Saturday, April 21, 2007

Scrybe: Sneak Peek

[video removed - was not working]

This looks like the coming of Semantic Web that Tim Berners-Lee talks about. It looks extremely useful.

[May 8, 2007 update]

Some reviewers seem to be treating Scrybe as a calendar. It's really more of a shareable organizer concept - calendar, to do, and notes, for example.

The YouTube video link was not working here or on the Scrybe site. So I have removed it and added a couple of links about Scrybe:

New email version from Mozilla

Thunderbird 2.0 email software is now available from Mozilla -- the folks who bring you the FireFox web browser. I have in the past used Outlook Express, Outlook, and Eudora email clients. But my current choice is Thunderbird.

My fast take on version 2.0:
  • Spiffied up icons (in general)
  • Weird looking sideways folder icons
  • Some nice new features
  • One big disadvantage: Mozilla still has not built in the needed ability to delete a message and return to the message list. The only action built into Thurderbird is to automatically display the nest message. This is a horrible program behavior for security reasons. What if the next message is malicious? What if it contains an invisible GIF web bug? You have no chance to just not open it -- Thunderbird will open that message anyway. As a result, some Thunderbird 2.0 users are reverting back to version 1.5 and using the "Unselect message" add-in.
  • Another downer: The "Unselect message" add-in (extension) that I used with version 1.5 does not work with version 2. I used this as a workaround for the terrible lack of that capability in Thunderbird (as mentioned above). Hopefully the author will revise the code so it's compatible with version 2.x.

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Hope for image searches

Current image searches give only fair results, but researchers are working on the problem. Here's a couple of articles in MIT Technology Review:
  • Better, more accurate image search
  • Software learns to tag photos. The test used Flickr photos to assign up to 15 tags per photos. ALIPR (Automatic Linguistic Indexing of Pictures) uses statistical methods to analyze a photo one pixel at a time and determine what tags apply. While the software is still in development, it assigned at least one correct tag 98% of the time. Not perfect, but pretty cool. I drool in anticipation of an improved version.

Friday, April 13, 2007

Plot multiple point maps

I was going to gush over a make-your-own-map site, MultiPlottr I discovered recently. Then I noticed that Google has enhanced Google Maps to include "My Maps".

With both MultiPlottr and Google's My Maps, you can add several map points and assign text to the point for display in the normal Google pop-up balloon. But Google's My Maps appears to offer more and has the Google ease of use and cool minimalist interface we've come to expect from Google.

I tested MultiPlottr by plotting lots of places to eat around where I work. We may refer visitors to it in emails prior to visits. My recommendation -- try both and see what you like.

Update April 19:
While Google My Maps is great, it still cannot actually plot multiple exact addresses. You basically "swag it" by dragging the marker. Multiplottr, on the other hand, does let you add specific addresses, then plots them for you.

Update: April 21:
It's a different process than I anticipated. Google does let you locate an address, and then add it to a custom map in MyMaps. [There is still a 50 address limit per map, though.] Here's the process:
  1. Sign in to Google.
  2. If you have never created a map, click on the "My Maps" tab and create one. Then save that map.
  3. Search for an address or for business near that address (for example "restaurants near _____"). If you search for businesses or similar groups of addresses, each address listing in the search sidebar now has an "Add to My Maps" link. When you search for an individual address, the address marker balloon includes a "Save to My Maps" link.
  4. If you have more than one map, select the correct one via the drop-down box.
  5. Edit the marker balloon title and text. You can use the text tools to bold or color text and background. If you add a link in text for (including the http://), Google makes it a link.
  6. OK the results. Presto -- a new marker is plotted. You can plot up to 50 on one map.

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Free Anti-Rootkit software

Rootkits are nasty buggers. Antivirus software doesn't detect them and they can be a bear to detect and destroy.

Now comes Anti-Rootkit Free from Grisoft, makers of AVG Antivirus Free Edition.

A test of the fast scan on a home computer took 10 minutes. The interface is attractive yet very simple to use.

Vista's here -- what next?

Paul Thurott's Windows SuperSite is an excellent source of information. He has started a page on Windows "Vienna" (a.k.a. Windows 7 or Windows Seven). If you're the curious type, surf away and enjoy.

Paul also mentions that Windows Vista SP1 will amount to a major release -- it will include a kernel update to the operating system (OS) and will coincide with the release of the Longhorn server OS.

Both Vienna and Office 14 (current codename) look like a 2009 release.

Paul is also a columnist for Windows IT Pro magazine.

Monday, April 02, 2007

Computer bloopers at the movies

If you are a computer geek or just plain irritated at movie script writers or directors that appear clueless about computers (or both, like me), you'll appreciate reading the "Usability in the Movies - Top 10 Bloopers" by usability expert Jakob Nielsen.