My Eyes Online

Watching Belgian Television Online

2009-05-05T12:31:00.002+01:00

Is Belgian TV more boring than television stations from other countries? Only watching it online could give you an idea...

The most important site for watching Belgian television online is iWatch

The Music Facotry channel is certainly not boring to those who are interested in popular music video clips (Vlaams, Flemish)

Sport is available at Sporza.be

The children's show NT van Ketnet is available here ; Ketnet's site is here

Watch TV.be has an assortment of TV shows from Belgium

The comedy Willy's en Marjetten is also available online

Watching Argentine Television Online

2009-04-30T14:21:00.003+01:00

Argentina has one of the longest traditions of television in the world, and even some non-Spanish speakers hook in the Argentinean telenovelas or want to watch Argentine football online.

Find Internet TV has a list of Argentinian television channels broadcasting fully or partially online. A similar list can be found at TVover

As for specific programmes

Amanda O - a telenovella with Natalia Oreiro - some clips here

The Argentine version of Desperate Housewives , Amas de Casa Desesperadas, has a blog with relevant videos

Caiga Quien Caiga can be watched here,

Casados con Hijos

Watching Austrian Television Online

2009-04-09T11:51:00.002+01:00

The next article in our series of watching TV online, is for the Republic of Austria - please note that this is different from Australiam, about which we have already written the guide on getting Australian TV online (silly thing, but many people misspell in this case...)

Free channels/programmes:

The ORF (Austrian Broadcasting Corporation) offers free streaming of the news and the regional news

Okto is available online

Hello Austria - Hello Vienna is Austrias weekly international television magazine. The program provides viewers with information and entertainment from the alpine republic, covering a wide spectrum of topics ranging from landscape features to business success stories; historical flashbacks and 'off the wall' portraits of interesting individuals; reports on Austrian art, culture and architecture.

Pay per view/subscription:

Lola1 TV offers Bundesliga matches, Ice Hockey and other sports programmes on a pay per vewi basis

Specific Programmes
You can watch the first season of Austria's Next Topmodel here

Australian TV Online

2009-04-06T14:04:00.002+01:00

I have seen that relatively many people who get into my blog are looking for ways to watch their favourite television shows when they are away from home, and relatively many are looking for German TV online, for example.

I decided that every now-and-then I will update my blog with new ways to watch specific TV stations online, and this time, my Aussie friends and expats from down under - where to watch Australian TV online.

ABC (Australia) has many shows up online, where you can watch them and even download your favourite ABC show (as long as it is produced by them).

If you're interested in Australian (or international) tennis, you should definitely check out Australian Open TV ; Cricket TV, on the other hand, demands registration and payment in advance.

Also try:
BigPond TV

A Directory of Australian shows online

While the Australian Idol wensite is restricted to Australian residents only, Blinxx has full episodes of Australian Idol

The same could be said of another popular Australian reality TV show , The Mole, full episodes of which could be found for example at Sidereel, which also has links to full episodes of The Secret Life of Us.

TV Links has another successful Australian show, Summer Heights High

Watch TV Online - Redux

2008-02-28T13:25:00.004+01:00

It is still quite amazing that the copyright protection organisations have not come up with a better business model than chasing one site, only for it to be smashed and dispresed to several little sites, as it happpened in the case of TVLinks. Just like in a science fiction film or in Disney's Fantasia, breaking the broom only creates many little brooms flooding the room.

Few TV networks, as mentioned on previous posts on this site, offer their programmes online. In the German TV front, the good news are that ZDF made many of their programs (in fact, everything that they, and not others, produce) available online; ARTE also have many films and clips on their site. These two, however, are not in English.

In the English language world, except for the networks limiting their viewership to their own home country (NBC, ABC, etc.), there are several "global" networks. It might be worth mentioning here, that a good proxy server might be able to bypass the problem of watching television from another country, but then again, the best servers cost money.

LinkTV is the opposite of the late TV-Links, in the sense that it is all educational and legal. No Family Guy and Housewives there, only goody goody Mosaic Intelligence Report, which is an interesting analysis of Middle East affairs.

ESPN 360 is a fee based service, but also has many clips and shows available for free.

TV Shows Legally Online

2007-12-02T13:50:00.001+01:00

I have wondered in the past, why unlike online radio, online TV is not available to everyone, everywhere; and it is much more difficult to watch some good shows online.

Apparenly, some TV productions are available completely legally online, but viewing is usually limited to U.S.-based users.

The creators or the ingenious "IT Crowd" have taken a completely different attitude. First of all, the show was legally available for watching on the Channel 4 site; it understands that the globalisation of tv production and the availability of TV shows outside their original production rights are a fact - and its way to deal with it is to create better content, that would make us want to buy their DVD (I know I want it). Wikipedia describes the DVD extras:

Also included on the DVD are subtitles in leet. The leet subtitles, for the
first episode, are not a direct translation of the show and include many
references to geek culture that were not included in the original episode. The
second episode has the subtitles ROT13 encoded, episode three has
all the words in the subtitles sorted in alphabetical order, episode four has
the text base64
encoded and the last two episodes are direct leet translations.[10]
It is
possible to run the decrypted VOB files for episode four from the DVD through a
subtitle OCR program
such as SubRip which will produce a text file containing the base64 data. After
removing the extra line feeds and time indexes, the resulting file can be
processed by a base64 decoder and it will produce the 15.3KB plain text of the
subtitles (using Unix
linefeeds). The base64 encoding does contain one error: line 423 and 424 are
duplicates and one must be removed for proper decoding (the text is
"LAoKCgp0aGUgcGVvcGxlIHRoYXQgdHVybmVkIH").[11]
The DVD
also included a short film written and
directed by Linehan called Hello Friend, which starred
Ayoade in a silent role, and also had an appearance from Little
Britain's David Walliams.

But finally, even non-UK users can enjoy the first season legally, through FileClowd

Other legal downloads of TV shows there are rather Internet produced TV shows (read: independent television, an interesting concept in itself).

tv-video.net VIP channel - Worth it?

2007-11-12T15:44:00.000+01:00

tv-video.net have a neat trick - a VIP channel, separately from the "normal" users' channel. One can become a member of the VIP channel in two ways: contributing (through PayPal) to the site (nice way to make money for all that bandwidth); or contributing (free advices) at the tv-video.net forums.

Tv-Video.net are quite elusive as to what are the real benefits of joining the VIP channel. One can only assume that unlike the "regular" TV-Video, which claims not to link to high definition/resolution versions of the full episodes they have, the VIP section has high definition and/or has quicker download rates.

TV-Video.net was not available several times in the past few weeks, with glitches in the software. This, of course, adds somewhat to the big question, whether or not to join their VIP club.

Further Links:
More Video Toolbars and Sites
More TV Online Sources
Radio Online
Should you download SATVOD?

Mercure's Russian Roulette

2007-11-10T14:22:00.000+01:00

Mercure hotel chain now runs a new campaign for its hotels in Berlin:
(1) you buy a room for 50 EUR a night, 99 for two nights, breakfast included
(2) four days before arrival, you will be notified which Mercure hotel you're receiving.
(3) the charge is non refundable. That is, even if you get a hotel you don't like, you can't call the deal off.

They call it "Glücksroulette Berlin", which means "luck roulette".

Now, Mercure have a couple of hotels in pretty decent locations in Berlin: one near Check Point Charlie, another near Charite hospital in Mitte (and near the Natural History Museum), one in Frankfurter Allee and another near the Technical Museum. There is also a hotel near the Boddinstrasse station (and close to the Tempelhof airport), which might not be the best neighbouhood in Berlin, but is very convinient, transportation-wise.

However, it has 9 hotels in Berlin and its vicinity: others are not "just" far away from the centre, but also from means of public transportation; and two are actually outside Berlin proper: in Potsdam and in the lively town of Henningsdorf, a place about which most Berliners haven't heard (let alone visited). Their hotel "Berlin City West" is described on their site as a city centre hotel, but is in fact located in a remote corner of Spandau, near the indusrial area of Siemensstadt (in all fairness, it has good public transport connection).

In other words, Mercure's Glücksroulette could end up as being quite a Russian Roulette: you might find tourself tucked away in Henningsdorf, Potsdam or Spandau; or in an airport hotel. The chances are even lower than the classic Russian Roulette.

Related Links:
Reserving hotel in Berlin at Hotel.de
Tours in Berlin

Mystery

2007-10-24T12:40:00.000+01:00

The Spiegel magazine has a new section, which deals with history, and which also includes personal questions and accounts. I will write more about it in another time, but in this case, this mysetery intersted me:

In 1988 I took a 19 year old hitch-hiker from West Berlin to Kiel. He said he
was a West German and wanted to get to Oldenburg. On the road he wanted to "go".
He went in a dark field just behind the rest area, and never came back.

About 300 meters after this field, there is a forest. He gave me his
passport "just in case". I called, jumped and looked all over for him, but had
to leave with very bad conscience, because leaving the road was not permitted.

The GDR border guards took away his passport, and released me after a
long interrogation ("we never had one less passenger").

I have
never found out, what has happened. His birthplace was near Magdeburg [in
another source he said the guy was born in 1963 or 1969], as I have later
learnt.

What happened in the forest? Why did he give me his passport?
Has he been arrested? Did he want to return to a long lost love? What does he do
today?

I would be happy to get any help in answering these questions.

I googled the name Ralf Strunz online. Several people emerge.
(1) someone who provided chorus and help in an Einstürzende Neubauten album (1996) [that somehow fits perfectly with being a young man in Berlin];
(2) the second, a football trainer from Baden. This guy formerly played football for a team in Riesa (which is in Saxony, East Germany); and might be the same person as
(3) the owner of an advertising agency in rural southwest Germany
(4) The head of the fire brigade in a small East German town [fits with being an East German, although the city is not near Magdeburg]
(5) Someone who lives in northern Bavaria (near the Thuringen border) and has bought a motorcycle

So which one is it? What has really happened? Did he (somehow the gentle spirit who originally asked the question does not put that as a possibility) commit suicide? Was arrested? Was in fact a spy (re)infitrating East Germany? Wanted to meet someone and try to get them out of the GDR, but the person has failed to show up? Missed his loved ones, as the asker implies?

Smelly Washing Machine

2007-10-23T13:52:00.000+01:00

As this blog usually doesn't deal with household advices and life hack styled solutions to everyday problems (it is much more focused on non-existent, not important or non realistic problems, when it does), it came as absolute surprise that such an ingenious trick became apparent to me.

Well, it all starts with a stinky washing machine. Washing machines stink when fungus or mold develop under the drum, usually when the washing machine has front door. Liquids left after washing do not dry up and the result is growth environment for all kinds of stink.

There are several products on the market offering to solve this problem. In fact, if you will Google the term stiky washing machine or smelly washing machine, you will reach some of them. I have also reached some pages warning that some of these alleged miracle drugs can be harmful to the machine's rubber seal. Not to mention how environmentally unfriendly they are.

In other words: try these products at your own risk. Or you can buy a product that probably costs 0.01 of the price of those marketed products. Vinegar. In order to get rid of bad odor in your washing machine, just sprinkle some vinegar into the drum after emptying the machine, and leave the door open as long as possible. Friendlier to the environment, cheaper and most importantly, really works.

Young Boys' Club

2007-10-08T14:04:00.000+01:00

Young Boys' Club: Ex-Google Employee Sues for Age-Discrimination

Through my friend Em, I got more information regarding an impending age-discrimination suit filed against Google: "A 54-year-old former Google Inc. manager who claimed he was fired after a supervisor told him his opinions were "too old to matter"

I have already discussed before what I saw as sexist remarks by a senior Google official that reflect the general attitude towards women in the high-tech industry. I wrote, that:

Cyberspace and the new Information Technology have not revolutionised gender relations, despite the fact that theoretically, on the Internet, nobody knows that you're a dog. Be a dog, but don't be a bitch - because unless you are career driven maniac who doesn't want a family (which is something most women are not), you cannot stand the hours in the high-tech industry. Even if you do have an engineering degree, which is a question in itself (less women than men study that).

Apparently, this is also true regarding age discrimination, which is a largely discussed issue in the industry. Like women (or men) who would not work crazy hours; like people with disabilities restricted to telejobs (which I wrote, are "pushed to the bottom of the social ladder. Those who telework are being stigmatised as "work-at-home-moms" even if they are providing a service that is unique and valuable"); "old" people are excluded from the young-boys-network.

How old is old? Actually, the perception of the geeks from the silicon valley is not dissimilar to that of the 14 year old mall rat from San Frenando Valley: 45-year-old are old people. 54 year old is already with one foot in the grave.

There are several webpages dedicated only to the issue of age descrimination in the High Tech industry. There are also very interesting responses on Slashdot to the story (well, I am halfway through, if you know what Slashdot is like).

Basically, if you don't fit with a corporate culture that under the disguise of being young and hip, excludes everybody who is not exactly like them, you do not belong there. This is the message that the IT culture passes to people. Accordingly, the "fun" and "hip" is all maintained in order to keep a young-boys'-network, just like in the olden days.

Yes, it does bring up a great idea for a site, probably up next in Google labs:
http://send-the-elderly-to-ice-floes.google.com

More TV Online Sources

2007-10-07T11:39:00.000+01:00

Mashable have published a list of TV online sources. Although not completely different from what you can get here, it is worth visiting

33 Ways to Watch TV Online
http://mashable.com/2007/06/18/33-ways-to-watch-free-tv-online/

Radio Online

2007-10-05T14:38:00.000+01:00

Unlike online TV, which (because of different issues, mostly corporate copyright limitations), do not really manage to become a true Internet international phenomenon; radio stations sometimes manage to do that. In a way, it brings up the question why it doesn't happen with TV: you can hear regular radio stations, with their ads and songs, from anywhere; and in the case of the BBC radio, even clean of ads, but with lots of good music. Why can't it happen with BBC TV?

