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The short-form week of 8–14 Feb 2010

15 Feb 2010; last modified 13 Mar 2011

The week in review, 140 characters at a time. This week, 86 messages in 78 conversations. (With 14 favorites.)

This document was created automatically from my archive of my Twitter stream. Due to limitations in the Twitter API and occasional glitches in my archiving system, it may not be 100% complete.

In a conversation that started on Sunday at 10:36pm

wow, that is crazy. @daysoftware CRX's Tar PM actually IS tar (as in tape archive) http://bit.ly/dzcTxu #jcr—@andrewserff
@andrewserff @daysoftware I dunno. Seems less crazy than inventing a new append-only file format. Standards FTW.—@ndw

Monday at 03:02am

Just watched the Superbowl ads. Except I skipped the numbfuck airhead GoDaddy swill. I'm ashamed to be in a vaguely-related business.—@timbray

Monday at 06:19am

Just slightly freaked by 'Your house has been robbed' spam. See, I went on vacation without locking the front door... #safeneighborhood—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Monday at 08:18am

Shuttle launch tweets from NASA remind me: I must make plans to see one of those things live before it's too late. Road trip, anyone?—@ndw
@ndw Shuttle launches are really amazing to watch. If you can, try to get into the KSC. I hope you get lucky, launch dates tend to slip.—@toddstavish
@toddstavish Any idea how I can try to get into the KSC?—@ndw
@ndw Take a spacesuit with you, I can see another MarkLogic video in the offing ...—@abcoates
@ndw I wish I could !—@fgeorges

In a conversation that started on Monday at 11:46am

Cool! RT @sindoc SICP video lectures: http://is.gd/7UDiZ—@ndw
@ndw They're absolutely classic. Watched the whole set a few years ago.—@abdelazer

Monday at 01:55pm

RT @technorati excellent quote of the day: "It's so bad I miss Newt Gingrich." http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/08/opinion/08krugman.html?em—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Monday at 03:05pm

Is it the consensus that QuickSilver B57 is stable under OS X 10.6? It was unstable for me for a while...so I gave up.—@ndw
for what its worth @ndw i been using b54 with 10.6 with no probs—@xquery

Monday at 05:51pm

File under extremely handy: Photoshop actions—@ndw

Monday at 05:57pm

OTOH, Lightroom edit in CS4 + Action that includes save = some weird results—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Monday at 06:03pm

I see. Recording ⌘S stored the filename of the file I was recording on. Feh. That's not the semantic I wanted...—@ndw
@ndw Should be able to just Edit that part of the recorded action.—@gcarothers

In a conversation that started on Monday at 06:47pm

Indeed. Wow. RT Most disrespectful tech company takeover move ever - http://www.sun.com—@ndw
@ndw Yep, for one or two weeks now. At least http://java.sun.com/ is still there (but in "la vie en rouge"...)—@fgeorges

In a conversation that started on Monday at 07:12pm

I've made up my mind: unless I get a good price on a used 100-400mm L zoom, I'm going to buy the 400 f/5.6 as my main bird lens.—@elharo
@elharo The 5.6 is fast enough for bird work?—@ndw
@ndw Arthur Morris says so, and I've had excellent results with a rental: http://picasaweb.google.com/erharold/Barnegat#—@elharo

Monday at 07:56pm

Happy to be giving QuickSilver another try. Now can I figure out the extra stuff I had configured it to do long ago...—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Monday at 08:37pm

When Adobe says 75% of sites use Flash the reality is 70% do for ads, 4% do for videos, and 1% are just e-tailers being too fancy.—@hunterhacker
@hunterhacker you're forgetting about all the f*ing restaurant sites—@andrewsavikas
@hunterhacker And Google voice :(—@gcarothers
@gcarothers I have little trouble with Google Voice w/flash blocked...—@ndw

Monday at 10:14pm

Hells yeah! RT @ndw And now back to _Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs_. #bedtimereading—@grechaw

