Apparently VW was pooh-poohing hybrids until a few more details came to light, and now they've come up with a Golf concept car:

The diesel-HEV could potentially deliver up to 10 to 15 percent better fuel economy than a comparable gasoline-electric powertrain, stated Matthias Rabe, director of research for the VW Group. And what about performance? Zero to 100 km/h (0-62.5 mph) needs a mere 11.0 seconds while a top speed of approximately 196 km/h (122 mph) is attainable. The Golf ECO.Power is equipped with a stop-start function, similar to all current production hybrids, and achieves a thrifty 3.8 liter per 100 km fuel economy average.

[ Canadian automotive network ]

Sounds like the exact car that I want...

Google, seriously ticked off with the likes of Apple and BMW has announced a new product:

With the new product, the Mountain View, Calif.-based company hopes to broaden its search-appliance business to cater to smaller businesses with fewer documents and tighter budgets. The blue box, which plugs into a corporate intranet and searches up to 50,000 documents, was launched Thursday at Google.com for $4,995.

[ Google unveils budget search appliance | CNET News.com ]

Starbucks has commented that they wish they had called the Chantico the Cocoa Mini...

Props to Mak.

Well, perhaps not die, but it's fun to vote anyway! I like Concept III. Still room to sit for the elderly or handicapped, but much easier access to the train. Just add in some swell video monitors with notifications about the station and direction of train (in Kanji, Katakana, and Romanji of course) and it'll feel just like Tokyo.

[ Survey input page ]

Well, perhaps it will take more than that, but DC metro does have more seats than any other commuter train system I've ever ridden on.

Props to the Persian Diversion...

I love coffee. I also love the Internet. I really love it when they come together.

Don't let your card run low -- add to your Caribou Card balance online. In order to add money to your card, you will need to log in or create a personal account with Caribou.

[ Caribou Coffee — My Account ]

I had been Caribouing regularly, but I really enjoyed the fact that I could load up my Narbucks card from their website. The cashiers are nice enough, but loading up a card isn't what they're best at. With the card I don't have to see dozens of tiny ATM POP transactions, or *shudder* carry cash. Now that 'Bou is on-board with Internet reloads, I think I'm switching my regular back...

It's true:

Washington's largest alternative rock station, WHFS 99.1, was replaced by an all-Spanish music format. WHFS, an indie favorite in the D.C.-metro area since it's inception in the 1960s, saw many changes over its lifespan. Originally a home for music that couldn't find a home elsewhere, it became an Infinity station in 1996

[ washingtonpost.com - Live Online ]

Of course Infinity made it suck even more than it had already started to. I blame Seattle and “Grunge” for killing WHFS. Viva El Zol! (www.whfs.com).

More props to el Dari.

Update:

Of Infinity's five stations in the market, WHFS was its weakest ratings performer. In the Summer 2004 survey, the station had a 1.6 overall share and a 3.3 among its 18-34 target. Infinity's own Rhythmic Contemporary Hit Radio WPGC-FM is the top-rated station and the 18-34 leader.

[ Media Week ]

Time Warp Playlist!

• Supertramp
• ELO
• Styx
• Yes
• REO Speedwagon
• Rush

Mostly greatest hits albums. Debated putting some Boston on there too...

This looks small, light, inexpensive, and clever:

Time to mix things up. Meet iPod shuffle, the unpredictable new iPod. What will it play next? Can it read your mind? Can it read your moods? Load it up. Put it on. See where it takes you. Choose from pocket-size 512MB or 1G models starting at $99 and surprise yourself.

[ Apple - iPod shuffle ]

Too bad my GTI doesn't have a USB interface for the radio...

Now you can make a low profile PC driven solution with a Mac!

Live the digital life in stylish simplicity. Just 6.5 inches wide and 2 inches tall, Mac mini provides what you need to have more fun with your music, photos and movies — right out of the box.

[ Apple - Mac mini ]

Maybe my kitchen needs Internet...

Props to Dari.

For a while now I've thought of putting together a playlist and burning a CD of songs related to one of my passions, coffee. So far I have about 1/2 what I need for a full CD. Can anyone think of something (available from Rhapsody) that would fit this list?

 Coffee

1. "Black Coffee" - Bobby Darin
2. "Cigarettes And Coffee" - Otis Redding
3. "Black Coffee Inn Bed" - Squeeze
4. "Coffee In A Cardboard Cup" - Mandy Patinkin
5. "Pot Of Coffee" - Frankie Paul/Pinchers
6. "Tom's Diner (A Capella)" - Suzanne Vega
7. "Let's Have Another Cup O' Coffee" - Glenn Miller
8. "The Coffee Song - (previously unreleased, alternate take)" - Frank Sinatra
9. "Java Jive" - Manhattan Transfer
10. "Jumpin' East Of Java" - The Brian Setzer Orchestra

And yes, the Rhapsody thing, unfortunately leaves Prince's Starfish and Coffee of the list. (Why Prince, why?!?!?)

But I like it!

