Last: March 2005
Next: May 2005
April 30, 2005
nearly
I managed to hack through Tiger's iSync to get it to recognise my Nokia 6630 and even to throw the iSync Agent application to me. The app runs fine, but iSync can't talk to it. Why can't Apple implement a standard like SyncML? Bah.
For the record, the relevent preference file is Applications/iSync.app/Contents/Plugins/
ApplePhoneConduit.syncdevice/Contents/
PhoneMdelsSync.phoneplugin/Contents/
Resources/MetaClasses.plist, and the apps that are thrown at the different phones are at Applications/iSync.app/Contents/Plugins/
ApplePhoneConduit.syncdevice/Contents/
Resources/Agents.
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April 25, 2005
colours!
Compare:
with:
Silver. Black. Black. Silver. Silver. Silver. Silver. Black. Boring. Boring.
Please, people of Europe, can we start demanding more phone colours? I'm tired of silver and black.
(Japanese montage taken from istyle magazine - my favourite. I'll write more about this magazine later. Colours are a bit off in the scan.)
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QR codes update
Every so often I get really really excited about barcodes. I mean, who doesn't?
This time it was prompted by going to Japan a few weeks ago, and seeing how QR codes have really become part of life there: business cards, adverts, magazines, any printed media will have a QR code, either for the URL, address, phone number, or even little pieces of content themselves (ringtones, pictures). Each operator has a slightly different way of encoding (surprise!), but there are generators that try to bridge them. The original encoding scheme is NTTDoCoMo's, described here.
What I want is an open source QR code reader for Western mobile phones. It shouldn't be too hard to do, at least for small codes (our Western fixed focus phone cameras can't cope with reading too much up close). In fact, I know it isn't hard to do, as I've had demos of just this from several people in the last year - but each one was doing it just for research, or to sell to operators.
Anyway, there has been a little progress since I last looked. There's a sourceforge project that has released Java code that will decode QR codes. If anyone has the skills to package this up J2ME style for Symbian, you'd make me very happy. There's also plans (I think) to turn the code into other programming languages - again, if you're good at Java translating, then contribute. If you have a Japanese phone, you can download an appli and test it out.
I also found a really good QR code reader for the Mac - it's in Japanese, but isn't hard to figure out. I may try to produce an English interface file for it. Haven't found a good one for the PC yet.
Other things I have found:
A good set of QR code generator programs in all sorts of languages (plus how to encode it, in Japanese, natch).
An open source (standard 1d) UPN bar code reader for Symbian/S60.
Visual codes, a very nice research project, with real demos on S60 (and in Sourceforge). Uses their own encoding format, but nicely illustrates lots of uses for this.
Semacode continues to go from strength to strength. It's now implemented on bus stops in the US, and he's quietly released a server as well. It's a pity Simon doesn't like QR codes - I think they'd add something to the URLness of semacode.
Wikipedia page on QR codes.
Anothr good QR code generator (in English).
QRcodeblog is a weblog, where every entry is encoded in QR code. Also features QR code chocolate.
Colourcodes is a new rival to QR codes - however, with the need to be online (their server does the lookup from code to URL - a business model that fails), and the lack of carrier acceptance, it's unlikely to dent QR code's dominance in Japan.
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in the mix
A dancier selection of music this time, which will show how different some of the remixes were from the originals (the joys of 80 minutes to play around with).
Firstly, Renegade Soundwave by Renegade Soundwave - a fantastic track from 1994 (unusually still available). Featured 6 other mixes, including 2 by Leftfield. The first is a big pulsing techno thing, which I last heard on a big soundsystem played by a warm-up DJ for either Underworld or Leftfield themselves (and, spookily, used on BBC's Top Gear minutes after posting this). Second is a slightly relaxed dub mix.
Spiritual High by Moodswings, featuring Chrissie Hynde. Admittedly features the Martin Luther King speech, but has a laid back quality that I really like. Featured 5 other mixes, including this Back To Basics Mix, which shows how different most of the remixes of the time were.
Two Basement Jaxx remixes of Gabriel by Roy Davis Jr. A wonderful house track from 1997 that still sends a shiver down my spine, twisted into the usual samba madness of the Jaxx, and then a harder clubbier version.