In any case, the prevalence of radio stations make a tool like the http://www.iheard.com/ radio stations directory very useful.

Bremen on a Budget

2007-10-03T07:56:00.001+01:00

As usual, when I travel, I also take my notes regarding the option of travelling on a budget. Bremen, unlike Boston and Copenhagen, is not considered to be a very expensive town. In fact, it is - like Berlin for example - a very cheap city indeed.

There are several options for cheap accommodation in Bremen. The most obvious one is the Bremen Youth Hostel (yes, no English on the official youth hostel site; the Germans like foreigners, right?); and several guesthouses near the central train station (Hauptbahnhof): e.g. the Bremer Backpacking Hostel.. Please keep in mind that these hostels and guest houses, unless you order a private room with your own bath, may accommodate you with people of the opposite sex; and the showers might be also shared (some may find it as an advantage, I guess).

If youth hostels are not your type, there are several other options. As usual, staying in a private flat is sometimes just as inexpensive as staying in a hostel, but you have your privacy. The city of Bremen has a list of private people renting holiday flats. From a personal experience, I went to stay at this flat, ran by Mr. Nalincioglu (pronounced: Nalinchi'orrloo). He speaks German, English and Turkish and is extremely nice and helpful. The flats are clean and very quiet (in Romantic narrow street), and most importantly, this romantic street is off a busy main road, where you can get public transportation, plenty of pubs and restaurants, etc.

Bremen's main attraction is its old town, and strolling in it is of course for free. The city hall and other magnificent renovated buildings are very impressive. You can find very good information on the City Tourism Bureau homepage, including free walking tour routes to follow; and recommendations cards you can use to get around and get admission into attractions.

The public transportation in Bremen seems to be working well, and therefore taxis are not a must. Except for the Old City, the Schnoor area, with its little boutiques and shops and the Ostertor area (which is where Mr. Nalincioglu's flat is located) are very good areas to hang around. In the Ostertor area you will find student-priced restaurants, bars and cafes, and you can try everything from a Doener to a nice typical Bremen food (if you are brave enough to eat the Labskaus: pork porridge with mashed red beet. In fact not as bad as it sounds - or looks - like, if you get used to the baby food texture).

A word of warning might be in place for those having a conference in the University of Bremen. The university is located at the end of the world. There is nothing to do there at night, and very little during the day either. No restaurants, no shops, and the only attraction is the oyster/spaceship shaped Science Centre. The university has some recommended guest-houses for visitors, but the area itself is like a remote village, so consider the fact that you will have to either have no life; or choose to stay in the city and travel every morning - like all students and staff - to the gulag where they put the university at.

Related articles:
Boston for less
Copehangen on a Shoestring

Rock the Village: A Clash of Cultures in Wacken, Germany

2007-10-01T11:03:00.000+01:00

Full Metal Village is a new documentary made by German-Korean Cho Sung-hyung. It is a documentary about a rock festival, The Wacken Open Air, but it is in fact a documentary about a clash of cultures, and the tolerance to the “Other”.

The Wacken Open Air is the largest heavy metal festival in the world, which takes place in the village of Wacken in Schleswig Holstein, northern Germany. Wacken is one of those detached villages, not a gentrified suburb which still calls itself a village. And Cho chose to concentrate on the village and its people, and see their reactions to the invasion of the people, who are so different from them: the clash between the church choir of the village elderly; and the tattooed metalists.

Cho made her choices – except for two people (one 16 year old and another, the 40ish Norbert, who was one of the original organisers of the festival, and is now depressed, bitter, and unemployed), those interviewed are old and represent the “old”, post-war generation in Wacken. I am sure that there are couple other interesting, but less “representative” inhabitants of this 1800 people village.

The old people, however, are charming. You have the farmer who rents out the territory to the festival, who is constantly thinking of a way to earn the next Euro; the granny who was one of the Germans expelled from East Prussia as part of the aftermath of World War II; the one that believes that all heavy metal fans are devil worshippers and worse (the village’s vicar seems more relaxed); and above all, the farmer who relaxes with his cows and seems disinterested in all of this.

German-ness is the topic of the movie, and those coming to see a film about their favourite metal festival might be disappointed. They also might not be disappointed to learn about how tolerant most of their hosts are – willing to help the festival and to get along with the crazy week it entails: the scene with the sales of beer at the local supermarket is very entertaining.

But underneath Cho’s good intentions to bring about a nice film about the clash of cultures (which ends well), there is, well, Germany. The 16 year old girl is obsessed with the second World War in at some point says that “she wishes to have lived during that period” (to be able to learn more).Does her obsession go too far, to the dark corners we might connote with a German teen obsessed with Nazism? The film doesn’t say.

And what about the unemployed Norbert? He plainly says that the guilty party in his condition are all those “foreigners” who come to steal good German job places. And I would imagine, that as Cho herself is a “foreigner”, Norbert has somewhat censored himself, and did not reveal the rest of his opinions of foreigners. In other words, while the old people in the film are supposed be the intolerant, god-fearing, folks, it is the young ones that reveal intolerance to the present and longing for romantic past.

Cho also calls the film a “Heimatfilm”, an ironic title, as the original “Heimatfilms” where romantic (feature) films, which highlighted good old country life, with families, dogs and sheep. And maybe this is what this film is all about – the clash of cultures is not between the Metalists and the village people; it is between those longing for the past and those living in the present.

Wikipedia has been had (by one of their own)

2007-09-29T20:28:00.000+01:00

There have been several cases before, where Wikipedia has been had: most famousely, John Seigenthaler Sr. , whose page has been changed to include false information (Wikipedia themselves write about it). Wikipedia admins are usually quick in finding sheer vandalism ("Oprah is an alien"); less successful, when it comes to information that seems true, changing a year, a small note, adding information about a relatively unknown figure's life. Wikipedia also has its own category: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Suspected_hoax_articles

However, as far as I know, this is the first time that Wikipedia has been had by one of their own, someone who administered one of the many language versions of Wikipedia. The problem? The language, Siberian, doesn't exist, the site was a private joke by the administrators and his friends (with an opportunity to bash some Russians, which is apparently, the only reason the hoax has been discovered: the Russians complained of the non-objective, anti-Russian, content of the Siberian Wikipedia).

The issue has been heatedly debated before Wikimedia foundation finally decided to pull the plug on the Siberian Wiki, partially because the Siberians are still adament that everything is dead (or cold) serious.

It is not as if there are no constructed languages in Wikipedia (from Esperanto, which is pretty big and seems, to Klingon which is now unfortunately locked). I guess that they don't like to be made fun of....

Should you download SATVOD?

2007-09-22T19:27:00.000+01:00

Because of my infamous post, where I listed TV and video websites I sometimes get people asking me about this site or the other.

SATVOD is apparently one of the latest buzzes around: they have neat graphics, and unlike those scammers who try to sell you "Satellite TV online", Satvod is for free - just download it, and they promise that they scan video sites (You Tube, etc.) for relevant material.

There are, as I have listed before, several sites that do that. Satvod, except of neat graphics, tells you to download their toolbar (in order to watch TV online). There are no reports (yet!) of the toolbar being harmful in any way. However, it raises a question - why download a toolbar when you can find sites that have the same viewer on your browser? why add another software to the already ladden computer? I am suspicious of toolbars by nature: for me, they (even the Google toolbar) more of a hindernis.

If you are a toolbar fan, however, Satvod promises you another bankload of streamed TV and video.

Boston for Less

2007-09-20T15:50:00.000+01:00

It seems that life brings us to the most expensive places on earth. Last time, it was Copenhagen. This time it is another notoriously expensive city, Boston.

Although this is a “Boston on a budget” article, it would be unrealistic to talk about “Boston in $10 a day”, as tour guides used to do. This amount of money would hardly buy anything, let alone hold you for a full day, including accommodation, dining and having fun being a tourist.

So, how can you enjoy Boston on a shoestring budget? Here are several sections that try to answer the question. The sections appear here as one unit, but you can also find them as independent articles:

Accommodation
Attractions
Eating in Boston – dining and buying food
Transportation
Boston with kids, babies and toddlers

The Sociologist of Religion’s Visit to Boston

2007-09-14T11:38:00.000+01:00

Boston is a very interesting city from a Religious Studies/Sociology of Religion perspective. There are numerous places that would be interesting for you to see:

(1) Visit the Mary Baker Eddy Library and the Christian Science centre

(2) Visit the Swedenborgian chapel in Cambridge, tucked near the Harvard University

(3) Visit the North End, with the array of Churches, some important in U.S. history, and the “Saints’ Alley” in particular.

(4) Other historical churches: King’s Chapel (on Beacon Street), Trinity Church

(5) Just walk the streets: see the small Catholic-Irish ornaments in Charlestown; the new Temples/New Religious Movements on Cambridge’s Main Street; the immigrants’ churches in Chinatown.

Boston with kids, babies and toddlers

2007-09-13T17:14:00.000+01:00

A big disclaimer here: I wasn’t in Boston with a real kid (“mommy buy me…!”) but with a very young and obliging child who will do almost anything. Still, here are a few tips:

(1) Food – Boston’s inner city supermarkets are expensive, but it is still a good idea to raid them and eat sandwiches or even the hot meals they offer, and not fast food; those of you from outside the East (including me) probably don’t know Friendly’s, a family restaurant chain, a restaurant of which can be found near the Charlestown Community College train station

(2) The area near the New England Aquarium has a pool with seals for free, which might be enough for some kids

(3) Boston Commons and the Gardens are a great place to be with kids, given the ducks all over the place

(4) Coply Plaza is a great place if your kids are not the winy/buy-me kind, lots of escalators and other exciting things (water fountains, sculptures, etc.)

(5) Museum of Science is almost a “must”; it has attractions for kids of all ages in almost every exhibit. Boston also has a Children’s Museum

Boston Technicalities

2007-09-10T15:14:00.000+01:00

Transportation - public transportation in Boston is cheap and convenient, but the city centre is not very large, so one could also go almost anywhere by foot. Remember to get yourself a Charlie Card before you ride, and not buy a ticket each time. Concessions available for handicapped, etc. - but you have to go to a special office for that.

Internet - free Internet is available in public libraries (for 15 minutes without any membership; longer for members or people that the librarian seems to like); most of Cambridge and large parts of central Boston have some sort of WLAN hotspot arrangement.

Newspapers - the Metro newspaper might not be Boston Globe, but is for free.

Eating in Boston for Less

2007-09-07T12:53:00.000+01:00

After touring Boston's finest attractions the whole day, and just before returning to your affordable Boston accommodation, you'd probably want to grab something to eat.

The North End and Chinatown both provide an opportunity to sample great ethnic restaurants for less. Go to side streets (those not on the Freedom Trail) in the North End and you will discover Italian Bakeries that also offer sandwiches (no, you don't have to go to the most famous Pizza place in the North End to enjoy the food there); small places open only for lunches, etc.

In Chinatown, you can identify the good, cheap, restaurants because:
* They don't look like Chinese restaurants (that is, with red dragons and other "Chinese" decorations), but more like a cantene;
* Everybody inside, on the other hand, is. We needed in fact someone to translate our wishes to the cashier.

Buying cheap and good food is even more problematic. In Boston itself you can find mostly 7-11 (which haven't seen a fresh vegetable if it beat them); and two moderately-expensive chains (Shaw's and Whole Foods). Both are very good for shopping, and you can also substitute a restaurant's food for Shaw's salad and warm food bars (you pay by the weight). It is not extremely cheap, but for the same price, you would probably get mostly greasy chain food, not real salads. In Charlestown you can also find a chain called Johnny's Foodmaster, which caught our hearts, because it seemed that many handicapped people worked in that branch.

Also in Charlestown (which is in general, another place where you can find off the beaten track cheap places to eat and drink), you can find a "Friendley's" restaurant. For those of you who are not from the East Coast, where this chain operates: it is an ice-cream chain (with lots of balloons and attractions to keep your children satisfied throughout the meal), that serves surprisingly good casual "real" food, you can even get "healthy" stuff like very good salads, and the cherry on the sundae is that it is not very expensive either.

Here are several other restaurants found online:

Boston Magazine: Best of Boston's Cheap Eats

FoodieView

Best Inexpensive Restaurants in Boston, Cambridge and Eastern MA

http://boston.citysearch.com/roundup/38630

20 for $20

Boston: Cheap Eats (my favourite sites for restaurants, from the Boston Globe)

Boston Attractions - Cheap Thrills

2007-08-26T22:06:00.000+01:00

While Boston accommodation for cheap might be a problem, there are many Boston attractions for free or at least tourist sites that fit a budget traveler:

Outdoor attractions
Naturally, many outdoor attractions are for free. The ones listed here are either well-recommended (in tourist books, in general); or ones I happened to have visited. There are probably many more.

First of all, there are two trails that could be followed in the city, for free, and show you some of the most important historical landmarks. The first is the Freedom Trail, with events and sites from the colonial period and the War of Independence. Another is the Black Heritage Trail. Both will not only show you the history they discuss, but take you to interesting points in town.
If that is not enough, you have the parks, Boston Common and the Boston Gardens are free of charge, just as the Esplanade (where you can see the Boston Pops stage) and many other gardens are out these, full of ducks.

One of the nicest strolls we have made was down the docks and the piers – from the south all the way to North End. Oh, yes. North End. A great place to stroll outdoors, enjoy the architecture and the flair. Don’t go (only) on the main streets (or those from the Freedom Trail) and everything will be also cheap. Other neighbourhoods, like South Bay or the Chinatown are also worth strolling.

There are some cheap things that could be fun – the Duck Tours seemed to us like a combination of a tourist trap and a nightmare (the weather was cold and going in a Duck seemed a bad idea); but don’t mix up the ducks with the swans in Boston Public Gardens, which are fun (in the summer and late spring only).

