Paul Thurrott's SuperSite for Windows: Virtual Folders: A Windows Vista Technology Showcase

Gotta try this one. It's grand being able to explore these technologies ahead of the curve. Thanks, Paul!

Windows Vista Beta 1 Running on My System!

Yep, I got it installed and running. I'm using VMWare Workstation 5 to run it right now. Had to allocate more than 5GB of drive space for it to install and had to manually install the virtual ethernet card but otherwise, very little maintenance. I've installed the extra developer API environment features (Avalon and Indigo) known as WinFX and all seems well. I'll cover some of the things I learn but for a more immediate full review, check out Paul Thurrott's review.

Teens & the Internet

Want to know how the Interent factors into most teens' lives today? Want to predict where IM'ing will be in 10 years? Some highlights from a study at the link above.

Nickel Creek - "When In Rome" Video | Cup of Cold Coffee

New Nickel Creek on August 8th. I love listening to them and this album sounds great. I especially love this first song and its video.

Shakespeare's 'The Tempest' & Lost

I finished reading this famous work last week to my five year old. It was an adaptation so I don't know how good a job was done compared to the original. But I couldn't help think that some of the writers of Lost had this in mind as they wrote. Read this synopsis and think about the show. Invisible characters (the voices), supra-human characters, a monster and then this quote from one of the characters, Gonzalo, lost on the island in The Tempest...

"Now rejoice!" cried Gonzalo, weeping for gladness to see how men had repented of evil and set their lives straight again. "Here on this isle we deemed ourselves lost, yet here, where we thought ourselves lost, have we truly found ourselves!"

Microsoft Reveals More Vista, IE 7.0 Beta 1 Features

Mary Jo Foley has the scoop over at Microsoft Watch on some of the new features in Windows Longhorn...eh, Windows Vista. The name will probably stick despite the threat of a lawsuit or Robert Scoble's brother Alex hating it.

Several of the new features sound interesting. I'm wondering especially about the P2P service being introduced for collaboration. Vista may have the effect of legitimizing the technology when it has been so beaten up (indirectly) by the courts. We'll soon see how Microsoft has built this into the OS with the Beta 1 release. Will they throttle or manage the bandwidth efficiently? Will they provide effective security mechanisms for the unexperienced? Wait and see.

I'm hoping it allows for a more effective means of sharing pictures and video between families and friends...handling the growing size of files. Users setting up unsecured, unencrypted ftp sites for personal data exchange has always been too risky an idea for getting access to content. Perhaps this new service will bring an end to this practice.

CNN.com - James Doohan, 'Star Trek's' Scotty, dead?

It's hard to believe this fixture of Star Trek lore is no longer with us. Two other articles to read: Zap2it and StarTrek.com. But for the real memories, check out this string of scenes from Scotty's life in the Trek universe, provided by StarTrek.com.

Google Moon - Lunar Landing Sites

We have Google Maps, Google Earth and now Google Moon. Incredible details is available...just zoom in to the closest setting. :-)

Ron Moore's Deep Space Journey - New York Times

Season Two is here. Hopefully the ride will be as wild as before. Ron Moore was genius with Star Trek. Now his reimagining of Battlestar takes his creativity to a whole new level. Great show!

Corrupted PC's Find New Home in the Dumpster - New York Times

Sad but true. Many times it is more economical to get a new, low-end PC than to hire someone to clean your old PC. Somehow you still need to transfer the data so that may be a cost you incur. However, don't look at the Mac as a safe haven. Microsoft is the biggest target right now due to market share but practicing basic security and being Internet savvy will keep any computer operating system user from becoming a victim.

lecielestbleu.com : la Pate a Sonm (via Boing Boing)

Hours of fun making music via a Rube Goldberg type contraption.

The Disney Blog: New SeaWorld Water Park Announced

New park mixing water park and animals. Sounds interesting.

Santa Maria Restaurant

My co-worker says this is one of the wonders of St. Augustine, Florida. It's a tourist trap but the unique "feeding the catfish" while you eat experience is entertaining (These people went). He says he always feared falling down into "the swarm". Not a good thought.

