AllThingsD » Woz

Fusion-io Brings Flash Madness to Workstations and Movies Like "Hugo"

Arik Hesseldahl — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 14:35:02 +0000

After working mostly in the realm of servers, Fusion-io — the founding member of the AllThingsD Flash Madness Club and last summer’s hot IPO — said today that it is bringing its flash technology to workstations. It is calling the product ioFX.

One early customer is Rob Legato, the visual effects supervisor who won an Academy Award for his work on the Martin Scorsese-directed hit motion picture “Hugo.” Legato will be talking about ioFX with Fusion-io chief scientist and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak at a conference in Las Vegas next week.

Fusion does some cool stuff with flash memory. Here’s the part where I roll out the old metaphor that has served me so well: In pretty much any computer, you can think of the processor as a fast-moving, highly efficient, type-A personality, constantly in a hurry, and always waiting impatiently for the rest of the system to give it more work to do. The slowpoke in the deal is the hard drive, which, though it’s already spinning at a super fast rate, just can’t get data to the processor fast enough. So the processor sits around, tapping its foot and looking at its watch, waiting for the other parts of the system that feed it data to work to keep up.

In high-performance computing, where there’s more data to be crunched than in most average computing situations, this is sort of a big deal. You want the processor to be as busy as possible — mainly because the systems are so expensive, and you want to get your money’s worth out of them — but also because jobs get done faster.

So Fusion-io’s stock in trade is a series of insert cards that bring flash memory right up next to the processor. The flash chips grab great big armloads of data and hold on to it, handing it off to the processor in a way that keeps it happy and busy and not impatiently waiting — at least not so much.

We’ve seen the technology brought to bear at places like Credit Suisse, which added Fusion’s flash cards to its trading systems. And its technology is also used in data centers belonging to Facebook and Apple.

On top of that, Fusion has relationships with all the big server vendors: Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Dell and SuperMicro all sell systems with Fusion-io on board.

Workstations are essentially heavily tricked-out PCs that are used primarily in two professions: Animation and special-effects work for movies and TV and computer-assisted design and modeling, used by folks who design buildings and cars and planes and pretty much anything else you can think of. They have the same problem that servers have — agitated processors constantly waiting for the rest of the system to catch up with them.

At this point, none of the workstation vendors are offering the card as an option, but if you’ve got a professional workstation — like, say, an Apple Mac Pro, which has three PCI Express slots — you might add one of these cards and speed up your work. In the meantime, the company is working with workstation vendors to get the ioFX insert cards certified. My guess is there will be more than a few visual artists who won’t bother to wait.

Fusion-io shares are up almost 11 percent — or $2.64 — to $27.30, as of 11 am ET; not so much on this news — workstations are kind of a low-volume market — but on an analyst report from Piper Jaffray suggesting that Cisco Systems may be close to a deal to add Fusion-io’s flash technology to its Unified Computing System platform.

The report goes on to suggest that Cisco could, over the next three or four quarters, become one of Fusion’s bigger customers, along with Facebook and Apple, and could account for more than 10 percent of Fusion’s business — which could, in turn, lead to a doubling of revenue this year. For the record, sales were $197.2 million in Fusion’s fiscal 2011. Do the math.

Woz Plus Spock Equals a Geek Swarm

Arik Hesseldahl — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 23:20:23 +0000

In what can only be described as a strange collision of two distinct yet oddly similar universes of the geek canon, Steve Wozniak — Apple co-founder, friend of Steve Jobs, and chief scientist of chip memory concern Fusion-io — will have a conversation at Thursday’s DEMO conference with Leonard Nimoy, the actor famous for playing Spock in the “Star Trek” TV and film series.

Fusion just announced the pairing on its corporate blog. The company says the two will “share their thoughts on technology’s past, present and future.”

It’s probably no surprise that Wozniak was a fan of the original 1960s vintage TV show in his early adulthood. In a speech he delivered at a conference earlier this year he said that during his days working at Hewlett-Packard designing calculators, he’d come home from work “watch ‘Star Trek,’ eat a TV dinner, and do electronics projects.” So Woz will probably be thrilled to hang out with Nimoy, who’s always been a favorite among the “Star Trek” fan community.

