Tim Oren's Due Diligence

Ole Eichhorn is back

After having shipping the latest release of his company's product. Check out his mammoth 8-week catchup post. News in fast forward.

Improved Technorati launches

Check out the new and improved Technorati interface, for enhanced blogwatching pleasure. List of enhanced features here.

It's been worth it

Today marks another significant anniversary: the start of the invasion of Iraq. Work has got the better of writing this week, but it turns out an Iraqi has said what I wanted, probably better and certainly more credibly. It's far from over, but now we're fighting on the same side as most of the Iraqis. If we can have as much courage as they, we'll win it.

I've been dreading this day

There are so many folks who both put themselves into harm's way in a good cause, and took time to tell us the story, that it's seemed inevitable we would at some point lose one. It's happened. Peace to his spirit and to those left behind. Thank you.

Thanks to Smash.

Dubious Distinction: The New York Times

This is about as smart as sticking a 'kick me' sign on your own back. For those late to the story, a political blog called The National Debate put up a 'corrections' page mocking the NYT's apparent policy of not correcting factual inaccuracies in its editorial columnists' writings. Argueably, the bogus page imitated the NYT's trade dress, which might or might not fall under fair use guidelines as a parody. What cannot be argued is the folly of management in threatening the author with dire legal consequences. Shortly, the offending page had metastasized all over the blogosphere, and now a pro bono attorney has stepped forward to defend the original blogger.

Maybe the Times' management should have had a chat with some of the flacks who pitch them every day before they embarked on this course. After Jayson Blair, et. al., their credibility is already low. This little flap is allowing mockery of their inaccuracy to turn into a legitimate big vs. little media story. And the next wanna-be Times mocker knows just where to stick in the needle to get a reaction that might turn into a national story.

This blog hereby presents its Dubious Distinction award for business idiocy to the management and legal staff of the former Newspaper of Record.

Update: The NYT has backed down. Glenn Reynolds linked the item twenty minutes after this post went up. The award stands, though. I'll retract it when and if the Times actually bothers to run its own corrections.

Wi-Fi is an amenity

Public 802.11 access has already gone far enough that watering holes are competing based on 'location based services' added to the free access. No, not ads. Here's a report of free streaming music as the latest competitive tweak in the Austin market. Now, if Starbuck's can say "free samples", they might finally be able to make the CD kiosk idea work, leveraging the customer's equipment. And create another revenue source from 'free' wireless access.

Metadata Risks

Seems you don't need DRM to reveal interesting things about the origins and uses of a document. Glad to know Bill Lockyer is working on behalf of the California citizenry. Heh, as the source might say.

Jeff Jarvis' suggestions for making RSS audit friendly

No, not IRS friendly, but usable for traffic counting and other media metrics needed for advertising. It's a pretty clear statement of one set of needs. Now, do the readers want to see ads in their feeds? That's another question.

The Grand Challenge Was

DARPA will get to keep its $1m prize in the bank. The most feared competitor, CMU's Red Team, did in fact get the farthest, but that was only 7 miles of a couple hundred mile course. Try again next year, most likely. Complete results here (PDF file).

I'm willing to bet that some of the entries in the next round will be loaded down with corporate logos, a la NASCAR. The drivers will be a little short on personality, however.

Thirty Months Ago, and Today

He who controls the past commands the future. -- George Orwell

We swore not to forgive, never to forget. Neither is the worst danger. It's rather the attempt to make it politically and socially incorrect to talk about what happened, or who did it.

Thirty months ago, the World Trade towers were brought down, and 3000 people slaughtered. By Muslims. By Arabs. Most of whom were Saudis. All of whom abused our open society to commit an act of war.

These are facts. To attempt to put discussion of them beyond the pale is an act of gross indecency on the tombs of the lost. If we are to have justice in their name, we must be able to debate how to erase the terrorists, without butchering the peoples from which they come. The simpering snicker wondering how one can be so gauche as to mention it prepares the day for another 9/11. Then vengeance, and nothing but smoke blown down the wind.