Hey, you're always asking me where I find stuff...
Thursday, April 29, 2004
PhD Timewaster Update
The final three cards in the series. One of them was made by me. See if you can guess which one...
Click on the thumbnails to see the full picture.
Click on the thumbnails to see the full picture.
Demented Moles Update
A very satisfying win on Tuesday night. Up against the recently-promoted "Charlatons (sic) X" we were down 1-3 at half-time. But we knuckled down and dragged ourselves back into the game with a few excellent goals. At 5-5 it looked like we might be in trouble again, but in his debut for the Moles the Grasshopper scored a wonderful long-range goal and we never looked back. Moles 7, Charlatons 5.
Tuesday, April 27, 2004
Gmail
Cool! I just got a Gmail account! more later...
Update: Well, I've been playing around with Gmail, and I am pleasantly impressed. The interface is very nice and easy to use, the archive and labels features are very good. Keyboard shortcuts is a great idea.
Right now my biggest wish is to be able to download my contacts list as a delimited txt file or perhaps an XML file. And to be able to upload it the same way. Then my contacts lists problems (having to maintain multiple versions for home, work) could be solved. Just let Google do it!
But now of course I have to think about how I move everyone from sending me email at my work or home account. I think I might experiment with Gmail a bit more before I start the migration...
But, if you're feeling adventurous, my new address is adrianDOTfurbyATgmail.com (replace the DOT and AT with their keyboard equivalents and you'll have the full address).
Update: Well, I've been playing around with Gmail, and I am pleasantly impressed. The interface is very nice and easy to use, the archive and labels features are very good. Keyboard shortcuts is a great idea.
Right now my biggest wish is to be able to download my contacts list as a delimited txt file or perhaps an XML file. And to be able to upload it the same way. Then my contacts lists problems (having to maintain multiple versions for home, work) could be solved. Just let Google do it!
But now of course I have to think about how I move everyone from sending me email at my work or home account. I think I might experiment with Gmail a bit more before I start the migration...
But, if you're feeling adventurous, my new address is adrianDOTfurbyATgmail.com (replace the DOT and AT with their keyboard equivalents and you'll have the full address).
Thursday, April 22, 2004
Open letter to the Fairfax Corporation
Hi there,
I understand that at the moment you are going through the tedious and exhaustive process of finding a replacement for Mr Gawenda.
Let me help you. Stop what you are doing and get on the phone to me. I'm your man. I'm the breath of fresh air in the newspaper industry that will save The Age and Fairfax from itself.
At the moment The Age is irrelevant. Circulation is on the slide, most of the interesting writing is reprints from the Guardian or Washington Post, and the HeraldSun keeps on being the paper of choice for young educated people who Should Know Better.
Whoever gets the task of leading The Age into the future (hint - me) has to turn it all around. No more treading water. Time to make the paper relevant again.
So what would I do to make The Age the best paper in Melbourne again? First up, I'd have a go at turning it into the tabloid-broadsheet format being trialled in England. Have you ever tried to read The Age on the tram or train? You can't. It's too freaking wide. And for no good reason either - have a look at the amount of whitespace. Acres of it. All wasted. For people who like to read a newspaper on public transport, believe me, The Age is not the first choice of commuters.
Second, The Age is living off it's past reputation. Fairfax can't really afford to have correspondents dotted across the globe anymore, so to plug the holes you've just been lifting the best writing from overseas publications. It's a crock and it shows contempt for the readers. But what's the alternative? Well, every day another thousand or so people decide they should be sharing their thoughts with the rest of world via their web logs. A lot of them are complete shite, but there are some excellent ones, covering a wide variety of topics. So cherrypick the best ones, and get them to write for The Age. There's enough attention-hungry wannabes out there that you wouldn't even have to pay them very much.
Next. Part of the reason The Age is losing to the HeraldSun is because you're still conflicted about what to do with the Rise of Celebrity. Personally I think the Rise of Celebrity is a cancer on society that poisons everything it touches, but unfortunately it's here to stay for the forseeable future. So you need to have some kind of celebrity news, but it can't poison the real news. So quarantine it in it's own little section (maybe one or two pages), call it The Celebrity Bullsheet, and that way you can rip into them whilst still feeding the depraved desire so many people have for reading about Brad Pitt's nipple.