It’s a little hard to guess precisely what all this will have to do with Fusion-io’s flash memory technology, which essentially speeds up conventional servers by adding an extra layer of memory to keep data close by the processor so it doesn’t stand around waiting for the hard drive to catch up. Nimoy is, however, an old hand at talking about how consumer technology that was science fiction on the TV show — mobile phones are essentially “Star Trek” communicators, for example — is now a reality. (See the video below for an example of that.) I’m sure it will be fun to see regardless.

One thing that will happen: A geek swarm on Foursquare. Woz is active on Foursquare, so expect lots of his followers to check in all at once and maybe trigger a swarm.

How Siri Really Works (Comic)

Voices — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 23:30:26 +0000

Here is the latest comic from our Joy of Tech friends at Geek Culture, Nitrozac and Snaggy. Joy of Tech appears three times a week in the Voices section of this site.

The Steam-Punk Dream Computer: Watch the Babbage Difference Engine in Action

Drake Martinet — Sat, 04 Dec 2010 14:00:39 +0000

After All Things Digital finished up a recent tour of the not-yet-reopened Computer History Museum, conducted by Apple co-founder Steve “Woz” Wozniak, one of the curators offered a special treat for a few of the geekiest reporters in attendance.

That meant the cult-legendary Babbage Difference Engine, a Hummer-size calculator originally designed by Charles Babbage in 1847 and later built from the original plans by the Science Museum in London in 2008.

Every part, and there are over 8,000, was finished by hand, using only techniques available in Victorian England.

The bronze, cast-iron and steel engine uses a dizzying series of gears, cams and catches to calculate and print tables of numbers that you might be familiar with if you’ve used one of those little brown pocket reference books.

Plus, it’s the only computer that requires an oil pan.

When “turned on,” which means turning the hand crank, the whole thing clatters to life in a decidedly organized symphony of metallic motion.

There are only two Babbage Engines in existence, and the maintenance alone means they’re almost never brought to life.

But, just for our nerdtastic audience, here is a short video of the whole thing in action in Silicon Valley–something you’ll probably not see again if you wait a lifetime.

Geek on:

[ See post to watch video ]

Back in the Day With Woz: A Sneak Peek Inside the New and Improved Computer History Museum

Drake Martinet — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 17:51:56 +0000

What could be better than listening to legendary Apple co-founder Steve “Woz” Wozniak wax poetic about his first and favorite gadget–which turns out to be a transistor radio?

Well, doing it inside the newly renovated Computer History Museum in Mountain View, Calif., certainly raises the geek factor to 10.

The museum has spent the last five years planning and installing “Revolution: The First 2,000 Years of Computing” and will open the doors to the public on January 10, 2011. That’s “011011,” Woz reminded the small crowd of journalists invited for an early tour of the new Silicon Valley facility.

The museum has more than doubled its public space to accommodate the new exhibit, which includes an impressive collection of the rare, revolutionary and ridiculous–mostly relating to computing from the 1950s onward.

The whole shebang was largely funded by Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, whose name features prominently in the signage.

Woz led a tour that highlighted some of the machines that meant most to him. He recounted hours spent at the IBM Model 026 punch card machine, and fawned over a Honeywell Kitchen Computer.

That device was originally sold by Neiman Marcus, complete with mod ’60s styling and bearing the “Mad Men”-esque slogan: “If only she could cook as well as the Honeywell computes.”

Woz said it was the machine that inspired him to believe computers could be attractive things for the home.

After a long meander through many, many more Woz-ly musings, the tour ended at the Homebrew Computer Club exhibit, complete with an Apple 1–signed by Woz–basically identical to the one that recently sold at Christie’s of London for $210,000. (Woz flew there and signed that one too.)

Once open, the expanded museum promises to be the perfect spot to take that über-geeky date, or just wander and reflect amidst hundreds of miles of wire and mountains of transistors.

No word on whether Woz will also be on permanent display.

He seemed to enjoy it, but you can judge for yourself by checking out our highlight video reel from the tour, complete with an interview about Woz’s first and favorite gadget, the coming robopocalypse and the iPhone as a future historical artifact.

