RFID: Credit Card Companies Bully Discovery, Mythbusters Into Axing Segment on RFID Vulnerabilities

RFID: Credit Card Companies Bully Discovery, Mythbusters Into Axing Segment on RFID Vulnerabilities

Fred flintstone

Fred flintstone
Originally uploaded by k3rm

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

As seen in hilcrest

As seen in hilcrest
Originally uploaded by k3rm

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Twitter feed

In case any of my 3 readers are wondering why my blog is so quiet these days, it has a lot to do with Twitter. Twitter is a micro-blogging service that allows users to post 140 character posts and allows other users to subscribe to these short posts and receive them a number of different mediums (web, SMS, IM). As annoying as I find most Twitter posts, I'm strangely drawn to it. I've tried to kick my Twitter habit and return to this blog, but it's just so easy to post these short updates.

I've added a Twitter Widget on the right hand side of the blog in case you want to see what I'm posting there. While you're peering over to the right, check out my shared Google Reader items just below the Twitter feed.

To find out more about Twitter, check out Twitter or Wikipedia. Better yet, sign up for an account, follow me and join in on the addicting fun.

11 Things Startups Should Know About Enterprise 2.0 - ReadWriteWeb

A very nice quote that is key to what I'm working on at work these days! Emphasis mine

11 Things Startups Should Know About Enterprise 2.0 - ReadWriteWeb: "Social Media is about being open, loose, unstructured, informal and fun; no ties allowed. Enterprises are about secrecy, structure and control. Ties show that you are serious and fun is for after work. The ties and fun bit is just style. But secrecy, structure and control is real. If you threaten those, many forces within the enterprise will shut you out. It will be like the red blood cells attacking the foreign virus. On the other hand, if you go along with all the secrecy, structure and control rules of the enterprise you will lose the social media benefits of extended enterprise collaboration and innovation. Many people within enterprises understand this and some of them are in a policy-making position of authority. In general, the trend is towards loose, unstructured, 'emergent business networks'. So 'make the trend your friend', but beware of the very strong forces of opposition and deal positively with their legitimate needs."

Offshore oil drilling in the US: what's at stake? - earth - 13 August 2008 - New Scientist Environment

Offshore oil drilling in the US: what's at stake? - earth - 13 August 2008 - New Scientist Environment:

"Bush and McCain have called for offshore drilling in order to lower oil prices. Obama also said he would consider the plan. How soon would drilling translate to cheaper prices?

Not very soon. Drilling has not yet begun in areas that were opened in 2006, because of on-going negotiations over the leasing agreements. It could take another five to seven years for drilling to begin once the leases have been agreed. So two full presidential terms are likely to have passed by the time drilling begins.

The US Energy Department's forecasting arm has said opening the Pacific, Atlantic and eastern Gulf of Mexico regions to drilling would not have a significant impact on domestic crude oil and natural gas production or prices before 2030."

Obama and McCain Tax Proposals - washingtonpost.com

Obama and McCain Tax Proposals - washingtonpost.com

Television - Is Jon Stewart the Most Trusted Man in America? - NYTimes.com

Television - Is Jon Stewart the Most Trusted Man in America? - NYTimes.com

Death Star over San Francisco // Current

Awesome!!!

Death Star over San Francisco // Current

Logic, rational thinking gone...

The History channel is now dead to me. Caught a horrible show on Doomsday 2012. It's filled with horrible 'facts' that are easy to check out and show they are actually crappy theories laid out nutcases. The show doesn't really tell you that though, instead, it opts to call the few scientists they do interview as "skeptics" (said with a very derogatory tone) while presenting ridiculously vague prophecies as very specific historical events.

I have zero respect for the History channel at this point. To present this garbage as fact is terribly disingenuous and fuels massive waste of time and waste of cognitive surplus in conspiracy theorists. Not to mention the time wasted trying to prove all the logical fallacies and flat out wrong facts to these people, who now have a TV show to point to and say, "the History channel said it's true!"

