There’s a new source of stimulating sound this month: Audiofile.es. “Great radio,” says part of its tagline, and they want you to be a programmer as well as a listener.

The idea is simple crowdsourcing: If you come across an interesting audio file while you’re browsing the web, tweet the link with the tag #audiofiles and Audiofil.es will automatically add it to their database. Not only can you feed your finds into the mix, but you can also easily create playlists for yourself when you’re on the Audiofil.es site.

What sort of things are already there? The topmost “producer . . . [more]

I am attending the Dig2011 conference today. Several hundred people will be at the London Convention Centre today and tomorrow to hear about topics in 2 different streams – the digital game industry, and the web industry. (Harrison Pensa is a sponsor.)

The second day includes a mini-MBA for budding game development companies, and a high school stream with panels on the path and options leading to a successful game development career.

There are good employment opportunities in this sector. Companies in the game and software development business are having difficulty finding qualified employees. But just because one likes to . . . [more]

How are hockey, poutine, and philosophy related?

The answer to this and all manner of other “connect the dots” sorts of questions is provided by xefer’s cunning use of Wikipedia. On the xefer-Wikipedia site, you simply enter one or more words or phrases, and provided that they’re Wikipedia article titles, xefer finds the paths in Wikipedia that will link up the concepts. The result is a map of logically related nodes each of which is an article title, making the whole look rather like a way finder for a subway system.

If you’re stumped for notions—and it’s surprising how empty . . . [more]

Drafting proper trade-mark use descriptions when registering a trade-mark is important to get the right protection. Drafting uses can sometimes be a challenge when the wares or services the mark is used for is new and changing technology. The use description must accurately describe the wares and services the mark is used for, must stand the test of time, and must satisfy CIPO’s (Canadian Intellectual Property Office) rules on use descriptions.

Software is a good example of how things can rapidly change. If a business is selling software in the traditional manner where the user installs it on his/her computer, . . . [more]

As a professional working in both official languages day in and day out, I found a recent study conducted by the Institut de recherche en économie contemporaine and the Institut de recherche sur le français en Amérique particularly interesting: nearly 14% of employees in Quebec’s education, health and public sectors predominantly use English as a language of work and this, with Anglophones only representing 9% of Quebec’s population (the study was based on the 2006 census). Moreover, less than half of these jobs are held by individuals who described themselves as Anglophones.

When compared to the reverse situation in Canada . . . [more]

According to Victims of Violence the number of incidents of reported elder abuse increased by 14% since 2004. A third of these are committed by family members. Over 13% of the Canadian population is over 65, meaning elder abuse will be a growing concern.

One incident of alleged elder abuse that we will not have to worry about any more are the allegations against Brian Corrin, who was charged in February of this year on the accusations that an incident of family violence resulted in injuries to the Winnipeg Justice’s 89 year-old mother.

Based on contradictory testimony and the . . . [more]

♫ You say you want a revolution
Well, you know
We all want to change the world
You tell me that it’s evolution
Well, you know
We all want to change the world …♫

Lyrics and music by Lennon/McCartney, recorded by The Beatles.

CTV.ca has released the complete text of the demands of the Occupy Vancouver protestors. A number of their demands are in the legal area, so I thought I would highlight a few of them from their total list of 60:

12. We demand that corporate person-hood is repealed.

I am not quite sure what they mean…the elimination . . . [more]

Which is not the same thing as “beer me”—it’s too early on a Friday for any of that, though both have to do, perhaps, with a kind of adjustment.

I’m a typophile—which is very like being a snapper-up of unconsidered trifles, as the Bard once put it, because nothing could be triflingly smaller than a single letterform or, indeed, the space between letters; and as for “unconsidered,” the job of type is to appear and yet to disappear at the same time so that the message comes through as clearly and as beautifully as possible. So what of kerning? What . . . [more]

This actually seems to be more of a marketing campaign for Dell and Intel than a movement, but Happy IT Day to Information Technology professionals anyway. 

It’s time to celebrate and recognize the efforts of all IT professionals across Canada. Let’s thank our IT heroes for the hard work and long hours they put in everyday. Show your appreciation by saying “thank you” in your own way!

Perhaps the hotel industry will need the services of some IT professionals soon in light of this New York Times article entitled IPads Change Economics, and Speed, of Hotel Wi-Fi that says . . . [more]

What are you doing at 6:00 PM (ET) on Monday, November 14, 2011? If you’re in Toronto, consider coming to Fraser Milner Cagrain at 77 King Street West to hear Human Rights Adjudication in the 21st Century, a talk by Timothy Endicott, Dean of the Faculty and Professor of Legal Philosophy (for Lawyers and Non-Lawyers alike)

The timetable is 6pm Wine and Cheese Reception, 6.45pm Talk and Discussion. $20 at the door but please let us know if you’re on the fence so we know how many to cater for. Here is the log-in.

Timothy Endicott is a Canadian . . . [more]

Whether you call them “executive recruiters” or “headhunters”, they are all engaged in a fierce competition to recruit the ideal candidate to fill out executive or professional positions for their clients.

With a labour shortage that is bound to rise dramatically as baby-boomers begin retiring, headhunting has become increasingly important for the future development of companies and for people seeking new employment. However, the industry has faced challenges. It has been reported that several headhunters have run afoul ethically by, for example, requesting money directly from potential candidates (in exchange for a better recommendation) or revealing confidential information related to . . . [more]

Just in time for Hallowe’en, we get the scary news from the UN that the population of the Earth will be reaching 7 billion today (give or take 50 million). According to today’s National Post:

Mounting concern over humanity’s environmental impact and fears that we may not be able to feed ourselves 100 years from now cast a cautionary tone over the buildup to Monday’s milestone.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon told students at a New York school last week: “Seven billion people who need enough food. Enough energy. Good opportunities in life for jobs and education. Rights and freedoms.