Enjoy:

[ See post to watch video ]

Weekend Update 12.13.09–A New Hope

Drake Martinet — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 20:10:48 +0000

Just like other parts of the world, Silicon Valley has its own special magic during the holidays. We gather together around the old-timey glow of a CRT monitor and drag out our old CDs–especially the ones that say things like “Sign up for AOL now and receive 500 hours free.” With the familiar tone of a dial-up modem log-in on the stereo, we can almost smell the sweet aroma of irrational exuberance of holidays past. It’s this seasonal magic of limitless possibility that captured the tech word this week, featuring the miracle of rebirth, new jobs, and the greatest miracle of all, a possible Verizon (VZ) iPhone.

Kara soothed some furrowed brows with her NPR voice early in the week, before heading out to New York to attend the Diddy-studded relaunch party of Aol (AOL). She said that the real miracle of Aol seems to be its incredible resilience. Weekend Update thinks the 25-year-old online player was bitten by a radioactive roach sometime in the late 80s—it’s the only explanation. In any case, at the event, Kara caught former CBS (CBS) interactive head Quincy Smith on camera briefly and followed with a post about his part in a new niche banking venture. She rounded out BoomTown this week with a wrap-up of the party, featuring a little video chat with good ol’ Woz. Apple (APPL) co-founder Steve Wozniak was his usual jolly self, which got Weekend Update to thinking: He’s friendly, loves gadgets more than any human should and always seems to be sequestered in some workshop, toiling away before emerging for special occasions. We might be getting a little “Glenn Beck” paranoid here, but Woz and Claus do rhyme.

Digital Daily was in the holiday spirit too and brought us some prognostications a la the ghost of Christmas future. AT&T (T) is foretelling a grave future if it can’t get its coverage in order. No “incentive” programs are in place yet, but the company did release an app that allows users to geo-tag locations where service is bad, though we’re not sure yet what they’ll do with the data. More iPhones on the network plus lack of action may slow down connection speeds so much that even Jacob Marley could beat AT&T in a bandwidth race, and we’re pretty sure he’s wrapped in chains. While AT&T grapples with correcting its own network transgressions, John posted about a prognostication from an industry analyst who says that as time progresses we’re increasingly likely to see a Verizon iPhone. While the analysis is complex, the math is simple. Over time, Apple will see fewer and fewer iPhone converts at AT&T as the carrier slowly slurps up those remaining in the bottom of the cup. Moral of the story: We may start hearing that sucking sound between 2010 and 2012. John finished out the week with a snapshot of Aol. There were fewer sugarplums and candy canes and more about the long, wintery walk ahead of the oddly new Internet player. The reality is that shares in the post-spinoff Aol were down a few points, even as management was doing its best to put on a brave face. Sometimes a fruitcake is still a fruitcake, even if you gift-wrap it.

MediaMemo was in the holiday spirit too, even if the world of media is a little more somber this holiday season. Peter started things off with coverage of a new Nielsen report that puts TV viewing down somewhat, even as Internet video viewership rises. While one explanation might be that the screentime balance is finally beginning to shift, Weekend Update has another hypothesis: There are not nearly so many hilarious cat-dressed-as-Santa videos on TV as on the Internet, and that’s just want the holiday viewers want. Arguably, the biggest shakeup this week was over at Facebook, where the elves have been working feverishly on yet another privacy agreement. Peter reported that king elf Zuckerberg thinks sharing is the best default and sort of puts his profile where his mouth is (even if he keeps certain data, like his cellphone number, just for his friends). Finally, not to be left out of the Aol party, Peter also delivered some insight about the shape of things to come with a post about New York Times veteran Saul Hansell heading over to do some kind of work in Aol’s new content factory. No word yet on what sort of gift this particular wise man will be delivering.

Walt and Katie were in full swing this week, working hard to make sense of some of those last-minute gift items. Personal Technology was devoted to the Nook, a much anticipated e-reader from Barnes and Noble (BKS). Similar to the Amazon (AMZN) Kindle in its display capabilities, the Nook sets itself apart, in theory, by augmenting its text display with a small color screen to aid navigation. Walt said this one needed a little more time in the workshop and that future iterations may take better advantage of the interesting dual-screen idea. Mossberg’s Mailbox wasn’t full of tins of cookies yet, but Walt did answer some mail about the end of Microsoft (MSFT) Money for the Mac and recording all your favorite shows onto a computer. He also helped one wayward would-be smartphone owner examine options less costly than the Motorola (MOT) Droid. Katie came to every mom’s rescue with a great post breaking down the Wii, Xbox and Playstation 3 field. If that weren’t enough, she includes a cheat sheet of features and options that will take the confusion out of the impending trip through your favorite electronics superstore gauntlet.

