Tumblenated

All I can say is that it was less painful than their Windows...

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:10:00 -0800

All I can say is that it was less painful than their Windows launch party video. Awkward and embarrassing, yes, but not as painful.

Ex-Microsoftie discovers software can be better

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:11:25 -0800

Ex-Microsoftie discovers software can be better:

A Microsoftie is laid off, gets a job at Google, and discovers that there are better software products out there than what Microsoft develops. Wow, imagine that. It’s like the blinders have been removed. Yet another reason I’ll never work at Microsoft (or Oracle).

Sarah Palin really is stupid, and full of shit

Sat, 14 Nov 2009 07:37:50 -0800

Sarah Palin really is stupid, and full of shit:

It’s impressive the way Palin has built up a reality distortion field around herself. She is so full of shit, on top of being a complete idiot, that I wonder how anyone could have ever taken her seriously.

Stonebraker on NoSQL data stores

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 22:10:39 -0800

Stonebraker on NoSQL data stores:

If you’ve read any of Stonebraker’s other recent posts (in particular from January 2008), you might feel this is another case of mis-categorization. I don’t know where he gets the idea that the NoSQL camp is trying to perform OLTP with their data stores, but that seems to be what he has focused on. Oddly enough, in many cases such data stores are for batch data processing. Curiously, he ignores the benefits offered by these unorthodox data stores (e.g. the high availability and speed of Dynamo, the sheer mass of BigTable) and instead focuses on the features that they don’t provide. He’s careful not to mention any of them by name so that his argument can somehow be applied to all of them. In any case, it’s another biased posting by a self-interested database proponent speaking out against the competition.

Toyota and the feds don't care if you die

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 21:41:33 -0800

Toyota and the feds don't care if you die:

After reading this article I’ve made two conclusions. One, I will never buy a Toyota, ever. Two, the NHTSA does not have your safety in mind, which is ironic given their name. Thank God for journalists.

NY Times Unemployment Chart

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:18:06 -0800

NY Times Unemployment Chart:

So the conclusion here is, if you don’t have an education, you’re screwed. If you’re black, you’re also screwed, but not as much as those without a high school diploma. Granted, these are just numbers without any clear correlation to other factors, but it’s revealing nonetheless.

Need to watch Jon Stewart more

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 10:20:10 -0700

Need to watch Jon Stewart more:

Who else could take a case involving gang rape by government contractors and make it sound funny. Not the actual crime, of course, but how it is so poorly handled by the idiot Republicans who voted against the amendment to avoid doing business with these contractors in the future. Like Steward said, how can anyone be against this?

How Utterly Incompetent Can You Be?

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 07:47:26 -0700

How Utterly Incompetent Can You Be?:

The largest software company in the world apparently failed to manage the risk of data loss of customer backups. Even I have a better idea of how to prevent data loss and I’m not even experienced in the storage field. I hope people aren’t paying for this pathetic service.

Charlie Brooker on Windows 7 launch party

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 06:29:02 -0700

Charlie Brooker on Windows 7 launch party:

Hilarious take on the Windows 7 launch party video tutorials put out by Microsoft. This is perhaps the best argument I’ve seen for why everyone using Windows should switch.

Wow, that must have been painful to film. It was painful to...

Sat, 26 Sep 2009 09:10:07 -0700

Wow, that must have been painful to film. It was painful to watch. How does anyone seriously think users want to watch this dumb crap?

Lesson learned: don't sack a conspirator

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 06:29:39 -0700

Lesson learned: don't sack a conspirator:

Renault sacked Piquet and of course he spills the beans on their race fixing conspiracy. Gosh, can’t imagine why they didn’t see that coming.

Oracle buying its way to success

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 13:47:58 -0700

Oracle buying its way to success:

When your growth plan means acquiring every other company in the industry, there’s bound to be a point at which the plan is no longer sustainable. Add to that they’re gouging their customers during the worst recession in decades and you begin to wonder if they are someone you’d want to work for.

Petabytes on the cheap, or is it?

Mon, 07 Sep 2009 08:32:00 -0700

Petabytes on the cheap, or is it?:

Just when you thought it would make sense to buy cheap hardware, cut corners and sacrifice just about everything (performance, reliability, etc), lo and behold it’s really not the case.

Well, duh. Of course I didn't see it coming either.

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 11:17:00 -0700

Well, duh. Of course I didn't see it coming either.:

In hindsight this now seems obvious and makes me wonder why Oracle thought the acquisition process was going to go through unchallenged. At this point it seems like a considerable road block with only one satisfactory solution: sell off MySQL.

Spank them disabled kids!

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 09:56:00 -0700

Spank them disabled kids!:

Gotta hand it to The South for keeping the Old Ways alive and well. “One principal said, ‘I was whipped as a child, so it’s fine with me.’” Why stop just because you grew up?

Thank God for TweetLater!

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 13:55:12 -0700

Thank God for TweetLater!:

All of my problems have been solved, thanks to TweetLater. What with Twitter falling down two days in a row it’s a godsend to be able to express myself immediately and still have my nuggets of wisdom appear once Twitter is back online. After all, you know that I’d otherwise forget and never post anything. :)

Word spy: frequency illusion

Thu, 16 Jul 2009 15:17:44 -0700

Word spy: frequency illusion:

I’m so happy that I’ve learned this phrase. I’ve noticed this phenomenon myself for years and now I finally have a way to refer to it.

Azerbaijan: another place I won't be visiting

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 10:14:52 -0700

Azerbaijan: another place I won't be visiting:

If I had a fight with a person here in the U.S. I’d face a night in jail and a fine. But in Azerbaijan you get one to five years for so-called hooliganism. That’s what I call a tool for the government to suppress views they don’t want anyone to hear.

United Breaks Guitars — I love it, finally take their shit...

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 06:52:11 -0700

United Breaks Guitars — I love it, finally take their shit and throw it into the fan for everyone to see. The problem with airlines is there is never anyone that is responsible for customer satisfaction. Customer service is one thing, but actually ensuring that customers are satisfied is simply too expensive. Shareholders don’t see the value in it.

From Ford president to Defense Secretary

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 10:18:42 -0700

From Ford president to Defense Secretary:

I would love to hear an explanation as to how and why the president of Ford Motor Co. would be tapped to lead the Pentagon. That’s like choosing Sarah Palin to be president of Harvard University.