Monthly Archives: April 2006

A Directory of Visualizing Tools

Update Feb 2007: Just came across some cool stuff from digg labs (the guys behind digg) who haev some coold stuff I’ve added below. In this week’s WSJ.com column I wrote (subscription only, I’m afraid) about treemaps, tools which allow you to look at data differently: One of the things that bugs me about our… Read More »

Skype’s 100 Million: Where The Hell Are They?

Internet telephony folks Skype today says that it now has 100 million registered users. A press release (free registration required) says that this was achieved in “just two-and-a-half year’s time [sic], and has nearly doubled in size from September 2005 when it had 54 million registered users.” This is truly impressive. But if this is the case,… Read More »

The “Sharing Files Thing” Gets Cheaper

It’s a growing space, as the marketing types call it, and it’s not surprising
that Laplink, best known for their linking of laps (shurely “laptops”? – ed),
have decided to make the basic edition of their file sharing appliactions,
ShareDirect, free. Previously available online for $40, the program can
now be downloaded for nothing. It’s not a bad application, — you just
invite trusted contacts to view and download them from the folders you
designate. The files never leave the safety of your hard drive until you
invite someone to download them from you directly. All files are protected
by 128-bit encryption, and can securely travel through

A Modular Packing Expert Speaks

Today’s podcast is given over to an interview with my old friend Jim, further identity concealed, as we catch him via Skype on mission in the southern Sudan and ask him, not about the tense political situation and his efforts to bolster democracy in that troubled country, but about how he packs his underpants. Anyone… Read More »