Yesterday, was reading Matthew 10:9,
Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts... (NASB) - the version i read
Don't think you have to put on a fund-raising campaign before you start (The Message)
Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses (King James)
Provide neither gold nor silver nor copper in your money belts (NEW King James)
Don’t take any money in your money belts—no gold, silver, or even copper coins (New Living)
At first, I was intrigued, because Gold and Silver are precious metals, and understander-bly used as a medium of currency/buying. But behold, copper is categorized as quite precious too. I am learning alot about copper in my job and that caught my attention.
As I search on more of the different versions, look at King James that says "brass". Brass is an alloy that contains copper and zinc. Then i wonder would it be that the root word bears the same meaning for both copper and brass?
While copper is fetching very high prices now, it was not much of a precious metal during the olden days, although being one of the oldest trades of mankind. So naturally i thought of it being a medium of exchange that represents value comparable to gold and silver, so the only thing that can do that is to validate it as currency. while looking at the New Living translation, it states "copper coins".
Matthew is a "publician", or tax collector, as he penned down his own occupation as. He is well-versed with money. So shouldn't be any error there. If you read other gospels, there's mention of the bags and belts (Mat 10:9b), while no mention of money. A little occupational hazard there.
I like the Message version, do not go on a fund raising campaign. Food for thought isn't it, for us to go out there like "sheeps among wolves", with no financial support at all, no extra 2 coats, no bags (prob to carry food and coat, water bottle even), no belts (to carry money), no staff (defensive weapon maybe). Basically, nothing. Doing the Lord's work starting with nothing at all. However, without any of these sorts, we are still required to be "shrewd as a serpent and gentle as dove".
In investment, its always high-risk, high-reward; low-risk, low-reward. In this endeavor, we start with nothing, we end with nothing (of this world), naked we come from the womb, naked we depart, as travellers. But we gain treasures in store for us in heaven. A rather good investment proposition there, wouldn't you think so?
Monday, June 25, 2007
Thursday, June 21, 2007
梁与朱
My friend told me that this singer is nice, so i went to listen, 曹格。 so i searched for his song for those 试听ones and saw this song, so i tried to listen. its called "梁山伯与朱丽叶". its quite catchy chinese pop music, i haven't been listening for a while, so the chorus goes like this:
Fill in the blanks:
我爱你，你是我的____________;
我愿意成为你的______________.
MCQ choices
a) 罗密友与朱丽叶
b) 梁山伯与祝英台
c) (any other glorious love story couples you can think of...)
I must confess that after losing touch with the chinese pop scene (my friend mentioned the name of the singer, i said "oh the one with the superwoman song ah?" then my friend say, wah lau.. now so many more albums got superman already.. i thought pulling my leg.. superman, actually really have one), its quite catchy la the tune, keep playing in my head now haha..
I should listen to less complicated things like this more, makes me more human probably haha..I was quite boh liao so try to put some of the lyrics on my MSN personal msg like "我爱你，你是我的朱丽叶".. then after a while, i also feel 不好意思 so took it off.
I mean to give credit, im sure there are much better songs that he sings ( I trust my friends' taste, and also he is a Malaysian.)
Fill in the blanks:
我爱你，你是我的____________;
我愿意成为你的______________.
MCQ choices
a) 罗密友与朱丽叶
b) 梁山伯与祝英台
c) (any other glorious love story couples you can think of...)
I must confess that after losing touch with the chinese pop scene (my friend mentioned the name of the singer, i said "oh the one with the superwoman song ah?" then my friend say, wah lau.. now so many more albums got superman already.. i thought pulling my leg.. superman, actually really have one), its quite catchy la the tune, keep playing in my head now haha..
I should listen to less complicated things like this more, makes me more human probably haha..I was quite boh liao so try to put some of the lyrics on my MSN personal msg like "我爱你，你是我的朱丽叶".. then after a while, i also feel 不好意思 so took it off.
I mean to give credit, im sure there are much better songs that he sings ( I trust my friends' taste, and also he is a Malaysian.)
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Bloomberg
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 19, 2007
No. 205
www.nyc.gov
STATEMENT BY MAYOR BLOOMBERG ON PARTY AFFILIATION
“I have filed papers with the New York City Board of Elections to change my status as a voter and register as unaffiliated with any political party. Although my plans for the future haven’t changed, I believe this brings my affiliation into alignment with how I have led and will continue to lead our City.
“A nonpartisan approach has worked wonders in New York: we’ve balanced budgets, grown our economy, improved public health, reformed the school system and made the nation’s safest city even safer.
“We have achieved real progress by overcoming the partisanship that too often puts narrow interests above the common good. As a political independent, I will continue to work with those in all political parties to find common ground, to put partisanship aside and to achieve real solutions to the challenges we face.
“Any successful elected executive knows that real results are more important than partisan battles and that good ideas should take precedence over rigid adherence to any particular political ideology. Working together, there’s no limit to what we can do.”
-30-
Contact: Stu Loeser (212) 788-XXXX
--------------------
I really like Bloomberg and how he managed New York. If he runs for presidency, I would have voted for him (if im an American). I first knew him through using a Bloomberg terminal (of course), the financial terminal with the biggest market share, then later found out more about his company and read his book, Bloomberg by Bloomberg. He came from the golden era of Soloman Brothers (read: Liar's Poker by Micheal Lewis). Business times has a very good writeup on him last week.
There is no better way to manage a city/country like a business entity really. Look at Singapore, able to establish itself in different economic frontiers by establishing an edge, competitive advantage. The GIC and Temasek are now the de facto of managing foreign exchange reserves and country assets, with China, with the world's largest reserves, wanting to model after Singapore.
