I no longer pay much attention to this blog’s visitor stats. When I first started the Gazette, I had a free Site Meter account and monitored it regularly, but that was back in the salad days when blogs were the only social media outlet (and when I actually worked harder at it). When I redesigned/relaunched… Continue reading Whatever you’re searching for, it appears we have it here.
Month: January 2011
Blu-Ray: Consumer tech with pro headaches
Khoi Vinh is a well-respected designer (he reworked the website for the New York Times) and is in demand as a speaker at tech and design conferences around the world. In other words, he’s a bit of a geek. And thus I find his experiences with and observations about the current state of Blu-Ray to… Continue reading Blu-Ray: Consumer tech with pro headaches
Back Yard Visitor
I glanced at the backyard just before lunch this morning, and my eye caught an unusual shape in our Mexican Elder*, which has been significantly denuded by the winter cold. I looked a bit more carefully – the figure was definitely bird-shaped, but much larger than the usual vagrants. I moved to another window to… Continue reading Back Yard Visitor
Mad Woodworking Skillz
I once carved a rattlesnake out of a two-by-four. Took me three days. And several two-by-fours. Link via Neatorama
I Heard the Springs of Hell on Christmas Day
Taking a cue from another local blogger who is recycling some of her material (I don’t have clearance to link, in case you’re wondering), and in response to something that recently arose on Facebook (an exchange between two sisters, one of which happens to be my spousal unit), it seems appropriate – essential, even –… Continue reading I Heard the Springs of Hell on Christmas Day
Digging the QR Code
You’ve seen them here and there, and you’ll see them even more frequently in the future – those black-and-white squares that look like a dying dot-matrix printer spit them out. They’re QR Codes, and they’re tiny gateways to all kinds of good stuff. QR Codes (the “QR” stands for “Quick Response”) were created in Japan… Continue reading Digging the QR Code
Random Thursday
Oh, boy…the first Random Thursday of 2011. I hope it’s a good one! (See, I never know what I’m going to write until it happens, and the words flow like the aftereffects of a bad batch of shrimp.) Let’s wax nostalgic for a bit. Remember when ordering from an out-of-town company meant getting a paper… Continue reading Random Thursday
A Cornell Professor Writes About “A Death in Texas”
I received an email yesterday from Josh Wallaert, the web editor for Places, which is described as an interdisciplinary journal of contemporary architecture, landscape, and urbanism, with particular emphasis on the public realm as physical place and social ideal. Josh wanted to draw attention to a new essay by Cornell University architecture professor Jim Williamson. I was… Continue reading A Cornell Professor Writes About “A Death in Texas”
Traffic Light Sync System on Holiday?
Contrary to my earlier opinion, the synchronization of traffic lights IS apparently rocket surgery.
Netflix No DVD Plan: What’s Missing
We’ve just switched our Netflix plan from the “3 DVDs out at-a-time” plan to the “Watching instantly (no DVDs)” plan, thereby saving money ($19.99/month vs. $7.99/month). We don’t watch enough movies on DVD to make the rental plan worthwhile. If Netflix has disclosed how many movies and TV program episodes it has available for “instant… Continue reading Netflix No DVD Plan: What’s Missing