Weblog Archive >  2004 >  February Previous/Next


Scripting News, the weblog started in 1997 that bootstrapped the blogging revolution.
 

Permanent link to archive for Sunday, February 29, 2004. Sunday, February 29, 2004

Pew Internet: "44% of Internet users have created content for the online world through building or posting to Web sites, creating blogs, and sharing files." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Yeah, you kill all the competition and then the talent pool dries up. People were choosing computer science as a career because they hoped to be the next Bill Gates, not because they wanted to work for Bill Gates. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Howard Kurtz explains how internal politics helped bring down the Dean campaign, via Ed ConePermanent link to this item in the archive.

Howard Dean: "The quotes attributed to me by others in Howard Kurtz's gossipy rendition of the divisions in the Dean for America campaign are entirely false." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Diego Doval raises some interesting questions about RSS validators. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Doc Searls sums up the news of Clear Channel's cancellation of Howard Stern. According to Jeff Jarvis, Stern is moving to satellite radio. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

At first I thought I was looking at a horrible bug in my software, but it turns out the software was right and I was the one with the bug, Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Steve Outing: "A Times reporter wanting to write a personal blog on bee-keeping might be allowed to do it, but the paper's policy is that even such an innocuous blog must be approved by newsroom management." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Slate: "Meet BitTorrent, the file-sharing network that makes trading movies a breeze." Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Saturday, February 28, 2004. Saturday, February 28, 2004

James Robertson: "What tangible benefits does Sun get from Java?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Clemens Vasters: "If you want to put your skills to work and you need to support a family, your work and work results can’t be free." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Scoble is hosting a dinner tonight at Jing Jing's in Palo Alto. Wish I could be there. Have some spicy noodles for me! Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Glenn Fleishman reviews the iPod mini. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dowbrigade tunes into OhMy News. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Tim Bray: "It’s been years since I cranked up a first-person-shooter." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times: "For men, arousal almost always leads to desire." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Joi Ito: "Marko may have been trying to get me back for feeding him snapping turtle in Kyoto." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named nut.gif Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Friday, February 27, 2004. Friday, February 27, 2004

AP: "RSS has been called the TiVo of the Web, the first 'killer app' of the anticipated automation of social and commercial transactions online using the Web's second-generation XML standard." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Fredrik Lundh spies on the Swedish Donald Duck. "I read twenty newspapers on the Internet and subscribe to dozens of RSS-channels," says the famous duck. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Phil Ringnalda on the synergy betw Google and Blogger. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Michael Watkins: Death Knell for the Delicate Experiment at HBSPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Crimson: "A junior faculty member at Harvard Business School is using his popular weblog to sound a warning that the school’s prestige is in jeopardy, but HBS faculty and staff vigorously dispute his claim." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Watkins comments on the Crimson article. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Oceana today announced "that Yahoo, one of the Internet’s leading search engines, has accepted two of its paid advertisements, one describing Oceana’s mission of saving the oceans and linking to its Web site, the other focusing on Oceana’s campaign to stop cruise pollution. The same ads created a major media stir last week when they were rejected by Google." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Boston Globe: "Is a movement about its leader or the person who put it together? That question is fueling a behind-the-scenes struggle between Howard Dean and his former campaign manager, Joe Trippi." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

AP: "Hollywood is dog-eat-dog," said West Wing co-executive producer Llewellyn Wells. "And Washington is the complete reverse." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Rod Kratochwill is going to figure out what No Child Left Behind is about.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

BBC: "The creators of internet search engine Google have joined the Forbes magazine list of world billionaires." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Planet PDF has an RSS feed. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Randy Charles Morin: "Dave Winer has passion."  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

We had a fantastic Thursday meeting last night. Some new contributors and a fresh topic. Lots of humor and good ideas. Thanks everyone, looking forward to next week. Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Thursday, February 26, 2004. Thursday, February 26, 2004

Jim Moore's vision for blogging software.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named timeExpired.gifA couple of announcements this evening. A new Berkman fellow starting in July -- the honorable and accomplished thinker of the Web, David Weinberger. A great deal for Berkman and an honor for David. Mazel tov. And we finally have our webcast act moderately together. A new omni-directional microphone makes all the difference. You can tune in the usual place., Tonight's meeting starts at 7PM EST, but the webcast and IRC are already going. The show kicked off with Subterranean Homesick Blues by Bob Dylan. "Don't follow leaders, watch the parking meters." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dru Oja Jay: "Haiti is in crisis, and an entire society stands on the brink of economic and humanitarian disaster. This disaster is not the product of some unfortunate circumstance, but the direct result of policies carried out by our governments." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dowbrigade: Where are the Haitian blogs? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

How Jesse Ventura used the Internet. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Howard Dean is speaking in New Haven tonight. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named egg.gifSome announcements about BloggerCon II. We will have several sessions on journalism, politics and the campaign of 2004. We've scheduled the conference between the first part of the campaign, the primaries; and the next -- the conventions. The goal is to coalesce what we've learned in time to apply that knowledge in the second cycle. We will also have a session on weblogs and libraries, which is new. And if there's sufficient interest, we will repeat the sessions on medicine and law, and possibly add sessions for art, education, science and literature. Let me know. Based on the very strong response re visions for web writing tools, we will certainly have a session about that. We're also going to do a session on RSS. Technical people are welcome, but remember this is a user's conference.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Re discussion moderators, I have a few confirmations, and still have to send out offers. In general they are people who were at the first BloggerCon, but did not present. I want to rotate the faces every time to emphasize that the people who are in front of the room are just facilitators. There is some small prestige in being one of them, but it's also hard work (but rewarding, I hope). We pack each room with experts and leaders, and the job of the moderator is to assemble a story by calling on the people at his or her disposal. They're like a reporter putting together a story, but you get to hear, first hand what the experts are saying, in their own voices. Think of Dan Gillmor's adage that the people who read his blog are much smarter than he is -- that's the philosophy of BloggerCon. Don't be distracted by the face in the front of the room (as you would be in most conferences), it's the people to your left and right who know the most. And if you want to talk with them later, we'll be sure you get a chance to do that too.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

To give you an idea of how this works, at the first BC, the moderators were great, for sure, but for me the two most memorable contributors were both in the "audience" -- Esther Dyson and Jay Rosen. I think there's something relaxing about not having to prepare, and in that relaxation, if you have a powerful and curious mind, can come brilliant ideas. That's what I want. That's why I love this conference, because brilliant people come to it, and share what they know. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

The first invitations will go out by email in a day or so. Remember the cost to attend is $0. If you want to make a contribution so we can have refreshments or help fund the party, or contribute labor, we will welcome that. We're doing this by the seat of our pants, which is cool, it seems to be The Weblog Way to do things. Onward! Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times endorses John Kerry. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Hotel choices for BloggerCon.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Lisa Williams talks up a "chick blogs" discuss at the Con in April.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Why no comments about the weather lately? Because it's been so great. Highs near 40. Over the weekend they say it might reach 50. And it's still February. What's going on? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Don Park theorizes that Osama bin Laden will be killed or captured shortly before the US election in the fall. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A list of 34 senators who will vote against a constitutional ban on gay marriage. Via Joshua Marshall. Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Wednesday, February 25, 2004. Wednesday, February 25, 2004

We've got a date for BloggerCon II -- April 17Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Same rooms as last year: Pound 200, 201, 202, 203, 204.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Adam Curry will be there on the 17th, as will Jevon MacDonald and Lisa WilliamsPermanent link to this item in the archive.

A visual tool from Langreiter that compares results from Google and Yahoo searches. For example, here's the comparison for Dave.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Forbes: The Coming RSS RevolutionPermanent link to this item in the archive.

An incredible response to the call, yesterday, for visions of the future of blogging tools, from users of the tools. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Howard Rheingold asks, provocatively, why all blog comment tools are brain dead. The answer is that they aren't.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Adam Curry: Blog News AgencyPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Is Joe Trippi is trying to reboot the Dean community? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Wired: The Complete Guide to GooglePermanent link to this item in the archive.

Telegraph: "[Kerry] won easy victories in Hawaii, Utah and Idaho, giving him 18 wins out the 20 contests in the race so far." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dino Morelli did a RELAX NG schema for RSS 2.0 Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dowbrigade: "Ever get that feeling that something bad is about to happen?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Tuesday, February 24, 2004. Tuesday, February 24, 2004

A vision for the next generation of blogging tools? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named dumbya.jpgThe hot story today is the President's call to amend the US Constitution to prevent gay marriage. You heard it here first: It won't pass. It can't. Homosexuality is becoming fairly accepted in the US. This amendment won't pass anywhere outside the Deep South. This is a political tactic. It's funny that the press won't let the Nader candidacy exist for one second before they question its viability. This idea is impossible. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

BTW, I would endorse a constitutional ban on Donald Trump.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Elizabeth Drew: "This is no way to pick a possible president." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Steve Gillmor: "Maybe I should accept one of those Orkut invitations before I run completely out of friends." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Wired News interviews the author of the USA PATRIOT Act. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

It's time to dump Sprint for Verizon. What phone should I get? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Rebecca MacKinnon: North Koreans cite John Kerry in positive lightPermanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named schwarzenegger.jpgThe opening act for Ralph Nader on Sunday's Meet the Press was California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. It was his first appearance on Sunday morning political TV. He was unusually frank for a politician, for example he favored a constitutional amendment that would allow him to be President (he wasn't born in the US, which disqualifies him). He was there to promote two California propositions related to the state's finanical crisis. He said over and over that the two propositions must pass. But he never said what they would do, and the interviewer never asked. So much talk about two propositions, and what they were about never came up. They did show a clip of Sylvester Stallone reacting to a hypothetical Schwarzenegger presidency. Life imitating movies. Reminds of the bit in Sleeper where Woody Allen asks how civilization was destroyedPermanent link to this item in the archive.

