I used Google Docs heavily for a few years. Then one day, about two years ago, they disabled offline mode. Guess what happened to me a few weeks later? Yup, I was in some situation with no internet access and needed a document and couldn't get it. I dropped Docs like a hot rock and switched to Dropbox the next day. (Granted, they now have offline access once again, through the very nice Google Drive. But, you know, "screw me twice," and all that.)

OTOH, I use Maps all the time, and Translate and YouTube. I arrived on this page via Google Reader and am entering this comment via my Nexus 7. So clearly they know how to make (or acquire) some good products.

Final note: Google relentlessly a/b tests everything. They know exactly how many people are rejecting the GMail redesign, or how many uses they stand to lose by killing iGoogle. Sometimes I think these cold, rational decisions backfire, as they annoy a vocal minority or misinterpret the reasons for the test results.

  -- 77IM

Funniest: Battlepug -- http://battlepug.com

Best Art: Romantically Apocalyptic -- http://romanticallyapocalyptic.com

Best Overall: Hunter Black -- http://www.hunterblackcomics.com

For those of you playing along at home, what you're seeing is an example of the Cosmological Argument for the existence of God. It's one of my favorites, because there's no way to prove it correct or incorrect, so you can keep arguing forever!

  -- 77IM

This is a great idea. By subjecting CEOs to the negative consequences of the company's business practices, they justify their high salaries and we get a virtuous cycle; it's a win-win.

  -- 77IM

The Goose That Laid the Golden Egg

Andrew Oliver is the idiot who couldn't tell the difference between senior developers, rock star developers, and prima donna developers.

How do I add his articles to my "ignore" list?

  -- 77IM

Before you respond further, please read up on Tyranny of the Majority, and why it's a bad thing, and how respecting the rights of the individual is essential to a functioning democracy. (Hint: Your logic eats itself.)

  -- 77IM

The whole essay is a joke.

Why do you think they are working on a Linux client for Steam? Android is a type of Linux. Steam on Ouya could disrupt the shit out of everybody.

  -- 77IM

Where did this myth come from? As a parent of young children, I found that for the most part, kids are not expensive. There's a marginal increase in food / medical / clothing costs, and saving a bit for college, but it's not bad; most of the big expenses (housing, bills, saving for retirement) stay the same.

The only thing expensive about having kids is day care / preschool, which is pricey. But if one parent doesn't work, then they can take care of the kids. If both parents work, then it's a two-income household, and most should be able to bear that cost. Single parents are truly screwed here.

  -- 77IM

That is agile. That's exactly all it is.

I don't dispute the value of your experiences, but maybe learn what you are talking about before offering advice to others.

  -- 77IM

They're mostly talking about peace between nation-states; not the internal workings of the states themselves, which can still be as tyrannical and oppressive as ever.

  -- 77IM

It's the Hot Pockets. Or the Jimmy Dean Frozen Sausage Biscuits.

This kind of stuff is cheap to buy, quick to make, and very bad for you.