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Yesterday CB Radio's CEO Alex has discovered that an iguana hunt takes place at a pump station cove and stated that it looks almost exactly like The Cove in Taiji Japan. He said that they hide their shame with tarps and use the same killing method as the monsters in Taiji use. "It was unbelievable what I saw! They actually kill these innocent creatures under tarps in order to stop the public from seeing what they are doing! " We have uploaded all the images taken at The Cove in Florida.
11/12/2015 07:45:16 am
Sounds like Taiji to me. If they have to cover it up with tarps to hide their shame then that may just be the next Cove. P.S I saw this on Twitter.
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A lace ring is a ring with open worked motifs, resembling lace work.
This Late Edwardian, Early Art Deco Three-Stone Diamond Ring in 14 Karat White Gold Features Three Full-Cut Diamonds, Weighing .22 Carat Total, Set Horizontally in Square Panels. Scroll and Lace Motif Filigree Work Accent the Ring's Gallery.Image Courtesy of Lang Antiques.


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What is your skin type?
We all have it, we try to look after it, but how many of us can confidently say what skin type we are and what products are right for us? By reading this you should be able to have a better insight and understanding of the different skin types and most importantly your skin type. Oily Underneath your skin are glands called sebaceous glands. These glands are … Continue reading What is your skin type?


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An Garda Siochana's refusal to investigate X's complaint against Sean Kelly continues to this day. No records exist on any Database, including PULSE, to show that X ever made a complaint and that is exactly how Garda authorities wanted it. Sean Kelly is above the law. The complaint made about him was not recorded by An Garda Siochana. As per the investigation by the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner, the concealment of a complaint against Sean Kelly went through many levels before The Garda Commissioner himself was adjudged to have breached the Data Protection Acts. It is a fact that no records exist to show that Sean Kelly was ever questioned by An Garda Siochana, let alone made a statement.
But Kelly did provide a statement. He provided it to a man with no authority to investigate a complaint of assault, a man who would subsequently alter X's file, a man Kelly requested 'investigate' X's complaint, Mr. John Glennon, Regional Manager, Department of Social Community and Family Affairs. This statement was provided to John Glennon even before X was afforded the opportunity to make a statement to Garda McGovern. No full copy of this statement has ever been made available but quotes from it are included in an internal Review conducted by the department some time later. More from the statement I made to An Garda Siochana in 2009:
But Kelly did provide a statement. He provided it to a man with no authority to investigate a complaint of assault, a man who would subsequently alter X's file, a man Kelly requested 'investigate' X's complaint, Mr. John Glennon, Regional Manager, Department of Social Community and Family Affairs. This statement was provided to John Glennon even before X was afforded the opportunity to make a statement to Garda McGovern. No full copy of this statement has ever been made available but quotes from it are included in an internal Review conducted by the department some time later. More from the statement I made to An Garda Siochana in 2009:
On 12/7/00 an interview took place between Mr. Sean Kelly accompanied by his solicitor, Mr. Niall Courtney. Representing the Department was Mr. John Glennon Regional Manager and Mr. Dave Redmond Regional Directors Office. Apart from these 4 named persons no one else was present. At this interview, Sean Kelly handed a written account of his version of events to the Regional Manager, John Glennon. This statement was typewritten and unsigned. In this statement Sean Kelly states:
'On Tuesday 7th of March at approx. 11am this year (2000) I called to 17 --------------- to interview X. There was no reply when I first knocked. I was in the course of completing a recall note when I was approached by a female pushing a buggy. She asked who I was. I told her I was looking to speak to X. She informed me that that was to whom I was speaking'.
At this interview on the 12th of July 2000 Kelly claimed that he was working from a 'list'. X would obtain a copy of the list, following a protracted FOI battle, some years later. All of the other names and addresses on the one page list were blacked out and only her name and address were visible, except that it wasn't her address. The 'list' Kelly claimed to be working from gave X's address as number 19 but X lived at number 17. The number 17 house is not even visible from the number 19 house and back then the estate was a desolate, unoccupied building site with no numbers on any of the front doors. Only divine intervention could have put Kelly at the door of number 17. As I said earlier, this was not a clever conspiracy, they couldn't even manage the cover up properly. The really scary point that this throws up is, that to know number 17 and X went together, Kelly must have seen X at number 17 prior to his unannounced 'home visit' on the 7th of March 2000. John Glennon, now playing the role of Detective and Judge, interviewed Sean Kelly before he interviewed X. Back to my statement of 2009:
In his statement Sean Kelly states that he explained the purpose of his visit after entering the kitchen area of the house. This contradicts the report of the same interview (by John Glennon) endorsed by Sean Kelly in which he states that he explained the purpose of his visit before entering the house. In his statement Mr. Kelly states that he identified himself as an inspector attached to the investigation unit from Finglas Social Welfare Office. This contradicts the Report of the Review Team (10/12/01) which states:
'there was no question of the department targeting her for special attention',
and a report from Mr. John Glennon (7/9/2000) which states:
'it was a failing in the departments system of operating and that she could be assured that she was not being specifically targeted for any reason'.
There are no records of any SIU/JIU investigations into X.