The Tubes have a feed. White punks on RSS.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A Russian article called RSS For Dummies.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Olav Junker Kjaer is building a table of Unicode support in XML-RPC libraries. Thanks for doing this. It's good that someone is bothering to get the data instead of just making speeches.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A new feature on the Share Your OPML site, an Andrew-Dave collaboration, it lists people whose subscription lists are most like yours. Think of it as your personal echo chamber. It's an interesting way to discover new feeds you aren't subscribed to.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Monday, February 23, 2004. Monday, February 23, 2004

It's hard to imagine it getting much worse than this.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named perp.jpgRick Heller's scoop on George Steinbrenner's contribution to kill the Howard Dean candidacy in Iowa made it to Judy Woodruff and onto CNN. Candy Crowley on hearing the connection said "Wow," and John Mercurio said "I don't think Howard Dean is going to be a season ticket holder for the Yankees." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

David Weinberger on echo chambers.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dan Farber on what's up with blogging. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named bugs.jpgFour years ago today, an essay on how to win the Presidency on the Internet. McCain had just won Michigan even though Bush was the presumed nominee. In hindsight, we would have had a much more meaningful election had the Republicans nominated McCain. He had a kind of integrity that neither Bush or Gore do. BTW, I just heard a Gore aide accuse Nader of lying. Reminds me why I hated Gore as I voted for him. He stood for absolutely nothing. The perfect television candidate. Might as well vote for Bugs Bunny. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Joshua Marshall says Bush campaign manager Marc Racicot lied on NPR this morning about whether Bush volunteered for Vietnam. I heard the interview too. Marshall asked who's going to call them on this. Answer: we are.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Slate: Forget Nader. Draft Moore. "Moore refused to remove his famous monument to the Ten Commandments from his courtroom." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Andrew Grumet: "If you use AOLserver, give it a hug today." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Paolo likes Event Share Framework. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

What's wrong with April 17? Could we schedule BloggerCon for that date, to avoid being one day before Easter and in the middle of Passover? The quickest way to find out is to ask everyone to look at their calendars. (Mike Walsh says April 19 is the Boston Marathon, meaning hotel rooms will be hard to get that weekend.) Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dare Obasanjo: "After we got back on the train from the winery tour the unexpected happened." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

An important Lessig post on certifying non-control. "For most of the history of copyright law in the US, there were a million ways to forfeit your copyright. Today, it’s not even clear that it is possible." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dowbrigade had dinner with Julio in Columbia in 1975. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Mike Walsh: "The only drawback on this device is that it's so small and light I just know it will wind up in the washing machine one of these days." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A measure of how ineffective the interop work in SOAP was. "We have 3 dozen beta testers testing a new set of SOAP-based APIs and exactly one has made a successful call after 5 weeks." That's failure.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Sunday, February 22, 2004. Sunday, February 22, 2004

DaveNet: Ralph Nader's candidacyPermanent link to this item in the archive.

On Meet the Press today, Nader made nice sounds about John Edwards. I wish Russert had asked the obvious follow-up. "Will you still run if Edwards were the Democratic nominee?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

ESF is an RSS 2.0 extension for sharing event information. Thanks to Greg Reinacker for the pointer.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Britain joins Denmark and Germany in blessing RSS as a standard format. You can see the endorsement in Table 4 in this PDF documentPermanent link to this item in the archive.

I started a new category for the Nader campaign, and of course it has its own RSS feed. If someone wanted to start a group blog about the Nader candidacy, this would be a decent place to start.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

CSM: Will Google IPO bring back the bubble? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Oy. There is no such thing as a good date for a conference. We've tentatively chosen April 10 for BloggerCon II, and why didn't anyone notice that the next day is Easter Sunday? And Passover is April 5th through the 13th. I'm not changing the date, but I am re-opening the discussion.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

"thinkusaalignright"Imho, Nader's run separates the people who "get" American democracy, and those who don't. If Nader is going to win the election for Dubya, then now's the time to fix the bug in the process. Kerry isn't nominated yet. Think. What's the problem that Nader exploits? What's so fixed about our political system that a minority independent candidate, who likely won't be able to register in many states, is going to spoil it for.. who exactly is he going to spoil it for? Think. Is this the America you imagined when you were a kid? Why can't we make it better? Why can't we have a dozen people running for President? By trying to hold back Nader (good luck) maybe you're preventing exactly the kind of transformation we need. I think Nader is a patriot. Give him a medal. And think instead of being part of the herd.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named george.jpgHere's a thought. Who could you find to run for President who would split the Republican vote? Come on. We've got some money. Who could you launch to take votes from the people you don't like? I'm going to give some money to Nader to thank him for challenging conventional wisdom. I'll give money to a Republican. If it's good enough for George Steinbrenner (who's probably a Republican, think about it) why can't I give some money to a Republican who's strategic? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

William Grosso: "The number one response to Nader's entry is not about his ideas and whether they're any good. It's about how his entry impacts the (mostly imaginary) horse race." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Eric J: "It's that 'two party' mentality that keeps us locked into this 'two party' nonsense." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Andrew moves forward with RSSTV. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named egg.gifI'm having a great time with the program for BloggerCon. The second one is much easier. Man. Anyway one of the themes is going to be Nuking The Echo Chamber. I'm going to ask each of the moderators to find a way to work that into the discussions they lead. These conferences are stringing out into a series. This one follows the O'Reilly Emerging Technology conf, where the they identified this problem. How do we methodically and systematically overcome the tendency for echo chambers to form and self-perpetuate. There are some obvious ideas, once we know the problem is there, which we do now, thanks to the people who were at O'Reilly. Of course our conference will be totally wide open and webcast and IRC'd, blogged and wiki'd, we'll create a record, so subsequent meetings can work on the problems we uncover and hopefully build on the answers we discover.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

CNN: "Ralph Nader, a consumer advocate and former Green Party presidential candidate, said Sunday he will run for president as an independent in the 2004 election." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dan Gillmor column on anonymity. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times: The Search Engine That Isn't a Verb, YetPermanent link to this item in the archive.

BBC: "The consumer advocate Ralph Nader has said he will announce on Sunday whether he will join the US presidential race." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Nader is on Meet the Press this morning. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Euroresidentes: "RSS es un formato para la sindicacion de contenidos de paginas web." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Two years ago: "If I've inspired zealotry I've failed." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Five years ago I was working on my browser-based weblog editor. Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Saturday, February 21, 2004. Saturday, February 21, 2004

Telegraph: "Dr Dean told his aides that Sen Edwards would be 'the stronger candidate' to beat President Bush." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Rick has a big story, but it's gone unnoticed by other blogs (not here) and he's been exchanging email with a reporter from the NY Times, so it's likely to break there. Let's make sure he gets credit.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Jon Udell: "Steve Gillmor told me that he's feeling overwhelmed by thousands of unread items in NetNewsWire." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

The Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau is syndicating their publications; via LibraryStuffPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Keeping the meme of editing your friends' pictures, Don Hopkins revised the Dutch Masters pic with a new gesture from me and Marc Canter. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Rogers Cadenhead: "A good weblog is a conversation among friends that you can't tear yourself away from." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times: In Politics, the Web Is a Parallel World With Its Own RulesPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Julie Leung: How I got a geek boyfriendPermanent link to this item in the archive.

What's the scoop on microphones for PCs?  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Adam Gaffin rounds up reviews of the new Yahoo search. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dowbrigade yearns to blog the conventions. Me too. Should we have a session on blogging the conventions on April 10? I think so. I've asked Sanford Dickert from the Kerry campaign to come to the conference. He should be able to help, as should our new friends at ShorensteinPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Mike Walsh's report on the KSG talk we attended on Thursday. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

In San Francisco, a judge has ruled that gay marriages may continue.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Chris doesn't like the picture on Scripting Permanent link to this item in the archive.

I guess Chris Gulker is a great photo editor and I'm not. But Chris's criticism of the banner photo is based on some missing and incorrect data.

1. That was the only picture I have of that meeting. I have no idea how I got it, I just tripped across it in the archive and thought it was interesting and still do.

2. I don't think of those people as alpha males. Where did you get the idea that I do??

3. It's the flaws that make it interesting. That's why I like to read weblogs. They're genuine. I don't look like an actor, I wasn't posed for the shot, that's me as I probably look 99 percent of the time. If you don't like it, then you probably don't like me.

4. Okay you may be a better photo editor than I am. So what? Does that mean I shouldn't play, explore, experiment, learn, have fun? Just because you're better than I am? That's 20th Century thinking. This is the century of amateur journalism, Garage Band, digital cameras, etc etc.

5. I also like it because it makes Bucks look like an Old Master painting, and makes it look like we're engaged in deep interesting thought. But if you knew what was being discussed and how it turned out, you might think it's a bit ironic.

6. It wasn't a "publicity picture" -- it was just a picture. Like this.

See there's all that depth there that you didn't see. That's why it's art. You obviously felt a need to be critical, and that's okay. But given what you know now, what would you change about your critique?

BTW, I'm also a writer in addition to the things you list.


