Tools For Travelers

By E. Brown

Traveling? I have found that there are many local and Federal agencies on the Internet that are informative places to go before heading off onto most excursions. Below is list of sites I frequent, and I thought you might find useful too.

www.cdc.gov/travel/index.html
Information about vaccinations and country specific health related topics from the Center for Disease Control.

travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_1764.html
State Department travel warnings for most every country.

www.bts.gov/virtualib
Various links from the Department of Transportation statistics for airlines, airports, railways, etc.

travel.state.gov/passport/passport_1738.html
Information on applying for a passport and a downloadable application form. Very helpful since current approval times have stretched due to National Security.

www.tsa.gov/travelers/index.shtm
Information and tips about travel with carry-on’s, children, and more.

waittime.tsa.dhs.gov/index.html
Information about the security wait time at many U.S. airports so you do not miss a flight.

usembassy.state.gov/
Links to many U.S. embassies and consulates around the world.

www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/vacation/
Regulations from U.S. Customs and Border Patrol for residents returning to the United States.

I hope you have found these helpful. There are numerous other sites for other modes of travel. One such site worth mentioning is for those of you going on a cruise. Cruise Diva is a must visit with all kinds of tips and hints to make your cruising experience top notch.

Have fun!

Web Programming – HTML5 Differences

This document, edited by Anne van Kesteren, describes the differences between HTML4 and HTML5 and provides some of the rationale for the changes that have been made to the language.

The editor would like to thank Ben Millard, Dan Conolly, Henri Sivonen, Maciej Stachowiak, Martijn Wargers, Martyn Haigh, Michael Smith, Olivier Gendrin and Simon Pieters for their contributions to this document as well as to all the people who have contributed to HTML5 over the years for improving the web!

read more | digg story

Todd McFarlane Designs Wireless Controllers

OK, this is a throw back to the college days of comic book reading and other tech geekery — GameStop is releasing a series of custom designed controllers. Todd McFarlane, the creator/illustrator of Spawn and other imaginative art work has brought his talents to XBox 360 wireless controllers for FPS game, Halo 3.

These limited edition controllers are not cheap — $59.99 each. Ouch! But, if you want to be the first on your block to have bragging rights (along with your new iPhone), then head over to GameStop and buy one now!

Oh, by the way, did I mention each controller comes with a Halo 3 figurine?…ooooh

Safari for Windows – Day Zero Dud

As Apple rolled out the Safari Web browser for Windows at its World Wide Developers Conference, some one should have asked if it had been tested by real-world Windows users. It turns out that not 3 hours after its release, a major security issue was discovered — and discovered quite easily.

Thor Larholm, a Web app developer, from Denmark unearthed a command line security hole within 2 hours of installing Safari.

Apple’s Web site touts, “Apple engineers designed Safari to be secure from day one.” As Larholm explained on his blog, that may very well be correct: Its engineers obviously designed Safari to take advantage of security protocols in the OS X operating system, as evidenced by function calls to those protocols Larholm located inside the source code for the Windows version – calls which would obviously go unfulfilled.

“On the OS X platform,” he continued, “Apple has enjoyed the same luxury and the same curse as Internet Explorer has had on the Windows platform, namely intimate operating system knowledge.”

In short, this does not bode well for Apple or Safari.

I recommended downloading and giving SafariWin a try — as it turns out, you may be come part of their “Beta Bug Team”! You can send all your reports to Cupertino and I’m sure they will plug up the security holes and breaches quickly, but you have to ask the question, “Has the real damage already been done?”

“Mr. Wizard” Don Herbert 1917-2007

For those of you who are Baby Boomers, you will remember seeing Mr. Wizard on TV doing amazing science experiments. Throughout the 1950′s-60′s Don Herbert (a.k.a. Mr. Wizard) charmed children and showed them how “keen” it was to learn science.

For those who grew up watching Nickelodeon in the 1980′s Don made science “cool” on Mr. Wizard’s World. The show had been revived for another generation, almost 20 years after it first began.

