The touch sensitive net on the screen is visible, as well as spurious lines of dead cells. These were promised to be removed in production. The discussion of e-book readers is here.
Read more!
Friday, February 13, 2009
Plastic Logic
My first view of the Plastic Logic reader:
The touch sensitive net on the screen is visible, as well as spurious lines of dead cells. These were promised to be removed in production. The discussion of e-book readers is here.
Read more!
The touch sensitive net on the screen is visible, as well as spurious lines of dead cells. These were promised to be removed in production. The discussion of e-book readers is here.
Read more!
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
A Team of Rivals
(ruminations on Doris K. Goodwin's book)
A wonderfully written piece of history about an extremely important and interesting time. The story is about the political ambitions of four men, Lincoln, Seward, Bates and Chase who came to adulthood just after the Revolutionary War and saw before them the boundless possibilities of their young country. This was not just the material possibilities in terms of westward expansion and free commerce, but also of political ideology, the firm belief that people could govern themselves.
Lincoln's generation did not have to fight the Revolutionary War, write the Constitution or build a government; they were handed a brand new country by their previous generation. The men who struggled to preserve the Union were very cognisant of this inheritance, the secession directly challenged them to preserve the gift that had been handed down. Furthermore, they had deep conviction in their inheritance, the manifest destiny of their nation. The rest under the fold. The most interesting points I think are the following:
1. [defending the Union] Historically, the Confederacy started the civil war by attacking Fort Sumter and Lincoln who had decided against "firing the first shot" had to respond. But in his mind the need to preserve the Union was something like preserving the inheritance bestowed by the founding generation. The South seceded from the Union as soon as Lincoln was elected, long before the inauguration. Lincoln realized that in a democracy there are elections, and if the loosing party can withdraw from the Union at will, democracy itself can not survive. Thus in my view Lincoln was not only preserving the Union for America, but democracy for all future generations. I will discuss the right to secede further below.
2. [machinery of war] The second point is the Emancipation Proclamation. Lincoln argued that southerners could go and fight the legitimate government (the Union) because the slaves were taking care of the domestic production. Thus slaves (being property) were a part of the southern machinery of war and could be confiscated (and then proclaimed to be emancipated) by the government, just like the police can confiscate the gun of a rogue gunman. Of course not a single slave was freed the day of the proclamation, but it laid down the principles which the Union would follow once it had the ability to do so.
But could slaves be legitimately considered a part of the machinery of war? In recent times Israel deliberately targets civilian infrastructure which is often of dual use, like bridges, power plants etc. since Hamas also uses them. Are they legitimate machinery of war? Hamas and Co. on the other hand considers Jewish settlers to be enablers of the occupation and therefore a part of the Israeli war machinery. Are they justified?
One possible answer to resolve the above is to postulate that only "property" can be considered a part of machinery, and slaves were "property". This is in line with Lincoln's argument, but nevertheless deeply unsatisfactory.
Right of Secession: The quarrel began with the induction of the new states (California, Nebraska etc.) into the Union. Lincoln demanded that abolition of slavery was a precondition, much like polygamy in Utah (many decades later). The southern states wanted a referendum in those states. This was because if all the new states were free, then the slave states would become an insignificant minority in the senate and hence loose all influence, and feared a majority support for an amendment (eventually the 13th) eventually abolishing slavery altogether. But did the south have a right to secede?
The comparison of secession with a divorce is incorrect. During a marriage the divorce laws are known in advance, the Constitution is silent on secession. States came together form the Union, so one can argue that they can choose to secede. But the Constitution introduces "we the people", not we the states, so it is the people who came together to form the states. This is further supported by the independence of Vermont, part of New York and New Hampshire seceded, so states are not fundamental units. So can a farmer secede from the state? Such a framework simply can not work. How about communist countries refusing passport to it's citizens, is that not like preventing secession? I would argue that the jurisdiction exists only over territories, and not people, for example a nation is defined by its borders and not any of its individual citizens.
Several other interesting points stand out, a few among them being:
1. A recurring theme in the book is the great story-telling genius of Abraham Lincoln. We know of the fireside chats of Roosevelt. What's the correlation between story-telling and leadership? Intuitively, people gather round the story-teller, and he assumes a leadership position, so this might make sense anthropologically, but historically bards have not been great leaders. On the other hand this might have assumed much greater significance since nations became democratic. How are Obama's story-telling abilities? The infomercial was rather tacky.
