Overloading the Machine

Vegan food in Logan Airport's Terminal C

Sat, 10 Oct 2009 13:24:55 GMT

I ended up being in Logan this morning longer than expected, so I was poking around Terminal C looking for some vegan friendly food, without much hope for anything better than trail mix.

Turns out the Boston Back Bay Cafe (kind of by Gate C15) carries some of the "Macro and Vegetarian" prepackaged stuff. They had the Vegan Pad Thai, Vegan Dumplings, and Vegan Udon Noodles. Supposedly they can be eaten hot or cold. I've had their stuff before and it's not my favorite, but in the airport, I'll take it.

Unsurprisingly, the cashier didn't know how to ring them up.

William Safire's Finest Speech

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 03:28:05 GMT

There must be more like this in his collection -- the unspoken speech written for Nixon by William Safire to be delivered in the event that Armstrong and Aldrin couldn't return to Earth.

William Safire's Finest Speech - William Safire - Gawker

Phone freedom and double-talk

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 00:21:26 GMT

This article confusedly says, "Will carriers be willing to subsidize the N900 and its locked-down Maemo OS?" The "lock down" that it's describing refers to the comments by a Nokia executive saying that Nokia would not do customizations for carriers. These customizations are usually proprietary, often relating to locking the phone to their network, or implementing carrier-specific features like "MyCrap" or whatever. Nokia's comments were in contrast, for example, to Google's Android operating system, which is licensed in a way to specifically allow proprietary software extensions on top of a free software core. So apparently, unlocked is the new locked. Or something.

Unfortunately, Nokia quickly retracted the executive's comments anyway, saying they are leaving room for the possibility of such customizations.

In other phone freedom news, Palm has been working hard to demonstrate the fundamental incompatibilities between free software and the exclusive "app store" model of software distribution.

My OpenMoko FreeRunner has still been having some voice quality issues in low-reception areas, but is otherwise working quite well running the SHR distribution. Unfortunately one of those low-reception areas is my home, but I've been compensating for that by using the free VOIP software Ekiga and Asterisk more when I'm home.

Dave's Fresh Pasta thieves caught

Sun, 27 Sep 2009 22:13:55 GMT

Good to see that the dudes who ran off with one of the cash registers from Dave's Fresh Pasta have been apprehended. I apologize for blaming it on the return of the students, since I don't think these guys even qualify as students of life.

As the men fled in a car toward Teele Square, they were pulled over by police. A witness identified Doane and McCarthy as the men who busted into Dave’s Fresh Pasta. An open 10-inch folding knife was found in the car the men were in, police said.

McCarthy was arrested and charged with possession of a dangerous weapon, destruction of property over $250, breaking and entering in the nighttime for a felony, operating a motor vehicle with a suspended license and larceny over $250. Doane was arrested and charged with receiving stolen property over $250.

Also, it's funny to me that when people break the law in one major way, they seem to often break it in other random incidental ways. If you're going to drive around robbing places, how about having a valid license and not carrying a weapon? And does this mean that it's a worse offense to break into a place at night?

Now if that second cash register could be returned, I'd appreciate it. With only one, the line has been looonnnngg.

And we wonder why there is confusion

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 03:21:43 GMT

The FSF is not "open source." Any ideas where this Google description comes from? It certainly doesn't come from the web site it's supposedly indexing and presenting.

Vegan pizza - returning soon to Allston!

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 14:55:23 GMT

I'm happy to see that Allston's TJ Scallywaggle's (which as I understand it is actually closed despite the fact that their web site still pretends that they are open and asks you to donate to them) is reopening under a new name "Peace o' Pie" and will continue serving vegan pizza.

Vegan pizza - returning soon to Allston!

It's not easy, being green

Mon, 07 Sep 2009 03:30:30 GMT

I'm finding some irony in the fact that the Peapod grocery service does not carry baby lima beans.

(No, those big fat butter beans don't work for succotash.)

A Vegan in the National Football League? : Planet Green

Sun, 06 Sep 2009 17:19:36 GMT

I thought I'd read something about him reverting; happy to hear that's not the case.

Another NFL season is upon us but what can the red meat macho world of pro football offer an earth-friendly greenie? How about a lesson in eco-eating from Atlanta Falcons Tight End Tony Gonzalez? A ten-time Pro Bowl selection, Gonzalez currently holds the NFL records for single season receptions (102) by a tight end, career touchdowns by a tight end (76), career receptions by a tight end (916), and reception yards by a tight end (10,940).