While we’re not yet roasting chestnuts (Kara hates it when we start fires in the office), AllThingsD most certainly is getting its stockings hung with care. Is it weird that we are noshing on a potato latke while we do that? Either way, stay tuned to the AllThingsD crew, and please feel free to leave comments–no one likes an empty mailbox during the holidays. Weekend Update will catch you again next week.

Apple Co-Founder and Dancing Fool Steve Wozniak Talks!

Kara Swisher — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 20:56:37 +0000

Today, at the Silicom Summit at Stanford University, BoomTown was on a panel about consumer media, and right in the front row paying rapt attention was Steve Wozniak.

It was the same Woz–the famous nickname of the Apple (AAPL) co-founder–who was also staring back last week at the seventh D: All Things Digital conference and taking it all in.

Thus, I used Woz as an example from onstage today, in making my point how to practice a new kind of journalism using simpler tech tools–like the Flip digital video camera and this blog, as well as Twitter and more–and doing quick and informative reporting about, say, well-known tech figures I see all over Silicon Valley.

As in: See Woz, stick my trusty Flip in Woz’s face, ask Woz annoying questions and, presto, we’ve got a lovely post about what he’s been up to.

Such as this video interview, in which Woz talks about a wide range of things from Apple to Google (GOOG) to sassy Yahoo (YHOO) CEO Carol Bartz (he’s buying stock!) to Twitter to innovation to social networking and, yes, dancing.

Woz, a verifiable tech legend, loves to talk–but not about his ex-partner Steve Jobs’ health this time–and it’s good to listen.

Here’s the video:

[ See post to watch video ]

Woz to DWTS Judges: "I'm Still Standing" (And Still Dancing as Bad as He Can!)

Kara Swisher — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 09:38:20 +0000

Apple (AAPL) Co-founder Steve Wozniak revved his damn-the-judges juggernaut into high gear this week with yet another low-scoring performance on ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars” and a full-bore mangle of the Argentine tango last night.

Interestingly, as the trio of judges dinged him for the fourth week in a row, they also tried to compliment Wozniak at the same time, telling him they loved his spirit.

Oh, these judges know that a Silicon Valley mob riding Segways could run them down at any minute if they got too mean (and there was actually a video of just that possibility on the television show).

“The judges have forsaken me,” said Woz, sounding more and more like a very appealing nerd cult leader. “But the geeks shall inherit the earth.”

One judge, Bruno Tonioli, still had the temerity to speak the truth about Woz’s tango: “This really stunk.”

Retorted the cute-as-a-button-who-can’t-dance Woz: “I have three words for you: I’m still standing.”

That he is. So you better get out there and vote early and often (you can vote up to 10 times).

Results come tonight, but here is the video from last night:

Sam-bad: Woz Gets a 10 Out of 30 on "DWTS"

Kara Swisher — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 07:00:52 +0000

At least Apple (AAPL) co-founder Steve Wozniak can pun through the pain of his foot fracture and pulled hamstring.

“Hey, well, one thing I learned is that if you mix a little dancing with a little Smirnoff, you might end up in an ambulance,” he joked, riffing on the name of his partner, Karina Smirnoff.

What he can’t do, of course, is dance very well, which was why he got the low, low score of 10 out of 30 last night from the judges on his third week of “Dancing with the Stars.”

“Steve, on your knees and beg forgiveness–this was the worst Samba I’ve ever seen, I think–just bad,” said Bruno Tonioli.

“I just hope the viewers enjoyed it as an entertainment, because for me, it was consistent–it was terrible from start to finish,” said Len Goodman.

And, while she called Woz “adorable,” Carrie Ann Inaba delivered the bomb: “At some point, the novelty wears off…you’re like the uncle at the party that we just root for.”

Well, maybe for her it gets old, but not the rest of us completely riveted to exactly what wacky stunt and what level of atrocious dancing Woz will deliver next on the ABC television show.

Oh, it was a bad Samba. A very bad Samba. Sam-bad.

