Podcast Update

You must be thinking "man, did this guy quit listening to anything except Adam Curry's Daily Source Code and Phedippidations?" Well, you wouldn't be far from the truth. I have listened to the following podcasts over that last weeks, but only a little at a time. For some, I simply can't say much about them as too much time has passed an my brain has grown fuzzy.

• Josh Bancroft talks about Podcasting from Mobile Devices. This was a good presentation especially if you are new to podcasting. Josh clearly knows his stuff.
• Omid Kordestani, Google, participated in a conversation where many topics were covered. While I don't remember all of the details, I know this was a good podcast. I do remember the Google 80/20 work week. Each employee gets 1 day a week to do what ever they want! Man, could I did that.
  
• The Prospects for AI panel discussion with
  • Neil Jacobstein
  • Patrick Lincoln
  • Peter Norvig
  • Bruno Olshausen
  
  I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this panel. They discussed how AI can help humans behave intelligently and how we need to keep studying the brain to gain insight into how it works. And much more. Highly recommended.
• SDForum's SearchSIG was another worthwhile panel presentation. The panelists were:
  
  
  • Doug Kaye, IT Conversations
  • Evan Williams, ODEO
  • David Marks, Loomia
  • Eric Rice, Audioblog
  
  
  My favorite line from one of these guys was something like, "it's not the search, but the find that matters."
  


• I have started subscribing to eWeek's podcasts. I have totally made up my mind about their utility yet. I like that they are brief. I do remember hearing about Microsoft's Sparkle (something like Flash) which I haven't dug into yet.
• Trent Henry talks about Enterprise Security Architecture. Man, it has been awhile. I am confident this is a good presentation, but my memory is just too faded to say much. I may have to listen again.
  

Rant - To Divide is Not Divine

The more I think about all of the seemingly senseless violence in the world these days, I keep thinking about how we humans seem to have the tendency to divide people into different groups. The type of division I am thinking about isn’t that which classifies people in ways that is edifying or trivial (e.g., bike riders vs runners). It is more in line with saints vs. sinners, Muslims vs. Christians, straights vs. gays, etc. I guess the divisions I am thinking are those driven by ideology, religion, politics and the like. The ones that are concerning me the most in this case are religion and ideology.

It seems to me that we should be able to more easily weed through the hateful and wrong religions and ideologies. By the way, I think there are many of them, but the level of hate and “wrongness” does vary in degrees for some of these. The first idea that came to me in this regard was prompted by some ideas I learned reading Brian Greene’s books about physics. I was particularly struck by his description of experiments that demonstrated that if one sends individual particles through slots on a plane you get the same effects as when you send many particles at one time. He compared this to the effect one sees when you see flowing water through a series of even spaced and sized slots on a plane. The water forms waves and the waves from each slot interact with each other. Sometimes the waves cancel each other out and you see waves intermixed with smooth parts. OK, remember I am not a physicist. Thus, I may not say this quite right, but I think I’m in the ballpark. The interpretation in the particle case is that the particles which were released 1 at a time could not have interacted with each other like the water did. Thus, any given particle once released individually has at any given moment infinite potential movements within the same kind of space as that which would appear if many particles were released through the slots at the same time.

You must be thinking, “where is he going with this?” Here: what if the Divine behaves in ways that is consistent with the same principles governing the phenomenon we observe. For example, what if any given human released into the world has infinite potential movements in Divine space. Thus, it is invalid to classify Muslim or Christian as religions as more or less divine then the other. The seemingly deterministic, legalistic, “extreme” points of view that say if you dogma isn’t exactly like mine then you are damned or you are fodder for extermination and abuse are WRONG.

So, the critical question becomes what defines Divine space. I suggest that we can judge Divine by its objectives. When these objectives are seemingly focused on killing people of label X, it is not divine. When these objectives are to abuse people who don't believe like you, it is not divine. When these objectives are focused on convincing yourself or others that others are damned because they don't think like you, it is not divine. It seems to me that right now there are a lot of groups that are not focused on making anything better as much as they are focused on simply making them worse for someone else. That is not divine. No one is perfect, but we should all strive for the divine.

By the way, I put the NATO-Caliphates war I referenced in an earlier blog entry in this non-divine category. Identifying 2 sides from which one can choose to join to fight is not the answer to our woes. It is not divine. It does not even exist. There is strife. There is hatred. There are horrible things happening that result in the deaths of those who don't deserve it. Failing to accommodate the times and seeking the divine will only make it worse. Let's stop dividing into Jew, Muslim, Christian, ... for non-divine purposes. He hurts us all and helps no one.

9 Mile Run: Brownell - Shades Creek Greenway

Adam Curry's Daily Source Code was especially long today. So, that took up a good portion of the run even though I had started it yesterday. He had really gone off on the appearance of his opponents in his recent law suit and this one included an ex-employee of the EFF. Adam believes they should take a larger interest in cases like the one he just fought. He got an audio comment that basically said all of Adam's concern with his own appearance and remarks about his shabby opponents' appearance were of little value as appearance meant little to the judge. Adam, of course, disagreed. Adam is certainly right that everyone is influenced by appearances. But, I think Adam may give it too much credence.

The recent conversations about the efforts one must go through to get white-listed by large ISP's is quite interesting. Basically, if you send an email to a lot of folks and likely other observable characteristics, AOL, MSN, and others put you on their blacklist under the guise of protecting their users from spam. For an opening price of a mere $80,000 you can get them to list you in their white-list and your emails will go through. I would have to agree with Adam's sentiments. This is highway robbery.

Also, listened to the latest Phedippidations. Another good show. Steve went off on Tom Cruise a little. I mentioned it when I voted for Phedippidations on Podcast Alley. Steve emailed me. I hope I didn't help create any real guilt for him. Tom Cruise deserves grief for his silly statements about psychiatry and depression. And, I have to admit that when you cut to the core, I agree with Steve's perspective on Tom. Tom should stick to acting.

Data

Distance: 9
Time: 1:21:41
Heart Rate: 154
Pace: 9:04
Weather: Clear skies and about 45.

6 Mile Run: Neighborhood

This was a slow run in the dark on a warm night. This was a busy day and I was not able to hit the pavement until after 6:00. I hate running my neighborhood route at night as it includes 4 miles on gravel with no lights. But, I have alwasy survived. I felt tired early in the run. Thus, this was a "mental run". A mental run for me means I ran because my mind said so. My body said no. This was not due to any true pain hinting at injury or anything. Just the result of a hard day and general tiredness. I have always found the results are better for me if I run. Not running just makes it worse. I listened to Adam Curry and his wife discuss his suit with the gossip rag on the latest Daily Source Code. While I agree with Adam's position 100%. I thought he went over the top discussing how people looked. He hopes the judge sends a clear statement that violating Creative Common licenses is not acceptable. Me too! I did get some music time on the run. I listened to Nickelback's "The Long Road". I hadn't listened to them in quite a while. Man these guys rock! Data: Distance: 6 Miles Time: 1:01:54 Heart Rate: 155 Pace: 10:18 Weather: Clear and 66 degrees

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

No CD's on this run, I got caught on Adam Curry's Daily Source Code. I checked out the MadgeCast videos distributed via my subscription. For those of you who don't know, Madge is Madge Weinstein of Madge Weinstein's Yeast Radio. I have only heard Madge on Adam's show (now nicknamed "the Charlie"). She sounds hilarious and creative. She, by the way, is biologically a he and prefers the masculine gender. Except for these video's , I had only seen glimpses of Madge and always in drag. Madge's partner died in February. This is quite evident in the video's.

Madge, sorry for your loss. I would check out your show should I have time. But, I just can't keep up with my current subscriptions. I did appreciate seeing you without drag. Just to see what you "really" look like. Seems wrong that at such a time while viewing such a personal creation in such circumstances, that this is what strikes me. The video is very touching. I hate to see the pain anyone suffers after such a loss.

