Hypertext

Rules of the TSA blog

The Transportation Security Administration, the people behind the 3-ounce shampoo bottle and the mandatory pre-boarding sock display, now has a blog. It's called "Evolution of Security." As you might expect, this is not one of your freewheeling Internet blogs. Here is an advance copy I've discovered of the soon-to-be-propagated Rules of the TSA Blog: 1. Commenters must arrive at the blog 45 minutes before attempting to post a comment. 2. Comments cannot last more than three paragraphs. 3. Comments that are longer than three paragraphs are subject to confiscation. For more on the handling of comments, see our post, "Why...

Real Clear Politics real clear on its growth, mission

It is early in the morning in a Clybourn corridor office, but for John McIntyre, one of the least likely looking Internet entrepreneurs you'll encounter, it's already midday. He's been at his desk since about 4 a.m., sifting through enough news about the American electoral process to make a less politically inclined person ponder the benefits of dictatorship. "Everything's pretty horse-race focused right now," says McIntyre, flipping through the 20 or so open windows on his computer desktop, "especially today, when there's a big election." It's the day of the Florida presidential primary, significant for the Republicans, and significant for...

High Five: Frumondah, Silverman-Damon, Google v. Microhoo and Super Bowl ads

1. MySpace now has a dedicated Super Bowl ads site showing the spots that aired during the game. So that's what they meant when they said they knew a way to make advertising work on MySpace. 2. Newest viral video, up at ABC.com and elsewhere: Comic Sarah Silverman, in a fifth-anniversary-on-the-air present to her boyfriend, talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, announces in a rather elaborate music video that she's been having an affair with Matt Damon (who is also in the gleefully vulgar video). The big question: Does Ben Affleck know? 3. Google is opposing Microsoft's proposed takeover of Yahoo....

Perfection hard to get just right

Perfection, we can all agree, is not attainible, although spell check gets us closer. Make that "attainable." It is an ideal, Plato suggested, that we can only try to approximate in the real world. Plato's example was a chair, never quite achieving the "chairness" we had in mind. Even had he lived to experience today's infinitely adjustable $800 ergonomic wonders, his lower back would confirm his point. Tom Brady, another noted philosopher, was asked last week what his purpose in life is. "I play football," the New England Patriots quarterback said, with (almost) perfect self-awareness. But he didn't play it...

High Five: Butt glue, Reader's Digest humor, NKOTB and Google's political ads

1. One of the fastest-rising search queries on Google right before Saturday's Miss America pageant: "butt glue," apparently used to adhere swimsuits to flesh. One of the hottest search queries in the pageant's aftermath: "How long does butt glue last?" 2. You can vote at the Reader's Digest site, rd.com, for "Chicago's Funniest Comedian." I'm torn between the guy whose act rips off Humor in Uniform and the one who cribs his material from Life in These United States. 3. A new site, Hubdub.com, lets people bet fake money on the outcome of news stories, such as who will win...

EveryBlock, already impressive in its debut, bears watching

It's not as detailed as spying on your neighbors, but the new EveryBlock site offers a level of organized local information that the Web hasn't seen before on so large a scale. Debuting this week with coverage of Chicago, San Francisco and New York, the Chicago-based site aims to offer a near real-time look at what's happening around your address, your Zip code or your neighborhood. For instance, type in "60611," the Tribune Tower's Zip code, and get a list of the latest publicly-available information: 14 crimes, mostly theft and criminal trespass; "news" stories ranging from Sun-Times articles to a...

Was Slate's Hillary and 'Election' video fair use?

I assumed, as I posted Slate V's clever video comparing Hillary Clinton to "Election's" Tracy Flick (several items down), that the site had gotten the OK from "Election's" makers to use the clips. The filmmakers, I figured, would count it as good promotion for the DVD, even if people who've seen the video disagree on whether it's sexist or not . Apparently Slate V's clip borrowing, though, rests on good old (read: creaky) "fair use." There is lively discussion of whether these crystal-clear movie scenes do, indeed, qualify here and here.

Tom Cruise video parody easier to take than real thing

So you can't see the infamous Tom Cruise Scientology video here; that's up on Gawker Media's Defamer and Gawker sites. But you can get a good feel for it -- think "Oprah" appearance, minus the filters -- from the first-rate parody, starring Jerry O'Connell, that the Funny Or Die site has up: <a href="http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/3f716ffebe">the parody video Tom Cruise WANTS you to see!</a> on <a href="http://www.funnyordie.com/">FunnyOrDie.com</a>