worldwide pablo

What's in your computer?

What's on a terrorist's laptop? According to reports today about the near miss in capturing Abu Musab al-Zarqawi during a February raid in Iraq:

NBC, quoting U.S. military sources, reported Tuesday that among the items seized with the laptop were several small plug-in hard drives. Numerous pictures of Zarqawi were found in the computer's "My Pictures" file, the network said.

That's right: The U.S. military's No. 1 Most Wanted uses Windows -- XP, no less. And he files his digital photos in the lame "My Pictures" folder.

We're pretty sure this isn't what Bill Gates had in mind when talking today about computer security...

To err is human

WWP is quite amused with Jack Bog's post today about a new "valuable blogging tool." WWP wishes to completely embrace this technological advance. And why not? After all, he seems to experience waaaay more than his earned share of weird error messages. [Perhaps you can relate, too.]

To wit: Last time we tried to tried to download an innocent word document, we were faced with this Hobson's choice. [Or lack thereof?] And then there's this one, which mysteriously keeps popping up. And lately, we've been having to click out of this one more and more. [Damn them.] And it seems that WWP and amigo Chuck keep running into this one.

And then there's that one extraordinarily irksome error message that keeps recurring. How utterly annoying.

Via media

Perhaps you've seen the TinyURL.com, where one can reduce monstrously sized weblinks down to a size one can swallow. Now, as Betsy reports today at My Whim Is Law, there's a way to make your URL bigger! And not just big, but huge.

Yep, you guessed right: It's HugeURL.com, the latest in Internet tomfoolery that, as Betsy points out, just might ... er ... fill a need -- or as the website helpfully puts it, will fulfill "every guy's dream." [Could be onto something, but we digress.]

Imagine for the time being, however, if one were to submit one's Huge URLs to the other Tiny URLs, and vice versa. That is, would reciprocal pinging result in a reliable and mutually satisfying afterglow?

Here's what WWP's exhausting research found:

At HugeURL, the URL for Worldwide Pablo puffs up to this: http://www.hugeurl.com/?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

Then, running that monster through TinyURL produces this eensy-teensy result: http://tinyurl.com/48j8s . [Judge for yourself how well it works. WWP's computer frequently choked on the TinyURL each time he attempted it.]

Flipping the process around, at TinyURL we get this result for the Worldwide Pablo site address: http://tinyurl.com/5r3bl -- a sensible if modest address to hit upon. But insert that address into HugeURL, the result swells to this:

http://www.hugeurl.com/?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

Huge to small, small to huge. Thanks to modern science, you can have both.

As for WWP, he's content with his medium-sized URL.

Beware the Ides of ... February

Okay, so he's a day late in mentioning it, but in perusing a blogicle that WWP ran across yesterday, it seems that blogging might not only be bad for your health, but a threat to your employment.

Don't know about you, but the blogging thing actually has been a plus for WWP. In fact, it showed up in the performance evaluation this year [and last year]. But then again, WWP tends not to consort with "unstable terrorists" or “anal retentive control freaks."

Not on purpose, at least.

Don't go there

Every now and again, the trusty Google search simply comes up empty. And then there are times when the results are even less than that. [A true search, for a WWP colleague.]

ThURLsday

Take the quiz: Which Random Irish Gaelic Phrase Are You?



Here's WWP's result: "Ta mo bhriste tri thine."

Which means, "My trousers are on fire."

You're a few bricks short of a load, aren't you? You're probably not allowed to use sharp objects and you should be locked in a rubber room. With Rubber rats. Rubber rats? I hate rubber rats. They drive me crazy. Crazy? I was crazy once. They put me in a rubber room. With rubber rats. Rubber rats? I hate rubber rats...

Yeah, WWP knew that already...heh!

Healing time: It's been a while since WWP sent a shout out to Dalene over at the Terra Firma Diaries. As always, there's a lot of really good stuff over there. Check it out.

Typo! As much as WWP's Inner Democrat wants to believe otherwise, the ginned-up documents against GWB look fake to these eyes. Why? There's no way that typeface or technology existed in 1972 or 1973. WWP remembers these times very well: His first job, in 1973, was as a typesetter. No way, friends. Check it out for yourself, and recall the manual typewriters and clunky "mag-tapes" and "paper ribbons" that prevailed in those days. Fake, fake, fake. How sad.

Kind regards and thanks to Isaac Laquedem, who continues to keep WWP's attention focused on this delightful Thursday diversion.

Idle chat

Just as WWP always suspected...

Look that up in your Funk & Wagnall's

WWP isn't feeling all that web-ambitious today. You want content? Check out Jack's take on the expedited gay marriage case or b!X's photos from Saturday's exercise in actualized self awareness.

As for WWP, he's taking a side trip down one of history's back alleys.

Who? WWP confesses he had to look it up.

So, which historical lunatic are you?

[From the fecund loins of Rum and Monkey. Pointer courtesy of Betsy.]

Well, surprise, surprise

GWB is already backing off his forecast of 2.6 million new jobs this year. You don't suppose it's because of this?

GWB might go down as the most surprised president in history.