File this under “horrendous timesuck”: Steam for Mac goes live. I will eventually sign up for this, when they release the Half-Life Yellow Box.

Date posted: May 12, 2010 | Filed under apple, entertainment, shortlinks | Leave a Comment »

From Jalopnik.com, a bit of timely information: How To Rebuild An American V-8 Carburetor. I’m in the process of buying a couple of 2-barrel Holley 2300’s for rebuild and tinkering so that I can become both familiar and adept at working with them.

→ This is a syndicated post from my Scout weblog. More info here.

Date posted: May 12, 2010 | Filed under projects, Scout, shortlinks | Leave a Comment »

Here’s some fascinating reading: The complete history of the Fallout Shelter sign.

Date posted: May 7, 2010 | Filed under art/design, shortlinks | Leave a Comment »

Who says National Public Radio has no sense of humor? The first music bumper on Marketplace this evening, after the lead story on the stock market hiccup, was “Wave of Mutilation” by the Pixies.

Date posted: May 7, 2010 | Filed under humor, shortlinks | Leave a Comment »

I have a Facebook account, and I do try to keep it as minimal as possible, because the company’s continuing policy is to erode as much privacy from user accounts as possible. The EFF just published Six Things You Need to Know About Facebook Connections, which is a handy guide to seeing exactly what they’re sharing (everything) and how. Remember, to Facebook, you’re not a user, you’re a product. Your personal information is bought and sold every day, and there is no “privacy”.

At least with a weblog, I can choose to share what I want with the world.

Date posted: May 5, 2010 | Filed under geek, shortlinks | Leave a Comment »

Steve Jobs wrote a love letter to Adobe today, and predictably, the internet is losing its mind. It seems like people land on one side of this argument or the other: Flash is a security hazard/resource pig/aging dinosaur, and Apple is closed/proprietary so this is the pot calling the kettle black. Personally, I’m agnostic about Flash either way, but I do know that it slows my Mac to a crawl (when it doesn’t crash my browser) and chews up battery power like a pothead in a convenience store. Adobe’s claims to the contrary are pitiful.

Date posted: April 29, 2010 | Filed under apple, geek, shortlinks | Leave a Comment »

This is getting funny. Police Seize Jason Chen’s Computers. To recap: this guy is an editor at Gizmodo, which bought a prototype iPhone that someone mistakenly left at a bar, from the original finder, who never really meant to did a piss-poor job of attempting to locate the original owner. These guys (Gizmodo) bitching about “invalid police procedure” is just humorous.

Date posted: April 26, 2010 | Filed under apple, humor, shortlinks | Comments Off on Police Seize Jason Chen’s Computers

Another bit of good news: Obama wants to give gay couples hospital visitation rights on par with married couples. Hallelujah, amen. I’ve seen the incredible healing power of having a loved one at bedside; I can’t fathom the idea of being kept away from a sick wife, child, or family member for any reason. Maybe someday this country will grow up completely.

Date posted: April 16, 2010 | Filed under politics, shortlinks | Leave a Comment »

Today the U.S. Government charged Goldman Sachs with fraud for their role in the financial meltdown. What took them so long?

Date posted: April 16, 2010 | Filed under money, shortlinks | Leave a Comment »

This is a great idea, but with one fatal flaw. Emeco’s 111 Navy Chair is made from old Coke bottles, 111 of them to be precise. Of course, because it’s being sold at Design Within Reach, they want $250 for one.

For the record, I love the design of the Navy Chair. But there’s no way in hell I’d spend $250 for one made from soda bottles; $25 is more like it. (via)

Date posted: April 14, 2010 | Filed under design, humor, shortlinks | Leave a Comment »