The two young gaygeeks on this train are… cute.
En route to St Ives. A magnificent spring morning helps ease the pain. So does codeine.
Mon plan: Mailout to announce new charge-out rates for general geekery; day in St Ives for client disinfection; evening at home, collapsing.
Emerges. It’s Monday, but it’s also Spring. Maybe the stress of one is cancelled by the hope of the other.
Exhausted. Even with sort-of decent sleep last night, the pain levels are tiring. Codeine and sleep beckon, despite no work catch-up. [exit]
@middleclassgirl Hehe! Merci. :) I was blown away being quoted by Pisani too, he’s cool. I like being “le blogueur australien Stilgherrian”.
@SilkCharm Get a reputation? But then you could MANAGE your reputation. How often do you Google yourself, if it’s not rude to ask?
@lewellyn No, “fiddling with my bits” is NOT “letting off steam”. Well, not steam anyway.
@middleclassgirl Formidable? Well, it’s not quite “Le Monde” http://is.gd/102y but I’m happy. Il est adéquate. ;)
@lewellyn Googling oneself is “reputation management”. Ask @SilkCharm, she’ll tell you it’s not dirty. Ask nicely, she’ll tell you what is.
@Nickhodge Barry Jones is not only smart, he talks even more than I do. Never get him and me in the same room. Personal experience speaking.
WTF? One of my angry outbursts is being used in an English language lesson! I think… http://is.gd/257O And i’s French AGAIN!
Little known fact: I tried to think of something witty about “Palin” and “drome”, but failed.
En route to the gym, which today shall be a source of much amusement. Probably off-grid for some time.
@wolfcat [smirks] Everything is “first” for some sufficiently-narrorw definition of the category, eh?
@wolfcat I think the first Twitter meme would have been the Fail Whale, surely?
(I won’t be doing much gym at the gym, the pain is still painful. But I’ll enjoy watching @SnarkyPlatypus suffer.)
Sun plan: Potter thru the work backlog caused by Friday’s back pain and “emergency” work, with @SnarkyPlatypus & gym inserted at 1300+.
RT @JasonBarnett RT @duckstrap: Nice post about The UpTake paying attention to important stories http://tinyurl.com/66crud
@neerav Indeed, the Reserve Bank of Australia has CPI figures at http://is.gd/24LU which I found myself ‘cos Twitterverse was too slow. ;)
@SnarkyPlatypus Is there a recording of the karaoke? The world needs to see your rendition of “Total Eclipse of the Heart”. ;)
Dear Twitterverse, can haz linkage to Australian inflation/CPI increases, to adjust my charge-out rates since 2 years ago plz kthxbai.
RT @JasonBarnett: Chuck from @theuptake at scene of Minneapolis bus pull-over http://is.gd/24Jh Live vid like this changes journalism LOTS!
RT @jeffsonstein: Interview with Nat’l Lawyers Guild attorney while 3 Minneapolis-area raids in progress this morning. http://is.gd/24He
@wolfcat @trib @misswired I just call the world as I see it, instead of pretending diversity doesn’t exist. ;)
@wolfcat Why do people keep saying “that is so wrong” to things I say?
Little Known Fact: McCain only met with Sarah Palin once. She was paid by the hour, with a surcharge for the uniform.
@misswired, @Alegrya and me are at The Afternoon Office(TM) and about to have lunch. I am hearing stories of A Big Night and [won’t fit].
The 9/11 Truthers have a stall in Newtown Square.
@misswired @Alegrya Well, either or both of you ladies would be lovely company. If not, I’ll be pondering formats for Stilgherrian Live.
I think I might pop down to Kelly’s On King for lunch and a pint and a quiet read. If anyone’s in Newtown, feel free to pop up. ETA 1500.
@havi Hey good to make contact! Your piece “Twitter demystified and debunked” is excellent, yes. http://is.gd/1Wr4
Preparing an archive of “Stilgherrian Live Alpha” episodes, such as they exist. Re-encoding them all as MP4s.
@crispynoodles Those pics just go to show how much hair / clothes / makeup are surface signals. Same bloke underneath, but our assumptions!