Can't wait to hear Adam's next show as it should contain details about his suit against the gossip rag in the Netherlands. The took pictures from Flickr that were covered by a Creative Commons, non-commercial use license and plastered them in their rag. Moreover, they pissed off Adam (and for good reason) by following his daughter to school and describing where she goes to school. Most disturbingly, they described her travel arrangements and schedule. So, Adam had to change them of course. Even Lawrence Lessig is apparently interested in this one. Should be interesting.

Data

Distance: 3
Time: 30:03
Heart Rate: 150
Pace: 10:03
Weather: Clear skies and 65 degrees

10.5 Mile Run: Brownell - Shades Creek Greenway

Another good Sunday run in the cold. Listened to the latest Phedippidations about the mystique of the marathon. I thoroughly enjoyed the way Steve told the story of the first Marathon run, that of Phedippides. Then, the mp3 player rolled into Shinedown. What a good CD! I especially like the rendition of Simple Man. The singing on this one is just great. The run finished off with Eve 6 which is another favorite for running with. Further, both of these flowed together well. Data: Distance: 10.5 Miles Time: 1:43:45 Heart Rate: 154 Pace: 9:53 Weather: Clear skies, 37 degrees

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

A late day run in the dark and cold. Was just too busy cranking out the work today to get out while the sun was there. No CD's on this run, I got caught on Adam Curry's Daily Source Code.

Data

Distance: 3
Time: 30:04
Heart Rate: 154
Pace: 10:01
Weather: Clear Skies, low 50's.

6 Mile Run: Neighborhood

It was raining and in the 50's on Wednesday (when I planned to complete this run). This is just the right conditions to making dressing very difficult. Warm enough to make wearing water resistant clothing really hot and cool enough to be cold without the water resistance. So, I delayed for this morning. My son caught the flu despite having had a flu shot. So, didn't sleep much as I took the duty of taking care of him while the wife slept. He is doing fine and the run went well. Today, I ran to The Vines' Ride CD. Ride just jams while the rest is little sleepier, but not bad. Data: Distance: 6 Miles Time: 58:28 Heart Rate: 160 Pace: 9:44 Weather: Clear skies, 53 degrees

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

I need to get better at logging right after my runs as the brain just gets fuzzy with time. Work has been so demanding, I can barely keep up with when I last ate. But, twas a good run. Today, I ran to Outkast's Speakerboxxx. Some jam, some not. Overall, it is a good CD to listen or run to. Interestingly enough, I find that rap and hip hop CD's list so many artists for the songs, that you have to select by album title on the mp3 player if you want to hear the entire CD. Data: Distance: 3 Miles Time: 29:03 Heart Rate: 158 Pace: 9:41 Weather: Cloudy, mid 50's

9 Mile Run: Brownell - Shades Creek Greenway

Another run catching up on podcasts including Adam Curry's Daily Source Code and Phedippidations. A very cold, but good run. After my long diatribe of the last posting, I am going to just log the data and get going.

Data

Distance: 9
Time: 1:21:47
Heart Rate: 156
Pace: 9:05
Weather: Cloudy and 25 degrees.

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

I have not been able to keep up with all the podcasts I listen to regularly. So, again I didn't select any music for the run. Instead, I listened to show 337 of Adam Curry's Daily Source Code. The most interesting part of the show was Michael of Podshow's comments about the NATO-Caliphates war. Interesting and scary, I should say. Seems to me that Michael's comments add some sort of credibility to what we think of as terrorists as a Caliphatic army defending the Ottoman Empire. I found this gem of an article, KryssTal : USA: The "War on Terror", that I assume presents some of the foundation for the position well.

I am sure that like all such polarizing arguments "the west's" and the "Caliphates", the truth is somewhere in between all of the rhetoric. If we can divide everything up into two camps, it will sure make fighting easier. I hope we can find a way through what looks to me like a mess getting messier. And, it seems that much of it is in the name of the same God who I understand prefers love. How dreadful we humans can make our own lot! I can actually understand and sympathize with some of the sentiments in the aforementioned article.

For many Americans, myself included, the sentiment expressed in the aforementioned article does not reflect our position. We do fear for the safety of our society and for our families. And, that fear motivates us to act. All should forsake violence and pursue real peace. And, yes, for me that means Americans too. But, I have to tell you that tearing down a government that hung cassette tapes from lamp posts and treated a soccer field as an execution center while maintaining training camps to kill me and my children, does not seem too difficult to support. Further, at the time I had no idea what Caliphates was. Iraq, for me, was a totally different matter.

As to perspectives that span hundreds of years and acts of dead people, I think it is up to us to find a better way. I would say it looks like we have a long way to go.

Data

Distance: 3
Time: 30:09
Heart Rate: 153
Pace: 10:03
Weather: Partly cloudy. 47 degrees

5 Mile Run: Neighborhood

Early morning run that should have been on Wednesday. And, I just noticed that I failed to log Tuesday's run. Unfortunately, my heart rate monitor and watch do not save history beyond last run. So, when I make that log entry shortly, it will be scant for information. During this run, I just got caught up on Adam Curry's Daily Source Code and Phedippidations. Phedippidations was on Runner Safety. Gotta tell you Steve, you said it all nicely. But, folks who get emotional and holier than thou about mp3 players and headphones, can sure irritate me. You didn't. You were polite and non-emotional. And, yes I will continue to use them while I run.

Data

Distance: 5
Time: 52:26
Heart Rate: 153
Pace: 10:24
Weather: Clear skies and 51

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

Lamest running log entry ever!

I lost the data on the watch because I cleared in the next run. I did log this run on time. I don't remember the data, the weather, or what I listened to. I'm lame.

I did run and it was the first run after the 1/2 marathon. I know my legs said "ouch".

13.1 Miles: Mercedes Half-Marathon

I did it! I completed the Mercedes Half-Marathon of 2006. This is an extremely well organized and managed race. A 7:03 start time made for an early start. Yes, I know I normally run at 6:30 on Sunday mornings, but it is different to start a race so early. Nonetheless, I toed up and did it. I never felt overly fatigued. The right hamstring was a bit tight after about 7 miles, but no real issue. After all of the ankle trouble and such, I am just glad to have done it. I considered putting the latest Phedippidations in the playlist for the start, but opted for nothing but music. All three CD's I selected are amongst my favorites and I sure put them in the right order. Train, The Killers, P.O.D. Data: Distance: 13.1 Miles Time: 2:05:29 Heart Rate: 162 Pace: 9:34 Weather: Mostly clear skies, 29 degrees

5 Mile Run: Neighborhood

This is the last run before Mercedes 1/2 marathon on Sunday. I am holding back a little on workouts and runs this week to ensure a fresher start on Sunday. The weather man is predicting very cold temperatures (low 20's). But, it has always been cold on the 4 other times I have run this thing. I can handle it. I am just happy that with all of the ankle problems last year, that I find myself in a position to go for it. Yeepee! Wish me luck. This run's musical selection was one of my favorites. The Black Eyeed Peas, Monkey Business. These guys are just too cool. I love the vibe, lyrics, and hip hop. Great to dance and run to. Data: Distance: 5 Miles Time: 49:57 Heart Rate: 156 Pace: 9:59 Weather: Partly cloudy, 41 degrees

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

Another morning run and I am sure slower in the neighborhood. The hills do make a difference. Good run. I jammed to Soul Coughing. Data: Distance: 3 Miles Time: 30:31 Heart Rate: 151 Pace: 10:10 Weather: Clear skies, 28 degrees

