Ubuntu 11.10 and Unity, Two Months In
Two months after Ubuntu 11.10 shipped with Unity as the default, checking back in on whether the complaints actually faded or people just found other desktops to run instead.
Setting Up Self-Hosted WordPress (Finally Wrote This Down)
A walkthrough of moving to self-hosted WordPress: picking a cheap host, the actual install process (five-click or manual), and choosing a first theme.
Finally Turned the Junk Closet Into a Home Theater PC
I finally turned a milk crate of old computer parts into a working home theater PC this weekend, complete with a dying hard drive, an Ubuntu detour I regret, and a remote that worked way too easily.
Live-Blogging the SOPA Markup Hearing
Live-reaction notes from today's House Judiciary Committee markup hearing on SOPA, DNS provisions, awkward tech questions, and all.
Galaxy Nexus vs iPhone 4S: Two Weeks In
Two weeks of daily-driving a Galaxy Nexus alongside an iPhone 4S: the screen, Ice Cream Sandwich, Siri, battery life, and why the Carrier IQ mess has me a little paranoid about both.
Poking Around jQuery Mobile 1.0
A hands-on first look at jQuery Mobile 1.0, which just went final: getting the files linked up, building a simple data-role page, and a few gotchas I hit along the way.
SOPA Isn't Just Google's Problem
SOPA and PIPA get framed as a fight between Hollywood and big tech, but the small site owners and developers running comment sections and forums are the ones with the most to lose and the least lobbying power.
SOPA Hearings Are Starting and the Internet Is Nervous
A rundown of what SOPA actually proposes ahead of the December 15th markup session, and why DNS engineers and tech companies like Google and Twitter are sounding alarms.
A Nerd's Holiday Shopping List
A lazy weekend rundown of what I'd actually buy the geeky people in my life this year, from a $199 tablet to a good reason to skip a certain phone carrier.
A Simple PHP Contact Form (That Doesn't Get You Hacked)
A quick, no-framework PHP tutorial for building a contact form that emails you, with basic server-side validation and a fix for the email header injection hole most beginner tutorials skip.
Kindle Fire Update: Did It Actually Fix Anything?
Amazon pushed an OTA update to the Kindle Fire this week. Here's what actually improved with the lag and the Silk browser, and what's still rough.
Ditching Flash: A Practical HTML5 Video Tag Tutorial
A practical walkthrough of the HTML5 video tag: multiple source formats, poster images, and why you still need a fallback for browsers (and clients) that won't cooperate.