[MyAppleMenu] Feb 25, 2012

[applesurf at myapplemenu.com]

MyAppleMenu
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**** Cookies And Privacy ****
<http://daringfireball.net/2012/02/cookies_and_privacy>
John Gruber, Daring Fireball


> What I detect in Google’s behavior (and Battelle’s more-or-less defense of it) is a sense of entitlement. That because in the past ad networks could track almost all users via cookies, they are entitled to continue tracking almost all users across the web via cookies, even when a large (and growing) number of them begin using a web browser which, by default, tries to prevent it.

> Arguing that Google didn’t do anything wrong — or all that wrong — is one thing. But trying to spin this into an argument that Apple has done something wrong, and that Google was just reacting naturally, is something else.



**** The Perfect Mac Utility For The Paranoid Geek Wannabe Newbie ****
<http://noodlemac.com/2012/02/the-perfect-mac-utility-for-the-paranoid-geek-wannabe-newbie/>
NoodleMac


> Cocktail is great. It’s highly recommended if you need, truly need to dig into your Mac and make it better. It’s a fine app for the paranoid, the Mac newbie, and the geek wannabe.



**** Confronting A Law Of Limits ****
<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/25/business/apple-confronts-the-law-of-large-numbers-common-sense.html?partner=rss&emc=rss>
James B. Stewart, New York Times


> Apple is so big, it’s running up against the law of large numbers.



**** Scrawl Lets You Store Text Notes And Sync Them Between Your Macs ****
<http://www.macworld.com/article/165551/2012/02/scrawl_lets_you_store_text_notes_and_sync_them_between_your_macs.html>
Dan Frakes, Macworld


> Although Apple’s iCloud service debuted last fall, it’s only recently that we’ve started to see applications take advantage of iCloud to keep data synchronized between your Macs. Scrawl is one such program, and this note-taking tool is both simple and useful.






The Tomorrow Weblog
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**** Should All Web Traffic Be Encrypted? ****
<http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/2012/02/should-all-web-traffic-be-encrypted.html>
Jeff Atwood, Coding Horror


> Maybe not tomorrow, maybe not next year, but over the medium to long term, adopting encrypted web connections as a standard for logged-in users is the healthiest direction for the future of the web. We need to work toward making HTTPS easier, faster, and most of all, the default for logged in users.






MyAppleMenu Reader
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**** Teller Reveals His Secrets ****
<http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/Teller-Reveals-His-Secrets.html?c=y&story=fullstory>
Teller, Smithsonian


> You will be fooled by a trick if it involves more time, money and practice than you (or any other sane onlooker) would be willing to invest.



**** A First Birthday – At Four Years Old ****
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2012/feb/25/leap-year-babies-birthday>
Emily Carlisle, The Guardian


> There is a one in 1,461 chance of being born on 29 February, so a leap-day birthday isn't that rare, but there is something about it that appeals to my love of the uncommon. There's even a special name for someone born on that day: a leapling. The first thing everyone wants to know is when we celebrate our daughters' birthday and so far it's been tricky to decide.



**** A Brief History Of Children's Picture Books And The Art Of Visual Storytelling ****
<http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2012/02/a-brief-history-of-childrens-picture-books-and-the-art-of-visual-storytelling/253570/>
Maria Popova, The Atlantic


> From very early on, we both intuit and learn the language of pictorial representation, and most modern adults, the picturebook was our first dictionary of this visual vocabulary. Yet the picturebook -- defined by its narrative framework of sequential imagery and minimalist text to convey meaning or tell a story, and different from the illustrated book in which pictures play a secondary narrative part, enhancing and decorating the narrative -- is a surprisingly nascent medium.



**** The Poetry Bug ****
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/feb/24/poetry-bug-colette-bryce?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theguardian%2Fbooks%2Frss+%28Books%29>
Colette Bryce, The Guardian



**** In Gaddis’s Footsteps ****
<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/26/books/review/men-in-space-tom-mccarthys-complex-novel.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss&pagewanted=all>
Stephen Burn, New York Times


> “Men in Space” is sometimes overly caught up in fine details, and occasionally characters are implausibly slow at reading the signals that surround them — but the novel is an intellectually voracious cross section of a historical moment, and a thrilling indication of the vitality of the contemporary British novel.



**** Book Review: 'The Flame Alphabet' By Ben Marcus ****
<http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-book-20120224,0,6136238.story>
Chris Barton, Los Angeles Times


> Spend too much time with 24-hour news networks and it's easy to feel that exposure to that much talk can make you sick. Taking the idea a few steps further, author Ben Marcus imagines a world in which language becomes fatal in "The Flame Alphabet," a powerfully strange and frequently disturbing work that examines the power of words in a new, apocalyptic way.






SingaporeSurf
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**** Govt Sets Up Workgroup To Review Animal Welfare Policies ****
<http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1185216/1/.html>
Channel NewsAsia


> Local groups said the animal protection movement has come a long way in the past two years. They see progress in ongoing discussions with the National Development Ministry and the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority.