June 19, 2007
No. 205
www.nyc.gov
STATEMENT BY MAYOR BLOOMBERG ON PARTY AFFILIATION
“I have filed papers with the New York City Board of Elections to change my status as a voter and register as unaffiliated with any political party. Although my plans for the future haven’t changed, I believe this brings my affiliation into alignment with how I have led and will continue to lead our City.
“A nonpartisan approach has worked wonders in New York: we’ve balanced budgets, grown our economy, improved public health, reformed the school system and made the nation’s safest city even safer.
“We have achieved real progress by overcoming the partisanship that too often puts narrow interests above the common good. As a political independent, I will continue to work with those in all political parties to find common ground, to put partisanship aside and to achieve real solutions to the challenges we face.
“Any successful elected executive knows that real results are more important than partisan battles and that good ideas should take precedence over rigid adherence to any particular political ideology. Working together, there’s no limit to what we can do.”
-30-
Contact: Stu Loeser (212) 788-XXXX
--------------------
I really like Bloomberg and how he managed New York. If he runs for presidency, I would have voted for him (if im an American). I first knew him through using a Bloomberg terminal (of course), the financial terminal with the biggest market share, then later found out more about his company and read his book, Bloomberg by Bloomberg. He came from the golden era of Soloman Brothers (read: Liar's Poker by Micheal Lewis). Business times has a very good writeup on him last week.
There is no better way to manage a city/country like a business entity really. Look at Singapore, able to establish itself in different economic frontiers by establishing an edge, competitive advantage. The GIC and Temasek are now the de facto of managing foreign exchange reserves and country assets, with China, with the world's largest reserves, wanting to model after Singapore.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
A Good Year
Rented "A Good Year" last Sat evening, a show that i wanted to watch when it first came out but missed it. Really liked it. A story about life's simple pleasures, with a tint of romantic overlay, based in a picturesque setting of Château La Canorgue during the 2005 harvest in the Luberon area of Provence.
Was it the punchlines that Max Skinner delivered, or the cinematography, or the clever yet entertaining details, or was it because Max Skinner's profession is one that i can identify with, yet the background of summers in a small town setting is nostalgic, or was that love Max has for his uncle? I'm not sure really, but I really enjoyed this show, surprisingly, a so called love story. But really, the main theme of it may just be about kinship, Max's posture towards the uncle, the daughter that Max's uncle never knew, the warm servants, the meaning that little things bear for a person all because of the memories that is attached to it. Afterall, maybe men's needs has always been that need to relate, which without it as a foundation, any other higher tier need like money and status, will just be built shaky.
Not new, but still have a dream to own a vineyard. I am working towards it, many more than just this thing from this film.
Pardonne mes lèvres. Elles trouvent la joie dans les endrois les plus inhabituels
Forgive my lips. They find joy in the most unusual places
早雨
如果有一个愿望
那怕多么远，名华权就又算什么？
在这深处又渴望些什么？
被祝福，因他取力于祢
深居祢圣殿里，祢的住居是多么美丽
生命渴望祢的一切
就似山谷变成一道溪
似早雨盖过是祢的祝福
与祢一天豫胜过一切美丽
让我站在祢殿门守候，直到见到了祢
那怕多么远，名华权就又算什么？
在这深处又渴望些什么？
被祝福，因他取力于祢
深居祢圣殿里，祢的住居是多么美丽
生命渴望祢的一切
就似山谷变成一道溪
似早雨盖过是祢的祝福
与祢一天豫胜过一切美丽
让我站在祢殿门守候，直到见到了祢
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Horse steak, pig innerts and such
"If the president ever apppoints you liaison to the intelligentsia or if you find yourself at the Havard Faculty Club for any other reason, you will be well advised to order the horse steak. That shows that you are one of us. The horse steak has been on the menu since the World War II meat shortages, and the Harvard cognoscenti, always alert for new taste thrills, found it gamier and more interesting than plain old cow streak, especially when washed down with an amusing little Australian Pinot Chardonnay. So it stays on the menu, a permanent fixture. Horse steak is the symbol of the open, questing mind, which is how Havard likes to think of itself" (quoted, The Money Game, Adam Smith)
Eccentricities signifies abnormality, undeniably any form of eccentricities possess a measure of exclusivity. While in many cases, more desirable emotions of eclusivity is being projected to overshadow the un-norm. The westerners digusts at Chinese that eats everything, but have you ever wonder why Chinese eat every single part of a pig, from head to toe? Because they are poor, and have to make full use of the whole animal, during the olden day war times, that's my theory. Therefore, it becomes a "permanent fixture" on the menu, not unlike the horse steak. The Germans' eat pig trotters, the French eat Foie Gras etc.
Well, probably the chinese is just happy and contented to enjoy their own pig innerts and trotters and not care about what others say about them (乐在其中), while giving it a twist will definitely increase the taste of exclusivity, as a delicacy.
Having said that, still interested to taste the horse steak with chardonnay. Besides trotters, one of my favourite dish of my mum's cooking, maybe i would say i quite like pigs ear.
Eccentricities signifies abnormality, undeniably any form of eccentricities possess a measure of exclusivity. While in many cases, more desirable emotions of eclusivity is being projected to overshadow the un-norm. The westerners digusts at Chinese that eats everything, but have you ever wonder why Chinese eat every single part of a pig, from head to toe? Because they are poor, and have to make full use of the whole animal, during the olden day war times, that's my theory. Therefore, it becomes a "permanent fixture" on the menu, not unlike the horse steak. The Germans' eat pig trotters, the French eat Foie Gras etc.