11 Mile Run: Jemison Park - Shades Creek Circle

Finally, I have worked enough of a base to run my favorite loop here in Birmingham. The even better news is that now I feel confident enough to enter for the Mercedes 1/2 Marathon scheduled for next weekend. The run felt great! Today, I listened to the latest Phedippidations and jammed to Velvet Revolver and Sum 41. The Velvet Revolver CD has some super good running tracks and some ok music. One of these days, I need to identify the songs from the CD that just crank for running and put them in a playing list. I nearly gave up on this CD thanks to the sneaky attempt to prevent mp3 ripping on it. I don't share music files. And, I seldom do anything other then listen with my mp3 player. I find it easier to buy CD's then buying by track especially since I don't have an iPod and don't benefit from iTunes. The upside is that I learned the importance of turning off auto-launch for CD's. I removed BMG's load of a hidden driver that prevented the copy and prevented them from taking the same sneaky path to dropping hidden files on my machine in the future. I ended the run with Sum 41 which is a cranking band. Data: Distance: 11 Miles Time: 1:48:04 Heart Rate: 154 Pace: 9:49 Weather: Clear skies, 28 degrees

3 Mile Run: Columbia, SC

The last early morning run before I go back home! Yeppee. I sure miss the family. I am still digging these early morning runs. This could get addicting. Jammed to Trapt today. Trapt came to Birmingham for a yearly CSchaeffer Eye Center Crawfish Boil that is just awesome and more so with such a jamming band. I love their chose of musical style and the lyrics are rich with introspective and heart felt outpourings that make me feel strong (esp. Headstrong). Data: Distance: 3 Miles Time: 28:21 Heart Rate: Not measured Pace: 9:10 Weather: Mostly clear skies, 61 degrees (ew, summer is here, lol)

6 Mile Run: Columbia, SC

Another beautiful morning, although cold. These pre-dawn runs are exhilarating. Something about the earth waking up that just makes you feel good. I jammed to the Meat Puppets and Mary Playground. Both are good, but the Meat Puppets just nail the perfect running beat. In fact, this CD is almost playing when I start the Cooper River Bridge Run each year (running for the 11th time this year). The pace is picking up. I suspect it is due to the much flatter courses. Data: Distance: 6 Miles Time: 56:48 Heart Rate: Not measured Pace: 9:22 Weather: Clear skies, 39 degrees

3 Mile Run: Columbia, SC

Early morning run in the cold. I got caught on Adam Curry's Daily Source Code.

Data

Distance: 3.12
Time: 29:57
Heart Rate: Not measured
Pace: 9:35
Weather: 41 degrees and clear skies

9 Mile Run: Brownell - Shades Creek Greenway

The last time I ran this route I sprained my ankle (again!) and that ended my running for several months. Today, I had no problem. But, of course, I was in my ankle brace. Felt good. I listened to the end of a Daily Source Code by Adam Curry and a Phedippidations episode. Then, I finished the run listening to the Bare Naked Ladies, Maroon. Good music! Although I had no ankle trouble, I did encounter a little muscle fatigue in my right calf in the last mile. It is strange how as you crank up the intensity, speed or distance, you find weaknesses. For a few minutes, I suffered what felt like a right leg that was going to just let me fall by not providing the umph to kick-off the next step. I survived. I had some "trots" trouble too. Most runners probably know what I mean (think Imodium AD). Fortunately, there is a shell station very near the 1 mile mark! After this minor pit stop, all was well. Data: Distance: 9 Miles Time: 1:26:09 Heart Rate: 160 Pace: 9:34 Weather: Cloudy and humid, it had rained overnight and the windshield in the car required regular wiping on the way to Brownell, 58 degrees

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

No CD's on this run, I got caught on Adam Curry's Daily Source Code (show 320). He is working with his lawyers to sue some gossip rag in the Netherlands for posting pictures from his flickr site (covered by Creative Commons license, thus no commercial use). His motivation is more about their invasion and endangerment of his daughter by describing precisely when and how she travels from school. Adam, stick it to 'em as that was wreckless and stupid on their part.

Data

Distance: 3
Time: 29:49 (yeppee broke 30)
Heart Rate: 156
Pace: 9:56
Weather: Partly cloudy, 56 degrees.

5 Mile Run: Neighborhood

I started at 5:15 am as I have a 7:00 am meeting. It was cold, but what a beautiful morning. The sky was extremely clear with a crescent moon in the sky with its entire circumference visible. Lots of stars. About midway in the run, I could see the sun's light beginning to brighten the ground although the sky was still quite dark. Great way to start the day. I jammed to the Black Eyed Peas, Monkey Business. What a great CD and what wonderful musicians. I have 3 of their CDs and love every one of 'em. Data: Distance: 5 Miles Time: 51:34 Heart Rate: 157 Pace: 10:18 Weather: Clear skies, 32 degrees

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

Felt like a good run, but I am still slow. I listened to the latest Phedippidations. This show was especially interesting and Steve got me with visual imagery bit. Someone had written him indicating that they were stuck running on a treadmill due to weather. So, he describes a great running environ in the country, only to ..., whoosh! Good trick. Well, you need to listen for yourself, I shouldn't give it away

Data

Distance: 3
Time: 30:53
Heart Rate: 153
Pace: 10:18
Weather: Clear skies and 47.

7 Mile Run: Brownell - Shades Creek Greenway

My original plan was to run 6 miles, but that would have meant wearing the Timex/Garwin Time and Distance GPS. Of course, it didn't dawn on me that I could have done my 6 mile loop through Mountain Brook. So, I went to the end of Shades Creek Greenway for a total of 7 miles. The run felt great. The TNT folks that normally start Brownell at 6:30 am went the opposite direction today. So, I didn't pass or get passed by many runners. I listened the last Daily Source Code and closed the run with Peter Case. This is an old CD, but, man, I dig this tunes. Interesting that Amazon has no image for the CD. I could scan, but I surely its copyrighted. I got the CD after hearing one of the tunes on the radio while I was in graduate school at Virginia Tech. I thought it was a Joe Ely tune I hadn't heard. I called to find out what it was and discovered that it was Peter Case. I bought the CD and have loved it ever since. It is a bit off the beaten track for my usual listening, but Peter's fushion of blues, country, and probably a few other styles coupled with the superior song writing is just awesome. Not to mention the catchy pseudo-intellectual CD title: The Man with the Blue Post Modern Fragmented Neo-Traditionalist Guitar. Data: Distance: 7 Miles Time: 1:08:42 Heart Rate: 154 Pace: 9:48 Weather: Heavy cloud coverage with a fairly constant mist, 62 degrees

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

Had to try to squeeze a quick run and leave time to do some cooking for guests arriving at 7:00 pm. Whew, I did it. I finished cooking up some gumbo and some Okra Caponata Toasts. All came out good. The guests showed and we ate in fine New Orleans style. Oh, back to run. It went fine. I jammed to P.O.D. which is some great running music. Data: Distance: 3 Miles Time: 30:20 Heart Rate: 157 Pace: 10:7 Weather: Clear skies, 58 degrees

Podcast Update

IT Conversations has gone Commercial. I approve and I am happy to pay! Sure hope the price stays reasonable. I wonder if the free part is going away? I used the queue and such, so I paid up.

• I listened to another great presentation by Anne Thomas Manes. This time the subject was Security in a SOA World. She does a great job of explaining how WS-Security and several of the other WS* specifications work. Further, she reviews the current status and maturity of the security related WS* specifications. She also discusses some of the reasons why for many applications WS* and SOAP provide a better answer then REST and https. I highly recommend this podcast.
• I listed to Dr. Moira Gunn talk to Mary Roach. The conversation including discussions about scientific searches for the soul. Mary also talked about her experience with mediums including what it was like to go to medium school and her conversation with the medium that inspired the TV show of the same name. Interesting podcast.
  