A Vegan in the National Football League? : Planet Green

Stripping iPhone notices from e-mails in Gnus

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 16:49:00 GMT

I'm not a fan of the iPhone, because of its proprietary software and Digital Restrictions Management (DRM).

Sometimes people e-mail me from iPhones, and so I see that little "Sent from my iPhone" note at the bottom of their messages.

While I would prefer that people change that note (if Apple allows them to do that) to say something like, "The iPhone is Defective by Design (http://defectivebydesign.org).", my second choice would be to just not see the note. Fortunately, in Gnus — my favorite free software e-mail client — it's easy to "wash" messages.

Today to my .gnus file I added:

(setq gnus-parameters
      '((".*"
        (banner . iphone))))

(setq gnus-article-banner-alist
      '((iphone . "\\(^Sent from my iPhone$\\)")))

Now I don't have to see those notes.

THOOGLE

Thu, 13 Aug 2009 01:44:50 GMT

4.At Broadway, take the 3rd exit onto Broadway

...

9.Take the exit

(Getting from my apartment to Logan Airport..)

Waste not want not

Sun, 09 Aug 2009 04:12:06 GMT

Trying to cook up the contents of my refrigerator before I leave on vacation this week, I started today with:

Oven roasted corn on the cob
Potato Kale Soup
Roasted Beets and Carrots
Fresh squeezed lemonade

Tomorrow there will probably be zucchini bread plus maybe some roasted zucchini, mashed potatoes, potato salad, three-bean salad, and something with broccoli.

We believe in the freedom to read | DefectiveByDesign.org

Tue, 04 Aug 2009 03:30:47 GMT

Please add your signature to the petition, "We believe in the freedom to read | DefectiveByDesign.org", and help spread the word. No pun intended.

Tofu Tahini Spread

Sun, 02 Aug 2009 20:16:40 GMT

Tofu Tahini Spread

I don't like it so much just on crackers — the flavor of hippie is just too strong — but it's been good on sandwiches for lunch the last few days. Pictured above with cucumbers, romaine and pea sprouts from Boston Organics, plus some red onion and grape tomatoes.

FCC takes on Apple and AT&T over App Store rejections

Sat, 01 Aug 2009 04:53:16 GMT

This seems like very good news. It seems like the FCC is asking the right questions.

Recent press reports indicate that Apple has declined to approve the Google Voice application for the iPhone and has removed related (and previously approved) third-party applications from the iPhone App Store. In light of pending FCC proceedings regarding wireless open access (RM-11361) and handset exclusivity (RM-11497), we are interested in a more complete understanding of this situation.

To that end, please provide answers to the following questions by close of business on Friday, August 21, 2009.

...

6. What are the standards for considering and approving iPhone applications? What is the approval process for such applications (timing, reasons for rejection, appeal process, etc.)? What is the percentage of applications that are rejected? What are the major reasons for rejecting an application?

FCC Takes On Apple And AT&T Over Google Voice Rejection

First Boston Organics box

Sat, 01 Aug 2009 01:07:52 GMT

My first box from Boston Organics was waiting for me on the porch when I got home today.

Excuse me sir, do you have the train?

Wed, 29 Jul 2009 23:29:20 GMT

The Red Line was experiencing delays (I love the passivity in the language the MBTA uses) tonight on my way home due to some problem at Harvard.

Right around Central, a uniformed T employee (the conductor?) emerges from the "cockpit" into the train car, and asks me, "Excuse me, can you tell me what time it is?"

Um...

I told her it was 6:42. Doesn't the train have a clock? Isn't this whole operation supposed to run on some kind of schedule? Was the T really relying on employees carrying their own clocks, in the form of cell phones which they are no longer allowed to have on duty?

Are you coming or going?

Tue, 28 Jul 2009 14:34:53 GMT

Saw this today while checking out a JetBlue special:

What Google thinks of me

Mon, 27 Jul 2009 04:35:41 GMT

This is apparently what Google thinks of me. There is a standard "workshop poem" based on this kind of anaphora, which is done masterfully by Tyler Doherty in his collection Bodhidharma Never Came to Hatboro and Other Poems. I read it back in 2005 but had to part with my copy of it. Reading this Googlism reminded me to order another.

I've marked some of my favorites in bold.