Monday at 10:17pm

If you were looking for a reason to pref Bing RT @EFF Google Superbowl Ad Explains The Need for Search Privacy http://eff.org/r.3fP #privacy—@ndw

Monday at 10:20pm

RT @ndw If u were looking for reason to pref Bing RT @EFF Google Superbowl Ad Explains Need for Search Privacy http://eff.org/r.3fP #privacy—@peteaven

Tuesday at 12:12am

O hell no! Oracle, I see the bitch in you! RT @ndw: Indeed. Wow. RT Most disrespectful tech company takeover move ever - http://www.sun.com—@uogbuji

Tuesday at 04:25am

Nice framing! RT @EFF Google Superbowl Ad Explains The Need for Search Privacy http://eff.org/r.3fP #privacy via @ndw—@jschneider

In a conversation that started on Tuesday at 07:02am

An anti-product placement pledge #appp "Upon seeing a blatent ad in a tv show, I pledge to not buy that product for a month." Who's with me?—@benosteen
@benosteen Count me in! #appp—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Tuesday at 08:19am

Batik doesn't render the text in this SVG: http://pastebin.org/88835 My bug or batik's? #lazyweb—@ndw
@ndw Does it render text in simpler SVGs? Does it have a font? Does it work with inches usually? Nothing else jumps up...—@robinberjon
@ndw BTW, I should really stop spelling "the attribute with name xxx" the XPath way on Twitter...—@fgeorges
@fgeorges On twitter, we are all attributes. #xml—@jpcs
@fgeorges Heh. I know what you mean.—@ndw
@ndw Nothing obvious. Does Batik support 1.1? What if you change @version to 1.0?—@fgeorges
@ndw You're on a Mac, right? https://issues.apache.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=47917 ?—@bazzargh
@bazzargh Thanks. The RSVG variant of ImageMagick seems to be able to do what I need.—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Tuesday at 09:22am

@heycam see @ndw question, "Batik doesn't render the text in this SVG: http://pastebin.org/88835 My bug or batik's?"—@sideshowbarker
@sideshowbarker @heycam Thanks, Mike. It looks like it's probably this bug: https://issues.apache.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=47917—@ndw

Tuesday at 02:11pm

The more the web gets social, the more I want to hide away and work in complete solitude.—@tommorris

In a conversation that started on Tuesday at 02:55pm

Does MSV work for most folks with embedded Schematron, @ndw? "xalan.res.XSLTErrorResources Exception..Couldn't resolve the node to a handle"—@abdelazer
@abdelazer Uhhhh...it worked last time I tried it, I think. More than that, I'm not prepared to commit.—@ndw
@ndw It just seems to fall down on even the most trivial input documents. Is RelaxNG + Schematron really doomed to multi-step? Xproc?—@abdelazer
@abdelazer I don't consider relying on XProc "doomed" :-), but I'm not the author of an all-in-one RNG/Schematron impl. @kohsukekawa ?—@ndw
@ndw I didn't mean to impugn XProc. Know of folks generating standalone schematron from RNG then "validating" everything with XProc?—@abdelazer

In a conversation that started on Tuesday at 04:59pm

@ndw did disabling quartz make the text render?—@heycam
@heycam Dunno. I managed to get ImageMagick built with librsvg support and that did the right thing.—@ndw

Tuesday at 05:06pm

I want my social network to be locked into a particular client even less than I want it to be locked in to a particular company.—@james_clark

In a conversation that started on Tuesday at 05:30pm

"The iPhone may be a fascist regime, but the trains run on time and the streets are very well maintained."—@codinghorror
@codinghorror "... and people are properly respectful of their betters, too."—@timbray

In a conversation that started on Tuesday at 07:17pm

Cool: The pkg to install was on the device itself, seen via USB. Uncool: MB Air didn't see it. Way uncool: That a pkg was needed at all.—@hunterhacker
@hunterhacker Let me know how it goes. Plan to replace USBConnect card with MiFi when contract runs out.—@ndw
@ndw I got it working. Activation needed a phone call. Old VZAccess sw had to be deleted. New sw had to be pulled from device itself!—@hunterhacker

