November 2005 Archives

Not too long ago the latest version of TextWrangler - version 2.1.1 - was released. Although it's got it's issues, I think it's the best freely available text editor available for OS X.

For those of you who are old school but not up to date, TextWrangler is BBEdit Lite with a new name. The story I've heard says that some time ago Bare Bones Software decided to stop supporting BBEdit Lite, and then changed their minds and TextWrangler was born.

This is one of the most powerful text editors out there, capable of running all sorts of scripts, plugins, and colorizations. It's a hand-coder's dream in that way. The most immediately visible features are a drawer (for opening multiple documents in the same window - let's hear it for screen real estate!), highlighting of the current line, and line numbering. But there's much more - too much to list. Any professional coder will probably end up buying BBEdit.

I wouldn't be my critical self if I didn't have at least one complaint about this software, and indeed I do. The main complaint is window size. Although this may simply be a case of misuse or missing a preference somewhere, when I open a new window in TextWrangler it opens as if it's maximized, but it's not - that's just the default window size. It doesn't remember the window size or position last used, and that's a big frustration for me as I'm big on screen real estate.

You can get TextWrangler here

I just finished reading Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus by Orson Scott Card last night. This is my second time reading this book. I would warn that if you're not mature or don't like novels that'll make you think, this book may not be for you. That being said, it was definitely for me.

Per usual, Card fleshed out his characters to the point of making them seem real and tangible - one of my favorite attributes of his writing. There's nothing quite like relating to people who never have and never will exist.

I found that this book flowed nicely, and took perspective breaks regularly enough to to keep the reader wanting more but far enough apart to be satisfying. The story itself was solid, the interactions human, and the history (yes, history) had sources. Not being a historian, I can't say how accurate it was but it all seems plausible and, again, there were sources.

This book's genre would cross between historical fiction, science fiction, and time travel. It's like nothing I've ever read before, and remains a favorite.

"Nobody will be without fuel," says Human Services Secretary Michael Smith. The Douglas administration responded to yesterday's shock at unprocessed heating aid requests by saying additional workers - workers we were told weren't available - will be devoted to handling the requests.

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According to the Burlington Free Press, the Agency of Human Service admitted to, in my opinion, a major failure. As temperatures were approximately 30º around the state, the Agency announced that they didn't have checks ready for people who applied for heating assistance. They say they've had seven staffers working overtime, say their other staffers are too busy to be shifted, say it would take three weeks to train new staffers. Meanwhile, people all over the state are going cold.

What makes this especially stunning in my eyes is the fact that this is Vermont. I've been shocked at the unseasonable warmth we've experienced this late into November. It's almost Thanksgiving and this morning was the first I woke up with visible snow on the ground here in South Burlington. A year ago today I was attempting to snowboard for the first time. And this is the first we're hearing that they don't have the checks ready. It's disturbing that they didn't see the lack of man power and seek help. Three weeks ago they could have started training people.

Here's a hint to business owners and governments: if your employees are working overtime, something is probably wrong. You should probably check in with them and see if they really think they can meet their deadline, and if so why they're so rushed. Something could have been done weeks ago, but now, as we usher in the cold, we're first starting to think about it.

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Try as I might, my limited free time has hindered all attempts at keeping up with the Sony Rootkit scandal. I knew bits and pieces. I was aware of the rootkit their CDs automatically installed on Windows systems. I knew that there was a kernel extension installed on OS X systems, but that it required the user to enter their administrative password to do so. I'd heard that the copy protection code illegally used LAME's libraries.

In the back of my mind I was asking some questions: how does it work, why will it damage Windows if you remove it, and why has it taken this long to be exposed? Bruce Schneier wrote a column for Wired News that outlines the entire debacle. It's thorough, and filled with links explaining the things he mentions. And, most importantly for me, he addresses the greatest concern: why has it taken this long for security companies to notice and do something about it? Is anyone actively working to find a way to remove the code without damaging Windows?

