January 2002

Wenn die Mailbox zur Müllbox wird

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Auch 30 Jahre nach seiner Einführung sorgt das Medium E-Mail noch immer für Verwirrung

Knapp zehn Milliarden Mal pro Tag macht irgendwo auf diesem Planeten ein Computer "Ping!", oder eine sanfte Frauenstimme säuselt: "Sie haben Post!" Mehr als alle multimedialen Spielereien ist die E-Mail die "Killer-Anwendung" des Internet. Per elektronische Post hält man Kontakt zu Freunden oder verabredet sich mit dem Kollegen im Nachbarbüro auf ein Bier. Die E-Mail transportiert heiße Liebesgrüße und unpersönliche Massenwerbung.

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Was Word & Co verraten...

by Oliver Tunnat

Wer ein Office-Dokument weiterreicht, gibt eventuell unabsichtlich vertrauliche Informationen preis. Versteckt in der Datei finden sich nicht nur Angaben zur Entstehungsgeschichte, sondern womöglich auch heikle Firmeninterna, berichtet c't in der aktuellen Ausgabe 3/2002.

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Internet für Aliens

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Auch Mond, Mars und Venus sollen nun ans Netz. Bei ihrem nächsten Mars-Programm 2003 will die Nasa die ersten Internet-Knoten im Weltall stationieren.

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Das Auto bin ich

by Volker Weber

Im Renault Avantime wird man im Handumdrehen zu einer Figur des öffentlichen Lebens

Was da am Münchner Hauptbahnhof vor mir steht, ist seltsam. Von vorn sieht es aus wie ein abgeflachter, aber rund geknuffter Espace, von der Seite wie ein Sternengleiter, und hinter der tonnenförmigen Heckscheibe könnte sich alles Mögliche verbergen, von der versteckten Kamera bis zum leichten MG. Führe das Ding beim Starten Flügel aus, es würde nicht überraschen. »Wahnsinn, da legst di nieder«, sagt die bayerische Familie, die mit zwei Koffern des Weges kommt, und starrt erst das Auto an und dann mich. Bewundernd. Ich nicke hilflos.

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TIME: Year in Pictures 2001

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The World Trade Center and Pentagon tragedies produced astonishing twin images of heroism and destruction, capping a year full of photos that were truly unforgettable.

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Gonzo Lotusphere Page

by Volker Weber

This year here »

You can be serious without a suit

by Volker Weber

"The perfect search engine," says Google co-founder Larry Page, "would understand exactly what you mean and give back exactly what you want." Given the state of search technology today, that's a far-reaching vision requiring research, development and innovation to realize. Google is committed to blazing that trail. Though acknowledged as the world's leading search technology company, Google's goal is to provide a much higher level of service to all those who seek information, whether they're at a desk in Boston, driving through Bonn, or strolling in Bangkok.

To that end, Google has persistently pursued innovation and pushed the limits of existing technology to provide a fast, accurate and easy-to-use search service that can be accessed from anywhere. To fully understand Google, it's helpful to understand all the ways in which the company has helped to redefine how individuals, businesses and technologists view the Internet.

10 things Google has found to be true »

Eine Art Phrasendreschmaschine für Pressemeldungen

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Kein Geld für PR?

Kein Problem! Das Bright-Heads-Sonderkommando 'Rettet die integrierte Kommunikation' springt auch hier in die Bresche. Geben Sie einfach links die notwendigen Daten ein, und wir schreiben in Sekunden, ruckzuck, On-the-Fly, vollautomatisch und auch sonst recht attributreich eine schöne Presseinformation für Sie.

So handkonfektioniert, individuell und wirkungsvoll, wie Sie das beim Tiefstpreis von Null Mark erwarten können.

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Orlando Weather

by Volker Weber

rsdlpnphoto1zom.jpg More >

Lotus to Debut New Beta, Hosted Service

by Volker Weber

IBM's Lotus software division hopes to demonstrate its commitment to lowering customers' costs when it unveils a hosted version of its Sametime instant messaging server and another beta of its Notes and Domino server upgrade next week at Lotusphere.

