Tag Archives: code

Algorithmic efficiency in the face of inelegance

Posted on March 1, 2008 by ian

Seed magazine published a wonderful crossover article between the worlds of biology and engineering “Algorithmic Inelegance” The complexity of developmental regulation isn’t a product of design at all, and it’s the antithesis of what human designers would consider good planning … Continue reading →

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The Web as operating system

Posted on October 19, 2007 by ian

Alistair, who has been writing recently at GigaOM, puts together the most lucid synthesis I have seen on the topic of the “Web OS.” Big Internet companies are making themselves the OS of the web 2.0 world. In addition to … Continue reading →

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Can code be bad for the planet?

Posted on October 14, 2007 by ian

Alistair has an interesting post on Earth2Tech, the thesis of which is that inefficient coding practices can lead to environmental harm. I almost misled myself into thinking AC is blaming virtualization and SaaS/IaaS (infrastructure as a service) on creating such … Continue reading →

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Getting real about security

Posted on October 24, 2006 by ian

Adam (crypto nerd extraordinaire, former evil-genius at Zero Knowledge) from the Emergent Chaos “jazz combo” throws us a reference and ties it in with an amusing story about misguided security concepts. The Emporer’s New Computer Affixing a Mac logo to … Continue reading →

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Gettin' Real Yo

Posted on October 18, 2006 by ian

Last week I attended the 37Signals “Getting Real” workshop where they indoctrinated the attendees on their parsimonious approach to building and running web applications. Getting Real is an exciting approach to software development currently largely practiced by Mac-toting revolutionaries. But … Continue reading →

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The Wild Kingdom of Spore

Posted on March 20, 2006 by ian

Spore looks to be a truly amazing game in the works from the original creators of Simcity. It seems to combine elements of some other classic simulation strategy games such as Populous and Civilization, crossed with the more modern “god” … Continue reading →

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Adding Adwords

Posted on February 27, 2006 by ian

So I opened a Google “Adwords” account, mainly to figure out how it works and whether the links really are relevant to the content I post. Basically the idea is Google gets to advertise on my site, and will dynamically … Continue reading →

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Protect your Windows PC for free

Posted on January 29, 2006 by ian

First in a series of articles about useful things: how to protect your personal computer running Windows when it hooked up to the internet, and do it for free! A combination of Anti-Virus, Firewall and Anti-Spyware is essential for any … Continue reading →

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Put on your safety googles: a trip to Google's Labs

Posted on May 30, 2005 by ian

Just a suggestion… Check out the simultaneously useful and distracting Google Suggest: as you type the search field expands into a drop down list providing anticipatory or alternative searches and allowing you to see the difference in the size of … Continue reading →

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The Genius of Gmail

Posted on November 19, 2004 by ian

Gmail: The stickiest of Google’s many substances? (updated) Gmail is a truly innovative webmail service. The interface is incredibly fast and clean, mail is usefully sorted into threads, the targeted ads are inobtrusive, and the features are second to none. … Continue reading →

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