Wednesday Morning Links

My hubby-Eric is a Mac user, while I play with PCs and Ubuntu. I thought he might appreciate a link to the latest Mac news, including the announcement of the MacBook Air, which weighs 3 pounds and fits in a manila envelope.

The new Doctor Who is successful. I like it, but I like Sarah Jane Adventures almost as much. More Sarah Jane!

Best Book Title Ever.

Texans are seeing UFOs. I gotta wonder what they are really seeing, and if we'll ever find out? Says one witness: "everyone is afraid it's the end of times" Heh.

Speaking of end of times, we had a near miss last night. And another one coming soon.

I would love to make these, but they do seem to be a bit much work.

Interesting: The Ernst Bettler Hoax, about an ad designer who ruined a company that worked with the Nazis... only the entire tale is bunk.

Want to be a slush pile editor? Go to Amazon.com Breakthrough and read a few excerpts from unpublished novels and submit your reviews. I do have a friend with an entry, but I'm not sure if I should link to his novel.

Cigarette Pack Books are accused of looking too much like Lucky Strike packs. The publisher responded that "members of the public are unlikely to mistake a Hemingway novel for a packet of cigarettes." Boing Boing has pictures of the books. What do you think?

How to Win a Fist Fight. I recommend people who haven't taken a self-defense course in awhile read this one. The guide is for untrained fighters only.

"Research" paper contest. Get a bogus paper published in the "journal", and win a prize! Your entry to the prize sponsors must include a point-by-point rebuttal.

Smurfs turn 50.

From Wellington Grey: The TSA Guide to Reading Faces for Security Workers. I'm Angry Human.

The science of laughter. I had to link when I read this: "groundbreaking rat-tickling experiments."

Dreamhost really screwed up, but they want to make it right:

If, because of this billing mistake, you somehow incurred some fees from your bank or credit card company, please let us know after tomorrow (today we are just replying to all 10,000+ billing messages with a generic explanation) and we’ll do our best to make it right for you.

Oddly enough, although I use Dreamhost (and generally like them) I didn't get charged at all for any of my services. My hosting doesn't run out until 2009, and I've already set up payment for the domains that expire next month.