Small things

The scene: yesterday morning, on the bike path a couple of km away from my house. Two little girls - maybe 3-ish and 5-ish - are walking toward me, a few meters ahead of their Mom. I'm riding my bike to work, in my usual early-morning haze of I'm-not-up-yet thought.

What happens next: the smaller munchkin sees me approach, smiles and waves. Her sister pickes up the cue and does the same thing. I smile back, broadly, because this just doesn't happen in this day and age.

Mom sees me smiling, laughs and says hi. We all continue in our opposite directions, all in a better mood than before our paths first crossed.

The takeaway: Small things make a big difference in the trajectories of our lives.

Your turn: How would you like to influence the life of a stranger the next time you're out and about? Can something as small as a friendly smile and wave make that much of a difference?

Not so far from the madding crowd

McGill College Avenue in downtown Montreal is a not-very-long street that, when I was a kid, sat at the center of a huge controversy over urban renewal and what constituted effective street design. Developers duked it out with city hall over what the streetscape would/should look like, what kind of buildings would hover over it, and ultimately how regular everyday people would interact with it all.

As a child-newspaper-addict, I voraciously followed the debate, then watched the street come alive as I grew through my teens and went to school in that very part of town.

The road eventually became a broad boulevard with lots of cool features at street level. It's a great place to walk around, and it continues to resonate in my mind long after I moved far, far away.

This is one of my favorite sculptures along one of my favorite urban roads. I'm not quite sure what it's saying, but it's definitely speaking to me.

Your turn 1: Describe your ideal urban environment. What does the street look like? Why does it work?

Your turn 2: Sorry, I couldn't decide on just one, so you get two tonight! What do you see in this crowd scene? In one sentence, please describe what you think is happening to the left of this image. Virtually, of course, because what's really happening to the left of this picture is traffic. Quebec driver-traffic. The scariest kind. But I ramble. Again. Your turn...

Quoted - VoIP security

Attention: geekdom alert!

IT Business Edge has published the transcript of an interview I gave them recently. It's also distributed within their Optimizing Infrastructure online newsletter. It's entitled 3 Questions: Walking Upright, Not Yet Running. I've pasted it here:

With Carmi Levy, senior research analyst with Info-Tech Research Group Inc., London, Ontario, Canada.

Question: In recent research on Voice over IP, you cite the relatively unsettled regulatory situation as well as security concerns and other issues for holding off on VoIP deployment. What's your best guess as to when the technology will be ready for worry-free, enterprise-wide deployment, and what's the biggest variable in that equation?

Levy: I don't think any technology is ever completely worry-free. For example, e-mail has been around in various forms for well over a generation, and we continue to deploy it along with a phalanx of protective filters against spam, viruses and a host of other threats. For any relatively new technology, the worry never really goes away, but it does tend to level off somewhat once the technology has had a few years to mature. Maturity occurs when standards become relatively universal, key vendors become more entrenched in their respective market niches, and the overall language of the technology becomes known by IT decision makers.

For VoIP, we're still in the somewhat more chaotic early stages of its evolution. Standards remain somewhat fluid, startups do battle with more established vendors who are in turn struggling to make the transition to VoIP, and IT decision-makers are still getting up to speed. The next two to three years will witness that kind of shaking-out, meaning 2008 is the year when we can comfortably call it a mature technology. The biggest variable is clearly security. Until it is relatively stable and well-communicated, IT won't make the jump.

Question: You also caution potential customers that upgrade costs can spiral out of control, since the increased traffic load on the IP network can mean unforeseen additional expenditures. How common is this among customers and what sorts of additional equipment or software do they end up having to buy?

Levy: The majority of early-adopter VoIP implementations run into greater-than-expected infrastructure costs. The majority of such companies with whom I have spoken have run into varying degrees of uncertainty during deployment, and this can be attributed to the uncertainty of the new landscape.

We're still learning the language of VoIP and figuring out what questions need to be asked. Until IT becomes as well-versed here as it already is with other aspects of infrastructure — as it has become with server design and desktop operating system deployment, for example — these little surprises will continue to pop up. The kinds of additional expenses that tend to pop up include VoIP-compliant firewalls, higher-capacity switches and routers, as well as direct increases in available bandwidth. As IT becomes more familiar with the scope of VoIP's impact on network infrastructure, these questions will be asked — and answered — far earlier in the project planning process.

Question: The "skills gap" you mention occurs as enterprises come to grips with whether VoIP gets handled by the telecom staff as a data service or by the IT staff as a voice application. Does this blending of voice and data at the personnel level really have to be so disruptive or expensive?

Levy: It never needs to be disruptive, but reality has an annoying habit of falling short of the original promise.

Both disciplines are typically staffed by highly experienced, long-serving experts in their respective fields. The term "turf war" wouldn't be out of place in describing how each side responds to a potential degradation in its area of accountability. Like most people, they focus on the territorial protection of what they already have. In doing so, they ignore the going-forward potential of the converged architecture.

Fear can be a positive or negative motivator. Effective managers focus on the wins that will benefit everyone, and ensure their messaging focuses heavily on these advantages right from the start. Effective managers also anticipate the kinds of questions and issues that employees from both teams will raise, and they prepare properly structured responses in advance. Proceeding through a VoIP implementation without a communication plan that outlines, in explicit detail, how the respective data and voice specialists will be deployed to support the new infrastructure is, in my view, a disaster waiting to happen.