UPDATED: My co-worker's other favorite thing to do is a Google image search for "huge catfish"

SignOnSanDiego.com -- For television via Internet, future is now

Time Warner Cable does pilot projects all the time. This is one I wished they'd do here. We often get some pilot projects but the one in San Diego really is exciting because of the merging of technologies.

An Unsecured Wi-Fi Network Equals an Open Invitation

I think this case is fascinating. Is using an open, unsecured wireless network stealing from the owner? I must agree with Coursey here, I have a hard time believing it is. Even putting simple, crackable WEP security on a wireless router says "No Trespassing" but unsecured wireless...what's being stolen? Bandwidth? Can you prove damages from lost bandwidth on a 3mbps connection to the Internet? If you're sniffing someone's traffic, that's wrong but just getting on to check e-mail and surf? Lots of questions but not a lot of answers.

Google Maps Mania: Use Google Maps to track Hurricane Dennis

Cool use of Google Maps and the new API's. Check them out.

GreenvilleOnline.com - Savoring Saluda

My wife's family has had a place in the little town of Saluda, NC for 100 years. She tries to go back there every summer if she can, especially when family is staying there. It's kind of her own little Mitford.

Nice little article about this special place. Next time you're in the area, stop and check it out...especially on Coon Dog Day.

Ink Jets: High Tech in Low Places

How did a coffee percolator inspire your printer technology? Read on...

Just a Minute, Boss. My Cellphone Is Ringing. - New York Times

Manage your gadget for success; be considerate. Everyone doesn't want to know what restaurant you're going to tonight or what the latest trick your dog Brutus did. It's not all about you.

Google readies toolbar for Firefox | InfoWorld

Firefox users (as I am an avvid one), prepare for a must-have extension at noon, EST today. The OFFICIAL Google toolbar arrives!

Google Maps Transparencies

When Google released their API's for Google Maps, you knew there would be lots of developing. Here's one result. Very cool!

You Never Know What You Might See

I've seen all kinds of things at work...from half-dressed protesters to former Senator Thurmond's caisson. But I was taken by surprise to see this out my window. Why was there a camel on the premises?

Story found here.

The World's Ugliest Dog Winner 2005

Warning...may be hazardous to your eyes!!

Updated: Maybe it's one of the zombie dogs!

CNN.com - Study: Antibiotics often unnecessary but make patients happy - Jun 22, 2005

I read this twelve hours after being quizzed about what I was going to do about my cold/flu/cough. I said all the same things at the time and now I have another JAMA report to support my position.

The Fading Memory of the State

Read this and you'll find the monumental challenges being faced in keeping up with what will become our history.

The New York Times - Forget the Bootleg, Just Download the Movie Legally

Sounds interesting. Instant DVD's with additional content? I'm listening.

RSS in Longhorn: The Security Question

Okay, if you don't understand the headline, let me help.

RSS is something I've talked about in the past. Really Simple Syndication allows news, blogs, etc. that post fresh content daily to be access by a client grabbing the new content from the site instead of a user visiting the web page. For instance, this site has a feed for the blog and also other feeds from content I find interesting online (My Clippings). I may not blog each day but my topic feeds usually always have something new.

Longhorn is the next version of Windows. Make sense yet?

RSS is going to mainstream for sure as part of the operating system. This raises security concerns per this article but its always risky to mainstream a flexible and useful technology like RSS. Will Microsoft do their homework so a year from now RSS in Longhorn is not just another surface for attack? I think they've been beat up enough the last few years so let's give them some slack, okay?!

The Battle for Eardrums Begins With Podcasts - New York Times

If you are unfamiliar with the technology, catch up to the next big thing. Now the Newsgator has integrated a beta podcast client, I'm finding I'm listening for the first time.

"Ten Years of Chilled Innovation"

The Grokster decision last week from the Supreme Court seems destined to effect new technologies' development by creating a more cautious atmosphere. Lawrence Lessig does a great job of expounding the possible effects.

Declaration of Independence

It's July 4th...take time to read why.