Planet Hilker: Tech

by Mark Frauenfelder at 6 January 2009 2241h

Jay Leno's wind turbine

Ed Begley, Jr, says:

Thought I would send along this video from my friend Jay Leno about a new wind turbine called the MagWind from Enviro-Energies that he and I will be installing soon. As many of you have asked about "vertical axis wind turbines," I thought you'd like to see the latest in this technology.

Jay Leno's wind turbine

Article about quasi-perpetual motion technology

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Randell Mills, founder of BlackLight Power, claims to have invented a reactor that makes hydrogen atoms drop to an energy state below ground level, which causes them to release "100 times as much energy as you’d get by just burning the hydrogen." IEEE Spectrum interviewed several physicists about it, and they say it's poppycock. Nevertheless, the company developing the technology has received $60 million in funding.

“This is scientific nonsense—there is no state of hydrogen lower than the ground state,” says Wolfgang Ketterle, an MIT scientist and a Nobel Prize laureate in physics. “Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe, and it’s had time enough to find its ground state.”
Anthony Leggett, a professor of physics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and also a Nobel laureate, says that quantum mechanics is “consistent with just about everything we know about atomic physics, so the onus is firmly on anyone who wants to discard it to prove his case.” He adds, “I don’t see that [BlackLight] has got anywhere near doing this.”
But turn to Randell Mills, the founder, chairman, chief executive, and president of BlackLight Power, and he’ll tell you that this lower-energy hydrogen, which he calls hydrino, is very real indeed.
“We produce hydrino on demand,” he tells IEEE Spectrum, adding that his team has isolated and characterized hydrino’s properties using spectroscopy and has even created hydrino-rich materials it can provide for analysis.

BlackLight Power says it's developing a revolutionary energy source—and it won't let the laws of physics stand in its way

by Mark Frauenfelder at 6 January 2009 2224h

Clay Shirky on traditional media: "2009 is going to be a bloodbath."

Tom Teodorczuk of the Guardian interviews BB guest blogger alum Clay Shirky about the future of media. For traditional media, he says, "2009 is going to be a bloodbath."

The things that the Huffington Post or the Daily Beast have are good storytelling and low costs. Newspapers are going to get more elitist and less elitist. The elitist argument is: "Be the Economist or New Yorker, a small, niche publication that says: 'We're only opening our mouths when what we say is demonstrably superior to anything else on the subject.'" The populist model is: "We're going to take all the news pieces we get and have an enormous amount of commentary. It's whatever readers want to talk about." Finding the working business model between them in that expanded range is the new challenge.
Why pay for it at all? The steady loss of advertising revenue, accelerated by the recession, has normalised the idea that it's acceptable to move to the web. Even if we have the shallowest recession and advertising comes back as it inevitably does, more of it will go to the web. I think that's it for newspapers.

Clay Shirky on traditional media

by Mark Frauenfelder at 6 January 2009 2154h

by schneier at 6 January 2009 2028h

The Best Capers of 2008

Good list.

by Mark Frauenfelder at 6 January 2009 2024h

Webcam border stake-out

Stake-Out

Justin Hall twittered this website:

"The Texas Border Sheriff's Coalition has joined BlueServo in a public-private partnership to deploy the Virtual Community Watch, an innovative real-time surveillance program designed to empower the public to proactively participate in fighting border crime. The TBSC BlueServo Virtual Community Watch is a network of cameras and sensors along the Texas-Mexico border that feeds live streaming video to www.BlueServo.net. Users will log in to the BlueServo website and directly monitor suspicious criminal activity along the border via this virtual fence."

Virtual Stake Outs - Live Border Cameras

Acclaimed animated movie can't be shown because of licensing costs for 80+ year-old music

Animator Nina Paley's brilliant film, "Sita Sings The Blues," has been wowing the festival circuit but you're probably not going to see it anytime soon. That's because the company that controls the synch rights to the 80+ year old music in the film want so much money for licensing that Paley can't afford to distribute her movie, despite all the critical acclaim.

Question Copyright has a 42-minute interview with Paley on the heartbreak of having to strangle her acclaimed art.

After pouring three years of her life into making the film, and having great success with audiences at festival screenings, she now can't distribute it, because of music licensing issues: the film uses songs recorded in the late 1920's by singer Annette Hanshaw, and although the recordings are out of copyright, the compositions themselves are still restricted. That means if you want to make a film using these songs from the 1920s, you have to pay money — a lot of money.
It's a classic example of how today's copyright system suppresses art, effectively forcing artists to make creative choices based on licensing concerns rather than on their artistic vision.
The music in Sita Sings The Blues is integral to the film: entire animation sequences were done around particular songs. As Nina says in the interview, incorporating those particular recordings was part of her inspiration. To tell her — as many people did — to simply use different music would have been like telling her not to do the film at all. And that's part of her point: artists "internalize the permission culture", which in turn affects the kinds of art they make.

How Copyright Restrictions Suppress Art: An Interview With Nina Paley About "Sita Sings The Blues" (Thanks, Karl!)

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 1945h

CCTV decals for your toilet

These Etsy-sold CCTV decals make a handsome addition to your white goods, porcelain fittings, and other smooth surfaces.

SECURITY CAMERAS vinyl toilet fridge wall or window decal (Thanks, Iain!)

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 1940h

Apple dropping DRM from music in iTunes, keeping DRM for audiobooks, video

Looks like Apple's going to drop the DRM on the music in the iTunes store -- but there's no indication that the DRM that's too evil to be borne for music will be likewise dropped from audiobooks and video. Right now, Apple will only sell audiobooks from Audible -- and Audible will only sell audiobooks with DRM (even if the author and publisher don't want it). I don't get it -- if DRM is so foul that it can't be borne when it comes to music sales, why is it acceptable for other kinds of media in the iTunes store? And if Apple is so committed to getting rid of DRM, why did it renew Audible's exclusive, DRM-only audiobook deal, after Steve Jobs said that he wanted to get the DRM out of the iTunes store? And as the single largest shareholder in Disney, you'd think The Steve could get someone there to consider selling videos without DRM?

"Over the last six years songs have been $0.99 [79p]. Music companies want more flexibility. Starting today, 8 million songs will be DRM free and by the end of this quarter, all 10 million songs will be DRM free," he told the crowd.
Apple has also revised its pricing structure, offering a two-tier system with songs available for $0.69 and $1.29. Prices will vary slightly in the UK.
At present, the firm has a one-price-fits-all strategy - currently 79p per track - with no subscription fee.
The new model will have a varied pricing structure, with what the company calls "better quality iTunes Plus" costing more.

Apple to end music restrictions (Thanks, Debcha!)

