Scruffy Six Twenty Five: Tastes
18 March 2010 03:47am UTC 11 comments
As a follow up to last nights' post, I figured a new Sruffy Six was in order!
What are your top 6 favorite tastes of all time?
Recent Blog Entries (page 3)
Sweets
17 March 2010 03:56am UTC 1 comment ★
Well, my faithful friends. I have some bad news. I betrayed you. Normally when I decide to try and change my life for the better I tell you about it. Exhibits A, B, C, D, E, F and G (for starters). But during the month of February I made a resolution and didn't tell you about it.
But that's because I was tired of telling you all about my new resolutions and not following through (if I wasn't so tired I would find you a whole list of exhibits–á la the previous paragraph–of examples)! I was tired of letting you down!
Anyway, On January 27th I decided to not eat sweets for one month. Now what exactly qualifies as a "sweet" is up for debate, but basically I decided on any store bought candy, pastries/deserts or soda pop.
I didn't have any sweets again for 4 weeks (well except twice when I made two little mistakes).
And I gotta tell you, while 4 weeks doesn't sound like much, it was really tough! Or maybe my fiance and I just normally eat a lot of sweets.
I also gotta tell you that I after I was off the wagon again, I didn't feel as good as when I was on the wagon. That might have something to do with the fact that I exercised regularly throughout February. Or that the week after I finished was filled with sweets. I think it was a little of those two things and the fact that sweets just aren't good for you.
Anyway, I have decided to get get back on the wagon. Well, a slightly smaller wagon. I'm going to avoid sweets as much as I can, but no more hard and fast rules about everything. Though, no more soda pop for me! No more red vines! No more sour punch straws! No more girl scout thin mints! However, I think if some one goes to the effort to actually bake something, how can I say no? So, cookies are in! Bake me cookies! Pies too! Also if it is a special occasion, how can I not celebrate with a Sprite or a Grape Soda?
Here's to saying goodbye to one of my favorite things in life!
Saying Goodbye to Apple
14 March 2010 09:00pm UTC 12 comments ★ ★ ★ ★
[Sorry if this post is boring for some of you! But well, it isn't boring to me!]
It is no secret that I am a pretty big fan of the things that Apple makes. I got my first Apple laptop on January 15th in 2005. Five short years ago *sniff*. I loved that laptop like nothing else. It was small and portable, it was beautiful, and the operating system worked great. I now recommend to everyone, get an Apple computer. They just work. And they work very well.
It was with that in mind that last week I installed Linux on my laptop, making a full commitment to different operating system.
A couple of people I have told about this switch have asked me what exactly it means to install a new operating system. Basically, to most people, when you get a computer you have two choices. Windows vs. Apple. This choice is about the operating system. Talking about stability vs. ease of use vs. programs available vs. what you can do vs. what you like about your computer, is most likely talking about the operating system.
The operating system basically, for all intents and purposes, is the computer.
So, when I say I switched operating systems, I mean to say that I have completely changed the most fundamental part of how I use my computer. I spend 12-plus hours a day on my computer. Needless to say, this is a Big Deal.
The "big-deal-ness" is compounded by how big a fan I am of the things Apple makes. I think Apple makes the best laptops you can buy. I think Apple makes the best phone you can buy. I think Apple makes the best MP3 player you can buy. I think Apple makes the most user-friendly operating system you can use. Basically, Apple is like no other company in the world in terms of making absolutely top-notch products.
So, what am I replacing Apple's operating system with? Linux, of course!
Which, I realize is a term that means not much to non-techy people and techy people alike. For you non-techy people, Linux is a third possible operating system (Windows and Max OS X being the first two). For you techy people, I am actually switching to Ubuntu, a variant of Linux.
Generally speaking, Linux is an open source operating system that no one "owns" (in the sense that Microsoft owns Windows and Apple owns Mac OS X). This means that you can kind of think of Linux as being owned "by the people". Anyone can have a say in what happens with Linux, just start programming on it. Or if you want, you can make a copy of it, claim it as yours, and not let anyone else have a say with what happens. The possibilities are endless!
But here is the million dollar question: Why am I switching?
Two reasons:
- Basically, to use an over-used buzzword, Linux is more "open" than both Windows and Mac OS X.
- Apple has been making decisions lately that I philosophically disagree with.
About a month ago Apple announced its latest and greatest product, called the iPad. While the iPad looks awesome, it continues the model set up by the iPhone, where if you want to write an application for the device you have to get Apple's approval first. I don't like this model. I'll even go so far as to say I hate this model. I don't think this model is in the best interest of the consumers of Apple's devices. With the iPhone, it was at least excusable, because you could argue that Apple had to lock the system down tight because they were operating on AT&T's phone network. But with the iPad, while there is a 3G option, it doesn't feel as excusable. Maybe it still is. But the main point is, that if the future of Apple's products are devices like this, where you have to ask Apple's permission to install something on your computer, well, that's bullshit.
