Sunday 31 January 2010
Money For The Haiti Earthquake Appeal
Abandoned at $0.01 as it really wasn't working as quickly as i'd hoped...
Friday 29 January 2010
Todays Dump: What Language Are Popular Sites Written In?
I thought i'd try and compile a list of various popular sites and the languages/API's that hold them together:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FACEBOOK
Most of what is presented to the user is written in PHP/MySQL.
TWITTER
Written originally in Ruby On Rails. They switched to Scala for some of the backend once traffic levels rocketed and the badly written Rails code couldn't be efficiently scaled.
DIGG
Written entirely using PHP/MySQL .
YOUTUBE
Youtubes server-side is written in Python.
FLICKR
PHP
WIKIPEDIA
PHP
WORDPRESS
PHP
EBAY
The engine is written in C++ and Java.
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If anyone knows anything else that I should add/correct please comment.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Most of what is presented to the user is written in PHP/MySQL.
Written originally in Ruby On Rails. They switched to Scala for some of the backend once traffic levels rocketed and the badly written Rails code couldn't be efficiently scaled.
DIGG
Written entirely using PHP/MySQL .
YOUTUBE
Youtubes server-side is written in Python.
FLICKR
PHP
WIKIPEDIA
PHP
WORDPRESS
PHP
EBAY
The engine is written in C++ and Java.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If anyone knows anything else that I should add/correct please comment.
Thursday 28 January 2010
Todays Tune: Brenda Lee - Always On My Mind
"Always on My Mind" is an American country music song by Mark James, Johnny Christopher, and Wayne Carson Thompson originally recorded by Brenda Lee.
Other version have been recorded, most notably by Elvis and Willie Nelson.
Tuesday 26 January 2010
Todays Tune: College Humor - I've Got A Feeling
A great parody by college humor of the Black Eyed Peas song "I've Got A Feeling".
Todays Dump: How Bands You've Never Heard Of Are Making Money On iTunes
How is that possible?
A band you have never heard of -- AC/DC cover band AC/db -- made over $32,000 from music sales in November.
Under the elderly business model of music sales on physical media, it would not be. For a band to finish up with that much funds in its pockets after the distributor and record label had taken their cuts, its music would must have posted garish, unmissable sales numbers.
AC/db, on the other hand, had to do around $45,000 in sales at the iTunes store. After Apple took its 30 cents on the dollar, that left $32,000, of which the band's distributor -- TuneCore -- took nothing at all.
TuneCore is six of a few digital distributors that have turned the music business model on its head, treating distribution as a service. The company charges an up front fee to system recordings and upload them to music stores like iTunes -- which won't deal with individual artists. The band retains all rights to its music and keeps all the revenue past what the stores keep.
This model is obviously appealing to musicians. CEO Jeff Price says TuneCore, a startup with a mere $7 million in venture funding to date, distributes more music for sale than any company in the world -- and by a wide margin. In 2009, TuneCore processed and uploaded over a song per second; its iTunes sales were nice for $32 million after Apple took its cut.
That doesn't seem like a giant sum in the context of a $10 billion industry. But as most of TuneCore's customers are unsigned ("whatever that even means anymore," Price says), that is mostly going straight to musicians; in that context, $32 million is serious funds.
And it is not music -- TuneCore put a collection of Halloween-themed sound effects on iTunes, which sold for around $20,000 in November.
The barriers to entry are low -- TuneCore charges around $10 for a single, $40 for an album, much in line with its main competitor, ReverbNation -- so somebody can record anything and offer it to the masses on a whim. And if they happen to catch a viral wave, they can finish up making a decent living.
A band you have never heard of -- AC/DC cover band AC/db -- made over $32,000 from music sales in November.
Under the elderly business model of music sales on physical media, it would not be. For a band to finish up with that much funds in its pockets after the distributor and record label had taken their cuts, its music would must have posted garish, unmissable sales numbers.
AC/db, on the other hand, had to do around $45,000 in sales at the iTunes store. After Apple took its 30 cents on the dollar, that left $32,000, of which the band's distributor -- TuneCore -- took nothing at all.