4 Mile Run: Neighborhood

I ended up with an early morning run as I didn't manage to get my Wednesday run in. It was nice to run in the wee hours and watch the neighborhood wake up. I got caught up on the latest Daily Source Code and finished the run jamming to Audioslave which just jams. Data: Distance: 4 Miles Time: 41:12 Heart Rate: 156 Pace: 10:18 Weather: Partly cloudy, 43 degrees

30 Minutes Run: At the Gym

I wimped out and opted not to brave the weather. Ok, those in the really cold parts of the country can laugh at me. So, I went off to gym where 17 laps = 1 mile and ran for 30 minutes. No songs on this run except those in Adam Curry's Daily Source Code shows 316 and 217. The run was uneventful, dry, and warm.

Data

Distance: 3
Time: 29:43
Heart Rate: 155
Pace: Not measured
Weather: Outside it was 48 degrees and raining.

5 Mile Run: Brownell - Shades Creek Greenway

I woke up at a horrible 3:00 am after falling asleep with when my son got sleepy in my arms on the sofa last night at 7:30. I started the run listening to the latest Phedippidations and finished listening to Sheryl Crow. It is a great CD, but a little slow for running. I enjoyed listening anyway. It would be better for a longer run. Data: Distance: 5 Miles Time: 47:58 Heart Rate: Not measured Pace: 9:34 Weather: Clear skies, 28 degrees (coldest run this year)

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

What yucky weather. This was one of those days that knowing that you are running in such bad conditions supports the idea that you are a real runner. But, trully once the body heat kicked in, it wasn't bad. Todays, mp3 selection was The Killers' Hot Fuss CD. Good CD that drives the feet to run. Data: Distance: 3 Miles Time: 30:48 Heart Rate: 155 Pace: 10:16 Weather: Dense clouds and light mist, 52 degrees

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

This was a comfortable, cool run during which I listened to Puddle of Mudd's "Come Clean" for which I didn't get any hits on Amazon, so no picture or opportunity to provide a link. I am sure some may think I am just trying to be greedy (I have no sales). I just think seeing the album art and having the opp to buy adds a nice look. I don't expect to make anything. I checked after posting this entry and was able to get a hit for the CD, so I updated this entry accordingly. Data: Distance: 3 Miles Time: 30:13 Heart Rate: 158 Pace: 10:4 Weather: Partly cloudy, 52 degrees

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

I sure hope the pace begins to pick up, but the hills are brutal. No CD's on this run, I got caught on Adam Curry's Daily Source Code.

Data

Distance: 3
Time: 31:47
Heart Rate: 152
Pace: 10:36
Weather: I can't remember as it took me too long to get to log... (I ran on Jan 10th, logged on 12th)

Podcast Update

Tony Gaughan, Computer Associates, talked about his experience with open sourcing Ingres, a enterprise database engine. If you have investigated the open source from the perspective of a commercial vendor, he probably didn't introduce anything new. However, if you aren't, he provides a quick, accurate, and well articulated picture of the main issues facing commercial enterprises as they look at open source: licensing, total cost of ownership, cultural changes (he use this label, but it is evident that CA embraced cultural changes as they open sourced Ingres). He also addressed whether the open sourcing of Ingres purely a way for Computer Associates to dump it given its age and such. He didn't agree that this was the case. In contrast, he built the case that it is a great candidate for use in the enterprise given it stability, performance, and feature set. He indicated that the change to open source provided opportunity for new innovations. He provides a very good coverage of the general licensing concerns that one faces with open source. I agree with him that we all need to find a way to simply the range and applicability of open source licenses. Interesting that he indicated that the GPL was quickly dismissed largely due to its viral clauses. That matches my experience as well. For many open source projects, warmer acceptance and growth is going to be directly correlated with the commercial friendliness of the governing license.

4 Mile Run: Brownell - Shades Creek Greenway

Today was my first time to meet up with all the runners at the Brownell building at 6:30 am. Feels good to be back and to have put in 4 days of running this week. I also put in my 2 muscle works classes at the gym. Yeppee! Today's mp3 selection was a Steve Runner's podcast. Listening to him talking about jumping in the ocean in Boston on January 1, some how helped me feel warm.

Data

Distance: 4
Time: 37:49
Heart Rate: Not measured (wore the Garwin/Timex Time and Distance)
Pace: 9:26
Weather: Clear skies, 42 degrees, and a strong breeze that added to the feeling of cold

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

Third run of the week and feeling good. I started the run by listening to the 4 songs I have downloaded by the Stepford Wives. My favorite is still "My back is Achin", but "They're Coming to Take Me Away" is quite cool as well. I will most likely buy the CD they are advertising on the web page linked above. After the Stepford Wives' songs finished, Staind's Dysfunction took over. This is some cranking tunes that really encourage the feet to pick it up. Data: Distance: 3 Miles Time: 30:00 Heart Rate: 167 Pace: 10:00 Weather: Clear skies, 48 degrees

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

Great afternoon run. I jammed to Better Than Ezra's Deluxe CD. Another one I have had for awhile and still love. They came to Birmingham's Crawfish Festival a few years ago and it was a great show. Good run and I can feel my strength coming back. I am still wearing a brace for the ankle, but not because it looks injured. I am doing it as a prevention per the podiatrist's recommendation. Data: Distance: 3 Miles Time: 31:05 Heart Rate: 162 Pace: 10:22 Weather: Partly cloudy, 62 degrees

Podcast Update

• Thomas Barnett talked with Phil Windley about the information Thomas wrote about in his book, Blueprint for Action: A Future Worth Creating. I found Thomas' coverage of world events and his optimism about it very interesting and on target. He referenced one my favorite authors and op-ed writers, Thomas Friedman. I also agree with his 2 recommendations: a strong offense to take out the bad guys and a transparent governance that spreads the peace through economic development. An excellent podcast I would strongly recommend.
• Richard Monson-Haefel, Burton Group, talked about the Rebel Platforms. Rebel platforms are open source and not compliant with standards. Frequently, these rebel platforms are targeted at introducing simplicity into arenas served by complex, standards compliant deployments. Richard's coverage of the available platforms and identification of their trade-offs was excellent. He noted that open source = some assembly required. He also noted that the biggest threat is not to Microsoft, but to J2EE based platforms like IBM and BEA. I strongly recommend this podcast to those interested in tracking trends in enterprise class software.
  

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

Back in the neighborhood and into the hills. But, what a beautiful day to run. I listened to Tonic's Lemon Parade, a great CD.

Data

Distance: 3
Time: 31:37
Heart Rate: 170
Pace: 10:32
Weather: Clear skies and 77 degrees (in January!)

Podcast Update

• Drew Endy talked about Open Source Biology. He described how some of the patents and such that one sees being filed today hint at the need to consider a system that is more open and encourages sharing to help foster innovation. One of his analogies compares the current practice of filing for patents on particular peptide sequences with putting patents on semi-colons, commas, and such. Then, of course, the process of getting permissions to use certain grammatical constructs becomes so difficult that fewer books are written. This was a good listen.
• James Surowieki talked about Independent Individuals and Wise Crowds. During this interesting podcast, James talked about how our human culture can lead us to participate in herd behaviors and other such behaviors. James offers some good advice that is well worth listening to if you find yourself participating in group decision making processes.
• John Hanke talked about Google Earth. This interesting podcast describes several methods that can be and are used to interact with Google Earth. John includes coverage of how a particpatory model helps to make Google Earth possible. Very interesting.
• Michael Disabato talked about the Evolving Technology Organization. Most particularly, Michael correctly notes that it is service delivery not technology that we in IT need to place our focus. From there he talked about how an IT Infrastructure Library approach can help in this regard. In this case, meta information about current and planned IT deployments are recorded and harvested by many separate interests to ensure that any new deployment in environment essentially is deployed without notice.
• Ray Kurzwell talked about what happens When Humans Transcend Biology part 1 and part 2. Ray does a great job building the case that we should expect the rate of change to continue accelerate like it has in the past. Despite this expectation, he points out that many experts continue to make their prediction based on linear models. Thus, they underestimate the rate of technological innovation. This is a very exciting and informative podcast. I can't wait to get my nanobots that deliver oxygen to my muscles 1000 more efficiently then my red blood cells.
• Mitchell Baker talked about her experience as she participated with others as they took Mozilla to open source. She does a great job building the case that it isn't just technology and organization is important. A good presentation.
• Peter Barrett and Scott Rafer talked about how technology continues to enable connections between people. They build the case this network effect will continue to lead to more and more innovations that enable people to participate and share their lives with friends and family. A good presentation.

