 |
::: Friday, May 31 ::: |
|
|
No yet: IBM to give hard drives the boot?
Don't get me wrong... iSCSI is sexy tech. The problem is that it is just too soon to implement it as a boot technology for the enterprise customer. The main problem is one of bandwidth. Since iSCSI uses ethernet to connect the desktop machines back to central storage, disk operations are limited to the speed and capability of the underlying network.
In most companies 100Base-T, with its theoretical maxmium throughput of 100Mbps, has become the standard. Compare that to the ATA-100 hard drive standard which has a theoretical 100MBps and you have a 10-fold decrease in performance. Add to that the fact that, unless very high end switches are deployed, most users will never see anywhere near the theoretical maximum of 100Base-T and you have a bit of a problem. Can you imagine the network traffic at 8:00am when a couple hundred people attempt to boot their PC?
I agree with IBM that this is exciting technology that will eventually solve a lot of the headaches involved with supporting large networks. Backups and virus scans are just the tip of the iceberg. I simply don't think the plumbing is there yet.
11:10 AM CST ::
|
|
Good point: AOL Test May Renew Browser War
"I'm all for megacorps making use of open standards and open source," said Mozilla project founder Jamie Zawinski, who resigned after AOL's takeover in 1999. "But I'm supposed to be rooting for (AOL-Time Warner) over Microsoft? What's up next, Union Carbide versus Philip Morris?"
Leave it to jwz to boil down three years worth of marketing babble into a single distinct statement.
10:43 AM CST ::
|
|
Hmm: UltraDNS goes low
How's $1 per month sound for basic web hosting? Sounds too good to be true to me, but since The Reg chose not to provide a link I can't check out the fine print.
10:32 AM CST ::
|
|
::: Thursday, May 30 ::: |
|
|
Uhm: The Penguin Continues Its March
Linux is now the world's No. 2 server operating system, with about 27 percent of the market behind Microsoft's various Windows systems, which run more than 40 percent of servers and most desktop computers, according to the technology research firm IDC.
Does 27% sound a little low to anyone else? It makes me wonder who was included in the IDC survey.
10:13 AM CST ::
|
|
Okay: AMD cuts prices to match Intel
This was certainly an expected move. What wasn't expected was that AMD took reductions at every tier. All the way from Duron to Athlon MP (multi-processor). Before long it's going to be feasible for the average home user to have a four-cpu SMP system for peanuts.
10:03 AM CST ::
|
|
::: Wednesday, May 29 ::: |
|
|
Interesting: Gracenote Digital Top 10
I've run across this page a few times in the past, but I always forget to blog it. It isn't a truly accurate picture of music usage because of several limitations. First off, most players only query the CDDB once when a new CD is detected and then read the details from a local cache from then on. Secondly, it only tracks CD's and not MP3's. Once a track is ripped to MP3 no more queries are required.
Regardless of these shortcomings Gracenote's charts do indicate how many people are playing a disc for the first time which is interesting.
11:02 AM CST ::
|
|
::: Tuesday, May 28 ::: |
Good point: Of Doom, Gloom, Fun and Games
"Games are not the best way to tell stories because the players just won't cooperate," Carmack said. "Games are at their best when they are treated as activities. It's like asking a basketball game to come with a story. Games are not stories, and the better the story you tell, the worse that game is."
While I think that is somewhat of an overly broad statement, I have to admit I agree with the spirit of his assertion. I enjoy storylines which are used to give the game a cohesiveness without interfering with the speed of gameplay. When game makers force players to wade through 20 minutes of dialog to detail the back-story, the overall experience is tarnished in my opinion.
On the other hand, there is a value perception at work as well. A game which takes 70 hours to complete seems to offer more value than one which is over after a mere 15-20 hours. Games like the Final Fantasy series push this envelope nearly to the breaking point, but still achieve great success.
9:32 AM CST ::
|
|
Ack: '678' The 666 of DSL Users
Putting aside the heinous malevolence that is PPPoE for the moment, this article points out one major way that Microsoft's comingling of middleware with the OS hurts consumers. Prosecutors take note.
