Thoughts about Blogs

The news that Google has bought Pyra Labs hit the Edinburgh crowd like a brick. Of course, there was much talk centred around whether this is a "good" or a "bad" thing. On the plus side it does seem to indicate that blogging is going mainstream. It is re-affirming a phenomenon that the news agencies discovered in the wake of 9/11 that when there is a major event/news story people go on-line to the extent that sites like CNN, Fox and even our own BBC couldn't cope. Much of the information I got that day came from internet sources for example various mailing lists and also from the Usenet bulletin boards. Blogs provide pretty much the same sort of coverage, being information that people have heard from various sources, together with how the event is impacting on their own personal experience. The negative side is how companies, like Google, handle the information within blogs. As a socio-historical record of how people live, work and interact in a world that is becoming increasingly driven by technological advances it is second to none. The main worry I have is that Google, being driven by shareholders and a bottom line are going to use their position as owners to data mine blogs, extracting information and demographics that are a valuable resource to market research companies. Monster have already done this using CVs lodged with various job search websites that it owns, and Yahoo keep resetting options for their users so that they can sell information gleened from user profiles to marketing companies.

The whole discussion about the function of blogs set me thinking along another line. Why do we do it? There are lots of ordinary people like myself who have blogs that are updated infrequently. Yet I would suspect that in many cases only a handful of people ever view our rants, raves and witterings, being restricted to close friends and acquaintences. Having blogs coming up on searches would increase out exposure. Or would it? For example, a friend of mine, Charlie, is a writer. What if he and I are working over a weekend fixing computer, and we both blog in detail the problem, the fix, the problem that the fix caused, the new fix etc. Whose blog will people turn to? I suspect that people would go to Charlie's blog, and the reason is simple, he is a writer, he is a computer journalist, he has a high profile. I on the other hand am an unknown who has jumped the blogging bandwagon. It wouldn't matter that in this little made up scenario my blog may be more indepth. I'm an unknown and Charlie is a name. The vast majority of bloggers are going to fall into this "we don't know you so we won't read you" category and unless we manage to produce twice as much output as the "name" bloggers, whilst consistently matching their quality of writing, the balance will always be uneven.

Will Google buying Pyra, change this state of affairs? Will anything? Does anyone care?

War with Iraq

Whilst I didn't go on the Anti-War demo I am very much against the stance that the British Govt is taking. Despite my own failing to get my arse across to Glasgow I am pleased to see that many others are not as lazy as I am and much respect to those of you who did march.

One of the things that, in my mind, stands out in the govt rhetoric is their insistance that this is part of the "War against terrorism". Now I will grant that Saddam Hussein is a nasty piece of work, but apart from his own people I haven't seen any evidence that he is doing anything in the way of openly terrorizing his neighbours and I think the way he was forcibly evicted from Kuwait put paid to any plans of expansion that he may have once had. (I could be wrong there because I am neither an expert in Middle East politics nor psychology).

However, reading the BMJ (1) I noticed a news article highlighting the release of a report (2) relating to the mental health of Iraqi children. This report is based on the the work of a humanitarian fact finding mission, that interviewed families in Iraq at the beginning of the year. The team included two child psychologists who report that:

"..the children have "a great fear" of a war that they perceive to be "hanging over their heads." Children as young as four described ideas about the horrors of war. They were fearful, anxious, and depressed about the prospects of armed conflict... Many have nightmares, and 40% do not think that life is worth living"

To me these children are being terrorized, and yes I do mean terrorized

The Oxford English Dictionary (3) give the meaning of terrorist as:

1. As a political term: a. Applied to the Jacobins and their agents and partisans in the French Revolution, esp. to those connected with the Revolutionary tribunals during the ‘Reign of Terror’. b. Any one who attempts to further his views by a system of coercive intimidation. In early use also applied spec. to members of one of the extreme revolutionary societies in Russia. The term now usually refers to a member of a clandestine or expatriate organization aiming to coerce an established government by acts of violence against it or its subjects.
2. Dyslogistically: One who entertains, professes, or tries to awaken or spread a feeling of terror or alarm; an alarmist, a scaremonger.

Now correct me if I'm wrong (and I really don't think I am) but looking at the definition at 1b, isn't this what Bush and Blair are doing to the children and people of Iraq? Further isn't the stepping up security at airports and reporting more and more about the perceived threat what Blair is trying to do to us here?

So who are the real terrorists?

REFERENCES
1. Clark. BMJ 2003;326: 356 Link to BMJ News 15th February 2003
2. Our Common Responsibility: The Impact of a New War on Iraqi Children Link to Reports at War Child Canada
3. Oxford English Dictionary On-line. Link to definition

Officially Insane?!

Surfing the web I re-found the link to the Insanity Test. Yes I know there are lots of insanity tests around but as one of my major interests is motor racing you will see why I like this one. Despite having seen it before (about 18 months ago) I still started laughing at it.

Flash Alert

I've just got Flash working on my browser (can't you tell) and I'm currently looking at lots of animations. Whilst there is a huge amount of talentless crap out there in webdom, there are also some quite clever and thoughtful pieces, a not insignificant number inspired by the 11 September terror attacks.

