Computers and Internet

Don’t use anything on this list–it’s out where the whole world can see it.  My favorite is Muad`Dib, and everyone knows it’s not spelled ‘xxyyzz’, it’s ‘xyzzy‘. Tip from the Geek Press. Read more

Looks like I’ll need to be a bit more decorous in my ranting. I just got a hat tip from Geek Press, and I’ve advanced to the status of Multicellular Microorganism in the TTLB Blog Ecosystem. I may soon have to use both hands to count my readers! Read more

The latest one-time-good-deal in my Inbox: Dear Bank of America Customer, Due to the recent phishing attacks targeting Bank of America we are currently launching a new security system. In order to benefit from the new facilities please follow the link below. To update your account status please AUTHENTICATE and complete the necessary steps. Failure Read more

Wow!  Lookee what I just got via email: GOOGLE EMAIL LOTTERY INTERNATIONAL FROM: INTERNATIONAL PROMOTION / PRIZE AWARD. PROMOTING INTERNET USAGE OVER THE GLOBE (We Encourage Globalization) FROM: THE LOTTERY COORDINATOR, INTERNATIONAL PROMOTIONS/PRIZE AWARD DEPARTMENT GOOGLE B.V. Boeing Avenue 44 9459 PE. RESULTS FOR CATEGORY "A" DRAWS Congratulations to you as we bring to your Read more

I’ve just finished a bit of spring cleaning, getting rid of two piles of trackback spam that hit in late March and mid-April. After all the spam was gone, I found exactly one valid trackback, from Aube over at the Aube Zone (thanks, kiddo). So I’ve disabled trackbacks for the wider world and I’m only Read more

Some folks are having heartburn about the occasional leap second: Because the rate at which Earth slows isn’t perfectly predictable from year to year, leap seconds are announced only 6 months in advance. That’s a concern for software designers, operators of satellite-based systems, and anyone else who relies on split-second communications. Six months isn’t much Read more

Computer programmers, you absolutely must read about Waterfall 2006. (My favorite topic: Testing: Saving the Best for Last)  I occasionally need to remind myself why I gave up the computer racket to become a statistician. Tip from the Armed Liberal at Winds of Change. Read more

I got my first burst of comment and trackback spam this week (4 entries).  I’m not sure which emotion rules:  the pleasure of being noticed, or the annoyance of having to clean out the spam. Read more

Giggly young Michelle dropped by my office last week to ask about FORTRAN compilers and the IMSL math library, since the faculty and grad students here are under the (somewhat mistaken) impression that I’m some sort of computer wizard. Not having touched FORTRAN in 9 or 10 years, I allowed as how I’d have to Read more

Jan Nordgreen at think again! keeps me on my toes. In addtion to the next installment of the gunfighter problem, he’s tipped off the world about flickr, a web site that allows you to store images online and link to them from the outside, like this: My blog entries just got a lot more interesting. Read more