Publish Day - getting published

My latest column in the London Free Press, Author prevails in finding publisher, focuses on the very real challenges of getting published. I was lucky enough to observe London author Mark Rayner's efforts to launch and market his newly-published novel, The Amadeus Net, and thought his experiences in doing so would resonate with anyone who was thinking of doing the same.

The intestinal fortitude I witnessed in the process was monumental, and I have an even deeper respect for him and anyone else who has the conviction to follow a dream and get a book out there.

Editorial correction: a glitch seems to have creeped into the piece following submission. The lede should in fact read as follows:

Mark Rayner has some advice for would-be authors who want to get rich and famous from writing: put down your pen.

Your turn: Wanna write a book or get your name and work out there in some sort of historically significant manner? Why? What drives you?

(BTW, here are links to his web site and his blog. Both are compelling reading, just like the book.)

Go flight, again

The spacehead in me is having a difficult time keeping the excitement in check in advance of Wednesday's scheduled launch of the Space Shuttle Discovery. Return to flight represents a lot of things to a lot of people, not the least of which is the need to keep exploring despite the inherent risks of doing so.

I have been fascinated by aviation and space flight for my entire life, and I watched shuttle launches, missions and landings faithfully from STS-1 on up. I saw Challenger explode and Columbia disintegrate on live television, and thought the only tragedy larger than the loss of such precious and exemplary lives would be an end to the journey.

The journey resumes tomorrow. Television coverage starts at 3:30 p.m. ET in most regions. I hope you'll stop what you're doing and tune in - or log onto www.space.com and click on the NASA-TV link.

I'll have more to say tomorrow. For now, it's your turn: Is space flight worth it? Why? Why not?

Quoted - AMD/Intel fallout

A couple of weeks ago, I commented on AMD's lawsuit against Intel, and posted it here.

Tom's Hardware has quoted me in an update story, EU raids Intel's offices in Europe. Here's the snippet:

Still, it is unclear if AMD's claims are strong enough to hold up in court. Analysts such as Carmi Levy from Info-Tech Research, for example, believes that the current antitrust claims have nothing to do with unfair business practices but rather with the fact that Intel is just in a different league when marketing and selling its products. "When Intel gets its act together, everyone else scatters," he said.

Another glimpse

A couple of weeks back, Noah was playing in the back yard with Dahlia. We had laid out some towels on the grass, as well as some toys. It was a pleasant, sunny day, and they were engrossed in their little world of happiness for what seemed like an age.

At one point, Noah rolled over onto his back, put his hands beneath his neck in the universal relaxed-reclining position, and while staring up at the fluffy white clouds in the middle of a deep blue sky, asked her this:

“Dahlia, is this the life?”

I was stunned – happily so – at the level of insight from a four-year-old, and consequently didn’t even hear her big-sisterly response.

Never mind, I know the right answer anyway: it most certainly is.

Geometry at the beach

Manufactured lines meet those from a more natural origin. Can you tell I've been toying with the infiniteness of large bodies of water lately?

Fire in the sky

For some reason, the clouds have been especially beautiful over the past few days. The cynic in me says it's the smog, but the romantic being that hovers over my other shoulder says I'm just getting weepy in my old age. While they duke it out, I'll just take the pictures.

I shot this one the other evening as I walked home from an errand. I noticed this formation reflecting the setting sun as I strolled the last few meters before getting to the house. I grabbed the camera off the kitchen table - it's always handy, wouldn't ya know - and ran back outside. These scenes tend to disappear quickly, and I didn't want to miss the magic.

Your turn: It's actually a two-parter:

1. What are the first three words that come to mind as you see this?
2. What will you photograph next?

Playground pattern

An indoor play place is home to countless images that hide amidst the kaleidoscopic colors of the equipment and the blurred energy of the children who scamper in every conceivable direction.

While waiting for my own little people to make their appearance from inside the maze, I somehow fixated on this. As their little hands grabbed at the blue rope on their way out, they hardly paused as they waved at me before running back into another entranceway.

Your turn: The next time you head to the park - indoors or out - take a minute or two to look closer than you usually would. You might like what you see. I do hope you'll consider capturing a photo of it and posting it online.

Quoted - Amid some controversy

Ooh, I've stoked controversy. Good stuff.

Recently, I was interviewed for a story, entitled Five Reasons Not To Implement VoIP, that was published this week in Networking Pipeline.

In response, a ZDNet (I know, don't hyperventilate on me) writer named Russell Shaw posted this to his IP telephony blog:

Analyst's "don't implement VoIP" screed sounds like "hey, hire me"

Subsequent comments to Mr. Shaw's posting have branded me as a VoIP Insultant. They have also provided endless entertainment on how easily the English language can be butchered, but that is neither here nor there.

I'll ignore the whole quoting me out of context and missing the big picture thing. The article is right on the money, and I would change nothing if I were interviewed again tomorrow.

The closest analogy I can draw comes from the world of the daredevil:

Before you jump off of a cliff, I would highly recommend you exhaustively ensure every component of your parachute is in proper working order. In advising you to take these precautions, I'm not telling you NOT to jump off the cliff. I'm simply telling you to not do so before making sure you don't end up a flattened speck on the bottom of the gorge.

Happy jumping, Mr. Shaw and friends. Oh, and while we're here, kindly note that my name is not Carni. It is Carmi, with an em. If you're going to miss my point by the intellectual equivalent of a light-year, at least get my name right, k?

