Paths of Glory

It's nice to see that I'm not the only person who is no longer a fan of Netscape's Communicator. This article over at MacWeek hits the nail right on the head. I found the following quote especially interesting, since it's approximately what I say once a week when advocating use of Internet Explorer over Netscape's Navigator to a user: Netscape cannot succeed simply because it isn't Microsoft. If that's Netscape's best reason for being, it doesn't deserve to succeed. I'm not going to use a product because of what it isn't, or who the developer is not. If the product doesn't help us get our work done better than the competition does, we won't use it.

I have no company or product loyalty. I use Outlook Express and Internet Explorer because for the way I work, they are the best products. If iCab or Opera releases a browser that is better for me than IE, I'll stop using IE. Simple as that. If Netscape 6 turns out to accomplish those goals, then it will earn its place as my Web and e-mail application of choice. . . . Until something better comes along.

I got up nice and early this morning, and vacuumed my apartment. I bet the neighbors loved that, but it's my revenge for their apparently late night dance parties. After cleaning, I settled down and watched Paths of Glory, a Kubrick film from 1957, which I found very entertaining. Is it just me, or do older movies not spoon-feed the audience quite so much as newer ones? When I saw What Lies Beneath on Friday, I leaned over to my companion and whispered "Hey, that was foreshadowing" when for no apparent reason, this lab technician explained all about this chemical that can render a person unable to move, but still conscious. It's one thing to provide some clues in a whodunnit, it's another to alert the viewer with details with all the subtlety of the neon sign that flashes "Snack bar will close in 5 minutes".