Time is an interesting creature of change…  The more things change the more they stay same??  To a certain degree I find that to be correct.  Internet Explorer always seems to be a few revs behind its competition i.e. Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, Opera and Safari.  I find it interesting how Opera and Firefox are leveraging the Internet to enhance the browsing experience.  It makes a lot of sense.  This could also be attributed to the general nature of improvement – things evolve over time.

Opera’s Unite, the web server in a browser,  is a good example of a web browser that is much more than a web browser.  It is an application that uses Opera servers (or personal servers) to share content.  That is a very vague overview, but it makes a point; web browsers today are much different than web browsers of yesterday.

I think this is a trend started by Firefox.  Firefox plug-ins that integrate delicious, flickr, facebook, or any kind of social media that is web based – is a change from the norm.  Even Mozilla is graying the line between desktop and webapp.  The introduction of Weave lets users sync up their browsers across many PCs and mobile devices.  Allowing for a more constant web experience – such a great idea.

Google Chrome lacks the plug-in features, but what it lacks in that area it more than makes up with speed.  The Javascript engine is a beast.   I’m certainly surprised by the lack of plug-ins for Chrome, but I do find myself using it more and more.  It just starts up so fast; maybe that’s why there are no plug-ins.  It renders things great and is just an overall great browsing experience.  Sometimes I think Firefox lost sight of that over the development of the application.

Who would of thought that browsers would come back with such innovation?  I remember back to the days of Netscape Navigator… Communicator…  Whatever it was called!  Internet Explorer was once a leader in this field surprisingly.  The most exciting thing is that there is more to come!  We are only beginning to touch the surface of the capabilities of browsers.  HTML 5 will be revolutionary for the web.  Google Wave is in the distance.  Windows 7 is on getting ready for deployment.

This is an exciting time for the IT world.  For the non IT world too because things renew so quickly.  Innovation is not hampered by centuries of corruption.  We are truly in the Wild West of Web Development.  We are learning as we go and innovating on-the-fly.  Treads come and go, but innovation is the key to what makes technology so appealing and productive.

It only helps everyone I believe.  The more people that know about web security – a better web will be had for all.

The overview from the research paper:

Google supports HTTPS encryption for the entire Gmail, Docs or Calendar session. However, this is disabled by default, and the configuration option controlling this security mechanism is not easy to discover. (1)

What they want done:

Rather than forcing users of Gmail, Docs and Calendar to “opt-in” to adequate security, Google should make security and privacy the default. (1)

I think Google is an unfair target in this situation.  I tried getting HTTPS on my Yahoo! mail – no going.  No options.  Appending https to mail.yahoo.com only encrypts your login and not your mail session.  How about getting them to change??

I don’t know about hotmail or live mail whatever it is called now, but I suspect that is also the same.  Google is far ahead of its competition, yet, they are singled out?  I don’t get it, but I do.

Google is an agent of change and represents the future; they are held to a higher standard.  They should be applauded for all the good they have done for the web and all of us. 

I’m not sure if Google should be forced into this situation of automatically enabling HTTPS for all users; do we need HTTPS at home?  How many of their users access from home or other secured network?  This is a question that Google alone can answer.  Sure, it would be nice to protect all the people who have no clue about security, but is that Google’s responsibilty?

I don’t know.  Should Google start a new PR campaign about the dangers of using unencrypted HTTP on a public network?  That sounds like something Microsoft or Yahoo! would do.

Can Internet Explorer 6 be considered a modern browser? It was released on August 27, 2001 (1).  Its market share has been dropping 28 straight months to a current low of 17.4% (2).  It peaked during 2002-2003 according to Wikipedia and W3schools.  I find it amazing that still after all these years it still has market share at all.  With Firefox, IE7, Opera, Google Chrome, how has it survived?  There are so many choices why are people still using it?  Corporate policies? Ignorance?  Lack of knowledge?  From a security standpoint it is down right frightening.

It has been almost 8 years since IE6 was in a public beta test. IE6 should not be hanging around anymore. It hardly follows any spec on CSS or HTML. It is Microsoft’s this is how it should be done and falling short of expectations. Though in its time it was the browser of the Internet reaching upwards of 95% (2). I was never a fan, I used Netscape, which wasn’t much better, then Opera, and now Firefox.

Change is Hard

I don’t think we will ever know the true reason why people still use IE6.  If you do a quick search you find a ton of sites giving lots of reasons.  “They don’t know any better”, “they dislike change”, “because they have to”, “they have an old computer” (3) … all valid reasons why but that is not the point.  Change must occur.  There are so many better choices people must be informed.  This blog does not render correctly in IE6, its close but no cigar, and I think that is how people will ultimately change.  We must move forward and leave people behind so they will catch up.

