Sunday, November 15, 2009

Origami accordion toys

One of my favorite ways to burn time is folding complex origami accordion patterns. I just uploaded an album of these paper accordions, and I've listed the different types of patterns below. I might make a tutorial on how to fold one if somebody asks nicely.

Expanded diagonal compound v-shaped

Expanded diagonal v-shaped origami accordion top
Top view

Expanded diagonal v-shaped origami accordion bottom
Bottom view

This pattern is a more complex version of the classic v-shaped accordion pattern.

Deep accordion

Deep origami accordion top
Top view

Deep origami accordion bottom
Bottom view

Deep origami accordion curled
Curled

This is probably my favorite pattern of all time; it's an incredibly time-consuming way to turn a piece of paper into a mesmerizing paper toy. It requires folding and pleating in three dimensions simultaneously.

Collapsed triangle base

Collapsed triangle base origami accordion top view
Top view

Collapsed triangle base origami accordion bottom view
Bottom view

This is just a weird test pattern I folded with some spare time and a magazine renewal card. It's unique because it doesn't like to flex.

Collapsed diagonal compound v-shaped

Collapsed diagonal v-shaped origami accordion top view
Top view

Collapsed diagonal v-shaped origami accordion bottom view
Bottom view

This one is more complex than the collapsed diagonal compound v-shaped pattern, because it requires an extra pleat for each row.

Collapsed compound v-shaped

Collapsed compound v-shaped origami accordion

This one is the same pattern as the collapsed diagonal compound v-shaped accordion, but it originates from the middle of a side of the paper, instead of the corner. It looks like a snow monster.

That's all the accordion patterns I have folded recently. I know this has nothing to do with technology, but I still don't have the time to work on any serious development projects. With luck, I'll be rejoining the coding community soon.

Update: I just opened an Etsy shop to sell some of the textures you see above. If you want one, visit my shop and buy one before they sell out! Yeah, right...

Saturday, November 7, 2009

A laughable argument against net neutrality

I don't generally stray into political topics, but some issues are too important and relevant to my future and the future of the internet. For example, I believe net neutrality is critical to protecting creative uses of the internet from the internet service providers' meddling. That's why I wrote a general summary of the net neutrality issue a couple weeks ago, and that's why I'm addressing some of net neutrality's critics today.

In the October 30 opinions section of the Wall Street Journal, I read an opinion against net neutrality that is too misguided for me to ignore. Republican senators Orrin Hatch and Jim DeMint wrote the piece, arguing that net neutrality policy will obstruct broadband investment and innovation by letting the government meddle in the affairs of the ISPs. That's simply not true.

I agree with the senators that over-regulation will prevent companies from innovating. The logic is obvious; if a company can't increase its profit by improving its services, it won't improve. However, the current regulation doesn't prevent ISPs from profiting from broadband investment. They are free to changes prices, set usage caps, and even offer higher internet speeds for higher prices. The only way in which the regulations limits ISPs network management options is by preventing them from discriminating against certain types of traffic.

I'm afraid that alarmist arguments like this one about net neutrality are obstructing important discussions on the effects of the regulations and the FCC's proper role in net neutrality enforcement.