I took this test, and here's my results. What's your English sound like?

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

(via John Dunshee)

SveaSoft has published the new Talisman/Basic release of their replacement firmware for the Linksys WRT54G and WRT54GS wireless routers. It's available for v1.1 and newer revs of the router hardware (see the label on the bottom, if it's v1.1 or newer you'll see the numbers there).

Subscribers to Sveasoft's firmware service can download it now. It's only $20 a year, and if you're a hardware/software geek with a WRT54G, it's worth the $20 a year just for the fun of messing with it, not to mention the great functionality.

This firmware is excellent, and includes a large number of technical enhancements and improvements over both the default Linksys firmware and the previous SveaSoft firmware versions.

Just some of the extra features the SveaSoft firmware provides above and beyond what the default firmware gives you:

Classic funny moment - I've been victim of the Slashdot effect (lots of referral traffic) a couple of times in the past. A friend pointed this out to me just a minute or two ago. Looks like Slashdot's got a little hair of the dog that bit 'em problem? What comes around... Heh...

Thanks, Dave.

Audible.com - an great audio book/publication service that I have been using for about a year - has published a whole set of RSS feeds so you can subscribe to find out easily what new content is published, including both free and pay-for selections:

This Week's Best Sellers (Top 50)
This Week's New Audiobooks and Programs
New Free Audio Programs
Under $10 Audio Programs
New York Times Best Sellers
BusinessWeek Best Sellers
Publishers Weekly Best Sellers
Best Sellers in Arts & Entertainment
Best Sellers in AudibleOriginals
Best Sellers in Biographies and Memoirs
Best Sellers in Business
Best Sellers in Classics
Best Sellers in Comedy
Best Sellers in Drama and Poetry
Best Sellers in Fiction
Best Sellers in Foreign Language
Best Sellers in Great Talkers
Best Sellers in History
Best Sellers in Information Age
Best Sellers in Kids
Best Sellers in Mystery
Best Sellers in Non-fiction
Best Sellers in Science
Best Sellers in Science Fiction and Fantasy
Best Sellers in Self Development
Best Sellers in Speeches and Lectures
Best Sellers in Spirituality
Best Sellers in Sports
Best Sellers in Travel and Adventure

And perhaps the coolest thing on the page? I scrolled down and noticed the question "Where can I find more information about RSS?" and the first resource listed is the RSS Quickstart Guide from Lockergnome.com - nice.

Several Tablet PC hardware announcements/leaks/what-have-you in the past couple of days:

• Some pictures are out of what looks like a tablet from IBM (long rumored and IBM has told me when I speak to them that it's coming, just not commitments):
  http://jkontherun.blogs.com/jkontherun/2005/04/fcc_pics_of_the.html
  
• Hot new Toshiba M4 Tablet PC - looks very nice (but heavy):
  http://www.toshibadirect.com/td/b2c/cmod.to?coid=-29325&ccid=1291041&rcid=-26367&seg=SMB
  
• Funky low-power, long-battery Electrovaya Tablet PC (interesting one, but not a power notebook replacement):
  http://www.electrovaya.com/product/sc2200WXA1.1.html
  
• Another Toshiba, the R15 Tablet PC:
  http://www.tabletpcreviewspot.com/default.asp?newsID=229

I'm still using an Acer C300-series. Still works, but I am holing out for the IBM to see what it looks like, since I am awfully impressed with their T-Series laptops.

WinBeta has posted a review and some screenshots of Windows Longhorn Build 5048. Anyone who's interested in the future of Windows may want to check it out.

http://www.winbeta.org/articles.php?action=show&id=15&perpage=1&pagenum=1

The next several months will be quite interesting as Longhorn continues to be built up and new information becomes public.

But release is still a ways off. The author of this article speculates it could still be two full years before Longhorn is released by Microsoft. Time will tell.

There's slashdot conversation taking place about using and enforcing cryptographically strong passwords (it's all about passphrases, people, passphrases - read my experiences here). In that thread, someone linked to an old and quite perfect social engineering example that I had not seen in a while. In my field I see and hear some of the funniest (or rather scariest) stories about situations like this.

From an IRC chatroom:

<Cthon98> hey, if you type in your pw, it will show as stars
<Cthon98> ********* see!
<AzureDiamond> hunter2
<AzureDiamond> doesnt look like stars to me
<Cthon98> <AzureDiamond> *******
<Cthon98> thats what I see
<AzureDiamond> oh, really?
<Cthon98> Absolutely
<AzureDiamond> you can go hunter2 my hunter2-ing hunter2
<AzureDiamond> haha, does that look funny to you?
<Cthon98> lol, yes. See, when YOU type hunter2, it shows to us as *******
<AzureDiamond> thats neat, I didnt know IRC did that
<Cthon98> yep, no matter how many times you type hunter2, it will show to us as *******
<AzureDiamond> awesome!
<AzureDiamond> wait, how do you know my pw?
<Cthon98> er, I just copy pasted YOUR ******'s and it appears to YOU as hunter2 cause its your pw
<AzureDiamond> oh, ok.

