no, not really. But I'm extra careful not to send you stupid stuff. (hopefully). - adam christensen
My first job in book publishing was as a publicity assistant for a Cambridge publishing company. I literally used to stuff thousands of padded envelopes with books, galleys, and press releases. Another part of my job was collating the clips/reviews that came in. The ratio/percentage of books sent out and books reviewed was always paltry. What a waste of money and time. I never felt so utterly useless in my life. - James
Yeah I'd say you are hard to deal with. I can't even get you to subscribe to my Friendfeed - Alex Scoble
"Barack is about to choose a running mate, and he wants you to know first. You have helped build this movement from the bottom up, and Barack wants you to be part of this important moment." - Dave Winer via Bookmarklet
Does this mean the VP announcement is imminent?? - Dave Winer
A master stroke -like how they get you to invite your friends and family. Brilliant - dolores parker
isn't anyone concerned about his 3.7 trillion dollar tax hike on the middle class? or anything else he's ever said? and why we can't let him slide on all his flip-flopping? and don't say he hasn't every politician running for office does or has at some point in their political career. Why are we holding Barack H. Obama up to such messianic ideals? He's only human after all. - JohnBfromMemphis
Yes, but he's the master of social media, so we don't care. ;-) - Brent Logan
"I could ruin you with a word...no, make that 6 words...Don't you think he looks tired?" - Doctor Who - Cheryl Allin via NoiseRiver
Brent I do agree with you that either Obama himself or someone in his crew is a master of social media for sure. - JohnBfromMemphis
Barack Obama All the Way Baby!! Good Riddance Bush + Brainwashed Flock! ;)) Peace* - Billy Warhol
Hey, Billy, you realize that you're just another sheep from a different brainwashed flock, don't you? - Akiva Moskovitz
Wow, a 3 second head start on Friendfeed and a 12 second head start on CNN. Sign me up. It's important I get my news milliseconds before others - Nicholas Molnar
JohnB: I'd really like for you to define "middle class" and show precisely where that "3.7 trillion dollar tax hike" is going to hit. Just out of curiosity, you understand. - David Worrell
An awful lot of us aren't so much voting FOR Obama as voting against the party of unnecessary war, torture, intolerance, luddism, fear, uncertainty and doubt. I'd strongly consider voting for the 2000 McCain, but the 2008 McCain seems almost no different at all from W. At this point I don't give a flip if Obama is a European style socialist. I feel strongly that McCain will continue with the torture, intolerance, luddism, etc, but I don't know about Obama. That's good enough for me at this point. - Tad Donaghe
Tad, voting for the unknown then? Seems dicey. - Akiva Moskovitz
Not at all Akiva - the known is completely detestable. I feel a moral imperative to vote against the Republicans this go around. I hope they eventually get their shit together and kick out the moralist/stasist groups that are making them contemptable. The last time we had a Democratic president, I hated him, but the country was much better off than we are now under the Republicans. The GOP had 6 uncontested years to show their true colors... and they did. - Tad Donaghe
Tad, I will refute your logic by pointing at you and laughing and then running away like a little girl [was: re: I still have no idea how I'm going to vote]. - Akiva Moskovitz
so I guess Akiva removed their comment - can someone give me an idea what it was? - Ruth Ferguson
All signed up and ready to go ... can't wait to see all the tweets that will ensue after the announcement. - James
He's already following me. Why can't he just DM me? - Cyndy
Cyndy, probably those limits that are designed to inspire our creativity. ;-) - Joanmarie
First you're prompted to sign up, then to share, then to donate. These guys know what they're doing. "Own a piece of this movement." Nice. - Angel Galloway
Akiva did not remove his comment. There are several, Ruth. - Akiva Moskovitz
Wow, this makes the Obama campaign look just like a reality TV show. Is it more "Who wants to marry my dad," or "Paradise Hotel"? "Who will be the winner of the ULTIMATE PRIZE? Stick around for the BIG REVEAL, after these messages." - nathan
Angel, I signed up via sms. No additional prompts or requests for $$. Although I wonder if I'll start getting such messages in the days that follow. That's how most campaigns work I think. A month or two ago, I donated to Jeanne Shaheen's campaign (signing up for their list in the process) and within a week of making that donation I got an email asking me for.... wait for it.... another donation. - Joanmarie
I sent that "VP" the minute I got that text. - Brandon Titus
I've been waiting to hear who he runs with. How long do they have to choose? - Sheryl
I'm telling you right now: I will not accept the VP nomination. - Charles LePage
If Obama picks Evan Bayh, am I going to feel the same way that I did when Bush 41 chose Dan Quayle? - Thomas Ho via fftogo
CS3 Master Collection in April -- but before that -- can't remember - Shey
Tad, I lost interest as soon as a friend of mine found out that most of the voice acting, et al., disappeared once you were out of Tortage. I've been playing Lord of the Rings Online ever since. - Akiva Moskovitz
Ha! Me too Akiva. Also playing LoTRO - Tad Donaghe
Ok. Not counting games since they only come boxed. - Steve Rubel
If OS upgrades count, I did buy the Leopard upgrade when it came out for Ye Olde Kitchen Box. - Joanmarie
