Interesting links of the week

31 January 2008 » Football, Friends, IBM, PHP, Politics, Zend

Well, not exactly this week. I gathered a few links from the end of January that I figured would have some blogworthiness to them.

Instead of dedicating a whole post to each, here they are with a bit of commentary.

First up, because it’s my sister’s first appearance on TV, are Mona’s remarks to local news in St. Louis on what the female demographic means to this year’s presidential campaigns. While it is a Fox affiliate, congrats are still in order. :)

Yossi Leon announced that Zend Studio for Eclipse was tantalizing close to release. We heard a few more details at NYPHP about its launch. The Zend page carries the official announcement.

If you’re wondering exactly how the new Zend Studio for Eclipse differs from the Eclipse PDT (PHP Development Tools), this chart breaks it all down.

Jon Udell backs up my “.htm is dogsqueeze” argument in his much more eloquent .NET-specific rant, .aspx considered harmful.

I caught a glance of this article on naming the Triborough Bridge for Robert F. Kennedy in the New York Times.

I too am a little weary of the Kennedy badge on so many public buildings, but have an alternate suggestion… Rename the bridge for John F. Kennedy, and rechristen his namesake disaster of an airport for someone worthy of its reputation for mismanagement, George W. Bush.

And finally, though it pains me greatly to see Tom Brady’s name on a Web site I lovingly crafted for all that is good, there is an interesting press release on how IBM and the NFL have gone about making all those random stats available to announcers in real time.

That about wraps it up. Enjoy the weekend, I know I will.

Post-mortem: The 2006 New York Giants

08 January 2007 » Football, Potpourri

It seems the 1990 season of good breaks finally caught up with the Giants. That year, everything went right for Big Blue, from a last minute bomb from backup Jeff Hostetler against Phoenix to a missed field goal by Buffalo kicker Scott Norwood in the Super Bowl.

This year, they were finally put out of their penalty-ridden, injury-laden misery by the Eagles on a last second kick by David Akers in the first round of the NFC playoffs. Which is for the best, I think, because my blood pressure can return to normal and I can again enjoy watching football in the coming weeks.

Without Tiki Barber, the offense will be missing one of the best backs in the NFL, but by trading Eli Manning (please!) for one or more more promising offensive players, I’m sure the Giants can put together a more disciplined unit in 2007. Maybe even behind short yardage star Jared “The Hefty Lefty” Lorenzen… :)

Old school

02 January 2006 » Football, Potpourri

Doug Flutie makes the first drop kick in 64 years. Amazing. This is particularly freaky since I was reading this article in the December issue of Maxim the day before while waiting for a haircut.

This alternative to a place kick is still technically legal – players behind the line of scrimmage can boot an impromptu field goal at any time. Old NFL footballs resembled a rugby ball, allowing for controlled bounces, and guys like Jim Thorpe kicked it regularly. The Bears’ Ray McLean converted it last on a PAT in the NFL championship game in 1941. Hey, Vanderjagt, why not kick like a real man?

Twenty-eight straight

01 November 2005 » Football

The Trinity College football team extended its winning streak to 28 games with a 14-0 win over the Middlebury College Panthers. The streak is the nation’s longest in Division III and second only to USC (29 entering today) in all of college football. The win also gives Trinity 499 wins in its 120-year football history.”

Wow. The team wasn’t that bad back when I was playing (Best Record in NESCAC, 1996), but that is out of control. :)