Finally, a stupidly happy summery tune by Madagascar, eponomously titled. Came with 5 mixes, all of which are too jawachingly dated to include here.
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April 24, 2005
captcha captcha white thing
Yahoo's captchas are very much like early Underworld videos.
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April 22, 2005
sigh
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April 19, 2005
Google Maps UK
Tom Smith found Google Maps UK. At last! If only I was in the UK; I'd be jumping for joy right now. All the hacking of the US service means there's plenty of ways to annotate the maps produced, and even link up data feeds from other services.
Best thing is, Google Local, and Google SMS now work in the UK too.
A few nitpicks - the postcode db, or georeferencer, isn't completely accurate:
The timings on the directions appear to indicate freeway speed driving around most of London. No doubt it will be tweaked in the future. Comes from building on the same engine as the US maps, I guess - it gives a rather strange view of the world:
(thanks to 2lmc for some of the links)
UPDATE: Not only goes Google Local work, but Google Local Mobile - and specifically the version rolled out in the US shows the maps of Britain too, on your mobile.
yes, I am wearing a red t-shirt today)
The maps aren't really up to snuff - cartography for small screens is entirely different to even the small amount of map you can show in a browser. And I repeat my rant that there aren't any scales, anywhere. Someone want to work out what each zoom level is comparable to?
Anyway, fire up http://www.google.com/xhtml?site=local in your mobile's web browser to try it out.
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man dates
Last week, I got really very angry at an article in the New York Times entitled 'Man Dates'. I was going to let it go, just grumbling at anyone who met me last weekend, but it's been reprinted and expanded on by several other newspapers, lastly the Observer this Sunday.
First of all, what is a man date?
Simply defined a man date is two heterosexual men socializing without the crutch of business or sports. It is two guys meeting for the kind of outing a straight man might reasonably arrange with a woman.
So, three men is good or bad? What about a gay man and two straight men? Because this was the situation last weekend. Other rules broken: I brought up the concept of man dates, I paid for their drinks and food, oh, and we were naked, for it was in a Finnish sauna.
Line crossed yet?
Thankfully, the people I know have no problem with anything that the article construes as man dates. Most of the reactions, both in the paper, and on the Internet, are people of diff'rent strokes basically boggling at the concept, or that this is in any way news, a problem, or a trend (my favourite reaction is probably that this is part of the Gay Agenda to make straight men feel more uncomfortable in social situations).
But whilst you could be flippant, and dismiss it, it shines a very narrow spotlight at the male insecurity, and homophobia, that still exist, even if underportrayed in mass media.
I don't make a big deal of the fact I'm gay, and certainly people don't really seem to guess. This means, for better or for worse, I get exposed to what it's like to be straight, with a suprising amount of assumption and extrapolation by others. Tom takes a different approach, letting people know quite early on of meeting him. I certainly see the advantages, but I've worried this means that some people pussyfoot around you. I prefer to get to know people warts and all, and when they do find out (I don't lie), I've never had someone have an issue with it. Call me a selfish ethnographer if you wish...
To say that we live in some ultra-accepting society patently isn't true. Gay is still a slur, or a word spat out derogatorily. Both sides of the coin often seem to want to perpetuate gayness as a single point of difference. I remain confused as to what a gay lifestyle is. My life isn't a single issue. But the media seems to like boiling issues down to black and white. Gender is exactly the same - reduced to 1970sesque soundbites in programmes such as this. "Men without their womenfolk! How will they cope?" Please! It's this reductionist attitude that means the real issues aren't brought out onto the table, and the real root causes of male (and female, and gay, and straight, and human) insecurity in the modern Western world.
Anyway, let's take apart some of the man date rules:
The first rule of man dating is... you don't mention the man date. Friend will instantly feel uncomfortable.
Far better to sit in uncomfortable silence whilst macho posturing.
At the cinema, always keep a spare seat between you and your mate, especially if the film stars Hugh Grant or Vin Diesel.
You certainly don't want anyone to think you went to see such an awful film as xXx.
In a restaurant, order at least one dish that includes red meat.
