Only for today: Free Opera Browser

For those of you eager to switch from Internet Explorer; comes a one day only promotion from Opera. They're celebrating their 10th birthday and offering an Ad free version of their browser (Normally $39USD) via download.com Simply e-mail registerme@opera.com to obtain a registration code. Click here for more information

Microsoft & Nokia vs Motorola & Apple: New iPod phone on the horizon?

As you're probably aware Nokia licensed Windows Media technology from Microsoft last February; in an attempt to build a widely distributed iPod class contender and squeeze out any major MP3 player out of business. But why would Nokia choose one of its biggest competitors as an ally? If Nokia really wanted to go for market share in music, surely they would approach Apple? No doubt, Nokia tried and Apple nixed the idea. But, why would Apple say no to a partnership with the world's largest cell phone maker? If you consider the iPod as a platform for listening to music, the logical next step of the evolution is the cell phone? News started to surface on the internet about a possible iPod phone; the Motorola ROKR is set to launch next week. Nokia rolls out approximately 690 million phones a year, Microsoft Windows Media is subscription based unlike iTunes, and 3G is out in the open and on the horizon at many countries. Given the customer loyalty Nokia has and Microsoft market-share; I think this can be a possible iPod Killer. However, If there is one lesson CEO Steve Jobs has learned the hard way, it is that being first rarely pays in technology markets (remember Newton?). Part of the success of the iPod was exactly that it did not come first, and it is likely that Steve Jobs will play this game the same way. For More:

• Microsoft and Nokia Collaborate to Help Ensure Consumers Can Enjoy Digital Music Anywhere
• ROKR or New iPod on September 7^th

The wisdom of Malakha

Well everyone has been throwing quotes left and right, here's one of the wisest things ever said: “Give a man a link and he can waste an afternoon. Teach a man to Google and he can waste a lifetime.” Yazan Malakha (1979 - ) - Some MSN conversation

And the Plot Thickens: Windows Applications on MacOS X86

By adapting the Wine compatibility layer for Windows, a method to run windows programs under OS X for Intel has been developed. Could this be Apple's plot behind releasing a not-so-secure developers’ kit? Porting Wine to OSx86 requires serious tweaking, which still results in very unstable programs, work such as this opens a range of possibilities in the future. Since future versions of OS X will be built around the same Intel Processors that power Windows. Will we be able to run Windows apps as if they were native to OS X? Or perhaps the other way around? Will be able to double, or triple boot? It would be Apple’s dream come true if they’re able to actually have all Windows Applications available run under Mac OS X NATIVELY! I wonder what Bill Gates have to say about this, buy Apple Stock? More Here

The Palestinian Lyrical Front: A Step in the right direction

It’s times like these that I wish I poses a journalist’s writing skills and reach to describe the revolution taking place on the Palestinian end, for decades Palestinians have been outgunned and never outspoken, but not anymore. Armed with powerful words, singing in Arabic, English and Hebrew with topics ranging from history and politics to love; The Palestinian Lyrical Front, comprising of 10 rap artists/bands aims to break the silence with Slingshot, a Hip Hop documentary focusing on the struggle and daily life of Palestinians living in Gaza, the west bank and Israel. Their willingness to experiment with a new medium, the absence of religious scrapping, and the ability to differentiate between Zionism and Judaism is awe inspiring. These kids know their & peace’s enemy. Here’s a sample of their lyrics حرام يا شعبي حرام, عشان جدادنا اذا بشفونا بتألبوا بالقبور كيف هم اخترعوا الصفر واحفادهم صاروا صفور For the benefit of non-arab readers this means (it’s a pity how things have turned, if our grandfathers saw us they’d roll in their graves, they invented the zero and that’s what we’ve become) Although their music may lack the immediacy of other rap songs, it’s still a veritable storm of apt samples, grumbling percussion, memorable riffs, and powerful lyrics. Songs like “olive trees” describe the uprooting of the Palestinians from their land, much in the same way Israeli settlers are uprooting olive trees today. Ironically, olive trees are an international symbol of peace. Here's a list of some of their songs. Right click and select Save as to download. By the way (DAM stands for Da Arab Mc’s not Blood as I initially thought) 1- Slingshot A Hip Hop Documentary (Trailer) (Windows Media Quicktime) 2- MBS + DAM – Boomerang 3- DAM - Meen Erhabe? (Who’s the terrorist) 4- DAM - ANA EW INTI 5- DAM - BORN HERE (ARABIC VERSION) 6- DAM – BORN HERE VIDEO (A MUST SEE) 7 - IRON SHEIK -OLIVE TREES 8 - IRON SHEIK - THE TALE OF THREE MUHAMMEDS (A MUST) For More Visit: Iron Sheik, DAM, Slingshot Please feel free to copy this into your website if you don't feel like rewriting.

