The Art of Not Getting It

One of the things that I like about the Dean campaign is the way that they get the Net. They understand that the Net allows them to have a conversation with their supporters, and they take advantage of the capability to make the process work for everyone in the conversation. So let's compare and contrast that with the Bush administration. Before, if you wanted to write to Bush (or Clinton before him), you just wrote an email to president@whitehouse.gov. But now, as this NYT article details, the White House E-Mail System Becomes Less User-Friendly:

Under a system deployed on the White House Web site for the first time last week, those who want to send a message to President Bush must now navigate as many as nine Web pages and fill out a detailed form that starts by asking whether the message sender supports White House policy or differs with it.

Completing a message to the president also requires choosing a subject from the provided list, then entering a full name, organization, address and e-mail address. Once the message is sent, the writer must wait for an automated response to the e-mail address listed, asking whether the addressee intended to send the message. The message is delivered to the White House only after the person using that e-mail address confirms it.

A White House flack "described the system as an "enhancement" intended to improve communications." More like a roadblock designed to discourage those annoying citizens from speaking up, it seems to me. The cluetrain isn't making any stops at this White House; worse, they've built a track so that it bypasses them cleanly.

Sit up, boy! Good dog!

A little Net sleuthing over at The Scrum reveals a bit of dirty-tricking, probably from the Bush campaign, and disseminated via their obedient lapdog, Matt Drudge. A bare taste of the slime to come from the Bushies, no doubt; that family has always been ready to play as dirty as possible in order to win. Remember Willie Horton from Bush Sr., or the rumors of McCain's illegitimate Asian kid from W? Expect the worst this time around; you won't be disappointed.

UPDATE 7/18: The Republican National Committee has fessed up to planting the photo with Drudge.

Macromedia Contribute 2 VQS

Now that the product has been announced, I can reveal that I'm working on the revision of my Macromedia Contribute book, to include the new Mac OS X version and cover the program's new features. Look for Macromedia Contribute 2 for Windows and Macintosh: Visual QuickStart Guide to be released in early September.

Off to NYC

I'm just about to take off for the conference previously known as Macworld Expo NYC. It's going to be an incredibly busy trip. I was worried about being able to fit in seeing all the exhibitors, but once I saw the floor plan, I stopped fretting. There's not a lot of exhibitors to see from that layout. Adobe? Microsoft? Macromedia? Nope, not there (or at least not in booths that the general public can visit). It's going to be a pretty quiet show.

If you're there, though, come and say hi. The best times to find me are on Wednesday, either at the UG Lounge (3D01, 1-2 pm), or at my book signing (Peachpit's booth, 4-5 pm).

The Amazing Baconizer

Connect darn near anything (books, movies, CDs) to darn near anything else with The Amazing Baconizer. It uses Amazon.com's "Customers who bought this also bought" info. So, for example, it's four hops from me to Harry Potter 5:

People who bought
Java 2 for the World Wide Web: Visual QuickStart Guide by Dori Smith
bought
Sams Teach Yourself Java 2 in 21 Days, Professional Reference Edition (2nd Edition) by Laura Lemay and Rogers Cadenhead
who then bought
Sams Teach Yourself C++ in 21 Days (4th Edition by Jesse Liberty
who then bought
C++ (Teach Yourself Books) by Richard Riley
who then bought
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Book 5) by J. K. Rowling

Dude, I got a(nother) Dell

If you thought I was going to be able to pass up that Dell deal I mentioned a couple of days ago, you don't know me very well. Here's what I ended up getting:

OptiPlex GX260 Small Minitower
Qty: 1
Unit Price: 604.99
Base: Pentium(r) 4 Processor 2.66GHz, 533FSB, 512K Cache, Intel Gigabit NIC
Floppy Drives: 1.44MB 3.5 Inch Floppy Drive
Mouse: No Mouse Selected
Audio Solutions: Integrated Sound Blaster Compatible
Hardware Support Services: 3 Year Limited Warranty plus 3 Year NBD On-Site Service
Operating System(s): Windows(r) XP Professional Version, Service Pack 1, with CD, using NTFS
Memory: 512MB DDR Non-ECC SDRAM (1 DIMM)
Monitors: No Monitor
Keyboards: Dell PS/2 Keyboard in Gray, No Hot Keys
Documentation: Resources CD contains Diagnostics and Driver for Dell OptiPlex Systems
Speakers: Internal Dell Business AudioSpeaker
Boot Hard Drives: 40GB EIDE 7200RPM
Installation Support Services: No Installation
Network Adapters (NICs): Integrated Intel Gigabit (10/100/1000), with Alert Standards Format
1st Removable Media and DVD+RW Options: 48X CD-ROM
Video Boards: 32MB, ATI, RadeonTM VE, VGA/DVI (dual monitor capable)
2nd Removable Media: 48X CDRW/DVD Combo, with Roxio Easy CD CreatorTM and DVD Decode
--------------------------------------------------------
Sub-Total: $604.99
Shipping: $0.00
Tax: $45.37
Total Price: $650.36

Not too shabby, eh? I figure that this machine should hold me pretty well for my (admittedly limited) PC usage for the next few years. I figure that my next Mac will cost 4-5 times this much, whenever Apple finally lets me order it.

And still, they continue to follow

Two days ago, I made a post entitled Alpacas are following me. You might have thought I was exaggerating. Proof that I wasn't: today's Google ads (see lower right navbar) are for AlpacaNation.com, ChampionAlpacas.com, DreamspunAlpaca.com, an Alpaca consulting service, and an Alpaca ranch and store.

Now that you're reading this, you should keep an eye out: alpacas may start following you around, too.

Quote of the day

Howard Dean is guest posting on Lawrence Lessig's blog next week. Slashdot noted it, and the usual rantings ensued. One voice of sanity: that of Joe Trippi, Dean's campaign manager, where he said:

And we are not trying to kid anybody -- particularly anyone here -- we know we ain't perfect -- and that we don't get it all -- but we are trying to get it -- trying to reach out to everyone using every tool we can -- because as someone who you will probably regard as a political hack -- who has worked on 6 Presidential campaigns -- I can tell you what you already know -- ITS ALL ABOUT THE MONEY -- The only way to put power back in people's hands is for the people to buy their government back. A million to two million Americans contributing $100 each or whatever they can -- will be a force that will not only win the Presidency -- but will also strike enough fear into everyone else in Washington -- that we can change our country's politics. The biggest challenge is to cut through people's cynicism -- nothing will change if we can not get beyond that and get people to participate in their self-government again -- and believe that together we have the power to protect our rights, and our civil liberties, and reclaim our government.