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 1938h

Cookie Monster eats World Trade towers in 1976

200901061125

Cookie Monster devours a pair of buildings that resemble the the Twin Towers. From the cover of the October 1976 issue of Sesame Street magazine.

by Mark Frauenfelder at 6 January 2009 1928h

JetBlue and TSA pay $240,000 to man refused boarding because of Arabic writing on shirt

JetBlue and the TSA have settled a lawsuit brought by a man who was refused boarding on an airplane because he was wearing a shirt with Arabic writing on it (the TSA said that this was like "wearing a T-shirt at a bank stating, 'I am a robber.'"). They've paid him $240,000.

Only 14 days until we get a change in administration. Maybe the new guys will appoint someone who understands that Arabic writing doesn't make airplanes fall out of the sky. Kudos to the ACLU for kicking ass and taking names on this one.

The lawsuit claimed Jarrar, 30, invoked the First Amendment but acquiesced after it became clear to him that he would not be allowed to fly if he did not cover his shirt with one given to him by JetBlue officials.
"All people in this country have the right to be free of discrimination and to express their own opinions," Jarrar wrote on his blog. "With this outcome, I am hopeful that TSA and airlines officials will think twice before practicing illegal discrimination and that other travelers will be spared the treatment I endured."

TSA, JetBlue Pay $240,000 to Settle Discrimination Suit

Previously:

T-shirt: "I am not a terrorist," in Arabic - Boing Boing

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 1906h

U.S. household debt down for first time since feds started tracking it in 1952

The Wall Street Journal reports that U.S. citizens have suddenly become quite thrifty.

Usually, frugality is good for individuals and for the economy. Savings serve as a reservoir of capital that can be used to finance investment, which helps raise a nation's standard of living. But in a recession, increased saving -- or its flip side, decreased spending -- can exacerbate the economy's woes. It's what economists call the "paradox of thrift."
U.S. household debt, which has been growing steadily since the Federal Reserve began tracking it in 1952, declined for the first time in the third quarter of 2008. In the same quarter, U.S. consumer spending growth declined for the first time in 17 years.

Hard-Hit Families Finally Start Saving, Aggravating Nation's Economic Woes

by Mark Frauenfelder at 6 January 2009 1848h

CES 2009: Woot's On The Ground

Does it seem a little empty on the site today? That could be due to Woot’s advance team already being in Las Vegas! Last night the first wave of our crack CES Reporting Team arrived in style…

We found these beers at a bus station

...and now we immediately set to crawling through the city, hoping to find a hooker with a heart of gold who would give us a place to sleep. Our rooms won’t be ready until Wednesday, you see.

world’s largest hooker heart

When that didn’t work, we decided to check out the more neglected side of Vegas, the scenic Fremont area. It’s down a bit from the more famous casinos, but it certainly is charming.

such a fancy McDonalds

Nestled between the hotels like some budget Shangri-La, the “Fremont Experience” is a nice way to spend a night. But we have to be honest: if the Vegas Strip is like a grown-up’s Disneyland, Fremont is like a grown-up’s state fair.

we looked but did not find a petting zoo

But don’t take that as an insult, Fremont. We had fun! And can we compliment your groundbreaking outdoor roof?

get out of the way, lady, we want to see the roof

This mini-strip is covered by a roof of lights that makes it afternoon all day. There’s also an exciting light show where the roof comes alive! Sadly that happened while we were still on the plane so we didn’t get to see it.

Call us boring if you like, but the highlight for us was the never-ending cascade of neon signs.

That’s classic Vegas there, baby. And. naturally, we had to throw some money away on the slots before we went to bed. Scott lost two bucks. Matthew won five cents!

To see my pilot face to face/when i have lost the bar

We’ll be out here getting ready for CES for the next day or two, then plunging shank-deep into the madness and glory come Thursday so you don't have to.

For the least informative CES coverage anywhere on the Web, keep your eye on our CES 2009 channel.

6 January 2009 1815h

What it feels like to die in a black hole

Astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson, author of Death by Black Hole and Other Cosmic Quandaries, tells the entertaining story of what it's like to be sucked into a black hole.

Neil DeGrasse Tyson: Death by Black Hole (via How Good is That?)

by Mark Frauenfelder at 6 January 2009 1811h

Lawrence Lessig

The coolest and hardest job in DC: Kagan as SG

Now that she won't be my Dean, I am free to say the following. And I am inspired to say the following by my sense that there's a misperception among some about exactly why Elena Kagan's appointment is so important. Everyone knows the Solicitor General is the government's path to the Supreme Court. But some write as if the job is about arguing in the Supreme Court. That's a mistake. No doubt, that's a part, though historically the SG has argued a small percentage of the cases (sometimes as low as 1 or 2 a term). Much more important is the policymaking function of the office. The SG must decide on the strategy for interacting with the Supreme Court. He or she must decide which issues to push, which to hold back, how to frame the issues, and how best to maintain the (deserved) reputation of the office as a principled expositor of the (administration's view of the) law. Having known Elena since I began teaching (she and I started together at Chicago), I can say that I can't imagine a better choice for this job. Granted, she is not an oral advocate -- though again, that's not the job, and having seen her teach (always at the very top at Harvard and Chicago), I have no doubt she'll be superb as an oral advocate. But she knows the administration cold (after years in the Clinton administration, and many more years studying and teaching administrative law), and, more importantly (and extremely rare for an academic), she has an extraordinary ability to productively engage disagreement. That's the real success from her time at Harvard (I used to think it was impossible to be loved as Dean of Harvard; Elena is loved by everyone). She is a straight talking, brilliant strategist and strong negotiator, who holds herself to insanely high standards. People see that and respect that -- one bit to the key of her success. As one reflects upon the fact that the most entrenched disagreements the Obama administration will face over the next 8 years will be with a conservative Court that doesn't need to be reelected, it is quickly apparent that the role of the SG is going to be critical. On a list of many (if not all) fantastic appointments by Obama, this one is brilliant. Everyone is saying as much, but few, I think, recognize just how brilliant this is. </content>

6 January 2009 1802h

A Brief Essay on the Sad Lack of Imagination in Invertebrate Oriented Erotica with Brief Notes on the Lascivious Nature of Both the Lophotrochozoa and Ecdysozoa, or, Getting Beyond "Hur hur! That Squid Tentacle Looks like Penis!"

Loligo Lothario sez, "With all of the recent postings on cephalopod oriented erotica (or tentacle porn, as it is coarsely called), I had wondered if you had not stumbled on this musing on why those fixated on tentacles really lack imagination, and how other invertebrate oriented erotica can be really really hot. Invertebrates are amazingly kinky, as pointed out in some lovely marine science blog The Oyster's Garter as it looks at the sex lives of tunicates, slugs, and more. So really, why can't we get beyond the tentacle, I ask?"

