January 31, 2010
Will Apple Make Us Stupid?
This observation on the iPad and the future of computing is interesting and a bit ominous:
Apple has declared war on the tinkerers of the world. With every software update, the previous generation of “jailbreaks” stop working, and people have to find new ways to break into their own computers. There won’t ever be a MacsBug for the iPad. There won’t be a ResEdit, or a Copy ][+ sector editor, or an iPad Peeks & Pokes Chart. And that’s a real loss. Maybe not to you, but to somebody who doesn’t even know it yet.
Like this author, I also learned to do BASIC programming on an Apple IIe and I still like to tinker with my current rig, even if it just involves getting an old game to run properly. It's probably a little early to predict how the iPad and other portable devices will be used, but I'm guessing they will continue to exist side-by-side with computers. Kids may use a tablet to watch a video or play a game, but they will still have computers that are more powerful and flexible. The kids that are inclined to hack (and I use that term in the best do-it-yourself sense) will find a way.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 09:37 PM | Comments (0)
January 30, 2010
Verbal Sparring
I spent my Saturday morning watching a replay of yesterday's question-and-answer session between Obama and House Republicans. It's rare in American politics to see this kind of unmediated policy debate between a president and the opposition. And that's unfortunate; I think a lot of voters are hungry for honest debate free of media spin and hyperbole.
My more partisan take on the Q&A is that it plays so well to Obama's strengths while exposing Republican "ideas" as vacuous and simplistic. The president had the assured demeanor of someone eager to debate because his ideas are qualitatively better than those of the opposition. I got a lot of satisfaction from watching him dismantle Republican nonsense that the health care bill is the instrument of radical Trotskyites plotting a proletariat revolution. If Obama is to have any hope of moving his agenda forward, he'll need to do a lot more forceful advocacy like this. Americans generally still like Obama, much more so than anyone in Congress. He needs to parlay that likeability into trust and these open debates are a good start.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 04:16 PM | Comments (0)
January 29, 2010
Do Robots Get Lonesome?
We don't tend to get too attached to our machines and gadgets. But as this cute but melancholy XKCD comic about the now-immobile Mars rover Spirit demonstrates, it's hard not to feel some empathy for those inventions of ours that just won't quit, even long after their warranties expire.
Sleep well, little guy. Maybe you'll get to come home someday.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 07:14 PM | Comments (0)
January 28, 2010
Talk Is Cheap
The thing about State of the Union speeches is that they usually end up sounding like wonky wish lists. Eighty to ninety percent of that wish list will never come to anything and presidents can consider themselves lucky if that other ten percent survives in any recognizable form. And I think Obama knows that. He'll be lucky to finish the year getting a financial reform package and, if the stars align just right and the Democrats manage to keep it together, a health care bill. Even that's an optimistic view.
I'd like to live the world envisioned in Obama's speech, but I'm guessing we'll end up muddling through much of 2010.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 09:16 PM | Comments (0)
January 27, 2010
Feeling Ignored
The iPad is pretty much what I thought it would be: an oversized iPod Touch. At $500 for the cheapest model, I can see myself purchasing it for its reading capabilities alone. But I'm a little disappointed that Apple, a company noted for its commitment to accessibility on the Mac, seems to have completely abandoned incorporating accessibility features into its portable devices. And I'm not just speaking for those of us with motor impairments; I don't think too many people with visual impairments are going to be rushing to the local Apple Store to pick one of these up.
I understand that we gimps may not be the target audience for this kind of tech, but throw us a bone, Apple. Include some rudimentary voice control or auditory feedback. Hell, I'd even settle for a vague statement that you'll explore adding these features in the future. Right now, the iPad (and iPhone) are useless to me without human assistance. With a little ingenuity, that could change, but not without some commitment from Apple. I don't think it's too much to ask.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 07:26 PM | Comments (3)
January 26, 2010
Future Litigators of America
As I was passing through the Government Center earlier this evening, I saw a bunch of high school kids filing into the courts wing for a mock trial tournament. I had a momentary flashback to my own mock trial experience; I had a vague notion that I wanted to be a lawyer and so mock trial seemed like something I should try. I also had a ginormous crush on a girl who was the team. I never summoned the courage to ask her out, but I did end up with an attorney's license, so I guess it wasn't a total wash.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 11:35 PM | Comments (0)
January 25, 2010
Rumor Control
Here are the things that I'm fairly certain the forthcoming Apple tablet/slate/squished iPhone won't do:
- It won't come pre-loaded with the sequel to Avatar.
- It won't have a telepathic interface.
- It won't pass a health care bill.
