The Null Device
2000/6/6
I decided to check on the status of font editing programs for Linux today, and, alas, there isn't much to report. Raph Levien's gfonted appears to be stillborn; there's a new project named Gill, based on it, which aspires to be something like Adobe Illustrator, though is still in an early stage of development (though does have some pretty pictures on the page). Meanwhile, Spif is still "not yet available for general use".
CD anti-recommendation: Information Society, InSoc Recombinant Bad angstcore reworkings of synthpop by Cleopatra derivagoth bands just don't work; for the most part, anyway. Most of them sound not so much remixed as degraded (though, considering the audience, that may be a selling point).
What is it about aging pop stars rediscovering their inner darkness anyway? Kurt Harland, the sole remaining member of 80s cyberpunk boyband Information Society, gets in touch with his Inner Trent Reznor, meanwhile laughable whiteboy rapper Vanilla Ice goes industrial rap-metal. And then there's Gary Numan's mid-90s goth makeover.
Actually, there's one thing that will probably save my copy of Recombinant from the second-hand shop: the bonus CD-ROM containing Information Society videos from the 80s. (Look, all those bright colours...)
Keeping the roads safe from dangerous criminals: In England, a woman was fined £20 for drinking water whilst waiting at traffic lights; this allegedly constituted "failing to be in charge of a vehicle". (ITN, via Jimbob)
The Sealand data haven: Another complication has come to light, namely the fact that Britain extended its territorial waters in 1987, and Sealand now would lie within British territory. Though it will all depend whether Sealand is considered to have been sovereign before 1987. (BBC News)