Permanent link to archive for Friday, February 20, 2004. Friday, February 20, 2004

Rex Hammock: "I just walked out of the Old Executive Office Building where four other 'real people' and I sat down for a 25-minute chat with the President of the United States."  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Washington Post: "The White House press corps yesterday scrambled to figure out why a hastily-arranged 'conversation' between President Bush and some regular Americans about the economy was suddenly closed to reporters -- and what went on behind those closed doors. Little did they know that behind those doors, one of the regular Americans whom Bush was meeting was a blogger."  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

BBC: "The most compelling use of RSS is that it lets users read dozens of websites, all on the same page. The sites can be scanned in seconds rather than have to be laboriously loaded individually." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Tentative announcement of BloggerCon on April 10. Please comment if there's a problem with the date. Experience has shown that people speak after it's set in stone when it's too late. If there's some reason we can't do it on April 10, please comment asap. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

MIT tech blog: "There are a couple of different ways the general public can sort through the 'raw' images returned by the rovers." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

There was a weather bomb in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Russell Beattie: "Atom needs the simplest solution that could possibly work and not all this headache." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Did Yankees owner George Steinbrenner fund ads to dislodge Howard Dean as the Democratic front-runner? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named erinSmall.jpgAt dinner I participated in a lively debate over the death penalty. There's little I enjoy more than discussing something that's important with a smart person who disagrees with me. We're planning another BloggerCon, btw, either April 3 or 10. If there's reason, like a major holiday or sporting event, that prevents us from doing either date, please let me know asap. It's going to be a one-day conference, free (as in no cost to attend, contributions are welcome, and we will solicit sponsorships). It'll be Day 2 style, multi-track, with a focus on blogging and politics, although we will repeat the most successful sessions from the last Con. We will discuss ways to disrupt the Echo Chamber. Believe it or not we came up with a killer idea along those lines last night. Nothing like premeditated creativity. The party will be on Saturday night, not Friday. Keep your fingers crossed it might actually be nice weather in Cambridge in early-mid April.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

I went to a seminar at the Kennedy School yesterday doing a postmortem on the Dean campaign. The discussion was led by a Chicago Sun-Times columnist and a political operative who ran a PAC that ran negative ads successfully against Dean in Iowa. He repeated that the only thing that mattered was winning. It didn't occur to me until this morning why that is wrong. Maybe it's true from the candidate's perspective, but it's not true from the voter's. What matters to the voter is getting representated. In the current political system that can't happen. Think about it this way. What if, in 2000, your main issue had been No Nation Building. Easy. Vote for Bush. What does he do his first week in office? Gets ready to do some nation-building. Did he know he would invade Iraq when he was running? You be the judge. In any case, as with most centralized businesses, the voters are a herd, not meant to be heard. At one point I leaned over to one of my colleagues and said "These guys are the enemy." Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Thursday, February 19, 2004. Thursday, February 19, 2004

Paul Boutin: "Perhaps Kerry should make a special trip to Harvard to court the Berkman Center's A-list of bloggers for their support." Yes!  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

We're booting up the Thursday evening meeting at Berkman. We didn't get the new microphone so the webcast is certain to suck. However the IRC channel is probably great. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

What is Exploit Boston? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Chronicle: "Google has become the symbol of competition to the academic library." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Kerry campaign: "We have finished experimenting with the RSS aggregator that was on this page and decided that it did not meet our needs."  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Jason Kottke calls Jakob Nielsen an ugly name on his way to making an important point, that the general press doesn't review tech products in a serious way.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

News.Com: "Manufacturers plan to start selling notebooks with integrated VoIP this year and plan later to offer notebooks with built-in cell phone capabilities." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Atom use XML-RPC Permanent link to this item in the archive.

It's fascinating to read the comments on Russell Beattie's post about the Atom API. His concern is that he won't be able to build a client that talks to a weblog server through his Java toolkit because it doesn't allow the HTTP methods the API calls for. Further, he notes that the spec, which was openly developed, has a restrictive copyright.

The best answer is obvious, imho, use XML-RPC because it already has been adapted to and debugged in all the environments where blogging APIs need to run. By cutting almost to the bottom of the stack you will have to redo everything that took years to do. I think it's going to take longer to redo because XML-RPC didn't need to get any Java toolkits to change, it treaded more softly than the Atom does.

There's a practical side to protocol and format design that's missing in the Atom API. The goal is to make it easy for developers to hop on the bandwagon and get them committed to developing for the platform. Putting unnecessary hurdles in the way unnecessarily limits adoption, and virtually guarantees either stagnation or massive breakage. I can't imagine that either choice is what Google is looking for.

XML-RPC was designed for what they want to do and it's stood the test of time. Learn to love the pragmatic, it's how you're going to win the wars with Yahoo, Microsoft and everyone else who wants to eat your lunch.


Permanent link to archive for Wednesday, February 18, 2004. Wednesday, February 18, 2004

Dean quits: NY Times, Telegraph, BBC, MSNBC, Dean weblog, Edwards weblog, CNN, Fox, AP.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Jon Margolis: "The experienced national political reporters wondered why Howard Dean blew it. Up here in Vermont, no one was surprised." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

News.Com: Yahoo dumps Google search technologyPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Search Engine Watch: "Yahoo is rolling out a brand new search engine today, with its own index and ranking mechanisms, casting aside its long-standing use of Google-powered search results." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

ResourceShelf: "We knew the switch was coming. However, we didn't know it was coming so soon." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named yahoo.gifThe uncluttered interface for Yahoo search. Instant review. If they wanted to make the switch easier, as always, they should have made it work exactly like the competition, or as close as they can without invoking the ire of their attorneys. They put the tabs on the left instead of along the top. And the search results page looks different from the page you enter the query on. Doesn't reinforce the virtuality. I like that you can add and remove tabs. Google should copy this idea. Also, do they have the equivalent of the Google API? In any case, it's good to see Yahoo challenge Google. Even though I think Google is a shitty company (disclaimer) I'm pretty sure Yahoo is too, even though I have less contact with them. Two shitty Silicon Valley companies competing is a billion percent better than one dominant shitty Silicon Valley company. And you can quote me on that (as I'm sure my detractors will). Am I ready to replace the Google button in my toolbar? Not yet. But with a few tweaks, I'll be glad to do so. Other opinions? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Phil Ringnalda compares Google and Yahoo search.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Mark Bernstein: "Imagine what the tech side of the blogosphere would be like today if, when Atom kicked off, the Atom folks had felt strongly that the new standard should minimize disruption and avoid hurt feelings -- even the feelings of people they might not want to invite to dinner." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Russell Beattie: "Now Yahoo just needs a web API and it'll be perfect." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Russell Beattie: "Why would the Sun J2ME developers just simply leave out support for two basic HTTP functions? Because they're not commonly used." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

An author writes to ask if its safe to only support RSS on his weblog, and I say absolutely yes it is safe. Look at it this way. Scripting News is a top-ranked feed. And I promise it will always be available in RSS as it is today, so as long as people want to read my site, the aggregators will have to support RSS 2.0. I can offer the same kind of safety that Lotus 1-2-3 offered developers on MS-DOS or Excel on Mac OS. If you did something the way they did, you were safe, because you could be sure the platform vendor would never break them. In this case what matters is if aggregators read the format. The day aggregators can't read Scripting News is the day your RSS feed will stop working. My job is to be sure that day never comes.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

"Though Dean is not going to formally drop out of the race, he is going to stop campaigning," a Dean aide told the LA Times. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Joshua Whalen: Paybacks are a bitchPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Wired: "A Democratic candidate buys $2,000 of advertising on a blog and gets $80,000 in campaign donations in two weeks. Was it a fluke, or the beginning of a new campaign cash cow?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named madge.jpgJan Miner, the woman who played Madge, died. She was featured on Scripting News in 2002, and that's where the slogan "You're soaking in it" came from. When applied to software, the slogan means we're using the software we're talking about. For example if I were to write something about Channel Z, it would apply. What's Channel Z? You're soaking in it! Then if you really want to say something profound -- "It softens your hands while you do the dishes." That's the sign of goood software.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times: Kermit and Miss Piggy Join DisneyPermanent link to this item in the archive.