Decoding The Past - Doomsday 2012: The End of Days

The Rise and (relative) fall of supidity in america

The Rise and (relative) fall of supidity in america

Another reason why PB should be tented, fumigated, and put under marshall law

SignOnSanDiego.com > News > Metro -- Police review rise in rape cases

Mini plus surfboards

Mini plus surfboards
Originally uploaded by k3rm

Doesn't look too silly!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Skin Deep: Cosmetic Safety Database - Special Report

I seem to have forgotten to blog this. Good stuff about sunscreen and what's bad for you. I have switched the sunscreen I use on my face to a really good Blue Lizard Zinc-based block. It works great! I still use a spray for the rest of my body because it's quick and easy and even if the chemicals are bad, I doubt they are worse than cancer.

Skin Deep: Cosmetic Safety Database - Special Report

Secrets To An Interfaith Relationship

Not sure how this ended up in my browser this morning. Must have been something clicked from my RSS reader. Still, it's an interesting short read about something that has interested me from time to time.

Secrets To An Interfaith Relationship

After reading, notice the "Articles you love most" on the right... this web site cracks me up.

Top five iPhone gripes - The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)

My exact reasons for not getting an iphone.

I should add the lack of voice dialing.

My blackberry does all this and is actually easier to use, in my opinion. The iphone feels like a dumbed down phone to me that they market and sell for much more than other phones.

Top five iPhone gripes - The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)

J.O.B.: A short surf film from Red Bull

While my life isn't exactly the same as either of these guys, I'm closer to the suit and want to be closer to the trunks.

J.O.B.: A short surf film from Red Bull

Betrayed by Obama - Joan Walsh - Salon.com

I'm not the only one pissed at Obama's vote.

Betrayed by Obama - Joan Walsh - Salon.com

Giant rubber snake could be the future of wave power - earth - 04 July 2008 - New Scientist Environment

Giant rubber snake could be the future of wave power - earth - 04 July 2008 - New Scientist Environment

Beach-goers clean up their act

SignOnSanDiego.com > News > Metro -- Beach-goers clean up their act

unexpected benefit of the no drinking ban on beaches!

Ted Nugent Threatens to Kill Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton During Vicious Onstage Rant : Rolling Stone : Rock and Roll Daily

Wow...

Ted Nugent Threatens to Kill Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton During Vicious Onstage Rant : Rolling Stone : Rock and Roll Daily

Ted's a complete nutbag, but not nearly as nutbaggy as the comments on that page. I am now truly afraid for America.

Oceana – Protecting the World’s Oceans: Endangered Sharks

Really great site with info on shark conservation.
Oceana – Protecting the World’s Oceans: Endangered Sharks

There's also some info on turtles and other conservation issues.

Also, if you still haven't seen it, you need to watch Sharkwater. I have a copy so ask me to borrow it!

Bad Astronomy Blog � God hates Mars

Bad Astronomy Blog � God hates Mars: "Sorry, dude. You don’t get to pick and choose what aspects of science you’re willing to believe in and what you’re not. Reality is a package deal. If we can use science to develop the engineering to build dams, to develop the medical knowledge to cure cancer, and to develop the agricultural methods necessary to feed the hungry, then we also have to acknowledge that science works."

Living the Scientific Life (Scientist, Interrupted): Hippocratic Oath for Scientists?

Living the Scientific Life (Scientist, Interrupted): Hippocratic Oath for Scientists?

Associated Press: Court OK's border fence despite environmental worry

In an effort to do as much harm and break as many laws as possible before leaving their stolen position in the White House, the Bush administration has this for today:

Associated Press: Court OK's border fence despite environmental worry

Love this image

test blog post

test blog post
Originally uploaded by k3rm

Cool free online stuff

Thanks TJ for pointing out this link: State of the Art - Cell Services Keep It Easy, and Free - NYTimes.com
Some fun, free tools for your cell phone.

Speaking of free tools, if you're not using Google Reader or some other RSS reader, you should be!

It has also come to my attention that some friends of mine are still using mapping sites other than maps.google.com. I can't imagine why.

