Sunflowers

This past week, Space had the episode "Vincent and the Doctor". It deals with an encounter the Doctor and Amy had with the great Post Impressionist painter Vincent Van Gogh. It's a great episode and if you haven't seen it, why did you miss it. It features an alien, of course, but more then a Doctor vs a Monster, it gives some truth worth considering. As well, it has a lot of Van Gogh's paintings. Plus a cameo by Bill Nighy, what more do you want? The final scene was Amy looking at Vincent' famous still life of sunflowers and she sees it has been dedicated to her.

Although in the episode, Van Gogh wasn't impressed with the Sunflower, feeling it was far too complex, he certainly caught on if his artwork proves anything:



My purpose for this blog is not to discuss Doctor Who, that's coming up when this season is over, but I thought I'd write about sunflowers. It's one of those plants I enjoy growing in the gardens. It's impressive when you plant a little seed in the ground and given enough time, water and soil it becomes this massive plant that stands over 2 metres tall.


I've had a few growing in all my gardens, after all, it has to be the kings of the garden, simply by its size and impressive yellow colouration. It's bright yellow flower so speaks of summer, and the fact it follows the sun makes it the perfect plant for the season.

This year, I've decided to be different. Instead of the classic yellow, I've gone for the Prado Red Sunflower.

So far they have been growing well:




As you read its a fast growing plant, and today I noticed that they may be close to blooming.





I'm looking forward to see the bloom take form.

I'll keep you posted.

The Garden: 26 days later

I was going over some past blogs and I came across the one from the end of May. I was taken aback by how much the garden had changed in a matter of 26 days, almost 4 weeks. I decided to take a new photograph of the same patch from what I hope was the same angle:



As you can see, the zucchini is now in full bloom, in fact a number of blossoms are making their presence known





Even the tomatoes and eggplants are starting to blossom:







This is truly the fun part of gardening, when all the hard work of turning over the soil, adding more compost and topsoil, weeding and watering brings about this. It is amazing when you think about it, a little seed, a bit of dirt and water, or should I say soil, bring about this tremendous growth. Alright, I will admit, i bought seedlings for the eggplants and tomatoes, still I guess the environment must be good enough to bring about this growth.

Jesus said:

Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

This is how it all happens, a seed, a seedling, goes into the ground and the wonder happens.

Thomas Jefferson wrote this about gardening:

Those who labour in the earth are the chosen people of God, if ever he had a chosen people, whose breasts he has made his peculiar deposit for substantial and genuine virtue. It is the focus in which he keeps alive that sacred fire, which otherwise might escape from the face of the earth.

Feel like being a chosen one? Invest in some seeds and a few garden implements.

Bill C-32 and Radical Extremists

I'd say that of the world's economies, there's more that believe in intellectual property today than ever. There are fewer communists in the world today than there were. There are some new modern-day sort of communists who want to get rid of the incentive for musicians and moviemakers and software makers under various guises. They don't think that those incentives should exist.
Bill Gates-2005
The only people who are opposed to this legislation are really two groups of radical extremists...There are those that pretend to be for copyright reform, but they don't believe in actual copyright reform. There are those that are cited as experts by the media endlessly who are not in favour of copyright reform.
Heritage Minister James Moore-2010

So there you have it, from a Communist, and all that line did was inspire a design and a lot of t-shirts to now being extremists and to be a poseur. I believe, as many do, the Heritage Minister is taking a shot of Professor Michael Geist, the expert on copyright and privacy on the Internet both in Canada and around the globe.

Far from 'selling' the merits of the bill by its merits, the Heritage Minister seems to want to demonize all those who oppose his bill, or at least who make issue with some of the weak spots of the law.

In a must read article, the CBC points out the debate has now turned ugly. It's not those commonists who are making it ugly, but the minister himself. It seems he is not interested in debating the merits of his bill, but to declare all who question and oppose it to be worst then communists, they are extremists, akin to those anarchists who will soon be charging the fences in Toronto. He wants to say that the critics simply hate copyright and wouldn't agree with the bill at all. He makes the point this is the third time for this legislation. Perhaps instead of ripping into the critics he should understand why so many people opposed the other two times.



To call those who draw comments and criticisms of the bill to be those who don't want copyright, or don't get it, well, last time I checked we do live in a democracy and one of the marks of a democracy is the presentation of opposing viewpoints. If a person is simply going to respond to criticism by name calling, that tells us the person is defending a very weak point.

The issue of the bill is simple, on one hand, it protects the rights of fair use, you own the disc, you can make as many copies of the content as you want, so long as it is for private use. It makes possible to post videos on YouTube that contain copyrighted material.

The bone of contention is the fact the bill makes it a crime to possess and use software that could crack any protective lock that may be found on the content. So if you want to practice your right to fair use but the content provider puts a lock, you are out of luck. As many have pointed out, technology trumps rights.

Let's be clear of something, the locks put on CD's, DVD's and Blu-Ray discs don't work. You come up with the code one day, the next somebody in Norway, Finland or some former member nation of the Eastern Bloc will crack it and will post the code the very next day, it will be in the hands of everybody the following day.

As well, all those ripped CD's and DVD's are available through various bit torrents the day after anyways, who needs to crack anything when it's already been done. If this bill and the proponents think it will stop the sharing of content, they are delusional and very sadly mistaken. It does nothing and will do nothing.

So the Heritage Minister is showing that he's not so much tech savvy but rather another lapdog of Big Media. One commentator wrote this:

I @'d him (just once) on Twitter to complain about the C-32 digital locks criminalising kids transferring (legally owned) DVD's to iPods etc. He DM'd me with one word - "ridiculous" - and then blocked me.

He likes to model himself as tech savvy - which to him means tweeting about the latest Apple product he's acquired - but it's bizarre how he's really screwed up his social media usage. Stephen Harper has a reputation for keeping his ministers on a tight leash - I'm sure he's not happy with the way James Moore is handling this situation right now.