Some are quite poignant and others, like this short cartoon, are really quite funny.

Maybe I need to set up a Flash archive. Or better still maybe not.

One for the Sisters

I thought I had seem everything but this Flash animation takes the biscuit. I wonder if the Catholic church know about it.

The main Rubber Nun website is interesting too.

Cats Galore

I was looking to find the link to the Japanese singing kitten when I came across this. Lots of stuff about cats, though many of the links are to Flash pages. Just wish they wouldn't describe everything as cute.

What in the world makes God Botherers believe that knocking on your door on a Sunday afternoon to discuss The Bible is going to endear them to you. I have just had the Jehovah's Witlesses around. Not the usual old woman/young woman partnership. No this time was a very nice looking young bloke (5'10", short blond hair, cute smile, aged mid 20s, I'd say) and a young asian woman (Far East, Malaysia or thereabouts, 5'5"ish, quite pretty, disarming smile).

Young Man: Good afternoon. I know this probably isn't the best time to call, but we were wondering if you had a few minutes to spare to discuss The Bible. [Short pause] We would like the opportunity to discuss why we believe that current events were predicted in The Bible.

Me: Sorry I don't wish to be exposed to your heresies [Shuts door in young man's face]

It was only later that I realised that this could have been the start of much amusement.

Damn, I've got to learn to put my brain in gear before opening my mouth.

Government Stupidity

In response to the Belgian supreme court ruling that Israeli military commanders could be prosecuted for their part in the 1982 Sabra and Chatilla massacres, the Israeli government are screaming anti-semetism and an accusation that Belgium are raising 'a "blood libel" against the Jewish people.'

The Guardian have reported the story here including a brief description of the blood libel.

He Loves Me!

I just collected the package my boyfriend sent from Manchester. Apart from the obligatory Valentine's Day card, he sent me his last Rolo.

All together now. Awwwwww.

YAY!

I found the game. I can't think why software is on the Hitler bookshelf. I'm now off to spend an enjoyable evening bankrupting capitalists, killing warmongers and smiting fundies.

Don't wait up.

A little bit of poetry for a Friday afternoon

I was going through old issues of the Lancet (like you do) and I came across this poem (again)

night-crossing

i wake to find myself
exactly halfway
between last night and
touching you.

i can tell by this uneasiness.

by the way these feverfews
have come to harm, how
the thin
velvet of their dusted
wings
weaken and fold
beneath a litany of false alarms
halfway
between burning down and coming true.

this is the season of falling satellites, the internal bleeding
of unwritten poems, forest fires for no reason
and i am waiting for news of all
of these, and cannot sleep
until you put your arms around me like a bay
and i tide in and out of you, until we run aground
and have nothing left to say.

you are listing, unsure
if it is my hand in your or yours in mine

if your pulling away will leave me falling behind.

Michael O'Reilly
Ramelton, County Donegal, Eire

(Or if you want the proper reference: O'Reilly. The Lancet 1995; 346: 1543)

My phone has been ringing like an emergency hotline tonight. Seems as though everyone and his dog wants to speak with me.

In among the calls was one from a friend in England checking I was okay because I'd been quiet, who is then telling me about his latest string of potential conquests, which left me so f****** depressed. It just highlights the difference in attitudes to men and women. This friend is only about a year younger than me and seems to be getting interested ladies left right and center. Whereas I am perceived as being over the hill and not worthy of a second glance. It's a rotten f****** double standard and it's f****** unfair. Why should an almost 40 year old woman be seen as unworthy of attention when a nearly 40 year old man is seen as highly desirable? Why the f*** should experience be a virtue for a man and yet mark a woman out as being a slut? Why don't I just blow my f****** brains out and be done with it?

Okay, okay so I don't update as regularly as I should. So what? It's my blog and I'll update when I want.

Anyway I have been frequenting different parts of the internet recently and have been introduced to a couple of tidbits, which I present here for your delight and amusement.

Firstly, thanks to a one of the geeks in a linux chat room for this. Remember folks it's a joke.

Then there the Restroom Rules as brought to my attention by Mike (thanks mate).

And finally, on a topical note a bunch of folks protesting the forthcoming war against Iraq but a banner over a billboard which I just had to laugh at.

Well that's it till next time.

I have the urge to play computer games but I don't want to reboot into windows because that might be what caused all the problems in the first place and I can't find the linux games to reload them. I want to know how it is possible to lose a set of cds in their packaging, complete with manuals in a flat that is the size of a rabbit hutch. I think one of the cthulus must have eaten them as a substitute for brains, but neither of them will admit it. I feel like I should head out to the pub for the writers workshop readings, but seeing as I have been off work sick it would be a bit of a cheek. On top of which I have to get out of bed sometime before light to get my butt across town for 8:30 in the morning. Happy, happy, joy, joy. Blarrrggghh!