Well, probably the chinese is just happy and contented to enjoy their own pig innerts and trotters and not care about what others say about them (乐在其中), while giving it a twist will definitely increase the taste of exclusivity, as a delicacy.
Having said that, still interested to taste the horse steak with chardonnay. Besides trotters, one of my favourite dish of my mum's cooking, maybe i would say i quite like pigs ear.
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Jackpot
In the questions, most will choose the second option, with some kind of hope of hitting the jackpot, but however, when counted with probability, the expected outcome is the same for both options.
Men are never rational are they? Very willing to take their risks when there is a perceived return (often when calculated with expected return, is not higher than not taking the risk at all). This goes for the stock market, and all sorts of speculation like buying toto, and maybe even, going after a girl?!? haha..
well well, or it simply shows that men are just bad in mathematics. hahaha... (that was my point to defend mankind from the person that showed me this article)
In Nietzsche's book Beyond Good and Evil, he said that "Madness is something rare in individuals -- but in groups, parties, peoples, ages it is the rule" However, have you ever realize that alot of times, when you are left to make your own decision, you look for some affirmation of your choice? Easily swayed, that is why madness exists when there is groupthink, as Barton Biggs mention in his book Hedgehogging, groupthink is groupstink. But i digressed.
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock." (Matthew 7:24,25). The world celebrates that you have a mind of your own, you have your conviction in making decisions, your own perspective, going after your own passion. Maybe afterall, we fall unconsciously under the spell of groupthink, sub-culture, follow the crowd. If anyone would hear the words of what is written in the Book, and followed, one would have escaped the groupthink trap.
Rain comes down on the top, wind blows lateral, and streams rose from below. He said that if those words are being put into practice, one will be able to stand against adversaries from all sides and not sway.
Men are never rational are they? Very willing to take their risks when there is a perceived return (often when calculated with expected return, is not higher than not taking the risk at all). This goes for the stock market, and all sorts of speculation like buying toto, and maybe even, going after a girl?!? haha..
well well, or it simply shows that men are just bad in mathematics. hahaha... (that was my point to defend mankind from the person that showed me this article)
In Nietzsche's book Beyond Good and Evil
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock." (Matthew 7:24,25). The world celebrates that you have a mind of your own, you have your conviction in making decisions, your own perspective, going after your own passion. Maybe afterall, we fall unconsciously under the spell of groupthink, sub-culture, follow the crowd. If anyone would hear the words of what is written in the Book, and followed, one would have escaped the groupthink trap.
Rain comes down on the top, wind blows lateral, and streams rose from below. He said that if those words are being put into practice, one will be able to stand against adversaries from all sides and not sway.
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Rational Choices #1
Senario #1:
There is 3 choices in an experiment, one being:
a) you get 100 bucks straight away
b) you toss a coin, if its heads, you get 250, if you get tails, you have to pay 50 bucks
Senario #2:
There is 2 choices,
a) you originally have 500 bucks, but 100 bucks got stolen
b) you have 400 bucks originally, you toss the coin, if you win, you get 200 bucks
Senario #3:
There is 100 bucks to be devided between 2 person
a) if you agreed to divide, you have to take the other person's terms
b) if you disagree to divide, both get nothing
his proposal will be for you to take 1, and he take 99.
give your answers now! write it in the format of the questions. e.g. a,b,b OR a,b,a OR b,b,a etc
The answers and findings will be in the next blog
adapted from: 读者2006 #8
There is 3 choices in an experiment, one being:
a) you get 100 bucks straight away
b) you toss a coin, if its heads, you get 250, if you get tails, you have to pay 50 bucks
Senario #2:
There is 2 choices,
a) you originally have 500 bucks, but 100 bucks got stolen
b) you have 400 bucks originally, you toss the coin, if you win, you get 200 bucks
Senario #3:
There is 100 bucks to be devided between 2 person
a) if you agreed to divide, you have to take the other person's terms
b) if you disagree to divide, both get nothing
his proposal will be for you to take 1, and he take 99.
give your answers now! write it in the format of the questions. e.g. a,b,b OR a,b,a OR b,b,a etc
The answers and findings will be in the next blog
adapted from: 读者2006 #8
Saturday, June 02, 2007
What if what you paint is real
I have not painted for ages, these are obviously quite brief strokes and a little half-hearted, bacause i didn't even bother to outline with pencil, just draw and paint at the same time with colours. 
This sketch of a girl that i found in one of my drawing blocks, must have drawn it long long time ago, added colours, she does look a bit pale without "makeup",
especially the lips. Now i know why girls need to put make up. 
Hmm, what if what you paint can become real? Okie, the old man no need. haha..
This sketch of a girl that i found in one of my drawing blocks, must have drawn it long long time ago, added colours, she does look a bit pale without "makeup",
especially the lips. Now i know why girls need to put make up. 
Hmm, what if what you paint can become real? Okie, the old man no need. haha..
Friday, June 01, 2007
Chronos VS Kairos
Chronos, has to do with calendars, seasons, dates, clocks, chronometers. It is the time as defined, quantified and grasped by men, as concept of time. It is also the linear time, a time that goes in a straight line, and does not turn back.
Kairos, is to do with the fullness of time, when circumstances are right for something to take place.
