Firefox 2 Is Here

Firefox 2 is out of beta, and into 2.0 proper.
Big Woos all around.

Reading Again

I have started to read again. Haven't done so for months (books I mean), haven't been in the mood since I couldn't take any more of War and Peace, my mind was not following the story (I wasn't well at the time). So as "War and Peace" is currently elevating my Powerbook off the bed staving off over-heating (with the aid of some supports a la here, but with tape rolls instead of bottle lids.) I've been reading Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Suicide Club", and have just begun the monster that is "Bleak House".

The Suicide Club is not as I had imagined it might be a nihilistic text about the futility of everything, it is a collection of three short stories about a club for those who wish to end their lives. The whole Club is set up is run like a game it is never certain which of the Club members will die next, but that's all part of the fun of the story - finding out that it isn't quite as straight forward as you expect (no massive OMGs here but it wasn't exactly what I was expecting.) The whole thing does involve a prince as the hero, which put me off reading it for years, and there is a "what a privilege it would be to die for him", kind of vibe going on, but a lot of the time the king and his "man" are in disguise so... anyway. It's only short (in my Dover edition which has slightly larger pages than an ordinary paperback) it's about 60 pages long, but I must say it was fun.

Bleak House throws me right in there with that (often) jocular, (often) sentimental, anthropomorphising Dickens's narrator. I run upon Dickens's busy philanthropic women who are everything but caring especially in regard to their own families (vs. the Darling, kind, sweet, self effacing Esther). Here are "non-entity" men erased by the unthinking formidability of their wives. Which brings up all kinds about the man Dickens which I am too lazy go into now, but briefly Here are some issues that spring to mind.
...on the "proper nature" and place of women, and of the devastation these do-gooding bring about (dejected, ignorant and/spiteful and resentful children) the ideas about sorting your own house first before going fucking around with bringing enlightenment and aid to "savages" (get your own house in order first, and all that)
... -
like I said, won't expound on that now, could go on forever if started... so anyway maybe when I've finished the book... having said that, probably not. It's not anywhere as "Bleak" as the BBC drama (of which I only watched a few episodes) made it out to be.

Annnnnnnnyway (again) on to another post now so look above where I shall be saying -

On My Duck-ness

I have been doing not much in the way of anything recently, hence no posts, but that is not unusual (the not posting). But I have been contemplating my duckhood. What does it mean for me to be an, as I describe myself a neurologicaly evolved Mallard? Some will say that I should spend my time campaigning for animal welfare, or somesuch relevant issue. No doubt that would be a great thing to spend my time doing - although I don't thing I could offer the unique animal perspective they are looking for (Do animals suffer, do they understand they are going to die? and revelations to these questions that they are seeking.) Because although I understand that I will die, and that I suffer in a way that I assume is comparable to human suffering, I can't say the same for my duck relatives. I realise, and always have that I am very different from them and can say nothing with surety about what they feel or understand or experience. And scientific investigations are not something I will willingly subject myself to (let us hope that I won't have to undergo them unwillingly either).

So then what is the purpose of my life here, away from the wetlands? My work is not to eat and find a mate and experience the duck experience, so then what should I be doing with myself?

Over the past couple of weeks of contemplation I think this comes back to the freedom of the individual. I grant myself those rights as obviously (obvious to myself) I deserve them. I must be free to do the things I want to do, and the things I enjoy, which is partially what I have been doing up until now. And if people judge that I am doing wrong in not doing the things they perceive I should be doing then that is that. I must get on with my life and discovering what it is to live in this unusual (perhaps unique) way, this half human half duck (half human in a neurological, not a physical way) development.

Anyway, those musings I have touched upon here I will be continuing through the rest of my life I expect, but that is what I would like to say today.

---------
And also that I have been reading the Barbelith forum quite a bit recently. Though i do not think I would like to become a member, I makes for a thoughtful read.
Following on from that I have been discovering The Invisibles, which is all very exciting and inspiring.

I Have Posted Elsewhere

I have become incredibly lazy, there are things I have been meaning to do, but can't be arsed to do. I meant to tell blog I was returned... didn't do that. Meant to put up my rss feed link on this page (in the template), still haven't done that. Meant to make a proper post here about diversifying, not being so narrow in what I post here (it's too tech, tech) haven't done that either. But I have posted on last.fm so here is a link to that post (more about netlabels and some of my fave artists on them).

And here is a link to the rss feed.
I shall get around to putting it in the template someday. But no hurry, seeeing as no one reads this anyway...

I Shall Be Away.

Off, sans computer for a while. I will be pining. I'm far too adapted to this way of life. What a development for a duck.

Birmingham's free Arts festival Artsfest was on last weekend. I saw parts. Elliot Jack were the best music act I saw. (With banter about breakfast cereal while waiting for their powerbook to sort itself out.)

I may write more when I return.

What is Becomming of Me?

This is turning into a software blog. I have to do something about it. Soon some non-software related posts. I am slowly becoming more geeky. Though hooray for that, though still no software next post. I am kinda geeky according to this extensive (but old) geek test. I forget what my actual delineation was, which isn't very geek like is it?

I have been downloading lots of torrents from legaltorrents.com where you can torrents of movies and music, a few books and audiobooks. All nice and guilt free as they are under the Creative Commons License. It's the music I am interested in right now. I have nearly all of the net.label stuff that is up there. I like Enough Records, Observatory Online, and Please Do Something stuff. One Archives is good too. In fact all prett much all of what I have heard, I like. It's electronica, beats, experimental type stuff; ambient, soundscapes, some drum and bass, technoish and idm (I don't like that term but there it is), that kind of thing, yer usual netlabel fare, although it is not your usual fare, there's some very good stuff out there. There is more a The Internet Archive.org that I must check out. I'm going to be making use of that external drive I recently bought. (LaCie Mini 300GB, nice, and doubles as a hub too, giving you 4 extra powered USB ports and 2 firewire.)

Firefox 2 Beta 2 (Mac)

Just downloaded the new Firefox 2 beta 2.
And Ooh it is pretty. It looks as though they have updated the icons.

And the little close tab cross on each tab now glows red when you hover over it.
Tabs not currently in use are faded out (I don't recall this before, though I may be mistaken).
There is a small arrow you can click at the end of the window that shows a list of all your tabs. you can then click to choose a tab and are taken to it in the browser window.

Very useful with the sprawl of tabs I usually have open. (Was this around in beta 1? If it was I didn't notice it)

I am excited about the new Firefox. I'm regularly using the spellcheck and the "undo close tab" and the "recently closed tabs" item in the history menu. And of course the session restore feature, which reinstates all your previously open tabs when/if you crash, (which is rarely happening for me now). Lifesaver. I think I have said all this before.
Oh and on the tab thing, you can scroll through your tabs along with some green arrows that appear, so no more "where have my tabs gone" worries. (and yes I think this was in beta 1 too, again I can't be sure, but if it was I don't think the arrows were green.)

Overall it just seems to me to be more a lot smoother to use, and nicer to look at. More Macintosh-y, though is it aqua looking?.
Well whatever, I am impressed.
I shall see over the next coming days how stable it is.