Googlism for: john sullivan

john sullivan is encouraged by the arrests of former worldcom executives
john sullivan is rescued by a group of yugoslav chetnik guerrillas in a small boat travelling across from egypt
john sullivan is in a newly created "assistant director" position
john sullivan is head of the human management program in the college of business at san francisco state university
john sullivan is a professor and the hr program coordinator for the college of business at san francisco state university
john sullivan is the cto for agilent technologies and is on leave as head and professor of human resource management college of business
john sullivan is played by skipp sudduth
john sullivan is a graduate of brown university and columbia law
john sullivan is from the collection in the new hampshire state legislature
john sullivan is suddenly bombarded with a whole set of new memories
john sullivan is dedicated to solving the emerging issues faced by today's leading organizations and has proven effective at
john sullivan is owner of all of the above hilton head real estate for sale
john sullivan is vice president of sales and business development
john sullivan is a 26
john sullivan is observing
john sullivan is named drama coach and carl lopes as assistant drama coach
john sullivan is ruled out because he left the ship before the fleet week event and is also listed as a non us citizen
john sullivan is a virtuoso woodworker and luthier
john sullivan is a world
john sullivan is the supervisor of assessments for harford county
john sullivan is serving his first term after being appointed to fill a vacant position in 2001
john sullivan is also the author of "only fools and horses" and "roger roger"
john sullivan is now available
john sullivan is senior vice president in charge of underwriting
john sullivan is not only an excellent researcher
john sullivan is that choice
john sullivan is the head and professor of human resource management
john sullivan is a former chair of the institute of carmelite studies
john sullivan is a cop in 1999 who is down on his luck
john sullivan is one of the nation's top ol prospects
john sullivan is the finest comedy writer on television and i'm delighted his next work will be on itv
john sullivan is recorded in princess anne county
john sullivan is a parent
john sullivan is a financial analyst with ispworld
john sullivan is an assistant sports information director with the rice university athletic department
john sullivan is with at&t data and internet services in bridgewater
john sullivan is currently working on a new script for the show
john sullivan is head of the human resource management program in the college of business at san francisco state university
john sullivan is a shareholder with inslee
john sullivan is the pitcher of the week
john sullivan is a 25 year old aeronautical engineer
john sullivan is huge
john sullivan is the god of fools then steve clarks? new book "the only fools & horses story" is the fools bible
john sullivan is an assistant professor in the department of information systems as part of the gerald schwartz school of business and information systems at st
john sullivan is a
john sullivan is the cto for agilent technologies
john sullivan is the second candidate to emerge for the open seat
john sullivan is working on new scripts
john sullivan is head of the human resource management program at san francisco state university
john sullivan is an associate editor at the oxford american
john sullivan is writing a new series
john sullivan is a new york police detective whose life isn't exactly a glowing success
john sullivan is currently a freelance musician in the nyc area
john sullivan is rumored to be considering running for the assembly district on the democratic ticket
john sullivan is seeking
john sullivan is the winner of the 1999/2000 excellence
john sullivan is age 12
john sullivan is the most polite
john sullivan is a wonderful comic writer
john sullivan is a talented filmmaker of comedies who decides to make something "important
john sullivan is head of the human resource management program at san francisco state
john sullivan is director of distribution developement at callas enterprises
john sullivan is a well
john sullivan is a distinguished academic
john sullivan is a stickler for detail
john sullivan is a shining example; but sullivan himself is a modest man who speaks hesitantly about his many military honors and his achievements as base
john sullivan is the regents’ professor of political science at the university of minnesota
john sullivan is a dedicated practitioner
john sullivan is expected to hold an open forum with residents later this week
john sullivan is
john sullivan is now a cop and his mother's murderer was never brought to justice
john sullivan is an overworked ny cop who's lived in the same house all of his life
john sullivan is a thirty
john sullivan is a technical manager for a fortune 1000 it company and has written extensively on project and career management issues
john sullivan is this?
john sullivan is very
john sullivan is a lecturer in the department of computer and information sciences here at the university of delaware
john sullivan is a sergeant with the los angeles sheriff's department
john sullivan is the editor of transit policing

What does Google think about you?

Stop Facebook from using you in ads

Fri, 24 Jul 2009 00:21:19 GMT

So, if on Facebook you visit:

Settings => Privacy => News Feed and Wall => Facebook Ads

you'll see:

Facebook occasionally pairs advertisements with relevant social actions from a user's friends to create Facebook Ads. Facebook Ads make advertisements more interesting and more tailored to you and your friends. These respect all privacy rules. You may opt out of appearing in your friends' Facebook Ads below.

where you can select not to be an unpaid star in some random ads designed to con your friends. Probably a good idea.