Taking a step to the side, let us briefly consider phylum Mollusca class Bivalvia. Yes, bivalves at first seem boring - little sessile clam-like things that they are. However, bivalves engage in the one behavior that heretofore I think sounds like the most delightful sexual activity ever. Free spawning. I mean, seriously, think of it, you catch a sudden whif of the right scent, the right temperature, or a little shake, and then EXPLODE in pleasurable gamete release. I, myself, have had this happen right in my face in an orgy of mussel bukkake, but picture the potential for some nubile nymphet subjected to the experiments of a dastardly doctor in fusing the sexual needs of a scallop with the body of his scientific muse.
This is of course not to mention the abilities for bivalves to form threadlike attachments with their byssal gland, and the ever shape-changing, muscular, pulsing, turgid, bivalve foot. Or, the bizarre, soft, delicate anatomy of free swimming shell-less bivalves who, if airborne, could wreak erotic havoc on an entire countryside if presented by the proper author or animator.

Previously:

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 1727h

Naughty speed camera prank

Some high school students in Maryland are reportedly taping fake license plates to their cars, then speeding past speed cameras so that owners of the cars with the real license plates get fined.

Students from Richard Montgomery High School dubbed the prank the Speed Camera "Pimping" game, according to a parent of a student enrolled at one of the high schools.
Originating from Wootton High School, the parent said, students duplicate the license plates by printing plate numbers on glossy photo paper, using fonts from certain websites that "mimic" those on Maryland license plates. They tape the duplicate plate over the existing plate on the back of their car and purposefully speed through a speed camera, the parent said. The victim then receives a citation in the mail days later.
Students are even obtaining vehicles from their friends that are similar or identical to the make and model of the car owned by the targeted victim, according to the parent.

Local teens claim pranks on county's Speed Cams (Via The Agitator)

by Mark Frauenfelder at 6 January 2009 1716h

Winners' Gallery: the Best of Contest 200

At some point in the not-too-distant past, we asked you to show us a mythologized version of a scene from Woot's history. Legend has it that Wootbot visits all the good little Wooters the day prior to a Woot-Off and sprinkles energy powder on their last meals of the day. You'll know if you were visited or not if you had to prop your eyelids open with toothpicks at any point during the last Woot-Off. What? You fell asleep? Then you must not have been a good little Wooter and you probably missed that one item you would have bought if you had seen it in time. Or maybe you did do something right, because Wootbot has chosen to bestow the three cash winners with double-sized prizes just this once, in honor of the 200th contest. Maybe you can use it to invest in coal.

First Place - $200
cicada - Brave Ride in a Flying Chair
"They were heard to splat loudly."

Second Place - $100
majit - Don Quixote
This must be where the phrase "when the stick hits the fan" comes from.

Third Place - $40
taylormorgan - AOL chat
Just think, if it weren't for AOL, Woot wouldn't be here.

Honorable Mentions:
lockeroom - The One Commandment
Yep, that's one per day you have to follow. Today, don't covet your neighbor's InFocus projector and Sima inflatable widescreen. Click for embiggenation.

z144man - Toon's Tees
Will these be the next shirt.woot offerings?

yarisyokus - Big Banjo of Consternation
"If this boat starts sinking, one of you rowers will have to go."

joedeedee - Tomb Raider
We see what you did with Elvis there.

fyrefall - Detour #1
The Great Detour of 1929 is still used as an example today of how low Woot's marketing will go.

easy1 - Trojan Pig
Oh, boy, was it hot inside that thing. I'm still disturbed by that mysterious smell of peanut butter and raspberry jam. And all those moderators and writers - they fought like cats and dogs in that pig. It's a wonder we didn't get caught.

toby8915 - Warehouse Opening
Welcome to Woot, here is your complimentary Roomba.

Monkey Prize
GluonConcerto - Fun with Word Filters
Ovaltina you fat lard, come get some dinner!

Money winners, please email your Paypal info to jtoon@woot.com. Monkey Prize winner, please email your shipping address to jtoon@woot.com. Maybe you should slip a twenty in with that email. Oh it won't fit in the envelope? Hmmm well you're on your own then to wait like the rest of the poor, monkeyless monkey winners. Honorable Mentioneers may use coupon code HONMEN-FS for free shipping on a future order. Until next time remember: Don't try to catch a glimpse of WootBot. He only shows up when you're in the bathroom.

6 January 2009 1715h

Gulnur Ozdaglar's PET Jellies

I've always really liked jellyfish. I can spend hours zoning out at the jelly exhibit at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. And I'm almost as enthralled with these jelly sculptures made out of plastic bottles by Gulnur Ozdaglar, which I discovered on Design Sponge. Ozdaglar makes all kinds of wonderful things out of PET bottles.

--Bruce (Thanks, Shawn, for getting me to add Design Sponge to my RSS reader in an attempt to make me just a bit stylish!)

tertium non data

(Shawn Connally and Bruce Stewart are guest bloggers)

by ShawnBruce at 6 January 2009 1655h

Law prof wants to webcast RIAA lawsuit

Campaigning law prof Charlie Nesson wants the whole world to see how the RIAA shakes down students, so he's asked for the proceedings to be webcast. The RIAA wants to hide under a rock:

A Harvard Law professor representing some students sued by the recording industry for illegally downloading music has filed a motion to broadcast online the proceedings of two cases being heard by the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts.
The professor, Charles R. Nesson, argues in the motion that to stream the court proceedings over the Internet — or as the students put it in their request, 'admit the Internet into the courtroom' — would help the public understand the legal issues at play in the industry’s lawsuits against thousands of computer users, many of whom are college students.
The plaintiff, the Recording Industry Association of America, which announced last month that it would stop bringing new cases against students in favor of working with Internet Service Providers to take action against repeat offenders, has described its lawsuits as an educational effort focused on illuminating the consequences of illegally sharing music — something Mr. Nesson takes a jab at in the motion.
'Surely education is the purpose of the Digital Deterrence Act of 1999, the constitutionality of which we are challenging,' the motion reads. 'How can RIAA object? Yet they do, fear of sunlight shone upon them.'

Defendants in Music-Industry Lawsuit Ask for Trial to Be Broadcast Online (Thanks, Michael!)

Previously:

Legendary Harvard law prof fights constitutionality of RIAA ...

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 1642h

Legal Beatles MP3 archive goes dark

NRK, the Norwegian public broadcaster, has had to pull its legal MP3 archive of all 212 Beatles songs. Turns out the agreement they had with the local rights society didn't mean what they thought it meant.

