Shrek's Green Fairy Tale

Grok Headline matches for Shrek's Green Fairy Tale

A fractured fairy tale

A fractured fairy tale 02/12/2004 09:54 AM
Disney, now embroiled in a board-room squabble and takeover fight, was once considered a technology leader but it has been a straggler in the digital era.

No fairy tale life for lottery winner
(USATODAY.com)

No fairy tale life for lottery winner
(USATODAY.com) 12/24/2004 12:19 PM
USATODAY.com - Despite having millions, Jack Whittaker lost what he prized the most: His granddaughter. His 17-year-old granddaughter, Brandi Bragg, was found wrapped in a tarp under a junked van outside her boyfriend's house near Scott Depot. State police said her body had been there for weeks but would not comment on a report that she died of a drug overdose. Her funeral will be Christmas Eve.

King Spot: CC-licensed fairy tale well
told

King Spot: CC-licensed fairy tale well
told 04/17/2005 04:04 AM
Cory Doctorow: Mike sez, "I've written a 48-chapter all-ages novella while looking for work, and I have begun posting it reserving rights under the creative commons license. It's 20,000 words and some change, but should be about 230 pages when illustrated (comic-panel storytelling has been sketched for most pages)."

I read the first couple short chapters this morning. It's a snappy, witty fairy-tale kind of thing, like Geek Love without the squick, and if I didn't have to run, I'd be reading it still. It concerns itself with the adventures of King Spot, a runaway circus dog who is the king of the world.

"Hey, look over there," said Roger. "Check out the peg-legged guy with the funny-looking dog." Roger was talking about a very large man in an overcoat, whose face was hidden by a scarf. To his left was a tiny, spotted dog.

"Are you trying to trick me?" said Brian. "I have to be careful, because, unlike lying for fun, using deception to win a game is not considered immoral. It's called bluffing."

"Brian, you talk like you're going to read shampoo instructions for a living when you grow up," said Roger. "You'll find a job where you can talk like this: 'After you lather the shampoo in your hair, rinse it out. Then lather and rinse it from your hair again.' You'll do this in the supermarkets where they sell the shampoo. They'll pay you to go away."

Link (Thanks, Mike!)

Euro-RIAA justifies breaking iTunes,
endorses fairy-tale of "open DRM"

Euro-RIAA justifies breaking iTunes,
endorses fairy-tale of "open DRM" 04/01/2005 03:43 AM
Cory Doctorow: Charlie sez, "While Jon Johansen ported PyMusique to C#, now called SharpMusique, a head of IFPI Norway says they don't care about PyMusique and that all the blame is on Apple and its proprietary DRM:"

To the degree that iTunes sells music based on proprietary barriers, this is not something that has happened with the recording industry's blessing and celebration. We are skeptical to this. This is a problem Apple has to solve." [...] "As far as I can see PyMusique does not violate the DRM system in iTunes, it only keeps the music away from the (iTunes) program.

It's funny to see the European equivalent of the RIAA saying that Apple deserves to have its DRM broken, of course.

But the REALLY funny thing here is the nonsensical term "proprietary DRM." DRM is by definition proprietary. Even in the "standards bodies" where they are setting out DRM systems, these are not freely implementable -- instead, you have to go on bended knee before a cartel of studio executives and beg permission to have your implementation approved. Shipping an unapproved DRM is a one-way ticket to an anti-circumvention lawsuit.

Among the grounds for refusing to approve an "open DRM" is that you want to include an output to some other DRM that hasn't been approved -- if you build to a "DRM standard," you have to waive your right to contract with anyone building to different standard.

But it gets worse: say you get permission to include an output for some other DRM system that you think your customers want and use. If, at some time in the future, the cartel decides that the other DRM system is no good (say, because Jon Johansen has released OtherDRMMusique), they demand the right to force you to eliminate that DRM from your system -- even if you have a contract with that DRM provider promising to include it.

So you not only waive your right to contract up to the moment that you implement the "standard," but also for the indefinite future.

It's like a schoolyard friend who says, "If you want to be my pal, you have to promise not to talk to the goth kids -- only the jocks." So you end up in a study group with a bunch of jocks and your erstwhile friend says, "I hate jocks now. Stop hanging out with them. From now on, you have to hang out with the D&D nerds." When you protest that if you walk away from your study group you'll flunk out of school, your "friend" just shrugs and says, "I told you when I agreed to be your friend that this might happen. Tough."