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Eden News: "Eden is Closed on Mondays" ;-)

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From 14th January until 11th February 2002 eden will be closed on mondays for essential maintainance and staff training.

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CIA's World FactBook / Portals to the world

by Oliver Tunnat

In August of 1962, the United States Central Intelligence Agency
(CIA) started publishing a yearly, basic intelligence manual called
"The World Factbook." The World Factbook provided policymakers with
fundamental and factual reference material on countries around the
world. And, of course, you and I couldn't read it. The World
Factbook was highly confidential. This is the CIA we're talking
about, after all.

About thirty years ago, the folks at the CIA decided to unclassify The
World Factbook, and for as long as I can remember The World Factbook
has been an essential Internet resource for anyone looking for
information about a particular country.

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Your Password Must Be at Least 18770 Characters and...

by Volker Weber

... cannot repeat any of your previous 30689 passwords. Please type a different password. Type a password that meets these requirements in both text boxes. Note that the number of required characters changes from 17,145 to 18,770 with the installation of SP1.

A supported fix is now available from Microsoft, but it is only intended to correct the problem described in this article and should be applied only to systems experiencing this specific problem. This fix may receive additional testing at a later time, to further ensure product quality. Therefore, if you are not severely affected by this problem, Microsoft recommends that you wait for the next Windows 2000 service pack that contains this fix.

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Hendriks liebste Shoutcast-Stationen

by Volker Weber

Listen »

Is it secure? I mean IIS

by Volker Weber

It's not as if it's impossible to make software that's more secure. Wim Vandeputte, CTO of Custodix.com, a provider of trusted services, notes that the OpenBSD operating system he uses "hasn't suffered from a remote hole in the default install in over four years." In a similar vein, Gibson says, "The last serious remote-code execution vulnerability to hit the Apache Web server was back in 1997. But IIS has them monthly." Knowing that you may need to patch a product next month and again the month after doesn't make you feel as secure as using a product that's well-tested. Partially as a result, Apache server software enjoys twice IIS's market share in Netcraft's latest survey.

Microsoft has some of the world's best developers, but it still pushes some half-baked products.

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Sicherheitstests bald illegal

by Oliver Tunnat

Um die Computernetze nach Schwachstellen zu durchsuchen, nutzen Administratoren die gleichen Programme (Penetration-Tools) wie Hacker. Doch nach dem Gesetz kann auch der Besitz und die Verwendung von Passwort-Crackern oder Krypto-Analysesoftware illegal sein. Administratoren drohe bei Verwendung dieser Tools zudem die fristlose Kündigung.

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Why Microsoft's C# isn't

by Volker Weber

Java inventor James Gosling says he isn't losing much sleep over Microsoft these days, despite the software giant's effort to stem Java's popularity with its own Java-like language. The next battle in Web services software development pits Microsoft against Java creator Sun Microsystems, along with Java adherents IBM, Oracle and others. Crucial to Microsoft's effort is C#, a Java-like language that will soon be part of the company's new Visual Studio.Net package of software-development tools, which was released to developers Wednesday. Gosling, a Sun vice president, is dismissive of C# but admits he and others at Sun initially "panicked" when they learned of the language. "The trite answer is, 'Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery--thank you very much,'" he said this week. "But the other answer is, 'You guys (at Microsoft) still don't get it,' because it's sort of Java with reliability, productivity and security deleted." In an interview with CNET News.com, Gosling dissects C#, discusses Java's popularity and explains what it's like to be a "superstar." More >

Cable no good

by Volker Weber

Make sure, you are not using one these new high powered cables. (Thanks, Oliver.) cable.JPG

Interview with Lotus GM Al Zollar

by Volker Weber

Q: When do you estimate the final code for Rnext will ship?

A: We expect companies to be in serious deployment mode in the second half of 2002.

