• Gnomedex 9.0 – “The Technology Conference of Inspiration and Influence: Register Now!” – I did!
• The Market Ticker: TARP Part Deux? Do It Right Or Don’t Do It – “The problem we face today and have since the summer of 2007 when the bubble burst is that Washington DC, heavily-influenced by the bribery of campaign contributions and lobbying from those on Wall Street and elsewhere in the very system that led to the creation of this excess credit have done their level best to convince a bunch of Representatives, Senators, and the White House that the math can be cheated, because to admit the truth of the mathematics means that those very people are the ones who will suffer most.“
• WWW SQL Designer – “Hi and welcome to WWW SQL Designer! This tool allows you to draw and create database schemas (E-R diagrams) directly in browser, without the need for any external programs (flash). You only need JavaScript enabled. The Designer works perfectly in Mozillas (Firefox, Seamonkey), Internet Explorers (6, 7, 8), Safari and Operas. Konqueror works, but the experience is limited. ” – Check out the amazing demo.
• Autodesk Draw – “Project Draw is a new feature-rich web-based vector drawing application built by the Labs team. Use it to create simple floor plans, electronic-circuit diagrams, network diagrams, user interface mock-ups, and more. Save your work in a variety of formats on our server or yours. No plug-ins or downloads required – if you have a JavaScript-enabled Internet Explorer or Firefox browser, you’re good to go.” – Another amazing demo.
• Cisco Pulse – “See how your online behavior affects the networks you use. This application is designed to show you the types of traffic that flow to and from your computer and provides network usage trends for all global users of this application. You can see your usage across three categories.“
• SS Galaxy: Queen of the Sagitarrean Sea – “Welcome aboard the SS Galaxy, the only full size, full scaled, and full featured virtual cruise ship in Second Life. Anchored in the Sagittaria Estate, the SS Galaxy spans 3 sims with more than 8 decks of fun and entertainment. Proudly carrying on the tradition of luxury, glorious, and sophisticated floating palaces of the world, the SS Galaxy offers an array of amenities and activities on board, and a variety of staterooms & suites to choose from.“

The much-rumored Microsoft layoffs finally took place last week. Let’s hope that this is a long-term positive move for them. As a long-time reader of the Mini-Microsoft blog, it is clear that they need to refine their vision, focus on their core strengths, and resist the urge to make a large bet on every last emerging market.

I just found some bumper stickers which are definitely as gallows humor in light of the layoffs. Here you go:

If none of these express your sentiments you can customize them or even create your own!

• Oleg Burlaca: Graph Visualization for Apache Log Files – “I described just one scenario of how graph visualization can be used in apache log analysis. The intention was to create an overview report and see the whole picture, but the log file can be filtered to create some biased graphs.“
• Steve Reynolds: WordPress Plugins: Implementing jQuery Tutorial – “This tutorial will guide you through the steps on including the jQuery library within your plugin so that you can use all the goodness jQuery can bring, setting up your own javascript file, as well as an important tip at the end!“
• aiSee – Graph Visualization – “When working with any kind of complex relational data, visualization provides for much better and faster understanding. Back in 1991, aiSee was developed to visualize the internal data structures typically found in compilers.“
• David Henderson: Media Savvy in the Internet Era – “There is little room for the status quo or traditional tactics as business and organizations strive for authentic leadership in these challenging times, and beyond. More than ever before, companies will rely on the media—mainstream and the fast-evolving online New Media of Web 2.0—as they seek to build brand awareness, leadership positioning, new opportunities to engage in trust-building conversations with customers and stakeholders, and, ultimately, better financial performance, sales and results.“

• Michael Rozeff: How to Steal Billions in Plain View: Bernanke’s Robber Banks – “Bernanke urges Congress to absorb the bad loans. The details of his three alternative plans are secondary to the fact that they all ask that others pay for the losses that the bankers caused, or else they involve the government in a variety of complicated maneuvers by which the government ends up shoring up these banks and bankers while taking on various risks of owning portfolios of bad loans. The idea is for the bankers to offload their mistakes onto taxpayers.“
• The Big Picture: Earth Observed – “Gathered here are some standout photographs from the collections in the Earth Observatory over the past several years.“
• Washington Post: A Tweet in Foggy Bottom – “The other reason to Twitter my trip was simple: Communicating in this peppy, informal medium helped to personalize my visit and enhance my impact as a U.S. official. When I met with students at the University of Bucharest, and later with Moldovan bloggers, we were connected before I even arrived.“
• Kathleen Parker: A New Generation Discovers the Pain of Unemployment – “Something has gone terribly wrong with the American dream. No longer is a college degree – or even an advanced degree – a guarantee of employment or job security.“