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Sunday, November 8th, 2009
(2 comments | comment on this) Thursday, November 5th, 2009
news
[ theljstaff ]
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1:15p
LiveJournal Major Notes: Spam counter-attack, RSS feeds again, CSI Deadly Intent contest
The empire strikes backIn recent weeks, we've taken huge steps towards blocking spam accounts on LiveJournal. In fact, we've suspended as many as 30,000 accounts in a single day! We've implemented several pre-emptive measures to prevent the creation of spam accounts, and we've honed our detection of suspicious content. Spam bots are a crafty lot, so we'll continue to refine our tactics and keep up the good fight to keep you safe from spam attacks on LiveJournal.
RSS feeds againIf you're addicted to , ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/syndicated.gif) icanhaschzbrgr, or other syndicated feeds, we're pleased to report that we've resolved the update error that was mucking up your RSS feeds. While content was being pulled correctly, it wasn't being posted to the feeds themselves. Late last week, we finally nailed down what we hope was the root problem, so content should post properly. We thank you for your patience.
Wii have killer CSI Deadly Intent contests!
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) c_s_i
If you're a gamer who loves CSI, have Wii got news for you! c_s_i is sponsoring killer contests. Simply post a question to a member of the CSI crew. The winner will get a free copy of CSI: Deadly Intent for Nintendo Wii (with a retail value of $39.99) and get their question answered by a member of the CSI writing team! There's also a fantastic monthly contest. To enter, join c_s_i, play the online version of CSI: Deadly Intent, and respond to a two-part query for a chance to win a Wii! Entries will be judged on composition and originality. Sorry, but you must be a U.S. resident and over 18 years old to participate. Check out the rules here.
Enveloped in postcardsLast week, we asked you to send in postcards to help us decorate our drab concrete walls. Here's a photo of the results so far! Thank you so much and please keep them coming! You can mail them to Frank the Goat, Esq., c/o LiveJournal, Inc., 539 Bryant Street, Suite 210, San Francisco, CA 94107. Be sure to include your username, since we'll be giving ten random users paid account credits.
Photos of the weekIf you haven't visited our new LiveJournal photo community, you're in for an amazing visual trip. LiveJournal users from around the world will take you on a scenic journey to everywhere. Post your own pictures or kick back and enjoy at lj_photophile. You can view some of this week's awesome photos after the jump. Please start tagging with geographic location, since we'd like to track all the places around the world represented in this community. Keep on commenting too!
( Read more... )
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(212 comments | comment on this) Wednesday, November 4th, 2009
damien_wise
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10:30p
"Clash of the Titans" remake
Recently, they've been filming a new version of "Clash of the Titans".
Gone is the virtuosic stop-motion animation of Ray Harryhausen, replaced by CGI (he's unhappy there's no stop-mo in the remake of "his" film) that appears to be in the style of "300". I'm puzzled by Hollywood's fascination with remaking classic films / TV shows, usually making a hash of it in the process.
Looking on the bright side, they're rumoured to have kept the story mostly the same.
And the cast ain't half bad. The film stars Liam Neesona Zeus, Ralph Fiennes as Hades, Gemma Arterton as Io, and Sam Worthington as the heroic Perseus.
Directed by Louis Leterrier, who did the latest "Incredible Hulk" film and "Transporter 2".
( Movie promo posters and a still from the film )
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(4 comments | comment on this)
(6 comments | comment on this) Monday, November 2nd, 2009
(1 comment | comment on this)
damien_wise
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7:30p
End the Myths on Asylum Seekers
I don't often re-post stuff from GetUp here because I assume most of my friends are intelligent/educated enough to be aware of the issues (or are already subscribed to GetUp)...but this recent mess over boat-people makes it necessary to try that bit harder to get the message out far and wide.
As I see it, K-Rudd is doing a J.Ho -- having a go at refugees for political gain.
It's disgusting to take such a cheap shot when people's lives are at stake and in light of our international human rights obligations.
