Wednesday, April 23, 2003

College established to train IT journalists (SABCNews). The Acacia Institute is a research organisation funded by the Canadian government. For the past five years it has been studying how the Internet affects poor and marginalised rural African communities. The organisation has recruited scores of trainee journalists to join a team of professional IT and development writers to produce a unique online newspaper. The institute believes that by offering Internet training closely tied to newspaper work, it can create a new generation of web-savvy journalists. They would then serve the news and information needs of Africa. 1:04:16 PM    comment []

Hyderabad institute to train ethical hackers (Indo-Asian News service). 11:03:58 AM    comment []

Man, some days I really love reading Robert Christgau. Here's his much-delayed Thanksgiving Turkey Shoot, this time as Easter Bunny Stomp. Not Hop, Stomp, in the Voice. Like the man says, I'd rather have blood on my feet than on my hands. Inspirational assessments (follow the link yourself to see the artists so Stomp'd): Novelty records—rock and rollers can never get enough of them. If they changed their name, that would mean the major labels had won. [H]e raps and rhymes with gusto, and I like his Timbaland beat so much I don't want to know how real its Glocks are. Nevertheless, he is or impersonates a no-class pimp motherfucker, and if he never reached a one of the nine-year-olds O'Reilly yammers about, he would still be coarsening public discourse. . . . it is to cringe with dismay at the survival of a generation. And then there's the matter of "Who Are They," which goes so far as to blame "safe sex" and the replacement of "what the hell" by "what the heck" (I swear) on the owners of this newspaper (honest, named as such), called "funny boys" when he means "faggots" because "They" so decree. Fuck that. I don't much like how David Schneiderman treats unions, but I'm here to tell Timbo that my boss is a better family man than any damn country roadhog. "I wonder if They like to fight," muses Timbo on his way to finding out where "They" live. Me, I use my words. If any Nashville thug lays a hand on me, I'll sue him within 50 cents of his ignorant life. But I can't imagine him writing a song I cared about, even as a laugh, because he treats music the way his songs treat women—as a means to an end. What end, though? Getting laid is a snap, after all. Maybe just believing his life means a damn thing. Probably not the worst album ever released by an artist of substance— there are all those Elvis soundtracks. But in the running. And much, much, much more. I promise: I didn't quote even half of the well penned lines. 10:03:49 AM    comment []

Why the Mullahs Love a Revolution. If the Bush administration truly hopes to see a "liberated" Iraq, stepping down as power broker might be the only option. By Dilip Hiro. [New York Times: Opinion] 6:50:45 AM    comment []

A Promise of Education and Its Lasting Legacy. A program that promised a free college education to students at several Kansas City, Kan., schools had its successes, but had to make a lot of changes along the way. By Michael Winerip. [New York Times: Education] 6:49:51 AM    comment []

Retailers Report Sales Bounce Using Security Certificate, by George V. Hulme, InformationWeek. ScanAlert says it has analyzed the shopping behavior of more than 300,000 visitors to 11 online retailers. Sites showing "proof" of increased Web security enjoyed a 10.5% to 33% boost in converting browsers to buyers. 6:47:15 AM    comment []

'Bull Durham' Stars to Appear on Costas's Season Premiere. The actors Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins, whose invitations for a Baseball Hall of Fame commemoration were revoked, will discuss the film on Bob Costas's HBO show. By The New York Times. [New York Times: Business] 6:42:48 AM    comment []

Doc sez: Make way for Ray. Ray Ozzie is back. I do miss being part of this fascinating social fabric. [The Doc Searls Weblog] 6:40:11 AM    comment []

A nation of fashion sheep. A new book says clothes-addicted Americans still dress like zombies, whether it's Old Navy or Prada that's stealing our souls. [Salon.com] 6:34:25 AM    comment []

Digital dilemmas. Despite the dotcom boom and bust, the computer and telecommunications revolution has barely begun. Over the next few decades, the internet and related technologies really will profoundly transform society, argues David Manasian in The Economist. 4:02:11 AM    comment []

Arcata Police Log - Week of April 14, 2003 including such beauties as: Things got a little pushy-shovy between the lord of a Frederick Avenue manor and a room renter, but it was the landlord who called police from a neighbor's home. Prosecution and assistance was declined, but the tenant got 30 days notice. 1:02 p.m. A slight, freckled man who exuded Booze-reeky style vapors, intruded A Valley West lobby Then, just as a hobby Went door-banging till he was booted. 8:57 a.m. A man in a green hooded jacket carried on the regurgitation tradition down at the Community Center, simultaneously gut-horking and digging through a trash can. Police asked him not to multitask in such a manner, in fact, not to be there at all. A woman experienced the miracle of the digital age when she discovered someone, somewhere making charges on her credit card. And so the paperwork began. 6:27 p.m. A three-man gaggle of jeersome japesters assembled at the South H Street portal to the Marsh, where they took delight in harassing women trying to enjoy the wetland trails. The women didn't. The sub-gallant menfolk readily succumbed to police pressure, and went quite away. 2:01:52 AM    comment []