University Bans Smoking on Entire Campus | News & Features | Cigar Aficionado.
Of course, keggers are still perfectly acceptable.
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Archive for the 'Leisure' category
Clay Shirky: Sopa and Pipa would create a consumption-only internet | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk
Shirky writes that this upcoming SOPA and PIPA bills would create a consumption-only internet, leaving the large, politically-protected media firms as the sole providers of content, just like the the good old days when publishing nearly any form of content was prohibitively expensive.
The internet made everyone a publisher; everyone a content creator. The cat’s been out of the bag for 15 years. It just gets easier every year with better and cheaper tools. Look at the recently released iBooks Author app from Apple. This free app lets anyone easily create a book and sell it on iTunes. Amazon and Barnes and Noble make it relatively easy and cheap–read free–to publish eBooks on the Kindle and Nook. I know because I’ve done it many times. You can even publish your own softcover book through CreateSpace for a nominal fee (the cost of shipping a proof of your book is the only charge.) Anyone with a Mac, Garageband, a mic and an instrument can make music that would have cost tens of thousands in equipment and studio time not too long ago. Movies are still expensive but the price has come down considerably over the years. Just think, the iPhone 4s can shoot video in 1080p resolution! You could make a movie with that and a Mac running iMovie for editing. It’s been done countless times.
The point is, the media companies are desperate to protect their aging, declining business models. They say it’s about piracy, but it’s not. They are using political means to protect their business. Media companies are zombies, being kept alive by their friends in Congress.
We still go to the movies, we still buy books and movies, and we still watch TV shows. We have far more choices now beyond the large media companies, and we want to consume our content on any device we own. The days of sitting in front of the tube at 8pm to watch sitcoms is long gone. We create, we consume and there’s nothing the media companies or Congress can do about it. They can censor what we do on the web, but we’ll find another way. There’s always another way.
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Offline and Sick for Three Days
It’s been an interesting week. I came down with a cold Tuesday night and spent the next few days working from home. On Wednesday night, my AT&T Uverse modem died. It started power cycling and never stopped. A call to AT&T confirmed the issue and they shipped a replacement modem. No TV, no internet. I was completely offline for over two days. My only internet connection was my iPhone 4.
This morning, my modem arrived and I was back in business in a matter of 15 minutes. My cold has abated and I can get back to writing. This weekend is devoted to the NFL divisional playoffs so my posts will be brief. I’ll be back in full force next week.
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Iran squeezes Web surfers, prepares censored national intranet | InSecurity Complex – CNET News
Iran squeezes Web surfers, prepares censored national intranet | InSecurity Complex – CNET News.
You know there are quite a few people in D.C. clamoring for something like this here. Don’t think it can’t happen.
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Bourbon’s All-American Roar – NYTimes.com
Bourbon’s All-American Roar – NYTimes.com.
I’m primarily a Scotch drinker but I love a good bourbon. I’m happy that bourbon sales are up this year. Along with the standard brands, I’m excited about the burgeoning small-batch and single-barrel editions to broaden the pallet, especially for those who drink their bourbon straight, like I do.
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Utah Bans Happy Hour
Utah Is Banning Happy Hours Starting In 2012 – Business Insider.
Really? It’s true. Utah, one of the driest states in the union, has prohibited bars from hosting daily drink specials. Say goodbye to happy hour!
It’s crazy but elected people love treating constituents like a bunch of children. We still live in a country filled with neo-puritan do-gooders who insist on sucking the fun out living.
We deserve the governments we get, good and hard. Think about that the next time you vote. Better yet, don’t vote.
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Must We Really ‘Turn Off All Portable Electronic Devices’?: View – Bloomberg
Mobile phones and BlackBerrys, which transmit strong signals at frequencies that could theoretically interfere with a plane’s communication and navigation equipment (and could disrupt cell networks on the ground), are a different story, but still instructive.
Their use is banned in flight by the Federal Communications Commission. A study by IEEE Spectrum argued that such devices “will, in all likelihood, someday cause an accident by interfering with critical cockpit instruments such as GPS receivers.”
That sounds alarming. But the study also found that, on average, someone uses a mobile phone at least once per flight, sometimes during takeoff and landing. Through September, 6.5 million domestic flights had taken off in the U.S. this year, carrying 480.5 million passengers. If mobile phones present a legitimate danger, and passengers are using them on every flight, we’re tolerating an enormous amount of risk.
via Must We Really ‘Turn Off All Portable Electronic Devices’?: View – Bloomberg.
What this really means is the FAA and the FCC have no idea what the hell they’re talking about. If pilots can use an iPad in the cockpit, so can the passengers. Yet we must still obey antiquated diktats issues by equally antiquated federal bureaucracies.
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The end of email? – FT.com
I’m not sure this is the end. I’d like to rely less on it but that’s not always the case. Some companies want to move away from internal email and use social networking tools like Yammer, but when dealing with people outside the company, email is still the primary tool.
This is prevalent with larger companies that rely on third-parties to provide IT support, human resource services, and other non-core functions on site. Vendors are usually prohibited from using their customer’s internal systems other than for administration and support. For instance, the customer can use Yammer for its own employees, and the vendor can use Yammer for its own employees. The two cannot talk to each other. The same goes for instant messaging applications and email. The primary way to communicate is through email.
