We've recently been told quite a lot about the activities of the US National Security Agency in monitoring internet communications. Much of it could be described as "stuff you might have feared, but that's a bit depressing to have confirmed". For people outside the US, one perhaps surprising thing is that the US government seems… Continue reading “It didn’t violate the First Amendment because Americans weren’t among the people targeted”
Category: Non-Work
Firefox OS on the Geeksphone Keon
(Previous post: What is Firefox OS all about?) Hardware To get this out of the way first: this is clearly intended to be the lowest-end device that Firefox OS apps will need to support. It's distinctly bargain-basement. By far the best thing about this hardware is its soft-touch orange plastic rear cover, which is nice… Continue reading Firefox OS on the Geeksphone Keon
What is Firefox OS all about?
When I first read about Firefox OS, the ongoing project to make an operating system for phones and tablets that runs entirely in a Firefox browser, I thought: what a marvellously futile idea. The world isn't short on niche, provisional, or failed experiments in operating systems for phones: Sailfish, Tizen, webOS, BB10, Ubuntu-for-phones, Meego, (cough)… Continue reading What is Firefox OS all about?
Can the American be trusted?
I found a striking bit of cultural conditioning in my head today. I watched Apple's introductory video about iOS 7. That's this one: If you haven't seen it already, and have some minutes to spare, watch it now. The first half is narrated by Jony Ive, Apple's (former) top hardware designer and (now) chief Designer… Continue reading Can the American be trusted?
Performance Practice as Unanticipated Pit
Last Tuesday afternoon I went to the weekly meeting of my research group. (But this isn't a post about work.) The weekly meetings have a rotating series of themes: this week's was "Music Performance and Expression". Accordingly, the first part of this meeting was a bit of a concert. To open the subject, Elaine Chew… Continue reading Performance Practice as Unanticipated Pit
What are, or were, Nintendo good at?
Marco Arment: At the high end, there’s room for a small number of huge-budget blockbuster titles that usually involve realistic sports simulations or killing people, none of which Nintendo does well. They compete by pushing the boundaries of cutting-edge graphics hardware, which Nintendo doesn’t produce anymore, and licensing real-life sports teams, which Nintendo doesn’t do.… Continue reading What are, or were, Nintendo good at?
The Breakfast Post 