Implement a DRM "standard" and be prepared to have your devices redesigned at regular intervals, to the whims of the most paranoid, power-drunk, technophobic executives in the world. Link (Thanks, Charlie!)

For a Cinderella Art, a Fairy Godmother

For a Cinderella Art, a Fairy Godmother 01/06/2005 07:26 PM
The Museum of Modern Art's new print galleries are a respite from the beaten track and are stupendously beautiful.

A Fairy, a Low-Fat Bagel, and a Sack of
Hammers

A Fairy, a Low-Fat Bagel, and a Sack of
Hammers 01/07/2004 07:10 PM
Never underestimate the importance of words on the web.

A Fairy, a Low-Fat Bagel, and a Sack of
Hammers

A Fairy, a Low-Fat Bagel, and a Sack of
Hammers 02/10/2004 02:35 AM
Never underestimate the importance of words on the web.

~The Sound of the Sugar Plum Fairy~

~The Sound of the Sugar Plum Fairy~ 12/24/2003 11:00 AM
"When Tchaikovsky heard the celesta during a trip to Paris, he wrote a letter to his publisher saying, "get me one of those before another composer steals it." The Sugar Plum Fairy from The Nutcracker couldn't dance without it. We have the history of the celesta -- and hear it in a special performance by Lambert Orkis of the National Symphony Orchestra." From NPR's Morning Edition a look at this relatively obscure instrument that young wizards music are made of. If you can't play or afford the real thing, try the chime.

Microsoft needs some open-source fairy
dust

Microsoft needs some open-source fairy
dust 04/26/2004 08:56 AM
ZDNet UK Apr 26 2004 1:07PM GMT

Fathers of Linux Revealed: Tooth Fairy
& Santa Claus

Fathers of Linux Revealed: Tooth Fairy
& Santa Claus 05/17/2004 07:38 PM

A Tale of Two Printers

A Tale of Two Printers 07/23/2004 02:35 AM
Technology Review Jul 23 2004 5:54AM GMT

A Tangled Tale

A Tangled Tale 09/24/2004 02:10 PM
Math s puzzles and more problems. Found whilst searching for the fiendish the Monty Hall Problem. A Tangled Tale, indeed.

A cautionary tale

A cautionary tale 04/27/2004 03:19 AM

At last night's dinner I sat across from an entrepreneur who runs a company that makes content for cell phones. He told the story of WAP and WML and how they had splintered and reformed so many times, that now there are thousands of variations, and it's basically impossible to make applications that work over enough of the market to be economically viable.

This is a cautionary tale for the RSS community. When people say more formats, or varying practices don't cost, they are either naive or acting in their own interest, not ours. In all likelihood, RSS is going down the same path. But it's not too late to do something about it.

Yesterday Adam Curry, a friend of mine (a word I don't use lightly), said when he sees me write about RSS, he quickly skips to the next item, thinking "I'm glad Dave is taking care of that." Don't be so sure, I said to Adam. The people who want to splinter the formats just make my personality the issue, something they couldn't do if you joined me in fighting the splintering. If two people say no, it can't be about personalities, because we'd have to share the personality flaws. When you make me the only voice, that's what happens.

And by the way, having said that, you can't be sure I'm watching out for your interests. I get tired of fighting this alone. So if you like what you have with RSS, get up to speed on how it is falling apart, and stop it from happening before it's too late.

So Adam asked what he could do. I said you now own Joi Ito. Help him learn how he could help. He invests in lots of companies that benefit from RSS. It's time for him to do something good for RSS to balance the books. He's used it too well, his companies, particularly SixApart, have repeatedly undermined a coalescing of the format. Someone needs to talk wtih Joi about this. I've tried, and failed. Maybe Adam and Joi can figure out what Joi needs to get him on board. Then, after that works, we'll find someone else for you to work with, and then someone for Joi to work with. We'll start a world wide club of ninjas, fighting against the unfair exploitation of RSS and its users.

A Tale in the Desert II 1.0

A Tale in the Desert II 1.0 09/17/2004 04:27 PM
An online game set in ancient Egypt where players work together to build the perfect society.

The Tale of Two Hazards...

The Tale of Two Hazards... 04/28/2004 11:45 AM
That boy ain't right...

Recently -- for some reason -- I have found myself listening to the song Hazard by Richard Marx, and my interest in the murderous storyline has been re-piqued. This place has the whole shebang. Background information, conspiracy theories and even a kangaroo court!

