idiotabroad.com http://idiotabroad.com aka geoffrey mccaleb posterous.com Wed, 18 Jan 2012 05:12:00 -0800 (leak) First draft of Chris Dodd's statement on the internet blackout protests #SOPA #sarcasm http://idiotabroad.com/leak-first-draft-of-chris-dodds-statement-on http://idiotabroad.com/leak-first-draft-of-chris-dodds-statement-on

WASHINGTON —The following is a statement by Senator Chris Dodd, Chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. (MPAA) on the so-called “Blackout Day” protesting anti-piracy legislation:

“Only days after the White House and chief sponsors of the legislation responded to the major concern expressed by opponents and then called for all parties to work cooperatively together,

Only days after the White House and Congress started realizing how toxic this legislation is, we all got together to figure out how to continue pushing this legislation while appeasing the barbarian horde. 

some technology business interests are resorting to stunts that punish their users or turn them into their corporate pawns, 

because the MPAA/RIAA have never used their customers as pawns or seeked to punish them through extended content windows, crippled DRM, or endless lawsuits. 

rather than coming to the table to find solutions to a problem 

we've written the legislation and forcibly kept the deck stacked against them for the whole time, so now that we offer them the chance to tweak this horrid legislation they should be thanking us. 

that all now seem to agree is very real and damaging.

that everyone who we've given campaign contributions to have agreed to parrot the baseless facts that we've given them, which have been discredited by everyone we haven't given money to. 

It is an irresponsible response and a disservice to people who rely on them for information and use their services.

How dare they resort to non-violent/non-Super PAC bribing means to get what they want? 

It is also an abuse of power given the freedoms these companies enjoy in the marketplace today.

It is also an abuse of power given the freedoms these companies enjoy in the marketplace today that we seek to take away.

Tomorrow was supposed to be different, that's why we bought this legislation.

Tomorrow was supposed to be when I enjoyed my bonus for railroading through this legislation so quickly after moving over from Congress, ignoring the fact that when I was in Congress I vowed to never become a lobbyist. 

It’s a dangerous and troubling development when the platforms that serve as gateways to information intentionally skew the facts to incite their users in order to further their corporate interests.

It is unconscionable that these platforms would attempt to skew what we consider to be facts. Our facts are the real facts, ignoring the fact that even the GAO considers our data to be flawed. 

A so-called “blackout” is yet another gimmick, albeit a dangerous one, 

People on the Hill think this is a gimmick, but anyone with half a brain is probably figuring out that supporters of SOPA will be driven out of office next term. 

designed to punish elected and administration officials who are working diligently to protect American jobs from foreign criminals.

designed to punish elected officials who are doing nothing more than serving the industries they wish to take a job with once they tire of the lobbyists trough (or get voted out of office). 

It is our hope that the White House and the Congress will call on those who intend to stage this “blackout” to stop the hyperbole and PR stunts and engage in meaningful efforts to combat piracy.”

It is our hope that the White House and the Congress will call on those who intend to stage this “blackout” to stop the hyperbole and PR stunts and engage in meaningful efforts to allow us to continue our war on avoiding innovation and making money from this new-fangled distribution channel the tech industry has once again created for us. 

 

Inspired by Translation from sanctimonious bluster to English of Chris Dodd's statement on the internet blackout protests

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Mon, 03 Oct 2011 07:00:00 -0700 Whole Paycheck - aka Whole Foods - coming to Richmond in 2013 http://idiotabroad.com/whole-paycheck-aka-whole-foods-coming-to-rich http://idiotabroad.com/whole-paycheck-aka-whole-foods-coming-to-rich

Photo

 

edit: whoops, meant 2013

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Sun, 11 Sep 2011 07:42:34 -0700 If peeling garlic is too much of a challenge, then you should probably not be cooking http://idiotabroad.com/if-peeling-garlic-is-too-much-of-a-challenge http://idiotabroad.com/if-peeling-garlic-is-too-much-of-a-challenge
Photo

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Tue, 02 Aug 2011 07:17:00 -0700 I'm guessing American Express needs to work on their travel search algorithm http://idiotabroad.com/im-guessing-american-express-needs-to-work-on http://idiotabroad.com/im-guessing-american-express-needs-to-work-on

American_express_travel_search_fun

What should be a non-stop flight taking around 4 hours and costing no more than £250, becomes a 13 hour marathon costing £1,800! 


Sign. Me. Up!

