05 Feb 2005
Animal Herders of 23 Lands Meet and Swap Stories

Well I'll be damned! The UN may finally have hit on something that might have a positive impact! I'm reasonably sure, however, that this initative will get bogged down in bureaucracy and stifled in speeches, but the idea is good.

And it works here in America, too, if in a slightly different manner. Empty Pastures by Terence Centner details the transformation of American pastoralists into "animal farmers", abandoning their pastures to concrete and asphalt and concentraing their herds and flocks in huge confinement barns. This not only effect the quality of life for the herds and their livestock, but can affect the surrounding community in ways that may not be obvious.

The herders, from Mauritius to Mongolia, were united on one overriding issue: their common struggle against encroachment on their grazing land.

(link) [NYT > Home Page]

00:00 /Agriculture | 0 comments | permanent link

Why Does Windows Still Suck?

I often ask myself this same question, especially since my main machine is a Mac but I still work on Windows for customers. Are Microsoft engineers incapable of writing secure and functional software? Or is the embedded culture there so driven by deadlines and marketing that engineering takes a back seat?

And why consumers keep flocking to this dinosaur is completely beyond me ...

Why the hell do people put up with this? Why is there not some massive revolt, some huge insurrection against Microsoft? Why is there not a huge contingent of furious users stomping up to Seattle with torches and scythes and crowbars, demanding the Windows Frankenstein monster be sacrificed at the altar of decent functionality and an elegant user interface?

(link) [San Francisco Gate]

via Slashdot

00:00 /Technology | 0 comments | permanent link