Letter from the Editor March 10, 2006
Posted by theexpress in personal.1 comment so far
Due to travels, I’ll probably be away from the blog until Wednesday. Hopefully I can touch back in sooner, but it will all depend if the hotel I’m staying at has a Wi-fi connection. Most hotels these days do, but I’ll be in a relatively small city in the South, so I can’t make any promises. If I am able to get onto the internet, you can probably expect a few posts in the time frame. If not, I want everyone to keep me posted about life on the web, as I’m usually not away from it for this long. Ciao!
Microsoft’s New Search March 9, 2006
Posted by theexpress in internet, media.add a comment
Microsoft, in the midst of the hunt for web supremacy, has just revamped their lacking web search engine. It is set to replace the MSN search that is run by Microsoft. It debuted yesterday, and like all new search engines, has the objective to tackle the front-runner, Google. Their search engine has a different feel than google, but has some cool new features.
Google has the very plain front page that is oft replicated by others, especially the new, de-butlered Ask.com . Live.com, on the other hand, is more beefed up; it is centered around the search but is also including mail features and news on MSN.com. It has the feel that you can get with google if you have a gmail account and five spare minutes using the homepage editor.
I decided to talk about this instead of the origami that has had the most buzz around the web for the past few weeks. I thought their new tablet PC was cool, but the hype was just too much. It was almost a let down to see such a good product and expect much better.
Web 2.0’s Highlights March 7, 2006
Posted by theexpress in blog, internet, open source, social, web 2.0.5 comments
I try not to post too much to what others say around the web, especially when it involves the collective term Web 2.0, but I found this picture, and it really puts the internet around us in perspective. The Web 2.0 term has been around for quite a while now, and most of the web buzz has been around it. There is no specific grounds for it, but it just refers to the new breed of websites out there that have a more interactive approach to the internet. Just looking through this picture, one can probably see that they are more involved with the new web that they would think.
I find it amazing that in this short time, we have all become so attached to not only the internet that has been around for ten years, but Web 2.0 in specific.
I briefly counted through the web sites that I am a part of or have been to, and with only looking at a fraction of the picture, I recognized dozens of them. Even those that have never really heard of Web 2.0 have probably been to some of the more popular sites like Wikipedia, Skype, and our beloved WordPress. The new web connects us in a way never before done. Years ago, the world seemed so much bigger, but now, you can say that you were talking to someone halfway around the world without batting an eye. This picture is just an example of how we all opened up around the world (which could be another post in itself) and how our lives have changed through the internet. There is a link here from the artist’s flickr page and it has some of the different sites linked on the picture.
What’s the Problem March 5, 2006
Posted by theexpress in movies.1 comment so far
I was browsing through the more recent Wired articles and came across this one by Tony Long on his tirade against Bond. Now as a long-time Bond fan, I could not just sit on the sidelines and let him tell everyone how much better George Smiley is than my man James. My main problem was not Long’s opinion of who is the better spy, but his overgeneralization about the Bond films. 
He begins to assume that in each and every Bond movie, James can only get by with his gadgets. Lets take Dr. No as the first example. Bond barely even got anything and there was still no Q to be seen. He relied on his wits as he did through the earlier films. When he needs to make sure his room is not broken into at the hotel, Bond reaches for no gadget, but he uses talcum powder and some of his own hair to get the job done. In From Russia with Love, his best gadget was a briefcase that could do a few select tricks and produce a knife from the side of it. The early films show many examples of Bond using very little to get the job done. As for the future in Casino Royale, we can only hope Bond goes back to the basics and ditches the gadgets that sometimes trademark him.
Though not to take this to seriously, I wanted to repeal Long’s direct insults to the Bond movies. In recent days, the films have taken a turn for the worse in how he is always depending on his gadgets and looking silly (case in point Die Another Day), but we must not forget the glory days when he acted like a far superior spy.
Review: lib.rario.us March 4, 2006
Posted by theexpress in internet, media, social.2 comments
After seeing a little article on this at Wired’s Monkey Bites blog, I got very excited about the lib.rario.us service and just had to check it out. Now obviously, their name is a joking rip off of del.icio.us, but dont let this little joke make you take the site less serious. Since I knew that I had quite a bit of extra time, I was able to get a good overview of the service.
First of all, the registering is very simple. Just type your wanted username, then type and re-type your passsword and – voila – you are in. No need put in your email and have to activate it that way (I just thought I’d add the registering process because it was unusual to me that this was so easy). The point of this site is to track all of your books, CD’s, DVD’s, and video games in one spot. If you are a person that has CD cases or games spread all around your house, this is a great service for you. And if you lend out a lot of these things, a tracker will be coming soon; you can type in who you lent your GTA 3 to, and remember to nag him went you want it back.
When it comes to putting in all of your media, you will need some time. The ASIN code for your product is required, but you can find it by using their built-in locator (I must warn you that it is a bit shaky since it is still in its infancy), or just get the product code from Amazon.com. After entering the ASIN code, you can write a little review of the product, then tag it how you wish and it is added to your library. Putting the products in your library will take time because you have to enter it all individually, so this isn’t something you can complete in the morning before you’re off to work of school. I have added all of my music to the library, but I still have a ways to go with books, games, and DVD’s. Lib.rario.us is much easier to set up if your collection is rather small, but I’m not that lucky, so it is a bit of a chore working this all in.