Photo sequence: How to turn a hairy metal rocker into a drag queen. http://is.gd/23tn Click through for the full sequence.
@SnarkyPlatypus I love that your “memories of work drinks gently coalescing around him” coincided with the DM “Can we do gym tomorrow?” ;)
Glenn Greenwald / Salon on today’s police raids in Minneapolis. http://is.gd/24xO Welcome to the Land of the Free. Not. #rnc08
@mpesce Little known fact: Sarah Palin can TAKE the Exxon Valdez. DVDA FTW! (Oh, that is SO wrong…)
@SnarkyPlatypus You’ll love this song! The lyrics explain the formula for a boy-band hit ballad. http://is.gd/24D4 Hat-tip to @desaraev.
@ApostrophePong Excellent. Logically, therefore, a Twittersearch for “little known fact palin” IS the Buddhist way: http://is.gd/22VA
@firstdogonmoon You simply MUST Twittersearch for “little known fact palin”: http://is.gd/22VA Also the blog: http://palinfacts.com
RT @ChrisSaad: Sarah Palin just miss-pronounced Nuclear - she fits right in with the Republican party.
Dear Twitterverse, I have Stilgherrian Live ep 6 as 68MB .mov, but audio is 26-ish seconds out of sync. Can anyone quickly re-align? DM pls.
RT @seanosteen: My 5yr old gave Senator McCain an extreme makeover: http://is.gd/24Bk
@ApostrophePong I’m fairly sure your recent tweets about your shooting, bras, tear gas and beer are not related… I hope.
@mpesce [smirks] Look, do you REALLY need me to help you fulfil your fantasies? ;) Anyway, I reckon the Viet Cong reference is the icing.
RT @john_chr: Life imitates art (kinda - in a strange sort a way) http://tinyurl.com/6cpol6 OK, it’s a sci-fi reference, but it works.
@lewellyn Hehe! Twittersnooze sues the API, so may be throttled by the API limit? Suffer, mate!
@mpesce [revised] Little Known Fact: McCain only met Sarah Palin once. She was paid by the hour, with a surcharge for the Viet Cong uniform.
@lewellyn I believe you want http://twittersnooze.com to temporarily unfollow people whose tweets have taken a different path.
@limburger2001 Nah you don’t want an actual, living pet then, you want a lifelike inflatable companion.
Emerges. Discovering many little known facts about Sarah Palin, and thinking that “little-known” should be hyphenated. Grammar, people!
Lack of decent, pain-free sleep catches up. If war breaks out, do let me know, otherwise do remember it’s the weekend. [exit]
Home. Ensconsed wit the quilt, but without felines who’ve decided I’m less interesting than hunting.
RT @glittertrash: “My cephalopods are being recalcitrant.” Oh, girl, I know EXACTLY what you mean… the bastards.
Looking at my photos from Bangkok last year, and Google Earth of that city, and reminiscing and thinking about… soon… http://is.gd/23Px
@firstdogonmoon Yes, describing Julia Gillard as “our most senior ranga” is a nice touch.
@SnarkyPlatypus “I don’t like taurine - makes me feel quite uncomfortable.” I thought you meant ME there for a minute.
RT @cameronreilly: “@mpesce don’t be so naive, @stilgherrian knows ALL.” I’ll re-follow now you’ve stopped haranguing Christians for a bit.
I don’t think I made Crikey today. Lots of other Fairfax cuts / strike stuff, including Mike Carlton being sacked. I guess I didn’t fit.
RAAF / US National Guard jet fighters to zap thru Sydney Harbour between 1415 and 1435, i.e. very soon. http://is.gd/21E7
@Mediamum Stilgherrian Live returns next Thursday 4 September, for Spring. I’ll post more across the weekend.
@Warlach OK, my metaphor needs work. Still, unlike the sinking ship, all the tools to build the new-media hovercraft are freely available.
@Warlach Well I wrote it for Crikey on spec, but it IS a live topic so I’m hoping… oh, in the next hour.
Fairfax journalists are fighting for deckchairs on a sinking ship. Guys, get a hovercraft! BUILD a hovercraft.
