iBlackle

Moved Servers and Directory

2011-02-28T18:22:00.002-05:00

I moved the files into this URL: http://iblackle.webbynetworks.com. The old http://iblackle.urlcloud.com is now gone. Please update your bookmarks if you were using that defunct URL as the homepage of your browser.

But if you bookmarked the main domain, http://iBlackle.com, then there wouldn't be any problem--that domain automatically redirects to http://iblackle.webbynetworks.com.

Thank you for your patience, and patronage!

GreenTips will be in the Cloud

2011-02-01T15:24:00.000-05:00

I'm now porting all the greentips data in the cloud. Courtesy of cloudant, and the very relaxing couchdb.

Milestone: GreenTips, EcoTwits and Wackiness

2008-11-07T12:57:00.004-05:00

Whoa! Today marks another milestone: The greentips reaches 200 unique original tips personally concocted by me. They are unadulterated and unrated, so watch out for some wacky ones that might pop up randomly. They now link to ecotwits, as well - with additional details about the tip (if any). Plus, the greentips (a.k.a EcoTwits) now has its own URL, so you can forward it to your friends for reference, or simply to laugh about. Here's a sample.
Also, the EcoTwits Widget has been approved by Widgetbox, so it is now included in their directory. For those who have been clamoring to install the greentips on their own sites and blogs, you may now do so using that widget.
EcoTwits now has 15 twitter followers in a span of less than a week! So why dont you join the bandwagon and follow EcoTwits as well.
And lastly, EcoTwits now has its own blog. Hurrahh! Its not much yet, but I will be aggressively developing all these things like a mutant octopus.

Spin-Off from Green Tips: EcoTwits !

2008-11-01T11:36:00.007-04:00

Folks, I noticed something about the Green Tips: They actually look like tweets! Or that they may make good tweets! Most of them are naughty, funny, witty, wacky, short and sweet--quite perfect as tweets.
I decided to send these Green Tips as Tweets at least once a week via Twitter. And not only that, I just realized that not only bottles and paper can be recycled, but webapps as well! So I will try to make some widget out of it.
But for now, I'd like to introduce you to a spin-off from iBlackle's Green Tips. Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you EcoTwits! The greatest thing that ever happened to ecofriendly tweeting!
You may follow EcoTwits to receive these updates via Twitter. Or you may install the EcoTwits Widget in your own blog and/or website.

Green Tips now reaches 150!

2008-10-26T17:09:00.002-04:00

My self-compiled green tips now reaches a total number of 150! Most are wackier than ever! But still relevant and practical enough to save energy, avert global warming, and reduce carbon emission.
My favorite original green tip is still the same: Turn the lights off when making love.

Dance for Earth

2008-07-22T12:39:00.002-04:00

Earthling, if you don't yet feel a sense of oneness with the earth just yet, at least maybe you'll feel it among its crazy dancing inhabitants. :)
I've learned the Dance step myself. Maybe I'm going crazy but I feel like crying if I just sit still.

Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap080722.html

The 11th Hour

2008-05-17T19:46:00.005-04:00

I watched The 11th Hour several times, learning that it is the Global Awareness to Environmental issues that must be spread to the public before a massive action can take place to avert global warming. Failure for the whole of humanity to take action can further increase the Earth's temperature to a few more degrees - further amplifying climate change. And you've seen what the continued climate change can do - flooding, more powerful hurricanes, and deadlier tornadoes, landslides, drought, animal extinctions. These are the effects we are reaping now because of our continued reliance on fossil fuels which releases more CO2, our destructive practices such as deforestation, and dumping toxic wastes that kill the oceans.
A few more degrees of increase to the average surface temperature of the earth can throw of the Earth's balance in a destructive way against man himself.
It's actually not the planet that we must save but humanity and life itself, because Earth can and will recover...when mankind is gone.

Links: 11thHOurFilm.com

Fight Global Warming from the Heart of Humanity

2008-05-17T09:24:00.004-04:00

For those who would like to know more details about how climate change and global warming is destroying our planet and hurting us, please visit fightglobalwarming.com.
It's strange, but its really not global warming that we should fight: its the culture of consumerism and the apathy to the environment that we should fight. The battle begins in the heart of humanity.

