O'Reilly Mac OS X Innovators Contest
One of the reasons I went to OS X was the promise of innovation. That promise has been realized. There's an amazing amount of interesting software for OS X. O'Reilly has done a great job with this series of articles and with this year's winners.
Update: Maybe not as great a job as I'd thought. One of the winners is called "Process". It's a simple project/task manager with outliner features. It's supposed to allow one to link to "sources" (documents). Problem is, the link is a unix path -- not a Mac file reference. So if you move the source file, you break the link. This won a prize?!! Give me a break.
Wednesday, October 27, 2004
Role playing games and robotic simulants -- the future of games and the evolution of mind
Fantasy Economics - Why economists are obsessed with online role-playing games. By Robert Shapiro
I was discussing this topic with a colleague today. He mentioned how one company used "sweatshop" low wage Mexican game players to outsource the tedious work of building initial assets in many role playing games.
That led me to the next logical step -- robotic players. I was inspired by an old science fiction satire about a world in which the costs of production had fallen so far that consumption became a duty rather than a privilege. Only the rich could afford to live without constantly consuming goods. The protagonist breaks the viscious cycle by building robots to consume things. Ok, so it's not the same thing at all -- but that's how my brain works.
I don't mean simulated players within the game -- the game wouldn't allow that. No, simulated players outside the game. They don't have to strike keys, but they need to generate keystroke and mouse motion signals. They don't have to read the screen, but they need to be able to "interpret" the digital stream representing onscreen objects.
Observed within a game the avatar for such a simulated player might seem clumsy ... even a bit "mindless'. Or they might seem oddly smooth but "stupid". They would, however, react with lightning speed to certain stimuli. They could kill game-rabits and the like very well. They'd never advance far in the game, but they could earn a lot of low level script.
And there could be a lot of them. Thousands. Millions.
Just like robots in the real world. Or just like frogs.
Of course the game masters might come up with tricks to detect robots. mini-Turing tests that would a robot would fail. So the robots would get smarter. One human might manage a hundred robots, constantly on call to solve Turing tests the robots could identify but not resolve. The robots might be supplemented by rats responding to a rat-VR version of the game. Eventually rat tissue plated out in growth chambers would play a role.
And so it goes.
Eventually the robots/simulants become a part of the game. Other simulants compete with them. Some get their own tv shows.
And do it goes.
I was discussing this topic with a colleague today. He mentioned how one company used "sweatshop" low wage Mexican game players to outsource the tedious work of building initial assets in many role playing games.
That led me to the next logical step -- robotic players. I was inspired by an old science fiction satire about a world in which the costs of production had fallen so far that consumption became a duty rather than a privilege. Only the rich could afford to live without constantly consuming goods. The protagonist breaks the viscious cycle by building robots to consume things. Ok, so it's not the same thing at all -- but that's how my brain works.
I don't mean simulated players within the game -- the game wouldn't allow that. No, simulated players outside the game. They don't have to strike keys, but they need to generate keystroke and mouse motion signals. They don't have to read the screen, but they need to be able to "interpret" the digital stream representing onscreen objects.
Observed within a game the avatar for such a simulated player might seem clumsy ... even a bit "mindless'. Or they might seem oddly smooth but "stupid". They would, however, react with lightning speed to certain stimuli. They could kill game-rabits and the like very well. They'd never advance far in the game, but they could earn a lot of low level script.
And there could be a lot of them. Thousands. Millions.
Just like robots in the real world. Or just like frogs.
Of course the game masters might come up with tricks to detect robots. mini-Turing tests that would a robot would fail. So the robots would get smarter. One human might manage a hundred robots, constantly on call to solve Turing tests the robots could identify but not resolve. The robots might be supplemented by rats responding to a rat-VR version of the game. Eventually rat tissue plated out in growth chambers would play a role.
And so it goes.
Eventually the robots/simulants become a part of the game. Other simulants compete with them. Some get their own tv shows.
