Category: Uncategorized

MySQL 5.0 almost ready, reports ZDNet. Stored procedures. Triggers. Views. Welcome to the world of real databases, MySQL!

TRN Magazine reports that researchers from MIT have developed a tool (“Metafor”) for turning English into code. I am immediately reminded of the aphorism, “Make it possible for programmers to write in English and you will find the programmers cannot write in English.”

I got a jury summons. I'm not eligible. Whee!

Wimbledon. Not bad. An enjoyable 90 minutes. But a) I don't think that's the way to Brighton from London, and b) nobody runs 10 miles during a tournament, even less so while wearing Converse All Stars! Clueless. I'm a sucker for teen movies. Plus, it's got Alicia Silverstone in it; need I say more?

Easter sort of crept up on me, but what the hell, I don't observe it anyway, and the US doesn't either (no 4-day weekend here)! So it was just a normal weekend, but a pretty good one. Visited Griffith Park on Saturday, but the zoo was, well, a zoo. Didn't think it was worth queueing… Continue reading Easter weekend

That is, actually destroy the physical earth, as opposed to merely making it uninhabitable. It turns out to be a) quite a difficult task to achieve in reasonable time, but of course b) a very easy task if you have an awful lot of patience. My favourite methods: Destroyed by vacuum energy detonation (you will… Continue reading How to Destroy the Earth…

Took my car in for a service on Saturday, and while it was being done I went to see Robots. Good movie! The sort of film I'd like to see again to get all the references I missed first time around. They had fun making this one. Nothing out of the ordinary plotwise, and Ewan… Continue reading Robots

1. Open up webcam 2. Remove IR filter 3. Insert photo negative material to block visible light 4. Reassemble webcam 5. Play with looking at everyday stuff in the IR spectrum – navy blue fleece turns white! – my eyebrows disappear! – US passport picture page goes blank (except for lettering)! – UK passport first… Continue reading Infrared webcam fun

1. I read Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud. Very good. 2. I started playing World of Warcraft. Elbeno is now a level 10 priest. That's also good.

Via Slashdot: A San Diego research team has developed a method for extracting information about a machine from the timestamps contained in the TCP packets it sends. In summary: Machines will include timestamps in each TCP packet as an option (RFC 1323: TCP Extensions for High Performance) which for most machines is negotiated by default.… Continue reading Another blow against Internet anonymity