Scripting News

Tue, 08 Jun 2004 01:20:33 GMT

Bob Stepno, a Thursday night regular, wrote an excellent survey of RSS tools in the current PC World.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 23:19:19 GMT

Had a phone talk with Steve Rubel today where I said several times that my goal is to have the users take over. Then just a few minutes later Doc Searls posted this gem. That's what users-taking-over looks like. This is the moment I've been looking forward to, when I could point to a mind bomb from a user. Adam Curry got to this bomb four years ago. That's okay, we need more converts. Let's not wait for the cable and content companies to lead us to the promised land, we'll just create our own network, like we did with weblogs, and share with the pros when they're ready. Now don't the arguments about which format is the coolest seem just a little on the silly side??

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 21:44:47 GMT

Sub-directory of all reviews so far.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 21:05:15 GMT

Sarah Gilbert reviews Jyte.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 21:06:42 GMT

Thomas Winningham reviews Sharpreader.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 19:58:04 GMT

Apple Airport Express. Discuss.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 20:58:00 GMT

Doc Searls: "Why didn't Apple build an FM transmitter into this thing?"

Tue, 08 Jun 2004 03:12:24 GMT

I miss the Talking Moose.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 21:00:31 GMT

Howard Rheingold is speaking at Berkman tomorrow. I'll be there.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 14:27:33 GMT

Steve Kirks reviews NetNewsWire.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 14:28:52 GMT

Bill Ives reviews NewsGator.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 14:23:27 GMT

Adam Curry reviews Nucleus.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 14:57:51 GMT

Keep the reviews coming.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 15:59:59 GMT

Nick Bradbury: "If you're a long-time FeedDemon user, especially one who has tried competing products, would you consider writing a review?"

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 14:22:25 GMT

Doc Searls says RSS could be a big deal for public radio.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 16:28:55 GMT

Jeffrey Veen: "That's the Secret Service..."

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 14:20:09 GMT

Furl helps "you save, share, and recall anything you find online."

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 14:56:53 GMT

del.icio.us is somewhat different from, but related to, Furl. It's a group bookmark manager.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 19:33:11 GMT

Evan Cordes sent links to four other group bookmark managers.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 14:44:42 GMT

Mark Pilgrim, in 2002: "Dave, I'm sorry I was rude to you. This town is big enough for the two of us."

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 08:46:43 GMT

John Battelle on Bill Gates on Google.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 08:58:47 GMT

NY Times: Contest over Blackberry Patent.

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 08:49:51 GMT

Scott Rosenberg: "America would have been a lot better off if Ronald Reagan had never been president."

Two packs a day

Mon, 07 Jun 2004 09:04:37 GMT

Five years ago I said here that it was time to do something about patents, if we wait, there will be a meltdown. I don't think too many paid attention. Today patents are central to every software strategy, not because we're all going to be defensive with them, as so many say. They're a hedge by investors, in case Plan A doesn't work (selling a product to customers) perhaps Plan B might (suing to get money from companies who sell products to customers). Deaf, dumb and blind are the customers themselves, who might act in their own interest and only buy products from non-patent abusers. (And as in the Blackberry case, sometimes the abuser doesn't even market products, but sometimes they do.)

Sometimes things are so obvious, of course people see the problem coming, it must be like smoking cigarettes. You know it's killing you, but you do it anyway? I'm not saying I'm any better. In a week it'll be two years since I gave up a 31-year two-pack-a-day habit.

The first three links today are like that. Google on cruise-control, like Silicon Valley of the past. What was John Warnock's answer to TrueType? Or Apple's answer to Windows? Or Netscape's answer to MSIE? The day of reckoning is coming for Google, and they're trying the same plan that failed every SV tech juggernaut that came before. The valley has a two-pack-a-day habit too, I guess. (The answer, btw, is to insulate yourself with developers who depend on your technology.)

And the US has an addiction for bedtime stories. We, as a country loved Reagan because he told such good jokes and looked so good in a cowboy hat. Listening to the current president get lost between his tongue and his lips, again, as usual, made me yearn for The Great Communicator, who only looks great in comparison to the current leadership. Clinton was a great communicator too, and dishonest like Reagan and Bush, but as they say, when he lied no one died.