engineoustag:www.clothbot.org,2007:/engineous//22007-01-20T03:16:02ZThat reminds me...Movable Type 3.33Open Captioning the Appletag:www.clothbot.org,2007:/engineous//2.142007-01-20T02:08:00Z2007-01-20T03:16:02ZWhen the Apple falls on the TV, will anyone read between the lines? What if iTunes were to start serving up properly closed-captioned video? The QuickTime video format already supports it and the upcoming Leopard release will have enhanced captioning...
properly closed-captioned video?
The QuickTime video format already supports it and the upcoming Leopard release will have enhanced captioning support for accessibility. If their video content had captions there would be no good reason why iTunes wouldn't be able to search the caption text directly and return links to those points in the video.
It's not just about checking off that box beside "accessibility requirements" for the subset of our population that is deaf and hard-of-hearing.
It's a potential profit multiplier, reinforcing the cycle of choice.
1. Make it easy for me to find what I'm looking for.
2. Make it easy for me to share what I've found with others.
3. Make it easy for me to find what I didn't know I was looking for.
...oh yeah, I almost forgot...
0. Let me buy video content through iTunes Canada already!!]]>
Americans-Only; Fourth Amendmenttag:www.clothbot.org,2007:/engineous//2.132007-01-19T03:31:00Z2007-01-19T05:06:00ZOverdue for another post. Being Canadian, living in Canada but working for a company headquartered in the US, I've taken more than a passing interest in what my rights, or lack there-of, are. Take the Fourth Amendment of the US...
Fourth Amendment of the US constitution for example:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
It's really quite subtle. Having grown up under constant barrage of programming produced in the US, it's all too easy to take for granted that the laws and rights trumpeted apply to us as well. As the saying goes, when you assume...]]>
the people referred to. In other words, I have no rights beyond what our embassy may (or may not) be able to negotiate after the fact.
So every time I travel to the US, I do so with no expectations of privacy. Being your typical techie white-guy, I blend in, don't fuss about anything, drive safely, and generally go with the flow. Having seen what happens to non-citizens that deviate from the norm, it's rather depressing knowing that if I were to land up in the wrong place at the wrong time I'd be worse than S.O.L'd.
Ah well, such are the choices I continue to make. I'm not about to stop visiting my friends to the South just because of a silly little fear like this...]]>
...I claim thee.tag:www.clothbot.org,2006:/engineous//2.32006-12-10T04:05:00Z2006-12-10T04:07:42ZHello Technorati Profile ...and Bloglines....
Technorati Profile
...and Bloglines. ]]>
Gartner Report on Greener Electronicstag:www.clothbot.org,2006:/engineous//2.122006-11-30T15:41:06Z2006-11-30T17:24:43ZSlowly but surely, the message is getting out that electronics designers and manufacturers need to push forward on the greening of technology. Meike Escherich, a principal research analyst at Gartner, has written a report [via] outlining the challenges ahead. As...
Meike Escherich, a principal research analyst at Gartner, has written a report [via] outlining the challenges ahead. As more countries raise the bar what are acceptable levels of toxic materials in the manufacturing processes and final products available to the general population, companies need to adapt and innovate now or face an ever-shrinking market for their 'wares.
Haven't found a link to the report itself yet...]]>
Sun Through Shaded Windowtag:www.clothbot.org,2006:/engineous//2.112006-11-24T15:17:57Z2006-11-24T15:30:25Z Sun Through Shaded Window Originally uploaded by aplumb. Winter is finally settling in. Once the temperature drops below freezing, the skies clear up and eventually the snow will come... At least I HOPE the snow will come. I hate... Sun Through Shaded Window
Originally uploaded by aplumb.
Winter is finally settling in. Once the temperature drops below freezing, the skies clear up and eventually the snow will come... At least I HOPE the snow will come. I hate it when the temperature endlessly hovers around freezing.
I'll take deep-cold-but-calm-and-sunny over thawed-but-cloudy any day.
]]>
Archi-temporal Fabricationtag:www.clothbot.org,2006:/engineous//2.102006-11-15T20:57:00Z2006-11-16T00:43:19Z fabjects1 Originally uploaded by brucesflickr. Seeing the brick/mold in this picture of Bruce's got me thinking. What if buildings and/or monuments incorporated some sort of second, environment-driven structural element? ...Think of large caverns with stalactites and stalagmites formed by... fabjects1
Originally uploaded by brucesflickr.
Seeing the brick/mold in this picture of Bruce's got me thinking. What if buildings and/or monuments incorporated some sort of second, environment-driven structural element?
...Think of large caverns with stalactites and stalagmites formed by millenia of mineral-rich drips of water.
...Or the ultra-slow flow and crystalization of man-made glass.
...Or a field of petrified wood.
As one volume errodes and decays, a secondary structure could be revealed, possibly even reinforced as time goes by.
]]>
One Minute Make Filetag:www.clothbot.org,2006:/engineous//2.92006-11-11T02:02:38Z2006-11-11T03:44:13ZLately, I've been doing a lot of tutorial, documentation and demo crafting at work. Nothing fancy, just screen capture stuff with annotations. I'm an engineer first... Seeing Bre's weekly Make videos develop has got me wanting to do more and...
Bre's weekly Make videos develop has got me wanting to do more and different things. Hard to believe it's been fifteen years since the last documentary soundtrack work and ten since my last orchestral performance.
Enter the One Minute Make File:
Time to get exercising those creative muscles again!]]>
Sillyphone Cycolingtag:www.clothbot.org,2006:/engineous//2.82006-11-09T01:59:19Z2006-11-09T02:15:00ZWouldn't it suck if a driver followed these safety tips and flattened a cyclist or two because they stayed in the right-hand lane, where driving may be less demanding? ...or just a pedestrian or two? At least they're softer and...
safety tips and flattened a cyclist or two because they stayed in the right-hand lane, where driving may be less demanding?