It would take some considerable time before Kelly finally admitted that his visit had nothing to do with SIU/JIU, but we'll come to that later. The person who could have immediately answered any questions about SIU/JIU's interest or not in X, Mr. George Tracey, was in contact with John Glennon but whatever he had to say is concealed ever since, from my statement of 2009:
The only record of an interview with the person Sean Kelly identified as his superior, Mr. George Tracey, is withheld by the Department and the Information Commissioner has been informed by the Department that this record is now classified as misfiled and does not form any part of the Department's investigation or X's files.
Back in part 2 of this blog I posted a copy of the untitled, unsigned document Kelly partially filled out during his visit to X's home. I also posted a copy of a Genuinely Seeking Work (UA/UB25GSW) form he sent to X a month later to plug the gaping hole in his story ie. that his visit to X's home was to conduct a GSW review. It was during this interview with John Glennon on the 12th of July 2000 that Kelly and the Department tried to spin the lie that Kelly had conducted a Genuinely Seeking Work review. From my statement of 2009:
In the report dated 21/7/2000 of Sean Kelly's interview (12/7/200) he states:
'I looked on the case as a standard Genuinely Seeking Work review and nothing more than that'.
In his statement of 12/7/2000 Sean Kelly states:
'the interview proper commenced at the kitchen table. I wrote down her answers to my questions regarding the household and her own recent work history'.
Questions regarding the household do not form any part of standard Genuinely Seeking Work reviews. In the report of the interview it states that Sean Kelly accepted and conceded that the UA/UB 25 GSW Claimant Questionnaire Form is the standard Genuinely Seeking Work form used.
In the Report of the Review Team it states:
'he went through the form asking various questions to assist in determining her on going entitlement to unemployment benefit'.
In his statement of 12/7/00 Sean Kelly states:
'She signed the form on which I had written her answers to my questions'.
In the report of the interview dated 15/01/2001 (between John Glennon and Sean Kelly) it states:
'he (Sean Kelly) went through the form with her form beginning to end and indicated to her that his only interest related to her efforts re.GSW'
In the Report of the Review Team it states:
'for his part the inspector (Sean Kelly) stated this his line of questioning was solely for the purpose of the interview ie. questioning her in relation to the availability for and genuinely seeking work conditions attached to her employment benefit claim and that any reference to her partner would only have arisen in the context of completing the form required for that purpose'.
In the report (21/7/00) of the interview (12/7/00) it states:
'the initial questions were of a routine nature eg. her date of birth, that (boyfriend) lived in the house with her and that he worked as a -----------'.
In the report of the interview 15/01/2001 it states:
'He could not recall if he specifically asked if (boyfriend) was her partner. He completed the form with her and it might have come up during the process'.
Both Kelly and the Department's fabrication that Sean Kelly had conducted a Genuinely Seeking Work review using the form required for that purpose is repeated ad nauseum through several interviews and reviews. In 2003 X wrote to the Information Commissioner and exposed the lie. From my statement of 2009:
On 9/2/2003 X wrote to the information commissioner and stated:
'this is an unsigned, untitled document which was partially completed by Sean Kelly JIU. Mr. Kelly claims to have used this unidentified form to determine if I was genuinely seeking work. this however is not a UA/UB 25 GSW. No details regarding GSW were sought by Sean Kelly on the 7/3/00'.
In reply to this on 21/5/2003 X received a letter from the Office of the Information Commissioner which stated that the document used by Sean Kelly was now called an 'Aide Memoire'.
For more than three years X had been telling the department that Sean Kelly didn't conduct a GSW review in her home. For more than three years she had repeatedly told the department that the so called 'form' partially completed by Sean Kelly in her home was not a Genuinely Seeking Work form. She had been ignored time and again. Yet when the Information Commissioner asked the same question, it was immediately conceded that it was not a GSW form. It was a list of questions personally chosen by Sean Kelly and typed onto a page before his home visit to X. More from my statement to 2009:
This aide memoire is not an official department of Social Welfare document and contains only one question which relates to genuinely seeking work and this is the only question on the aide memoire where no answer has been recorded by Sean Kelly. None of the other questions on the aide memoire relate to genuinely seeking work and cannot be found on a UA/UB 25 (GSW) form. The use of an aide memoire and not a UA/UB 25 (GSW) form contradicts Mr. Kelly's statement that:
'It was a standard GSW review and nothing more'
There are no records in any files of Mr. Kelly conducting a GSW review on the 7/3/2000 and Mr. Kelly's statement is the only document which refers to a GSW review taking place in X's home.
The meeting between Sean Kelly and John Glennon on 12/7/2000 was never an investigation. It was a forum for Kelly and the department to get their stories straight. There were no records of Kelly's unannounced 'home visit' to X. It wasn't a SIU/JIU operation, the Local SW Office knew nothing about it and nobody was prepared to accept responsibility for sending Kelly to X's home. None of these points were raised by John Glennon instead the 'genuinely seeking work review' excuse was first put on record. It had been almost three months in the planning, three months since Kelly first realised the gaping whole in his story and had sent a genuine UA/UB 25 GSW form to X. But it wasn't the only act of deception that both Kelly and the Department engaged in during this 'interview'. From my statement of 2009:
In the record of the interview dated 21/7/2000 it stated:
'he was asked why he thought it took her so long to register her complaint. He could not think of any particular reason except that she was approaching the time when she would have been subject to an examination under the FAS administered action plan and she may have wished to deflect attention away from her'.