Anyway, I’m making the transition to The Afternoon Office(tm) for a hearty lunch and what I should’ve been working on this morning.
@Warlach But THAT old debate is tedious, and that it keep emerging whenever we have a conversation about media evolution shits me to tears.
@Warlach The old media vs new media “one or the other” style argument only happen if you assume people can’t/won’t learn new new skills.
@Warlach I don’t think you can change Fairfax from the inside any more than you can turn a steamship into an Airbus A380.
@Warlach I tell the journos that facing the sack is an opportunity, not a threat, that they can create something new - unless not up for it.
@hortovanyi Well I wrote it for Crikey, they like a stir. The last similar rant I wrote went global, quoted in “Le Monde”. http://is.gd/UuS
@monkeyjedi “Journalists going on strike. Well, off you go, petals. You can stamp your feet and turn blue in the face too, for all I care.”
I am gonna be so the enemy of every working journalist in Australia once my piece goes live. Let’s hope they’re too busy watching Obama.
@jeffcadwell No, if you’re not watching the DNC “now” then it’s fine ‘cos the relevant bits will be repeated endlessly all weekend.
Thieves steal Ubuntu-loaded laptops, ignore Vista. Not even thieves want Vista. ;) http://is.gd/21t1
Dear Client, the combination of “Backdoor.Trojan”, “Trojan.Srizbi” and “Hacktool.Rootkit” are not things you wanted to see on your computer.
@monkeyjedi Ah yes, #poltech in Canberra, a fun morning! Hi, Sir!
OK, Crikey article written, Taking a breather before final edit and adding the linkage.
@thatdavidmiller @Barry_Saunders @ragamouf @dcagle @ianlyons@waycooljnr Hi all, I to try to greet new followers, but overwhelmed lately.
1-day “cyberspace law” conference “Meeting privacy challenges: the ALRC & NSWLRC Privacy Reviews”, 2 October, Sydney. http://is.gd/23fC
@ChrisSaad “Fox News has been a *little* more balanced lately”? [smirks] In other news, Mussolini has been a *little* less fascist… ;)
@wolfcat Heh! A pre-breakfast sauvignon blanc would be tempting… but gods know I need a stress-reduction day!
Emerges. Things are better, but will be even better shortly because each tablet contains 200mg Ibuprofen and 12.8mg Codeine Phosphate.
I will now take my newly-realigned vertebrae and place them in a line along the bed. [exit]
@GeorgeDearing Heh! The (mis)use of “space” is one of my major gripes. I’m an anti-buzzword guy (who swears a lot, even for an Australian).
@GeorgeDearing Oh hai, plz do not says “in the enterprise social software space”, just say “in enterprise social software” kthxbai.
@sboiling Well, Bangkok’s a big city… you probably won’t even notice. They’ve got this riot and coup thing down pat, says @ApostrophePong.
@jeffsonstein When you say “public darkroom in San Francisco in late 80’s” my brain assplodes. Just sayin’…
Looks like they’re having a great day in Bangkok today as well. http://is.gd/22dG [sigh]
@mr_gadget So you’ll be getting me a D90 for Christmas, then? ;)
Maybe I don’t want a camcorder. Maybe I want the new Nikon D90 12 megapixel DSLR that also does HD video. http://is.gd/1X5V Man, the lenses!
@jeffsonstein Colbert is a bit self-consciously nerdy, though I somehow prefer him to Jon Stewart. Both make me think about my own style.
Shop: “What kind of Mac is it?” Customer: “A MacBook.” Shop: “Yeah, but is it an HP, Toshiba or Gateway?” http://is.gd/22au
@mhawkins1970 Yes, I watched all eps of “The Colbert Report” last night. He does a fine little satire I reckon.
@StuartLivesey @alphajuliet @mhawkins1970 @jeffsonstein Ah, my work is done for the night, eh? ;)
From The Daily Show: “Every time Obama speaks an angel has an orgasm.”
