Because I'm spending time in Berlin now as well as Munich, I created berlinblogs.com in addition to munichblogs.com. So, email me if you want to add your blog. I'm particularly hoping that there are lots of open-source developers blogging in Berlin. I'm still amazed that there are only 2 of us in Munich.
There are lots of blogs in Berlin, but most of them have awful feeds – half are truncated, and half of the rest have no dates.
All the Gaps in Germany will be gone in a couple of weeks. I guess it's time I broke my dependence anyway. But not before feeding the addiction at closing-down prices at the Munich shop.
We went to the Muffathalle last night to watch Germany lose to the Czech Republic. The German team were clumsy and out-of-sync. We don’t have to watch them anymore.
A couple of days ago there was some strange tree-flaunting procession in Schwabing.
I was offerered a project in Berlin which I decided to take if all goes well. It's a long way from Munich but it's a) better than Linz, and b) could fund some of my other plans. Munich would still be my home though.
And it looks like I might spend a year in Romania from the middle of 2005. That would be an adventure.
As my fellow Munich blogger, Michael Banck pointed out, this one last year was even better, if you like that kind of thing. I was living in Linz at the time, and I was amazed when I visited Munich at a weekend and saw it.
I used the planet code to set up munichblogs.com, with an initial random selection of blog feeds. Hopefully there'll be some gradual natural-selection of the bloggers. I plan to add some subculture blogs too – For instance, I'd like to know about any and all blogs for open source developers in Munich.
Feeds seems to be of variable content, possibly depending on the formats (planet seems to handle any feed format automatically). Some have full text, and some have just the first couple of sentences. Some have links to the images shown on the original blogs, some do not. Maybe planets are test cases for feeds.
planet makes it really easy to do this – so expect a lot more planets to appear.
I used the planet code to set up munichblogs.com, with an initial random selection of blog feeds. Hopefully there'll be some natural selection of bloggers over time. I plan to add some subculture blogs under that – For instance, I'd like to know about any and all blogs for open source developers in Munich.
Feeds seems to be of variable content, possibly depending on the formats (planet seems to handle any feed format automatically). Some have full text, and some have just the first couple of sentences. Some have links to the images shown on the original blogs, some do not. Maybe planets are test cases for feeds.
planet makes it really easy to do this – so expect a lot more planets to appear.
The Dok.Fest Documentary festival is on in Munich this week. It's information rich. So far I've seen
At the very least, I want to put a company name on my current freelancing work, so I have something to build gradually. I spent some time investigating the various types of German companies, and I think I've reduced it to either an e.K. or a GbR. An e.K. is a bit crappy-looking because it's specifically for one-man companies. I think a GbR must have 2 or more partners, but opinions vary. A GmbH looks even more professional, but you pay more tax, and you need 25,000 euros starting capital – I almost have the cash, but that's what I plan to live on for the next year.
Like thomasvs. says, it's really hard to come up with a company name. It's hard enough to find a company name that is not used, but it's almost impossible to find any word in the dictionary that is not already registered as a domain. And those made up words are so impersonal.
Munich Blogs #2
The guy who runs ToytownMunich emailed me. It's a kind of blog-based news site, though it doesn't have actual personal blogs. There's loads of fascinating local information there, and he seems to put a lot of work in to it. But the comments section is mostly full of unpleasantly small-minded British people.
I think I'll try to set up a Munich blogs aggregator because there isn't a working one at the moment. I'll also try to install my own blogging software instead of using advogato. I generally avoid doing that kind of thing, but I want to use topics/categories and make things a bit prettier.
I'm porting glom from mysqlcppapi to libgdamm, the C++ wrappers for libgda. This should allow it to support a variety of database backends. Also, I have abandoned mysqlcppapi because MySQL changed their C API license from LGPL to GPL. mysqlcppapi is being maintained by Johnathan Wakely now. At some point I might actually make glom usable.
Munich
The sun has started to appear at random intervals, so I feel more motivated to run. I replaced my running shoes because the others were way over the recommended mileage and my body needs some cushioning. Everybody else seems to get great advice about shoes, but the most I've ever got in a shop is “you run a bit funny”. I went to a specialist store this time (in team, on Belgradstrasse), but the person serving me was reluctant to offer opinions even when prompted with a selection of running jargon. So now I have some Asics which are supposed to be good for people with flat feet, who are supposed to tend towards overpronation. They hurt my feet, but my knees hurt less, so maybe that's good.
Sometimes I don't understand german/catholic sensibilities. There's a walled cemetary near my apartment so I took a shortcut through when running home. I thought I was being a bit cheeky, but I found it full of joggers and cyclists and there were even sunbathers and picknickers among the gravestones.
New places visited: Sangam indian restaurant on Franz-Joseph-Strase – tasty food and pretty interior. Cafe Ignaz vegetarian restaurant on Georgenstrasse, with fantastic fresh gnocchi. Nespresso coffee house, by the Opera, as freeloading beta customers before their official opening.