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Cover Story: Daft Punk

Tue, 14 May 2013 21:18:00 -0700

Great article on Pitchfork about Daft Punk and their new album.

After 20 years, the world has finally caught up with Daft Punk, so the helmet-clad retro-futurists are embarking on a new mission: to make music breathe again

AOL is still the weirdest successful tech company in America

Wed, 08 May 2013 23:20:50 -0700

AOL is still the weirdest successful tech company in America:

You probably know AOL as a conglomeration of websites that presumably make money by selling advertising next to their articles. But in fact, AOL as a media company is a constant money-loser. It lost $17 million in advertising on its fleet of sites—AOL.com, Huffington Post, Moviefone—in the first quarter of 2012 and another $5 million in the first three months of this year.

So, as a business proposition, AOL is a media company—an ad company—with diminishing losses. But as a profit-making business, AOL isn’t a media company, or an advertising company, at all. It’s a vestigial subscriptions business gleaning cash from people who haven’t graduated from the era of pshhhkkkrrrrkakingkakingkakingtshchch*ding*ding*ding”.

Earnings filed under “membership,” which includes $168 million in subscriptions plus revenue associated with services like AIM, accounts for more than 100 percent of the company’s profit, just as it has for years. As Peter Kafka notes, this is both mind-boggling and not even close to being news.

How to Pronounce gif

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 12:00:40 -0700

How to Pronounce gif:

Laying to rest the age-old argument of how “gif” is pronounced.

How to Pronounce GIF, the Graphics Interchange Format. This is THE authoritative website on the correct pronunciation of GIF.

How to Mine Bitcoins

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 17:26:48 -0700

How to Mine Bitcoins:

Simple article on how to mine bitcoins.

Mining bitcoins – a process that helps manage bitcoin transactions as well as create new “wealth” – are the new Beanie Babies. Luckily for us, however, bitcoins seem to be going up in value and should maintain their value over time, unlike your mint condition Tiny the stuffed Chihuahua.

But how do you get bitcoins? You can begin by buying them outright, but the market is currently wild. At $188 per coin, the direction of the bitcoin is anyone’s guess right now and, unlike equities, these things don’t split. In short, you should probably mine. But what is bitcoin mining?

Think of it as work done by groups of people to find large prime numbers or trying keys to decrypt a file. You can read a lot more about it here but just understand that for every block mined you get 25 coins or, at current rates, $4,722.25. Currently a single bitcoin is valued at $188, an alarming result that is probably caused by money movements related to Cyprus and a general bubble-like excitement over the platform in general. In fact, many wager that the DDOS attacks on many bitcoin-related services are direct action by hackers to inject instability in order to reduce the price.

Experiment to Test if We're Living in a Simulation: Constraints on the Universe as a Numerical Simulation

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 21:44:01 -0700

Experiment to Test if We're Living in a Simulation: Constraints on the Universe as a Numerical Simulation:

Scientists have devised a way to test the simulation argument that states there is a strong likelihood we are living in a simulation.

Observable consequences of the hypothesis that the observed universe is a numerical simulation performed on a cubic space-time lattice or grid are explored. The simulation scenario is first motivated by extrapolating current trends in computational resource requirements for lattice QCD into the future. Using the historical development of lattice gauge theory technology as a guide, we assume that our universe is an early numerical simulation with unimproved Wilson fermion discretization and investigate potentially-observable consequences. Among the observables that are considered are the muon g-2 and the current differences between determinations of alpha, but the most stringent bound on the inverse lattice spacing of the universe, b^(-1) >~ 10^(11) GeV, is derived from the high-energy cut off of the cosmic ray spectrum. The numerical simulation scenario could reveal itself in the distributions of the highest energy cosmic rays exhibiting a degree of rotational symmetry breaking that reflects the structure of the underlying lattice.

Source

Timehop is great lilly: Timehop has become one of my very...

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 18:06:03 -0700

Timehop is great

lilly:

Timehop has become one of my very favorite things about digital life lately. We’re not investors, but I love what their team has built, because it’s so essentially human.

As I described to Jonathan, what happens about every other day, sometime in the morning, is that my wife or I sees a note/picture/tweet from a few years ago — when our son was 2 or 3 or 4 — and we send it to the other. In that way, Timehop is helping us connect with each other to remember some of our fondest memories together.

It’s emblematic of why I love this wave of mobile technology, too — because we have our devices with us all the time, and they can capture images and feelings so quickly and thoughtlessly, they’re becoming more human, and helping us connect.