In a conversation that started on Tuesday at 07:18pm

Dear everyone, "granular" does not mean "fine grained". Thanks #grammarpolice—@edd
@edd Using a word with the wrong definition in mind isn't a grammatical error, but rather semantic. #pedantpolice—@robinberjon
@robinberjon touché—@edd

In a conversation that started on Wednesday at 06:11am

If the multi node deadlock test hangs forever, does that mean it's successful? ;-)—@martin_probst
@martin_probst How do you know it hangs forever? ;)—@vojtechtoman

Wednesday at 06:52am

RT @xmlprague places going fast for XML Prague .... now is the time to register or us to find a bigger venue ;)—@ndw

Wednesday at 07:32am

The BBC seem to think "oh, we have an ethical question, let's call a bishop". Why not call the butcher, baker or candlestick maker?—@tommorris

In a conversation that started on Wednesday at 09:18am

This really is Hotblack Desiato's Wristwatch - http://bit.ly/9A8ZK6 - black hands on a black face pointing at black numerals—@webmink
@webmink Nevermind Hotblack Desiato's wristwatch, I want a pair of Joo Janta 200 Super-Chromatic Peril Sensitive Sunglasses.—@ndw

Wednesday at 09:35am

DAAP over ssh tunnel would be even more useful if iTunes would do just a little more buffering.—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Wednesday at 10:10am

Yes, but I don't like the implications. RT @karlpro "The iPad is a replacement for computing." The failure of empathy http://bit.ly/9JrkIf—@ndw
@ndw As long as the other way is still possible, there is no issue. It's a question of having the choice.—@karlpro

In a conversation that started on Wednesday at 10:20am

Working at Pelham Auto isn't bad, except that the waiting room is bloody cold.—@ndw
@ndw In my experience, you have to buy a damned expensive car to sit in a heated waiting room while it's serviced. :>—@kendall

Wednesday at 09:11pm

Denying science is a hate crime.—@zeldman

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 06:53am

In #xproc, each step is its own 'transform' so p:add-attribute + current-time() can be used within a loop to time-stamp each result doc.—@philipfennell
@philipfennell I expect that's technically implementation defined. I wonder if that's the right answer.—@ndw
@ndw Good point! It certainly wouldn't work for my XSLT implementation. Or then again, as it uses saxon:transform(), then maybe, just maybe?—@philipfennell

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 07:42am

While @ndw is busy closing remaining open #xproc issues one by one, I am incorporating the changes in #calumet.—@vojtechtoman
@vojtechtoman Showoff. :-)—@ndw

Thursday at 08:53am

Simple bulleted list items for an agenda...sent in Word. Sigh.—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 09:37am

Every telcon that doesn't have an IRC back channel is less productive than it could be.—@ndw
@ndw Depends on the audience; if many are non-techie, the back-channel can easily become a source of distractions and sports scores.—@freddrake
@freddrake Then they weren't paying attention anyway, which begs the question, did they need to be there? Did you really need the meeting?—@ndw
@ndw No, they weren't, and we didn't, but not everyone agreed about that. The situations where that's happened were odd to start with.—@freddrake
@freddrake Fair enough then. I have no idea how to rescue those meetings. Try to keep them short, I guess.—@ndw
@ndw Unfortunately, duration was constrained by circumstances. Better to just monitor the meeting while getting work done in other windows.—@freddrake

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 10:14am

@ndw yes how annoying, will prod Kurt ... thx—@xquery

Thursday at 10:58am

Walsh Principle N°1 : RT @ndw: Every telcon that doesn't have an IRC back channel is less productive than it could be.—@innovimax

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 11:14am

Cisco wants to make Holyoke, MA a model for how communications technologies can revitalize communities http://bit.ly/cbjrz7—@timoreilly
@timoreilly I'm all for revitalizing Holyoke, but "another use might be for observation cameras to bolster public safety". Ugh.—@ndw
@ndw If the cam feeds are online, open, not private to law enforcement, does that change the dynamic? I am undecided but I think maybe yes.—@judell
@judell Maybe. But I'm still not a fan of mounting cameras in public places.—@ndw

