Monday - 14 August 2000
Monday Round-up
Linux to Disappear in Five Years. Or at least, shift focus from the OS to the applications. That according to InfoWorld's Nicholas Petreley here. In other words, in five years, the operating system will have become so stable, usable, and pervasive that it will fade from importance and the focus will be on the applications that run on it.
Linux Gnome Foundation. The New York Times is reporting ( here) the creation of a foundation, supported by IBM, Compaq, HP, and Sun, whose initiatives include a unified desktop interface and MS Office alternative.
Ooka Chootha Solo. Actually, not that Han Solo. HAN, as in Home-Area Network (you heard it here first. Or not.). Bob Metcalf, in his column here, talks about a company called Ucentric. Ucentric is developing a home server that will provide the platform for "Web access, unified messaging, home intranet, appliance monitoring, medical monitoring, HVAC, security, gaming, and telecommuting.
Bank on IT. Who would have thought that Finland, with a population less than the city of Los Angeles, would be the leader in electronic banking? And while it is possible to debate whether this (electronic banking, not the population) is a Good Thing or not. It is nonetheless true.
Not only that, but MeritaNordbanken is linked to an electronic marketplace through its portal called. Now wait for this. Solo. Can I make transitions or what? See the Los Angeles Times story here.
Win2000 Tricks. And for those of you running Win2000, Brian Livingston discusses the SP1 and then goes on to list some of his favorite tweaks to Win2K (see it here).
Start of a busy week here. So I am out of here.
Aloha!
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Tuesday - 15 August 2000
George Dubyah. Interesting article in The New Republic (here) about the man who would be king, ahem, President. Say what you will about George, but he has a purpose in life. He just hasn't figured out what that purpose is yet.<g>
The Positive Effects of Being Appropriately Negative. The New York Times has a report ( here) that indicates that;
"There's some reasonably compelling evidence to suggest that when people are falsely peppy and upbeat and chipper, it's not very healthy," - Dr. James Pennebaker, professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin.
That's not to say that wallowing in negativity is healthy either. Just that trying to be artificially happy, when you are not, is not necessarily a Good Thing.
iPaq Expands. Compaq announced today an expanded line of iPaq branded products (see them here). Included are the "Blackberry" Wireless Email Solution, Personal Audio Player, Connection Point (home-area wireless network), and the Home Internet Appliance (email and web access). I guess they are still putting up the pages for this because when I clicked on the Blackberry link nothing was there. All the other links worked though.
Hohum. Another bright, sunny Hawaiian day. And I am out of here.
Aloha!
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Hump Day Wednesday - 16 August 2000
Gray Lady Down. One hopes that the Russian sailors are eventually rescued. Although the likelihood of that seems to be fading.
But an interesting name from the past came up locally in relation to undersea rescue operations. John Craven. The University of Hawaii professor had a prominent spot in the book "Blind Man's Bluff : The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage" (see it here at Amazon). His exploits include working with the CIA's Glomar Explorer in its attempt to raise a sunken Russian submarine.
Another is his tracking, through recorded acoustic information (I think using the SOSUS grid), the path of the USS Scorpion, SSN 589 which went down in the Atlantic. After discovering its final resting place (see the story here from PBS), and examining the remains, and receiving some information about problems with the then current torpedoes, Craven concluded that the Scorpion went down due to an explosion in the forward torpedo room caused by a defective battery in one of the Mark-37 torpedoes that it carried. The batteries would occasionally overheat and cause the torpedo to explode. While still inside of the submarine.
While the US Navy did not exactly admit that the problem was the defective torpedo, they did redesign it shortly thereafter and apparently never had another US submarine go down. Unlike the Soviets who lost at least seven (at the time of the PBS report and for reasons, one assumes, other than torpedo failure).
Perhaps one of Craven's more famous exploits was the hunt for Red September. Yes, that book (and movie) by Tom Clancy (see a site here). The one with Sean Connery and Alec Baldwin was based on the true search, by Craven. Unfortunately, perhaps only the title itself (modified by one month) and some other minor details came from the true story, but Craven was at the center of all of this.
But in relation to undersea rescues, Craven, in a local TV interview yesterday (here), talked about having to do an emergency rescue of Sealab personnel. It needs to be noted that Craven also worked on the Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle (DSRV) program and later the NR-1 spook sub. But I digress. I did not get all of the details, but from what I understood from the interview, the Sealab was listing at an angle greater than the rescue vehicle (I'm not sure if it was a DSRV or a diving bell) could safely dock and create an air-tight seal. And with only 12 hours of air left in the undersea lab, Craven had to do some fast thinking. So he designed and constructed a collar that fit on the bottom of the vehicle that matched the angle that the Sealab was listing at. And thereby saved the day.
An amazing man. And perhaps the kind of man needed for the hunt for the Red Kursk.
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Thursday - 17 August 2000
Good News Story of the Day. It's three months ago. And you are on your way to work. Since you don't have a lot of money, the way you get there is by walking. But you don't mind walking because it allows you to see all the wonders of nature. The green grass. The palm trees swaying in the wind. The birds in flight. All the things you would miss if you were inside the steel shell of an air-conditioned car.
The job you are heading to is not a high paying one, but it covers the bills and allows your 18-year-old son the hope that he can attend the local state community college in the fall. Life has been hard, but things could be worse. Much worse.
But this day doesn't appear to be different from any other over the past twelve years that you've been working at the fast-food joint. But in a few minutes, your life will take a critical change for the worse. For hurtling your way, is a speeding truck. Not much is known about where it came from or where it is going. Who the driver is. Or even why they are driving at all that day.
But for whatever reason, it climbs the curb and slams into you from behind. Your body is instantly crushed in multiple places and thrown 70-feet through the air. You receive even more injuries when your body crashes to the ground, crumpling like a wet piece of paper. But you don't feel anything because your brain shut down an instant after you head was snapped back by the force of the collision.
You lay in the hospital, in a coma for a month. When you finally awake, you are disorientated. You don't even remember what happened. All you know is that you are surrounded by tubes. Tubes to help you breathe. Tubes to feed you. Tubes to carry away the waste. Then it dawns on you, how are you going to pay for all of this? And how are the household bills going to be paid? The rent? Tuition?
Well, now comes the good news part. The people you work with. They've started a trust fund. And into that trust fund they've deposited $7,500 USD. Where did all of that money come from? From benefit chili sales. From donations. From these same co-workers, customers, friends, and strangers you don't even know, but have heard of your story and responded with the kindness you showed to everyone over the past 12-years. No, the money won't cover all of your bills over the next year that it will take to fully recover, but it's a good start. And more comes in every day.
As your gaze moves to the window, and the world outside of the hospital, you thank the Lord for such people. And watch as the palm trees gently sway in the breeze.
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I will be off tomorrow as it is a state holiday (Admissions Day). There probably will be a posting. But if there is, it will be later than usual.
Aloha!
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Aloha Friday - 18 August 2000
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