On this day last year I sold my house in Woodside.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

In 1998 Berkman had a conference on the Internet & Society, with an amazing cast of speakers.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Editorial about the weather. After a promising beginning this winter has been a major disappointment. One good snow storm in December. I thought "Gee this is fun but I bet I get tired of it by the end of the winter." Bzzzt. Not. Since then we've had flurries. Every week they predict a good storm, and every week it fails to materialize. I want my money back. Let's get it together. Snow now. Snow now. Snow now. Snow now! Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Gary Secondino respectfully disagreesPermanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Tuesday, February 17, 2004. Tuesday, February 17, 2004

Kerry squeaks by Edwards in Wisconsin. 39 to 37. Dean distant third. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Betsy Devine wonders why she can't be more like Adam Curry. Hmm. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

At John Battelle's search-focused weblog, rumblings of a new search engine called Dipsie, and a search engine transplant at Yahoo. Could there be choice in search soon? That would be welcome. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

New header graphic commemorates the kind of meetings that are commonplace at Buck's Woodside. Pictured are Jamis MacNiven, Jimmi Johnson, myself and Marc Canter in 1999, talking about websites, or something like that. I was probably having a Chorizo Scramble. Jamis, who owns Buck's, picked up the tab. The food was good. The meeting ill-fated, like most of the meetings held at Buck's before the bust. According to NPR business is good again. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

News.Com: "The RIAA picked up the pace of its legal attack on Net music swappers Tuesday, filing copyright infringement suits against another 531 individuals." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Howard Dean: "I still have some hope of being the nominee." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named jamis.jpgYesterday I heard a report on NPR about Silicon Valley where they got two easy facts wrong. Facts, not in question, like Jamis MacNiven's name and what town Sand Hill Road is in. These mistakes would not survive on a reasonably high traffic weblog. And it makes me doubt all the more that the other information presented is accurate. I prefer getting news from blogs more and more, because of the lack of conflict of interest, and for the deep vetting that goes on here. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Paul Boutin: Inside Baseball vs Outside BaseballPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Lots of new feeds from Apple. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A poem in a picture at East Broadway Ron's. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Adam Curry's latest report from Iraq. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Pictures of Brent and Sheila taken last Wednesday from the back seat of their car while Sheila was driving. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named benMena.jpgFour years ago today Manila Express shipped. Here's a funny story about that. I had breakfast in Seattle about a week ago with Brent and Sheila Simmons. The waitress was something else, when I walked into the restaurant and said "I'm looking for some friends," she said "That's so cool!" I fell in love, on the spot. Anyway, Brent and Sheila weren't there yet. I picked a table. She said "That's a great table!" Brent and Sheila came and we talked about lots of stuff. Eventually somehow the subject came up that their faces were on the logo for Manila Express. They told me that when Ben and Mena met Brent and Sheila they said "Oh you're the people on Scripting News." I said I would put B&M's pic on SN so they could say the same thing to them next time. Done. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Thanks for those who sent good wishes on the WIRED nomination. It's great to know that there are some high-roaders in this community. It can be hard to hear them over the din created by the negativists. Onward! Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Monday, February 16, 2004. Monday, February 16, 2004

The Rave Award nominees for 2004 are up. I'm nominated in the Software Designer category, for RSS, along with the designers of Friendster, Skype, BitTorrent and iTunes. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named raiseTheBar.jpgObservations about RSS. It's doing the job. It's right up there with social networks, VOIP, the latest in file sharing, and the Internet music revolution. It's the only XML format on the list. HTTP was good enough, as was HTML, and there's certainly nothing wrong with RSS, clearly, because it works, demonstrably. It's a great format, and of course some people don't like it, and that's their right. But it's a great day for us, the community of people who use and build on RSS. I love RSS, with pride.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Law Tech Guru follows up on yesterday's post on Atom vs RSS. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

The concept of friendship is much-discussed these days in the blogosphere. For a refresher, I turned to a couple of essays I wrote last September when my uncle died suddenly. We don't have many friends, true friends, people who will listen to anything we want to talk about. I was confused then, but not now. My uncle was a friend, and I still miss him, terribly.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

BBC: "According to a new survey, UK women are now spending more money online than men for the first ever time." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

AP: "Howard Dean revealed Monday that national campaign chairman Steve Grossman has departed." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Roy Neel: "There have been a lot of rumors around today about Gov Dean's intentions after the Wisconsin primary." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named dancemanindahouse.gifSeveral people sent a pointer to this page on the Feedster site, which is pretty clearly the source for the page on the Kerry site, below. They have similar pages for other candidates. What's interesting (and if true wrong) is that they've chosen weblogs that support the candidates to include in the synthetic feed for each candidate. What's the logic behind that? They might as well call the project The Echo Chamber. Aside from that, they have me down as a Kerry supporter? I don't recall making such a declaration. Would you say the NY Times is a Kerry supporter? We're getting confused here. At the same time Taegan Goddard is starting a political aggregator, but he's not including blogs, only pros. Oy. We need some philosophy here. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named abe.jpgSomething interesting is going on at the Kerry site? Hmmm. Some kind of aggregator. Crawling Scripting News among others. A Feedster app? Here's my guess on how it works -- any blog posts on any of the sites they subscribe to that contains the word "Kerry" is included on their page. If so, we can probably do better. For example, I have a category for Kerry, with its own RSS feed. That way I can deliberately route something to their site. (That's why I did it that way, anticipating this application.) Permanent link to this item in the archive.

I bought a new microphone for our Thursday evening meetings. The webcasts should be much better, Murphy-willing. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Mike Walsh: "I decided to get a copy of my credit report." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Adam has arrived in Iraq. Pictures from the trip. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Washington Post: "Will Google get steamrolled like Netscape?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

It's a bank holiday in the US. Happy birthday to Presidents Washington and Lincoln. It's an efficiency. We used to have two holidays, one for each. I think they collapsed them into one so we could have a January holiday for Martin Luther King. Good deal. George could not tell a lie, Abe freed the slaves, and MLK had a dream.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Postscript: It's not true that President's Day is the result of merging the birthdays of Lincoln and Washington. Nixon said it is the "holiday set aside to honor all presidents, even myself." Heh. I don't think anyone's celebrating Tricky Dick. I'd love to see a picture of Dubya with Nixon. Now that would be cool, even if it were a fake.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Caucuses and jury duty make you smarter. So do weblogs, if you use them the same way, to share ideas.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Snopes exposes the fake Republican picture of Kerry and Jane Fonda. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A rare unretouched photo of a young George W Bush visiting the Nixon White House around the same time John Kerry was appearing with Jane Fonda. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named topblog.gif Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Sunday, February 15, 2004. Sunday, February 15, 2004

A picture named kerry.jpgNewsday: 1971 Photo of Kerry Doctored. "Light did not photograph Jane Fonda on that warm June Sunday in 1971. The actress, who is reviled by many Vietnam veterans for her vocal stance against the war, did not even attend." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Tonight's presidential debate is at 6:30PM Eastern on MSNBC. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

AP: "Howard Dean is preparing to abandon his race for the Democratic presidential nomination if he loses Wisconsin's primary, several advisers said Sunday, despite the candidate's assertions to the contrary." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Ferdig, Trammell: Content Delivery in the BlogospherePermanent link to this item in the archive.

Alexander Svensson writes: "The German Constitutional Court now syndicates its decisions and press releases using RSS 2.0." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

On Friday we noted that the Danish government is also standardizing on RSS. It seems that Mr Safe has made his decision.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Jeff Beard: "Is Google crazy, or crazy like a fox?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named bernstein.jpgMark Bernstein roundup on Atom. He asks why no one has developed a translator from Atom to RSS. There are a couple of reasons. First, Atom is a moving target. Anyone who gets on board now is committing to the twists and turns that are certainly coming. Second, it would really only work if it were deployed as a dynamic service and that's a long-term commitment with no joy. It seems Google, the big company here with the deep pockets, should do this. And if they contemplated it, it would lead them to the correct answer -- support RSS and end this miserable discussion. How unfair that they won't comment publicly on it, leaving us guessing as to their motive, what they're doing and where they're going.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Phillip Pearson has a feed normalizer that converts Atom to RSS.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Derek Scruggs: "There is no reason for Google to not support RSS." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Tracy Adams: "Why exactly is Google investing in Atom?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Tracy Adams: "After 30 comments to my last post, no one even commented on why Google is interested in Atom." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Phil Ringnalda: FUD 101.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dowbrigade: Big Tent MovementPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Clay Shirky: "Trippi comes this close to blaming the voters." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Question: What is being done to archive the Dean web presence? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

On this day in 1998, Fat Web PagesPermanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Saturday, February 14, 2004. Saturday, February 14, 2004

Adam is on his way to Iraq? Yow. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

DFA blogger and BloggerConner Matt Gross has a new weblogPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Yup it happens to me too. One of life's little annoyances. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named hpsmall.jpgI've been asked to review my new Bose headphones. Happy to oblige. First and foremost they work. Hop on the airplane, turn them on, put them on, it's much quieter but you still can hear plane noise. Put on some tunes. Sounds nice! They're lightweight, comfortable, but after a few hours it's time for a rest. A nice $299 treat. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

The headphones work very well with today's song. "You don’t need a weather man to know which way the wind blows." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

New feature -- the Scripting News home page now shows the last three days. Not a mind bomb but nice to have nonetheless. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Wired: "These corporations have outlawed an art form." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A historic perspective on Google and its leader, Eric Schmidt. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Jeremy Bowers supports: "The most important thing is to keep the ball rolling." Amen brother. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Anita Rowland: "Dave did remember what I told him about Jack and me getting together." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Boston Globe: "Howard Dean's presidential campaign increasingly looks like it won't go on beyond Tuesday." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Jessica Baumgart on the value of an encyclopedia on CD-ROM. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Jay Rosen analyzes a Reuters story on Joe Trippi's talk. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times: "The latest conundrum hanging over Howard Dean and his campaign is how to give up a serious bid for the White House without devolving into some obscure trivia question." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Phil Stanhope, in the comments on yesterday's post about Atom and UserLand: "Perhaps Mark will end up in the XML-equivalent of a $10 bill -- but my vote is for the more deeply thought out principles and approach of our modern-day Adams." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named adams.gifWhite House: "Adams was born in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1735. A Harvard-educated lawyer, he early became identified with the patriot cause; a delegate to the First and Second Continental Congresses, he led in the movement for independence." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

John Adams is one of the founders of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, where we had the evening reception for BloggerCon.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

In the same thread, UserLand CEO Scott Young says: "We will continue to follow the development of the Atom spec to see how it maps with our product plans." Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Friday, February 13, 2004. Friday, February 13, 2004

