I watched the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest live from the official site. Octoshape P2P streaming worked very well, and image quality was good. It was legal, free and without commercials. It was even without the sometimes annoying commentators who are found on TV broadcasts of the contest. You can even watch it again from the official site. This is all very impressive. It shows what technology is capable of when people don't try to stop it from working.
BTW. If I could vote, I would have voted for Finland. However, I'm in Canada, so I can't vote and I couldn't even watch this on TV.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Monday, May 11, 2009
My love/hate relationship with Reddit
In one way, Reddit is the best site on the Internet. Practically any new an newly discovered interesting thing shows up there. It often shows up earlier than on other sites like Digg or in the news. Generally, if someone tells me about something, it's already on Reddit. Sometimes I've already seen it on Reddit.
In another way, Reddit is the worst site on the Internet, because it is horribly addictive. It is the most addictive thing I've discovered, and I don't mean just on the Internet. It's also for the most part useless. I used to think that learning about new things there could be helpful, but it's far more efficient to actively seek knowledge which is currently useful. For example, I saved many stories from Reddit thinking some of that would be interesting or useful later, but it never was.
Reddit also has another downside: alarmism. That is stupid because it is an unproductive fad which is disconnected from real risks. For example, high oil prices led to countless Peak Oil posts and then, when oil prices went down, suddenly it seems like everyone forgot about it. Recently, there has also been some alarmism about the Swine Flu. There are also regular "outrage posts" about various injustices suffered by individuals. In all these respects, Reddit seems worse than the mainstream media. It's interesting how something like this happens automatically. I guess the upvote/downvote paradigm is simillar to TV ratings, but there's probably more to it than that. I guess Reddit is getting better however.
Despite the downsides, I like Reddit. I think the main strength of the site is the sense of community which sometimes exists. Discussion of new and interesting things is not innovative. It's an old idea which has been around for a long time. It also has no staying power; it draws people as long as Reddit presents new and interesting things, and if another better source appeared, those people would move on. However, what goes on in some "self" posts and the occasional deeper thread of comments is different. There, I see signs of a Reddit community. That makes me think that Reddit might even be immune to the sort of decline that Digg experienced.
In another way, Reddit is the worst site on the Internet, because it is horribly addictive. It is the most addictive thing I've discovered, and I don't mean just on the Internet. It's also for the most part useless. I used to think that learning about new things there could be helpful, but it's far more efficient to actively seek knowledge which is currently useful. For example, I saved many stories from Reddit thinking some of that would be interesting or useful later, but it never was.
Reddit also has another downside: alarmism. That is stupid because it is an unproductive fad which is disconnected from real risks. For example, high oil prices led to countless Peak Oil posts and then, when oil prices went down, suddenly it seems like everyone forgot about it. Recently, there has also been some alarmism about the Swine Flu. There are also regular "outrage posts" about various injustices suffered by individuals. In all these respects, Reddit seems worse than the mainstream media. It's interesting how something like this happens automatically. I guess the upvote/downvote paradigm is simillar to TV ratings, but there's probably more to it than that. I guess Reddit is getting better however.
Despite the downsides, I like Reddit. I think the main strength of the site is the sense of community which sometimes exists. Discussion of new and interesting things is not innovative. It's an old idea which has been around for a long time. It also has no staying power; it draws people as long as Reddit presents new and interesting things, and if another better source appeared, those people would move on. However, what goes on in some "self" posts and the occasional deeper thread of comments is different. There, I see signs of a Reddit community. That makes me think that Reddit might even be immune to the sort of decline that Digg experienced.
Friday, May 08, 2009
Is Windows ready for the desktop?
Some people doubt Linux is ready for the desktop. What about Windows? Is Windows ready?
The answer is a clear NO. The problem is that maintaining a computer running Windows is too much work. Sure, it's not a problem if you make it a hobby. However, if you just want things to work and be safe, it's totally unacceptable.
Microsoft updates used to be a pain. I remember when updating XP required checking the Windows Update web site and rebooting multiple times. Nowadays, keeping Vista up to date is quite easy. However, Windows isn't very useful without third party software.
Updates for third party software come from many sources, and there is no consistency. Sometimes one has to uninstall the application, download a new copy, and reinstall it. Other times it's best to not uninstall. Sometimes the application has a built-in update check. Sometimes the company making the application has an updater program. Often, updaters don't work. For example, Java or Flash Player updaters never seem to find new versions. Even when updaters work, they're still a waste of resources; there's no need to have a process running constantly to keep a program up to date.
For example I just installed a Winamp update. The installer is relatively user-friendly. It detects what is currently installed and by default doesn't install what you didn't want before. However, I still had to check to make sure that it isn't installing new crap. Then there are a bunch of dialog boxes to go through. That was all for a minor and insiginificant update.
I wish everything came from a central repository and updated itself automatically.
The answer is a clear NO. The problem is that maintaining a computer running Windows is too much work. Sure, it's not a problem if you make it a hobby. However, if you just want things to work and be safe, it's totally unacceptable.
Microsoft updates used to be a pain. I remember when updating XP required checking the Windows Update web site and rebooting multiple times. Nowadays, keeping Vista up to date is quite easy. However, Windows isn't very useful without third party software.
