Blog posts in Science & Tech
Proof of how crap IE is
As if anyone with a single brain-cell needed proof of IE's shittiness, herewith I present a real-world example.
Today I was working on a web page which had a glitched on the server-side script which generated a 4MB HTML page (yeah, kind of messed up to think of 4MB worth of HTML). Once the page is l…
Browser Usage Stats
In the past, whenever I've made the case for using a browser other than Internet Explorer, I often use browser market share to illustrate the steady decline of Internet Explorer - typically using sites like W3Schools and such. Admittedly, these should always be taken with a grain of salt, but the re…
Latest Netflix Update on Wii
Has anyone else noticed that the recent Netflix update for the Wii feels like a real mess?
Here's what I've noticed - both good and bad:
- larger thumbnails in the menu
- "just for kids" menu
- Wii crashes (needs hard restart)
- slower loading
- forward/backward thumbnails don't seem to load
- seems to lose …
OpenIndiana - first impressions
Since the demise of OpenSolaris, I've been waiting for an open-source successor. I'd read about Illumos, but there didn't seem to be an actually installable version of it.
Thankfully, I noticed "OpenIndiana" - I duly downloaded and installed it in a VirtualBox.
I'm quite impressed.
It's virtually id…
My Poor Laptop - Thank Goodness for the Internet
I recently pulled out my laptop from storage for my fiancee so she can lay in bed and still be connected. Unfortunately, it seems the battery is completely toast (interestingly enough, Ubuntu 11.04 detected this). I visited the manufacturer's website, but alas, since it's a discontinued product, it …
K Computer
Today I saw on the news that Japan has produced the word's fastest supercomputer, the K Computer.
While this is interesting in an of itself, what I found particularly interesting was their choice of CPU - the SPARC. I think it's a clear justification for Fujitsu and Sun Microsystems sticking with th…
Ubuntu 11.04 - revisit
Okay, so since my last rant on Ubuntu 11.04, I've had a chance to use it a little more and ... well ... I was completely correct about my first post. It's utter garbage. The interface is rubbish.
Even the installation is full of "WTF"s. I had to install it twice on my laptop because after the first …
Ubuntu 11.04
Today was my first forray into the new Ubuntu 11.04 - this was purely for experimentation, since I've given up on Ubuntu entirely because my installations keep crashing irrecoverably (over the past 2 years, I've had no fewer that 6 Ubuntu installation complete crap themselves mysteriously on differe…
Nokia + Microsoft - My Thoughts
Having read the news that Nokia and Microsoft have entered into a partnership into the smart-phone market, I thought I'd offer my 2c.
First off - I'd like to address the skeptics comment that this event clearly shows that Nokia's "in-house" development of an operating system for smart-phones was a "…
My HDD is more reliable than your SSD
I've always wondered what running my PC with SSD drives would be like (aside from just a crap-load more expensive), especially when you see folks with those lovely little stickers which say "my SSD is faster than your HDD" (aside from this being a "my dick is bigger than your dick" thing to say ... …
Ubuntu Upgrades Keep Breaking
Okay, here's the deal - either I am the unluckiest Linux user in the world, or Ubuntu's upgrade process is severely unstable. I am filled with dream and fear every time Ubuntu wants to upgrade something, because I can never be sure if the machine will work thereafter.
Here's my history:
Working at a…
Light Speed Not Constant
Here is a truly fascinating bit of research - it seems researchers have not only been able to slow down the speed of light, but even bring it to a complete halt.
Looking at the age of the gazette, this isn't a brand new thing - it was done 9 years ago.
It's amazing how discoveries like this go unher…
Thoughts on IE9
Ever since I first read that Microsoft was working on IE9, I've had a keen interest - not only because IE still represents the lion's share of the browser market, but also because of the features promised.
Now, let me say right now that I've given up long ago believing 90% of what Microsoft says the…
Ubuntu 10.04 - Take Two
After working in Ubuntu 10.04 for a bit, I have one major gripe - OpenJDK/IcedTea. I have no idea whose decision it was to drop the official Sun JDK from the repositories (or if Oracle had a part to play in this), but OpenJDK is a pile of steamy dog-droppings.
Since upgrading (and being forced to sw…
6 Degrees of Separation
On the weekend, I was pondering the notion of 6 degrees of separation - if you're unfamiliar with the concept: the idea is that within 6 "degrees" (a degree being you know someone [one degree] who knows somebody [that you might not know - one more degree]) everybody in the world is covered. So - I k…
Blender 3D
Okay, so I know every now and then the Blender Foundation (which looks after the OpenSource Blender 3D software package) holds a competition for little movies created with their software. However, via a Slashdot article, I came across a preview of one such movie, called Sintel. I'm seriously impress…
Ubuntu 10.04 First Impressions
I just completed my upgrade to Ubuntu 10.04 and here's my first impressions.
Honestly - right now I don't care for the new colours. The dark-grey menus are actually surprisingly hard to read. And no, I'm not blind.
The move of the close, min, max buttons from the right to the left is uncomfortable a…
Does Facebook Privacy Worry Me?
No.
It doesn't.
Because I'm not an idiot.
If there's something about myself I don't want the world to know, I don't put it in my profile. Anyone who complains about Facebook privacy is a moron.
End of discussion.
Adobe vs. Apple: War of Worlds Escalating
With a new salvo, Adobe has upped the ante in the war of words with Apple.
Frankly, I don't care of either company, but I tend to lean more towards Adobe on this one (as you can tell from any previous posts on the issue in question). It's not that I prefer Adobe technologies to Apple's, or even that…
Is Valve Becoming Linux Friendly?
I came across a Slashdot article today which mentioned the Mac version of Steam from Valve, and the supposedly imminent release of the Linux version.
I'll admit, I was skeptical.
Until I found this job posting on the Valve website:
Senior Software Engineer
Description
Lead engineer and…
Visit my Friends and Family
If you've enjoyed my site, please take a moment to visit my friends and family, many of whom have some interesting insights, and entertaining thoughts and ideas.
- Crause Family - the family website
- Peter Crause - my father
- Justin Crause - my brother
- Cencina Photomagic - great photographer
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