2. Lincoln's original platform consisted of national bank, higher import tariff and internal improvement, very similar to Obama's platform. Contrast this with Obama considering temporary nationalization of banks, his stance on NAFTA during the campaign and now infrastructure spending.
3. In his only term in the Senate, Lincoln opposed the Mexican War since the War was started on false pretences, and the president refused to submit any evidence behind the claim that the Mexican military had shot at Americans on American soil. Since the United States won, the war was very popular. Later Lincoln realized that no one in office can oppose a war and still get elected. Obama's opposition to the war in Iraq is similar, while Hillary took a lesson from this. The differentiating factor was not the legitimacy of the war but that the war in Iraq dragged on.
4. The Republican party was formed by disaffected Whigs (sons of the Enlightenment), and the Know Nothing Party (anti-immigration). Today Sarah Palin is still carrying the banner of the Know Nothings and the "real" Americans, but the Whig faction of the party has completely disappeared.
5. Lincoln's evolving positions on slavery, was this an evolution or simply recalibration to attain his ultimate goal of abolition. Is this similar to Obama's position on gay marriage?
6. Deportation of freed slaves, was this a bad idea for the Black community to reject this? One can think of Liberia to estimate the outcome, but I don't think that's a fair comparison since most of the black intellectuals decided against leaving the United States, thus probably Liberia was colonized only by a self selected group.
7. Lincoln was able to win over Seward. But not Chase. Will Hillary head for SCOTUS? Who'll challenge or be the most difficult to manage?
Read more!
A wonderfully written piece of history about an extremely important and interesting time. The story is about the political ambitions of four men, Lincoln, Seward, Bates and Chase who came to adulthood just after the Revolutionary War and saw before them the boundless possibilities of their young country. This was not just the material possibilities in terms of westward expansion and free commerce, but also of political ideology, the firm belief that people could govern themselves.
Lincoln's generation did not have to fight the Revolutionary War, write the Constitution or build a government; they were handed a brand new country by their previous generation. The men who struggled to preserve the Union were very cognisant of this inheritance, the secession directly challenged them to preserve the gift that had been handed down. Furthermore, they had deep conviction in their inheritance, the manifest destiny of their nation. The rest under the fold. The most interesting points I think are the following:
1. [defending the Union] Historically, the Confederacy started the civil war by attacking Fort Sumter and Lincoln who had decided against "firing the first shot" had to respond. But in his mind the need to preserve the Union was something like preserving the inheritance bestowed by the founding generation. The South seceded from the Union as soon as Lincoln was elected, long before the inauguration. Lincoln realized that in a democracy there are elections, and if the loosing party can withdraw from the Union at will, democracy itself can not survive. Thus in my view Lincoln was not only preserving the Union for America, but democracy for all future generations. I will discuss the right to secede further below.
2. [machinery of war] The second point is the Emancipation Proclamation. Lincoln argued that southerners could go and fight the legitimate government (the Union) because the slaves were taking care of the domestic production. Thus slaves (being property) were a part of the southern machinery of war and could be confiscated (and then proclaimed to be emancipated) by the government, just like the police can confiscate the gun of a rogue gunman. Of course not a single slave was freed the day of the proclamation, but it laid down the principles which the Union would follow once it had the ability to do so.
But could slaves be legitimately considered a part of the machinery of war? In recent times Israel deliberately targets civilian infrastructure which is often of dual use, like bridges, power plants etc. since Hamas also uses them. Are they legitimate machinery of war? Hamas and Co. on the other hand considers Jewish settlers to be enablers of the occupation and therefore a part of the Israeli war machinery. Are they justified?
One possible answer to resolve the above is to postulate that only "property" can be considered a part of machinery, and slaves were "property". This is in line with Lincoln's argument, but nevertheless deeply unsatisfactory.
Right of Secession: The quarrel began with the induction of the new states (California, Nebraska etc.) into the Union. Lincoln demanded that abolition of slavery was a precondition, much like polygamy in Utah (many decades later). The southern states wanted a referendum in those states. This was because if all the new states were free, then the slave states would become an insignificant minority in the senate and hence loose all influence, and feared a majority support for an amendment (eventually the 13th) eventually abolishing slavery altogether. But did the south have a right to secede?
The comparison of secession with a divorce is incorrect. During a marriage the divorce laws are known in advance, the Constitution is silent on secession. States came together form the Union, so one can argue that they can choose to secede. But the Constitution introduces "we the people", not we the states, so it is the people who came together to form the states. This is further supported by the independence of Vermont, part of New York and New Hampshire seceded, so states are not fundamental units. So can a farmer secede from the state? Such a framework simply can not work. How about communist countries refusing passport to it's citizens, is that not like preventing secession? I would argue that the jurisdiction exists only over territories, and not people, for example a nation is defined by its borders and not any of its individual citizens.
