While you’re giving thanks today, take a moment to appreciate not just family and friends and health and bounty, but the amazing freakin’ world we live in. Louis C.K. on Conan:
Notes on a Django Migration
Earlier this year, I inherited responsibility for the website of the Knight Digital Media Center at UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism. The site is built with Django, a web application framework written in Python. The J-School has primarily been a PHP shop, using a mixture of open-source apps — lots of WordPress, Smarty templates and piles of home-brew code. Because it’s grown organically over time with no clear underlying architecture and a constantly changing array of publications to support, the organization sits on top of dozens of unrelated databases.
These are my notes and observations on how the J-School got into this mess, why we’ve fallen in love with Django, and how we plan to dig ourselves out.
And She’s the California Constitution
OK, it’s over, right? Get over it? Nope. It’s not over. We’re going to fix this. Humans must be free.
In the Name of Love
Keith Olberman gets past the bile and hits this one right out of the park. In the name of love, please watch this, and spread it far and wide.
I’m a Dirty Liberal
What did liberals do that was so offensive to the Republican Party? I’ll tell you what they did. Liberals got women the right to vote. Liberals got African-Americans the right to vote. Liberals created Social Security and lifted millions of elderly people out of poverty. Liberals ended segregation. Liberals passed the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act. Liberals created Medicare. Liberals passed the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act. What did Conservatives do? They opposed them on every one of those things, every one. So when you try to hurl that label at my feet, ‘Liberal,’ as if it were something to be ashamed of, something dirty, something to run away from, it won’t work, because I will pick up that label and I will wear it as a badge of honor. –The West Wing
Lessig on Prop. 8
Always impressed by the clarity and perspective of copyright law professor Larry Lessig. His video explication of reasons to vote No on 8 is worth five minutes of your time.
See also: Amendment Song
Self Portrait
Note to self: Look out the window to see if there are any really little kids waiting for treats before putting on the mask and opening the door :)
Yes We Carve
Thanks to YesWeCarve.com, found some excellent Obama stencils. Opted for simpler (read: more do-able) campaign logo background, hoping it speaks for itself (“Oooobama” would have been fun, but Miles’ bedtime was coming up fast). Amy went for the classic black cat (artfully executed), and Miles did a ghost. We’re ready!
Disk Usage Patterns
Did some math and took some notes on real-world disk usage patterns by Birdhouse Hosting customers. Short version: The vast majority of users will never utilize even a tiny fraction of the massive amounts of space being offered by some of the largest/most-oversell-crazy web hosts out there.
If Jesus Ran For President
Zowch!
Music: The Dirty Dozen Brass Band :: Flyin’ High (In The Friendly Sky)