A Westerner's Unauthorized Photo Tour of North Korea

For one little corner of the world, George Orwell got it right.

http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/showthread.php?t=82755

Google's Gmail Seems to be Seriously Ill

For several hours today I have been unable to use Gmail, the email service from Google. A few months ago I moved all my email traffic (several account) to Gmail, so I am effectively shut out from email until Google fixes the problem.

Last week I was at Google Headquarters (that's a blog post I need to do), and I noticed little black signs on the walls warning of something on 6-16-06 related to http://gcc. If a mere mortal (as opposed to a Googler), types that URL into a browser, it resolves to http://gcc.gnu.org/, which is a home page for "GCC, the GNU Compiler Collection." Could it be that Google has updated its internal compiler, or done some sort of other voodoo, that has led to today's Gmail outage?

Somalia: No Functioning Government and the Cheapest Internet in Africa

This BBC report -- one in a series -- is fascinating. There is no functioning central government in Somalia. The country is ruled by tribal warloards. Yet the three telecom companies there offer great service, quick hookups, cheap rates, and the best Internet Cafe experience in Africa.