- It won't address me as "Master" in a breathless sex-kitten voice.
- It won't give me superpowers (although I'm hedging my bets on this one).
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 07:50 PM | Comments (1)
January 24, 2010
Pushing Back
Andre Bauer, South Carolina's lieutenant governor and candidate for governor, recently compared people who receive public assistance to "stray animals" who "don't know any better". It must be primary season, when Republicans of all stripes do their best to one-up each other to score points with a base who has nothing but scorn for government and the people who use the social services government provides (never mind that we all use government services to some extent). We'll almost certainly see more of this kind of mocking disparagement of the poor and marginalized from conservatives in the coming months; it's a predictable and depressingly effective campaign tactic.
As Obama reconstitutes his political operation in preparations for the midterm elections, his team should develop strategies for calling out candidates who engage in such cynical demagoguery and unapologetically label it as hateful and unAmerican. This rhetoric can't be politely dismissed as a difference of opinion. One of the Democrats' biggest problems is that they distance themselves from the people they claim to represent. It might dawn on them that such aloofness doesn't inspire voter allegiance.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 04:17 PM | Comments (0)
January 23, 2010
Safe Sex
Fellas, as you prepare to go out on the town tonight, take a minute to watch this very NSFW public service ad about the benefits of wearing a condom. Never before has a work of art depicted the penis as such an adorable but melancholy character. But not to worry; this urban tale ends quite happily for everyone involved.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 12:21 PM | Comments (0)
January 22, 2010
Well, That Sucked
I'm more than happy to see this week come to a close. The Democrats still seem to be doing a spot-on imitation of a bowl full of quivering jelly, but there are signs that sanity may be taking hold again. It would be a stretch to describe what I'm feeling as optimism, but it's also not complete and utter dejection.
But politics and policy will have to be set aside for tonight as I bid adieu to Conan until the fall. The fact that Conan has to go off the air while the exceedingly unfunny Leno gets rewarded for failure speaks volumes about the state of our society.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 07:41 PM | Comments (0)
January 21, 2010
The End Of Free
Years from now, I'll be regaling all seven of my blog readers with stories of the salad days of the early-21st century Internet, when free content was abundant. The Times just announced that it will charge frequent readers an as-yet-undetermined subscription fee beginning in 2011. Hulu also indicated that it would begin charging users to access the more popular shows in its catalog. At this rate, I'll have start moonlighting as a bartender just to afford my various Internet subscription fees.
This retrenchment of paywalls was probably inevitable. Web advertising is sustainable revenue model for some businesses, but it's not enough to support a major newspaper or unlimited video streaming. However, this will only work for a handful of established brands whose content is already highly valued by consumers. I'll gladly pay five bucks a month to get unlimited access to the Times, but I probably wouldn't pay a single penny to the Star Tribune.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 09:18 PM | Comments (0)
January 20, 2010
Panic In The Streets
I was going to post something about the prospects for still passing a comprehensive health care bill, but I fear that any such analysis would quickly turn into an epithet-laced invective against Democratic cowardice. I'd like to think that Democrats will have their little freak-out and then, you know, actually do what we elected them to do. Never mind that Obama already is signaling his willingness to accept a thin gruel of a bill that would do little more than give people the right to bankrupt themselves buying insurance. But that's just Obama doing his elite Jedi mindfuck with the opposition, right?
Right?
I'm still a Democrat and I believe in Democratic principles. I just wish I could say the same of folks like Barney Frank.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 06:01 PM | Comments (1)
January 19, 2010
By Any Means Necessary
A week ago, I wrote that I was "reasonably confident" that Coakley would win in today's Massachusetts special election for Kennedy's former seat. Tonight, I'm steeling myself for a Republican loss. Nate Silver, the master of election statistical analysis, pegs Republican Brown as the 3:1 favorite. Coakley ran a terrible campaign, but voters are also really, really angry. They're angry about unemployment, the bailouts, health care reform, and the bewildering structural changes that the economy is currently experiencing. It's an inarticulate anger; they don't like the changes Democrats are proposing, but they don't have a clear idea on what the alternative strategies should be.
How Democrats should respond to this anger is a topic for serious debate, but I'm convinced of one thing: health care reform should not be scuttled because of this election. The House can still pass the Senate bill as-is, eliminating the need for another Senate vote. Further negotiations would have made the bill better, but many of those improvements could be accomplished through a reconciliation bill. The politics of such a move will be messy, but the process has come too far and too many lives are at stake. Walking away is simply not an option.