Don’t expect this service to have all the bells and whistles now. It is still in its early Alpha stages, but anyone can sign up for it without an invitation. The community is also very small, but its growing, so you can still expect this tight-knit feel to the place that reminds me of the feel flickr had in its early days. It is entering the internet as a place where people can talk to each other about their media and even make some reccomendations. The company also has a sense of humor that you’ll see through the site, like them saying that “All fields are required. (I mean, really… there isn’t THAT many)”. This site has a great future in sight, so I reccomend that everyone get out there and try it out and maybe even spread the word about it.
Companies Eyes Open March 2, 2006
Posted by theexpress in blog, business, internet.add a comment
Ever since the blogosphere encompassed the internet, companies did not act on the goldmine that they received. It is full of countless blogs that offer unbiased advice that can really tell the company what the consumer is interested in. Like I mentioned in a previous, the amount of weblogs on the internet just keep growing and it feels like there is no end in sight. A light bulb has just clicked in their minds that they might want to take full advantage of this while it is still red hot.
Thats why companies are now starting to employ crawlers to scour the internet and find anything in blogs, forums, or social networking sites that may be related to their products. The demand is so high that there are even companies forming that specifically cater to the other companies that need the crawlers. Companies like BuzzMetrics have programs that fetch comments and posts all over the internet and break down the data into related groups. The data then goes to the companies that are those specific fields. It allows large businesses in any industry to capture the buzz around their products or find out what they can do better. Hopefully, the info will be used by more and more companies and everyday products out there can be geared to the consumer much better.
Even companies like NBC saw foresaw the low Olympic viewer ratings because of this technology. The highest buzz was right after the torch was lit, then the chatter went down and down. It was at its worst when people proclaimed that they’d much rather watch American Idol than the “boring” Olympics. But we can all see that as the blogoshere grows, so will the demand for companies to cash in on it. But “cashing in on it” has a bad connotation. Remember, they are doing it to hear out opinion, so the cashing in is really the fruits of our web chatter.
Early War February 27, 2006
Posted by theexpress in war, world.add a comment
Now that everyone is sick of this forsaken war in Iraq, I thought that I would go back and see what America and the government felt before it all started. I was still a little young to fully grasp it, so my research has brought up a few points that I didn’t realize or didn’t remember from back then. My impression now and then was that it was more of an emotionally charged enterance to Iraq. We sat on the brink for a while, but when American, Britain, and other troops crossed the borders of the country, we fell into figurative quicksand that we cant get out of.
I found a CNN headline dated October 11, 2002: ” In a major victory for the White House, the Senate early Friday voted 77-23 to authorize President Bush to attack Iraq if Saddam Hussein refuses to give up weapons of mass destruction as required by U.N. resolutions. “. Why was the support so strong back then whilst it is so weak today? Is it because it was politcally popular to back the war, because we were still smarting from 9/11, or because we did not realize that the bodies would pile up and it would become a repeat of Vietnam? I guess people just wanted to stay and office and not be tagged as “un-American” if they did not support the war. The good news is, the time when one was called un-American for opposing the war is over. The bad news, the war is still going on, and only recently has there seemed to be an end in sight. In the past few months, Congress has really been stepping it up in terms of calling for a pullout in the country. Sadly, the plans for a pullout are longterm and incomplete. Just leaving Iraq all at once would be an international disaster, but these three-year plans are just too long. What needs to be done is to step up training for the Iraqi army so they have a way to protect themselves while are troops leave the country more rapidly.
In the pre-war passionate debates, no one on the hawk side had any plan for an exit, and no one on the dove side questioned the issue. America needs to stand up now and correct the mistakes we made in 2002 and 2003 before we entered Iraq. In three weeks, Sadaam was out of power, but the lack of stability there makes me wonder why things can not be done in addition to the new curfews to keep law and order there. I’ve tried to keep my weblog clear of my comments on the war because I tend to branch off (which I’ve probably did here) and not finish a story. All this branching off is trying to get back to the point that Washington needs to realize the error of their ways and fix it before we slip any deeper in the sands of Iraq
DP World and the Six February 26, 2006
Posted by theexpress in politics, security, world.1 comment so far
The news has recently been bombarded with the issue of letting a UAE-run company handle cargo in six different U.S. ports. In my opinion, the issue has been blown out of proportion with people not giving the whole story to what will happen in this possible deal. In October, Dubai Ports World told the U.S. Treasury Dept. that they would most likely be purchasing cargo terminals in six U.S. ports from the British-run Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co. The six ports involved (Baltimore, Philadelphia, Miami, New Orleans, Houston, and Newark) have a total of 43 terminals and only 11 would be trading hands to the United Arab Emirate Company. P&O only handles unloading and loading cargo, storage, and repairs, not security, so my question is: Where is the national security disaster in this?
