...
Another Google related news item while I was away was the annoucement of Google Talk, and as a lot of people predicted during the rumour mongering leading up to the new service, Google have embraced an open standard and have adopted Jabber instead of rolling their own protocol...
It looks like Russell Beattie is jealous, and who can blame him, and is talking about a Jabber to Yahoo! gateway. This would be pretty big news if he could pull it off, although there are interesting arguements why gateways like this won't succeed in the long term. Could Google driven adoption mean that Jabber/XMPP is the next SMTP? Are we finally going to see the end of the confusing mix of instant messaging standards?
Matt Croydon was in at the start and is cautiously optimistic about things. But no matter what happens, the reaction of the competition should be interesting...
It looks like Russell Beattie is jealous, and who can blame him, and is talking about a Jabber to Yahoo! gateway. This would be pretty big news if he could pull it off, although there are interesting arguements why gateways like this won't succeed in the long term. Could Google driven adoption mean that Jabber/XMPP is the next SMTP? Are we finally going to see the end of the confusing mix of instant messaging standards?
Matt Croydon was in at the start and is cautiously optimistic about things. But no matter what happens, the reaction of the competition should be interesting...
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