Must've been about 2001/2. I don't really buy much software, either because of OEM stuff or because I can find a FOSS/freeware alternative online. - Cyvros/fyc
Steve, they don't only come boxed. I mainly buy games through direct2drive.com. - Akiva Moskovitz
Not counting games, I can't remember. I've been running only linux for years now. - Nathan Howell
Uhm...I bought Quake 3 Arena in that fresh metal box for Linux from the Linux General Store back in the day...must have been like...'98 - Rahsheen Porter
It was either Mac OS X 10.5 or Microsoft Office 2008. - Louis Gray
OS X 10.5 ... still not installed though - Jason Carreira
Leopard (10.5). It was a family pack and I probably wouldn't have bought it had I not been able to make a little money by selling people licenses for cheaper than the single price. (I had the beta a couple months before it was released). - Brandon Titus
I don't actually think I ever have. Any non-freeware software I have was what came pre-installed on the box. - Simian Downtime Analyst
These days only operating system installs OS X etc - Sean Kelly
I've never bought software in my life, actually I got this computer about 2 yrs ago and it was my first and it was a present so it had everything on there. I'm wanting to buy a new one maybe next yr with taxes but I don't even know where to begin etc. I know nothing about these things. I just press buttons until I figure out how something works...lol - Sheryl
I bought Defcon a few weeks ago. Before that, I bought SimCity 4 during the winter. I don't remember the last one before that. - Harvey Simmons
Good point, Steve; it's been at least a year, I think. Other question is, when was the last time you bought software? ;-) - Brent Newhall
James: They were both reading them. The nearest competition is the Sony eReader which doesn't have wireless transfer and only works with windows. - Robin Barooah
Those avatars are excellent! I love the one with you and Ginny on the globe. I was immediately impressed by that when I first visited the site. - James
"This recipe for stuffed chicken thighs is the absolute bomb. It’s simple, healthy, quick, easy, and not expensive. Best of all the leftovers are even better than the original and they make the most awesome sandwich ever." - Jason Toney via Bookmarklet
That's a damn good looking sandwich. - Jason Toney
Mark, I'm glad I'm not one of the people you're hiding :-) - Jason Toney
Are you kidding?! The stuff you share is always gold. And how can I miss out on tasty sandwiches like this? - Mark Trapp
I must say that my favorite parts of the chicken are the breast and thigh. I have to have one of each when eating my mother's fried chicken. I will definitely be trying this recipe. - James
Mike Ness (lead singer of SD) has my 2nd. favorite title from a solo record- "Cheating at Solitaire" First fave= "Damn Right I Got the Blues" by Buddy Guy. - Nice Fish Films
Replied on Twitter as well but Diigo is my choice. - James
If you're using TextExpander, there's a neat snippet that just converts any url in the clipboard to a tiny url by typing in a trigger. - mark.kemperman via feedalizr
Check out Twitter Bar. Sends Tweets right from the firefox address bar, works really well for me http://is.gd/rDK - Chad Albert
Graffiti has been changing many years, even from the very beginning. But I think that has increased, more than before. A lot of young folks have started to express themselves by writing deeper messages instead of simply tagging. Also I think it's a reaction to how the world is changing. There are more kids who want to speak up and maybe they feel that they can't really do it through regular media. They might be feeling that our leaders keep people down by not telling us the truth. The increase of ads we see on the streets could be another reason too… - Mark Forman via Bookmarklet
Graffiti and jazz have some paralells - Mark Forman
You need to elaborate on the graffiti/jazz connection. That would be a good blog post. - James
Well I was riffing of of Fu's comment about the freedom aspect. I see a definite parallel in jazz with the freedom that comes from being "in the moment" while improvising - Mark Forman
@James--my connection. Great American music/art/culture comes from the dispossessed. The whole notion of "making art out of nothing" comes from the strong--the survivors. What these people create is true originality. It's not really the objective but it happens out of necessity and that, imo, is what makes the music/art/culture beautiful. I see blues, jazz, punk, and hip hop in this shared light. The creators of these movements were on the "outside." - Anna Haro
African-Americans were legally and socially prevented from being part of "our" society. They HAD to be on the outside--they were not given a choice. The young adults/kids who were involved in what would later be called the "Punk Movement" could have been part of "our" society, but they didn't want to be. They took one look at the "American Dream" and said, "That's bullshit." So there they were, the freaks, the outsiders, and they made something truly amazing. - Anna Haro
I see graffiti artists very much like punks--rejecting the status quo. They realize consumer culture is not the key to happiness, and many get a rise out of "bombing" a big beautiful advertisement. They too are rejecting the old "American Dream." - Anna Haro
James-Anna did my blog post for me. Good thoughts/expression Anna. - Mark Forman
Anna --- you rock --- Mark you know you rock as well. - James
Chewing out a rhythm on my bubble gum
The sun is out and I want some.
