Firefox referer blocking Jun 29, 2007
When browsing online newspaper sites like OregonLive and NJ.com, users are presented with the following nag screen that requires a zip code, a birth year, and a gender: 
[Image: njnag.png]
As far as nag screens go, this one's not all that bad.  It doesn't ask for your name or email address.  And I've heard they use the information for targeted advertising, which isn't altogether evil.  But either way, it's annoying, and I hate it with a passion.  When I try to read this simple story, I have no problem accessing the site.  But when I click to go to the next page, I get the nag screen.  The issue is caused by the web browser sending an http referer, which tell the website where I'm coming from.  It's not an inherently bad thing, and many websites use the referer to perform valuable services (not just stupid advertising).  Digg said to just disable all referers, which can be accomplished with a simple about:config hack.  But several Digg comments pointed to the fact that disabling all referers is unfair (boo hoo, poor web admins) and can degrade or disable the performance of certain websites (del.icio.us for example). 

To get around that, there's a Firefox extension called RefControl.  It allows you to block referers for specific websites.  As long as you're morally ok with causing some sort of harm to a website's advertising demographics (I am!), this plugin is the way to go. 

Update (2007-07-06 1:10pm):  Advance Internet is the parent company to the sites that have this annoying "feature", including NJ.com, cleveland.com, MassLive.com, MLive.com, al.com, NOLA.com, OregonLive.com, PennLive.com, SILive.com, Syracuse.com, gulflive.com, and MardiGras.com. #technology
Adblock Jun 26, 2007
It's been a while since I tried using Adblock for Firefox, and I can't remember why I stopped.  In the past day, this plugin has made my life about 35% better (figure based on estimates).  Pop-up blocking used to be all the rage, but most newer browsers have that built-in.  Yet for some reason, certain pop-ups still find their way through, and it really gets to me.  Sites like Snopes still employ this archaic and annoying method of advertising, and I got to the point where I was looking for alternative sites that didn't get on my nerves.  But with Adblock, you can just block all the junk you don't want to see.  No more pop-ups from casalemedia.com or tribalfusion.com.  No more ads, period.  Man I love geeks and their ability to hack things. #technology
Phone mazes Jun 15, 2007
I think it's at least slightly funny* how customer service phone mazes work.  Here's a typical example: 
  1. Press 1 for billing.  Press 2 for tech support.  Press 3 for all other inquiries.  You press 2.
  2. Enter your shipping number or product code.  You enter your 29-digit number.
  3. Enter your zip code.  You enter your zip code.
  4. Say your first and last name.  You say your first and last name.
Here's what happens when a person picks up: 
  1. "Hi, this is Rajuswami Ricky from India Texas.  How can I help you today?
  2. You say, "I'm calling for tech support."
  3. They say, "Let me transfer you to tech support."
  4. Tech support says, "Can I have your 29-digit product code, your zip code, and your first and last name?"
  5. You hang up with murderous thoughts on your mind.
An obvious question arises:  Why did I do all that stuff and press all those buttons when I first called?  The not-so-obvious answer:  These systems exist for the purpose of stalling.  They don't actually provide any type of benefit.  They're like Kramer on Seinfeld:  "Why don't you just tell me the name of the movie you've selected?"  All those buttons you press are like the buttons on a child's toy phone:  They don't do anything; they just have an appearance of doing something. 

And I have it on good authority that the main purpose of customer support is to get you off the phone.  The less time they spend with each person, the more people they can not help. 

*Funny obviously isn't the right word, but I couldn't think of a better one that wasn't preceded by several 4-letter words. 

Update:  This Dilbert comic says it all. #technology
Keys (4) Jun 12, 2007
I think at this point in the technological revolution, we should no longer be using keys.  When was the last time a key was actually beneficial?  "Gosh, I'm glad I'm carrying this pointy metal object in my pocket where it can cause mortal damage and possible death!"  It's more like, "Whoops, I locked my keys in my car!" or "I locked myself out of my house ... again!" 

