December 2008

What is open source?

Open source software is free software.  It is created by conscientious programmers who are frustrated with the limitations of commercial software vendors and think they can do a better job.  In some cases, open source alternatives are far superior to the commercial programs they replace.  For example, I stopped using Microsoft’s Internet Explorer nearly two years ago.  Instead, I use Firefox, which is fast, more secure, highly customizable, and just as user-friendly.

I recently came across the following Dilbert cartoon:

There’s really nothing I can add to this.  It sums me up perfectly.  I’ll probably be up til 3am looking at pictures and reviews of the Nokia N810 I’m getting for Christmas.  How does Scott Adams know these things about me?

If anyone is in the market for a digital audio player, you may want to check this out.  The Creative website has refurbished Zen Vision M 30 gigabyte players for about $100.  I have one of these that I bought new for $250 about a year and a half ago, and I love it.  The sound quality is excellent, it supports most audio formats, and it can function as a plug and play storage device.  I haven’t used it for movies, but it received excellent reviews for the quality of its screen.

What is VOIP?

“VOIP” stands for “Voice Over Internet Protocol.”  Simply put, with VOIP, your phone conversations go over the internet rather than through landlines.

I had a lesson in economics recently, illustrated by a simple package of disposable razors.

The package on the left contains 8 Target brand triple blade razors.  It cost about $5.  The package on the right contains 8 Schick XTREME3 ComfortPlus razors and cost about $10.  I’ve been using the Schick razors for the past year, and decided save a few bucks by trying the store-brand razors.

School is out, finals are over, and Christmas is just a couple of weeks away, and I’m drooling with anticipation over my soon-to-be latest toy.  Recently, I started thinking about buying a new Pocket PC to replace my 6 year old Toshiba e330.  The Toshiba still works great- I use it to take notes in class with a portable keyboard, but it has neither Bluetooth nor WiFi, and I’d really like to be able to surf the net and check my email on the go.

Lately I’ve been getting a lot of use out of internet search engines, especially Google.  Whether I’m looking for a free substitute for a commercial software utility, trying to find a product or service, or just hunting for the great blog post I read last week and forgot to bookmark, I usually find what I’m was looking for fairly quickly.  I’m amazed not only by the tremendous amount of information available on the internet, but by the fact that it’s often easier to find things on the internet than in the real world.  Here are some ideas I have for search products that I think would do very well: