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David Loschiavo   ..:: djlosch.com
Software Engineering, Linux, and Tech Policy.
..:: Tables vs CSS Challenge - Round 1
I am one of the many coders who subscribe to the idea that web applications are best made through a nice balance of CSS and Tables. Whenever I hear someone touting a tableless CSS design, I cringe. This is the first in a many part series to prove that tableless CSS is simply fanboyish zealotry, if not completely moronic.
5 Comments, 272 Referrals since Thursday, 3 January '08 - 2:48:36 PM -0500
..:: Latin Phrases Everyone Should Know
Just a few things I thought were interesting
0 Comments, 43 Referrals since Thursday, 15 November '07 - 2:04:10 PM -0500
..:: MPAA Sues Kanye West and and 50 Cent for Intellectual Property Infringement
The Meat Producers Association of American has filed suit against rapper extraordinaire Curtis James Jackson, "50 Cent", and hip-hop mogul, Kanye West in an Oklahoma federal court on Friday, alleging misappropriation of trademarks, copyright infringement, invasion of privacy, and possibly patent infringement.
2 Comments, 240 Referrals since Sunday, 12 August '07 - 4:21:15 PM -0400
..:: Convertible and Tablet Notebooks Suck
I am constantly explaining this to people, and I'm keeping a running list (really, I just got tired to typing this entire thing out whenever someone on the gentoo forums said they wanted to get a tablet). I had an Averatec C3500 from about Feb. 2005 to Aug. 2007 and I have come to the inescapable conclusion: tablet notebooks and convertibles suck. And before you accuse me of judging all convertibles/tablets based on my 2 year experience with a single laptop, I can tell you that I've dealt a fa...
1 Comments, 210 Referrals since Sunday, 5 August '07 - 10:21:41 AM -0400
..:: A True Testament to Open Source
I often get a lot of people asking me why I defend open source. My dad doesn't understand how it gets done. But, as a testament to the power of open source, compare the open source compositing manager, Beryl, to Microsoft's closed source version, Aero.
0 Comments, 23 Referrals since Friday, 13 July '07 - 7:58:07 PM -0400
..:: Neo 1973 Promotional Videos
The Neo 1973 first generation is out. I'm currently waiting for Gen2 to come out so I can get it with the WiFi hardware, but I was looking for some reviews when I stumbled onto some promotional parody videos. If you didn't know, the Neo is the first phone ever to be completely open (it actually comes with an SDK). There are a bunch of videos, some funnier than others, but I've included a few of the better ones.
0 Comments, 112 Referrals since Friday, 13 July '07 - 7:44:34 PM -0400
..:: Joost Beta Reviewed
Today, my Joost Beta application was accepted. So, I went over to their installation page from the link in the email, with an open mind. I was excited. On paper, Joost looks like it may revolutionize the way we view media content. It's essentially a bittorrent client on a closed bittorrent network with a video player and interface built on top. Before I start, note that I am completely unaffiliated with Joost. I am just a regular computer geek exploring some cutting edge media software. N...
1 Comments, 1279 Referrals since Thursday, 5 April '07 - 10:27:11 PM -0400
..:: Dell Charges You 70 Dollars To Have No OS
Dell recently responded to the call of the Linux community by offering pre-installed Linux desktops. However, I'll show this was a joke by examining two different offerings: Buying FreeDOS uninstalled costs $70 more than getting Windows pre-installed. Buying Redhat pre-installed costs $100+ more than getting Windows pre-installed.
2 Comments, 863 Referrals since Saturday, 31 March '07 - 5:19:33 PM -0400
..:: The Current State of the US Patent System: Linked Lists Patented April 11, 2006
Various players in the industry disagree over whether software patents should be granted. Every now and then, a software patent is granted that is just so unbelievably ridiculous that it's not worth the paper that it's printed on. Linked lists are a common data structure, learned in every basic computer programming data structures class across the nation. So when the USPTO granted the patent for linked lists, the programming community was shocked.
0 Comments, 14 Referrals since Tuesday, 20 March '07 - 6:27:05 AM -0400
..:: The Seven Rules of Trade Practice for Web Publishing
Every now and then, someone who has no idea how the Internet works comes along and files a lawsuit at one of the backbones of the internet that would set horrible precedent. The latest debacle is the woman who sued Archive.org, one of the top mirroring sites. The fact that she knows how to install a basic web publishing program neither makes her an authority on the internet, nor an expert web publisher. Apparently, Mrs. Suzanne Shell has no idea how the internet works. Please note that thi...
2 Comments, 471 Referrals since Monday, 19 March '07 - 2:25:09 AM -0400
..:: Why Internet Radio is in the Emergency Room
If you've been reading up on your news aggregator, you've noticed that internet radio costs skyrocketed. What you may have wondered is why? I've thrown together a few theories as towards why. Essentially, it all comes down to various corporations lobbying politicians with hidden motives to stomping out fair use, anti-piracy, and anti-competition.
30 Comments, 11814 Referrals since Monday, 5 March '07 - 8:36:16 PM -0500
..:: The Myth of Secure WiFi
Every week, there's another article on digg explaining how to either hack a wireless router, or secure a wireless router, or some story of some guy bragging about the wireless router he just hacked. The purpose of this article is to outline how easy it is to hack onto a wireless network, and the most effective ways to protect against it. I'm not going to give a line by line description of how to use some of the networking tools, but I will explain what can be used. Note that in many jurisdict...
1 Comments, 1186 Referrals since Thursday, 22 February '07 - 6:59:07 PM -0500
..:: An In Depth Look: DRM is About Far More Than Piracy
DRM isn't about piracy at all. Multiple ars technica articles have discussed this to no uncertain end. I once attended a DRM negotiation where an MPAA vice-president said, "Watching a show that's being received in one room while you're sitting in another room has value, and if it has value, we should be able to charge money for it." Siva Vaidhyanathan calls this the "if value, then right" theory -- if something has value, someone must have a right to sell it. So while you might be accustomed...
2 Comments, 43 Referrals since Saturday, 10 February '07 - 8:59:54 PM -0500
..:: Exploit: T-Mobile Gives Free Wi-Fi to Everyone
This guide is not to meant to be used in cheating anyone or stealing anything. It is specifically for programmers and security consultants to know about exploits that may be encountered on their systems. By reading or attempting this exploit, you agree to hold yourself completely liable for your actions. Actually performing this exploit for any gain whatsoever is probably illegal, but this exploit is all over the web. It is very important that admins don't rely on something so easily spoofed...
0 Comments, 4 Referrals since Friday, 9 February '07 - 7:39:07 PM -0500
..:: Supercooled Liquids
Want a new party trick? And now done with water... This is called supercooling. The best [non-physicist] explanation for this comes from Digg user Devon: The dissolved particles in water lower the freezing point. (This is why you put salt on ice during the winter to melt the ice.) When you open the bottle, the concentration of dissolved CO2 changes because the bottle has been opened/depressurized. The loss of pressure causes CO2 that has been forced into to solution to escape fro...
0 Comments, 17 Referrals since Friday, 9 February '07 - 7:06:36 PM -0500