USS Constitution is a free open air museum, in a naval base. Interesting and worth visiting. It is the oldest commissioned ship in the U.S. Navy. The “Old Ironside” was never defeated in Battle because of its legendary ability to repel any shot fired.

Another touristy outdoor attraction for free is the Faneuil Hall Marketplace. Naturally, as a marketplace, the whole idea is that you buy stuff, but there are always street shows and interesting things without it. And there are several decent eateries, despite the touristy location.
Outside the Aquarium, which is for a fee, you can find a seal pool.

Museums
Massachusetts Historical Society
Charlestown Navy Yard – including the USS Constitution
Gardner Museum – if your name is Isabella. See here: http://www.gardnermuseum.org/isabellas.asp

Free on certain days:
Harvard University Art Museums - Saturday 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.; everyday after 4:30 p.m.; everyday for under 18s.
Institute of Contemporary Art - FREE for all from 5 to 9 pm every Thursday for Target Free Thursday Nights; FREE for families (up to 2 adults accompanied by children 12 and under) on the last Saturday of each month
Museum of Fine Arts - Citizens Bank Foundation Wednesday Nights at the MFA: No general admission fee required. Every Wed, 4–9:45 pm. Voluntary donations welcome. Special exhibitions ticketed separately.

Reduced:
Children’s Museum: Target $1 Friday Nights are offered every Friday from 5:00 – 9:00 p.m.
I would definitely go to see the Science Museum; in the science museum, you’ve got also some small sections that are free (including a petting zoo)

Various Rainy Day Options (besides museums):

Go to the Boston Public Library – except for being the oldest in the United States, it is interesting, has limited (I think 15 minutes) free Internet time and well, you can always read a book
Harvard and MIT – Cambridge is ugly, but the Harvard buildings are interesting; and MIT has the most interesting public building in Boston – the Ghery building (Senta Center) is as crazy from the inside as it from the outside.
Interesting window shopping: the Coply Square Mall; the Koo de Kir (65 Chestnut Street); The nearby Holiday designer shop (53 Charles Street Boston, MA 02114 )
Visit the JFK library
Visit the Mary Baker Eddy Library

Boston Accommodation

2007-08-23T12:40:00.000+01:00

Boston Accommodation – Where to Sleep in Boston for Cheap (Homeless Shelters not Included)

If you’re staying in Boston on a budget, you have several options, but you have to remember that it is real estate prices that make Boston so expensive (restaurants or shop, as well as some of the attractions, have to pay the rent, right?).

There are some ways around the expensive hotel prices in Boston, assuming you don’t know anyone in Boston who would take you in (thank you tmarmoret!!!). The first might be to join an apartment exchange program (like this, this or this). The way it works was featured in a pretty bad Cameron Diaz/Kate Winslet movie I’ve seen on a plane, The Holiday, but it doesn’t have to work like that. It could be actually good. You might find a cheap – perhaps even free – host in Boston that way. There is also the CouchSurfing organization, where people register themselves to accommodate or meet others. Another option for budget accommodation in Boston would be to look up – through Craigslist for example – for people willing to rent their apartments when they are on vacation; for example (given the number of universities in Boston, Cambridge and the vicinity) students on one of their winter, summer or spring break. Bed and Breakfasts are also usually more affordable than hotels, although in the case of Boston, you can’t be sure…

For those of you who cannot sleep at someone else’s house, I can recommend the Marriott Residence Inn, a cheaper version of Marriott, which is suitable to host a relatively large party for affordable prices, something that could be a solution for those visiting Boston with kids or as students. The Residence Inn is also very close to MIT and Harvard.

History Channel, again, manages to ruin a perfectly good movie

2007-08-18T17:07:00.000+01:00

In the past several posts I have lamented the style of the style of the documentaries shown on the History Channel. I said that they tend to over-dramatise their statements and movies, as if a good historical documentary will not do without their dramatizations and acting out. I said that they tend to use bombastic titles, a perfectly legitimate device to lure people to watch a film, only that after a while you get the point.

The series “Lost Worlds” provides another good example. Prima facie a very good series, which attempts to find, through computer technology and experts’ interview, how would cities or projects, that do not exist, look today.

The episode “Hitler’s Supercity” does exactly that with the Nazi vision of Germania, a fascist model city Hitler has intended to build over Berlin. These were not just vague plans – Hitler and his architect/Minister of Armament Albert Speer, have actually began testing ground for the megalomaniac project. “Hitler’s Supercity” is a great episode in that sense: the researchers have managed to find very knowledgeable experts, the computer simulation is amazing and as someone who lives in Berlin and knows quite a bit about the subject, the choice of places to shoot was not mundane. Excellent film, I would have wished to say, but unfortunately, the problems with this historical documentary start here: some Germans have decided to be interviewed in English; those who haven’t, have been punished by the history channel – voiceover (because our viewers are not intelligent enough to hear foreign languages and read subtitles, despite the fact that they watch a documentary about a very specific episode in Nazi Germany’s history). Voiceovers are quite popular, and I wouldn’t have been so raged if it was the dignified type of voiceover you hear all over good documentaries: neutral tone and accent.

Not for the History Channel fellows. They have to dramatise, even if there is no drama. And what’s better than insulting a few kraut historians who have done the unforgivable mistake of interviewing in their own mother-tongue? Right, the voiceover artist (listed as Corey Lawson) does a bad imitation of a German Akzent. Something you would have expected to hear in a Monty Python sketch, not in a serious documentary. Shame on the History Channel, for treating people who were willing to grant an interview like that.

What has Happened to Open Cola?

2007-08-08T14:47:00.000+01:00

Open Cola was apparently all the rage just several years ago - a company selling colas and not only that, but also provide, in an open source mode - cola formula (see a recipe later), which they claim is identical to the Coca Cola formula - in order to pass a message regarding open source and copyleft.

This social experiment is very interesting, but the results are not entirely clear. There is great interest in OpenCola all of a sudden (through ocial Networking), but the site OpenCola.com, which you'd expect would become a major hit, vanished any traces of cola (or open source) activism from its sites, and it sells "premium bedding". The company was in fact sold in 2003 by its founders to Open Text Corporation.

Several names come up as associated with the Cola recipe. The first is Cory Doctorow, a web-activist, journalist and proponent of open source and copyleft ideas. The second name that comes up is Laird Brown, a business consultant. The third is Amanda Foubister, who is listed as a stunt double. She is in fact credited with the original recipe.

The recipe goes like this:

Open Souce Cola Formula
Disclaimer
Making soft drinks is not for the faint of heart, nor the dirty of finger. It is a solemn enterprise not to be entered into lightly, as with marriage or buying used farm machinery.

With any food-prep, failure to observe basic hygienic principles, follow directions, and exercise common sense can have grave consequences. OpenCola assumes no liability for any problems that arise out of the use of this document. Proceed at your own risk. No one's putting a gun to your head, so don't bother if you can't boil water.

Improper use of cola might result in blunt trauma, puncture wounds, physical illness, mental illness, caffeine dependency, dental necrosis, acid reflux, death, devastation, and random tax audits. Or it might not.

A list of warnings has been provided below. We did not include them for our health â€" we included them for yours. Read them. Know them. Follow them. Tattoo them to your backside.

Just in case you have any doubt: following the directions below may be hazardous to your health and property. You assume any and all risk arising from the manufacture and consumption of cola.

An important note: this is not the recipe for "OpenCola" - that is, the canned beverage from OpenCola that you may have received at a trade show, or other venue or outlet. Making canned cola requires millions of dollars in abstruse gear and manufacturing gizmos. It's easier to make nerve gas than manufacture cola. This is a kitchen-sink recipe that you can make all on your own. It is our kitchen-sink recipe. We figured it out somewhere between coding the COLA SDK and debugging the Linux build of the clerver.

Anyway, we've tried to be nice about the disclaimer. If it's not good enough for you, here's what our lawyers have to say about the whole shootin' match.

By copying and/or distributing the Program, you hereby agree to the following:

Indemnity: You shall indemnify, defend, and hold harmless OpenCola, its affiliates, directors, officers, and employees from and against any third-party claim, demand, cause of action, debt, liability, cost or expense (including, but not limited to, reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of your use of the Recipe, or any derivative thereof, including, but not limited to, any claims arising from your distribution of soft drink based on the Recipe or any derivatives thereof.

International: OpenCola makes no representation that the Recipe, or any soft drink based on the Recipe or any derivatives thereof, may be appropriate for use in locations outside of the United States or Canada, and accessing them from any location where their use is illegal is prohibited. If you choose to access this Recipe from any location outside of the United States or Canada, you do so at your own risk, and are responsible for compliance with all local laws.
License:
OpenCola soda is distributed under the terms of the General Public License (GPL), a copy of which is appended to the bottom of this document. Please check out Richard Stallman's Free Software Foundation. He wrote the GPL and has plenty of interesting documentation on the site.
Version History:

1.1.3
2/20/01
Added sterner caffeine warnings, link to Material Safety Data Sheet â€" thanks to Tom Swulius. Added contributors section.

1.1.2
1/31/01
Fixed Amanda's email address

1.1.1
01/30/01
Even more disclaimer, this time to differentiate this recipe from the stuff in the cans.

1.1
01/29/01
Fixed typos. Made disclaimer scarier. Removed snotty references to Americans.

1.0
01/27/01
Introduction
Contained hereunder is a HOW-TO for brewing up kitchen-sink OpenCola. Amazingly enough, every soft-drink vendor we spoke to acted like the preparation of cola was some kind of deep, dark trade-seekrutâ"¢. With much reverse-engineering and creative shopping, the research kitchens at OpenCola have coopered together the following makefile for brewing up The Black Waters of Corporate Imperialismâ"¢ in the privacy of your own home.

The basis for the whole thing is the 7X, Top-Seekrutâ"¢ formula. Our sources tell us that 7X is the internal Coca-Cola codename for their syrup. You'll note that the 7X formula contains eight ingredients: still more evidence of the deviousness of the Soda Gnomes.

As it turns out, mixing up a batch of cola's pretty easy. Finding the ingredients is damned hard. Most of this file is about finding and handling ingredients so as to produce a tasty bevvy without blowing up your kitchen, melting your flesh off your bones, or poisoning yourself. As with all undertakings of great moment, read and understand the instructions before attempting to commit cola on your own. Pay special attention to the "Warnings" section.

This recipe is licensed under the GNU General Public license. It is "Open Source" Cola, or, if you prefer, "Free" Cola. That means you're free to use this recipe to make your own cola, or to make derivative colas. If you distribute derivative colas, you're expected to send email to the recipe's author, Amanda Foubister (amanda@opencola.com) with your updates. In the future, we expect to have a CVS server up to handle additions, bug-reports, etc.
The Formula
7X (Top SeekrutTM) flavoring formula:

3.50 ml orange oil
1.00 ml lemon oil
1.00 ml nutmeg oil
1.25 ml cassia oil
0.25 ml coriander oil
0.25 ml neroli oil
2.75 ml lime oil
0.25 ml lavender oil
10.0 g gum arabic
3.00 ml water
OpenCola syrup:

2.00 tsp. 7X formula
3.50 tsp. 75% phosphoric acid or citric acid
2.28 l water
2.36 kg plain granulated white table sugar
0.50 tsp. caffeine (optional)
30.0 ml caramel color
Preparation

7X Flavoring
Mix oils together in a cup. Add gum arabic, mix with a spoon. Add water and mix well. I used my trusty Braun mixer for this step, mixing for 4-5 minutes. You can also transfer to a blender for this step. Can be kept in a sealed glass jar in the fridge or at room temperature.

Please note that this mixture will separate. The Gum Arabic is essential to this part of the recipe, as you are mixing oil and water.
Syrup:

In a one gallon container (I used the Rubbermaid Servin' Saver Dry Food Keeper, 1.3 US Gal/4.92 l), take 5 mls of the 7X formula, add the 75% phosphoric or citric acid. Add the water, then the sugar. While mixing, add the caffeine, if desired. Make sure the caffeine is completely dissolved. Then add the caramel color. Mix thoroughly.
Cola:

To finish drink, take one part syrup and add 5 parts carbonated water.
Scavenging and Handling Ingredients
7X flavor:

Measurement: I used a dropper purchased at a Shoppers Drug Mart (normally used to measure infant portions of medicine, I believe).

Oils: Oils can cause skin irritation. Wear latex food-prep or surgical gloves. If oils come in contact with skin, wash with soap and water.

I purchased all oils from health food stores and the herbalist store, Thuna's (see notes on gum arabic).

Everything could have come from the herbalist's. Try for 100 percent pure, undiluted oils. I used oils from the following companies:

* CK Solutions, Ft. Wayne, IN 46825
* Aura Cacia Oils, Weaverville, CA 96093
* Aromaforce Essential Oils
* Frontier Natural Flavors, www.frontiercoop.com
* Karooch, Peterborough, ONT K9J 7Y8

When I purchased the oils, I specifically asked whether they were food grade or not. All persons said that they were, one person said she used them internally all the time.

Neroli is a very expensive item, be prepared (US$48.52 for 5.00 ml).

All others were a more reasonable price (US$2-9.30).

Gum Arabic: It is very important that you get only food-grade Gum Arabic. There is also an art-grade, which is readily available at art supply stores â€" never use art-grade Gum Arabic! Art-grade Gum Arabic is toxic. It will make you ill. You'll be sad. We'll be sad.

I found food-grade Gum Arabic at an herbalist store in Toronto called Thuna's (416) 461-8191. I purchased 112g for US$12.46, which will make more than 11 batches of flavoring formula.
Syrup:

Water: good old tap water will do, if you trust your tap. I used spring water.

75% Phosphoric Acid: Due to its acidity, this product is corrosive to the eyes and skin. Handle with gloved hands, and use extreme caution. If comes in contact with the eyes or skin, immediately flush with plenty of water for at least 15 minutes. Get medical attention. Rinse any spills on clothing or other surfaces thoroughly. Store in a secure area. Do not store more than 50.0 ml.

