] By JARED DIAMOND
] Published: January 1, 2005
]
] Los Angeles -- NEW Year's weekend traditionally is a
] time for us to reflect, and to make resolutions based on
] our reflections. In this fresh year, with the United
] States seemingly at the height of its power and at the
] start of a new presidential term, Americans are
] increasingly concerned and divided about where we are
] going. How long can America remain ascendant? Where will
] we stand 10 years from now, or even next year?
]
] Such questions seem especially appropriate this year. History
] warns us that when once-powerful societies collapse, they tend
] to do so quickly and unexpectedly. That shouldn't come as much
] of a surprise: peak power usually means peak population, peak
] needs, and hence peak vulnerability. What can be learned from
] history that could help us avoid joining the ranks of those who
] declined swiftly? We must expect the answers to be complex,
] because historical reality is complex: while some societies did
] indeed collapse spectacularly, others have managed to thrive for
] thousands of years without major reversal.

A new year's opinion piece in the New York Times by my Pulitzer-winning cousin, Jared Diamond. I haven't read it yet so can't say whether or not I agree with it. But hey, he's family. :) Overall, this looks like a summary of the material that's going to be in his upcoming book.

- Elonka

The New York Times - Opinion - The Ends of the World as We Know Them

] Experts have valued the deal at between $85m (£43.6m) and
] $100m, making it one of EA's largest acquisitions.
 . . .
] EA's stake would give it access to 18.4 % of the voting
] rights against 22.8 % held by Ubisoft's founders, the
] Guillemot family, Ubisoft said.
]
] "Pending further information, we consider this operation
] as hostile," an Ubisoft spokesman told Reuters agency.
 . . .
] The transaction needs to get US anti-trust clearance
] before it can be completed.

Games giant EA buys Ubisoft stake

] A Ubisoft spokesman said the video game designer is
] waiting for Electronic Arts to make its intentions clear
] before any discussions on the future of Ubisoft can
] start. EA has declined to comment on whether it wants to
] make a full takeover bid for Ubisoft.

EA has a reputation for buying companies (Maxis, Westwood, Kesmai, Origin) and then shutting them down. I sympathize with the universal "cringe" that must be being experienced by the folks at Ubisoft right now.

Ubisoft Regards EA Share Purchase As Hostile

] Of the several options available for iPod use in the car,
] the cassette adapter is the most favorable. The cassette
] adapter will allow you to listen to your music without
] interference with the added plus of not requiring
] batteries. While portable FM transmitters have improved
] recently, success with them is still questionable. For
] every one person that is able to get the FM transmitter
] working well in their car, there is at least one person
] who received very poor results using the Transmitter.

I have to agree with this. I tried to use an FM transmitter with my iPod, and the results have been very poor. Since I live in a metropolitan area (St. Louis), I'm constantly having to tweak the frequency to find a station that isn't being used. And even then the signal is prone to static, like getting those weird "buzzing" sounds when driving past an electricity pole.

Furthermore, even when the signal is clean, the sound quality isn't that good. High frequencies are truncated, leaving a sense that the music is "muffled." I do *not* consider myself a fussy audiophile, but even with my lowered expectations, the sound quality is just plain bad. Which is even more annoying considering the high price of the transmitter ($60).

I'm returning my transmitter to the store today, and switching to a cassette adapter.

Connecting iPod to car stereo

Not particularly comprehensive, but does have useful data on a dozen popular games. I also like that it attempts to include some of the Asian titles, such as Lineage (which completely dwarfs the U.S. market). However, they don't include MU, which, last I heard, was the most-played game in Asia.

In any case, there's still some interesting data here.

mmogchart.com - MMOG Subscription Numbers

I just won an iPod mini at a Christmas party (participating in a party-wide trivia contest).

I've surfed the web a bit looking at iPod hoopla, but this is my first time actually playing with one. Anyone here have recommendations on the "must have" accessories?

Apple - iPod mini

Updated every 30 minutes, a webcam feed from Antarctica, showing a colony of Gentoo penguins. Looks like the chicks have already hatched...

Antarctica Penguin-Cam

Fun 8-minute flash animation, with a bizarre twist at the end.

God Speaks To Me Through Scrabble

] The National Security Agency's Center for
] Cryptologic History (CCH) preserves and advances
] understanding of cryptologic history for NSA, the United
] States Intelligence Community, the Department of Defense,
] other government agencies, academia, and the general
] public. CCH provides objective, meaningful historical
] support to NSA leadership and the workforce to enhance
] decision-making, cryptologic knowledge, and esprit de
] corps. CCH also serves as NSA%u2019s historical outreach
] to academia and the general public. The CCH produces
] unclassified histories of cryptology that can be obtained
] and ordered.

Every two years, they also host a Cryptologic History Symposium in Maryland. I'm hoping to be one of the speakers this year.

NSA Center for Cryptologic History

] I am regularly asked what average Internet users can do
] to ensure their security. My first answer is usually,
] "Nothing--you're screwed."
]
] But that's not true, and the reality is more complicated.
] You're screwed if you do nothing to protect yourself, but
] there are many things you can do to increase your
] security on the Internet.
]
] Two years ago, I published a list of PC security
] recommendations. The idea was to give home users concrete
] actions they could take to improve security. This is an
] update of that list: a dozen things you can do to improve
] your security.

Good advice, ranging from "back up regularly" to "don't type your password into a non-SSL encrypted webpage" to "don't follow links in unknown Email".

I have my own mantra that I repeat to digitally neophyte relatives and friends who ask me how to make their systems secure. I've lost track of the number of times I've visited a friend's house and listened in horror as they said something like, "I keep getting these weird popups and my computer runs really slow sometimes, and no, I don't use anti-virus software or anything... Can you help?" At which point I either tell them to do the following, or I push them aside and do it myself if I'm feeling particularly generous with my time:

(1) Download a free anti-virus program and run it. For example, AVG is highly recommended, and can be obtained at http://www.grisoft.com/us/us_avg_new_free_edition.php

(2) Check for operating system updates: http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com

(3) Download the free program "ad aware" and run it: http://www.lavasoftusa.com/support/download/

(4) Download and run some free anti-spy-software like "Spybot S&D": http://www.safer-networking.org/en/download/index.html

Run all of the above, and then when done, go back and do them all again. Then if things still feel gooey: lather, rinse, repeat, until the warning messages stop.

Of course I can also lecture the friend about not opening email attachments, and making regular backups, etc. etc., which they may or may not do. But at least the above steps can address the vast majority of messes that most folks run into.

- Elonka

Schneier on Security: Safe Personal Computing