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2013-02-04 23:04:20 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Tags: #goodmorningplus

February 4, 2013: All Guns Blazing

Whenever another debate on firearms erupts in America - usually after yet another shooting in a place where nobody but the attacker had a gun - there is a long stream of articles and comments, proving  that citizens of the United States are truly a superstitious lot. The belief that guns are actually Gonnes straight from Terry Pratchett’s books, malignant weapons wanting to kill as many innocent victims as possible, and that more legal restrictions will keep them away, is so widespread, that it is almost funny by itself. How is it possible, that people in Switzerland, where virtually every male owns an assault rifle, or Czech Republic, where rules on access to weapons are not dictated by phobias and neuroses, are not extinct yet, while public shootings are virtually unheard of? Surely, something beyondrelat... more »

2013-02-02 22:46:29 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Tags: #goodmorningplus

February 2, 2013: Mahmoud's Not Flying Circus

Ruses of all kinds are mankind’s tools since time immemorial. Even before the Trojan Horse, Sun Tzu wisely urged his readers to feign weakness while being strong, and feign strength while being weak, for the express purpose of fooling their enemies. Unfortunately, for a ruse to be effective, it has to be not only well crafted, but also believable - and few things are more pathetic than a failed attempt at deception, apart from the one who tried to reap its rewards. Today, continuing the tradition of all autocratic regimes, regularly trying to behave like puffer fish, the award for a failed ruse of laughable proportions goes to the Iranian Defense Ministry, for the unveiling of a hastily constructed large scale plastic model as a “major breakthrough towards the fulfillment of the SupremeLead... more »

2013-02-01 21:37:12 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Tags: #goodmorningplus

February 1, 2013: Carving up the Clock

It seems I haven’t been around for some time, apart from comments here and there. I tend to repeat that no plan survives its meeting with real life intact, and indeed, truer words haven’t been spoken, as far as my participation in the digital society is concerned. Still, there’s no reason to be discouraged and abandon ship altogether. I intend to experiment with shorter posts, around 150 words each, with longer pieces published at weekends, as well as some regular columns appearing daily. Who knows, perhaps the approach will bear some fruit. The Internet, despite its grandeur, has ample competition when it comes to my attention (for instance, I can’t wait to get my hands on Halik Kochanski’s newest book on Poland during World War II, even though it shall undoubtedly monopolize my evenings for awhile) fi... more »

2013-01-11 21:09:08 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

#goodmorningplus

My belated yesterday's post - in need of some redaction and cleanup, but then again, I'm a perfectionist of the worst sort, so none of my works is ever complete and fully satisfactory - was of the serious nature, so I suppose I should be countering it with something of the leisurely nature. Fortunately, my countrymen from CD Projekt RED have come to my aid, releasing the trailer for "Cyberpunk 2077", a new project to be released sometimes in the future, probably after the possible culmination of the "Witcher" trilogy.

While the trailer is lovely - and made me discover Archive as a band I'd like to listen more to - I'd really like to congratulate the folks from CDPR for reviving one of my fondest memories from early teens. While I was a so-so role playing gamer, I had a love of RPG source books - in fact, I have learned Englishs... more »

2013-01-11 16:08:54 (6 comments, 0 reshares, 4 +1s)

#goodmorningplus

Since I haven't written anything yesterday, in order to keep my output at constant level, I should be writing two posts today. First, allow me to return to my short text on Google, and design consistency.

As I have already written, I'd bought myself a Christmas gift by purchasing a Nexus 7 tablet. Despite the fact that I already own a Galaxy Note, I wanted something a little bigger, faster, and unencumbered with Samsung's questionable additions such as TouchWiz and some of the apps - even though I admit, I adore S Note for helping me get rid of all scraps of paper I used to make notes on. While I am certainly not disappointed in my purchase, I'd have to say that I am disappointed by the way Google is handling the Nexus brand as a whole. The problem is easily spotted the moment we look at the current lineup of Nexus devices - do they have anything in... more »

2013-01-09 22:36:20 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

#goodmorningplus

I should be writing something witty about Google and its lack of cohesive design philosophy, inspired by my Nexus 7 - it's not that I dislike it, on the contrary, it is one of the best Christmas gifts I have given myself, and I'm actually writing this post using it (and SwiftKey is definitely making it easier) - I however find myself a bit under the weather. Perhaps it's my today's "fun" with my wife's computer and its decomposing Windows talking. In any case, I'll try to elaborate beyond "Google cannot be consistent under pain of death, but at least it's not pushing skeuomorphism" tomorrow.

Come to think of it, writing all of my posts like that could be an interesting challenge. Still, I'm too much of a tactile feedback person.

2013-01-10 05:49:16 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

2013-01-08 23:39:49 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

#goodmorningplus

I have nearly forgotten about writing my today's post, I'm pretty sure however,   that dealing with a corporate customer service department should be counted as an exonerating circumstance. Having said that, a quick note on public opinion and dictators, put on back burner yesterday due to the Adobe Systems debacle, is very much in order.

Consider the following situation: a major telecommunications company launches a new advertising campaign for mobile users, with a revolutionary new offer that undoubtedly will take the market by storm - in other words, same old story, only in a different packaging. Instead of abstract feel good images of happy smartphone users and similar rubbish however, the leading character for the entire campaign is a well known short man with a toothbrush mustache, and its motto is "Ein Volk, Ein Gesellshaft, Ein Preis", ors... more »

2013-01-08 05:58:25 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

#goodmorningplus

I so wanted to write a short post on public opinion and its doublethink ways when it comes to famous dictators, inspired by a certain Polish telecommunications company and its latest advertising campaign, starring Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov (commonly known as Lenin), but I guess that particular idea died fairly quickly. Instead, due to the sheer amount of posts on Adobe Creative Suite 2 today, both on Google+ and elsewhere, allow me to treat you to a public service announcement. In short, due to the overwhelming number of people successfully downloading Adobe CS2 after a completely uncharacteristic show of generosity on behalf of Adobe Systems, the company has quickly overturned its previous position - indeed, it is not entirely clear whether it has actually held it at any time - and, through Dov Isaacs, one of its principal scientists, has stated, that, and I quote, "Adobe... more »

2013-01-01 18:36:47 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

#goodmorningplus  

Greetings, everyone, and welcome to the year 2013, at least those of you, for whom the the bells have tolled midnight and festivities have commenced, only to pass with the coming of dawn. As you can observe, following a resolution, written before its time under a post made by the illustrious +Ayoub Khote, I have decided to pull myself out of the depths of obscurity by my proverbial bootstraps. For a perfectionist, who reviews every written line thrice, and who laments every misshapen figure of speech, it is a daunting task, and I still fondly remember the sympathy once offered to me by +Grace O'Malley in this regard. Still, while a man must know his limitations, he should also strive to overcome them, and what better way there is, at least when the man in question is an asocial misanthrope, than walking outside the walls of his comfort zone, meeting old friends andco... more »