Friday, July 09, 1999

Now when a MailToTheFuture message goes out, or a password confirmation, or a Bulletin, it will flow thru the offload server. So every time you get an automatic email from UserLand, think to yourself "This code is still working."

Due to popular demand, XML-RPC.COM now has its own Discussion Group. (Actually it always had one, but now it's visible thru the UI.)

News.Com: Why do corporate software makers want to be portals? "As enterprise resource planning companies press ahead with plans to establish Yahoo-like sites for their markets, analysts are still scratching their heads and wondering what these business software makers are trying to accomplish."

Wired: ICANN Points Finger at NSI. "The notion that there is some secret process that has any significance simply makes no sense."

MacWorld UK: Quark 'Welcomes' Quark-killer. "The upgrade will also be more "Web-enabled", with the ability to export as HTML. This can be done with content only, or with layout as well. XML support will not be included, said Gill, because a very small number of QuarkXPress customers will use it."

I spoke with Chris Oakes at Wired about the changes this week at NSI. I'm still confused about what the new rules are, but in the meantime we've turned our interface back on.

UserLand's first business development Talent Search. A longish survey form that asks thought-provoking questions. If interesting and informed thoughts come back, we know it's worth pursuing. It's time for us to grow, we want smart and informed business people on our team. Maybe that's you?

The technology behind Prefs.UserLand.Com is XML, of course. It's an unqualified win. Because the wizard interface is spec'd in XML it could be rendered in any interactive environment and it's easy to change and you don't have to be a rocket scientist to do it.

Steven Ivy: XML in Director. "I think that using XML as a means of storing settings, preferences, etc. is going to be big. One of my coworkers is working on a real-time stategy game in Director, and I'm trying to get him to build in an xml-based customization engine. There's so much possibility here."

WSJ: Web groceries firm places $1 billion order.

PC WEEK: "Lutris unleashed the source code to Enhydra in January, eliminating the price tag on its Java-based app server. Now the company is hoping the product takes off, leaving Lutris in a ripe position to tap consulting and integration gigs around the product it invented."

Wired: Clone OS to Run NT Apps. "If Microsoft's previous actions, or lack thereof, in similar situations is any indication, Trumpet is safe from a lawsuit. Microsoft has not taken action against two open source projects, Wine and ReactOS, which similarly aim to run Windows applications using the Win32 application program interface." One request, no socket limits!

Wired: Third Voice Opens Security Holes. "Vulnerabilities were first discovered by Michigan-based programmer Jeremy Bowers, who found that the software hole allowed users to post not just text but programming code in Third Voice notes. Once executed on other Third Voice users' computers, the code, if maliciously designed, could perform a variety of compromising tasks."