Try finding phosphoric acid at a compounding pharmacy in your area. There are pharmacies that still mix their own individual compounds and still stock phosphoric acid.

Citric acid: Very easy to find. I found mine at a Shoppers Drug Mart (Rougier Pharma Inc, Quebec, Canada J7J 1P3). Says right on the label, "For the preparation of acidulous drinks and effervescing draughts, and preservation of jams and jellies." According to the Coke history book, citric acid was used first in the formula, but they now use the phosphoric.

Sugar: Basic granulated white table sugar found everywhere. Buy from a bulk store to save some money.

Caffeine: It's best not to store caffeine in any amount. Caffeine can kill people in relatively small doses. The median lethal dose for an adult human is around 10 grams, or approximately one third of an ounce. You can find out more by reading the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for caffeine at http://www.jtbaker.com/msds/c0165.htm. Don't yeild to the temptation to create a "Super-Joltâ"¢," adding tons and tons of the white stuff to your cola, our you'll be in a world of hurt. If stored, store in a secure area away from children. Toxic by inhalation and ingestion: If inhaled, remove to fresh air, If ingested, call a physician. Possible teratogen and mutagen. If product comes in contact with the eyes, flush with plenty of water. There is some great information on caffeine and it's over-consumption at http://www.thecaffeinepage.com.

Caffeine is completely optional. I used part of a caffeine pill (MVP, www.mvpnutrition.com), ground up in a pestle with a mortar. According to information on the pill bottle and on the Web site, the pills are 100% caffeine. As an extra safety precaution, I strained all of the syrup through a 4-ply of cheesecloth, in case any of the caffeine wasn't dissolved.

Caramel color: I found mine at a bakery supply store (World of Cake Decorating, 1766 Weston Road, Toronto, Ontario, Canada 416-247-4935). I was originally told to use double strength caramel color, but couldn't find it anywhere (retail or wholesale). It really only adds color, so it makes it a bit paler than we are used to coming out of a can or bottle. No other difference that we could discern during our taste-testing.
Cola:

Soda Water: I purchased a soda charger and CO2 cartridges at Nikolaou's (629 Queen Street West, Toronto, Ontario, Canada 416-504-6411) to deliver the soda charge needed to make the cola fizzy. At testing, no one was impressed. What worked best was adding canned sodium-free (very important!) soda water to the syrup.

If you would like to make soda water yourself as well, here is a recipe from a great Web site on beverages (http://www.upl.cs.wisc.edu/~craft/bar/section7.html):

Soda: Carbonated Water

* 5 U.S. gallons of water
* 1.5 cups sugar (or sugar syrup)
* 1 teaspoon dry bread yeast (rehydrated)

I fill each bottle 2/3 full, screw on the top, and leave for one or two weeks. Each weekend I measure and add the syrup to a few bottles, top them off with water and stick them in the fridge.

This is a very quick operation. I had experimented with adding dry sugar, but this caused an excessive amount of foaming.
Warnings:

These are all associated with each of their ingredients, but they're repeated here just to make sure. We're not making this stuff up. Cola is a harsh mistress, and she is quick to anger. Heed the warnings below or proceed into certain peril.

Oils: Can cause skin irritation. If oils come in contact with skin, wash with soap and water.

Gum Arabic: It is very important that you get only food-grade Gum Arabic. There is also an art-grade, which is readily available at art supply stores â€" never use art-grade Gum Arabic! Art grade Gum Arabic is toxic. It will make you ill. You'll be sad. We'll be sad.

75% Phosphoric Acid: Due to its acidity, this product is corrosive to the eyes and skin. Handle with gloved hands, and use extreme caution. If comes in contact with the eyes or skin, immediately flush with plenty of water for at least 15 minutes. Get medical attention. Rinse any spills on clothing or other surfaces thoroughly. Store in a secure area. Do not store more than 50.0 ml.

Caffeine: It's best not to store caffeine in any amount. Caffeine can kill people in relatively small doses. The median lethal dose for an adult human is around 10 grams, or approximately one third of an ounce. You can find out more by reading the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for caffeine at http://www.jtbaker.com/msds/c0165.htm. Don't yield to the temptation to create a â€œSuper-Joltâ"¢â€ adding tons and tons of the white stuff to you cola, our you'll be in a world of hurt. If stored, store in a secure area away from children. Toxic by inhalation and ingestion: If inhaled, remove to fresh air. If ingested, call a physician. Possible teratogen and mutagen. If product comes in contact with the eyes, flush with plenty of water. There is some great information on caffeine and it's over-consumption at http://www.thecaffeinepage.com.
Thanks, Acknowledgements and Afterward:

The 7X that I experimented with comes from the great Coke history book, For God, Country, & Coca-Cola, by Mark Pendergrast, Basic Books, 1993, 2000, ISBN 0-465-05468-4. I know, I know. I list 8 oils, not 7. It notes in the book that many believe lavender to be part of the 7X formula, so I tried it. We liked it in testing.

Special thanks to Pharmacist David at the IDA (Queen West near Jameson, Toronto) for advice on phosphoric acid and chemistry.

Thanks to Barb Holland and Rose Murray from Foodland Ontario for advice on various ingredients and general soda making.
Contributors:

The following people have contributed refinements to the formula. Thanks to:
Cory Doctorow (cory@opencola.com)
Tom Swulius (swulius@ih2000.net)

GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE

Version 2, June 1991

Copyright (C) 1989, 1991 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
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9. The Free Software Foundation may publish revised and/or new versions of the General Public License from time to time. Such new versions will be similar in spirit to the present version, but may differ in detail to address new problems or concerns.

Each version is given a distinguishing version number. If the Program specifies a version number of this License which applies to it and "any later version", you have the option of following the terms and conditions either of that version or of any later version published by the Free Software Foundation. If the Program does not specify a version number of this License, you may choose any version ever published by the Free Software Foundation.

10. If you wish to incorporate parts of the Program into other free programs whose distribution conditions are different, write to the author to ask for permission. For software which is copyrighted by the Free Software Foundation, write to the Free Software Foundation; we sometimes make exceptions for this. Our decision will be guided by the two goals of preserving the free status of all derivatives of our free software and of promoting the sharing and reuse of software generally.
NO WARRANTY

11. BECAUSE THE PROGRAM IS LICENSED FREE OF CHARGE, THERE IS NO WARRANTY FOR THE PROGRAM, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW. EXCEPT WHEN OTHERWISE STATED IN WRITING THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND/OR OTHER PARTIES PROVIDE THE PROGRAM "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE PROGRAM IS WITH YOU. SHOULD THE PROGRAM PROVE DEFECTIVE, YOU ASSUME THE COST OF ALL NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR OR CORRECTION.

12. IN NO EVENT UNLESS REQUIRED BY APPLICABLE LAW OR AGREED TO IN WRITING WILL ANY COPYRIGHT HOLDER, OR ANY OTHER PARTY WHO MAY MODIFY AND/OR REDISTRIBUTE THE PROGRAM AS PERMITTED ABOVE, BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR DAMAGES, INCLUDING ANY GENERAL, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE PROGRAM (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF DATA OR DATA BEING RENDERED INACCURATE OR LOSSES SUSTAINED BY YOU OR THIRD PARTIES OR A FAILURE OF THE PROGRAM TO OPERATE WITH ANY OTHER PROGRAMS), EVEN IF SUCH HOLDER OR OTHER PARTY HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES

More information:
http://www.infoweb.co.nz/open-source-cola

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenCola

Between the Lines of "The World at War"

2007-08-07T12:56:00.000+01:00

ITV’s monumental documentary series about the Second World War, The World at War, is now available on DVD (now is relative, in fact it has been available for some time now).

ITV produced “The World at War” between 1968 and 1972, with a record investment for that time. It has 26 episodes, narrated by Sir Laurence Olivier and magnificently edited. It strikes so, especially in lieu of originality of depth in some contemporary documentaries, most evidently by the History Channel (and sometimes also Discovery), who seem to think that sticking “Hitler” to the title of any film only marginally dealing with Nazi Germany (“Unsolved History: Hitler and the Spear of Destiny”), or that we need actors who’d reenact historical scenes for us (“Gestapo” series by History Channel).

Unlike these two examples, The World at War is a crisp, never-outdated, product. I could only think of another historical documentary, which might be better, which is “The People’s Century”, with its researchers locating the “simple” people recorded in historical reels. However, The World at War, without intending to, is also a very interesting sociological document into power relations in Britain (or in Europe in general), both at the time of its production, as well as in the times it refer to.

An example could be given using the fourth episode, “Alone: The Battle of Britain”, which describes the situation in Britain between May 1940 and May 1941, and the Blitzkrieg ran against the British. The episode is – as always in this series – excellent, and depicts both the perspective of those bombed as well as that of those who fought or were in political decision making points.

However, because the episode, after all, deals with the ordeal of the “rear front”, the civilians, the choice of interviewees is even more interesting. In politics, one will not be surprised to hear that most of those who were in charge at the time were “Lord” something or another; or just someone with a very fine accent. The social class of the pilots depicted in the documentary reels is also rather obvious: most seem like the stereotype of the higher class officer-pilot, including those survivors who talk in cameo.

The ones peculiarly absent from an episode dealing with the British civilian population, are those 51% of the population that have carried the weight, just as well as – if not in some cases – more than the other 49%. The producers have even rounded up a group of Londoners who’d tell about life under the threat of Blitz. Although women are shown in the group, the editor gave only one description by a woman, a very brief sentence where she complains about the lack of personal hygiene they had to endure. Other women are also seen – both in historical reels (where it seems that most if not many Londoners at the time were women), and in the interview sequence, but are not heard; are spoken of (an assistant to Churchill tells of a visit the PM made to the rubble that had been a house in London, telling the women that “we” shall overcome; with them answering him that it is *them* who are now looking for their remaining property in the rubble, not him).

This is of course not (entirely) the producers’ fault. First of all, it is possible that it was not the editor who chose not to put them in, but the women themselves, who would not speak openly about the period; because of social conventions or any other reason. The fact that reels love to depict women as victims in order to extort sympathy is also not new. However, it is interesting how we can learn some additional things, between the lines, from this fine documentary.

5 More "Most Exquisitely Sad Songs in the Whole World"

2007-08-06T18:54:00.000+01:00

Spinner published, some time ago, a list of the "The 25 Most Exquisitely Sad Songs in the Whole World". I agree with some of their choices. The River or Eleanor Rigby make me cry; others sort of leave me cold, or at least wouldn't be on my top 25 saddest songs. It's OK, as Spinner got a very long list of comments by others, recommending their own stuff ("the saddest song is by Elvis..."); Here are my five additions, you may disagree, as most seem to:

1. Neil Young - Let's start with the usual elvisian complaint: how come there are no Neil Young songs there? He has several candidates for sure: Ohio ("what if you knew her, and found her dead on the ground?"); A Man Needs a Maid (well, because of the helplessness here), Old Man. The list could go on. But one would really make you cringe: The Needle and the Damage Done.

2. Leonard Cohen - Another great source for sad songs ("dance me to the end of love", with the chilling cancer-ward video-clip), but here I am torn between two songs: "The Partisan" (which was not really written by Cohen, but is so sad when he does it) and "Who by Fire".

3. If we stay at "horrible reasons to die", Billy Holiday has another one, with Strange Fruit:

4. And being a bereaved mother of a dead soldier is no picknick either, as Kate Bush's Army Dreamers can tell:

5. The last one might be considered by some a tad dramatic: Nick Cave's "Where the Wild Roses Grow". Nick Cave's fans would probably claim (rightly so) that I've chosen Cave's least sad song; and some of his less "commercial" songs (he doesn't sing them with any blondes) are much better. But just like the Holocaust, drugs or lynch death, this is also the story of death by humans:

And there are some runner-ups, of course:

* Terry Jacks' Seasons in the Sun (a bit melodramatic but works). What's interesting is that the original lyrics by Jacques Brel (yes, the song is from French, just like the Partisan) were considered "too sad" and therefore the song did not suceed with them (see on Wikipedia).

* James Taylor's Fire and Rain

* You'll have to take my word that Joni Mitchell's "Songs for Aging Children" is very sad, and especially if you watch it as part of "Alice's Restaurant", a film I should actually write something about.

* My Name is Luca, by Suzanne Vega, is about an abused child. No one seems to care.

* Another sad child abuse song (or at least this is what it sounds to me) is the Crush Test Dummies' "Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm"

* Cat in the Cradle, Cat Steven's masterpiece about another dysfunctional family

Memorial for the Homosexual Victims of Nazism

2007-06-04T20:40:00.001+01:00

Berlin: The design of a memorial to homosexuals persecuted and killed under the Nazis should be completed later this year. It will be placed in Tiergarten, just accross the street from the Memorial for the Murdered Jews of Europe.

"Last year, a jury chose a design by Danish-born Michael Elmgreen and Norwegian native Ingar Dragset for the memorial. It will be shaped as a gray concrete slab, with a window allowing visitors to view a film projection inside."

Deutsche Welle Reports:

Under the Nazis, between 5,000 and 10,000 homosexuals were shipped off to concentration camps. During its crackdown the Nazi regime also began 100,000 legal proceedings against homosexuals.

After the war, 44,231 homosexuals were prosecuted in what was then West Germany.

Legal discrimination of homosexuals was outlawed in 1994, four years after unification. East Germany had abolished its anti-gay legislation in 1968.

Tours in Berlin, also on this issue: here.

About Me and This Blog

2007-04-29T19:57:00.000+01:00

Finally, I came around into writing this, thanks to the advice of a friend. So, what is this blog all about?

