New Blog Location Reminder

I've rearranged my homes in cyberspace. public static final KITTEN continues in a new location:

http://andrew.becherer.org/blog/

The comprehensive portal for all things Andrew Becherer is:

http://andrew.becherer.org/

Google Analytics is the Best Thing Since Sliced Bread!

I just recently started using Google Analytics. I have this to say to anyone who has had trouble maintaining a blog before... GET GOOGLE ANALYTICS! It is amazing. I set it up for my new blog and I can't believe how cool it is.

Apache2, DNS, MX, apache2ctl

So this afternoon I have been setting up my VPS. How did I manage to be a geek this long and never have to deal with Apache configuration, DNS zones, MX records and stuff? Anyway, you can see the fruits of my limited labor by typing http://andrew.becherer.org/blog into your trusty web browser (or you could click the link).

Where are the posts?

My loyal readers may have noticed I have not posted in two weeks. I haven't even posted Friday Kitten Blogging. What is up? Well besides a fantastic trip to the Commonwealth of Kentucky to visit friends and family I am moving this blog.

Moving!?! Yes, moving. There are a couple of reasons I am moving. The first is that I want to be just like Ted Haeger and since he moved to Wordpress I am going to move to Wordpress! The second is that I have owned the domain becherer.org longer than I can remember and I want to make more use of it than just email. The third reason is so that I can give my Dad (and anyone else in the Becherer clan who wants one) a blog.

I have purchased a "virtual private server" based on Xen from a really great outfit called Rimuhosting. It is currently running Debian 3.1 but I may upgrade it to Ubuntu 6.06 prior to really getting it setup. Ubuntu 6.06 has newer version of everything and unlike previous versions it will be supported for a long time (several years as I recall).

The reason for the delay in moving is that I have been doing my homework. I looked at a number of blogging engines (Wordpress, MovableType, etc.) and I also looked at different content management systems (Drupal, Joomla!, etc.). Expect to see some action soon.

In the meantime this is still the right bat time and the right bat channel.

Friday Kitten Blogging: Handy

All I have to say is why couldn't my cats have been this handy? You can read the discussion over at Cute Overload.

Google Web Toolkit (GWT)

Google released an interesting project at JavaOne 2006. It is a JavaScript generator written in... Java! All of you servlet and JSP developers out there can get in on this whole web 2.0 AJAX thing without leaving the comfort of the Eclipse IDE. Get ready too create dynamic sites like Google Maps, Flickr, YouTube and more.

Is there a catch? Yes. It is under a non-OSI approved license and does restrict your ability to do certain "things" with code developed with the GWT. Most notably you cannot redistribute derivative code. IANAL so find a lawyer to interpret the "terms of use" for you if you are considering using this commercially.

Campaign Against Digital Rights Management Heats Up

Thankfully people keep talking about Digital Restrictions Management and the Defective by Design campaign. I think the latest thread and my experience today at FreedomHEC show that the campaign, no officially launched, needs work in a couple of areas.

We are reaching out to technologists yet our media is not very sophisticated. Our website is content poor and there are broken links. Our print media was described as amateurish by a FreedomHEC attendee.

The campaign has gotten of to a great start! We need to take it to the next level. We need to leverage our collective skills to present a coherent, sophisticated and intelligent image to those we are reaching out to. People are generally responding well to our message let's refine our appearance.

read more | digg story

Greetings from FreedomHEC

FreedomHEC is in its second day up here in sunny Seattle, WA. Greg K-H just finished up his Make Your Own Linux Device Driver talk. Who knew a USB device driver could be so easy.

If this presentation was any indication of the material presented yesterday I am regretting missing the sysfs talk. I sincerely hope this becomes an annual phenomenon.

More later including photos.

France Considers Anti-DRM 'iPod Law'

"We oppose the idea that the seller of a song or any kind of work can impose on the consumer the way to read it, forever, and especially in the consumer's home... Can we allow a couple of vendors to establish monopolies tightly controlling their clients and excluding competition?" said Assembly member Christian Paul.

Can someone remind me when interoperability became a bad thing?

read more | digg story

Friday Kitten Blogging: Saved by Jen

Thanks go out to Jen for rescuing Friday Kitten Blogging. I was so wrapped up in a whirlwind lunch picnic that I almost forgot to post. That would have been a trajedy! Only in its 3rd week! She got Friday Kitten Blogging back on track.

When your eyes match the carpet and you have the curled paw you know you are cute. (Check out the rules of cuteness over at Cute Overload).

I have to say that this little kitten's portrait conveys a certain longing. I imagine his owner is away and he is sitting in the late afternoon sun waiting for his owner's return or for the appearance of something to hunt and kill. Cats can be such jerks.

Preemption

Jeff Maxwell will be posting soon to "put me in my place." I thought it best to get out ahead of that train wreck. Jeff is going to say, "DRM is bad but TC is inherently neutral... It is an open standard."

I say this... TPMs are neat, I like things like Trusted Grub but we have to take the long view here. Peer down the slippery slope Jeff. What are we gaining and what are we risking?

Do you believe that the corporations with dominant market positions in conjunction with the government will not foist truly treacherous computing upon us?

What Are You Talking About?!?

I have been talking to a lot of people about what I did on Tuesday morning and I have been getting one response more than any other, "what the heck are you talking about?" That is precisely why I paraded outside of Bill Gates' Windows party wearing a HAZMAT suit.

Technology and law are changing at an unprecedented rate. It is impossible for us to keep up with everything all the time. There are certain things we take for granted that could change very soon. Scottish publishers secured free culture for us in the 1700s and we are very close to giving that free culture back to those in positions of power and authority. I believe culture is too important to be owned and caged.

Please view or listen to Lawrence Lessig's July 2002 O'Reilly Open Source Conference presentation on free culture. It is only about 30 minutes long and will make clear to you the issues surrounding the erosion of our "copy rights" as well the threats posed by Digital Restrictions Management (DRM).

The flash presentation is the best way to view this presentation. If you want to listen to this presentation on the go a DRM-free audio version of the presentation is available.

Peter Brown Speaks Out

Peter Brown is the Executive Director of the Free Software Foundation. In this video Peter explains why we paraded around outside of Microsoft's WinHEC conference in Seattle on Tuesday morning dressed in HAZMAT suits.

Why should you be concerned about Digital Restrictions Management (DRM)?

Tiki 2

Tiki 2,
originally uploaded by semaphore_.

This is the second in the series of four. I really enjoyed painting this one. I started to get my groove on so to speak.

I have laid down the base color for the other two paintings. There is a red canvas and a blue canvas. These can be viewed on my Flickr.

Astute accessory for the iPod Shuffle will recognize this guy. Oh the irony...

I Create Too!

Tiki 1,
originally uploaded by semaphore_.

I have been fascinated with tiki lately. So much so that I have been turning my apartment into a tiki bar. Unfortunately I do not have the wads of cash that make such an endeavor quick and easy.

This is the first in a series of four paintings. It is currently just called Tiki 1 but I plan on giving it a name soon.

Astute viewers of a certain Canadian podcast will recognize this guy. Also viewers of a certain blog will recognize this image from a certain banner ad (look down). My art is most certainly derivative...