Presidential Guidester
Sunday, October 31, 2004 10: 56 PM
Presidential Guidester. Still undecided? Use this handy wizard to make the choice for you.
Hi. I'm Paul Nixon, a designer living in Mountain View California. My days (and some nights) are spent designing websites for a little company in Cupertino. The rest of my time is spent with my beautiful wife and friends, road cycing and reading your blogs.
October 2004
Some Music: Cary Brothers, Joshua Radin
Sunday, October 31, 2004 04: 04 PM
From the Garden State soundtrack comes Cary Brothers. His track "Blue Eyes" is one of many exceptional tracks on that album. With a great voice and sound, Cary should go a long way. Listen to his current tracks from the top of his site.
Zach Braff (Scrubs star and Garden State writer, director and star) had this to say about him. Zach has been getting his music into Scrubs episodes as well. (Zach will justify another post sometime. The guy is incredibly creative -- and seems to be dabbling in just about everything these days.)
Cary and Zach are also highly recommending the smooth sounding Joshua Radin. His song "Winter" was also featured in a Scrubs episode.
Some links:
- Cary Brothers' homepage
- Cary Brothers' MySpace
- Cary Brothers' album at Amazon
- Cary Brothers' iTunes Mix of many acts that have graced Hotel Cafe in Hollywood
- Joshua Radin's album at Amazon.
- Zach Braff's Garden State Blog
Fenway Renaissance Festival
Friday, October 29, 2004 01: 00 AM
Knights of the Round Table Photography. And in other news -- Fenway Park hosted its annual renaissance festival last night.
Boston Abductions
Friday, October 29, 2004 12: 47 AM
Boston Abductions Photography. Alien abductions rampant following Red Sox victory in Boston.
Bush's One-Fingered Victory Salute
Wednesday, October 27, 2004 10: 34 PM
Bush's One-Fingered Victory Salute (QT Movie) Uh...so...uh...yeah. Most likely from the Texas days...but you have to wonder... do we really want him leading the free...oh never mind. Via Airbag.
The Michael Vick Experience Commercial
Wednesday, October 27, 2004 06: 01 PM
The Michael Vick Experience Commercial Bottom left link on the page. Saw this commercial the other night -- great combination of ideas, well done. Via K10K.
Airline Safety Procedure Video
Wednesday, October 27, 2004 05: 35 PM
Airplane Safety Procedure Video (QT, 8 MB) Infographics. Robert Fenwick adds a healthy dose of realism to the classic airplane safety card. Via K10K.
Domino Artwork
Wednesday, October 27, 2004 05: 10 PM
Domino Artwork Design. PDF instructions show you how to make your own. Pretty amazing. Via BoingBoing
iPod Ashlee Simpson Karaoke Edition
Wednesday, October 27, 2004 03: 28 PM
iPod Ashlee Simpson Karaoke Edition Funny. Greg presents an innovative new product. Via Airbag
$4 Billion.
Wednesday, October 27, 2004 12: 30 PM
$4 billion. Four. Billion. Dollars.
That is the amount of money being spent on political campaigning this year. $1.2 billion alone for the presidential campaigns.
The whole world of money and politics is completely broken. It's insane. It's surreal. Part of me wishes I could sit down with these politicians and confront them on what that money could be doing for this country, instead of feeding their fruitless battles on television with lame-ass ads that scare seniors and only make me think that these politicians are idiots.
This much I know -- if the system has no limits on what they can spend, then they will spend as much as they have. These politicians are like teenages shopping at the mall with dad's credit card. No restraints. No limits.
So something should be done and as an uneducated observer in this area here is what I propose:
Presidential campaigns should have spending caps.
All campaigns for that matter should have spending caps.
It is simply out of control and billions of dollars are going to waste...waste...pure and simple. With spending caps, once each party has determined their candidate, they should be allowed to spend up to a certain amount on their campaign (say $150 million dollars $100 in a presidential campaign) and that's it. If there were across the board spending caps on political campaigns, I think it would greatly help even the playing field for people entering politics. So often these days it's not who has the best ideas, but rather the fattest pocket book that wins elections.
It's hurting this country and it's wasting a hell of a lot of money that should actually go to doing some good...too bad these politicians don't have the integrity to admit that.