Its not hard, not far to reach
We can hitch a ride
To rockaway beach.
Up on the roof, out on the street
Down in the playground the hot concrete
Bus ride is too slow
They blast out the disco on the radio
Rock rock rockaway beach
Rock rock rockaway beach
We can hitch a ride
To rockaway beach
Its not hard, not far to reach
We can hitch a ride
To rockaway beach. - Mark Forman
No my friends, *pointing a finger at each of you* you rock! - Anna Haro
FANTASTIC!!! love the message from Uruguay. - Anna Haro
So much hatred. Is this kind of stuff common for most presidents? I know there will always be people out there who hate the current rulers, and I KNOW Bush is well, a lot worse then your average one but wow. - Bartek Gniado
Some of the best stuff I've seen on the web in awhile. Thanks for this. Made my day. Good bye Bush! - James
@Bartek...firstly, this so called "hatred," if there is so much of it, well there has to be a reason right? Personally, I don't call it hatred. These intense feelings that would motivate artists or anyone else, come from anger, pain, frustration, and feelings of helplessness. And no Dubya is not alone in this camp. I think many people feel this way about Reagan and his administration. Both these presidents were/are very polarizing in the U.S. - Anna Haro
You've seen the tag on your high-tech camping gear from brands like Mountain Hardwear, Marmot, and The North Face: Made in China. SNEWS reports today that as part of its disaster relief efforts, the Chinese government has seized control of all Chinese-owned tent factories and existing stock. The report puts Chinese army soldiers on factory floors for at least a month, maybe more. The move may have some effect on US suppliers gearing up for the outdoor season, and could bottleneck production into the spring of 2009. Chinese gov't decides something and that's it. - Mark Forman via Bookmarklet
I was just going through back issues of Outside magazine at home the other day. It always inspires me to get well uh "outside". - James
Thanks for sharing that! @exxonmobilcorp, I lived in Richmond, CA by the Chevron refineries. Interested to hear your perspective! - Clay Newton
I commented on the Twitter site as well. I guess it's kind of progressive for one of our leading oil companies to become involved in social media. - James
I've *tried* to read two different novels by Dostoevsky but have never made it past the first few pages. Same thing with Joyce Carol Oates. - Ginger Makela via Bookmarklet
I tried several times to read Ulysses, then gave up and bought the unabridged version on itunes and listened to it in my car. Does that still count as reading it? - Shannon Jiménez
I have read a lot of the classics and I am not ashamed to admit NOT having read many of them. However I do find it a regret that I have not yet read Marquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude. - James
James, wasn't that one hundred years? :) I'm not ashamed to have not read any particular classics either, but I have tried to read some and decided not to finish them, including Ulysses. - Chris White
@ Chris White ... I guess I am illiterate eh? Thank God for the edit function here and thanks Chris for pointing out that typo! - James
One of the things that I'm proud of is that I've read all the things that are most worth reading. ;-) - j1m
ok ok. it's not shame exactly, but the latter half of the decameron. also, ovid. - j1m
Oh, have I mentioned how much I hated Atlas Shrugged? :) - Chris White
Oh Ayn Rand. Say what you want about Atlas Shrugged: at least it isn't as bad as the Fountainhead. *ducks* - Mark Trapp
I still think Atlas Shrugged is something all high school seniors should be forced to read. Get that all out of their system while they're young. - Tad Donaghe
I'll take Atlas Shrugged 100 times over Ethan Frome. I hated that book. - Lindsay Donaghe
The Fountainhead wasn't that bad once you got over the crappy philosophy behind it. - Kevin Bondelli
Oh god yes. I'll even read John Galt's obnoxious speech again rather than re-reading Ethan Frome. - Tad Donaghe
You read John Galt's speech? I skipped that chapter ;) - Shannon Jiménez
Chapter? It was like a novel all in itself. And yeah, I was all high on Objectivism at the time. It was a pretty big deal for me. Fortunately I read "The Illuminatus Trilogy" right after. That's the perfect cure for Randroidism. - Tad Donaghe
