April 18th 2008
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Internet, Technology
Natural selection and web page design aren’t two phrases I would normally utter in the same sentence but now researchers are using evolutionary algorithms to come up with the perfect web page design. The Telegraph reports that an organisation called Creative Synthesis has designed evolutionary software that takes a Wordpress theme and changes it gradually based on how a user responds to it. Through tracking software, they recorded and analysed how users interacted with the design. Any parts of the design that were not considered interesting or did not receive attention were ‘bred’ out of the design.
Evolutionary algorithms have been used before to design aeroplane wings and also art but I think this is the first time they’ve been used to design the perfect web page design. Unlike these two uses though, it requires human interaction which is both a positive and a negative.
“The mutations will always occur and while they are responsive to human attention, they are not bound by them. It is possible to develop unique mutations that may actually influence human goals (rather than the other way around).”
It would be interesting to see this technique used on sites with different functions: social networking sites, news sites etc.
Cow’s Blog | New Scientist
April 16th 2008
Life, News, Politics
Several blogs today report on a current trend with the popular instant messaging program MSN/Windows Live Messenger. 
Chinese internet users are adding a “love China” icon to their screen names in support of their country and in protest to perceived Western bullying seen in recent Olympic protests.
From SushiPanda, linked above:
Over half of my Chinese-Chinese friends on MSN have put the badge on their contact names, in defiance of all the anti-China bullying that they’re undoubtedly reading about in the Chinese newspapers, watching on the Chinese news, and scouring over on the hundreds of blogs and BBS’s peppering China’s cyberscape and devoted to propping up this country’s national pride.
I’ve no problem with patriotism, within limits of course, but we all know that information is manipulated in an unprecedented way in China and it’s a shame that the people - the good people of China - don’t realise why foreigners do protest. It’s nice to see that Chinese internet users can rally together like this, but just a shame they seem to have a misguided view.
February 27th 2008
Internet, Linux
The last few years has seen the unprecedented intrusion of Linux into the desktop computer operating system market. While Microsoft still continues to dominate the OS market with it’s many incantations of Windows, Linux (along with Apple’s Mac OS X) has walked into Microsoft’s house without even wiping its feet. Perhaps the most publicised or most widely known flavour of Linux is Ubuntu and its many forks. This is probably the distribution that has made the most waves in the houses of the average Joe around the world. One of the major aspects of any Linux operating system is the perceived complexity of installation and general use. 
Ubuntu and many other flavours are challenging this view and with the adoption by Dell of Ubuntu, are challenging Microsoft’s dominance over the market. One piece of software which hopes to step up to the challenge and convert the faithful Windows users to Ubuntu is Wubi.
Wubi is an unofficial Ubuntu installer currently in beta that takes the risk out of installing Ubuntu alongside an existing Windows partition. It runs Ubuntu from within Windows from a disk image. Its aim is to get the Windows user aquainted with Linux and Ubuntu. Anything that prevents me from wiping my hard drive or braking partitions gets a thumbs up from me. But, does it do what it says on the box?
Installation
On running the Wubi executable, you’re presented with one screen where you choose which drive to install your choice of Ubuntu or one of it’s forks. One click and it does it magic. It downloads the required disk image and then works even more magic. Afterwards you’re required to restart. If the post finishes here, it means I broke it.
Using Ubuntu
Unfortunately, on reboot and selecting Ubuntu from the menu resulted in several freezes when trying to active the swap partition so I didn’t actually manage to get into Ubuntu. I was surprised however that the experience provides the experience of Ubuntu but without the risk of installing it as an inexperienced user. As it is in beta I am not surprised that my experience failed however I have high hopes for the software and its part in the spreading of Ubuntu, and Linux in general, into homes around the world.
Conclusion
Wubi allows the quick and risk-free installation and uninstallation of Ubuntu and its many forks which makes it an ideal piece of software for those not experienced with partitioning and the like.
The ease of installation and uninstallation surprised me and even though I didn’t get to actually use the installed OS, it would appear that if the experience is just the same as installing Ubuntu manually, it could be an invaluable tool to convert people to the world of free software. Go and give Wubi a test drive today: download.
February 27th 2008
Blogging, Life
Considering I usually write about things in a rather dull and boring manner, I’m quite astounded about how much my little tiny blog over here has grown. Spawned from a dark corner on Blogspot (remember that :)) in 2004, it moved to its current home in October 2005. Below is a graph of unique visitors, hits and pages served over this time. Some interesting trends.
Still going strong and I got a post coming up for you all tomorrow. Thanks to those that read it.
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Natural selection and web page design aren’t two phrases I would normally utter in the same sentence but now researchers are using evolutionary algorithms to come up with the perfect web page design. The Telegraph reports that an organisation called Creative Synthesis has designed evolutionary software that takes a Wordpress theme and changes it gradually based on how a user responds to it. Through tracking software, they recorded and analysed how users interacted with the design. Any parts of the design that were not considered interesting or did not receive attention were ‘bred’ out of the design.