TuneCore is six of a few digital distributors that have turned the music business model on its head, treating distribution as a service. The company charges an up front fee to system recordings and upload them to music stores like iTunes -- which won't deal with individual artists. The band retains all rights to its music and keeps all the revenue past what the stores keep.
This model is obviously appealing to musicians. CEO Jeff Price says TuneCore, a startup with a mere $7 million in venture funding to date, distributes more music for sale than any company in the world -- and by a wide margin. In 2009, TuneCore processed and uploaded over a song per second; its iTunes sales were nice for $32 million after Apple took its cut.
That doesn't seem like a giant sum in the context of a $10 billion industry. But as most of TuneCore's customers are unsigned ("whatever that even means anymore," Price says), that is mostly going straight to musicians; in that context, $32 million is serious funds.
And it is not music -- TuneCore put a collection of Halloween-themed sound effects on iTunes, which sold for around $20,000 in November.
The barriers to entry are low -- TuneCore charges around $10 for a single, $40 for an album, much in line with its main competitor, ReverbNation -- so somebody can record anything and offer it to the masses on a whim. And if they happen to catch a viral wave, they can finish up making a decent living.
Monday 25 January 2010
Todays Dump: Incredible Tool - Drawter
I just found an incredible site Drawter. It allows you to draw all kinds of html tags out on a WYSIWYG basis and then generate the html/css code.
I'm definately going to have to try this out on some future designs.
I'm definately going to have to try this out on some future designs.
Sunday 24 January 2010
Todays Tune: Dire Straits - Walk Of Life
"Walk of Life" is a 1985 song by the British rock band Dire Straits. It appeared on their best-selling album Brothers in Arms. It subsequently appeared on their live album On the Night. It was released as a single in 1986 but had first been available as the b-side of "So Far Away" released in advance of Brothers in Arms. The track peaked at number 7 in the US charts & was their biggest commercial hit in the UK, peaking at number 2.
The music video for the song shown in the UK video features a busker or street musician wearing the same shirt as Mark Knopfler intercut with the band performing on a stage, while the U.S. features sports bloopers intercut with footage of the band performing the song on a stage.
A simple rock 'n' roll rhythm is used, with chord changes limited to I, IV & V chords. The long introduction has became iconic in some circles, with an instantly recognisable melody played on a synthesiser organ patch. The singer mentioned in the lyrics is said to perform "down in the tunnels, trying to make it pay," a reference to busking in the subway. The songs he plays are oldies, including "I Got a Woman", "Be-Bop-A-Lula", "What'd I Say", "Mack the Knife" & the "Talking Blues".
Live performances of the song have often been concluded with an elaborate pedal steel solo by guest performer Paul Franklin.[1]
"Walk of Life" was the song played during the Space Shuttle Discovery crew wake-up call on STS-114 Flight Day 7.
The walk of life was also the name of the charity walk from London to Khartoum 1985-1986, to raise funds for famine relief led by John Abbey. The band donated Brothers in Arms Gold disc in recognition & support of the expedition.
The introduction to the song was also used for a time as the theme music for Check Match Special cricket in the United Kingdom.
When the song was originally released, the band explained that a "walk of life" in the context of this song is a traditional journey taken by a storyteller in the countryside, in which he went from town to town telling stories, in the days before radio, tv, & recording.
How To Be Like Jason Bourne
- Learn how to speak every major language - French, German, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Chinese, and Arabic.
- Learn how to create false identities.
- Learn how to fight and be extremely fit.
- Learn how to drive.
- Learn how to treat your injuries.
Learning to speak every major language
To learn a language requires regular exposure and practice. There are various online resources to help learn languages. The best free ones are:
You can also visit foreign chatrooms for practice.
Learning how to create false identities
If you need a quick fake identity you can visit The Fake Name Generator. However, if you want to do it properly you will need to try a bit harder.
For more info read this post: How To Be Jason Bourne
Learn how to fight and be extremely fit
I have collected here the best instructional videos on youtube.
Learn how to drive
I have collected here the best instructional videos on youtube. The only real way to learn is to find some disused land / a carpark and practice.
