Hate Speech

Much has been made of hate speech lately, about how one side incites its followers to commit violent acts. Here is a nice compilation of what the left wing media does not choose to mention in this conversation.

"The progressive 'climate of hate:' An illustrated primer, 2000-2010" by Michelle Malkin
http://michellemalkin.com/2011/01/10/the-progressive-climate-of-hate-an-illustrated-primer-2000-2010/

I have only looked at a fraction of the material in this list and it is appalling. Have a look for yourself and see what you think.

Google Voice Search and Voice Actions for your phone

Do you Google Voice Search (not to be confused with Google Voice) yet? Maria Sharapova does. That's good enough for me! :)

In all seriousness, it's a great feature if you have an Android phone. It's also available on other phones through the Google Mobile App (I used to use it when I had a Blackberry, for example). Here is a video showing how to use Voice Search. Actually, on an Android phone they call it Voice Actions, because it is integrated into the phone such that it opens up the appropriate app depending on what you ask for (dialer if you say "call ...", GMail if you say "send email ...", Maps if you say "directions ...", and so forth).

In fact, one of my new year's resolutions was to use Voice Actions more. The voice recognition has truly gotten a lot better since the first time I used Voice Search over two years ago on my Blackberry.

It also makes for a fun video. Check this out on YouTube (I should add, check it out using Chrome while reading Blogger as long as I'm shilling for my employer today):
"Maria Sharapova by Dan and Jonny"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiIm-_Kq__M&feature=youtube_gdata_player

What's that? You thought I'd show a picture of Maria Sharapova rather than pictures of Voice Search? Yeah, you're right. I guess I should.

New Zodiac pickup lines

As some of you may be aware, some people believe that the Zodiac dates have shifted and a thirteenth sign should be added.

Naturally, this means that some pickup lines need to be updated. From the Huffington Post:
"Zodiac Pick-Up Lines: The Funniest Tweets!" by Katla McGlynn
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/14/zodiac-pick-up-lines-twitter_n_809267.html#s224346&title=Judes_Dickey

For you Scorpio women out there:
"With the new zodiac system it turns out I'm no longer a psychotic Scorpio bitch! Wanna go on a date?"

Some other favorites:
"we should probably date now that I have YOUR astrological sign tattooed on my ass."

"Are you a Pisces? I used to be a Pisces!"

"I beat Cancer. (Now I'm apparently a Gemini.)"

Finally, a nice play on the recent shift in dates:
"so baby, what's your signs?"

Facebook: Back to the Future

Is Facebook the next big thing, or is it just the latest in a series of fads that we'll soon forget? I've discussed this question before (Social Networking - Required Reading, December 10, 2010). Now John Dvorak weighs in. Suffice to say, he's not impressed with Facebook. From PC Magazine:
"Why I Don't Use Facebook" by John C. Dvorak
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2375715,00.asp

Summary: "Facebook is basically AOL with a different layout and all the same retro problems."

"Facebook is actually the logical end-point of what AOL should have become. AOL had some web initiatives, such as Geocities or Hometown, which could have easily morphed into Facebook, but it didn't. It could have made the transition rather easily. I can't find anyone who argues with this premise."

"Facebook is retro because, like AOL, it's retro by its nature. It's a closed system. Some people like a closed comfy system and others don't. I, for one, don't. If I want a personal webpage with all sorts of information about myself, I'll go to Wordpress.com and make one. By doing this, I don't turn over any data, control, or information to an onerous third party to sell, use, or exploit. I can close down the site when I want. I can say what I want. I can pretty much do whatever."

"Facebook is a simple system for the masses that do not really care about technology and do not want to learn anything new except something easy like Facebook."

"There is no reason for anyone with any chops online to be remotely involved with Facebook, except to peruse it for lost relatives. So, next time you log on, remember it's really AOL with a different layout.

"Welcome to the past."


This post, in the comments section, by David, sums up Dvorak's article pretty well, I think.

David:
"Darren, what you don't get is the title of the article: John is explaining why *he* doesn't use Facebook, not why no one should use. What he points out is that by subscribing to Facebook you are trading off your freedom to maneuver as you want for a standard, simple, interface to your online presence.

"If you are OK with that, as most people who just want to 'connect with old friends' are, then you can just go and create a profile. If, on the other hand, you don't want to a) provide a third party with a lot of private data b) depend on that third party to keep your internet presence, setting up a custom webpage is just a matter of hours."

For all you nerds out there.

This one is hilarious!

From Geeks are Sexy:
"Nerd Friends [Cartoon]"
http://www.geeksaresexy.net/2011/01/13/nerd-friends-cartoon/