How To: Google Talk Tips & Tricks

Yet Another Google Post! How To: Setup Google on Mac OSX iChat Several people have been complaining about not being able to get Talk to run on their iChat despite following Google's setup guide step by step. Well apparently iChat doesn't translate the IP for talk.google.com properly and connects to the website IP instead of the Jabber service. By using 216.239.37.125 as the server I was able to connect to Talk (Screenshot below) How To: Run multiple instances of Google Talk This might not be useful for all of you, but for those who keep two addresses; or like messing with their friends by claiming to be a hottie, starting multiple instances of Talk is quite easy. If you have a desktop shortcut for Google Talk, right-click on the icon, go to ‘Properties’, and find the ‘Target’ field. Add /nomutex to the end of the target string. See the screenshot below. Now simply double click on the icon, and another Google Talk instance will fire up. How To: Replace Google Talk's Logo? By using Resource Hacker, I was able to replace Google's Logo with a different logo, or remove the logo all together (Not exactly legal). How To: Find Chat History Location Chat logs are stored here: C:\Documents and settings\[username]\local settings\application data\Google\GTalk\chatlogs

Let's talk about Google Talk!

Alright, privacy issues aside; Google Talk's GUI design is very intuitive and nothing short of brilliant! The application allows you to circulate between your contacts using a keyboard shortcut (Ctrl+tab); you no longer have to go through the million browser windows open to get to another contact's window using the keyboard! Other than that the ability to stick chat windows to each other and to the primary window is amazing. You can pretty much arrange windows whichever way you like, check out the screenshots below. By double clicking on a contact's window, it would either open/close the chat window! If contact windows are minimized and stuck together, clicking on the person's name in the main window, will enlarge their window, clicking on another perosn's name will minimize the open one and enlarge the person you've clicked!

On a Further Note: Google Talk

I never thought I'd actually say this, but what about a Mac OSX Client?! Let me stress the fact that Google Talk is a JABBER based IM Client which means it would work with any JABBER client that already exists. You'd be able to login and chat, but you won't benefit from other features of the client. I was able to log on to the Google Jabber server using my existing Google username and password few hours before its launch. When checking my offline contacts using Google’s Jabber server, it lists email addresses I’ve emailed within the last few hours. How to setup Google IM on Jabber based clients?

1. Add an account, select "Jabber" as the protocol
2. Your screen name is everything before the "@gmail.com"
3. Server is "Gmail.com"
4. Click "Show more options" and make sure "use TLS if available" is checked.
5. Leave "Force old SSL" and "allow plaintext.." unchecked for now
6. Connection port should be 5222, connection server should be "talk.google.com"
7. Ta-Da! You're good to go

For a list of clients for other OS(s) go to: http://www.google.com/talk/otherclients.html

Google Introduces Google Talk [Instant Messenger]

Let's face it, Google wouldn’t have been “complete” without one right? I mean, Yahoo, MSN, and AOL have it. Why not Google? Let’s face the truth. Hello, Google’s photo sharing application, can’t really be considered a chat application. It’s not like anyone says “hey I’ll be on Hello when I get home, send me a message.”

I really can’t imagine what it’s like to work for Google right now. They’re churning out services like Oompa Loompas candy at Charlie’s Chocolate Factory. I’m still amazed by the recent Google Desktop Search application with an interegrated sidebar complete with developer extensibility.

I’ve spent the last hour or so playing around with the new Google IM client and have a few thoughts. First of all, although not as "pretty" or "feature full" (look below) as other chat clients I've used; I’d like to commend Google for creating a clean, ad-free, Gmail integrated chat client. Gmail contacts are indexed and easily accessible through the chat client. Multiple chat windows make use of a slick sliding “tabbed” interface navigated using the Tab and Ctrl + Tab combo. The client also serves as a Gmail notification utility.