At first I was confused, because when I clicked on the Facebook Ads tab, I saw nothing. That's because I had Adblock Plus on. Oh the irony.

The free software replacement for Facebook (ala identi.ca replacing Twitter) can't come fast enough.

Me neither

Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:06:55 GMT

Child on the Red Line this morning, when the train stopped in the tunnel between Charles/MGH and Park Street:

I didn't know this was a station!

(Also posted to ovrheardboston.)

Double-plus ungood: give Amazon's Kindle a 1-star review

Tue, 21 Jul 2009 19:04:22 GMT

This is an article I wrote for the FSF Bulletin, and also posted as a review of the Kindle on Amazon.com, as part of DefectiveByDesign's campaign to let the public know about ebook DRM. You can help by digging the campaign action at http://digg.com/gadgets/Tell_Kindle_buyers_Amazon_can_delete_your_books and posting your own review.

2009-07-22: They rejected the review the first time, because I neglected to read their guidelines and included URLs (as well as some things that might be interpreted as appeals for more votes, which are also prohibited). So I revised and resubmitted, and the reviews are now posted here and here.

Don't get swindled

Proprietary software and proprietary formats are vehicles for the exercise of power by some over others. Companies that claim ownership over the software and formats involved in the delivery of information become gatekeepers determining who can and cannot access that information. The point isn't whether the people who claim such power — and are granted it by our legal system — use it for good or bad. The point is that they shouldn't have it at all. But as it turns out anyway, they generally use it for bad.

The Amazon Kindle (more appropriately known as the "Swindle"), which uses proprietary software to distribute ebooks in proprietary formats within a Digital Restrictions Management (DRM) scheme, is an example of a company claiming and being granted power they shouldn't have over books and the terms under which we can access them.

Amazon's speedy move to shut off the Kindle's text-to-speech (TTS) capabilities in response to complaints by the Authors Guild was a clear demonstration of this power. Authors Guild president Roy Blount, Jr. borrowed our "Kindle Swindle" monicker as the headline for his New York Times op-ed piece complaining that the TTS feature infringed on authors' rights. Amazon twiddled some bits and suddenly all Kindles refused to read certain titles aloud. It's still a mystery why a computerized voice reading a book aloud to you in your home is infringement on any author's right — but in this case, it's Amazon's secret software that makes the law.

This action sparked a backlash that is still gaining momentum. Blind people have been protesting in large numbers, because the TTS feature is incredibly useful to them. Their point is powerful — taking it further, we should not be content with case-specific exemptions. The problem isn't that Amazon and the publishers don't use the power properly, it's that they have it at all. In this case, they used it in a manner that disproportionately impacted blind users, and that was wrong. But if they retain the power, they will be able to use it later against someone else.

Update: They just made this prediction come true, by remotely deleting purchased copies of 1984 and Animal Farm from hundreds of Kindles. Along with the books, they deleted students' annotations on the books (http://www.defectivebydesign.org/blog/1248).

This has not been the only such instance. Earlier this year, DefectiveByDesign supporters sent Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos jars of peach baby food — a reference to an episode of Seinfeld where Kramer is banned from his favorite fruit market for attempting to return a peach — to call attention to Amazon's ban of a user for returning too many Amazon purchases; a ban which prevented the user not only from purchasing any ebooks for his Kindle but also from accessing ebooks he had already purchased (http://defectivebydesign.org/impeach-jeff-bezos-for-kindle-swindle). Though the ban was rescinded after the outcry, the leopard had shown its spots.

Amazon spokeswoman Cinthia Portugal told Wired that "Amazon is agnostic when it comes to DRM with ebooks," and that they "give content owners the choice." While Amazon has been a positive force in the world of DRM-free music, they are anything but a neutral party in the ebook world. They control the format, the device, and the store where the media for the device is purchased. If all they wanted to do was "give content owners the choice," then why did they send a DMCA takedown notice to a site hosting a tool which facilitated loading books from other companies onto the Kindle (http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-10196424-38.html)?

Statements like Portugal's show Amazon's strategy: Don't look behind the curtain. Trying to get an exact description of what the DRM on the Kindle does is impossible. DRM is not even mentioned much less explained — outside of user-contributed reviews — on the purchase page for the Kindle. And yet, while the Kindle already does support some DRM-free formats, access to the restricted Kindle store is the feature being marketed most heavily by Amazon.

