Aside

Why should I join? What, that isn’t reason enough? Fine. I suppose you could use your valuable time to do work, get good grades, get ahead in life and make something of yourself. Or you could be having mind-blowing sex. An article on groupware discusses the philosophy of writing social software, and boiled it down to one simple principle: “How will this software get my users laid” should be on the minds of anyone writing social software At theAssbook, we…

A Hamburger Today, the sister site to Slice has launched. Looks tasty. I’m hungry already.

In a way, I’m kinda glad that I cover technology, so that stuff like this doesn’t happen because of something that I write. Newsweek apologized yesterday for printing a small item on May 9 about reported desecration of the Koran by American guards at Guant‡namo Bay, Cuba, an item linked to riots in Pakistan and Afghanistan that led to the deaths of at least 17 people. But the magazine, while acknowledging possible errors in the article, stopped short of retracting…

Greetings from Hartford. Philly was fun yesterday. I scored the above hat yesterday for $10 on sale at a cool sports paraphanalia shop. Chicago Cubs 1914. Sweet, isn’t it? Beantown tomorrow. ‘Rents in NYC on Monday. Graduation on Wednesday. Home on Friday. Can’t wait. Who’s down for the Albatross late Friday and/or Saturday night?

Macworld: We here at Macworld have decided to experiment with the Podcast format. So weÕve taken a page from the magazine and inaugurated the Geek Factor podcast, covering tech topics on an irregular basis. Former Macworld intern Cyrus Farivar is the host of this Podcast. In this second 29-minute installment, the topic of choice is AppleÕs Newton PDA, which still has a legion of followers even seven years after it was discontinued. Cyrus interviews Grant Hutchinson, a Newton enthusiast who…

FedEx Package from Shanghai to New York: May 11 2005 8:35 pm – Left Origin – Shanghai 8:53 pm – Pickup status – Shanghai May 12 2005 1:57 pm – Arrived at Sort Facility – Anchorage 4:17 pm – Left Sort Facility – Anchorage 8:40 pm – Arrived at FedEx Ramp – Shanghai 9:12 pm – Left FedEx Ramp – Shanghai

AP : TALLINN, Estonia (AP) – Lawmakers authorized Internet voting Thursday for Tallinn’s local elections in October as the first step toward a nationwide system. Voters will need an electronic ID card, an ID-card reader and Internet access. There are plans to use the system also in the next parliamentary elections in 2007. The approved bill was initiated by the Parliament’s constitutional affairs committee. The national electoral committee has conducted trials since early this year. Dubbed E-Stonia by some, Estonia…

NYT Circuits, 5/12/05 : What do the pope and Paris Hilton have in common? They’re both podcasters – and you can be one too. Ranging from the sublime to the ridiculous, podcasts are essentially do-it-yourself recorded radio programs posted online. Anyone can download them free, and, using special software, listeners can subscribe to favorite shows and even have them automatically downloaded to a portable digital music player. Despite what the name suggests, podcasts can be played not just on iPods…

Cameron Diaz, talking to USA Today, about her new show: Trippin’ They had a similar experience with Kid Rock, who joined Diaz on the journey to Costa Rica. Rock, Diaz says, initially scoffed at their talk about the importance of clean waterways. “He was like, ‘I don’t need any water.’ We were like, ‘You need water to make beer!’ He was like, ‘Oh, my God!’ “ (Thanks to last week’s Daily Show for my weekly dose of celebrity ridicule.)

Finally done! Got about three hours of sleep last night from 3 am – 6 am and finished the book proposal and sample chapter. Went to a party on the roof of a classmate’s apartment on 94th/Broadway with a great view of the Hudson. We’ll see where this leads. So this should be it for me and school. You can start calling me “Master Farivar” starting next Wednesday. So what’s next for me? Well, I’m back in Oakland on May…