Pretty darn funny - unless it's you.

Of course, much of the /. conversation has evolved into the requisite noise and talk about how the original question is a moot point because passwords are dead, etc etc etc blah blah blah shashdotadnauseum...

And, since we need something useful to go with the something-funny/scary, here's some information worth reading about how to make it possible for users to remember and use cryptographically strong authentication without having to resort to post-it's and .txt files on the computer:

The Great Debate: Pass Phrases vs. Passwords

• Part One - covers the fundamentals of passwords and pass phrases, how they are stored, and so on
• Part Two - discusses the relative strength of each type of password, and use some mathematical approaches for illustration
• Part Three - offers some conclusions and guidance on how to choose passwords and configure a password policy

QuickTime is needed to watch this clip.

Okay, whoever sends me a picture of themselves actually wearing one of these will get a copy of Real Ultimate Power from yours truly. Cuz if you wear one of these, you'll love that book, I am confident.

"Introducing the most technologically advanced piece of clothing since the Hypercolor t-shirt ... the LED scrolling belt buckle."

Umm, wow. Cool, hehe.

It's $28.99 plus $6.49 shipping and handling, and holds up to six unique messages at a time, with each message being 256 characters long. You can change the messages at any time as well as things like like the speed of the messages and how bright the display is.

Yes it works with regular belts, and no it won't play MP3s.

This one's making the rounds, and I thought it was cool, so here it is:

Yes, you CAN make a fire from a can of coke and a chocolate bar!

So, if you're ever stuck in the wilderness and can't find your way home, yet you happen to have (and hey, don't we all?), a Coke can and a bit of chocolate with you, have no fear - Just round up some flammable material and you have everything you'll need to start a fire and keep warm.

Or, you could just use to to wow and amaze your friends.

(via Eric Rice and Phil Torrone)

People are regularly asking me if I got my free Mac Mini yet, so to answer those questions here's an update to the Free Mac Mini situation/test/experience.

It appears that 85 people have signed up after clicking on my banner ad on this site, and 8 of those people have completed the offer portion (it takes 10 completions before they send the computer). So if you're interested in any of the available offers, do a guy a favor and give it a shot. Just click here: FreeMiniMacs.com - Get a FREE Mini Mac! Or click on the Mac Mini image over there to the left.

The offers that are available change over time. At one point Blockbuster Online was been removed as a possible offer to complete, but it looks like it is back available at times (which is very cool). Among the others available are a trial of Napster's online music service and eFax.com, a service I already subscribe to that allows you to receive faxes in email, and which also allows you to send faxes straight from your computer. No need for a fax line or a dedicated fax machine, plus having your faxes stored as electronic files is a great way to keep track of things.

If you happen to find Blockbuster Online as an offer to complete, I highly recommend it. I dropped NetFlix's service and switched to Blockbuster's service for two reasons: Less money per month and free rental coupons for in-store rentals each month. You get to rent unlimited DVDs online for only $9.95 a month (3 movies at a time), plus coupons delivered in email for two free in-store game or movie rentals every month. I got my "offer" credit within hours of signing up. Make sure you temporarily allow pop-up windows when you click on an offer at freeminimacs.com, because that's where they show you the terms of the offer and how long it will take for you to get credit for signing up. You can always close the pop-up later once you've received confirmation.

Anyhow, two more people to sign up and I can get that computer and remove the banner!

So, tonight's a special Geek Dinner, there's also a monthly Portland Nerd Dinner, and next week at the PADNUG meeting (that's Portland Area .NET Users Group), my coworkers Scott and Patrick are teaming up to present on "Continuous Integration for .NET" to attendees:

"Continuous Integration is more than just a fad; it's darn near required to survive anymore. Join Patrick Cauldwell and Scott Hanselman as they talk about one of Corillian's product's build processes. They will explore NUnit, NAnt, custom NAnt Tasks, automatic reporting of errors, and unit test failures as well as Cruise Control.NET which can enable you to create an Enterprise Wide Build Dashboard for all the pointy-haired bosses to oogle at. It'll be fun, informative, and fast pace."

Portland Community College Auditorium
CAPITAL Center, Room 1508
18640 NW Walker Rd.
Beaverton, OR 97006
Directions

There's chat time and free pizza at 6:00 pm. The meeting and presentation begins at 6:30 pm.