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Schürfen in der Datenhalde

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In Unternehmen bleibt zu viel Wissen ungenutzt. Ein neuer Forschungszweig will Abhilfe schaffen.

"Hier liegt ein zentrales Problem des Wissenstransfers: Know-how ist oft Gefühlssache, schwer in Worte zu fassen und erst recht nicht digitalisierbar. "Das hält!" Dem Motorenkonstrukteur genügt ein Blick auf die frisch entworfene Strebe, da muss er nicht groß messen oder experimentieren, er hat's im Gefühl. Würde man ihn bitten, sein "Gefühl" nachvollziehbar herzuleiten, täte er sich wahrscheinlich schwer, würde etwa brummen "das hab ich im Bauch". Solch eigenwillig lokalisiertes, intuitives Wissen ist beim Mitarbeiter eines fluktuationsarmen Familienbetriebs prima aufgehoben. In mittelständischen und großen Betrieben, die Mitarbeiterwissen in mehreren Filialen oder global nutzen wollen, gilt privates Expertenwissen, das sich der allgemeinen Verwertbarkeit entzieht, immer mehr als Problem." — ... das allerdings auch KM kaum wird lösen können ...

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Web portals pose security challenge

by Volker Weber

A growing number of companies are setting up Web portals to let employees and trading partners access critical business information and services, even though securing such systems presents a daunting challenge.

Many Web portal software vendors, including Plumtree Software and Epicentric, acknowledge they don't have sophisticated single sign-on (SSO) access-control capabilities. To provide better authentication and access-management controls, they have to work closely with SSO vendors such as Netegrity.

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Blogging the KM world

by Volker Weber

Frank Sturm has started a very interesting weblog about Knowledge Management. Go Frank!

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Redbook: Inside the Lotus Discovery Server

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The Lotus Discovery Server is a knowledge server. It provides search and expertise location solutions designed to ensure that the relevant knowledge and collective experience of an organization is readily available to help individuals and teams solve everyday business problems. In this IBM Redbook, we describe how to set up a successful Discovery Server implementation in an organization. We show you how to begin the project by looking at and sorting through the information you already have, how to install a pilot system you can use to learn how Discovery Server works with your information, and how to design your system to work effectively across multiple servers. We also touch on how this complex product works under the covers. The Discovery Server extracts, analyzes and categorizes structured and unstructured information, revealing the relationships between content, people, topics and user activity in an organization. It automatically generates and maintains a Knowledge map (K-map) to display relevant content categories and their appropriate hierarchical mapping, which can easily be searched or browsed by users. It also generates and maintains user profiles and tracks relevant end-user activities, identifying individuals who may be subject matter experts. The Discovery Server uncovers organizational know-how. More >

i was a 20-something dotcom dethroned ceo that went to work the counter at mcdonald's

by Volker Weber

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Skipping.net Linkfests

by Volker Weber

Highly aggregated information from the web about Extreme Programming, Jabber, RSS, SOAP - Simple Object Access Protocol, Weblogging and Content Management, XML-RPC and Zope

Modern Jaguar makes monkey of Lauda

by Volker Weber

Even three-time world champions should sometimes engage the brain before letting the mouth run at high speed, as Niki Lauda discovered to his embarrassment yesterday. Now head of the Jaguar Formula One team, Lauda recently declared that a monkey could drive the modern grand prix car, with its sophisticated electronic aids and gadgets.

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Orlando Weather

by Volker Weber

Two weeks to go until Lotusphere kicks off. Here is the 5 day forecast. Bookmark and come back in 10 days.

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Lotus Domino and Java Technology Learning Center

by Volker Weber

Lotus Domino and Java Technology Learning Center: Developed to help Domino and web developers learn to use the Java programming language and related tools in their applications. The Technology Learning Center provides descriptive documents, sample code, and examples.

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Killer Web Apps 2

by Volker Weber

New and updated for R5! This brand new learning center covers the latest web technologies to enable you to take advantage of the new R5 programming capabilities. It covers CSS, DHTML, HTML, JavaScript, XML and more.