Four days after Kelly said this and three days before Glennon wrote up his report on the 'interview' another document mysteriously appeared in X's files. From my statement:
On 18/7/2000 an Employment Action Plan was created. This document stated that X was awaiting FAS registration. X was already registered with FAS.
The person who created this document is not identified. X had attended FAS as instructed to do so as part of an action plan prior to this action plan document being created.
This Employment Action Plan document was created and added to X's file by a person unknown only after Sean Kelly alleged that X made a complaint against him because of this action plan despite the fact that X had attended FAS as part on an action plan prior to this document being created and a Forensic Report has concluded that the letter which ordered X to attend FAS as part of an action plan was written by Sean Kelly.
To this date no one has accepted responsibility for creating or adding this falsified 'Action Plan' (18/7/2000) to X's file. It is a fact that X's file was deliberately altered by the Department to superficially concur with Kelly's statement.
Part 7 coming soon.
Part 7 coming soon.


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Making It Work
In the beginning was the idea.
For administrators at the Laurel Springs School, a private K-12 school in Ojai, Calif., 90 minutes' drive north of Los Angeles, the idea was to make an entire precollegiate curriculum available on the Internet so that students could study from home--whether home was in Tulsa or Thailand.
But between the idea and the execution lay the details. And the many technical, logistical, and human problems Laurel Springs encountered in linking home and school by technology are far from unique to that school.
Paper-and-pencil correspondence courses had long been a fixture of the school's curriculum, and electronic communications were expected to provide additional dimensions to learning.
But teaching whole courses on the Internet is a radical idea even for a private school that espouses a fairly unusual educational philosophy: All of its students are on independent-study programs of their own choosing. And many of them live outside California.
Marilyn Mosley, the school's director, says the Internet course was designed to meet several goals. One was to link electronically a student body that spans the globe. Another was to supplement the few reference materials often found in local libraries. A third was to help prepare students for a world that depends on technology.
The lessons Laurel Springs learned in implementing the pilot course for 40 students are broadly applicable to any effort to link school and home through telecommunications.
First, "virtual courses" are a valuable supplement to, not a replacement for, traditional learning. Although it is possible, "we certainly don't advocate all on-line learning," Mosley says.
The school also found that parent support was critical. Parents need to be taught such basics as how to get on line or how to get their modems to work. "What we did for our parents was allow them to enroll in a course called Introduction to the Internet," Mosley explains. "At first, we only opened it up to our students, but then we had a number of moms say, 'Well, we'd like to take that, too.' "
Getting teachers on line and helping them to incorporate the technology into their teaching was also important. "Many of them said, 'It'll cost me too much money in on-line fees' or 'I'm not ready yet because it's going to take too much of our time,' " Mosley explains.
Teachers also benefited from taking the introductory Internet course, she says. And teachers were asked to help design the on-line courses.
The school also had to come to grips with technological realities.
Lee Gordanier, the school's technology administrator, says that schools considering such an initiative must ensure that home equipment is up-to-date. "Anything more than a couple of years old just isn't capable of interacting with these incredible new languages that are out there on the Internet," he says.
The school also has a contract with a private provider of Internet access because students rapidly use up basic time on commercial on-line services, he adds. The provider also can screen out sexually explicit materials available on line.
Finally, the educators had to deal with the constantly changing nature of the Internet. Resources that might be found at one electronic address one day may well be somewhere else the next, often without any warning. "It's not like creating a curriculum from a book," Mosley notes. "There's a fluidity to the World Wide Web that's exciting but kind of frustrating."
Public School Problems
Some stereotypes about computer-based instruction also have fallen by the wayside at Laurel Springs. For example, books are often, but not always, superior to electronic media as teaching tools. "There are many children who learn better on line, particularly some young boys," Mosley contends.
And girls are not necessarily adverse to technology. "I found that girls don't like to 'surf the net'; they don't like to hang out in front of the computer and play," Mosley says. "But they're much more purpose-oriented than boys. They have more of a focus, and they'll use it as a tool."
Moreover, conventional wisdom dictates that today's students have vastly more experience with computers than their teachers. That's not always true, Mosley says. "We get kids who were in public high schools and many of them have had little time at a computer lab in their school," she says.
Public school administrators face some additional difficulties in developing electronic school-to-home connections. Unlike at Laurel Springs, where students own their computers, public schools usually furnish equipment, raising questions of liability should the machine be lost, stolen, or damaged.
The Crown Point, Ind., School Corp. provides every 4th and 5th grader with a home computer as part of the statewide Buddy Project. Jeff Iacobazzi, the executive assistant to the superintendent, says the best way to deal with such issues is to adapt existing policies on school-supplied uniforms or band instruments, which often are covered by homeowner's insurance policies. Still, he adds, no policy addresses every eventuality.
