December 2008

How my Avatar differs from my Real Face (a guide)

While I was changing my Twitter picture I noticed that the service suggests that to be more personable and connect better I should use a picture of myself, rather than a random image as an avatar. Currently I use an avatar I created about two years ago that also doubles as my logo for business materials. I crafted it specially to capture something about me while still being abstract enough to hide my physical flaws. It was never about hiding behind a picture, I thought it was a nice way to promote myself consistently.

My avatar and logo My logo and avatar for the last two years: E01

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I think your analogy slipped!

I think your analogy slipped!

Shared by joshnunn
A terrific argument against drawing a bad analogy between the internet and road safety.

You see, while we have laws to prevent people from speeding (and they don’t actually…

Oh 2.7, you know just what I like…

Good design in 2.7 Good Design in Wordpress 2.7

The latest Wordpress update, 2.7, manages to get WIN all over my keyboard. It fair shoots out of the screen and all over the place with its sexy sexy curves and simple lines. I want to give it a hug.

The 2.6 update was pretty good. It was good enough that 2.5 is all but erased completely from my mind. 2.7 however, looks gorgeous, plays nice with all my extensions and adds a couple of neat features that make me want to go home with it, and I barely even know it.

Awesome Feature Number 1 is automatic site software upgrades. Untested as I write this, the idea of its existence is enough to make me “ghee” with joy. Found under “Tools > Upgrade” on the new left-hand menu, it offers simple upgrades to the latest software that bypasses the old “upload each new file/directory” that some have been subjected to, and even cuts out the middle man web-hosts who have been offering something similar for a while.

Awesome Feature Number 2 is plugin searching and installation RIGHT FROM THE FRIGGIN ADMIN PAGE! This makes plugins so easy to install that it practically guarantees broken Wordpress installations across the world as people just install new plugins ’cause they can! No more tossing up if it’s worth it to upload and install something new. Why waste a second thinking about it when you can just press “install” and see? In minutes of upgrading my site tonight I had a working iPhone version of my site, and (hopefully) some integration with my FriendFeed account. That is the “killer feature” of Wordpress right there my friends, found under “Plugins > Add New”. It makes me so happy I could cry.

So go and update it today. It’ll be the last painful upgrade you do.

Twitter iPhone Client Faceoff

I’ve tried a number of Twitter clients for my iPhone now. Most of them have something that makes them stand out, and all of them have flaws. Here they are, a little mini-review:

Twitter for iPhone Image by dan taylor via Flickr

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Where my parenting meets the “Cleanfeed”

I love technology. The thrill of new possibilities. The excitement of learning. There’s nothing that beats it.

Actually, that’s a complete lie. There is something that beats it. Beats it hands down. Without question.

I love my baby girl. The thrill of her potential. The excitement of seeing her learn. By gum it’s the greatest feeling I’ve ever experienced, to watch her discover her world.

Hacking the interwebz Hax0r the interw3bz

I’m totally looking forward to teaching her everything I can about the earth. The people on it, the cultures, the life, the bizarre phenomena we just can’t explain yet. I know she’ll be just as fascinated as I am. And I’m hoping that she turns out to be a geek like her Dad.

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Unsubscribed from Technologizer

The Technologizer is quite a good Tech website, but I find myself scrolling past them in my feed reader all too often, because they don’t offer full feeds.

10 Useful RSS-Tricks and Hacks For WordPress

10 Useful RSS-Tricks and Hacks For WordPress

By Jean-Baptiste Jung

RSS is one of those technologies that are extremely simple yet extremely powerful. Currently, RSS is the de facto standard for blog syndication, and it is used widely in…

IBoss from Phantom Technologies

IBoss from Phantom Technologies

Shared by joshnunn
Not a bad solution to mix wireless access with filtering. Products like these could help those “overwhelmed parents” more than the cleanfeed

I’ve added another filtering to…

Children’s welfare groups clobber Rudd’s filter plan

Children’s welfare groups clobber Rudd’s filter plan
Holly Doel-Mackaway, a child rights adviser with Save the Children, shocked many of us last week at the UNSW filtering forum when she spoke out against mandatory ISP filtering. I guess too many of…

Sweetcron: A Sweet Lifestreaming Solution

Sweetcron: A Sweet Lifestreaming Solution
sweetcronIt’s a common complaint: with all the social networking sites and blogging options that our friends are always asking us to join, we’re getting over-extended. By the time you’ve had your first…