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Nach der Gans die Stulle

by Volker Weber

Die Festgelage sind passé. Jetzt heißt es, kulinarisch kürzer zu treten - zumindest vordergründig. Ein Hoch auf das Butterbrot

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CD-Erfinder Philips sieht keine Zukunft für Kopierschutz

by Volker Weber

Der von der Musikindustrie eingeführte Kopierschutz auf CDs hat nach Einschätzung des CD-Erfinders Philips dauerhaft keine Chance. Beschwerden über Probleme beim Abspielen würden sich häufen. Außerdem treffe der Kopierschutz die Falschen.
Als Verwalter weltweiter CD-Patente könne Philips eigentlich die Hersteller von Kopierschutz-CDs verklagen, weil diese CDs nicht den Standards entsprächen, sagte Philips-Sprecher Klaus Petri am Mittwoch. "Das sind Silberscheiben mit Musik drauf, die CDs ähneln, aber keine sind."

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Notes/Domino 5.0.9a Maintenance Release

by Volker Weber

We have addressed approximately 10 SPRs in the 5.0.9a release. The details for each SPR are available from the 5.0.9a status page. Lotus strongly recommends that customers who have upgraded to 5.0.9 move to the 5.0.9a release due to the severity of the fixes included. Please pay particular attention to SPR# MLCN554UB7. In it, we have fixed a problem that was introduced in R5.0.9 that prevented certain view column formulas, including @DocDescendants, from working correctly in Web applications.

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IBM developerWorks Live

by Volker Weber

IBM developerWorks Live! 2002 is the new premier event that merges three successful IBM conferences (WebSphere 2001, Lotus DevCon and Solutions, The IBM Technical Developers Conference) to bring you next year's most comprehensive and informative developer event.
More contacts. More Information. More resources
IBM developerWorks Live! will be packed with strategically designed informational sessions, hands-on workshops, and expert speakers to help Web developers and IT executives lead next generation development. In addition, the Solutions Center” a showcase of IBM e-business technology as well as Business Partner solutions and services” will enable you to see the latest technology and discuss your needs, one-to-one, with system, Web and solutions experts.

Join us in San Francisco this May and experience for yourself how IBM and its commitment to scalable, open architectures is the e-infrastructure leader of choice ranging from complex enterprise-wide solutions to NetGens who don't want to stop and rewrite code later.

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Using and Writing Java Servlets

by Volker Weber

Creating dynamic web pages is necessary if a web site wants to display the current state of data accurately, for example showing temperatures around the world. There are several ways to accomplish this, such as using Perl or shell scripts. In this article, I discuss the viability of using Java programs (servlets) with a web server. A servlet is a Java application that performs a task that may generate a dynamic web page or process input from a web page form.

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The Case Against Knowledge Management

by Volker Weber

Companies waste billions on knowledge management because they fail to figure out what knowledge they need, or how to manage it. In his latest book, Thomas A. Stewart explains how to answer both questions.

In all these ways, the Kraken differs from KnowledgeCurve. The latter is supply-side; it's full of documents, artifacts, and other explicit knowledge. The content in its repositories aims to be canonical rather than iconoclastic. The Kraken is a conversation; KnowledgeCurve and its cousins are compendiums. KnowledgeCurve is about teaching; the Kraken is about learning. — Knowledge management resources go unused for one simple reason: They're not useful. Either the work isn't connected to the knowledge or the knowledge isn't connected to the work. — At PricewaterhouseCoopers, Bentley imagined that the Kraken would be filled with volumes of research papers; he was wrong, because the group's members were "creatives" whose purpose was "to be more innovative." They wanted a cafe, not a library. Their questions are unstructured, their problems may be new. They don't want answers so much as they want to talk to smart people. For innovators, the goal of knowledge management will often be to improve a person's chance of putting together the right team of experts.

