This release adds a choice of 4 backgrounds and fixes a CSS bug in the page.  My next release is intened to have a little love given to the design of the form and some more sounds.

On the subject of sound.  I’ve been asked for a version of this timer for folks on smart phones and other devices that don’t have Flashplayer.  I am looking into it, but sound in browsers is unreliable and nonstandard, to put it nicely.  It seems that HTML 5 will solve this problem quite finally and I will be able to lose the dependency on Flashplayer.

HTML 5 is due towards the end of 2010, if my informration in correct, if I can get it going earlier than that I will try to  do so.

You can find Sitquietly on this page.

This is what I’ve changed:

• Added details to instructions to clarify what to expect when running the timer.
• Changed wording and meta tags to use the phrase online timer.
• changed header when inside the timer to be a lot smaller, this should be better for smaller screens.
• Added a changelog that incorporates the pre-existing desktop changelog.

You can find my online medition timer here.

Well, just as the original filled a couple of needs I had, namely to learn Python and to get a Free Software meditation timer, I’m very pleased to announce that there is a new kid on the block.

I needed to get back into web design, PHP, HTML and CSS.  I’d also had the idea of of a completely web based version of my timer knocking about in my mind for about a year.  Well, I started it and then had data loss and got busy.  But I restarted it from memory very recently and after some work and a little swearing at Internet Explorer (don’t ask) you can find the results of my endeavours at http://sitquietly.quietwatercourse.co.uk/.

Now I’ve tested this on the most recent versions of all major browsers and as long as you have your Javascript turned on and an up to date copy of Adobe Flash Player, you should be laughing.  If you find a problem, or think things could be clearer, don’t be shy, tell me!

And yes… those are the words “Facebook Edition” on the site, I’ll keep everyone posted on that one… after the Web Edition itself only took a year to emerge! Lol!

From the Ars Technica article:

“It’s such a tremendously bad idea that it’s almost bound to succeed. Microsoft has filed another patent, this one for an “advertising framework” that uses “context data” from your hard drive to show you advertisements and “apportion and credit advertising revenue” to ad suppliers in real time. Yes, Redmond wants to own the patent on the mother of all adware.”

“The adware framework would leave almost no data untouched in its quest to sell you stuff. It would inspect “user document files, user e-mail files, user music files, downloaded podcasts, computer settings, computer status messages (e.g., a low memory status or low printer ink),” and more. How could we have been so blind as to not see the marketing value in computer status messages?”

I hope they’re just grabbing that patent in a form of pre-emptive self defence, it’s a possibility; after all they wouldn’t really be crazy enough to try running that kind of spyware/adware would they? Mind you, considering their record I find myself harbouring dark suspicions, power corrupts and all that.

*Shudder* This sort of thing is one of the reasons why I run Linux.

Thanks for the nudge Peter!

The situation with Microsoft really does remind me of the words of the Tao Te Ching, chapter 76:

While alive, the body is soft and pliant
When dead, it is hard and rigid
All living things, grass and trees,
While alive, are soft and supple
When dead, become dry and brittle
Thus that which is hard and stiff
is the follower of death
That which is soft and yielding
is the follower of life
Therefore, an inflexible army will not win
A strong tree will be cut down
The big and forceful occupy a lowly position
While the soft and pliant occupy a higher place

(Source: www.Taoism.net and Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths in 2006.)

Microsoft are in the position of trying defend a fairly inflexible position, they’ve painted themselves into a corner with Windows and Office and can’t move quickly enough. In fighting against Free Software, they’re trying the big and forceful thing, and as noted in the article it’s not working.

They’re trying every trick in the book to get things all their own way, the open document standard in Massachusetts in one example, their position pushing software patents is another. I can’t help but think how much more progress could be made if they’d just work with the community, all this energy that’s being put into fighting could be out into building really great software. How much better off would we be?

Well, I think I’ve earned a cup of tea!

V1.0.1
——-
Added contact details to readme.
Small code cleanups.
Changed contact details in about dialog.
Added contact details and changelog to the online help.

You can see its’ page along the top of my site, I’ve been using it for my own meditation sessions, I think it works well enough to be shared out. I hope to get it into Ubuntu Universe as soon as I can, and I’ll be continuing development of it as I have a few things planned, including selectable chime sounds and maybe even background music. I certainly need to develop the online help and may even throw in a few basic meditation exercises to get people started.

Please give me feedback and let me know what you think, enjoy!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtp5gNhBZgo]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVOnFdMf0RU]

For me, one of the unexpected bonuses was a music player called “Banshee”. It’s a very good music player, but also contains social aspects in that it talks to the Last.fm social music site about what you’re listening to. The result is on the new box on the right hand side of my blog, it’s the top 10 artists I’ve listened to recently. What the heck, at least you can all have a giggle at my musical tastes now!