9:19 AM CST ::
|
|
Whoa: Rival sues RIM
Somebody at Good Technology is certainly on their toes. I can't imagine a less expensive method of publicizing a product launch. By filing suit against a known name they garner some of that name recognition for themselves.
8:58 AM CST ::
|
|
Hmm: Intel Processor Pricing
Intel has cut some fat from their middle tier. What's particularly tempting is the 2.26GHz w/512k cache and a 533MHz FSB for a mere $241. Throw in some moderately speedy RAM and you would have one hella fast entry level system. Unfortunately, Pentium III prices remain unchanged.
[link courtesy of The Reg]
8:47 AM CST ::
|
|
::: Friday, May 24 ::: |
Interesting: XBox Economics
If this is true, then Microsoft is a lot dumber than I thought they were. What really irks me about this article is that the author hints that Nintendo and Sony aren't losing money on their hardware, but never really backs that hypothesis up with much support data. I'd be very interested to learn how low Nintendo and Sony can go before they truly are "giving away the razor".
[link courtesy of Kim]
2:15 PM CST ::
|
|
Cool: Game over for Nintendo chief
I'm sad to see Yamauchi step down, but it's nice to see Miyamoto take a more direct leadership role in the company. It's likely that there would be no Nintendo with him. Can you imagine a gaming world without Mario or Zelda? Me neither.
10:18 AM CST ::
|
|
Hmm: Microsoft's Privacy Czar on the "Trust Model"
How does Microsoft's privacy policy relate to date rape? Read on and find out. That anyone, much less an important public-relations officer, would think that such a subject is appropriate for metaphors is indicative of a very sick corporate mind-set indeed.
10:12 AM CST ::
|
|
As easy as: One, Two, Three
Microsoft is preparing to release WindowsXP SP1. This service pack includes not only the hundred or so security fixes since XP was release, but also a middleware management interface. Why Microsoft felt the need to create a completely separate interface for this when "Add/Remove Programs" has been available since Win95 is anyone's guess. My assumption is that they wanted the tool to be as high-profile and visible as possible to discourage objections from competitors.
I suppose Microsoft should be lauded for complying so readily with the DOJ settlement. The real question is whether they will be as cooperative if the dissenting states are given the opportunity to make their own demands. In fact, Microsoft may attempt to lessen the blow by claiming the amount of development it took to get to this point was punishment enough. My hunch is that this middleware management utility has been kicking around the vaults for years, but the suits wouldn't allow it to be included in the shipping product until they were forced to do so.
9:58 AM CST ::
|
|
Oh, yeah: GiantKid.net
Speaking of The Johns, this site offers a sneak preview of their next album, No!, which is due in stores on June 11th. The site features all sorts of whizz-bang flashy goodness from the fine folks at The Chopping Block.
8:09 AM CST ::
|
|
::: Tuesday, May 21 ::: |
|
|
Whoa: MSN fishing for disgruntled AOL users
Imagine, if you will, a simple tech support center. Unprepared for the onslaught of 3.5 million clueless AOL users, they tear at their headsets with feeble hands and stare into empty space unable to comprehend the horror. There's a signpost ahead... you have entered: The Twit Zone.
9:09 AM CST ::
|
|
Good grief: Gibt es Schwarze in Brasilien?
This is an article from a very large and trusted German news source. You can feed it through babelfish, but gist of it is that Bush, while visiting with the President of Brazil, asked "Do you have blacks living in Brazil, too?" To which the Brazilian leader replied, "Mr. President, Brazil has probably more blacks than the USA".
Is it any wonder we get so little respect from other nations?
8:11 AM CST ::
|
|
::: Friday, May 17 ::: |
Damn: Andy Richter Controls the Universe
While I'm certainly glad Andy will be coming back next season, I'm less than thrilled that Fox chose to give it a mid-season debut once again. Why can't anyone at the networks recognize good tv anymore?