Another important thing to do is hire some reporters who can actually find out the big stories in this slippery city. The HeraldSun is doing better with investigative reporting, so The Age has to regain the initiative. Send the journos out the door and tell them not to come back until they've got the story for the front page. People need a reason to pick up the paper from a newsstand, and that reason is usually the headline. The Age has the dullest headlines in Australia.
Every day I see smart people, young people, professional people, with their heads buried in the HeraldSun. They should know better, but they don't. They instinctively know The Age has nothing in there for them. You have to win these people back NOW, or you'll lose them FOREVER.
So don't be afraid. Pick up the phone, give me a call, drop me a line, whatever. Do it now while I'm still available. I've never run a newspaper before, but from the looks of things neither have the last few people you hired.
Cheers,
Adrian.
I understand that at the moment you are going through the tedious and exhaustive process of finding a replacement for Mr Gawenda.
Let me help you. Stop what you are doing and get on the phone to me. I'm your man. I'm the breath of fresh air in the newspaper industry that will save The Age and Fairfax from itself.
At the moment The Age is irrelevant. Circulation is on the slide, most of the interesting writing is reprints from the Guardian or Washington Post, and the HeraldSun keeps on being the paper of choice for young educated people who Should Know Better.
Whoever gets the task of leading The Age into the future (hint - me) has to turn it all around. No more treading water. Time to make the paper relevant again.
So what would I do to make The Age the best paper in Melbourne again? First up, I'd have a go at turning it into the tabloid-broadsheet format being trialled in England. Have you ever tried to read The Age on the tram or train? You can't. It's too freaking wide. And for no good reason either - have a look at the amount of whitespace. Acres of it. All wasted. For people who like to read a newspaper on public transport, believe me, The Age is not the first choice of commuters.
Second, The Age is living off it's past reputation. Fairfax can't really afford to have correspondents dotted across the globe anymore, so to plug the holes you've just been lifting the best writing from overseas publications. It's a crock and it shows contempt for the readers. But what's the alternative? Well, every day another thousand or so people decide they should be sharing their thoughts with the rest of world via their web logs. A lot of them are complete shite, but there are some excellent ones, covering a wide variety of topics. So cherrypick the best ones, and get them to write for The Age. There's enough attention-hungry wannabes out there that you wouldn't even have to pay them very much.
Next. Part of the reason The Age is losing to the HeraldSun is because you're still conflicted about what to do with the Rise of Celebrity. Personally I think the Rise of Celebrity is a cancer on society that poisons everything it touches, but unfortunately it's here to stay for the forseeable future. So you need to have some kind of celebrity news, but it can't poison the real news. So quarantine it in it's own little section (maybe one or two pages), call it The Celebrity Bullsheet, and that way you can rip into them whilst still feeding the depraved desire so many people have for reading about Brad Pitt's nipple.
Another important thing to do is hire some reporters who can actually find out the big stories in this slippery city. The HeraldSun is doing better with investigative reporting, so The Age has to regain the initiative. Send the journos out the door and tell them not to come back until they've got the story for the front page. People need a reason to pick up the paper from a newsstand, and that reason is usually the headline. The Age has the dullest headlines in Australia.
Every day I see smart people, young people, professional people, with their heads buried in the HeraldSun. They should know better, but they don't. They instinctively know The Age has nothing in there for them. You have to win these people back NOW, or you'll lose them FOREVER.
So don't be afraid. Pick up the phone, give me a call, drop me a line, whatever. Do it now while I'm still available. I've never run a newspaper before, but from the looks of things neither have the last few people you hired.
Cheers,
Adrian.
Wednesday, April 21, 2004
London Booted
And finally (crikey there's been a lot of posts today) some enterprising soul has put together a bootleg album based on "London Calling" by The Clash (one of my favourite bands ever). Download it while you can.
Demented Moles Update
Last night we played the British Knights. The game was at 6pm so it was a struggle to get enough players there on time, and we had to get some fill-in players. One of whom was quite good - he scored three goals. But we still lost 5-4, and I got smacked in the back of the head and the face. They are dirty bastards those British Knights...
Linux Australia Position Paper on the Aust-US Free Trade Agreement
A little while ago I posted about Lawrence Lessig's new book "Free Culture". In the post I mentioned the Free Trade Agreement with the US and how Australia is expected to align its copyright and patent laws with the US. The Senate FTA Committee will be taking submissions on the effect of the FTA which they will use when they consider the legislation that will need to be passed in the senate to enact some parts of the FTA. Linux Australia has a position paper which you can read and familiarise yourself with the issues. I helped a little bit to write it. Then read this page for the broader context and the things you can do.