Link: fightglobalwarming.com

Earth Day 2008

2008-04-19T20:09:00.005-04:00

The Earth Hour came, now Earth Day cometh! Let me be a li'l ridiculous now by saying Earth Year is next! Let me beat them to it because I'm sure all the skeptics will point that out. On Tuesday, April 22, 2008 I hope you'll take time to enjoy the Earth on that one fine day, whether you love the earth or not.

Links: http://www.nature.org/earthday/

When the Parody becomes the Parodied

2008-03-29T02:43:00.005-04:00

I couldn't believe my eyes. I thought that Google hacked my iBlackle logo! Google finally turned their search page into black! And take note of the message at the lower part. It seems so like iBlackle!
The snapshot you see of the Search Giant's page will probably last only an hour, but it will forever be in the annals of iBlackle's history!
What makes me so happy is that Google supports environmental causes such as Earth Hour.
And in this particular case, the parody became the parodied, but for a wonderful reason. Environmental Awareness!
Now, what are you waiting for?! Turn off your lights!

Earth Hour: All Black on March 29 @ 8pm

2008-03-22T23:19:00.006-04:00

Turn all your lights off March 29, 2008 at 8pm. It's called Earth Hour. Support this cause to raise awareness on environmental issues such as Climate Change, Carbon Footprint, and so on.
It would be a great time for a candle-light dinner date with your love, eh?
But for the skeptical ones, suggest to them to gaze at the stars on this hour. If the whole city participates in this event it would be a perfect hour for city-dwellers to get a good view of the constellations. Inform your local police about this event, though. And be safe.
Its not the actual energy savings that count anymore. Its about raising Global Consciousness on Ecology.

"It is the greatest of all mistakes to do nothing because you can do only a little."
- Sydney Smith

Links:
Earth Hour
Universe Today

Green Comedy (funny videos on alternative energy)

2008-02-26T20:14:00.005-05:00

I just discovered this today - some funny videos to make the boring topic of alternative energy sound funny. They're the guys from alternativeenergy.com.
But I must warn you: they keep saying "alternativenergy dot com....alternativenergy dot com" it might annoy you.

link: http://www.alternativeenergy.com

More Options ▼ (Javascript Goodness)

2008-01-31T21:35:00.001-05:00

iBlackle finally mimics the iGoogle 'More ▼' interface. I must say, those iGoogle interface developers are pretty good, but their wizardy will not escape the fangs of iBlackle code parody implemented in javascript.
So for all the fans of iGoogle, and of course for the rest of iBlackle fans (weeeee!), behold the 'More Options ▼ ' interface to make your iLife much sleekier!

A Hundred Green Tips!

2008-01-31T12:33:00.000-05:00

The Green Tips now reaches a hundred-fold! If you havent noticed the 'iBlackle Green Tips' yet, well they're personally-written ecofriendly tips by your humble iBlackle Developer.
I painstakingly compile them as I go along with my journey into becoming an earth-friendly inhabitant of this planet.
These tips appear (via AJAX) at the bottom of the iBlackle logo. For any fellow developer who's curious about the backend/middle-tier technology behind it, well its Zoho Creator! Thank you very much Zoho for providing an awesome AJAx service! The only thing I'm not happy about is that you keep on resetting my ticket (w/c disables my AJAX) so it's really cumbersome for me to get a new ticket twice a month. I'm hopeful that things will get better, because now i'm planning to convert The iBlackle Green Tips into a widget!!!