I will disagree, James Moore is listening to his master's voice and the voice is that of Big Media.

On Guerrilla Gardening: A Review

The book "On Guerrilla Gardening" is subtitled 'A Handbook for Gardening without Boundaries'. The author, Richard Reynolds has been called the founder of the Guerrilla Gardening movement. While he admits being flattered with the title, he rejects the notion he is the founder. Nonetheless he may one of the more internationally known GG's, what with this book and his website GuerrillaGardening.Org.

Before I begin with the review, I should tell the story on how I got the book. You're now thinking, 'you went to a bookstore and purchased it, wow exciting story'. Partially correct. I went to the Indigo bookstore in Burlington Ontario, just down the street from the MEC store. The family went down to check things out and we ended up in the Indigo store, I had bought a new bookbag at MEC, by the way. I decided to do a search for the book on the computer but didn't find much, I believe I spelled the name wrong. One of the staff approached me and ask what I wanted, I gave the title and commented my inability to find it. I left, she went back to her work. A few minutes she returned with a copy of the book, it was in the bargain part of the store. It was priced for only $5.99 and after she had made the effort to look I bought it. So let me give strong words of support to Indigo and in particular the Burlington Ontario store, 1250 Brant Street. So cheers to the staff.

What about the book, it begins with what should be is the motto and manifesto of the organization, "Fighting Filth with Forks and Flowers". Mr. Reynolds gives some history, considering the history of the guerrilla movement in the political world, he quotes from such famous guerrilla, which is the Spanish for 'little war'. He quotes from Che Guevara and Mao Zedong. He uses them since they do describe what can be considered the operational manual for guerrilla gardens. While they are important, he considers Gerrard Winstanley, a Christian radical who lived during the time of the English Civil War as thee spiritual and philosophical father to the movement. He encouraged people to farm on land and not to worry about ownership, since he didn't believe in private ownership of property. While at the same time, Reynolds admits Winstanley spent too much time writing about gardening, rather then gardening and annoying potential allies. In other words he made a bit too many enemies, when some of them could have been friends to himself and the movement.

The whole idea behind Guerrilla Gardening is to plant flowers and food on land that is barren and under utilized. He gives his own experience, he moved into a large apartment and noticed the front 'garden' was anything but a garden. He began to clean it up and planted flowers. All this without the permission of the owners of the apartment. This is one of the chief ideas of guerrilla gardening, you find some soil, clean it up and plant something, it can be flowers which does enhance the area and the surrounding area. You might note that the wikipedia notes seem to indicate the political philosophy of the Guerrilla Gardening, this is the not the point of the book, this is not a manifesto, it is a handbook. While he discusses the political use of gardening, to him its all about turning unused and under used land into something pleasant to look at and helps the community.

He spends a fair bit of time considering the work of the Green Guerrillas of New York City; they commenced their work to beautify the New York City starting in the 70's. This was when, to use Reynolds own words, the Big Apple was rotten, there was a lot of empty space and park land that was abandoned. To this group they simply went through what fence existed, if such a thing existed and began to plan gardens. It meant cleaning up the land, putting new soil and planting the seeds. They succeeded because there was really no clear claim on the property and the City didn't have the resources to deal with them. In fact their work has been recognized and honoured by the city. Of course, during the time of Mayor Rudy Giuliani, they were considered communists.

The book is part history, part interview and part handbook for becoming a guerrilla gardener. To Reynolds it is a simple as a few seeds and a few gardening tools. It is that simple and while it may be considered illegal, because you are 'trespassing', you are doing all this to improve the environment. He interviewed a lot of people from all over the globe to hear their stories, including some funny one. He warns of potential problems, from dealing with stuffy municipal bureaucrats who believe that it should be illegal for people to have fun, especially in the public realm. Other problems may be theft, people not understanding, and the occasional drunk. For the latter he suggests get them involved, one person was involved and worked very hard for an hour of so, and all he asked was money for a can of beer. Reynolds suggests such people because they work, will take ownership of the property and protect it.

While not political, he does talk about some political actions that has taken place, in parts of the world such as Mexico, Brazil and Guantanamo Bay. In the first two, landless farm workers have risen up to take over underused land to feed their families. Of course for them, the government fought back, defending the rights of the landowners rather then the people. There has been defeats and victories. For the last place, the detainees have taken upon themselves to work the land and plant seeds that have come from their food. They have grown successful gardens, even though they have received no help at all from the US government.

The book is filled with ideas to start your own gardening action from what to wear, what to use to what to plant. It is filled with some very good ideas.

It's also about becoming a part of the soil and the environment. It's learning how to plant a sunflower seed and watching the riot of colour that will come about in a couple of months. In our urban world, we might think that soil is dirt and it is an annoyance rather then soil that will sustain our world and our place in it. It is connecting ourselves with nature in the middle of our urban environment.

It is an entertaining read, one reviewer describes it a manual, a manifesto and a coffee table book, there are some delightful photographs of the effort of GG's around the world.

If you're not sure you want to read the book, may I suggest you visit his website. There you will read what is happening with the GG movement, plus there are a lot of great photographs and videos. Well worth the time, plus he will suggest you buy his book.

I want to join him and suggest you buy the book, or find the book at your local library.

Whither Red Tangerine

I re-discovered the delight of Fanta a few years ago, thank you Dollar Stores. In fact I became a connoisseur of their wonderful Red Tangerine drink. It had everything a person wants in a pop, sparkly and a combination of tart and sweetness. I came to the conclusion that this might be my second favourite flavour of pop, after venerable Coca-Cola, of course.

Lately, I've been searching for Red Tangerine at my favourite store and noticed it wasn't available. I thought, its a temporary aberration, one of those in between the dropping of the next supply. Yes that had to be it. After all, the weather was warm and what better way to quench a thirst then with Red Tangerine Fanta. I went to another store, and noticed no Red Tangerine. At least the second store had some Fanta products, but nothing on what I wanted.

