There is lots of PHP hatred on the web. It doesn’t seem to matter that some of the biggest sites on the web run PHP, including Yahoo and CNET’s own Gamespot: PHP still doesn’t get any respect. Anyway, for all PHP lovers out there, here’s two excellent defenses of PHP: Why PHP Scales – A Cranky, Snarky Answer and A pro-php-rant.

Read A Long Way Down this weekend. It’s typical Nick Hornby: easy to read, and determined to make the point that the only thing that makes life bearable is the small, human connections we make. Not as good as High Fidelity, marginally less depressing than How to be Good, better than About a Boy.

If he’s not attacking Linux, he must be doing a price comparison between Macs and PCs

One of the most frustrating experiences as a parent is suggesting a book that you loved as a child to your own children, and finding they are completely uninterested. That’s what happened to me when I gave Wind in the Willows to my daughters. So, I just re-read it myself. It’s still wonderful.

Just finished re-reading 1587, A Year of No Significance: The Ming Dynasty in Decline. This is arguably the best book of Ming history ever written.