Push Button Eco-Friendliness

2008-01-31T12:18:00.000-05:00

I do not know how effective this gadget is but, if I will be given a free sampler, I would definitely give rave reviews (har-har) to this eco-button thingie. The question remains how fast it "wakes up" your PC from the "eco-mode" state. They say "instantly" on their website, but its all relative to me.
In the meantime, I will stick to my nifty technique of setting my Windows XP desktop to "Stand By" mode and turning off my monitor when I go out for lunch. To me, its just a glorified "Push Button" version of my tedious technique above.

iBlackle is Now on GreenMaven.com

2008-01-09T06:48:00.000-05:00

GreenMaven has just included iBlackle in their roster of ecofriendly websites. Gee, thanks GreenMaven!
Well, of course greenmaven will be one of the priority sites in the iblackle search engine. See for yourself in iBlackle's Configuration.

links:
http://www.greenmaven.com
iBlackle Search Engine Configurations

iBlackle is now Open Source for Collaboration!

2008-01-02T19:43:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year Planet Earth! I am greeting our Planet with open arms! That's right! Open! iBlackle is now OPEN for Collaboration! Anyone can add their ecofriendly websites to be emphasized in iBlackle's search results!
Here's how it works: When you volunteer to add your site(s) to iBlackle's database, your website(s) will be given priority by iBlackle's spiders and emphasized in the search results.
So if you like to join, please go to this page and click on the "Volunteer to contribute" link. Then you will be taken to a series of pages to complete your profile as a contributor to iBlackle. If you do not have a Google account, you will be prompted to get one.
But please take note that only Green Ecofriendly websites will be allowed to be included in iBlackle's priority list.
I will be reviewing the sites often to check the integrity of the list. I will also be adding sites that I feel is worthy to be included on iBlackle's priority list, and I will personally delete non-relevant websites! Basically, the only thing I ask is for contributors to put in sites that are truly ecological, and support environmental issues or must aim to save the planet. If you feel shy to contribute and just want to add your site or suggest new ones, just send them via this contact page and I will add them to the list.
This improvement will morph iBlackle into a "General Purpose Search Engine with an Ecological Vent". It means that iBlackle will still provide relevant results when queried with general keywords (since it uses Google's General Search Engine) but whenever someone searches for terms which are environmental or ecological, iBlackle will return results that are more focused on ecological issues as influenced by the volunteer community of iBlackle. The ecological sites of the active green community will be given priority in the search results.
In essence, iBlackle will morph into a community-based, human-powered, collaborative search engine on ecological topics, while remaining as a general purpose "re-packaged" google search engine.
So go ahead. Volunteer now! Add your favorite green websites to iBlackle!

Links:
http://www.google.com/coop/cse?cx=005451225522983698504%3Azagxlwkyn5g

iBlackle to Fight Solastalgia

2007-12-30T16:14:00.002-05:00

An article from Wired's January 2008 Issue by Clive Thompson mentions a new kind of depression - Solastalgia - the sadness caused by environmental change. Australia is suffering the most of it, the article writes. And it strikes me that Blackle, the original inspiration of iBlackle, hails from the land of Down Under. Even moreso that the man who coined the word solastalgia is an Australian.
As iBlackle's lone developer, I am neither Australian, nor am I Solastalgic, but I would like to make it clear that I feel the pain too. That's why I started iBlackle on a humorous vent 2 months ago.
Although iBlackle, as a parody - seems to be making fun of ecological websites, it maintains that the damage to our planet is no laughing matter.
In fact it stuck to my mind that John Doerr (the venture capitalist who inspired the developers of CO2Stats.com) literally cried at the end of his talk about the environmental crisis. Dude, he could be Solastalgic! Well, he cried out of passion, wherein I would have peed my pants out of nervousness when giving speeches.
The saddening environmental issues of our Planet is real and it is no joke. And that is why iBlackle is here: To counter the pain and misery caused by environmental damage, via the use of comedy and humor to at least quell the sadness, to educate the masses in ecological issues, and raise public awareness on environmental matters.
Do Not Be Sad: iBlackle is Here to Save the Planet and Fight Solastalgia!