Some of you may have even been “Mr. Wizard Science Club” members. What? You don’t remember the club? It was nationwide and at one time boasted 5000 clubs with over 100,000 members. Do you remember the secret hand-shake? No?! Well, there wasn’t a secret hand-shake…gotcha. Needless to say, the show was a hit.

“What really did it for us was the inclusion of a child,” [Don] told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch in 2004. “When we started out, it was just me up there alone. That was too much like having a professor give a lecture. We cast a boy and girl to come in and talk with me about science. That’s when it took off.

“The children watching could identify with someone like them.”

In explaining how he brought a sense of wonder to elementary scientific experiments, Herbert told the New York Times in 2004 that he “would perform the trick, as it were, to hook the kids, and then explain the science later. (LA Times.com)

Born in LaCrosse, Wisconsin, in 1917, Don grew up wanting to be an actor. He even worked as an actor and stage hand before moving to New York. A little known fact is that Don volunteered for the Armed Services after which he flew as many as 56 missions as a B-24 bomber pilot. He earned several medals including the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Don Herbert died on Tuesday, June 12, 2007 after a long battle with melanoma cancer. He was 89 years old.

We wish his wife of 34 years, Norma, his children, and grandchildren peace at this time in their lives. And, for many of us Don will be remembered as Mr. Wizard – the man who touched our lives with the magic of science and inspired us to think and learn.

He will be missed.

Added: Last Interview with Don Herbert on WIRED

Finally! Safari on Windows

The title says it all but how will Windows users adopt it? Is Internet Explorer the only defacto option for Windows users? Whatever you think, it’s worth a download — try Safari and comment below on how you “love it” or “hate it”.

read more | digg story

Apple Rolls Out Redesigned Website

Look at the brand new Website by Apple, just released today — looks sweet! It is user friendly and ties to the look of the soon-to-be-released new OSX Leopard.

read more | digg story

Like I Said: You May Not Want An iPhone

Apple’s wonderphone will fly off the shelves at the end of this June. But you may be better off waiting until you can answer these questions from Forbes.com.

Give Steve Jobs credit: He’s managed to get the entire tech community–and much of the rest of the world–talking about a pricey gadget that only a handful have seen or touched.

Apple’s iPhone finally goes on sale June 29, and for many potential buyers, the only issue is whether they’ll be able to get their hands on one, as it’s certain to sell out immediately. But whether you are a music lover, a business e-mail addict, a mobile power-user or just a normal consumer, there are several good reasons to think twice about dropping $500 for the first-generation iPhone.

read more | digg story

Babelgum Tastes Like Joost!

From TechCrunch | By Duncan Riley

Babelgum has pushed itself public yesterday. On the surface it looks very similar to its more famous competitor, Joost. Both are P2P IPTV applications that let you flip through channels and shows streamed to your computer. Both are backed by deep pockets and big names. In Joost’s corner, Skype and Kazaa veterans Niklas Zenstrom and Janus Friis with $45 million in financing. Babelgum was started by FASTWEB founder Silvio Scaglia with $13.2 million invested.

Yet while the market and pedigree may be similar, the execution in each case differs.

read more…

NOTE: Joost is available for BOTH Mac and Windows platforms, while Babelgum is Windows ONLY at this time.

If you’re interested in being invited to Joost, let me know — I have a bunch of invitations left to give out!! — just leave a comment here on WeirdGuy with your first and last name plus valid email address and I’ll sign you up.

Parallels – New 3.0 Upgrade Available Mid-June

From WebWorker Daily | By Judi Sohn

Whoever coined the phrase “have your cake and eat it too” was probably an Intel Mac user running Parallels Desktop for Mac. All the ease and beauty of Mac OS X with the ability to run Windows programs as needed in an environment that’s nearly as fast as the “real” thing.

After a long public beta period for Parallels 2.5, SWsoft surprised many Mac users last week with their announcement of Parallels 3.0 after a short private beta. Parallels 2.x users could upgrade sight unseen for $39.95 until June 6, otherwise the upgrade price would be $49.95 (Full version is $79.95). Nowadays, we are so used to having trial software and public betas, that the very thought of paying for an upgrade before having the software in hand made a few nervous. Who was I kidding? I knew I wouldn’t be passing this upgrade by. My money was quickly on the table at the reduced price.