Assuming Democrats don't lose their nerve, they can still do some tremendous good. They should seize the moment while they can because, once they lose their supermajority, we can forget about any major legislation passing in the foreseeable future.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 07:13 PM | Comments (0)
January 18, 2010
Put To Pasture
Norm Coleman finally came to the realization that Minnesota voters are tired of seeing his name on election ballots. His Facebook declaration that he will not run for governor this year is probably good news for Democrats. The two Republicans who seem poised to inherit the mantle of frontrunners, state legislators Marty Seifert and Tom Emmer, are much more conservative than the majority of Minnesotans. They may be able to ride the building national wave of Tea Party discontent, but I'm not sure how well that message plays beyond the exurbs and some rural areas. This is going to be a tough year for Democrats, but Minnesota may be able to finally put a Democrat in the governor's mansion after a couple decades' absence.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 11:39 AM | Comments (0)
January 17, 2010
Competing For My Attention
Yikes, book club is a little over a week away and I'm not even halfway finished with the book. I'm discovering that reading books on my computer is easy enough; the trouble is that my computer also has easy access to the Internet and games. I am a weak, weak man.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 06:08 PM | Comments (0)
January 16, 2010
Give Now
It's hard to write anything about the Haiti earthquake without being trite or obvious, so I'm just going to point to Lifehacker's list of ways to contribute to the relief effort. Doctors without Borders is my choice as they already have a presence in the country, but so do many other good organizations. But I worry that giving will dry up once the headlines fade from public view and that Haiti, confronted with overwhelming devastation, will cease to become a functional state.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 05:31 PM | Comments (0)
January 15, 2010
My Body's Finicky Ways
So this is Take Two with my new seating system. I had to make a return visit to the clinic for some tweaks, but I'm still not sure everything is quite right. I'm definitely straighter (and a little taller), but my twisty regions are not completely happy with this state of affairs. I have a long weekend coming up and I'll try to use that time to break this thing in. If I'm still crampy by Tuesday, back to the clinic I go for more tweaks.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 09:12 PM | Comments (1)
January 14, 2010
Alpha Nerd
Can a geek also be a player? A quick scan of the recent coverage surrounding Peter Orszag's mini-scandal, the answer is "yes". Orszag is director of the White House Office of Management and Budget. He also dates assorted hot women, fathers children with them, breaks up with them, and then gets engaged to a different but equally hot woman. Join Stewart breaks it down for us:
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Peter Orszag Sex Scandal | ||||
| ||||
Who knew that bureaucrats could be such ladykillers? Clearly, I'm not living up to my potential. Maybe a new pair of glasses and a haircut that can slice glass would improve my chances.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 07:50 PM | Comments (0)
January 13, 2010
Return To Pandora
I'm about to see Avatar in 3D for the first time at an IMAX theater. Will it send me into a deep depression? Stay tuned.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 05:18 PM | Comments (0)
January 12, 2010
It Ain't Over Yet
The health care bill continues its slow march towards final passage as House and Senate Democrats work on negotiating a compromise bill. But even now, with the finish line so tantalizingly close, a special election in Massachusetts (of all places) could throw a monkey wrench in the whole works. Next Tuesday, Massachusetts voters will elect a senator to fill Edward Kennedy's seat. Of course, Massachusetts is as blue as a naked Na'vi taking a quick dip in Lake Superior, but the political climate is such that even Massachusetts Democratic candidate Martha Coakley is facing a tough crowd. Polls are all over the place and it's conceivable that the Republican candidate could win, thus taking away the Democrats' filibuster-proof majority.
In such a scenario, the House could still pass the Senate version of the bill and be done with the process. But that solution is far from ideal. The Senate bill could stand a lot of improving and that can only happen if the House and Senate negotiate.
This was never going to be easy. I'm reasonably confident Coakley will win, but much is at stake and it would be a horrible shame if Kennedy's successor killed his dream of making health care more accessible and affordable.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 09:55 PM | Comments (0)
January 11, 2010
The Late Shift
If Comcast does end up buying NBC, can it stick Jay Leno on some low-rent cable channel where he can fulfill the remainder of his contract delivering cheap yuks to the same people who think eating out at Applebee's is a fine dining experience? Poor Conan. He should have bailed on the network as it became apparent that Leno would never retire and that NBC would never say "no" to him. Perhaps Fox will steal him away and give him a forum where he can be true to his inner Ivy League dork. But he'll still have a hard time tearing me away from Craig Ferguson and his puppets.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 10:27 PM | Comments (0)
January 10, 2010
What We're Watching
The Times is the king of fun and interesting infographics that use web technologies to great effect. The latest example is a comparison of Netflix rental patterns across metropolitan areas including the Twin Cities. The maps reveal interesting demographic divides in terms of taste in movies. For example, Paul Blart: Mall Cop was huge in the exurbs but was completely ignored in the urban core. Rachel Getting Married did pretty well in Minneapolis-St. Paul but got less love in the suburbs. Somewhat surprisingly, biopic Milk was pretty popular across the entire metropolitan region except for the far northern and southern fringes. And everyone wanted to see The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 12:42 PM | Comments (0)
January 09, 2010
Ballroom Blitz
The BBC continues to demonstrate that it's way ahead of the States when it comes to including people with disabilities in mainstream programming. It's latest effort is Dancing on Wheels, a dance competition modeled after other reality shows like So You Think You Can Dance except that the pairings include one partner in a wheelchair and one partner who is able-bodied. The winners will represent the U.K. at the wheelchair Dance Sport European Championship competition.
