Jorah's 80% Fat-Free Blog

by Dave Cronin

A common affliction plaguing many of us interaction designers is the propensity to complain and kvetch about every piece of software on our computers, cell-phones and cars. And it's true -there is a lot of bad software out there.

To offset this sometimes irritating tendency to critique and redesign everything we see, I'd like to offer a selection of software that I consider to be truly well-designed. To avoid creating a list that is simply an expression of my personal taste (which of course it is, to some extent), I devised some criteria as necessary aspects of a well-designed software product.

Read more...
(I found two bits of software on this page that I'd never heard of... both of which I may actually have a use for... let me know if you find something you like.)

Orlando Bloom is the new young James Bond! - The Times of India:


LONDON: British actor Orlando Bloom actor has been signed by Miramax to play young James Bond in his new movie which is based on the college days of this widely popular secret agent.

There were rumours floating that Bloom is taking over the role of James Bond from Pierce Brosnan in the next film due out next November.

According to Ananova, Bond producers were looking for a new leading man and Bloom was the lucky guy who got the role.

---

(does anyone else think this is strange?)

orkut - help

Anyone who knows me, who is part of orkut who would mind inviting me?

Well, that was a lot faster than I expected. Thanks for reading, folks!

I had two accounts last night, but they were gone within a few hours. Good luck to everyone who wrote.

The Project Apollo Archive serves as an online reference source and repository of digital images pertaining to the historic manned lunar landing program. The Archive was created by Kipp Teague in February 1999 as a companion web site to his "Contact Light" personal retrospective on Project Apollo. The Archive is also companion to Eric Jones' comprehensive

Read More

http://www.jumbojoke.com/

For all of you who occasionally have a really bad day, and you just
need to take it out on someone, don't take it out on someone you know,
take it out on someone you don't know. I was sitting at my desk when I
remembered a phone call I had forgotten to make. I found the number,
and dialed it.

A man answered saying, "Hello?" I politely said, "This is Patrick
Hanifin, could I please speak with Robin Carter?" Suddenly, the phone
was slammed down on me. I couldn't believe that anyone could be so
rude.

I tracked down Robin's correct number and called her. (I had
transposed the last two digits of her phone number). After hanging up
with her I decided to call the 'wrong' number again. When the same guy
answered the phone, I yelled, "You're a jerk!" and hung up. I wrote
his number down with the word 'jerk' next to it and put it in my desk
drawer. Every couple of weeks, when I was paying bills or had a really
bad day, I'd call him. He'd answer and I'd yell, "You're a jerk!" It
always cheered me up.

When Caller ID came to our area I thought my therapeutic 'jerk'
calling would have to stop. So, I called his number and said, "Hi,
this is John Smith from the Telephone Company. I'm just calling to see
if you're familiar with the caller ID program?" he yelled, "no!" and
slammed the phone down. I quickly called him back and said, "That's
because you're a jerk!"

One day I was at the store, getting ready to pull into a parking spot.
Some guy in a black BMW cut me off and pulled into the spot I had
patiently waited for. I hit the horn and yelled that I had been
waiting for the spot. The idiot ignored me. I noticed a "For Sale"
sign in his car window, so I wrote down his number.

A couple of days later, right after calling the first jerk (I had his
number on speed dial), I thought I had better call the BMW jerk, too.
I dialed and someone said, "Hello?" I said, "Is this the man with the
black BMW for sale?" "Yes it is." "Can you tell me where I can see
it?" "Yes, I live at 1802 West 34th Street. It's a yellow house and
the car's parked right out front." "What's your name?" I asked. "My
name is Don Hansen," he said. "When's a good time to catch you, Don?"
"I'm home every evening after five." "Listen, Don, can I tell you
something?" "Yes?" "Don, you're a jerk!" Then I hung up, and added his
number to my speed dial, too.

Now, when I had a problem, I had two jerks to call. But after several
months of calling them, it wasn't as enjoyable as it used to be. So, I
came up with an idea: I called jerk #1. "Hello" "You're a jerk!" I
shouted, but I didn't hang up. "Are you still there?" he asked.
"Yeah," I said. "Stop calling me!" he screamed. "Make me," I said.
"Who are you?" he asked.

"My name is Don Hansen." "Yeah? Where do you live?" "Jerk, I live at
1802 West 34th Street, a yellow house with my black Beemer out front."

He said, "I'm coming over right now, Don. And you had better start
saying your prayers." I said, "Yeah, like I'm really scared, jerk."
Then I called jerk #2: "Hello?" he said. "Hello jerk," I said. He
yelled, "If I ever find out who you are..."