Parallels 3.0 (build 4124) was released to the world today and is available for download. You will need to request a trial activation key if you want to try it out before purchasing, even if you have a previous version installed.

What’s new and interesting for existing users? Plenty.

read more…

Inspirational Business Card Designs

By E. Brown

Business cards — those tiny 2×3.5″ brands in the palm of your hand. You gotta love them. Yet, with all the business cards you have in your collection (I cannot say Rolodex because I do not know of many who use them any more), what gives them staying power? What makes them memorable? Why do we still use them?

Why Business Cards Prevail
You find yourself at a conference, restaurant outing, social event, networking event, recreational outing, or simply traveling and someone asks your name and what you do. You’re gracious and tell them about yourself and a bit about your company. If you’re aggressive you start to mine for potential business opportunities. Regardless, once the conversation or event is over, how will you be remembered?

“Um, wait a second, let me write your email on a slip of paper…or my hand…or this napkin and I’ll send you my contact information.” Then you say, “Uh, by the way, do you have a pen or pencil?”

No.

More than likely you will have your wallet or purse available and so you present the new acquaintance with your business card.

Business cards are cheap and easy ways to tell people about yourself, what you do, and what you have to offer.

Now, That is Memorable
OK, you’ve been to an event and you have a dozen cards in your pocket. You get back to your room, home, or office and start to scrutinize them more deliberately. What are you looking for? Typically, you’re looking for one of three things:

1) The contact information
You have met the person, heard about what they do and about their company. You might already be familiar with the company and its reputation and this person is someone with whom you want to do business or get to know better.

2) The services provided
You have just met the person for the first time. After hearing about what they do you realize you have need of their services. Some of their companies additional services are spelled out on the card as well — a bonus in your book!

3) The quality of professional presentation
You have just met the person or heard about the business for the first time. You do not know much, other than what you have just heard (and maybe what you recall hearing from a peer or reading in a trade publication). Nevertheless, the card has caught your attention because of the creative design or clever way in which it was handed to you.

This last point is what catches your attention and is often what keeps you hanging onto the business card long after you have pitched others. This may prompt you to re-evaluate your own company cards.

“Now,” you may be wondering, “where can I get some ideas for my new cards?” Help is here! See the Flickr library below for a showcase of many inspirational card ideas and designs.

Flickr Business Card Showcase

Next you may be asking, “What should I put on my business card?” Jacci Howard Bear offers thoughts on this in her article, 11 Parts Of A Business Card, from the site, About.com. Many of the ideas she offers are valid.

Maria Nerius also offers timely suggestions for crafting a Creative Calling Card:

In the Victorian times, a calling card was given to a house servant to announce the arrival and name of a guest. In modern times, we are often handed a business card as a form of introduction. The basic idea is the same. We want to give someone contact information so they can reach us in the future. We need a creative calling card!

Finally, Chuck Green offers innovative ideas and a handy tool for rethinking your business card. His Business Card Checklist will help you think through: people, place, communication, detail, and orientation of your new card.

Enjoy these tips and ideas, and after you have created your inspirational card, send me a copy.

Have fun!

Star Wars Mash-Up

No, it’s not the Monster Mash (for those who can remember that oldie but goodie), it’s the Star Wars Mash — “mash-up”, that is. I don’t know how I missed seeing this one, but Sarah McBride, of The Wall Street Journal Online, captured this story last week about make-it-yourself Star Wars movies from over 250 released clips from all six movies.

George Lucas, creator of “Star Wars,” has never hesitated to protect his intellectual property, which is why some call him “Lucas the Litigator.” But this week, his Lucasfilm plans to make clips of “Star Wars” available to fans on the Internet to mash up — meaning to remix however they want — at will.