Now I'm getting suspicious. What has happened to Red Tangerine? I mean here's a flavour the gained some fair press. One reviewer did wax poetic about the beauty of the pop.

Another visit to another store revealed ths same fact, Red Tangerine has disappeared.

I went to the website and wrote a letter. Here is the response:

As you may know, The Coca-Cola Company offers a portfolio of more than 500 brands and 3,300 beverage products in more than 200 countries. Taste and preferences vary around the world. For this reason, some Coca-Cola brand products are only available in certain countries or areas. However, please be assured that your comments have been shared with the appropriate management within the Company.

I am thinking of sending another letter and it will be simple:
Give me back my Red Tangerine

We need Red Tangerine back.

Support the movement and write to Fanta.

National Pollinators Week

I missed International Composting Week so when I heard about this week, I promised myself I do a quick blog. It's my way of drawing attention to some important things. Unfortunately I don't think the local Hallmark's store has the cards quite yet. Shame really because this is one of those holidays we need to be reminded of and to take part in some way.

This week, our thoughts are centred upon the pollinators, those insects, birds and animals that help spread the pollen around and make our plants and vegetables grow to be lush and fruitful, to say nothing of our fruits. Perhaps the best known of the pollinators is the honey bee. Truly one of natures amazing workers. Their tireless work help spread the pollen and make so much of our food to grow and thrive.

Lately, we have been aware of problems with honey bees. In fact there are many instances of colonies being wiped out. The phenomenon is referred to as Colony Collapse Disorder and it is nasty. There are a number of reasons; Genetically Modified Food, electromagnetic interference from power lines and cellular phone towers, to name just a few. Another suggestion is that the bees are suffering from a virus which was transmitted from Australian bees. Others suggestion it has to do with the pesticides used by farmers and others. What ever the reason it is serious and one that we must consider and come up with a solution. An article in the Guardian states that instead of studying the issue, it is now time to solve it and the method suggested is to grow more gardens that are honey bee friendly.

One website declared this week to be a salute to bees. They encouraged all to get involved with the Great Sunflower Project, since sunflowers are one of those flowers honey bees like and the more honey bees you have the better it is for your garden. So plant those sunflowers if you haven't done so already. I've planted some Prado Red this year, just to be a bit different.



So this week, do something nice to our bees. Think about growing and planting some flowers that will attract them and keep them around. They do so much for us, they now need our help. It's only fair.

International T Shirt Day

Not only is this the first day of summer, let's hear it for the the Summer Solstice, it's also International T Shirt Day. Of course most think this has to do with Druid ceremonies at Stonehenge, but that's only part of the celebration of this day.

We might think this is the official start to patio season, when we all sit outside and enjoy the warm weather. This is because we are Canadians and that means winter is always just around the corner, so we need to sit outside and enjoy it.

More, its the time to consider the joy of the t shirt. It's fortunes have risen and fallen over the time. Some might consider its apex was when Marlon Brando was seen wearing it, without a shirt in the movie "A Streetcar named Desire".



This brought the t from underwear to outerwear and so it became the garment of choice for the cool kids, the hipsters and the non-conformists. It was also what the tough guys wore, tearing out the sleeves if needed to show off the muscle.

It's interesting today you can enter the contest and win a year's supply of t shirts. Which would be very special and certainly would be a great gift to win.

As outwear it's obvious the big blank space on the front would eventually find its way into the thoughts of message makers and advertisers. You can get your favourite sportswear on the front of your body, to a political message. Now of course, this being the age of the Internet, you can wear your geek message on the front of your body. In fact most web based sites do offer t shirts for you to show off their message or their website. After all, why not?



On this first day of summer, put on the t and celebrate the season. This is the day to wear the t and to wear it proudly. Of course, those who know me are asking themselves the question, 'how does this day differ then any other?' Okay, it's my garment of choice.

Still, Happy International T Shirt everybody.

It Does Begin

I wondered yesterday if it was going to happen. Then the reports in the paper declared that if the City voted to go ahead with the demolition it would be slated for Tuesday. Well, the City passed and the demolition has commenced:



Photographs taken by others show the equipment making its way through the city to the south side of Colborne Street.


There`s not much more to be added to this is there. The building are coming down. A number of people are happy, a number are sad and angry.

Is it all Over?

The headlines in various papers say the same thing, on Tuesday the order for the demolition of the South Side of Colborne Street will be given and the 41 buildings that have been at the centre of a great deal of controversy will soon be no more.

Reading the notes from the Facebook Group Save the South Side of Colborne Street, it is all over. Lloyd Alter of the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario wrote:

We lost, and two councillors previously in support of preserving the buildings switched their votes to demolition. But I want to say how proud I am to have met you all , to have fought this fight with such people. Your deputations were persuasive and I cried during Leis's impassioned pleas. Too bad nobody was listening.

The vote went 8-3, it seems a couple of counsellors voted for the demolition because further delay was hurting the downtown core, the businesses that were there had problems because of the delay.

So today, with the aid of my trusty camera, I went for a walk and took some photographs:





Some of these building date back to the middle of the 19th century. One wonders if people who were there at the beginning when the decay started to set in had contacted groups to support restoration if the downtown of Brantford could have been saved. I know there are many who suggest that it was not likely, with the growth of the car culture, people looked to the outskirts, with the malls and more recently the big box stores as the place to shop. Downtowns were viewed as passé, only fit for the druggies and others who belong to the lower end of the Social Economic Scale.






Now the news is stating that the Y will be coming to occupy some of the land that will soon be vacant.



I always thought the rallying cry should have been "Save Heinbuck's"

Perhaps I'll take some photos and videos of the demolition.

Bill C-32, Epic Fail

Yesterday, the government of Canada tabled Bill C-32, also called the Copyright Modernization Act. The government has referred to this bill as an attempt to modernize Canada's copyright rules. They feel the rules need to be changed since we are now living in the digital age.