CO2 Emissions Offset ( How to make up for farting too much )

2007-12-19T12:50:00.000-05:00

Apparently, I farted a lot during the development of iBlackle, so I'd like to make up for the harm I did by installing the CO2 Emissions Offset on this blog & iBlackle pages. See the green widget below. Hopefully CO2Stats.com will really cancel out all the 'green pea gas' i made. And they better live up to their promise or else I might pass gas some more! It must've been the Green Pea Soup or the Lentil Soup that caused such toxic fumes in my bowels to emanate.
Lentil and Green Pea..."green" as it may seem, is not Ecofriendly. It contributes to Global Warming by causing too much fart, or CO2 emissions.
Imagine how HOT it would be if every person around the world ate Green Pea soup and Lentils simultaneously and then farted all at the same time - it would be global rotten hell!

Learn More Green Tips via iBlackle Naturally

2007-12-16T16:27:00.000-05:00

I have been adding more and more green tips (70 of them so far) as I learn and compile them that I come across. Of course I try to shorten them as much as I can, or make them sound funny. Some are even original ones that I just thought of myself (such as the example above). But what's even funnier is that I have been finding myself practicing these tips from out of the blue, instinctively, effortlessly, and naturally.
I guess these green tips showing up just a little bit above the iBlackle search box (or below the logo) gets read via peripheral vision and somehow induces a subliminal learning effect on the mind. Whoa!
Case in point: Use iBlackle more and you'll learn to be ecofriendlier naturally!

Wasteful Thinking

2007-12-07T12:20:00.000-05:00

iBlackle is a parody. I have started it with that in mind, but I realized it doesn't really 'act' like one. So today, I have decided to make a small change:
I have changed the "n Watt-hours saved" into "n Watt-hours Wasted". The counter mechanism is untouched, and honest as from the day i activated it last Nov 15, 2007. Only the suffix was changed from "saved" to "wasted".
The point of this parody is that by being aware of how much energy we actually waste on senseless searching, we can then take measures to minimize our energy-wasting activities (such as using this parody search engine!).
Right now, you are wasting your energy reading this st*pid post, so get back to useful work!

iBlackle Theme for iGoogle now Live!

2007-11-28T04:19:00.000-05:00

The long-awaited iBlackle Theme is now live! It's also an iGoogle skin to call it the other way around. The iGoogle interface has been 'monkeyed' with, using the GreaseMonkey Firefox Add-on. This release only works for Mozilla Firefox. And requires that the GreaseMonkey Add-On be installed in your Firefox browser first. Then the GreaseMonkey script should be installed next. It works seamlessly with your iGoogle custom page, but you must set 'Classic' as your theme! Don't select no crazy 'Solar System' themes just yet! I'm still working on it. For now, just enjoy the sleek iBlackle theme or skin for your iGoogle!

iBlackle as Mashup of the Day in ProgrammableWeb!

2007-11-27T08:19:00.000-05:00

iBlackle has just been selected as Mashup of the Day!!! It is truly fun for a parody mashup site to be listed in ProgrammableWeb - a site that focuses on the web's programmability or mashability (via APIs,SDKs,AJAX,etc). This really makes my day....its so funny! Now, all I need is some ecofriendly beer to celebrate!

Google AJAX Search API for iBlackle

2007-11-21T19:27:00.000-05:00

In my continuing quest to bring you the most ecofriendly way to perform your search, I am now working out a way to implement the Google AJAX Search API for iBlackle. Pretty soon, you will be able to do Web Search, Local Search, Video Search, Blog Search, News Search, Book Search, and Image Search directly from iBlackle.com! On the internet, it seems that AJAX will clean the planet!

Ecofriendly Tips delivered via AJAX!

2007-11-20T23:04:00.000-05:00

It wastes a lot of energy when webpages refresh. So iBlackle provided a neat little AJAX way for you to get short pieces of green tips via iBlackle. Simply hover your mouse over the lightbulb, (soon to be replaced by ecofriendly coiled flourescents :) and watch the magic unfold. Its short and sweet. These one-sentence green tips are my own compilation of ways to save the planet. I learned them from many many sources and shortened them to a few bite-sized words to minimize transit time of AJAX data transfer. A lot of them are from my own personal list to save energy.
Feel free to suggest short, one-sentence tips via this feedback/suggestion form.