/dev/null/kevin

While uploading a spreadsheet to Google Docs I got this error:

We were unable to upload this document because of this error:

conversion request did not return an error or a new document

This error message comes from the converter we're using, and hopefully tells you what you need to know to fix the problem.

That's one of the worst error messages I've ever seen.  I'm surprised they didn't draw it on a blue background.  The fact that they suggest that it could actually be helpful is just insulting.

In spite of that error message, I was able to track down the legal thing I was doing and remove it.

On to actually using the spreadsheet.  I updated a few numbers and then tried to resort some rows.

FAIL.

I cannot sort by number.  I can only sort A-Z or Z-A.  Are you kidding me?  Do they really expect that people won't use numbers in a spread sheet?

I also cannot sort just a range of rows, unless I only want them sorted by column A.  The only was to sort by any other column is to sort the entire sheet.  Yes, I can freeze some of the top rows, but if there are any rows I don't want sorted, I am SOL.

It just might be possible to do these things, but I can't figure it out.  Maybe it's just a UI fail, but I don't think so.

Is it me or is the lady who complained that she could see her cat in Google Streets and hypocrite for then allowing the New York Times to print a photo of her, and her cat, from inside of her house to be published for everyone to see?

Tags: google streets cat lady

Go play with Google's Street View now!  Sample 1: San Francisco.  Sample 2: Las Vegas.  [via]

Tags: google | maps | street view
 

For those who don't like big box stores in their neighborhood, Target makes it easy to get rid of them, assuming you have access to a B-52 and some payload.

Tags: target | bomb | google maps

I probably won't be blogging over the US Thanksgiving holiday, so an early jab at dumb people.  The first dumb person is ...

• Me - For not buying Google stock, even at the "ridiculous" price of $100.


• Google's Calendar Team - Great system, except for one huge flaw.  They've been "working on a fix" for months now.  Careful guys, that might cut into your $500 stock price.
  


• Dave "Mega Pixels Don't Matter" Pogue - OK, I'm being harsh calling him "dumb" but a tech reporter for the New York Times should know better.  This guy took a 13 mega-pixel image, down rezzed it twice to 8 and 5 MP, and then blew up all three images into 16 x 24 inch prints.  Then on the streets of New York, where photography experts constantly roam the streets, he tried to find people who could tell the difference.  Read the comments for lots of good explanations why he missed the point, but it was fairly obvious (to me) that resampling a 13 MP image down to 5 MP would produce a superior image than that taken by a 5MP camera to begin with.  Dave needs to look up the term anti-aliasing.

Dave is correct in that the average person does not need a 13 megapixel camera (or even 8 MP), but that's like saying the average person doesn't need to live in a castle.

Happy Thanksgiving, all!

Tags: google, calendar, photography