Cheap Thoughts: Checkbox News – Customized News

Doc tipped me off about checkbox news, Dave Winer’s dream of being able to fine-tune the news that gets delivered to him. Checkbox news lets you tailor the stories you are presented according to your likes, and perhaps more importantly, your dislikes.

I find it interesting that this isn’t already being done. Its the future of broadcasting, or to be more precise – its proof there is no future for broadcasting. The idea that everyone will be watching the same thing was mortally wounded with the invention of the Tivo and this idea may finish it off.

I see “checkbox news” taking shape as a Tivo-like set-top box collecting snippets of news. The typical network news show consists of multiple stories lasting around 60 to 90 seconds, with plenty of commercial padding. You’ll soon be able to pick which stories you want to follow, perhaps even mixing in another network’s coverage of a particular story if you like their angle better.

Overnight, the media is freed from the iron grip of so few companies. Networks no longer matter. Anchors no longer matter. News is broken up into the essential element:the story. A news session can be assembled any way the viewer wishes, with stories selected in the same way newspaper editors select wire stories to mix with their locally-produced news. The idea of a television “consumer,” one who takes only what is given, goes the way of black and white TV. Individual stories compete for viewers in an online marketplace: the free market at its best.

News would be judged on the basis of the stories alone. In the same manner that the World Wide Web acts as a great equalizer for anyone with something to say, checkbox news could provide the platform for anyone willing to provide a report. Offer more compelling reporting, and you as an independent journalist could speak to millions. Anyone with a story could have an equal shot of getting heard.

Sites like YouTube specialize in short video clips. Tools like bittorrent can distribute news clips. Konspire is like BitTorrent with a remote control – designed for customized IPTV channels that anyone can create. Its dormant now but still offers as much promise as when I wrote about it earlier. Maybe even more.

All one needs is to create the story marketplace – the economic engine for this whole scheme – and news will never be the same. Ah, to have access to a few million bucks right now…

Time To Add Another Track To The Backyard?

We spent yesterday at Hill Ridge Farms in Youngsville, where a friend of Hallie’s had her birthday party.

One of the attractions at Hill Ridge is their train rides, on a circular (and a bit dull) 16 gauge track that loops around the property.

I couldn’t help but think how if I owned a train I would do it so much better. Now I’m looking into what it would take to put one of these in the backyard. I mean, who wouldn’t want their own EMD locomotive?

Well, my wife, for one, but a guy can dream, can’t he? At least its smaller than the fire truck I’ve been threatening to buy.

Resprung!

The crepe myrtles that I worried has been wiped out from the late freeze are alive and kicking after all! All four plants have new growth on them this weekend. Two of them are even sprouting fresh new stems. Its good to see things recovering. I was worried I’d never see green on them.

Oddly, the runt of the landscaping, the Japanese maple tree, is thriving this season. It looks better than it ever has in fact. The first spring we were here, the stupid deer chewed it down to the ground. Now that its fenced (and being watered regularly) its doing fine. I think we may have it providing some decent shade in the next summer or two.

The stupid deer referred to above have enjoyed munching on the azaleas I once fetched from my grandmother’s yard. Our neighbor decided to divert attention from his roses by pouring a bag of corn in the back corner of his yard. This has provided a niced balanced meal for the deer: they get their greens from my azaleas and a good dose of carbs from the corn.

After nightfall Saturday night I heard a vicious growling coming from that area. A raccoon was enjoying a corn feast and obviously wanted to dine alone. The next morning two deer were snacking in the area. I tell ya, there’s no better way to attract wildlife than with a bag of corn.

Hiding The Weirdos

My company recently moved into nice new digs in our existing office building. It ocurred to me that this is the second time that I was assigned a desk located as far as possible from the office entrance.

Hmm. What is the message here? Should I start wearing pants?