Our new agreement with rights holder TONO gives us rights to publish radio and TV shows we aired a long time ago. But the agreement NRK has with rights holders IFPI and FONO only allows us to publish shows that has been aired the last four weeks. And since “Our daily Beatles” was aired in 2007, we have to pull it from the podcast (see below for details about the agreements).

NRK pulls “Our daily Beatles” podcast because of rights (Thanks, Oyvind!)

Previously:

Free, legal downloads of every Beatles song - Boing Boing

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 1532h

Tumbarumba: a surreal fiction anthology in the form of a browser plugin

Ethan Ham sez,

Turbulence.org recently released “Tumbarumba,” a project by Benjamin Rosenbaum and myself (Ethan Ham). Tumbarumba is an anthology in the form of a browser add-on. To read the stories, readers must stumble upon them while browsing the web. The browser add-on will occasionally insert a story fragment into a web page as it loads it. The result is a disorienting surreal sentence that sometimes is nonsensical and sometimes amusingly close making sense. If the reader spots the fragment, they can interact with it in a way that will cause the full story to appear—albeit in the format of the web page on which it was found.
The authors in the anthology are:
Haddayr Copley-Woods, Greg van Eekhout, Stephen Gaskell, James Patrick Kelly, Mary Anne Mohanraj, David Moles, John Phillip Olsen, Tim Pratt, Kiini Ibura Salaam, David J. Schwartz, Heather Shaw, Jeff Spock

Tumbarumba (Thanks, Ethan!)

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 1518h

Atheist bus ads roll in London today: massive success

A UK campaign to raise money to buy London bus-ads to promote atheism was a massive success -- 800 of the busses took the streets today, and the campaign is spreading around the world.

Today, thanks to many Cif readers, the overall total raised for the Atheist Bus Campaign stands at a truly overwhelming £135,000, breaking our original target of £5,500 by over 2400%. Given this unexpected amount, I'm very excited to tell you that 800 buses – instead of the 30 we were initially aiming for – are now rolling out across the UK with the slogan, "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life", in locations all over England, Scotland and Wales, including Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow, York, Cardiff, Devon, Leeds, Bristol and Aberdeen.
From today's launch, two hundred of the buses will run in London, because the campaign was originally started as a positive counter-response to the Jesus Said ads running on London buses in June 2008. These ads displayed the URL of a website which stated that non-Christians "will be condemned to everlasting separation from God and then you spend all eternity in torment in hell … Jesus spoke about this as a lake of fire prepared for the devil". Our rational slogan will hopefully reassure anyone who has been scared by this kind of evangelism.

The atheist bus journey (Thanks, Paul!)

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 1429h

Hank Paulson's literary bailout

Julian Gough sends us his NYT piece, "A Modest Proposal For The Publishing Industry": "It's a piece in yesterday's New York Times. It's a parody of all the recent, massive, Treasury bailout plans. (Having done banks, insurance and cars, the Treasury are now solve the unread books crisis for us). It is written as an official statement from Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, using language taken directly from all his real statements (with just a few key words changed)."

"As we all know, lax writing practices earlier this decade led to irresponsible writing and irresponsible reading. This simply put too many families into books they could not finish. We are seeing the impact on readers and neighborhoods, with 5 million readers now behind on their reading. Some are just walking away from novels they should never have been reading in the first place. What began as a sub-prime reading problem has spread to other, less-risky readers, and contributed to excess inventories.
These troubled novels are now parked, or frozen, on the shelves of libraries, bookstores, and other reading institutions, preventing them from financing readable novels. The inability to determine the worth of these novels has fostered uncertainty about novels in general, and even about the cultural condition of the institutions that own them. The normal buying and selling of nearly all types of literature has become challenged.
The role of the ratings agencies cannot be overlooked in the creation of this crisis. The Pulitzer, Booker and the National Book Foundation continued to award these novels their top ratings, even as unread copies piled up all over America.

A Modest Proposal For The Publishing Industry on nytimes.com (stupid registration required), A Modest Proposal For The Publishing Industry on Julian's site (no registration required!) (Thanks, Julian!)

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 1426h

Maker Faire comes to the UK: Newcastle, March 14-15

Josette from O'Reilly sez, "Call for makers! It is now official the long awaited first UK Maker Faire will take place in Newcastle, UK on March 14th-15th! Maker Faire seeks to inspire, inform, connect and entertain thousands of Makers and aspiring Makers of all ages and backgrounds through the public gathering of tech enthusiasts, crafters, educators, tinkerers, hobbyists, students, authors and commercial exhibitors."

Maker Faire seeks to inspire, inform, connect and entertain thousands of Makers and aspiring Makers of all ages and backgrounds through the public gathering of tech enthusiasts, crafters, educators, tinkerers, hobbyists, students, authors and commercial exhibitors.
The first UK Maker Faire will take place in Newcastle 14-15 March 2009 as part of Newcastle ScienceFest - a 10 day festival celebrating creativity and innovation.
In the last decade Newcastle has joined forces with neighbouring Gateshead and has transformed itself into one of Europe's most exciting places. Architectural icons such as the gigantic Angel of the North (whose 54m wingspan is longer than a jumbo jet!) best symbolises the region's unquenchable thirst for creativity and sense of fun.

Maker Faire, Newcastle, UK 14-15 March 2009 (Thanks, Josette!)

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 1423h

Disneyland home movie from 1956 makes Library of Congress's National Film Registry

Molly sez, "Robbins Barstow's film Disneyland Dream was included in this year's National Film Registry (25 films selected by the Library of Congress annually). He is a tireless advocate for amateur film and a great supporter of Home Movie Day. Steve Martin wrote to Robbins Barstow after the news of Disneyland Dream being selected for the Film Registry. Martin appears in the home movie, he's 11 years old and worked selling guidebooks. Go home movies!"

We've blogged Robbins's amazing home movies here before. The man's a hero of the medium. Well-deserved congratulations indeed.

From the Library of Congress’s press release:
Disneyland Dream (1956)
The Barstow family films a memorable home movie of their trip to Disneyland. Robbins and Meg Barstow, along with their children Mary, David and Daniel were among 25 families who won a free trip to the newly opened Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif., as part of a ‘Scotch Brand Cellophane Tape’ contest sponsored by 3M. Through vivid color and droll narration (”The landscape was very different from back home in Connecticut”), we see a fantastic historical snapshot of Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Catalina Island, Knott’s Berry Farm, Universal Studios and Disneyland in mid-1956. Home movies have assumed a rapidly increasing importance in American cultural studies as they provide a priceless and authentic record of time and place.
The film, along with 15 other Barstow Travel Adventure titles, is available for viewing and downloading at the Internet Archive.