The clips — about 250 of them, from all six Star Wars movies — will land on the Starwars.com Web site tomorrow, part of this week’s 30th-anniversary celebrations of the release of his hit movie. Working with an easy-to-use editing program from Eyespot Corp. of San Diego, fans can cut, add to and retool the clips. Then they can post their creations to blogs or social-networking sites like MySpace. More clips will come out from time to time over coming months. (read more…)

What a great opportunity for community activity. This is a perfect example of using creativity to promote learning — an innovative way to show off an editing app (from Eyespot), learn some about the video editing process (what works and what doesn’t), and to show off your final piece (using your mad director chops). More colloborative efforts like these used in online learning environments are powerful and sticky. I guarantee once a person dives into this and sees how easy it is, they will remember it and tell others how to do it too.

So, if you haven’t tried Eyespot’s editing wares or ventured over to the Star Wars site to make your own mash-up, do it now! At least do it during your lunch break — you don’t want to make your boss unhappy.

Have fun!

9 Best Practices For Home-based Entreprenuers

From Web Worker Daily

When you work from home, it can be difficult to keep work and personal life from blending into one big mess. Work demands bleed into every waking hour. Friends and family, assuming you’re not really busy, invite you out to lunch or ask you to help with daytime errands. SmartMoney talked to a few long-time home-based entrepreneurs to find out what rules and guidelines they’ve developed to draw a line between work and personal life.

read more…

Be sure to look over the related articles at the end because they are worth their weight in gold! Have fun!

Reactee: T-Shirts That Text Back

From: TechCrunch | By Duncan Riley

Reactee has announced the launch of a line of interactive t-shirts that combine fashion, SMS and activism through “shirts that text back”.

Reactee allows users to create t-shirts that include a personalized message such “Stop Global Whaling” or “Andrew Keen is a Luddite” that is then complimented by a unique keyword such as SUSHI or MORON on the shirt. People who see the shirt can then respond to it by sending the keyword via SMS to 41411. In return senders receive a custom text message response created by the T-Shirt creator.

read more…

Apple iPhone – 25 Days And Counting

Hurry! Hurry! Read all about it (er, or watch all about it) Apple just released the date for the iPhone roll out. The commercial aired during 60 Minutes, on Sunday, May 3 and the Apple Web site has all the new ads available for viewing.

But first you’ve got to ask yourself, are you ready? Are you ready for the steep $600 price tag? Are you ready for the 2 year commitment? Are you ready to be on the bleeding edge of the bug-list? Huh, tell me, are you ready? If so, mark your calendars and start ticking the days off until you can have bragging rights to be amongst the first to purchase the new Apple iPhone.

As for me, I’ll watch for a while. If you want, you can come show me your new iPhone when you get it :)

K12 Online Conference – Proposals Wanted

From: Ubiquitous Thoughts

Announcing the second annual “K12 Online” conference for teachers, administrators and educators around the world interested in the use of Web 2.0 tools in classrooms and professional practice! This year’s conference is scheduled to be held over two weeks, October 15-19 and October 22-26 of 2007, and will include a preconference keynote during the week of October 8. This years conference theme is “Playing with Boundaries.” A call for proposals is below.

There will be four “conference strands”– two each week. Two presentations will be published in each strand each day, Monday – Friday, so four new presentations will be available each day over the course of the two-weeks. Each presentation will be given in any of a variety of downloadable, web based formats and released via the conference blog (www.k12onlineconference.org) and archived for posterity.

read more…

Do You Really Know Who Is On Your Community?

From: Best Engaging Communities

I think most people expect that if a community is “private” or “invitation-only” then they would end up knowing each other. But if you are running a public community like Digg and expect users to self police, then that creates another mess. Business Week reports on Cleaning Messy Boards, where companies are turning to new tools to prevent “hate-filled arguments or meaningless drivel”.

read more…

News From TheNextWeb Conference

On last Friday, Kevin Rose spoke via video link at TheNextWeb conference in Amsterdam, outlining Digg’s plans for expansion. The good news is that they plan to add images – one of the most demanded features. The mixed news is that they plan expansion into product reviews and more diverse topics.

read more | digg story

It’s Official – Google Acquires Feedburner

News from Susan Wojcicki, VP, Product Management

As you know, we’re constantly looking for ways to identify and offer new tools for content creators and website publishers. Likewise, we constantly aim to give AdWords advertisers broader distribution to an even wider audience of users. For these reasons, we’re very pleased to tell you that we’ve just acquired FeedBurner.

read more…