My building at work has a pretty simple yet effective system:  An electronic keypad.  I know these were available on vehicles about 10 years ago, but the fad never really caught on.  For some reason, people feel more comfortable carrying a pointy metal object and/or a bulky rectangular plastic thing.  And this same device is available on garage door openers, but for whatever reason, it never spread to the front door.  I can really only think of 3 reasons it didn't become popular: 
  1. Security.  People think it's easy to guess a numerical code.  The keypad at work has 10 digits, and each entry code is 5 digits long.  That means there are 105 = 100,000 possible codes.  And while that's not an astronomically large number, if a person was willing to try 100,000 different codes to break into your house, I'd say let 'em; they deserve to get in.
  2. Reliability.  What happens if your power goes out and you need to get into your house?  This is an excellent point, but I have an excellent counterpoint:  When was the last time you tried to get into your house when the power was out?  I can think of exactly zero times this has ever happened in the history of mankind.
  3. Convenience.  This is really the only good argument.  It's more convenient to push a button on your key chain as you're walking to your car than to wait until you get to your car to type in a code.  I don't have a counterpoint to this, except maybe to use a fingerprint scanner on the door handle.
And that brings me to my next point.  My laptop has a pretty cool security feature:  Logging in with a fingerprint reader.  I don't have to carry anything around (except ... ya know ... my fingers) and I don't have to memorize a code.  There's literally no way this device can fail or mess up, as long as its scanning ability is up to par.  One argument is that all a thief would need to do is kidnap you, knock you out, and use your finger against your will.  To that I say this:  (a) A thief could do that with a key just as easily, and (b) most theft is non-violent these days.  There isn't much money to be gained in stealing 5-year-old cars and laptops.  Theft these days is more about identity and credit.  But anyway, it amazes me that the simple technology used to logon to my computer hasn't also been utilized to unlock my car and my house.  C'mon Bill Gates and Steve Jobs!  Where's Windows Vista Door Edition or the iKey? #technology
Work email May 24, 2007
I think it's at least mildly funny that I pay exactly zero dollars and zero cents ($0.00) for my web-based email and I get something close to 100% uptime and reliability, while my employer pays a ton of money to buy expensive equipment and employ countless people to monitor and upgrade it, thus causing constant downtime and pitiful reliability.  This is not to mention the utter inaccessibility of my work email in the name of security and the almost laughable amount of storage space (50MB).  It ain't quite right. #technology
World innovation May 24, 2007
Similar to world fatness, here are some rankings for world innovation based on number of patents, technical skills of a country's workforce, and the quality of its telecommunications and information technology infrastructure. 
  1. Japan
  2. Switzerland
  3. U.S.
  4. Sweden
  5. Finland
  6. Germany
  7. Denmark
  8. Taiwan
  9. Netherlands
  10. Israel
  11. Austria
  12. France
  13. Canada
  14. Belgium
  15. South Korea
Of these 15 countries, only 3 (Switzerland, Taiwan, and Israel) aren't among the top 27 fattest countries in the world.  The obvious conclusion:  Innovation breeds obesity. #technology
WikiClock May 21, 2007
WikiClock is like any wiki site:  It's user-edited.  "Please update this page with the correct current time UTC."  Funny in a stupid way.  (via Cynical-C) #technology
Bad combinations May 16, 2007
I've seen several examples recently of combining things that shouldn't be combined.  Some would say these all have something to do with thinning the herd.  I like that analogy. 
  1. Using a cell phone while running.  I can't imagine it would be a very meaningful or important conversation, not to mention the question of why a person would carry a cell phone while running in the first place.
  2. Using a cell phone while hiking.  This one wasn't too weird, but it was in the middle of the woods, miles from anything, going up and down steep hills covered with rocks.  Plus, the guy was with his family, so he was ignoring them at a time when they were probably supposed to be bonding in the first place.
  3. Using a cell phone while biking.  I saw this on the busy streets of New York City, and I pretended to not notice as the guy pulled into flowing traffic, hoping I wouldn't have to witness a brutal death.
  4. Smoking while riding a motorcycle.  This one isn't all that bad, but it just doesn't make sense.  The guy was riding with one hand, holding his cigarette with the other.  I was under the impression you needed two hands to ride a motorcycle, and I would imagine the cigarette wouldn't last too long in 40 mph winds.
#technology
Cell phone interruptions May 16, 2007
Just the other day, I was trying to think of occasions when it's acceptable to interrupt something to answer a cell phone, and I couldn't come up with any.  Everything that was a possibility always ended with "...but it could wait till later."  What if your sister was calling to say she had the baby?  She could leave a message, and I could listen to it later.  What if one of your relatives died?  I could find out about it later.  What if you were expecting a phone call from a certain person that couldn't call at any other time?  I guess it just wasn't meant to be, and I'll hear about it later. 

I'll admit that this is at least partially as a result of how I was raised.  No phone calls were answered during dinner.  Ever.  I was angry about that sometimes, but now I've adopted that practice for my "family" (a.k.a. Wendy and me).  Dinner is a special time that's spent with family, without distractions.  No phone call can possibly ever be important enough to interrupt that.  Another rule in my house while growing up was an unwritten rule about calls after 9pm.  You could make and receive calls, but there was always bad karma associated with it.  Wendy and I don't follow that rule quite as well, but it's mostly because her family doesn't do well with rules.  Either way, the phone in my parents' house was treated like what it is:  An object used to make communication convenient, not a life-controlling device that must be bowed down to with immediacy. 

It amazes me what people will interrupt to answer their cell phone.  Conversations.  Bible studies.  Classes.  Vacations.  Hikes.  My rationale in all these cases is, "What would you have done 5-10 years ago, before you had a cell phone?"  The answer is, obviously, nothing.  You would've gotten the message later.  Life would have continued. 

In the same way, life will continue if you don't answer your phone.  That's precisely why voice mail was invented. #technology
USB device direction (3) May 2, 2007
My main complaint about USB devices is that it's nearly impossible to figure out which way to plug them in.  And no matter which way is right, the first way you try is always wrong. 

I noticed my co-worker observe a USB stick before he plugged it into his laptop.  He seemed to notice something, flip the thing over, then plug it in.  That's when I realized the method to his madness:  He discovered that USB plugs have a top and a bottom.  On the shiny metal part that plugs into the computer, there are four rectangular openings, two on the top and two on the bottom.  One side of the device has openings that are filled with some other object or material.  The other side has openings that are completely open.  This is the top.  When plugging the device into a computer, the top is almost always facing you.  There are probably exceptions to this rule (such as USB ports that are vertical), but that's not my problem. #technology