Windows AntiSpyware (Beta) is a security technology that helps protect Windows users from spyware and other potentially unwanted software. Known spyware on your PC can be detected and removed. This helps reduce negative effects caused by spyware including slow PC performance, annoying pop-up ads, unwanted changes to Internet settings, and unauthorized use of your private information. Continuous protection improves Internet browsing safety by guarding over 50 ways spyware can enter your PC

[ Download details: Windows AntiSpyware (Beta) ]

It did seem to require a verification of my Windows license, so if you don't have quite a legal copy, you might not be able to get this. I have little information on the database that Microsoft (previously Giant's) has put together, and how it stacks up against Ad-Aware, but so far I am impressed. It lets me set some options on how I want it to run, if I want automatic, and when, and then finds spyware for me. It registered my VNC as possible spyware, but since I installed it (and only use the client) I told it to ignore that in the future.

And for power users there are some “Advanced Tools”, including some “System Explorers” which allow you to view Downloaded ActiveX, Running Processes, Startup Programs, etc. And the software informs you what it might be, and if it might be safe. If you agree to assist their little network, you can submit programs to them to review for “spywaredness”, I sent in the one ActiveX component they don't seem to be aware of (that I have installed) Bitstream's TrueDoc plug in.

Certainly good value for the money. (Though I think I'll still give Ad-Aware a run every now and then).

It would seem so. At first I was quite disoriented. The layout of the game has changed a bit since version one, and now there is an “over world” of sorts. Instead of just picking up races like you would in NfSU1, you drive around town looking for races. Sometimes you happen upon an underground racer, a quick SMS back and forth and it's off to see who's fastest. Other times you happen across actual events and you enter a slide race or some such. In between all of this you use your earning to “pimp your ride”.

Need for Speed Underground 2 dares you to go faster and deeper into racing culture! Immerse yourself in the tuner culture, exploring an expansive, free-roaming city divided into five distinct neighborhoods.

[ GameCube Games : Gamefly ]

Once I got used to the interface, and realized that each event on the map had uploaded coordinates into my navi-computer (courtesy of Brooke Burke), and my car came equipped with a GPS system to guide me, I think I really like this one. I'm not so much of a racing freak that I'll be buying this one, but the game certainly seems decent enough. Career mode, however, takes a racing game type to get through. Tricking out your car just takes too long in career mode to suit my taste. I'm not sure if there is an option to make the damage model more realistic either. No matter how bad your crash is, the worst effect it seems to have is slowing you down. All in all a great show, I give it 4 thumbs out of 5 stars, or something like that.

T. R. Reid and Bob Sacha have great jobs:

Slurped in black coffee or sipped in green tea, gulped down in a soda or knocked back in a headache pill, caffeine is the world's most popular psychoactive drug.

[ National Geographic ]

I'm sure they've had to cover all sorts of other stuff that I wouldn't enjoy, and the only way to get a story like this is to have a full career of it. And I'm sure Bob Sacha is correct that this story has ruined his ability to be satisfyed with sub-par coffee, tea, and chocolate. But still I think this would be the trip of a lifetime...

Contrary to the opinion of some (possibly most in the US):

"Jihad" is one of the few Arabic words used in English. It means holy crusade[sic], but many Muslims have pointed out that "jihad" is almost always used in English in the context of terrorism, even though the actual meaning is broader. Commentator Anisa Mehdi would like to propose a word that could be used instead of "jihad."

[ Rethinking the Word 'Jihad' ]

My understanding is that jihad means something close to struggle for the sake of God. There are internal and external struggles. Ms. Mehdi makes a good point about how the struggles of those so quick to use the word aren't even struggles for the sake of God. I would also make the point that a physical struggle is actually the easiest of all levels of struggle. Think about when you are upset is it easier to alter your own behavior? To tell others that what they've done should be corrected? Or just hit them?

Including:

• Madness
• The Specials
• The English Beat
• The Police (there's some Ska Influence there...)
• Save Ferris
• Smash Mouth
• No Doubt
• Hepcats

The tweaking continues...

Seems like a bunch of websites are tweaking their designs...

[ New Year, New Design ]

To address some of the criticism of my new design, I've changed the font again, Arial or Helvetica, should look much better, and I've reduced the complexity quite a bit. I've also removed the “What I'm Playing” piece, and aim to have a whole page dedicated to that shortly.

Sure the picture looks inviting. And truffles are yummy.

'Chantico', a new gourmet drinking chocolate beverage, will be offered at Starbucks shops in the United States and Canada beginning January 8, 2005. Described as 'drinking a melted truffle', the chocolate has an intense, full-bodied flavor and a rich, silky texture that builds on the tradition of European drinking chocolate.

[ Yahoo! News - Top Stories Photos - Reuters ]

Maybe I'll have to partake later today...

Update: Say it isn't so. With the Chantico Starbucks has actually created a chocolate beverage to rival that of “My Buddy Tom”. Tom is a bit of a hot chocolate purist and will go the extra mile to make a perfect cup from scratch. Starbucks has actually produced a cup that is finer. However the Starbucks solution must cost about 10-20 times as much.

Very interesting Talk of the Nation. I don't think they truly had enough time to explore and appreciate all views here, though.

