Ars Technica: Siri is iPhone 4S-only today; where will it be tomorrow?

The whole thing’s decent, but for now, skip right down to the bottom of the article and read that section calling out the potential problems:

Michael Okuda also noted that voice input is generally inefficient. “Imagine I’m looking at some photos, and I want to say, ‘Up, up, left, down one, photo number 3362, no, the one on the left.’—that’s much slower than just clicking or tapping,” he said. “Natural language is, I think, going to have some significant limitations.”

Found here, by way of Peter Brown on the Facebooks.

When Bigger Isn’t Better: Samsung Galaxy S II Preview | Apartment Therapy Unplggd

First, WTF is up with that name, Samsung?

I find it interesting that Apple’s devices appear to be considered untouchable by so many reviewers. This review might as well read, “Well, it’s ugly, not as good as its 18-month old competitor, and clearly designed and built by chimpanzees, but it’s pretty much better than the rest of the also-rans.”

In case you were wondering what IP67 and whatnot means in terms of waterproofing of a device or enclosure, here’s everything you need to know in three compact tables: IP - Ingress Protection Ratings.

Apartment Therapy’s Unplggd just did a nice roundup of a bunch of IKEA hacks and ideas. And yes, it links to the great IKEA hacking blog, of course.

IKEA Lovin’: The Best Of IKEA Tech Hacking & DIY | Apartment Therapy Unplggd

Welcome to the ultimate guide to IKEA hacking and DIY at Unplggd, with over 100 articles devoted to all things IKEA. Anything and everything about IKEA that’s been highlighted in these pages is carefully cataloged and categorized (sorta) for your pleasure and convenience. Well maybe not *everything - man can only endure search for so long (in this case a couple of hours). We’ve got IKEA hacking, Ikea DIY, and even some normal IKEA pieces that we just found extraordinary.

ongoing by Tim Bray · Good News-Biz News

Tim Bray’s latest blog post, discussing TPM, is well worth a read. It also contains a little side note on the current Republican party, who are largely (and, I believe, correctly) considered by the rest of the world as crazy fucking nutjobs:

Possibly the Republicans are right that homosexuality weakens marriage and tax cuts don’t cause deficits and imprisoning a world-leading proportion of your population increases public safety and deregulating the finance industry is good economics and invading large Middle-Eastern nations (then staying) improves America’s security, as does spending more on the military than the rest of the world put together. And maybe the rest of the world is wrong on these things. I doubt it, though.

Great video from Louis on brake service: Land Cruiser rear brake service, shoes, drum, emergency brake adjustment - YouTube

Running from Camera: Wherein the photographer attempts to get as far from the camera as possible in the 2-second self-timer delay. This seems like a fun project for traveling… (via a tweet from Rands)

Declutter For a Good Cause: Recycle/Donate Your Old Tech | Apartment Therapy Unplggd

Update: In addition to their own products, Apple now takes non-Apple devices for recycling (up to 60 pounds, and including CRTs). Several good options on their recycling page, some of which get you money.

In an earlier post, I mentioned Rhode Island Wiring Service, purveyors of reproduction wire, including what looks to be every wire style used in Land Cruisers (40s and 60s, anyway).

Other good sources of auto/boat electrical parts I always forget about:

Genuinedealz does free shipping, and their prices are great. They will make custom cables, too, for a $1-per-connector labor charge. I remembered about them tonight, right after I spent more than I should have for some Blue Sea stuff on eBay.