I was always impressed by foreigneers bought into Russian literature like Dostoevsky or Tolstoy or madame Rand when it comes to that (she was Russian, you know) -- all this for sake of 'classics' tag ;) There are better classicist in Russian literature, lighter & brightter - silpol
@silpol: translation is king. did you see much of, say, Leskov translated to English? OTOH, Dostoevsky did write thrillers and detective stroies, maybe this would be a better tag to appeal people to him ;) - 9000
Pride and Prejudice. I have three copies gifted to me at different times by different people, nevertheless. Sigh. - Parth Awasthi
War and Peace, never got beyond the first paragraph in six attempts - Sally Church
@9000 see another victim of Great Pillar of Russian Literature, just line above? What I was trying to say is... Variety rules ;) E.g. Kuprin has all reasons to be tagged as classics - yet, most of his works are brighter and lighter... And talking about translations - one can start e.g. from http://www.kuprin.de/english.h... My favorite one is GTFO url for freedom & order fighters http://www.kuprin.de/engl_juri... ;) - silpol
I'm not really "ashamed" for not reading things. There's a ton of books I haven't read that are considered literature and "must-reads" and there's even more of those books that I'm just not interested in reading. - James Ferguson
@9000: I second your statement on translation. My last English teacher who was from Great Britain told me lots of stories on how horrible and unreadable some Great Russian authors are when translated into English. - Andrey Ivanov
On my last trip to France I have discovered that I haven't read *any* famous French authors except for Antoine de Saint Exupéry's "Little Price". That's probably the thing I can be ashamed of. - Andrey Ivanov
Never read Jane Austin or James Joyce. Seems every time I was about to, a Brontë sister or Salinger grabbed my attention instead. - Michael W. May
If it bothers me that I haven't read something, I usually just go out and read it. - K Welch
Also, I don't like the question. It implies that there's going to be a test. - K Welch
War and Peace, I could never sit through the entire thing. - Steve Spalding
Ginger - It's a real problem. My attention span is now limited to 140 characters - Charlie Anzman
I'm ashamed to admit that even though I'm a huge Robert Anton Wilson fan I haven't read the first word of James Joyce. - Tad Donaghe
There's a huge number of books (classics and not so classic) that I haven't read yet. I'm not ashamed, though. Too many good books out there and only one lifetime to read them in (not to mention too many great films, too many great paintings, too many great poems, too many great hobbies, etc). I'm doing the best I can with the time I've got. - James Williams (willia4)
I'm not ashamed of not reading any of these 'classics' I don't like Austin, couldn't get through Joyce and find Faulkner unreadable. I guess I'm also supposed to think Naked Lunch and Nova Express are brilliant but I thought the style was confusing and obscured a rather weak underpinning. - AJ Kohn
I got stuck (read: fell asleep) at Plato's the Republic and several Dostojevski books, though Crime & Punishment is great. James Joyce's Dubliners is another sleeper, as is Friedman's Hidden Order (though I will finish that one). - Vincent van Wylick
For all of us who failed to read War and Peace, comes my message: in Russian it is as awkward and unnecessarily lengthy as in English. Sometimes I think that L. Tolstoy fails to be masterful, just meaning the craft of connecting words. - 9000
I never finished Dubliners. This was a heavily footnoted version - I think it actually was the footnotes that put me off it. - Thomas Brox Røst
The only shame is having never read something you really *wanted* to read. In my experience, no one over the age of 16 really *wants* to read The Fountainhead. And everyone, I believe--even diehard fans of southern literature--finds Faulkner intolerable. Couldn't stomach Moby Dick? Try Omoo, or Mardi. Melville wasn't always such a stick in the mud. Too many authors and critics--and fans--forget one important fact: Literary posturing does not equal intellectual depth. - Derrick Burns