12:17 PM CST ::
|
|
::: Thursday, May 16 ::: |
|
|
::: Wednesday, May 15 ::: |
|
|
Booyah: 100 Greatest Online Games
You've probably seen most of these before, but there are a few new ones. I just re-discovered the "Scalectrix Rallying" slot car sim which has a simply huge time-sink potential. As zannah would say, "vrooom!"
11:30 AM CST ::
|
|
Uhm, no: Microsoft puts final touches on Office
This week, Microsoft said that customers had purchased the right to install 60 million copies of Office XP.
Which would lead one to believe that companies are adopting Office XP in droves. This, of course, is patently false. Microsoft has a licensing policy called "version downgrading" which allows companies to purchase a license for the latest version of their products while actually installing an earlier version. When a new version hits the "shelves" all licenses for older versions are discontinued.
Microsoft does not track how many people are actually installing earlier versions, only that the licenses purchased were for the new version. This allows them to boast of high adoption curves for new releases while simultaneously allowing companies the freedom to run the software they need to continue operating their businesses. It turns out to be that rarest of circumstances: a win-win.
Knowing Microsoft they are likely hard at work devising a way to shift that from a win-win to a pure win for them. Subscription pricing would likely fit the bill nicely.
10:39 AM CST ::
|
|
::: Tuesday, May 14 ::: |
Not Good: Sonicblue Balks at Court Order
As well they should. Forcing a company to infringe on the privacy of its customers to the sole benefit of Disney, MGM, et al. is simply unfathomable. In fact, I'm surprised the judge in this case wasn't able to see the request for what it was: a blatant attempt to shut down SonicBlue altogether.
10:37 AM CST ::
|
|
::: Friday, May 10 ::: |
Uhm: Microsoft steps on Samba's toes
I'm curious... how does one prove in a court of law that a developer has or hasn't read a document? What if they didn't read it themselves, but it was read aloud to them? Or better yet, what if it was read by a third-party who then created a paraphrased version of the document and gave it to the developer?
There seem to be far too many holes for this license restriction to be at all binding. Then again, whether the charges stick or not, the simple act of filing suit can often put a small developer out of business since they can't afford legal representation.
10:11 AM CST ::
|
|
Apple's Jaguar sliced and diced
"Check this out," writes one user. "When you hover the icon over the target folder, the target icon opens out, ready to receive the file."
Yet another feature which NeXTstep had back in '92. If Apple tries really hard maybe they'll have 90% of NeXT's functionality in place by 2005.
9:34 AM CST ::
|
|
::: Thursday, May 9 ::: |
|
|
Huh: IBM grids may untangle online gaming
"Our whole focus is to get the price point below a dollar per player per month," Levine said. "Right now, for a lot of games it's between $4 and $6."
I'm not sure I would have mentioned that, guys. I mean, most of the online games charge somewhere around $30/month. At $6/month they've already got a pretty steep profit margin, much less $1/month.
11:04 AM CST ::
|
|
::: Wednesday, May 8 ::: |
|
|
Interesting: Age Gauge
Ever wonder how old you were when Reagan was shot by John Hinckley, Jr? How about when ET was first released in theatres? Now you can find out. I'm somewhat troubled by the news that I am nearly two years older than Jeff Gordon.
[link courtesy of The Usual Suspects]
2:00 PM CST ::
|
|
Sigh: Peugeot 206
Leave it to me to fall completely in love with a car that isn't available in the US. Even if it was, Peugeots don't have the best track record for reliability. Desire can be such a cruel mistress.
9:57 AM CST ::
|
|
Interesting: Judge wants demo of "modular" Windows
What irks me about this whole modular Windows debate is Microsoft's doomsday viewpoint. Microsoft is crowing that it would be required to produce multiple versions of Windows all with differing combinations of middleware components. People aren't really asking for multiple versions of Windows though. What we need is the ability to easily remove parts of the OS we don't need or want.
I do mean *remove* and not merely hide. The courts seem to think hiding is good enough. When it comes to purging a system of security holes, however, only complete removal will work. A hidden component can still be leveraged in an attack.