UPDATE: It's obvious I know nothing about this stuff and discussing campaign finance reform is completely out of my realm of expertise, but venting about it feels good. After some cursory glancing around here are a couple more links from OpenSecrets.org that seem to break it down a bit:
U.S. Census Bureau Maps
Wednesday, October 27, 2004 11: 59 AM
U.S. Census Bureau Maps Infographics. Purrrrrty colors. Via Assemble Me.
iPod Photo
Tuesday, October 26, 2004 12: 46 PM
iPod Photo Technology. I see holiday spending money slipping from my grasp. Apple is keeping the upgrade cycle just fresh enough that you almost hesitate to lock in at a certain time. iPod leasing anyone??? Via Brett.
Hosting.
Tuesday, October 26, 2004 12: 31 PM
Dreamhost is promoting their "Code Monster" hosting plan for $19.95/mo. (usually $39.95/mo.) for as long as you have the plan. If you can swallow the $24.95 sign-up fee it offers a ton for only one Jackson a month. It appears to be a limited time offer.
I have been hosting nixlog and several other domains on the "Sweet Dreams" plan for a couple of years now. But when I saw the "Code Monster" deal today for the same price, it was a no-brainer. It includes: 2.6 GB of storage, 64 GB of monthly bandwith, 15 hosted domains, 75 subdomains, Quicktime streaming, etc., etc.. Just passing on the deal if anyone out there is looking for a hosting company. There may be better ones out there, but Dreamhost has served me well so I don't mind doing a little promotion.
One thing that I find really nice is putting side projects on the same account. With 15 domains I can add a dozen side projects on the same account as my own. For paying clients this give me the ability to bill hosting into the project. For other projects it gives me an instant home for trying out quick ideas. With domains dirt cheap, I can buy a domain, build a site and have it live within 48 hrs (it would be sooner if waiting for DNS wasn't an issue). This is great when you have an idea that might be time sensitive to capture market attention.
Here's more info:
- Referral link to Dreamhost (gives me credit for directing you there) OR
- Direct link to Dreamhost (hang me out to dry for trying to profit from you)
The Wired CD.
Tuesday, October 26, 2004 11: 19 AM
Download it here for a limited time. The November issue of Wired includes a CD with 16 tracks distributed under two different Creative Commons licenses.
Downloads:
- BitTorrent Users: LegalTorrents is linking to a 320 kbps version. .torrent download link here.
- Download a zipped copy of The Wired CD from nixlog here (84.8 MB @ 192 kbps)
- View Creative Common Licenses for these songs (All are Sampling Plus or Noncommercial Sampling Plus)
On The Wired CD:
- :01 Beastie Boys/ Now Get Busy
- :02 David Byrne/ My Fair Lady
- :03 Zap Mama/ Wadidyusay?
- :04 My Morning Jacket/ One Big Holiday
- :05 Spoon/ Revenge!
- :06 Gilberto Gil/ Oslodum
- :07 Dan the Automator/ Relaxation Spa Treatment
- :08 Thievery Corporation/ DC 3000
- :09 Le Tigre/ Fake French
- :10 Paul Westerberg/ Looking Up in Heaven
- :11 Chuck D with Fine Arts Militia/ No Meaning No
- :12 The Rapture/ Sister Saviour (Blackstrobe Remix)
- :13 Cornelius/ Wataridori 2
- :14 Danger Mouse & Jemini/ What U Sittin' On? (starring Cee Lo and Tha Alkaholiks)
- :15 DJ Dolores/ Oslodum 2004
- :16 Matmos/ Action at a Distance
Enjoy it while it lasts -- when my bandwidth gets sucked dry I'll have to pull it. By that time there should be plenty of copies elsewhere.
Powerless.
Friday, October 22, 2004 01: 04 AM
It's 11:06 PM. I should be watching The Daily Show right now. Instead, I'm writing this.
Our power is out and has been out for an hour now thanks to a pretty good storm that ripped through Tucson, probably distracting some careless driver who then wrapped themselves around a power pole. Yet, through the wonders of technology I can type this message into my Powerbook on battery power. That's good, because my next option would have been to go caveman and start carving messages on walls and that just seemed so 20,000 B.C.
The whole scenario however has been quite "enlightening" (sorry -- couldn't resist.)