The Future is Now

I stumbled across a nice little blog Lea Verou that is done totally in CSS3.  Very ambitous and is what a lot more sites should do.  We must move forward so others may follow.  We need more blogs pushing the newer standards.  I don’t think corporations can do this because they are afraid of losing sales or isolating customers; a valid point.  Is this a drawback of Corporations on the web?  That all forward progress must grind to a halt?  To a point.  Yes.

There are a lot of interesting things happening right now that I think correlate to aging technology.  The rise of netbooks hampers this forward progress.  Vista and Netbooks never going to happen.  Windows 7 and Netbooks sounds promising.  I feel we are stuck right now.  I think that is okay as things cannot be the same forever.  The one balantly obvious fact is Microsoft’s model of stitching the browser to the OS will never work.  It has to be independent to be effective.  The next iteration of Microsoft IE codenamed “Gazelle” finally sounds like they are becoming a modern browser (hopefully).  Looks like they are going to follow Google’s implementation of Google Chrome with a multi-process browser (each tab is a process).

The one certainty is that IE6 is dead and people need to be weaned off of it ASAP.

What browser do you use?

1)  Just use an old VCR!
2)  Just use an old computer!

End of thread…  End of post… That is where the story ends and it leaves a lot to be desired.  I have problems with both of these solutions.

1)  The VCR is archaic
2)  I don’t want to leave a computer running in a room that will be used sparingly
3)  I don’t want to wait for a computer to boot up

This can be negated if you have a cable box that already does that.  But there are still people out there without cable boxes.  Or don’t want a cable box in every room or on every device; I’m sure the cable companies want you to.  I can’t seem to justify the extra $30 + fees for the box to move away from basic cable.  Renting a cable box seems like a dirty tactic to me; in the long run they have to make a killing.

I have NetFlix so if I want to watch a movie I can just get it off of there.  Also, there is NetFlix streaming which is awesome.  I do not want to give the cable companies more money – it’s already highway robbery.

The problem with this is that projectors do not have a TV tuner.  It doesn’t know what to do with the coax connection.  Projectors cannot tune (most of them that are out there anyway).  But I believe there is a happy medium… a product by Ambery.com -> Super Video to WXGA Converter.  This device works much like a cable box expect that you can buy it and use it how you like.

It takes a coax connection (Clear QAM), it won’t decrypt any of the pay channels like a real cable box, and converts it to composite, VGA, or S-Video.  Composite will most likely be your best choice for a projector.  I believe they also have one with component connections.  If you are looking for HDMI I’m not sure what will be needed – I’m guessing an upconverter of some sort.

Clear QAM is important.  If the device is not Clear QAM then it will not be able to tune to the cable frequencies.  If you have been looking at the Analog-to-Digital most of the ones that I have found do not have clear QAM meaning they will not work with cable; you will need an antenna to retrieve the signals.

My coax cable runs into the Super Video to WXGA Converter and from there the S-Video runs into my projector.  I also have component cables for in the future.  There is also some HDMI lurking behind the panel, but I don’t think it will be needed for awhile.

This face plate comes from, LibertyCable, an interesting cable that does orders by the phone, but none-the-less has a really great product; not too many other choices out there.

So composite into the wall that runs up to the projector that is mounted on the ceiling.  It’s really that simple.

I hope that can add some clarity to a problem that can be over/under thought.  This is my geeky trade-off do-the-job kind of way of doing things.

It seems every few months or so sites like www.whydiggisblocked.com come about spewing FUD (fear, uncertainty, doubt). I think this is a marketing ploy to drive more traffic to their sites – these things get a lot of visibility on Digg and Reddit. Before this iteration there was www.whyfirefoxisblocked.com. It’s not the users that need to change, it’s the sites that think their visitors should have to conform to some statistic. The web is not a one size fits all business model. You have to be flexible and change for the users.

I visited the sites to see what I was truly missing with having Ad Block Plus installed and what I found was amazing. IT WAS ABSOLUTE CRAP. ReadWriteWeb has a nice write up on the Economic Idiocy of blocking social media… short conclusion: basically these people are idiots.

Traffic is good for a site, it is healthy, in fact, it is the lubrication that keeps everything going or something. It’s about the conversation that this Internet technology creates. It is amazing. If you need ads to keep your site alive, I’m sure a lot do, find a better way to drive funds than smacking banners and ads all over your page. I don’t know, GET CREATIVE or INNOVATIVE.

