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• February 17th, 2009

  What do you think of the new Facebook Terms Of Service?

  @Anaphase I believe Google Chrome has a feature that collected information on users’ browsing history. Here’s a follow-up to some of those issues: http://blogoscoped.com/archive/2008-09-09-n68.html While I’m not a lawyer, I believe all Facebook requires from users is a license to distribute their content to others according to the user’s privacy settings. The wording they currently use is CYA weasel speak to mitigate liability, and Facebook should just take some responsibility for being reasonable custodians of that data. Facebook also needs to state explicitly how they use demographic and other data to target advertising and how much of that data is shared with advertisers/partners on individual users and in aggregate. A lot of confusion still exists on this. Privacy advocates need to find ways of telling people what the consequences of putting their information on these sites really is. People (especially older, less social networking-savvy people) have little sympathy for those that don’t get hired for a job because their status updates are filled with drunken slurs, but how would it feel if an employer passed on a candidate because the candidate joined a cause or mentioned attending a rally for something that the employer didn’t agree with?
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• February 17th, 2009

  What inspired you today?

  I watched a video of Damien Katz (creator of CouchDB) at a conference, on how he got the job he always wanted (he went out and made it for himself). A photo I exposed in a non-typical way made me realize that atypical isn’t always bad.
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• February 17th, 2009

  In your opnion, what are the top 10 best things to do/see in NYC?

  I think @TitsMcGhee‘s and others’ lists covers most of mine, leaving me free to hit some painfully touristy stuff and some random stuff (in no particular order). * Ride the subway, if you never have before. Mourn the fact that you can no longer use tokens. Be glad it runs at all hours, unlike so many other places. * Go to a deli. I am partial to Carnegie even if it’s a tourist trap because they took my pastrami sandwich cherry. Go late at night. Katz’s is good too; the real New Yorkers here probably have their own recommendations. * See the wooden escalators in Macy’s at Herald Square (may only appeal to geeks). * I enjoyed the Circle Line tour. For someone that mostly went to New York on business, it was very interesting to see the topography of the upper end of Manhattan. * Go down Battery Park and look at the Statue of Liberty. * Go on a white knuckle ride with a crazy cab driver (this is hard to arrange in advance). * Consider going to a comedy club. My girlfriend and another friend surprised me with tickets to Caroline’s for the late show one night. It was expensive ($40 cover plus two (expensive) drink minimum but so funny. There are probably cheaper venues. * Walk around at night. Be amazed at all the trash the city generates, and understand how being in the trash business can be so lucrative. If you’re down by NYU, feel amazingly old and wish you’d had more fun in college (also may not apply, heh). Must stop now as I am starting to get a little green with envy. Have a great trip.
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• February 16th, 2009

  Cross-country move by freight?

  My girlfriend used ABF (a freight company) to ship about 1,100 pounds of stuff about a thousand miles back in 2004. That particular service included them picking up the stuff and putting it on pallets, and then dropping it off. It was ~ $1700 and it took them a couple of weeks to deliver the stuff. The current U-Pack service requires you to pack a storage container or part of a trailer. I would say we’d use ABF again if we had a small amount of stuff. For comparison, to move her and my stuff back (3,500 pounds? don’t recall precisely) with a full service mover, it was $5,600 in 2007 including packing services, and that took about the same amount of time. Full-service movers are expensive and can be difficult to work with; we used one because my (new) employer was willing to pay for it and had pre-negotiated arrangements with different companies. If you haven’t yet been, visit Moving Scam. They are very helpful. Good luck and safe travels.
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• February 6th, 2009

  Best lens choices for doing architectural photography?

  You’ll want the widest angle lens you can find (that has good optics) if you’re going to be doing skyscrapers, as @dik2312 said above. Also, a fast 50mm serves every photographer well. Are you taking pictures to document the buildings, or are you taking pictures of buildings, but you can do whatever you want in them? If you’re not constrained by what the photos will be used for, I’d consider a fisheye, too, but that’s not a necessity.
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