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Software für das eigene Weblog

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Weblogs spriessen wie Pilze aus dem Boden und wer möchte nicht auch zur Gemeinschaft der Logger gehören? Ich konnte mich dem Reiz nicht entziehen und wollte auch ein Weblog machen. Der Weg dahin nahm aber einige Zeit für Recherche in Anspruch, denn vor allem bei den Bloggern achtet man auf Qualität.

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Eine rollende Beziehungskiste

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Beim Smart läuft nicht alles glatt, aber vieles anders. Über Schaltprobleme, Knautsch- und Knutschzonen

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Kaugummi für die Augen

by Volker Weber

Die Smarties am unteren Rand erschliessen den Inhalt. Rechts anfangen.

Wahnsinn »

MS rigs ZD reader poll to promote .NET

by Volker Weber

This shining jewel in the world's economy, this commercial Titan with software on virtually every desktop on Earth, this Microsoft, has stooped to rigging reader surveys on tech news sites to rescue the crumbling myth of its popularity.

We're delighted to report that Microsoft has fallen from great heights, and stooped to rigging a poll by ZD-Net.uk asking readers whether they prefer Java or .NET for Web development.

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FTD - Tops und Flops 2002: Medienkonzerne

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Die Medienunternehmen haben ihre Erwartungen niedrig angesetzt. Nachdem sie 2001 durch den Rückgang der Werbebuchungen böse aus ihren überzogenen Wachstumsträumen geweckt worden waren, müssen sie sich jetzt auf die Realität einstellen: Auch dieses Jahr wird schwierig. Zu allem Übel stehen die Branchenführer vor enormen Integrationsanstrengungen.

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Lindows could give Linux life and worry Microsoft

by Volker Weber

Michael Robertson started his IBM notebook computer. He launched a Microsoft PowerPoint slide presentation about a product he hopes to be selling soon. The product was the operating system he was running. Hint: It wasn't Microsoft Windows.

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Asterix auf großer Fahrt

by Volker Weber

Gab es wirklich Anti-Dopinggesetze bei den olympischen Spielen? Tanzten die alten Iberer bereits den Flamenco? Kannten die Briten schon den Regenschirm? Und ging Rom tatsächlich unter, weil man dort fortlaufend Orgien feierte? In Asterix auf großer Fahrt werden all diese Fragen und viele weitere beantwortet.

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Cyber Newseum

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Das "Cyber Newseum" praesentiert Teile von Ausstellungen im Internet, z. B. Bilder von Fotografinnen des "National Geographic", oder Features ueber die Berliner Mauer und ueber Kriegskorrespondenten.

Zum Museum >>

Learning to love the computer, warts and all

by Volker Weber

shock0106.gif At least once per day, without fail, my computer, like every computer I have ever owned, has some kind of emotional breakdown. It simply stops working -- often when I'm not touching it -- and it puts a message on the screen informing me that an error has occurred. It does not say what the error is, nor where it occurred. ...

But my point is that because of computer weirdness, I regularly see an entire morning's work -- sometimes as many as 18 words -- get blipped away forever to the Planet of Lost Data. Needless to say, I use Microsoft Windows. I've been a loyal Windows man since the first version, which required you to write on the screen with crayons. Every year or so, Microsoft comes out with a new version, which Microsoft always swears is better and more reliable, and I always buy it. I bought Windows 2.0, Windows 3.0, Windows 3.1415926, Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows ME, Windows RSVP, The Best of Windows, Windows Strikes Back, Windows Does Dallas, and Windows Let's All Buy Bill Gates a House the Size of Vermont.

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Feedreader

by Volker Weber

I found a very hand tool that reads news from different sources - including this site. Download Feedreader. Once you have installed and started the programm, click on New Feed and enter the url http://vowe.net/index.rdf .

Other interesting feeds for german content are http://www.telepolis.de/news.rdf and http://www.heise.de/newsticker/heise.rdf .

Feedreader will sit in your Windows tray and alert you of news being posted to one of the active feeds. When you open Feadreader, you can read headlines and excerpts. If you double click the headlines it takes you to the news item.