Now that it’s after hours, if you missed this before, you’ll never think of McCain the same way after this. http://is.gd/zLO
RT @BBCWorld: Australian hikers in Papua New Guinea find suspected remains of WWII airman hanging in a tree. http://tinyurl.com/5vrygu
@deconstructo Who would replace Morris Iemma? Oh, a small block of cheese… a potted palm… a sack of gravel… choose!
@mpesce Well for Morris Iemma the end of NEXT week then. ;) Though I still don’t quite understand why he’s there AT ALL.
Actually, I won’t blog the piece just yet. If I get it into Crikey then it’ll be read by journalists. Important. DM me for a private copy.
@mpesce Heh! You mean, “Poll: Will Iemma make it to the end of the week?”
@wolfcat Crikey has the bigger audience, but hey it’ll spread fast enough I guess… heh… OK, I’m home now so stand by.
I wrote about journalists’ strike and changes in media. It didn’t run in Crikey. Should I try again Monday or blog it now? Audience size…?
Open source group sues Quebec government for buying Microsoft software without considering open alternatives. http://is.gd/21W1
Anyway, I’m safe from the sniffer dog ‘cos I am ensconsed at the pub with that non-drug, a NZ sauvignon blanc. [sigh]
@chieftech @deconstructo Well, the chap who they’d stopped at the head of the stairs looked more local or state govt than a hippie… ;)
Police with sniffer dogs doing Newtown station, static at top of stairs. It’s slow and unsafe enough at peak hour, guys.
Oddly enough, it feels better with all my vertebrae rotated to the sdme orientation. Electric tube-worm takes me home.
Overheard on the train: The leather bars in Mexico are hilarious.
Uhoh. The big monitor has suddenly gained East 17’s version of “West End Girls”. http://is.gd/21O0 Bank and journey to chiropractor soon!
@garthk http://is.gd/21HF (PDF) is the preliminary ATSB report into the emergency on QF30 (the Oxygen Cylinder A-Go-Go Flight).
RT @jg_rat RT @viller RT @rosshill: You will never think of McCain the same again. NSFW unless you have headphones http://tinyurl.com/66shha
@smperris Nah not ALL government staff deserve the BBQ forks. I like to vary the punishment… ;)
@trib If I had a captive government audience, I wouldn’t be talking about social media. I’d be stabbing them with barbecue forks.
@SnarkyPlatypus @jg_rat Yes, telling a media editor to “stay away from journalists”… good advice. He could sack them? All the rage atm…
I hope the courier arrives here soon with my wallet. I think I need to hit the chiropractor today not tomorrow. Pain, and not the good kind.
@wolfcat So is Kevin Rudd the Wiggle, Dora the Explorer or Britney? And that would make Brendan Nelson…?
@conem @StuartLivesey How about, since we’re deciding what happens in the future, that ONLY people UNDER 18 can vote in federal elections?
@willhughes @lelak @StuartLivesey @plasmaegg You and most of the commenters on the ABC story agree: Costa leaving politics? Fine by us!
Um, Michael Costa “threatens” to quit politics? http://is.gd/1Zp5 Exactly who would this be a “threat” to, as opposed to a blessed relief?
@lzcd True. Making up news takes creativity an effort. Copying and pasting from Facebook requires neither.
@crispynoodles “Why are NineMSN quoting people’s reactions on Facebook?” To make “news” without leaving their desk. Lazy arseholes.
@SnarkyPlatypus @garthk There is no Truth, and hasn’t been since 1995. http://is.gd/1ZeY
I assume the occasional whaleage is due to some political thing in that America place? Anything important or just what we call ALREADY KNEW?
@firstdogonmoon I agree that your cartoon http://is.gd/1Zeh is one of your best from 2007. Also http://is.gd/1Zel and http://is.gd/1Zew
@garthk These articles in Atlantic Review http://is.gd/1Zea and FT http://is.gd/1Zeb may help too re US/Russia/Georgia.
@lewellyn “Where are the fun things for hobbyists to play with?” In their pants?
@garthk I haven’t read “The Truth About Russia in Georgia†http://is.gd/1Wk4 but note it omits the US/Georgia deal re Iraq & training.
OK, going dark for an hour or so while I write this story and get it out of my system.