Each individual is like an ice-cream parlour, with many flavours: I am a postgraduate student and a lecturer in Berlin (Germany). But I am also a former Google Answers Researcher (you can see my answers here). Google Answers used to be a main source of income for me, and was also one of the reasons I have started with My Eyes Online: I have found interesting sites, which I thought are worth mentioning, even if they are not relevant to my answer. Later on, I have also used it to wrote about my experiences as a budget traveller; a little about life in Berlin; and other things that happen to me, or that I find interesting.

After Google Answers shut down (in December 2006), my main source of income (besides a meagre stipend) has become AdSense.

Therefore, I decided to add some blogs about topics I am interested in: distance education, citiznship and immigration and dispensing advice on governmental/administrative help (tax, etc).

Fight Your Brethren

2007-04-23T13:41:00.000+01:00

Passerby News reported on violent fights between Buddhist monks in Cambodia. This pehnomenon, of people who are supposed to be on the same side, but are fighting violently, is not new.

European history is full of blood shed by one religious fraction against members of the same religion. . This existed even in early Christianity. The Albigensian Crusade of 1208 is a first crusade, which was basically aimed at fellow Christians (don't worry, Jews have suffered too, as they always have during crusades).

In world history, Slave trade relied on the fact that some clerics allowed Jihad against Muslims:

[...], some Muslim leaders have justified Jihad (holy war) against Muslims that were perceived as "heathen" (basically, Muslims are not to wage war against another Muslim) and as the norm of the time was, captives were enslaved.

Interestingly, many of the pictures I found online are of Buddhist monks fighting each other, something that might contradict with the Western layman's notion of Buddihists as peace lovers (something that has to do with post-1960s images and ideas than with actual historical facts).

Korea: Fighting at the Chogye Sah Temple, Seoul
(More about temple violence in Korea:
Monks charged over temple violence )

Sri Lanka

The Capitalist City Lights, The Communist Interrogation Room

2007-04-22T12:31:00.000+01:00

The Capitalist City Lights, The Communist Interrogation Room: Symbolic Space and Landscape in “The Lives of Others” (Das Leben der Anderen)

The 2006 German production of “The Lives of Others” (Das Leben der Anderen) has recently won the Academy Award (Oscar) for Best Foreign Language Film. It is, indeed, a very good film and one of the first German feature films to discuss the impact of the dictatorship in East Germany, if possible not through nostalgic or humourist lenses.

The film tells the story of a Stasi officer sent to monitor the lives of two intellectuals: a beautiful actress and her partner, a celebrated playwright. He gradually gets more and more involved in their lives, which naturally brings about a dramatic ending.

Apart from raving reviews, the film has also raised some questions in German publicity about the role of the Stasi in public (and private) lives in the German Democratic Republic (GDR), and whether or not East Germany was indeed a “Stasiland”, where everybody reported everyone. This is in fact one of the few points of critique expressed by some former East Germans: the GDR, they say, was not only a police-state; and the film’s depiction of the country as such is inaccurate. Besides, the filmmaker is a Wessie, a West German, and as everybody knows, dirty laundry is to be washed at home. It is also possible that this uneasiness of some old comrades and Party ex-cadre derives from the fact that both the director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck and the main actor, Ulrich Mühe, have decided to name names in the DVD commentary. Henckel von Donnersmarck claimed that Gregor Gysi – a politician for the formerly-communist party and a lawyer of many East German dissidents – was an IM, an Inoffizieller Mitarbeiter (informal worker) of the Stasi. Gysi denied and threatened to sue, if the version will not be retracted, which it has.

Mühe decided to go closer to home with his allegations. Mühe is himself formerly East German, and his second wife was another East German actress, Jenny Gröllmann. In interviews around the German release, Mühe claimed that Gröllmann was an IM. Gröllmann denied ever cooperating knowingly with the Stasi. She took Mühe to court, and the fact that she was dying of breast cancer at the time did not exactly add to his positive public image.

These stories notwithstanding, it is a powerful film, even if it sometimes tends to be a little melodramatic. One of its strengths is the usage of original locations, and the way landscapes and environment are depicted in the film.

Dim East
Most of the film has a very distinctive feeling to it: a dark one. The film opens with an interrogation scene, followed by other scenes lit by artificial lights. It’s an indoor film, with very few outdoor scenes in general; however, even those scenes are usually dark, with grey weather and grey people. The Lives of Others is literally film noire.

Naturally, there was light and colour in the German Democratic Republic. The East Berlin shared (and still shares) the same sky as the western counterpart. People went to the beach (in fact, there was a flourishing nudist culture in East Germany), to street fairs and to the park.

The dim artificial light and the grey landscape seem to be part of an intentional attempt to convey a message about the GDR and to let the user feel trapped in the East German reality. However, it is also a question of collective memory. Almost any West German who had visited or drove through the GDR claims that they remember East Germany as a grey country, with a distinctive smell. It could be related to the fear that one had when driving through the GDR, not to be arrested by the Vopo (the Volkspolizei, East German police); it could be that these were the most common descriptions, and people just accepted them (if you are familiar with suggestive psychology, e.g. writing RED and asking people what colour it is). It can be also grounded in reality: the smell was because most people heated with coal, and not with gas, as in the west; the dark, grey atmosphere, because of the relative lack of neon lights from advertisements and other ways commercialism shapes the public sphere. In any case, this was the image of East Berlin in West German eyes, and whether Henckel von Donnersmarck made a full conscious choice to display the GDR as such, or whether it had to do with his West German upbringing, the contrast between the lights of the KuDamm, the West Berlin showcase presented for a glimpse when the uncle calls and the dark street in Friedrichshain is evident.

You Are Where You Live In
In addition, the film also uses architectural forms as part of its expression of the contrast between East and West, between the Stasi and the intellectuals, and between freedom and oppression.

Again, Henckel von Donnersmarck’s (or, in general, West German) attitudes towards communist architecture play a role here. Georg Dreyman and his girlfriend, Christa-Maria Sieland, live in a beautiful Stalinbau. These houses were built in the 1950s, at the height of idealism and as part of the plan to reconstruct East Berlin, which has been badly damaged during the Second World War. They were supposed to be a socialist flagship: luxury apartments for all, workers, intellectuals and functionaries alike. The wedding-cake style Stalinbau buildings are today listed and are considered (rightfully so) architectural gems of the socialist classicist realism style. The intellectuals live in what is considered – also today – as an aesthetic building.

What is even more interesting, is that the interiors of Christa-Maria and Georg’s apartment are not interiors of these classical Stalinist buildings, but of old building, Albau houses. These are considered today to be more romantic and aesthetic than new buildings, with their high ceilings (which are sometimes so high that you can’t reach them to hang a lamp, which makes Ikea’s standing lamps especially popular among young romantic students living in those Albau buildings), neo-classical decorations and bourgeoisie style. In other words, the director created a optimal aesthetic world for his intellectuals.

Stasi Haupmann (Captain) Gerd Wiesler lives in a totally different world. His world is not of the idealistic socialist architecture of the early GDR; he lives in a Plattenbau, a prefab concrete high-rise, where hundreds of families live. Such buildings have been built since the 1960s all over the GDR and East Berlin: it was a cheap solution for those East Germans who did not want to live in Henckel von Donnersmarck’s romantic idyll of outhouses and coal heating, and surprisingly enough preferred lifts, central heating, indoor plumbing and garbage disposal units in each apartment/floor (a novelty at the time, now obsolete in most houses, with the separation of rubbish). Unlike similar state housing estates in West Berlin (Kottbusser Tor, Gropiusstadt or Märkische Viertel), the Plattenbau areas were not intended to host socially weak population, and people who live there, or have lived there, are your Average Joes, from university professors to the cleaners of their offices. This could be part of the reason why Henckel von Donnersmarck chose to put Wiesler in such a building. However, the West German image of the Plattenbau as the anonymous, ugly, hell-on-earth, also plays a part here. Wiesler lives in a small, ugly, apartment, which is empty of anything “intellectual”, creative or personal, a complete contrast to Dreyman’s apartment.

For those of you who are interested in visiting these and other types of buildings (as well as to hear more about the historical context of the film), let me recommend a tour through communist Berlin.

In other words, in “The Lives of Others”, you are the place in which you live. You are shaped by your environment, by the anonymous concrete slab or by the warm old building; by the height of socialist idealism or by the hard ground of the dictatorial realities of the 1970s.

How to get from New York to Berlin

2007-04-20T10:50:00.000+01:00

According to Google Maps:

Get to stage 24 here.

Viciously Funny

2007-04-19T19:38:00.000+01:00

Who said that Germans have no sense of humour?

A Huge List of Job Sites for Freelancers

2007-04-18T14:13:00.000+01:00

Freelance Switch just published The Monster List of Freelancing Job Sites.

This is a wonderful list, and it is also well-organised. Here are several further places where jobs might be available:

Smarter Work could be added to the list of Job Bidding sites

You can also try Google Base

Where to Watch German TV Online

2007-03-26T10:58:00.000+01:00

Onetipaday has published a list of sites, where you can watch TV online, mostly for free.

There are several more places, for those who are interested in German TV.

3Sat Vivo - short videos, no streaming

Tagesschuau - watch the ARD news in streaming

Lindenstrasse - watch the long-running soap online.

Deutsche Welle - a foreign office feel-good TV, with English too

N-TV - news

Phoenix - several programmes on Pheonix

ARTE - several shows

ZDF - videos from the second channel

1-2-3.de - live streaming of an interactive auctions channel (a-la eBay)

9Live - you have to be really bored and miserable to watch this crap

TV.B - Berlin's commercial local TV station

Some really weird TV channels here: http://www.tevootv.com/ and here: http://wwitv.com/portal.htm

From Onetipaday, those TV/video sites, which are relevant for Germany, are:

Sites:
Channelsurfer - amazing community site. You can also upload.

Tape It Off The Internet - just what the name says

http://onlygreatstuff.blogspot.com/ - a very good blog

Organised Directories
By "organised directories" I mean places, where you can browse into your favourite show(s) and find links to online broadcasts of that show.

All UC - directory which works like a forum, and is updated more often than not.

TV Links - a very comprehensive directory

Streamick - another large directory

http://tv-video.net/

TeeVee

Vidlist - including movies

QuickSilverScreen - a list, regularly updated with an RSS option

WeeTeeVee - most of the rest.

Sick Eric
http://www.sickeric.co.uk/ (please note, that probably due to the success of sickeric.co.uk, there is a site calling itself sickeric.com, which is just an adsense trap).

VeniVideoVici
http://www.venivideovici.com/ - some real gems.

PeekVID - Asian slant and anime.

Search Engines:

DVD Cosmos - a search engine of TV/anime/movies online. Doesn't store anything itself.

Naturally, you can also try your luck at Google Video or Watchmojo.com

Update (April 19):
http://www.dailyiptv.com/news/100-best-internet-tv-channels-041807/ provides a list of TV channels that provide something online; the disadvantages are that it is for Americans (=many shows unaccessible for Europeans, even if you pay); a lot requires subscription (=not free); and a lot is only promotional clips from the actual show, but still, a good source.

Great Gmail add-ons, tricks etc.

2007-03-22T12:29:00.000+01:00

Makeuseof posted a great list of more than 30 Gmail tools, add-ons, hacks and tricks : here.

Science v. Faith

2007-03-20T13:22:00.000+01:00

Naturally, the issue of science and faith is a complex one, as could be seen in many analyses by scholars like William Bainbridge.

However, you can also fool around a little:

http://www.wellingtongrey.net/miscellanea/archive/2007-01-15%20--%20science%20vs%20faith.html

52 money hacks - one for each week!

2007-02-23T12:24:00.000+01:00

Moneychamp has a wonderful article, full of 52 advices on saving a little, while not living like a dog. Some are a bit exclusively "American", but those who live elsewhere can get the drift and apply the advice, amended, to their lives.

The link? here.

Fundamentalism to the word

2007-02-22T13:45:00.000+01:00

Fundamentalists are those who tend to follow the Bible to (what they consider) the word.

Well, what if we did follow the Bible? Unixgirl has several questions:

a) When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing
odour for the Lord (Lev. 1:9). The problem is my neighbours. They
claim the odour is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?

b) I would like to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus
21:7. In this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?

c) I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is
in her period of menstrual uncleanliness (Lev. 15:19-24). The problem is,
how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offence.

d) Lev. 25:44 states that I may indeed possess slaves, both male and
female, provided they are purchased from neighbouring nations.
A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not
Canadians. Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?

e) I have a neighbour who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2
clearly states he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill
him myself?

f) A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an
abomination (Lev. 11:10), it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I
don't agree. Can you settle this?

g) Lev. 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a
defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my
vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle room here?

h) Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair
around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden
by Lev.19:27. How should they die?

i) I know from Lev. 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me
unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?

j) My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev. 19:19 by planting two
different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments
made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend).
He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that
we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone
them? (Lev.24:10-16) Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private
family affair like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws?
(Lev. 20:14)

Moscow in Berlin

2007-02-21T14:09:00.000+01:00

They are shooting the third Bourne movie, "Bourne Ultimatum" in Berlin, making it look a little like Moscow. About a week ago, they were shooting in our area (now I understand that they are shooting near Bahnhof Lichtenberg), and Berlin is supposed to be Moscow. There was even a shooting scene on the roof of the building across the road and we were all very excited, even though we haven't seen Matt Damon.

All of this actually makes sense: before the fall of communist East Germany, the name of our place was Leninplatz (Lenin Place), and you've seen Good Bye! Lenin, you must remember the scene where they take the large Lenin Bust by helicopter, that was "our" Lenin.

Our neighbourhood supermarket as a Russian one...