Op-Ed Contributor - Put a Little Science in Your Life - Op-Ed - NYTimes.com

Op-Ed Contributor - Put a Little Science in Your Life - Op-Ed - NYTimes.com

Robots: HULC Exoskeleton Now Available For Pre-Order

Damn! This was my idea!

I want one of these! I hope they continue to make them better and they can be used for sports one day.

Robots: HULC Exoskeleton Now Available For Pre-Order

We are variety cakes!

We are variety cakes!
Originally uploaded by k3rm

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Pigman!

Pigman!
Originally uploaded by k3rm

Kevin wanted pigman first thing. We obliged.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Ouch: Dude Takes a Tennis Ball to the Crotch at 50MPH for 'Science'

ok, I'm a child. This is the funniest thing I've seen since Jackass.

Ouch: Dude Takes a Tennis Ball to the Crotch at 50MPH for 'Science'

An atheist soldier from Fort Riley says his higher-ups in Iraq didn’t like his non-Christian ways

Wow...

Just wow...

Sad part is a Van Hise is one of the morons perpetrating this fanaticism.

Kansas City - News - An atheist soldier from Fort Riley says his higher-ups in Iraq didn’t like his non-Christian ways

Nice little remix of the Bill PapaBear O'Reilly video

Bill O'Reilly's Producer - CollegeHumor video

"troglodyte homunculus!"

Bill O'Reilly is an uber douche

Ah... I love this video.
Nothing like a grown man loosing his temper over a teleprompter. I use the terms "grown" and "man" loosely of course.

See more funny videos at CollegeHumor

Pointed out by: The Superficial - Bill O'Reilly is a man who stays cool under pressure (Must be the loofah)

Makin' Music with John Mayer from John Mayer, Judd Apatow, Kristen Bell, GerryBednob, Ian Roberts, and Cohen/O'Brien

Ok, so I've never been a huge John Mayer fan. His music is cheesy and obviously only written to get girls (which is kinda admirable in some messed up way), but I've seen him play guitar in blues settings and he's freaking good. This video just cemented him as a really funny dude!


Makin' Music with John Mayer from John Mayer, Judd Apatow, Kristen Bell, GerryBednob, Ian Roberts, and Cohen/O'Brien

The Top 10 Conservative Idiots - The Top 10 Conservative Idiots, No. 335

Oh how I've missed the Top 10 Conservative Idiots list!

It's time to get back to politics and start paying attention. I highly recommend reading this list each week. It'll make you laugh and should piss you off a bit as well.

The Top 10 Conservative Idiots - The Top 10 Conservative Idiots, No. 335

Sharkbite!! on Vimeo

I almost added Andy Hurdman to my shit list for shark fishing, but then watched the whole video. Not only did he catch and release (Thank you Andy!) but the shark got it's way and took a good chunk out of some dude's finger. :)

If I ever run into Hurdman again, I'll give him some pliers for the next time he's catch and releasing.

Sharkbite!! on Vimeo

Clay Shirky at Web 2.0 Expo SF 2008

This was one of the best keynote speeches at the Web2.0 conference last week. Give it a watch. Clay Shirky talks about the industrial revolution and gin, Wikipedia and the cognitive heat sink of TV, and the future of media. Really interesting and really good stuff!

Clay Shirky at Web 2.0 Expo SF 2008
Text version

And for a laugh, check out The Fake Steve Jobs' speech:

Fake Steve Jobs at Web2.0 Expo SF 2008

He was so jacked on caffeine and so funny.

Up and Then Down

Ever been stuck in an elevator for 41 hours? This guy has!

Our Local Correspondents: Up and Then Down: Reporting & Essays: The New Yorker

Watch the video: 41 hours in an elevator

SHARKWATER - In UK theaters February 22nd

Everyone who laughs at me for not eating shark, go watch this.

Sharks are very important to our world, both above and below water. It's not funny, and it's not a joke.

Hug your shark today and watch this:

SHARKWATER - In UK theaters February 22nd

For Scientists, a Beer Test Shows Results as a Litmus Test - New York Times

Crap...

