I've just installed Jeff Minard's modification of Edmundo Hidalgo's Cat2Tag plugin for WordPress to move away from the antiquated categorical organization system to a more flexible tag-based system. I've already been pseudo-tagging my posts using categories in the sense that I've been putting posts in more than one category, but I've been sticking to existing categories since I couldn't previously create categories on-the-fly while writing posts.
As the description for this plugin says, "It’s time to use folksomonies in our blogs, people."
Now if only there was a way to integrate the Technorati tagging plugin with this plugin…
Technorati Tags: blogs, tags, folksonomies, wordpress, plugins
Is it just me or are health and fitness podcasts just glorified infomercials? Yes, some of them do give a lot of good information, but I've found that they don't give you all the information. Instead they redirect you to a simple site with lots of testimonials urging you to buy a set of books, CDs or DVDs. Contrast this to tech podcasts which provide you with a boatload of information and encourage you to vote for them on Podcast Alley, et al. Only rarely do I hear tech podcasts asking for donations and even then, they're not "coercing" the listener to do so by giving out half the content for free. It's a small difference, but one that makes some types of podcasts stick with you and others that make you wonder why you wasted your time and bandwidth downloading disguised advertising.
Technorati Tags: advertising, podcast, podcasts, fitness, health, donations
Mena Trott over at Six Apart writes about a ViewMaster Six Apart put out showcasing some of history's greatest moments and how bloggers would have reacted to them had blogs existed. She writes:
I made the assumption that many of these attendees would have pre-conceived notions about bloggers being self-important and figured that it was better to call it out in a humorous way. The last thing that people would expect from a weblogging company is a giveaway poking fun at an over-exaggerated aspect of blogging.
Technorati Tags: Six Apart, blogging, history, funny
Up until now, I had thought ligers were fantasy creatures made up by the title character of last years' Napoleon Dynamite. Well, it turns out they are real (though not found in the wild) and here's a National Geographic article on them. Noteworthy is the fact that mixing species is frowned upon by the American Zoo and Acquarium Association and the survival rate of the hybrids probably has something to do with it. According to the article, the ten ligers at Wild Animal Safari in Pine Mountain, Georgia, are the only ones that have survived of the 24 they've bred since 1999.
I can't say that I particularly liked Napoleon Dynamite, but "discovering" a new species that's not a giant squid or mosquito or something is always cool.
Technorati Tags: liger, animals, National Geographic, Napoleon Dynamite
(Slightly) Long(er) story short: a 20 year old was taken into a police station to be booked on a stolen auto charge when he grabbed an officer's gun and killed two officers and a radio dispatcher. He claims GTA made him do it and told an officer after his arrest that, "Life is a video game; everybody has to die sometime."
Thank goodness the jury convicted him. Yes, GTA is a violent game, but the claim that one can't tell the difference between real life and video games is preposterous. If anything, being able to take out one's anger in a virtual world should lower real world violence.
GTA and its creator, Rockstar, seem to be society's latest scapegoat. You've got a controversial video game and a small, non-influential developer, what more could looking for an easy fight want?
(via Joystiq)
Technorati Tags: Rockstar, GTA, video games, gaming, violence
The EVDB (Events and Venues Database) is a tag-based event directory that I've discovered after hearing an interview with founder and CEO Brian Dear on IT Conversations. I always complain that there's not enough to do in Miami, but that's partly because I don't like looking in the newspaper for things to do. With an online database, finding events will be much easier. Right now it looks to just include events from ticketmaster.com and meetup.com, but at least you can avoid those ad-ridden sites and browse events on a site that's much cleaner. It's very obvious that they're modeling the site after Flickr and that's alright since Flickr's UI is excellent. I do have some complaints about it, but the ever-popular "Beta" tag was there, which excuses them from all flaws. Regardless, I sent them some feedback touching on some areas (particularly UI flaws) that need improvement:
1. The "Metro areas" section on the main page is a bit misleading. I was almost turned off to the site because at first glance it looked like it didn't support the metro areas I frequent (Miami and Philadelphia).
