Chatroulette (previously) just got much more interesting [via Buzzfeed].
Technology
25
Feb 10
Facebook Premium Invites?
While they may do it someday, that day isn’t today. The invites you are receiving to ‘Facebook Premium’ are a hoax. The instructions are as follows:
You supposedly get yourself on the queue for a free upgrade by pasting the following into the “invite friends” address box:
:elms=document.getElementById(’friends’).getElementsByTagName(’li’);for(var fid in elms){if(typeof elms[fid] === ‘object’){fs.click(elms[fid]);}}
That code will automatically invite all of your friends, presumably why we received the invite in the first place, and why it already has over 7,000 members.
17
Feb 10
Instant DVD Gratification is worth a Premium
I love me some Redbox. I’m ashamed to admit that I’m probably a good 5-years behind on movies I want to see. Buying any DVD (with the exception of kids’ movies) is a waste of money, in my opinion. I contemplated signing up for Netflix, but I doubt I would utilize the service enough to justify the expense. Redbox neatly fills that void by allowing me to pick up new releases at my convenience, all for the low price of $1 plus tax.
12
Feb 10
Thoughts on Google Buzz
- Just like Facebook has done – repeatedly – Google has miscalculated privacy implications as well as the literacy of its total user base. Fortunately, they have an opportunity to recover, an opportunity they would be well advised to take advantage, which I suspect they are. So far, they’ve made a number of small but meaningful changes.
- I really like the ability to use the keyboard shortcuts from Google Reader. You can call them up by pressing [Shift+?] or view them here.
5
Feb 10
mailto:USERNAME@FACEBOOK.COM
If you haven’t gotten a spiffy vanity-URL for Facebook, like firstname.lastname, you may want to do it soon. Facebook is rumored to finally roll-out a comprehensive email feature – Project Titan – enthusiastically referred to as a “Gmail killer”.
29
Jan 10
iFail
I’m just not seeing the win.
Sure, the fanboy who has iEverything will grab one. I likewise suppose that the person who would buy one of Apple’s other fine products but were deterred by the relative high price may also consider one. Like others have mentioned, the iPad (horrible name, BTW. iSlate, iBook, and iTablet would have been much better IMHO) has a series of shortcomings that are inexcusable:
- No Adobe Flash
- No multitasking
- No camera
- No HDMI-out.
- No USB ports
- No expandable memory via memory card
4
Jan 10
Education Policy Disagreements in My Household
My wife – a special education school teacher – and I have a bit of a policy disagreement regarding teacher merit pay.
Most can agree that our Education System is broken (see anything by John Taylor Gatto) and some sort of reform is necessary (even if it rankles some of the President’s core constituents). Sometimes that change can only be motivated through monetary incentives. On the macro-level, I can see the potential benefits. On the micro-level, it’s likely that her students may not ever achieve sufficiently for her to earn said bonuses.