Scam the Scums - Nigerian Doing the Dead Parrot

2007-02-20T17:17:00.000+01:00

If you're interested in those working against the scammers, check out:

Has the NIGERIAN LETTER SCAM finally run its course,or still making milliions?
http://answers.google.com/answers/main?cmd=threadview&id=119015

Tzomet Volkan / Volcano Junction

2007-02-07T18:01:00.000+01:00

I happened to watch Tzomet Volkan lately. The plot of this Israeli film takes place in the days before the 1973 "Yom Kippur" War and attempts to portray a group of 5-6 young people in a small workers' town in this period. Four of them are members of a band, which tries to break through and leave the small town. The fifth, a female journalist wannabe, wants to leave to pursue a journalist career in the big city. A sixth main figure is a professional football (soccer) player, who might be bought by FC Ajax Amsterdam.

In this, this film is no different from many "small town youth" films around the world, especially Hollywood ones depicting a small Bruce-Springsteen like town, where the main characters dream of a better future.

However, this film is also disappointing, because it wouldn't even pass as such a manipulative Hollywood film - on the one hand, it is supposed to be a drama. The viewer knows something that most characters are oblivient of: a horrible war is about to break. One that has changed the Israeli society and torn it from within. I say that "most characters" know nothing, because the journalist-wannabe girl is so prophetic it could make you chill, if you'd met someone like that in real life. Unfortunately, there weren't people like that. Not many, in any case.

The rest are living in the bliss of ignorance. They deal with their plans to get the world with their band, football or whatever. And naturally, they fall, being so close to the sun. And here is the second point that distiguishes it from a good film, but also from a manipulative popular Hollywoodian film: it is neither a comedy, nor a drama; and the ending, despite the obvious destruction, has a very tepid feeling to it.

Signs that your empire is crumbling

2007-02-05T13:02:00.000+01:00

Prof. David Michael Green published recently a list of 36 signs that your empire (he means the US, not my empire...) is crumbling. You may not agree with some, but it is entertaining read, and a sure forwarded email for future to come, probably without crediting poor Green...

The Unfree Town of Christiania

2007-01-23T13:27:00.000+01:00

The Unfree Town of Christiania, or: What Happens When a Movement Gets Its Way

Freetown Christiania , (“Fristaden Christiania” or “The Free Christiania” - Det fri Christiania, in Danish) in Copenhagen has a very interesting history. Like many other areas adjacent to the royal palace, it was a military barracks – among other things used (between 1946 and 1950) to punish those accused of collaboration with the Nazis. The Danish Navy, however, decided in the late 1960s and early 1970s to shut down some of its bases and the compound remained deserted. In 1971, a group of five people squat the forsaken base, with the symbolic purpose to use the space as a “free” town, independent from Copenhagen and its rules, free from the conventions of the Danish society. The new inhabitants hailed an anti-consumerist ideology, free usage of drugs, ban on violence and stealing and so on. Their mission statement read “"The objective of Christiania is to create a self-governing society whereby each and every individual holds themselves responsible over the wellbeing of the entire community. Our society is to be economically self-sustaining and, as such, our aspiration is to be steadfast in our conviction that psychological and physical destitution can be averted." The hippy movement has found its neighbourhood in Copenhagen, where some 850 people want to live like in Hans-Christian Andersen fairy tales: free and happy ever after.

Part of the protest was because of housing shortage, a common problem in the European cities since the 1960s, which encouraged the development of the squatter movement in several areas, including Berlin, London and Amsterdam. The beginning, nevertheless, was all but easy.

Conflicts with the Government
Like most revolts of the counter-cultural movements, it encountered bureaucratic and ideological opposition and the consequential hardships. Perhaps it would be more appropriate to state, that the main ideological rival was, in fact, the Danish bureaucracy. Squatting is illegal, and squatting to state property, deserted military barracks, is of no exception. On the other hand, the squatters were linked with several movements and ideologies, which found their circle of sympathisers beyond the small group of “pioneers”. The area is still owned by the Danish Ministry of Defence, and Christiania reached an agreement with the ministry in 1995, regarding its status.

Take for example their insistence on an “auto-free” zone. The authorities opposed the idea, claiming that the ways to Christiania must remain open, for fire safety reasons. Inhabitants claimed that they have already arranged means of rescue with the fire department, and that the authorities really want the area open, because they want to get the police in the “Freetown”, which was also free of police presence. Roadblocks were constantly removed by the authorities and restored by the Christianites.

Another issue (and some libertarian anarchists would say: the main issue) was taxes. The inhabitants of Christiania, unlike most Danes, refused to pay municipality taxes. According to their own narrative, they are not part of the Copenhagen district of Christianshavn, but a free-town. However, starting 1994 they “succumbed” to the municipality’s demands and began to pay their taxes.

At least legally, one should ask for building permits before building or reconstructing. This, naturally, hasn’t always happened in Christiania. Some of the buildings or shacks have been built in a nature-preserved area, and the currently right-wing government in Denmark has announced that it would attempt to demolish those, a decision that caused natural resistance in Christiania.

Naturally, a main point of conflict was drugs. Christianites supported the free use of drugs, a policy which is prohibited in Denmark, and not surprisingly, caused many conflicts with the police.

The current Danish government (since 2001) is especially hostile towards Christiania and decided in 2004 to stop treating the squatters as a collective, and treat them as individual criminals. Police enhanced its activities in the neighbourhood, which causes resistance among the inhabitants. The government proposed in January 2006, that Christiania’s houses would become private property, a proposal which was rejected by the collective. Just recently, one of the real-estate companies involved in the plan has come out with a new plan that might preserve the uniqueness of the neighbourhood: building “experimental rental apartments and homes in line with Christiania's own laws”. The company has “has offered to buy all the building grounds at Christiania with the exception of Røde Sols Plads (Red Suns' Square), amounting to 12,000 sqm of residential rentals. The state will convert Røde Sols Plads into 7400 sqm of rental and co-op residential buildings.” The residents insist that no deal has been reached with the government, but some have expressed support of this new plan. The plan would in fact legalise Christiania, while maintaining some of its original features. However, “Christiania as a closed-membership club is done. In the future anyone will have the possibility of finding an apartment there” [Source: Copenhagen Post - “Saving Christiania: One of Denmark's most popular tourist sites may be saved by investors from unwanted state intervention“ January 9, 2007]

In other words, paradoxically, the right-wing hostile government is the one, which would legalise Christiania through these deals, and reach an agreement with its current inhabitants. Sort of Nixon paradox , only with a social movement.

Internal Conflicts in a Consensus-Based Community

Problems also arose from within: drugs, violence and controversies among the inhabitants, not all adhere to the same line of thought and not all “agree to disagree”. Decisions must be accepted in consensus, which means that many conflicts in the neighbourhood remain unsolved. The open sale of soft drugs (until January 2004, when this was ceased by a police raid) was at the centre of controversy not only with the government, but also caused internal conflicts.

Hard drugs also stood at the centre of controversy, as several inhabitants died of overdose and several spots, especially a building called “Arc of Peace”, were the centre of junky activity. In Winter 1979, inhabitants placed a siege on “The Arc of Peace”, to drive hard-drug dealers out of the neighbourhood. Christianites claim success in eliminating hard drugs in the area, and the event was mythologised by the movement, part of the neighbourhood’s founding myth of independence from the authorities on one hand (the police, after “betraying” the Christianites previously on the matter, was not let in), and lifestyle according to an internal set of rules on the other.

There have been several other violent internal conflicts in Christiania, where the inhabitants attempted to keep their own internal rules and spirit, without involving the authorities. In 1984, a growing problem was violent biker gangs that also tried to control the soft-drug market (which was, as mentioned before, still active until 2004). The violent conflict between the “veterans” and the newcomer bikers culminated in a murder; soon afterwards community meetings decided that the bikers must remain outside.

Drug related violence did not cease after the closure of the official market in 2004. In April 2005 conflicts between rival pusher organisations (a Christianite one and one from Copenhagen) escalated into full scale violence: On April 23rd, Christianites pushers opened fire at the Copenhagen drug-dealer, who came to their turf; On April 24th, his gang returned fire, killing one Christianite and injuring three more.

Aging Population, Unchanging Values?

Some things, by the way, are considered way more harmful than drug-dealers by the Christianites. As Wikipedia reports of a TV show placing a stand in Christiania: “The journalist was violently threatened to make himself scarce. Other residents, however, took the time to peacefully explain Christiania building rules. Later, journalists set up a stall attempting to sell 'non-politically correct' products such as Coca-Cola and Israeli oranges, arguing this was no worse than selling cannabis to minors. “

An interesting example of the change in Christiania’s original population was the “baby boom” it experienced in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The young squatter couples, who decided to have children have apparently changed their priorities and with it, also pressed for more infrastructure suitable for children. The baby boom was not popular on all fronts, as some old-timers resented the fact that instead of “freedom”, babies now demanded new types of commitment from the community (see: Kjaergaard, K. “Babyboom in Christiania”, Sygeplejersken, March 21, 1990, 90 (12) p. 8).

Another might be the issue of Christiania being an auto-free zone, a decision that hasn’t changed, despite the fact that some elderly or handicapped inhabitants might require now more mobility than in their youthful biking days. In fact, one in eight Christianites owns a vehicle (quite a lot, if you consider that this statistics include minors and others who cannot drive anyways). There is only one parking space in the compound, which can host 14 cars, 10% of the cars owned by Christianites (who park outside the neighbourhood, in Copenhagen). Despite the requests by Copenhagen, Christianites have so far declined to make room for further parking spaces within their neighbourhood. Christiania, by the way, used to run a nationally famous bike fabric, which is now ran more efficiently from outside the small “free town”, and like in ordinarily capitalistic business fashion.

The aging citizens also face “clash of cultures” with other countercultures. For example, between 2002 and 2003, there has been tension between Christianites and a group of artists who actually came to the neighbourhood to support them, but, according to Wikipedia, brought complaints from neighbours who “disliked Dunst's loud parties, their contemporary electro-punk style music being described as techno”

The Unfree Town of Christiania?

Did the movement for Christiania succeed? Between 1971 and 2007, there is a continuous settlement of a collective in the town, with relatively free usage of drugs and free lifestyle. If this is an indicator for a squatters’ movement success, then Christiania is a success – despite its constant clashes with the government, and despite the fact that Christiania keeps fighting for breath, it is still alive.

On the other hand, its “free” lifestyle came with a price. Christiania is full of commercialisation in every corner: from the heavy smell of dope everywhere, suggesting that some drug dealer is making nice profits, to the stands selling all kinds of semi-Hippie trash made in China or India for the tourists: batik dresses, Bob Markey shirts, plastic or glass bongs. Some sweatshop workers in China or Vietnam are probably really proud of those Danish freedom fighters. Bored and doped Lebanese teenagers are walking between the stands, trying to push drugs, not looking very hippie. Market economy has already digested Christiania, despite the protests of its veteran inhabitants.

As the TV article mentioned before suggests, in order to get into the exclusive Christiania club, you’ve got to know people in it. Just like in the “real” world, the Christianites have developed their own internal rules – members of the community are not just “free” to do what they want, and should conform to certain ideals and moral conduct. According to the Christiania moral code, it seems, buying oranges made in Israel is much worse than buying bongs made in China. In general, in order to succeed, countercultural movements, too, have to develop their own rules of membership in the sub-group and conduct in it, and one would be a fool to think that Christiania would be different. It could be only assumed, that after February 1st, when Christianites decide whether to accept or reject the government's offer, new tensions and internal rules would emerge.

One should not however dismiss the success of the Christianites in receiving legitimacy from wider groups in the public, passing on their political message and in giving voice to a counterculture and to subgroups that have been dismissed in Denmark beforehand.

Copenhagen on a Shoestring

2006-12-27T22:10:00.000+01:00

A recent survey found that the Danes are the happiest nation on earth. No wonder. The rest of the world cannot afford Copenhagen. Or could it?

Copenhagen (and Scandinavia in general) is notoriously expensive. When we went there, we were ready to open our savings account in order to get a can of soda. However, we found out that budget travelers can also enjoy Copenhagen.

Our first stop on our way to Copenhagen was useit.dk UseIt is a service offered by the Danish Tourism Agency, which basically gives you many tips on visiting Copenhagen without selling your kidney first to finance it.

We found accommodation through the Danish Bed & Breakfast. The B&B we stayed at (actually, only bed – you fetch your own breakfast) belongs to Ulla Jargil. Ms. Jargil also lives on the second floor, while the third is dedicated to guests (she has 2 guest rooms). You are sharing the bathroom and the kitchenette, and you have very narrow stairs to climb all the way to the third floor. These are the disadvantages. Despite sharing the bathroom and kitchenette we enjoyed full privacy, and Ms. Jargil is very friendly and would assist you around town (she leaves brochures in the room). Some people have a problem to sleep at somebody else’s house; others may have problem sharing a bathroom. While I can relate to the latter, staying in a house is much better than staying in a lousy motel, and since one of our colleagues stayed at a cheap motel we know that he even paid more.

We chose Ms. Jargil’s holiday apartment, because on the map it looked close to the university (which is where we had to work). However, be careful about that if you come to the university, as it is spread all over town and some faculties are relatively far away. In our case, the B&B also proved good despite the fact that it is not located in the old town – which is something you should know: if you don’t mind walking a little (and Copenhagen is the perfect place for strolling) and unless the weather is horrible, you don’t have to rent an apartment at the centre of town, in 15 minutes walk (and less with public transportation) you’d be there. I’ll get later to more strolling tips.

Getting to the city from the Kastrup Airport also proved pretty easy. First of all, exchange to Kroner in the airport – there are several bank counters in one of the terminals (and it is later much more expensive to exchange in the town). There is also a train going directly from the airport to the central train station in Copenhagen, so taxis are a waste of time; please note though, that the trains put their final destination (which is usually after Copenhagen) and you should be aware where they are going.

In general, public transportation is very good and affordable. There is a bike service for free, where you can rent bikes all over town. The bikes I’ve seen were not in the best shape (apparently, you can’t get free lunches), but it’s still worth a try if you’re a biker and have no children around.

