Monthly Archives: December 2009

Microsoft Windows First on Mac

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Microsoft Windows Colored Apple LogoThe first thing I install when I’m setting up a Mac is Microsoft Windows XP.

I’ll likely never start up Windows again, but I’d like to have it available just in case my need becomes great in this Windoze world. Re-partitioning later could destroy your Mac OS X installation and all your precious data that you have on. Better to get it out of the way right away.

I do a similar thing if setting up a non-Mac desktop or laptop, but there I install Linux Ubuntu, and Windows.

I like to imagine Apple adding to the end of their beautiful Mac setup guide a suggestion to delay playing with your new tool and to install Windows right away. Now that would be awkward.

Or I imagine being able to order from Apple with Windows pre-installed. Makes me laugh, partially because it makes too much sense.

Old Toy Trains and New Memories

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I”m really feeling the spirit this season. Nothing lightens my mood lately like hearing someone offering a “Merry Christmas”.

At my in-laws’ place on the weekend, they put on Nana Mouskouri’s “Petit Garçon”, and lamented not having the English version “Old Toy Trains”, which they grow up listening to it at Christmas time on a reel-to-reel.

Here are lower quality recorders of both songs.

Nana is a singer who has recorded about 1,500 songs in 15 languages on 450 albums in a career spanning over five decades, making her one of the best-selling artists and highest selling female artist of all time. Incredible!

Nana Mouskouri’s singing feels familiar, but I can’t recall her being part of my family’s traditions growing up.

It took me a while to find the album with “Old Toy Train” on it. It’s “Christmas with Nana Mouskouri [IMPORT]“, not to be confused with “Nana Mouskouri – The Christmas Album“, which has Petit Garçon on it and about double the songs — though fewer of my wife’s favorites.

These songs are really enchanting. When I hear “old toy trains”, I think of new, but olden style wooden toy trains.

My wife’s mom recently got a used Brio train set for our 19 month old son. He is really enjoying it and continues to say “train” in excitement in his over pronounced way.

My co-worker Ryan, with two young boys of his own, shares in “Kid Gear”

Laying down wooden tracks and pushing wooden trains is favored over all of the electronic gizmos we’ve bought them.

Wooden trains bring back some of my oldest, fondest memories.

American Thanksgiving Comes Late

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“For most of its 122-year history, the government trust fund program that pays American Indians royalties for use of their land has been a tragic mess, plagued by bureaucratic mismanagement and accusations of flat-out theft.

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The proposed settlement, which has to be approved by Congress and the court, would send an initial $1,000 payment to all beneficiaries. A distribution model would be developed to award the remaining $1.4 billion royalty award, Cobell says.

In addition, another $2 billion would be used by the government to buy, in trust for the tribes, parcels of what are called “fractionalized” land interests — parcels that have been divided and redivided among tribal heirs over the past century or so. The voluntary buy-back program, says lawyer Harper, would allow tribes to piece together larger parcels that could be used more productively — and under tribal control.”

Liz Halloran, “After A History Of Mistrust, $3.4B For Indians“, NPR

Counterfeit Intellectual Property

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What’s interesting is that there’s clearly a collateral campaign underway to support ACTA by hammering on the wickedness of counterfeiting – allowing the bait and switch game to be played again. Here’s an example:

Canada trails far behind the United States, United Kingdom, Japan and France by not enacting tougher laws and penalties for selling imported bogus goods, an anti-counterfietting conference heard yesterday.

Lorne Lipkus, of the Canadian Anti-Counterfeiting Network, said a private members’ bill will soon lobby Parliament for expanded copyright laws, seizure rights similar to those that block suspected fake goods entering the U.S., plus heavier sentences for convicted sellers and importers.

The Toronto lawyer and conference organizer estimated Canadian manufacturers lose $20 to $30 billion and thousands of jobs to cheaper knockoffs.

We are warned against “knock-offs”: counterfeit goods are clearly knock-offs, but so, in the minds of the media cartel, are unauthorised copies of copyright material. The difference between counterfeit and copyright has been subtly elided. As a result, the solution demanded for this large-scale counterfeiting of goods – clearly *physical* goods – is “expanded copyright law”.

Glynn Moody, “The Great Digital Bait and Switch“, Dec 3rd 2009

And remember boys and girls, pirates dont’ steal copyrighted ink and bytes, they kill people or work for Disney.