bioneural.net » Musings

Open Share Icon from idea to Google

Bruce — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 23:27:23 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net doi:tSglPpAB7a8nfM :

You know a concept has merit when it's picked up by Google. Google have adopted the Open Share Icon (OSI), the product of a creative partnership that I'm proud to have played a part in. This is something to celebrate: you don't need highly paid professionals or deep pockets to pull off a good idea: you just need plain-old enthusiasm and an unmet need. Here is the story of how the Open Share Icon (OSI) came to be. The Google toolbar—now with OSI A proposal On 20 March 2008 I read that Shareaholic had been threatened by ShareThis.com over the use of the Share Icon in their functionally similar Firefox extension. After discussing this with David Hall and Icerabbit we agreed that next day I would write to Jay Meattle, entrepreneur at Shareaholic, to seek confirmation this was so—and to float the idea of his involvement in an alternative icon project. Having recently proposed and completed the design of the Geotag Icon we were game to be involved ourselves: If you needed assistance with the vector graphics, moral or other practical support, I know of at least a couple of volunteers ;-) Iteration after iteration Things moved quickly: we didn't wait for a response. David, Icerabbit and I exchanged an enormous number of design candidates within the space of a few days. Most of our designs involved hands: Our final selection came down to stylised "seeing hands", which we described in the design note I sent to Jay on 24 March as follows: We just couldn't help ourselves ...

Apple silence and secrecy

Bruce — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 09:10:45 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net doi:tSglPpAB7a8nfM :

This Dilbert strip may shed some light on why Apple engineers won't publicly acknowledge a defect that causes the 7200rpm Seagate drive upgrades in June 2009 MacBook Pros to make clicking and beeping noises associated with pauses in system responsiveness. Apple's cloak of corporate silence is becoming notorious, with the recent disclosure of an exploding iPod-related gagging order. Google returns many hits relating to Apple's culture of secrecy. It seems like a sure-fire way to alienate the traditionally loyal customer base.

Swine flu apps pervert free informatics

Bruce — Sun, 24 May 2009 07:17:42 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net doi:tSglPpAB7a8nfM :

Information wants to be exploited—and that's generally a good thing. Exploitation has downsides too and these seem to be manifest when you look at the growing epidemic of iPhone apps pertaining to swine (novel, Mexican, or H1N1) influenza that you can pay to download from Apple's iTunes for use on your iPhone. As of today I count nineteen paid apps (in the UK store) and thirteen provided free-of-charge (although these may include paid advertisements). Do we need so much choice? Do we need flu updates on mobile devices at all? What are the risks associated with this expeditious development? 'Greedy pigs' priced from 0.59p to £2.99. Some of the apps, such as Swine Flu Tracker Map (free), appear to be fairly well implemented, often merely aggregating content from online information sources but sometimes paraphrasing static material such as FAQs: Other apps are very clearly rush-jobs, some even turning what is a serious global threat into a game. None of these applications are produced by authoritative official information sources such as WHO or the CDC, and most have the audacity to charge for information they had no hand in producing but have extracted verbatim from freely available sources. Information that is constantly changing. Can these authors maintain the motivation to constantly update the static advice within their applications? Can Apple's App Store approval process, with it's virtually non-existant quality assurance standards, possibly keep up? Some apps—specifically those incorporating Google Maps—are in violation of the data provider's terms of use (others are using OpenStreetMap, presumably ...

A return to academia

Bruce — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 09:58:04 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net doi:tSglPpAB7a8nfM :

With introductory week and the first week of lectures behind me it seems like an opportune time to reflect on my initial experiences upon returning to campus. I'm hoping to relearn some of what I thought I knew about "health", gaining a perspective somewhat removed from my erstwhile clinical observation of individuals. To do this I need to study new subjects, fully engage with a new learning environment, take on the new adventure of commuting by public transport, and consider utilizing opportunities for extracurricular learning and activities. Different courses for different horses It's 16 years since I last graduated from a university, and I'm at the beginning of an intensive postgraduate taught course that should lead, initially, to a Master of Public Health. Full-time study entails 2 days of direct teaching but most postgraduate education is self-directed (they say 3 hours of independent study for every hour taught). Other buzz words used to distinguish it from undergraduate teaching include "critical thinking", "challenging assumptions", and "problem-centered learning". A Master degree requires 180 credits—60 of those being derived from a dissertation. There are four core (obligatory) modules on my course worth 15 credits each, all delivered in the first semester: Introduction to public health; Introduction to research methods; Introduction to statistics; Needs assessment, planning and economic evaluation. I have made up the remaining 60 credits by choosing the following optional modules: Systematic review and critical appraisal (systematic reviews are one of three possible dissertation types, and good preparation for a PhD); Epidemiological research design (essential for the FPH exam—see below); Public health ...