I know, I'm enjoying this way too much.

Sing it like the Flintstones...

It's been 13 years since a beautiful young woman with a lot of courage put on a lovely white dress and married me. She's courageous because she's managed to put up with the tempestuousness of a husband whose idea of fun is lying on his back on the front lawn and measuring the size of clouds with his fingertips. That she does it at all is a wonder. That she does it while keeping herself and the household on an even keel is even more so.

We celebrated by dropping the kids off at day camp, then heading to nearby Grand Bend - a little town on the Lake Huron shore - to sit on the beach and contemplate life. The weather was iffy - it rained off and on as we drove there, forcing me to close the beloved sunroof - and stayed gray for most of the time that we were at the lake. The sky cleared into brilliant blue as we loaded up to head home. But I didn't much care. I had, after all, gotten to spend quiet time with the one person on the planet who can speak to me without saying a word.

After we got back to London and picked up the kids, we took them out for pizza. As our daughter had a hissy fit and buried herself in the deepest recesses of the adjacent bench seat for a good sulking, Debbie smiled and shook her head. She said never in a million years could she have imagined when we got married that we'd be doing THIS on our 13th anniversary.

I thought the same thing, then looked at our boisterous children and thought how cool it was that we had created this crazy little world.

We watched our wedding video with them before bedtime. I always have difficulty watching it because I can't bear to see all the folks who are no longer with us. As much joy as we felt on our wedding day, I don't want my memories to be bittersweet. Still, explaining who was who to our munchkins, and listening to them belly-laugh when they saw me happily saunter down the aisle made everything right with the world again.

I lack the ability to write the words that adequately - or even remotely - express how lucky I feel that I've been able to spend my life with my wife. All I can do is ask for countless more years that are as charmed as the last 13 have been.

Catalpa madness

I'm still on a bit of a picture kick, so thank you all for indulging my little photographic jag in recent days.

This time out, I headed into, of all places, my parents' backyard. This is the house where I grew up, and next month they will be moving to a condo nearby.

We visited them this weekend, and I found myself slowly taking pictures, hoping to capture not just the images, but the ghosts of what it felt like to grow up there. I'm not sure I succeeded, and I'm not even sure it mattered. But it did get me thinking.

This is a picture of the mythical catalpa tree. This tree with the giant leaves has fascinated me forever. It has seemingly died off some years, then charged back with bursts of leaves after the next winter. Half of it continues to be a skeletal presence high in the sky, but it grew enough big green leaves close to the ground this year to shade my playing children. Here's what it looked like to them as they bounced around on the lawn below.

Your turn: What is it about trees that speaks to the kid in you? Why do they matter so much?

Noah sleeps

It's been a very busy week for the little man, so here he catches up on his beauty sleep. Not that he needs much, mind you (yup, there goes that bias of mine, again.)

Your turn: I'm amazed at how he can fall asleep just about anywhere. I wish I had that ability. Do you? Where's the most oddball place you have fallen asleep?

Picket this!

Everybody wants a white picket fence, right?

Your turn: If you aspire to a white picket fence, why? What is it about them that makes them worth dreaming about? If you're not a fan, why not? (I know, this is a really broad topic...I'm feeling vague today. Thanks for indulging me!)

Search engine fun

If you use the AOL search engine (please stop laughing, as there are at least six people out there who continue to use this resource. That, and you don't want to insult my great aunt Minnie, but I digress yet again) I have a bit of interesting - and disturbing - trivia for you.

This blog apparently shows up at #1 on the returns list if you type in the following search term:

Pictures of people who don't wear their seat belts and die

Um, OK. Moving on...

Your turn: What weird search terms have showed up on your blog stats? Do they disturb you as much as some of mine disturb me?

Publish Day - Pre-school graduation

My latest column in the London Free Press is all about our little guy, Noah, and his recent graduation from pre-school. To some people, these things often seem quite trivial on the surface. To me, however, it's what life and parenting are all about, and I wanted to make sure I remembered it with words.

It's called Pre-school 'graduation' bittersweet milestone, and it's available here. I hope you enjoy it.

Your turn: I like the first-three-words-that-come-to-mind concept. Which three words go through your mind as you finish reading the piece?

Quoted - AMD, Intel, and a really big lawsuit

Back to geekdom for just a bit...

Chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has launched a fairly broad-ranging antitrust lawsuit against Intel.

I know, please try to maintain decorum as you absorb this earth-shattering news. If not for me, then for the sake of the children. Thank you.

But seriously, I've written a press release on the issue. It's called AMD Taking Huge Market Share and Client Gamble With Antitrust Lawsuit, and you can read it here.

I'll post links to responses as they become available.

Updates...

• Yahoo! Finance.
  
• Tom's Hardware. AMD vs. Intel: "It's not a slam dunk case".
• Softpedia News. AMD to Lose Clients by Suing Intel.
• FindLaw.

Pickups from the Agence France Presse wire service:

• Australian IT. AMD sues Intel over 'bribery'.
• NYU (New York).
• French postings - all under the headline: AMD s'attaque aux pratiques commerciales du leader Intel.
• 
  
• L'Internaute (France). AMD s'attaque aux pratiques commerciales du leader Intel. Additional link here.
• Radio France. AMD s'attaque aux pratiques commerciales du leader Intel.
• Via SFR (France). AMD s'attaque aux pratiques commerciales du leader Intel.
• Journal du Net (France). AMD s'attaque aux pratiques commerciales du leader Intel. Additional link here.
• Actu Live (France). AMD s'attaque aux pratiques commerciales du leader Intel.
  