The first few minutes of complete darkness were pretty entertaining. The first priority was light. So our path to consistent light was as follows:
- 15" Powerbook screen (it was already on) to
- Sony Ericsson T616 cell phone screen (portable light) to
- Road bike handlebar light (our efforts to find a real flashlight failed despite convincing ourselves we had one) to
- REI candle lantern from some camping supplies (our best light source yet)
So with constant light in place I began assessing our situation: No Internet access. No television. No battery powered radios. Currently our only connection to the outside world is via cell phone - which we could make calls from and also connect to the Internet if necessary. We could also access our car radios. But at the moment, I'm more interested in light. It's hard to function in the dark. So what do we have on hand? Let's see...
- Powerbook (2 hours)
- Bike handlebar light (15-20 hours)
- REI Candle Lantern (27 hours; 3 candles, 9 hours each)
- Additional scented candles (est. 50+ hours; plus healthy supply of matches)
- Cell Phone Screens (3-6 hours)
- Digital Camera Screen (2 hours)
- Digital Video Camera Screen (1 hour)
- iPod Screen (1-2 hours)
- Lightwedge book light (4-5 hours)
So, all in all, 100+ hours of light. Not too bad. If we averaged 2-3 hours of usage a night (essentially sleeping a little after sunset and rising with the sun) we could survive a month or so; buying us plenty of time to gather wood and make arrowhead tipped spears for hunting deer in the desert during the day.
Aside from the whole issue of having light, the most interesting observation thus far is how much simpler life seems on the surface without electricity (and technology for that matter). Rebecca and I, after getting some light established -- almost immediately started talking...just having a normal conversation at candle light. No television. No technology. Everything was completely natural - 1800's style. I can't explain how fascinating it is seeing her walk around with a lantern. And our apartment could very well be an old ranch house when seen in candle light. I've been seemingly transported in time. And it's quiet. So very quiet. Just us and the sound of rain playing outside the open window.
After I finish this post I plan on doing some reading by candle light to complete the full powerless experience. This may be the beginning of a new tradition: One powerless night a month.
Well, my wife just said we need to start eating stuff from the freezer...but before that, I need to send this off from my Powerbook via bluetooth on my cell phone...even with the power completely out, it seems a man can't live without some sort of connectivity these days.
The Car Blog
Wednesday, October 20, 2004 11: 36 PM
The Car Blog launches. Design Case. Business Case. Design. Via whitespace.
Morgue File
Wednesday, October 20, 2004 09: 01 PM
Morgue File Photography, Design. Free high resolution digital stock photography for either corporate or public use. Via datacloud
Convention Words
Wednesday, October 20, 2004 08: 40 PM
Convention Words (reg. req'd) Infographics. A bit dated, but still interesting. Via Collin vs. Blog
JustBlogIt
Monday, October 18, 2004 04: 34 PM
JustBlogIt with a simple right-click. Technology. Right click blogging tool for Firefox. Via Brett.
Program From European Media Art Festival (PDF)
Tuesday, October 12, 2004 04: 10 PM
Program From European Media Art Festival (PDF) Infographics. Clean, inspiring layout of information. Via EMAF
121
Monday, October 11, 2004 06: 30 PM
I rarely talk about my passion for cycling here, but Saturday was a good day -- so I just have to pass along some thoughts...
121. That is the number of miles my two-wheeled steed and I grinded out on Saturday. Pedal over pedal, legs in perpetual motion until they would move no longer. From six in the morning until two in the afternoon -- it was a gruelling amount of time, but well worth it. My previous one day record on my bike was 112 miles. I have done over a hundred miles seven or eight times in the last couple of years, yet most of those were in group events where drafting certainly aided my endurance.
Saturday was different. The first 60 miles were with a group driving hard at 25+ mph most of the way, while the last 60 miles were solo. A man and his machine left to battle the wind and heat of the southern Arizona desert. In my total distance I could have biked from Tucson to Phoenix and then some. Instead I took a large, scenic loop around Tucson. My rationale was "training" -- getting ready for the Tour de Farm and the Tour de Tucson next month. But really, it was more than that. The events are just my excuses; excuses that are secondary to the experience of being alone on my bike with endless miles of possibility in front me and many hard miles behind. Cycling is just in my blood - events or not. For whatever reason I am pulled to the bike -- and it has a grip that has no signs of letting go.
