Before we begin today’s rant, it is important to point out that the word “elegant” holds a special meaning for software people. Let me quote the entry from the New Hacker’s Dictionary (or the “Jargon File” as it is sometimes known): Combining simplicity, power, and a certain ineffable grace of design. Higher praise than `clever’,… Continue reading Verizon and INCREDIBLY STUPID Verification Schemes
Tag: opinion
Long-term Away Messages
Recently, I’ve started using Instant Messaging software again after a long hiatus. I stopped using it (for a variety of reasons) shortly after I left college (back in 2001). Now that I’m back “on IM,” there’s some things I’ve noticed – some of which I used to do myself, but that now just annoy me.… Continue reading Long-term Away Messages
Don’t Steal the Focus
Jeff Atwood made a wonderful post the other day called Please Don’t Steal My Focus, and I have to say I wholeheartedly agree with him. Of course, the question that is raised is “why are programs still doing this?” My pick for “worst offender” is, ironically, Microsoft Word. When you open Word, it forces itself… Continue reading Don’t Steal the Focus
The Right to Read
I stumbled across this the other day – it’s a sort of story about the future, or what it might be like, if we continue to allow both large corporations and the government dictate what we do with the information we buy. I came across it because I was reading about Amazon’s new e-book reader… Continue reading The Right to Read
Why I Don’t Play Newer Games (Mostly)
It is a (sad?) fact that I play far, far fewer games than I used to. Suffice to say, there were thousands upon thousands of games available for my Atari 7800. Ditto for my original Nintendo (NES) and Super Nintendo (SNES). And when I owned those systems, I had pretty large libraries of games –… Continue reading Why I Don’t Play Newer Games (Mostly)