Mostly wrote test suites at work, and completed the first run at coding our existing access control system in Python, along with a bit of sysadmin stuff like recompiling kernels and creating a new mailing list for the Matisse project. In the evening, made a second pass at the Python 1.6 document, and began preparing for my visit to Berkeley next week.

Book review: The Victorian Internet, Tom Standage: This little book skilfully draws parallels between the rise and fall of the telegraph in the 19th century and the rise (so far) of the Internet. Many of the parallels are pretty apt: the early days of telegraphy enthusiasts who faded away as the technology became commercialized and the machinery more automated; the far-flung communities that chatted during quiet periods; romances, marriages, and crime taking place over the wire; and the inexorably accelerating pace of life mandated by the increased information. At around 220 pages, this book provides a few hours of entertainment, and a fair number of insights.