"We had a problem where a truck crashed into a house and destroyed the computer," he says. "That provoked a hissing contest between the homeowners and the auto-insurance companies."
And when a household cat so severely soiled a computer keyboard that it could not be recycled to another family, he jokes, the incident "fell into the category of 'an act of God.' "
The resources mentioned in this story can be reached at the
following Internet addresses:
Laurel Springs School:http://www.Laurelsprings.com
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your bag
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Exclusive print blouse. Great for tucking in as well.
The terrific Infinity Top from Wish has sold out. We did have it in12.
Start a "Find It For Me" to notify hundreds of Australian Boutiques that you're looking for it and then be notified if it comes back in stock.


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Colorado's energy-efficiency programs are taking hold and the state's performance is improving, according to a nationwide survey of state programs.
Colorado jumped to 16th from 24th among the 50 states in the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy's 2009 Energy Efficiency Scorecard.
"We are continuing to see improvement in many states, and Colorado took a big step," said Steve Nadel, executive director of the council, a Washington, D.C.- based public interest group.
Colorado's rise in the standings came as a result of improvements in three of the six areas in which states are graded — utility programs, combined power and heat policies, and state energy programs, Nadel said. Efficiency utility and public benefits programs
Colorado score: 11 out of 20. This measures utility programs such as spending on efficiency projects and providing energy incentives. Colorado improved its score because of work by utilities in developing renewable energy sources and the state providing monetary incentives for efficiency. The state's goal of 20 percent renewable energy and an 11.5 percent energy saving by 2020 and programs such as Xcel's Solar Rewards program for residential solar arrays boosted the score.
Colorado score: 1 out of 8. States were graded on programs to curb vehicle greenhouse emissions, reducing miles traveled, state transit funding and incentives for efficient vehicles. Colorado got its one point because it has a tax credit for the purchase of electric plug-in or hybrid vehicles, as well as for people who convert their vehicles into plug-in or hybrids.
Building energy code
Colorado score: 3 out of 7.
States that scored high in this category have commercial and residential building codes that meet or exceed 2009 International Energy Conservation Code. Colorado is using the 2003 IECC standard.
Combined heat and power
Colorado score: 3 out of 5. Combined heat and power generates electricity and heat through one system. Colorado received high marks for it standards for enabling CHP systems to be connected to the grid.
State government initiatives
Colorado score: 3 out of 7. Colorado improved its score through policies to make state government more energy efficient and in promoting energy efficiency. Among the programs highlighted was the state's incentives to boost the market for energy-efficient Energy Star New Homes. Colorado also passed a number of laws promoting efficient and renewable energy, such the one aimed at reducing the up-front cost of rooftop solar electricity systems by enabling homeowners to lease them.
Appliance efficiency
Colorado score: 0 out of 3. States were graded on the scope and rigor of their energy-efficiency standards for equipment and appliances. Only 12 states, and the District Columbia, have adopted standards. California, which has put in place a dozen standards, got a perfect score. Colorado and the 37 other states with no standards got a zero.


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Hair Care:
Finding a shampoo and conditioner that does not cause damage or breakage to the hair shaft is important. These products do make a difference. The shiny hair on the models on television is hype. Do you think those models really use that product? Ask your hair stylist for his opinion.
To improve and build healthy hair follicles, besides the right product used, we also want a good soy protein. Protein is a major ingredient of hair, at least ninety per cent. Protein improves the growth of each hair.
Sensible moderation in chemical abuse such as smoking, alcohol, and stimulants is advised. This chemical abuse creates damage in the body as well as the hair. Any chemical abuse reduces nourishment flow to the hair follicle.
We want healthy blood circulation with correct nutrient balance. Hair follicles extend deep into the dermis, thus they can benefit from a supply of blood. Your blood carries all the good or bad little soldiers that help or harm your hair.
Regularity reduces the bodies' toxic burden. Keeping the body clean, inside and out benefits the entire body. Exercise and good circulation, sends oxygen and nutrients to the hair follicles.
Stress reduces the circulation to the hair and body.
A high-fat diet and excessive body-weight also reduces peripheral circulation. Fat changes the shape of the red blood cells.
To have healthy hair you must have a healthy body. Some of the vitamins and supplements that are specific to hair care are listed below. A good overall healthy diet will provide your body and your hair ample nutrition.
A word of caution – most people, even those who watch their food intake closely, cannot get all the required nutrition they need with the foods that we eat. Supplementation has become almost a necessity in today's world of processed, fast food.
This is a good beginning to good hair health.


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Issaquah, Washington, about a 20-minute drive east of Seattle, is a quaint little historic town said to be one of the best healthy places to retire. Nicknamed "Trailhead City", Issaquah offers a beautiful environment in a forgiving climate with miles and miles of trails.
But don't let the word "retire" fool you. Although seven percent of its more than 28,000 residents are aged 65 or older, Issaquah is full of vigorous activities such as swimming, hiking, tennis, skiing, kayaking, and even paragliding! What was once a mining and logging town is now a bustling activity center for people of all ages.
Membership to local community centers is inexpensive, the local small theater is said to rival talent from big cities in the U.S., and the town, tucked in the foothills of the Cascade mountains, has a wide array of attractions.
