For many reasons, this holiday actually seems quite real this year. While I’m not able to fly a flag (we live in an apartment), I do feel differently about the liberties (large and small) that exist in this country. My grandmother, who came here in 1914 and recently passed away, witnessed the first World War, the swinging 20s, the Depression, radio, the second World War, Hiroshima and nuclear mayhem, television, JFK and MLK’s murders, yippies, Julian Schnabel, the PC, the Internet, and the birth of two great-grandchildren.
What do I have to show for all that? The fact that I am sitting here typing words on a computer instead of growing potatoes in radiation-filled Zhitomir, Ukraine. The enormity of this good fortune, thanks to her and to those who helped her here, is overwhelming.

This is a fascinating little piece of software coming out of Google Labs. If you enter a few items that are similar in kind, and hit the Large Set or Small Set button, Google actually looks at other items within the category or “set” that you defined.
Pretty amazing. It could easily be used to study your name on the Net, your business competitors, or, presumably, mathematical symbols that are subsets of large sets. It makes me think twice, nay three times, about the SAT board’s decision to require essay questions in 5 years hence. If Google can do analogies this well, why do we need to be able to do them?
Oh yes, because they make us logical. Hmm, good answer. Take a look:
Google Sets

I realize it’s been four full days since I’ve posted. Here’s a summary of what I’ve accomplished, in the order of most recent first:
1. Scared shiteless about July 4th holiday in New York.
2. Moved a ton of bricks (literally) from my friend’s front yard to his backyard. (And they were the big thick bricks, too.)
3. Realized how strange it is that the media is grouping Martha Stewart (who, granted, did some wrongs no doubt) with the nice folks at Enron and WorldCom (who, embezzeled pensioner and stakeholder money to enrich their private accounts).
4. Built the final draft for the new MANOVERBOARD.com (which is STILL not done).

Okay, folks, I took the leap into OS X. (If you hate Macs and hate reading about them, go to the New York Times today which features in its circuit section a little puff piece about NYCBlogger. It’s a nice puff piece, though.
OS X is unbelievable solid. While I miss the old clunkiness of OS 9.2, with its weird shutters, old-fashioned looking windows and scrawly type, OS 10.1.2 is beautiful, fresh, and very stable. More importantly, an end user like me, with a little planning, can easily make the leap from old applications to new ones. I’ve even found updated OS X drivers for a USB-Serial Port converter, a Palm Desktop, and a very cool application (better than Sherlock) that finds other applications (see link below). I’ve imported bookmarks no problem (almost), imported old email and address books sans problem and even have been able to important old Stickies no problem.
Apple are you listening? If you have any questions or objections to this high praise, let me know! I’m all OS X now.
LaunchBar for Mac OS X

It’s come to my attention that Rhizome has relaunched (okay, they sent me an email about it). I’ve had a problem with the user interface and the general design of the site for a long time and it looks as if they’ve listened carefully to their feedback and did not do a whole lot of hearing. Or vice versa.
The site is very confused and confusing. I believe in the mission (to show and archive “Net” art) but it does make me wonder. Of course, I’m in the process of redoing my sites as well so the glass in this house had better bulletproof.

I am posting this more as a bookmark, a place to visit in the near future about the past that once held pregnant our present. A very rich project and Web site.
America As It Was-A Tour of the USA in Vintage Postcards

Okay, all you 56k modem folks: here it is, the ultimate in 5k Web sites. I look forward to looking at each and every entry in this old and respected contest. Register and you can comment and rate your faves. 5k entries
I entered two eeny-weeny sites — with Jake Dobkin – take a look.

A few days ago I posted that Maeve waved. Well, today, for the first time, she crashed my computer (by pounding on every key on the keyboard). Very cool. I hope her early hacking activities continue, as is promised in the stars.
I hereby promise not to regularly post more firsts.
To make up for these posts, here is a link to a book that she absolutely adores, called My Many Colored Days, an early Dr. Seuss (perhaps the earliest). The paintings (by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher) are somewhat ham-fisted but what can I say. The kid loves these images of flattened out pancake people smiling their way to somewhere.

Funny in a ha-ha slick way. Wedding culture is less exposed than are Hollywood title manufacuries.
Future Home

My pal Jake just got back from a trip to Berlin and other places Euro. Take a look at this very nice photo. It would make Wim Wenders proud.
foto