Chronomesh

From our London Forum show in 1999. Recorded by Janick.

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The ATP version of 2 rights. It’s not bad!

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Photo: Only Sequel/Flickr

Twitter has jumped on the “Do Not Track” privacy bandwagon.

The company recently confirmed that it supports the Do Not Track header, a user privacy tool originally created by Mozilla that is in the process of becoming a web standard. That means if you visit Twitter in any web browser that supports the Do Not Track header, you can opt out of the cookies Twitter uses to gather personal information, as well as any cookies set by third-party advertisers.

Behavioral tracking, as such practices are often called, is a common on the web. Advertisers use cookies to track your clicks, watching which sites you visit, what you buy and even, in the case of mobile browsers, where you go. Often the sites tracking you are not just the sites you’ve actually visited, but third-party sites running ads on those pages.

And it’s not just advertisers tracking your movements, social networks like Facebook and Twitter also follow you around the web. You may not realize it, but Twitter has been tracking your every move for some time. The company doesn’t make a secret of it either. In a blog post announcing Twitter’s new “tailored suggestions system” Twitters Othman Laraki writes, “we receive visit information when sites have integrated Twitter buttons or widgets.”

To be clear, not only is Twitter able to set cookies any time you visit its own domain, whenever you visit a website (like this one) with a “Tweet This” or similar button Twitter can see you there as well. This practice is hardly unique to Twitter; Facebook, Google+ and others are doing the same thing.

Most of the time the information gathered is used to create a better experience for users. In the case of Twitter’s new “tailored suggestions” feature the information is used to build a profile of what you like and then Twitter makes suggestions based on that profile. You can read about exactly what Twitter does with your info and how long it keeps it in the company’s privacy policy.

The problem with such tracking is that it’s necessary for features we want, like smart, targeted suggestions — new users to follow, music you’ll likely enjoy, books you might want to read and so on — but it can also be used for decidedly less friendly purposes. As awareness of the downsides to such tracking become more well known a growing number of people are opting out of the tracking. The Mozilla Privacy blog reports that “current adoption rates of Do Not Track are 8.6 percent for desktop users of Firefox and 19 percent for Firefox Mobile users.”

To take advantage of Twitter’s new Do Not Track feature you’ll need to be using a web browser that supports the header. Currently that means Firefox, Opera 12+, Internet Explorer 9+ or Safari 5.1+. Chrome has pledged to add support for Do Not Track, but doesn’t just yet. For more information on protecting your online privacy, including tools like Ghostery, which go even further, blocking all tracking cookies, see our earlier post, Secure Your Browser: Add-Ons to Stop Web Tracking.

So many screens, so few images (testing responsive sites with Adobe Shadow). Photo: Adobe.

The web needs a more intelligent way to serve images.

No one wants to waste bandwidth sending large images over limited mobile pipes, but everyone wants images to look good on the myriad screens connecting to today’s web. Currently web authors use a variety of hacks to (incompletely) work around this problem, but to really solve it the web likely needs new tools.

Unfortunately, thanks to miscommunication between standards bodies, web developers and browser makers, instead of a solution to the image problem what developers got this week feels more like a slap in the face. Eventually an adaptive image solution will likely emerge, but the real lesson for many developers will be about how the standards process works and how they fit into it, if at all.

Webmonkey has previously looked at some proposed solutions to the adaptive image problem. Some very smart web developers came up with the idea of a <picture> element that works much like the current HTML <video> element. These developers thought they had the attention of the Web Hypertext Application Technology Working Group, better known as the WHATWG. Then, earlier this week, Edward O’Connor, Apple’s WHATWG representative, proposed another method of solving the problem, using a new srcset attribute on the <img> element. See our earlier coverage of the srcset attribute for a more detailed look at how it works and compares to the <picture> proposal.

What has web developers up in arms is that Ian Hickson, editor of the WHATWG spec (and better known as Hixie) has already added the srcset attribute to the WHATWG’s HTML draft spec, seemingly ignoring the months of effort that went into <picture>. Worse, members of the WHATWG apparently weren’t even aware that developers were putting forth the effort to come up with a solution via the Responsive Images community group. Nor were concerns about the srcset syntax given much consideration. Hickson does address some objections to srcset in his message to the WHATWG, but ends up dismissing most of them.

That doesn’t match up with how most people envision the web standards process. But as web developer and standards advocate Jeremy Keith writes, “this is exactly how the WHATWG is supposed to work. Use-cases are evaluated and whatever Hixie thinks is the best solution gets put in the spec, regardless of how popular or unpopular it is.”

In fact, think of the WHATWG as the source for initial, rapid development of new features. The group was started by browser makers because the W3C’s HTML Working Group (HTMLWG) moved too slowly. But if the WHATWG is the source of rapid development, the W3C is an effective check on that speed, ensuring that even those of us who don’t make web browsers still have a voice in the future of HTML. (see our earlier overview for more on the history and differences between the HTML WG and the WHATWG.)

While the HTML WG is also chaired by Hickson (a position he will soon step down from), it offers a much more democratic (and consequently slower) process and has overridden the WHATWG’s rash decisions in the past. For example the W3C added the time element back after Hickson removed it from the WHATWG spec.

Confused yet? It gets worse. The WHATWG is working on an ever-evolving standard, what it calls a “living standard,” which is different from — and may well diverge from — the snapshot-based standards issued by the W3C, like HTML5. In a comment on longtime web standards champion Jeffery Zeldman’s post on the matter, Jeremy Keith writes, “I don’t mind if the srcset attribute is in the WHATWG HTML spec but not in the W3C HTML5 spec. If it works, it’ll end up in a future W3C version number.”