Microsoft developer network RSS feedsPermanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named rpp.gifDowbrigade discusses an idea that we talked about briefly at Microsoft, a new political party that doesn't nominate candidates. I know that sounds weird, but that would create a tent that's big enough to include conservatives and liberals, peaceniks and warmongers, me and Glenn Reynolds, gun nuts and dope smokers, just as long as you like discussing politics with your neighbors, you can be part of the new party (please leave the guns and pot at home). Let's call it the Rational People's Party, or RPP. We'd meet every month to talk about local and national politics, to start new weblogs and meetups, to broadcast our ideas and invite political leaders to pitch themselves. If they wandered off-topic we'd ask them to get back on track. If one broke a campaign promise, this would appear on a public list, for every local RPP chapter to access. Think of it as a nationwide caucus system, that's ongoing, and has a good database and lots of weblogs. We'd encourage our members to run for office, we'd even publish guidelines and howtos, but we wouldn't back them as a party. It's kind of like Hotels.Com, Travelocity or Expedia. They don't run hotels or airlines, but they help you choose one. And maybe they help you decide where you want to go, but are really okay where ever you end up going. Our only stake is having a good election, one where the voters get what they want. We'd rate each election on how well we did, and strive to keep doing better. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Crimson: "The Committee on College Life voted to approve a student-run magazine that will feature nude pictures of Harvard undergraduates and articles about sexual issues." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Massachusetts for Dean starts up, interestingly. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Scott Young, CEO at UserLand, asked what I thought they should be doing re Atom. Here's what I saidPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Marc Barrot: "Atom support is not going to be a piece of cake." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Smalltalk: "Atom is nothing but a tax on aggregator developers." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Bob Doyle writes to say that if you image-search Google for "Evan Williams Blogger" the first two matches are pictures of me. Heh. That's so strange. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Wired: "Microsoft says incomplete portions of the source code for some versions of its Windows computer operating system were leaked over the Internet, but analysts caution it's too early to say how much damage the leak may cause." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named pup.jpgEveryone's so worried about the Microsoft source leak. "It could open new security holes!" they say. But check this out, the source for Linux, a popular Microsoft competitor, has always been available, and this is promoted by its advocates saying it makes Linux more secure, not less. More programmer eyeballs looking for bugs. Maybe some white-hat types will try to check in some fixes for Windows 2000? Stranger things have happened. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Linus's Law (via Eric Raymond): "Given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Another face-to-face first in Seattle, I met Baiss Magnusson, who I've known online for over a decade. He was part of the first group of Frontier developers in the early 90s, a smart guy, very easy to work with, a generous and nice guy. He introduced himself at the end of my .NET group talk, and said he's been looking for a job for a while. He looked sad, so I said "You look sad," and he told me the story of how life has been for over-50 programmers in the Seattle area. The jobs are going overseas. I hate to hear that. Baiss is a good guy. I vouch for him. Give the guy a chance. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A Seattle love story. I met Anita Rowland and Jack Bell on Monday night at the pizza meeting at the .NET Developer's Association. To my surprise, it turns out that Anita met Jack on Scripting News. She had sent me an email saying she was looking for a geek boyfriend. I published it of course, on that day's mail page. Jack sent her email, they had coffee, and now they're married. How about that! Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Thanks for the kind thoughts Paolo. I like to think everyone deserves the benefit of the doubt, esp when you're reading their words on a screen, but even when you're meeting them in person. Paolo reminds me that the second time I met him, in California, I was afraid he and his wife thought I was being rude or grouchy, but in fact I was really sick. We're taught to be strong, that it's impolite to let a guest know that we're not feeling well, put a smiling face on it, do the best you can. So even when you have the benefit of real-world contact, it's nice to know that you may get the benefit of the doubt, and that the doubt is always there. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Jessica Baumgart: "The Winter 2004 issue of News Library News with the feature article I wrote about RSS is now online." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named apcar.jpgBob Stepno found an interview with Len Apcar, editor in chief of NY Times on the Web, where he talks about blogs BloggerCon and the Times On The Trail site. "This will evolve. It still hasn’t achieved my vision just yet. But it’s off to a good start," says Apcar. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

The Age: "Online search engine leader Google has banned the ads of an environmental group protesting a major cruise line's sewage treatment methods, casting a spotlight on the policies -- and power -- of the popular Web site's lucrative marketing program." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

George Colony: Googlescape -- Are we headed for Bubble II? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

John Gotze writes to say the Danish government has included RSS 2.0 in its "government interoperability framework called the Reference Profile." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times: Microsoft gapples with source code leakPermanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named bilg.gifDare Obasanjo, who I met at Microsoft earlier this week, tries to make Yahoo work with Atom, after Jeremy Zawodny claimed yesterday that they had quickly created an Atom adapter (Zawodny works at Yahoo). Ninja networker Mark Pilgrim makes an appearance in Dare's comments. So -- did Dare's experiment work? Somewhat.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Adrian Holvaty reviews the terms-of-service at a scraping service and finds it lacking. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Two big stories yesterday: human cloning in Korea; and a brewing sex scandal around presumed Presidential nominee, John Kerry.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Interesting newcomer at last night's weblog writer's meeting at Berkman: Rebecca MacKinnon, friend of many of our friends, Shorenstein Fellow at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, bureau chief for CNN in Tokyo, and student of weblogs. She wants to know how they relate to professional journalism. Me too. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Perils of publishing Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Charles Herrera sent an email yesterday saying that he has a whole new impression of blogging after watching the talk I gave at Microsoft on Monday. It was a gratifying email for another reason.

He says: "To someone who has read Scripting News since the start, but who is not involved in scripting or blogging, it has seemed to me that on occasion you have been forced into a grumpy mode. Sometimes words on a screen don't always convey the sense of the person underneath. Of course, the 'grumpy' that I saw, or thought I saw, comes probably from the flames all around you."

This is worth emphasizing. If you scan an email quickly and there's a bunch of nasty words with someone's name in the middle, the mind has a tendency to connect the words and the person. Unfortunately this is how people read on the Web. Charles noted that I'm a friendly person, in person. I like to think that's true. Sometimes it's hard to see that in the writing. I know.


Permanent link to archive for Thursday, February 12, 2004. Thursday, February 12, 2004

PC World: "Microsoft is investigating rumors that the secret code underlying its Windows NT and Windows 2000 operating systems has leaked out and is available on the Internet, a company spokesperson confirms." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Notes from tonight's Berkman meeting. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dinner tonight is at the Cambridge Commons, 8:45PM. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named pepsiblue.gifblog is the OED's word of the dayPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Steven Vore reports that Pepsi Blue has been cancelled. In a way that's bad news, but I liked the bottle more than the drink, and since this is the Web, the bottle is still here.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Andrew Grumet: "I can't believe that Google is letting Mark Pilgrim do their talking for them." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Don Hopkins pulls quotes from my talk at Microsoft on Monday. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named angel.gifAfter I appeared on stage with then Apple CEO Gil Amelio in 1997 one of the Apple people in the audience asked if hell had frozen over too. So when I saw that Shelley Powers planned to comment on a probably very sexist picture that Marc Canter had posted on his blog and then pulled, I figured she was going to trash Marc. There was a predictable chorus saying Marc did bad and offended lots of people, and even though I haven't seen the picture, I can believe it would be offensive, knowing Marc. But even more offensive, vastly more offensive, are the niggly comments from supposed blogging thought leaders like Joi Ito and Cory Doctorow (and others I don't know). Don't you get it that the power to offend is just as sacred as the power to please? In fact, even more so, because people are always trying to shout down the person with an original idea, because they're easy to shout at (they're usually alone). One of my best friends asks if I am scared of something and when I say yes, she says "Okay, cool, that's what we'll do." If you're scared of Marc's picture, or more likely, scared of the disapproval of an alpha male or female, you become the subject of discussion, and that's right, and mazel tov to Shelley for pointing there instead of the predictable place (a misbehaving male). She goes on to say that the best thing that could happen to many bloggers is to be cut off from their communities. I completely agree. Now I get to ask, has hell frozen over too?  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Here's the picture that offended so many of the leading bloggers. Man these people are seriously uptight. Marc says he never pulled it. Right on. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times: "As long as Senator John Kerry faces even nominal competition, President Bush's advisers will have a harder time getting equal attention for their political message." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Paul Boutin mourns the passing of WebMonkey. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Guardian story about Chris Lydon and audible weblogs. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

My talk at Microsoft Research on Monday is now available on the Web. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named wagonerette.jpgAt the end of my talk, Shira Silberman, a Waggenerette, came up and asked for a feature. She said -- "You know how, when you're looking at a book on Amazon, they say 'People who read this book also read these books.' How about doing that for RSS?" I thought about it for a second and realized we could do it with the data we're accumulating on Share Your OPML. So I dialed up Andrew on my cell, passed the phone to Shira, and asked her to tell him what she wanted. Today, we have the feature. Demo: People who subscribe to Scobleizer also subscribe to.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

News.Com ran a perfectly awful food fight about RSS, again. I wish they'd give a damn about users, and stop putting so much energy into Mark Pilgrim. What has he done for anyone lately? Anyway, here's the only question that matters. Dear wheel reinventers. Please explain exactly what your format does that RSS doesn't and why it matters to users? If the answer is nothing, then just support RSS and let's compete at delighting users.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Wednesday, February 11, 2004. Wednesday, February 11, 2004