But from his decidedly odd “worm” to his accusing the producers of vote-rigging to his pink boa, Woz should still get the ballot box stuffed Silicon Valley-style.

Woz was cheerfully defiant about his performance, joking that he probably deserved a lesser score even: “I enjoy it and I am going to try to bring my form of entertainment to the world.”

World geek dancing domination!

So vote early and often tomorrow so that he can overcome his lack of dancing ability and win first place on this ridiculous show!

Here’s the video:

Also here are Woz’s missives to the fans on his Facebook page from yesterday, after the jump:

On Mar 23, 2009, at 1:53 AM, Steve Wozniak wrote:

Yesterday evening I was sure that I couldn’t dance on Monday, due to so much pain that I would wince when I walked. It wasn’t pretty.

My partner, Karina, is very familiar with such injuries and worse. She was of the opinion that if I withdrew from Dancing With The Stars, rumors would fly that I was using this injury as an excuse. She has danced with pulled hamstrings many times. I can tell you from how this one felt, that it’s not the same for a 20 year old as it is for a 58 year old.

Karina modified our routine to keep it as good, but avoid a few maneuvers that caused me extreme pain. We practiced a few times last night on the real DWTS stage and I decided that I could do the dance, a Samba, on Monday (tomorrow).

We practiced today. I had very little problem with my pain in the dance but now had to learn different sequences of the whole routine, and connect them. You have heard of muscle memory. One step reminds your foot of the next step, and so on. But now we took chunks in the middle and rewrote them. Plus we lost nearly 2 days of rehearsal due to my inability to do anything, not to mention hospitals and MRI’s and more over 2 days. So rehearsal-wise, we are behind everyone else, but we are feeling confident that we can do something of value tomorrow. You’ll have to see.

I have much more to say to you all, but it’s an incredibly tired time for me.

Please, keep email and phone calls to an absolute minimum. I will not necessarily be by either with any time at all tomorrow. I have to ask your help in minimizing this.

thanks,

Woz

On Mar 23, 2009, at 2:41 PM, Steve Wozniak wrote:

http://abc.go.com/primetime/dancingwiththestars/index?pn=aboutthevote

If that URL doesn’t work, go to –Dancing With The Stars–click the “Vote Now” tab.

I can’t stress how important in my case the audience voting is. It can fairly easily make the difference between last place and first place. When you are in the dance-off, you have to take extra time preparing for it instead of your next dance, which gets you further behind for the next week’s dance. It’s unfortunately a case of positive feedback and votes can pull me out of that situation. If you pull me out, I will owe you and love you all forever, as I do people who attended my US Festivals.

best regards,

Woz

On Mar 23, 2009, at 6:46 PM, Steve Wozniak wrote:

Dress rehearsal had a wardrobe malfunction

My pants were falling down and I had to keep pulling them up!

Ha ha, everyone loved it.

Also, before heading to the stage, Karina was looking for me and the camera went down to me crawling on the floor with a hurt leg. They loved it so much they asked us to do it live tonight.

The pants are being repaired now. I can’t tell you how it feels to have your pants falling off in a dance. I lost too much weight again.

The worm went great in dress rehearsal. Enjoy the show tonight.

best wishes to all,

Woz

An Injured Woz Dances On: You Owe Him Your Vote!

Kara Swisher — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 10:32:08 +0000

Last week, BoomTown turned partisan in what is perhaps our only truly fair election these days: “Dancing With the Stars.”

Because he is so lovably dorktastic, it seems as if Silicon Valley has to pull out all the stops to make sure the anti-Fred Astaire stylings of Apple (APPL) co-founder Steve Wozniak remain in the television competition.

Woe to everyone when it was revealed that he had hurt himself dancing, with a fractured leg.

But–unlike other competitors who have been sidelined by injuries–Woz is sticking, and is headed into a quickstep routine tonight.

There are several updates by Woz on his Facebook page here, with one note yesterday saying, in part:

“I found that I was getting delirious from the energy expenditure of yesterday and I could barely walk at all, even in my socks. I have never looked so funny or so in pain in my life. It took me about 5 minutes just to maneuver my body into the bathtub. I don’t take baths normally, and anyone who knows me knows that it would take a great occasion or emergency to get me into a bath, but I needed it badly.”

TMI! But let’s try to ignore it and move on!

