Punderings

She rounds up the talking points from across the blogosphere.

http://ribarambles.org/

OK, perhaps a bit biased, but I happen to agree with most of her biases.

.. for a hotel being built in the refurbished Charles Street jail.  The billboards even have a giant old-fashioned key graphic as the central point.  Shudder.

I suppose it is a handsome building – quite the architecture, and the hotel developer is getting funding because it is a landmark building.  But still: I don’t think I could stay in an ex-prison comfortably, especially one with a somewhat checkered past.

Just upgraded, works fine (had to remember to check the live site).

Many many thanks to the WordPress folks and the K2 folks and the Akismet folks for such cool software.  Although I’m a geek myself, I have very limited patience with maintaining and mucking with certain core tools, like my own website, mail client, and core development environment.  So it’s nice to have a happily licensed, free, and pretty cool (both from simple end user perspective and from hidden geek who always dreams of adding his own plugin) blogging environment.

Still must tweak the K2 theme some; I like blue, but I want something a little different.

And oddly enough I finally realized that I actually know some of the folks who helped build this software!

Along with switching to the K2 theme, I took CJD’s advice and installed Akismet.  Now I get a nice little page telling me how many spams were caught each day.  It’s a beautiful thing.

It was easy to install, and I like how they set it up.  The only drawback is that they re-post each incoming comment across the web to match with their database.  The privacy advocate in me is a little questioning of that, but really, since this is a public web site, it doesn’t much matter.  I mean, people are going to read the (successful, non-spam) comments on the web anyway, so why do I care if someone else’s database might possibly be keeping a copy.

No! Wait! Don’t read that!  (Sorry – stupid Sci-Fi movie where the linguistics expert is going into the newly discovered egyptian tomb and reading – aloud – the inscriptions on the wall.  She’s not bad – she’s just scripted that way.  The mummy’s not actually moving yet, but is now awake.  If you can just remember some simple rules, then you will have little problem surviving if you suddenly find yourself in the middle of a horror movie… like never reading inscriptions aloud.)

Actually, it’s the normal amount to do, I’m just not managing time very well.  Life as normal, I suppose.

LinkedIn continues to grow, I’m over 70 contacts without even trying very hard.  It’s becoming a game in a way, which is not the right way to look at it.  But their web ui is very good at focusing you on using the system more, which makes sense.  I still don’t need to pay; the free account is fine, ha ha.  But at least I’m at “100% complete” profile, now that a few kind friends sent me recommendations!

The weekend is in CT with Mimsley and company – relaxing as usual.  The only disappointment (besides no potato chips) is that Saturday night on cable TV is pretty darn boring.  I mean, coming to CT – after Roxanne goes to bed – is one of the very few times I get to flip thru cable anymore.  And the one time I can – nothing.  Even SciFi has a pair of cheezy – but not the right kind of cheeze – movies that are almost painfully bad to watch.  Cheap digital production, cable TV, and new distribution mechanisims mean that lots of new talent gets to try their hand at making movies.  Unfortunately the percentage of decent talent is pretty small.

Otherwise even the weather is cooperating: warm for November and nice and sunny.  The kids got to spend plenty of time running around in the yard.  It’s so nice for Roxanne to spend time with the cousins – it’s really fun to watch her chase around after Evelyn and company, and they have a lot of fun with her.