ObamaTaxCut.com
Thanks, Mr. Crawford, for leading me to this link.
See what kind of tax break your family would get under the Obama plan. Stop passively listening to the pandering right. Go take a look for yourself.
KDE 4.1 delivers a next-gen desktop Linux experience
ars technica has a review of the just released KDE 4.1 and they heap nothing but praise upon this "next-gen" desktop.
KDE 4.1 delivers a next-gen desktop Linux experience
I suppose if you have next-gen hardware, you can experience that next-gen desktop. I know that my now four-year old desktop hardware couldn't handle half of what KDE 4.1 wanted to deliver. Thus the reason I'm back to using the beautifully lightweight XFCE. If KDE 4.2 runs like KDE 3.5.9 did on my hardware, I'd consider switching back to KDE.
A new search engine – a new privacy policy
There's a new search engine out there - cuil, an old Irish word for knowledge. According to their press, they've reinvented search based on the philosophy that users are what drive search, not the content providers. As anyone who uses google on a regular basis can confirm, google's top hits are often the most popular, not necessarily the most informative.
I've only started using cuil today, so we'll see how it fares down the road, but their Privacy Policy is to be admired. NO identifying information. Search for whatever you'd like without being profiled. Hallelujah.
UPDATE: I wouldn't go switching from your favorite search engine of choice just yet. Whether it be Google, Yahoo!, Ask, or even HotBot, cuil is not yet ready to take its place.
Their "categories" don't seem to correlate with your search. Simple keywords return 0 results or irrelevant results. Phrases return unrelated results or the result you're looking for is 5 pages down.
Some say it better than I can hope to.
I have never read the Lefsetz Letter before, but a post on a friend's blog directed me to this post: The End of the Innocence. I share many of the sentiments expressed therein, notably: that very little is "Made in America", that there is no one watching over us, and that it's time for honest communication to pave the way to a richer future for all of us.
Bad Days for Newsrooms—and Democracy
Folks, this isn't just the report of someone hoping to save their job. It's a proclamation of the dark future in store for us all if we don't begin to realize the value of journalism in a free society.
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Journalist Chris Hedges reports on the decline of the newspaper industry and how this is leading us further down the dark path of a total corporate takeover of the information we receive.
read more | digg story
Taking the bitter and the sweet.
This is a sad day. LugRadio is coming to an end.
I can't say I've been a fan since show one as I didn't even become aware of LugRadio until Season 2. After hearing one episode, however, I was immediately hooked. Many a night providing support for a nameless media player was spent with headphones on, listening to the gents debate and discuss the "finer" points of being a Linux user.
When the LugRadio crew embarked on what will now be the only U.S. showing of LugRadio Live, I made sure to attend. The show was wonderful and there was great enthusiasm about Linux that I know I'll be a Linux user for years to come.
Hats off to LugRadio. Thank you for a wonderful run. You'll always be the best Linux podcast.
Sadness and loss…
I find this just sad. I took my kids to see Ratatouille there when they visited last summer. My aunt used to take me there when I was but a wee lad. There's no better movie-going deal anywhere.
Drive-In's Demise Nears (sacbee.com)
I can't accurately describe how I feel about a piece of American history (not THIS specific drive-in, but drive-ins in general) being mowed down to be replaced by yet another fucking commercial cesspit. It's not like there aren't enough monuments to commercialism to be found in the Greater Sacramento area. In fact, the North Natomas area (which was once quite vacant) now has this massive sprawl of restaurants, big box retailers, hair & nail salons and LOTS and LOTS of traffic.
Right around the corner from my house, near the Port of Sacramento, yet another shopping mecca is being built up around a newly-built Lowe's and right across the street are the beginnings of more of the same. Is it really necessary to have a mega-shopping center on every block? Why does revitalization have to equate to building more testaments to American greed and materialism?
Why not leave some of the Earth uncovered? Or at least build a park so kids can go outside to play?
Age-appropriate content
I've received a scan of the letters my girls were sent home with and it would appear that I need to call the principal and discuss the content of the curriculum, when it starts, the stigma of "opting-out" and whether or not this is educational or religious in nature. If it's the latter, there's a problem: the kids go to a publicly-funded school in Virginia and religion should have no part of their education.