• AOL France. AMD s'attaque aux pratiques commerciales du leader Intel.
• La Tribune (France). AMD s'attaque aux pratiques commerciales du leader Intel.
• Le Figaro (France). AMD s'attaque aux pratiques commerciales du leader Intel.
• NordNet (France). AMD s'attaque aux pratiques commerciales du leader Intel.
• Voila.fr (France). AMD s'attaque aux pratiques commerciales du leader Intel.
• Wanadoo (France). AMD s'attaque aux pratiques commerciales du leader Intel.
• 
  
Spanish postings:

• 
  
Univision.com. EEUU: AMD ataca las prácticas comerciales del líder Intel.
• 
  
Mipunto.com (Venezuela). EEUU: AMD ataca las prácticas comerciales del líder Intel.
• 
  
ElNuevoHerald.com (Miami).

• 
  
• Far East postings:
• 
  
8080.net (China).
• 
  
PC Online (China).

• 
  
VnExpress (Vietnam).

Considering how many news outlets in France have picked up this story, I'm beginning to understand what Jerry Lewis must feel like.

I've also been picked up by an outfit called lowyat.net. They conducted an analysis of the suit, entitled EU raids Intel in Europe, and posted it to their site in PDF and HTML formats. They obtained the source info from the Tom's Hardware piece.

Sad Pooh

Somewhat poignantly, the two men who voiced the Tigger and Piglet characters in the classic Winnie the Pooh series passed away within a day of each other. The CBC is reporting it here.

Paul Winchell (Tigger) was 82 when he died last Friday. John Fiedler (Piglet) passed away a day later. He was 80.

The 100 Acre Wood will never be the same.

Your turn: I hope you'll share your memories of gentle childhood characters who influenced you into adulthood.

Once around the sun

I don't often like to focus on calendar-based milestones. Arbitrary numbers based on how many times the planet orbits the closest star don't mean a whole lot to me. Still, I can make exceptions on occasion, and this is one of them.

One year ago today, I wrote my first entry on this blog. In the 365 days since, I've posted a bunch of words and images that, I hope, have reached out beyond my own little world and touched the lives of like-minded folks wherever they may live. In the process, I've crossed electrons with some lovely people and learned much about my world and myself along the way.

Like all journeys, this one has changed me. My writing has evolved because of this experience, and I'm more convinced than ever that the written word represents my and my family's future.

Thank you for being there to read my words and leave your own as feedback. Thank you for sharing your thoughts on the craziness that is Written Inc., and for spreading the word of a writer who simply wants to make our planet a slightly better place than it already is.

Onward...

Return to the beach

Happy weekend, everyone. The weather continues to be ungodly-hot here, so I thought a neat way of thanking you all for your excellent cooldown suggestions would be to post a new picture.

This is one of a series I took at Deerfield Beach, Florida, last December. The transient nature of the weather that day - set against the already unthinkable enormity of the ocean - reminded me how small and insignificant I felt as I stood there and tripped the shutter.

Strangely, that didn't bother me. I felt seriously at peace. I hope you do, too, after seeing this image.

Your turn: The first three words that come to mind as you see this are...

Egg, meet sidewalk

The weather dude is calling for a high of 34 degrees Celsius (93.2 Fahrenheit) and a humidex somewhere well into the 40s (104). The humidex and smog alerts are already up, and as I look out my window before leaving for the office, I can literally see the air.

Somewhat stupidly, I'll be riding my bike today.

Yeah, silly me.

Your turn: What little tricks do you have up your sleeve to keep cool?

Justice knows no limits

Few things sicken me more than racism. The deep-seated, generational hatred that drives it has stained societies throughout history.

So it's nice to see the Mississippi Burning case closed with the conviction of 80-year-old Klansman Edgar Ray Killen.

Many people have made an issue of Killen's age. They claim that jailing a senior citizen in poor health accomplishes nothing. They call for him to simply be left alone to live out his years in peace.

I guess these people haven't spent any time with the families of the three men he murdered in cold blood in 1964. I guess these people think time somehow manages to erase the enormity of this crime. I guess these people just don't get it.

Mr. Killen: you got away with it for 41 years. That's 41 years more than you gave your victims. You're finally getting what you deserve (OK, to clarify, what you deserve is far, far worse than the Mississippi justice system is currently allowed to deliver to your sorry keister, but I'll accept a 60-year sentence if that's the best that can be done.) Your age has nothing to do with it. Nor does your failing health. You killed three people based on their support of racial mores you have never tried to understand because you were so blinded by hate. Society has no room for your kind. You will not be missed.

The end of a home

About one month ago, I took some pictures of an old house on the verge of demolition. I thought that capturing it before it disappeared forever would be a nice way of reminding myself that newer isn't always better. The resulting entry was called Awaiting its fate, and I invite you to click back to see what it once was.

For some reason, that image has stuck in my mind since then, so last week I went back to the site. The house was still there, albeit in a somewhat more advanced state of demolition. When the house is completely gone, the way will be cleared for the law firm next-door to build yet another box.