The BBC website won't let me play the trailer because it considers me a dirty foreigner, but the photo of the contestants is tastefully glitzy. And check out the biceps on the woman sitting in the dude's lap. Yikes. Let's hope her partner doesn't break easily.
I'm not a big fan of dance shows, but I might check this out once it makes its way to BBC America or, ahem, other distribution channels.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 01:30 PM | Comments (0)
January 08, 2010
Pop Collage
Your assignment for the weekend: download Uptime and Downtime, The Kleptones' latest two latest collections of mashups. I've been a fan of The Kleptones' sonic alchemy ever since A Night at the Hip-Hopera and their latest offerings contain some surprising combinations that somehow work. Like Aretha Franklin and Metallica, Genesis and M.I.A., and Nirvana and Blur. Some may still argue that mashups are nothing more than novelties, but I find the best ones to be elegant deconstructions of disparate musical styles.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 09:27 PM | Comments (0)
January 07, 2010
How I Keep My Girlish Figure
Film critic Roger Ebert writes about not eating or drinking via mouth any longer as a result of thyroid cancer. He writes that he doesn't really miss food itself, but he does miss the social experience of dining with others (Ebert's illness left him without the ability to speak as well):
So that's what's sad about not eating. The loss of dining, not the loss of food. It may be personal, but for, unless I'm alone, it doesn't involve dinner if it doesn't involve talking. The food and drink I can do without easily. The jokes, gossip, laughs, arguments and shared memories I miss.
Ebert also observes that he saves a lot of time by not eating and that certainly mirrors my own experience. As a kid, I always was the last one at the dinner table because it took me an hour to eat a third of whatever was on my plate. I don't miss those days.
I've mentioned that I can still eat and drink in small quantities, but weeks can pass between such occasions without me really noticing. I still have "lunch" with friends, which usually involves them eating while I go into great detail about all the salacious details of my life that don't make it into this blog. It never really occurs to me to envy them as they enjoy their food. But I do sometimes imagine the things I would eat if I had a fully functional jaw and swallow. Like a deep dish pizza with plenty of sausage and green olives. Or a braunschweiger sandwich with lots of mustard.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 07:55 PM | Comments (0)
January 06, 2010
Planned Obsolescence
The big Consumer Electronics Show gets underway tomorrow and the likes of Sony and Toshiba are hard at work trying to convince me that my brand new LCD TV is already an aging relic and that the future of home entertainment is 3-D. I remain unpersuaded. I'm still trying to decide if I can distinguish between the image quality of a Blu-Ray disc versus a standard DVD, so it's probably premature for electronics manufacturers to convince me that I need to put on a pair of silly-looking glasses to watch an episode of Lost (or whatever the next geek soap is). I'm sure the effect is cool, but childhood memories of those flimsy cardboard red-and-blue 3-D glasses and their disappointing results have made me instinctively suspicious of any claims regarding 3-D's awesome factor. And no, I haven't yet seen Avatar in 3-D, so I might still be converted into a true believer. Even so, I'm quite happy with the old-school world of 2-D entertainment.
However, I desperately want Apple's tablet computer even though I'm not totally sure what it does, how it works, or whether it even exists. My resistance to the hype machine is somewhat hit-and-miss.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 08:14 PM | Comments (0)
January 05, 2010
Rook To Queen's Bishop's Fist
Dear Professor Hawking:
Felicitations and Happy New Year! I trust this message finds you in good spirits and I hope you had a pleasant holiday season. Did you receive the iTunes gift card I sent you? I know what a big Shakira fan you are.
I'm writing to suggest a slight format change for our forthcoming zero-g deathmatch (btw, how does next New Year's Eve work for you? The promoter is bugging me to get something on the calendar.). Two words: chess boxing. It's all the rage right now. The rules are simple. Six rounds of chess alternated with five rounds of boxing. The winner is decided by checkmate or knockout.