FC Now: A Tale of Two Teammates

FC Now: A Tale of Two Teammates 09/14/2004 05:38 AM
While Michael Eisner and Fanklin Thomas were by no means contemporaries at Disney, this weekend's news about recent developments in the lives and careers of...

A Tale of Two Concepts

A Tale of Two Concepts 06/02/2004 08:23 AM
Some eateries thrive while others suffer through the low-carb craze.

A tale of two Cairos

A tale of two Cairos 12/02/2003 01:37 AM

Microsoft's 2003 Professional Developers Conference (PDC) reminded some observers of the same event in 1993, when the hot topics were the Win32 APIs, a rough draft of Windows 95 code-named Chicago, and a preview of a futuristic object-file-system-based NT successor code-named Cairo. The hot topics this year were the WinFX managed APIs, a rough draft of a future version of NT code-named Longhorn, and ... Cairo. Now called WinFS, this vision of metadata-enriched storage and query-driven retrieval was, and is, compelling. Making it real wasn't then, and isn't now, simply a matter of engineering the right data structures and APIs. [Full story at InfoWorld.com]

...

A tale of two mergers

A tale of two mergers 04/02/2005 01:53 PM
InternetRetailer.com Apr 2 2005 4:43PM GMT

A tale of two tunes

A tale of two tunes 04/28/2004 08:12 PM
CNET Apr 29 2004 0:45AM GMT

FC Now: A Tale of Two Squares

FC Now: A Tale of Two Squares 09/01/2004 06:16 AM
This week, in New York City, there's a tale of two squares -- one is Times Square, and the other -- seven blocks south --...

A Tale of Two Soldiers

A Tale of Two Soldiers 05/11/2004 03:11 PM
A tale of two West Virginia soldiers: one named Jessica, one named Lynndie. Both are on opposite sides of the propaganda war. One is a hero, one is a monster. No, wait - actually, one is a fraud, one was just following orders. No wait, one is perky and blonde, the other is kind of butch and ugly. Now I'm all confused. Help me Metafilter, you're my only hope.

A tale of two Tigers

A tale of two Tigers 06/28/2004 09:48 PM
Also: Google bolsters star power...iPod plans turn car owners green.

Do these lists tell a tale?

Do these lists tell a tale? 01/07/2004 02:02 PM
In "How to Kill a Country" there's a list of steps:
(1) Destroy the engine of productivity (2) Bury the truth (3) Crush dissent (4) Legislate the impossible (5) Teach hate (6) Scare off foreigners (7) Invade a neighbor (8) Ignore a deadly enemy (9) Commit genocide (10) Blame the imperialists
In "Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara" the lessons list as:
(1) Empathize with your enemy. (2) Rationality will not save us. (3) There's something beyond one's self. (4) Maximize efficiency. (5) Proportionality should be a guideline in war. (6) Get the data. (7) Belief and seeing are both often wrong. (8) Be prepared to re-examine your reasoning. (9) In order to do good you may have to engage in evil. (10) Never say never. (11) You can't change human nature.

Two sides of the same coin?

A Tale of Two Patents

A Tale of Two Patents 05/19/2004 07:23 PM
InternetNews.com-1 hour agoGoogle's Gmail could be a huge moneymaker for the search leader. But someone else may have thought of it first. Google got gobs ...

A tale of two cultures

A tale of two cultures 01/01/2004 01:35 PM

It's clear that that the future of the Unix-style pipeline lies with Web services. When the XML messages flowing through that pipeline are also XML documents that users interact with directly, we'll really start to cook with gas. But a GUI doesn't just present documents, it also enables us to interact with them. From Mozilla's XUL (XML User Interface Language) to Macromedia's Flex to Microsoft's XAML, we're trending toward XML dialects that define those interactions. Where this might lead is not so clear, but the recently published WSRP (Web Services for Remote Portals) specification may provide a clue. WSRP, like the Java portal systems it abstracts, delivers markup fragments that are nominally HTML, but could potentially be XUL, Flex, or XAML. It's scary to think about combinations of these, so I'm praying for convergence. But I like the trend. XML messages in the pipeline, XML documents carrying data to users, XML definitions of application behavior. If we're going to blend the two cultures, this is the right set of ingredients. [Full story at InfoWorld.com]

My recent stuff has provoked some diametrically opposed reactions. Responding to this column, Dan Kegel wrote:

Jon, you've been drinking too much XML / web services kool-aid. Only clueless analysts and those who wish they could program, but can't, think there's anything novel about "web services". Anything you can do with XML can be done more simply without it; the standards documents associated with XML and "web services" are absolutely mind-numbing. In the meantime, real programmers are getting real work done, and ignoring the analysts.

