Site Archives for the category "software"

My YAPC::NA talk on framing and Perl


In June, a delegation from Summersault attended the YAPC::NA Perl Conference in Columbus, Ohio for a few days.  My second YAPC conference, it was an interesting experience full of inside jokes, engaging discussions, more inside jokes, and good food.
I was only scheduled to give one presentation ("How to talk, or not talk, to your clients [...]

iPhone iOS4 IMAP mail syncing problems


I offer this account of trying to address a known (and I would say, severe) bug in the iPhone 4 mail software, in case it's helpful to others:
Ever since I upgraded my iPhone to IOS4 (the latest version of the phone's operating system), the Mail application has been flaky when it comes to syncing mail [...]

Unhelpful responses to cyberwarfare


A number of mainstream magazines and newspapers have recently published reports on the increasing threat of "cyberwarfare," the significant resources being devoted to fighting that "war" and what we're doing to protect the critical national asset that is our digital infrastructure.
Unfortunately, most of the responses (and the ones favored by the Obama administration) are focused [...]

5 reasons to ditch an RSS feed subscription


I've written before about how RSS feeds and website content syndication can make a big difference in how you take in content online.  If you haven't played around with a feed reader service or tool (like Google Reader), you should really give it a try.
But now it's time to explore the darker side of RSS [...]

Good PR via Twitter done right by Sonos


I love the Sonos multi-room music system.  It's a ridiculous luxury to have and I could fill up another blog post apologizing for it, but it's too much a fulfillment of the dreams I had as a kid about what the households of the future could be like to pass it up.  "Wait, you mean [...]

Local opportunities to benefit from technology alternatives


Lest we not forget the times when using expensive proprietary hardware and software without exploring more open alternatives comes back around to bite us in the rear, I thought I'd highlight two issues currently being mentioned in the local press.
1) The Pal-Item reports on a meeting happening today about technology in schools:

Using the iPhoneOS SDK on older PPC Macs


I'm just getting started with developing applications for the iPhone / iPod Touch, and one of the first real hurdles I encountered was that Apple didn't make it easy by default to use their iPhoneOS SDK on non-Intel Macs. With some Googling around I was was able to find a variety of articles that [...]

4 reasons to start using Gravatars right now


I've said before that to truly participate in public life, we must do so as ourselves, with our identities revealed.  Online discussions are now a part of the public sphere, and when used well, can bring people together in ways that complement and enhance real-world community.
A related trend I'm appreciating is the increasing number of [...]

Can the President of the U.S. use e-mail?


The Times has a nice little article today about why Barack Obama will probably have to give up the use of his Blackberry - and e-mail altogether - when he becomes President:
As his team prepares a final judgment on whether he can keep using e-mail, perhaps even in a read-only fashion, several authorities in presidential [...]

Entertain us! Distract us! Compel us!


Earlier this year, I kind of made fun of Twitter. And people who use Twitter. I kind of called them things like "insane" and "isolated" and "distracted." I would like to officially apologize to anyone who felt offended by those statements.
Completely unrelated, I'm now trying out Twitter myself. I could tell [...]