My friend Chris Pirillo and his lovely fiance Ponzi will be in town this evening, and Alex has put together a Geek Dinner this evening here in Portland. Head for Northwest and join us/them for a geeky get together:

What: Geek Dinner in Portland
Date: Friday, April 22nd
Time: 6pm
Where: Blue Moon - 432 N.W. 21st, Portland
Who is Welcome: Everyone!

Bring your friends and digital cameras, let's hang out and be - well - geeks, I guess.

Ever need access to a SMTP server so you can send email when you're out doing the mobile computing thing?

Use GMail: Set your email client to drop outbound mail to smtp.google.com, and use your gmail login credentials. It even supports using an SSL connection, if you like.

The Mindjet team, the people who create and publish the MindManager software that can be so useful for organizing thoughts, ideas and plans, recently started blogging:

"The Mindjet team is now blogging! Visit our new Mindjet blog at: http://blog.mindjet.com/ to read and comment on regularly updated discussions about our journey through the world of visualizing information. Gain insight into Mindjet's goals and read featured commentary from the diverse and creative team pioneering Mindjet's efforts.

"Discussions could range from technology to philosophy and even unique uses for MindManager software. So please join us at the blog."

They've even posted a MindManager map that contains hyperlinks to some of their favorite blogs on information visualization, collaboration and related fields, as well as their RSS feeds. Interesting idea.

Last night, I did something unusual, at least for me.

Honestly, I am not one to go to book or poetry readings or art houses or anything like that. Now, I have nothing against those kinds of things and places, but all else being equal I'd just assume go to a movie theater and see what Hollywood has to throw at me, or maybe watch a great movie on DVD that no one else I know has seen. Or maybe just jump on a motorcycle or 4 wheeler and cruise around and feel the wind.

But I really do like books, and I especially enjoy books by John Irving.

About 14 months ago, a few local people started putting together a new writing/author/books/written word festival, which they called Wordstock. Last night was the opening night, and I went with a friend (who also would not normally be caught dead at a book reading) to Keller Auditorium to see and hear John Irving, a great American novelist. I wondered what he would have to say, and what he might read or do.

I first encountered John Irving's stories in a theater when I saw The World According to Garp on film. I thought it was great, and it was one of those first movies early in my adult life that led me to actually read the book it was derived from, knowing even before cracking the cover that the book was almost certainly even better than the film.

My favorite John Irving novel is called A Prayer for Owen Meany, and it's unique in that it's written in the first person. If you appreciate a great storyteller who can paint the world in your mind and help you stand right in the middle of it, you should read John Irving.

His presentation was terrific. He first read from two of his works - the first reading was a first draft while the second was a polished, finished piece from his next novel, one which will be published soon. The first-draft piece was a funny story, and had the crowd laughing out loud. It was a true story, and one that will never be published, Irving said. The second reading was a rewritten, polished and final except from the opening of his new book. Both were terrific and fascinating to hear, in large part because I had never read them before, and in one case because I won't ever get to read the funny story that he wrote for a purpose other than publication. It was a lot like hearing a secret, and knowing something that most of the rest of the world will never experience.

Irving then answered questions from the audience. I was glad to discover through his answers that he's a no-crap, doesn't-mess-around kind of guy. As a bonus, I finally experienced someone whose answers to posed questions are even longer than mine (I'm lucky to have close friends that put up with my long windedness). Several esoteric questions were asked by people in the audience that had both me and my friend rolling our eyes ("What are your favorite words?" - Huh??). He deftly and politely responded to these questions with the most meaningful, indirect, free-thought non-answers, which (despite the fact that he actually has no favorite words) take you deep into his mind and provide a glimpse at how he thinks and writes, and why.

John Irving has always been one of my behind-the scenes heros, someone I have never met, but a seemingly quality man who writes thoughtful, meaningful books that I read and believe - books that make me wonder how an author could possibly know and write so much about me and my thoughts. That's what makes him a great author; When Irving writes, we don't just read the words, we feel them and see the world they describe.

Anyhow, this is all pretty deep for me. Suffice it to say that one night, I went to a book reading, which is something I'd not normally do. I went because the man who was reading was someone who's made an indirect but strong impression on my life on several occasions. I went because I wanted to hear his words in his own voice, and to see if the way I've read his words in the past was in any way similar to how he would speak and read them.

Oh and one more thing about John Irving. When he works he writes 8 or 9 hours a day, he's taught writing and English, has written several great novels, and he's dyslexic. Even without knowing that, the sheer volume and quality of his writing is amazing. But when you add dyslexia to the equation, it's so much more than just amazing.

I got to see one of my real-life heros. And I wasn't disappointed.

Wordstock. I may have to go again next year.