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I hate hype, but l admit to occasionally being seduced like many other technologists by "the next big thing".  Ask to see my Teledesic golf umbrella next time we visit.

However, I've never played nice with the on again-off again WiMAX hype engine.  Today's WSJ article on ex-Teledesic backer Craig McCaw and his new company Clearwire Corp. is yet another feel good story feeding the hype.  Check out this short analysis from the writers at techdirt.com that is pretty much on the mark IMHO, especially their dig about WiMAX being from the same lineage as HomeRF.  Yep, my team at Xircom fought long and hard against the Intel hype machine on that one, and "we told you so" that 802.11b/g would prevail for consumers at home and hotspots.

(Oh, and dudes, it's spelled WiMAX -- capital W small i capital M capital A capital X.  You'd think the WSJ would occasionally check hypemaster Intel's website for the correct spelling du jour...)

Dang, when will this heat end?  I live near the Santa Barbara, California coast and earlier today I was praising the return of the "blessed marine layer" expecting that it would reduce temperatures by 10-15F or so.  Nope, not happening yet.  Check out the California Independent System Operator website to see in almost real-time how close we are to having rotating blackouts.

I'm playing around with using photos to illustrate my blog entries; today's snapshots (nice word, is it soon to be considered archaic since I don't use 126 or 110 film anymore?) give a sense of the oppressive humidity outside.  I'd tell you how humid it is, but I don't have my sling psychrometer at hand...

...my new blog is sprouting from the seeds of previous private blogs, as well as random thoughts and insights scattered on somewhat fallow soil.  Thanks for joining me to watch what grows, to pick off the occasional slug and snail, and of course to shovel soil amendment whenever necessary.  I'll be sure to share the harvest with you.