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January 21, 2007
From the Great-Minds-Think-Alike Department
Posted by pgutwin at 8:10 PM | Comments (0)
January 20, 2007
Two Half's of the US Whole
The Colbert/O'Reilly duo have (sort of) defined a couple of extreams in US Politics (I'm sure there are more...). What makes these shows popular is the same thing that makes hanging out with your friends fun - you get to dis the people that a) aren't in your group or b) aren't there.
While all of this is fun, the sad thing is the some people think that hanging out with your friends is all that life is about, and it's not. The reality is that we have to spend time with people that don't think like we do.
That's why I think the agreement for these two guys to spend time on each other's show is an important milestone. I know it won't change either of these guys - they have too much at stake to change. But it just may start the process that we as a nation need to go through. We need to let the "two half's" become a whole nation.
Posted by pgutwin at 12:13 PM | Comments (0)
January 16, 2007
Verizon Sells Off Rural Lines
Looks like
Verizon will sell off rural lines, including in Vermont. What's up with that???
Posted by pgutwin at 5:34 PM | Comments (0)
House Building - Mark II
I've always felt that the method we use to build houses is really pretty old-fashion. It's incredibly manually intensive, using a lot of relatively inexpensive materials (with a few exceptions), and overall, it's a huge investment. I've also always thought that there must be a better way.
I've looked at some of the new pre-fab construction techniques, but they just don't seem right for some reason I can't put my finger on. What's really needed is a complete new approach: This seems to be it. It may not be perfect, but it's exploring the kind of idea that I think is needed to really change the home building market.
Posted by pgutwin at 7:53 AM | Comments (1)
January 13, 2007
What Goes Around...
I always thought the guys at Transmeta were pretty smart, but I also thought some of that smartness tipped over into cockiness. Their core ideas was very cool, and they overcame a lot of really difficult problems to be successful (i.e. stay alive). But when you decide to take a huge company to court, you've got to be ready for the worst.
Court action is really, really the last place anyone in business wants to end up. So much can go wrong, take so long, and chew up vast amount of resource that you have to:
- Be sure that you are right
- Have lots of time and money
I hope my friends over there (if any are left) can survive this challenge too.
Posted by pgutwin at 11:05 AM | Comments (0)
January 5, 2007
Wow
Imagine - rather than having just 12Gb free on my computer, 
I could have 988 Gb free. Oh, the sheer bliss of wonton excess.
What would you do with all that space? I guess a little video might start filling things up.
Otherwise, just keeping search results stored might chew up some more.
Posted by pgutwin at 9:17 PM | Comments (0)
January 4, 2007
Nothing But Net
WiFi at work, home, coffee shops, airplanes and now, it's in a car near you. Who wants to make a bet how quickly this is going to be the new, leading cause of auto accidents, right behind cell phones?
It's going to make plane-ol' DUI convictions seem so...old school.
Posted by pgutwin at 9:47 PM | Comments (0)
January 2, 2007
From the What-Did-You-Think-Was-Going-To-Happen Department
The story that a few bloggers bit the hand that fed them computers shouldn't exactly surprise anyone. Bloggers out in the wild on the Internet, unprotected by a solid paycheck are unlikely to be influenced by a handout from Microsoft.
Microsoft should have asked me – I could have told them what was going to happen…
Posted by pgutwin at 4:20 PM | Comments (0)
January 1, 2007
iPod Thing Starting to Creap Me Out
I was in Costco a few days ago, after quite a long hiatus. So I was unprepared for what greeted me in the electronics section: 
A complete row of iPod-related accessories. Mind you, I'm a big iPod fan, and see it as a way of reinvigorating the music industry (if the RIAA can get their heads around what's really happening). But the amount of stuff (a.k.a. junk) that’s sprouting up around the iPod is just weird.
One of my co-workers recently purchased a new car, and while he was completely satisfied with the car, there was one option he had to have installed: the iPod interface.
So I find it pretty creepy that everyone has one, and everyone loves them. Either Apple really gets it, or it’s some kind of mass-hypnosis. Right now, it’s a toss-up for me.
Posted by pgutwin at 2:40 PM | Comments (0)