3.66 Mile Run: Destin, FL

Great run. Started out with Lito and Judy. Oh yeah, they and our friends Edd and Kaye are in Destin Florida vacationing and celebrating New Years here. The house we got is excellent, but not on the beach. Little bungalow with 3 bedrooms, each with its own bathroom. It also has a screened in front porch. Shaby chic furniture and cabinets. Very quaint.

Back to the run. I ran while listening to 3 Doors Down, Away from the Sun. It is good music and appears near the top of the list in the mp3 player. Retrospective lyrics, soft rock rythms with occasional hard rock riffs. I dig it. Knocked off 5 minutes based on the last run at the 3 mile mark, cool. I used the Garwin/Timex time and distance system so no heart rate measure. I am also testing my new iRiver and lapel mic that I got for Christmas. Soon, I'm sure I will be recording stuff while running. Thanks for the inspiration Steve Runner.

Data

Distance: 3.661
Time: 34:44
Heart Rate: Not measured
Pace: 9:29
Weather: Clear skies and 40 degrees

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

Tonight was the first run since jaw surgery. I came through it just fine. The hardest part was eating a liquid diet and avoiding exercise. The swelling also took awhile to get down. But, I won't gross anyone out who happens to come here to read. The great news is I can run and I can go workout. I went to the gym yesterday and got out on the road tonight.

I listened to Phedippidations and the Daily Source Code to get caught up.

Data

Distance: 3 Miles
Time: 33:42
Heart Rate: 168
Pace: 11:14
Weather: Clear skies, 59 degrees

Podcast Update

• Norman Packard talked about Synthetic Biology. The main starting theme he introduced was a definition of life which includes requirements for self-subsistence, reproduction, and ability to evolve. With this definition, many things can be considered alive and Norman is particularly targeting creating things that are living that can do useful things. Best to let him tell you. This is an excellent presentation and I am looking for my new laptop that comes with the factory to produce more laptops and to improve them along the way!
• Dr. Moira Gunn talks with Gerd Leonhard, music industry strategist, about the future of music. He's written a book for which you can get a direct link by following the link just before this sentence, The Future of Music: Manifesto for the Digital Music Revolution. If you are a Daily Source Code listener, then you know that Adam Curry has been discussing how the current musical industry and the laws that support it are archaic. Further, that they don't adequately or fairly represent the real interests of musicians or customers. Gerd provides validation of most of Adam's views and a good all around discussion of this important topic. And, yes getting music as we know it is changing!
• Peter O'Kelly, Burton Group, discusses Microsoft as a Superplatform. His presentation provides quick fly-by of Microsoft's main platform offerrings. He validates that Microsoft is a viable candidate. Yes, there is lock-in just as there is if one goes with IBM, Oracle, SAP, and other providers. He believes that all of these vendors and others operate on a similar business model that seeks to provide multiple layers of the stack to each of their customers.
  

Podcast Update

• Dr. Moira Gunn talks with Ann Winblad, Hummer-Winblad Venture Partners, and Laura Merling, SDForum about funding and building new software. This is an interesting podcast predominantly about how silicon valley is still the center of software innovation. While they did give credit to the collaboration environment enabled by the Internet, I am not so confident that all big time software innovation begins in southern California. But, a lot certainly does.
• Balaji B. Prasad, EDS, talks about the Future of the Computer in Your Car. This was a very interesting presentation that I listened to quite awhile ago, but failed to log. Thus, my memory is a little light on his presentation. I do remember that he indicated that we might expect thinks like SIP to be used to help our various pieces of equipment to keep up with where we are and where we were with various things we might be using. I know this was a very interesting presentation and I would recommend it.
• Dr. Moira Gunn talks with Eamonn Kelly, Global Business Network, about the major impacts on the world today. He and Dr. Gunn walk quickly through the last 500 years and remind us that we are under going changes today that may not be unlike those of the enlightenment of those days 500 years ago. I think Eamonn is right on target with his prognostications and analysis of the current climate on the planet. The ubiquity of information and its access around the planet is reshaping the way people think and communicate. Further, as Eamonn notes we are discovering what we have and are doing to the planet. People are taking different sides and, in many cases, taking action. All of which is setting the stage for change. I highly recommend this presentation.
  

Podcast Update

• Esther Tyson led a discussion on accountability on the Internet. She spent a significant time talking about the importance of the rules that govern the creation of things on the net. This is seen in light of things like flickr and other sites that permit users to create things to which others have access and frequently participate in some form of exchange about. Much of the discussion was focused on those that are clearly involved in this topic and as such I did not have enough context to follow all of the exchanges. For example, there was a good discussion on the whether or not root domain servers (think DNS) should be commercial entities and wouldn't that improve root domain servers' services?
  
  There was a significant discussion around the accountable and non-accountable web. Non-accountable web really refers to the ability for anonymity and as such protecting the identity of the user. Esther supports the idea of having a non-accountable web, but believes that in general it leads to bad, harmful activities. She believes transparency is better. Her policy was expressed as "do ask, don't lie". You can say, I won't say. This led to some heated exchange around this. Quite interesting.
• John Clippinger talked about Social Physics. The domain of the topic is all about social networks and most particularly self-organizing on the web. He compares our traditional notions of authority, the influences of thoughts by those like Adam Smith, and neural science to draw conclusions about social physics as it applies to group formation and regulation (frequently self-forming and regulating). Very interesting presentation. He built the case that you can not separate emotion from reason. He claimed that as one reviews or formulates an argument, the evaluation is not some dry truth value calculation, but that in fact their are connections in the brain between this cortex related activity and the limbic system maintain an significant connect between reason and emotion. Thus, as we participate in groups from a variety identities (roles), we react emotionally and this emotion is driven partially by our desire to trust and such. He concludes (like Esther above), that transparency in this context is extremely important for the establishment of trust. Good presentation.
• Dick Hardt talked about identity 2.0. He did a good brief review of the past trail (like Microsoft's Passport) and paper based documents we have had historically. He clearly shows that ultimately what we want from identity infrastructure that identifies the person. That person will, of course, has different relationships, reflections of self on from different contexts, but is ultimately the same person. Reputation becomes significant in this context. He does a quick review of the various technologies coming into this space now and offers caution given RSA's expectations for SAML for registering for use given their claim of patent. His best line is "simple and open" wins. It is true and as he implied the domains to which this truism applies is extremely broad. It is clear that we don't know where identity is going, but Dick definitely has his hand directly on the pulse. He rejects WS-* stuff and SAML as very likely candidates given a variety of reasons not least of which is they are not "open and simple". He would like to see the identity strategy he backs win as thanks to the presentation, I will be checking out. He suggests sxip.
• Dr. Moira Gunn talked with Dr. Paul Hallenback about NeoTropix and his research involving viruses and cancer. This fast paced presentation proved to be very interesting. Paul talked alot about a virus they have identified that prove to be able to go throughout one's system and systematically eat tumor cells and then just get flushed away by the body at the end. Many current therapies and a 10-1 kill ratio (for 10 cancer cells the person loses 1 good cell). This new virus may have a kill ration of 1 million-1. WOW. Very interesting stuff.
  