It might be a bit much for a show of compassion from the (not-so-)Liberal Party, and I'm sick of the way the ALP are borrowing their worst policies...but let's at least attempt to have some truth in the debate over asylum-seekers and boat-people.
GetUp's page on the issue: http://www.getup.org.au/campaign/EndMandatoryDetention&id=818
The GetUp fact-sheet is quite informative and well researched. Debunk the myths: https://www.getup.org.au/files/campaigns/asylum_myths_factsheet.pdf
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(11 comments | comment on this) Sunday, November 1st, 2009
(comment on this) Friday, October 30th, 2009
lj_maintenance
[ dwell ]
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5:17p
Network Maintenance - Saturday, October 31, 2009 at 04:00-05:00 GMT/UTC
EDIT: If you're reading this, our maintenance is OVER! The problem was not found on our equipment, which means we'll have to work with our ISP to fix this small problem -- which also means another maintenance window in the future -- but at least we have eliminated our side.
Thank you everyone, and a special shout out to ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) rekoil for giving me a great suggestion AND also the opportunity to feel like I've just called in to a local radio station.
Have a great day, night or afternoon wherever you may be.
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Hi everyone, sorry for the late notice but I'm going to have to do some testing on 1 of our 4 internet circuits TONIGHT; Friday night or Saturday morning depending on which time zone you're in.
Most of us shouldn't notice any impact, though there may be some slowness or lag when I switch traffic on to our other ISP circuits and then another hit when I stop the tests. If a page won't load or times out, try hitting refresh 1 or 2 times and it should load then. If it doesn't work at all... trust me, I'll be typing really really really fast to try to undo whatever I just did. Hopefully you'll have some Halloween candy (if you're in the USA and celebrate that kind of thing) nearby to take away the bitterness of a small site outage. :(
Here's the handy-dandy Website That I Always Use to get a feel for when the maintenance will start in your area. Our site traffic historically dips on Friday afternoons until Saturday morning which is why we tend to pick this time for maintenance work.
( tech details )
status.livejournal.org will, of course be updated before and after the maintenance window. Or else marta will get mad at me. :D
bt
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(50 comments | comment on this) Thursday, October 29th, 2009
news
[ theljstaff ]
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10:53a
LiveJournal Major Notes: Search super-tweak, postcards, and amazing user content!
In response to user comments from last week, we want to let you know that we'll remain LJ cut-free for the next month in order to get more eyeballs on our evolving newsletter. As for product coverage, that continues to be our top priority. For more granular detail, however, we recommend you join lj_releases.
Super-tweak for Yandex searchSome of our beta testers expressed privacy concerns using the Yandex search engine. Here's why: Last week, when you ran a search, you could see the usernames (and only the usernames) of everyone who commented on an entry, even if that entry was switched to Private or Friends Only after it was originally indexed. You could NOT see the actual comments from Friends Only or Private posts. In response to your input, we've implemented a fix to keep all user activity currently marked Friends Only or Private completely hidden. If you'd prefer your public content not to be indexed by Yandex, click here and use the settings labeled Search Inclusion (this covers your entire journal) and/or Comment Search Inclusion (which covers comments only). To test drive Yandex search now, click here.
Postcards from the edgeSeveral years ago, we asked LiveJournal users to send postcards to help us decorate our dull, white-washed offices. Since a good idea warrants repetition, we're at it again (same issue, new address). We hope you'll surround us with LiveJournal love by sending your postcards to Frank the Goat, Esq., c/o LiveJournal, Inc., 539 Bryant Street, Suite 210, San Francisco, CA 94107. We'll post snapshots right here. Be sure to include your username, since we'll randomly pick 10 lucky recipients to win free paid account time.
Conquer Writer's BlockHere are some excerpts from this week's most popular question of the day:
If a friend or relative makes a racist or homophobic remark, do you tend to confront them or let it slide? Are you more likely to confront them if it offends you directly or someone else who seems reluctant to speak up?- I find it easier to stand up for other people, and i wouldn't let it slide if they made a rude or hurtful comment.