Approximately 18,000 Issaquah students receive their education in Issaquah School District's 24 public schools. Additionally, 1,832 students attend private schools, of which Issaquah has 15.
Issaquah thrives on its activities, but also boasts a wide variety of attractions including the historic train museum, a salmon hatchery, Cougar Mountain Zoo, Bohm's Candies, and the historic Triple X drive in restaurant featuring 1950s style hamburgers and good old-fashioned root beer.
Average rainfall in Issaquah is about 61 inches annually, with about 11 inches of snow each year. There are 186 days with measurable precipitation, leaving 154 days of the year where the sun shines in Issaquah. Average high temperatures in summer are around 75 degrees, and winter lows are around 32 degrees. The climate lends itself to year-round activities for all ages, indoors and out
Issaquah, Washington may indeed be one of the healthiest places to retire, but it's also a thriving community for members of all ages.
- City of Issaquah Website
- Issaquah School District
- Issaquah Chamber of Commerce
- Issaquah Washington Weekly Housing Statistics
You can search for all available homes for sale in Issaquah, specifically Downtown, Tiger Mountain, Talus, Squak Moutain and more. With the search tools on this site you can create alerts and save favorites or become a "Market Insider."
Search for Homes in Issaquah WA Communities / Neighborhoods
|Downtown Issaquah
|High Point
|Gilman Village
|Issaquah Highlands
|Issaquah-Fall City Rd
|Providence Point
|Squak Mountain
|Squak Mountain
|Cougar Mountain
|Tiger Mountain
Call The Eastside Real Estate Team today at 425-200-4093 to tour available houses for sale in Issaquah.


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By Joe Osborne From games.com
You know, for all the ragging we Amurricans do on France for its views on diplomacy, politics or whatever else, we often forget that it helped make what we have now possible.
So, let's forget the silly differences for a minute, shall we, and celebrate Bastille Day ... by blowing each other to smithereens. (That's the way to regain their respect, guys!)
Zyngahas released a slew of French-themed military units, buildings and decorations to Empires & Allies. Of course, most of which cost Empire Points, but I bet these will do really well across the Atlantic:
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When reading this article by David Coursey, keep in mind the context under which the comments are made. It's certainly not from a world where the Mac is the universal OS and Windows is a nagging reality. It's the new context that Coursey is dealing with which is using Mac OS X full time after a lifetime of Windows. If you didn't know that, you might think he's another, run of the mill, Mac zealot.
Anyway, It sounds like he's feeling the pain of having weak software support. Welcome to club, Dave.
This Moxi thing (from the guy who brought you WebTV) has a great feature list, and it probably expensive in spite of their claim to be 'surprisingly affordable.' It could be a TiVo killer if there's enough uptake on the consumer end, which of course will be determined by price and marketing. In the Fall, this will have to compete with MSFT's HomeStation, which will make the digital-recording-device-space "crowded" and drive prices down, just in time for Christmas.
Critical mass is on the way...
C|net has an analysis article about online gaming that I think is pretty realistic and makes the essential point that the user experience is the key. I think there are a few things that will keep profits low in the online gaming industry until they learn a lesson, and even then, it won't be easy...
If you have ever played Quake or EverQuest or Tribes2 (these games have a large fan base, and thus are desireable to advertisers), then you know that a massive amount of disbelief needs to be suspended in order to play the game. You leave the rules about the real world at the door when you play these games. Everything is different, which makes the annoyances of the real world, that much more annoying.
If I had to watch the clock as I was playing Tribes2 in a worry aver an hourly rate, I wouldn't be enjoying the game. People who play Ultima Online pay about ten dollars a month for the online access, which isn't so bad of a pricing structure. This article talks about the potential...
Take the game "Ultima Online." Since its release in September 1997, more than 125,000 copies of the Origin Systems software have been sold at $49.95 a copy. With gamers paying an additional $9.95 per month to play the online-only game, "Ultima Online" represents a potential $1.25 million in MONTHLY revenues -- on top of the actual unit profits. And Origin has already released an expansion package, "Ultima Online: The Second Age," for $39.95.
But it's not lucrative when the up-take/critical-mass/subscription-rate isn't really there. You might think in-game advertisements are the answer to this problem, but they are even worse. If you are in EverQuest and are trying to kill an Orc in an attempt to gain some experience, an ad for Pringles is not going to be a welcome occurance. I argue that absolutely nothing from the Real World can be advertised in a game like EverQuest. Adverts in GameSpy Arcade are also super annoying and have caused me to avoid it, and that's just a game matching service, not an in-game experience.
So, if subscription rates don't fuel top line growth, and in game ads are not an option (in my opinion anyway) then prices at the counter will have to increase. But I hope not, because $50 for a game is steep enough for me to limit my purchases to two or four games per year.
I sincerely believe that Flash has serious potential as a web application platform (for the display layer anyway), but you can't deny that it also has tons of entertainment potential too. But who has the time to do Flash sites like these? Not me.