Osymyso
Osymyso - is there nothing he can't do? He's just released a new mix called the "Puckish Mix" - it's got a great instrumental version of "Sweet Dreams Are Made of This", some DJ Shadow, Duran Duran, Coldplay and whole lot of other beats and pieces. It's quite simply superb, and you should 'do yourself a favour' and download it. (via boomselection)
Friday, April 16, 2004
White Boots/Black Boots
In a recent article for Stylus, Nick Southall listed his Top Ten Favourite Footballers. He listed Thierry Henry of course, and mentioned in passing that Henry is "one of the only players ever to look good in white boots".
I have a long-standing prejudice against white football boots - to me any player that wears white boots has tickets on himself, is a showpony, and thinks he's more important than the team. So I was a bit surprised to find myself agreeing with Nick - Henry could wear whatever colour boots he wants to and he would still look good. So why is it OK for Henry, but not for anyone else?
The reason I think is that Henry has the skills to justify wanting to stand out from the rest of the team. On him the boots aren't a distraction, he doesn't look slow, and he's clearly the best player on the field.
But there are so many players now who wear white or multicoloured boots - and almost none of them are as good as Henry. Something needs to be done - all these idiots in coloured boots are ruining the game. So far I've found two proposals to fix the problem. Anthony J Evans (of the Filter^) has suggested a system of National Boot Committees to decide on when a player is good enough to justify the wearing of white (or other colour) boots. At the grassroots level, Early Doors is running a white boot amnesty.
These are all fine efforts, but I think my solution is much more workable. The next time you're playing a game of football and you need to tackle someone who's wearing white boots, make sure you go in studs out. And when he hobbles away in pain, make sure you point out that's what he gets for wearing white boots. Unless of course you happen to be playing against Thierry Henry.
I have a long-standing prejudice against white football boots - to me any player that wears white boots has tickets on himself, is a showpony, and thinks he's more important than the team. So I was a bit surprised to find myself agreeing with Nick - Henry could wear whatever colour boots he wants to and he would still look good. So why is it OK for Henry, but not for anyone else?
The reason I think is that Henry has the skills to justify wanting to stand out from the rest of the team. On him the boots aren't a distraction, he doesn't look slow, and he's clearly the best player on the field.
But there are so many players now who wear white or multicoloured boots - and almost none of them are as good as Henry. Something needs to be done - all these idiots in coloured boots are ruining the game. So far I've found two proposals to fix the problem. Anthony J Evans (of the Filter^) has suggested a system of National Boot Committees to decide on when a player is good enough to justify the wearing of white (or other colour) boots. At the grassroots level, Early Doors is running a white boot amnesty.
These are all fine efforts, but I think my solution is much more workable. The next time you're playing a game of football and you need to tackle someone who's wearing white boots, make sure you go in studs out. And when he hobbles away in pain, make sure you point out that's what he gets for wearing white boots. Unless of course you happen to be playing against Thierry Henry.
Wednesday, April 14, 2004
Iron Chef Mystery Solved
Once again the Internet solves the mystery - since Iron Chef started showing here in Australia I've been wondering "what [is it] Kaga say[s] before the Gong of Fate sounds"... Thankfully, someone has put together a wonderful Iron Chef site, and the mystery has been solved.
"Allez cuisine!"
"Allez cuisine!"
FrancisFrancis Update
The little black cat at the top of this page is FrancisFrancis (named after the coffee machine). She came with us when we moved into our new home, but she promptly ran away into the night. We had tried to do the thing where the cat has to stay inside for two weeks, but we folded very quickly when she looked quite stressed. We thought we'd seen the last of her. I went back to the apartment we'd been renting, but she hadn't turned up there...
Then, two nights ago, I was out the back of our house, and saw a small black silhouette. It was FranicsFranics! I'm 100% sure it was her. She didn't come into yard, and when I got close she ran off, but maybe she'll came back again...
Then, two nights ago, I was out the back of our house, and saw a small black silhouette. It was FranicsFranics! I'm 100% sure it was her. She didn't come into yard, and when I got close she ran off, but maybe she'll came back again...