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Tue, 21 Jun 2011 09:03:24 -0700 I had no idea Ted Kaczynski wrote the Watchmen http://idiotabroad.com/i-had-no-idea-ted-kaczynski-wrote-the-watchme http://idiotabroad.com/i-had-no-idea-ted-kaczynski-wrote-the-watchme
Photo

Sent from my iPhone

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Wed, 15 Jun 2011 00:52:49 -0700 Greetings from Salzburg http://idiotabroad.com/greetings-from-salzburg http://idiotabroad.com/greetings-from-salzburg Had a great time in Salzburg. It's not the kind of city that warrants a ling stay, but it certainly is a awesome place to chill and visit for a few days. Nice small-town vibe, and very friendly locals.

Photo Image
See the full gallery on Posterous

Sent from my iPhone


Sent from my iPhone

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Sat, 11 Jun 2011 12:43:29 -0700 My son Ethan says, "Respect mah' authority!!" http://idiotabroad.com/my-son-ethan-says-respect-mah-authority http://idiotabroad.com/my-son-ethan-says-respect-mah-authority
Photo

Sent from my iPhone

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Mon, 06 Jun 2011 23:25:53 -0700 I don't know about you, but Ubuntu 11.04 leaves a bad taste in my mouth http://idiotabroad.com/i-dont-know-about-you-but-ubuntu-1104-leaves http://idiotabroad.com/i-dont-know-about-you-but-ubuntu-1104-leaves
Photo

Sent from my iPhone

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Mon, 06 Jun 2011 06:14:00 -0700 What car is this? http://idiotabroad.com/what-car-is-this http://idiotabroad.com/what-car-is-this

Any ideas? I know, I'm a male that doesn't know every car make/model on the planet, I am shamed...

 

Img_20110605_171436

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Wed, 11 May 2011 03:25:10 -0700 Google's tribute to Martha Graham http://idiotabroad.com/googles-tribute-to-martha-graham http://idiotabroad.com/googles-tribute-to-martha-graham For those unaware, today is the anniversary of Martha Graham's birth - she would have been 117 today. Martha Graham was one of the leading forces of modern dance, and her impact is still being felt today. See more about Martha @ Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martha_Graham

As a tribute, Google dedicated their logo today to her. I love Google's "doodles", but their tribute today is not just a static logo - the animation is really moving and amazing. See google.com to view the animation, single stills archived below:

5 4 3 2 1
See the full gallery on Posterous

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Thu, 28 Apr 2011 07:27:57 -0700 Why is someone paying for "royal wedding" to be a promoted trend? http://idiotabroad.com/why-is-someone-paying-for-royal-wedding-to-be http://idiotabroad.com/why-is-someone-paying-for-royal-wedding-to-be
Royal_promoted_trend

Guess the Windsor's really want all eyes of the physical (and social) world to be glued on Westminster Abbey tomorrow. ;)

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Fri, 22 Apr 2011 07:17:02 -0700 Any arachnologists out there? Is this a false widow? http://idiotabroad.com/any-arachnologists-out-there-is-this-a-false http://idiotabroad.com/any-arachnologists-out-there-is-this-a-false So I caught the spider, but not sure what it is. Anyone know?

Photo

Sent from my iPhone

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Tue, 19 Apr 2011 01:01:12 -0700 Everyone on my bus pretends to ignore the drunk guy singing show tunes http://idiotabroad.com/everyone-on-my-bus-pretends-to-ignore-the-dru http://idiotabroad.com/everyone-on-my-bus-pretends-to-ignore-the-dru
IMG_0884.MOV Watch on Posterous

Sent from my iPhone

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Wed, 13 Apr 2011 05:44:00 -0700 3G data speeds in Richmond Upon Thames http://idiotabroad.com/3g-data-speeds-in-richmond-upon-thames http://idiotabroad.com/3g-data-speeds-in-richmond-upon-thames

Now that I'm not commuting into town every day, I've had a chance to sample the connection speeds offered in my 'hood of Richmond. Wherever I've gone, I've taken my trusty ipad to connect to my digital life. Up until today, I've used my Vodafone data connection with absolutely miserable results! 

The first speedtest is on the Vodafone network, on the main High St. in Richmond - right in front of the rail station in fact. 

Vodafone

You are seeing this right - a ping of over 2000ms! Seriously I can get 1500ms ping with two tin cans and a string, so what the hell is Vodafone doing?

The second is from Three - yes I know they have the absolute worst customer service in the history of customer service, but just check out the difference in speed.

Three

So - with regret - I'm back with Three. Signing up to Three is as satisfying as having a root canal while the dentist makes you listen to Cher and you are forced to watch his toupé get ever so close to falling into your face. A terrible ordeal to be sure - but hey, that tooth ain't coming out on its own right?