Back in Boston. Let's have fun!  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Larry Lessig will speak at Radcliffe tomorrow afternoon. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Ross Mayfield explains how Disney is using RSS enclosures.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

LA Times article about Dean quoting Berkmanites and others. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

At dinner last night I gave my usual schpiel about how DaveNet started, and since I was dining with Microsoft people I emphasized the early piece I wrote about Bill Gates, and his response. I quoted Bill saying that the Internet wouldn't mean less sales for Flight Simulator or Encarta, and I said he was right but that wasn't the point. One of my companions stopped me there and said wait a minute, the Internet did mean less sales for Encarta. I was shocked. That's correct, and Gates got it wrong, and I wasn't enough of a visionary to see it. I got it wrong too. Who needs an encyclopedia on a CD-ROM when you have the Web at your fingertips? Someday some kid is going to ask you What is Encarta? That might be where you end up going today. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

1/25/04: "You can get anything you want at Alice's Restaurant." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Love RSS.Rogers Cadenhead is digging into the changes in formats over at Google. He's right to be concerned, I am too. They're breaking users, including people who aren't using their software. There is a lot of implicit trust in the RSS network, an assumption that vendors will behave rationally and will care for users. Any participant can break us, as Google is proving. But I believe in the fabric of the community. Either Google will fail, or Atom will be the new syndication standard. But Rogers, don't look to the past for their motivation, that's not what it's about. I am absolutely sure Google has an aggregator in the works. And by taking control of the syndication format, and trying to eliminate RSS, they will control the whole blogging-syndication-search space.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named hpsmall.jpgOne of the things I told the Microsoft people this week is that if they screw with RSS the way Google is, I will quit, permanently, and never look back. If the result of all this hard work is just another venue for the ongoing pissing match between Microsoft and Silicon Valley, I'm out. It occurred to me that I should say this publicly too. I mean it. The users now have enough data, and the tools to speak for themselves. That was the point of doing blogging software, so that we would never be held hostage to people who sit at the top of a pyramid and look down at us, their minions, and sigh when they have to kill our dreams. It doesn't have to happen. The political bloggers have been able to out Trent Lott, and now are working on Dubya. We've launched a Presidential campaign. We are powerful. Use your minds, and gather all the bits of data you can, and form an opinion. As Howard Dean says, and he's right, you have the power, not me. Tell Google to get with the program and work with the developers who brought you aggregators, publications, blogging tools, and other RSS apps. Tell Schmidt and Ballmer to view this space as not-theirs, not to be fought over. Make products for us, compete to serve us better, but if you try to break us, we'll break you. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

In a comment on the Cadenhead site, a guy named Pete says: "Just a reminder, you don't have to use Google." Perfect. A good way to provide feedback to the Google people is to switch away from them. Let them make the connection that the day they started playing unfair is the day the users started moving away. Companies always respond to this kind of input. It's where users have the most power. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Andrew Grumet: RSSTV, Syndication for your PVRPermanent link to this item in the archive.

CNN: Kerry wins in Tennesse and Virginia. Clark quits. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A review of the new headphones. I'm going to try them out tomorrow on the flight from Seattle to Boston.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Most of the meetings at Microsoft yesterday and today were non-disclosed. Interesting stuff. Wish I could talk about what I saw and heard. However I can say this, as promised, I went to bat, repeatedly, for the open formats and protocols of the blogging world.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Tuesday, February 10, 2004. Tuesday, February 10, 2004

New toy. "Fantastic." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

New Chronicle of Higher Education article on RSS. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Andrew posts a new teaser. This is going to be very cool. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Calpundit is digging into the Bush military record. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dowbrigade: Why We Need Video AggregatorsPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Wired: "Talking largely about Dean's presidential quest in the past tense, Trippi blamed rival campaigns and an irresponsible, hopelessly conventional news media for knocking the one-time front-runner from his perch." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Washington Post: "Did Trippi's aggressive ad strategy pose a conflict of interest?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Guess who has the number one hit on Google for howard dean rantPermanent link to this item in the archive.

News.Com: "The Semantic Web is no longer a research project," W3C representative Janet Daly said. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Joshua Allen and Korby Parnell blogged my talk at MS yesterday. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Hey Hemos, thanks for the Slashdot.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Monday, February 09, 2004. Monday, February 09, 2004

Tim Jarrett blogged my talk today at Microsoft Research. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Chris Lydon has a new show on MPR. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

James Joyce: Why C Is Not My Favourite Programming LanguagePermanent link to this item in the archive.

Star-Telegram: "'The point is, it's my driveway and nobody should be able to tell me I have to get rid of something because they don't like it,' Parsons said of an ordinance passed last fall that banned recreational vehicles from residential driveways." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Howard Beale: "I want you to go to the window, open it, stick your head out and yell: 'I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore!'" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Economist: "When your neighbour loses his job it’s a slowdown (or, if you dislike him, a correction); when you lose yours, it’s a recession; when an economic journalist loses his, that’s a depression." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times: "Despite impressive recent growth, social networking Web sites like Friendster face a challenge: how to make money." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Ross's Stupid Little Feedster/Share Your OPML ThingPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Don Hopkins thinks MSIE should have pie menus. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Steve Gillmor: "Today Kan is dead, Joy is retired, Napster is a brand name, and Ozzie's biggest client is the Department of Defense." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named kerry.jpgAfter reading some comments on my last essay, it seems I should have spelled it out in more detail. If voters had a place to go to get a balanced story, one that had good news and bad news about Dean, and about other candidates, instead of the crazy stuff they put on television networks, his candidacy might have survived, or at least we'd be having a discussion about what we want in a President, instead of the stuff they talk about on TV. Did you watch the Sunday morning interviews today? The interviewers ask the stupidest questions over and over, hoping to catch the candidate saying something like "I'll drop out when this happens," or "I don't mind running for vice-president." The candidates just don't answer them, instead they view the time as free commercials, and just repeat their soundbites over and over. In the meantime Dean and Clark are both sounding like much better candidates than they did when they were stumping in NH, and Dean is right about Kerry, we don't know if he's any kind of a good candidate, because all we're getting from him is bluster and victory speeches. Anyway, the average discourse in the blogosphere is no better than television. It's all pretty lame I guess. Whatever.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Welcome to Seattle where it's warm and dark. Easy trip. Got about 1/2 way through page-turner thriller. Tried to watch a movie on my laptop DVD player, but the volume wasn't high enough to make out the dialog, not that the dialog is the key feature of this movie. There must be a way to amplify. Anyway, it feels good to be on the west coast for a change. Not nearly so cold here.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Sunday, February 08, 2004. Sunday, February 08, 2004

I'm also speaking at the .NET Developer's Association tomorrow night along with Scoble. Should be interesting. I might sneak in a little demo of my development environment, maybe show them SCNS, the object database, how I edit scripts (and my weblog), how the CMS works. Let's see how it goes. Maybe RSS will be enough. I'm also meeting with the other half of MS, but I can't talk about that one. You might figure it out. These guys are so much cooler than Silicon Valley companies. They're all full of who-does-he-think-he-is, and why-should-we-listen-to-him's. Microsoft culture, even though it's PFU, has always been open to other points of view. It's part of the genetic coding. You want to give us free ideas? Sure thing, says Billg's guys and gals. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Seattle weather for the next few days, highs in the low 50s, lows in the high 30s. Partly cloudy, no rain. That's good weather from my pov. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named ie.gifReviewing the schedule for the MS trip, I see I have an hour with the head of the MSIE team. I asked for the meeting. I want to talk about how the browser can be made more useful to people who use RSS and who write weblogs. I'm going to ask for features that work for all blogging software and all aggregators, foolish me, maybe I'm the only one who thinks we all do better if everyone has a chance to compete. Send me email if you have ideas how the browser could work better for what we do.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

New feature this morning allows you to cancel a scheduled validationPermanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named takesALickinKeepsOnTickin.jpgYesterday's Dean-Soapbar DaveNet is the outline for my talk at Microsoft Research tomorrow afternoon. Let's focus on applications of technology. For the last N years developers have been far too focused on technology itself. As a result we spend time arguing and spinning wheels over various engineering visions of the plumbing, missing that the revolution ain't at that level, it's in how the tech is used to revolutionize all aspects of the world we live in, and even better, to solve problems and make the world better. Yes, even after all the control freaks have taken their pound of flesh, I'm still an idealist. Takes a lickin, keeps on tickin.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

BTW, I am told that tomorrow's talk will be available on the public Internet, if not as a webcast, afterwards. I'll be Seattle through Tuesday night. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Don Park: "Engineers are like blacksmiths without a hobby." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dare Obasanjo: "This is the first step in fragmenting the interoperability on the Web gained by XML." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

UN weapons inspector Hans Blix's quote of the day. If you're on a witch hunt, he says, "every broom in every corner is evidence of witches." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

The Holy Bible is now available as an RSS feed.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dave Pollard: "O Google, why have you forsaken me?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times: "Voters have wiped out several decades' worth of conventional wisdom about presidential primaries." Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Saturday, February 07, 2004. Saturday, February 07, 2004

DaveNet: Howard Dean is not a soap barPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Washington Post: Kerry wins Washington, MichiganPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Put down the cup of coffee and swallow before clicking on this linkPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Dean Peters asks how many syndication formats he should implement. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named evhead.jpgIt occurred to me today that I hadn't seen an update from Evan Williams in quite some time, so I went to his weblog to see if he had been udpating, and sure enough, he had. I guess they stopped maintaining his RSS feed. In doing a bit of checking for the Peters piece, above, I came across this concern: "...programs will express compatibility in terms of products, not formats. Then you'd have to use one aggregator to read BBC feeds, for example, and another to read SF Chronicle feeds." Well I guess we didn't have to wait too long for that to happen.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