It has always been men's dream to be able to time the Kairos moment correctly, drawing a parallel, the top and bottom of the stock market, most can detect a trend (trending up or down), which has to do with Chronos, but not the Kairos. Gadwell called it tipping point, mathematicians call it maxima/minima. Maybe deep inside us, there is this desire to see the best timing, which is God's timing. we chase after what is seemingly Kairos, as defined in the things of the world.
Maybe Kairos is so elusive that men has given up chasing for it. I like the way its being defined, "the fullness of time", when the time is right. Men also tried ways to find out that, if you know from the formula that Kairos will happen when the "fullness" is reached, you will seek after what makes the fullness and tries to detect it. Similarly in the markets, people try to see overbought/oversold signals, the drying up of liquidity that signifies fullness/emptiness, etc.
Its all so very interesting, because i realize that everything is linked. Men has always have a deepest desire in their hearts to chase after the things that matters to God. However, men are impatient, short-termed, selfish; which makes them substitute something of God to something created by men, to simulate God's things. Markets, fortune telling etc.
Maybe that's why also people could not live without a conclusion, a closing, an ending? Because all those things signifies the fullness, the Kairos? Well, i don't know, but this is all too interesting because its all linked. Elusive, but you can't escape it.
Kairos, is to do with the fullness of time, when circumstances are right for something to take place.
It has always been men's dream to be able to time the Kairos moment correctly, drawing a parallel, the top and bottom of the stock market, most can detect a trend (trending up or down), which has to do with Chronos, but not the Kairos. Gadwell called it tipping point, mathematicians call it maxima/minima. Maybe deep inside us, there is this desire to see the best timing, which is God's timing. we chase after what is seemingly Kairos, as defined in the things of the world.
Maybe Kairos is so elusive that men has given up chasing for it. I like the way its being defined, "the fullness of time", when the time is right. Men also tried ways to find out that, if you know from the formula that Kairos will happen when the "fullness" is reached, you will seek after what makes the fullness and tries to detect it. Similarly in the markets, people try to see overbought/oversold signals, the drying up of liquidity that signifies fullness/emptiness, etc.
Its all so very interesting, because i realize that everything is linked. Men has always have a deepest desire in their hearts to chase after the things that matters to God. However, men are impatient, short-termed, selfish; which makes them substitute something of God to something created by men, to simulate God's things. Markets, fortune telling etc.
Maybe that's why also people could not live without a conclusion, a closing, an ending? Because all those things signifies the fullness, the Kairos? Well, i don't know, but this is all too interesting because its all linked. Elusive, but you can't escape it.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
what is it be to me?
started unknowing, recognising yet denying
most will hide it, to subtly express it
fuzzy warm when up
tearing misery when down
hopeless it may seem, hopeful some think wishfully
wretched, sometimes feel yourself; blessed when you receive
search for one in the crowd, or try to be the one often
never certain 'til the last moment
never waiver, until never
always selfless, for only oneself albeit
always giving, wishfully receiving
none like others, but much for ours
what is this?
none other than what you think it is
what would it be to me?
don't guess unless you see
:)
most will hide it, to subtly express it
fuzzy warm when up
tearing misery when down
hopeless it may seem, hopeful some think wishfully
wretched, sometimes feel yourself; blessed when you receive
search for one in the crowd, or try to be the one often
never certain 'til the last moment
never waiver, until never
always selfless, for only oneself albeit
always giving, wishfully receiving
none like others, but much for ours
what is this?
none other than what you think it is
what would it be to me?
don't guess unless you see
:)
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
The River
Came across this song lyrics when i was searching for something, nice country song, of course i know Garth Brooks for another song, "Lost in you":
~The River~
You know a dream is like a river, ever changing as it flows, and a dreamer's just a vessel, that must follow where it goes.
Trying to learn from what's behind you, and never knowing what's in store, makes each day a constant battle just to stay between the shores.
Too many times we stand aside, and let the waters slip away, 'Til what we put off 'til tomorrow has now become today.
So, don't you sit upon the shoreline and say you're satisfied.
Choose to chance the rapids, and dare to dance the tide.
There's bound to be rough waters and I know I'll take some falls.
But, with the Good Lord as my captain I can make it through them all.
I will sail my vessel 'til the river runs dry.
Like a bird upon the wind, these waters are my sky.
I'll never reach my destination if I never try.
So, I will sail my vessel 'til the river runs dry.
"The River" Lyrics By ~ Garth Brooks
~The River~
You know a dream is like a river, ever changing as it flows, and a dreamer's just a vessel, that must follow where it goes.
Trying to learn from what's behind you, and never knowing what's in store, makes each day a constant battle just to stay between the shores.
Too many times we stand aside, and let the waters slip away, 'Til what we put off 'til tomorrow has now become today.
So, don't you sit upon the shoreline and say you're satisfied.
Choose to chance the rapids, and dare to dance the tide.
There's bound to be rough waters and I know I'll take some falls.
But, with the Good Lord as my captain I can make it through them all.
I will sail my vessel 'til the river runs dry.
Like a bird upon the wind, these waters are my sky.
I'll never reach my destination if I never try.
So, I will sail my vessel 'til the river runs dry.
"The River" Lyrics By ~ Garth Brooks
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Friday, May 25, 2007
Thursday, May 10, 2007
mother's day card
so it started like that, from the outside, then from the inside
then i decided to cut it (actually cos cannot fit into envelope). write some words inside, and that's it. i think it looks best when standing up... oh well, i think next year i'll just buy a card la haha..
Monday, May 07, 2007
Geeks can teach
14 Things Geeks Can Teach The World
We assemble the choicest nerdy nuggets of everyday wisdom from the brightest tech minds around. Start your education now!