Your turn: Are cities losing their uniqueness and sense of scale because of this seemingly relentless removal of heritage properties? If you had the power, what would you do to stop it?

A car, personified

For some bizarre reason that I cannot explain, I assign names to my cars. My first machine, a well-loved Mazda with a 5-speed, a sunroof and a stereo, was known as Bessie. I went the alliterative route for my next car, a red Honda known as Henrietta.

(It, too, had a stick and a sunroof. You can tell I've got a thing for vehicles with holes over one's head.)

This picture is older than our kids (the car was from the 1990 model year), but I've always loved it because it's this amazing swath of pure color and surface texture.

Your turn: Do you name your car? If so, I hope you'll share the name, as well as the story behind it.

Quoted - on credit card breach

Everyone's buzzing about that huge credit card hack attack where upwards of 40 million client records were compromised. If you carry a VISA or MasterCard, you just grew a few more strands of gray hair.

Thanks to the crack team at Info-Tech, we've released a comment on this issue. The press release is entitled Credit Card Breach Exposes Limits of Current Privacy Legislation.

I'll keep this list of pickups updated regularly. So far, here's who we've got:

• Yahoo! Finance
• AllAmericanPatriots.com. (Also linked here.)
• Business Intelligence Network.
• FindLaw. (Also linked here.)
• ITbusiness.ca.
  
• InterestAlert.
• Next-Gen Data Center Forum. Headline: Financial Security: Priceless.
• DataWarehouse.com.

On being a Dad

Editorial note: This entry may start off sounding cynical. Rest assured, it is anything but.

I've never been one to make a big deal of Father's Day. I don't believe in ignoring the things that matter for months on end, then saving up a bunch of store-bought sentiment so that it can be rapidly expressed over the course of one overcommercialized day.

Like Mother's Day, Valentine's Day, and so many other so-called "events" that were created by vendors to guilt us into buying more stuff we don't need, Father's Day as a calendar event has devolved into a rather meaningless point on the calendar.

Which is really too bad, because I had an incredibly fulfilling day with my family today. They let me sleep in really late. Then my wife made breakfast for us all and served it on our china (I love that set...I'll write about it sometime. But I digress.) Then it was outside to the deck to enjoy my gifts - an unbelievably comfortable adirondack chair and a table - and play out on the back lawn. Later on, we went to Storybook Gardens (click on the Flickr link to the right for more pics from the day) and had dinner out before carting our now-exhausted kids home for bath and tuck-in.

It was the kind of day that parents everywhere cherish, for it reminds us why we kill ourselves during the week, and why we stay up late nights, every night, working ourselves to the bone so that their future will be brighter.

Father's Day lasts for but one day. Next weekend, we'll try to recreate the same kind of magic that my wife, our kids and I enjoyed today. As I understand it, we don't need Hallmark to tell us that special days can happen any old time we wish.

Admin note - more pictures!

If you look at my sidebar, you'll notice a vertical strip of five photos. These will evolve over time, and they link to a more comprehensive site - kindly hosted by the folks at Flickr - of all sorts of photos and other glimpses into our life. The direct link is here, but you can also get at it by clicking the More of carmizvi's photos link at the bottom of the strip. If you're in the mood to type, I've set up this URL:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/writteninc/

I've added this to the site because using the blog to post individual pictures can be a little limiting when we do fun stuff as a family and want to post a bunch of pictures from our big day out. To wit, the new site includes pictures from our recent adventures in Oakville, Port Stanley, and right here at home in London. Keep an eye on this ever-changing collage, since you never know who will pop up in it - maybe even you!

I'll still post individual photos to the blog, of course. Now I have a new tool in my toolkit.

I do hope you'll all click over to the new resource, and let me know what you think in comments below. Enjoy!

Another journalistic loss

Every once in a while, I write about the folks who populate the world of journalism, what they mean to me, and why. I'd like to think this helps paint a more complete picture of what motivates me to write, and incents you all to find your own mentors out there. Here goes...

The Washington Post's Joel Achenbach once again serves up a winning entry in his Achenblog. The topic is, unfortunately, sad. Pulitzer prize-winning reporter and editor, and mentor to generations, Gene Miller, died on Thursday. Achenbach writes about it in this entry. Mr. Miller's obituary - which he wrote himself - is printed in the Miami Herald, and is available here. (Note: you may need to register for free to read it.)

Although I never met Mr. Miller, his passing leaves me wondering who the next generation of writers will look up to as they seek the guidance of their elders. I can't help feel that Mr. Miller's generation - which so ably supported me as I took my first steps in the world of writing - isn't being replaced.

It is the loss of the next generation of writers who won't achieve the levels of greatness that they would have otherwise achieved, and the loss of readers who will never know what they're missing.

A child grows

Our youngest son graduated from nursery today. Watching him sit on the stage with his friends and knowing this was the last time we would be part of the comfortable world of this lovely little nursery school was a bittersweet experience for my wife and me. We'll miss it.

I took lots of pictures, but pictures don't capture sentiment as well as we would like.

Speaking of pictures, childhood milestones always come with lots of them. In this case, he presented us with a large, colorful envelope filled with examples of his artwork from the past year. One of the things the teachers asked him to do was to draw one picture of his family at the beginning of the year, and another at the end. The operative goal was to show how he and the people he loved grew over the course of the school year.

