Two Snaps Up!

OK, using this as a test bed and playground again. Today's example: Snap.

But please, before clicking on the link (D'oh! Too late?), just "hover" over it.

Anything happen?

OK, nothing more to see here. Move along.

Randy. Captain Randy

. . . and that's when it started getting weird.

Hmmm? What? Oh, there you are!

Sorry. Got distracted for a moment. Or a couple of months. Insert appropriately chagrined smiley face here.


First, thanks to Hedwig for prodding me back. No promises that I'll keep it up.

Next, I'll catch you all up on the gap at a later time. Perhaps.

Oh, and before I go, I'll pass on that the new James Bond movie, Casino Royale is terrific.

It's refreshing. It is a reboot, but a solid one. The villain is appropriately evil, but over a matter of a 110 million dollars, not world domination. Bond is amazingly tough, but not indestructible. And there are few gadgets and none of them difficult to say, "sure, he could have one of those."

I liked it a lot.

My favorites of the series are, in ranked order:

Goldfinger
Casino Royale (the new one, not the Woody Allen mess)
Dr. No
On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Live and Let Die

Oh, I suppose I should provide a link, this being the internets, and all.

http://www.writely.com/

Writely, Writterly, Writtenly

Well, now. Here we are using an online word processor. How 1985.

But, then again, we're using a browser, so this must be Web 2.0.

So far, so good.

Andy's My Hero

Macworld: Opinion: Leopard's top-secret secrets: "And besides, it's a testament to Apple that they routinely produce products that are worth speculating about. When I get a new Microsoft product in the mail it's often like that moment when you've got both feet on the brakes but you know that the car can't possibly stop in time. You don't know what's going to happen. You just hope it won't hurt too much."

And I like his speculation. I 'spect that Apple has some interesting things up it's corporate sleeves that we'll learn about late this fall, in time for the Xmas buying season, and even more in January at the Macworld Expo.

Oh, and this is worth a chuckle, too:

"I mean, Microsoft is so desperate to distract attention from their inability to ship that they’re sending Bill Gates out to end hunger and disease as a diversionary tactic. That’s desperate."

But as I feared

Manhattinhand: No, I wasn't REALLY shot at....

I really liked my Moleskine before

But now I think I love it. Any notebook that can save your life is worth carrying

Manhattinhand: Holeskine

Very nice, but where's my Slow Glass?

Yes, this is interesting stuff: Electrochromatic Glass: Instant Darkening - Gizmodo

But for real imagination, try and find a copy of "Light of Other Days"
by Bob Shaw, a short story published in the 1960's. It's haunting - and has stayed with me in the many hears since I read it.

And apparently, it may be possible.

science, science fiction, light

Yes, we are up to something

And a few germs aren't going to make our giant tripod war machines break down, neither.

Almost Too Fair

And now, for this word on net neutrality, from The Daily Show.

It's hot outside - let's stay in and watch movies

If i only could. Today would be a perfect day for big glasses of rum and lime over ice and the Marx Brothers.

Stack o books for the beech

On Friday we head off for our yearly vacation on Cape Hatteras and I have my stack of books ready to go. This year's includes:

• Straight Man by Richard Russo
  
• Rainbow's End by Vernor Vinge
  
• Queen of the South by Arturo Perez-Reverte
  
• The Gilded Age by Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner
  

Unfortunately, I will not be able to include my yearly James Lee Burke fix. For the first time in years, he's late (although only by a week). Ah, well. We'll have to catch Pegasus Descending the following week or so.

Avast there, Matey!

Sitting here in my home office, if I turn to my left I see a shelf full of books on this list. When did I become a fan of sea books?

Well, O'Brian cinched it, but I've always been nuts over a great tale - and the ones on this list certainly are crackerjack ones!

Bookmarks Magazine: 101 Crackerjack Sea Books

Sea-low-can-th

And they're mighty tasty, too!

OK, I haven't actually eaten coelacanth and have no intention to, but I can bet that may people looking at this video are thinking, "I wonder what it tastes like?"

For the record

Might I say, for the record, that I prefer not to hear or read any more about Star Jones, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie (or their kids), Brittney Spears, Madonna (going on 25 years of hearing too much about her), global warming nay-sayers, defense of marriage-gay basing-bigots, anti-flag burning jingoists, Lindsey Lohan, Paris Hilton, what movie star is dating what other movie star, the latest powder keg in the middle east, but-but-but Clinton! Republican apologists, stay-the-course-damn-the-torpedoes-full-speed-ahead-things-are-much-better-than-the-liberal-media-is-telling-you-in-Iraq-head-in-the-sand-my-country-right-or-wrong red staters.

I prefer to have a pleasant, uninterrupted by the national tragedy of the moment, summer vacation. I'm assembling my stack of books and will soon head for sun and sand and cold Coronas.

Try not and blow up the planet while I'm gone.

Captain Randy Falls In Love With YouTube

Let it never be said that Al Gore doesn't know funny.

Captain Randy Discovers Wufoo

A moment of joy, shared.

Here's something that I found a breath of fresh air. A joyful, awe inspiring 3 minutes, 42 seconds. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Apparently no good Samaritans on Everest

This is utterly depressing:Hillary Blasts Climbers Who Left Dying Man

"Mount Everest pioneer Sir Edmund Hillary said Wednesday he was shocked that dozens of climbers left a British mountaineer to die during their own attempts on the world's tallest peak.

David Sharp, 34, died apparently of oxygen deficiency while descending from the summit during a solo climb last week.

More than 40 climbers are thought to have seen him as he lay dying, and almost all continued to the summit without offering assistance."

The book "Into Thin Air" put me into a full out funk for days. And now this. How many people passed him going up to the summit and then again on the way back down?

Some days I think we're all evil idiots.

everest

This Month's Help for the Clueless: Dell

Isn't it surprising and interesting that when apparently successful companies run off the end of the cliff they start grasping at straws?

Take a look at this: Mac News: Apple News : Dell Eyes Retail Again, With Apple Stores as Model: "Struggling to maintain its lead as the top personal PC maker, Dell plans to once again enter in the retail business when it launches two stores at shopping centers later this year. In contradistinction to Apple, which stocks products on-hand for customers to carry out after purchase, Dell will maintain its direct model by having shoppers place orders online for later pick-up at the store."

So, Dell sees Apple becoming wildly successful at their retail strategy. They failed at their own approach - mall kiosks where you could see a couple of computers, but had to order and wait for the computer to be delivered. So, if that didn't work, what should they do? Scale up, of course!

No, that's not right. Apple is succeeding because they have a very specific vision. First, they carefully scout locations and pick and pay for prime retail spots. Next, they went to retail experts from places like the Gap. Next, they designed stores that are clean, elegant, and uncluttered. The computers are all up front, all available and fully functional. And if you like what you see, you can take it with you. Oh, and Apple isn't targeting computer shoppers. They're targeting shoppers. A much bigger group. The local Apple store is always busy, always crowded.

I've said for some time, Dell does one thing very well: they have manufacturing a commodity PC down. They don't engineer anything, don't innovate beyond the manufacturing/inventory/production cycle.

So, Dell, if you want a chance at succeeding, don't just copy the surface of the Apple Store, copy the whole thing.