Open Source Software

I read recently that a powerful US copyright lobby is likening OS (Open Source software) to piracy or worse. Alright, we need to put this into perspective, so you can realize just how absurd this comparison is. Piracy is when somebody’s copyrighted content, whether it is music, movies, video games, books etc. is taken and distributed. We won’t go into any big detail, you know what I am talking about.

Open source software on the other hand is where a programmer, or a team of programmers, create an application. This can be in the form of a browser, such as Firefox, an operating system, such as Linux (any flavor), or a graphics application (Gimp, Blender, MyPaint, Inkscape…) etc. and make it open to the community. Have these people stolen anything? No. Have they distributed somebody else’s content? No!

What they have done is made their intellectual property available to people like you and me. These people give many others the opportunity to do something they wouldn’t otherwise be able to do. And chances are they have contributed more than you might think.

If you run a website, or even visit websites, you have come into contact with open source software in various forms. You don’t realize it, but the majority of the web is run through the open source database MySQL. Not to mention WordPress, Apache, RedHat, CentOS etc. etc. etc.

Meanwhile, it’s not uncommon for commercial applications to “borrow” code and inspiration. Even Mac OS X is based on the BSD operating system.

Off the top of my head I know of two countries that actively support open source software, one of them is Germany. The second one is Indonesia, which last year sent out a report to all their government departments encouraging them to migrate to open source.

You can read an interesting post from the Technology Blog on the Guardian.co.uk, the title of the article is: When using open source makes you an enemy of the state

Is this the end of open source software? That isn’t very likely, it will take more than one greedy corporation lobbying to outlaw what people are allowed to do with their IP.

Leonar3Do

I saw this earlier today and I was really impressed with how the idea has evolved. I saw something like this several years ago in a documentary and at that point it was closer to science fiction than reality. That has changed.

But before I go on I should probably explain what “this” is. Leonar3Do is a creates virtual space in front of your computer monitor. You can more it around and you can look at it from different angles as long as you are wearing the headset.

The device was created to allow you to sculpt on your computer, this actually isn’t anything new. There have been applications that allow you to do this for years but you were always restricted to the screen. Now with the creation of Leonar3Do that is no longer the case.

To get a better idea of what this means you can take a look at this video that demonstrates the technology better.

Black Dragon Sculpture

I should mention that this video is a mock-up, you can’t film the effect and you can’t see it unless you are wearing the glasses. My guess is we’ll have to wait a couple more years for something like that.

You can learn more on the official website, Leonar3Do.com. And if you are wondering how much this is going to cost, it may disappoint you to learn that it will be over $1000.

Here is one of the toys he has made. It is particularly interesting how he made the robot suit, which he named the RetroRobo, fit around the pilot inside.

Mani Zamani 3D printed robot

You can get a better idea of the size and shape of the toy in this turntable video.

As I have already said he has a large portfolio of toys he had designed. Here are a couple of my favorites.

Mani Zamani 3D printed-steel revoltech 4

Mani Zamani 3D printed-steel revoltech 5

Mani Zamani 3D printed-steel revoltech 6

You can see more of Mani’s designs by visiting his website: manizamani.com

Goats are exceptional climbers, and they are extremely nimble on their… Hooves.

A Short Story

A couple of years ago we were at a zoo that had goats in one section walking around freely. I can’t tell you what kind they were, they were rather small, and had short legs. They were friendly and would walk around people, but they didn’t like it when the visitors would try and touch them.

No, they weren’t mean, they didn’t ram anybody, but they were able to read the signs better than the people. No petting. Anyway, there were some children there who absolutely wanted to get their hands on this sweet little goat. She had other ideas and she was quicker than the kids.

I was standing next to a park bench when she came running at me. Before I had time to move out of the goat’s, way she jumped up on the bench, which was maybe 18” wide, ran along it and sailed into safety. She sprung about eight feet off of the other side before she hit the ground and then she was gone. I am assuming she could have jumped further when you look at what these mountain goats are capable of.

Goat Pictures

The reason for this post is still these incredible pictures of mountain goats in action. They can reach staggering heights, climb the most unfriendly walls, and they do it all without fingers. Take a look at some of these pictures for unbelievable mountain goat action!

african goats in tree

Jumping Goat

Funny picture of a goat on rocks

Mountain Climbing Goats

Mountain Goat

Tree Goats

Cliff Full of Goats

Goat on mountain

Gravity Defying Goat

And as you can see I’ve saved the best for last!

Cute Goat Photo

I originally saw these photos on Digg and they were just so fun I had to share them with you. You can view all 30 of them here.

world strongest dog

Some of you may recall the post I made late last year about the World’s Strongest Dog. In that post I talked about the Whippet named Wendy that suffers from a rare myostatin gene defect which causes her to have a double muscle layer. This is the same defect that causes the Belgian Blue to grow to the proportions it does.