For Scientists, a Beer Test Shows Results as a Litmus Test - New York Times

Two on state parks panel ousted after opposing toll road

SignOnSanDiego.com > News > State -- Two on state parks panel ousted after opposing toll road

Guns are stupid and should go away

Wouldn't it be nice if we could un-invent guns? I have an RSS feed for local SD news and in the last few months there's nothing but "shooting in ...", "man shot at ...", "police shoot woman and child...", etc. Now there was a large fight in Mission Beach that ended with a man shot and killed. Doesn't matter who it was (there's disagreement whether this was a gang member or not), it's just sad that a fight ends in a shooting.

Also in the news is a Supreme Court decision regarding My handguns in DC. DC seems to me to have made a good law. In a city with high crime, handguns are not allowed to be kept. Says nothing about rifles and shotguns, but gun advocates are all up in arms saying they should be able to own anything they want. (I wonder what they would say when terror groups argue that they should be able to make nuclear weapons in their back yards? The NRA would probably fight for them if they could attach a rifle stock to the device. [ya ya, I know this is a slippery argument, but it's fun and it's my blog!])

Here's my question about DC. If DC residents have no representation in our government, how does the judiciary have rights to impose constitutional laws? Doesn't seem right to me. DC should say, "Until our citizens are represented, go to hell Supreme Court!"

Best email I've ever received

Last night, I dropped my new 9'6" board off at a friend's house to store it overnight with the assumption I would pick it up early this morning to go surfing. Unfortunately, I overslept and was not able to grab it before my first morning meeting. With the realization that it was a beautiful sunny day and my brand new board was sitting in the sun, wax melting, dying a slow death from the sun, I emailed my buddy to whine and tell him I'd pick it up first thing tomorrow.

This is the email I got back:

Hello Mr. [K3rM1t],



The management of the Three Palms Estate wishes to extend its sincere apologies for not sending out this email to your graciousness sooner than this dreadfully tardy hour. Our delay was only due to having a lot of work to do at our day job at the [redacted] Company in San Diego. Regardless, we wish to inform you that your board and wetsuit are safe and secure on our premesis. In anticipation of the possibility of your inability to arrive before the sun reached an azimuthal angle of greater than 20 degrees with the horizon (therefore potentially exposing your surfing vehicle to damaging ultraviolet and infrared sunlight rays), we have taken the liberty of implementing the following actions on said surfing vehicle:



(1) Board was rotated 180 degrees about its longitudinal axis, thereby exposing its waxy surface to our cool, lush vegetative garden foliage

(2) Board was wrapped in the style of a Mexican burrito inside a blue tarp for sunlight protection



We are of the highest hope that these actions will sufficiently protect your gracious surfing vehicle until your future arrival time at the Three Palms Estate. We wish you a most enjoyable day and future surfing adventure. Please feel free to enter the estate at your leisure and retrieve your surfing vehicle for a most glorious session at the surfing location of your choosing.



Good day and best wishes,


[name redacted]


Three Palms Estate Executive Manager

This made my day. My friends are the best. And they are funny too.

Makers of Airborne Settle False-Ad Suit With Refunds - The Lede - Breaking News - New York Times Blog

Makers of Airborne Settle False-Ad Suit With Refunds - The Lede - Breaking News - New York Times Blog

Get some money back if you spent some on Airborne.

Interesting point about how it managed to get placed on the shelves next to FDA approved drugs like NyQuil when other herbal things have to go in a different section.

How hot is this?

Kari Byron from Mythbusters in a sun dress and boots, cutting down trees with a mini-gun!

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=f6e_1203989047

Ah, my day is complete.

Group Wants Guns On College Campuses - Local News Story - KNSD | San Diego

Man, this is just dumb. I hope in 20+ years when I have kids in college there aren't people toting their piece around campus.
Group Wants Guns On College Campuses - Local News Story - KNSD | San Diego

KUSI NEWS Video - South of the Border Safety

Interesting video about safety in Baja. Some propaganda of course, but he seems sincere in wanting Americans back there, if for nothing else than tourist dollars.