Thursday at 12:56pm

♺@xproc All XProc LC issues closed. Again. PR. Think PR. Tap your heels three times and think 'there's no place like PR'.—@ndw

Thursday at 01:42pm

RT @ndw: ♺@xproc All XProc LC issues closed. Again. PR. Think PR. Tap your heels three times and think 'there's no place like PR'. #xproc—@innovimax

Thursday at 02:42pm

Must. Send. Laptop. Out. For. Repair. Fan. Noise. Drilling. Through. My. Brain. Like. Hot. Needle.—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 02:43pm

Oh, fsck! That's better. Noise cancelling headphones FTW!—@ndw
@ndw I'd still be worried about the fan... that sounds like a harbinger of not such good things.—@JeanKaplansky
@JeanKaplansky Yeah, it needs replacing (again, actually) but that'll require opening the box up, swapping HDs, etc. Headphones for now.—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 03:18pm

♺@frumioj Chip and PIN broken!: http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/research/security/banking/nopin/press-release.html (back to the old stripe then?)—@ndw
@ndw No, forward to a secure system which protects users, vendors and bankers. Not just bankers—@tug
@tug Indeed!—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 03:32pm

The Saudiban are after Valentine's Day again: http://is.gd/8aHid—@david_megginson
@david_megginson Oh, good grief.—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 03:41pm

Finally getting my AtomPub server code ready for distribution.—@ndw
@ndw Yay! XQuery AtomPub! ... this year really?—@gcarothers
@gcarothers Yes. This year. Really. This month, I freaking hope. Probably not this week, though.—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 05:41pm

Hmph. "defaults read com.apple.screencapture type" says "png" but Grab still saves .tiff. Yes, I've logged out, rebooted even, since change—@ndw
@ndw Forget Grab: squiggly button[1] + Shift + 3 or 4 (whole screen). 1. Place of Interest Sign—@abdelazer
@abdelazer meh. Turned all those shortcuts off years ago.—@ndw
@ndw That is for shift-command-4—@ceri
@ceri Meh. I guess I've turned off those keyboard shortcuts. Ah, well, convert is my friend.—@ndw
@ndw They're set in the "keyboard shortcuts" tab in the Keyboard system preference thing if that helps any.—@ceri
@ceri Thanks. I know where they are. I turned them off and I don't feel like turning them back on. :-)—@ndw
@ndw :-)—@ceri

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 05:58pm

Comments NSFW. RT @gabrielsaldana New Anti-Piracy Windows 7 Update "Phones Home" to Microsoft Every 90 Days http://tinyurl.com/ya8o3ml—@ndw
@ndw Right, time to wait for a nice shiny new pirated image that works around this then. Love using pirated versions of software I own.—@gcarothers

Thursday at 06:13pm

Just what can you trust? Not your Windows 7 PC: http://tinyurl.com/ya8o3ml — if you needed it, more reason to run open source OS (via @ndw)—@edd

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 06:20pm

what an unpleasant, unhappy afternoon. tx to good colleagues for advice. now maybe time for a drink—@amyvdh
@amyvdh here's to a martini! And a better tomorrow!—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 08:01pm

I find myself needing and using @1Password every day, highly recommended. Tho $40, it's worth it. Esp. love the strong password generator.—@edd
@edd Does 1Password allow you to export your passwords in an open textual format? What happens if you change platforms?—@james_clark
@james_clark Yes, it supports export to various formats including tab-delimited text files—@edd
@james_clark Yes, you can export to a couple of different flavors, including tab delimited text. 1Password is very nice.—@ndw
@edd @1password yep, absolutely. And mobile version means I can recall those strong passwords on the road.—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 08:13pm

PhotoshopDisasters: Heine: More Möbius than Möbel http://post.ly/NQ2z—@merlyn
@merlyn wow. That's all I got really. Wow.—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Thursday at 09:27pm

