WebmasterMac: Macintosh > Applescript > Sample Talking Computers AppleScript Years and years ago, there was a program using Apple Events that would get multiple Macs to play music in harmony. "Axel F" was the sample song, if that tells you anything about the vintage. Point being... the more things change, the more they stay the same! :)
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Showing posts from 2002
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Whitley Strieber's Unknown Country Okay, you're going to think I'm nuts... but this story (about "ratbots" -- rats with electrodes in their brain so researchers can control and "steer" them) reminds me of something I thought of years ago: aerial recon. by using large birds (like geese, maybe?) with video cameras and electrical brain stimulation to guide them. I agree that there are ethical issues... but it's better to put a rat or goose in harm's way than a human.
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CaringBridge - gregtolaas My memories of my first day of class at UST consist of two things: John Buri giving us a mercifully brief introduction to Honors Psychology and then sending us on our way... and Fr. Greg Tolaas handing out doughnuts as students streamed in. I'm glad to know he's alive and "as well as can be", and will keep praying for him with renewed vigor...
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MIKE WENDLAND: Spam king lives large off others' e-mail troubles I feel the same way towards SPAMmers as I do towards the 9-11 terrorists; you have to acknowledge their cleverness in achieving their goals... but it's still wrong! ("wrong" in the case of the former, "evil" in the case of the latter, but there's still merit to the analogy...)
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I respect police officers -- I really do -- but there sure seem to be a lot of cases of cops running into innocent people and killing them. It used to be a Minneapolis-thing, but now it's moved down to our suburbs. (I know the intersection they're talking about very well...) Pioneer Press | 11/05/2002 | APPLE VALLEY: Funeral plans replace baby shower invitations
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Hoping that this doesn't affect my friend who has just gotten a new G4... I couldn't resist quoting this turn of a phrase from the "documentation": As the Apple Turns: Bringing New Meaning To The Phrase "Psychotic Episodes." It's recently come to light over at MacFixIt that Apple has now determined that "loud G4 fan noise is due to a motherboard problem" which causes the Power Mac's variable speed fan to spin at the setting tagged in the manufacturer's documentation as "Deafen Me With Your Whirling Blades Of Colossal Cooling Power,"
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I disagree with the position, but at least I've encountered a site that finally approaches a pro-choice philosophy from the perspective of the woman as a known rights-holder. (The basic argument is "When in doubt, don't kill the thing that might be a human person" versus "When in doubt, protect the rights of the thing you know is a human person". I believe in the former, and think that the latter is the only philosophically-coherent objection to it; if both sides agree to those grounds, we can have a resonable debate.) Anyway, the information is available at Catholics for Free Choice
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As you know, I love James Lileks' writing, and today's is particularly entertaining. Here's a quote (technically, a "quotation") about Avril Lavigne (or however it's spelled); check out the entire article at LILEKS (James) The Bleat She?s in your face! If so, then one simple request: get out of my face. The desire to be in my face does not equal the right to be in my face; it does not even mean you have the qualifications to be in my face. Indeed: if you get in my face, I will get in your face, and we will have a contest of in-face getting you cannot win.
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I figured I'd better blog this, or I'd never remember it. Hit MP3.com and look up Amethystium, which is a really, really cool group. I liked them so much I downloaded their MP3s and burned a CD (perfectly legally, mind you -- that's what MP3.com is about!) Here are the lyrics to what I think is probably my favorite song...
Obscure Lyrics Amethystium - Autumn Interlude (feat. Joyelle Brandt of Sonicjoy)
Feels like I could reach up into dark October skies
Scoop up seven of Orion's stars, hold them like shiny diamonds
Then I turn and return to a world less than I'd like it to be
Strange thoughts staring at the stars on an autumn's night
Lyrics by Steven Hewitt.
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Reader Report: Problems with Apple Rebates You know me and my hatred of companies that engage in rebate fraud. Well, here's a good tip for dealing with customer service reps who claim they're going to transfer you to their "supervisor". Get the name of the supervisor, and if you have any problems, remind the rep that their name is the one going in your records as the last human contact with the uncooperative company.
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Diversified Systems Group, Inc. - Media & Services - CD-R/DVD-R - Bulk CD-R/DVD-R - Prodisc You know, it's kinda cool that you can burn a CD that looks exactly like the "professional" ones. Very useful in a small-business setting! :) Now, I just have to find more information on these "black CDs" that I've been hearing about...
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It's amazing what you bumble into during random Internet searches about debate topics. This one is particularly amazing, and I can't find any information about the suit; I suppose a couple e-mails would clear it up. Anyway, woman goes to prison, woman tells nurse she's pregnant, nurse injects her with Depo-Provera (a birth-control drug) anyway, baby dies. Not good. Honolulu Star-Bulletin Local News
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While pondering what phone number I should put on personal business cards (ones that are independent of St. Thomas) I started thinking about CollegeClub, which used to let you check your e-mail from a toll-free phone number. Here's Yahoo!'s section on the concept; unfortunately, after the whole dot-com bubble burst, it looks like the free services are pretty stripped down... Yahoo! Business and Economy > Business to Business > Communications and Networking > Telecommunications > Phone Services > Messaging Services > Unified Messaging
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Lycos Finance | Sony Introduces Stylish All-in-One Desktop PC Looks like it might be interesting, though -- despite the promise in the release -- it doesn't appear to be available yet for viewing online... unless they expect you to pre-order it sight-unseen. (Or, more likely, they simply haven't updated their site yet...)
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'Want to build a bridge' search at Google turned up some ideas for putting an old flatbed trailer or rail "flat car" across the creek at my folks' place to build a bridge across it. Just something to walk across, maybe drive an ATV. I'd been thinking about a little suspension bridge, but this seems easier... if I could figure out a way to get it down there. Hmmm...
