scott arbeitman, friend of a squid

Costco Memberships In Australia Are Booming

Fri, 25 May 2012 21:36:43 +1000

Costco Memberships In Australia Are Booming:

The idea of a retail downturn is Australia is false. It is Australian brands that are on the way down because of their lousy value proposition. Meanwhile, foreign companies like Costco are making a killing with great pricing, great service, or sometimes both.

Teen critical after train surfing in St Kilda

Sun, 20 May 2012 21:45:37 +1000

Teen critical after train surfing in St Kilda:

Last year, 330 fines of $293 each were issued to people train surfing in Victoria.

That’s just those who got caught. Proof positive that more people are stupid than you might think.

"In New Zealand, where a local version of Marmite is more popular than Aussie Vegemite, a crisis..."

Sun, 13 May 2012 13:49:30 +1000

“In New Zealand, where a local version of Marmite is more popular than Aussie Vegemite, a crisis dubbed “Marmaggedon” unfolded after the country’s only factory closed late last year for nine months to repair damage caused by an earthquake in Christchurch. New Zealand food company Sanitarium asked consumers to restrict their use of Marmite until production resumes in July, and Prime Minister John Key said he had been forced to ration his use of the spread. A jar of the so-called “black gold” sold at a charity online auction for 2,115 New Zealand dollars (US$1,674).”

- Aussie Delicacy Vegemite Loses Some of Its Savory Appeal - WSJ.com

http://peachbm.com.au/2012/04/better-ways-to-hire-small-business/

Sun, 29 Apr 2012 16:28:24 +1000

http://peachbm.com.au/2012/04/better-ways-to-hire-small-business/:

My first blog post for someone else! Enjoy.

Elephants Down Under - NYTimes.com

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 15:46:51 +1100

Elephants Down Under - NYTimes.com

Hospital emergency codes - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Fri, 09 Mar 2012 20:32:30 +1100

Hospital emergency codes - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

Things I learned today in hospital: code grey and code black.

Food resupply effort foiled; McGill University occupation enters Day 3

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 19:27:09 +1100

Food resupply effort foiled; McGill University occupation enters Day 3:

McGill students, occupying the sixth floor of a building, try to lower a bucket, have it filled with food and then raise it.

But a subsequent tweet noted: “When the bucket was about 2/3 of the way down, a security guard reached out of a window to CUT OUR ROPE.”

So funny.

Do Nice Guys Finish Last? | Wired Science | Wired.com

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 19:35:22 +1100

Do Nice Guys Finish Last? | Wired Science | Wired.com:

Spoiler alert: it seems so.

Retinol - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 23:27:38 +1100

Retinol - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

If eaten in one meal, 30 to 90 grams of polar bear liver is enough to kill a human being, or to make even sled dogs very ill.

Good to know.

Insight: Lessons for U.S. from Canada's basket case moment | Reuters

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 00:30:59 +1100

Insight: Lessons for U.S. from Canada's basket case moment | Reuters:

“There would have been a day when we would have been the Greece of today,” recalled then-prime minister Jean Chretien, a Liberal who ended up chopping cherished social programs in one of the most dramatic fiscal turnarounds ever.

“I knew we were in a bind and we had to do something,” Chretien, 77, told Reuters in a rare interview.

I’ll never forget Chretien and his awesome accent from my days in Canada.

Is Coldfusion next?

Fri, 11 Nov 2011 00:19:56 +1100

With Adobe axing Mobile Flash, one wonders what will happen to other Adobe products. People have been predicting the end of Coldfusion for years. A new version is due soon. But I’m betting against ColdFusion as a going concern for Adobe.

By the way, I’m not a Coldfusion hater by any means. I used to develop with Coldfusion religiously and miss a lot of what it offered. My headspace is much more Rails+Javascript these days (see, for example dkmvs (aka dick moves), but I’ll always have a soft spot for ColdFusion and its lovely tags and components.

Peter's of Kensington | Breville - 800 Series Professional Toaster 4 Slice

Wed, 09 Nov 2011 21:59:15 +1100

Peter's of Kensington | Breville - 800 Series Professional Toaster 4 Slice:

The copy on this web page (for a toaster) is simultaneously terrible and hilarious. For example:

It features an intelligent motor that automatically lowers your raw toast (also known as bread) into the slots and then raises it again when it’s done.

"The architects wanted the windows to open. Jobs said no. He “had never liked the idea of people..."

Mon, 07 Nov 2011 20:58:48 +1100

“The architects wanted the windows to open. Jobs said no. He “had never liked the idea of people being able to open things. ‘That would just allow people to screw things up.’ ””

- Steve Jobs’s Real Genius : The New Yorker

Sounds like a dick.

shotsnanigans ... share your shots

Sun, 06 Nov 2011 18:42:11 +1100

shotsnanigans ... share your shots:

Inspired by me! See also this dkmvs (aka dick moves) post.

FYI: “Fennel is a root vegetable grown in the...

Sun, 06 Nov 2011 18:11:56 +1100

FYI: “Fennel is a root vegetable grown in the ground.”

Small Demons — Welcome to the Storyverse

Sun, 06 Nov 2011 17:12:07 +1100

Small Demons — Welcome to the Storyverse:

Awesome extension of the ebook. Reminds me of another project, for images. A cool, Melbourne startup as well.

Sandwich Video

Sun, 06 Nov 2011 17:08:13 +1100

Sandwich Video:

Cool product videos, in case you need inspiration.

Aussie tech gold rush: 'nothing off limits'

Sat, 05 Nov 2011 15:52:47 +1100

Aussie tech gold rush: 'nothing off limits'

Heilvetica – Poster | Hipster Hitler

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 13:22:17 +1100

Heilvetica – Poster | Hipster Hitler:

In the cafe yesterday, there were two tables in front of me. In the table immediately in front of me: two German tourists making travel plans on their computer and checking Facebook. On the table in front of them, a girl’s Mac desktop with this image: http://hipsterhitler.com/heilvetica-poster/.

Jews in IT

Sun, 30 Oct 2011 11:39:02 +1100

After a trip to Israel, where everyone and his falafel has a startup company, I became interested in the impact Jews are making in IT. Despite the success of Israel startups, it is still the American Jew who has most impacted the field. Here’s a list of important American Jews who are making a huge difference in the IT sector:

Larry Page, CEO of Google (mother’s side)
Sergey Brin, Co-founder of Google
Michael Dell, CEO and founder of Dell
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO and founder of Facebook
Andy Rubin, founder of Android Inc, now VP Android division at Google
Max Levchin, co-founder of Paypal
Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft (mother’s side)
Larry Ellison, CEO and co-founder of Oracle

Surely there are more–way more–but many are surprised and still hold the stereotype of Jews being successful as doctors, lawyers, the movie industry, etc. Not the case anymore.

If know any other good examples, leave them in the comments.