"You'll what?" I said.

"I'll kick your ass," he exclaimed.

I answered, "Well, jerk, here's your chance. I'm coming over right now."

Then, I hung up, and immediately called the police saying that I lived
at 1802 West 34th Street, and I was on my way over there to kill my
gay lover. Then, I called Channel 13 news about the gang war going
down on West 34th Street.

I quickly got into my car and headed over to 34th St. There, I saw two
jerks beating the crap out of each other in front of 6 squad cars, a
police helicopter, and a news crew.

Now I feel better.

Talk about self-referential:

Welcome
* My Blog
* My Personal Page
* The page where I read all my morning comics

By Tariq Malik
SPACE.com
Astronomers working with the Hubble Space Telescope (news - web sites) often build spectacular space images based on the raw data taken by the orbital instrument. But new thanks to some new software that power can sit in the hands of anyone, not just scientists, equipped with a computer and a digital imaging program.


The software, called FITS Liberator, is actually a plugin application for the imaging software Adobe Photoshop and is now available free at the Hubble's European website. The plugin allows space image enthusiasts to piece together in Photoshop the same raw data that were once reserved for astronomers with highly specialized imaging tools could touch.


Read more...

(Going for the Darwin Award in Texas)

Tuesday, July 6, 2004
(07-06) 08:00 PDT HOUSTON (AP) --

Two teenagers were injured in an explosion when they used a sledgehammer
to extract gunpowder from shotgun shells and bullets, police said.

Authorities were investigating whether the 16-year-old boys were trying to
make homemade fireworks the night of July 4.

The teens were taken to Memorial Hermann Hospital with first-, second-,
and third-degree burns, Harris County Fire Marshal Mike Montgomery said.
The hospital did not release any information about the victims.

Police said the teens were grinding powder from the shells and bullets
with a hammer, setting off the blast in a Harris County home.

Investigators seized bullets, a homemade discharging device and a
videotape the youths made to document their efforts, police said.


Read
more...

Meet Tyson, the Skateboarding Bulldog! The video clips and snapshots of this pup riding his skateboard are pretty amusing.

David Yutar
July 01 2004 at 09:53AM

"How will we protect our families now? Criminals prefer unarmed victims and so does the African National Congress."

That was the message from members of Victims Against Crime who demonstrated outside parliament to protest against the new Firearms Control Act.

The legislation, which became law at midnight, introduces new and stringent measures to regulate gun ownership by private citizens.

Charl van Wyk, chairman of Victims Against Crime, said his group regarded the new law as nothing short of "illegitimate" and an infringement of the citizen's "inalienable right to defend himself and his or her family".

Van Wyk was the congregant who shot back at the attackers who stormed the St James Church on July 25, 1993. The attackers killed 11 worshippers.

Van Wyk said the act would make it a privilege to own a firearm whereas, under the previous law, it had been a right.

"In terms of the new law, a person will have to prove his need (to possess a firearm).

"You will have to prove that (possession of a firearm) is essential and, only if that need cannot reasonably be satisfied by means other than the possession of a firearm, may a licence be issued to you."

He said "a law that made it impossible to defend one's family was an illegitimate law".

The new act also encroached on a person's rights to privacy and to property, and it violated the presumption of innocence by placing the onus on a gun owner to show that his or her possession and use of a firearm was lawful, Van Wyk said.

Van Wyk claimed that no research had been done into defensive gun use in South Africa.

"The times that firearms are used (by law-abiding citizens) in a positive way far outweigh the cases where it has negative consequences," said Van Wyk.

The Human Sciences Research Council conducted a survey that found that firearms were used in self- defence on about 81 000 occasions each year, he said.

Moreover, Magnum Magazine had done a survey showing this figure to be higher at over one million cases a year.

Steve Swart, of the African Christian Democratic Party, was also present at the protest and said his party had voted against the new law.

He said the cost of implementation was exorbitant and that the money should rather be used to better equip police officers to combat crime and take the approximately four million illegally owned firearms off the streets of South Africa.

"We support the right of responsible firearm ownership to enable the citizen to protect himself and members of his or her family," he said.
Read More...

Anyone remember Red Mars???


Tue Jun 29, 5:37 PM ET

By Leonard David
Senior Space Writer, SPACE.com

Leading experts are meeting this week to take a longing look at the idea of a space elevator. The idea is a stretch, no doubt, with plenty of work to do before travelers have push-button, top floor access to space.

For one, what's needed, advocates explain, is a super-tough ribbon that does an about face in thinking. It hangs from the ground and falls into the sky - - thanks to the Earth's spin and centripetal force.

Read more...