If you know anyone at Google, call em up and tell them this sucks. At the Thursday meeting Jim Moore, who apparently is friends with Eric Schmidt, couldn't believe he'd be nasty to the bloggers. I know Eric too, he is a nice guy. But here's the deal about nice guys. Sometimes they fuck you. And everyone says "But he's such a nice guy." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

The NY Times is advertising on weblogs.com.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Mike Walsh previews the Bush appearance on Meet The Press tomorrow. "His handlers must be sleepless worrying that maybe he will say something unpresidential." Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Friday, February 06, 2004. Friday, February 06, 2004

A new app for people who want to be sure their feeds are in good shape. You enter three bits of info, the URL of a feed, your email address and a subject for filtering. Periodically (at most every 24 hours) the app checks the feed and sends an email saying whether or not it validated. I have it set up to check the Scripting News RSS feed. This is mostly for technical people who are actively working on their feeds. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Jeff Jarvis asks a question that was behind much of the discussion last night. If the Dean campaign winds down, what becomes of the Dean weblog? Should it become a movement? Will people keep giving money? If so, what should the money be used for? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Greg Reinacker: "Our system is indeed standards-based -- except in those areas where there are no standards." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

First there was a Cup of Joe, then Joe-Mentum, and now the Joe-Bitchuary. One can only hope that this is where it ends. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Jim Louderback: "This newsfeed service could turn RSS into a nasty walled garden." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Goddard: Dean Loses Grip of WashingtonPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Ryan Lizza: "I spent a couple of days at Dean headquarters to get a feel for how the campaign was dealing with this stunning turn of fortune." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Don Hopkins: "I hope these ideas will inspire more tool developers to contribute their programming skills to the Sims community." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Winter beauty Permanent link to this item in the archive.

They forecast sleet and freezing rain today. A few minutes ago I took a look and sure enough, that's what's going on. So I got my coffee, and continued work on my latest programming project, but then glimpsed out of the corner of my eye that the nasty weather had turned beautiful. Huge flakes of snow falling slowly, with almost no wind. The street just beginning to turn white. What a nice surprise. I had to get up and take a look. I wanted to tell someone about it. So I told you.

My friend Betsy Permanent link to this item in the archive.

We had a fantastic meeting last night at Berkman. I'm sure a lot of people who were there will write up various parts of it.

Here's one little bit. We were talking about the money that Dean raised yesterday, Betsy Devine volunteered that she had given money yesterday. She gave for two reasons. I don't remember the first, but I do remember the second. Dean said either he wins in Wisconsin or he retires from the race. Betsy, an early Dean supporter said it's important that he bow out if he loses. Makes sense to me. One last push, if it works, great, if not, that's the end of the fight.

But this morning Dean is on the radio saying he didn't write the email, and while it was a great tactic to raise money, he's not personally pledged to get out of the race if he loses Wisconsin. While I'm not a lawyer, I think he either has to return the money or honor the pledge. It seems fraudulent not to.

BTW, the cool thing about Presidential politics is that unlike politics in the tech business, there is an end to it.

Sir, you have no honor.Last night Betsy told another story about the #joiito IRC channel, which I have never participated in because a lot of what they talk about is me, and they aren't fans, to put it nicely. Last night Betsy told us how, just once, on Joi's channel, she said "Dave is my friend and I don't want you to talk about him like this." It stopped. I'd like to see more of this, honorable people standing up for other honorable people. When you're cornered and alone there isn't much you can do. But if a friend will come and stand beside you, then the cowards melt. If you won't you can't say you're a friend, and in all seriousness (say this in a Worf-like voice) you have no honor. There's not much honor in the world of 2004, but the concept isn't totally dead yet.

Guardian: "To underline the point, Dean staffers abruptly halted campaigning in Michigan yesterday and relocated to Wisconsin."


Permanent link to archive for Thursday, February 05, 2004. Thursday, February 05, 2004

Gene Smith: Six tips for better RSS feedsPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Jim Moore reports that Dean has raised $438,000 so far today. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

What is OpensourceNovel.Net? "I want people to change it around." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

I must be crazy. I forgot that Lessig is a lawyer. Oy.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Chad Dickerson touts the benefits of simple syndication. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

States I've visited are shown in red on this mapPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Love RSS.For the record, I wrote the RSS 0.91 spec from scratch, starting in June 2000, to document current practice. There was no claim of compatibility with the format described by Netscape's document, as practice had already deviated, and it was made clear, in public, that I had created a new document. Some say that I stole the spec from Netscape, replacing their copyright notice with my company's. That's a very serious charge, it's being taken seriously, and it's not true. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Mark Pilgrim: "Userland took Netscape's RSS specification, removed Netscape's copyright statement, made several incompatible changes, added a Userland copyright statement, called it RSS 0.91 and claimed that it was compatible with Netscape's RSS 0.91." Note, if you want to visit that page, you'll have to copy the URL and paste it into a new browser window, Pilgrim's server is configured to bounce links from Scripting.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Don Hopkins: "The Sims pie menus were something I whipped up one night and just checked into the code base, and then gradually evolved over time." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named nader.jpgI heard the NPR interview with Ralph Nader yesterday, after leaving a long interesting meeting with two ex-Dean operatives. Nader is considering another run for the presidency. The interviewer asked repeatedly if he wasn't hurting Democrats by running, assuring a Republican victory, a repeat of 2000. After coming out of a meeting mostly about the press and how they manipulate us, I really felt for Nader. If I were him that kind of pressure would make me more insistent on running. Nader responded that those who call for him not to run are trying to censor him. I agree. One might argue that Kerry should shut up because every time he opens his mouth he might say something that would serve to elect Bush.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named toothpaste.jpgThe Democrats should nominate someone who inspires. A person not a toothpaste. The Democrats are responsible for the tie in 2000. It should shame them into waking up that they couldn't beat a man who can barely complete a sentence, who inspires so little confidence that it took a national disaster for us to begin to see him as a President. I agree with Chris Heilman, below, that with Kerry as the presumed nominee of the Democratic Party, there's little to look forward to. A picture named zoe.jpgLuckily, it's still not too late to fix this. And if we should nominate a Democrat as uninspiring as Gore, for all we know Nader's presence in the election will serve to inspire, and in turn get us better government. My friend Larry Lessig argues too linearly. No, Nader was not responsible for the war in Iraq. That's two levels too complicated. He wasn't even responsible for the tied election in 2000. But I love a good argument, so let's keep this one alive. I hope Nader runs for precisely that reason. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Last year on this day: "It's great to be a kid because they don't have to pretend they're not crazy, like adults do, if you know what I mean." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Six years ago: "If we could have let her live, even considering the horror of what she did, it would have made us greater. I feel deep shame at being part of a country with such a shallow collective heart, with such a brutal response to brutality, with no sense of forgiveness." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Boston Globe: "Howard Dean told his supporters today that he must win the Feb 17 Wisconsin primary or else he will drop out of the Democratic presidential race." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times: When a Search Engine Isn't Enough, Call a LibrarianPermanent link to this item in the archive.

Chris Heilman: "Kerry won in AZ, and just about everywhere else. He's like Bush with shaggy hair, so it's 4 more years no matter who wins. On NPR, EJ Dionne said the only difference would be the judicial nominations." Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Wednesday, February 04, 2004. Wednesday, February 04, 2004

I started my third corporation last week. The new company is called Scripting News, Inc. It owns this site and a few others, and some software I'm working on. It's a Massachusetts corporation. So I guess I'm going to be here for a while.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

There's a Dean ad on www.weblogs.com. Surprising. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

j Baumgart: "I'm j Baumgart and I approved this message." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named dean.jpgHalley nails it on the missing element in the Dean campaign. They failed to arm the electorate with the best information. For a fraction of the cost of a state campaign, they could have deployed an information system for voters that would have made history. We'd be raving about how the Internet has made it possible to be a responsible voter for the first time. $40 million isn't a big drop in an ocean of television ads, but in the space of public information systems it's a virtually infinite amount of money. Next time we, as citizens, decide to endow a candidate with millions of our dollars, let's find out first what they plan to do with it. If they say "run ads" or hire expensive consultants, let's pass. A new term to go with this idea: Voter Support Systems.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Political Wire: More Evidence of a Divided NationPermanent link to this item in the archive.

AP: Mass high court rules for gay marriage. Unfortunately this is going to be an issue in the 2004 presidential election. Kerry, the likely Democrat nominee, is from Massachusetts. Bush had strong language about this in his State of the Union speech. Even if you don't believe in gay couples' right to marry, certainly there are more pressing issues that should be discussed in this election cycle.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

What is Infoworld.Feedster.ComPermanent link to this item in the archive.

