- Peace
Monday, January 26, 2009
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Carts of Darkness
You can watch the entire film at the National Film Board of Canada. The NFB has put their archives online, we now have high resolution versions of such classics as the Big Snit.
- Peace
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Talitha of Fish Creek
Ever since Talitha showed us her Battle Axe at a party last year, I've wanted to do a shoot with her and the Axe. We got her an outfit and did the shoot yesterday in Fish Creek. Enjoy!
Friday, January 16, 2009
Cell Phones Exibit A for Net Neutrality
I know this is geeky stuff but stay with me. Michael Geist defines Net Neutrality as
Now this idea was built into the very fiber of the internet, because computer companies in the early days only built computers that talked to other computers you bought from them. The US Military needed to get computers from different companies to talk to one another; so being vendor neutral was part of the net's original mission.
However over he last 20 years the net has come more and more under the control of a few telecommunications giants. No big deal right? Just let the market take care of the net, it will be fine.
Well take a look at the cell phone market in North America, run by many of the same companies, only they go to build it their way. Consider that it's common for a cell phone company to disable simple features on phones so that customers need to use expensive options from the company. Many phones have their ability to transfer a picture directly to a PC disabled, so that you need to pay data charges to send a picture from your phone to a PC. Or phones that can play MP3 ringtones, but only if you buy the ring tone from the company. Want a rare Canadian song as your ringtone? Too bad your MP3 needs a special embedded code to play as a ring tone on the latest phones. Or UMA phones that will let you make a call via WiFi, cause they still make money on that, but don't let you get data via WiFi cause there's no money in that.
When Bell, Rogers or Telus say that we don't need Net Neutrality protection, consider how they have managed the network they built from scratch. They've managed it against the best interests of their customers. We shouldn't let them do the same thing with the net.
- Peace
"While the definition of net neutrality is open to some debate, at the core is the commitment to ensuring that Internet service providers treat all content and applications equally with no privileges, degrading of service or prioritization based on the content's source, ownership or destination."
Now this idea was built into the very fiber of the internet, because computer companies in the early days only built computers that talked to other computers you bought from them. The US Military needed to get computers from different companies to talk to one another; so being vendor neutral was part of the net's original mission.
However over he last 20 years the net has come more and more under the control of a few telecommunications giants. No big deal right? Just let the market take care of the net, it will be fine.
Well take a look at the cell phone market in North America, run by many of the same companies, only they go to build it their way. Consider that it's common for a cell phone company to disable simple features on phones so that customers need to use expensive options from the company. Many phones have their ability to transfer a picture directly to a PC disabled, so that you need to pay data charges to send a picture from your phone to a PC. Or phones that can play MP3 ringtones, but only if you buy the ring tone from the company. Want a rare Canadian song as your ringtone? Too bad your MP3 needs a special embedded code to play as a ring tone on the latest phones. Or UMA phones that will let you make a call via WiFi, cause they still make money on that, but don't let you get data via WiFi cause there's no money in that.
When Bell, Rogers or Telus say that we don't need Net Neutrality protection, consider how they have managed the network they built from scratch. They've managed it against the best interests of their customers. We shouldn't let them do the same thing with the net.
- Peace
Monday, January 12, 2009
Mission Accomplished
From a recent Christian Science Monitor Article:
(PS: This was posted by Calvin, not Dave; I post only very occasionally)
Asked about mistakes and regrets, the president offered a fuller list than he has in the past. "Clearly putting 'Mission Accomplished' on an aircraft carrier [early in the Iraq war] was a mistake," he said. "Some of my rhetoric has been a mistake," he added.
(PS: This was posted by Calvin, not Dave; I post only very occasionally)
Taste of Home
I've been in Alberta for over 20 years, I lived in New Brunswick for less than 18. Still, I was overjoyed to receive two cans of Sussex Ginger Ale from Nathalie, a fellow NB Expat. I'll have one can with some fish and chips and for the other I'll order in some Pizza Delight!
- Peace
Friday, January 09, 2009
First Interesting Picture of 2009
Flickr Ranks pictures interestingness. When a picture of mine breaks into my all time top 200 I add it to a set. The Caution Bikes in Frost picture starts off the 2009 set. The 2008 set has 47 pictures, so it would make for better viewing at the moment.
Thursday, January 01, 2009
2009 Biking Goals and one for 2010
My goal for 2009 is to do 4500 KM. I did 4200 KM way back in 2008.
In May of 2010 I'm aiming to ride the Golden Triangle: "a 310-km loop crosses the Great Divide twice". One of the local bike clubs does it the May long weekend every year. As I've only done one 100 KM day I have some work to do. So I'm adding two more goals for 2009:
Ride the entire Highwood Pass from one end to the other and back. 108 KM and about 1.5 KM of climbing in one day.
Ride Calgary to Edmonton, City Hall to City Hall. Just under 300 KM in two days. Relatively flat.
If I can do those two things in 2009 I think I can attempt the Golden Triangle in 2010.
- Peace
In May of 2010 I'm aiming to ride the Golden Triangle: "a 310-km loop crosses the Great Divide twice". One of the local bike clubs does it the May long weekend every year. As I've only done one 100 KM day I have some work to do. So I'm adding two more goals for 2009:
If I can do those two things in 2009 I think I can attempt the Golden Triangle in 2010.
- Peace
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