Feedreader will inherit proxy settings from Internet Explorer. If you don't use IE then set your proxy in the Windows control panel.

The Element of E-Mail Style

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Do your e-mails get results? If not, follow these rules for writing compelling communications.

When someone receives an e-mail from you they don't just jump, they ask for a specific altitude. You've never had to send a message twice or pester someone by phone because they haven't responded to you electronically.

This column is not for you.

The compendium of advice that follows is for people whose e-mails sometimes don't get the attention they deserve.

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How users read the web

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People rarely read Web pages word by word; instead, they scan the page, picking out individual words and sentences.

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I Went Down To The Crossroads

by Volker Weber

There's an old blues song that talks about going "down to the crossroads" - maybe to meet your maker, maybe to meet the Devil. As we all saddle up and ride into the Sunshine State, the Turtle is thinking about the many crossroads that Lotusphere 2002 will represent for Lotus, IBM, and the thousands of customers, business partners, and vendors who will congregate there. In many ways, it's going to be a Sphere like none we've ever seen before. No matter what happens, this isn't an event you'll want to miss.

Lotusphere, of course, is the gathering of the tribes that we Lotus addicts look forward to. It's a weeklong celebration of innovative software by the people who have the sense to write it and other people with the sense to put it to work, all marinated nicely in cold beer and salsa. It's the place to be if you use Lotus and IBM tools.

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Gesucht: Freundliche Querulanten

by Volker Weber

Überholte Strukturen und Vorschriften lähmen eigenständiges Denken und Handeln der Mitarbeiter - zum Schaden der Unternehmen.

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Horizont der Erkenntnis

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Allenthalben wird die schwindende "Halbwertszeit des Wissens" beschworen. Ein Blick in die Informationswissenschaft zeigt: Das Gegenteil ist der Fall

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Leben auf der Platte

by Oliver Tunnat

Von der Babywippe bis in den Rollstuhl lässt sich bald ein ganzes Menschenleben lückenlos auf einer Festplatte archivieren: Alle Fotos, Texte, Gespräche und Videos. Für manche ist es ein Traum, für andere der Horror.

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Zu Besuch in fremden Köpfen

by Oliver Tunnat

Alles wird gut: Der amerikanische Futurologe Ray Kurzweil über die virtuelle Welt der Zukunft. Ein ZEIT-Gespräch.

Seid bescheiden, Börsianer!

by Oliver Tunnat

20 bis 30 Prozent Gewinn in einem Jahr? Diese Zeiten sind vorbei.

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Just Beyond Our Windows

by Volker Weber

The graphical user interface changed computing. But what's on the horizon?

Point. Click. Drag.

Point. Click. Drag.

Tired of operating personal computers like this? A lot of researchers are, and they're trying to change the way people interact with the ubiquitous beige boxes by creating virtual spaces that take into account the way people behave in the real world.

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How to Drive in France

by Volker Weber

1. You went to New York once, whereupon you were dazzled by the technique and verve of the American cab driver. Model yourself after this noble guardian of the streets: learn his tenacity and fearlessness, and know that above all it is your confidence behind the wheel that will serve in the education of others.

2. While driving, should someone pull onto an otherwise empty road two kilometres ahead of you, step on the gas until you are a maximum of two inches behind this interloper and stay there, that he may understand the urgency of your journey and your status as an educator.

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The page cannot be fucking displayed

by Volker Weber

The page you are looking for is currently unavailable. The Web site might be experiencing technical difficulties, or you may need to adjust your browser settings, but most likely you're a complete ...

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Neues e-Commerce-Gesetz

by Oliver Tunnat

Mehr Rechtssicherheit im Web versprechen wichtige Änderungen des Teledienstegesetzes (TDG) und des Teledienste-Datenschutzgesetzes (TDDSG). Die neuen Regelungen sind Teil einer umfassenden Überarbeitung des Rechts für die Informations- und Kommunikationsdienste, mit dem die Regierung den e-Commerce auf eine rechtlich verbindliche Basis stellt.