By the How 2.0 Geeks
quoted: http://www.popsci.com/popsci/how20/0031cb989f071110vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html
Every group of friends has that one person to go to for tech advice: what kind of TV to buy, the right HTML tags to pimp out a MySpace page, and so on. Believe me, I would know. But although I consider myself fairly willing to share the tech wealth, my powers pale in comparison with the sage wisdom dispersed in the "Ask a Geek" feature found in each issue of Popular Science. Every month, we feed the practical questions faced by everyday netizens to some of the Web's brightest minds—including Gina Trapani (editor of Lifehacker), Merlin Mann (editor of 43 Folders), Jake Ludington (keeper of the MediaBlab blog) and Annalee Newitz (tech writer extraordinaire, Second Life whiz)—, anything from ridding your computer of spyware to using any song file on your computer as a ringtone.
But that’s only the beginning. Here we present a compendium of the choicest nuggets of nerdy advice—get yourself a geek education by launching the photo gallery.
And if you have any wisdom of your own to share, or perhaps a question for our geeks, we want to hear about it over on the How 2.0 Blog. —John Mahoney
Table of Contents:
How Do I Hang My Flat-Screen TV? by Bryan Greenway
How (and Why) Should I Encrypt My Data? by Gina Trapani
Can I Download Streaming Videos Off the Web? by Jake Ludington
Can I Plug In My Prius? by Stephan Wilkinson
Can Viruses Attack My Cellphone? by Eugene Kaspersky
How Can I Make a Personalized Email Address? by Merlin Mann
How Can I Surf the Web Anonymously? by Annalee Newitz
How Can I Guard Against Spyware? by Ben Edelman
Can I Use My Own Songs as Ringtones? by Gina Trapani
What Music Format is Best? by Jonathan Coulton
Why Do Batteries Explode? by Nicole Dyer
Is the Music Industry Still Suing People? by Fred von Lohmann
Can I Wipe My Name off the Web? by Lauren Gelman
How Can I Tame My Overflowing Inbox? by Merlin Mann
We assemble the choicest nerdy nuggets of everyday wisdom from the brightest tech minds around. Start your education now!
By the How 2.0 Geeks
quoted: http://www.popsci.com/popsci/how20/0031cb989f071110vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html
Every group of friends has that one person to go to for tech advice: what kind of TV to buy, the right HTML tags to pimp out a MySpace page, and so on. Believe me, I would know. But although I consider myself fairly willing to share the tech wealth, my powers pale in comparison with the sage wisdom dispersed in the "Ask a Geek" feature found in each issue of Popular Science. Every month, we feed the practical questions faced by everyday netizens to some of the Web's brightest minds—including Gina Trapani (editor of Lifehacker), Merlin Mann (editor of 43 Folders), Jake Ludington (keeper of the MediaBlab blog) and Annalee Newitz (tech writer extraordinaire, Second Life whiz)—, anything from ridding your computer of spyware to using any song file on your computer as a ringtone.
But that’s only the beginning. Here we present a compendium of the choicest nuggets of nerdy advice—get yourself a geek education by launching the photo gallery.
And if you have any wisdom of your own to share, or perhaps a question for our geeks, we want to hear about it over on the How 2.0 Blog. —John Mahoney
Table of Contents:
How Do I Hang My Flat-Screen TV? by Bryan Greenway
How (and Why) Should I Encrypt My Data? by Gina Trapani
Can I Download Streaming Videos Off the Web? by Jake Ludington
Can I Plug In My Prius? by Stephan Wilkinson
Can Viruses Attack My Cellphone? by Eugene Kaspersky
How Can I Make a Personalized Email Address? by Merlin Mann
How Can I Surf the Web Anonymously? by Annalee Newitz
How Can I Guard Against Spyware? by Ben Edelman
Can I Use My Own Songs as Ringtones? by Gina Trapani
What Music Format is Best? by Jonathan Coulton
Why Do Batteries Explode? by Nicole Dyer
Is the Music Industry Still Suing People? by Fred von Lohmann
Can I Wipe My Name off the Web? by Lauren Gelman
How Can I Tame My Overflowing Inbox? by Merlin Mann
Friday, May 04, 2007
Mac rocks. period.
Apple of Our Eye: Macs Save Money
03.20.07 5:00 AM
quoted from: http://www.wired.com/gadgets/mac/commentary/cultofmac/2007/03/73005?currentPage=1
There's been a distinct sea change in the way people think about Apple in the last few weeks.
Recently, people have been saying the strangest things about Apple and the Mac. Everything is topsy-turvy. Pundits aren't trotting out the old conventional wisdoms any more. They're saying odd stuff, like Macs are good for business; Macs can save money; and that Apple's stock -- at $90 a share -- is a bargain.
In fact, there seems to be a widespread re-evaluation of Apple going on, a cultural shift that's changing the way people think about the company. It's been building for a while but it has reached a tipping point in the last couple of months. Here's what people are saying now.
Macs will save you money
Macs have always been derided as more expensive than PCs, but now Wilkes University in Pennsylvania is dumping its Windows machines for Macs -- to save money! A few years ago, universities like Dartmouth College, one of the biggest Mac-centric colleges, couldn't dump their Macs fast enough.
Macs are good for business
Macs in the workplace used to be just for the artsy types in the design department. But now they're appropriate for regular desk jockeys of every stripe. In Computerworld, consultant Seth Weintraub recommends Macs for the enterprise because they're easy to learn, easy to administer and not as prone to viruses and other nasties. Weintraub says IT managers who bought Macs for home use are increasingly looking to deploy them at work.
