This entry was published at least two years ago (originally posted on December 2, 2008). Since that time the information may have become outdated or my beliefs may have changed (in general, assume a more open and liberal current viewpoint). A fuller disclaimer is available.
Sometime between 12:37 and 18:08, I thought this stuff was interesting. You might think so too!
- App Store Lessons: Creating simple application links: Linktoapp offers a handy way to simplify [iTunes App Store] URLs by filtering them through iTunes' search engine. Developed by Arn of MacRumors, Linktoapp is basically TinyURL for the App Store.
- Neil Gaiman’s Journal: Why defend freedom of icky speech?: Freedom to write, freedom to read, freedom to own material that you believe is worth defending means you're going to have to stand up for stuff you don't believe is worth defending, even stuff you find actively distasteful, because laws are big blunt instruments that do not differentiate between what you like and what you don't, because prosecutors are humans and bear grudges and fight for re-election, because one person's obscenity is another person's art. Because if you don't stand up for the stuff you don't like, when they come for the stuff you do like, you've already lost.
- The Witches: Guillermo Del Toro Dances With Roald Dahl’s Witches: Yay! This could be very, very cool. My one hope is that he sticks with the original ending — my one complaint about the otherwise excellent earlier film adaptation of this story is that the ending is sweeter and less dark than the book.
- Vampire Comedy Has Musicians Lining Up to Suck: Alice Cooper is about to make vampires more metal. The rocker joins Iggy Pop, Moby, and Malcolm McDowell in the upcoming horror comedy Suck. A cross-genre cast of musicians and a monster hunting, nyctophobic Malcolm McDowell star in this tale of a wannabe rock band who, after an encounter with a vampire, find that fame and immortality aren’t quite what they expected.
- Does the broken windows theory hold online?: Much of the tone of discourse online is governed by the level of moderation and to what extent people are encouraged to "own" their words. When forums, message boards, and blog comment threads with more than a handful of participants are unmoderated, bad behavior follows. The appearance of one troll encourages others. Undeleted hateful or ad hominem comments are an indication that that sort of thing is allowable behavior and encourages more of the same.