December 2006

Joel Spolsky on why you need to be alone to be productive. You build up concentration for 15 minutes, and you lose it in a second when interrupted.

Based on advice from Thomas Knoll, Michael suggests overexposing digital camera shots. This is because the on the CCD of digital cameras, the bright tones have the highest colour resolution. So you can darken images later and retain the colours well, but you can’t brighten without losing data.

If you have a bunch of projects you could do, and want to decide which ones to take up, I was taught a rule: if a project has positive net present value, do it. That is, find out how much money you have to put in (& when), and how much you’ll get out (& when). Adjust for money today being worth more than money tomorrow. If it makes a profit, just do it. ...

Pegasus on why Even numbered booths in toilets are better. This is one of those things I’ve endlessly thought about, but never got around to writing about. Comments pegasus 8 Dec 2006 2:29 pm: Hey thanks man :) ritzkini 9 Jan 2007 9:49 am: Same here !!! thought abt it so many times !!

Video demo of Sony’s digital desktop. This converts your physical desktop (you know, the one where you keep paper and staplers) into a digital desktop. You can drag and drop on to the physical desktop. You have to see it to understand!

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan, Dec 1998. I was on a project with Honda R&D at Utsunomiya, Japan. And I’m vegetarian. The next day, Yoshioka-san – our counterpart at Honda – took us to the canteen and introduced me to the chef. Knowing that “vegetarian” in Japan includes eating fish and birds, I took the chef aside. “I’m vegetarian,” I emphasised. “Hai. Vegetarian.” “I don’t eat fish.” “Ah, so. No fish.” “I don’t eat chicken. No birds.” ...

Hacking Knowledge: 77 Ways to Learn Faster, Deeper, and Better. Normally, I don’t like 77 tips (as opposed to just 7). But these are very good. Comments Sheila Topstone 5 Dec 2006 7:28 am: Top Consolidators is a new group of student loan experts dedicated to getting you the best rate, or the plan that best fits your financial goals. We are the most aggresive Student Loan Consolidation Company on the web. ILMA 12 Dec 2006 4:37 pm: Hi! My name is ILMA. I study in class 7. I have a problem. Previously I was able to learn everything faster, but now it became difficult for me to learn faster and better. Please tell me any trick/tip for this problem.I will be very thankful to you.