Less is more
At one time, loading on more features was the mantra. When the iPod came out, critics said it didn't match rival devices, which boasted FM radios and bigger hard drives. But users wanted fewer features, and better ease of use. "That's why the iPod succeeded where its predecessor products bombed," writes Chris Taylor, Business 2.0's senior editor, in a recent piece titled "The Trouble With Gee-Whiz Gadgets."
Closed is good
Apple's traditional closed system -- proprietary hardware, software and online services -- is now a selling point. A couple of years ago, many confidently predicted Apple would fail if it didn't open up the iPod/iTunes system to rivals, who would "hybridize" the platform with interoperable hardware and software from multiple companies. "It's absolutely clear now why five years from now, Apple will have 3 (percent) to 5 percent of the player market,'' Rob Glaser, CEO of Apple rival RealNetworks, told The New York Times in 2003. "The history of the world is that hybridization yields better results."
But consumers seem to want the opposite -- products and services from one company that are guaranteed to work well together. Look at Microsoft's attempt to copy the iPod's top-to-bottom integration with the Zune. And customers are embracing that "closed" system. "I just switched from a Dell to an Apple laptop and love the Mac lifestyle," student Priya Sanghvi told USA Today
Apple is the darling of Wall Street
Wall Street analysts, traditionally skeptical of Apple, are suddenly giddily bullish, releasing extremely positive forecasts on future performance. Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster says the Apple TV will give the company a big lead over Microsoft in the digital living room. (Target price: $124.) UBS Investment research analyst Benjamin Reitzes believes the iPhone is the beginning of a "mega platform" of touch-screen devices that will give Apple "open-ended growth." (Target price: $124.)
Jon Markman, a columnist for Microsoft Money, thinks Apple's shares will double by 2010. "If you have ever kicked yourself for not buying Apple four years ago when you bought your first iPod, you should go for it now during this market weakness," he writes. And The Street's Scott Moritz says that thanks to the iPhone, "Palm seems doomed." According to Zacks Investment Research, 14 of the 17 analysts following Apple rate the stock a "buy" or better. (There are three "holds" and no "sell" ratings.)
Macs can run more applications
I can't remember the last time I heard anyone say there's no software for the Mac, or that Macs are too expensive. People still acknowledge that Apple's products aren't the cheapest, but they seem happy to pay for better-designed, better-made products. As for software, the old argument against Macs is moot. New Intel Macs can run Windows software as well as any PC. I more often hear the opposite -- people complaining that software like Apple's iLife suite isn't available on Windows.
The change in perception seems to have been tipped by the iPhone. A lot of people thought Apple got lucky with the iPod: It was a one-hit wonder, a fluke not likely to be repeated. But the iPhone is already starting to look like another industry-changing smash hit, and it's shining a different light on the company.
The clearest example is the Apple TV, which is due to be released this week. Late last year, there wasn't much buzz about the Apple TV. Most people just shrugged. There didn't seem to be a need for a wireless box to stream content from your computer to your TV.
But lately, the buzz has been growing. I've seen a lot of blog posts and news reports predicting the Apple TV will fly off store shelves. Some analysts are even saying the Apple TV is a more important product than the iPhone.
There's been a shift here. In a few weeks, the Apple TV went from "who cares?" to must-have. The product didn't change, but what people were saying about it did. I think it's because Apple is very clearly looking like a serial innovator: a company that can successfully trot out one big product after another. This has been generally true since the iMac in 1998, but now the wider public is catching on.
What's changed is not Apple, but people's perceptions of the company.
03.20.07 5:00 AM
quoted from: http://www.wired.com/gadgets/mac/commentary/cultofmac/2007/03/73005?currentPage=1
There's been a distinct sea change in the way people think about Apple in the last few weeks.
Recently, people have been saying the strangest things about Apple and the Mac. Everything is topsy-turvy. Pundits aren't trotting out the old conventional wisdoms any more. They're saying odd stuff, like Macs are good for business; Macs can save money; and that Apple's stock -- at $90 a share -- is a bargain.
In fact, there seems to be a widespread re-evaluation of Apple going on, a cultural shift that's changing the way people think about the company. It's been building for a while but it has reached a tipping point in the last couple of months. Here's what people are saying now.
Macs will save you money
Macs have always been derided as more expensive than PCs, but now Wilkes University in Pennsylvania is dumping its Windows machines for Macs -- to save money! A few years ago, universities like Dartmouth College, one of the biggest Mac-centric colleges, couldn't dump their Macs fast enough.
Macs are good for business
Macs in the workplace used to be just for the artsy types in the design department. But now they're appropriate for regular desk jockeys of every stripe. In Computerworld, consultant Seth Weintraub recommends Macs for the enterprise because they're easy to learn, easy to administer and not as prone to viruses and other nasties. Weintraub says IT managers who bought Macs for home use are increasingly looking to deploy them at work.
Less is more
At one time, loading on more features was the mantra. When the iPod came out, critics said it didn't match rival devices, which boasted FM radios and bigger hard drives. But users wanted fewer features, and better ease of use. "That's why the iPod succeeded where its predecessor products bombed," writes Chris Taylor, Business 2.0's senior editor, in a recent piece titled "The Trouble With Gee-Whiz Gadgets."
Closed is good
Apple's traditional closed system -- proprietary hardware, software and online services -- is now a selling point. A couple of years ago, many confidently predicted Apple would fail if it didn't open up the iPod/iTunes system to rivals, who would "hybridize" the platform with interoperable hardware and software from multiple companies. "It's absolutely clear now why five years from now, Apple will have 3 (percent) to 5 percent of the player market,'' Rob Glaser, CEO of Apple rival RealNetworks, told The New York Times in 2003. "The history of the world is that hybridization yields better results."