This bill does two things, if we are to believe what is being reported, it protects the rights of consumers to produce and own a back up copy of all digital entertainment they own. In other words, you can rip music and movies from the disc to your hard drive. You can also take this copy and set it to your favourite mp3 player, if this is what you want to do. So, fair use is now enshrined by the law of the land.

The bill states:

29.22 (1) It is not an infringement of copyright for an individual to reproduce a work or other subject-matter or any substantial part of a work or other subject-matter if


(a) the copy of the work or other subject-matter from which the reproduction is made is not an infringing copy;


(b) the individual legally obtained the copy of the work or other subject-matter from which the reproduction is made, other than by borrowing it or renting it, and owns or is authorized to use the medium or device on which it is reproduced;


(c) the individual, in order to make the reproduction, did not circumvent, as defined in section 41, a technological protection measure, as defined in that section, or cause one to be circumvented;


(d) the individual does not give the reproduction away; and


(e) the reproduction is used only for private purposes.

You want to put it on your computer, make a copy, put it on your hard drive and enjoy listening to it as you work. This is wonderful and is a great idea. Fair use should be enshrined in law to protect people from the messy and ridiculous law suits from Big Media.

But remember, this act is from the government and is probably a gift to Big Media. For in the same act, there is this:

41.1 (1) No person shall


(a) circumvent a technological protection measure within the meaning of paragraph (a) of the definition “technological protection measure” in section 41;


(b) offer services to the public or provide services if


(i) the services are offered or provided primarily for the purposes of circumventing a technological protection measure,


(ii) the uses or purposes of those services are not commercially significant other than when they are offered or provided for the purposes of circumventing a technological protection measure, or


(iii) the person markets those services as being for the purposes of circumventing a technological protection measure or acts in concert with another person in order to market those services as being for those purposes; or


(c) manufacture, import, distribute, offer for sale or rental or provide — including by selling or renting — any technology, device or component if


(i) the technology, device or component is designed or produced primarily for the purposes of circumventing a technological protection measure,


(ii) the uses or purposes of the technology, device or component are not commercially significant other than when it is used for the purposes of circumventing a technolog- ical protection measure, or


(iii) the person markets the technology, device or component as being for the purposes of circumventing a technological protection measure or acts in concert with another person in order to market the technology, device or component as being for those purposes.

In other words, if the copyright holder has slapped on some sort of protection, you can't circumvent it. So your rights to make a copy can be stymied by this part of the bill. It's like the government making a law in which the speed limit is 120kph and then allowing the automobile manufacturer to put a governor on all cars so they can't go faster then 60kph and making it illegal to take the governor off. In other words, your rights are now short changed by the digital protection that a copyright holder decides to put on the disc.

What a great idea, give people rights, and a lot of actions are protected, but then turn around and allow companies to slap on the encryption tools and threatening legal actions if you crack it.

Also, ISP's:

41.25 (1) An owner of the copyright in a work or other subject-matter may send a notice of claimed infringement to a person who provides


(a) the means, in the course of providing services related to the operation of the Internet or another digital network, of telecommunication through which the electronic location that is the subject of the claim of infringement is connected to the Internet or another digital network;


(b) for the purpose set out in subsection 31.1(5), the digital memory that is used for the electronic location to which the claim of infringement relates; or


(c) an information location tool as defined in subsection 41.27(5).

Other interesting parts are the fact that copyright can be extended for 50 years:

23. (1) Subject to this Act, copyright in a performer’s performance subsists until the end of 50 years after the end of the calendar year in which the performance occurs. However,


(a) if the performance is fixed in a sound recording before the copyright expires, the copyright continues until the end of 50 years after the end of the calendar year in which the first fixation of the performance in a sound recording occurs; and


(b) if a sound recording in which the performance is fixed is published before the copyright expires, the copyright continues until the earlier of the end of 50 years after the end of the calendar year in which the first publication of the sound recording occurs and the end of 99 years after the end of the calendar year in which the performance occurs.

Why do I call this a fail?

It seems the bill thinks the only way a person gets their media is to buy, or rent or take it out of the library and then rip it for themselves. They take it and sell it to others. Listen, this is not how it happens. Most people get their media over the Internet. They go to their favourite torrent client and look for the music or movie. When you find it, click it and wait a few minutes or a couple of hours. Go back to your computer and you will find the music or movies or television shows. It's on your computer and you can watch on your high def monitor or burn it to a cd or dvd to watch over your home theatre system.

Does it stop piracy? Not at all. It ensures that more people will get involved then before. Stop me from making a back up, you shall pay.

No doubt more to follow.

Quit Facebook Day. Who Won? Who Lost?



So the day to quit Facebook has come and gone. From reports, some 31,000 people stated they have had enough with, as PCWorld described it, the cavalier attitude Facebook has taken with privacy. In fact, PCWorld lauds those who took up the challenge and deleted their account. I know they didn't do it right away, it takes a week for that to happen. Still, 30-31,000 people said they had enough of it all and have left. I posted the video of Leo Laporte quitting, since as one of the early adopters and as the head TWIT, he has a very strong following amongst the Tech Community. Before I go too far on that tack, I should remind you he at one time quit Twitter, but now is back. Although I believe it had more to do with the name rather then any problems he may have had with the service.

The "Quit Facebook" did garner a fair bit of publicity and interest. Most did wonder what the big deal was all about, and in some regards those who wondered have a point. For those who were going on about privacy a question had to be, but Facebook is all about sharing, not keeping. It's about posting, not privacy. Of course, the real issue is not about sharing, but rather what permission do we give Facebook with our information.

There were some who questioned and cautioned the stand of leaving Facebook. Amber MacArthur, who co-hosts a show with Leo Laporte, expressed her view and stated she has no interest in leaveing Facebook. Her article in the Globe and Mail gave the 5 Top Reasons not to Leave.

This leads me to the title of the Blog, who won, who lost. My suggestions.