@ndw tx a lot Norm. +1 to better tomorrows!—@amyvdh
@amyvdh and martinis, Amy, don't forget the martinis.—@ndw
@ndw :)) Shiraz in my case but not forgotten!—@amyvdh

In a conversation that started on Friday at 08:01am

"Number Six" === NaN—@psd
@psd Nice!—@ndw

Friday at 09:53am

♺@Carnage4Life Google will learn this week that customer trust is hard to earn and easy to lose - http://bit.ly/cCYDin—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Friday at 09:57am

Did Google really decide to let other people see the collection of feeds in *my* Google Reader? Really? That stupid?! Or do I misunderstand?—@ndw
@ndw I don't -think- so. I think it's still just shared items.—@gcarothers
@ndw Only your "shared feeds" but yes, they did it a while ago, pre-Buzz.—@jimancona
@ndw it is hard to say if you are correct because the connection between reader and google twitter is so opaque. yes, it was stupid if true.—@dajobe

Friday at 10:10am

"You don't use science to show that you're right, you use science to become right." -- XKCD—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Friday at 10:39am

Perspective: the prob. of two 64 bit hashes (of different objs) being the same is significantly lower than the prob. of some other bug.—@ndw
@ndw I knew hardware designers who discounted hash conflicts as being less likely to cause errors than electromagnetic interference—@michaelhkay
@ndw That said, I've had to work around hashcode collisions for Java strings, so it isn't so uncommon either, depending how many objects.—@abcoates
@abcoates I don't think that java.lang.String is the best example for good hash algorithms :)—@vojtechtoman
@vojtechtoman Really? Login shouldn't be required. Try alternative URL https://launchpad.net/xmlzebra—@abcoates
@abcoates Yes, that URL works. Actually, now both do... weird—@vojtechtoman
@vojtechtoman Can you recommend a better algorithm? XML Zebra needs one (http://www.xmlzebra.com//)—@abcoates
@abcoates You want to replace String.hashCode() with something else? I wonder if that is worth the effort. BTW the site requires me to login—@vojtechtoman
@ndw depends on the hash algorithm. it could be buggy (==0)—@DALDEI

In a conversation that started on Friday at 10:43am

There's NO Adobe block of HTML5 as incorrectly reported by @hixie @diveintomark & @annevkhttp://bit.ly/9IgQE5 - next time folks, get facts—@shelleypowers
@shelleypowers No, you're wrong. Proof is here: http://is.gd/8eWdp But you can't read that, because it's secret. Do you see the problem yet?—@diveintomark
@diveintomark Mark, you're smarter than that. And so am I. The proof is in the HTML WG at http://bit.ly/acMRZww.—@shelleypowers
@shelleypowers ...but you would know that already, if they weren't, you know, secret. Do you see the problem yet?—@diveintomark
@diveintomark You know, someone seemingly concerned about ethics and being above board should tweet a retraction when proven incorrect—@shelleypowers
@shelleypowers I agree, you should.—@diveintomark
@diveintomark Are you saying then, that your statement about Adobe blocking HTML5 is fact?—@shelleypowers
@shelleypowers ...oh wait, you can't read that, because it's secret. That must suck for you.—@diveintomark
@shelleypowers The W3C has agreed not to publish *any* HTMLWG artifacts until Adobe's objection is cleared. Source: http://is.gd/8eWdp—@diveintomark
@diveintomark That's not how I interpret that message. It doesn't say *any* artifacts, it says *some specific* artifacts.—@ndw
@diveintomark I suggest you look at the official W3C response to my question at http://bit.ly/9IgQE5 -—@shelleypowers
@diveintomark not true: there is no pending publication request being blocked, & "cleared" != "resolved". W3C could publish over objections—@shepazu
@diveintomark Sorry, I linked a gmail email--which I'm sure buzzed the world. Proof of non-blocking of HTML5 is at http://bit.ly/9IgQE5—@shelleypowers
@diveintomark ... which does not negate Hixie's point about mixed messages from Adobe about supporting HTML. "blocked" is hyperbole, tho—@shepazu
@shelleypowers do you see the problem yet? (Hint: it's not @Hixie, and it's not a conspiracy.)—@diveintomark
@diveintomark What was written in what email where doesn't matter. All that matters is the official response, which I linked.—@shelleypowers
@shelleypowers It's cute that you think the W3C works that way.—@diveintomark
@diveintomark Evidently when faced with fact you fall back on hysterics, innuendo, and patronization. Sad, not the Mark Pilgrim of yrs ago.—@shelleypowers
@shelleypowers your so-called "facts" are just your interpretation of (less than) half the evidence, and your outrage is sorely misdirected.—@diveintomark
@shelleypowers You're only seeing half the story. The statements being made in public do not correspond to statements being made in secret.—@diveintomark
@diveintomark All that matters is what is: Adobe is NOT blocking HTML5. That is fact. Everything else is conspiracy and hyperbole.—@shelleypowers