Several other interesting points stand out, a few among them being:
1. A recurring theme in the book is the great story-telling genius of Abraham Lincoln. We know of the fireside chats of Roosevelt. What's the correlation between story-telling and leadership? Intuitively, people gather round the story-teller, and he assumes a leadership position, so this might make sense anthropologically, but historically bards have not been great leaders. On the other hand this might have assumed much greater significance since nations became democratic. How are Obama's story-telling abilities? The infomercial was rather tacky.
2. Lincoln's original platform consisted of national bank, higher import tariff and internal improvement, very similar to Obama's platform. Contrast this with Obama considering temporary nationalization of banks, his stance on NAFTA during the campaign and now infrastructure spending.
3. In his only term in the Senate, Lincoln opposed the Mexican War since the War was started on false pretences, and the president refused to submit any evidence behind the claim that the Mexican military had shot at Americans on American soil. Since the United States won, the war was very popular. Later Lincoln realized that no one in office can oppose a war and still get elected. Obama's opposition to the war in Iraq is similar, while Hillary took a lesson from this. The differentiating factor was not the legitimacy of the war but that the war in Iraq dragged on.
4. The Republican party was formed by disaffected Whigs (sons of the Enlightenment), and the Know Nothing Party (anti-immigration). Today Sarah Palin is still carrying the banner of the Know Nothings and the "real" Americans, but the Whig faction of the party has completely disappeared.
5. Lincoln's evolving positions on slavery, was this an evolution or simply recalibration to attain his ultimate goal of abolition. Is this similar to Obama's position on gay marriage?
6. Deportation of freed slaves, was this a bad idea for the Black community to reject this? One can think of Liberia to estimate the outcome, but I don't think that's a fair comparison since most of the black intellectuals decided against leaving the United States, thus probably Liberia was colonized only by a self selected group.
7. Lincoln was able to win over Seward. But not Chase. Will Hillary head for SCOTUS? Who'll challenge or be the most difficult to manage?
Read more!
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
End of An Error
Was at the Eldridge St Synagogue for a community viewing of the inauguration. The synagogue was quite decorative with faux marble and intricately restored roof. There were some technical difficulties due to the extreme heavy internet load, but it all went over fine. Rick Warren was downright unimpressive, almost as inconsequential as Bush 43. I was arguing with Mark that the oath of office includes defending the Constitution "against all enemies", turns out it's a part of the Vice Presidential oath but not that of the President. Then Roberts starts reading the oath, and Obama seems to fumble!!! I am thinking, this is your day, what the heck are you doing???, Anyway, turns out that Roberts was reading without notes and he messed up, and Obama was going with the memorized lines. Mark wondered if conservatives would now claim this was not a legitimate swearing in. Oh Roberts! Obama after all voted against his nomination.
The speech started off OK, nothing mind blowing.
"This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year."
How about them sub-prime mortgages?
"On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear,"
Hmm, so McCain = fear?
They have been replaying on TV some of his past speeches especially the one from Grant Park: "It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled." and I have been mentally challenging him to embrace both believers and non-believers, but never thought he had the courage. And then this:
"For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and non-believers."
It felt as if he added it as an afterthought, it sort of hangs here at the end of the sentence. I was shocked, and impressed, and delighted. Although there are perhaps more Buddhists in the US (he might have clumped them with non-believers) than Hindus (not sure). The rest is equally eloquent:
"We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace. "
And here is the rest of it. From that point on I guess the speech just took wings and lifted off.
"To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West — know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist."
Also interesting was the quote from Washington(?) "that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive."
and the finale:
"America, in the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations."
Read more!
Monday, January 19, 2009
G30 Advocates Nationalization
The group of 30 is a group of most respected economists from all around the world. Members include Krugman, Volcker, Summers and Geithner. According to it's latest report Volcker urges
- limiting the size of banks to prevent the "too big to fail" quality.