And do it goes.
Status.Blogger.Com -- not great status!
Status.Blogger.Com
This page is available even when, as happens too often, blogger and blogspot are unreachable. This page shows some significant outages over the past few weeks, and it certainly does not capture all the issues I've seen.
Blogger is going through a rough patch -- the worst I've seen since the google acquisition. Do they need to put a moratorium on new blogs until they get a handle on these issues?
This page is available even when, as happens too often, blogger and blogspot are unreachable. This page shows some significant outages over the past few weeks, and it certainly does not capture all the issues I've seen.
Blogger is going through a rough patch -- the worst I've seen since the google acquisition. Do they need to put a moratorium on new blogs until they get a handle on these issues?
Tuesday, October 26, 2004
Shopping.com: best way to find watches
Watches - Find, Compare, and Buy at Shopping.com
This is impressive. I found it via a blog I read. They've built a very rich data model for common objects, such as watches. Given this extensive range of attributes there are many, many ways to filter thousands of items to find the handful one wants. Building this must have taken a great deal of work, though some was done by parsing text descriptions.
This needs some evaluation. For buying watches there's no beating it. (There are THOUSANDS of wrist watches out there.)
This is impressive. I found it via a blog I read. They've built a very rich data model for common objects, such as watches. Given this extensive range of attributes there are many, many ways to filter thousands of items to find the handful one wants. Building this must have taken a great deal of work, though some was done by parsing text descriptions.
This needs some evaluation. For buying watches there's no beating it. (There are THOUSANDS of wrist watches out there.)
Defined Contribution / Medical Savings Accounts (washingtonpost.com)
Selection Time (washingtonpost.com)
In the original model there wasn't a big gap between the cash portion and the indemnity portion. These incarnations with large gaps are much more suspect. They penalize illness too severely.
The article misses the most important question. Does the plan have an associated PPO with negotiated cash rates? If consumers pay "retail" fees for medical costs they'll blow through their cash portion in no time. Cash rates have been artificially inflated by the discounts demanded by payors.
Before you commit, it's a good idea to read through the list of frequently asked questions (www.opm.gov/hsa/faq.asp) posted by the federal Office of Personnel Management. Even if you work in the private sector or are shopping for an individual policy, the questions should prepare you for a talk with your agent or your employer's benefits staff. This is especially important for individual policy buyers, since they'll likely be dealing with salesmen who may biased toward their own product.
Here are some reasons you may find an HSA tempting:
• You own the money in the account even if you retire or change plans or employers.
• Tax-free withdrawals may be made for expenses such as prescription drugs, a doctor visit for a sinus infection, setting a broken arm and physical therapy prescribed by a doctor. (See the IRS list at www.irs.gov/publications/p502/ar02.html#d0e516.)
• Unused funds and any interest they've earned can be carried over, without limit, from year to year. (You can even spend set-asides on nonmedical expenses. But do that before age 65, and you'll pay income tax on the funds used plus a 10 percent penalty.)
In the original model there wasn't a big gap between the cash portion and the indemnity portion. These incarnations with large gaps are much more suspect. They penalize illness too severely.
The article misses the most important question. Does the plan have an associated PPO with negotiated cash rates? If consumers pay "retail" fees for medical costs they'll blow through their cash portion in no time. Cash rates have been artificially inflated by the discounts demanded by payors.
Blogger and Blogspot -- slow and slower
Blogger: Create your Blog Now -- FREE
I think both Blogger and Blogspot are succumbing to their popularity. Performance is degrading at a fairly steady pace.
I think both Blogger and Blogspot are succumbing to their popularity. Performance is degrading at a fairly steady pace.
Monday, October 25, 2004
PhotoBooth: Select iPhoto images and crop as needed for transient printing
Stunt Software - PhotoBooth
I need this software! Too bad it's going to cost me $20, but it's not like there's much competition. I'd hoped Portraits and Prints would do this -- but they missed the boat. (Too bad, it would have been an easy add for them).