Last week most of the UI oriented weblogs/newslogs had a link to a Harvard Business School article about managing creativity. Unfortunately, you have to buy the article to read the entire thing, but excerpt is available which presented enough content to get me to pay the six bucks. The purchasing process was about 8 steps too long, and the $6 was a bit steep for such a short article, but I digress.
The excerpt speaks for itself, so I won't rehash. What I will mention though, is that there is an overlapping theme between this article and a book called Next: The Future Just Happened (another over priced, quick, but good read). The point is that progress and creativity tend to come from outsiders who have no pre-conceptions of the rules. These people are not lost in a pile of assumptions which blind their ability to view things from a different perspective. Harnessing that potential is a double edged sword with the benefit of profiting from new perspectives coupled with the possibility of smothering the creativity you need to forge ahead.
The experience the user gets from this sort of thing is terrible and does not lend itself to a viable business plan. People will actively fight back against these sorts of activities, and news articles will cover it, which only underscores the need for positive, user oriented, product experiences. AudioGalaxy failed at that, and has shot iteself in the foot. If you use their software, or a produce internet software, please learn from their mistake.
<update when="December 24, 2003">
Solutions for removing perfectnav (aka find4u ?) have been posted here recently. Scroll down to see those solutions and to see a comment from what seems to be a perfectnav representative (offering uninstall info). I had never heard of perfectnav before people stated posting comments about it here (I'm a Mac OSX user) and cannot vouch-for/verify anything in the comments posted below. Swim at your own risk.
A Tivo for the Olympics.
January 23, 2002 2:40 AM
I was just watching a news article on C|Net News about the Olympics coverage coming up next month. One comment made by the ultra-young-looking Sr. Analyst was about the streaming media made available at the Sydney Olympics by Quokka Sports (now defunct, so no link). He said there was a concern about the online media canabalizing the televised coverage. What a crock!
I watched those streams at work, with a full T1 at my disposal, and the experience was terrible. I sincerely can not imagine streaming media canabalizing televised content. For the Salt Lake Games, MSFT will be assisting NBC in the online coverage, which is a good thing in my opinion.
The hope I had for the Sydney Olympics would be coverage that was robust, up to minute and complete. I lived up to my part of the bargain by staying up to 3am one night to watch the meagre 15 minutes of whitewater kayaking coverage, which was a complete let down.
This year, I'm buying a Tivo for the explicit purpose of recording as much Olympic coverage as the hard drive will allow. I thinking of hacking the one I buy to boost the storage capacity. What I really need is for NBC/MSNBC/CNBC to cover everything and run the content over night so I can record it. It would be perfect if they did this without interleaving the event coverage so I could record full events without being forced to watch events like Figure Skating.
There's a pretty good thread of discussion going on the SIGIA-L list about eXtreme Programming and Interaction Design. It was sparked by this discussion between Kent Beck and Alan Cooper. The discussion occurring on the mailing list is a bit more nuts-and-bolts than the article and offers several more perspectives on the issue. Good article, great thread.
In my opinion, a better Linux acquisition for AOL would be Lindows. Most people have investments in Windows software, which wouldn't be an issue with Lindows. I think a strategy of shipping /Red-Hat-Linux-CD's to everyone in America would garner few new AOL subscriptions because folks would have to deal with way things are done in Linux, and use Linux software. Yes, I know a Linux user could install WINE on their own, and then run their Windows software, but how many AOL users would do that? Not enough to base a business plan on.
Once you go Mac, do you go back?
January 17, 2002 11:47 AM
David Coursey is trying an experiment in working in Mac OS for the next month. I think adoption of Mac OS full time is very unlikely for a few reasons. The most important reason being that he has a high level of comfort in a different look-and-feel, a different widget set, and a different computing attitude (Windows = Windows centric; Mac OS = user centric).
Raskin talks about automaticity in his excellent book 'The Humane Interface' and notes its importance in adoption of a given system. When you drive a car, you don't think in terms of 'raise right foot off of accelerator by contracting the muscles in the abdomen and thigh.' You don't think about it at all, it's automatic, you just do it. Coursey has a career of automaticity to fight when he wants to do something as simple as close a window. For a while, he'll have to conciously think about where to click the mouse to close that window.
Coursey says "In theory, a Windows user ought to be able to get along quite well with a Mac." Which is, imho, just plain wrong in terms of battling the automaticity issue and another, more important, issue.
Transpose the words 'Windows' and 'Mac' in that sentence and that would be true when it comes to getting the OS's to play nice together. The Windows OS has become the most proprietary OS on earth. It refuses to open a Mac formatted disk without installing 3rd party software. But, the Mac OS has been able to open PC disks for years, without any after market software installs. This is just one of many examples. The Mac OS (and more to the point OSX) is probably the most flexible OS when trying to work with other OS's. I have been able to find ways to pry open just about any file ever sent to me (other than encrypted files for which I don't have the password. I'm not a kr@k3r.) But, I digress.
Coursey is in for more problems when his reliance on specific software that is not available on Mac OS becomes a clear and present danger to his work flow (which he talks about). On a given OS (Mac, Windows, Linux, OS2/Warp) you find and exploit software that is available to you when it becomes necessary. Changing your OS is like going to another country. You have to learn the local customs, the dialect, where the local market is and how to say "when is lunch?" I wonder if a month will be long enough for Coursey to become fluent in Mac OS.
