Older blog entries for mrd (starting at number 44)

Why we shouldn't all be programming in perl.

Microsoft has a patent pending in NZ for a Word-processing document stored in a single XML file that may be manipulated by applications that understand XML.

They've said "If we don't patent something that we've invented or developed someone else would". They invented? Huh? Storing a document in XML isn't a new invention - given that XML derives from HTML you could easily argue that storing a structured document was the first intended use of XML! The use of XML for data interchange between software components (I think) was a secondary use. This patent (pending) is a good example of the flaws of Intellectual Property assignment - there is no invention here, there is prior use, it is a trivial application of technology, and the only "benefit" of this sort of assignment is to increase the defensive patent portfolio of large companies (to be used to squash small companies).

I readilly accept IP if there is real invention, but that's not happening here. But I strongly dislike IP assignments for trivial things because it stiffles innovation industry-wide - imagine if IP was assigned for mathematical discoveries? We'd be living in single story buildings, using candles and riding horses.

My Linux.Conf.Au 2004 photos are now available...

Playing with orkut like everyone else. Cool stuff.

Getting sick again - trying to wrap up the budget for Linux.Conf.Au 2004, while doing Linux Australia committee things, while hacking dashboard (trying to get something ready for submission), and some python/gtk hacking for demonstration at LinuxSA next month, while trying to earn some brownie points with Susie - I owe a lot after this past year.

I need 30 hour days.

Linux.Conf.Au 2004: A complete blog of events is coming, but today I'll document just one little gem...

I'm the only person to have dunked Linus, and he's the only one to have dunked me :-P

See http://wiki.linux.conf.au for photos...

Linux.Conf.Au 2004: The day before the conference starts (well the miniconfs anyway)... Been to the airport twice, picked up wildfire, jdub, mtearle, lathiat, leon. More to come later today, when that flight from SFO finally gets in. Hopefully L got my phone number, I don't want him stranded at the airport.

Ugly stuff going on with a part of the conf. Just wish requests could have been made a couple of weeks ago, not just the day before. sigh.

Started writing the conference opening last night, talking to speakers this morning lifted my spirits, many of them wrapped around too.

It's all very exciting, can't wait for this thing to start.

havoc: you will have no trouble getting people to come to your keynote. Seriously.

linux.conf.au is only a week away - everyone[1] came back from holidays today, so I didn't get many actions done. I think my list is sub-50 items, not mentioning writing the conference opening and closing. Needless to say, a few of my projects are getting neglected as a result.

Big things get announced hopefully tomorrow and Thursday. Hope embargoed press releases stay that way - don't want to scare certain people away >:->

Last conference comment for today: Go back and read our news page - I'm constantly amazed at the cool stuff that's we've organised!

planet.gnome.org got it's own URL - pretty cool. About time (although it might have been like that for a while and I didn't notice. Or something). While jdub wants to have contributed enough to get listed on planet debian I'd be happy getting listed on Planet GNOME :-) I know, I know, it's all about what you contribute... at least I have that goal going forward this year...

[1] the conference sponsors, and just about every journalist in .au *And* they *all* called my mobile today.

Advogato diaries: shlomif: I agree - mostly I read recent diary entries and having to enter each person's diary to rate it is too slow, hence I don't rate others very often. What would be nice is a pull-down on each diary entry in the recent diary entries dump with a submit at the bottom once you've rated everyone. Of course this would change the rating system to be biased towards your most recent entry (since that's the one you are specifically rating) but it's probably not a bad thing.

Strange Merchandise: Who would buy this?

Linux.Conf.Au 2004: The conference is coming along nicely with 3 weeks to go, with new speakers jra, corbet and willy added to our list of speakers. But not just that, some really nice things like corporates giving away great prizes for the Hackfest contest, FIXITs (BOFs with an outcome), and the Wireless CyberCafe. We've actually run out of things for companies to sponsor! :-)

The big surprise will get announced in a fortnight's time.

Registrations continue strongly - at the current rate of registrations, there's only 10-12 days or so before we sell out. So if you are planning on coming, you'd better get in quick! This is a hard-core developers conference, so if we're going to sell out I want to make sure the right sort of people are sitting on the seats.

Reading: Like most people I'm making my way through both The Art of Unix Programming and Linux Kernel Development. Both have their strengths and weaknesses - I'll add my summaries to those of mbp, joel, and everyone else soon...

Dashboard: Development continues at break-neck speed. I really like the .doc frobnicator work being done by msevior out of AbiWord. Had to stop implemeting my own ideas on dashboard right now as cvs is changing just too quickly for me to keep up. I'll start again around January 18 - once Linux.Conf.Au finishes and normal life resumes.

Coolest thing of the week is the GNOME bounties program - adding that little extra level of desktop integration, that last 5%, to make the OSS desktop great. If it wasn't for the conference I'd be hacking away right now.

Runner up in the coolest thing of the week prize is expocity. This simply rocks.

And the third prize goes to... jdub for starting gnome-au-list. The amount of enthusiasm around GNOME is amazing, now if we can just harness that energy, and use it for niceness instead of evil...