...or just a pedestrian or two? At least they're softer and would be less likely to scratch your paint-job.]]>
Tangible Essencetag:www.clothbot.org,2006:/engineous//2.62006-11-01T17:21:03Z2006-11-30T16:06:11Z Samantha_van_der_Werff_02 Originally uploaded by we-make-money-not-art. The coolest thing in my mind, about the minimal laptop form in this installation by Samantha van def Werff, is that the technology exists today to implement a fully functional version. Note to self:... Samantha_van_der_Werff_02
Originally uploaded by we-make-money-not-art.
The coolest thing in my mind, about the minimal laptop form in this installation by Samantha van def Werff, is that the technology exists today to implement a fully functional version.
Note to self: Break out that MC33794 E-Field sensor development kit and start playing.
Photo Details:
designer Samantha van der Werff
department Man and communication
project Schaduw en geraamte
photo Miep Jukkema
www.designacademy.nl/
]]>
Trains, Planes and Ottawamobilestag:www.clothbot.org,2006:/engineous//2.42006-10-29T12:00:00Z2006-10-29T18:28:03ZOne of these days, Ottawa will get a rail backbone. Hopefully it will happen sooner, rather than later or never. Having to travel as much as I do for work is a mixed blessing. While it does give me the...
rail backbone. Hopefully it will happen sooner, rather than later or never.
Having to travel as much as I do for work is a mixed blessing. While it does give me the opportunity to see breadth of places few people do, it can be exhausting and although I'm on location, I don't often get to really see what there is to see. This ain't no vacation!
]]>
not having to immediately place myself behind the wheel of an unfamiliar thunder-lizard upon foreign roads and get myself from airport to bed in a reasonable length of time.
I can sit back and let my travel-addled mind relax and absorb my new surroundings.
It's unfortunate that most of North America has allowed rail transit to become either luxury retreat or subterranean zombie factory. Put the rails above ground, where passengers take in the passing landscape and pedestrians can peruse in peace. Bury the cars underground so all those antisocial grumps and emergency vehicles aren't suffered the distractions of natural life. If you're driving a vehicle then you should be paying attention to the road, not the scenery, right?
Just think about it for a moment. When driving a personal car, your first point of business is to get from point A to point B safely. If the inner-city roads were underground then the only distractions would be the vehicles in front, those behind, and clearly marked exits and entrances, a.k.a. street signs. All those pedestrians and bicycles that would normally be getting in the way, wouldn't.
For businesses above-ground, foot-traffic would increase by all definitions. Daily rail commuters would see it all. Unlike bus-bound commuting, rail schedules are a great deal more predictable and dependable, making any impromptu trip even more convenient than by car - no traffic or parking dependencies to worry about.
For the intercontinental traveler like myself, not being able to read the signs or speak the language is only a minor inconvenience where substantially developed rail infrastructure exists. All the players have websites detailing routes and schedules, making pre-travel preparation trivial. Find the right train, get on the right direction, get off at the right destination. That's all there is to it. If you get off at the wrong stop, it isn't usually too long a wait until the next train or the one headed in the opposite direction comes along. Worst-case, cell phones work so calling on virtual assistance is easy - assuming you remember to check into coverage before you leave.
]]>
...of an idea I had.tag:www.clothbot.org,2006:/engineous//2.12006-10-22T20:43:32Z2006-10-23T03:13:09ZI've always been one of those engineer-types with too many ideas to implement. Now that life is catching up, I think it's about time I started doing something with them, one step at a time. Welcome to Engineous @ ClothBot....
I've always been one of those engineer-types with too many ideas to implement.
Now that life is catching up, I think it's about time I started doing something with them, one step at a time.
Welcome to Engineous @ ClothBot.
Having to travel as much as I do for work is a mixed blessing. While it does give me the opportunity to see breadth of places few people do, it can be exhausting and although I'm on location, I don't often get to really see what there is to see. This ain't no vacation!
]]>
not having to immediately place myself behind the wheel of an unfamiliar thunder-lizard upon foreign roads and get myself from airport to bed in a reasonable length of time.
I can sit back and let my travel-addled mind relax and absorb my new surroundings.
It's unfortunate that most of North America has allowed rail transit to become either luxury retreat or subterranean zombie factory. Put the rails above ground, where passengers take in the passing landscape and pedestrians can peruse in peace. Bury the cars underground so all those antisocial grumps and emergency vehicles aren't suffered the distractions of natural life. If you're driving a vehicle then you should be paying attention to the road, not the scenery, right?
Just think about it for a moment. When driving a personal car, your first point of business is to get from point A to point B safely. If the inner-city roads were underground then the only distractions would be the vehicles in front, those behind, and clearly marked exits and entrances, a.k.a. street signs. All those pedestrians and bicycles that would normally be getting in the way, wouldn't.
For businesses above-ground, foot-traffic would increase by all definitions. Daily rail commuters would see it all. Unlike bus-bound commuting, rail schedules are a great deal more predictable and dependable, making any impromptu trip even more convenient than by car - no traffic or parking dependencies to worry about.
For the intercontinental traveler like myself, not being able to read the signs or speak the language is only a minor inconvenience where substantially developed rail infrastructure exists. All the players have websites detailing routes and schedules, making pre-travel preparation trivial. Find the right train, get on the right direction, get off at the right destination. That's all there is to it. If you get off at the wrong stop, it isn't usually too long a wait until the next train or the one headed in the opposite direction comes along. Worst-case, cell phones work so calling on virtual assistance is easy - assuming you remember to check into coverage before you leave.
]]>