I think the most interesting thing we can learn from this experiment is how Coursey manages to find his way in a different OS and how that experience changes his views of his native OS. I guess we'll have to check back in a month.
I recently commented that Microsoft will be using the Xbox as some type of trojan in the not-so-distant future. Some folks think I'm crazy, but this article at C|Net says...
Microsoft plans to transform its new Xbox game console into a general home device that handles everything from e-mail to video recording, according to analysts.
This transformation is a whole new box, which I think is a bad idea based on what the Xbox can already do. If MSFT were to release another box, and market it differently, I'd suggest that they would be competing with their own products (which is already a loss leader). Why not just release a keyboard and mouse for the Xbox? I can think of several after market upgrades that could be marketed for the Xbox that would be money makers, making the platform that much more viable. But the C|Net notes the following...
Besides playing Xbox games, the HomeStation will act as a digital video recorder, similar to devices from TiVo and Sonicblue's ReplayTV, and will perform Internet functions such as e-mail and Web surfing.
...which means there is now a reason to wait to buy an Xbox, because, if I can buy an Xbox++ that will do all this other stuff, then why would I want to buy the version that only plays games? I can't think of a reason. And I plan on buying a Tivo, because the Olympics start in 23 days!
Nanoloop is a 'real-time Game Boy sound editor' that actually works on that tiny Gameboy screen. It's a cartridge like any other Gameboy game, but this one is about creating something. So, instead of you (or your kid) playing Pokémon all day long, you could be writing music that sounds like this. And for the record, I like music that sounds like that and like this too.
In usability circles, Flash gets a lot of bad press and for the most part, I have to agree that Flash gets used in useless ways. At other times, Flash can be a pretty compelling medium for new media art. There's no doubt that the format has a great future since there is support for things like XML underneath the vector graphics. People just have to leverage it in compelling ways.
Macromedia has a site dedicated to Flash usability, but I still can't stand the user interface in the Flash 5 development application. In my humble opinion, Macromedia interfaces have never been usable and have been a barrier to learning the application. Too bad for Macromedia, because Adobe just announced LiveMotion 2.0. I'd count down the days if I could, but there's no date available yet.
Humans have a rich awareness of location and situation that directs how we interpret and interact with our environment. The Information Architecture project seeks to create information spaces, where people will use this awareness to search, browse, and learn. In the same way that they navigate in the physical environment, they will navigate through knowledge.That sounds a lot like Adobe's Atmosphere application. MIT's efforts will be a bit more academic than Adobe's or Triplecode's, complete with various publications with titles like "Ligature: Gesture-Based Configuration of the E21 Intelligent Environment." Just go here and click on the publications link to read more.
An encouraging sign of progress in Information Architecture is the appearance of web sites and software tools to help get the job done. Here's a few commercial tools for taxonomy and categorization.
RSS is a resource used by many sites and businesses around the world. In fact, I'm using it on this site to syndicate content from C|Net, Designtechnica and IASlash (just look to the right of this page screen). I'm using RSS in conjunction with a Perl script and a Perl module (and a crontab) to pull news headlines into template files that are pulled into this page using server side includes. It's a daisy chain architecture, but it works, and is not very intensive in terms of processing.
The rain on this parade is that someone says they own a patent over RDF which is how RSS is expressed. The software patent issue is a huge issue, and this dispute is a symptom of it. Considering the following quote from the C|Net article, I wonder how many individuals are infringing...
UFIL is working with Toronto-based Patent Enforcement and Royalties Ltd. (PEARL) to enforce the claims. According to press releases on PEARL's Web site, the companies believe as many as 45 companies may be infringing on the patents.
I first saw a link to the C|Net article over at The XML Cover Pages by Robin Cover.
I live in a pretty nice neighborhood in Northern Virginia in a recently constructed 'planned urban development' (PUD). This particular PUD has a few thousand homes in it and dwelling within them are a lot of dotcommers because this area of the country is a major communications hub housing such companies as Worldcom, AOL, Exodus, PSInet, Adelphia and Verizon. In fact, all of these companies have facilities within 5 miles of my house and I can almost see Exodus from my window as I type this. Not one of them is able to provide high speed access to me. Maybe I should break into Exodus with an ethernet cable in hand...
Raising expecatations can be dangerous.
January 6, 2002 12:53 PM
A large part of the Macintosh experience is the Apple experience, which has had its ups and downs to say the least. Tomorrow looks like it's going to be an Up day with the hype machine saying things like "Beyond the rumors sites, way beyond." Which will be hard to live up to since the rumors swirling include a triple merger between Apple, Be and Palm, a new hand held, flat panel iMacs, GigaWire, new versions of Adobe and Macromedia apps and G4 speed bumps.
At the last MacWorld, disappointment was the theme with no new product announcements in spite of rampant rumors. Based on their own hype, if Stevie boy doesn't pull thru tomorrow, there's going to be a mutiny.