But consumers seem to want the opposite -- products and services from one company that are guaranteed to work well together. Look at Microsoft's attempt to copy the iPod's top-to-bottom integration with the Zune. And customers are embracing that "closed" system. "I just switched from a Dell to an Apple laptop and love the Mac lifestyle," student Priya Sanghvi told USA Today
Apple is the darling of Wall Street
Wall Street analysts, traditionally skeptical of Apple, are suddenly giddily bullish, releasing extremely positive forecasts on future performance. Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster says the Apple TV will give the company a big lead over Microsoft in the digital living room. (Target price: $124.) UBS Investment research analyst Benjamin Reitzes believes the iPhone is the beginning of a "mega platform" of touch-screen devices that will give Apple "open-ended growth." (Target price: $124.)
Jon Markman, a columnist for Microsoft Money, thinks Apple's shares will double by 2010. "If you have ever kicked yourself for not buying Apple four years ago when you bought your first iPod, you should go for it now during this market weakness," he writes. And The Street's Scott Moritz says that thanks to the iPhone, "Palm seems doomed." According to Zacks Investment Research, 14 of the 17 analysts following Apple rate the stock a "buy" or better. (There are three "holds" and no "sell" ratings.)
Macs can run more applications
I can't remember the last time I heard anyone say there's no software for the Mac, or that Macs are too expensive. People still acknowledge that Apple's products aren't the cheapest, but they seem happy to pay for better-designed, better-made products. As for software, the old argument against Macs is moot. New Intel Macs can run Windows software as well as any PC. I more often hear the opposite -- people complaining that software like Apple's iLife suite isn't available on Windows.
The change in perception seems to have been tipped by the iPhone. A lot of people thought Apple got lucky with the iPod: It was a one-hit wonder, a fluke not likely to be repeated. But the iPhone is already starting to look like another industry-changing smash hit, and it's shining a different light on the company.
The clearest example is the Apple TV, which is due to be released this week. Late last year, there wasn't much buzz about the Apple TV. Most people just shrugged. There didn't seem to be a need for a wireless box to stream content from your computer to your TV.
But lately, the buzz has been growing. I've seen a lot of blog posts and news reports predicting the Apple TV will fly off store shelves. Some analysts are even saying the Apple TV is a more important product than the iPhone.
There's been a shift here. In a few weeks, the Apple TV went from "who cares?" to must-have. The product didn't change, but what people were saying about it did. I think it's because Apple is very clearly looking like a serial innovator: a company that can successfully trot out one big product after another. This has been generally true since the iMac in 1998, but now the wider public is catching on.
What's changed is not Apple, but people's perceptions of the company.
Ghandi on bible
You Christians look after a document containing enough dynamite to blow all civilisation to pieces, turn the world upside down and bring peace to a battle-torn planet. But you treat it as though it is nothing more than a piece of literature.
this is funny
When Your Spouse is Hotter than You
Thursday, Apr. 26, 2007 By BELINDA LUSCOMBE
quoted from: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1615172,00.html
Marrying outside your religion is no big deal anymore. Neither is marrying someone of a completely different generation. And now that something like 4% of all marriages are interracial, not even your grandparents will get lathered up if you marry someone of another color. But as the old prohibitions fall away, a new one is rising to take their place. It's a discrimination that's widespread but largely unspoken, causing pain and stress to the affected couples, who often find it hard to talk about, even to each other. I'm talking, of course, about marrying outside your looks. Marrying a few degrees up or down the hotness scale. Refusing to stay within your cute-gory.
I've been in a mixed marriage for a decade and a half now and gotten used to the stares and nudges. I've even developed a couple of airy responses to the inevitable comments that arise from co-workers and friends along the lines of "Um, your husband is so hot..." Sometimes I go with "Oh, that's not my husband--that's my twin brother," and other times a dismissive "Yeah, but back in Australia I'm considered a great beauty. It's Nicole Kidman who's the hag." Each time, it hurts just a little less.
Like so many in my situation, I didn't mean to intermarry. It wasn't that I had ideas above my station; it was just that I was young and naive enough to think love would conquer all. Also, to be perfectly frank, I didn't think he was that hot. That's what makes this type of discrimination particularly insidious: it's not clear that couples have transgressed against hotness-equality laws until they're already married. Nobody minds if you date outside your tribe, and people applaud an ambitious play for the hubba-hubba human across the room, but--as my brothers and sisters in the gay community have found--there's a world of difference between what people will accept in the innocent suburbs of hooking up and the judgmental metropolis of marriage.
As in so many other areas of discrimination, women face double jeopardy. Guys who marry a few rungs up the looks ladder are rock stars or rich or have, I don't know, beautiful penmanship. Women who marry up, well, they're deluded. Their husbands must be gay or have really bad bacne to even look at them. And the standards are ridiculous. Deborra-Lee Furness is a charming, spirited, good-looking woman who happens to be married to Hugh Jackman, a freak of nature. Hence rumors circulate that Jackman is gay. Had there been an Internet in times gone by, they probably would have swirled around Queen Victoria's and Eleanor Roosevelt's husbands as well.
