Archives for July 2011
show me all the blue prints
30 July 2011 | Apple, Design | No Comments
via.
dancing about architecture
29 July 2011 | Architecture, Art, Literature | No Comments
а вот, смотрите, преображаемая реальность:
First, we identify a suitable building: Something that appears neglected, and seems to have no immediate prospects for a future use. In short, we choose an unpopular place. Next we devise a hypothetical future for that structure. Specifically, we strive to make this future blatantly implausible: maybe provocative, maybe funny; above all engaging. Then an artist creates a rendering based on the imaginary concept. This is printed onto a 3′ x 5′ sign, modeled on those used by real developers. That sign, finally, goes onto the building.
там же попутно и другие параллели, немного истории:
Definitions of the term [architecture fiction] seem to vary, but the coinage belongs to Bruce Sterling. He introduced it in 2006, after reading an imaginative and insightful essay by J.G. Ballard, published in The Guardian, about modernist architecture[1]. “Now there’s some top-end sci-fi architecture criticism,” Sterling observed, adding this thought: “It’s entirely possible to write ‘architecture fiction‘ instead of ‘science fiction.’ Like, say, Archigram did in the 60s.”
и современности:
If Archigram is the core historical reference point for the idea of architecture fiction, then the core contemporary reference point, and resource, is BLDG BLOG, the popular website run by Geoff Manaugh, a writer and teacher based in Los Angeles. Mark Dery has called him “the acknowledged auteur of architecture fiction,” adding: “On BLDG BLOG, Manaugh reads our built — and unbuilt — environments like a cultural radiologist, scanning them for evidence of social pathologies, symptoms of the post-apocalyptic.”
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[1] — и эссе Балларда тоже, конечно, замечательное.
что внутри
28 July 2011 | Censorship, Google, Privacy | No Comments
как все уже знают, Google с потрясающим спокойствием одну за другой закрывает[1] учетные записи в Google+ — за использование псевдонимов вместо реальных имен:
Over the weekend and into Monday, multiple tech blogs were reporting what appeared to be an uptick in the number of people removed from Google+ for signing up under assumed names.
волне народного возмушения нет предела:
Saturday’s Google+ user account deletion purge plunged the new social network into a crisis of user trust. The community wants it fixed[2].
а, между тем, оно и логично:
There’s a very simple business reason why Google cares if they have your real name. It means it’s possible to cross-relate your account with your buying behavior with their partners, who might be banks, retailers, supermarkets, hospitals, airlines. To connect with your use of cell phones that might be running their mobile operating system. To provide identity in a commerce-ready way. And to give them information about what you do on the Internet, without obfuscation of pseudonyms.
страшно, да? и правильно — ибо дальше все просто, достаточно только кое-что вспомнить:
Google makes billions of dollars in revenue each fiscal quarter. That money comes about by the same process that all companies use: They sell a product to their customers. Their customers pay money for that product.
Who’s Google’s customer? You? Really? When’s the last time you paid Google for anything?
Advertisers are Google’s customer. What do they sell to advertisers? They sell you. Or, at least, they rent you out, or provide access to you.
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[1] — вас уже сосчитали? помогите собрать данные.
[2] — иными словами, уроков в Google так и не извлекли.
полено с картинками
28 July 2011 | Apple, Hardware, Technology | 2 Comments
вообще, кстати, самое интересное — это то, насколько iPad уже изменил существующий мир. насколько кто и как продолжает расти в данной ситуации. насколько кто и как умирает. и — с другой стороны — кто и как рождается.
любая категория пользователей постоянно находит какие-то очередные применения. от школ до больниц, от мэрий до летчиков, от ресторанов до полицейских.
но и даже в этом случае куда важнее другое: сегодняшние дети вырастают, сжимая в руках iPad. наличие планшета в доме становится естественным и обязательным — как мы раньше созревали на обломках Z-80, естественным образом подходя к PC/Mac, так и они теперь оценивают мир сквозь призму именно этого тачскрина.
и это уже определяет, какие инструменты они будут использовать в будущем[1].
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[1] — да и что далеко ходить, в конце концов, — еще в начале 2000-ых никто и предположить не мог, насколько iPod изменит наше музыкальное восприятие.
Jim, Jack, Johnnie & Jose
27 July 2011 | Culturology, Google, Lifeform, Privacy | No Comments
прекрасный Уоррен Эллис в очередной раз попытался осознать, что есть дружба в социальных сетях (и что есть Google+ заодно):
Dear 1000 people who have added me to their circles apparently overnight: very kind of you to think of me, but the system is just not fine-grained enough yet to let me sort through you effectively. So I have to declare Google+ bankruptcy. Sorry.
Also none of you invoked me in the approved manner, which requires a bottle of whisky, ritual drumming, fire, two chickens, a bucket of eels and a nurse.
дальнейший разговор с программой по ссылке.
под рукой
26 July 2011 | Biology, Hardware | No Comments
снова про татуировки замечательное:
Using a nanosensor “tattoo” and a modified iPhone, cyclists could closely monitor sodium levels to prevent dehydration, and anemic patients could track their blood oxygen levels [or measuring glucose levels in those with diabetes].
via.
спасение утопающих
25 July 2011 | Economics, Technology | No Comments
между тем, вот, пожалуйста, несколько самых очевидных способов улучшить работу книжных магазинов:
- Use location-based services built into pretty much every smartphone to know when I’m in one of your stores.