As of today, you’re only able to text chat / audio chat with other Google users. According to this Google Talk help page future support for mutli-protocol chat is being worked on. I’ve also discovered that inviting non-Google users to Google Talk will send them a Gmail invite. That means unlimited Gmail invites. Who doesn’t have a Gmail account that is still looking?

I’m sure Google will slowly integrate all of its online services into the Google Talk client within the next few months. Download your copy here!

--- Edit (12:00 PM / 24th August 2005) Talk's interface is very simple and doesn't have rich features such as emotion icons, winks etc. Simple is good of course! A very intuitive feature that I liked was; if you place two Talk windows underneath each other they would glue, and you'd be able to drag them both around.What's missing? Multiple party chats and file transfers! It also could use a video conferencing feature. VOIP quality is fair; although a trial with a friend of mine, Karim, resulted in static and irreversible damage to my ear.

--- Edit (1:03 PM / 24th August 2005) Privacy Anyone? I'm not exactly sure if this is true, so please feel free to correct me; Google Talk has the "save chat history" enabled by default; no where do they state where the files will be saved. I checked the registry and my hard drive and was unable to find saved history files; which leads me to believe these are actually stored on google's server!!!!! If true, I wouldn't be surprised if they get slammed with a privacy lawsuit.

Google Knows!

Back in 2004 searching for "Paris Hilton isn't a whore" would trigger google's suggestion as seen below! The bewildering amount of people that have blogged about it eliminated the need for the suggestion; that or her publicist

On the other hand.. has anyone tried to google "failure" recently? Try it and check out the first result.

Governmental Job Title Generator

Senior Accountability Orchestrator? Huh? Have a new hiring rec? Can’t think of an exciting title? Have a friend or relative you want to hire but they have no skills? Generate their title right here! Job Title Generator

Screenshots of Mac OS X Running Under Windows XP

As I'm about to clone this into a harddrive (OS X runs painfully slow when emulated under Windows; although this can be fixed.), I thought I'd take a few screenshots. Behold, Mac OS X Tiger running under Windows XP SP2.. what word can be used to describe that? Setting up VMWare [Memory / Harddisk / Floppy Image / etc.] Apple Bootloader Firing Up Apple OS X Loading First Click On The Apple About OS X Advanced Diagnostics Harddrive Content Note: MacOS X On a sub $300 PC (Celeron 2.66 Ghz) can outrun a MacOS X running on a G4

Microsoft patents Apple iPOD's Interface

Bloggers have dubbed Microsoft's move an "iPOD killer". If someone was talking bets, I'd wager that Apple never pays Microsoft a cent; bloggers and other tech pundits snickered at the prospect of Steve Jobs having to pay Bill Gates royalties on the beloved iPods. Back in 2002, Microsoft outraced Apple to the patent office to patent technologies that support the iPod's rotational wheel interface; after which it stated that it has a it has a long-standing policy of licensing its patents to others. Putting at stake the millions of iPods Apple has shipped. Fear not though Apple still has loads of options from a legal perspective; first Apple and Microsoft signed a five-year agreement in 1997 to share technology. When the deal expired in 2002, the music-player patents in question may have been covered. Second; this is not a supreme-court decision, Apple can file a declaration stating that it invented the technology before Microsoft filed its patent request, as evidenced by the fact that iPods were already on the market at the time. In such a case the patent office will have to start an investigation and determine who invented the technology. For more on this check: http://news.com.com/Microsoft,+Apple+in+iPod+patent+tussle/2100-1047_3-5830435.html

