From today on, The Economist's "Global Agenda" online articles are only available for subscribers of the print or web edition of the magazin. If they think this move will get them more subscribers, I very much doubt it. Maybe some readers of the Global Agenda will now subscribe (I will not), but on the long run they lose one of their best advertisments.
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Somehow I find that I switch more and more applications from the desktop to the internet. Here are some services I use regularly:
- flickr: Though I still use F-Spot for managing my offline collection of photos, I found that whenever I wanted to find a particular photo I did first serach for it on flickr, noted the date it was taken and then recieved the file through f-spot by that date. Flickr's tagging and sets system is just way more convenient than f-spot's.
- del.icio.us: For some time I wanted to create an application (possibly a Firefox extension) that whould let my organise my ever growing list of bookmarks in a sane way with extensive use of tags. But in the end I was pointed to del.ico.us, where now (nearly) all my bookmarks reside.
- Bloglines: I have used quite a lot of RSS aggregators over time. I started out with ordinary desktop applications (like Straw) then switched to a Firefox extension (Sage), but inexplicably the most useable RSS reader I found was an online one.
- Remember the Milk: I am rarely using any ToDo lists, but when I needed to keep track of all the things still to be done for oemo.at I first tried to use Evolution's tasks, but again, an online list turned out the be easier to use. Additinally, it also has a lot of features Evolution still lacks, like recuring tasks (ideal for Übungen at university)
- dict.leo.org, Wikipedia, planetmath.org, etc.: When have I last used a traditional dictionary? When did I last start research on a topic with a book (or offline encylopedia)?
- ConnectViaBooks: I just started using this online place for everybody who likes reading, so I cannot recommend it yet. But it looks promising (though they should hire a developer from the other sites mentioned here).
- last.fm: Now that their Linux player (in version 1.2 beta) is at last working for me, it often replaces ordinary radio (both the old fashioned one via electromagnetic waves and internet streams) and CDs/MP3s/OGGs when I want to listen to some music.
The only problem I have with this trend is the inherit reduction of privacy. At least the companies involved get to see all the data, but often it is also made public. While for some services (like ConnectViaBooks) this is the intended effect, with some others (e.g. del.icio.us) you have to be careful how much information about yourself you are making public.
Here is how you find me at some of these services: flickr, del.icio.us, ConnectViaBooks (recently read), last.fm/ausioscrobbler
For all Web Developers/Designers working on Linux this small Script (in combination with Wine) will be very valuable: It automatically downloads and installs Internet Explorer Versions >= 5.0, so that it is possible to test IE's rendering from within Linux without need of a dual-booting Windows installation.
A friend asked my for the link, so here it is: How to destroy the Earth.
Just a quick tip for spending your bandwidth: The BBC made (respectivly will make) Beethovens symphinies 6 to 9 available for free download for one week (as mp3, performed by the BBC Philharmonic under Gianandrea Noseda).
See this open letter, why schools (in the US) should not only teach evolution theory and the theory of Intelligent Designs (fortunately most don't do the second), but also that the universe was cr5eated by a Flying Spaghetti Monster.
What I like most about this letter is the demonstration of how easy it is to devise statistical nonsense, which sounds very scientifically:
"For your interest, I have included a graph of the approximate number of pirates versus the average global temperature over the last 200 years. As you can see, there is a statistically significant inverse relationship between pirates and global temperature."
Just finished reading the Glasperlenspiel (The Glass Bead Game) by Hermann Hesse today. I really liked that book. Hesse touches so many subjects, is full of wisdom and gave me a lot to think about. And all of this in a fantastic language. This is one of the books one just has to read - especially while being a student interested in "pure" subject (in contrast say to an applied one). (And, yes Johannes, this is an allusion that you should hurry up finishing the book 
).
In other news, here are some videos from this years Guadec. And after lurking on deviantArt for more than one and a half year I uploaded my first contributions.
Even with the danger of only producing a higher ranking for it on google, I just have to post a link to Algebrator. It gave me (as a math student) a good laugh. The thing is supposed to be a "cutting edge program", that solves "any problem from your algebra textbook", "if you are an algebra student struggling with your homework". Don't believe me? Read the "special promotion" page (notice the "linear equation" in the last screenshot!) and how it compares to other CAS. Why buy Mathematica or Maple, when you can get Algebrator for only $67? Very entertaining stuff!
Some extensions, which make websurfing a lot nicer. I'm mostly posting this here for my own use and quick reference.
- Browser ease of use
- undoclosetab (adds "undo close tab" menu item)
- All-in-One Gestures (one of the many mouse gestures extensions)
- GooglePreview (inserts web site previews in seraches)
- Autohide (hides menubars in full screen mode)
- Scribe (saving and opening form entries)
- Web annoyances
- Disable Targets for Downloading (prevents download links opening in a blank window)
- BugMeNot (bypass compulsory web registration via www.bugmenot.com
- Flashblock (replaces flash objects with a button to view them)
- Web Development Tools
- Web Developer
- User agent switcher (change the user agent string. Not only useful for development)
- Live HTTP headers
- XUL Applications
- Sage (RSS and Atom feed aggragator)
This page might be updated in future.
Seems like google is already advancing in the direction of providing search facilities for the desktop computer. They have a beta version of their google desktop serach tool online now. As I am mainly using Linux, I have not tested it, but it looks promising. (Aside from the fact, that currently you have to use Windows and Internet Explorer.)