If you’re wondering what a Belgian Blue looks like, you can get a pretty good impression for their size in this video. You will also be able to learn why the myostatin gene defect makes Wendy so muscular.

Returning to Wendy, I decided to do a little more research on her and see if I could learn more about this fascinating dog, even if she wasn’t the World’s Strongest Dog. And through a little digging I found that she has her own website. Who doesn’t have their own website these days?

You can visit her website, rightly titled: Wendy the Incredible Whippet. There you can learn more about this amazing dog and read along with her story. To peak your interest, here is a small excerpt:

“Wendy came into my life in August 2003. The breeders gave her to me as a companion to another puppy that my employer was getting. They had kept Wendy because her double muscles made her abnormal, and not wanted by most people. They also wanted to make sure that if they let her go she would end up at the right home.”

Read Wendy the Whippet’s complete story.

So you’re still not convinced that Wendy is in fact a Whippet. Don’t feel bad, the very first thing it says on her website is that she is often mistaken as a Pit Bull. But she is not, she is a loving, doubled muscled Whippet that loves to sit on her owner’s lap and get petted.

Here she is with a normal sized Whippet.

Wendy and Normal Whippet

And I thought that this photo really showed off how muscular she really is.

Wendy the Whippet

The last update on the website mentioned that Wendy was going to start taking advanced obedience training. She had finished up her novice class, even running through a mock trial with few mistakes. This might be due to her love for hotdogs as a reward.

Microsoft Data Mining Patent

Microsoft thinks that you are worth a million dollars! And because of that fact Bill Gates, Ray Ozzie and many of the other executives at Microsoft have been issued a patent that allows then to mine your personal data.

This recent patent (okay, the application for the patent was filed in September 2006) that was awarded this week basically layout a system for collecting your personal information. What this “personal data mining” system does is examine your actions and interests based on what they have observed you and others that fall into your category doing. This will allow them to make targeted suggestions. This could be in the form of recommendations on which books to read, movies to see or restaurants to eat at.

While this isn’t much different than what a lot of other companies have been doing, it goes beyond simply making contextually targeted plugs.

As the name implies, it is a method to mine your personal data. As per the patent this includes your:

“personal management information (PIM data), pictures, videos, documents, e-mail, instant messages, addresses, calendar dates/scheduling information (e.g., birthdays, anniversaries, appointments . . . ), voice mail, phone logs, RSS feeds, subscriptions, bookmarks, mail lists, project management features, computing device data, tasks and location data.”

Basically everything that is linked to you falls into this catch all system and it is as good as gold.

The patent also talks about the option to “include a monetization component”. What does this mean? It means you might just land in “an auction to sell information to the highest bidder.”

If you have any interest in reading through the full patent application, you can find it here.

This reminds me of the patent application that Steve Jobs recently filed for OS Advertisement.

Look at this bird for example. It is alone. And that means, all 12 of these tigers are very interested in making it’s acquaintance. Now, if there had been other foolish birds that were willing to land in a tiger’s enclosure, this one bird wouldn’t have been the center of so much attention. Take a look at the picture to see what I mean.

Tigers Wrong Place Wrong Time

I am not sure if the bird made it out, but its biggest advantage is that so many tigers are competing for its friendship. Combine that with the amount of effort the bird is making to hotfoot it out of the enclosure, and its chances are pretty good.

His goal/dream for the iPad is that it will bridge the gap between smartphones and laptops. But does the iPad fill this gap? Not really. But we’ll get to that in just a moment. The iPad at first glance looks like a scaled up version of the iPhone. And in some ways it is. First let’s take a look at the dimensions.

The iPad is half an inch thick, which is why many people began referring to it as iSlate. The IPS display is a rather respectable 9.7 inches. In comparison, the iPhone has a 3.5 inch display. The whole devices weighs 1.5 pounds.

Apple iPad

According to Steve Jobs, the iPad has a battery life of 10 hours, and can stay in stand-by for one month.

Hardware specs are also pretty decent. The processor is a 1 GHz Apple A4, which should provide more speed than it does. As it stands, the iPad is not capable of multitasking. What does that mean? Well, if you’re reading this, you probably have your browser open. If you checked your inbox, your email client may be open. Then there is whatever other programs you normally use on your computer. With the iPad you can only use one application at a time. Disappointing, isn’t it?

I really don’t see this as a limitation of the hardware. Either the OS can’t handle the demands, or won’t. In either case this is something that Apple will have to fix in a future release.

As with most of the other hardware, Apple makes the iPad come in multiple different flavors, these range from the 16GB to the 64GB versions, with the price increasing for each one. The 16GB version costs $499, with the 32GB version jumping to $599. If you want the big version with 64GB storage space, you will be looking to spend $699.

The iPad connects over WiFi 802.11n, although some versions come with 3G. The data plans for the device start at $14.99 a month for 250MB of transfer, while the unlimited plan costs the double, $29.99, and you get free access to AT&T hot spots. Unlike the iPhone, there aren’t any contacts you get locked into. Instead it runs on the pre-paid model, which is activated directly through the device.