I have a feeling that you're the better chess player, but I'm reasonably certain I can give you a concussion by the fourth round, thus putting us on more equal footing at the chess board. Plus, it opens up a whole new world of merchandising possibilities. Commemorative chess sets, boards, the works.
Let me know what you think. In the meantime, I'll be brushing up on my King's Gambit.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 09:18 PM | Comments (0)
January 04, 2010
Second Skin
This is my first day in my new custom seat insert. My previous insert served me well for fifteen years, but it no longer provided the support I need as I approach middle-aged decrepitude. This new seat is certainly more form-fitting and it grips me in a way that my previous seat never did. All this is to say that I should be doing less sliding as I traverse bumpy sidewalks and the occasional grassy field. But it also feels a bit weird, like putting on a new pair of jeans that haven't been broken in yet. I'm sure I'll get used to it in short order and this new seat will feel as familiar as the previous one. It also has that new car smell, which was novel for about five minutes but is now a little noxious. Hopefully, it dissipates before my work meetings tomorrow.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 08:24 PM | Comments (0)
January 03, 2010
Critic At Large: Hyperion
Much of my winter break was spent reading Hyperion, Dan Simmons' dense, riveting far-future space opera. Modeled in broad strokes after Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, the book tracks the pilgrimage of seven strangers to the mysterious world of Hyperion, a colonial world that remains apart from the galaxy-spanning Hegemony of human-settled planets. Hyperion is also home to strange artifacts known as the Time Tombs and the Shrike, an elusive humanoid creature adorned with blades who has acquired mythical status among the locals and has inspired a well-funded religion. The seven pilgrims are sent to Hyperion to seek an audience with the Shrike as war brews between the Hegemony and a splinter group of humanity. As the pilgrims make their way to the Time Tombs, they each tell their stories revealing some personal connection with Hyperion.
Simmons uses the conventions of space opera (exotic locations, near-magical technology, artificial intelligence, and intricate politics) to craft a series of novellas that vary in tone and style, but are all well-crafted character studies. The scope of Simmons' imagination is breathtaking; the universe he has constructed is incredibly complex, but he doesn't become overly enamored with his own creation. Even seemingly throwaway references to some obscure bit of future history are later shown to have crucial significance to the plot. And his characters, particularly the poet Martin Silenus and the scholar Sol Weintraub, are deeply flawed individuals who struggle to come to grips with past suffering in the company of other wounded souls.
The book ends on something of a cliffhanger, but is continued in The Fall of Hyperion, which I plan on picking up at the earliest opportunity.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 04:29 PM | Comments (0)
January 02, 2010
In The Wee Hours
Tony Judt, a writer and scholar, writes about his personal experiences with the progression of ALS (also known as Lou Gehrig's disease) for the New York Review of Books. He focuses in particular on how the onset of his disability has changed his nights:
I am then covered, my hands placed outside the blanket to afford me the illusion of mobility but wrapped nonetheless since—like the rest of me—they now suffer from a permanent sensation of cold. I am offered a final scratch on any of a dozen itchy spots from hairline to toe; the Bi-Pap breathing device in my nose is adjusted to a necessarily uncomfortable level of tightness to ensure that it does not slip in the night; my glasses are removed...and there I lie: trussed, myopic, and motionless like a modern-day mummy, alone in my corporeal prison, accompanied for the rest of the night only by my thoughts.
The inconveniences of physical disability can make for some long and uncomfortable nights. When I was a kid, I was always reluctant to wake my exhausted parents when I needed to be turned or otherwise repositioned. They never minded, of course, but I still didn't like being the one to interrupt their sleep. Now, I'm spoiled; I have nurses who are available to reposition me without me ever completely waking up. And I usually have little trouble getting to sleep once I find my comfort sweet spot. For someone like Judt, who is still coping with a recently acquired disability and its attendant sense of loss, the nights are probably an entirely different experience that I can only vaguely appreciate.
Thanks to Ezra Klein for the tip.
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 02:12 PM | Comments (0)
January 01, 2010
Welcome To The Future
Happy New Year, everyone. I don't know what the coming decade will bring for me or any of you, but as with most things regarding human existence, it's likely to be bittersweet. Here's hoping we learn to savor the sweetness and endure the bitterness.
And before we completely turn the page past 2009, let's get our groove on one more time with this mashup video distilling the essence of this past year's pop zeitgeist:
Posted by wintermute2_0 at 08:51 PM | Comments (0)