Auto-Writing

Maybe this is the key to your fortune: getting a computer to write books for you. Easy as pie:

The book-writing machine works simply, at least in principle. First, one feeds it a recipe for writing a particular genre of book – a tome about crossword puzzles, say, or a market outlook for products. Then hook the computer up to a big database full of info about crossword puzzles or market information. The computer uses the recipe to select data from the database and write and format it into book form.

Parker estimates that it costs him about 12p to write a book, with, perhaps, not much difference in quality from what a competent wordsmith or an MBA might produce.

Nothing but the title need actually exist until somebody orders a copy. At that point, a computer assembles the book’s content and prints up a single copy.

That’s how you get a best-seller like "The 2007 Import and Export Market for Seaweeds and Other Algae in France."

A Facebook Phone?

Uh-oh:

If you get close enough to another person who is also running the plugin on their phone, you are provided with a link to their profile the next time you login to Facebook. It was developed as part of a research project also called CityWare, partly funded by HP, Nokia and Vodafone.

Online cruising just took a quantum leap forward.

The Clinton Spin

Oy. So Obama won Louisiana because he’s … black:

"These are caucus states by and large, or in the case of Louisiana, you know, a very strong and very proud African-American electorate, which I totally respect and understand."

And the other states don’t count:

"It is highly unlikely we will win Alaska or North Dakota or Idaho or Nebraska [in November]."

I guess that concession isn’t coming any time soon.

The View From Abroad – Israel

A reader from Israel writes:

Recently I was with an Indian-American friend of mine in the Old City of Jerusalem, eating at a falafel joint run by a Muslim Palestinian in the Christian Quarter. He was a very kind man, speaking to us passionately about how all Palestinians need to stick together, regardless of religion. This was in January, two days before Bush came to Israel. Security was very tight. We talked about Bush for a moment (he said he might have to close his restaurant for a day or two because of security surrounding the visit), and then talk suddenly shifted. "You might have a new one in charge." he said, "Obama!" He seemed fairly enthusiastic, but when I told him that Obama’s full name was Barack Hussein Obama, the man’s face lit up. He couldn’t believe it and starting shouting ecstatically to one of his employees, "Barack Hussein Obama!" I told him that Obama wasn’t a Muslim but had lived in Indonesia. In any case, this didn’t matter to the man. He was so excited that a man with this name might be president of the United States. It was clear that he would tell many people he knew about Obama’s name and that to them, this means something important and even profound.