The longer I bike, the more I realize that I am learning with each ride. I learn about limits, possibilities, heartbreak and accomplishment. And I learn about suffering. More and more lately, cycling to me has become about suffering -- where the real pleasure comes in the rebuilding of your mind and body, after you have torn everything down. Over a distance of 121 miles, the suffering comes as a battle between the physical and mental self. Using fuel where it can find it, the body begins the systematic process of deconstruction. First carbohydrates. Then fats and proteins. Eventually the body attempts to shut down muscles when there is nothing left -- the brain is literally, subconsciously attempting to preserve life. But there is something else between the shots of gel and sports drinks that pushes you forward -- a human element deep inside that does not let you quit. Even at mile 113, with your personal best beaten -- you pedal on, because you set the goal of 120 miles. You've come too far to stop now. So you turn the cranks. Pedal over pedal. Your mind wonders to places you rarely go -- facing the past, embracing the future and even contemplating parallel universes where little aliens ride bikes.
Ultimately, this day, you have lived through an encapsulated journey that is symbolic of something bigger - a microcosm of life. The full spectrum of emotions well up as the body fatigues, until at times you are on the verge of breaking down, tears in the corners of your eyes and simply want to quit, but you don't. You continue. Always moving forward until that moment. The moment you step off the bike -- a moment of serenity where it's just your ragged body, a swift machine that shows no signs of wear and the sound of rushing air entering and exiting your lungs.
The next day you are sore. Tired. Satisfied. And happy. Not to mention a few pounds lighter. All while filled with memories of blood racing through your heart at 196 beats per minute as you strained up a climb you had no business taking a bike up; floating through the day on the knowledge that you accomplished something you had never done before: 121. That's the joy that comes from suffering. The joy of being a cycling addict.
ABC News Redesign
Monday, October 11, 2004 04: 24 PM
Behind the ABC News redesign. Design. Via Airbag
Rock & Roll Timeline
Monday, October 11, 2004 04: 10 PM
Rock & Roll Timeline Infographics. "The Visual Timeline - an interactive, animated compendium of rock and popular music history. Via InfoDesign.
Dropload
Monday, October 11, 2004 04: 09 AM
Dropload Technology. Need to pass along that 100MB file to a friend? Dropload is your answer. Via delicious
Skinning Gmail With Custom Stylesheet
Friday, October 8, 2004 12: 23 PM
Skinning Gmail With Custom Stylesheet Technology. Design. Fun with Firefox and Gmail. Via del.icio.us
Color Schemer Studio OSX
Thursday, October 7, 2004 10: 50 PM
Color Schemer Studio OSX Design. I just fell hard for this little shareware app for brainstorming color palettes. Via Airbag.
Rate My Network Diagram.com
Thursday, October 7, 2004 11: 31 AM
Rate My Network Diagram.com Infographics. Sort of a Is My Diagram Hot or Not. Via Photo Matt
Jupiter Project Management Tool
Thursday, October 7, 2004 10: 18 AM
Jupiter Project Management Tool Technology. Nathan @ Playgroundblues built this web-project project management tool from the ground up in two months. Nice work.
Conspiracy Theory Election 2004 Cont.
Tuesday, October 5, 2004 08: 36 PM
The hypothesis raised by my recent post regarding a conspiracy theory for the 2004 election alluded to a couple of extreme tactics that *could* be used by the neocons if the president's gap closed following the debates -- well, it seems the president's gap has closed and, it seems, a much more banal plan appears to have been put into action...
As reported by the International Heral Tribune:
"President George W. Bush, whose poll lead disappeared after Kerry's tough criticisms on Iraq in their debate, now plans to deliver a major speech Wednesday on terrorism and the economy, aides said."
An Introduction to Using Patterns in Web Design
Tuesday, October 5, 2004 04: 44 PM
An Introduction to Using Patterns in Web Design from 37signals Design. Via del.icio.us
Map: Bicycle Riding Options in NY (Reg.)
Tuesday, October 5, 2004 11: 41 AM
Map: Bicycle Riding Options in NY (Reg.) Infographics. Via Veen > Glowlabs > NY Times (Reg.)