- monitoring executive pay
- regulating hedge funds.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Peter Lugar
Have been eating out a lot lately, went to Daniel which was fantastic, but didn't have a camera. Six course meal, you could tell the short ribs were not soaked in coke. Anyway, was at Peter Lugar tonight, this is New York's most famous steak house. Most people either love it or hate it. I had heard that the service was rude. I found the service good enough, and the waiters friendly and helpful. We had bacon, creamed spinach and grits for sides. The steak sauce was good with everything, except for the steak.Now for the steak, porterhouse medium rare. That's the only thing they serve. So they don't even have a menu. It was good, but honestly, is this the best steak I have ever had? Not really. So, it's one of those things you have to do once, so check. Won't be back in a hurry, not that I regret going there. Read more!
Dems Already Blowing it
So all this stimulus plan, $30b for highways, and $10b for public transit. Way to go Obama, and what about Amtrak Biden? Carbon emission? Maybe Obama wants to promote tire gauges. Take a look at Spain to see how it's actually done.
Read more!
Plane Crash in Hudson
Not stolen from a website, but taken by yours truly.
They blocked street access, so we can only see the wing.
and here's the flight path.
Read more!
They blocked street access, so we can only see the wing.
and here's the flight path.Read more!
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Krugman: Conscience of a Liberal
Krugman's book for the most part was an exciting as any of his columns, somewhere in the middle the section on the rise of the movement conservatism was somewhat boring since this has been rehashed several times in the press and elsewhere ad nauseam for the last several years. A few points were eye opening for me.
Read more!
- The central claim of Krugman is : The middle class in the United States did not evolve automatically as the economy matured, but was created through government policy and intervention, by Roosevelt and the New Deal.
- The second claim is : The inequality of wages in the United States is not a result of technological advancements but of government policy.
- in progress ...
- Similar levels of technology in other western nations from Canada to France did not result in similar degrees of disparity, only Britain with similar policies during Thatcher saw spikes in inequality.
Read more!
Bush sees Iraqi sole (size 10)
I can only think of Milton, "the ignominy and shame beneath this downfall"
- This is clearly a far far more effective form of protest than if the guy blew himself up. This actually draws focus on his grievances, I hope other Iraqis take notice.
- This is also a form of democratic protest, not unlike the caricatures of world leaders at WTO conferences or nude marches on earth-day. So in some way this is the beginning of democratic protests in Iraq, ..., in a twisted way something that Bush claims to have tried to do.
- In other news, some rich Saudi has offered to buy the shoes for 10 million dollars. The journalist faces anywhere from two to fifteen years in prison. Although I think the government might have to relent on public pressure.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Terrorist Attacks in Bombay
Somehow I always have a mental block every time I type Mumbai, so Bombay from here on (even my automatic spell checker gives an error for Mumbai). Anyway, when I first saw the T.V. report, I thought just another attack. But as the story unfolded, it seemed clear that this was very different.
- The speculation was about the identity of the terrorists. There is no dearth of people with grievances against Delhi, but when I heard about the attack on the Jewish centre, I was convinced that this had to be an outside group. While there is much friction between Hindus and Muslims in India, anti-Semitism is unheard of.
- I don't see any advantage of the Pakistani government in this either. This only brings India, the U.S. and Israel closer which does Pakistan no good. But the reality is that Pakistan, like Palestine is almost an ungoverned land, LeT might have operated with or without the knowledge of ISI.
- What maddens me most is the failure of the Indian intelligence services to preempt this. I mean such attacks will happen from time to time, but this is like the fourth or fifth time this year. Someone high up has resigned, for a change, but does that improve things?
- If it wasn't Bombay, the emergency services would probably have been much much worse.
- What's the impact on the economy? Already investments were drying up, now business travel will inevitably take a hit.
Friday, November 28, 2008
Monkfish Paella
Went to the "soft" opening of David Burk's new place. The wait staff was good, I ordered the octopus salad, it was good but I had Barbounia's grilled octopus in mind, which was mind blowing. So in comparison this was ok. For the main course I had monk-fish paella. It wasn't a paella at all, but with couscous. But the monk-fish was just fantastic. The shrimp and fries sounded great, but was so-so. The 20% off for the "soft" opening was also very welcome. More pictures below fold.
Octopus Salad
Swordfish with foie gras
Read more!
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Ugly Little Boy
You might have heard of the mapping of DNA of the woolly mammoth. Now there's talk of cloning an actual Neanderthal, maybe in a not too distant future. Reminds me of the Ugly Little Boy. (nothing extra below fold)
Read more!