Dissidents would argue back that UAE is the home country of 2 9/11 hijackers and has frequently been the hub of money transfers in the Al Qaeda terrorist organization, but basing the whole country’s security level on the acts of a few people is ridiculous. The UAE has been an ally to the U.S. in the current and previous war and has let U.S. Navy ships dock in the country. Why is such a big deal made of a country with only a few skeletons in their closet? DP World will control no measures of security; that will remain in the hands of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Coast Guard. The prevously mentioned two have done a less-than-perfect job as it is managing security at the nation’s ports, so it is shocking that the public outcry is not focused around how so little cargo is checked.
Recent evidence shows that only 5 to 10 percent of cargo that enters the U.S. ports are checked as opposed to many other countries who have beefed security up to almost 100%. There have been customs agents sent abroad that check the U.S.-bound cargo, but not enough is being done do prevent attacks and the Department of Homeland Security still has not made enough reform. Now, I’m not saying that every single container of cargo should be checked, it would shut down global commerce everywhere, but more than such a small percent should be screened. I have a feeling, though, that there will be change in this system as the controversy has opened a “can of worms” for security organizations.
2008: The Looming Election February 24, 2006
Posted by theexpress in election, politics.1 comment so far
I know it is hard to think about, but the 2008 Presidential Election campaigns will be here before we know it. It will be the second election in 28 years that a Bush wont be on a ballot, either President or VP, and it will be the second in 20 years that doesn’t have a Bush going for the Prez. There have only been rumors so far about the possible nominees, but with this being the middle year, a lot of information will funnel in fast.
On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton is the current front runner in more recent polls. These are very early polls though, so there is very little evidence that this will actually pan out. Just remember that Howard Dean was the frontrunner for most of the primary polls, but Kerry ended up with the nomination. It would be quite the change if Hillary ends up getting the Democratic bid, because she, as we all know, would be the first woman President in America. Behind her in the polls are Sen. John Edwards (ran for VP in 2004), Sen. John Kerry (I doubt he will get it because of the unlikliness of someone to run after he already lost), Sen. Joe Biden (my personal favorite of all the current runners), and Wesley Clark, who tried to get the bid in the last election.
I am most supportive of Joe Biden in this mainly because I like the platform he has developed. He is more focused on what we haven’t been told by in the Bush Administration and taking the necessary reforms. He is also well esteemed in Congress, so he could probably get a lot of things done unlike the past few presidents. I could easily see him being the president, but I would really like for Barack Obama to be his VP. Something in me says that they would make a great team and do a lot of good for our country in their years of office, but Obama shows no sign of pursuing executive office. He is also a very young senator, so he probably wants to wait for more experience unlike Biden, who has been in the Senate since the early seventies.
On the Republican end, they will be rising out of 8 years overseen by Bush and ruled by Cheney and Rove (we all know its true). The polls are currently as follows: Condoleezza Rice, Rudy Giuliani, John McCain, Newt Gingrich, and Mitt Romney. The first three are in a tie for the current polls though. I would just like to make note that if Condy Rice and Hillary Clinton both get party nominations, it would make certain that we’d have a woman president.
Personally though, I support McCain for the Republican side. He is one of the most moderate Republicans out there and even headed the Republican side in the Gang of 14 last year. He, like Biden, is a popular senator and can get some legislation pasts that will focus on helping the Americans. With Bush always focusing on situations abroad (and mucking half of them up), it feels like there isn’t much out there that has been done domestically.
If you cant tell, I am in great support of a centrist in the White House. I feel that the best for this country will come from someone who is not torn up by party politics and pressures. With two long-term, popular senators that are in the running, I think we could be in good hands come 2008. An ideal election would be John McCain versus Joe Biden in the presidential bid. A clear head is going to be the best asset to get the country safely through these hectic times.
New to Linux February 23, 2006
Posted by theexpress in linux, windows.3 comments
I am having a few problems with Windows XP, but nothing I can’t quickly finish. Even though it is the small quirks I need to work out, I began to wonder what it was like on the other side. No, I’m not considering getting a Mac (which wouldnt be a bad idea); it is Linux that I’m talking about.
While I was pondering switching from Windows to the friendly penguin that isnt used by too many people, I thought of the work that I’d have to put in configuring a new OS. I don’t really have that much time these days and having to back up my current files and enable Linux did not seem that appealing. But as I did some research, I found that it doesn’t need to be that complicated. The option of the Live CD, which I have only heard of a few times, is quite magnificent. I can easily download the Linux files from somewhere like Gnoppix, put them to a CD, and reboot my computer with the CD in it. Gnoppix wont touch the current files on the computer and wont lay a finger on my hard drive.
I currently have the files downloading on another computer. I chose to put in on the computer that is not really used in my house, so if anything goes wrong, there wont be a serious problem. I’ll have to give a full review of my Linux experiences whenever I feel that it has made a decent impression on me. From what I have read, Linux has a lot of support from the small amount of users and, because of the small user base, doesn’t have the viruses that us XP users are all to familiar. Could this be the start of something big for my computer uses, or will it be yet another test I perform with all of this technology out there?
