Dave Naffziger’s Blog

A random assemblage of notable stuff I’ve run across online:

Interesting:

• Yahoo & geographic search queries: Yahoo has released some research that associates search terms with the geographic location of searchers. We used (and I presume still use) similar techniques at Quova. I find the secondary information that can be derived from some data sets fascinating.
• Gen Lord on Slashdot about Air Force Cyber Command. Air Force Cyber Command is still finding its way, but it is rare that senior officers engage with the online community.
• Cat ownership improves heart health (via Slashdot). A 30% reduction in heart attack risk. No effect was found for dogs, but the authors attribute that to data scarcity in their study. I wonder what effect kids have.

Cool:

• Giant mechanical flying jellyfish. Gorgeous.
• Robotic military insects. Prototypes of miniature robotic sensors similar to insects may be in use by the end of the year.
• MacGyver Movie. Now, we just need a remake of the A-Team.

Useful:

• Free AT&T Wifi (thanks Rahul): AT&T gives iPhone users free wifi at its hotspots. However, their authentication isn’t all that great. Modify your user agent and AT&T thinks you are an iPhone.
• SPF wizard. Sender Policy Framework wizard to create SPF records for your email (so it doesn’t end up in spam boxes). If you do any automated mailing, the SPF records are a must.