Robbins Barstow’s “Disneyland Dream” Named to National Film Registry, Steve Martin and Disneyland Dream (Thanks, Molly!)

Previously:

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 1420h

Cool Tools

Nutshell Cases

I did a lot of research into hip cases when trying to find one for my Palm TX five years back. These handmade leather cases not only look good, but they're incredibly durable. Each one I've had has always outlasted each of my phones with very little sign of wear. Handmade from a single piece of leather, the cases are very supple. When empty they lie almost completely flat. When the case is new, the fit is a little snug. And although the case does relax over time, it's never enough to allow your phone to slip out. I've had cases with and without a top flap. Neither my Blackberry nor my Nokia ever fell out of the case despite there being no top flap (note: Blackberry cases also include the "magic magnet" that signals a Blackberry so it knows when it's in a case).

With my first case I went with a belt loop model because I thought it'd be more secure than the multi-way clip. Since there's no way to remove the case without removing your belt, I switched to the belt clip with my second case. Turns out the clip is rock solid and incredibly secure. Really keeps the case in much closer to the body so it doesn't get knocked about as much as other swivel-clip cases. Anything that's going to get my case off my belt is likely going to have to take a large part of the belt -- and possibly a bit of the hip -- with it.

A little pricey, but not compared to other high-end, leather cases. From time to time you can also find coupons that'll knock 10% off. Incredibly well made and worth every penny. I now budget the cost of the case whenever I consider a new cell phone and I even just fired an email to Nutshell asking when they'll have a G1 case in stock. I should add that I've been able to reuse some of the cases with devices of similar size.

Available in various colors, though I always go with black. Made in New Zealand, they typically take less than 10 days to get to me in the U.S.

-- Chris Dollmont

Nutshell Cases
$50
(Nokia E65 - pic above)
Available from Nutshell

Other models/devices also available from Nutshell

Related Entries:
One Highly-Evolved Belt Kit Motorola v.60 Zalman Totally No Noise TNN500AF

6 January 2009 1300h

Kip Hawley Is Starting to Sound Like Me

Good quote:

"In the hurly-burly and the infinite variety of travel, you can end up with nonsensical results in which the T.S.A. person says, 'Well, I'm just following the rules,'" Mr. Hawley said. "But if you have an enemy who is going to study your technology and your process, and if you have something they can figure out a way to get around, and they're always figuring, then you have designed in a vulnerability."

by schneier at 6 January 2009 1151h

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 0939h

Hugo nominations open!

The 2008 Hugo award nominations have opened -- if you were a member of the 2008 WorldCon in Denver, or have bought a membership to the 2009 WorldCon in Montreal, you're eligible to nominate. I'll be sending in my nominations this week, and just in case you were wondering, here's the stuff I wrote that's eligible for this year's ballot:

* Best novel: Little Brother, Tor, 2008
* Best related book: Content, Tachyon, 2008
* Best novella: True Names (with Benjamin Rosenbaum), published in Fast Forward, Pyr Books, 2008, edited by Lou Anders * Best novelette: The Things That Make Me Weak and Strange Get Engineered Away, Tor.com, July 2008

No matter what you plan on nominate, I urge you to send in your form! Hugo participation seems to dwindle every year. The present form's just a PDF, but they're promising a web-based one shortly (I'll post again when it's live).

Hugos

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Jupiter Eclipsing Ganymede

See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest resolution version available.

Jupiter Eclipsing Ganymede
Credit: NASA, ESA, and E. Karkoschka (U. Arizona)

Explanation: How hazy is Jupiter's upper atmosphere? To help find out, astronomers deployed the Hubble Space Telescope to watch Jupiter eclipse its moon Ganymede. Although Ganymede circles Jupiter once a week, a particularly useful occultation occurs more rarely. Such an occultation was captured in great visual detail in April 2007. When near Jupiter's limb, Ganymede reflects sunlight though Jupiter's upper atmosphere, allowing astronomers to search for haze by noting a slight dimming at different colors. One result of this investigation was the above spectacular image, where bands of clouds that circle Jupiter are clearly visible, as well as magnificent swirling storm systems such as the Great Red Spot. Ganymede, at the image bottom, also shows noticeable detail on its dark icy surface. Since Jupiter and Ganymede are so bright, many eclipses can be seen right here on Earth with a small telescope.

digg_url = 'http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap090106.html'; digg_skin = 'compact';

6 January 2009 0902h

Shanghai recreated in dice and poker chips

Liu Jianhua recreated the Shanghai skyline from dice and poker-chips -- the gigantic piece was displayed at Galleria Continua in San Gimignano, Italy. The close-up detail view (shot by Flickr user cinghialino and licensed Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike) is spectacular.

Liu Jianhua - Unreal Scene (2008), Liu Jianhua - Unreal Scene (2008) (detail view) (via Neatorama)

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 0805h

China treats "Internet Addicts" with boot-camp discipline and sex ed

Thomas sez, "China's People's Liberation Army has made Sex education part of the detox methods for getting people over Internet addiction. They claim it works, but one woman under their care has acquired 68 virtual husbands."

Here, in addition to military-style discipline, some 60-odd patients at his center undergo a three-month regimen of counseling, confidence-building activities, sex education, and in about 60 percent of the cases, medication. The treatment is designed to address underlying family and psychological problems, and boost their self-confidence.
There are a handful of young women here, going "cold turkey" from "Audition" and similar games, where players engage in dance battles, decorate virtual homes, and have virtual husbands and babies. (One female patient had amassed 68 "husbands," says Tao, with a sigh).

In an increasingly wired China, rehab for Internet addicts

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 0801h

Understanding Islam Through Virtual Worlds launch in NYC, Jan 29

My pals Rita King and Josh Fouts have just completed an ambitious public diplomacy report on using virtual worlds to create understanding between Islamic and western societies. The book itself is presented in Understanding-Comics-style graphic novel format. They're holding a public launch in New York this month and I expect the report will hit the web around the same time.

After a year of research spanning four continents and interviews with dozens of people across the virtual world of the Internet Dancing Ink Productions is pleased to announce the release of our findings from the Understanding Islam through Virtual Worlds project on Thursday, January 29 at 6 PM Eastern at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs. Space is limited so please RSVP to attend the event.
The report will include a trilogy of deliverables, including formal public diplomacy policy recommendations for the Obama Administration; a broadcast-quality short machinima documentary; and a graphic book chronicling the people, places and findings of the project.