The Winners, the Quit Facebook group. Considering how small their numbers were in comparison to the number of people on Facebook, they got the attention of the Big Company. You would think 31,000 out of 450000000 is a very small tempest in a teapot, but still they got Facebook to notice them. As well, they got Facebook to do some dumb things, such as remove all posts that contained links to their group, or anything that would help a person leave Facebook. They got the attention of the Mainstream Media which helped their cause immensely. They got the message of the issue of privacy before people.

The Winners, Facebook. They weathered the storm. The number that left is very small. One article stated almost a million Canadians joined Facebook in the month of May alone. While it did serve as a wake-up call for Facebook not to be so quick and easy with privacy, they must feel good that ultimately, the call to quit was ignored by the vast majority. People didn't seem to want to quit after all.

The Losers: the "Quit Facebook" group. At one time it was reported that approximately 60% of Facebook users planned to quit. If you look at the graph, only 46% were either highly likely or already had quit. If you just consider those numbers, it would mean 207,000,000 were going to pull the plug on their account or had done so. 31,000 is a far cry from that number. So it could be said the quit group suffered from slacktivism. It's a common problem that exists in the day of social networking, people get angry over an issue, they sign up, sign off and promise to get involved. However when the time comes, a very small minority actually get involved. The rest see their involvement begin and end by joining the group.

The Losers: Facebook. There is now a vocal minority that are not impressed with anything Facebook does or will do. They lost some trust and while it meant to almost nothing now, it could easily grow. Chris Crum made this question in his article:

Could Facebook become MySpace? Sure, it could, but it doesn't look like it's going to happen anytime soon. It's going to take more than privacy concerns. It's going to take another service simply being "cooler". For now, Facebook is still "where it's at," and it will continue to be important for the foreseeable future.

Excellent question, could Facebook be the next MySpace? Remember when it was the totally cool place to be? Now, where is it? It still exists but what. Now there are groups interested in toppling Facebook. They want to have an open source social network, where ease and privacy are both the strong points. Right now, its a dream, but what if it comes true.

I think a question has to be asked, how many of those hundreds of millions are active now? How many were influenced to stop using Facebook. Perhaps they won't go through the trouble of deleting and cancelling their account, but they will simply never bother going back to the site. Their account is a dead account and is just nothing more then deadwood.

It's going to be an interesting few years. The real hope is Facebook was sufficiently humbled that it will be more aware of concerns from its stakeholders and not be so quick to abuse us.

Of Gardens and Gnomes

After all the concern about privacy and Facebook, which are two topics that will appear in future blogs. I thought I'd change a few things and lighten up for this weekend. The last weekend of May deserves something light, after all the summer is only a couple of weeks away and that's the time we all can start to relax, at least that is the hope.

So Gardens. Yes, the time of planting has arrived and I have over the past month and a bit taken the spade to the ground and done some turning of soil and adding fresh compost and topsoil to the work. I've also expanded the little garden to include a third bed a little further down the back.

As of now, most things are planted. I still have to add a few zucchini plants, for the upcoming chocolate zucchini cake which will be made, although I do have some hybrid One Ball Zucchinis starting to show. We're not sure if they can be used.

I'll give you a report of how its growing from time to time.

A Blink or a Wink?

I entitled my last blog "And Facebook Blinked", they heard all the complaints and the fact a number of early adopters were now opting out, and some quite high profile individuals as well. So today there was a press conference and the co-founder Mark Zuckerberg announced sweeping changes to the privacy setting for the site. He announced the changes in his blog.

He announced what the default of Facebook will be:

While many users have called for Facebook to change its default privacy settings to an entirely opted-out model, Zuckerberg explained that the company has chosen not to do so. "When people are able to share more, that leads to a world that's more open and connected," said the Facebook co-founder. "People want to share information, and they're best able to do that when they have control over what they share."

However, as Zuckerberg noted, the company has strong opinions about how sharing on the Web should be done. So the default settings will allow status updates, photos, and posts to be shared with everyone and photos you're tagged in, your religious and political view, and your birthday to be seen by friends of friends, while personal contact information will be kept private unless you alter that setting.

You know in a way I have no problem with their philosophy of openness and sharing beyond just family and friends. The difficulty is that did everyone understand that when they signed on, or did they simply expect everything they possted to be shared only with those who were on their friends list. To quote Stother Martin, "what we got here is a failure to communicate".

Perhaps the most important is the first change:

First, we've built one simple control to set who can see the content you post. In a couple of clicks, you can set the content you've posted to be open to everyone, friends of your friends or just your friends.

This control will also apply to settings in new products we launch going forward. So if you decide to share your content with friends only, then we will set future settings to friends only as well. This means you won't have to worry about new settings in the future.

This single control makes it easier to set who can see all your content at once, but you can still use all of the same granular controls we've offered if you'd like.

I should point out to you the article: "A Bill of Rights for Facebook Users". Here is what we should expect of Facebook when it comes to our material.

Overall, it seems people are generally pleased with the steps taken by Facebook.

I think no one would have challenges with Facebook's desire to make money and to consider our information as the source of monetization. After all, what company doesn't? After all, all those surveys we do, every magazine and newspaper we subscribe to sells their mailing list to companies that produce goods and services which would appeal to the demographics of the subscriber. You will often see such notifications on your notices of subscription. However there needs to be a strong opt-out ability and it should be simple and found without much of a search of the website. We need it easy because we don't have time to go through a long and complicated document to explain what we need to do.

Another good point from all this, it seems Mark listened. I suppose one a lot of this could be dismissed as the results of a very young person not fully understanding all he is doing. If this is so, then he needs a mentor, to help him with his myopic view of privacy and the changing of the terms of service.

If anything, hopefully he will realize that he must tread carefully when it comes to our privacy.

By the way, for the record I plan to stay with Facebook. So look me up.