The first picture included all of us, as well as our cat, Shadow. The second one did not, as we had to put him down in March (see here, here, here, and here for some original postings.) In seeing the two pictures side-by-side, it occurred to me that this was his way of illustrating that he had accepted the fact that his cat had died. For all our worrying at the time that our kids would have such difficulty with losing a pet, I was glad to see today - albeit with a small lump in my throat - that our son had shown us it was OK to move on.

Another milestone. Another chunk of proof that our child is growing in more ways than we can initially fathom.

I thought now might be a nice opportunity to post a picture of our gato. Check his thumbs.

Your turn: How do your kids show you that they're wise beyond their years?

A little boy sleeps

Zach was three when I took this. He's ten now, so you know I've been in a nostalgic mood lately. I've always loved this picture because, well, just because. Don't we all want to be in that very same warm and comfortable place with our beloved blanket?

Your turn: Where/when/how do you find peace? Please paint the picture for us...

Publish Day - don't touch my neighborhood

My latest column, OMB tramples on our very homes, was published in today's edition of the London Free Press. I suspect any developers who read it won't be too happy with my position. Then again, I don't write to appease developers. If I did, it would be called advertising.

Shudder at the thought.

---
Update - July 7, 2005: I notice that the Urban League has posted this article on its web site. Click here to see it. I'm flattered, but a quick e-mail before it was copied and pasted to their site would have been a nice professional courtesy.

Look who I met at the beach

My wife wrote a touching entry on our trip to the beach this past Sunday, so I'll say no more about the great time we all had.

I do, however, want to introduce you to the gilled dude (dudette?) that the kids found washed up on the shore just as we were packing up.

My long-suffering wife is used to my photographic fascination with weird stuff like this. The other beachgoers were, unfortunately for them, not. They stared at me as I gleefully waded into the shallow water by the shore and snapped picture after picture of the quite dead fish. The incredulous looks on their faces suggested they were all wondering what would possess a grown man to do such a thing.

I'm not sure I have the answer for them, since I'm not sure why I do any of this. I find it fun to take a contrarian view of the world. And I suspect that you'll all enjoy the results of my oddball photographic taste.

Your turn: So, am I nuts or what?

An interesting headline

I heavily favor the aggressive adoption of alternative sources of energy, but this?

Taking a ride on the sheep urine express

Your turn: Got any psycho headlines that you'd like to share? We all need a smile today.

A tale of two animals

I went for a spin on my bike today and ended up in a place called Port Stanley, a beach resort along Lake Erie's shores about 50 km from my house. Never mind the air was so hot, humid, and thick with visible smog that I had trouble breathing almost from the moment I first cleared the city limits. It was still good to be outside.

On the way down, a Very Large Dog - let's repeat these words, as this canine was massive - came running across the ditch and chased us down the road. Thankfully, motorists nearby - the road was a 2-lane regional highway with an 80 km/h speed limit - saw what was happening and stopped their vehicles to watch the frightened cyclists . Yes, it was a stupid dog, but an even dumber owner. The dog could have just as easily been mowed down by an 18-wheeler. I was tempted to find the owner and yell, but you never know what people will do when you decide to altert them to the error of their ways. So we - we were a group of three riders - let it go.

On the way home, we stopped by a horse pasture for a water break. Surprisingly, its two residents trotted over to us to say hello. The friendlier one of the two sniffed my bike, then nuzzled my arm and generally endeared himself to me forever. We obviously didn't speak each other's language, yet somehow I figured I was connecting with this amazingly majestic creature. A lovely moment at a time when I otherwise felt like melting.

Your turn: If you're enduring the heat, how are you coping? Does all-enveloping smog scare you as much as it scares me?

Macro pink flowers

Every once in a while, I like to pull out my beloved Nikon, pop on the extension tubes and see what kinds of extreme closeups I can capture.

Your turn: What's your favorite close-up subject? If you have a picture, please post it on your blog so we can all see. If you don't, I hope you'll share your idea(s) here. After all, you never know what I'll focus on next.

Today's headline

The CBC is running this half-baked headline on its web site this afternoon: Western leaders arrive for crystal meth talks.

I'd seriously hate to be around when they get deep into the illicit sauce.

(Yes, my taxes support this.)

My son, on language

It's been disgustingly hot and humid this week in our part of the world. We've had smog alerts every day, and like clockwork, thunderstorms have popped up every afternoon and have made the drive home somewhat entertaining throughout the region.

Against this backdrop, Noah's pre-school class went to visit a dairy farm yesterday. While getting ready in the morning, he babbled endlessly about the animals he would see - cows are his favorite - and what they would look like. As we loaded his knapsack, he reminded me that I had forgotten a critical item:

"I need to put on some sunscream," he said with an ear-to-ear smile.
"Some what?" I asked.
"Sunscream," he repeated, making it quite clear that this was the word and that was that.

I decided not to correct him. He has a whole lifetime to learn the right words to everything. And after he nails every word correctly, people around him won't smile and feel good to the bottom of their soul when he speaks. Sunscream is just fine for now.

Press Release - Apple Goes Intel

By now, the entire world knows about Apple Computer's decision to abandon the PowerPC-based processor architecture in favor of Intel's x86. Geeky, I know.

But I nevertheless find these kinds of things fascinating. We may think stuff like this is incredibly esoteric, but it can still have an impact on us - regardless of whether or not we fit into the geek camp.

