Sometimes when you have a hammer, everything looks like a nail. Thomas Dichter has a critique of the overhype of microcredit. Picked up via BoingBoing and Futurismic.

Yet microcredit is an almost perfect case of a phenomenon that has come to characterize much of development assistance - a widening gap between reality and propaganda. For while the promise of microcredit is irresistible - help the poor out of poverty using their own entrepreneurial energies, and in the process get our investment back - the hoped for poverty reduction impact of microcredit remains elusive.

Jim Barton has an extensive article detailing the challenges faced in designing and rolling out the TiVo service.

The two burdens that are probably most annoying to the user are a complex and difficult control interface and lack of reliability. Reliability is not just about whether a computer system functions or not. It encompasses expected behavior, lack of ambiguity, and recovery from unusual events, such as loss of power or network connectivity.

The official World Cup fantasy game is announced. This isn't a "pick the brackets" pool, more of a real fantasy game where you pick your squad of 23 players and gain points on their performance.

Select a squad of 23 players, who you think will shine at the finals and decide on a formation, e.g. 4-4-2, 4-3-3, etc. You will be able to chop and change your lineup as many times as you like before each match but once a player is in action, he cannot be substituted for another. You may also delegate a McDonald's Star Player or captain -- and however many points this player earns on the field will be doubled. If you drop a player from your roster, his place in future line-ups will be vacant until the transfer window opens.

Once all the team rosters are set for the participating nations, I'll create a league for us to play in. If you're interested, leave a comment and I'll get back to you.