Understanding Islam through Virtual Worlds report to release January 29

by Cory Doctorow at 6 January 2009 0759h

Screamin' Jay Hawkins: "I Put A Spell On You"

Here is an absolutely stupendous video of Screamin' Jay Hawkins in full witch doctor regalia performing "I Put A Spell On You". (Thanks, Kirsten Anderson!)

by David Pescovitz at 6 January 2009 0634h

Lawrence Lessig

re NIN best selling cc-licensed music

Beautifully <a href="http://creativecommons.org/weblog/entry/11947">put by Fred Benenson</a>: <blockquote><a href="http://creativecommons.org/weblog/entry/11947"> NIN's CC-Licensed Best-Selling MP3 Album</a> Fred Benenson, January 5th, 2009 <a href="http://www.amazon.com/b/ref=amb_link_7866952_18?ie=UTF8&amp;node=1240544011" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview ('/outbound/www.amazon.com');"><img src="http://creativecommons.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/picture-11.png" alt="NIN Best Selling MP3 Album" title="NIN Best Selling MP3 Album" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-11948" height="201" width="367"> </a>NIN's <a href="http://creativecommons.org/weblog/entry/8095">Creative Commons licensed Ghosts I-IV</a> has been making lots of headlines these days. First, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghosts_I-IV#Critical_reception" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview ('/outbound/en.wikipedia.org');">there's the critical acclaim and two Grammy nominations</a>, which testify to the work's strength as a musical piece. But what has got us really excited is how well the album has done with music fans. Aside from generating over <a href="http://blog.wired.com/music/2008/03/nine-inch-nai-2.html" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview ('/outbound/blog.wired.com');">$1.6 million in revenue for NIN in its first week</a>, and <a href="http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/retrieve_chart_history.do?model.chartFormatGroupName=Albums&amp;model.vnuArtistId=5315&amp;model.vnuAlbumId=1113935" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview ('/outbound/www.billboard.com');">hitting #1 on Billboard's Electronic charts</a>, <a href="http://www.last.fm/bestof/2008/album/4" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview ('/outbound/www.last.fm');">Last.fm has the album ranked as the 4th-most-listened to album of the year</a>, with over 5,222,525 scrobbles. Even more exciting, however, is that Ghosts I-IV is ranked <a href="http://www.amazon.com/b/ref=amb_link_7866952_18?ie=UTF8&amp;node=1240544011" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview ('/outbound/www.amazon.com');">the best selling MP3 album of 2008</a> on <a href="http://www.amazonmp3.com" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview ('/outbound/www.amazonmp3.com');">Amazon's MP3 store</a>. Take a moment and think about that. NIN fans could have gone to any <a href="http://beta.legaltorrents.com/torrents/146-ghosts-i-iv" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview ('/outbound/beta.legaltorrents.com');">file sharing network</a> to download the entire CC-BY-NC-SA album legally. Many did, and thousands will continue to do so. So why would fans bother buying files that were identical to the ones on the file sharing networks? One explanation is the convenience and ease of use of NIN and Amazon's MP3 stores. But another is that fans understood that purchasing MP3s would directly support the music and career of a musician they liked. The next time someone tries to convince you that releasing music under CC will cannibalize digital sales, remember that Ghosts I-IV broke that rule, and point them here.</blockquote> </content>

6 January 2009 0602h

Polk Audio miDock Studio – 2 Pack

Large Irate Man: Hey! Hey, you, in the blue polo shirt! Is your name Tom?

Tom, Bargain Barn Associate: Sure is! Can I help you?

Large Irate Man: Yeah, help me with this fist, you pervert!

Tom, Bargain Barn Associate: Ow! My nose! I – I think it’s broken – so much blood -

Large Irate Man: You like talking dirty to old ladies? Huh? That how you get your kicks, sicko?

Tom, Bargain Barn Associate: Please, I don’t know what you’re talking about…

Large Irate Man: Yeah, right. You didn’t wait on a little old lady with silver hair? Earlier today? Ring any bells?

Tom, Bargain Barn Associate: Yeah, but -

Large Irate Man: “Yeah, but” nothing! That was my mother. She came in here looking for high-quality portable sound for her iPod, and you spewed filth all over her! She’s eighty years old, for crying out loud! I never heard of anything so sick in my life!

Tom, Bargain Barn Associate: But, but, I just recommended the Polk miDock!

Large Irate Man: Polk miDock?

Tom, Bargain Barn Associate: Yes, the portable iPod boombox and charging station from the esteemed Polk Audio people.

Large Irate Man: So you didn’t tell her to poke your -

Tom, Bargain Barn Associate: No! Of course not! I just thought the Polk miDock’s superb acoustic design, rich bass, and iPod dock would provide a good solution for your mother’s personal audio needs!

Large Irate Man: Seriously? Wow. Man. I guess, uh, I guess her hearing isn’t so good anymore. Sorry about that, Tom. It’s just, you know, you think some pervert’s getting sick with your mom…I guess I overreacted.

Tom, Bargain Barn Associate: It’s OK. Don’t mention it.

Large Irate Man: And you know, that Polk miDock does sound pretty good. I’ll take two. Thanks.

Tom, Bargain Barn Associate: I really think you’ll enjoy it. That’s thanks enough for me.

Large Irate Man: So what were you saying when my mom thought you were talking about her “luscious rumpcakes”?

Tom, Bargain Barn Associate: Oh, that part, I really did say. Your mom’s got a fine, fine butt. Will that be all today?

Warranty: 1 Year Polk Audio

Authorized for SquareTrade Extended Warranty

st_widget.create({bannerStyle : 'wide', widgetType : 'quote', itemCondition : 'new', itemPrice : 99.99, merchantID : 'subscrip_014793207843'});

Features:

Portable audio system designed specifically for iPod (compatible with 5G iPod) and MP3 players using a 3.5mm mini jack
To keep your iPod synchronized with iTunes, you can connect your miDock Studio to your computer using the USB cable supplied with your iPod
miDock Studio audio system generates rich bass and open, boxless sound with wide, deep stereo imaging not found in any other portable iPod dock
Two 3.25” full-range drivers and tuned port enclosure produce high-performance sound, and the stylish slanted design provides an optimal acoustic listening range
Connect other music sources to your miDock STUDIO auxiliary input jack using a 3.5mm stereo cable (not supplied)
Connect headphones (not supplied) to your miDock Studio headphone jack for private listening
Operates while plugged in to AC (included) or with batteries (eight C Cells, not included)
Dimensions: 5-13/16” H x 17-1/8” W x 7-11/16” D (14.76cm H x 43.50cm W x 19.53cm D)
Weight: 7.75 lbs. (3.52kgs)

iPod Compatibility:
The miDock Studio includes the following seven adapters to accommodate the different iPod models

Adapter 1: 3rd generation iPod (10GB, 15GB, 20GB)
Adapter 2: 3rd generation iPod (30GB, 40GB)
Adapter 3: iPod mini (4GB, 6GB)
Adapter 4: 4th generation iPod, U2 iPod (20GB)
Adapter 5: 4th generation iPod (40GB)
Adapter 6: iPod photo, color U2 iPod (20GB, 30GB)
Adapter 7: iPod photo (40GB, 60GB)
Note: The miDock Studio is also compatible with iPod Classic (80GB, 160GB, 120GB), 5th Generation iPod with video (30GB, 60GB, 80GB), iPod touch 1st generation (8GB, 16GB, 32GB), iPod touch 2nd generation (8GB, 16GB, 32GB), iPod nano 4th generation (8GB, 16GB), iPod nano 3rd Generation (4GB, 8GB), iPod nano 2nd Generation (2GB, 4GB, 8GB) and iPod nano 1st Generation (2GB, 4GB). Adapters for these models are included with the iPods.
Note: It will play, but not charge the iPod nano (4th generation), iPod touch (2nd generation), and iPhone 3G.