So I wrote a press release at work - Apple Shifts to Intel: Big Change - No Impact - and it has garnered some cool feedback. (Again...I love doing this.) The Apple faithful may not be happy with my position. But they're always welcome to start blogs of their own where they can burn my electronic effigy.

Here's a quick list of some of the responses received thus far:

• Yahoo! News.
  
• Yahoo! Finance.
• CIO Today.
• MacNewsWorld.
• TechNewsWorld.
  
• NewsFactor Network.
  
• Business Intelligence Network.
• Sci-Tech Today.
• Top Tech News.
• Bloomberg.
• LinuxInsider.
• eCommerce Times.
• CRMBuyer.
• More to come...
  

Your turn: am I right or wrong? What lies in store for Apple? Have I earned the permanent hatred of Mac zealots everywhere?

I'm hungry...

...which likely explains the movie-themed photo. Does this make you hungry, too?

Your turn: I'm taking requests. What food should I shoot and post here? Should I head back to the grocery store and risk arrest by the rent-a-cop who prowls the vegetable section? You say it and I'll bring it to vivid life in a future blog entry. And if you want to do the same on your own blog, let us know where to find it.

Chasing the setting sun

You would think that a four-year-old wearing a t-shirt meant for his Dad wouldn't be able to run faster than him. You would be wrong.

I love the spirit of this picture. If I could somehow bottle it up, life would be perfect.

Come to think of it, as I snapped this yesterday afternoon, it pretty much was.

Your turn: Have you taken a picture that provokes a strong emotion in you? If so, how can we find it? I invite you to post your links and thoughts here so we can all feel a little better about the visual world around us.

Publish Day - more Microsoft

Processor.com has published my most recent technology opinion piece, Microsoft Making Promises Longhorn Can't Keep. I know it's a bit geeky, but the theme of blindly following the market gorilla is applicable beyond the tech industry. This one was a lot of fun to write.

Then again, they all are.

Today's must-read

This is why I so enjoy reading Joel Achenbach. Sure, this piece is funny enough to propel milk, in reverse, through my nasal passages. But it's the underlying message that gets me. Read it and enjoy the journey, then visit his blog, Achenblog, for more fun from a master of the pen.

Your turn: Do you have any favorite online reads - regular or one-time...whatever strikes your fancy - that you'd like to share? If so, post 'em here and spread the literary joy.

Intel-powered Macs

Rumors have been flying for months. Now, hot off the proverbial presses, it appears the rumors that Apple will dump Motorola processors in favor of those from Intel could very well be true. CNET News is breaking the story here. Reuters is running this, and there's more coverage here.

Is nothing sacred any more?

Your turn: What other inviolables of life do you think will fall in the wake of this technological equivalent of the downing of the Berlin Wall?

Vacation images - the overlooking tree

Another in an occasional series of photos from our trip to Florida last December.

I have nothing substantial to say here. I just love this tree, and I love the peace of its location.

Your turn: What places bring you peace? What is it about them that makes this so?

Lifeblood

As some of you may know, I am a regular blood donor. The first time I gave was back in university. I had some time to kill in between classes, and thought it wouldn't hurt to bleed a bit, then sit in a lounge chair munching cookies for a little while.

I gave sporadically over the years, usually when the clinic came to school or to a mall near my office. Sometimes they’d call and ask me to come down. Despite my intense hatred of needles, it was always a pretty easy thing to do.

Soon after moving to London, I started donating plasma. I got into a groove thanks to an amazing bunch of people at work who would go every week, no matter what. The leader of our merry band would, on his own volition, use his own vehicle to bring everyone to the clinic. He recruited newcomers to the group and somehow managed to make it into the highlight of everyone's week.

Leaving the company was difficult not because of the work - which I grew to no longer enjoy - or the leadership - which was morally bankrupt - but because I didn't get to hang for a couple of hours every week with these incredible people.

Still, I kept going when I joined my new firm. That's the cool thing about plasma: you can give weekly (vs. every eight weeks for whole blood.) I also love the cookies they have for donors – chocolate whippets, just like when I was a kid – so it’s pretty much a no-brainer for me to go down and shnarf a few. They even have oatmeal and soup – though, thankfully, not together.

Last night, I was privileged to attend a donor recognition night with my wife. I got a certificate - nice, but completely unnecessary - and was able to reconfirm why this thing matters so much to me:

• I really like the cookies.
• It’s life-affirming to be around the same caring, devoted people week after week. Donors, nurses, staff and volunteers at the clinic are likely some of the most inspiring people you’ll ever meet. That’s gold for a writer like me.
• Fear of needles is not a big enough excuse to stay away. If I ever get sick, I doubt I’d refuse treatment because I hate being jabbed.
• Barely 3.5% of Canadians who are eligible to donate actually do. If we don’t look out for folks around us who are in need, who will? Fear of an empty blood bank frightens me beyond belief.
• Community was an important part of my upbringing, and I want it to be an important part of my children's as well. This is one way to show them that sometimes you do things not because you expect something back, but because it’s good for others.
• I still really like the cookies. Though truth be told, I'd go even if they didn't stuff me silly.
  

As in past years, a recipient was asked to speak. Her name is Samar Chaker, a 17 year-old who, just over 6 years ago, almost died from Aplastic Anemia. Transfusions kept her alive so she could fight it off and, miraculously, survive. By the time she finished speaking, there was not a dry eye in the house.

