P2k Commander for Ubuntu

OK, after I got my cell phone, I went looking for a program that would allow me to put files onto it and otherwise customize it. I own a Motorola RAZR V3xx. Turned out that was not so easy. The moto4lin program was supposed to do it for me, but no love there . . . They don't support RAZR V3xx. I tried some other programs and none came even close to providing what moto4lin attempted to provide.

Finally, I found something that actually does allow me to interact with a (relatively) modern Motorola phone just fine! It's called P2k Commander and there's a Linux version as well as a Windows version. Seemed perfect! I downloaded the source for p2kc 0.6 and got started. And it was pretty good, but there were some things I wanted to fix in the code . . . So, I did! (Got to love truly free software!) Also, I figured it could stand to be cleaned-up and packaged for Ubuntu. So, I did that, too!

If you'd like to try P2k Commander on Ubuntu, download this package. (If you're running the AMD64 architecture of Ubuntu, use this package instead, but if you're not sure, stick to the default i386 architecture package that will work best for almost all Ubuntu users out there.) Finally, if you're a developer interested in the package sources, you can find those here.

I might eventually create an Ubuntu repository for these packages, but I'm not to sure I can actually provide that, so we'll see . . . In the meantime, once you've downloaded the package, install it like so:

sudo dpkg -i p2kc_0.6-0ubuntu1_i386.deb

or:

sudo dpkg -i p2kc_0.6-0ubuntu1_amd64.deb

Then go to your Applications menu and select the P2kCommander launcher (which should be under "Accessories" or "Utilities" or something like that). You'll be asked to enter your password to gain administrative privileges.

After that, you'll need to connect your phone with a USB cable. And then you should be able to view, change, and copy files on the phone by selecting "P2k: /e" or one of the other "P2k" entries. So far, it's allowed me to add ringtones and other files to my phone with little trouble!!! It also allows me to download pictures off my phone and retreive audio files recorded on the phone (which are recorded as AMR files and can only be played with this app, so far as I know). This has opened up a lot of new uses for my phone to me!

I hope this helps someone else. And if you do like this app, show some appreciation to Sándor Ötvös AKA s5vi, who created P2kCommander in the first place.

Finally, if you're interested in the Windows version, you can get that at his site as well: http://www.el-co.hu/smf/.

Thomas Geoghegan On Infinite Debt

Thomas Geoghegan speaks to one of the most pressing issues in our current economic downturn: the explosion of usury in the United States. He explains, yet again, Marquette National v. First of Omaha, the abysmal Supreme Court decision which partly precipitated the current state of affairs. It's really worth giving a listen, if you can find the time.

"Too Big To Fail" No More?

Sheila Bair, head of the FDIC, has some interesting things to say here about how we should regulate and insure the various financial institutions that have become "too big to fail." As she says, nothing should ever be too big and unregulated to fail. Here's hoping a system can be devised that closely approaches "the end of 'too big to fail,'" which is probably a phrase we'll have to retire all too soon in any case, as the expense of continually bailing out the rich and powerful very likely will become too high to sustain, especially as the needs of the increasingly poor and dispossessed populace will require greater attention to prevent vast instability . . .

Also, I encourage you to listen to this interview of Elizabeth Warren (MP3), who is one of my favorite economists. She's currently heading up the Congressional Oversight Panel (WikiP) that's supposed to expose what's done with the TARP monies. It's a fascinating listen. The most significant thing I gleened from this is that (1) we overpaid for the preferred stock (which has since been converted to common stock in such a way that even more money was lost) that was bought with TARP funds and (2) we overpaid more for the stock of banks that were in bigger trouble (like Citibank and Bank of America) than we overpaid for banks that are relatively sound for the moment. Basically, the "capitol injection" plan that was implemented by the purchase of preferred stock (since converted to common stock) in banks was actually used as a back-door way to hand more "free" money to the banks in the most trouble, but to do it in such a way that no one could tell from the purchase (without careful analysis that couldn't be done quickly) which banks were getting the most money from the deal and which were getting the least, presumably to conceal from nervous investors that some banks were in a lot more trouble than others.

How long will vast amounts of taxpayer funds be given away to the largest and most irresponsible corporations (supposedly to "save the economy")? How much more of our public assets must be handed to the wealthiest before we downsize and break-up these corporate interests so as to really begin to salvage the economy and help average people in helping us all to rebuild it on a firmer foundation? The current tempest in a teapot is actually small potatoes compared to the real scandal of overpayment going on here . . .

Bad Banks (and how and why they are about to mess you up)

The latest episode of This American Life (mp3 download) is all about the banking crisis and gives a pretty good rundown of what's happening if you don't know a lot about banking or economics.

There is a point in the episode where, in my opinion (and seemingly, their own), they get to the heart of the matter: American consumer debt has risen to 100% of annual GDP, or "the total annual economic output of the United States." Now, they basically say that it's the fault of the consumers, which many (including myself and Dean Baker) would dispute, but the basic analysis here is dead-on: the use of credit in the United States is entirely unsustainable in reality, no matter how worthy or profitable it seems that it used to be. Every level of American society (average consumers, businesses of all sizes and most all types, the federal government, and government at many other levels) has way too much debt. The amount of money being lent out is more than the money the country generates. You simply cannot live like that. You can't borrow against your whole income every year and function. Period.

So, this is gonna suck and this is why. Hope y'all can get something out of this one . . .