Geek My Run: Sneakers vault into the digital age

Shoes have seen countless changes over the millennia - from the grass stuffed goat and bearskin coverings of Stone-Age to Carrie Bradshaw's Manolo Blahniks. Sophisticated designs let athletes run faster and jump higher, but the unique hybrid Adidas shoes lept into the future. Computer hardware built into the $250 adidas_1 sneakers adjust cushioning levels for any runner in any environment, turning ordinary footwear into highly-enhanced digital running gear. Adidas_1 features a 20 Mhz microprocessor placed under the arch, capable of processing up to 1000 readings per second from the heel compression sensor. A motor receives command from the CPU and drives a transmission with a 1:50 ratio, turning a lead screw, that in turn adjusts a cable connected to the heel's cushioning element, when the cable is tighter, the element has less cushioning as a result. Lower tension allows vertical force to compress the element more. The mechanism uses power only when making adjustments. Besides measuring compression, the system tracks the time between peak readings, deriving other dynamics such as force, velocity, acceleration and deceleration. The two 3-volt CR2450 lithium cells will need to be changed after 100 hours of use, the company says the computerized parts will work beyond the shoe's 1000 kilometer lifespan. What's next? Presumably, GPS and bluetooth techology, hooking up the shoe to some analytical program that would give you information on your route, calories burnt, average speed.. and a designed for Windows XP Tag perhaps? hmmm.. Adidas_1 Official Website

Mars, Earth - Closest Approach in Recorded History

"Planet Mars will be the brightest in the night sky starting August. It will look as a large full moon to the naked eye. This will culminate on Aug. 27, when mars come within 34.65M miles of Earth. Be sure to watch the sky on Aug. 27, 12:30 am. It will look like the earth has 2 moons. The next time mars come this close is in the year 2287. Share this with your friends as NO ONE ALIVE TODAY will ever see it again" I've been receiving this email from several parties during the past couple of weeks, unfortunately this email is misleading and nothing but a hoax, someone apparently resurrected an email message the circulated around July/August 2003, when Mars and Earth were the closest they have been in 60,000 years. Mars was indeed a spectacular sight in the night sky Fact is that Mars will pass close to earth once again in 2005, however it'll be at it's closest on October 31st rather than August 27th, and even then it will be 9 million miles further than it was in 2003 (34 Million Miles in 2003). That won't make much of a difference for the casual observer, Mars will still be a compelling sight at night. Claiming that "No one alive will ever see it again" is a little misleading; there will several other close encounters. Mars won't be as close as it was to earth in 2003 till 2287, perhaps our descendents will be observing the close encounter from a Martian Perspective Based On: http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2003/18jun_approachingmars.htm For some Martian Fun check: CBS Late Night Show

Serves me just right for rubbing it in

Coming late to the office can have dire consequences! My car has been hit, perpetrator unknown. Although not as serious as Rob with an A's hit I'm sure the price tag well be much steeper, especially since it'll be coming out of my own pocket. Just yesterday I was rubbing in the fact that she can no longer drive due to her accident, and here i have one. Fortunately rear sensors are still working.

OSx86 Project: Mac OS X on a sub $300 USD Intel "White" Box

Your next Mac could cost you only $300 USD or less, and run faster than any G4 or G5 you've ever used. The future is already unfolding! Based on the Apple OS X x86 Developer Kit, the OSx86 Project offers a hack designed to over-ride TPM Chip (Trusted Platform Module), Apple's anti-competitve chip intended to prevent the system from running on Ordinary PCs and stifle innovation. By removing the TPM Kernel extension (AppleTPMACPI.kext) and writing the drivers (Known as Kernel Extensions) so that they can run your own Non-Apple-Gadgets such as Wi-Fi cards, VGA Cards, etc. Mac OS X can now be run on any x86 Box (Intel or AMD) that offers SSE 2, although you will need SSE3 if you plan on running Power PC Applications on Rosetta. Many believe (although I'm highly doubtful) that Apple wanted to demonstrate the weakness of TPM security, and may have plans to eventually license the operating system to PC Makers eventually. The setup can be done in 30 steps or less (if you happen to download a ready made VMWare image for instance) a guide on how to setup Max OS X on an intel box can be obtained from http://www.xplodenet.com/?p=guide the OS through BitTorrent, my test setup ran perfectly and much faster than a G4 with 1024 MB of RAM on a humble box I purchased primarily for testing Mac OS X, an Acer Power F2 (Intel Celeron 2.66 Ghz with 512 MB RAM) I wouldn't have believed it if i didn't run both systems back to back! Of course there are several reasons why you should wait for Apple to realease it's own Intel Boxes, the current legal-status of OS X intel is one, and the uncompleted developer nature of OS X for intel is another. For more information you can check: http://osx86project.org/ http://www.osx86.classicbeta.com/wiki