Lets one browse the iPhoto library, choose images to print, then crop as needed for printing.
Update 1/05: Portraits & Prints apparently does something similar, but as of 10/04 they didn't ship wtih the right template. I'll have to check back and see if they've bundled the template.
I need this software! Too bad it's going to cost me $20, but it's not like there's much competition. I'd hoped Portraits and Prints would do this -- but they missed the boat. (Too bad, it would have been an easy add for them).
Lets one browse the iPhoto library, choose images to print, then crop as needed for printing.
Update 1/05: Portraits & Prints apparently does something similar, but as of 10/04 they didn't ship wtih the right template. I'll have to check back and see if they've bundled the template.
Saturday, October 23, 2004
Hosting things to watch out for!
Top 10 Web Hosting Reviews: Personal and Business
Nice list of things to watch out for! MyHosting.com doesn't provide phone access. Hmmm.
Here's the full list (nice site - hosting-review.com)
Call your webhost, simply having only a email address is a sign of a fly-by-night operation.
Nice list of things to watch out for! MyHosting.com doesn't provide phone access. Hmmm.
Here's the full list (nice site - hosting-review.com)
In order to help you avoid getting scammed by the unscrupulous hosts that do exist, we have tried to put together the 'tricks' used by such companies to try to grad your cash:
Unlimited bandwidth or Unlimited Webspace - it is simply impossible for a company to offer unlimited bandwidth, unlimited webspace or both. The economics do not add up to any sort of profitable business. The scammers ar trying it. As hosting companies and their associated technologies are themselves limited (i.e. bandwidth or hard disk space), unlimited offerings are a marketing ploy. Often you will find clauses embedded deep within the company's terms of service contract that negate the unlimited offering.
No Contact (telephone, email, etc.) - some hosts simply make it impossible to contact them by any means possible. Call your webhost, simply having only a email address is a sign of a fly-by-night operation.
Long term contracts only - while cheaper plans may warrant an annual only plan, some hosts provide annual service exclusively. There is no guarantee that even though you have paid them for 12 months that you will get 12 months of service. Please avoid long term contracts greater than 12 months of service.
Domain Name Registration in the webhost's Name - some hosts offer to register your domain for you, legally register the domain in their own name! Therefore, if you try moving off, you will lose the domain because it was done in their name. This is a scam that we hope is quickly going away, but watch out for it.
No Money Back Guarantee - every respectable host offers a money back guarantee (30 day minimum)
Complicated uptime Warranty - some hosts hide behind their Terms of Service with complicated uptime guarantees such as the customer must report the downtime.
Webhosting -- this is a killer business
Top 10 Web Hosting Reviews: Personal and Business
I can't recall ever finding out so much information so quickly. Armed with two data points I'm sorting this out very quickly. Two of my early choices are in the top 4 on this site.
Globat
Startlogic (this is a sister site to iPowerWeb run by the same people, I'm downrating them for doing this)
lunarpages
ipowerweb
I'll check out a few more reviews and decide who I like. I'll look mostly at the clarity of the support site, quality of the documentation and FAQs, and read some more reviews. At this level features don't matter so much to me -- except I like the LunarPages WAR hosting. Overlal LunarPages is pulling ahead.
I can't recall ever finding out so much information so quickly. Armed with two data points I'm sorting this out very quickly. Two of my early choices are in the top 4 on this site.
Globat
Startlogic (this is a sister site to iPowerWeb run by the same people, I'm downrating them for doing this)
lunarpages
ipowerweb
I'll check out a few more reviews and decide who I like. I'll look mostly at the clarity of the support site, quality of the documentation and FAQs, and read some more reviews. At this level features don't matter so much to me -- except I like the LunarPages WAR hosting. Overlal LunarPages is pulling ahead.
