Sock Puppy
Awwww – I want a Sock Dog too! Clearly cutest with neat patterned socks. [via not martha]
Month: January 2003
Office Linebacker
If you haven’t already seen it, the only decent Superbowl commercial has an extended 3.5 minute version too: Terry Tate: Office Linebacker. Hilarious!
Hosting Move
If you’re reading this, I’ve successfully switched my web host service and updated my DNS listing. Of course, I would make the switch right during a blackout period for changing .org listings… Let me know if you see any problems.
Keep your mind on the road
Researchers in psychology report that hands-free cellphones are no safer for drivers, thus suggesting that the New York law prohibiting use of cellphones without a hands-free device jumped the gun. They actually demonstrate that talking on the phone (of any kind) impares driving more than listening to audio books or talking to a passenger. Even if you think you can talk on the phone and pay perfect attention, you can’t. I wonder why that is… Is it a physiological problem of the adio quality of a phone conversation, or something about the context-shift between you and your conversationalist?
Alternate Copyright Plan
If you liked Lessig’s much-linked NYTimes editorial Protecting Mickey Mouse at Art’s Expense from a couple of weeks ago, or perhaps just noticed today’s Foxtrot, you might want to check out Lessig’s FAQ on the proposed Eric Eldred Act, which suggests requiring a tax be paid by copyright holders who wish to extend their copyright beyond some term (say, 50 years), thus allowing Disney to pay to keep Steamboat Willie out of the public domain (which they presumably believe still has monetary value) while allowing other less profitable works to become available on a reasonable schedule. The FAQ also fills … Continue reading Alternate Copyright Plan
Icon War
Icon War – a cute little animation which probably violates all kinds of trademarks. [via eatonweb]
Classic Hair
I’m absolutely hopeless with my hair, so I was intruigued by The Traditional Hairdressing Page featuring “classic” hairstyles from the 60’s and 70’s. Most of the diagrams actually show placement and orientation of curlers and lots of people have left notes and tips. I wish I could get stuff like this to work though – it looks fun so long as I didn’t have to do it on a daily basis. Heck, I’m still trying to figure out how hair commercial women with plain straight hair get it to do that shiny single-curtain-of-hair look. They imply it’s the shampoo, but … Continue reading Classic Hair
Origami Kingdom
More than just an extensive origami site, Oriland follows through on it’s promise of “Origami Galore”, but even if you aren’t a paper folder you (or your kids!) might enjoy exploring Oriland Kingdoms (requires Flash). It’s a beautiful interactive animated world based on origami models. Just look around, or click on the “Origami Quest” tab at the bottom of the page to learn about the puzzles you can solve while exploring the kingdom. Not challenging, but very pretty. And if you are a paper folder, there are some nice free patterns on the site. I think the snail is particularly … Continue reading Origami Kingdom
Supporting Online Books
I suspect all my readers have already seen the ruling this week in Eldred v. Ashcroft – if you haven’t, pretty much everything you might want to read about it is collected at Lessig’s homepage with some interesting personal comments in his blog there as well. It seems like a worthwhile time to remind people who are bothered by the ruling and current copyright law in general that, on top of trying to change the law, the on-line book community is doing a lot to show the desire for and power of freely available public domain works – and they’re … Continue reading Supporting Online Books
Mule Fruit?
The banana extinction story has been getting a lot of press today (though mostly in international media, I’ve noticed). I had no idea that edible bananas were sterile. I haven’t seen any explanation of how you breed a sterile fruit; is it a hybrid or something, like with mules?