I do worry some about how technology yanks us out of our present contexts, and I think it’s important to be intentional about issues like that, but these moments of connection, as more and more of our artifacts are digital — and therefore ubiquitous, retrievable, searchable & shareable — well, that’s a pretty special thing for sure.

Thanks so much to Jonathan & folks at Timehop — you’ve helped us to remember and talk about and laugh about and cry about many of the most important moments over the last few years.

Google Affiliate Network is Shutting Down

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 11:48:00 -0700

Google Affiliate Network is Shutting Down:

Google is shutting down Google Affiliate Network (formerly DoubleClick) for the second time, effective in July 2013. Supposedly it’s so they can focus on other products.

Read the full blog post from Google below:

Our goal with Google Affiliate Network has been to help advertisers and publishers improve their performance across the affiliate ecosystem. Cost-per-action (CPA) marketing has rapidly evolved in the last few years, and we’ve invested significantly in CPA tools like Product Listing Ads, remarketing and Conversion Optimizer. We’re constantly evaluating our products to ensure that we’re focused on the services that will have the biggest impact for our advertisers and publishers.

To that end, we’ve made the difficult decision to retire Google Affiliate Network and focus on other products that are driving great results for clients.

We’ll continue to support our customers as we wind down the product over the next few months. And there are other products that can help you achieve your goals. Affiliate publishers can continue to earn AdSense revenue through the AdSense network. And marketers can take advantage of other CPA-oriented Google tools like Product Listing Ads, remarketing and Conversion Optimizer to drive valuable online sales and conversions. These areas are growing rapidly and we’re continuing to invest heavily in them.

A wonkish look at bitcoin economics

Wed, 10 Apr 2013 12:39:04 -0700

A wonkish look at bitcoin economics:

Great post by Robert David Graham explaining the recent surge in bitcoin popularity.

Bitcoin is an increasingly popular electronic currency, used both for legitimate and illegal transactions. Economists haven’t taken a serious look at bitcoin yet, so I thought I’d take a stab at it. In particular, I’m going to look at the “intrinsic value” of bitcoin, answering the question whether the recent rapid rise in price (to $240 at the time of writing this) is justified.

Bitcoin vs. Money

There have been many un-serious looks at BitCoin. Take, for example, this 2011 blogpost by Nobel-prize winning economist Paul Krugman, where he compares bitcoin to the gold standard. He’s completely wrong.

The mistake economists make is assuming that bitcoin works like real money. It doesn’t. While bitcoin is designed as a “medium of exchange”, it doesn’t serve the other traditional functions of money, such as a “store of value”, “unit of account”, or “measure of value”.

In recent months, the price of bitcoins has skyrocketed. In classic economics, this means that the bitcoin economy has experienced massive “deflation”. Likewise, when the bitcoin bubble bursts and the price goes down, the bitcoin economy will experience hyper “inflation”.

But this inflation/deflation has no effect. Prices aren’t denominated in bitcoins, but in some hard currency like dollars or euros. Buyers exchange their dollars for bitcoins, give the bitcoins to the seller, who then immediately changes them back to euros. The entire process takes about 30 minutes. The only requirement is that the exchange rate for bitcoins not fluctuate wildly during this half-hour window. When analyzing bitcoin, we have to toss out this idea that it is a “measure of value” and the related ideas of inflation/deflation.

Full post

iPhone 5 Total Cost of Ownership Across the 4 Major US Carriers [INFOGRAPHIC]

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 19:56:45 -0700

iPhone 5 Total Cost of Ownership Across the 4 Major US Carriers [INFOGRAPHIC]:

Credit Card Comparison Tool

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 18:59:56 -0700

Credit Card Comparison Tool:

A few days ago we launched phase 1 of Creditnet’s new credit card search tool and it’s now live here: http://www.creditnet.com/credit-cards/search

It was a lot of work, but I think it’s the best credit card search tool on the web. If you’re looking for a new credit card check out the tool. It’ll show you how much you’ll earn in rewards or save per year by using different credit cards, and you can apply right from the site.

Casamigos Tequila Review

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 12:44:00 -0700

I love tequila and have tried all of them, from De Leon, Clase Azul, Avion, to Patron, Don Julio, and Casa Dragones. Recently, I tried the new Casamigos Tequila from George Clooney, and I was blown away. From their website (www.casamigostequila.com), the tequila was created between longtime friends George Clooney, Rande Gerber, and Mike Meldman. It’s a small batch, ultra-premium, 100% blue weber agave tequila. I had shots of both the Blanco and Reposado, and then was surprised to find how perfect it is as a sipping tequila.

