Search Keyphrases and what they reveal

I was poking through my stats info this morning, as you do, when having a really tedious morning, and I found that the search keyphrases which bring people to my site are many and varied. Additionally, there are often searches for “kyte” and since there are many people with that surname, and a multiplicity with it as a nickname (I claim first or second, I’ve been using it since 1994) I am never surprised to see that in the list

Imagine my amazement when I saw “sue wotton kyte” in the list. Obviously there is someone out there who is looking for me and who found me. I havent made it easy to make contact via this site, I don’t leave my email address lying around for spambots to collect, so I guess maybe its time I created a contact page with a form, so that those few (yes, it was not just a one-off attempt) people who may want to make contact can do so.

In the meantime, here is an address to go on with. kyte AT bluebottle DOT com. Change the usual things to send email to me, and be prepared for a challenge from the server. Thats its job.

eBooks

I just don’t have space in my house for the number of bookcases which are required to hold the books I have had over the years, I suspect I could fill a small council library with those. My current bookcases (only two, admittedly, 6′x3′) are overflowing onto the floor and I dont really have room for more.

Enter the eBook.

When I was using a PC, I had three main methods of reading. The least enjoyable was Adobe reader, for the pdf versions, the next least enjoyable was Microsoft reader which has its own format, incompatible with any other reader, and the most useful of all was yBook reader which at that time was free and probably still is, and it could read a variety of different formats including text (which neither of the others could).

Now that I am using a Mac, Microsoft reader is unavailable to me (except via VPC but I am not that inclined to use it), Adobe Reader is okay, as it was on PC, and I am using eReader from Palm (also available in a Windows Version), and getting free palm format books when I can, from sources like Fictionwise, and others. I wish there were a comparable text reader like yBook, on Mac. Text editors do the job, but you just don’t get the same bookish feel.

For the purists who say theres nothing like reading dead tree versions, I say, I agree absolutely. But trees are limited and books are many. Conservation has become critical to the planet’s survival, so… give it a go. It really isn’t that bad.

Chain Email Hoaxes and Compulsive Forwarders

I don’t know why people are so damned slow in learning that 90% of the crap that comes into their email box, bearing dire warnings of destruction, is just unmitigated garbage.

This post is prompted by my having received yet another ‘FWD: Please read. IMPORTANT!!’ email. Which wasn’t of course. Important, that is. What it was, was a fwd from a friend of mine about some Budweiser Frog screensaver (hoax in existence since 1997, I think I may have received it the first time in 98), and who, in spite of my repeated requests for her NOT to send these things on without considering whether they are for real or not, still does so. Still does not consult her antivirus company’s website. Still does not google for information. Still does not THINK!! (Never mind the fact that I’ve been using a Mac for the past two years and a) couldn’t use the screensaver even if I got it and b) am not affected by the virus… if there was one… )

For those of you who fall into the category of compulsive forwarders, there are a couple of websites you need to visit. But first, one to check on email hoaxes. There are lots but I kinda liked this one:
http://www.breakthechain.org/

Now… compulsive forwarders must immediately follow the link to
http://www.esva.net/~pchousecalls/cfd.html
which explains pretty much how I feel, and then to
http://diamond-back.com/mybestfriend.shtml
Even though that’s written in tongue-in-cheek style, and intended for ICQ users, it applies to email just as much (probably more, now), so take it seriously for gods sake. I don’t think even Diamondback had any idea how bad the problem would become when he wrote that, back in 1997.

Stop forwarding without thought or consideration. You might be passing a virus on… or you might just be making a bloody nuisance of yourself.

Like the owner of esva.net, I am rapidly approaching a time when I will be using a kill filter for my CFD acquaintances.

CopperExport

Found this morning via Versiontracker, BrT » CopperExport is a plugin for iPhoto 4 or 5 which exports to Coppermine Gallery 1.3 or 1.4 beta.

Great idea, could have used it when I was hosting my own pix

Requirements (as per the website): Mac OS X 10.3 Panther and iPhoto 4.x or 5.x. iPhoto 2.x may work, but has not been tested. Versions of Mac OS X prior to 10.3 will certainly not work.

Seems like there might be issues with Tiger of varying kinds, when looking over the comments. Its been generally well received though.