Podcast Update: Robert Lefkowitz and Semasiology, Again

Robert presented the second part of his presentation on the semasiology of open source. I thoroughly enjoyed the first part and this one did not let me down either. He does a good job of making some straight forward facts and observations painfully obvious and, more importantly, convincingly important. For example, he builds the case that at least 1/2 of the money spent on software is spent reading it. Thus, make it readable is far more important that we may generally think. Why is this true? Well 60+% of the expense for any software is consumed in maintenance. Most of the time spent in maintenance is spent reading the code trying to figure out what it does.

He also reminds us that the meaning of "reading" has changed over time and that the nature of this change has relevance for open source in the modern world. For example, in the early days of reading, the reader was seen as taking on the properties of the writer. Anyone reading a book as taking the role of the speaker (writer). Overtime, the reader was seen as the receiver of the exchange. The reader essentially became the target, the listener for the writer. Open Source in this same way will and does encompass more then just the source. It is also about requirements and all of the other characteristics accompany our conception of software. Very interesting presentation.

Podcast Update

I have only managed to listen to one new IT podcast since my last update. I am keeping up with Adam Curry's Daily Source Code and Steve Runner's Phedippidations. I listened Robert Lang talk about origami, computation, and open source. Robert talked about how those in the origami community have shared designs and the computations underneath many of the designs. Apparently, much of modern origami is based on series of mathematical calculations many of which are generated by computers. This same technology is used to determine how to fold things from air bags in cars to solar sails deployed in space. This was a brief, but very interesting presentation.

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

Well, this is the last run before the jaw surgery. I am getting jaw surgery to correct my bite. This is part of the ortho treatment I have been in for almost a year now (wearing braces). I had the choice of losing some teeth or surgery. I went for the surgery. I won't be able to run for 2 weeks. At that point, I will be training in earnest for Cooper River Bridge which I have registered for now. Tonight, I ran to Alien Ant Farm which just cranks. I especially like their cover of Michael Jackson's "Smooth Criminal" Data: Distance: 3 Miles Time: 30:26 Heart Rate: 161 Pace: 10:9 Weather: Partly cloudy, 48 degrees

Added Frappr Map

I am sure that there are few (if anyone) that follow my rambling and blog entries. But, hey if you do, how about following the link in the header to Peg yourself on my Frappr map.

Podcast Update

• Kim Polese, SpikeSource, talked about companies moving from using Open Source from a "Do it Yourself" to a "Do it Together" mentality. This is the second podcast of a speech by Kim that I have listened to. And, both times she delivers. I, too, believe that we are under going a culture change as it pertains to the development and integration of software. This modern age of participation and transparency is changing the way we look at software and architecture. I highly recommend this podcast.
• Daniel Blum, Burton Group, talked about Managing Security. He does a good job of building the case of why the security is good for business and why business needs to be concerned about security. Further, he reminds us that we must be proactive and that realistic threat analysis is MUST and that some of the biggest threats work inside the firewall. Good presentation.
• Ray Kurzweil, Kurzweil Technologies, talked with Dr. Moira Gunn about the singularity and how humans transcend biology. This was a very interesting podcast and I plan to listen to his full length discussion as referenced in this interview. One of his comments I found most memorable referred to the darwinistic view of a buffalo growing a thick and protective hide. In this view, the buffalo that were born with genes that didn't not result in warm enough hides died. The evolution took generations. For us humans, as the weather gets cold, we only need to be near on the warm buffalo. Good interview.

Book Update: Finished Podcast Solutions

I found the book very informative and the chatty style (not to be confused with lots of words) that created the allusion of a conversation with the authors was great. I have podcasting equipment on order and have improved the production quality of my podcasts that are hosted on an intranet as a result of reading this book. If you are interested in Podcasting , this is a great book.

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

It was a cold night. First time in tights this year. I double layered the top with a singlet and a long sleeve coolmax. Ran slow as I took my time along the trail along the lake to protect the ankle. It doesn't make sense to push it. I listened to another Phedippidations 19 - Rambling Diatribes from Steverunner.com. First, let me say that running while listening to a runner WORKS. I enjoyed the experience. Not to mention how many times I have had similar internal diatribes while running. Two of my favorite topics were mentioned by Steve: dogs and cars (esp. the nuts holding the steering wheels). He is right in both cases. People should take better care of dogs and not let them roam. People should drive as if they had sense. And, yes there are tons of stupid drivers. And, they all seem to hate runners.

Data:

Distance: 3 Miles
Time: 32:00
Heart Rate: 151 (nice rate!)
Pace: 10:40
Weather: Clear skies, 42 degrees (weather.com said feels like 34).

Podcast Update: Phedippidations

I checked out Steve Runner's Phedippidations. At first, I didn't think I was going to like it. I like to run and I read Runners' World. But I typically prefer to listen to music or technical stuff when I am listening to podcasts. But, as I hung in there, I found myself getting locked into what Steve was experiencing and I couldn't turn it off. I am hooked. I will be continuing to listen in on Steve's Phedippidations. Steve, I was about to yell when you stopped near the end of the Cape Cod marathon. Good job for making it!

5K Run: Demopolis, AL

I ran the Christmas on the River Jingle Bell 5K in Demopolis, AL. I cranked up Stepford Wives, Back, and Puddle of Mud's Come Clean CD. Great run on a cool, but not cold morning. I have run this race at least 6 or 7 times now and it is always fun to run in this community run with a couple hundred runners. Good time today too. Maybe, I can pick up the pace. Data: Distance: 3.1 Miles Time: 27:50 Heart Rate: 175 Pace: 9:16 Weather: Cloudy skies, 52 degrees (in fact, it started raining when I finished).

Found a Running Podcast!

I was listening to the Dawn and Drew Show, a podcast, recently and they played a snippet of some guy that was recording a podcast while running. So, I went to their website and got the link, http://www.steverunner.com, and I am now checking it out. Too early for me to say if I like it yet, as I have not had a chance to listen. But, what a good idea. I emailed Steve too. He sure seems like a nice person as well. Thanks for the reply Steve. I asked him about the equipment he used to record.

I noticed a question/answer board, basically "Ask Steve", where there is an anwser to how one knows if he is a runner or a jogger. I gotta say, I think the answer is simpler. Ask the runner or the jogger (depends on their self-perception). Just my opinion. Me, I'm a runner and a jogger. Now, the ultimate question is are you "a real runner", lol (lots of laughs). For me, the answers to this question provides a framework for "you're a real runner if...".

You're a real runner if:

• You run in the rain
• You run in the cold
• You understand putting vaseline on your nipples
• You know the definition of "chub rub"
• You watch friends drink while you abstain 'cause you have to run tomorrow
• You drink beer tonight even though you are running tomorrow

This list could get huge.... But, I have heard this at many a runner/jogger gathering.

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

Good run, even if slow. Guess it is going to take me awhile to get the pace back. But, hey it is better then spraining an ankle and falling down and scraping a knee. "On the road again...". Anyway, the Creative Zen Sleek and I are still getting along. Here are some tidbits:

Creative Zen Sleek

• Likes:
• Lots of storage
• Easy to use
• I have dropped this thing 3 times and it just keeps working
• Supports Windows media format
  
• Dislikes:
• Random shuffle seems to select the same albums in the same order just different songs
• Pause and return after idle shutdown works great (takes back to where you where) if you come back soon. But, if you wait too long, it forgets where you where. This is the biggest nuisance. As a podcast listener, it would be great if I could just hit pause, it shutdowns after idle timeout, and no matter when I return it puts me where I was.
• Hard to find cases and accessories
  

Data:

Distance: 3 Miles
Time: 30:40
Heart Rate: 160
Pace: 10:13
Weather: Clear skies, 48 degrees.

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

This old body is feeling the increase of activity after 2 months of little exercise beyond the physical therapy for the left ankle. I am glad to be out there doing it. I am planning to run 4 days this week with 2 days at the gym. Close to my original schedule, albeit, with fewer miles for the week. I will be running a 5K this weekend. I do have jaw surgery coming up to correct my bite, that will slow me down again for a week or two. I will be ready for Cooper River in April as usual, I believe.