Endorse a product, ask your users what they like, anything something, but not that same crap that we hate. I’m so numb to banners on websites as it is. There has to be a better way than isolating traffic to your site; that just seems counter productive.

The top 5 technologies I am thankful for:

#5 SMS
Short Message Service – My preferred way of communication. I can keep in contact with a lot of people in a short amount of time. I’m just not a big phone person, I think having a conversation on a phone takes too long when you want to ask a simple question. Phone calls are not obsolete; they just have their place.

#4 Apple iPod
I don’t know where I would be without my iPod. I would be drowning in a sea of CDs and that’s no good. Having my entire music library in my pocket is quite an amazing thing. Also the ability to add the many podcasts I listen to is great.

#3 Podcasts
I’m not sure how I functioned or got information before podcasts; those were dark days. Podcasts make my commute to work and school so much easier. Not only are they packed with tons of great information; they are fun to listen to. So a big shout-out to some of my favorites: Buzz Out Loud, TWiT, DL.TV.

#2 Ubuntu
In my opinion, one of the best Linux distros out there currently. Surrounded by a vibrant communities of smart people and dedicated users. Not only is it very reliable, but it is super easy to use and, oh yeah, secure. Windows for business, Linux (or Mac) for home.

#1 Internet/Google
So there is a tie. The Internet and Google. I believe these two are fairly synonymous; Google is the lubrication of the Internet. It’s where I search, get e-mail, check my feeds, my homepage (iGoogle), and so much more. The Internet would be a far different place without the Goog. And without the Internet this would all be fairly moot eh?

I hope everyone has a safe holiday and a great Turkey Day.

Google has rolled out a new service for their GMail e-mail service: IMAP. To enable IMAP you have to login to https://mail.google.com and enabled it via Settings > Forwarding and POP/IMAP. I’m guessing by this point just about everyone should have it, since I have it and I’m usually one of the last to get these new features. After you enabled IMAP you can connect to GMail using your favorite mail client; like Thunderbird.

IMAP is a protocol, much like POP, but way cooler.

Gmail IMAP is sweet; I am mightily impressed! Basically, the best feature of IMAP is when I delete a message off of my local mail client (Thunderbird 2.0) that is hooked into GMail it also deletes it on the GMail’s web application. So, I can use Thunderbird while I’m at home. When I’m at work, school, or abroad I can use the the web application and everything stays in-sync. BRILLIANT! Also at work we use IMAP, so this isn’t a new way to do things, but it’s great that Google is expanding their services.

There are many benefits to using IMAP on Google’s GMail here are a few.

1) No longer tied to just the web browser for mail (or POP yuck!). For those who are not familiar with POP, it basically downloads all your mail from the mail server. Thus, it is hard to keep everything in-sync, which is a necessity now-a-days for people on the go. Isn’t that everybody?

2) Security, security, security. To use Google’s IMAP service you have to connect over IMAP secure, which is port 993. This encrypts all your mail traffic so no one can sniff your mail; keeping all of your passwords and mail safe. Depending on the program you may have to select SSL before you can access IMAP secure (IMAPS); I use Thunderbird 2.0, so I selected SSL when I configured Thunderbird.

3) More security for sending mail. Another great aspect of IMAP is the ability is that you can send mail via Google’s SMTP (Send Mail Transport Protocol) server; this is your outgoing mail. I know that this was available for POP, but it should be mentioned because it uses TLS (Transport Layer Security) so all of your outgoing mail is safe and secure.

4) Better for sharing devices. You can hook your GMail into your phone, PDA, laptop, desktop, anything and keep all your e-mail up-to-date. This is a great time saver, you can spend your time on more important things than making sure all your mail is synced.

5) Labels translate into folders. I was worried about how Google was going to handle the transition from their “labels” onto an IMAP client. Don’t be worried all your labels become folders and I think it feels a little more usable in this aspect.

The only problem I have with using the IMAP service with GMail is that all my contacts are on the web application. I don’t think this is specifically a Google problem; they didn’t write the IMAP protocol. Since I have all my e-mails I ever sent or received with my GMail account I can easily rebuild all my contacts.

Google does a nice job of laying out the instructions of various mail clients here.

In Google we trust.

public void brent() throws busyException
{
int freeTime = 0;
return;
}

School has thrown me into a constant state of work and deadlines. I’m glad I have found time to sleep as of late. But I have not forgotten about you all. I have had lots of ideas, but no time to express them. oh yes my lament.

This is not a bad thing I guess. I would much rather spend my time writing and exploring various topics; I think I learn way more this way. And in the future I think we are all going to be in a constant state of education the way things are moving today. New technologies are being implemented daily. The landscape is in constant change. But yes, this is not a bad thing because I am learning a lot of interesting things and can apply them to my life. This is a good a thing.