And force your friend to get the quiche. This will let everyone know who is who in the relationship. (I once got asked, several times, in a security interview "so, in your relationship, who is the male and who is the female?". Whilst trying very hard not to burst out in laughter, I explained that, well, it isn't really like that... I decided at that point that the place probably wasn't where I wanted to be).
Avoid sitting directly opposite your pal if at all possible.
Wrong, wrong, wrong. There is nothing gayer than sitting next to 'your pal' - not only is it far easier to hold hands, but it means you both get the opportunity to scan the room.
Extinguish table candles and remove any flower decorations.
Preferably by throwing them as quickly as possible at the waiter who is making eyes at you. Or hiding them in your manbag.
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April 14, 2005
lunchtime thought
If I had a jazz band, they would be called Chris Heathcote's Maillard Reaction.
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April 13, 2005
little britain
The Creative Archive licence site is live, and I really wish I could get excited about it. There are three additions to the Creative Commons non-commercial attribution share-alike licence that in essence change the philosophy somewhat.
My big bugbear, being an expat, is the UK only part of the licence. This is justified, the faq says, because
The delivery of content in the Creative Archive is paid for by the organisations who supply it. They are funded with public money to serve the UK population, and therefore they are restricted from subsidising services to overseas audiences.
If this is the reason, then it should not be enshrined in the legalese of the licence, rather just in the services that let you download the material. This would let 3rd parties such as archive.org deliver to the rest of the world. I *have* paid for this material to be created - so why won't I be allowed to access it?
Weirdly the licence doesn't mention actually viewing the material at all, just giving you a licence to copy, share, or create derivative works. Does this mean if I download from someone in the UK I'm fine? What about showing a documentary containing excepts from the creative archive outside of the UK?
The second disappointment is that material cannot be used for any derogatory or 'otherwise offensive' purpose. This is hard to define, at best, and at worst could be used against any free speech usage of the material (not that the UK has much free speech enshrined in law).
The final problem is that the licence is revocable, and changable. This means with a change in the political wind, the licence could change, and there's nothing you can do about it. If you're going to be spending time creating work based on these materials, you need a steadier legal base.
The US has benefitted greatly from making all Goverment sponsored work freely available on the Internet - notably the TIGER street database, and all NASA imagery. There are no restrictions on who can download, and how it can be used. Maybe we should look to this for how British Government funded material should be distributed.
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April 11, 2005
this week i have mostly been listening to I Am Kurious Oranj
I've loaded my shuffle with the greatest hits of Talking Heads, Wire and The Fall, plus The Fall's The Unutterable, Gonzales Uber Alles, some Fripp and Eno, and Give Out But Don't Give Up, an underated p-funk track by Primal Scream. Since then, I haven't used my iPod... and I've discovered the joy of shuffle mode. This week, though, I've been listening to just The Fall stuff, and been happily strutting round Helsinki - The Fall has a certain jaunt to it that makes it great walking music. (note for shuffle owners - get this db builder to escape the single computer iTunes tyranny)
Inspired by Anne, I've decided to put a few tracks up on an irregular basis. I was a student during the glory days of the CD single - 40 minutes each, with 5 or 6 tracks or remixes, often sold for 99p. So I have lots of obscure 90s music and mixes, some of which I'll put up for a few days only. If you like them, buy them, or the artist's more recent stuff!
Music and links now gone! You'll have to be quicker next time!
Portishead remix of Massive Attack's Karmacoma - the best of both groups. Whilst Portishead got ripped off by every downtempo group, a lot of the inventiveness, harshness and brilliance disappeared too.
Alex Reece remix of Tricky's Brand New You're Retro - fantastic slab of Bristolian jungle, with some great drum sounds and programming.
Koochie Ryder by Freaky Realistic - I played this single over and over again; the dancier remixes are great as well. The album wasn't much cop to be honest. Anyone know what's happened to any of them?
To Be Real by Ladycop - this starts off as a seemingly trite tinny remake of To Be Real, but it's a real floorfiller, and a reminder of a funky house style that has unfortunately disappeared.