I'm not sure what it'll take to get me back there. I'd really like to go, but the feeling of helplessness with the crooks is just no fun. What would it take for you to head back to Baja? Post a comment.

KUSI NEWS - Good Morning San Diego - Video - South of the Border Safety

Painfully Funny Politics

236 - The Room - Painfully Funny Politics

Sex chemistry 'lasts two years'

Interesting... Someone figured out the 2 year itch.

BBC NEWS | Health | Sex chemistry 'lasts two years'

'Bill Maher on Larry King Live' by Bill Maher, Larry King, CNN - RichardDawkins.net

'Bill Maher on Larry King Live' by Bill Maher, Larry King, CNN - RichardDawkins.net

hahaha! "...ya, you believe this, and I'm going to say why it's dumb."

Google And Microsoft Cross Swords Over Yahoo!

Slashdot | Google And Microsoft Cross Swords Over Yahoo!

This whole M$/Yahoo thing has me creeped out and discouraged with our system of commerce.

Star Trek fans, here's a great laugh

Someone spent a lot of time with this. Star Trek motivational-type posters.

I want an office filled with these. Does that make me cool?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/smwance/sets/72157603429970314/

Fundamentalist Christian Chat Room Top 100 Quotes

Priceless...

FSTDT Top 100

8 can't-miss tech predictions for 1998 | NetworkWorld.com Community

8 can't-miss tech predictions for 1998 | NetworkWorld.com Community

I love the amazing foresight that went into the "Viagra will be a big hit" prediction. Who would have guessed?

New Laws Set To Take Effect in '08 - Politics News Story - KNSD | San Diego

New Laws Set To Take Effect in '08 - Politics News Story - KNSD | San Diego

New Laws in Cali:
* Bikes need reflectors at night (good!)
* Smoking in cars with minors = $100 fine (good?)
* In July: Can't talk on cell phone while driving without handsfree kit (Mostly Good)
* Under 18, no talking on a cell while driving AT ALL (strange, but probably good)
* Minimum wage up 50 cents (sweet!)
* Gift cards under $10 can be redeemed for cash. (odd law)

San Diego Kiteboarding community

Visit San Diego Kiteboarding


Kiteboarders, come join our new San Diego community!

FedEx sucks eggs

I can't stand FedEx and I'm not much of a fan of UPS either. It's quite amazing how hard it is for me to receive packages. Something always goes wrong and they always screw me. I had to work from home all day today, missing meetings and important events at work, because two packages were coming from FedEx. Both were on trucks by 9am this morning. One was delivered at 6pm, the other has this wonderful load of crap on the tracking record:


Dec 14, 2007 9:27 PM

Delivery exception

SAN DIEGO, CA

Delivery delayed, scheduled for next business day

7:47 PM

Delivery exception

SAN DIEGO, CA

Local weather delay, delivery attempted

Ok, are you kidding me? WEATHER DELAY???? This is friggen San Diego! It's 58 degrees, there isn't a cloud in the sky, and the wind is dead calm. What kind of weather delay could they possibly think there was? Maybe the driver was thinking, "It's beautiful out and I want to sit at the beach and pick my nose."

On top of that, I was here until 8:20pm, so there was no attempted delivery at 7:47pm.

Morons is what they are. Talking to the representatives on the phone, asking about how this process could be streamlined in the future, it was obvious that they don't give a rat's ass about the person receiving the package, only the sender. It's the sender that pays them. There is no easy way to make this better short of getting a wife (maybe), a maid (yes please!), or a stay-at-home roommate (no thanks).

Other mistakes they made:
* Two boxes coming from the same place were put on 2 different trucks today. One truck made it, one didn't. Why?
* Web site tracking showing something completely different than what the phone reps see on their computers.
* First driver didn't even knock on the door, just dropped the package on the step. Only way I knew it was here was the web site tracking (which worked for that package).
* Wasted a full day of my time and will now be wasting at least one more day of my time.
* There is no way with FedEx to leave a note telling them to leave the damn thing.
* No way to tell FedEx to hold it at the warehouse so I can come pick it up.
* FedEx is a bunch of douchebag morons.