Her speech is here. Please read it, then think about whether you’d like to come on down, shnarf some cookies, meet some cool people and do something nice for someone you’ve never met. If you're in London, pop by first thing any Friday morning and say hi. I'll save you a cookie.

---
Cool readings:

• Canadian Blood Services
• American Red Cross
• National Blood Service (England & Wales)
• Australian Red Cross Blood Services
  
• 56 facts about blood donation
• 10 reasons to donate (The 11th reason? Cookies, of course)
• Wiki page - blood donation
• World Blood Donor Day (June 14th)
  

Press Release - VoIP security

I am, apparently, at it again. Info-Tech has sent out another press release today. Here it is on our corporate web site. PR Newswire is running it as well:

Analyst Firm Identifies Security Gaps in VoIP Networks

I'll add links to the bottom of this post as things get picked up and covered by trade media. Here's the text:

---
Calls on VoIP Security Alliance (VOIPSA) to Create Security Certification

LONDON, ON, June 2 /PRNewswire/ - The security threats that dog the Internet and other data networks threaten to stop the growth of Voice over IP (VoIP)-based telephony in its tracks. Info-Tech Research Group (http://www.infotech.com) today called on the industry's leading security alliance to implement standardized security certifications to address the growing threat.

The Voice over IP Security Alliance (VOIPSA) membership includes a wide range of hardware and software vendors, security firms, and researchers. It will use many tools, including discussion lists and white papers, to get its message across. It will also sponsor VoIP security research projects and develop free tools and methodologies.

But Info-Tech Research Group believes this is insufficient.

"VoIP handsets are simply Internet-capable computers disguised as telephones. They are subject to the same security threats as other web-connected devices. Until the VoIP world gets serious about security, industry growth risks being stunted," says Info-Tech Research Group Senior Research Analyst Carmi Levy. "We recognize and congratulate VOIPSA for educating businesses about the risks involved in VoIP. Now VOIPSA needs to go further by certifying new VoIP phones and systems to be as secure as traditional voice technology. Business confidence is essential to the success of new VoIP services.

"Without universally-defined security standards and certifications, many enterprises will not commit their mission-critical traffic to VoIP," adds Levy. "VOIPSA is in the best position to make this happen, and it needs to step up to the plate."

Info-Tech Research Group strongly believes that companies migrating their voice traffic onto threat-prone web and data networks without first investigating the security implications are asking for trouble.

"Moving voice traffic onto existing data networks opens up telephony to the very real potential of eavesdropping, impersonation, long distance toll fraud, and voicemail squatting," says Levy. "VOIPSA members come from every corner of the VoIP map and have the expertise required to design and implement certification criteria," adds Levy. "Such a program would boost confidence in today's solutions, and in many cases remove the last obstacle to migration."

About Info-Tech Research Group
With a paid membership of over 25,000 worldwide, Info-Tech Research Group is the global leader in providing information technology research and analysis to the mid-sized enterprise market. It is North America's fastest growing full-service IT analyst firm.

SOURCE: Info-Tech Research Group
---

Updates...

• Mysan.de (Pressemitteilung) (German web site...publishes in English).
• Business Intelligence Network.
• America's Network. Analyst Firm Identifies Security Gaps in VoIP Networks
• VoIP Now. More Security Needed
• Next-Gen Data Center Forum (NDCF). VOIP Security Group Urged On. This story incorporates some interesting responses directly from the chairman of VOIPSA. It's great to know my words made it all the way back to the source.
• NDCF has also posted the original release: Info-Tech Pinpoints VOIP Gaps.
• Enterprise VoIP Planet. Is VoIP a Security Risk? This piece also incorporates feedback from VOIPSA chairman David Endler.
  
• VoIP Magazine. VOIPSA Asked to Create VoIP Security Certifications.
• Yahoo! Finance (!)
• SmartPrice.com.
• Broadband Wireless Exchange Magazine.
• ladlass.com.
  

Publish Day - protect your head

The London Free Press has published my latest column, Too cool to wear a helmet? Too bad in today's edition. In it, I talk about people who refuse to cover their heads while cycling, and the risk we all assume because of their choice. In many ways, a helmet is very much like a seat belt in that it is a relatively simple means of protection that makes a huge diffference if the individual is ever involved in an accident.

It's been nagging at me for a while, so I wrote about it. Where do you stand on this issue?

Your turn:

• Do you wear a bicycle helmet when you ride? Why/why not?
• Do your kids wear them? Why/why not?
• Should people who refuse to ride with them be subject to higher insurance premiums to offset the additional risk? Would such differential treatment be fair?

Update - June 2

One of the groups that I quoted in this piece, the Canadian Association of Road Safety Professionals, has posted a reference to the column on its web site. Here's the link. Here's what they said:

ON - Too cool to wear a helmet? - Too bad!
Writing in the London Free Press, Carmi Levy indicates: "Ontario law states that every cyclist under the age of 18 must wear an approved helmet. Common sense would dictate anyone over that age would want to be similarly protected. Although every head injury is a terrible tragedy that changes individuals and families forever, let's talk dollars and cents for a bit. The Canadian Association of Road Safety Professionals (CARSP) estimates first-year costs for a brain-injured patient can reach $300,000. Post-hospital rehab will run another $125,000 annually, with the average lifetime cost for a head-injured patient averaging between $4 million and $9 million. And all because some people think they're too cool to wear a helmet."

For more on cycling safety and helmet use, see our Slick Clicks for June