davemancuso.com

Internet Pants

I'm whacked—I might actually buy a pair of these pants.

I bought a pair of tactical shorts from these guys on sale for $12.99. They're still in shipment.

They're at 511 Tactical Pants, although I Googled for the sales (that's how I found the shorts).

Merlin Mann posted a quick video on his own tactical pants...

Tactical Internet Pants from merlinmann on Vimeo.

Forbes.com: Most popular stories: Strong Friday Could Lock In March Gains

Via Forbes.com: Most popular stories:

Stocks are on pace for a positive month, but another slide could dash those hopes.

Wow. They really have no idea what to write about regarding the economy anymore, do they?

They might as well have written "Things could be good today! Unless they're bad."

Re: Eliot Spitzer

So, should I avoid the obvious joke that what he's done with prostitutes is what other politicians do to America? At least Spitzer's deeds are out in the open now, unlike the dealings of others...

Twitter vs. Pownce vs. Tumblr

I joined Twitter recently, and I'm loving the way you can post things quickly. I encouraged all my friends to join, because that's what Twitter is all about. Once you've all joined and you're all "following" each other, then it's like you're kind of hanging out again. It would be awesome for my Philly friends, and for my family. Twitter kind of erases the distance; it's like you're all together again.

So Twitter isn't about a microblog service. It's about hanging out with your friends with virtually no effort during your busy day.

But Twitter's not the only service that does this. So does Pownce, and so does Tumblr. So which one's the best?

Well, it depends. Revjim.net has a good article on the distinctions between the services, and it's worth reading.

I have a simpler take on the situation. I haven't investigated all three services yet, but gut feelings can be telling.

Twitter is all about popularity. You go with Twitter because everyone's there. It's amazing—with a Twitter client on my computer feeding me tweets, I find out about world happenings before they hit the regular web, let alone the traditional news media.

But Twitter has problems. It can't handle the traffic. It tends to bog down and break. Although they've made some amazing strides with this problem in recent weeks, they haven't eradicated it. In addition, some people would like more options form Twitter. These are the tech guys who want some nicer features, and access to the features so that they can write programs to interact with Twitter. The argument against this view is that Twitter is simple for a reason, and if you add too many features, the speed and simplicity is lost.

So, people look at Pownce. Pownce is nicer, thay say. It has more features. It has a better, more fleshed out API for programs to interact with. and it's more stable. In short, Pownce gives them everything they can't seem to get from Twitter.

But nobody's on Pownce.

So most Twitterites (Twitterbugs? These cute Web 2.x names bug the crap out of me) go to Pownce, hang around for a few days, and then go back to Twitter. It's like a nice new bar with no clientele. You go back to the place where, well, everybody knows your name.

And Tumblr? Well, in most industries there are room for two big names, and a third smaller, more distant competitor. Coke and Pepsi have RC, for instance. That's what Tumblr seems like to me, the RC cola of the microblog world. Don't get me wrong, I love RC cola. And Tumblr proponents say that Tumblr isn't really like Twitter or Pownce, that it's for "richer data," although I'm not sure what they mean by that. In the microblog world, Tumblr (at present) seems a distant third.

So, back to Twitter. Twitter's like an old girlfriend you go back to because all of your friends like her. But if she keeps abusing you, how long before you throw in the towel for good? Well, OK, Twitter doesn't abuse people. But some tech folks are beginning to make an issue of Twitter, and are sounding the trumpet to try Pownce.

So I guess I'll look at Pownce. But frankly, I feel like it's the Blu-Ray vs. HD-DVD debate all over again. I'm not that attached to microblogging. I just want to hang out with my friends. I'll look at Pownce, but Twitter works for me fine until (and unless) everyone goes somewhere else.

Then maybe I'll switch. There are no easy answers, people. Sorry.

Brad, I'm not really sure what to say.

Um, happy soulmate-ship?

Huckabee for President, Reality Notwithstanding

I just saw Mike Huckabee on Saturday Night Live. Man—everything else aside, for sense of humor this guy has all other Presidential candidates beat by a mile.

Boing Boing: Han Solo in Carbonite desk

Um, I'm not sure what to say about this one.

Via Boing Boing:

Tom Spina Designs created this Han Solo in Carbonite desk for a client. I would be incredibly productive with a desk like this. Just sayin'. Link

Slashdot: Netscape Finally Put Down

Via Slashdot:

Stony Stevenson writes to point out that Netscape has finally reached end of line with the release of version 9.0.0.6. A pop-up will offer users the choice of switching to Firefox, Flock, or remaining with the dead browser, but no new updates will be released.

More here.

I remember the good old days (sniff). It's all been downhill since version 1.1N anyway. Darn browser is going to make me cry...

Engadget: Optimus Maximus shipments begin

NO WAY! This thing is actually a real product?
I don't believe it.

Via Engadget:

Filed under: Peripherals

The day you've been waiting so very, very, very long for has finally arrived: Optimus Maximus keyboards have begun shipping out to their new homes. In addition to the pricey, OLED-studded 'boards, the Optimus Configurator software utility is also available, allowing you to customize your new purchase to your heart's content. In other news, Art Lebedev says that he's planning a new project which will make you salivate uncontrollably for five years straight, and end with you taking out a second mortgage on your home to purchase it. Huzzah!

Reference

Tom's Newfound Fame

Create Fake Magazine Covers with your own picture at MagMyPic.com
Subscribe to Cosmopolitan Magazine at a 63% discount!

Profound web post of the week:

Via 43 Folders:

Ours is a culture based on the idea that whenever you run out of space, you should just pull up stakes and move five miles west. Then you can be happy. Is it any wonder that we seek organization rather than deletion as the solution to an overwhelming problem? Yeah, I think this goes well beyond not being able to find a business card in your junk drawer.

Reference

This is quite sad

I think I have every one of these obsolete skills...

Well almost every skill. I've never churned butter or caulked my wagon to ford a river, at least. And I've never learned how to unlace my corset.

Gruber Gets It: The Appeal of the MacBook Air

John Gruber at Daring Fireball couldn't have been more in tune with my perspective on the MacBook Air.

Via Daring Fireball:

The Air’s missing optical drive and FireWire/Ethernet ports are like the original iMac’s missing floppy drive.

Reference

Wil Shipley has written about it too (although with a title not for the easily offended), and he agreed with my comment that I was baffled by the "it's too expensive, unlike the 12 inch PowerBook" claim. The much missed 12 inch PowerBook was the same price, not less than, the MacBook Air.

The MacBook Air is a shift in thinking, from disks to online living. Physical disk media is dead—long live online access to media.

Like I've said, the Internet is my filing cabinet--why bother buying discs anymore?

Grand Central

Sign me up--it would be really great to consolidate and simplify my phone services:

Google Grand Central.

I reserved a number (or filled out the form, anyway).

Boing Boing: Battle of the bogus Beatle bands

And from Boing Boing:

Battle of the bogus Beatle bands WFMU has a third post (part one, part two) about bands that made songs that sounded like (or attempted to sound like) The Beatles. This time it's The Manchesters versus The Beatle Buddies. Even though these songs are much worse than anything The Beatles did, I still enjoy listening to them.

Reference

Heh. So now I'd like to see the bogus Kinks wannabes...