...

Tale of Two Stories

Tale of Two Stories 02/07/2003 07:39 AM
What does coverage of Google's success tell us about what's really going on with Linux? Google has achieved maximum Linux irony ...

SMS is a cautionary tale too

SMS is a cautionary tale too 04/27/2004 07:26 AM

Another cautionary tale from the dinner in Amsterdam, SMS is going down the same path as WAP/WML, what used to be a firm standard is being extended in incompatible ways. There will be eighteen brands of SMS, and you'll only be able to message people who use the same brand of phone. I don't use SMS, I don't think it exists in the US, but I understand it's popular in Europe and Asia.

I used to say this to Bill G when he started giving money to charities to help make the world a better place, presumably. I said that he had so much more leverage in the computer business, if he would just do a few things differently we could solve some of the biggest problems in the world by working together. He either didn't get it, or ignored it, or is insincere in his desire to make the world a better place, or something else I don't understand.

Working together in the users' interest, is by far the most important thing we can do, far more important than any one brand of software.

Historic Tale Construction Kit

Historic Tale Construction Kit 12/09/2003 07:28 PM
Historic Tale Construction Kit. [flash] [more]

Bloodlines: A Jedi's Tale

Bloodlines: A Jedi's Tale 04/28/2004 05:21 PM
Dark Horse releases Star Wars: Republic #64 today. "Bloodlines" is by John Ostrander and Brandon Badeaux, with a cover by Tomás Giorello. Take a look at an odd pairing between Jedi Ronhar Kim and Senator Palpatine, and get a closer look at politics, war and death in this Clone Wars tale. You can check out an online preview here< /a>.

The tale of the bounced check

The tale of the bounced check 04/16/2004 08:55 AM

Novell OES: A tale of two kernels

Novell OES: A tale of two kernels 02/01/2005 08:19 PM
I got to sit down last week with Charlie Ungashick, Novell's director of product management and marketing, Linux servers and desktops. (Charlie hands out two business cards: one for his title, one for everything else!) We talked about - what else - Novell's upcoming Open Enterprise Server.

Enjoying Japanese Tale

Enjoying Japanese Tale 12/19/2004 03:24 PM
Japanese fairy tales. In English, illustrated.

A tale of modern day slavery

A tale of modern day slavery 08/11/2004 08:22 AM
Slavery is not just the shameful stuff of history books - not in Florida. Last year, 7 journalists spent 9 months in a behind-the-scenes exploration of the state's immigrant workers. In more than 30 articles and photo essays, they revealed a system where workers are threatened, beaten, locked up, injured, forced into prostitution, and trapped in a spiral of debt and abuse. Powerful forces are arrayed against them in a state where agricultural laws are shaped by politician-farmers who have a vested interest in the status quo. - more -

Another Cautionary Tale for Car Renters

Another Cautionary Tale for Car Renters 01/16/2004 01:00 PM
Hiawatha Bray points me to this New York Times horror story about a man who was charged more than $3,000 for a car rental because he took the car out of state without realizing that would violate his contract.

A tale told by an idiot

A tale told by an idiot 03/31/2005 11:49 PM
Wildly overplaying the Schiavo protesters, ignoring facts and giving Bush a free ride, the press was full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

A Tale of Timber and Love

A Tale of Timber and Love 05/05/2004 07:00 AM
Mom might not find timber so exciting -- until she rakes in some hefty dividends.

Twisted Tale of Art, Death, DNA

Twisted Tale of Art, Death, DNA 06/04/2004 05:50 AM
Steve Kurtz is an artist who works with DNA. His wife's recent unexplained death has suddenly made him a very interesting man to the FBI. By Mark Baard.

Tell Tale Weekly's audiobooks

Tell Tale Weekly's audiobooks 04/09/2004 06:31 PM

A New York Times article recently pointed to Tell Tale Weekly, an audio book site selling MP3s as cheap as $0.25 each. They've also committed to licensing the books under a Creative Commons license after 5 years or 100k downloads, whichever comes first.

It's not easy to find good, cheap, DRM-free audiobooks and Tell Tale Weekly looks like a pretty cool new provider of such work.

Grok Description matches for Shrek's Green Fairy Tale
GrokA matches for Shrek's Green Fairy Tale

Shrek's Green Fairy Tale

The following phrases have been identified by the grok system as matching this entry: