The greatest lost track of all time:
The Late Greats' "Turpentine"

Canada: "retreating from a complex, diverse economy towards dependence on a single primary resource, which happens to be the dirtiest commodity known to man. The price of this transition is the brutalisation of the country, and a government campaign against multilateralism as savage as any waged by George Bush."

"After giving the finger to Kyoto, Canada then set out to prevent the other nations striking a successor agreement. At the end of 2007, it singlehandedly blocked a Commonwealth resolution to support binding targets for industrialised nations. After the climate talks in Poland in December 2008, it won the Fossil of the Year award, presented by environmental groups to the country that had done most to disrupt the talks. The climate change performance index, which assesses the efforts of the world's 60 richest nations, was published in the same month. Saudi Arabia came 60th. Canada came 59th.
In June this year the media obtained Canadian briefing documents which showed the government was scheming to divide the Europeans. During the meeting in Bangkok in October, almost the entire developing world bloc walked out when the Canadian delegate was speaking, as they were so revolted by his bullying. Last week the Commonwealth heads of government battled for hours (and eventually won) against Canada's obstructions. A concerted campaign has now begun to expel Canada from the Commonwealth."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cif-green/2009/nov/30/canada-tar-sands-copenhagen-climate-deal

Why would I switch from OS X to Ubuntu?

I like things that work. e.g. bikes that don't shift. Macs. I switched from Windoze to a Mac mini five years ago. After three years on the mini I got a Macbook. It has been my workhorse for nearly two years.
It seems like every year there's an upgrade to Office, iWork, iLife, SPSS or EndNote. All of which cost.

So I thought I'd try something neither Apple nor Microsoft. Open Office has been working fantastically in OS X. Opera too. If Ubuntu is as stable as it's reputed, that augurs well.

Burning the Ubuntu Live CD was best done at a lower speed to reduce errors on the bootable USB. Also, getting into the Lenovo's BIOS (F1 when booting) was needed for the Lenovo to boot from the USB. I went with 9.04 instead of 9.10 because the wifi worked better. Five years and I had forgotten what a BIOS was. Once I have some time and bandwidth, I'll try 9.10.

Now I've got a 1.34 kg machine that is faster than the entry level Macbook Pro, with more storage and more RAM, for the same price. Lighter, more nimble and more affordable than a Macbook Air.

Thanks @doctorow for the inspiration. And @WebDevOnLinux for more advice.

In time, I may also be thanking Mr. Shuttleworh.

more cool stuff by way of @GreatDismal

embedding disabled: 1987
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhfB9DV90Fc&NR=1&feature=fvwp

If I had known the eternal was so good, I wouldn't have missed their June show here. Love these low-hit videos in the studio. The drum-kit mounted camera is great. As others have said, this is the best they've put out in a while. I think it's their best since Goo or Dirty. Have to say I miss Kim on bass.

My first gen Flip was a hunk of junk that never worked. I see more around lately and people seem to be happy with them. Hard to make a good photo or video through a pinhole.

by Kaaron Warren

Explicitly, this is a novel about a serial killer. More importantly, Slights is an internal portrayal of an unstable, unempathic protagonist with a poor sense of self, penchants for booze, recurrent suicide attempts and of course, murder. When near death, characters experience a room filled with the people they have slighted, or, wronged slightly - a chamber of profound psychological pain. From the first paragraphs, Slights is a seductive read, exploring layer after characterological layer of Stevie's rubbish and dug-up garden. It's difficult to feel what the protagonist feels - the pathos is convincing. A twisted knockout of a tale.

[Those with mental health issues should be cautious in approaching this emotionally potent novel. Also, not recommended for children or adolescents.]

by Alastair Reynolds

Think deep space. Think fear. Ubiquitous peril and paranoia. This novel made me feel quite small and had me looking over my shoulder for a couple weeks afterward. A dense, intense read. I'll be back for more, but not right away. I need some time to recover.

by Lauren Beukes

A superlative narrative blending GMO's, ICT, drugs, nanotech, bio-weapons while remaining ultra hip and humane. The dazzling denouement was credible. Topical, too -- the "No Service" message in the novel rang eerily as characters were disconnected in view of the recent three-strike legisltation in New Zealand. I can't wait to read what Lauren Beukes comes up with next.