And Facebook Blinked

It's all over the news today, Mark Zuckerberg, the now complete defensive Founder of Facebook wrote an article in the Washington Post today. His article expressed his desire to keep the user experience a wonderful thing on facebook.

Six years ago, we built Facebook around a few simple ideas. People want to share and stay connected with their friends and the people around them. If we give people control over what they share, they will want to share more. If people share more, the world will become more open and connected. And a world that's more open and connected is a better world. These are still our core principles today

To him, its all about people connecting and sharing their lives with their friends and reconnecting with family and friends. In all, laudable.

The complaints, the fact that the service lost some very high profile individuals has struck a nerve, plus the online unrest that was both mounted and I suspect growing, caused Mark to look again at his creation.

He has decided one of the issues was privacy and that there is a need to simply the privacy settings on Facebook:

We have heard the feedback. There needs to be a simpler way to control your information. In the coming weeks, we will add privacy controls that are much simpler to use. We will also give you an easy way to turn off all third-party services. We are working hard to make these changes available as soon as possible. We hope you'll be pleased with the result of our work and, as always, we'll be eager to get your feedback.

Of course the mea culpea has been met with some skepticism. Rob Pegoraro has some serious questions about the sincerity of the apology and whether or not this is truly a change of heart for the company.

If I can go back to the Zuckerberg article, he declares or articulates the guiding principles of Facebook:

Here are the principles under which Facebook operates:

-- You have control over how your information is shared.

-- We do not share your personal information with people or services you don't want.

-- We do not give advertisers access to your personal information.

-- We do not and never will sell any of your information to anyone.

-- We will always keep Facebook a free service for everyone.

So is this all a good thing, or will it just be some window dressing and the company will continue to act as it will to make itself profitable.

I think the bellwether will be the privacy settings, if they are simple to understand, find and change then it will be a positive sign. If there is more smoke and mirrors then the apology will have meant nothing.

Some people complain how Facebook changes everything. I suppose the company has the right to do what it does, after all, no company talks to me when they want to make a change, why should Facebook be different. I think the reason is clear, Facebook is different, we are not simply the consumer, we are the creators. Facebook exists and is able to thrive because we who use it provide the material that makes it a success. Every photograph, video, update makes us not simply the consumer but the stakeholder of the company. It exists because we use it. If anything this uprise makes it clear and it should inform the company that it can't mess with the stakeholders.

There's a few things as well, Facebook should not see the material uploaded as "their's", it isn't. Forget the legal mumbo-jumbo, its not Facebook, it belongs to the person who uploaded. Again, don't mess with the stakeholders. Should a person leave, everything gets wiped out. The material uploaded, photographs, videos and messages should all disappear.

Just a couple of more things:
The Register is reporting some more video smutware coming along. If you see the words 'distracting' 'beach' 'babes', don't click.

Take control of your privacy settings on Facebook. You have that right.

Quit Facebook(?) Day

The news is out, May31st is the day people are supposed to delete their Facebook accounts. This is being done because the people who operate Facebook are not to be trusted with our confidence. Our privacy has been compromised again and again. If its not our photographs and uploaded media content being used for advertisements, it's the bugs that allow us to read the chats of those on our friends list. Then there is the rather unclear instructions on how to change our privacy defaults, or the very fact that Facebook has decided to make 'public', not 'private'. As well, there was that incident early on when the company did wholesales changes and turned the defaults back to public.

Couple this with the fact the founder, Mark Zuckerberg has had a few incidents of ethical faux pas, you can understand why people are beginning to lose faith with the company. In fact Mr. Zuckerberg is involved in an investigation into securities fraud, always a good thing to be involved in.

There is one page that gives 10 reasons to leave Facebook. As you read, there is a sense that the problem with Facebook is that the founder commenced it while still in University and he neglect to attend any of those Ethics classes he should have attended. If you read the book "The Accidental Billionaires", you get an understand of some of the issues which are truly haunting the people behind Facebook. Yes he did screw people over and he has paid for it and I suggest he will pay for it in the near future. I hope that this will be part of a lesson he does need to learn. It is without reason one word used in the subtitle is 'betrayal'. If you haven't read the book, go look for it at your local library and read it.

One of the issues facing any one attempting to organize the leaving is that it seems the statistics are against you, one newspaper pegs the number of visits at over 1/2 a billion. That a huge mass of people. I believe what should be rememebered and someone should remind Mark of this fact; Facebook is popular right now, but if something better should come along- just consider My Space. It was once thought unbeatable, but it has lost a lot of people and publicity.

I want to say, I'm not going to join the boycott. I have a few reasons, first of all, it is a good way and place to keep up to date with family and friends. It's also a good way to share media with family and friends. As both groups get spread out over this fair Dominion, it's the way to keep in track with everybody. As for privacy, I think Leo Laporte, who by the way, has left Facebook, said it best, consider everything you post on facebook and public and only post that material that is public. Don't post material that is either embarassing or could be used in a court of law. If it is illegal, it could end up in a court of law. Understand it for what it is, a means of keeping in touch. If you are worried about privacy, learn all you can about Facebook's privacy setting and put everything to the place you feel comfortable with, and stick with them.

Now a few things Facebook could do; the first is, damage control and serious damage control. Right now people are losing trust and the company must prove that it is now going to take privacy serious. Second, appoint a CEO, that is a Chief Ethics Officer who will go through all the new strategies and warn the company of the dangers if they screw with people again.

In the Privacy settings, put a 'Save Changes' button at the bottom of the page, so that when people are done changing the settings, they click it have the assurance its being done. If its not there, people might get rather suspicious. Right now, Facebook can't afford to alienate or get people suspicious.

Don't be so cavalier with the attitude towards privacy, people still care about privacy. Even though Mark Zuckerberg may think privacy is dead and buried, a lot of people disagree. Then there are those IM exchanges when Zuckerberg gives his opinion of people who trust him. Listen, Facebook can disappear overnight. To ensure that doesn't happen, it needs to be aboveboard in its deal with its clientèle and give them respect.