Friday, November 21, 2008
Geithner
So Geithner for Treasury, it's an interesting choice, but also looks like Summers will be replacing Bernanke in 2010. The Dow suddenly got a 500 point bounce, who are these idiots? One would have to believe that it's only the interregnum and uncertainty which are killing the market. (other observations on the market below the fold)
Meanwhile, Merrill-BofA deal spread is widening, i.e. the "market" or what is left of it is betting against the merger going through under current terms. Which reminds me, I have to remember to vote. This is probably a consequence of TARP. Since Paulson abandoned the original plan of providing relief to the troubled assets, the valuation has changed. However, it's extremely difficult to believe in the wisdom of the market right now; the deal spread could simply be impacted by fund redemption. Also most of the arbitrage players on whom the market depends to close the gap, are out of business, so efficient market theory doesn't apply. Consequences of this deal not going through could be significant, not only for Merrill & Co. but essentially most of the TARP investments would also blow up in smoke as Merrill's debt brings down the remaining players. The market is simply broken right now. [For anyone who cares, all this is from public sources, I have no insider knowledge :(]
In other news, Hillary accepts state. What's annoying to me are the huge number of leaks and rumors which are spreading since the election starting with Emanuel. No-drama Obama is being dragged into the Clinton culture. But then Geithner's appointment was of course orchestrated to have the bounce. One thing that's going around is that you don't hire someone you can't fire. But I think Obama can always lure Hillary to the Supreme Court. All people complaining about too many Clintonites in the administration needs to think that anyone in the Democratic party with any talent had to be associated with the Clintons somehow, they have simply dominated the party for the last sixteen years.
Team of Rivals is shaping up (I wonder how much money Goodwin is making off this, not that I mind; the press simply creates an idea and milks it for all its worth). But when will the liberals get any appointment?
Read more!
Meanwhile, Merrill-BofA deal spread is widening, i.e. the "market" or what is left of it is betting against the merger going through under current terms. Which reminds me, I have to remember to vote. This is probably a consequence of TARP. Since Paulson abandoned the original plan of providing relief to the troubled assets, the valuation has changed. However, it's extremely difficult to believe in the wisdom of the market right now; the deal spread could simply be impacted by fund redemption. Also most of the arbitrage players on whom the market depends to close the gap, are out of business, so efficient market theory doesn't apply. Consequences of this deal not going through could be significant, not only for Merrill & Co. but essentially most of the TARP investments would also blow up in smoke as Merrill's debt brings down the remaining players. The market is simply broken right now. [For anyone who cares, all this is from public sources, I have no insider knowledge :(]
In other news, Hillary accepts state. What's annoying to me are the huge number of leaks and rumors which are spreading since the election starting with Emanuel. No-drama Obama is being dragged into the Clinton culture. But then Geithner's appointment was of course orchestrated to have the bounce. One thing that's going around is that you don't hire someone you can't fire. But I think Obama can always lure Hillary to the Supreme Court. All people complaining about too many Clintonites in the administration needs to think that anyone in the Democratic party with any talent had to be associated with the Clintons somehow, they have simply dominated the party for the last sixteen years.
Team of Rivals is shaping up (I wonder how much money Goodwin is making off this, not that I mind; the press simply creates an idea and milks it for all its worth). But when will the liberals get any appointment?
Read more!
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Batali in Union Square
So no Paltrow and no DVD, but Batali was entertaining enough. I think once the DVD comes out, I'll have a TV Spain travel evening with tapas and stuff. We shall see! I asked him which countries he was planning to travel next, and apparently the Moroccan government has offered them facilities, but no permission to enter any of the mosques, so that is ruled out. Other choices were Croatia/Italy or Mexico. (Nothing extra below fold) Read more!
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Bailout
We met at the Wall St atrium for the discussion on the bailout. At the discussion I learnt one interesting thing. It seems its better for the auto companies to go into chapter 11 bankruptcy, and then get some money for retooling. This will allow them to restructure the management as well as renegotiate with the Unions. Overall my thinking is, even if they get the money, I don't see what the next game plan is. On the other hand if the finance industry gets a bailout, why not the auto industry? (nothing extra below fold)
Read more!
Sunday, November 16, 2008
e-book Readers
I have been thinking for a while about e-book readers since the time that Kindle came out. The currently available models accomplish a lot, but even with the ones on the horizon, much still seems to be desired. Here's the best comparison of various models available right now (will keep changing over time of course).
So what features do I want in a future e-book reader? (more below the fold)
Basically a fantastic tablet:
1. The size should be very slightly bigger than a letter paper, probably half and inch thick, almost like a note-pad.
2. Should have wireless internet access, and an interface like the iphone, should be able to bring up something like one-note, a touch sensitive screen.