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Fetish: SONY PCG-SRX7

by Volker Weber

Pentium III-800mhz SpeedStep, 30gb HDD, Bluetooth, WLAN 802.11b 11mps (Wi-Fi), LAN port (100/10baseT), V.90 56k modem, MagicGate slot (Sony MemorySticks), IEEE 1394 (4-pin Firewire), Type II PCMCIA slot, USB port, 2.78 lbs (1250g)

sonysrx7.jpg

Lotusphere may have a little over 5000 registrations

by Volker Weber

The Turtle is making some educated guesses about registrations for Lotusphere. He thinks Lotus had a bit more than 5000 by the end of December.

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c't im Hohlspiegel

by Volker Weber

Die Computer-Zeitschrift "c't" über ein Internet-Portal: "Es informiert über Online-Themen wie das richtige Verhalten in Chats oder den Umgang mit Cyber-Pornografie, die es jeweils eltern- und kindgerecht aufbereitet."

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Sad days - too many good people die

by Volker Weber

Haig's mother, my father, then Haig's father, now Gisela. Funeral next Wednesday. Sad, sad, sad.

Lotus Domino 5.0.9 Breaks @DocChildren and @DocDescendants

by Volker Weber

Web views now report wrong data, fix coming in 5.0.9a.

On 28 November 2001, Lotus issued Quarterly Maintenance Release (QMR) 5.0.9 of Lotus Notes, Designer, Administrator clients and Domino server, internally dated 16 November 2001. This release provides a variety of minor (to most users) enhancements and a variety of bug fixes. The next QMR, 5.0.10, is scheduled for release in March 2002.

Unfortunately, Domino 5.0.9 also introduces a serious bug. When used in a view on the Web, @DocChildren and @DocDescendants always return "1". These functions should return the number of documents or categories belonging to the current document or category. The functions work correctly in views opened in Lotus Notes.

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Analysis of Microsoft's 'Competing with Linux' Document

by Volker Weber

In late November, 2001, an industry colleague, knowing that I had an interest in the competitive stance between Linux and Microsoft, sent me a document titled 'Partner Guide: Competing with Linux'. This document was produced by Microsoft in June 2001. It appears to be a training course for Microsoft partners who are obviously facing increasing competition from Linux. I believe that running this document through the analysis wringer can tell us much about Microsoft's current view and depth of understanding of Linux and Open Source software and about their planned method of attacking Linux in the trenches of real-world implementers.

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Wo blieb die Feuerwehr ?

by Volker Weber

Neben der entscheidenden Frage nach den wirklichen Drahtziehern des Anschlags ist das Ausbleiben der "Feuerwehr", die Frage warum Flug 77 über eine halbe Stunde von seiner Route abweichen und unbehelligt auf das Pentagon zusteuern konnte, das vielleicht größte Mysterium dieses Falls - und dass die Flugschreiber nach diesem unfalltechnisch absolut typischen Absturz eines Jets auf ein dreistöckiges Bürogebäude komplett unlesbar sein sollen, der unglaublichste Zufall überhaupt. Dagegen wirkt selbst dass scheinbare Kuriosum, dass der Pass eines der angeblichen Hijacker unversehrt zwei Blocks vom WTC aufgefunden wurde, noch völlig selbstverständlich: ein Pass kann fliegen, wenn er von einer Explosion ins Freie geschleudert wird, eine "unkaputtbare" black box aber kann unter den 100% normalen Umständen des Pentagon-Crashs nicht verbrennen.

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Chryler Crossfire available next year

by Volker Weber

crossfire.jpg

Built by Karmann in Osnabrück, Germany with Mercedes 215 hp engine. Pricing not available yet.