Senuti is another iPod "manager". I can hear the groans a mile away - there are so many iPod managers out there. Hell, my other favorite is called "Yet Another iPod Manager." I'm not sure, exactly, how they made that into YamiPod, but that's another post.

One of the things that sets this one apart is that it's open source. That's right, I said open source. Not just free. Open source projects are one of my weaknesses. I love watching them grow and contributing when possible in whatever ways I can.

The other aspect of Senuti I love is that it's lightning quick. It uses the iPod's own database, which means it's always got the correct information and never actually has to figure out what a song is. Since it's got no need for locking files, you're free to run iTunes at the same time if you so desire.

It's light-weight, which is a blessing and a curse. It's got no bells, whistles, or frills which is part of what allows it to run so quickly. However, it's lack of said bells, whistles, and frills makes it less of a one-stop-shop. I love one of the features YamiPod maintains - the ability to generate a human-readable song list. I'm a big fan of the iTunes-like interface, but leaving out the ability to browse by genre, artist, and album sort of seems like a cop out - especially given the functional search bar. But all in the name of speed.

This is the sort of application I would gladly keep on my workstation at the office for quick imports. It's also something I'll keep around at home for big backups of my entire iPod. But if you're a person who needs bells and whistles this isn't the app for you. Try YamiPod. One of the two is sure to suit you.

Oh, and sorry, folks, this one's OS X only. If you're looking for Windows or Linux, again I say try YamiPod

Friday November 18 has been deemed the grand opening of Winooski's newly-revamped downtown area, according to this. I find myself a bit cut off from the world right now, so I don't really know what that means. But it's still true.

The project has been in motion for over five years, and finally we see some results. The downtown portion of Winooski is no longer a dangerous construction zone blocked off to the world. The construction isn't 100% complete quite yet, but people can go down there now. Residents are saying that traffic is better, and if all goes well the benefits of this restoration will remove some of the social stigma that exists for the residents of this one-square-mile town.

ZDNet has written a review of Mac OS X for the x86 platform. Bootleg copies of this developing operating system have been available for some time but few are willing to takes the risk.

This development coincides with the choice from Apple to move to Intel processors. What's really special here is that Apple is developing the OS to run only on Apple hardware. They wouldn't want companies like Dell and Gateway to be able to sell machines with Mac OS X; Apple relies on sales of both hardware and software to survive and doesn't want to lose the pricing standard they've set. That means that ZDNet had to use a "modification" to install on their x86 machine. Translation? This is essentially illegal.

So place your bets as to whether or not there'll be a law suit. My money is on no, because this review is pretty shining.

A quick summary of the review will tell you that the OS itself performs pretty much on par with Windows XP, but the applications need a lot of work. This comes as no surprise since the Applications couldn't properly be tested without an OS that's mostly complete. Judging by this review, we now have an OS that's mostly complete and is at the stage of adding more drivers and squashing bugs. Application developers should now be pretty free to test. Sounds like things are moving along quite nicely.

I find myself torn, so I'm asking the opinion of whatever readers I may have and any friends they may have who have experience.

Netflix surfaced some time ago as the premier internet movie rental service. You pay them $N per month, they give you a few DVDs for as long as you want them by mail, no shipping cost. Return them when you're done and get more.

Blockbuster now provides the same service, but offers the added advantage of two free in-store rentals a month, which means that if I should happen to feel spontaneous one night and want to go grab a couple of flicks and a pizza I don't have to pay for them. That seems like a nice advantage.

So here's the question - what does Netflix offer that Blockbuster's service doesn't? Is there anything? You tell me. Please.

I'd better make sure I spell everything correctly in this entry; Vermont has been ranked the smartest state in the nation. This ranking appears to be based on the students and our educational system. It's nice to know that when I do settle down and start a family, any future children will have good schools to go to. Just another draw for living here.

The same publisher also ranked us the healthiest state, second safest, and third most livable.

(article, though I pretty much paraphrased the whole thing)