Implicit in Keith’s statement is that if the srcset attribute doesn’t end up working out it won’t be in HTML5.x and would likely just fade away like the blink tag, the applet tag and other HTML ideas tried and later discarded.

Which is another way of saying developers need not panic. Perhaps web developers don’t have a voice in the WHATWG simply because we’ve been using the wrong channels (W3C community groups don’t seem to be an effective means of communicating with standards bodies, in fact they seem more like this.). If you’ve got ideas and would like a voice in the future of the web join the WHATWG mailing list and login to the IRC channel. Introduce yourself, learn the rules and contribute.

In front of the Eastern European importers is a stand where the donut man makes his own tiny donuts and sells them in the same display case as toy trucks and 'dancing chickens'.

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It’s quantum computing: of course there’s a paradox

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Filed under: Convertible, Performance, Misc. Auto Shows, Specialty, MISC

Our own lensman Drew Phillips caught sight of this at Cars & Coffee in Irvine, California: the 2013 Hennessey Venom GT Spyder. This is the first time it's been seen on our shores. The targa version of the Venom GT packs the same 1,200 horsepower as the coupe - which also debuted at C&C, one year ago - but adds $150,000 to the price.That means you'll need $1.1 million for that wind-in-your-very-rich-hair feeling.

We still don't have exact specs on the car beyond a very limited build and its "enhanced driving sensations," but the high-res gallery of photos above should fill in enough blanks for now.

Hennessey Venom GT Spyder pops in at Cars & Coffee originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 20 May 2012 20:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Filed under: Motorsports, Coupe, Ferrari, Specialty, Racing

James Glickenhaus claims fastest lap by a Ferrari ever on the 'Ring originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 20 May 2012 18:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Here's another one from my recent trip out with Andrew Thatcher: the old end of the pier at St. Annes. As always, let me know what you think.

I've also uploaded this one as this week's Mini-PSD as the change between the original and final image is quite dramatic.

I'm currently back in the UK – to run some one-to-one training sessions, a Creating Dramatic Images workshop, and photograph a wedding – all of which starts at the end of next week. I've also got a long list of things to get through this week, but managed to head out for a few hours with Andrew Thatcher. We started out in Blackpool, then went down to St. Annes, and finished up in Fleetwood. I shot a range of stuff, and have another three, maybe four shots I'll be posting, but thought I'd start with this one as it's the most unusual of the four.

It was taken using a Lee Big Stopper (a 10 stop ND filter) – hence the 15s exposure – and while I'm not 100% happy with it I did think it was worth posting. Let me know what you think.

I'm filling in for the regular crew tonight, so we'll talk about some of the news from the last week: Will new Macs be unveiled at WWDC? Is it news when a podcaster switches networks? Are Windows Phones really kicking iPhone butt in China?

These topics and more will be analyzed, discussed, and dissected tonight on TUAW TV Live, and your opinion -- and I'm sure you have one -- is welcome.

Your calls and questions help us make the show the best it can be. To participate on TalkShoe, you can use the browser-only client, the embedded Facebook app, or download the classic TalkShoe Pro Java client; however, for maximum fun, you should call in. For the web UI, just click the Talkshoe Web button on our profile page at 4 HI/7 PDT/10 pm EDT Sunday. To call in on regular phone or VoIP lines (yay for free cellphone weekend minutes!): dial (724) 444-7444 and enter our talkcast ID, 45077 -- during the call, you can request to talk by keying in *8.

If you've got a headset or microphone handy (you know those headphones that came with your iPhone?), you can connect via the free Zoiper, X-Lite or Blink SIP clients; and basic instructions are here. Talk to you tonight!

TUAW Talkcast tonight: Previews, podcasters, and premature plaudits originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Sun, 20 May 2012 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

When it comes to evaluating the next big thing, we turn to our secret weapon: the TUAW braintrust. We put the question to you and let you have your go at it. Today's topic is form factors.

Recently, rumors have been swirling about possible iOS device form updates. You may have read about 7" iPads (or, possibly, a 7" relaunched iPod touch) and iPhones with mighty 4" screens, both of which would certainly throw monkey wrenches into the world of app development.

That's because each time Apple adds a new form factor into the mix, apps need to update to restyle their designs. They must meet both the physical form factor and the intrinsic aspect ratio. Each time this happens, universal apps grow bigger and space on your device grows smaller.

So do you think you see Apple moving forward on either one? Are these, as often, simply groundless speculation and spitballing? Or do you think either rumor has legs?

You tell us. Place your vote in this poll and then join in the comments with all your analysis.

Full disclosure: Certain TUAW staffers have ongoing bets with certain MacObserver staffers about a possible miniPad, with lunch riding on the outcome.

View Poll

You're the Pundit: Are we going to see form factor changes? originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Sun, 20 May 2012 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Filed under: Convertible, Performance, Misc. Auto Shows, Specialty, MISC

Our own lensman Drew Phillips caught sight of this at Cars & Coffee in Irvine, California: the 2013 Hennessey Venom GT Spyder. This is the first time it's been seen on our shores. The targa version of the Venom GT packs the same 1,200 horsepower as the coupe - which also debuted at C&C, one year ago - but adds $150,000 to the price.That means you'll need $1.1 million for that wind-in-your-very-rich-hair feeling.

We still don't have exact specs on the car beyond a very limited build and its "enhanced driving sensations," but the high-res gallery of photos above should fill in enough blanks for now.

Hennessey Venom GT Spyder pops in at Cars & Coffee originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 20 May 2012 20:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Filed under: Motorsports, Coupe, Ferrari, Specialty, Racing

James Glickenhaus claims fastest lap by a Ferrari ever on the 'Ring originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 20 May 2012 18:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.