My horoscope begins “You’re full of righteous energy” today, so writing this article could well be… fun. ;)
@deanlk Ta for the linkage to lame News Corp “hack” headline. http://snipurl.com/3krud Sub’s fault, not original journalist probably.
@Shaun_R I am “Different”? I hope so… but you’re noticing specifically… different from what? Which reference point? :)
@deanlk I don’t see the word “hack” in the news.com.au story about Wikipedia vandalism. http://is.gd/217G Is there another story?
I note that Fairfax journalists are going on strike. http://is.gd/216Y I’m inspired to write a spec piece for Crikey re Fairfax staff cuts.
RT @achitwood: “Can corporate internal communications ever be a conversation or always a speech?” (Via @trib.)
@SnarkyPlatypus “Having no pants builds character “? Yes. It does. Please see previous RT re a stack of books…
@andrewbarnett Ah, no, that it MY headache! But through some magick of teh internetz, I STILL HAVE IT TOO! TEH BILOCATION IS A MYSTARY!!!1!
RT @MissRFTC: In his Facebook profile pic, a friend of mine is lifting a stack of books with his cock whilst wearing a Stormtrooper helmet.
@andrewdotnich I see your words of yawnage, and raised them to a paragraph. Some, Sir, even have Capital Letters.
@exador23 Re McCain, you may be amused by this line from yesterday. http://is.gd/215E
Emerges. Without wallet. Without pants. Without dignity. Actually, it’s cold so I do have pants.
Watching obscure films from the Prelinger Archives. http://is.gd/202R I have… evil plans.
Howard Dean, noticing satellite delay talking with Jon Stewart: “Is there a delay in here? This is like being inside John McCain’s brain.”
John Oliver at DNC re Hillary supporters: “Like hopeful cattle they spill out into the night, and inevitable defeat in November.” [smirks]
@lewellyn But I’d actually like to watch local news etc, and we’re in a reception dead spot, not helped by heavy jets landing on the roof.
@lewellyn Oh I’m watching “The Colbert Report” directly off the Comedy Central website, that’s all fine.
Since I canna get broadcast TV, streaming “The Colbert Report” will have to do. I stand (well, lay) in awe, as always.
@mspecht Count me in for doing SOMETHING for Anxiety & Depression Awareness Month. Rather important.
@Limburger If the courier HAS run off with my wallet they’re both desperate and (as of tomorrow) without a job.
Gym abandoned: too much pain, no wallet. Cowering at home.
@Fush I wonder who’ll be first to BASE jump off Burj Dubai? ;)
Uhoh. I just noticed the time. The courier has not delivered my wallet. I am screwed.
Work on Burj Dubai, the world’s tallest building, is going quite well, it seems (nice pic). http://is.gd/1ZC4
@bethanie @joshsharp @JonathanPoh Since you were concerned about grammar, you’ll be pleased with this crow’s skillz. http://is.gd/1ZBf
I haven’t been keeping up with @gapingvoid’s cartoon’s lately, but this one seems to speak truth. http://is.gd/1ZxM
@SnarkyPlatypus Does who need assistance? The chiropractor? The courier? Brendan Nelson? Michael Costa? I AM SO CONFUZZLED!
@erkpod WFT is a “virginectomy”?
RT @cshirky: 4yo, pointing @ Twitter: “Is that the internet?” 7yo, older and wiser: “Yes. Everything that isn’t a movie is the internet.”
@tdm911 That “Batmobile” has a “cassette player”, whatever that is. http://is.gd/1XrF Surely THIS is the Batmobile? http://is.gd/1Xs0
Hmmm… 7 people found my website by searching for “homer simpson pussy”. That’s not right.
@wolfcat @Nickhodge @ApostrophePong @stilgherrian Not Alzheimer’s, the pre-1985 music clips are all @SnarkyPlatypus’ fault. Honestly.
@Alcoa may be on Twitter, but it’s just PR. “Alcoa does good. Alcoa does good.” Polly wants a cracker. Talking, not listening. Yawn.
