I have a bit of javascript that puts a message the top of the screen when there are 90 seconds to go, and then makes it blink when there are only 30 seconds left.

Why not use a countdown timer? I would argue this is more useful to someone who has to submit a form within a certain timeframe. The real-world equivalent of blink in this situation is someone standing next to you yelling, "Hurry up! Hurry up! Hurry up!"

the O'reily nut shell book is the thinest book (even thinner than C++)

You're right, O'Reilly's C++ In a Nutshell is a mere 810 pages long, whereas their Perl in a Nutshell, 2nd Edition is a scant 768 pages.

When I think C++ and Perl, I think lean.

I hope the offshore aspect solves the NIMBY mentality I often encounter whenever wind energy comes up.

Here's an example. One of my colleagues bought a lakefront property in rural Ontario. A couple of years later, a farmer on the *other side* of the lake leased land to a wind energy provider. They pay $10k per turbine per year, so ten of them went up. My colleague sold his property shortly thereafter, saying that he couldn't stand the turbines.

Can anyone explain this? I'm genuinely curious to know why some people dislike turbines.

You can't possibly protect content without directly affecting the people who play by the rules.

Indeed. Blinded by greed, the RIAA/MPAA keep tightening the noose without realizing that it isn't on the customer's neck, but on theirs.

And what's with their mascot? It's cute, but my first impression was an accelerating potato.

I know you're kidding, but Time Capsule has been upsold in the past for a similar reason.

Remember Backup.app from the .Mac suite? It was touted as a complete remote backup solution for a couple of years, until Apple changed their tune in Knowledge Base articles and began describing it as a modest service intended for browser bookmarks and user settings. The reason? Restoring files was prone to data loss.

Time Capsule + Time Machine appeared shortly thereafter, and Apple made a big, intentional splash about how this particular hardware and software combination will keep your data safe.

Although I voted for chair, I believe it's a combination of most of these choices. Getting a decent chair at home, and bugging my employer for a replacement, made a significant difference to my overall health.

But after setting my chair up (with the help of a kinesiologist), it became clear that I also needed a desk at the right height (I'm 6'4"), and should keep the keyboard fairly close, slightly off-centre, and at the proper angle. I moved my monitor further away, too.

Of course, this is all completely subjective, but I think it's wise to consider all of these things when setting up a workstation.

This is so unfortunate. IHT was great before the merge, which was touted as a "new" version of IHT. Instead, they just canned it and attempted to transfer its content to the existing NYT site. And did a dreadful job, it seems.

I understand the logic - newspapers need to cut costs because they can't figure out the internet and it is killing them. But they lost a dedicated reader in me with this move.

So, Oracle admits they 'need' MySQL, which may or may not complement their core business, but then ducks a question on the future of OpenOffice, saying they can't comment on any product line. Isn't MySQL a product line, too? Why comment on the future of one and not the other? Sun employees, start twisting in the wind...

No kidding. The rest is just doublethink.

I believe most cinemas will refund your ticket if you leave within the first 15 minutes of the film. YMMV.

On the other hand, though, who do you think is attending a screening of a "special, extended version" of The Wrath of Khan? It's a safe play for the organizers to assume that it will be mostly die-hard fans, and "rewarding" them with a surprise showing of a brand-new Star Trek film is a very inexpensive and effective publicity stunt. (FWIW, I read about this first in the mainstream media.)

I'm as cynical as most about Star Trek and Hollywood. But this is pretty cool, especially the introduction by Leonard Nimoy.

Don't sugarcoat it, man.