[…] all the way back, 17 years, through the Great Browser Wars, all the way back to February 25, 1993, when Marc Andreessen offhandedly remarked, “MIME, someday, maybe,” and then shipped his code anyway.

Right up my alley.

[Via Grant Hutchinson]

In trying to keep my bash-fu hightened, I tossed together the following bash script:

#!/bin/bash

# 
# mw2_countdown
# 
# Post countdown to Modern Warfare 2 release to Twitter every day
# 

release_year=2009
release_month=11
release_day=10
year=10#$(date +%Y)
month=10#$(date +%m)
day=10#$(date +%d)
username='cowardswayout'
password='somethingiwontleakhere'

if (( $release_year == $year && $release_month == $month && $day <= $release_day )); then
	if (( $day == $release_day )); then
		printf -v message "Modern Warfare 2 (http://bit.ly/dQMPz) is out! Go get your copy!"
	else
		printf -v message "Modern Warfare 2 (http://bit.ly/dQMPz) in %s..." $(( $release_day - $day ))
	fi	
	curl -u $username:$password -d status="$message" http://twitter.com/statuses/update.xml
fi

Since I host with Mac OS X Server and am anal about doing things “The Mac Way”, I whipped up a launchd job to run it every morning at 1am:

<plist version="1.0">
<dict>
	<key>Label</key>
	<string>com.cowardswayout.mw2_countdown</string>
	<key>ProgramArguments</key>
	<array>
		<string>/usr/local/bin/mw2_countdown</string>
	</array>
	<key>StartCalendarInterval</key>
	<dict>  
		<key>Hour</key>
		<integer>1</integer>
		<key>Minute</key>
		<integer>0</integer>
	</dict>
</dict>
</plist>

As you can see, I installed the bash script in /usr/local/bin/mw2_countdown and the launchd job went in /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.cowardswayout.mw2_countdown.plist.

I changed the permissions so that only root has read/execute access to the bash script, since the Twitter account password is stored in plain text:

sudo chmod 700 /usr/local/bin/mw2_countdown

And loaded the launchd job:

sudo launchctl load /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.cowardswayout.mw2_countdown.plist

Now I only have to remember to remove the bash script and launchd job sometime after 11/10/09. Naturally, this script can be easily tailored to your own needs.

Update: I’ve updated the script to prepend 10# to each call like $(date +%y) to force it to be evaluated as base 10 and also switched from using test (square brackets) to using the correct arithmetic evaluations (double parentheses).

Now it’s coming to the PlayStation 3. Oddly, it’ll comes on a disc which you can reserve now. Notes about Netflix being “exclusive” on the Xbox 360 console are no longer present on Xbox.com.

I’d highly consider the PS3 w/Netflix. Blu-ray would be nice. I’d miss Gears of War & the Xbox 360 controller. It’d be an even sweeter deal if they hadn’t dropped Linux support in the PS3 slim.

[Via Jon Hicks]

I also archived Newton-related Geocities sites for UNNA.

[Via NewtonTalk]

My first web site was hosted on Geocities. It’s hard to believe it’s been twelve years (at least, for me).

On first reference, use “retweeted.” On subsequent references, you may use “RTed,” “copied” or “had nothing original to say.”

And:

According to our technology writer, “Disc” refers to optical media while “disk” refers to magnetic media. NERD.

Not to mention:

While it’s tempting to call them “baristi” because of the Italian roots, the plural of “barista” is “journalism majors.”

[Via Grant Hutchinson] (I’m not sorry.)

The first rule of Twitter should be: don’t follow celebrities. It only encourages them. Don’t do it.

[Via Paul Guyot]

Sensuous technology.
Tactile utility.
Beautiful Newton.

Including one of my own.

[Via Grant Hutchinson]

Now it is time to retire this lovely device, and start using its successor, probably one of the last produced MP2100 I bought already quite a while ago. I’m not sure if it will also see twelve years of service, but you never know.

First, I’m extremely relieved to hear that Eckhart is still dedicated to the Newton as he’s one of the few remaining developers. Second, this says so much about the MessagePad 2100 as a whole, hardware and software, which is able to survive 12 years and be set down only for more of the same.

And the facade of the parking, we wanted to make the parking naturally ventilated. So we needed to perforate it. And we discovered that by controlling the size of the holes we could actually turn the entire facade into a gigantic, naturally ventilated, rasterized image. and since we always refer to the project as The Mountain, we commissioned this Japanese Himalaya photographer to give us this beautiful photo of Mount Everest, making the entire building a 3,000 square meter artwork.

I love the fact that they, “cut up the volume, so [they] wouldn’t block the view from [his] apartment.” How frequently do architects consider what the view is like from the surrounding buildings? It feels like the majority believe people will be gratified that they’re looking at the masterpiece in front of them.