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Question: If you could have dinner with three sports stars of your choosing, who would they be?

My Answer: I would choose Roberto Clemente, Ty Cobb, and Arnold Palmer, mainly because, while I admire each of them, I never got to see them play. They're the first three that came to mind - each played their game in a way it'd never been played before, and all were gritty competitors.

You are encouraged to answer the Question of the Day for yourself in the comments or on your blog.

Using a $3500 DV camera to video conference feels very weird. I'll be picking up an iSight as soon as possible, and I'm hopeful that my mom does as well. It has a Mic, I guess, but I'm curious if I can use that (on my tower) for general-purpose "microphoning."

What to do with my tower… It's still worth about $1000-$1500 or so. Any ideas? It is a dual eight with 1.5 GB, 2x120 GB, SD, Zip, etc.

Many people seem to think that an entire OS needs to be rewritten when the processors on which it runs switch from 32 to 64 bit. From what (very little) I know about OS and software development, that's simply not true. The primary reason to move an OS to a 64-bit processor is to allow for addressable RAM. The secondary reason may be to speed up "core" functions like "copy this data" (like 2 MB of RAM, perhaps). A 64-bit chip will be able to do that twice as fast as a 32-bit chip, all other things being equal.

Usually, switching from 32 bits to 64 bits means new opcodes (CPU commands), so switching from a 32 bit PowerPC to a 64 bit PowerPC would be the same as switching from 32 bit PowerPC to 64 bit AMD. What's unique about the PowerPC 970 is that it provides 32-bit compatibility, easing the burden on those OS developers while providing ample avenue for gradual growth.

Keep in mind one thing: 95% (I'm making that number up - but it's quite high) of the calculations occurring on your computer's CPU(s) are quite simple. They're typically just integer math, and 32 bits is often too much space for that. You can address more memory - and that's good - but does adding 193 and 6943 take more than a few bits? Nah.

Question: What's your favorite playground game?

My Answer: I used to be pretty damn good (and enjoy tremendously) the game "foursquare."

You are encouraged to answer the Question of the Day for yourself in the comments or on your blog.

I'm considering getting a Honda Element to replace my 2001 Aztek. The main factor: I could probably get my car payments down to 2/3 the current cost. Honda seems to have a good reputation for building solid, dependable cars, so that's a good thing too (I've had no troubles with Pontiacs in the past, nor has my family).

You see, I got my Aztek shortly after graduating from college, moving 1250 miles from where I grew up, and after doing a few years of work that wasn't taxed (W-2 work, not W-4). I got it just before 9/11, so I got absolutely raped on the interest rate.

I love my Aztek, but at what I'm paying per month, I should have two cars! So if the ride is smooth, if the space inside is nice, and if the numbers work out, I may have a new car as soon as Monday. I guess we'll just have to wait and see…

Question: What's the best car ever?

My Answer: I'm not much of a car guy, so I'll stick with the egotistical answer: whichever one I own at that given moment. Of course it's the best - I bought it! 🙂 But really, hmmmm… '67 Mustang? Perhaps.

You are encouraged to answer the Question of the Day for yourself in the comments or on your blog.

Question: If you had to describe your worst experience with blood, what would it be?

My Answer: I once split my head open (at my sister's third birthday party) on the cement corner of my grandparents' garage. I tripped on my (too-long) Donkey Kong shoelaces and BAM!!! The blood began pouring. It was only a flesh wound… I think.

You are encouraged to answer the Question of the Day for yourself in the comments or on your blog.

Question: If you were to be reincarnated as someone you know, who would it be?

My Answer: I have no idea. If I could take the knowledge I know now with me, I'd be reincarnated as one of my many very attractive female friends. Knowing how easy it is to manipulate men would serve me well. 🙂

You are encouraged to answer the Question of the Day for yourself in the comments or on your blog.

Aaron's written a new book, Core Mac OS X And Unix Programming (subtitled "Master Darwin and the Core Technologies"). I snagged a copy and am going to have a look at it in the next few days and weeks. This weekend especially.

Besides, maybe I can snag a few ideas…

Unreal Tournament 2003 is out now, and I picked up my copy today. There's already a bug fix… for the installer! Some QA they have going on there, eh? What's worse is that it took me fifteen tries or so to get the installer to run at all, because my installer was crashing just after the EULA (the first screen to appear) popped up! The CD Key is the next screen.

At this rate, the install is going to take a year and a half. By that time the PC version of Unreal Tournament 2005 will be out.

Question: If you had to name the hardest position to play in sports, what would you say it is?

My Answer: I think the people moving the brooms on a curling team have it pretty rough! Okay, I was joking. I've played several sports, and the toughest sport is golf, by far, but that's not a "position" sport. So I'm going to go with "pitcher." Hitters are incredible, the strike zone is constantly shrinking, and the bats are being corked (sorry, Sammy). Being a pitcher is nearly as close to being a participant in an individual sport as you can find in team sports.

You are encouraged to answer the Question of the Day for yourself in the comments or on your blog.

As promised, FTPeel Public Beta 2 is now available. A big change list is available. Features to come before release (in a month or so) include:

• "Edit in BBEdit" functionality.
• More AppleScripting.
• Instant toggling between column/list views.
• A lot more…

SFTP will be pushed back until a 1.1 release, most likely. Sorry. 🙁

I don't think it sucks, but I would only pay $1,000 for a Segway. I have absolutely no use or need for one. I walk to a few places - and would continue to walk to them if I had a Segway. It'd be nothing more than an expensive toy. I can't use it at work, I can't use it at home. I'd ride around the parking lot a little on sunny days and that's it.

In fact, I think the Segway appeals to very few people. Very few people have the space - or the $5,000 - for a Segway in their life. We drive long distances, and lazy people drive short distances. The Segway won't change that. There are no Segway parking spaces (nobody would leave it outside, and carrying it inside is a task in and of itself). It doesn't have much storage - my scooter is better equipped for trips to the grocery store.

I think it's nifty - and again I'd pay up to $1,000 for the toy - but that's all it is to me at this point. Nick - got a counterpoint?

FTPeel Public Beta 2 is coming real soon now. A quick list of some of the bigger fixes and updates:

• Some crashing bugs fixed. Some memory conserved (not leaked), etc.
• MagicMirror greatly improved (and now recursive as it should have been in the first verison).
• Directories can now be deleted.
• Usernames with "non-token" URL characters (like @, /, space, *, etc.) now work. We had to work around a lame bug in the Omni Frameworks to get this one going.
• Column view dramatically improved.
• Full unicode support.
• Actions are now cancellable (if things take too long, etc.)

Look for FTPeel Public Beta 2 in the next few days.

Question: What is your favorite state?

My Answer: Bliss. 🙂

You are encouraged to answer the Question of the Day for yourself in the comments or on your blog.