Managing email isn’t enough. There is too much of it to effectively manage. You end up spending too much time “managing” your inbox rather than getting your work done.
Email needs to become an ancillary communication method, rather than primary. While it’s easier for an individual or a small company to rely less on it and use social networking tools, larger companies have an email culture that is difficult to change. IT systems are designed around email and it’s difficult to get users to try something new when they are so used to using email, as much as they may hate it. Still, I’m optimistic that these new tools will reduce the use of email.
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Chocolate Binge Topping $100B Boosts Cocoa- Bloomberg
Chocolate Binge Topping $100B Boosts Cocoa- Bloomberg.
I’ve been on an artisan chocolate binge for a while now. Almost every where I go, there are new companies springing up offering delectable chocolates. Sometimes I will pay upwards of $10 a bar, though my average is around $4-6. Some may call me crazy to spend that much for a single bar of chocolate, but I say it’s worth it. They really are that good, in my opinion. I can never go back to the standard Hershey’s dark chocolate, or even ghirardelli. The quality, flavor, and texture are not the same.
Given the cocoa shortages, I’ll probably be paying more in the coming months, but I’ll still buy. I’ve seen my beloved Scotch go up almost 20% this year. Coffee is more expensive now, but I still drink copious quantities every day.
The main point is, despite rising prices, the qualities of these items have never been better. It’s a wonderful time for foodies, whisky and cigar aficionados, coffee drinkers, and wine lovers.
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George’s God | The Weekly Standard
George’s God | The Weekly Standard.
I stumbled upon this article about George Harrison after recently watching Martin Scorcese’s documentary, Living in the Material World. I thought the documentary was interesting, but its non-linear structure made it difficult to follow. It felt more like a collage of George Harrison’s life rather than a deeper examination; and that’s probably the intent.
I was born during the demise of the Beatles (1969). Therefore, the Beatles were not an influential part of my musical upbringing. I was raised on the entirety of Wings and Paul McCartney solo, John Lennon’s 1980, Double Fantasy; Ringo Starr’s 1975 greatest hits, Blast From Your Past; and George Harrison’s 1981, Somewhere in England. That album contained what I think is George’s best song, “All Those Years Ago.” Originally written for Ringo Starr, it was reworked after John Lennon’s assassination. It’s a picture-perfect pop song bereft of his Eastern influences of the late 1960s. It’s bouncy, breezy, yet deeply personal about the loss of his mate, John Lennon.
Over the years, I’ve come to respect the Beatles body of work. They were wonderfully melodic songwriters, and were pioneers of using the recording studio as an instrument. They were fortunate, back in those days, to eschew touring and focus on pure creation. One also has to admire and thank their producer, Sir George Martin for nurturing them over the years and providing his musical expertise in shaping those landmark records. Even, if upon listening with adult ears, the “drug” record, at times came off sounding pompous, rambling, and childish. Few bands, if any, could stop touring and only make records. In today’s musical climate, you have to tour.
As much as I like George, Paul was the better songwriter. He had the pop sensibility the others lacked. John could write a catchy tune to be sure, but drugs and political activism bogged him down. It would take over a decade before he got back to writing catchy pure pop tunes in 1980. George was an understated songwriter and some of the best Beatles tunes were written by George. However, I feel his newfound love of Hinduism had a negative effect on his songwriting.It’s one thing to introduce the sitar in a Beatles record, it’s another to write a good song utilizing a sitar.
Paul seemed to eschew all of that and just wrote pop songs. He didn’t always hit it out of the park. He fouled out many times. His latter-Wings solo albums were often rambling bits of whimsical, unfinished songs, with a few classic gems to round out an album. “No More Lonely Nights” from 1984. “Take it Away” from 1982. “Coming Up” and “Goodnight Tonight” from 1980. It’s those gems, that has made him one of the world’s greatest songwriters. As with the Beatles, his strongest songwriting came within a band structure, Wings. With Wings, he was at the pinnacle of pure melodic, catchy pop songwriting. Hits like “Band on the Run,” “Silly Love Songs,” “Let ‘Em In,” With a Little Luck,” “Jet,” Live and Let Die,” “Listen to What the Man Said,” and “Junior’s Farm,” are classic rock staples. Those songs are clinics for melodic pop songwriting.
The rise of rap, hip-hop and dance music over the past 25 years has diminished the need of catchy, pop melodies. Sure, the hook is there, just not as catchy. Songwriting has gotten lazy. A hook is written and repeated ad nauseam. Pop music is based on theme and variation. Today’s songwriters have a weak theme and no variation. It’s the same one- or two-bar hook repeated over and over. The best songwriters and performers knew to make each verse and chorus slightly different from the previous. It could be something as simple as having the shaker play an additional eighth note, as Prince did in the verse of 1987′s, “Sign O’ The Times”. Or, as was common back in the day, change the key to the chorus during the fade out. This usually would happen right after the bridge or solo section. Raising the key a whole step amplified the song as it was ending, giving it more energy and a different tonality.
I really wish today’s songwriters would take a lesson from the past and really hone their craft. Unfortunately, even the best songwriters of yesteryear are writing lazy, un-melodic songs today. Yes, there are good songs out there today. Yet I feel they still are not quite good enough as the classics of days gone by.
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