Looking for a new hosting service
I'm looking for a new hosting service. I've used softcomca (MyHosting.com) for years, but their prices are high for what they offer and I always have problems with their FP extensions being enabled on my site -- I don't want those darned extensions!!
Some alternatives
lunarpages
dreamhost
Both of these offer vastly more than my MyHosting.com site. Lunarpages allows one to install WAR files (ie. Blogject, Zope, etc)!
Searching on these two companies (a very sneaky technique -- if you ever want to find good reviews about a service or product, search on both the product and a competitor -- eliminates 99% of the junk and almost all ads) found this comment:
"LunarPages, DreamHost, iPowerWeb, and AvaHost"
So LunarPages and DreamHost are very well ranked, as are iPowerWeb and AvaHost.
Now when I search on the above I also see some interesting Google AdWords listings.
This doesn't look hard at all.
Update: I ended up with Lunarpages. I paid for a year in advance, but they have a 30 day MBG. They had the best description of their overall services and they were the only site to mention spam filtering options for email.
Some alternatives
lunarpages
dreamhost
Both of these offer vastly more than my MyHosting.com site. Lunarpages allows one to install WAR files (ie. Blogject, Zope, etc)!
Searching on these two companies (a very sneaky technique -- if you ever want to find good reviews about a service or product, search on both the product and a competitor -- eliminates 99% of the junk and almost all ads) found this comment:
"LunarPages, DreamHost, iPowerWeb, and AvaHost"
So LunarPages and DreamHost are very well ranked, as are iPowerWeb and AvaHost.
Now when I search on the above I also see some interesting Google AdWords listings.
This doesn't look hard at all.
Update: I ended up with Lunarpages. I paid for a year in advance, but they have a 30 day MBG. They had the best description of their overall services and they were the only site to mention spam filtering options for email.
Friday, October 22, 2004
Site Studio: FrontPage LITE for OS X
Site Studio
Now this is innovative. It's a cross between a simple content management system and something like FrontPage. The application uses a variety of templates and forms to design an "web site". The site is a single XML document (looks like an OS X plist document). It can reference images and files. You click a button to generate HTML locally or to upload the HTML.
It could be used easily by schoolchildren or non-techies. There's a limited WYSIWYG editor for some web page work.
It reminds me a bit of all the creative site creation tools that came out on PCs in the 1990s. Most went away. A few mutated to become very high end tools, and FrontPage just mutated (period). This shareware tool harkens back to a lost era.
I'm not quite sure how I can use it, but I'll play with it for a while. Maybe I'll figure out a use. I don't think there's any way to use to import an existing web site.
Now this is innovative. It's a cross between a simple content management system and something like FrontPage. The application uses a variety of templates and forms to design an "web site". The site is a single XML document (looks like an OS X plist document). It can reference images and files. You click a button to generate HTML locally or to upload the HTML.
It could be used easily by schoolchildren or non-techies. There's a limited WYSIWYG editor for some web page work.
It reminds me a bit of all the creative site creation tools that came out on PCs in the 1990s. Most went away. A few mutated to become very high end tools, and FrontPage just mutated (period). This shareware tool harkens back to a lost era.
I'm not quite sure how I can use it, but I'll play with it for a while. Maybe I'll figure out a use. I don't think there's any way to use to import an existing web site.
Find a word based on a description of the underlying concept
OneLook Reverse Dictionary As we boomers age, we need to incorporate this thing into our cell phones.
jux2: Google is not what as good as it used to be
jux2 Search for special education faughnan
Google has problems. JUX2 is a metasearch tool with a novel feature -- it shows what Google misses. Turns out, Google misses a LOT. In particular it's not indexing Blogger's blogspot very well.
I think there's a problem with Google.
Google has problems. JUX2 is a metasearch tool with a novel feature -- it shows what Google misses. Turns out, Google misses a LOT. In particular it's not indexing Blogger's blogspot very well.
I think there's a problem with Google.
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