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????QR?PCG-QR3S/BP
Looks strange? It is! I love Altavista's translation page; when I read about a Sony iBook look-alike that's only available in Japan, I followed the link to their site... and when I realized that I can't read Japanese, I tried hitting the link through Altavista's translator.
I'm hoping that this link, which is one frame of the Altavista site, still works and isn't just cached on my computer or something...
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Yahoo! News - Sharp's U.K. Lab Develops 3-D Flat Screen This is something that DTI has done for years, but it takes a big name like Sharp to make it famous. All I want is to see one, since it's really hard to describe 3D features in words.
(The theory with DTI's displays is the same as lenticular art; do a Google search for that and you'll get the idea.)
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I had the chance to browser through Soul Survivor: How My Faith Survived the Church last night at Barnes and Noble, and I have to say I wasn't very impressed. The Amazon reviews who point out that it's just a bunch of essays about famous Christians are right. Not that essays about people are bad things... but not as hopeful as the title suggested.
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"Digital Camera Modification (For IR/UV) FAQ" By Michael Jones There's one more IR-related blog entry, this one discussing Sony's still camera. My biggest complaint with IR is that I'm "stuck" with a 640x480 output. A megapixel still camera would solve that problem (as would one of Sony's megapixel Digital8 cameras... but you pay a lot for just a few more pixels).
Anyway, the problem is that Sony cameras were used to "see through clothing" by mounting an IR filter to them and pointing them at scantily-clad folks in bright sunlight. Frankly, I think you'd have to be in pretty sad mental shape to get excited over a grainy green blob in your viewfinder when you could see more on the cover of Vogue or Rolling Stone... but it bothered Sony enough that they've "crippled" their Nightshot cameras so you can't turn down the exposure setting when in bright sunlight. So, pictures can get washed out. :(
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Something I heard on "Dreamland" (a radio show) a couple weeks back that piqued my interest. I always wondered how quickly the effects of gravity traveled. Is it limited by the speed of light? And, if so, does that say anything about what gravity is ?
Here's what I mean: If the sun magically disappeared right now -- POOF! -- it would take a few minutes (eight, I think) for us to see the light blink out, because that's how long it takes for light to travel from the sun to us. But would we feel an effect before then -- messed up tides, earthquakes, etc.?
Scientists have been pondering this, to... Spaceflight Now | Breaking News | Scientists attempt to measure speed of gravity
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I'm coming to the conclusion that blogging my thoughts makes them even more incoherent than they are when witnessed in person. Sorry! This stuff makes sense to me -- really, it does. But I understand if it doesn't make sense to you. :)
New homepage (splash screen, really) that needs some work, but it's kinda cool and shouldn't behave as oddly as the last one when hit with different browsers.
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A year and a half ago (April 2001) I signed up for some email lists from ZDNet. I gave them a specific address, tied to my domain, on the off chance that they'd sell my name to someone. They promsied then, and still promise today, that "This information will be used only by ZDNet and our advertisers, to help us serve you better and to allow us to keep our services free - thank you."
This past August I started getting porn SPAM to that address. An e-mail to ZDNet has gone unanswered. Just today I found these e-mails are escallating to porn involving farm animals... so I think it's time for me to spend a stamp and send a real letter to these turkeys.
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Heading off this morning to help set up a Contagious Christian broadcast at Berean. If this "youth version" is anything like the one I attended this past spring, it should be excellent.
Bo Boshers on CCN Train your students to share their faith comfortably and effectively! And there's no better time than now -- After age nineteen, the chance
of a non-believer coming to Christ drops to 6 percent. That's right: 6 percent. That means your students have a special window of opportunity to make a
difference for the kingdom. And this lively, interactive seminar will give them the tools they need!
Most Christian teens (and adults!) really want to share their faith, but don't know how. Just the thought seems scary. What's so cool is that God wants to use
us the way we are-our interests, our personality, our strengths, and even some of our weaknesses. Your students will be amazed at how these are the very things
the Holy Spirit can use to hel...
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Electromagnetic Bombs Could Throw Civilization Back 200 Years
One of our debaters pointed out this link as an interesting example of individual rights (freedom of the press, in this case) in conflict with national security. And, the concept of a cheap "electromagnetic bomb" is a frightening one anyway.
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Marathon Computer - iRackDV
Now this is a good use for old iMacs! Especially if you could find one with a bad monitor. A rack-mount computer, one unit high, with a CD-ROM drive? Very, very cool! You could max out the RAM and load up VirtualPC, so you'd have the best of both worlds. G3 only, unfortunately, but... nothing's perfect, right? :)
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Heard about this book on the drive in, listening to Moore on Life... and it seems kinda interesting, considering that my non-Christian years were due to my observation of "christian conduct" in friends and neighbors. Haven't read the review yet, so maybe it's horrible, but...
Amazon.com: buying info: Soul Survivor: How My Faith Survived the Church
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For only 10 bucks, this looks like a good deal! Made with Macintosh, you know!
Photo to Movie
Photo to Movie 1.0 for Mac OS X
Photo to Movie enables you to create a movie by zooming and panning over a photo. It presents a simple interface to specify the starting and ending frames and generates full quality QuickTime or DV Stream files (compatible with iMovie). Photo to Movie only runs on Mac OS X.
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This amazes me; DVD-R media is down to less than $0.90 per disc! That's cheaper than videotape in bulk at Sam's Club! We still have the issue of not being able to view DVD-Rs in all DVD players... but things are looking better all the time! Shop4Tech is the source:
Shop4Tech: The lowest price on cd-r media and more! Leda DVD-Recordable 4.7GB - 50pack (General Purpose) Bulk $0.89 each