WPS1 Art Radio
Monday, October 4, 2004 04: 23 PM
WPS1 Art Radio Design. "WPS1 presents a daily, 24-hour stream of music, talk and historic spoken-word programs focusing on contemporary art, music and literature from around the world." Via Oct/Nov issue of Dwell Magazine
Iraq: Mapping 2,368 Attacks in 30 Days
Sunday, October 3, 2004 11: 09 PM
Iraq: Mapping 2,368 Attacks in 30 Days from NY Times Infographics. Amazing look at locations and types of attacks in Iraq. Via Metafilter.
Seattle Public Library Infographics
Friday, October 1, 2004 06: 55 PM
Through infographics The Seattle Times provides some exceptional insight into Seattle's Public Library that opened in May 2004:
1980 Mount St. Helens Eruption
Friday, October 1, 2004 06: 39 PM
1980 Mount St. Helens Eruption Graphic Infographics. Via Seattle Times
Unicode Charts
Friday, October 1, 2004 04: 53 PM
Unicode Code Charts Infographics. "These charts are provided as a convenient online reference to the character contents of the Unicode Standard." Some interesting character sets in there. Via a Google search.
Conspiracy Theory: Election 2004
Friday, October 1, 2004 04: 11 AM
I can't resist.
Is any conspiracy theory really beyond the realm of this presidential political race?
First off, the battle for the White House is the most heated, important and incredible battle for power in this country. We should never under estimate the extent bad people will go to retain or gain it.
Conspiracy theory ensues.
- The Equations:
- If JK(FL + MO)/GB(FL + MO) = -P% then -P%
- If -P% then S(M x J) or C(M x J)
- If S(M x J) then GB - A
- If C(M x J) then GB + A
- If -A with S or +A with C then V for GB
- The Variables:
- JK: John Kerry
- FL: Florida Debate
- MO: Missouri Debate
- P%: Positive Polling Numbers for John Kerry (i.e. He closes the gap)
- -P%: Negative Polling Numbers for George Bush (i.e. The gap closes significantly)
- S: National security situation (imaginary, fabricated or real)
- C: Capture of significant terrorist suspect (conveniently timed, perhaps already in custody but not announced)
- M: Media sympathy and support for GB
- J: John Q. Public sympathy and support for GB
- A: Arizona Debate
- V: Victory
- GB: George Bush
- The Long-hand:
- If JK(F + M)/GB(F + M) = -P% then -P%
If the summation (+) of John Kerry's (JK) debate performances in Florida (F) and Missouri (M) divided by (/) the summation (+) of George Bush's (GB) debate performances yields (=) a significant percentage gap decrease in George Bush's (GB) polling position (-P%) then there is a significant gap decrease in the polls (-P%). - If -P% then S(M x J) or C(M x J)
If there is a significant gap decrease in the polls (-P%) then the potential exists that there will be a "national security situation" (S) (imaginary, fabricated or real) that brings media (M) and John Q Public's (J) support and sympathy OR a conveniently timed capture (C) of a significant terrorist suspect that brings media (M) and John Q Public's support and praise. - If S(M x J) then GB - A
If a national security situation (S) brings George Bush sympathy from media (M) and public (J) then George Bush (GB) can withdraw (-) from the Arizona (A) debate (thus reducing the risk of loosing more ground because of the debates, if that is the case). - If C(M x J) then + A
If the capture (C) of a terrorist suspect brings George Bush support from media (M) and public (J), then George Bush (GB) will attend the Arizona (A) debate (thus attempting to increase his profile) - If -A with S or A with C then V for GB.
If no Arizona (A) debate with a national security situation (S) OR the Arizona (A) debate with a capture (C) then increased chance of victory (V) for George Bush (GB)
(Note: I don't remember remember a whole lot from the Phil 101 days - so my "logic statements" are not true to form. They are just playful re-interpretations of logic days long past.)
UPDATE: The formula has been updated to accurately reflect Missouri as the next presidential debate locale, not Ohio (the location of the VP debate). This error occured while attempting to write up things like this at 4 AM.
Bullet Madness ★ free bullets project at stylegala.com - a fine css resource
Friday, October 1, 2004 01: 54 AM
Bullet Madness - free bullets project Design. "Download 200 free bullets at Bullet Madness". Via Giant Ant.
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