Claude Schrader's Random Links

"Your 1920x1080 TV takes a 1920x1080 signal, chops the edges off it and then stretches the rest..."

Thu, 31 May 2012 10:08:12 -0400

“Your 1920x1080 TV takes a 1920x1080 signal, chops the edges off it and then stretches the rest to fit the screen because of decisions made in the 1930s.”

- tumbledry.org: 5 Things About Television

"Unless you’re a huge fan of Norwegian death metal, it’s hard to see this as anything but a win for..."

Wed, 30 May 2012 16:49:38 -0400

“Unless you’re a huge fan of Norwegian death metal, it’s hard to see this as anything but a win for Rdio”

- Spotify vs. Rdio: Who Has The Exclusives? | Epicenter | Wired.com

"If you provide excellent content, social media users will take the time to read and talk about it in..."

Wed, 30 May 2012 16:27:41 -0400

“If you provide excellent content, social media users will take the time to read and talk about it in their networks. That’s what you really want. You don’t want a cheap thumbs up, you want your readers to talk about your content with their own voice”

- Sweep the Sleaze | Information Architects

"the best way to avoid failure is to fail constantly."

Wed, 30 May 2012 11:47:30 -0400

“the best way to avoid failure is to fail constantly.”

- Coding Horror: Working with the Chaos Monkey

"A suit tells the world you are ready for business. A jacket tells the world you are open to fun. For..."

Tue, 29 May 2012 11:00:20 -0400

“A suit tells the world you are ready for business. A jacket tells the world you are open to fun. For me the ideal jacket should have soft and natural lines and balanced proportions. It should fit you but not constrict you. I do not believe in stiff shoulder pads. That is vanity, not style. Do not make it too tight. If it’s too tight, you will look like a matador. Any time I see a man playing golf or tennis in his jacket, I know he and I could be friends.”

- Luciano Barbera (via voxsart)

"Innovators in the private sector and the government have used the Internet and powerful computers to..."

Thu, 24 May 2012 10:29:43 -0400

“Innovators in the private sector and the government have used the Internet and powerful computers to improve customer service, but ‘it is time for the federal government to do more,’”

- Obama To Agencies: Optimize Web Content For Mobile

Congress Won't Let The Navy Purchase Biofuel For The Great Green Fleet [Boatlopnik]

Thu, 24 May 2012 10:23:08 -0400

Congress Won't Let The Navy Purchase Biofuel For The Great Green Fleet [Boatlopnik]:

a $1 per barrel increase in the price of crude oil costs the navy $31 million.

Ken Shirriff's blog: Apple iPhone charger teardown: quality in a tiny expensive package

Wed, 23 May 2012 16:34:42 -0400

Ken Shirriff's blog: Apple iPhone charger teardown: quality in a tiny expensive package:

Apple’s power adapter is clearly a high-quality power supply designed to produce carefully filtered power. Apple has obviously gone to extra effort to reduce EMI interference, probably to keep the charger from interfering with the touchscreen. When I opened the charger up, I expected to find a standard design, but I’ve compared the charger to the Samsung charger and several other high-quality industry designs, and Apple goes beyond these designs in several ways.

"Opening a laptop from the wrong end is a self-correcting problem that only lasts for a few seconds...."

Wed, 23 May 2012 11:25:09 -0400

“Opening a laptop from the wrong end is a self-correcting problem that only lasts for a few seconds. However, viewing the upside logo is a problem that lasts indefinitely.”

- Mea Vita (My Life): Upside Down Apple Logo

"You don’t engineer your systems with the belief that none of your computers will ever break. That’s..."

Tue, 22 May 2012 15:36:07 -0400

“You don’t engineer your systems with the belief that none of your computers will ever break. That’s insane; you KNOW they’re going to break. So don’t assume that your users will never break the rules. Build in graceful failure as often as possible, whether you’re designing a user interface or a security policy”

- Engineering Infrastructures For Humans | Standalone Sysadmin

Dan Harmon Poops: HEY, DID I MISS ANYTHING?

Mon, 21 May 2012 16:31:51 -0400

Dan Harmon Poops: HEY, DID I MISS ANYTHING? :

danharmon:

Kids:

A few hours ago, I landed in Los Angeles, turned on my phone, and confirmed what you already know. Sony Pictures Television is replacing me as showrunner on Community, with two seasoned fellows that I’m sure are quite nice - actually, I have it on good authority they’re quite nice, because…

"In the role playing game known as The Real World, “Straight White Male” is the lowest difficulty..."

Fri, 18 May 2012 14:11:57 -0400

“In the role playing game known as The Real World, “Straight White Male” is the lowest difficulty setting there is.”

- Straight White Male: The Lowest Difficulty Setting There Is – Whatever

"Nanny Computing" and the future of OS X | TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog

Fri, 18 May 2012 10:06:57 -0400

"Nanny Computing" and the future of OS X | TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog:

I’ve seen the future and it is iOS. Apple is moving solidly and confidently towards consumer computing and away from mollycoddling the power users. The company knows where its profits come from and power users ain’t it.

"In the cars where automatics get better mileage than manuals, we’re talking about one or two..."

Thu, 17 May 2012 10:00:05 -0400

“In the cars where automatics get better mileage than manuals, we’re talking about one or two MPG. So if that’s the dividing line between ethical and evil, then you better make sure your tires are inflated properly, Hitler. Driving with some luggage or extra wight in the car? Maybe your engine timing’s a bit off? Congratulations, Pol Pot, you’re a monster.”

- Yes, It’s Ethical To Drive A Stick Shift

What Eduardo Saverin Owes America (Hint: Nearly Everything) | PandoDaily

Thu, 17 May 2012 09:56:36 -0400

What Eduardo Saverin Owes America (Hint: Nearly Everything) | PandoDaily:

I hate paying taxes as much as the next guy, but when I think about all the ways that the United States has been integral to everything in my life, taxes seem like a tiny price.

"Hollywood lobbying groups are trying to pass laws wich would force ISPs to block or degrade..."

Thu, 17 May 2012 09:51:10 -0400

“Hollywood lobbying groups are trying to pass laws wich would force ISPs to block or degrade bittorrent traffic, too. Personally, I think this is like closing down freeways because a bank robber could use them to get away,”

- an example of the usefulness of bittorrent for entirely legal purposes - WWdN: In Exile

What a champion (Taken with instagram)

Thu, 17 May 2012 08:26:24 -0400

What a champion (Taken with instagram)

"AT&T’s Text Messages Cost $1,310 per Megabyte"

Tue, 15 May 2012 16:56:23 -0400

“AT&T’s Text Messages Cost $1,310 per Megabyte”

- AT&T’s Text Messages Cost $1,310 per Megabyte | TechCrunch

justtactics: Concept art for some of the units

Tue, 15 May 2012 10:59:26 -0400

justtactics:

Concept art for some of the units

notes.unwieldy: The $144,146,165 Button

Tue, 15 May 2012 10:32:18 -0400

notes.unwieldy: The $144,146,165 Button:

unwieldy:

The average New York City taxi cab driver makes $90,747 in revenue per year. There are roughly 13,267 cabs in the city. In 2007, NYC forced cab drivers to begin taking credit cards, which involved installing a touch screen system for payment.

During payment, the user is presented with three…