Some of the other features the iPad comes with are an accelerometer, compass, microphone, speaker, and a 30-pin connect. If you think you’re going to get a camera too, think again. The iPad does not come with a camera. This is rather disappointing, since including one with the device would make sense.

That about sums up the feature list. Does it sound like something you will need to have?

For me there are several issues with the iPad in its current state.

First, it doesn’t offer multitasking, which is a fundamental part of using a computer. If this isn’t changed, it isn’t anything more than a glorified iPhone with a lame name. This is the biggest problem for me with the device. Maybe this won’t bother most of the users, but for anyone that wants to do more than browse the Internet, read some email, and listen to music (not at the same time) this isn’t a viable solution.

Second, the lack of a camera. Apple’s solution for this was two huge adapters that could/should have been built into the device in the first place. Neither of them actually gives the device “real” camera functionality, instead they are only a way to import photos. Here is what Apple has to say about them:

“The Camera Connection Kit gives you two ways to import photos and videos from a digital camera. The Camera Connector lets you import your photos and videos to iPad using the camera’s USB cable. Or you can use the SD Card Reader to import photos and videos directly from the camera’s SD card.”

iPad USB Connectors

My verdict, if you’re looking for something bigger than your iPhone, and only care about browsing the Internet, reading your email, and other simple functions then this might be for you. I feel that Apple is trying to bank on the trendiness of their products rather than truly bridge the current gap between smartphones and laptops. If the iPad is their solution, we still have a long way to go.

Peter Shah - Amateur Astronomer

The garage, the basement, the tool shed, guys have their favorite places to tinker around. But that is about all that ever gets done. Tinkering is a good hobby, it keeps us occupied, but what comes out of it? Generally not much.

That is unless you’re amateur astronomer Peter Shah, if that is the case your shed is an astronomer’s dream come true. You see, Peter’s shed is worth more than £20,000, it has a sliding roof, and a modest amount of equipment. His telescope is connected to his home computer so that he can sit back and enjoy what the skies of Britain have to offer.

What is really impressive is that the tool shed astronomers images rival those of Hubble. He has successfully taken photos of the Andromeda Galaxy, Flaming Star Nebula, M33 Pinwheel Galaxy and the Monkey’s head nebula.

To quote Peter Shah: “it just goes to show that a window to the universe is there for all of us – even with the smallest budgets. I had to be patient and take the images over a period of several months because the skies in Britain are often clouded over and you need clear conditions.”

No, I know what you’re saying, “where are the pictures?” And to answer your question, here they are.

On a side note, the images are also being collected into a book for those that would like to own a copy.

Scale of Justice

Okay, you really can’t call it theft when the company decides to revoke your username. But it is dishonest and unethical when they decide to take it away from you when they think they can turn a profit. And that is exactly what happened to Harman Bajwa, who’s account has been in good standing.

This looks really bad for a company that has already had a string of embarrassing mishaps with their privacy protection and questionable ways of making money at their users’ expense. All that aside, here is what happened in the most recent incident.

Yesterday his vanity URL was unceremoniously revoked from him by facebook, the grounds: violations of the company’s policies. And he was given a new URL, something that was much more fitting with his name: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=538612932

Here is the message that facebook sent him:

Please Read This! Warning The username you selected was removed for violating Facebook’s policies. A Facebook username should have a clear connection to one’s identity. In addition, impersonating anyone or anything is prohibited. If you see other people with usernames that do not accurately represent their real names, it is only because they have not yet been removed for misuse. To select a new username, please visit the following link: www.facebook.com/username Thanks for your understanding, The Facebook Team

None of this would have come out, however, the company (Harman International) that was approached by facebook with the option to buy the facebook.com/Harman vanity URL contacted the original Harman. This was all news to him, and now fb has to recover from a black eye, which was most likely caused by Mike Murphy. Here is the email that they sent to Harman Bajwa yesterday:

From: Tyler Bahl To: Harman Bajwa Sent: Fri, January 22, 2010 11:25:21 AM Subject: HarmanHi Harman,Thanks for accepting my friend request on Facebook.I?m the emerging media strategist at Carat in Boston and I work on the Harman International account. We?re launching our first initiative in partnership with the GRAMMYS on Monday. Harman International is looking to obtain the vanity url facebook.com/harman for their Facebook fan page.We are currently working with Facebook to reclaim (http://www.facebook.com/help/?page=896#/help.php?page=899) the username, but I wanted to explore opportunities to work with you to acquire the name. In the past, we have offered product in exchange for social domain names. One case in mind was for the new movie Avatar , we were able to give promotional items to the owner of twitter.com/avtr for Coke Zero.Do you have time to connect today to discuss this opportunity in more detail?Best,-tb

You can read more in the TechCrunch article on the Washinton Post.