Another commendation for serious craftsmanship. This justly named 40-lb puzzle is called ‘The Intimidator’, because, says its creator GarE Maxton, it is “both mentally and physically intimidating”.
I suspect the “physical intimidating” part is due to that fact that it turns into a fucking GUN! It’s made of six different metals, and comes complete with .45 caliber bullets and a laser sight.
Check out the dude’s gallery for more awesome, and less lethal, sculptures.
Super psyched about Firefox Panorama! It’s now included in the FF4 beta. This will revolutionize browsing. For the last four months, I’ve had 30-60 tabs open between three windows. Somehow I just can’t win the battle. Now, still with like 45 tabs, it looks awesome and manageable, and in one window. If you just got it and haven’t yet figured it out, use Option-Space (Mac) or Ctrl-Space (Windows) to switch in and out of the panorama view.
Although for me, having Panorama alone is enough reason to upgrade, there are downsides to using a beta release. And the biggest one, in my opinion, is the lack of add-on compatibility. I’ve gotten used to my Greasemonkey-enhanced browsing experience, but GM hasn’t (yet) been updated for FF4. I did find a mod someone made for 4b2, which seems to work fine for 4b4. Sweet. Also, for those who are wondering about the benefits of Greasemonkey, add it and try this script called FFixer. It makes Facebook way better. Seriously, you won’t go back.
As for FF Sync, I still haven’t used it that much, but without an actual FF browser on the iPhone I think its functionality is limited. And Mozilla doesn’t seem to have any plans to develop one.
Update: 9 Sept 2010
Tried said Greasemonkey mod with 4b5; works like a charm. 4b5 on the other hand is buggy as hell, at least for me.
Update: 9 Sept 2010
GM mod works with 4b6 
Today is a day to celebrate, for many reasons. Here is one: The Library of Congress has deemed jailbreaking legal.
For years, the legality of jailbreaking has rested in legal limbo, with Apple contending that the Digital Millennium Copyright Act forbade such action. Recently, the Electronic Frontier Foundation asked that jailbreaking be exempted from the DMCA, based on the fact that the issue is not really about copyright, but about Apple’s desire to maintain control over its app ecosystem, as well as keeping users bound to AT&T. This exemption was granted today, much to Jobs’ chagrin.
Now, the Dev Team, saurik, comex, and other leaders of the movement can come out of the woodwork without having to worry about legal repercussion. This is big. I realize that, before today, the questionable legality and shady reputation of jailbreaking turned many off from testing the waters of freedom. Well now it’s legit. And with the new jailbreak for iPhone 4 coming out soon, I expect a fair chunk of users to be jumping ship.
Okay, I did it. I’ve moved to Portland, and it’s pretty great. A new chapter in my life, and I think a very appropriate juncture to finally stake out some virtual real estate on the ol’ blogosphere. Really, I’m just getting sick of channeling my thoughts through the Facebook’s framework, so I’m going to try discharging some of those ideas into this blog.
This blog will be like most other blogs you’ve seen, at least in appearance. However, there will be no central theme, no common topic; my digital life is segmented enough as it is. No, this blog will explore a universe of subject matter, dark matter, antimatter, Higgs bosons, and the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything. Anything is game. Nothing will be too holy for this blog’s scrutiny. This blog will not leave stones unturned, or even in the general area where they were originally found. This blog will make fun of your mom once in a while.
So that’s that.
By the way, I’m writing this from Stumptown Coffee Roasters, incidentally one of the “Big Three” of the Third Wave coffee movement. They have a few locations; this one on Third Street has a really cool, inspiring ambience, lots of space, and free wifi. Stumptown captures the essence of the young Portland hipster scene. Here you’ll find a lot of cool haircuts, unnecessary donning of sunglasses, and strange music. Here’s a sound bite I recorded, just to get a feel:
But I’m not a hater; I’m an adapter. Portland’s weird, and that’s how I like it.