Many victims of the tsunami are left with tough questions about fate and natural disasters. Often, they're left with few answers, only their faith. We discuss how Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus and Christians reconcile religion and disaster.

[ NPR TotN ]

The caller “Fathima” who doesn't identify her religion is clearly a Muslim. Her point is valid, but perhaps too much of a tangent. I felt the Imam did bring up an important point about testing vs. punishment, but left off other important concepts like why it is better to be punished in this life than the next. More importantly, I think, one of the Muslims should have touched on the concept of punishment of a society for societal ills.

As for the non-Muslims, who's opinions I am not as familiar with, I'm not sure the “end of days” scenario of the Jewish gentleman was truly on topic, he seemed to be more concerned with Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, and to imply that disasters of this proportion didn't occur before that invasion is a bit out there.

I also found the information about Krakatoa to be very intriguing, and may have to purchase his book.

I understand that there was previously a brand of bread called “Kearns Bread” but now the only item I can find in a store with close to my name is:

[ Mexijew's Flikr ]

Mexijew got a Sidekick II, and apparently I had something to say about it:

Welcome to the world of the Sidekick II

I'm sure you've seen the adverts where Paris Hilton, Snoop Dog, Wee Man, Wayne Newton, and I all share tips about life via an application that doesn't really exist. And we love it!

Honestly, my Sidekick is my sidekick. Just got my bill and I used over 13MB of data this past month. On T-Mob's unlimited usage Sidekick plan that's great, on other networks, with less appealing tech, that could double or triple my monthly costs with overage.

Here are a few warnings, however:

• The $10 sync package is worth about that. It doesn't auto-sync like a PDA or Blackberry, and if you sync too much the app tell you that you must wait before you can sync again (with no guidelines on what "too much" is).
• You can't use the Hiptop (Danger's name for the device) ability to save .WAV attachments as phone rings due to T-Mob's restriction that ensures proper licensing of music tones (read extra cash in their pocket)
• The web browser leaves a bit to be desired. It goes through a proxy, and they reduce the size of pages to make it appear better on the sidekick, but trying pulling up my site and you'll see what happens when their proxy guesses wrong. I now need to figure out how to make my site viewable again. Oh, and no javascript. This increasingly becomes an issue, and many things just can't be done on the SK (like refilling scripts at CVS, or a Starbucks card)
• The sound profiles only affect the volume not the actual ring.
• The Yahoo IM client is not as polished as the AIM client. If it drops you and reconnects, any status is wiped and you're once again available. If you log in elsewhere, the SK will log back in unless you've ended the connection. And the [menu]+. hotkey that closes AIM doesn't work for Y!M
• A few months ago, without my approval, T-Mob started charging .15 per international SMS message (it was treated as one of my 1000 included before then)
• The ToDo list, when "deleting" actually moves the items into a trash can that needs to be emptied. I had to figure this out when I reached the device's limit and couldn't understand why I couldn't add anymore ToDo items...

The Apps that I've downloaded/bought include:

• Time Traveler (free at the time, meh)
• Calculator (still free I think, handy but the interface is clunky)
• Apples to Oranges (about $5, but helpful when talking to my wife)
• Y!M (free, great way to “talk” to my wife)

All-in-all I love my Sidekick, and feel that the SKII is close to living up to my expectations. If the SKIII adds Bluetooth (for a hands free), a better web browser, and G3 Internet speeds, I'll be loving it even more...

[ Me ]

I guess I just should have blogged this one to begin with...

Excellent.

NPR news and information is available through RSS feeds, which use a technology called XML to deliver headlines and summaries to your desktop. Many NPR Member stations also provide local and regional RSS feeds of their own.

[ NPR : RSS Feeds ]

If only Nintendo would get RSS feeds, I'd be pretty much set.

I'm a big fan of ClearType. Don't know exactly what wizardry Microsoft is trying to pull off, or if they deserve a patent, but I do know that if you're running XP, ClearType is hot.

With Windows XP, ClearType delivers improved font display quality over traditional forms of font smoothing or anti-aliasing. ClearType improves readability on color LCD displays with a digital interface, such as those in laptops and high-quality flat panel displays. Readability on CRT screens can also be somewhat improved.

[ ClearType Step 1: Turn on Windows XP ClearType ]

Somewhat my butt. ClearType has improved my web browsing experience on every computer I use: LCD, CRT, or otherwise.

If you don't like the invasive web-based tuning tool, Microsoft has created a PowerToy as well.

Seems like a bunch of websites are tweaking their designs, must be something in the air because on a whim I redid my site. Gone is the big fat table that provided the structure of the page, replaced with a CSS solution. It's not as elegant as it should be, but I only played with it for a few hours. It is still very understated, but no longer in bright “safety yellow”. I'm not sure about the font, though, as on my box I have “Eras Medium ITC” but haven't a clue where it came from, I back that up with “Trebuchet MS” but I'm guessing that Macs don't have that one. If anyone has any font suggestions, feel free to speak up.

Full Disclosure: I used a web-based tool to assist with the color palette.

Update: apparently my sub-conscious bogarted the quote graphic design concept from Joe Grossberg's site.