The Blanco is smooth like velvet. Brilliant and very rich, the taste is complex with vanilla highlights, notes of tropical fruits with accents of honey, candied cinnamon, and ginger. I had it as a sipping tequila, on the rocks, and can only imagine how unreal of a margarita it’d make.

The Reposado is mature, with a creamy profile to go with the sunny gold color. I tasted soft and subtle notes of pepper and oak, and the finish was so smooth, it went down like like candy with warm caramel and agave notes.

Recently I was told Casamigos took home A Ratings and scored 90+ points in the industry standard Ultimate Spirits Challenge where it smashed Patron, Don Julio, Corazon, El Jimador, Sauza, and Tres Agaves. I wouldn’t expect anything less. Cheers.

Rating: 5/5 Stars

NASA's advice for near-term meteor strike: "Pray"

Tue, 19 Mar 2013 20:38:00 -0700

NASA's advice for near-term meteor strike: "Pray":

Interesting article on the implications of any ‘small’ meteors approach Earth

At a House Committee hearing Tuesday, NASA administrator Charles Bolden Jr. was asked what America would do if a meteor similar to the one that hit in Russia on Feb. 15 was found to be on a path toward New York City, with impact three weeks away. His response? “Pray.”

At the moment, we might be lucky to get even three weeks warning. The United States and the rest of the world simply do not have the ability to detect many “small” meteors like the one that exploded over Russia, which has been estimated at roughly 55 feet long. Donald Yeomans, Manager of NASA’s Near-Earth Object Program Office and the author of “Near-Earth Objects: Finding Them Before They Find Us,” told CBSNews.com that there are a lot of these small meteors in orbit, and little early warning system in place to detect them.

Yeomans said the most efficient way to find them would be a space-based infrared telescope. This has two benefits: One, the sun would not serve to prevent detection of some objects, and two, the infrared nature of the telescope would mean it would be effective in detecting them. (Part of the reason there was no warning for the Russia meteor is that the sun blinded the satellites.) CBS News contributor and City University of New York physics professor Michio Kaku calls such a telescope a “no brainer,” in part because it comes at the relatively low cost of a few hundred million dollars.

Samsung’s Galaxy S IV Will Scroll Content Based On Eye Movement, Report Says

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 11:32:00 -0800

Samsung’s Galaxy S IV Will Scroll Content Based On Eye Movement, Report Says:

Samsung is about to show off a new flagship phone at an event on March 14, and details continue to leak out about the new smartphone. The New York Times’ Brian X. Chen reports today that eye movement-based content scrolling will be among the Galaxy S IV’s features. Chen’s source, a Samsung employee, also says that the emphasis will be on software, not hardware at the upcoming press event.

Samsung’s next smartphone will be able to track a user’s eyes and scroll articles and other types of content based on where they’re focused, the source said, so that if a user was reading a web page and hit the bottom, the device could automatically scroll more content up into view. There’s no guarantee it will be demoed on stage, according to the article, but the Korean company should be showing off more new software features, instead of demoing hardware advancements.

What Most Schools Don’t Teach - Code.org“Everybody...

Wed, 27 Feb 2013 15:45:58 -0800

What Most Schools Don’t Teach - Code.org

“Everybody in this country should learn how to program a computer because it teaches you how to think.” - Steve Jobs

The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 11:47:11 -0800

The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food:

Great article in The New York Times about the science behind junk food, and what’s being done by the food companies.

On the evening of April 8, 1999, a long line of Town Cars and taxis pulled up to the Minneapolis headquarters of Pillsbury and discharged 11 men who controlled America’s largest food companies. Nestlé was in attendance, as were Kraft and Nabisco, General Mills and Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola and Mars. Rivals any other day, the C.E.O.’s and company presidents had come together for a rare, private meeting. On the agenda was one item: the emerging obesity epidemic and how to deal with it. While the atmosphere was cordial, the men assembled were hardly friends. Their stature was defined by their skill in fighting one another for what they called “stomach share” — the amount of digestive space that any one company’s brand can grab from the competition.

Catch Me Live on KFWB AM 980

Wed, 13 Feb 2013 01:10:09 -0800

Catch Me Live on KFWB AM 980:

I’ll be talking about MyRatePlan, the cell phone industry in general, and answering listener questions live on Money 101 with Bob McCormick on KFWB AM 980 live at 10:00am Pacific time this Friday, February 15th.