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April 10, 2005
okonomiyaki
"Chris", you say, "what is all this talk of technology, when all I really want are your obsessive posts about food?". Well, let's try and restore the balance to 95% food 5% technology that this weblog tries to hit.
I had a wonderfully foodie time in Hong Kong and Tokyo - more on that in later posts. Normally I come back from these trips craving homely European food, however this time, I came back wanting more and more Japanese food (I've also been craving fish and chips and Bakewell tarts and lots of other things I can't get).
The Japanese store in Helsinki, Tokyokan, has done brisk business this week. My first new dish to try and master is okonomiyaki - Japanese pancake/omelette/pizza. I'd been to an okonomiyaki restaurant in London quite a few times, but had never really thought about making it myself, for some odd reason.
The first attempt wasn't great - the batter consistancy was too liquid, the veg were shedded too thick, and rather than use common sense and make appropriately sized okonomiyaki, I just threw the whole mix in the pan, making something too spectacularly big to flip or cook evenly.
My second attempt tonight was far more satisfying. I used less water (real okonomiyaki batter made with shredded yam doesn't need water) - 80ml, plus a dash of the kimchi chili liquid to 100g of okonomomiyaki flour mix (normal flour plus a dash of dashi powder is probably equivalent). Then I added the cabbage and kimchi, which I'd grated pretty fine in the food processor - easier to just chop fine I think. Then an egg, and mix mix mix.
The mix made about 1.8 proper sized okonomiyaki.
Cooked for 3 minutes and flipped.
Another 3 minutes and flipped again.
Decorated with mayonnaise and okononomiyaki sauce (similar to Bulldog/katsu sauce).
Finally fish flakes (katsuobushi) that dance in the heat.
Yum!
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weather again
The RSS weather service should be working again. Thank you to everyone who mailed for pointing out it was broken.
Note that if you use Bloglines, you may have been automatically unsubscribed from the feeds, which is rather annoying. It's hard to get them to check the fact that it's working again too. I hope it sorts itself in the next 24 hours.
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April 07, 2005
my name is chris and I have a tshirt problem
I arrived home last night to a package of 2 tshirts, which I had forgotten about, and a note to say the Post Office had 3 more, which I was expecting.
Last week, I bought 6 at a graniph store in Tokyo - incidentally one of the few labels that will not ship internationally - and 4 in various places in the Hong Kong (2 of which I had forgotten about until I unpacked).
I have a bit of a tshirt problem, but not as much as cal, who even setup a database of his tshirts.
I've always loved tshirts, but the problem began in earnest when threadless launched. Internet shopping came late to tshirts, but since threadless, many labels large and small now take online orders, and, worse still, completely new labels run out of people's living rooms are blossoming.
As with any popular pastime, several weblogs sprang up to aggregate finds - the first was World of Tees, followed by preshrunk. Both are good, and both have encouraged far too many purchases.
So, I think I have enought tshirts for a while. If you see me in a tshirt shop, sidle up to me and remind me of this post. Please.
...however, it is the crazy days sale at one way in Helsinki...
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Movable Type comments as RSS
Flickr has ruined me. Now I expect to be able to hit my 'subscribe in bloglines' button, and get a constant feed of the data inside any page.
The latest is the comments page on Movable Type. I mean, it's one of the greatest proponents of RSS and syndication, yet it's all outward facing, with no RSS used in site management or workflow.
I had a look around, and couldn't see anything that fitted what I want to do (see that there are pending comments for me to approve), so I hacked together a script to turn the latest comments in MT into an RSS feed - download the script here (you will need to rename it, edit the variables at the top, and throw it in the same folder as your MT installation).
Caveat emptor: no warranties or support. My Perl is bad and rusty, and I've never programmed with Movable Type before. It doesn't even work completely, but I get bored with programming very easily. Feel free to improve, rip apart, write a better one from scratch.
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April 06, 2005
and we're almost back
So, my server was cracked just over a week ago. Nothing broken, but when you can't trust something, you have to demolish it and start again. Which is just what I've done.
Not everything is fixed yet, but I've got Moveable Type working again, so I can start posting again. I've got a week's worth of Asian craziness bottled up!
Weather, pling and other apps will be fixed in due course...