Taking children along is not a problem (not with the B&B we were at, and not in general) – the Danes are very child-friendly, and would coo, smile and help you around. They do mind noise in general, but would smile when they see that it comes from children. The city itself has many attractions for children, not only the famous Tivoli (in which we haven’t been, because we’ve been there in the only month Tivoli takes off!). Just an example: the National Museum (Nationalmuseet), which is recommended in any case, has a lovely children museum, where kids can play and have a learning experience at the same time. The only thing that you might be missing is regular variety of mashed food jars and formula milk (if you’re not breastfeeding) – there’s very little offering at a normal supermarket (I asked someone and she said that most Danish parents make their own mashed-food mixtures; and that breast feeding is a big issue – if someone cannot, she may go to the chemist and get it as part of her medical insurance). Nappy changing facilities are available everywhere, but especially mind the public libraries, where you can find a children’s reading corner with toys (and also books in English, though most books are naturally in Danish). Not only that they have neat changing facilities, but in some libraries they have a librarian who’d mind the child for a while, to let you time to read.

Public libraries also have Internet access, and they’d let you use the first 15 minutes for free (which is usually enough for a quick email check and reading this article); and everything is available in English, even if they’d rather speak Danish. UseIt also say that they have free Internet at their offices – haven’t checked it. As Internet-addicted as I am, there is so much to do in Copenhagen you’d hardly notice your floating email box.

Basically, Copenhagen has several main boroughs, each with its own unique character. There’s the city centre, where you can find small enchanting streets and magnificent rococo to modern architecture, including the Celebration Hall of the University (on Frue Plads), which is especially recommended visit. Then, you have neighbourhoods around the city centre, more or less similar to it - but with more gardens, residential areas, etc. Across the bridges southwards or northwards you find slightly different, a bit seedier neighbourhoods, where you’d find many immigrants and their restaurants.

The University of Copenhagen itself is spread all over town, and if you have meetings or conferences there, make sure that you know where it will take place – although the city makes fun walking and has great public transportation, it is still advisable not to stay at the other end of the town. Humanities and parts of Social Sciences, for example, are in Islands Brygge, near Amager (one of the sites on the Internet concludes only “not the place to go, unless you’re looking for a fight”, regarding Amager, but I’ve been there and except for being very cheap in comparison to Copenhagen and totally non-trendy, I didn’t feel anything threatening in particular. I was not involved in any major fights). Islands Brygge is on the south part of the harbour, and it is full of interesting architecture.

The only reason I think that you may not visit Amager or Islands Brygge is not that they’re not interesting, but that there’s much to see in all quarters, including an almost compulsory visit to the Little Mermaid (which is indeed very small), the changing of the guards at the palace and other touristy stuff. UseIt and other guides to Denmark are full with advices what to see and what to miss; and the only thing I could say is that many museums are either for free or have a students’ discount; many parks are for free; and other sites, like the marvelous City Hall are also for free (the university also gave us a wonderful lunch there, in a hall used by the royal family). You will spend of course, on Tivoli and other interesting sites that cost money; and on food.

However, also here, the rumours on “expensive Denmark” are a bit farfetched. Of course, you could dine splendidly for €300 a person, but you don’t have to. There’s plenty of affordable good food and you don’t have to stuff your face at the nearest McDonalds/KFC/whatever (this is really weird and I could never understand tourists who’d do that, unless the food in that country is absolutely horrendous. The whole point of travelling is trying local stuff, right?).

In the fast food category, alongside the McFood chains, you also have hotdogs (a local variety which is very popular in Denmark, haven’t tried though, because I am more of a cow person when it comes to food). You can also buy affordable sandwiches with wonderful combinations in many shops, usually they are marked as “Smørrebrød”, despite the fact that the term “Smørrebrød” actually refers to open sandwiches buffet, not to any sandwich.

Buffet is in general a good possibility to enjoy a meal without digging into your savings account. Almost every restaurant, certainly in the city center, offers an “eat as much as you can” buffet for a fixed price. We went to a pizza place once, and once to a Chinese place, both were OK but nothing I’d write home about. We ate one evening at a very good fusion café, called “Picknick”, which offers fusion between Kurdish and Danish food for friendly prices. It is somewhere near Fælledvej (maybe at the end of it? I just remember it was close to the Police Historical Museum, which is there), although unfortunately I don’t have the full address.

One thing you should definitely not miss – and is also not expensive, is the Danish bakeries. I come from Germany, so I thought that I can’t be taught about cool bakeries. Wrong. On the one hand, the Danes are the Japanese of Europe. Their baked goods and sandwiches are very aesthetic and innovative. On the other, they are not the Japanese of Europe, because they have those wonderful baked goods, so sweet and interesting. Not only the “Danish” pastry. I ate, for example, something that is called “Potatosomething” (Idon’t understand Danish, the word Kartoffel was there), which turned out to be a thin bun filled with sweet pudding and covered with “potato” pattern from Marzipan. One of the most fabulous bakeries I’ve found is Lagkagehuset, near the Christianhavn metro station. Just sit there, drink your coffee and eat something amazing, while looking at the swans in the canal. That’s life!

Another option, especially if you live in an apartment, like we did, is to buy something in cheap supermarkets and cook it yourself. There are several cheap supermarkets with interesting local variety of food, like Netto or Fakta. You can then try the local variety and eat according to your own diet. In any case, if you want to take some souvenirs home, you can buy Danish stuff at those supermarkets, including lots of licorice (the Danes are big on licorice – they even have several types of licorice ice cream treats!), Danish or Swedish chocolate (which is very good), etc.

Copenhagen, to sum up, is a wonderful city, and even if it is not that cheap, it also doesn’t deserve its horrible reputation. Go ahead with your kidneys intact, you won’t have to sell them.

How Extreme Groups Use P2P to Spread Their Ideology

2006-12-27T21:42:00.000+01:00

Internet was long hailed as the place, where alternative views could be heard and anyone, from those who love sheep (not platonically) to those who believe in the annihilation of the whole human race, could find a place to post their opinions. This is correct to a certain point: mainstream media still casts a shadow on alternative media – Google results show outlets like BBC or CNN way above some fringe newsletter. Moreover, as surfers from certain countries know, the Internet is not omnipotent – and prohibited propaganda sites are blocked. For example, surfers for Germany would get different results when they search for the Nazi term “stormfront” on Google.de and on Google.com; or would not be able to bid on “constitutionally prohibited” items on the German eBay. The intention of these German policies is to constrain the spread of extreme-right propaganda in the country, is the state views it is Verfassungswidrig – against the constitution.

However, despite the best efforts of these governments, information finds its ways to adherents and those vulnerable for recruitment. One of the ways Neo-Nazis manage to spread their propaganda is P2P networks. P2P networks and web 2.0 sites like YouTube are both useful in spreading non-mainstream propaganda. Films discussing conspiracy theories regarding the events of September 11, 2001, have been spread mostly through web 2.0 video sites and P2P networks. You can also find Nazi propaganda on YouTube.

On neo-Nazi sites, one could find e-Donkey-2000 P2P network links to Nazi and Neo-Nazi propaganda films as well as other films about Nazism, the Second World War and race domination. In one of them, which is managed in the form of a forum, the managers use the section “Propaganda” to discuss, analyse and give ED2K links to films such as “Saving Private Ryan” or “NAPOLA” – these are deemed “Allied Propaganda”.

In other sites dedicated to sharing links to file sharing networks, neo-Nazis and extreme-right activists post links to films supporting their ideology, under the auspices of “Documentaries”. A naive teenager looking for political or social documentaries would download it and be exposed to the ideology; similarly to the spread of fascist rock-music in secondary school yards, as exposed by the German media. Games, movies and other pieces of media, which seem harmless are disguised through these networks, and reach those in Germany and other countries, where the law prohibits the free distribution of such media.

Opponents of P2P and file-sharing would probably deduct from this activity that “P2P leads to Nazism” (just as smoking pot leads you to a life of crime). Proponents of P2P would claim that by illegalizing file-sharing, users find themselves with strange and dangerous bedfellows, whom they wouldn’t have met in a legal system. One conclusion that could be drawn from this issue is that technology would always find ways to succumb censorship, and that governments might think of other ways to deter their most vulnerable members of becoming Nazis.

10 things that annoy me in Germany

2006-12-24T20:48:00.000+01:00

Once a year, I am also allowed to complain. So here is a list of ten things that annoy me in Germany. Naturally, they are generalisations. But let me get the steam out:

1. They don’t like children. Germans often complain that they don’t have enough children (population growth rate is negative). On the other hand, when it comes to the point of social friendliness towards children – I am talking about smiling towards a baby instead of being annoyed of her being, well, a baby (making noises, putting things she shouldn’t in her mouth to “test” them) – you see that many Germans fail the test. Social policies are indeed very baby-friendly; but the message a woman gets if she has one, is that she should stay at home, be a good German mother, and hide that thing from the public, not get back to work. Let’s put it like that: there are more aisles for pets in the supermarkets than there are for babies. These are the creatures really adored by the Germans, who’d probably call the police if they see a maltreated dog, but couldn’t give a toss about the well-being of the child next door.

2. They smoke, and still think it is somehow cool and related to their civil rights to poison everybody around them. Germany is behind most of the civilised world in anti-smoking laws. Get that: they argue whether to prohibit by law smoking in hospitals and schools. Yes, I am not talking about restaurants, they are so far from that. If you mention that to a German, they’d say that banning smoking would violate the rights of those poor smokers to be able to go out and have a cig. What about my rights? My child’s rights? The waiter’s and the barman’s? Do they all have to suffer of passive smoking? Apparently.

3. Passport-Photos are part of every job application. The Germans probably don’t get what’s wrong with that. I have no idea what is the source of this tradition – it is probably something old, because it has been also used in East Germany, not only in West Germany – probably, in the pre-computerised world, to make sure that the person in the job interview and the person on the file are the same people; or to save a pic once the person is admitted – to put on their files. However, it is quite clear what it is used for today: to reject those who look a little too dark-faced.

4. “Perfect German”. In some job applications, they want “perfect German, no accent”. It is well known, that a cleaning lady must have a degree in German literature. Or let’s just say, that if her name is Sulimanğlu, they wouldn’t take her anyway, without inviting her first to an interview to hear what her accent sounds like. Naturally, I have met less assholes when it comes to high-skilled jobs, but this point about “no accent” actually demonstrates that they are basically not open for foreigners when it comes to the job-market. And this is really superb in a globalised world, where high-skilled migrants contribute to the economies of the countries where they live.

5. That they are spoiled. Germans got out to the streets, and toppled Schröder’s government because of social reforms. What were those reforms? The job centre is allowed to check if a candidate is actually looking for a job; they can also refer a candidate to a job outside their field of training, if after a certain period it is clear that he has no prospects of finding a job in that field. Oh, the outrage! How come the rude government actually sends us to work, instead of just paying the dole!

6. This has also happened with the German students. Many students spend their time idly, dragging their studies to the 8th or 9th year. The state governments decided then to install tuition for those dragging their feet. Again, the outrage was horrible. “Installing tuition would harm the opportunities of those potential students from poor families”. Let me tell you something: unfortunately, the rate of students from weak socioeconomic background in Germany is not higher than in tuition-land UK. You first have to reform your ridiculous secondary education system (which routes children as young as 9 years old to a school with no Abitur). This is where those poor fail, not at the university.

7. And if we’re talking about educational system, let me tell you that: officially, according to the Bologna Process, all EU certificates should have equal standing. Not when it comes to Germany, where German certificates worth much more. Peter Grotian, a professor of Political Science at the FUB, recently criticised the fact that the Germans now transform their Diplom-based academic system to a Bachelor-based one, would make everything superficial and inadequate. Right. Because of the so many great German Nobel-Prize winners and social scholars; in comparison with the rest of the stupid world – nobody from the UK has ever won a Nobel Prize or published an important scientific work; and those BA degrees from those superficial universities in Oxbridge, London or Edinburgh put you in much worse standing than a glorious Diplom from the famous university in, say, Bochum.

8. This is because, in general, the Germans think that they have invented the wheel, and the rest of the world is composed of plain retarded nations that lag behind the great German nation. It is not a Nazi thing. At least not directly. But a friend of mine once had this enlightening conversation with a help-desk of Germany’s top Internet providers:

He: I signed up for DSL, but the connection is incredibly slow. It is worse than having a dial-up connection
Helpdesk: Could you please give me an example where this happens? Give me a site.
He: Let’s say, I try to access CNN.com and it happens. Very slow
Helpdesk: CNN? What is it?
He: It is an American news site.
Helpdesk: Oh. In America. It is because they don’t have DSL there yet. It is not like here in Germany.
He: arggghhhh

9. And if we got there, for a relatively modern nation notorious for being efficient to the point that have almost managed to kill all Jews, they are incredibly inefficient. Maybe it is the only thing they really denazified. When I ordered an Internet line, they told me that it would take 3-4 weeks to install it. At that time, it took about 2 days in other countries (now it probably takes two hours). They told me that they have to send my application for a line to Bonn, where someone would authorise that they can lift a finger and create a line… I am kidding you not. This doesn’t only get to Internet. Everywhere the Germans drown you with paperwork. The photocopy machine business in Germany is one of the only ones in constant demand: people need to copy documents the whole time and naturally, nothing could be done online. Now, think about this, add this with their love of foreigners as demonstrated in 3,4,7 and 8, and understand why Germany is the sick man of Europe, economically.

10. That they always complain. See points 1 through 9 to see how I became integrated…

A moment in history, almost 35 years ago

2006-12-14T00:57:00.000+01:00

I like using Pandora (don't tell them I live outside the US...) and I have a Paul Simon station. Funny, I was never a huge Paul Simon fan, but suddenly it hit me that I've become one: that I really like his songs, and that his new album is just as good (cool! Amazon have a clip there!). I actually dragged my blub down to a store and bought it.