Learn how to treat your injuries
Instructional videos on things such as treating bullet wounds, and stitching cuts together:
http://www.wonderhowto.com/how-to/video/how-to-treat-a-bullet-wound-at-home-77608/
http://www.wonderhowto.com/how-to/video/how-to-suture-a-wound-194156/
http://www.wonderhowto.com/how-to/video/how-to-set-a-dislocated-shoulder-194155/
http://www.wonderhowto.com/how-to/video/how-to-perform-a-phlebotomy-procedure-259215/
http://www.wonderhowto.com/how-to/video/how-to-begin-a-subcuticular-or-intradermal-suture-259841/
http://www.wonderhowto.com/how-to/video/how-to-administer-a-subcutaneous-injection-195379/
Todays Tune: Supertramp - Logical Song
"The Logical Song" is a hit single on Supertramp's 1979 album Breakfast in America and is written & sung by band member Roger Hodgson. It is one of the band's most recognised songs.
Friday 22 January 2010
Todays Tune: Chet Atkins - The Entertainer (Scott Joplin)
Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), better known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist & record producer who created, along with Owen Bradley, the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.
His picking style, inspired by Merle Travis, Django Reinhardt, George Barnes & Les Paul, brought him admirers within & outside the country scene, both in the United States & internationally. Atkins produced records for Perry Como, Elvis Presley, the Everly Brothers, Eddy Arnold, Don Gibson, Jim Reeves, Jerry Reed, Skeeter Davis, Connie Smith, Waylon Jennings & others.
Among lots of honors, Atkins received 14 Grammy Awards as well as the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, nine Country Music Association Instrumentalist of the Year awards, & was inducted in to the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum.
Todays Dump: Simple FM Radio Jammer
Today I found an article explaining how to make a simple FM radio jammer. All it is is a 100Mhz crystal oscillator with an antenna stuck on it. 100Mhz oscillators are rare, but you can find them on old circuit boards. For example, I found one on an old 486DX4-100 motherboard. You hook up the power as shown, and stick on an antenna made from a thin piece of wire. The antenna should be about 80cm long.
This can silence a radio for a surprisingly good distance, and through thick walls. The interesting thing is that although it is supposed to be a crystal accurate to 100.000 Mhz it can blank out the entire FM band!
Btw this is illegal to do so don't do it. I didn't.
Thursday 21 January 2010
Todays Dump: Karl Pilkington's girlfriend Suzanne?
Tuesday 19 January 2010
Todays Dump: Misa Digital Guitar
A presentation of the new Misa Guitar running Kernel 2.6.31.
For more info on the Misa Guitar visit the official site: http://www.misadigital.com/
Monday 18 January 2010
Todays Dump: Get Backlinks With Squidoo
Squidoo.com is a great place to get links back to your site. Type the following into a Google search:
"add+to+this+list"+site:squidoo.com
You will be presented with a huge list of Squidoo lenses where you can add your site, with custom anchor text. Many of these have very high PageRank as well!
For extra credit, append +"keyword phrase" onto the end of this query, and you can target your links for relevance. For example, if you were trying to rank an 'SEO' site you could type:
"add+to+this+list"+"SEO"+site:squidoo.com (click this to see the results in google, will open in new window)
"add+to+this+list"+site:squidoo.com
You will be presented with a huge list of Squidoo lenses where you can add your site, with custom anchor text. Many of these have very high PageRank as well!
For extra credit, append +"keyword phrase" onto the end of this query, and you can target your links for relevance. For example, if you were trying to rank an 'SEO' site you could type:
"add+to+this+list"+"SEO"+site:squidoo.com (click this to see the results in google, will open in new window)
Sunday 17 January 2010
Todays Dump: Alt Characters
To obtain an ALT Character:
1) Make sure Num-Lock is on to activate the numeric pad.
2) Hold Alt.
3) Press the number on the numeric pad corresponding to the codes in the table below.
4) Release.
1) Make sure Num-Lock is on to activate the numeric pad.
2) Hold Alt.
3) Press the number on the numeric pad corresponding to the codes in the table below.
4) Release.
Tuesday 5 January 2010
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