Wednesday, April 07, 2004
PhD Timewaster
It takes a lot of work to finish a PhD thesis. Something so important should demand a lot of time, to the exclusion of all else. But the problem is writing a PhD thesis is like writing an undergraduate essay, just much much longer. And if you couldn't summon up the energy to pump out 2000 words on something in first-year, how likely is it that you'll ever finish that thesis? Especially if you spend part of your valuable time hand-crafting trading cards for a fantasy football league...
Click on the thumbnails to see the larger pics...
Click on the thumbnails to see the larger pics...
Demented Moles Update
Last night we played the Street Cafe. We've played these guys a few times in the last couple of seasons, and generally we've come out on top. This time we beat them 4-2. Spreadsheet Pete scored two, Deadeye Dan chipped in with a goal, and I scored one from a free kick. The opposing defenders thoughtfully set their wall to impede their keeper's vision of me, and invitingly left a gap on the right hand side. Bang!
That makes three wins in a row - we've made an excellent start to the season, but our tougher matches are yet to come. Stay tooned...
That makes three wins in a row - we've made an excellent start to the season, but our tougher matches are yet to come. Stay tooned...
Monday, April 05, 2004
The Dice of Blame
Things go wrong, and sometimes it's not really anyone's fault. But there has to be a scapegoat - lessons must be learnt, changes must be made, the buck has to stop somewhere. So next time blame needs to be assigned, use the BigMontag method...
Fitzroy Graffiti
Walking along Johnstone St last Thursday I spotted a couple of pieces of graffiti that I think are very good. Click the thumbnails for larger, more detailed versions.
Graham St
This is the view I get in the morning from the Graham St tramstop. I just put this up because I like it.
Friday, April 02, 2004
Free Culture
Just when it felt like it was getting harder and harder to keep up with the Great Intellectual Property Debate (aka 'Stop Stealing Our Music!!!'), Lawrence Lessig has written a book. And it's a great book - it leads the reader through all the important topics e.g. file-sharing, fair use, copyright terms, and how technology is being used to erode our right to experience our own culture. Lessig is an American, and writes exclusively about what is happening in America, which is why Australians should definitely read the book.We've just entered into a Free Trade Agreement with America, and in return for access to the US market, our government promised to align our intellectual property regimes with the American ones. So we could be in for our own DMCA, or file-sharing laws, or some other horrible piece or crap.
And putting his money where his mouth is, Lessig is allowing you to read his book for free. So there's no excuse - go download the PDF and find out one of our possible futures.
And putting his money where his mouth is, Lessig is allowing you to read his book for free. So there's no excuse - go download the PDF and find out one of our possible futures.
Fashion Wars
This is a picture of LURD (Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy) fighters in Monrovia. Their picture was taken by a French correspondent (his name escapes me) and somehow he managed to take them in what looks like a catwalk pose. Kalashnikov's are the new black?
April Hilarity Ensues
Amid the blizzard of April Fool's Day gags on the interweb, the one I really liked was this one. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see it in all it's glory, as time differences meant that by the time the UK had gotten around to April 1st I was already home in bed, and when I got in this morning the gag had been pulled (presumably in accordance with the rule that a gag can't continue after noon). The internet might be making the world smaller, but it still takes 24 hours for the Earth to spin around once.
Anyway, if you continue on through to the real Snackspot.org you'll also find my review of the Picnic Honeycomb...
Anyway, if you continue on through to the real Snackspot.org you'll also find my review of the Picnic Honeycomb...
Thursday, April 01, 2004
Slave to the Dr Rhythm
Hey! Look! It's my drum machine! Well, it's a flash version of my drum machine - press the "stop/cont" button to hear it play a track, and click on the larger pads to hear the individual drum sounds. If you want to know a bit more about this Dr Rhythm, check out these reviews at Harmony Central.
And then go play with the other drum machines...
And then go play with the other drum machines...
Why can't we have TV like this in Australia?
From the land that gave us "Iron Chef" (the best cooking show on TV ever), comes "TV Champion". It's a show that pits champions in various sports, hobbies or professions against each other. An American guy got to go on the edition that featured Origami. Why can't we watch things like this in Australia? Instead we get to watch dumb blondes and their boyfriends bitch-fight while they try and build a house, or a restaurant.
Anyway, the show sounded like it was pretty good, and you can read the account of TV Champion - Origami here.
Anyway, the show sounded like it was pretty good, and you can read the account of TV Champion - Origami here.
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