3. A full sized keyboard should fit nicely on a letter paper in the landscape mode, and the screen should be able to recognize double handed typing.
4. All with colored e-ink, and should be able to play video as well. The refresh rate will have to improve considerably for this to happen. The OLEDs can already do this, so e-ink should not be too far behind.
5. Of course, mp3 player, GPS etc are a given, but probably not too large a hard-drive (solid state).
So let's see how much of this is available in the existing models.
The Iliad I-Rex comes close, as you can see in the following video. Dimensions are slightly smaller, but will do. Refresh rate is a real problem, and the internet browsing needs a clunky hack.
Jinke, the Chinese company making the less flashy Hanlin e-book reader had announced the V9 which would be the perfect size, but since then they have withdrawn it from the website, so probably not happening. I might have read somewhere that the company which makes the e-ink screens canceled, couldn't keep up with the order flow.
Read more!
So what features do I want in a future e-book reader? (more below the fold)
Basically a fantastic tablet:
1. The size should be very slightly bigger than a letter paper, probably half and inch thick, almost like a note-pad.
2. Should have wireless internet access, and an interface like the iphone, should be able to bring up something like one-note, a touch sensitive screen.
3. A full sized keyboard should fit nicely on a letter paper in the landscape mode, and the screen should be able to recognize double handed typing.
4. All with colored e-ink, and should be able to play video as well. The refresh rate will have to improve considerably for this to happen. The OLEDs can already do this, so e-ink should not be too far behind.
5. Of course, mp3 player, GPS etc are a given, but probably not too large a hard-drive (solid state).
So let's see how much of this is available in the existing models.
The Iliad I-Rex comes close, as you can see in the following video. Dimensions are slightly smaller, but will do. Refresh rate is a real problem, and the internet browsing needs a clunky hack.
Jinke, the Chinese company making the less flashy Hanlin e-book reader had announced the V9 which would be the perfect size, but since then they have withdrawn it from the website, so probably not happening. I might have read somewhere that the company which makes the e-ink screens canceled, couldn't keep up with the order flow.
Read more!
Turkish Brunch
So met up with the office gang for brunch at the Turkish Kitchen. A reservation seems to be a must, besides the line at the buffet counters were very long but things got moving. The main courses and desserts were really good. (more below the fold)
There were a lot of salads and middle eastern spreads, but then the main courses were lamb kabobs, grilled fish and the desserts were definitely delicious. All for about $28 with tax and tip.
From there we went to see W. (a life misunderestimated). Somehow I really like this word, and no sarcasm intended. The movie could have been much better, more serious. This seemed like an SNL skit. Condi Rice is shown as a complete retard, much of the dialogue although out of place are actually correct quotations. Overall, I'll give it a C grade, probably will never watch it again (unlike 13 days or even JFK was better), but sort of movie to see to end the Bush era. But in the end, these days one almost feels sorry for the guy, just waiting to retire. And the appearance of Palin on the scene somehow makes him look like a cuddly bear in comparison.
While passing by the Barnes and Nobles in Union Square noticed that Batali and Paltrow will be signing their Spain on the Road Again on Wed. I should get the video and the book, and maybe some pics.
Now off to cooking crab curry.
Read more!
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Lazy Saturday
So the Google Video Chat actually works, although I had to work out the kinks, had the best Dosa (south Indian crepes) in NYC, had plans to go for black paella (with squid ink) but that looks like will fall through. (more below the fold)
Talked to Nick through the new Video Chat feature in Google, he was using an integrated web-cam in his Mac, I had to change the Firefox settings for him to be able to hear me. I have to say I was very impressed, there goes Skype.
Had Dosa at Saravanas in Curry Hill, not sure why anyone would call their restaurant "Disaster House", but the crepe and especially the condiments were very good.
Read more!
Talked to Nick through the new Video Chat feature in Google, he was using an integrated web-cam in his Mac, I had to change the Firefox settings for him to be able to hear me. I have to say I was very impressed, there goes Skype.
Had Dosa at Saravanas in Curry Hill, not sure why anyone would call their restaurant "Disaster House", but the crepe and especially the condiments were very good.
Read more!
Manhattan for Obama
From this very cool Times map, it looks like Manhattan (somehow the borough is being shown as a county, Dom's correction, Manhattan is New York County, King's county is Brooklyn) gave Obama the strongest support at 85% in the entire country. Surprisingly, Staten Island went to McCain by a small margin.(Nothing extra below fold)
Read more!
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