Data:

Distance: 3 Miles
Time: 31:32
Heart Rate: 160
Pace: 10:31
Weather: Clear skies, 60 degrees.

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

Well, I am getting back to my normal workout schedule. I am going to the gym twice a week for muscle works. Of course, I am getting the usual set of questions after laying off for awhile, "where have you been?" But, all are wishing me well. The running is going fine but, I can still feel something is different with the left heel and ankle. But, it doesn't feel like weakness or pain. I think it may be the brace. But, it sure does feel good to be back at it.

Data:

Distance: 3 Miles
Time: 30:43
Heart Rate: 167
Pace: 10:14
Weather: Clear skies, 57 degrees.

Podcast Update

• Vernor Vinge talked about Technical Singularity. I got interested in this topic after reading an article in Wired. I thought that I saw references to hackers and terrorists as additional limitations on our ability to make progress towards something like the singularity to which Vernor alludes. But, I can't find it. Not worth the trouble. Vernor delivered a very interesting presentation. His ideas are great fodder for science fiction writers and for general contemplation. Vernor introduces some interesting ideas related to this singularity. So, what is singularity? I found this definition on Wikipedia:
  
  technological singularity (also referred to as just "the Singularity") is a predicted future event when technological progress and societal change accelerate due to the advent of superhuman intelligence, changing our environment beyond the ability of pre-Singularity humans to comprehend or reliably predict.
  
  Vernor adds concepts like a soft and hard take-off. A soft take-off refers to the idea that we gradually and relatively incrementally reach singularity. A hard take-off refers to the idea that it emerges as more or less a surprise maybe even without notice. As we continue to add chips to all kinds of things in our environment, what happens when the devices get ornery. Hum. The more we lean on computers for management of basic features of our social and general environment, the easier it is to imagine machines coordinating an automatic expansion of capabilities that just escapes us.
  
  Great presentation. The whole topic has me thinking about basic dichotomies like good-and-evil. In this context, I am treating the singularity as "good" which, of course, is not a given. Thus, the association with hackers and terrorists in my mind is related to the notion that worms, Trojan horses, viruses and those that introduce them distract from our ability to keep growing our abilities on exponential scales as we have to spend so much resources on defense. Terrorism and other social ills provide the same controlling impact on society. Of course, the troubling thought is that if singularity were to take place which side of the dichotomy would benefit? What if it just exacerbates the battle?
• Paul Le Dieu talks about how the BBC is participating in the digitization of more and more information. Further, that the BBC is participating in making this content available for those that wish to remix and redistribute under a creative commons license (limited to the UK). Very interesting presentation.
• Paul Graham talks about blogging and open source and how it compares to more traditional IT work environments. He hits the nail on the head so many times and does so with a nice peppering of humor. I laughed out loud so many times listening to this. Fortunately for me, I work for an organization that gets it. I don't trudge into a endless sea of cubicles each day and experience some of the humorous (well, maybe not really funny) events described by Paul so well. For example, to describe the motivation for making people go to work during certain hours he says "if you can't make people work, at least, you can prevent them from having fun". I do visit from time-to-time. In this case, my visits are packed with face-to-face meetings that are not just contrived or distracting but about making connections.
  One of the less obvious things Paul points out is that despite the traditional media's pointing out that the average blog contains content of average or worse content, they miss that what they will compete is against isn't the average blog. They will compete against the best blogs. This, of course, is comparable to Microsoft's position with open source. Paul's comments are on target, iconoclastic and highly recommended listening.
  

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

I put in another good run. Yeppee! All seems to be working OK. I have finished physical therapy and I am embarking on picking up my normal workout schedule. It feels good to be back, but I am tired.

Data:

Distance: 3 Miles
Time: 30:57
Heart Rate: 169
Pace: 10:19
Weather: Partly cloudy, 60 degrees.

3 Mile Run: Neighborhood

I know it is a shock! First run since the injury on September 18th. I have been in physical therapy and was cleared by the podiatrist. I was slow and stiff, but it was great to be back out there. My plan is to train hard and steady for Cooper River Bridge Run in April.

Data:

Distance: 3 Miles
Time: 32:03
Heart Rate: 168
Pace: 10:40
Weather: Partly cloudy, 61 degrees.

Podcast Update

• Opening Move with Scott Mace
  • Julie Hanna Farris talks about Scalix which offers a messaging application that presents an Outlook like interface via a browser. Interesting comments about the penetration of open source into commercial enterprises. She clearly believes that the two will continue to play well together. For her company, they open sourced a limited, but rich set of features in Scalix Community Edition. In fact, it sounds like they open sourced all but those that are most clearly directed towards more enterprise use (e.g., group scheduling). She also made it clear that their target is to provide a messaging system for Linux. They are not targeting Windows. Interesting presentation.
    
  • Brian Capouch talks about the open source project, Asterisk. This open source project provides PBX functionality for VoIP. Brian made it clear that the main version of Asterisk is best understood by those with a background in IT and Telephony. However, he also indicated that the home distribution is easy to install and essentially gets you setup via answers to easy to understand questions. I know little about telephony. So, I imagine I would find the full edition of Asterisk intimidating. Brian mentioned several uses of Asterisk that were quite interesting. For example, he mentioned once case where an application used Asterisk and bluetooth to ring the room in which a person was physically located. Good presentation.
• Larry's World
• Larry talked with Craig Newmark of Craig's List. Given the use of Craig's List during hurricane Katrina, I was very curious to hear this presentation. I must the most impressive part for me was the insight I gained into the character of Craig. Maintaining a simple site where control remains with the users, bypassing offers for huge sums of cash to maintain a work he finds important, both speak well for Craig. Very interesting.
• Larry talked with Jakob Nielsen a usability expert. This lively and entertaining presentation features Jakob sharing some of the no-no's we see and should avoid as we build web applications (or applications in general for that matter). It is how the user is going to use the site, not what it looks like that matters. Good listening.
  
• Rajesh Jain, Professor of Information & Computer Sciences, UC, Irvine, talks about Experiential Computing. Every time I listen to Rajesh I gain more appreciation for his insightful and informed viewpoint on where computer science is taking us. This excellent presentation find Rajesh reminding us that we are on the edge of escaping some of our historical baggage (like viewing everything on the web as a document) into a world where our experiences are captured in multiple ways and linked via the web and other technologies to allows to revisit and share that experience. Cool presentation.
  
• Vermor Vinge talks about Singularity.
• The Gilmor Gang talks about the current range of browsers standards for the web (blessed and de facto). This very interesting presentation brings together a group of knowledgeable folks to talk about the browsers and the tagged languages to which the appeal. They talked about the W3C blessed standards and the standards that appear in the real world. XForms, SVG, and DOM level 0 and level 1 make the list of topics discussed. With the apparent ongoing onslaught of Firefox use growth, this presentation is still timely and interesting. I highly recommend this presentation.
  
• Tara Lemmey talks about National Security in the Information Age. This brief, but very informative presentation, highlights how the automation of information between and within agencies needs to meet certain usability requirements that many of us probably don't think about much. For example, some FBI agents have a strong preference for NOT having to type in information. Then, one has to determine how to manage annotations and viewability within a security context. Who can see what on the original document and amongst the collections of annotations. Good presentation.
• Richard Monson-Haefel, Senior Analyst for the Burton Group, talks about Java Superplatforms including those from IBM, Oracle, and BEA. Richard makes a compelling case that essentially divides the world of Java based platforms between these big players and open source where open source represents the lower end of the market space (read as less large scale enterprise deployments). I am not sure I completely accept Richard's viewpoint as the most accurate descriptive or prescriptive of the current and future marketplace. But, it is certainly feasible that things could end up exactly as he describes. My hesitation is driven by my knowledge that some corporations do, in fact, thrive on multiple and varied solutions. Many corporations' IT shops are thrown a mix of applications by their business units and expected to help them find coexistence without forcing a one-size fits all solution. Do NOT read this comment as a rejection of Richard's position. I do believe Richard speaks for some, perhaps many, organizations.