Right the computer is working again, thanks to Claudio and the guys in #linux on nixhelp.org. It's actually a re-occurrence of a problem that Claudio spend two nights fixing last week so before he started spending lots more time at it again I threw the problem into the chat room. Main query that came back from the guys was "raid?". Neither Claudio or I thought that the machine was using raid but we kept the suggestion in the back of our minds as work began, partitions were checked and bad blocks marked. When the machine was rebooted, we kept a very close eye on what was being loaded, at which point curses were heard. Kernel sources were located and downloaded from disk at which point we noted that the installer claimed it was reconfiguring something. Looks were exchanged and a decision to have a close look at what the kernel was doing was made. The distro insists that my AMD K6 desktop machine is a 586 family processor running on a Toshiba laptop as well as other stupid stuff including what appeared to be two different raid controllers, so a swift reconfiguration and recompile later we think that we may have the problem solved. Touch wood.

ARRGHH!

Just got up after a fitful night of pained sleeplessness to discover that one of the computers has crashed big time. Won't boot at all. I think I need the services of an Italian friend. Hopefully he will make the computer an offer it can't refuse.

I woke up today with a blinding headache, so bad that I rang for a doctor's appointment. It wasn't just that it was bad but also that it has been there for about ten days. Anyway, the doctor listened to me sympathetically, and agreed that worrying about a headache that's lasted ten days isn't hypochondria, and she gave me some pills to kill the pain and help with the feeling of nausea. So off I toddled to the bus stop to go to work only to find I'd just missed the bus, so I went to get the prescription made up. What a palaver. The local pharmacy never seems to have drugs that you want, it's always we'll have to order this in and we'll have it in a couple of days. Anyway the drug I was prescribed is available in small quantities over the counter so the pharmacist made up the script out of her "over the counter" stock, then charged me a double fee ("well there are two types of tablet there dear").

I staggered into work only to have one of the other senior secretaries drag me off to lunch with the rest of the lunch crew, who all said I looked like shit and should go home.

After having had at least something to eat I took two of the pills. The first lot you should take are a lurid pink and have a drug to stop feelings of nausea, which I needed because I really did feel quite sick. I then put my head on the desk and prayed for a swift death (I said it was a bad headache). One of my co-workers saw me in this state and said that I really ought to go home, and as he is a doctor I decided to take his advice. Because I was feeling nauseous I decided that it would be better to get a taxi home but before I could do this I had to go and throw up. Now I can only blame this on the pills because I'd gone well over a week of nausea without the up-chucking, but on the plus side after my discussion with Ralph on the white telephone the nausea went away so it wasn't all bad.

And now I am at home and just about to go to bed to see if darkness and quiet will help any.

Blaaarrgghh!

I had a phone call from my mother today. She was telling me the latest news about her chemotherapy and all the stuff that is going on with the family down in Leeds.

Family news is pretty much as it always is, but the treatment news was interesting. Her treatment regime is a long session (several drugs) then a week later a short session (one main drug and antibiotics), then the next week a long session and so on. She had her first long session a couple of weeks ago and when I went to visit she was fine. Her only side effect was that her joints were aching and she felt tired. When she went for the short session it was cancelled because her blood tests were a bit skewed. Last week she was back for the next long session and there was a delay for some reason during which time she got to see the consultant. She thought that because there were no nasty side effects that the drugs weren't working, so she was shown the x-rays for comparison, and apparently there is already a visible reduction in the tumour.

Whilst we know that this is not a cure, it's a positive and each positive is a step on the way to controlling the nasty little bugger. So we are all pretty upbeat about it.

Just got back to work, straight off the train from Manchester I should add, and what do I find? Someone in my office "borrowing" my keyboard. So I wasn't well pleased. Of course, this has raised an issue of security, but as my contract there expires on the 14th April I'm getting to a point were I don't give a shit.

However, the reason for my late arrival at work was the visit to my mum's (travelling via Manchester to see the boyfriend). I actually arranged this trip quite well in that I travelled straight from work on Friday, spend the best part of Saturday in Leeds, had quality time with Paul on Sunday and started back a zero-dark-o'clock today.

Mum is fine, if fact she looks better than she has in a long time. I suspect that some of that is because she took early retirement from her job as a special education needs co-ordinator at a deprived inner city school and has therefore relieved her of a huge amounts of stress. The only side effect she is getting is soreness in her joints, though she also says that she is getting tired easily. I have to confess that seeing her has lifted a weight from my mind. She is her usual cheerful self, and she doesn't look anything like you would expect of a cancer patient on chemotherapy.

Plus she is determined not to be beaten.

I knew this was going to happen. The last time I spoke to my mother, she promised faithfully that I would be kept informed of what was happening. Well the date for her first chemotherapy has been and gone and not a word. I know that the effects of the treatment are such that she probably doesn't feel up to calling. But what excuse does my aunt have? On past experience my mother has been at death's door in intensive care and my aunt didn't tell me anything, and what was most annoying is that I was working in a different department of the same hospital. I am so angry yet I can't really be angry at my mother because she probably feels like shit at the moment, and I feel shit because I don't know what is happening.