Happy Saturday to all! I'll be sitting here waiting, again. If they hose me again, they don't deliver until Tuesday. What a waste of time.


*** Saturday Update ***
Received an email response from FedEx to my onion letter of last night. Apparently "weather delay" actually means, "Box not on the truck" So, there's a good chance they've totally lost the thing. They assured me that it would arrive today... sometime before 8pm.
How is it we allow the corporations we spoon feed money into treat us the way they do? When will we demand some sort of recourse for lying, mistakes, failed promises, and general bad business practices?

Belgium politics

Whoa, Belgium is cool. Their idea of politics is WAY better than ours!

NEE: Index

The Secret to Raising Smart Kids - Tell them they aren't smart!

Scientific American: The Secret to Raising Smart Kids

Scientific American: Searching for God in the Brain

Really neat device that can give you the feeling of "God" just by stimulating the temporal lobes.

Neat!

Scientific American: Searching for God in the Brain

Ouchies: D3O Armor Protects Shovel to Head - Gizmodo

This D3O stuff is amazing! I want some built in to all my clothes, especially my knees and a cool beanie like this guy has.

Ouchies: D3O Armor Protects Shovel to Head - Gizmodo

Water forms floating 'bridge' when exposed to high voltage

Water forms floating 'bridge' when exposed to high voltage

Neat!!

Eclipse video is my new flatwater bible

This video of the Greek Freak pretty much represents everything I could ever want to do on flat water kiteboarding. From here on out, I'm making it my instruction manual.

kiteforum.tv - Thruster 2008 in Action

AlterNet: War on Iraq: Fascist America, in 10 Easy Steps

AlterNet: War on Iraq: Fascist America, in 10 Easy Steps

Pumpkins concert tomorrow!

I'm heading off to see the Pumpkins tomorrow and I'm getting really excited! I've been "preparing" by listening to nothing but Pumpkins for a few days now and today I've picked apart the new album over and over. While some of the new album just rocks, some of it I'm not so sure about, and some tracks are begging to be skipped. That's hard for me to say, but something is just different about this album.

I found this
review that sums up a lot of my opinions better that I could.

The review is correct, Jimmy just plain rocks, but the songs just don't sound right.

Doesn't matter though, cuz I'm going to see them live from the 5th row and unless Billy explodes on stage, the show is going to be amazing! (If he does explode, it should still be interesting...)

Nebraska state senator sues God - Yahoo! News

Nebraska state senator sues God - Yahoo! News

kiteforum.tv - Le Morne Wave Session

This may be the most beautiful place I've ever seen:
kiteforum.tv - Le Morne Wave Session

Southwest Airlines Says "Too Sexy" - Kyla Ebbert � Blog Archive � DHADM

This is just too funny on too many accounts. I had to post. Watch the video.

Southwest Airlines Says "Too Sexy" - Kyla Ebbert � Blog Archive � DHADM

Persistence of Myths Could Alter Public Policy Approach - washingtonpost.com

Persistence of Myths Could Alter Public Policy Approach - washingtonpost.com

Vacation Photo Blog

In an effort to be more nerdy, I'm going to keep a photo blog of my vacation this week. You can view photos uploaded from my phone here: http://flickr.com/photos/k3rm/

I'm vacationing on the Outer Banks in North Carolina. So far it's super sweet out here! Jody is here with me now and everyone else will be showing up in the next few days. We've got a really cool house right next to the ocean and it currently smells like bacon... yummy.

The Eternal Value of Privacy

The Eternal Value of Privacy

Psychology Today: Ten Politically Incorrect Truths About Human Nature

Fasinating, and sure to rile a few feathers!

Psychology Today: Ten Politically Incorrect Truths About Human Nature

Len10 is crazy

New video of Ruben Lenten in OZ.  This kid is just ridiculous. 