Friday at 10:54am

Yes, fair point, for large numbers of objects, the odds go up. And collisions do happen, I know.—@ndw

Friday at 11:02am

Friday at 11:14am

@ndw that was my experience re: Google Reader. w/out even asking! so I cleared my account right quick—@amyvdh

In a conversation that started on Friday at 11:36am

@ndw is there a way to automate indexing of a docbook manuscript? i'm looking for tools or automation since i have 400+ pages—@brucesnyder
. @brucesnyder I don't know of any, but I've never looked. Automated indexes are usually pretty awful. Indexing is an art.—@ndw

In a conversation that started on Friday at 12:23pm

HTML5 WG adds deliverables without checking with anybody and then when somebody says "do your charter", the Sky Falls! http://bit.ly/9r3mXD—@DaveO
@DaveO That seems to about sum it up.—@ndw
@DaveO of course, if it wasn't Adobe, there'd be no fuss. It's a Flash-spiracy!!—@gdaniels

In a conversation that started on Friday at 01:31pm

Enough about W3C backroom conspiracies and nefarious designs on HTML5--let's talk about UFOs, Bigfoot, Nessie, giant squid, & unicorns.—@shelleypowers
@shelleypowers Favorite quote (from a recent Big Bang, I think): That would be like beating a unicorn to death with a bag of rainbows.—@ndw
@ndw And then feeding the carcass to the giant squid ;-) (Big Bang rules, BTW)—@shelleypowers

In a conversation that started on Friday at 03:23pm

Sarah Palin is a retard. http://bit.ly/aXchFD #cnn—@lmorchard
@lmorchard dude, that comparison's unfair to people with developmental impairments, who are pretty nice people, unlike, say Palin.—@whump
@whump You are 100% correct, and I apologize to everyone with impairments beyond their own control.—@lmorchard
@lmorchard This is news?—@ndw

Friday at 06:02pm

Google Buzz: a social network of tens of millions of people wondering why Google have fucked up their e-mail service so much.—@tommorris

In a conversation that started on Friday at 06:40pm

In 20 minutes time, I'll have been on this planet for quarter of a century. In geological time, that's like... a nanosecond.—@tommorris
@tommorris Congratulations! Three more quarters and you win! Er. Or something. Not that good at sports metaphors.—@ndw

Saturday at 10:43am

"If you wish to strive for peace of soul and pleasure, then believe; If you wish to be a devotee of truth, then inquire." (Nietzsche)—@tommorris

Saturday at 05:53pm

Moved HD from one laptop to another. Odd things different: default Java version, modifier keys, some things in the menu bar.—@ndw

Saturday at 06:00pm

Enjoying a Bombay Sapphire martini.—@ndw

Saturday at 06:03pm

Picked up Talking Heads "Little Creatures". Also enjoying.—@ndw

Sunday at 03:12am

so we all agree pop-ups are evil, but almost everyone uses lightbox - come on guys! it's the same shit, different name. #usability #fail—@josefrichter