As for the Quit Facebook Day, I doubt there will be many, even if there is a couple of hundred thousand, it will pale with the numbers of people still using it. However, remove the smug look, see this as a wake up call, a wake up to do better.

A Linux Distro with a cool minty Flavour

Since Katrina arrived last year with her personal effects and Isabelle, her desktop computer has been sitting in her room, languishing. It has been ignored and not been allowed to fulfil it's intended life mission as a computer. The problem has been its operating system. It has Windows XP Professional on it, not that its a bad OS, in fact there are a number of positive strengths to it. The problem was the installation process, it wasn't quite right and since someone else did it, there were a number of issues.

So it sat.

Now, if you know me, a unfulfilled computer means one thing and one thing only:

Linux. In particular, Ubuntu. You know I have installed and used Ubuntu, both on a desktop and a laptop. In fact I have installed Ubuntu on the main desktop, turning it into a dual boot computer. I must admit I haven't done the installation on the new Dell for two reasons. One, its still under warranty and I don't want to mess that up. The second point has to do with iTunes, because Steve Jobs doesn't want to expand iTunes to the Linux community. Oh yes, sure, MacOS is based upon Unix, but Linux, forget it, blasted proprietary closed system.

Right, so much for my bit of a rant. I thought of installing Ubuntu on the machine since I am used to it, but I recalled that Katrina once complained about Ubuntu. I don't know why, it's wonderful and works right off the disc. I had thought of installing Kubuntu, but I'm not a great fan of KDE. However, as I thought about it, Kubuntu was becoming the system to install, at least so I thought.

Then I found Peppermint.

I found it and installed it and its working. One of the problems Katrina had was the loss of sound, not any more. There is sound on her computer. The only problem is with her DVD-ROM drive. It's very sketchy, something I'm going to work at over the next little while. There's a fix out there and I shall find it.

What can I say about Peppermint. First of all, it is based upon Ubuntu and Linux Mint. So it is part of the Ubuntu family, with a few differences.

All the articles I've read discuss the same points and in particular the point as to its speed of booting. It is a slim and trim distro, just at about 400 MB to download for the .iso. To compare it, Ubuntu is now over 700MB for the latest release. So now it broken the 'available on one CD disc'. Yes Ubuntu is now a real hog. Tragic I know. It is light and fast. It is also not brown, which is the main color of Ubuntu. It is also very much a distro that depends on the Cloud. The reason for the small size is the fact that many of the apps are not installed but are available on the web. Instead of Open Office, it uses Google Doc. As well, instead of GIMP it Photo Editor by Plixr. It is cloud based and I think this is both its strength and its weakness.

Let me explain by the weakness. To access the Office programs you need a google account. This means Google gets to know more about you. Also, Google Doc may not be the best Office alternative out there, personally I use Zoho.

Its strength is the fact that much of the apps are web based. The developers behind Peppermint use Mozilla Prism, which means specific sites can run directly on the desktop, out of the browser. You can access the Doc directly as well as gmail, Facebook, YouTube and other goodies. With this the age of social networking, if it gets you to these sites quicker, the better for many people.

Even though it speaks much of the cloud, it's not like Chrome OS, which is totally cloud based, this is a typical Linux distro and one can install applications to the hard drive. The advantage, because the main apps are web based, then you can have it on a smaller hard drive and have room for more programs. It is light weight, so it can run on older computers.

The Inquirer writes a positive review and makes this comment on the resource usage:

The team reckons that Peppermint Linux needs only 4GB of hard drive space to install and claims it can run in 192MB of memory. We won't be too surprised if this claim is correct, given that this review clocked Peppermint using just 82Mb of system memory.

On just an evening, I would say my experience is positive, it is light weight, but not a lightweight. One can't dismiss it as a cloud based OS, because while it may have its head in the clouds, it still keeps its feet on the ground.

If you want to bring life to an older computer, give it a try. You will enjoy the experience.

Compost Awareness (Last)Week

I missed this last week. I'm not sure how I did, it must have been not seeing any cards at the gift card section of the Dollar Store. I don't know why there isn't any greeting cards for this holiday. After all, what can be more important then composting.

I suspect most people would think a lot of things, and ask why am I thinking there would be gift cards to celebrate such a thing. I suppose that's a good point, after all what would you put on the card? A picture of dirt, or the inside of a composter. Well, I will admit, the inside of a composter is not the most appealing site, in fact I went to my little compost and took a few photographs of the inside:



I realize you may think 'this is ugly', but what happens in that little space is magical. For from that mass of clippings and food material, comes the wonder of a substance that builds up soil and turns dirt into a medium in which the delights of nature can take place.

One website gives these suggestions as to reasons for composting:

What is compost & composting?

Compost is a dark, crumbly, earthy smelling material that is great for your garden. Composting is the natural breakdown of organic material (kitchen and yard materials) by micro-organisms (bacteria and fungi), insects and worms.
What are the benefits of compost?

Composting is nature's way of recycling. Compost returns nutrients and organic matter to the soil, and feeds beneficial micro-organisms, insects and worms. It improves the texture, oxygen-retaining capabilities and moisture-holding capacity of the soil. Compost is a soil conditioner and a source of fertilizing nutrients. It conditions and improves the overall structure of soils by adding organic matter. Compost contains fertilizing nutrients that are released slowly over time. This can reduce, if not eliminate, the need for chemical fertilizers.

Beyond its benefit to gardens, there's another compelling reason to have some form of composting system in your yard. Putting garden and kitchen material in a compost bin removes these materials from curbside waste collection and saves landfill space. Composting reduces greenhouse gases that are produced when organic material decomposes in a landfill without oxygen.

What became a fascinating study as I worked on this blog, is the number of webpages dealing with the benefits and instructions for composting. Some of them answered the question 'Why Compost?'