Reverse launching C kites with a dog running through the lines,HUGE kiteloops, and I don't even know what some of the tricks he's doing are!



http://www.kiteforum.tv/component/option,com_videos/task,show/id,1353/Itemid,30/

links

Anne and I have talked about what it will be in our future that children will understand yet we will not. Similar to computers in this generation.
My answer has been some sort of neural device that allows one to control things like video games, computers, or even driving a car. Well, looks like someone is on their way: Mind Reading Toys

Thought provoking video: Shift Happens
Nerdy thought provoking video from Web2.0 conference: The Machine is Us/ing Us

And some interesting science news about death: Doctors change the way they think about death

Web 2.0 Conference part 4

Conference is still going...

I need an invite to Joost!!! Who's got one for me? Please please please!

Web 2.0 Conference part 3

Day 3

The rest of Monday just didn't compare with the vulnerabilities session. It was standing room only at one session so I left and learned little to nothing about large file systems. Stuff I already knew. The only neat thing that I didn't know about was Amazon's S3 service.
The keynotes were interesting although a little uncomfortable as Tim O'Reilly had a talk show style interview with Jeff Bezos. Two nerds trying to entertain a few thousand people doesn't work so well and there were a few awkward laughs and uncomfortable questions. It was interesting to see the dynamic between these two. O'Reilly asked a few pointed questions that Bezos didn't want to answer. Bezos appears to be a good businessman and was good at avoiding questions or just refusing to answer.
The expo opened last night. Nothing like thousands of nerds running around trying to get free garbage.

Slept in this morning and relaxed. Planned a little bit for Costa Rica and wandered over to a less crowded Expo. From what I see, there are a lot of companies that are doing something that involves housing or uploading private or sensitive data to their servers. That scares me. Especially after the vulnerabilities session. I really want to laugh when a sales person reassures you that all their data is in a secure datacenter. That's great, so everyone at your company may have access to my data and do whatever they want with it, but at least a thief can't steal your servers.

Current session: Super Ninja Privacy Techniques for Web App Developers
Real title should be: Privacy Techniques used at Wesabe.com

It's super windy outside and I'm stuck inside. :(

Web 2.0 Conference part 2

Current session: "Vulnerabilities 2.0 in Web 2.0: Next Generation Web Apps from a Hacker's Perspective" Alex Stamos

The bad: 60+ people sitting on the floor (including me)

The good:
* Finally a session that is what it says it is!
* This Alex dude is awesome. Security consultant. Bad mouthing Web2.0, MySpace, all sorts of stuff. Awesome.

I'm off to listen...

Web 2.0 Conference part 1

I'm up in San Francisco this week for the Web 2.0 O'Reilly conference. Someone had the bright idea to start this conference on a Sunday. That person is evil.

Thought I might take some notes while sitting in these sessions.

So far, the trip has been pretty fun. Anne came up to the city to mooch on a free hotel room and see some friends. We flew up Saturday so Dan and I could hit up some kiting, and hit it up we did! A storm blew through in the morning and by early afternoon it was 9m weather in Alameda. As we didn't have 9's, we flew our 12s. There was a Naish kite demo at the beach, so I flew a few demo kites. I've never really thought Naish kites were very interesting, and now I'm sure of it. The day was fun, very choppy, gusty and overpowered.

Conference on Sunday was brutal. This conference is supposed to be about Web2.0 but really it's just about web applications with a slight trend to talk about AJAX or the like. Sunday's sessions were 3 hours long! I could only make it through one of them. We tried to kite again, but just stood around in our wetsuits for 2 hours. Bummer.

I'm sitting in the second of like 5 sessions on Monday. Here are some thoughts;

* These chairs suck real bad.
* There are a lot of people here and they really have us packed in. No empty seats, people sitting on the floor. The rows of chairs are so close together that no one can get in or out.
* Tiny coffee cups! What the heck??! Coffee is the only thing to get us through this stuff, give us more!
* They've named sessions some long fancy sounding title, but they turn out to be one big marketing speech for a single product. Example, session title, "Securing and Optimizing Web 2.0 Application Delivery" what the real title should have been, "Citrix talks about their NetScaler devices"
* The free bag sucks real bad too. I actually packed light and didn't bring a backpack since every conference gives you some schwag pack on day one. The time they gave us a tiny purse thing that can barely hold my laptop. Lame.

more to come...