And then, I found myself singing "Duncan" to my son. Not exactly the material for children ("couple in the next room/bound to win a prize/they've been going at it all night long/I'm trying to get some sleep/but these motel walls are cheap" - what a scene of adulthood and lonliness in only a few lines!).

This song is almost 35 years old. It is as fresh as it was, even if you don't have any Jesus People (or maybe he meant Children of God?) followers, who'd sleep with you in order to recruit you, not in the numbers that we had in the 1970s, in any case ("A young girl in a parking lot/Was preaching to a crowd/Singing sacred songs and reading/From the Bible/Well, I told her I was lost/And she told me all about the Pentecost/And I seen that girl as the road/To my survival"). The long years of innocence are certainly over.

It might be hard to believe, but when "Duncan" came out, in January 1972, Times magazine had asked:

"Everyone knows what Art Garfunkel has been doing since then: acting in Hollywood (Catch-22, Carnal Knowledge). But what of Paul Simon, the creative half of the team, the composer of Bridge and all those other hits like Sounds of Silence and Mrs. Robinson?"

("Simon Says" Time, January 31, 1972)

Isn't it nice to find such archeological artifacts in the middle of the day? Paul Simon would have probably written a song about that feeling.

Interesearch

2006-12-13T16:40:00.000+01:00

I am pleased to announce that I am now accessible through a webpage, where you can hire me for Internet research and translation assignments:
http://interesearch.googlepages.com

Google Answers and Gender

2006-12-01T11:31:00.000+01:00

When Craig Silverstein from Google answered questions about Google at UNC last autumn, he also answered a question about Google Answers:

Craig said that many of the people on google answers are actually stay-at-home mothers who can make extra money doing research for others.

(originally at tech-recipes)

Here you can see why Google shut down Google Answers. Not because it wasn't a good and helpful service. And not also because it was fee-based, which is what many commentators have suggested - that Yahoo's social network "Yahoo! Answers" site "beat" Google Answers. It is because people in the Googleplex saw the Google Answers Researchers not as the independent contractors and serious Internet researchers that they were, but as a bunch of bored work-at-home soccer moms.

From the Google Answers Researchers I know, about half are male. And from the females, not all have children, and almost none is a classic "work-at-home" mom. Pinkfreud for example, has written in one of her last answers:

Google Answers was my only source of income and very nearly my
only source of human companionship. Because my health is very dodgy, I
cannot work outside my home nor accept jobs with strict deadlines.
Google Answers was my dream job. The dream is over.

However, Google sees them as someone who could be easily dismissed away. They are not serious workers, they are first and foremost moms. I am not saying that Silverstein is a sexist pig. I am sure he doesn't think of himself as one.

However, I am saying that this is how gender stereotypes and positions are reproduced in cyberspace to the point where these genderised positions are actually tagged to people who at all do not belong to that gender (as I asid, many are male, many have no children). These positions and opinion mix gender ("work at home moms") with the real issue - class (how much does Silverstein make; how much do I make; and how much do people with no access at all to Cyberspace make) and culture/education.

Silverstein makes so much because he's a Stanford-educated "White" American male; the "work-at-home mom" makes so little because she's not a Stanford-educated-career-driven-male, she's first of all defined by Silverstein through her motherness. The centre of her life is not Google Answers, it is her children (or it is so in a reality constructed by these gender definitions). And the source of income is insignificant. She can be a Google Answers Researcher; but she could also do any other thing that work-at-home moms do. After all, it is not really of importance what she does. It is of importance what *he* (Silverstein, Brin, whoever, as long as he is not a work-at-home-dad) does. Therefore, Google Answers could be easily shut down. It is a feminine service, not an important one, and the mothers can get back into selling Tupperware or sending cute little emails with many emoticons to their other housewife-friends.

And this is the way it is. Cyberspace and the new Information Technology have not revolutionised gender relations, despite the fact that theoretically, on the Internet, nobody knows that you're a dog. Be a dog, but don't be a bitch - because unless you are career driven maniac who doesn't want a family (which is something most women are not), you cannot stand the hours in the high-tech industry. Even if you do have an engineering degree, which is a question in itself (less women than men study that).

And despite the fact that telework was supposed to provide people with the opportunity to do serious work despite disabilities, it is again pushed to the bottom of the social ladder. Those who telework are being stigmatised as "work-at-home-moms" even if they are providing a service that is unique and valuable as Google Answers, and provide real advice, unlike other similar services.

How Firefox can upgrade your search skills

2006-11-23T21:56:00.000+01:00

Firefox veterans already know the trick and can stop reading now. And before I'll go any further, I'd say that although I use Firefox as my chief browser, I am not one of those fanatics - I don't hate Internet Explorer. In fact, I try most of the time not to hate things, only people, and even then, they really have to piss me off. Bill Gates is not even on my grey list.

After all of that has been cleared, let me tell you why someone serious about researching online should switch to Firefox. Because of its open strucutre, Firefox enables people to do a very specific research, efficiently and in a very short time.

After you have downloaded Firefox, you'd notice a small window, to the right of your address line. This small window has several search engines on it - those on default, if I am not mistaken, are Google, Amazon, IMDB, the English-language Wikipedia and eBay. If you type in a term, and choose the specific search engine, you can search only there. But this is nothing.

You can also change the search engines that appear there and add ones that are important for your efficiency. For example, except for those "regulars" I have also added a map of Berlin (so when I read an article about something that has happened here, I can know where is that street); a German-English dictionary (not to make stupid errors, but we'll get to spell-check later); several libraries and databases I use on regular basis; and several further Wikipedias, in other language. My friend has TV.com as one of her engines - she just cannot stand it, when someone mentions a TV show, not to be able to know immidiately everything about it. There are several specialised databases/search engines out there, including Food Network, Job search engines, academic databases, and much more.

So, how do you add a search engine to your list there? Easily: you go to their list of search engines (this is the advanced version, browse through it) and choose one. You click on it, and it adds it. Next time you open your Firefox, it's there.

Firefox' next feature enables you to mark/highlight specific text with your mouse, and then, using the mouse's right button, to search that text in a specific search engine. This may come handy if you're reading a text, which mentions something you'd like to read further; as a GAR I sometimes can find the answer easily by highliting the words appearing in the question and then looking them up in the right search engine. This feature is called "context search" and you can install it on your Firefox browser here.

Now you'd probably want to Digg this article or write in your blog how wunderbar I am (or not). If you don't want to make some imbarasing speling misstayks, Firefox 2.0 has a spell-checker, which includes several languages - here, you can find additional dictionaries for the languages, in which you write .

Someone has taken Roleplaying too seriously

2006-11-08T13:30:00.000+01:00

This is from the Reno 911 mocumentary, but believe me, such people do exist, I thought of researching role-playing communities (the idea is still there, but I am too involved with other research at the moment). This is hilarious.

Borat v. Reality

2006-11-08T13:26:00.000+01:00

People do know that Borat is a satire, right? I'm not so sure, given this Slate article (interesting reading nevertheless), which discusses Borat's notions about Kazakhstan and the reality of the country.

Wawawiwa!

The Wikipedia Knowledge Dump

2006-11-07T12:09:00.000+01:00

Everything that is collected when even Wikipedia doesn't see it fit to print.

Comfort the Prisoner

2006-11-01T18:10:00.000+01:00

http://comfort-the-prisoner.blogspot.com/

If he'll carry on. it will make interesting reading

Double Sting on Steam

2006-11-01T17:35:00.000+01:00

Steam, for those unacquinted with it, is a "a content delivery, digital rights management, multiplayer and communications service and platform developed by Valve Corporation for digital entertainment. It is currently used to digitally distribute and manage games including Half-Life and Half-Life 2." (Source: Wikipedia)

These systems, as you can guess, are vulnerable to hacking and ID theft. But what happens when a 13 year old tries to steal a user's ID by claiming to be an employee of Valve?

That's right - he gets stung!

Adversiting as History

2006-10-25T16:20:00.000+01:00

In a wonderful article, PC World Techlog discusses A Brief History of Computers, As Seen in Old TV Ads.

This very interesting article features commercials from YouTube (YouTube actually functions here, if I might be a bit academic, as an archive of popular culture), from the beginning of commercial computers.

***Warning: Ideas in Sociology Bellow this Point***
Naturally, ads can teach us a lot about a society. Perhaps, this is another thing lost with globalisation - everybody sees the same Kinder Chocolate kid all over - but it used to be that you could learn about social trends and discourse from advertising. After all, if to follow a Marxian line of thought, advertising is the main medium of capitalist societies.

Google DIY: "Google Co-OP"

2006-10-24T18:08:00.000+01:00

Google Co-Op is a new tool (in Beta) from Google:

"Harness the power of Google search to create a free Custom Search Engine that reflects your knowledge and interests. Specify the websites that you want searched - and integrate the search box and results into your own website."

You can find it here.

Google Direct Answers - a German Experiment

2006-10-22T11:28:00.000+01:00

Following Philipp's post about Google's Direct Answers, and WestofWillamette's "complaint" that he gets an answer in Dutch for a natural language question in English, I decided to try how (and what) works in German.

Philipp's first experiment: Google Q&A. You type in a question and get an answer. For example:

Q: Who is Dumbo?
(A: "DUMBO — ... is an animated feature, produced by Walt Disney and first released on 23 October 1941 by RKO Radio ...
According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dumbo")

I tried "wer ist Dumbo?" (in fact, also "wer ist Karl Marx?") and received no definition from the German Wiki or another type of direct answer, although in Marx's case, the German Wiki was the first result.

Next, Philipp uses the calculator: "How much is 9 times 7"? In German, you get no automated response for a full question, although one must say that if I ask 9*7 I get an answer in German.

The same happens with the currency exchange, which also gives an answer in German if you don't use natural language question:
10 EUR in USD

What’s the time in Chicago?

was Philipp's next question, that this one, too, doesn't receive a straight answer in German. Google (in English) also has a feature that defines terms and words. You can either use the "define:" parameter, or just ask, in natural language, "What is..."

In German, Google responses to define: (not to "definieren") but not to a natural language question. I didn't even try the Google flight feature, and in fact, it doesn't work for me on my "English" Google. The tests directing one to Froogle ("Where can I buy...") and to Google Images ("Where can I find pictures of ...") have also failed.

But, when I type in "Berlin Karte" (not "Wo kann ich eine Karte von Berlin finden"?, I gave up on natural language at this point, I do get some interesting results:
- images of Berlin maps
- Local results of shops selling maps in Berlin
This DOESN'T work with the term "Landkarte".

This is in fact the next feature on test at Philipp's, and this one works like a charm:
Kneipe in Berlin?

If you write "nachrichten über afrika?", you also get references to Google News (Germany).

It seems that dierct answers are not possible yet in German. However, some features do function - those that are dependant upon common signs in English and German (or the usage of English parameters in German, like define:), references to News, Froogle, Images, and Scholar fucntion partially (not with natural language questions). In fact, it seems that the whole system is unified and doesn't have language recognition - you'd get Dutch definitions, if the only "lexical" source is in Dutch.

Searching for specific media files on Google

2006-10-19T09:57:00.000+01:00

Certainly you don't do anything illegal. But let's just assume that you'd like to listen to some mp3 totally in the public space; or let's just assume that e-Mule has been out of business.

What shall you do?

Using certain parameters, you can search Google and find mp3 of your favourite artists, or text files of books, or just videos.

Just use this:

-inurl:(htm|html|php) intitle:”index of” +”last modified” +”parent directory” +description +size +(wma|mp3) “NAME”

Replace the term "NAME" with your favourite artist.

Same goes for videos
-inurl:(htm|html|php) intitle:"index of" +"last modified" +"parent directory" +description +size +(mpg|wmv) "VIDEO"

You can also use it, instead of searching for mp3 or video files, to search for .doc or PDFs

With some very slight modifications the same search string can easily be used to search for ebooks in DOC and PDF format:

-inurl:(htm|html|php) intitle:”index of” +”last modified” +”parent directory” +description +size +(pdf|doc|rtf) “BOOK″

Again, replace the term "BOOK" with whatever you're looking for.

And if you're totally lazy, you can try G2P Beta. It does it for you.

Through:
Likehacker
Marc and Angel

Useful Tool: Converting Media Formats

2006-10-19T09:29:00.000+01:00

If you'd like to convert wmv to mpeg, or ogg to mp3, the cure is here, for free! As usual Ze Doktors are Deutsch, so the site is in German, but there is an English (and other languages) version - on the right hand corner .

No software download, nothing.

I've tried it myself, using an ogg file that has been uploaded to Google Answers. Worked like charm.

The more savvy readers might say, "ha, ogg!", but the Media Convert can convert rarer file types, such as fits, vqf, 8svx, odt, 3gp; convert ringtones to mp3 (and vice versa, converting mp3 to ringtones without having to use only what Jamba and their buddies have to offer; and because this pretends to be a legit blog, your own songs as your ringtones); vector documents (wmf, etc.), text documents (including the easy for savvies, but otherwise much sought after, pdf to doc), data and math files, compressed archives (zips) and MS Access files.

So, up you go , Media Convert is waiting for you.

Warning Signs

2006-10-19T09:15:00.000+01:00

Arenamontanus, a Flickr user, has published new and useful warning signs. I am not sure which ones I like better, the more philosophical ones, or the highly needed and practical warning on a no-connectivity zone.

Full show - on Flickr.

Gossip

2006-10-19T09:09:00.000+01:00

Tabloid Whore

Only Fools and Nigerian Horses

2006-09-13T10:58:00.000+01:00

The BBC should be proud of itself. So should any British tax payer. The gospel of high British culture has reached those dark corners of the world, were the sun never shines and 411-scammers are working daily on sending us much needed mails from the widows, orphans and friends of deceased dictators.

This one has a sense of humour:

Go get my money, Del Boy!