Whatever happens with the Kindle, we need to work to eliminate DRM on all ebooks. Here are some things you can do to protest these restrictions and promote DRM-free ebooks:

Don't get swindled. Other portable devices can both run free software and read DRM-free ebooks. FBReader is free software that runs on Android mobile devices, the OpenMoko FreeRunner, and other systems running GNU/Linux. The Bebook e-ink device publishes their reader software as free software under the GNU General Public License (GPL). As of this writing, the Bebook still includes a proprietary module for DRM support, but maybe if enough people request it, they will offer a completely DRM-free version.

Support authors who offer their ebooks without DRM. Creative Commons licenses sensibly prohibit DRM, so look for books under licenses like CC-BY-ND, CC-BY and CC-BY-SA. Another group of authors is working to tag all of their own DRM-free ebooks with "drmfree" on Amazon. You can help by supporting their work and by helping in the tagging effort (http://defectivebydesign.org/blog/1240).

Insist that Amazon start being honest about their DRM. Write to Amazon asking them to answer author Cory Doctorow's questions about DRM — and publish your letter online (http://boingboing.net/2009/05/14/kindle-owners-start.html). If Amazon is just doing what the authors want, then why aren't they answering him?

Hand out copies of "The Right to Read" (http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/right-to-read.html). Richard Stallman's short story illustrates the kind of world we can expect if we buy into proprietary devices, proprietary formats, and DRM for our ebooks.

Review Amazon on Amazon. This worked to call attention to DRM on video games, when many people reviewed Spore negatively for its DRM. The same can be done with the Kindle. Take a few minutes to write your own review of the Kindle, emphasizing the problems with DRM.

Review the Reviewers. Write to tech reviewers and point out that they failed to mention the Kindle or other device's DRM restrictions in their review. Some reviewers wield a lot of influence — people like David Pogue of the New York Times. It's mystifying that they exclude such an important misfeature when they review devices in this genre.

Please do write to us at info@defectivebydesign.org about anything you do to protest ebook DRM, and use the LibrePlanet wiki at http://libreplanet.org to share the texts and reading lists you've created. Together we can achieve the same in the arena of ebooks that we have achieved in music — a widespread recognition that people will no longer tolerate DRM.

News of interest to those who drink

Sun, 19 Jul 2009 15:38:48 GMT

Starbucks inside the Louvre in Paris

I wasn't surprised to see Boulder at #3 on this list of "Heaviest Drinking Metro Areas." I definitely witnessed several incidents related to that distinction, around 2am on the Pearl Street Mall -- a stark contrast with the scores of healthy bikers and joggers I saw each morning during my barista shifts. I blamed a lot of it at the time on the debut of Red Bull as a mixer. Keeping people awake longer so they can drink more turns out to be not that great of an idea. But I guess the trend has deeper roots than that.

In other tipsy news, Starbucks is getting into the alcohol business, starting with a store in Seattle. I think this is a welcome development generally -- I enjoy the European-style coffee house where you can have a glass of wine or a beer instead of coffee. We sort of have it here in Boston with the Trident; if only it felt less like a restaurant. But I'm definitely wary of what Starbucks will bring to this -- could Starbucks do to the bar industry what they've done to the cafe industry? They aren't going to try to rename the "pint," are they?

Quote

Sun, 19 Jul 2009 00:57:51 GMT

When all is said and done, more is said than done.

-- Lou Holtz

From Brainy Quote.

Credit card fees

Sat, 18 Jul 2009 02:42:32 GMT

The New York Times says that:

At Target, for example, interchange fees represent the second-largest store-level expense, behind payroll. The costs are similarly eye-popping at Home Depot, where officials say they top the price of health care insurance for employees. “The amount of money we’re spending on interchange would put 10 associates in each of our stores,” Dwaine Kimmet, vice president of financial services for Home Depot, said at a recent conference on credit card fees.

(via the Consumerist)

Grillo's Pickles

Sat, 18 Jul 2009 01:41:04 GMT

I tried to stop by the Grillo's Pickles cart by Park Street on my way home from work today. I wanted 2 delicious pickle spears for $1. Sadly, the cart was unattended (I think he just stepped away for a minute). But then I went to Dave's Fresh Pasta to pick up some other things, and look what I found.