The next broadcast of “Dancing with the Stars” is tonight at 8 p.m. EST, with the voting open for various times after the show via phone, SMS or online. Also, Chicago-style, you can vote up to 13 times, but check with the ABC site for all the rules.

The first results show is tomorrow night. That’ll be scary given that Woz scored a paltry 13 points from the snotty judges for last week’s cha-cha disaster, although it’s not clear what the public thought of his debut dance.

So, if his quickstep is–it has to be said–like quicksand, stuffing the ballot box is the only option for geek domination.

As you will see from this video of his first outing, Woz needs all the help he can get:

Dancing With the Prankster

Nitrozac and Snaggy — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 18:17:38 +0000

Where in the World Is America's CTO?

Kara Swisher — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 13:30:39 +0000

With the naming of Oracle (ORCL) President Charles Phillips to President Barack Obama’s 16-Member Economic Recovery Advisory Board a few days ago, another Silicon Valley tech mandarin fell off the list to become America’s first chief technology officer.

The job–which was promised by President Barack Obama during his campaign and underscored when he released a memorandum on transparency and open government that outlined some of the CTO duties the day after he was sworn in–remains unfilled.

In fact, so does the Federal Communications Commission chairman’s post, which insiders said a month ago would go to former IAC/InterActiveCorp (IACI) exec Julius Genachowski. But he has not been nominated yet.

Both Genachowski and Phillips were on a short list floated in November by The Wall Street Journal for CTO. The third name on it, Level 3 (LVLT) exec Don Gips, has since been named to a high-level White House job.

While the continuing economic crisis has sucked all the oxygen from the room, the Obama administration has still made a lot of promises about tech issues, from improving broadband to making the government more transparent and digital.

So, who is getting the job as head geek?

Could it be well-known entrepreneur Mitch Kapor? Google (GOOG) guru-in-resident and Internet father Vint Cerf? Or some other tech-savvy Silicon Valley figure?

BoomTown is, of course, rooting for Steve “Woz” Wozniak. Once he wins “Dancing With the Stars” this season, he will be the only nerd capable of the two-stepping one needs to survive in Washington.

Post new guesses in comments below.

And, until someone is appointed to fix the nation’s computers, here is the Jan. 21 memo Obama released about some of the tasks ahead for America’s CTO:

MEMORANDUM FOR THE HEADS OF EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES

SUBJECT: Transparency and Open Government

My Administration is committed to creating an unprecedented level of openness in Government. We will work together to ensure the public trust and establish a system of transparency, public participation, and collaboration. Openness will strengthen our democracy and promote efficiency and effectiveness in Government.

Government should be transparent. Transparency promotes accountability and provides information for citizens about what their Government is doing. Information maintained by the Federal Government is a national asset. My Administration will take appropriate action, consistent with law and policy, to disclose information rapidly in forms that the public can readily find and use. Executive departments and agencies should harness new technologies to put information about their operations and decisions online and readily available to the public. Executive departments and agencies should also solicit public feedback to identify information of greatest use to the public.

Government should be participatory. Public engagement enhances the Government’s effectiveness and improves the quality of its decisions. Knowledge is widely dispersed in society, and public officials benefit from having access to that dispersed knowledge. Executive departments and agencies should offer Americans increased opportunities to participate in policymaking and to provide their Government with the benefits of their collective expertise and information. Executive departments and agencies should also solicit public input on how we can increase and improve opportunities for public participation in Government.

Government should be collaborative. Collaboration actively engages Americans in the work of their Government. Executive departments and agencies should use innovative tools, methods, and systems to cooperate among themselves, across all levels of Government, and with nonprofit organizations, businesses, and individuals in the private sector. Executive departments and agencies should solicit public feedback to assess and improve their level of collaboration and to identify new opportunities for cooperation.

I direct the Chief Technology Officer, in coordination with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Administrator of General Services, to coordinate the development by appropriate executive departments and agencies, within 120 days, of recommendations for an Open Government Directive, to be issued by the Director of OMB, that instructs executive departments and agencies to take specific actions implementing the principles set forth in this memorandum. The independent agencies should comply with the Open Government Directive.

This memorandum is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by a party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

This memorandum shall be published in the Federal Register.

BARACK OBAMA

[Photo of the t-shirt from ThinkGeek.]