- When I open your app and you’ve detected I’m in-store, offer me special deals which are only good for the next hour. Make sure all the deals are fully redeemable using only my smartphone app. Don’t email me coupons. Push them into the app so I can just flash my iPhone at the checkout counter and be on my way without fumbling through my email inbox.
- If you sell your own reader device, don’t make me bring it to your store for all this. My iPhone is always by my side but I refuse to bring a larger device just to get a deal. All the promotions and redemptions need to happen with nothing more than my smartphone. Plus, I probably don’t even own your device. I’m happy reading my ebooks on an iPad today, I might switch to an Android tablet soon and I don’t want to be locked into your hardware platform tomorrow.
- Most importantly, since I’ll soon be using your reader app, not Amazon’s, you’ll know my reading habits…so focus the deals on the things I tend to buy.
- Offer specials on ebooks, print books as well as combinations. And don’t forget about all the other things you sell in your store (remember the cafe!). If I’m standing in your store and I just bought the ebook version of the latest Mickey Mantle bestseller, make me an offer on the Major League Baseball preseason guide you sell in the magazine section.
- Take a page out of Groupon’s play book. Use your nifty new app to track how many customers with common interests are currently standing in your stores. Push a message like this to all of them: “You’re a history buff but you’ve never bought this great ebook about FDR. If at least 100 of you commit to buying it in the next 10 minutes we’ll give you all a special discount of x%. Stop by the Biography section to browse the book and see why we think it’s perfect for you.”
- Surprise me! Use this app’s services to make me want to visit your brick-and-mortar store more frequently!
и вариантов полным–полно, в общем-то, надо только задуматься.
контролировать безумие совсем несложно
24 July 2011 | Culturology, Music | 1 Comment
после Эми Уайнхауз тоже осталась подборка высказываний:
Большинство людей моего возраста проводят кучу времени, размышляя о том, что они будут делать в следующие пять или десять лет. Так вот: то время, которое они проводят в этих размышлениях, я провожу за выпивкой.
коллега.
за семью печатями
24 July 2011 | Google, Security | No Comments
как известно, для того, чтобы обеспечить учетной записи Google дополнительный уровень безопастности, разработана двухэтапная авторизация: в добавок к вашему стандартному паролю для подключения надо так же ввести и специально генерируемый код.
и все бы, в общем-то, хорошо, но обычные приложения (мессенджеры, работающие с Google Talk, почтовые программы, фронтэнды к Google Calendar или Google Docs, итп), конечно же, не умеют работать с двушаговой авторизацией. для чего и созданы дополнительно генерируемые пароли приложений — 16 строчных букв латинского алфавита. довольно простые пароли, если быть точным.
иными словами, такой подход в итоге может показаться менее безопасным, чем обычный метод. но суть, несмотря на более слабые пароли приложений, абсолютно в другом: даже узнав один из этих специфичных паролей, злоумышленник окажется не в состоянии использовать его в браузере, и, следовательно, не сможет сменить ваш основной пароль, модифицировать фильтры или настроить пересылку.
остается только пожалеть, что генерирумые пароли так — относительно — просты.
зато указанный алгоритм можно использовать отюдь не только для аутентификации в Google.
собственный город
23 July 2011 | Geography, Lifeform | No Comments
а вот замечательное интервью с человеком, променявшим беспрерывный кодинг на размеренную жизнь в лесу:
I had spent the better part of 10 years either studying computer science in college or working as a professional software engineer (or both), and I suddenly decided I wanted to experience life outside the cubicle. Living in the woods was a childhood dream of mine, and it seemed like a good time to realize that dream.
But, the other part was that I started to see some fundamental issues with the way the industry and our society are structured. At a personal level, I realized that striving for success and accomplishment didn’t bring me any closer to happiness. And at a societal level, it occurred to me that a system predicated on infinite growth simply was not sustainable. So, I decided to step back, slow down, and rethink my life and my priorities.
не все, разумеется, легко и просто, но вполне терпимо:
For a long time, there was actually a fair amount of work to do because I was trying to turn a patch of completely undeveloped land into something habitable. I built my cabin mostly on my own, and that alone took several months. The work that needs to happen also varies depending on the season. In the spring, I might be tending to the garden, or clearing brush to lower the risks of a forest fire. In the autumn, I might spend a lot of time gathering firewood. I also dedicate a fair chunk of time to cooking because food is important. There’s also ample time for reading, writing, reflection and contemplation, too, which is one of the benefits of a slower lifestyle. Of course, if I can’t find anything better to do, I can always step out of my cabin and go wander the woods.
плюс, именно там ты и переоцениваешь многое заново — например, важность интернета в твоей жизни:
I can’t say getting “wired” was unequivocally better for my quality of life. With Internet access, I spend more time and electricity on my laptop, uselessly browsing the web when I could be doing something else.
но так же многое и приобретаешь:
I’ve learned a ton. I’ve learned some carpentry and architecture from designing and building my own cabin. I’ve also learned a lot about off-grid electricity, about the importance of water, gardening, wildlife, and self-reliance, to name a few things. But the fact that I gained knowledge and skills is hardly surprising.
What I think made this experience uniquely valuable for me, though, is that I’ve learned so much about myself.
очень хороший.