01 November 2002

Technology Loved by Ray Ozzie Ray Ozzie -- 1) I love GSM. Let me repeat: I love GSM. It's the only communications safety net that I really keep in-place wherever I go. I so very much appreciate that it works most anywhere - except Japan, Korea, and New Hampshire - and lets me reach critical phone numbers such as voice mail, the hotel, and in this case, the U.S. Consulate. 2) I love OAG. Although I didn't stay connected, I carried my Libretto in my backpack "just in case". When forced to do significant last-minute (and very complex) rerouting of my trip due to the unfortunate bombing in Indonesia, I was able to use OAG (TIS) to do significant and nontrivial rerouting, I was able to use 9600bps GSM dialup to Earthlink to look up some hotel information, and I was able to communicate with the travel agent, airline, hotel, and my assistant, reworking an entire itinerary in five hours end-to-end. An incredible testament to the state of technology and the Internet. 3) I love my Casio Exilim (for stills) and my Panasonic SV-AV10 (for clips), both of which fit in my pockets, and both of which - with 512MB SD memory cards - fit all of the hundreds of images from the trip. Truly revolutionary. [Ray Ozzie]

Microsoft.net Trounces Java in Tests ONLINE BLOG -- When Sun Microsystems was promoting Java (J2EE) for corporate use it produced Pet Store, a sample application to show how it really should be done. Microsoft then produced an implementation using .Net to show how much better it was. "Foul" cried the Java-backing multitude: Pet Store wasn't optimised for performance. the Microsoft.net Pet Store 2 still trounces the Java version. In fact, the Microsoft.net server with two processors is rather faster than the 8-processor J2EE server B version, and amazingly cheaper ($4,722 v $316/tps). Worse, the Java B server tested "was unable to sustain peak throughput beyond four hours, destabilizing over this period of time to the point of failure" says TMC's report. Another aside from this fun-packed epistle: the Java version of Pet Store 2 required 14,004 lines of code whereas the C#/.net version was done in 2,096. You can download a copy of the report here. The Java side is discussing the implications on The ServerSide.com.` [onlineblog.com] Sent from TransNote using Nokia D211+Vodafone HSD

OPEN -- I am putting this post here to solicit a comment that tells me the settings for the Esat ADSL modem (Ericsson HM220d) on a very simple setup PC->ADSL modem->Analog line. PCs can ping ADSL router but no further.

Easy Mail to Blog BALLYBLOG -- So I have a "Contact" named "Blog" and when my fingers slip on my mobile phone's messaging area, I fire blanks at my blog. This little posting contained nothing until I saw it and decided to explain to anyone watching how a Nokia 9210 can fire blanks. Sent on train by Noka 9210i e-mail to blog

BALLYBLOG -- It seems that each passing week brings me more spam. I need better spam filtering and that means using Spam Assassin or Choice Mail. I am resigned to paying for protection against junk mail. That's simply part of the cost of participating in the Net. But I miss the days when I posted to Usenet without thinking of such things. Sent by Noka 9210i e-mail to blog.

Letting Advertising Pay for City Services USA TODAY -- Cash-strapped American cities are considering innovative ways of getting revenue. Larry Copeland discovered San Diego is considering letting General Motors put ads on life guard towers in exchange for 35 free police cars. The city of St Charles, Missouri, is renting ad space on its trash trucks. And the 1,793 people in Biggs, California, are mulling an offer from the California Milk Processor Board to change its name to "Got Milk?, California," in exchange for a "meaningful contibution. Sent by Noka 9210i as e-mail to blog

Spam Suffocates Me Four weeks after the SIGIA-L put their archives online, I have more than 2000 pieces of rubbish in the trash folder of my company mail account. I filter my mail. Before the SIGIA-L archives went public, I received hardly any jjunk mail to my company address. Someone should pay me to receive their junk. As it is, I am stuck with the costs of receiving, filtering, storing and deleting. Sent by Noka 9210i as e-mail to blog

It's Official: The Celtic Tiger Has Died BUSINESS WEEK -- The European edition reports the death of the Celtic Tiger and no wonder -- economic growth has slowed markedly in Ireland, tax revenues are sharply below target and technology jobs are shriveling. I chalk up the downturn to the exit of the telecommunications companies from funds that stimulated the growth of concept businesses. The principals who got the money had a "time to market" imperative without having to prove the validity of their business models. Some didn't have a model, so they had no benchmarks at entry. A tech sector skimmed high daily rates from Y2K-paranoid companies, then many of the same consultants discovered they could charge more because they were few in numbers. Now, demand for their services is down, as is their income, as is the tax take. The government also started the Special Savings Investment Scheme, which siphons around €425m annually. Now the Irish government must borrow €750m in 2002 and €3bn in 2003. There is no slush fund to maintain public spending. For the next two years, slowdowns and reduced expectations will replace the champagne days of the Celtic Tiger.

Irish Penalty Points System Implemented Irish Motorways -- If you drive on an Irish motorway, you will probably observe slower-moving traffic as the penalty points system finally gets implemented. I think getting points will deter friends who violate traffic code. After just three speeding violations, drivers can be forced to find another way to travel to work. That prospect will change drivers' behaviours. As it stands, speed kills more than the dire state of most Irish roads.

Magadalene Sisters Movie Heads for Box Office Record ECLIPSE PICTURES -- A hard-hitting film examining the gruesome conditions pregnant girls endured in notorious Irish workhouses has sold out in cinemas across Ireland. It is expected to hit €300,000 by the close of its second week on release. That could push its revenues over a million within five weeks and make it one of the biggest grossing pictures ever screened in Ireland. The film won The Golden Lion Award for best film at the Venice Film Festival but it has been blasted by the Vatican.

Irish Software Association Company of the Year ISA -- The shortlist for Young Company of the Year is out for the annual Irish Software Association Awards. The shortlist includes AEP Systems, Am Beo, AMT, Cinehub, WS2 and Xiam.

Xi Blue Post-Production Saves Time and Money XI BLUE -- To produce a film using the digital tools available at Xi Blue is certainly less expensive than using traditional film formats. Xi's post-production suite also makes it easier to add special effects or to remove items that detract from the original footage.