CNN has a great table showing the returns from yesterday's primaries. Kerry won five, Clark and Edwards each won one. But that doesn't tell the whole story. Where Kerry won, he won with large margins. Clark's margin in Oklahoma was tiny, and while Edwards won by 15 points to Kerry in South Carolina, the rest of the field was left in the dust.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times: "Edwards and Dean still have small windows of opportunity" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Ed Cone: "Is John Edwards the first North Carolinian to win a presidential primary?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

My new RSS validator now recognizes Atom feeds and gives you a nice badge saying your feed validates. Some people felt that calling it an RSS feed was confusing. I'm pretty sure users will end up thinking of Atom as a flavor of RSS. The validator still recognizes RSS feeds, of course.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Tuesday, February 03, 2004. Tuesday, February 03, 2004

Political Wire exit polls. Edwards++. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Bob Stepno has been following the NY Times election "weblog." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

I asked Randy Charles Morin what he would do if he was on the RSS Advisory Board, and, no surprise, I got a thoughtful and upbeat responsePermanent link to this item in the archive.

Rogers Cadenhead: Janet's Breast Throttled My ServerPermanent link to this item in the archive.

InternetNews: Is Ad-Supported RSS the Next Big Thing? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named ketchupsmall.gifJim Moore reports from the Dean campaign. A couple of thoughts. I'd be more encouraged if the campaign were getting inspiration from new people "in the field" -- although that would reflect an imbalance in perspective. Second, how about doing something creative with the money? Now that we know how the 2003 money was wasted, what's going to change in 2004? What is the newly funded Dean campaign going to do to empower our minds? The rallies clearly didn't make a difference. Nor did the expensive collateral material or television ads. Wouldn't an Internet campaign make it easy for voters who care to find out what the issues are, in plain understandable terms? Activate and then empower our minds, that's the challenge. That way, should your guy become the front-runner again, we'll all know where to tune to get the counter-arguments when CNN and ABC go after him. Maybe Dean is the rare phoenix who gets to rise from the ashes. If so, let's get to level 2. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Last year on this day: "How about teaching us something about space and the universe. Seems like the perfect opportunity. They say we wouldn't understand, but I'm not sure they're right. I think maybe they're just lazy." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times: "They're dead, but they don't know it yet." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Ross Karchner is doing a front-end for RSS validators.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Scott Rosenberg: "If US intelligence is broken, it's clear that the Bush White House broke it." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Three years ago: "How can the air be so soft and full of new fragrances while winter is in full swing in so many other places?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

BBC: "John Kerry's supporters are hoping for a knock-out blow with a clean sweep of seven states picking a Democrat presidential nominee today. Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Monday, February 02, 2004. Monday, February 02, 2004

A picture named meter.gifScott Rosenberg wonders what's the big deal with Orkut. Lots of people are wondering, me too. Like Scott, this is the first one I've joined, although I've been invited countless times to join Friendster, LinkedIn, etc etc. Like David Weinberger, I'm not impressed. It's a puzzle, why would Google bother with this? Well, first, it doesn't have to be very useful for Google to try it out. They've launched lots of speculative services that have failed to find users. This one is finding users. So what can they do with it? Easy. It's their identity system. At some point they'll add a web services interface so our comment systems can connect to their back-end to validate users. Now you can go to one place to see all your comments. Then it gets better. Give it your credit card info, and then when you go to an Orkut-enabled e-commerce site, you can have one-click ordering (modulo a certain patent). Think about all the relationships Google has with sites that run their ads. Even I run their ads on one of my sites, and it's a pretty good deal, that one site pays for the bandwidth on all my sites. Anyway, that's a ramble. The net-net -- it's Google's identity system, and if you trust them, it can be yours too. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Michael Watkins: On Not Getting TenurePermanent link to this item in the archive.

A new validator for RSS. I worked on this app with Andrew Grumet, it's based on the open source feed validator written in Python. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

ActiveRenderer 2.0 has lots of new features. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Ted Goranson: Outliner User InterfacesPermanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named breast.jpgFor the record, I missed Janet Jackson's breast because I was writing something at halftime yesterday. Women's breasts are great. I think there should be a requirement that all women bare their breasts if they want to when they're on television. It should be a choice thing. I'm pro-choice. It might be more comfortable. It's unbelievable that Michael Powell is having a hissy fit over this. More breasts, not less. That's my opinion. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Dan Gillmor: "A farting horse?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

NY Times: "Did Mr. Kerry, class of 66, and Mr. Bush, class of 68, know each other at Yale?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

David Weinberger: "I am finding Orkut to be all maintenance and no value." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Andrew Grumet: "At BloggerCon this October several people noted an irony in the Dean campaign budget: they were rewarding the Internet, which had helped them raise unprecedented amounts of money in small contributions, by pouring the war chest right back into television." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

All the Super Bowl ads on one pagePermanent link to this item in the archive.

John Palfrey: "I couldn't figure out why it wasn't an issue ad." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Michael Gartenberg: "Steve Ballmer doing a Dean Scream?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

AP: "Downloading music online from rogue file-sharing networks got 14-year-old Annie Leith sued for thousands of dollars. Now it has landed her a leading spot on a national ad that will debut during the Super Bowl." Permanent link to this item in the archive.


Permanent link to archive for Sunday, February 01, 2004. Sunday, February 01, 2004

Back to politics. Taegan Goddard rounds up the latest polls that show that Kerry is gaining momentum. Not much of a surprise there. I'd like to see Dean hold on for a while because it's a guarantee of continued discourse. The other candidates haven't been so intelligent or straightforward, imho. Should Kerry wind it up on Tuesday, I'm concerned that's the end of the liveliest campaign in memory.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

The Patriots won. It was an excellent game. There's fireworks outside. Amazing. Lots more issue ads. Congrats to Patriots fans! Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named pepsiblue.gifHalftime. Three commercials worth noting. One borderline issue ad about kids downloading music for free and getting caught and prosecuted. Maybe they avoid issueness by promoting Pepsi and Apple's iTunes. An anti-smoking ad from Phillip Morris was totally an issue ad. I guess everyone agrees smoking is bad, I sure do, but it's still an issue ad. Would they have allowed someone else to buy an ad saying cigarette smoking makes you more masculine or feminine or sexy or makes people like you better. It wasn't so long ago that people believed that, or said they did. Anyway, the most fun ad so far is the "romantic" Budweiser ad on the sleigh. It's a territorial thing. The Super Bowl is a guy thing. The women can watch if they want. Do they think it's funny? I kinda doubt it. Hehe.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Okay the Fedex commercial wins so far. Yes, Jenkins is an alien.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

John Nichols: "What if we lived in a parallel universe where Howard Dean was actually treated fairly by the media?" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

MoveOn couldn't broadcast a commercial about the Bush deficit, but Bush himself got a freebie on CBS, followed by an H&R Block commercial that asks how much of Bush's tax cut you want. An issue ad? Hmmm. I guess it's okay because he didn't have to pay for it?? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Discussion of excerpted RSS feeds on the RSS-User list. Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Chris Heilman: "The only two words I can think of scarier than President Kerry are President Cheney." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

Telegraph: Blair and Bush nominated for peace prizePermanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named russert.jpgHoward Dean was masterful on Meet The Press. What's remarkable is the tension the interviewer creates inside me, a member of the audience, who he's supposed to be serving. I just want to hear what Dean has to say, I'm not all that interested in the trivial contradictions you think you've spotted. Then immediately after, switching to Reliable Sources, where they debated whether or not the networks were too hard on Dean, then switched to whether they were accountable for letting Bush and Powell lie about WMD's, without any challenges, before the US went to war in Iraq. They roast Dean for trivia, brainwash anyone who's stupid enough to watch, and give the Republicans a pass as they lie on their way to war. We seriously need someone who's not in the press to ask the questions. And I'd like to see some approval-rating polls about Russert and Blitzer. Why are these guys so untouchable? Permanent link to this item in the archive.

AP: "Dean spent more than $6.5 million on staff salaries and related expenses, and more than $2 million on consultants." Permanent link to this item in the archive.

1/19/04: "Asked about last year's drug policy advertisement that linked drug sales to international terrorism, Mr. Franks said, 'Is it an absolutely perfect system? Absolutely not. On the other hand, the MoveOn.org ad wasn't even close. I didn't need to rewind that one in the VCR.'" Permanent link to this item in the archive.

A picture named trashbag.jpgI came home mid-week to a house with some minor offensive odors. Sniff sniff. It's the garbage. Okay, get a trash bag, load it up. Seal it. Another day. Come home. Sniff sniff. Still smells. Take the bag, throw it on the outdoor porch where it's 12 degrees. Another day. Sniff sniff. Smells nice. Winter in the northeast. Outside it's colder than the inside of a freezer.  Permanent link to this item in the archive.

     

Dave Winer Mailto icon

 

Click here to read blogs commenting on today's Scripting News.

Community Directory
A picture named folder.gif On this day in
A picture named folder.gif OPML Editor Docs
A picture named folder.gif Scripting News Archive
A picture named folder.gif TechCrunch reviews
A picture named folder.gif Amyloo's community car roll
A picture named folder.gif XML-RPC Directory
A picture named folder.gif Tim Post's Tomorrow
A picture named folder.gif LibriVox
A picture named folder.gif News.Com Top 100
A picture named folder.gif BloggerCon III Blogroll
A picture named folder.gif Public Radio podcasts
A picture named folder.gif iPodder.org directory
A picture named folder.gif Memeorandum
A picture named folder.gif DaveNet archive
A picture named folder.gif Scripting News sites
Click here to view the OPML source for this directory.

Click here to see a list of recently updated OPML weblogs.

Morning Coffee Notes, an occasional podcast by Scripting News Editor, Dave Winer.

February 2004
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
 
Jan   Mar


Click here to see an XML representation of the content of this weblog.

Click here to view the OPML version of Scripting News.


          


© Copyright 1997-2006 Dave Winer.


Previous/Next