Wall Street Math for Engineers
March 1, 2009 at 4:49 pm | Posted in Rants, Technology | Leave a commentI recommend this fascinating Wired article on the mathematical background that led to the current financial crisis. Although I believe that mathematics is itself an abstract intellectual construct, when it is applied without any validation or confirmation to reality (as is done in engineering, physics, and as should have been done in finance), you are asking for trouble.
The financial “engineers” performed sensitivity analysis on the Cupola function itself, to see how small changes in the input data affected the price; they saw the results, and unlike real engineers (i.e. those not asked to put on their management hat), set them aside in denial.
New Sony Product
February 9, 2009 at 11:07 pm | Posted in Humor (G- and R- rated), Rants, Technology | Leave a commentSony has finally developed something even worse than trying to enter alphanumeric data on the PSP. I gave up on the PSP after connecting it to my wireless network and trying to use their web browser. If anyone can tell me how to enter a web address manually other than the default method, please comment below.
No Innovation at Microsoft
January 30, 2009 at 8:30 pm | Posted in Technology | Leave a commentIf Microsoft were so innovative, if all the billions of dollars in R&D they spend over at Microsoft Labs were so useful, how come they can’t even come up with this simple extension to their own mapping products? It does seem obvious in retrospect, but I’m sure it wasn’t what most people were thinking of a few weeks/months/years ago.
Apple and Google will continue to innovate, while all Microsoft can do is copy, copy, copy. I’ll admit that MS Songsmith is pretty cool, but it doesn’t have the same kind of impact as Google Maps.
Monster.com Hacked Again
January 26, 2009 at 10:17 pm | Posted in Technology | Leave a commentFor the second time in the last two years, monster.com had user identities stolen by hackers. I finally took action and canceled my account with them – there wasn’t much information in my profile, just my first name, last name initial, and my home zip code. Fortunately, I left all my other fields blank and had no resumes or other private information stored on their servers. I suggest that everyone looking for a job cancel their monster.com account and look elsewhere – I’ve found better leads on Dice and Craigslist.
I will still give companies the benefit of the doubt the first time something like this happens, but I’m not giving them three strikes. Two strikes is all they get.
iPhone Naysayers Eating Crow
October 22, 2008 at 7:44 pm | Posted in Macintosh, Technology | Leave a commentMacDailyNews has a nice listing of all the “pundits” and “analysts” who predicted that the iPhone would not sell 10 million units by the end of 2008, let alone make Apple into the #3 vendor of mobile phones behind Nokia and Samsung. While the latter two probably have over 20 models between them, Apple only sells two versions of the iPhone. So much for the advantage of choice in the mobile handset market…
New Honda Insight
September 18, 2008 at 7:08 pm | Posted in Technology | Leave a commentEither Honda has pulled a Microsoft and copied the leader in hybrid cars or it shows that there really is an optimal shape for hybrid hatchbacks (mouse over). At least the Honda wheels are nicer-looking.
Segway Killer
August 2, 2008 at 1:09 pm | Posted in Fun Outdoors, Technology | Leave a commentLeave it to the Japanese to take an American invention such as the Segway and make it cheaper, smaller, and cool-looking. The best ideas and innovations still come from small American companies but it takes large Japanese conglomerates to make them profitable and available at Walmart:
iPhone Unlock
June 3, 2008 at 4:50 pm | Posted in Macintosh, Technology | Leave a commentiPhone unlocking has become quite prevalent, despite Apple’s attempt to lock users to AT&T service. Some reports say that up to 18% of iPhones have been unlocked, depriving AT&T and Apple of subscription revenue. Now, you don’t even have to be a computer geek to unlock one – below is a picture of a wireless store that publicly offers an iPhone unlocking service.
Dell Will Die
May 11, 2008 at 10:46 pm | Posted in Macintosh, Technology | Leave a commentSometimes, it seems that the Fake Steve Jobs is actually the Real Steve Jobs. Today’s entry on Dell’s future prospects is very insightful (at least to the halfway mark where Steve begins to show signs of megalomania) – the only lasting innovation is from product design. When companies pursue process improvement at the expense of product development, any advantages are quickly erased by the competition. Couple that with bad business practices such as screwing your customers and suppliers and outsourcing your engineering talent overseas, and you end up getting booted from the Dow.
Even though we will be buying from Dell now and for the foreseeable future, their demise will not be mourned nor missed.
If you don’t dare bet on yourself and your own people, you shouldn’t be in business – Fake Steve Jobs
UPS Industrial Design
April 3, 2008 at 9:51 pm | Posted in Technology | Leave a commentI never thought that a UPS/surge protector should look good, but today’s Woot! item shows otherwise. The ones you can buy from APC and Belkin are downright ugly. This is the closest APC came to a nice-looking UPS, but only if you bought it with a first-generation iMac.
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