If you use or are interested in Flash MX, Colin Moock’s moock.org updates mailing list is a pretty valuable little resource worth checking out.
Macromedia: Which server language should I use?
Osbournes want more money for second season. Can’t say I blame them, MTV has made big cash off the success of the show. Having said that, how good would a second season be? Not very, the magnetic effect of the first season would have some sort of effect on how they acted on camera.
It’s pretty quiet here at the bump clubhouse. With taxes and some computer/server housekeeping, I got caught up in some other things the last few days, and didn’t really feel that I had anything really worth posting. Most of the really interesting stuff, I’m legally bound not to talk about here for the time being. I can say that I’ve been experimenting with a next generation Web application server that is in beta, and it really rocks.
Somehow I missed it, but filming on Ang Lee’s Incredible Hulk Movie has started. You may remember Ang Lee from a little film called Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
FlashToolset 1.1 released (Flash MX ready)
This is interesting stuff.
If you surf over to Radio Bump and then scroll down, you’ll see that I’m checking out the new Google Web Services API via Radio. I’ll change the search terms from time to time to reflect my interests.
O’Reilly Network: Inventing the Future This is a good, look ahead, write up that’s worth reading for anyone interested in technology. Of course, I might be saying that because I mostly agree with the technologies he picked.
I had an interesting moment this morning. At least to me. I couldn’t remember when the last time I rebooted my Ti Powerbook that is running Mac OS X was. I fired up the terminal, typed “uptime” and discovered that my machine hadn’t been rebooted in 12 days. This on the machine I use for email, web browsing, games, and just about everything that doesn’t absolutely require the use of my Sony laptop or my other machine that is still running mac OS 9. This might not seem like that long to some, but to people who are still using Mac OS 9, this would be an eternity to have your machine not crash or have to reboot it after a software install. Progress.
Wicked Intellect: Flash based XML-RPC for Blogger (via JD on MX)
osOpinion: Microsoft To Detail Mac .NET Plans “While development tools for XML (the language used for .NET servers and clients) are scarce on the Macintosh, Browne’s presentation may eliminate the void." I don’t think this is accurate. I believe that there are plenty of XML tools available on the Macintosh. In fact, I’m typing this right now using one of them.
John Dowdell makes some interesting observations about the different attitude in the Cold Fusion and PHP/ASP communities regarding the developments in connecting Flash MX aaplications with back end technologies. I’ll be reading JD on MX from here on out.
vanderwal.net has a great compendium of information related to the WSJ redesign.
Building A Collection Of DJ Albums: “Fifteen Essential 12-Inches And Albums.” I have only eleven out of the fifteen. Quite a crushing blow. There are a couple that I would put in there that they have ignored, like Paul’s Boutique by the Beastie Boys which set a whole new standard for back beats and the Z-Trip and Radar Future Primitive Mix that might be the greatest mix tape of all time. Perhaps I should make my own list.
Radio Bump (This is a test of the shortcut broadcast system. If this were in fact a real shortcut, it might actually go somewhere useful.)
Brent’s got a Macintosh News Aggregator up on his site now. Still a few sites that need to be added somehow it looks like to make it complete, but how long before something like this puts MacSurfer in a bad spot? I know when we started it way back when, that it was terribly time consuming surfing around to find all the updates that had occurred sine the last page update. It’s nice to see that all this newish Web technology does make it easier to follow the sites you want to follow.
USATODAY.com - Piracy pillages music industry Yet another big newspaper piece that does not really explore this issue fully. My views are quite evident to longtime readers. I buy music, and I want to be able to use it anywhere. There are lots of issues with the music companies, including the ridiculous pricing of cd’s today. At the same time, I admit there is an issue here with piracy. People who can damn well afford to pay for the music they listen to are making copies of cd’s for each other. I was at a friends house last week, he’s a consultant for a company that does ERP software implementations. He was giving a copy of the Moulin Rouge soundtrack that he had made for another friend of mine who works in the same business. These are people who make six figures plus, not starving college students, not people who are frustrated with the lack of digitally distributed music. This hammered home for me that this really is a serious issue that is not the simple set of issues normally presented by the “Internet” crowd. Sure, I might buy more music because of the exposure to it online, but others will simply take what they want regardless of morals and ethics. Having said that, the music industry cannot point at digital copying alone for its woes, and their statistics prove nothing.
I happened upon an outdoor hip hop show when I was going to get a coffee on Saturday. The band was Live on Arrival, an Atlanta hip hop group that has been around for several years. Somehow I had never run into them before. They were solid, a couple of MC’s, sometimes joined by others, and a band consisting of drums, bass, guitar, two keyboardists, and a dj. One word popped into my head while I was watching them: Legitimate. Really well designed and executed rhymes, and musically they are on a soulish tip. They sort of reminded me at times of the Goats, one of my favorite hip hop groups from Philly that also played with a live band. I snapped a bunch of pictures which you will find here. I’ll definitely be at their shows from here on out.
IPod: Music to Hackers' Ears This article paints a picture that says this device has the potential to be more than just another MP3 jukebox if Apple is willing to put the time in and nurture the community. Prediction: that won’t happen.
I’ve been digging a little into the Instant Outline stuff. Andy’s Hive gives you an interesting way to browse through the outlines without the overhead of Radio. This won’t really give you the full concept though. I can see without a doubt that this could be invaluable as a an internal collaboration interface the same way that we use IM clients to talk in the office now. Leave it in your outline and I’ll pick it up later.
First person shooter board game. I’ve been through a sort of board game revival over the last couple of years. The last two summers, we would gather around the pool in my apartment complex and play Risk and swim. Board games are a much more social experience than video games currently. Perhaps, though, that will change.
Giambi’s Bat Is Cold, and So Is His Reception I like how he chooses to embrace the attitude of Yankee fans, even when it goes against him. I respect that.