Free Robby

New server is up and running! Pretty fast, eh?

I’m currently in the process of migrating web servers. Any comments you leave between now and the end of the migration may get lost in the transition. I’ll post again as soon as the migration is complete!

If you’re like me, you were disappointed when Google released a mobile Gmail client for PalmOS 5, but did not provide support for Palm TX devices. The TX, after all, is Wi-Fi- and Bluetooth-enabled, and thus an ideal candidate for any mobile application that takes advantage of unfettered wireless internet. Sure, you can access Gmail through the web-based mobile interface using a mobile browser, but that method is slow, menial and inelegant.

But fear not. It turns out that getting Google’s Gmail client up and running on the Palm TX is both quick and easy. And rewarding, too, if you’re on the go as much as I am!

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“The best revenge is living well.”

–Jerry Seinfeld, The Revenge

The RIAA’s lobbying and lawsuits all tell the same story: the industry fears its inevitable irrelevance.

In the early days, the recording industry played a functional role in the album-making process: they facilitated the recordings, and they paid for the production and distribution of said albums. Bob Dylan may have had the talent, but when push came to shove, he couldn’t go it alone because he didn’t have the means to distribute CDs across the globe.

But the times they are a-changing. Most artists can record in their apartments, or a friend’s apartment. And on those occasions when they need to go into the studio, they can do so without enduring as financial a burden as they needed to 40 years ago. And while recording has become cheaper, distribution has become all but free. With modern internet services, a nobody can record a song or a video, throw it on his blog, and have tens of thousands of hits. I know, because I’m one of them.
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A jury has determined that Jammie Thomas, single mother of two, has to pay the RIAA $225,000 for copyright infringement. There is no proof that she even had the alleged software on her computer.

I’m asking everyone to please consider pledging a donation to help her foot the bill. As the pledges come in, I’ll look for a reliable means to facilitate this. Please folks. $1, $10, $50, whatever you have. This is not only a good thing to do, but it’s the right message to send–to Jammie, to the RIAA and to Congress. There is power in numbers.

Please post your pledges as comments here until a better system is worked out.

I’m pledging $25.

edit: and please, do spread the word as you see fit.

Any Verizon customer can tell you the company mantra: if the customer wants it, make them pay for it. Verizon’s mobile web is no exception: by disallowing the user to change certain settings on the LG VX8600 phone, they effectively force him to use Verizon’s mobile web service, or none at all. Long story short: users cannot take advantage of free WAP services (such as that of Google) because Verizon wants you to use theirs. And pay for it.

But if you’re like me and use the LG VX 8600, you no longer have to. My making a minor firmware update, you can enable your phone to use free WAP providers, giving you full access to the mobile web without paying Verizon so much as a dime (aside from airtime minutes, of course). Here’s how I did it.
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“I couldn’t have done it without my players.”

–Casey Stengel, on winning the 1958 World Series.

Radiohead announced earlier this week that they would be selling their new album on October 10 for whatever price their listeners would like to pay. The mainstream media covered this so extensively that excessive traffic caused the band’s web site to crash.

But the idea isn’t so new. In fact, it’s nearly eight years old, and it came from the mind of yet another musical genius. In December of 1999, Jon Brion was asked, “As a musician, are you afraid of the internet?” His response was prophetic (emphasis mine):
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“Time is a game only children play well.”

–The Silver Jews, How Can I Love You? (If You Won’t Lie Down)

One hobby that I’ve steadily picked up over the past year or so is that of homebrewing. To date I’ve made a pale ale, an oatmeal stout, an amber ale and a raspberry wheat. At the moment, I’ve got a Belgian brewing in my studio. Today I brewed my first Pumpkin Spice ale, and here’s how I did it.
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