The best thing Microsoft could do would be to develop a robust middleware framework. Currently, if an application makes a call to a non-existant middleware procedure the developer cannot be certain of the outcome. Most of the time you either get a GPF or a blue screen, but sometimes nothing visibly happens and the user is left wondering what's broken.
If Microsoft spent a little time making a middleware framework which could detect and gracefully handle failed procedure calls that would go a long way towards solving the middleware mess. Just a little box that said:
| Middleware Protection Error | X | Application X tried to call the getMediaHandle
function of the Microsoft Audio Codec Library
which is not currently installed.
Do you wish to install it? | | YES NO |
|
This, of course, isn't likely because Microsoft directly benefits from the current "leave it installed just in case" mentality. If the courts could affect a change in this area then maybe, just maybe, the public would end up getting at least some value for all their tax dollars.
8:46 AM CST ::
|
|
::: Tuesday, May 7 ::: |
|
|
Whoa: No Plans, No Graduation Rite, Seniors Told
"I approve of the aim, but I think it's unrealistic, because many students probably are in families that are looking forward to their children graduating so that they can get a job and help make ends meet," she said. "It would be great if everybody could go to college, but that's not always possible."
I think that sums it up nicely.
8:54 AM CST ::
|
|
Sheesh: Dumb and Dumber
It seems inevitable that we will reach a point where lawmakers are so far removed from the concerns of the common man that the two become mutually exclusive. Two possibilities arise from such an event horizon. Either the people arise and topple the government, or the government enlists the help of the multi-national corporations for which the the laws were tailored. Personally, I don't see option one as being very plausible.
A third possibility is that I read too much William Gibson.
8:47 AM CST ::
|
|
Uhm: Compulsory Windows
I somehow doubt that when the courts suggested that Microsoft be "non-discriminatory" that this was what they were envisioning. You certainly can't blame Microsoft for trying.
8:32 AM CST ::
|
|
::: Friday, May 3 ::: |
|
|
Hella good: The Seriously Funny Jon Stewart
What I love about Jon Stewart is his humility:
"I'm on TV," he says. "You put a grapefruit out there that's been on TV, people would be, like, 'Damn, check out that grapefruit, that is some sweet grapefruit. I've got to get me some of that.' "
Which is, though funny, patently false. Have you ever watched Jon do an interview with someone then watched Jay Leno interview the same person? It's embarassing. Jay steps all over their answers and steadfastly refuses to budge one inch from the pre-interview. Anytime someone goes off-script Jay mugs into the camera and quickly moves on to the next question.
Anyway, my point is that Jon Stewart is probably the best interviewer this side of Charlie Rose. It's good to see him receiving some recognition from the press for it.
[thanks to The Obscure Store for the link]
10:53 AM CST ::
|
|
Whoa: Seagate puts a faster spin on hard drives
The Cheetah 15K.3 has a data density of 34 gigabits per square inch
That's amazingly dense. To put it another way, if you were to crack open one of these drives and make a 1/8" scratch on the disk surface with a straight pin, you could end up wiping out more than 5MB of storage.
10:27 AM CST ::
|
|
::: Thursday, May 2 ::: |
Whatever: Streaming Music Choked by Fees?
As I've said before, if webcasters must pay "per song/per listener" then I think it's only fair that traditional radio broadcasts be held to the same standard. Sure, there's no way to accurately measure the number of listeners at any given moment, but all radio stations have listener estimates which they use for budgeting. All they would need to do is use those same estimates to pay the RIAA.
That will never happen though, because the RIAA doesn't consider traditional radio a threat, but an ally. I see no reason why webcasting couldn't be seen in a similar context.
3:22 PM CST ::
|
|
Ack: MS' MIT prof witness gets toasted over KDE, GNOME
If I was forced to sit in a court room and listen to this sort of ridiculous back-and-forth, I think I would likely tear my hair out. I would certainly have a difficult time remaining quiet when the MS lawyers objected with "asked and answered", because it's clear to anyone with half a brain that the good Professor did no such thing.
2:51 PM CST ::
|
|
|
dinoneil[at]newdream[dot]net
|
|
|
|
|