@erkpod Oh BTW I forgot to say that “stankydorco” if the most awesomest new word since @firstdogonmoon’s “olympicest”. Bravo!
I could also attend @stub by Ustream or Qik video, but that would reveal that I’m curled up in bed reading.
Since I can’t be at @stub tonight, I’ll wear my @stub Pub Trivia green sunnies avatar for the night.
Nice post on Ustream’s blog, “The Anatomy of a Successful Music Broadcast Event” http://is.gd/1Xmo
Finally watching last week’s Clarke & Dawe video on sub-prime investments. http://is.gd/1XkC
@Fush Oh, I was “joking”. This is what was on the ABC. http://www.helveticafilm… It’s on teh torrentz, apparently…
@Fush OK, you win. Wasn’t that movie http://www.snurl.com/fon… on the ABC the other night? ;)
@andrewdotnich Ah no Zapf Chancery is a cliché. A far better one is Aldo Novarese’s Stop. http://is.gd/1Xhu
Listening to this episode of “The Goons” right here –> http://is.gd/1Xhd “The Great British Revolution”
@andrewdotnich @SnarkyPlatypus Oh undoubtedly our current universe is Comic Sans.
@andrewdotnich Computers are better than typewriters, we should be able to make a new physics with DIFFERENT TYPEFACES!
@andrewdotnich The Goons’ universe had a much better kind of physics.
@mhawkins1970 Hmmm… I dunno whether a picture of coffee is enough. And @SnarkyPlatypus’ suggestion is just wrong.
No coffee in house. No wallet means no money to buy more coffee. This. Is. Serious.
@raena Yes, thankfully the bank still has my wallet. I assume they’ll deduct the usual $40 for any reason they make up before returning it.
Incorrect sequence: 1 Leave suburb by train. 2 Remember wallet sitting on bank desk.
Work in St Ives is done. I await my private helicopter and connecting hovercraft. The 21st Century rocks!
@totalomnivore “Rick Astley”? No, never heard of him. You must be thinking of someone else.
@misswired Well my Twitterstream this morning … including http://is.gd/1X4v … is a fair representation of reality. Find your keys?
@totalomnivore “Rickrolled”? I haven’t the faintest idea what you’re talking about, sir!
@DrMiaow I doubt it’s related to the Facebook Trojan directly, but then all good malware is modular these days anyway. [shrugs]
I’ve just been told that they’ve mentioned this Trojan.Blusod on commercial radio in Sydney just now. Widespread?
@eskimo_sparky Alas, I will not be doing @stub tonight, as my liver is sending me smoke signals.
@lzcd Heh! I should’ve saved a copy to see if “All your base belong to us!” is in there somewhere. Heck, I’ll just download it again. ;)
“Are you sure keep your computer exposing to cyber terrorists?” Yes, I am sure. [giggles]
Heh! Resuming from screensaver, it pops a “recovered from serious error” dialog. If you cancel it, you get another scary but cute warning…
… then it says, “oh hai, credit card details to register pls kthxbai”, and your money is pwn3d.
Cute. The trojan generates a fake BSOD as a screensaver, and installs fake anti-virus software warning of “3094 viruses on your computer”…
“Ladies and Gentlemen of St Ives, I present unto you ‘Trojan.Blusod’, the latest addition to your computers’ software.”
@RozP Hey, we must need to add in a Rockroll every now and then, to liven up proceedings. ;)
@jeffsonstein The “Blue Screen of Knowledge” is @eskimo_sparky’s, from memory, alas not my original thought.
Northbound, passing thru Artarmon. It still hurts. Reading a serious book is probably the wrong strategy.
Well at least ignorance is wide distributed, both here http://is.gd/1WMh and here http://is.gd/3EI … [sigh]
@lewellyn I’m assuming the Cyber simulator is for running legacy petroleum industry and defence applications, so $12k is cheap.
@lewellyn Yes, “Desktop Cyber emulator” for “one PC is US$12,500 + optional US$4,000 for annual maintenance”. [giggles]
RT @ChrisSaad: @alper Thanks for the video that explains the [US] presidential process http://is.gd/1YX4 Yes, another Common Craft effort.