Updates for third party software come from many sources, and there is no consistency. Sometimes one has to uninstall the application, download a new copy, and reinstall it. Other times it's best to not uninstall. Sometimes the application has a built-in update check. Sometimes the company making the application has an updater program. Often, updaters don't work. For example, Java or Flash Player updaters never seem to find new versions. Even when updaters work, they're still a waste of resources; there's no need to have a process running constantly to keep a program up to date.
For example I just installed a Winamp update. The installer is relatively user-friendly. It detects what is currently installed and by default doesn't install what you didn't want before. However, I still had to check to make sure that it isn't installing new crap. Then there are a bunch of dialog boxes to go through. That was all for a minor and insiginificant update.
I wish everything came from a central repository and updated itself automatically.
Monday, April 20, 2009
I just removed ads from my blog
Several times in the past I thought about removing ads from my blog. I always concluded that they might as well stay, because practically everything on the web has ads, and if anyone doesn't want to see them, it's easy to block them. (For example, if you use Firefox, you just need to install AdBlock Plus and use a filter subscription.) I finally decided to remove them. I don't feel that they're contributing to my blog and I want to make it clear that ad revenue is not my motive here.
I also decided to remove the Google search box. All browsers have a search bar, and so search boxes on pages are obsolete. Plus the one I had did not blend smoothly into my blog's colour scheme. I still think Google is the best search engine; try it and see.
I also decided to remove the Google search box. All browsers have a search bar, and so search boxes on pages are obsolete. Plus the one I had did not blend smoothly into my blog's colour scheme. I still think Google is the best search engine; try it and see.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
AutoPager is great
A lot of content on the web is split into numbered pages. AutoPager is a Firefox extension which concatenates pages, so instead of clicking "next page" links I can simply scroll down. This is great, and it makes me realize how obsolete pages are on the web.
In the past, I've used CustomizeGoogle to "stream search result pages". That was pretty good, but it sometimes got stuck in a loop when I was logged in and it only supports this feature for Google. AutoPager supports it on many web sites, and I have not had any problems with it.
A few suggestions: The simple modal prompt is annoying, so turn that off. A green rectangle in the bottom right corner of the screen is much nicer than a "yes/no" popup. I generally set AutoPager to only autoload one page. Page loading is so fast, that by the time I'm done with that page, the next page will be loaded and so on.
In the past, I've used CustomizeGoogle to "stream search result pages". That was pretty good, but it sometimes got stuck in a loop when I was logged in and it only supports this feature for Google. AutoPager supports it on many web sites, and I have not had any problems with it.
A few suggestions: The simple modal prompt is annoying, so turn that off. A green rectangle in the bottom right corner of the screen is much nicer than a "yes/no" popup. I generally set AutoPager to only autoload one page. Page loading is so fast, that by the time I'm done with that page, the next page will be loaded and so on.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Yaari is like a virus
I got an invite for Yaari, a social networking site which is being marketed to Indian youth. A google.ca search for Yaari has a very interesting blog post as its second result. Apparently, the registration procedure requires a Yahoo, Hotmail or Gmail address, and you have to give them your password so they can send invites to everybody in your address book! Then those invites are sent as if they are coming from the address you gave. If you continue reading that post, you'll see there's Yaari has more downsides. So, I'll be telling Gmail that Yaari invites are spam.
Sunday, February 08, 2009
The Vista shutdown screen (ie. Why is Microsoft insane?)
A friend who installed the Windows 7 beta was complaining about the shutdown screen. It tells you that an application is preventing shutdown, but it prevents you from interacting with the application to do something about it. Instead, you can either kill the application or cancel the shutdown, interact with the application, and then shutdown again. What idiot added this feature?
Vista does the same thing. Fortunately, I'm not too familiar with it because due to standby to RAM and hibernate I rarely shutdown or restart.
Vista does the same thing. Fortunately, I'm not too familiar with it because due to standby to RAM and hibernate I rarely shutdown or restart.
Monday, January 26, 2009
The magic of psychill/psybient and psytrance
Some parts of psytrance and psychill/psybient tracks have patterns which seem to musically express fundamental patterns in reality. The music makes me imagine vague generic and/or stereotypical patterns of events in reality. It's practically never something specific. It feels meaningful yet meaningless.
When I listen to that, I start seeing the world more like music or dancing. I start thinking less about the meanings of what I observe, and I start simply appreciating things more.
A good example is an experience I had at a mall while listening to Sirius Sounds by Children of the Bong. I came into the Santa's palace area, where there were many chains of Christmas lights hanging from the ceiling. Ordinarily I would see those as cables with small light bulbs on them at regular intervals and with plugs at the ends, and I might think about their context. Then I just saw a wonderful arrangement of countless points of light. It felt truly magical.
I guess classical music can probably do the same thing. I should probably try to get into it more. However, I find psychill and psytrance holds my attention better and is more fun.
When I listen to that, I start seeing the world more like music or dancing. I start thinking less about the meanings of what I observe, and I start simply appreciating things more.
A good example is an experience I had at a mall while listening to Sirius Sounds by Children of the Bong. I came into the Santa's palace area, where there were many chains of Christmas lights hanging from the ceiling. Ordinarily I would see those as cables with small light bulbs on them at regular intervals and with plugs at the ends, and I might think about their context. Then I just saw a wonderful arrangement of countless points of light. It felt truly magical.
I guess classical music can probably do the same thing. I should probably try to get into it more. However, I find psychill and psytrance holds my attention better and is more fun.
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