Best email ever

My buddy Fasha sent me this email today. I am pretty sure it's the best email I've ever gotten:

"I just created an account, walked around without a body, was asked by a fat statue to save them from Pele the volcano god, tried to talk to a dragon, and then my computer crashed. Pretty odd."

Skeptico: How do you prove photography to a blind man?

Skeptico: How do you prove photography to a blind man?

Wired News: Top Secret: We're Wiretapping You

Wired News: Top Secret: We're Wiretapping You

Evolution and Religion - Darwin’s God - Robin Marantz Henig - New York Times

Evolution and Religion - Darwin’s God - Robin Marantz Henig - New York Times

Key Found to the Smell of the Sea - Yahoo! News

Key Found to the Smell of the Sea - Yahoo! News

100 Best Companies to Work For 2007: Full list | FORTUNE

Interesting info on average salaries for the top 100 companies. There is a LOT of variance even in similar jobs. One thing's for sure, my company needs to make a global salary adjustment or they'll start having a higher turnover rate.

100 Best Companies to Work For 2007: Full list | FORTUNE

Global Development: Views from the Center: Global Development: Good PR for Celebrities? Bad PR for Politicians?

Ya people!!! Get off your butts and tell your congress people that they don't get it.

Global Development: Views from the Center: Global Development: Good PR for Celebrities? Bad PR for Politicians?

Get ready for 24-hour living - health - 18 February 2006 - New Scientist

Get ready for 24-hour living - health - 18 February 2006 - New Scientist

13 things that do not make sense - space - 19 March 2005 - New Scientist

Really cool mysteries!

13 things that do not make sense - space - 19 March 2005 - New Scientist

AP Poll: Bush, Britney get thumbs-down - Yahoo! News

This is just too funny:
Britney Spears has AP Poll: Bush, Britney get thumbs-down - Yahoo! News: "highly publicized nights out with party girls Hilton and Lindsay Lohan, including photographic evidence of Spears wearing no underpants, which raised questions about her fitness as a parent." Since when did you have to wear underwear to be a parent?

Sure, the partying wasn't a good idea, but at least she wasn't pregnant and I'm sure her kids had a good babysitter. Perhaps it was Nicole Richie.

Virgin dragon prepares to give birth - Yahoo! News

Virgin dragon prepares to give birth - Yahoo! News

Therefore God exists...

Weight may be linked to type of bacteria - Yahoo! News

Weight may be linked to type of bacteria - Yahoo! News

01.20.09 Bush's Last Day Buttons, Magnets, Decals, Hats, Mugs and Bumperstickers, T-shirts and Countdown Clocks

01.20.09 Bush's Last Day Buttons, Magnets, Decals, Hats, Mugs and Bumperstickers, T-shirts and Countdown Clocks

Now you know what you're all getting for Xmas!

Features : Radar Online

Toys that kill and a funny old-time commercial

Superhornet Mishap at Pensacola Today - ARC Air Discussion Forums

Superhornet Mishap at Pensacola Today - ARC Air Discussion Forums

Examination of Apollo moon photos - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Examination of Apollo moon photos - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Edge; DIGITAL MAOISM: The Hazards of the New Online Collectivism By Jaron Lanier

Very interesting article by Jaron Lanier. After seeing Lanier speak at Apachecon a few years back, I love finding new and fascinating articles he's written.

Edge; DIGITAL MAOISM: The Hazards of the New Online Collectivism By Jaron Lanier

The Last Question -- Isaac Asimov

The Last Question -- Isaac Asimov

Gene Weingarten - The Secret of Being Funny - washingtonpost.com

Gene Weingarten - The Secret of Being Funny - washingtonpost.com