So what I wanted to talk about was Human Computer Interaction (HCI), more specifically the User Interface (UI). Probably up to this point in my technological education I wasn’t too concerned by what the user thought. My thinking was this is how it is and we must adapt to the technology. I think that was a big mistake. Technology should conform to the user; this is my new mantra. Users are not stupid – the technology makes them feel stupid – and that is a big no-no.

I’ve been applying this to various aspects of my technology life. When a fellow worker says, “I’m so stupid I can’t figure this out”. I explain to them that it is not their fault the software was written poorly. That the UI was not made for the novice. I think telling this to family members who want computer support also helps. Everyone get frustrated because they think they are problem and in fact the problem is the technology.

We’ve been seeing a lot of UI design changes in software like: Windows Vista, Ubuntu, Mac OS, and Office 2007. The computer industry, software and hardware, is trying to make the UI more intuitive for all users. I’m not sure if this is good or not, but if it can alleviate some frustrations for users; I think that can only be good.

But on the flip side of this train of thought… is a one size fits all UI possible? No, probably not, some users like things a certain way. So UIs in the future will easily adapt to the user and make the experience more natural. This will be an interesting area of study to follow in the coming years.

And when all else fails there’s always the command line

shutdown -n

You are now entering a place where only the truth matters. No more bullshit, no more lies, and no more corruption.

Okay, there is still bullshit, lies, and corruption, but the Internet is redefining how we become informed about things. There was a time when the news at 10 was how everyone got their information. Now you can get the information anytime you want or need it. This is a turning point in history. Never before has there been a global information network this robust. There were teletypes, MORRIS code, radio, satellite phones. The Internet is truly remarkable in the way it connects people and ideas.

I really don’t think governments around the world are ready for this fundamental change in how people become informed. It’s hard to believe there are corrupt governments in this day and age. Militaristic governments shooting monks, journalists, etc in “Burma” or Myanmar. Let this not be a smoke screen. There are problems elsewhere in the world. Let’s not forget Darfur.

The time it takes to become aware of problems is instantaneous, thanks to bloggers, news services, and satellite imagery systems. Awareness is key to solving problems. I don’t think the problems of the world will be easily solved, but awareness, I feel, moves things in the right direction. I’m glad that blogging has ushered in the return of the FREE PRESS. People talking about society, life, struggles, achievements, and oh yes TECHNOLOGY.

To really bring this point home I’m adding a link to the Nirvana Musing blog. The blogger, Amit, posted screen shots of a banned commercial, a truly remarkable ad by MTV.

This is why the Free Internet Press is so important. I don’t think you’re going to see this any newspaper, magazine, or TV show.

There’s a shift occurring in the Computing Industry. A recent report out of mac.co.uk states that Apple is driving a “transformational” shift in PC sales. Somewhere up to 30% of people that are going to purchase a laptop in the next 90 days want to buy a MacBook. I think we shouldn’t get caught up in predictions, but it is an interesting statistic.

If I were going to buy a laptop in the next 90 days I would want to purchase a MacBook. I’m not looking to buy a laptop though, I’m sticking with my thinkpad that continues to chug along.

The reason I feel people are being drawn to Apple products is because the platform is independent. Just about everything I do now is via the Web.

• Gmail
• Google Docs
• Google Reader
• Myspace/Facebook/Twitter etc

I’m not stuck to Windows to do any of my daily tasks. Sure there are going to be products that I could not use on a Mac and vice versa there are products I could not use on Windows. I think this is where Apple is making up the most ground.

• Parallels – Virtualization to run Windows or Linux
• Boot Camp – Run Windows on a MAC, no virtualization
• VMware/VirtualBox – These work on all platforms and do the virtualization thing

They are focused on their customers’ needs and wants. You are going to pay a hefty price, but you will be satisfied. Apple gets it, maybe just Steve Jobs.

The other part of Apple’s success lies in the fact that their products are hot right now. I’ll be honest, I think the MacBooks look really nice in white and black. They are simplistic and are easy on the eye. I think Dell is trying to come out with different colored laptops, which looks nice, but it might be a little late in the game.

The “operating system scene” has really turned into a three horse race: Windows, MacOS, and Linux. It is a race that doesn’t really matter, because we are finding out that locking into one OS is bad for business. I love Ubuntu and I’m apart of the doubling of the Linux desktop in the past year. It doesn’t matter, the platform is moot when everything is on the Web.

This is what is driving Web 2.0.