Suddenly, socks! Thousands of them!

I see they’ve embraced a package-based model for their postal architecture. Not a bad move, but you have to consider the risks, like out-of-order arrival (not a big problem for socks), lossage (high retransmission cost), jitter (particularly important for sockscription customers), etc. Latency rocks, though!

I came across this rather amusing company a little while ago. They’ve been around since before the turn of the millennium but I somehow hadn’t stumbled upon them until now. What with everything turning web2.0-ey nowadays, I’d say they’ve got themselves a nice little niche.

In case you’re too busy to visit (or too much of a slacker, TL;DR!), the concept is simple: you pay a yearly subscription fee (they call it a “sockscription”), and they keep sending you pairs of nice new black socks. It’s a very cute idea that has wide-ranging appeal and applicability. It also abides by one of the general rules for sysadmins, which is to automate whatever you can; the less time you waste thinking about repeatable tasks, the more time you have for fun things.

Right now I’m lamenting the state of the Aussie dollar, as the billing amounts will be in USD. However, this is far too compelling a concept to ignore, and the current state of my sock drawer is positively unacceptable with only two pairs of plain blacks socks (both with holes, no less!). One does not wear white sports socks with black patent leather lace-ups, it’s just not done (hey, I like to dress up). I’ll have to put in an order as soon as possible, those kneesocks look like just the ticket.

かえして！ニーソックス