I actually didn’t know the precise definition of the term, for all it’s become an eponymous meme, itself, thanks to the Internet. Then I happened to be pointed to this fascinating video lecture by Susan Blackmore over at TED.com. She not only defined the term, she placed it in a very important place in our [...]
Archives for Geek Rants
Letting my geek flag fly.
Birds of a Feather
Based on my last blog post you would probably (perhaps rightly) label me an Apple fanboi. That doesn’t mean I can’t bring the snark when I think it’s called for…
Selling my Soul to Steve Jobs
It all started so innocently… The number one activity I undertake on computing devices is creating graphics. 3D modeling, animating same, web stuff, what have you. I long since realized I was sick and tired of being tied to a computer desk, though, and wanted something fresh that didn’t involve unplugging, lugging, and plugging every [...]
We are Google, and we can kill you
Okay. I have a gmail account. The e-mail for this very domain name goes through a Google Apps server. Guess what my default browser home page is? Yeah. Hell, I use “Google” as a verb…don’t you? On the other hand I passed on Wave, and will pass on Buzz. I’m not opposed to them, really, [...]
I Sing the Praises of Akismet
Do you have a WordPress blog? Are you using the free Akismet plugin? Why not? This baby stops comment spam in its filthy tracks, my friends. You need to get a (free) WordPress API (they tell you how to do it, it’s easy), then you install the plugin…done. It works so well that after about [...]
Internet Explorer Must Die
If you’ve done any web development more ambitious than a few text links, you have already long since run up against the problem of how Microsoft constantly fails to conform to standards. For those of you who haven’t experienced the special joy of making otherwise correctly-coded web designs work in IE, you don’t know what [...]
Beware of Theft via “ATM Traps”
I just heard about this today (and checked it out at Snopes), and it’s pretty bizarre. There’s a way to set an “ATM Trap” such that it captures your card, and then the thief does a bit of social engineering to get your PIN, only to recover the card a short time later and withdraw [...]
On Finding Gifts for Geeks
So, Xmas is past but if you had any hard core geeks on your gift list last year I’m betting it was a royal chore finding something “suitable” for them. Tell me, honestly: where do you think that gizmo is now? My friends, I’m here to make your next foray into geek giftdom an experience [...]
The more complicated things get…
First off, don’t get me wrong: I love my new Alienware laptop. It rocks in so many ways I haven’t found them all yet. Still, some things are just too damned fancy in my godlike opinion. For instance? Instead of clicky-button controls for things like volume control, CD ejection, media control (what? your laptop doesn’t [...]
Peremptory re-booting
I can’t be the only person who gets annoyed by Microsoft’s insistence on re-booting my machine without asking first. Who the hell do they think they are? I gave permission to install updates autonomously, but why does that include a re-boot? The proper procedure is to install the updates, then provide notice that a re-boot [...]
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