- Usually if a friend makes a racist or homophobic remark, I tend to let it slide. I think that while i would not say such things myself, I have no right to censor those around me.
- This happens all of the time. I confront some relatives, but I refuse to if they are drunk or watch Fox News.
- I'd let it slide if it was just a private remark... As much as I despise bigotry and intolerance, I know that you can't change people-they have to change themselves ...
- Confront! confront! confront! Politely, but without equivocation.
- SPEAK UP. Always, always, always speak up. Letting something slide lets ignorance win. No matter if it offends me directly, or someone else, I will confront the speaker and let them know that's not ok.
- I don't get offended personally. As an immigrant, woman, gay and person of color if I took every single potentially offensive remark seriously I wouldn't get anything done.
- I punch them in the balls. With my mind.
- I do speak up, but often very timidly because I feel that I'm white and therefore I don't really have any authority to lecture someone on what's racist and what isn't...
- Generally speaking, I do not let this shit fly, because it reduces me as a person, to this non-person and it replicates the destructive discourse that makes sure that sexual minorities, racial minorities, women, people with disabilities, trans people and every intersection thereof into something other than human... And sometimes... I'm just too tired to deal with it, so I roll my eyes, make a sarcastic remark and hope the conversation moves on quickly.
For more daily questions and user comments, join writersblock. FYI, we don't want to invade your privacy, so we haven't credited individual users for their responses. We'd appreciate your feedback on this!
Spotlight community of the weekWe can't resist making one last midnight trip to the ol' pumpkin patch. If you adore crazy costumes, fiendish festivities, and bottomless candy consumption as much as we do, this community has just what it takes to light up your jack-o-lantern.
halloween_fan
Photos of the weekWe received so many incredible photos, we had to close our eyes and point. We uploaded a selection of awesome images at our new lj_photophile community. Please join and start posting (try to keep the width at around 625 for the sake of consistency)! We'd love for you to tell us more about your photos! You can help us select spotlight photos by commenting on your favorites. Once again, we thank you for making our online world more beautiful!
CurtainsThanks, again, for tuning in. We look forward to seeing you next week.
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(697 comments | comment on this) Wednesday, October 28th, 2009
damien_wise
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4:00p
More thoughts on Google Wave
Saw this article a few days ago and mentioned it elsewhere: What problems does Google Wave solve?
It's a really good examination of what Wave is and is not.
It's not some IM-killer or email-killer, but I can see how it does the good bits of both while fixing some of the annoyances of both.
Right now, it's still got a few fiddly little problems to iron-out (hence being not-quite-public Beta).
Also, not many of my contacts are there yet (though a surprising number are), so it's not at critical mass.
Given the difficulty in the past of getting workmates to settle on one type of IM/chat (please, pick one, any one -- they all do the same core function, so just ****ing settle on the same one so you can all talk with each other), I foresee some difficulty getting momentum going. Sometimes you need a benign dictator BOFH sysadmin to put their foot down and say: "This is the system we're using."
Then, there's another problem with Wave, and it's nothing to do with the interface or protocols or anything like that: it's yet another piece of software to keep an eye on!
I check email a few times a day, Twitter occasionally, LJ a few times a day, read other blogs daily, reluctantly waste time on FaceBorg most days, etc.
And, to complicate matters, there's folks running software that automatically scrapes their Twitter waffle into Facebook and then bounces it to LJ, so I get that drivel -- times three! Around and around it goes. A cat chasing its own tail is humorous -- you, however, are doing the same thing and yet profoundly irritating.
Just because you have the technology to do it, that doesn't mean you should.
It's my hope that any import/export gadgets for Wave have a smart feature along the lines of "I've seen this already; don't waste my time honouring this person's RSS feed. Let through unique messages but ignore repeats from other media."
Wave is a wonderful piece of communication technology...it's going to take people a while to figure it out and use it effectively.
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(7 comments | comment on this)
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