Click here to listen.

Google Rich Snippet Tool

Tue, 12 Feb 2013 11:48:00 -0800

Google Author Rank is the next big trend in SEO. I am not going to go into it in this post, but if you haven’t read about it yet, you can do so here.

My favorite tool to check if Author Rank is implemented correctly is the Google Rich Snippet Tool. With the Rich Snippet Tool, you can input a URL, and the tool will show you how your page should appear in Google search results if the Authorship tag was implemented correctly.

The Rich Snippet Tool is really useful if you’re new to Google Author Rank and want to check if you’ve set it up correctly. Just because you see your image next to your page in the tool, however, does not mean you will see it in the actual search results. Google needs to first believe that you are an authority author before it will start showing your picture and Google+ profile in its SERPs. Getting the Authorship tags implemented and tested correctly is the first step though.

Click here for the Rich Snippet Tool.

Apple Replaces Samsung As No.1 Mobile Maker In U.S. In Q4 2012

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 09:06:04 -0800

Apple Replaces Samsung As No.1 Mobile Maker In U.S. In Q4 2012:

Apple took the title of largest mobile maker by volume in the U.S. in Q4 2012, according to Strategy Analytics, which said Cupertino rose to the top of the U.S. phone maker charts for the first time ever — taking a record 34 per cent marketshare, and shipping an estimated 17.7 million units in the quarter. Samsung came second, with a 32.3 per cent share, shipping 16.8 million smartphones. Third place went to LG — but the company was far behind Apple and Samsung, with only a nine per cent share, and shipments of 4.7 million units.

Sausages by Amylu Review

Thu, 31 Jan 2013 20:44:00 -0800

I won a Facebook contest a few weeks ago on the Sausages by Amylu Facebook page. Every once in a while I like to review random things on here, and since I haven’t seen many Sausages by Amylu reviews out there, I thought I’d write one myself. I have purchased the Apple Gouda flavor of Amylu sausages before at Costco, but hadn’t really tried a lot of the other flavors until I won these sweepstakes and ATK Foods sent me a big group of sausages to try. I really enjoyed them so I thought I would write a review here to get the word out.

Here are the sausages the company sent me, along with a little breakdown about each one:

Andouille Chicken Sausage

The Andouille Chicken Sausages had a decently spicy cajun flavor to them. I would say out of all of the sausages I received, the Andouille sausages were probably my second favorite flavor, behind the Apple & Gouda flavor. They are spicy, but not too spicy, and I liked them a lot.

Sugarhouse Maple Chicken Sausage

The Sugarhouse Maple Chicken Sausages were good as well, but they had more of a sweet flavor to them, which made them feel a little more like a breakfast item than something I would eat throughout the day, or for dinner. The Sugarhouse sausages were longer and thinner than the rest of the sausages, but there are also eight to a package, instead of the regular four.

Italian Chicken Sausage

The Italian chicken sausages tasted like your standard Italian chicken sausages, but definitely had a feel of higher quality to them than the regular Italian sausages you can get at your local supermarket.

Dried Tomato & Basil Chicken Sausage

The Dried Tomato & Basil Chicken Sausages were solid as well, and I would probably say they were my third favorite behind Apple & Gouda and the Andouilles.

Apple & Gouda Chicken Sausage

The Apple & Gouda Chicken Sausages have always been my favorite Sausages by Amylu. In fact, I had picked these up at Costco before when they were sampling them for free, and that is the only reason I had found out about Amylu’s sausages in the first place. There is Gouda cheese throughout the sausages, and you get a taste of melted cheese in your mouth in almost every bite.

All in all, I definitely recommend Sausages by Amylu because they are easy to make, and since they are chicken and gluten-free, they are some of the healthiest sausages you can buy. They come pre-cooked so all you have to do is heat them up via microwave or stove, but I found that the best way to prepare them was by cooking them in a pan with about a half an inch of water. ATK Foods also apparently offers Burgers by Amylu and Meatballs by Amylu, which I will try next.

If you want to try them for yourself, you can buy them from the Sausages by Amylu website.

Child of the 90s | Internet Explorer I’m still a Chrome...

Thu, 24 Jan 2013 11:17:00 -0800

Child of the 90s | Internet Explorer

I’m still a Chrome guy but this nostalgic commercial was a great ad for the new IE