Universal Rule

Book Reviews

Monday, October 20, 2003

Writing a new column -- Comment()
Today I submitted a new column to the MikroPC magazine, about the Linux vs. Microsoft controversy. The column will appear in the printed magazine on November 6th. This column was a hard one to write. I had two different texts, which I wanted to combine, but this required a lot of iterations. I must have written eight drafts of the column, in rapid succession. The result may be one of the best texts which I have ever written.

Consulting the national tv broadcasting company -- Comment()
A translator from YLE, the Finnish broadcasting company, phoned and asked how to translate certain terms in the BBC documentary about the G5 cluster at Virginia Tech. This was an interesting conversation. This translator was really professional, and proud of her work. Nice to know that making translations of documentaries is not routine work -- it is like doing research.

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Microsoft monopoly says Apple monopoly is too restrictive: "Microsoft would be negligent if it didn't see Apple's music ambitions as a competitive threat. On the eve of Apple's splashy launch last week, Microsoft offered a Q&A which warned users not to be seduced by the iTunes, Apple's integrated MP3 player/ripper/burner/radio/music store, which is now available on Windows." [The Register]

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Tove Jansson: "You can't ever be really free if you admire somebody too much." [Motivational Quotes of the Day]

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The Panther Report: Is It Dangerous To Become An Early Adopter? "Yes, I do hope the Panther upgrade process will be easy, and that most third party applications will just work without modification. But things never seem to work that way in the real world." (Mac Night Owl via MyAppleMenu) [MyAppleMenu]

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Confession: "Listen, I didn't really stuff my new cell phone inside four pairs of athletic socks and stick it at the bottom of the hamper and then call it on my regular phone to confirm I couldn't hear it ringing. I only said that because it made a better story. I'm not interested in telling the truth here unless the truth makes a better story." [Oblivio]

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Drama: "About a year ago I wrote a post on this website about what it was like go off a depression medication. I’d been on a specific medication for over seven years, and it took over three and a half months to go from 100 milligrams/day of the drug to 0 milligrams/per day, a painful, often traumatic trip through nausea, dizziness, numb hands, and temporary blackouts." [dooce]

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Windows iTunes sparks mixed reactions: "indows users jump at the chance to try Apple's iTunes jukebox software--and reactions range from unabashed praise to complaints of bugs." [CNET News.com - Personal Technology]

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Pop culture will feed itself: "I'm waiting for the anime movie based on the album based on the book based on the DVD based on the swimsuit calendar of the cheerleaders for the New England Patriots." [kottke.org]

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Uncommonly Good Sense about Blogs and Journalism: "I grow increasingly impressed with Jay Rosen, head of New York University's journalism program, and pieces like this one -- "Ten Things Radical about the Weblog Form in Journalism" -- will help you understand why."

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Is the therapy culture actually making us ill?: "From Adam Ant to Nick Hornby, everyone seems to be opening up about depression. But is the therapy culture actually making us ill?" [Guardian Unlimited]