The Julian Assange affair looks like a Smith and Jones gag

In the news: Julian Assange.    While the prosecutor in Sweden is denying it, the lesson here seems to be: publish a Wikileak naming anti-Taliban Afghan sources and risk getting them killed, and nothing happens to you. Publish a Wikileak embarrassing the United States, and get the whole media talking, while you’re charged with rape. […]

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Is your favourite 1980s’ celeb here?

From the ‘Whatever happened to …’ and the ‘My God, is (s)he still alive?’ files comes this promotional video for the (Norwegian) TV2 show Gylne Tider, with a bunch of celebrities lip-synching ‘Let It Be’ (including, appropriately, Fab Morvan of Milli Vanilli).    Sir Roger Moore kicks it off, but right after, you’ll catch (inter […]

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Duck Duck Go adds a Lucire bang

Aside from writing a branding report today (which I will share with you once all contributors have OKed it), I received some wonderful news from Gabriel Weinberg of Duck Duck Go.    Those who are used to the Duck will know that you can search using what he calls bangs—the exclamation mark. On Chrome, which […]

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Another false accusation from Google

For around a year, I’ve been at Google for its misbehaviours. And one thing I dislike about these tech companies—whether it’s Facebook or Google or any of their ilk—is how they are slaves to technology, rather than masters of it. Somewhere along the line, they have allowed algorithms to determine guilt, thereby offending that old-fashioned […]

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TPPA could turn the clock back

During the campaign trail, people tended to ask me if I was left or right. While I cheekily said, ‘Forward,’ many a time (and had at least one imitator), there’s something to be said for abandoning what are, effectively, nineteenth-century constructs.    And unless you are DI Alex Drake in Ashes to Ashes, you need […]

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Putting a full site feed on a Facebook fan page is not a good idea

Even though more young women are spending time on Facebook at the exclusion of other sites, last night I decided to stop connecting the Lucire RSS feed in to its Facebook fan page.    We began the fan page very late, having relied on using a Facebook group. And even then, these were promoted half-heartedly. […]

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Igovt hates my answers

I signed up to the Igovt site for the New Zealand Government today, allowing citizens a single log-on for e-government services (such as the Companies’ Office, where we have to file annual returns). In case you forget your password, you can choose from a variety of security questions they can ask you.    The following […]

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Farewell, Leslie Nielsen

A quick tribute to Leslie Nielsen—the ‘OC’—and the world’s favourite Danish–Canadian guy, who died today at age 84. And don’t call me Shirley, either. You may also like Is there a type that works from home more easily? History of the 2010s: a look back at the decade that was Seasonal Canadian humour I wanted […]

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Amazon begins charging dormant-account fee

Here’s a new clause in the Amazon Associates’ contract that I never spotted before, which is available publicly for viewing. European countries have a similar one, with differences in the currency. If you have not earned any advertising fees in the 3 years prior to any given calendar month, then on the first day of […]

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The ex-Vox testimony

A phpBB forum for former users of Vox (I am one) started in September 2010. I posted there today, going through my history with the service. The below is a repost, which I thought would be of interest to readers of this blog (some of whom have come from Vox). It’s a small summary of […]

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