Design Not Found makes a good point about bad usability in this snapshot about PayPal. This a prime example about how little effort one needs to exert to make a site, application, etc, a bit more usable. And these efforts are like pennies, they add up.
Like I said last week, Webtechniques is always interesting. And the trend continues with an article in the February 2002 issue titled Groundwork for Project Success. This article echoes another that used to be available at UIweb.com under the title of "Critical thinking in web/interface design part 2: idea generation" but the site seems to be gone these days. Fortunately Google has a cached version of that article.
Both articles are well worth the read if you are going to find yourself as a stake holder in a given web site/application project. Note: Being a stake holder doesn't mean being an investor or a client. Being a stake holder is being someone who makes a contribution to the success of a given project (which still might be money ;^).
At home right now, I have many
So, I consider the MP3 experience as a good one. But you might ask, "what about the long downloads?" Well, in my opinion, the pain of downloading an MP3 is less than or equal to the pain of sifting thru the bins at Tower, waiting in line, slapping down a $20 and driving home in awful Northern Virginia traffic. In fact, I suggest that the user experience of procuring MP3s is now far more acceptable than the experience of buying a CD. And then the follow-on experience of playing the MP3s is better since I don't have to swap a CD every 45 minutes (yes, I listen to a lot of music)
Recently there's been some discussion about the price of CDs falling to about $10, which is a good step towards a better User Experience. But since my TV plays MP3s and I can route that to any place in my home, I won't be buying $20 CDs anymore.
2001 is finally over, and not a moment too soon. I should be driving a flying car and reading about humans orbiting Jupiter. Instead, my car is burning oil and Jupiter is still so very far away (in spite of being so close).
Fortunately, progress on the web continues in the form of Content Syndication. NewsIsFree is a content syndication and aggregation site and you might be familiar with Blogdex and MetaFilter, which are content aggregators too. For the most part, the aggregators are not doing things semantically. That is to say, I don't find syndicated content that I am interested in without tons of browsing. Weblogs have semantic value built in, so I'll be trying to exploit that by syndicating content that is relevant to my interests (and hopefully yours) by using the aggregators and the sites they aggregate.
To the right of the home page, I currently have link tables from IAslash, C|net News and Designtechnica that are brought to you thru the magic of Perl and RSS. In the future, more robust syndication will come along with more sources and hopefully a better way to sift thru it all. We'll see how that goes based on how well 2002 gets started.


text:
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November 2, 1947 - February 4, 2005
In Loving Memory


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I really fell off the 2015 Reading Challenge bandwagon there, but I figure since there's still a couple weeks left, I could probably get another book or two read before the end of the year. I'm a little bummed that I only got 25 of the 50 books read, but a book a week is pretty ambitious when you have three young kids, are trying to get your writing career off the ground, and get caught up into a writing competition for half the year.
I have to admit, I was tempted to get an early start on the 2016 Reading Challenge, since 2015 is nearly over. However, it feels like cheating to read something off the 2016 list when it fits the 2015 list first.
So I've got at least one more review for the 2015 Reading Challenge. The Martian by Andy Weir fits as "A book set in the future." I picked it up off the "Most Wanted" display at my library, which is a special place where they put up a copy or two of extremely popular books in high demand. You can't reserve the copies that are "Most Wanted," so sometimes you can get lucky and get books faster than waiting for them on reserve.
I know a movie came out a couple months ago based on the book and I heard a lot of good things about it, but I'm generally pretty strict when it comes to books being turned into a movie. I like to read the books first before seeing them on screen. Since the movie's due out on DVD in about a month, it seemed like the perfect time to read the book.
I started reading The Martian the other night before bed and finally just had to force myself to close it so I could sleep. Picked it up during breakfast and found myself unable to put it down until I finished it around noon.
So you could probably tell that I loved The Martian. I'm not the biggest fan of sci-fi books (different story if we're talking movies), but there are a few that catch my interest now and again. The Martian can easily be summed up as "Robinson Crusoe on Mars." I loved Robinson Crusoe as a kid, and I generally like survival type stories of that nature.
In The Martian, Astronaut Mark Watney is presumed dead in a freak accident as his crew mates have to abandon their 31 day mission on Mars' surface. Trapped on the red planet in a temporary base that's supposed to support six astronauts for only 31 days and with no way to communicate with NASA, Watney has to figure out how to survive until the next Mars mission arrives… about four years later.
Most of the book is narrated by Mark Watney in logs that he's recording in the Hab. Every so often the POV changes to his departed crew mates or the folks back on Earth, plus a few other fun POV switches that really make you sit up and take notice.
Mark is a funny guy and the jokes he makes throughout his long stay on Mars keep the mood a little light even when it's gotten serious. Just when you think the guy is catching a break, Mars throws another monkey wrench into things and keeps you turning page after page.
Not sure if I'll manage another book before the end of the year. Once that calendar turns over to 2016, I'll jump onto my new challenge.
So here's my invitation to you. Check out the 2016 Reading Challenge and let me know if you'll join me in it. With 10 books less than last year, this should be easier to achieve. Also, if you know of any great books that fit in any of the categories, drop me a comment. With 40 book categories to choose from, I'm sure some of you have great ideas on what I should read over the coming year.