Links for 04-23-2008

• Exodus of key figures from OLPC a troubling sign for project - "Although OLPC may be close to going on life support, it's important to note that its efforts so far have have contributed much to budget computing and open technology. The organization's vision largely influenced the emergence of competition in the budget subnotebook market." Sounds about right.
• The Constant Siege - I spent a lot of time in B&W darkrooms once upon a time even though I was never anything like this obsessive.
• HipMojo.com » eBay and Craigslist - Why Companies Who Invest Ask for Control" - '“Put the bong down, the honeymoon is over' is the only message I can walk away from this news that eBay is suing Craig Newmark." (of craigslist)
• implemented » Web 3.0 - The Semantic, Implicit, Mobile or Distributed Web? - A comprehensive study of the various definitions of Web 3.0 that people have used in the past, including the Semantic, Mobile, Implicit and the proposed Distributed Web.
• Google's festering problem with the AGPL | The Open Road - The Business and Politics of Open Source by Matt Asay - CNET Blogs - Not especially surprising that Google doesn't want to go anywhere near licenses that treat Web services as a form of software "distribution" from a license perspective.
• VMware placates Wall Street with 70 per cent Q1 revenue surge | The Register - It's worth noting that VMware leads in x86 virtualization revenue--by far (as in roughly two orders of magnitude).
• Airlines to Charge for Second Bag - New York Times - Five major airlines plan to start charging coach passengers as much as $25 next month to check a second bag. Uggh but probably inevitable. This doesn't affect me on business but will on personal trips when I'm lugging a lot of camping gear.
• WebUrbanist » 7 Abandoned Wonders of the Former Soviet Union: Deserted Cities, Buildings, Bases and More - I found this fascinating.
• Cloud Vendors A to Z (Revised) | John M Willis ESM Blog - A long list of cloud computing players--mostly those on the infrastructure side in one form or another. There are a few true SaaS (application) companies listed but it's just a sampling. I'd quibble with some of the specifics but a good view of the landscape.
• How Valid Are T.V. Weather Forecasts? - Freakonomics - Opinion - New York Times Blog - "no forecaster is ever better than just assuming it won’t rain. If you think that’s bad, sadly it gets worse"