2. Sorting options in search results. I have no idea what kind of sorting system the search default to, but right now it looks to be completely random. It doesn't look to be sorted by any of the four fields available, so it might be the order in which the event was added, which doesn't make much sense unless I'm looking for "what's new". It should only sort that way if I explicitly want "what's new." Sorting by any of the four fields available would be ideal.
3. This may be helped by being able to sort by date, but an option to limit results by a date range would be ideal. For example, I should be able to search for concerts in New York between 9/1/05 and 9/4/05.
Technorati Tags: tags, tagging, evdb, events, web 2.0, to-do, IT Conversations
Ten days until I'm done with my internship. Ten days until I can go back to being a college student, going to sleep at 5am and waking up at noon. Eleven days until my birthday. Eleven days until the end of my teenage years.
It's weird how days drag on forever (especially at work), but the summer as a whole feels like it flew by. I am not looking forward to moving furniture up three flights of stairs, but I am looking forward to being back in Philly with my friends (most of which are graduating next year).
Another chapter in life quickly coming to a close.
I just booked my flight back to school for Wednesday 8/31. It will be my first time traveling on Southwest. The July 4th weekend debacle moved me to try something new and the general crappiness of the USAirways terminal (the other terminals at FLL are much, much better) and lack of entertainment onboard USAirways flights also influenced my decision. I've heard good things about Southwest and so far two factors have made it a good experience for me so far:
- Total cost: $57.70. I don't think I've ever paid less for a plane ticket outside of reward travel. For comparison, a flight that leaves twenty minutes after mine costs $20 more on USAirways.
- Three (3) pieces of checked baggage allowed. It could be risky, but the proposition of not having to shlep my guitar across the airports is appealing. Even if I don't check my guitar, I won't have to fill my suitcases to the point where they're ripping at the seams.
The only downside is that my normal school year travel plans make it impossible for me to get a free ticket under their current rewards scheme. 16 one-way flights are required for a free ticket and those 16 credits must be acquired in a year. Since I only make 10 one-way trips a year, its impossible for me to get a free ticket. It doesn't really bother me though, since I normally need 25 flights for a free ticket on USAirways, and if I can save $20/flight by flying on Southwest, I can get a "free" flight every three flights I make (assuming they're $60 flights of course).
After flying USAirways exclusively for the past two years and becoming ever more disappointed with them, I'm really looking forward to moving on to something that makes for a (hopefully) more enjoyable flying experience.
Technorati Tags: Southwest, USAirways, flying, travel
Copper Kettle Restaurant Sign
Originally uploaded by Martin Gordon.
My dad and I took the car in for service this morning and we went to the nearest restaurant to grab some lunch while we waited for them to finish up the car. The first restaurant we came across was the Copper Kettle Restaurant, a diner-style place which seems like it was stuck in time. The tables, decor, and even the staff seem frozen in the 70s. Though the menu does look like it was updated fairly recently (clipart and prices seemed current), the daily specials were handwritten and posted by the bar. The food was nothing out of the ordinary, but it felt home-cooked and that's a welcome change from the line-cooked grease-laden excuses for entrées you find at a lot of places. It was quite a sight to see and a great change from the shitty service common at chain restaurants that are all-too-convenient around here. There are a couple of pictures of the dining room in my Flickr photostream.
Technorati Tags: photos, Flickr, restaurants, ft. lauderdale, florida, old, nostalgia
Apple did it. They released a multibutton mouse called Mighty Mouse. It has a one button design like their current mouse, but it actually has 4 distinct buttons. In place of a scroll wheel, it has a scroll ball that allows 360 degrees of scrolling. Its biggest drawback, and no doubt a showstopper, is that cord coming out of the top of it. I don't use all 8 buttons on my MX900, but I sure like that it's wireless. I'd be willing to give it up for a mouse with less buttons, but not one that's corded. Maybe they'll put out a Bluetooth one (and it better be rechargeable) in a couple of months and I'll be able to finally put my scarred and battered MX900 to rest.
Technorati Tags: Apple, Mac, computers, mouse, Mighty Mouse
