code meets music

In a couple of days time (November 21) Amazon are launching their ‘Kindle’ e-book service in the US and it looks like it might be worth a look- if not straight away, certainly in the not too distant future.

The Kindle itself is touted as a ‘Wireless Reading Device’ but it is the service that comes with it that will be just as, if not more, important.

The device will allow you to download entire books, with free sample chapters available for most, from the service’s 88000 title collection “whether you’re in the back of a taxi, at the airport, or in bed.” The product description states that it has “EVDO”, a wireless technology used by mobile phones thus not requiring wi-fi for connectivity. If a UK version is 3G-capable, that would be a good selling point.

This continuous connectivity will also allow Amazon to offer subscriptions, both to traditional newspapers and magazines (unsurprisingly only US publications mentioned so far) and to a variety of blogs, charging $0.99 for a month’s access.

This, at first, seemed to me like a nice idea but looking at the list, it seems to consist mainly of localised versions of “Metroblogging” and “SportsBlogs” that have little appeal. In addition, one of the big trends at the moment is towards offline-access to web sites and applications. Google, with the help of their Gears project, have given people the option to enable offline-access to their (free) Reader service. The device also apparently comes with an ‘experimental’ web-browser that is free to use, so unless services like Google reader are blocked, I’m not quite sure why anyone would be willing to pay for the RSS.

Joel Johnson at Boing Boing Gadgets has posted 15 Things he Just Learned About the Amazon Kindle some good, some not so good.

I’ve heard a lot of good things about the reading-ease of some of the newer ‘E-ink’ devices and wouldn’t mind trying one out at some point but until there’s a convenient way of getting hold of things to put on it (magazines and newspapers as well as books) the cost of the devices themselves is prohibitive.

Searching amazon.co.uk for “Kindle” only brings up other e-book readers, which suggests we might not be seeing it over here any time soon, which is a shame as I think the market needs somebody like Amazon to help it take its first steps.

For a few miles, hers was the only car on the road. Then she noticed a pair of headlights in her rearview mirror. As she continued driving, she noticed the headlights were getting closer and closer, until the other car was almost touching her bumper. The other car began honking and flashing its brights. Scared, Doris sped up. The other car did so too, then changed lanes and started to pass her, but then suddenly braked and swerved behind her bumper, where the driver began honking again.

It’s an old story. Older, even, than email. Seven writers put their own twist on things, in The Morning News’ “open ended gore fest” The Backseat Killer

zom·bi [zom-bee]

–noun 1. Bambi-like deer. With fangs. Weeping gore. And smiling.

Layer Tennis Week 5

How much do you hate soggy cereal? Do you hate it enough to spend less than £5 on never having to experience it again?

Look no further: Eat Me Crunchy will solve all your problems with the rather simple yet ingenious idea of putting a shelf in your bowl that keeps the milk tucked away underneath most of the cereal, letting just enough mix at the edge- the pictures on the site explain it better than I can.

I actually lied about it costing less than a fiver, because you’re going to want to buy more than one. In my case, it seemed silly to buy just one when that would mean having the luxurious crunch at home and not at work (or vice versa) so I had to get 2. Having to watch other people eat cereal from normal bowls is becoming very difficult, if I’m not careful I’m going to end up ordering them for everyone I know. The nice people at Gray Matter seemed to anticipate this situation though, and offer 2 bowls for the rather bargainous price of £7.50, and that includes delivery.

I was just taking a look at the Eat Me Crunchy page on the Gray Matter main site and apparently 30% of people don’t prefer crunchy cereal. I know in this day and age we’re supposed to be tolerant, but really…

The rather interesting folks at Coudal (a design firm in Chicago) run a competition each Friday in which 2 designers go head to head, volleying an image backwards and forwards making their mark on it in an attempt to be crowned Layer Tennis Champion.

Today is the 4th week of the competion and sees Chris Glass go up against Naz Hamid in what seems to be a very photo-centric competition (c.f. last week’s which saw cartoon-style wigwams (or were they teepees?) locking horns with some rather colourful mountains), beginning what a rather abrupt golden toilet. Head here to get in on the action- make sure to read the commentary as well as look at the pretty pictures, it’s rather good.

It’s a shame the matches don’t take place a bit earlier, looks like it’s going to go on well past my bedtime.

What do Guinea Pigs test on? This and more answered by the very funny Milton Jones as he continues to “bestride the globe as an expert in his field, with no ability whatsoever”. Lots of very bad (but good, if you know what I mean) puns, generally quite clever.

Like Have I Got News For You (back when it was funny, with a bit more intelligence, and without the visuals), The News Quiz has just started up again. Sandi Toksvig (her off Call My Bluff) asks the questions with Alan Coren (him off Call My Bluff) and other special guests doing the answering. Bob Holness (the other “him off Call My Bluff”) is yet to make an appearance.

Dirk Gently’s Detective Agency (this one has a real website!) started tonight. I haven’t listened yet, but have been looking forward to it for a while. For those who don’t know, it’s based on a book by Douglas Adams (he wrote The Hitch-Hikers Guide to the Galaxy), which describes itself as a “detective-ghost-horror-whodunnit-time-travel-romantic-musical-comedy-epic” and it’s about as confusing as such a description would suggest.