caitlin gannon

Twitter is a strange entrant onto the social networking stage … I must admit I don’t really see the point. People share little 120-character bits of information about themselves (”just had a great burrito for lunch”, “waiting for my dad to pick me up”, etc.), and their friends — or complete strangers — can subscribe to and read them. I’m just not that interested in what kind of coffee someone in Michigan just ordered, or why a guy in Spain is waiting for a phone call.

However, I must admit to a surprising fascination with TwitterVision:

This mashup of twitter nonsense with Google Maps is actually sort of … well, reassuring. Somehow, plotting all these bits of trivia on a world map makes the continents seem like cozy neighbors, and the differences between us not so great. The more banal experiences of daily life are really rather similar (especially among the web-savvy set).

So, enjoy your latte, Michigan, and Spain-guy, I hope you get your phone call!

Best Flash Animation 2006 — the stick figures finally get their revenge!

Flickr is a great place for a diversion, and a reminder that stick figures all over the world put up with a multitude of bizarre threats and dangers. Where would we be without their brave warnings?

The Hall of Technical Documentation Weirdness offers truly brilliant examples of how NOT to write user instructions.

“Sanyan Wield Ways and Means” is either the victim of machine translation or contains some obscure coded text:

1. With appertain rotor of screw setting pre ceiling on the under standing that screw no wield. May wield two-faced, pressboard securing, wield pre to begin with wiping ceiling of bilge dasto.
2. Thread of length need half again as many as tad.
3. Open toy of batteries shuck. Verification batteries, whereafter stow down to a certainty need locklust lest take place accident.

I couldn’t agree more. Sounds like a good way of going about it.

There’s also a very frightening set of instructions on how to vacuum a cat that has fleas.