**** Train Tracks Maintenance Not Rigorous Enough: Commuters ****
<http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1185206/1/.html>
Dylan Loih, Channel NewsAsia



**** NParks To Develop 150-Km Round Island Route ****
<http://www.todayonline.com/Singapore/EDC120225-0000105/NParks-to-develop-150-km-Round-Island-Route>
Channel NewsAsia


> The Round Island Route (RIR) will be a seamless green corridor that goes all round Singapore, linking up many major natural, cultural and historical attractions to our parks, park connectors, and intra-town cycling networks.



**** PAP Government In Messy Affair With New Sweetheart ****
<http://yawningbread.wordpress.com/2012/02/25/pap-government-in-messy-affair-with-new-sweetheart/>
Alex Au, Yawning Bread



**** Disgraceful Debating ****
<http://convexset.blogspot.com/2012/02/disgraceful-debating.html>
Convex Set


> Sophistry is not wisdom. It is a misrepresentation of reality. Let us not be deceived.



**** The Cost Of NUS: An In-depth Look At The School’s Financial Aid Plan ****
<http://yaleherald.com/features/the-cost-of-nus-an-in-depth-look-at-the-schools-financial-aid-plan/>
E-Lynn Yap, The Yale Herald



**** Political Stupidity ****
<http://politicalwritings.wordpress.com/2012/02/25/political-stupidity/>
Political Writings


> Those who decry the recent lawyers’ letters from PM Lee, his brother Lee Hsien Yang and Law Minister Shanmugam as a reversal of the Govt’s “light touch” to Internet regulation are also very confused people.



**** Creativity, An Alien Word To Workforce ****
<http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/2/25/focus/10801635&sec=focus>
Seah Chiang Nee, The Star


> Singapore has turned direction for cheaper money-making projects like casinos, instead of pursuing a high-skilled economy, others said.

> Instead of moving higher-skilled, the authorities are pushing up growth by importing millions of cheap workers from Asia, pushing productivity growth down to almost zero.



**** 'Now That I Am Out, I Have To Face The Music' ****
<http://www.todayonline.com/Singapore/EDC120225-0000060/Now-that-I-am-out,-I-have-to-face-the-music>
Wong Jiahui Alicia, Today


> In fact, the events in the last few days had led him to question his involvement with TRE. Should he continue to face legal troubles, he will have to resign, Mr Wan said. "My family members are not happy with me. At a certain point, you've got to ask yourself, what are you doing?" said Mr Wan, who is married with a 17-year-old son.

> According to Mr Wan, his TRE team members, who had questioned his decision initially, are "using me as test case". And given the current situation, the other members are going to "remain anonymous", he added.

See also:
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.todayonline.com/Singapore/EDC120225-0000044/Other-TRE-members-had-doubts-about-going-public">Other TRE Members Had Doubts About Going Public</a> (Wong Jiahui Alicia, Today).</li>
<li><a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_770601.html">Sociopolitical Website TR Emeritus To Continue Operating</a></li>
</ul>


**** Glue Traps Effective But Must Be Used Properly ****
<http://www.straitstimes.com/STForum/Story/STIStory_770435.html>
Andrew Chan, Singapore Pest Management Association, Straits Times


> Rodent glue traps should not be banned as they are an effective non-chemical control measure for trapping rats in residential and commercial premises and food outlets. […] The misuse by one party should not result in an outright ban on an effective tool.



**** The Push And Pull Of Singapore ****
<http://kirstenhan.me/2012/02/25/the-push-and-pull-of-singapore/>
Kirsten Han, Funny Little World



**** 香港出生少年想放弃我国公民权　申请司法检讨被驳回 ****
<http://www.zaobao.com.sg/sp/sp120225_017.shtml>
郑靖豫, 联合早报


> ç§»æ°‘ä¸Žå…³å¡å±€ä»¥å¼ ä¿Šé€¸æœªæˆå¹´ä¸ºç”±ï¼Œæ‹’ç»å—ç†ã€‚ä¸Žæ­¤åŒæ—¶ï¼Œè¯¥å±€ä¹Ÿæé†’ä»–åœ¨æ”¾å¼ƒå…¬æ°‘æƒå‰ï¼Œå¿…é¡»ä¸Žå…¶ä»–é€‚é¾„ç”·æ€§å…¬æ°‘ä¸€æ ·åœ¨18岁时履行国民服役义务。国防部中央人力局则提议他在放弃国籍前先申请延后服役，它会考虑他的要求。

Really? Do Singaporeans want a kid who do not want to be a Singaporean to defend Singapore?


**** Does Threat Of Defamation Lawsuit Scare And Silence? ****
<http://feedmetothefish.blogspot.com/2012/02/does-threat-of-defamation-lawsuit-scare.html>
Feed Me To The Fish


> PM Lee has missed many opportunities to act on what he preached. If an open and inclusive society where trust, care, openness and transparency is what he sincerely wants in Singapore, he must step up to the plate and do what's right for the nation. We don't want a lame Prime Minister. We want one who has the gumption to do right when rightfully and reasonably challenged.