George Orwell, “Politics and the English Language,” 1946:

But one can often be in doubt about the effect of a word or a phrase, and one needs rules that one can rely on when instinct fails. I think the following rules will cover most cases:

1. Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.

2. Never use a long word where a short one will do.

3. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.

4. Never use the passive where you can use the active.

5. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.

6. Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.

(Via Seth Godin.)

Is Shyness an Evolutionary Tactic? – NYTimes.com:

The psychologist Gregory Feist found that many of the most creative people in a range of fields are introverts who are comfortable working in solitary conditions in which they can focus attention inward. Steve Wozniak, the engineer who founded Apple with Steve Jobs, is a prime example: Mr. Wozniak describes his creative process as an exercise in solitude. “Most inventors and engineers I’ve met are like me,” he writes in “iWoz,” his autobiography. “They’re shy and they live in their heads. They’re almost like artists. In fact, the very best of them are artists. And artists work best alone… Not on a committee. Not on a team.”

Seth’s Blog: Adopt vs. adapt:

An early adopter seeks out new ideas and makes them work.

An adapter, on the other hand, puts up with what he has to, begrudgingly.

One is offense, the other is defense. One requires the spark of curiousity, the other is associated with fear, or at least hassle.

Two spaces after a period: Why you should never, ever do it. – By Farhad Manjoo – Slate Magazine:

Can I let you in on a secret? Typing two spaces after a period is totally, completely, utterly, and inarguably wrong.

(Via Whatever.)

7 life lessons from the very wealthy – The Washington Post:

There is a Latin phrase associated with military actions: “Amat victoria curam.“ It translates as “Victory loves careful preparation.” You would be amazed at what you can accomplish with planning.

(Via The Big Picture.)

J. J. Abrams on progressive elaboration. The money quote comes at around 4:35.

It’s like driving through the fog — sort of. The closer you get to your destination, the more detail you see, the more you realize, “Oh, yeah, let’s take this road,” that you couldn’t have even seen back there. So it kind of evolves as it goes.

(Via The Daily Show.)

Polaroid’s SX-70: The Art and Science of the Nearly Impossible:

“Don’t undertake a project,” an oft-quoted [Polaroid co-founder Edwin H. Land] maxim goes, “unless it is manifestly important and nearly impossible.”

(Via Daring Fireball.)

Flipping to Grilled Cheese – NYTimes.com:

[Jonathan Kaplan, founder and chief executive of Pure Digital, the company that made the wildly successful Flip camcorders, the company that Cisco bought two years ago for $590 million, the company that Cisco then shut down last month, without any reasonable explanation] gave us a few lessons from his life as a serial entrepreneur:

• It’s not about the hour, day, week; it’s about the month, quarter, year

• It’s better to be happy than to be right (It’s hard for driven people to realize this)

• Say thank you

• Anything is possible

A colleague of mine pointed me to the most recent issue of The Internet Protocol Journal, which contains several excellent articles covering topics such as:

• Address Exhaustion
• World IPv6 Day
• Transitional Myths
• Transitioning Protocols

Take a moment and check them out.

Seth’s Blog: Selling nuts to squirrels:

Worldview changes three things: attention, bias and vernacular. Attention, because we choose to pay attention to those things that we’ve decided matter. Bias, because our worldview alters the way we filter and interpret what we hear. And vernacular, because words and images resonate with people differently based on their worldview.