Photo Scanning

I recently went back over my huge collection of film photographs and realized just how many pictures I’ve got that should rightfully be scanned in. I’ve been taking pictures with my own camera for twenty years. Most of the photographs I took while in the Navy – of the cool stuff like Soviet TU-95 Bombers overflying me – wound up in the hands of another shipboard photographer. A truly spectacular photograph I took of three generations of warships sailing together graces my cruise book but again is in someone else’s hands.

I need to find time to add my film library to the digital library I already have. I’m looking for a good film scanner (i.e., negative scanner) to do the work. If y’all come across any good ones, I’d appreciate you letting me know.

To Skype Or Not To Skype

I don’t trust Skype. I suspect its doing things to my Linux computer that I did not authorize. Far too often I’ve seen CPU usage spike on Skype for no apparent reason. Today that happened again. I clicked on the close button and Skype dutifully disappeared from my desktop, but the process itself kept running in the background!

I’ve read rumors of things Skype may be doing behind our backs, but didn’t treat them seriously until now. I’m starting to believe any peer-to-peer (or instant messaging) apps deserve close scrutiny, regardless of the reputations of the companies that create them. If a hacker hacked Skype’s main servers, for instance, she could potentially have access to millions of PCs running Skype clients. Don’t you think that’s an inviting target?

If I was in charge of a network with sensitive data, I’d ban Skype in a heartbeat.

Read these papers offering a technical security critique of Skype: Vanilla Skype 1, and Vanilla Skype 2. Also, the obligatory Wikipedia entry: Skype Protocol.

A Gym Near Durant Nature Park?

I just got this note in from Jennifer Smith, who is active in my neighborhood’s events:

To: Windsor Forest Neighborhood
From: Jennifer Smith
Re: Meeting on Wed 5/2 6:00-8:00
re: the 40,000 sq ft gym proposed for Durant Nature Park

I wanted to make sure everyone was aware of the proposal for Durant Nature Park and the meeting for public comment. The City Council is proposing a 40,000 sq ft gym and multi-use courts (no tennis courts or basketball courts as were proposed earlier) be built south of the playground that backs up to Astwell Ct (off the bottom of Hobhouse Circle). The entrance will be from the south (I would assume the South Entrance for Durant Nature Park which comes off of Gresham Lake Road).

I talked with David Shouse, the City of Raleigh contact on the letter that was sent to some WF residents notifying them of the meeting. He stated that the building would be 600 feet (or two football fields) from the houses on Astwell Ct and the bottom of Hobhouse. If you are interested in commenting on this plan, the public meeting will be this Wednesday, May 2nd from 6:00-8:00 PM at Campbell Lodge. It’s an open house format, so you can stop in as you have time and they will show you the plans and answer your questions. If you can’t come, you can email your comments to richard dot lee at arcadis-us.com (the plan developers). Thanks!

When I first learned of the City’s plans, I was a bit concerned. I expected Jessie Taliaferro would be bulldozing over all the trees of our wonderful neighborhood nature park. Fortunately, the law keeps her from doing that: due to the federal and state grants used for its purchase, Durant Park must by law remain natural. However, an adjacent, 15-acre piece of city-owned property has no such restrictions. It is for this site that the proposed park is being discussed.

Folks in Windsor Forest have informally discussed among themselves adding possible common area amenities like a playground or a clubhouse, and this exact piece of city-owned property has been eyed for just this. The discussed plan was to purchase the property from the city and build the clubhouse using homeowners’ fees.

While I was opposed to putting a gym in the middle of our beloved nature park, when I found out that

  • Raleigh may wind up building our rec facilities for us.
  • Our homeowners’ fees won’t be paying for it.
  • The gym will not be in Durant Nature Park, but next to it.
  • The gym will be within easy walking distance to the neighborhood.

…well, now, I’m much more interested in this proposal!

The only real question I have regards the North Wake Landfill. Its long been proposed as a site for recreational facilities once it closes (if it ever does, that is). Does Raleigh need two large recreational facilities right next to each other? Why can’t a Raleigh gym wait to be placed on landfill property? If building a gym at Durant makes a park at the North Wake Landfill redundant, how else will the landfill property be used once it closes?