At least I'm not the only one:

Day 103 of the Vodafone Zero-3G Experience in Richmond

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Tue, 05 Apr 2011 07:04:23 -0700 Why does ical suck so bad? http://idiotabroad.com/why-does-ical-suck-so-bad http://idiotabroad.com/why-does-ical-suck-so-bad Apple has become legendary for their amazing devices and their insistence at presenting the absolute best/most elegant User Interface design - so why does their client app development lag so far behind? Sure iwork is an impressive suite and one that made me finally run screaming from Office, but everything else seems to be stuck in some kind of Dilbert Hell. I won't jump on your favorite whipping boy and mine - itunes - instead I turn to a somewhat insignificant application, ical. 

ical seems almost trivial, it's a calendar app, pure and simple. But it fundamentally has not changed since Tiger (and probably before that) and is so absolutely limited in what it does that I actually *yearn* to have Outlook again. 

I rarely use ical in personal settings - bar the occasional networking event or birthday reminder. Where scheduling becomes important is (for me) in the business context. Meetings, interviews, events, conference calls, etc etc. At any given moment, the business side of my life has anywhere from 7-10 "appointments" every week in my ical, and thanks to Mobile Me I can be reminded where I need to be/dial in to - because lets face it I won't be hiring a PA anytime soon. 

So, ical is meant to have Apple's slick design principles right? Ok, let's look at the process of creating an appointment. 

Step One: You chose your time and double click to create an entry. Ok, this works pretty well. 

Screen_shot_2011-04-05_at_2

No, I don't generally do anything outside of making coffee at 7 AM - let's move on. 

Step Two: Let's enter a title and an agenda. Oh wait, where is the body? 

Screen_shot_2011-04-05_at_1

Oh, "note". Oh wait, how the hell am I supposed to write an agenda or add dial in details in this small fraking box?? Only 28 characters a line? You kidding?

Screen_shot_2011-04-05_at_1

Step Three: Ok, so I had to write the agenda in another application and paste it into this tiny tiny box. Let's ignore that FAIL for a moment and move on. Now let's add some attendees to this fine session. Wait a second, you mean that even if an attendee is "known" or at least cached in Mail.app (i.e. when you start writing their name or email address, it auto-completes for you) it is not known here? 

Ok, just to paraphrase, ical will only autocomplete an attendee when that attendee is saved in Apple's Address Book application, even if Mail.app recognizes this as someone you communicate with frequently. 

Step Four: Attachments! Of course you need to add an attachment to this entry. You've got Powerpoint decks, spreadsheets, and PDF's by the truckload! Now where do I add an attachment? 

This is where we officially start to descend into 7th plane of Dilbert Hell. First off, no facility to send an attachment. Ok, so let's add a file via Mobile Me. First, we upload the file, sync it, chose to share the file, then get the shared url, then copy that URL back into the "note" field. 

Screen_shot_2011-04-05_at_1

Wow - a 5 step process requiring 3 different applications/processes to just add an attachment to an ical event (ok, I could have uploaded the file directly to Mobile Me or used Dropbox, but you get the idea). This is pure Apple genius! Almost as brilliant as the recessed headphone jack in the 2G iphone - ok I digress.

Step Five: The response. Yes I know tracking attendees who have confirmed the meeting is a big USP for Exchange, but really ical should be capable of doing that too. 

The funny thing is, Apple is no stranger to monolithic programming, after all in 10 years time we will all be banking, breaking up with our girlfriends/wives, and calling for ambulances via itunes, but from the mail/communication perspective, they still have a very stale view of how users need to interact with one another (I'll save "why ichat blows" for another post). I'm all for the *nix model of app development, but sometimes we do need a big honking monolith/silo for certain situations. 

Less (applications) is more after all...

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Thu, 17 Mar 2011 04:52:34 -0700 Activity (over)sharing via Youtube - bug or a feature? http://idiotabroad.com/activity-oversharing-via-youtube-bug-or-a-fea http://idiotabroad.com/activity-oversharing-via-youtube-bug-or-a-fea So, this morning I decided to dream up new and magical ways to lose followers and friends - setup auto-sharing on Youtube with my social accounts @ twitter and facebook! It seemed like a good idea at the time as I don't really "like" videos terribly often, but what I didn't realize was that youtube would circle back and spam-post everything from my archive. Joy, rapture....

So I wandered over to my profile and set it up:

Screen_shot_2011-03-17_at_11

The problem? Well at no point during the "process" was I made aware that the action was retroactive, so all at once I was going to bombard my feeds with "everything" I have ever favorite'd or liked. Queue my normally quiet twitter feed:

0screen_shot_2011-03-17_at_11

Thankfully I haven't lost any followers yet - though my followers are probably wondering why I'm such a fan of Terry Tate, Lazytown the children's show, Thomas the Tank Engine, and Steam Trains (hint, my son loves these videos and he's 5....).