In the box:

2 miDock STUDIO Docking Systems for iPod
2 Sets of Dock Adapters
2 Remote Controls
2 12V, wall-mounted power supplies for AC operation

Today on Offworld we saw Rock Band's vocal pitch recognition get trumped by some ace theremin playing on Portal theme song Still Alive, and downloaded a new unofficial theme for the PlayStation 3 featuring gorgeous HD paintings of cult Genesis shooter Gunstar Heroes. We then got more musical and listened to an album composed on DS synth Korg DS-10, as well as a one-man gadget orchestra featuring two DSs, an iPod Touch, an iPhone and a Kaossilator, and watched LittleBigPlanet creator Alex Evans go back in time to its early prototype days from a recent Wired store event. Finally, we took a look behind the design of indie adventure Aquaria, tried to decipher the code behind Subversion, an as yet un-detailed game that hopes to generatively model everything from entire cities down to a pen lying on each office desk, saw one man's new wrap-around Patapon tattoo and a beautiful motion graphics piece on the history of games, and timed how long it would take for an autonomous Katamari to clean your living quarters, Roomba style.

by Brandon Boyer at 6 January 2009 0306h

EFF Deep Links

UMG v. Veoh: Another Victory for Web 2.0

Over the holidays, video hosting site Veoh won another victory under the DMCA safe harbors, this time against Universal Music Group (UMG). The ruling should put to rest the argument that transcoding and other activities necessary for making content accessible on the web are not covered by the DMCA's Section 512(c) safe harbor for storing material on behalf of users (i.e., hosting user-generated content). This is good news not just for Veoh, but also for YouTube and every other site that hosts material uploaded by users.

Like many other companies that host content on behalf of users, Veoh has been bedeviled by copyright lawsuits. The copyright owners make the same argument in each of these suits: the hosting service should be liable for every infringing bit uploaded by naughty users and responsible for the full cost of policing for infringement. Fortunately, Congress enacted the DMCA's safe harbor provisions back in 1998 to protect service providers from exactly these risks, offering immunity from copyright damages to those who implement a notice-and-takedown system. In August 2008, Veoh won a big victory against adult video purveyor Io Group, relying on these provisions.

Veoh's latest victory was against UMG, which sued Veoh because Veoh users allegedly uploaded UMG music videos without authorization. The issue before the court was whether the DMCA safe harbor for hosting only covers the actual act of storing bits on a server, or whether it also covers related activities, such as:

automatically transcoding video files uploaded by users into Flash format;
automatically creating copies of uploaded video files that are comprised of smaller “chunks” of the original file;
allowing users to access uploaded videos via streaming;
allowing users to access uploaded videos by downloading whole video files.

Relying on the statutory language, as well as the legislative history, the court concluded that all of these activities are covered by the DMCA Section 512(c) safe harbor. Lots of online service providers will greet this ruling with relief. If the court had accepted UMG's arguments, every web host would lose the safe harbor as soon as it made web pages available to the public. The ruling should also help YouTube in its ongoing battle with Viacom, which also turns on the continuing strength of the DMCA safe harbors.

But the Veoh ruling also points out a surprising irony: while YouTube and Viacom are fighting their interminable litigation trench war, many interesting DMCA legal questions are being resolved in smaller, faster-moving cases involving companies like Veoh. At this rate, the highly-anticipated Viacom v. YouTube lawsuit may end up a footnote in the legal fights that define the rules governing user-generated content.

by fred at 6 January 2009 0129h

Al-Haramain Warrantless Spying Case Can Proceed

Today, Chief Judge Vaughn Walker of the United States District Court in San Francisco denied the government's third motion to dismiss the Al-Haramain v. Bush litigation. The ruling means that the case can proceed and the court also set up a process to allow the Al Haramain plaintiffs to prosecute the case while protecting classified information.

Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation, the Oregon chapter of an Islamic charity, sued the Bush Administration for the illegal surveillance of the organization and its attorneys as part of the NSA warrantless wiretapping program. The case was based on a secret document that was inadvertently disclosed by the government that, according to the plaintiffs, demonstrates that they were subjected to unlawful electronic surveillance outside the scope of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

In late 2007, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that despite the disclosure, the "Sealed Document" itself was a state secret, but sent the case back to the District Court to determine whether the FISA law nonetheless allowed the case to go forward, under a doctrine called "preemption." Last summer, the Court had ruled that FISA does preempts the state secrets privilege, and gave Al-Haramain the right to amend its complaint to show that they were "aggrieved persons" within the meaning of FISA through evidence other than the Sealed Document. If they could do so, the case could proceed.

In today's ruling, the Court held that in their amended complaint the Al-Haramain plaintiffs had presented sufficient evidence that they were "aggrieved persons" and rejected the Government's claims to the contrary, saying: "Without a doubt, plaintiffs have alleged enough to plead 'aggrieved persons' status so as to proceed to the next step in proceedings . . ."

