Tuesday, June 30, 2009

On Standards and the Web

In case you haven't heard yet, Firefox 3.5 went live today. Among it's more noted features is support for the HTML <video> tag, which basically tells the browser that it should insert all the functionality of a flash embedded video player at that location. I installed it today, of course, and truth be told I really didn't see all that much difference, except for the <video> tag.

I'm a follower of the blog Lifehacker, which posts a lot of tips and tweaks for everyday life, especially computers. However, a few weeks ago I started noticing content being posted with the <video> tag. If you don't have a browser that supports HTML 5, it doesn't work very well. Did I mention that Firefox 3.5 is the first browser to support this? That's right, mainstream content was already being served in a standard that was only implemented in unreleased browsers.

Think about that for a minute. Also consider that HTML 5 isn't even finished yet. Then think about how far Twitter and Youtube have come in just a few years. Do you see the problem yet? Given how quickly businesses build up on the web, and how quickly they are adopted as the de-facto standards, releasing anything half-finished onto the web is dangerous. Suppose the next Youtube were to build up around the <video> tag, accumulate half the internet's video content, and then the <video> tag standard was changed at the last minute in a way that was difficult for this new video site (by now a cornerstone of social media) to implement? Suppose they simply chose not to change? Browser developers would then be stuck either implementing two incompatible versions of the same standard, or explaining to non-technical users why they can't see the videos of dancing bunnies anymore. In fact, that's very similar in nature to the situation that arose with non-standard tags and Internet Explorer, and we all remember how well that mess went.

Sometimes, unfinished things need to be kept seperate from the mainstream, even if it means you don't get the shiniest bits of tech immediately. I think we might do well to cultivate a little more patience for the sake of sanity a few years later. I also know that I'm not the only one who's noticed...

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Wednesday, June 17, 2009

The Price of a Sticker


What is the value of a sticker? To many, not much I'm sure. When I caved in to academic pressures and bought my laptop last year, it came adorned with all manner of little logos and stickers to the point it looked like the NASCAR model. One in particular which irked me was a little logo you may have seen before, the rather ubiquitous Windows compatibility logo. It was for Vista rather than the pictured Windows 7 logo, but you get the idea.

To me, this seemed a waste. Sure, it probably only cost a penny or so, but it was frustrating to me to have to take it off and added no value. I mean, it's not as if HP shipped alternative operating systems on the model, and stickers like this are about as meaningful as the red-and-white starbursts that proclaim 'new and improved' on the same laundry soap you've been buying for twenty years. Talk is cheap, and since the advent of affordable printing processes, print is even cheaper. So, what good is it?

Lately, I've started following a blog I ran across (It's dangerous to call it 'stumbling' these days. Will we have any verbs left unclaimed by the end of Web 2.0? But that's another rant topic for another day.) called Engineering Windows 7. It's not exactly a secret that I became something of a begrudging fan of Microsoft a few years ago, but I too had considered this to be mostly so much fluff. Then, I read this post from the EW7 blog. I knew that they had been putting some serious effort into testing Windows 7 and making real performance improvements, but I'd never realized how much they were doing to test the integrated system including hardware configurations. This probably marks the first time that I actually start to feel that we'll get every penny's worth out of the price of Windows. The sticker I scorned before actually means something this time around. And that's a change I welcome.

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Wednesday, June 03, 2009

Tips for Last-Minute Applications

If you're a college student, you've probably seen them. The wonderful program, scholarship, internship, or fellowship that you could have gotten if only you had found out about it more than two days before the due date. Don't give up hope! Whether time slipped up on you, or no one bothered to mention it before now, with a bit of preparation you be poised to snag opportunities that come up at the last possible minute.
  • Keep at least three official (or as close to official as you can arrange) transcripts from all of your colleges and/or high schools. Applications tend to come in waves and/or require multiple physical copies.
  • Keep at least three copies (most likely unofficial) of all of your standardized exams (SAT, ACT, GRE, etc.
  • Keep your resume up to date, and keep electronic and printed copies available.
  • Have scanned (electronic) versions of all of these documents. Make certain that you have them all in either PDF document format or JPEG or PNG image format, as these are the only formats that are almost universally readable. (PDFs can be created by 'printing' to a PDF from the editor of your choice a free program such as PDF Creator or Bullzip PDF. It pays to have these installed in advance. Microsoft Office 2007 also has an optional add-in that allows it to save directly to PDF.)
  • Keep contact information for professional and academic references current. It helps to have it written down or in a file, along with frequently needed application information such as university official addresses and dates of attendence or employment.
  • Know how to send a fax from your computer, or find a local business that you can fax from. (Mailing centers and copy shops can usually do this.)
  • Know the location of convenient copy shops, mailing centers, and post offices. If you use a printing service on a campus, make sure you keep extra credit on your printing account, especially if you can't re-fill it online. Also know a back-up location to print in case they're out of paper or having other technical problems.
  • Keep at least three priority mail and express mail flat-rate envelopes, including labels. This will allow you to do all the packaging at odd hours, though you will still have to go to the post office to send them. (But you won't have to wait until you're in line to fill them out.) Get replacements as you use them.
  • Get an account with FedEx. That way, you'll only have to give someone the account number and they can ship something at your expense. Sometimes services that operate through U.S. Mail can substitute for FedEx if they don't have to pay for it. (Naturally, be very careful with this number!)
  • Know the long poles in processes. Some things simply can't be rushed, such as mailed copies of GRE scores. Ask if electronic or faxed copies will be sufficient instead.
  • Find out the phone number of the person accepting the application. (It's usually on the letterhead for printable forms or on the related website.) You can often accomplish much more speaking to someone live than by e-mail or not asking at all. Also, they're more likely to accept a slightly late application if they know it's coming!
  • Ask if temporary copies can be temporarily substituted for documents with long processing times until official copies arrive.
  • Look for electronic processes wherever possible, as they usually operate 24/7
  • Do paperwork and packaging in the evening so that you can drop it off early the next day.
  • If you don't know which way something should be done, but can't wait until the next day to ask before starting, prepare sets of paperwork done each way so that you can ask later and then stuff the appropriate copy in the envelope at the last minute. (This usually only works for things where you can narrow down the correct approach to one of two, maybe three alternatives. One or two of the copies will be wasted, but why would you be applying for something that wasn't worth at least the paper of the application?)
  • Above all, keep a level head and don't panic!
Sometimes a good strategy, preparation, and little extra effort/money can make up for several weeks' worth of lead time. It won't always work, and knowing the dates ahead of time is your first, best defence, but these tips can be a lifesaver in a pinch.

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