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Wed, 16 Mar 2011 06:30:00 -0700 National Rail - Yet another fine example of a well run webservice http://idiotabroad.com/national-rail-yet-another-fine-example-of-a-w http://idiotabroad.com/national-rail-yet-another-fine-example-of-a-w

So I recently read about National Rail's reluctance to open up their data (API) to third party developers (http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20101103/04081311702/uk-national-rail-threat..., so I thought I'd visit their site and find out for myself.

Nothing was listed in the site map so I tried to search for API. Here is what I found:

Screen_shot_2011-03-16_at_1

Woohoo - why hack with code when I can buy psuedo-sketchy lingerie? How do they know me so well?? Stockings over method statements any day of the week brother.

+1 bonus for sticking with the rotting corpse that is Yahoo Search - gotta love someone who hangs with the underdog.

p.s. eventually found the API documentation I was looking for here: http://www.livedepartureboards.co.uk/ldbws/

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Thu, 10 Mar 2011 07:17:51 -0800 Anatomy of a frustrated music fan - why modern licensing sucks http://idiotabroad.com/anatomy-of-a-frustrated-music-fan-why-modern http://idiotabroad.com/anatomy-of-a-frustrated-music-fan-why-modern

So we don't live in the easiest of times for buying music now do we. Limewire is dead, the industry *still* wants to sell us whole albums, and Spotify/Pandora are not available in every market. 

In the past, we would tend to buy stuff we heard on the radio - before radio turned into the joke it is today. Or, we would buy compilations and discover new artists and go on and buy more of their stuff - but who wants to spend $20 on a compilation when 1/2 or more of the tracks blow?

So, just bought a new track from an artist I've never heard of. How did it happen? 

First, started with a recommendation from my last.fm radio stream:

Screen_shot_2011-03-10_at_2

Right, who the hell is Luminous anyway? I have no idea? I love the track (a mashup of America's old Horse with no name classic). Can I listen to it again? Can I listen to more great tracks from this artist? Sigh, no. Thanks to the idiots steering the music industry ship, Last.fm's licensing scheme means I can't. Ok, what next?

In steps Spotify. Let's listen to that exact track a few more times to make sure we really like it:

Screen_shot_2011-03-10_at_2
Now let's listen to more stuff from Luminous:

Screen_shot_2011-03-10_at_3

Damn I LOVE these guys! Ok, I'm convinced, let's buy some of their tracks:

Screen_shot_2011-03-10_at_3

Damn you music industry! Ok, so Spotify has the ability to play virtually anything, but can only sell stuff We7 (their partner) actually sells? Curses again!

So, well....that leaves only one alternative. It's like the nuclear option - no...it's like eating McDonald's when you are starving and have no other alternative. You have to do it, but you know you will feel dirty afterwards. I mean: itunes. 

Screen_shot_2011-03-10_at_3
Woohoo! I've actually PAID for music! Yuck, I used itunes. Now I need a shower. 

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Wed, 09 Mar 2011 07:30:00 -0800 How to: Default to "paste and match style" in OSX http://idiotabroad.com/how-to-default-to-paste-and-match-style-in-os http://idiotabroad.com/how-to-default-to-paste-and-match-style-in-os

Very simple how-to as how-to's go, but hopefully pretty useful.
The biggest annoyance in pasting text from one application to another is the fact that the paste-action carries over the style of the text from the source. So, you have a document (or email) with blue colored text in Arial, but your other document is black text styled with Helvetica Neue. In steps the helpful paste and match style function:

Screen_shot_2011-03-09_at_3

Only problem? I use this all the time and I am fundamentally a very lazy person, so three key presses gets a bit annoying after a while. Also, I can't remember the last time that I wanted a paste action to overwrite my default style anyway. So simple cut and paste begone!

Simply head to: System Preferences --> Keyboard --> Keyboard Shortcuts. Then click the plus icon to add a new shortcut. In the "Menu Title" field enter: Paste and Match Style. In the keyboard shortcut field, enter: Command/Apple key + v.
The entry will look like this:

Screen_shot_2011-03-09_at_3

There you go! This over-ride doesn't seem to affect other non-styled uses of control v (eg: terminal.app, etc) but if it does, just remove the shortcut and the function will revert back to the default action.

 

**update**

Slight correction, this change does cause problems if you paste tables or images - so don't forget to create a new shortcut for the old paste function

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb Fri, 04 Mar 2011 08:32:14 -0800 Nature is truly amazing - 2 weeks every year Horsetail Falls in Yosemite looks like it's on fire http://idiotabroad.com/nature-is-truly-amazing-2-weeks-every-year-ho http://idiotabroad.com/nature-is-truly-amazing-2-weeks-every-year-ho
Horsetail_falls

via: http://j.mp/eYyKIs (be sure to watch in HD)

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/1074034/Geoffrey_Headshot.png http://posterous.com/users/f9t8ky0UG Geoffrey McCaleb Geoffrey Geoffrey McCaleb