I've already voiced my opinions about the iPad at length on Peter's website, but this comment in particular summarizes my opinions about the issue:
But the more Apple locks up (even if it is design perfection) the more I am going to push against it. I don't like patents. I don't like secrets. I don't like rules. I believe in a very communistic approach to development: I will never keep the things I develop all to myself. If anyone wants it, I would be happy to give it to them. I feel this way because it is precisely the projects that do this that make it fun for me to use my computer. PHP, MySQL, CouchDB, Sqlite, Apache, Vim, Node, V8, Ruby, Python, Inkscape, JQuery. I use computers a lot because I like to program and design. I don't use computers a lot for any other reason. If I didn't program/design I would only use computers as a communication tool. And judging by how much I do that, it wouldn't be a lot.
So, openness and freedom are the single most important part of what make computers enjoyable for me. Period.
Then last week it was announced that Apple was suing another cellphone maker called HTC for patent infringement. And well, that just pissed me off.
I love math. That's why it was one of my majors in college. In math you take a set of assumptions and constraints and then see what other rules, shortcuts, algorithms, systems you can develop from those rules. It is that simple, yet from that you get things like Calculus. Now, I don't think many people out there would argue that you should be able to patent Math. Imagine if someone had a patent on Calculus.
Well, computer science is no different than math. Computer science is in fact just applied math. Just math with a different set of assumptions and constraints. So, it seems completely illogical that software patents are legal.
I'm sure economists might argue that patents are valuable from a market point of view, and that a lot of research and development wouldn't happen without the promise of exclusivity. While that might be true, that doesn't make them right. (And I am in no way saying software patents are similar to slavery) but it can probably be argued that slavery is better for a certain market (namely better for the slave holders) but that doesn't make it right.
I see software patents as a great wrong. And something that currently and actively makes the world a worse place.
[As a quick aside, I'm not completely sure what this means for my opinions on patents in general, but I am pretty sure that I think the whole patent system should be abolished. You shouldn't be able to own ideas.]
I was discussing with Peter how I was angry with Apple when he said the following (I hope it is okay that I am quoting you Peter!):
unfortunately for us, we don't live in a land where unicorns' tears make everyone happy and everyone only wants to make the world a better place. apple is a company, a huge one, just like Microsoft and google. and their goal is not our goal; their goal is to make more money, using their innovation to do it. I just wish they didn't have to hurt others' innovation to do it too.
I agree with Peter that I wish Apple wasn't doing this. But when I read that, I realized I could no longer support Apple. I can no longer support an entity that is willing to sacrifice what I see as moral obligations in the pursuit of making more money.
I acknowledge though, that Apple is a company. And it needs to make money or it wouldn't exist. But my money is a way of voting. And when I spend my money on Apple products I am saying that I endorse what they are doing. When I use their operating system, I am telling the world and my friends that this company is worth choosing.
I have decided to put my vote elsewhere.* So, I am switching operating systems. I know I will be faced with a tough choice in the future when I need a new laptop or computer. I'll have to find a company that is the least "evil" I guess.
The operating system I chose (the Ubuntu variant of Linux) was named after a South African philosophy called "Ubuntu". To quote from Desmond Tutu:
One of the sayings in our country is Ubuntu - the essence of being human. Ubuntu speaks particularly about the fact that you can't exist as a human being in isolation. It speaks about our interconnectedness. You can't be human all by yourself, and when you have this quality - Ubuntu - you are known for your generosity.
We think of ourselves far too frequently as just individuals, separated from one another, whereas you are connected and what you do affects the whole world. When you do well, it spreads out; it is for the whole of humanity.
An operating system with that as its guiding philosophy? That I can get behind.
*As to what I think other people should do is another issue. I don't think Linux is at the stage where non-computer people can use it enjoyably. So, most people are faced with a choice between Windows and Mac OS X. In that case both choices are "evil" and I would choose Mac OS X. Google is coming out with an operating system this year called "Chrome OS" which will be completely open sourced. Maybe use that. Though, I am not sure how well it is going to work without an internet connection, since it is highly based on their Chrome internet browser.
Live Blogging the Oscars 2010!
8 March 2010 01:09am UTC 332 comments ★
Refresh the comments for the updates! Woo!
The Next Three Years
20 February 2010 09:44pm UTC 5 comments ★ ★
So, the excitement from earlier this month quickly wore off when my fiance proceeded to get into 6½* of the seven schools she applied to. I mean come on! Stop sending us all these acceptance letters, people!
I am, of course, kidding. It is really quite exciting how awesome my fiance is.
I'd like to say that the decision for which school to go to was difficult, but my other half completely fell in love with just one of those schools. When she got in, I don't think I have ever seen her that excited. We proceeded to jump on the bed!
So, without further ado I give you our home for the next three years!
Yes, that's right, Keri has officially sent off the word to **The University of Colorado Denver,** so we are going to be living in Aurora, Colorado.
The school starts in June, so we have about three months to find our new place, move, and generally go crazy before she sells her soul to physical therapy.
You guys all better get ready to come out and visit us!
Woo!
* She got wait-listed at one of them. Those jerks!
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