Der deutsche Patient

by Volker Weber

Wahljahr 2002: Heil- und Kostenplan für ein krankes Land

Am Anfang eines Jahres sind die Wünsche frisch, die Vorsätze stark. Im privaten Leben. In der Politik ist das anders. Erst recht zu Beginn eines Wahljahres - am 22. September wird ausgezählt. Da gilt die Regel: Die Wünsche der Wähler sind größer (und widersprüchlicher) als die Vorsätze der Politiker. Bisher weiß keine der Parteien, womit, wozu und wofür sie Wähler für die nächsten vier Jahre gewinnen soll - und die CDU/CSU weiß noch nicht einmal, mit wem. Dabei ist es gar nicht so schwer, zu sagen, worum es im Wahlkampf in diesem Jahr und in der deutschen Politik der nächsten Jahren gehen sollte. Längst wissen dies auch die Vernünftigen in allen Parteien. Nur fällt es im permanenten Maskenball der Politik den Spielern offenbar immer schwerer, schlichte Wahrheiten beim Namen zu nennen. Also tun wir es - hier unsere Wunsch- und Themenliste für das Jahr der Entscheidungen.

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Rakete mit Familienanschluss

by Volker Weber

Europas schnellster Van macht aus Vätern wieder Männer

Normalerweise fährt Johann mit dem Ferrari von Herrn Krüger, dem Nachbarn. Oder mit dem Unimog samt Anhänger, den er vom Kollegen Assheuer bekommen hat. Oder Bobbycar. Was er da wohl ausgerechnet von einem Opel halten wird? "Schön", sagt Johann.

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In Memoriam Gisela

by Volker Weber

Fünf Jahre hast Du gekämpft. Und immer versucht, mit Heiterkeit und Optimismus diese Zeit zu leben und dabei nie aufgegeben.

Wir werden Deine Freude, Deinen Spaß und Dein Lachen in Erinnerung behalten. So viele Deiner Wortschöpfungen sind in unsere Sprache eingeflossen, dass wir jeden Tag an Dich denken müssen.

How to Run a Microsoft-Free Shop

by Volker Weber

Do you find that you're incapable of stopping upgrades? Do you spend much of your day patching security holes? Do you have a vague sense that you're spending too much money on software? If you answered yes to any of those questions, you may have become overly dependent on Microsoft. Here's a handy 12-step program to cure your condition.

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Can Instant Messaging Graduate to Business?

by Volker Weber

"The real challenge -- for business as well as for personal use -- is to map anthropological and sociological habits and conventions into cyberspace, in useful and acceptable ways. Jabber and Groove are headed down that road, but it will be a long journey."

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MS struggles to discredit Linux

by Volker Weber

From: Brian Valentine
Sent: Wed 12/26/2001 7:14 PM
To: WW Sales, Marketing & Services Group
Subject: Me again -- Linux updates

Microsoft Confidential -- Do not print, copy or forward this email and do not share this email with anyone out side the company. For internal use only!

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Be is almost gone as Gassée resigns

by Volker Weber

And now is the time to read Scott Hacker's BYTE article "He Who Controls the Bootloader" again.

"What we know for sure is that Microsoft treated the PC hardware platform as if it owned it, and thus hurt consumers, software developers, PC OEMs, OS competitors, and the industry in general. That's a layman's definition of abusing a monopoly.

-- Jean Louis Gassée, July 2000

The Euro has arrived

by Volker Weber

20EUROFR.JPG

Ein frohes neues Jahr

by Volker Weber

"Man nehme 12 Monate, putze sie sauber von Neid, Bitterkeit, Geiz, Pedanterie und zerlege sie in 30 oder 31 Teile, so daß der Vorrat für ein Jahr reicht. Jeder Tag wird einzeln angerichtet aus 1 Teil Arbeit und 2 Teilen Frohsinn und Humor. Man füge 3 gehäufte Eßlöffel Optimismus hinzu, 1 Teelöffel Toleranz, 1 Körnchen Ironie und 1 Prise Takt. Dann wird die Masse mit sehr viel Liebe übergossen. Das fertige Gericht schmücke man mit Sträußchen kleiner Aufmerksamkeiten und serviere es täglich mit Heiterkeit."

-- Katharina Elisabeth Goethe (1731-1808), Mutter v. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

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