Transitions

Bruce — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 06:00:49 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net doi:tSglPpAB7a8nfM :

When I met with Professor Crampton from the Department of Public Health at the University of Otago in Wellington last year, I was concerned about the difficulty I might face in making a transition from general practice (focussing on the problems of individuals) to public health (focussing on the problems of communities). The Prof. helpfully drew a graph on his whiteboard that I duly jotted down, illustrating three other crucial aspects of a career transition to be aware of aside from a shift in mindset. Beware of the dip The graph he drew is actually pretty generic, applicable to virtually any career transition (as in significant change that involves re-training; I'm not talking about getting promoted). Anyway, I've jazzed it up a bit and added in a "sink or swim" metaphor: Beware of the dip: keep swimming, or risk sinking I think it's pretty self-explanatory, but in case not it suggests that as you move over time from career A into career B you will experience a drop in professional competence, income, and self-esteem. As you become established in the new career, these losses are reversed. But there is a danger period in which you are not competent in the procedures & practice of either career, not well remunerated, and not feeling all that great about being in a kind of limbo. The best way to survive it, the Prof. says, is to tell everyone around you about it so they know to expect it and come to understand it. Sounds like good advice ...

New Zealand tipping over the edge?

Bruce — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 10:17:44 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net doi:tSglPpAB7a8nfM :

Are New Zealanders, the People on the Edge of the World, about to tip off the edge and into cultural homogeneity with the United States? I was surprised to read in The New Zealand Herald that the a new edition of the Lonely Planet travel guide is advising visitors to leave a tip of about 10% for good service. Tipping was not part of the culture when I was growing up, and nor was it an overt practice during my last stint at home during 2006–2007. It would be unfortunate if visitors to Godzone came with the expectation that they had to pay over and above the advertized price. All goods and services in New Zealand are subject to a 12.5% Goods and Services Tax (GST), included in the displayed price. I was also under the impression that most employees (such as wait staff) were adequately remunerated so that they did not need to rely on tips for income, as I believe is the case in the USA and some other countries (where workers aren't properly paid). I don't like the phenomenon of tipping. I've always found it uncomfortable as a traveller knowing when to tip and by how much. I want to look at a menu and know in advance what I'll be paying—just as I can buy a new keyboard for a fixed price without thinking about the 10–15% extra it might cost if the sales assistant demonstrates competence with the card reader. But more than that I resent ...

New Zealand progressive on fair use laws

Bruce — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 13:12:48 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net doi:tSglPpAB7a8nfM :

As reported by Ars Technica, the New Zealand House of Representatives passed a bill on 8 April 2008 reforming copyright law for the "digital age". Most netizens even outside the US will have come across the American DMCA: any mention seems tainted by the taste of bile. The DMCA criminalises circumvention of digital rights management (DRM) technologies and access controls—many folk argue at the expense of "fair use". Do the NZ reforms provide workable compromise? Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand [© iStockPhoto] Ars cite a Canadian law professor as saying: The anti-circumvention provisions are arguably the best of any country, since they are compliant with WIPO, limited in scope, and seek to preserve fair dealing rights. Having looked at the new Copyright (New Technologies) Amendment Bill I find myself almost as confused as I was before; it raises at least as many questions as it answers. Time and format shifting I've always wondered exactly how recording a TV programme to VHS tape, DVD+RW, or PVR hard drives sat with current copyright laws. It must be pretty unusual to walk into a living room and not find the home owner's favourite TV series or movie archived on recordable media for repeated viewing at their leisure. Fortunately the bill specifies that anyone watching TV that isn't "live" is no longer engaged in a criminal act (recording of an on-demand broadcast isn't allowed). It does mean, however, that domestic recording libraries are still illegal: you must watch your recordings within a "reasonable" time frame and then delete them. No ...