In order to allow litigation to proceed while keeping the secrets under wraps, the Court ordered the government to arrange security clearances for Al-Haramain's attorneys. The Court also ordered the government to allow Judge Walker to review the Sealed Document in his chambers by January 19th. Finally, the Court required the government to review the classified submissions in the case, and declassify as much as possible. The Court will schedule a hearing later this month to plan next steps.

by kurt at 6 January 2009 0123h

January 05, 2009

FBI's New Cryptanalysis Contest

From their website.

by schneier at 5 January 2009 2056h

Lawrence Lessig

CHANGE.ORG round #2 -- Citizens' Funding (aka, Teddy's idea)

<center><embed src="http://blip.tv/play/lG3kxQ8A" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="512" height="399" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></center> <a href="http://www.change.org/ideas/view/citizens_funding_of_the_nations_elections">Citizens' Funding of the Nation's Elections</a> made it into round #2 at Change.org. Here's 7 minutes about why it needs to be in the final list as well. Voting runs from today till January 15. Vote <a href="http://www.change.org/ideas/view/citizens_funding_of_the_nations_elections">here</a>. </content>

5 January 2009 1902h

Woot Contest 206: Wootrace 2000

We're old enough to remember when the number 2000 was a signifier of the frighteningly distant future, when men would either zoom through the stars in laser limousines or scrounge in the atomic rubble for edible rocks. Either way civilization turned, bad-ass vehicles were always on the agenda. The year 2000 has come and gone, with disappointingly few instances of roadbound, airborne, or space vehicle combat, but we can still dream. Your challenge this week:

Create a futuristic battle-mobile from past and current Woot products.

You can go the Buck Rogers route with a fancy hi-tekk star-van, or get all Mad Max up in this mug with a post-apocalyptic junkyard jeep, or whip up something in a '70s decadent-murder mode a la the original Deathrace 2000 or Rollerball. Just make it look like the future, and make it out of Woot stuff.

Post your entry here by 11:59 AM CST on Monday, January 12, 2009. Prizes are $20/$50/$100 for 3rd/2nd/1st. The rules and criteria for winning: our panel of volunteer judges can and will make stuff up as it goes along. Use Photoshop, linoleum blocks, pastels, MSPaint, cave painting, tattoos, tribal scarification, whatever, but it’ll only be judged if it’s visible in our forums as a jpg, gif, or png. As we are fond of saying, try to keep your maximum width to 450px. If you need a place to host your pictures, try www.imageshack.ws or www.photobucket.com. We have no connection to either, but they seem free and easy to use. And if you want us to be sure your entry was indeed your work, post links to your source images. The more sure we are that you did your own work, the more likely we are to consider it for a prize.

5 January 2009 1810h

Cool Tools

5-in-1 Painter's Tool

I'd seen these scrapers for years and always figured them to be a gimmick, just a glorified putty knife. Then a friend helped me with a roofing project and brought one along. The more I used it, the more I came to see it as the single most handy, versatile and cheapest jobsite tool I've found. The basic functions: scraper, putty knife, chisel, pick, paint roll cleaner (squeegee).

I have probably a dozen of them floating around right now, always one or two on a jobsite. At a buck or so a piece, they are an incredible bargain. The pointy end does a great job of cleaning out crevices, scraping off excess glue or weld slag, prying up staples and getting into tight places. Makes a great little pry bar for wood trim. They can be used as a wedge and make a dandy temporary door stop/door hold open. The point can double as a Phillips screwdriver in a pinch. The flat side does a great job of opening cans. Sharpened up, the large flat blade can be used as a wood scraper or wood chisel. Great for those places where you may hit metal and don't want to trash a good chisel.

You can also customize them for specific tasks easily by filing or grinding them down if, say, you're refinishing and need a specific-sized scraper for the trim or you want to sharpen one side to a near-razor edge. I have seriously beat on these with a hammer and never had one shatter or snap. But they don't bend like a cheap screwdriver when prying with them. The steel is high-quality enough to do the task -- quite stiff and does not bend easily at all -- but still relatively easy to work with, file, etc.

I've had more expensive versions and cheaper ones and there isn't a noticeable amount of difference in the tools. I prefer the Dollar Store ones with the wood handle (great for hammering cans closed, etc.), but the scrapers with the nylon handle (below) are also sufficient.

-- Norman Bolser

5-in-1 Painter's Tool
$2
Available from Amazon

Related Entries:
3M Masking Tape Dispenser Unger Trim Scraper COOL TOOLS UNTRIED

5 January 2009 1647h

Mommy? Maurice Sendak's monstrous kids' pop-up book

The coolest thing about your kid's first Christmas is that you get to watch her unwrap all the amazing kiddy treasures that your friends and family found. It was a fantastic haul this year, no doubt about it, and my favorite was Mommy?, a 2006 pop-up book by Maurice "Where the Wild Things Are" Sendak that I'm thinking of keeping for myself.

Mummy? is a practically wordless, six-page popup that follows the travails of a little boy who's looking for his mother in a castle full of monsters. The left panel shows junior saying "Mommy?" and the right panel shows a leering monster; flip it up and see how the boy has defeated it. Mommy?'s dimensionality is fabulous -- the monsters explode in all directions, portrayed in fabulous grisly style that's a cross between Big Daddy Roth and Marc Davis's Haunted Mansion ghouls.

The flip-up right panels showing the monsters' comeuppance are witty, marvellously engineered, and deeply satisfying. The ending -- the Bride of Frankenstein bursting through the door, saying, "Baby!" -- is a great touch. This is the kind of papercraft you can feel good about giving to a kid (even if you don't want to part with it).

Mommy?

by Cory Doctorow at 5 January 2009 1606h

Trends in Counterfeit Currency

It's getting worse:

More counterfeiters are using today's ink-jet printers, computers and copiers to make money that's just good enough to pass, he said, even though their product is awful.
In the past, he said, the best American counterfeiters were skilled printers who used heavy offset presses to turn out decent 20s, 50s and 100s. Now that kind of work is rare and almost all comes from abroad.

[...]

Green pointed to a picture hanging in his downtown conference room. It's a photo from a 1980s Lenexa case that involved heavy printing presses and about 2 million fake dollars.

"That's what we used to see," he boomed. "That's the kind of case we used to make."

Agents discovered then that someone had purchased such equipment and a special kind of paper and it all went to the Lenexa shop. Then the agents secretly went in there with a court order and planted a tiny video camera on a Playboy calendar.

They streamed video 24/7 for days, stormed in with guns drawn and sent bad guys to federal prison.

Green's voice sank as he described today's sad-sack counterfeiters.

These people call up pictures of bills on their computers, buy paper at an office supply store and print out a few bills. They cut the bills apart, go into a store or bar and pass one or two.

Many offenders are involved with drugs, he said, often methamphetamine. If they get caught, so little money is involved that federal prosecutors won't take the case.

It's interesting. Counterfeits are becoming easier to detect while people are becoming less skilled in detecting it:

Part of the problem, Green said, is that the government has changed the money so much to foil counterfeiting. With all the new bills out there, citizens and even many police officers don't know what they're supposed to look like.
Moreover, many people see paper money less because they use credit or debit cards.

The result: Ink-jet counterfeiting accounted for 60 percent of $103 million in fake money removed from circulation from October 2007 to August 2008, the Secret Service reports. In 1995, the figure was less than 1 percent.

Another article on the topic.

by schneier at 5 January 2009 1234h