Shockingly few peer-reviewed studies have been done on our type of union. We don't yet have our own box to check on the Census, even though we've been around for years. I'm actually the product of a mixed marriage. My father has an unlined face and thick, curly salt-and-pepper hair in his 70s. My mother--well, let's just say that when she comes to visit, the kids hide the broomstick and the big cooking pot. She tells folks my dad married her for her legs and her fortune. Coincidentally, these are the only two of her attributes she did not pass along to me.
If you suspect that you might be in an interfacial marriage, don't be ashamed. Acceptance is the first step to recovery. Ask yourself these questions: Do you and your spouse disagree on how many mirrors should be in the home, what angle they're placed at and how well they're lit? Do you find yourself taking all the photographs at family gatherings and "forgetting" how to use the self-timer? If your spouse buys you some beauty products, do you take it as a kind of warning? Do you ever encourage your spouse to wear those pants that make him or her look beamy?
These are all challenges that scummy-yummy couples must deal with to survive. And that's before you get to the big questions: Do you raise the children as attractive or hideous? Or try to find a middle ground--you know, sorta cute? Do you celebrate beautiful-people holidays (Valentine's Day, Mardi Gras) or Oktoberfest? Very few mismatched pairs can work through these issues on their own.
What they--who am I kidding, we--desperately need is a celebrity spokescouple, a famous mixed-assortment pair willing to step into the limelight and explain the challenges specific to this unequal yoking. Maybe then people would have a little compassion for those of us who, through no fault of our own, have to wake up every single day to a drop-dead gorgeous human being on the other pillow, for the love of mercy! Donald and Melania Trump, are you reading this? Ric Ocasek and Paulina Porizkova? Sylvester Stallone and Jennifer Flavin? Larry King and whomever you're married to now? Your people need you!
Thursday, Apr. 26, 2007 By BELINDA LUSCOMBE
quoted from: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1615172,00.html
Marrying outside your religion is no big deal anymore. Neither is marrying someone of a completely different generation. And now that something like 4% of all marriages are interracial, not even your grandparents will get lathered up if you marry someone of another color. But as the old prohibitions fall away, a new one is rising to take their place. It's a discrimination that's widespread but largely unspoken, causing pain and stress to the affected couples, who often find it hard to talk about, even to each other. I'm talking, of course, about marrying outside your looks. Marrying a few degrees up or down the hotness scale. Refusing to stay within your cute-gory.
I've been in a mixed marriage for a decade and a half now and gotten used to the stares and nudges. I've even developed a couple of airy responses to the inevitable comments that arise from co-workers and friends along the lines of "Um, your husband is so hot..." Sometimes I go with "Oh, that's not my husband--that's my twin brother," and other times a dismissive "Yeah, but back in Australia I'm considered a great beauty. It's Nicole Kidman who's the hag." Each time, it hurts just a little less.
Like so many in my situation, I didn't mean to intermarry. It wasn't that I had ideas above my station; it was just that I was young and naive enough to think love would conquer all. Also, to be perfectly frank, I didn't think he was that hot. That's what makes this type of discrimination particularly insidious: it's not clear that couples have transgressed against hotness-equality laws until they're already married. Nobody minds if you date outside your tribe, and people applaud an ambitious play for the hubba-hubba human across the room, but--as my brothers and sisters in the gay community have found--there's a world of difference between what people will accept in the innocent suburbs of hooking up and the judgmental metropolis of marriage.
As in so many other areas of discrimination, women face double jeopardy. Guys who marry a few rungs up the looks ladder are rock stars or rich or have, I don't know, beautiful penmanship. Women who marry up, well, they're deluded. Their husbands must be gay or have really bad bacne to even look at them. And the standards are ridiculous. Deborra-Lee Furness is a charming, spirited, good-looking woman who happens to be married to Hugh Jackman, a freak of nature. Hence rumors circulate that Jackman is gay. Had there been an Internet in times gone by, they probably would have swirled around Queen Victoria's and Eleanor Roosevelt's husbands as well.
Shockingly few peer-reviewed studies have been done on our type of union. We don't yet have our own box to check on the Census, even though we've been around for years. I'm actually the product of a mixed marriage. My father has an unlined face and thick, curly salt-and-pepper hair in his 70s. My mother--well, let's just say that when she comes to visit, the kids hide the broomstick and the big cooking pot. She tells folks my dad married her for her legs and her fortune. Coincidentally, these are the only two of her attributes she did not pass along to me.
If you suspect that you might be in an interfacial marriage, don't be ashamed. Acceptance is the first step to recovery. Ask yourself these questions: Do you and your spouse disagree on how many mirrors should be in the home, what angle they're placed at and how well they're lit? Do you find yourself taking all the photographs at family gatherings and "forgetting" how to use the self-timer? If your spouse buys you some beauty products, do you take it as a kind of warning? Do you ever encourage your spouse to wear those pants that make him or her look beamy?
These are all challenges that scummy-yummy couples must deal with to survive. And that's before you get to the big questions: Do you raise the children as attractive or hideous? Or try to find a middle ground--you know, sorta cute? Do you celebrate beautiful-people holidays (Valentine's Day, Mardi Gras) or Oktoberfest? Very few mismatched pairs can work through these issues on their own.
What they--who am I kidding, we--desperately need is a celebrity spokescouple, a famous mixed-assortment pair willing to step into the limelight and explain the challenges specific to this unequal yoking. Maybe then people would have a little compassion for those of us who, through no fault of our own, have to wake up every single day to a drop-dead gorgeous human being on the other pillow, for the love of mercy! Donald and Melania Trump, are you reading this? Ric Ocasek and Paulina Porizkova? Sylvester Stallone and Jennifer Flavin? Larry King and whomever you're married to now? Your people need you!
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