iTunes freebies are worth checking out

Bruce — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 09:15:54 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net doi:tSglPpAB7a8nfM :

While generally in life you get what you pay for, there are rare instances when the reverse is true. Since their launch I've been fairly regularly checking out the free Single of the Week on the iTunes Music Store (UK and NZ editions). A 30 second preview is enough to decide if it's worth a download or not, and I have discovered some real gems from artists I hadn't previously heard of. Here are the "keepers" from my Freebies playlist; I hope you find something that tickles your fancy too. The following list is a bit eclectic, with a good proportion not sung in the English language. I'm no music critic—I either like it or I don't. I don't have the knowledge to describe the merits of each track or even what it is that appeals, so I won't try. Music doesn't have to justify itself. In no particular order: iTMS link Track and artist NZ Say You'll Stay by Luke Thompson NZ Be Bad by Low Rider NZ To the Light (Acoustic Version) by Newton Faulkner UK Hot Tears by Sarabeth Tucek UK Nobody's Fault But Mine by Beth Rowley UK More Rock 'n' Roll by Ruarri Joseph UK Cler Achel by Tinariwen UK Lalala by Julien Civange and Louis Haeri UK Thin Blue Flame by Josh Ritter UK Multiply by Jamie Lidell UK Mi Tierra by Guitarra De Pasión UK Congoleo by Angélique Kidjo UK Counting to Sleep by Wallis Bird UK Totally Underwater by Shelly Poole UK The Nomad by Niraj Chag UK Come & Get It by Lady Ragga NZ Mama by Kate Miller-Heidke Surely there's at least one track on that list you have to have? If I had to pick "favourites", they would ...

Saving Miss Daisy

Bruce — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 18:08:55 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net doi:tSglPpAB7a8nfM :

Welcoming in a New Year is as good a time as any for reflection. Rather than make traditional resolutions or goals (I've done my fair share of reflection recently), I've decided to focus briefly on a single but not insignificant issue: survival. All life wants to survive (unless it's ill), because that is its common purpose. Some human lives are more concerned with saving certain other lives (human, animal, plant) or, more generally, saving the planet. Does the planet need "saving", or do we? In the recently televised Earth: The Power of the Planet, a BBC series with Dr Iain Stewart, it was posed that the Earth was a rarity beyond popular recognition. A convincing argument was presented by citing various cosmological conditions that might prove Earth unique even in an infinite universe: The right distance from the sun for water to exist in a liquid state; The right mass to produce enough gravity to retain an atmosphere; The right moon to provide climatic stability (it reduces the planetary wobble that would otherwise cause extreme and frequent seasonal shifts); The right type of star (slow-burning and thus long-living); A nearby giant neighbour (Jupiter) whose massive gravity well deflects cosmic missiles. Perhaps there were other characteristics too, but those are the ones I recall mentioned in the program. Such conditions are postulated as essential to "give life a chance". Although it must be said that these may be the conditions required to support "our kind of life"—alien requirements may be quite different. But the long and short of ...

Hanging up the stethoscope

Bruce — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 11:56:35 +0000

From http://www.bioneural.net doi:tSglPpAB7a8nfM :

The week just gone marked 15 years in medicine. Two of those years were spent in New Zealand, the rest in England, and the last 10 in general (family) practice. It also marked the end of my clinical career—I'm hanging up the stethoscope and starting down a new path. I don't yet know where that path begins, let alone where it leads. But it's something I have to do. Leaving clinical practice is not a rash decision; it was in fact made during Project Koru. I had wanted to re-train in public health, but my application to do so in New Zealand was rejected. For a variety of reasons re-training within the UK National Health Service holds little appeal. So I thought I could return to general practice for a time while I considered my options. Thus I returned to the despair, hopelessness, poverty, psychosomatic illness, the reek of stale sweat and urine in nursing homes, and of cigarette smoke that lingers in your clothes and hair. And I found that I just can't do it any more. Herewith I present an Ode to general practice: I don't want to stick my finger up any more bums; I've had my fill of free-range brats and control-less mums. A look at your tonsils and throat I ask; You cough in my face as I perform this task. Stop smoking and loose weight I hear myself say, But taking some responsibility is not your way. Your job/ lover/ mother is making you ill; Nothing I can fix with patience or pill. The poverty ...