I've been composting for a few years now and there's always a great benefit of taking a bunch of kitchen wastes, leaves and grass clippings to something that will benefit the soil and the garden. I'm hoping tomorrow I'll be able to start working on the garden by planting some seeds. I've been preparing the soil, getting some good compost into the ground, both what comes from the composter and some commercial material.

As pointed out by another website:

All organic materials can be broken-down and decomposed, but not at the same speed. composting only the right materials will ensure the highest quality product.

What's great is any and almost everything can go into a composter. If you've been to a Starbucks, you might notice a place to grab some free coffee grounds for the home composter. There is encouragement for composting coffee.

If there is one problem is that some articles want to make it a bit difficult, such as you have to have so much of this material, and so much of that. I guess all i can say to that is, this isn't rocket science, all we're doing is what nature does naturally. Soil is nothing more then the breakdown of organic matter and nature does quite a good job of it. To be honest I did learn a few things and that is I can put shredded paper into the compost. Never thought of that, makes sense and a great way to avoid any threats of identity theft. You really think people are going to stick their hand into a compost pile to look for an address to a credit card statement? I think not. Yet one can compost shredded paper.

Alright, I didn't send anyone a Happy Compost Awareness Week card, perhaps I'll find one next year to send.

All I can say is, get working on that pile.

Canada's Next Governor General

There has been a great deal of attention being given towards the Office of the Governor General. At present, Her Excellency Michaëlle Jean is coming to the end of her term. The discussion in Ottawa is who should be the next Governor General. It seems as if her term shall end and Ms Jean will enter an honourable retirement. Of course, the Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff now wants her term extended. He feels she has done a great job and deserves a few more years. Whilt it could be argued she has done a fabulous job representing both the Crown and Canada, his move has perplexed even his supporters. I mean if Chantel Hebert is confused and she's a Liberal fangirl, then there is something weird going on.

Let's ignore Iggy for the time being. Who should be the next G-G? Who should be the Queen's Representative in Canada? It is a very important position and certainly gives the office holder a great deal of a profile in the nation and world. There have been a few names, to give a few, Rick Hanson, Wayne Gretzky, Walter Gretzky, of course in Brantford, they give both those names for everything. Even William Shatner has a facebook fan page calling for his nomination.

Now for my opinion. I've thought about it and I think the best candidate for the position is:

Rex Murphy.



I know what some are thinking, "you're kidding, what attributes does he possess?"

Here's my list:

1) he's a journalist, well more of a columnist
2) he's works for the CBC.
Since the last two GG's worked for the CBC, let's keep the precedent going.

3) He's extremely erudite and possesses a great knowledge and uses the English language with great skill.
4) He's run as a candidate in Newfoundland as both a Conservative and Liberal. Thus he appeals to both parties. Plus he thinks Pierre Trudeau should be the greatest Canadian, which will appeal to federalists in Quebec, as well as the latte slurpers in Toronto.
5) On the CBC, he has a popular radio program, which appeals to people outside of the major centres of Canada.
6) He is critical of the Anthropogenic theory of Climate Change, this will make his appeal great in Alberta.
7) As a columist he has a great opinion about the nation and will no doubt let the Prime Minister of the day, a few bits of those opinions.
8) He's a Newfoundlander. As Canada's youngest province, it will mean they have matured and are no longer outsiders. Plus it will quiet the ongoing whining and complaining about everything from Danny Williams.

All in all, he should make a pretty good G-G.

One Million T Shirts to Africa?

When I first heard about the site and the plan I wasn't sure if it was a joke or not. Although sadly this seems to be the mindset of a lot of aid to Africa, a variation of the theme, "we don't want it, so let's junk if off to Africa" Then again, what is wrong with the plan, we all have tee shirts we don't want, or we don't wear and after all, what Africa really needs is our tee shirts, because that will solve all their problems. I mean, Africa really doesn't need access to clean drinking water or medicine, or peace, it needs tee shirts! Apparently lots and lots of tee shirts.

The rationale on the website goes as follows:

Poverty and disease tend to be commonplace in most African countries. Medical care is lacking, and food runs scarce. The rate at which disease transmission occurs affects the continent at an alarming rate. Since most people cannot afford suitable health care, they are forced to endure living below their means, which includes not having proper nourishment, susceptibility to disease, and deficiencies in combating everyday threats to one’s health.

1MillionShirts cannot solve all the problems that our African neighbors experience, but it can help to provide part of the solution.

The t-shirts provided by 1MillionShirts will give people part of what they need to survive. Your donation of 1 or several t-shirts will not only help people in poverty-stricken areas, but it will also help the environment!

One of the bloggers from the Boston Globe wrote an article entitled: "News Flash: Africans are not shirtless".

So that leaves us with a few thoughts, is this simply a coy or blatant attempt to generate business to the main website. The two people wear tshirts featuring your company for a day and spread the news through social media, or are they sincere albeit misguided.

I wonder if there is a third thought, raising awareness of the needs of the continent and our problem with having too much. Consider some of the news coming from the Africa; the developed world has too many computer and too much computer waste, so why not ship the stuff over the ocean and give it to Africa. After all, they can take it refurbish it and reuse it. Sounds wonderful and then you look behind everything and see mountains of waste.



Or consider what happened off the coast of Somalia. Because there hasn't been an effective government for a few years, a number of countries decided it could dump toxic wastes into the waters, as well as over-fish. After all, nothing can go wrong can it?

Ever hear of Pirates??

Yes whenever the west has decided to use Africa as a dumping ground it has come back to haunt us. To dump 1 million unwanted tshirts, not like it's not happening now, would effectively destroy any local textile industry. How can a local industry compete with free. It can't.

A far better tactic would be to take those dollars and invest it into textile mills and indigenous clothing industries. We are past the day of the hand out, Africa does need aid, but this time real aid. The type of aid Africa needs is this:

A-ssistance
I-vestment
D-evelopment.

This is how Africa gets on the road to wealth and recovery. It does by people helping Africans experience and develop their full potential. The last thing they need is more of our junk.