blo.gs

Having long ago opted out of the weblogs.com update-tracking service, I've had a request from an Early Weblogger to at least ping (the much less conscience-troubling) blo.gs when I update. So now I do. People who eschew RSS readers, there ya go.     4 comment(s)  

Gracias. (I do, in fact, eschew. In fact, I eschew all RSS readers at least 10 times before swallowing.)
      ...posted by TheBrad on August 29, 2003 7:29 PM

^Gesundheit!^
      ...posted by Lilly on August 31, 2003 5:05 AM

At the risk of being told to use the f***ing search engine, care to point me to the problem with weblogs.com, which I was previously unaware of as being troublesome?
      ...posted by Glen Engel-Cox on September 10, 2003 3:50 PM

Glen: My years-ago decision to cease to participate in weblogs.com is based on its association with Dave Winer. If you'd like more explanation than that, just google his name plus any synonyms for 'jerk' and start reading; you'll get a sense of him.
      ...posted by SteveB on September 10, 2003 4:12 PM

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 Microsoft v. Netscape?

Microsoft v. Netscape, still? This is just an anecdote, but it's my anecdote:

Today I had cause to download a fresh copy of an ancient Netscape client from the 4.7 era. Foolishly, I tried using Internet Explorer 6 (Windows). It successfully loaded all the pages I needed to find the download link, but I tried several times to execute the download and every time it would just get stuck, failing to contact ftp.netscape.com.

Eventually I switched to Mozilla Firebird, pasted in the page's link, clicked on the download link, and poof: the download started up right away.

I'm sure this could just be an innocent coincidence. Just to verify my observations, though, after the download completed I went back to IE and tried to download the same file -- same hang.

Then, mere seconds later, I tried to do it from within Opera 6 and succeeded immediately, just like in Firebird.

Gosh I sure do have bad luck with IE; whenever I use it, Netscape's FTP site goes down!

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On a separate topic, I have now deduced the internal Apple codename of the aluminum successor to the 15" titanium PowerBook: Godot.     1 comment(s)  

If you're having a problem accessing Netscape's FTP site from IE, I doubt it is anything nefarious. I just went to their archive site and downloaded files from their FTP site just fine in IE6.
      ...posted by Scott on August 29, 2003 5:44 PM

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 Bottled water no better?

Not as advertised? What's in your Bottled Water? [Hartford Advocate]

...the Kansas Department of Health and Environment tested 80 samples of bottled water from retail stores and manufacturers. All 80 of the samples had detectable levels of chlorine, fluoride and sodium. Seventy-eight of the 80 contained nitrate (which can cause methemoglobinemia, or blue-baby syndrome), 12 had nitrite, 53 had chloroform, 33 contained bromodichloro-methane, 25 had arsenic and 15 tested positive for lead.

...As U.S. News & World Report explains, "Aquafina is municipal water from spots like Wichita, Kansas." The newsmagazine continues, "Coke's Dasani (with minerals added) is taken from the taps of Queens, New York, Jacksonville, Florida, and elsewhere." Everest bottled water originates from southern Texas, while Yosemite brand is drawn from the Los Angeles suburbs.

Long article, well worth reading if you drink bottled water.

Apparently the rules for tap water are more strict than for bottled water, so, counterintuitively, you might be better off using your faucet plus a filter than buying bottles.     1 comment(s)  

Yeah, except that tap water often tastes bad (depending on where you live). If tap water tasted great, it'd be a no-brainer. As it is, we use a Britta filter/pitcher. But even that doesn't give you perfect-tasting water like you get from bottled waters. Does anyone notice a difference in taste between the different bottled waters? I haven't done any blind, side-by-side tastes tests, but I don't remember drinking a bottled water that tasted bad (though I think I've only had Poland Spring, Aquafina, and Desani). I remember when bottled waters first started coming out, and it was a big joke "Can you believe people are PAYING for water now?!". Part of me still feels this way. On the other hand, if there is no tap water available, a bottle of water is certainly healthier for you than a bottle of Coke, and it may make sense to choose a healthier product if you need to buy something. (But I sure do love Coke...)
      ...posted by Chris on August 29, 2003 3:29 PM

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