Podcast Update

• Robert Lefkowitz, VP Enterprise Systems & Architecture, AT&T Wireless, talks about The Semasiology of Open Source. Before you ask, semasiology refers to the study of the development of words and their meanings. Robert does an excellent job of dividing the term "open source" into a variety of possible connotations and such. This very interesting presentation includes consideration for how an IT organization might view open source from an accountant's perspective. For those of you familiar with FASB 86, this is quite interesting. Robert also notes the changes that have occurred in how we diagnose problems with systems and how this has changed over the last 20+ years. In this context, logging has become perhaps more important then being able to use a debugger. A very interesting idea indeed, when was the last time you, if you are a techie, checked the contents of a register. Robert also talked about what constitutes source for open source. His discussion would apply to closed source too. In this context, he builds a good case that it isn't just the code. In fact, it starts with the requirements. This is a rich presentation with great analysis and wonderful historical references. ITConversations includes a link to a transcript of the presentation too.
• David Ritter, VP Boston Consulting Group, delivered an inspiring and information packed presentation about Making Connections. I recommend listening to this one while viewing the slides which ITConversations provides. This presentation talks about how networking has changed the dynamics of many industrial processes including, but not only, software. Networking, in this context, while enhanced and aided by technological capabilities like the Internet, is more about how organizations and people connect with each other. David's presentation includes a good selection of examples including what happened with a single provider of a critical component for ALL Toyota cars burned to the ground. Many other Toyota providing vendors worked together with the original provider to bring Toyota plants back online (an amazing story). David drives home the importance of transparency and offers some interesting tidbits about network analysis in this regard. I highly recommend this presentation. ITConversations also provides access to a transcript of this presentation.
• Steve Gillmor (ZDNet), Glenn Reid (Five Across), Dorée Duncan Seligmann (Avaya), David Sifry (Technorati), and Linda Stone (Apple) talked about Attention. My first glance at the description of this session made me think I wouldn't find this presentation interesting. To the contrary, this interesting panel discussion brought to light the real essence of what my everyday is like in many ways. The whole notion of continuous partial attention is so apt. I highly recommend this presentation.
• Jonathan Schwartz, President of Sun Microsystems, was interviewed by Kevin Werbach. Jonathan offers some very interesting perspectives about open source and the importance of decentralizing the control of technology. Jonathan is insightful and outspoken. This is another presentation I would highly recommend especially if, like me, you share an interest in software development and open source from a software vendor's perspective.
• Kartik Subbarao, Hewlett Packard, talks about embracing Open Source within an enterprise. Particularly, he uses an interesting analysis incorporating a metaphor of water (open source) and earth (closed source) and Venice. He talks about the characteristics of both are necessary to support Venice's existence (and yes he addresses the fact the Venice is still sinking). His examples include HP's use and contributions to OpenLDAP. I highly recommend this presentation. The world of enterprise software today is not just choices between buy and build. Open and closed source. Great, fast, short presentation.
• John Smart delivered the opening presentation at the Accelerating Change conference. This presentation was predominantly an overview of the other presentations to come and at first swipe, this may sound uninteresting. The contrary is true. I am actively seeking the podcast of the presentation on technical singularity to which John referred now. Go listen. :)
• Several lawyers, Lauren Gelman and Wendy Seltzer, participated in a panel discussion moderated by Jennifer Collins about the legal rights and responsibilities of bloggers. This is a very informative and interesting discussion that any blogger would find value listening to. They provide good coverage of the issues surrounding borrowing text, using music, and talking about others.

Podcast Update

• I listened to Dr. Moira Gunn interview Robert Kaplan about his book Imperial Grunts. He talked about the experience of doing the research to learn first hand about the experience of American soldiers in the field. He described much of our work as imperialistic. I was surprised until he defended why he applied that definition. In fact, we do spend a lot of time consulting and training troops in other countries. To do otherwise would require us to have to strong of a presence in the host countries. Very interesting interview and I have added his book to my desired reading list.
  
• I listened to a panel moderated by Liza Sabater. The panel included Debi Jones who blogs as mobile jones, Ellen Spertus a computer science professor, and Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez who blogs and writes. It was very interesting to listen to this group of women talk about how to manage and react to those who would flame, shame, or blame (this was the title of the panel) others via blogs, email, and such. It was fiery and very interesting. My wife and I listened to this and a few other podcasts while driving on a long trip. This is the only one my wife liked. My wife does find IT as interesting as I do.
• Jeremy Zawodny, Yahoo, led an interesting presentation about the infrastructure of some of the software at Yahoo. He particularly addressed open source used at Yahoo. A good and thorough presentation.

Anonymous Posts Not Welcome

I suspect this blog is read by few. And that is ok, I am using this as a personal log and if someone finds my ramblings interesting fine. But, clearly anonymous posts that are not related to the log entries themselves are not really welcome. The few I get seem to be spam. I wonder if there is a different word for them when they are posted to blogs like this. Hum.... Probably so.

The Dark Tower - Finally or No, Not Yet!

Stephen King has written the last of the Dark Tower series and I have been reading them as they have come out since the 1980's. What a long time! I thoroughly enjoyed the journey through the books. I have found it difficult to read other books of this type (read as Tolkien and such). Yet, I was attracted to this story and its main characters. It has been a great read.

First, I was excited to learn the last one was done. Finally, we get to the tower! Second, I was sad to think the journey was to end. Roland and his ka-tet traveled far, fought hard, and shared their souls.


Thanks for the trip, Stephen.

Rave - I Figured Out How to Use My Zen Sleek

I have had my Creative Zen Sleek for a few months now, and finally I have learned how to use it correctly. My major mistake was to somehow get my music loaded on to the player where each artist and album was treated as a folder. Thus, the desktop software seemed to suck when it came to looking at all songs for sorting and such. I reformatted and loaded anew. This time I selected all the tracks on the PC tab after selected the various directories within which I may have music and drug them to the "Music" tab on the player. Now, I can slice and dice 'em. Don't know how I started down the folder path, but it sucked. I can also look for the most recently loaded on to the PC. Thus, noticing what needs to be moved is now easy. Yeppee!

Podcast Update

• Andrew Zolli, Z+ Partners, participated in an interview as part of Globeshakers with Tim Zak. During this interview, Andrew talks about the impact of demographic distribution changes on the world and domestic economy. This is a very interesting presentation that I would recommend. Unfortunately, I listened too long ago and didn't take notes so I can't state an specifics about the interview. But, I know I liked it.
• Anne Thomas Manes, APS Research Director for the Burton Group, talked about The Advent of Superplatforms. This information packed and insightful presentation is well worth listening to if you are an architect. Anne correctly notes that the major platform providers like Microsoft with .Net and IBM with WebSphere are including 100's of support applications with their suites. Thus, while the promise of web services, open source, and industry standards would lead you to think that a new world of plug and play is on the horizon, we may in fact, be seeing something entirely different emerge. I can't help but think this is sort of more of the same. That is, the IDE and infrastructure providers build in features that help lock you in to their solution (and their problems). I don't read this as good or bad. It is the nature of things. Anne also notes that Open Source is essentially an alternative choice. One that on a feature basis may not compete directly with the comprehensive suites of the commercial providers. My primary concern with implications of her analysis is that continuing notion of vendor lock-in at the platform level. But, her analysis definitely has merit and for many companies, the information she provides is surely of high interest and value. Thanks Anne for a very thought provoking presentation.