At last... A simple mobile phone

[link]

So, does that make me a senior citizen?!
Pfft.

I'm an atheist!

A recent study by the University of Minnesota department of sociology has identified atheists as "America's most distrusted minority". University researchers found that Americans rate atheists below Muslims, recent immigrants, homosexuals and other minority groups in "sharing their vision of American society." Atheists are also the minority group most Americans are least willing to allow their children to marry. The researchers conclude that atheists offer "a glaring exception to the rule of increasing social tolerance over the last 30 years.

Many of the study's respondents associated atheism with an array of moral indiscretions ranging from criminal behavior to rampant materialism and cultural elitism. The study's lead researcher believes a fear of moral decline and resulting social disorder is behind the findings. "Americans believe they share more than rules and procedures with their fellow citizens, they share an understanding of right and wrong. Our findings seem to rest on a view of atheists as self-interested individuals who are not concerned with the common good.

Band site with cool Web2.0 twist

Check out the new site for Head Automatica:
http://www.headautomatica.com/

"
This launch is cool because we’re doing a contest based on tagging.

The user then tags any content they write, or come across related to the band 'headautomatica'. We did some custom coding to pull from RSS feeds on those services and put that content on the site. People on the site can vote the content up and down, in relation to quality, etc. High scoring content gets in the hall of fame.

High scoring people win cool prizes.
"

Parazz Photobook

Thanks Googe!

MySpace & it's cousins... 3G's killer app?

Social networking: 3G's killer app?

Thought this article makes an interesting point about driving 3G usage.

Dunno if it's correct or anything, but it does make sense for mobiles. I can't imagine regular general browsing on a mobile, but posting & reading blogs, bulletin-boards, etc. is an obvious natural fit.

WSJ + AJAX

Highlight a word and right click and it will perform a search on that word. Pretty funky. Though from a usability pov you are getting a clash of right click stuff (the default menu and WSJ's menu), and you can't move the search results window as you would a traditional window. And how would anyone know the function is there. Still, a sign of things to come.

http://online.wsj.com/public/us

Rap -> English... Where's the Babelfish application for that?!

Assignment: Please translate the following Rap song lyrics from Ebonics to standard English.
Artist: Notorious B.I.G.
Album: Ready to Die
Song: One more chance (remix)

Lyrics:
First things first, I poppa, freaks all the honeys
Dummies - playboy bunnies, those wantin money
Those the ones I like cause they dont get nathan
But penetration, unless it smells like sanitation
Garbage, I turn like doorknobs
Heart throb, never, black and ugly as ever
However, I stay coochied down to the socks
Rings and watch filled with rocks

TRANSLATION:
As a general rule, I perform deviant sexual acts with women of all kinds, including but not limited to those with limited intellect, nude magazine models, and prostitutes. I particularly enjoy sexual encounters with the latter group as they are generally disappointed in the fact that they only receive penile intercourse and nothing more, unless of course, they douche on a consistent basis. Although I am extremely unattractive, I am able to engage in these types of sexual acts with some regularity. Perhaps my sexuality is somehow related to my fancy and expensive jewelry.

Steam robots... Um, wow!

Check out this dude over at Crabfu.com.
I love the centipede, but it's hard to have a favourite.

Big-ups & shout-outs

So here's a selection of what's going into my ears of late... Not exactly consistent, but quality nonetheless. Diversity is essential

Error Plains hijacked the NYUB podcast #34.5:
http://notyourusualbollocks.squarespace.com/
(Expect some mental gabba-punk noise)

And chickadee checkout Valuetime's latest DnB mix for May:
http://valuetime.blogspot.com/
(Showing-off his global appeal)

Went and saw Bic Runga last night. She's the bomb:
http://www.bicrunga.com/main.htm

Essential Mixes are always good, but 2 recent ones for Tiga and Layo & Bushwacka have been rockin' my little iPod lovin' sox:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/essentialmix/
(You might have to look around forums to get mp3s... but then again, that'd be illegal, so don't look at places like melbournebeats.com)

The sublime Boards of Canada:
Dayvan Cowboy Filmclip
http://www.bleep.com/?label=boc (Preview Track 2 Skyliner... Awesome!)

Mac vs PC: The road to victory? Pffft.

So Apple want us to believe that Macs are just better than PCs.
I love these blanket statements... They do really well at making brands sounds really out-of-touch. This campaign wont convert PC owners, it just makes Apple look desperate.

I'm not a PC-head or anything... I just don't like these ads. I normally enjoy Apple's advertising, but this campaign is bollox.

It seems to me just think they're missing the point. Mac users are growing, and for the first time it's nothing to do with the PC market growth... Shouldn't they focus on what it is to be Mac and not be seen to lower themselves like this? I think so.

my rebuttal.

viruses:
there aren't viruses for macs cos no-one owns them. more macs will mean more viruses. simple.

restarting:
the mac users i know restart as much as me.

better:
pfft... subjective crap. whatever.

ilife:
um... what if there are other/better apps outside the mac suite. diversity is an important part of the web that macs fanatics miss out on.

network:
pcs are pretty good at connecting to other stuff now. in fact, pcs are better at the broadest connection of all - the web.

wsj:
cool. they bought 1 journalist. ace. lets make an ad and claim that what 1 person thinks matters.

UBS tips Italy to win WC'06

Check out the UBS World Cup Report

Australia out in first round. (Really?!)

England lose to Holland in the quarters.
Italy beat Argentina in the semis.
Then, Italy beat Brazil in the final.

We'll see...