Saturday, September 20, 2003

Pursuing the 17th-Century Origins of the Hacker's Grail. Neal Stephenson's gargantuan 927-page historical novel, "Quicksilver," imagines a project to organize all of human knowledge. By Edward Rothstein. [New York Times: Technology] Quicksilver (Baroque Cycle, V. 1.) will be officially published Tuesday. I've ordered mine, and eagerly anticipate its arrival. 9:36:10 AM    comment []

Local Beer Only at Oktoberfest, Unless It's Belgian, of Course. Some of Germany's leading beers have been sold into foreign hands, and to defenders of national pride, something of Germany's birthright has been sold with them. By Mark Landler. [New York Times: Business] Intriguing issues in all this. 9:30:11 AM    comment []

Landline Numbers Can Go Mobile. Not only will cell-phone users soon be able to keep their phone numbers when changing carriers, but this fall, folks will also be able to convert their wired phone numbers to a cell phone. It's not clear, however, how phone companies will interpret the new rules. [Wired News] 9:09:22 AM    comment []