Monday, October 29, 2007

Recent Reading

Both of these reviews are a bit long so I posted them behind a cut. Today, I discuss:
1) Napoleon’s Buttons: 17 Molecules that Changed History by Penny Le Couteur & Jay Burreson
2) The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court by Jeffery Toobin

1) Napoleon’s Buttons: 17 Molecules that Changed History by Penny Le Couteur & Jay Burreson. This is a very interestingly structured book. The text is an intriguing combination of organic chemistry and history. It looks at various chemicals and how their chemical structure, availability and commercialization changed human history. Some of the chemicals discussed have been long acknowledged to impact history like salt, cellulose or cloves/pepper. But there were also sections on Oleic Acid (Olive Oil), "The Pill" and the chemistry of Witchcraft accusations. Thankfully, the chemistry is presented in a fairly straightforward manner; it’s nothing beyond what you would see in an AP Chemistry course. And the history is full of interesting facts and characters, some more well-known than others.

The chapters included little historical asides that provided greater context for certain historical events. One fact of particular interest to me was that many women convicted as witches may have really believed that they participated in dark rituals because of hallucinogenic nature of several commonly used herbal remedies. Another point in the book’s favor, the authors went to great lengths to demonstrate the fine line between usefulness and toxicity for a chemical. They discussed many of the trade-offs in using one chemical versus another and provided some good historical context for why chemicals now banned were once considered life-saving. On the whole, I thought this was a balanced, well-presented and entertaining look at the effect of chemistry on human history.

2) The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court by Jeffery Toobin. Who says law is boring? This easy-to-read book covers the last twenty or so years of the Supreme Court history. It provides wonderful insight into the personalities, egos and politics surrounding the Court’s recent decisions. While I think it’s important to understand Supreme Court justices are real people with real lives, Toobin does a good job of embracing their eccentricities while showing the consequences of their all-too human mistakes.

Another nod in the author's favor is he succeeds in fairly portraying the complexity of certain decisions while still not leaving much doubt about the author’s opinions. For instance, I think Toobin has a little bit of a crush on Sandra Day O’Conner but doesn’t think much of Clarence Thomas. Interestingly, Scalia for all his strict constructionism and combative behavior got a much more favorable presentation. It doesn’t hurt that Scalia is a bit of a cut-up (seriously, this book had several LOL moments, mainly due to his quotes). The only downside for me was the focus on two points about the modern Court that disturb me:

(1) Certain justices becoming enamored with international legal precedents. While I’m not totally opposed to the idea, the international community is much more statist, collectivist and leftist than the US. I do not believe the United States would be well-served to duplicate those aspects of international law. Also important, most countries lack anything like the Bill of Rights which imposes quite specific restrictions on how governements can interfere with individual liberty. Using case law from both Britain and the EU especially has this flaw as both lack written constitutions. Accepting precedents from either ignores the lower burden-of-proof required for change in both legal systems. The issue of the death penalty is one area in particular where, even with the flaws in our process, I think the US has a proper stance.

(2) Modern Legal thought has such a weird focus on the abortion issue. I know it’s a really big deal in political circles and no book discussing conservatives’ relationship to the Court could ignore it. But this issue just seems like a big deal out of nothing to me. My opinion of abortion is that it is morally wrong but it should be legal. So while I would never get one myself, I don’t want it to be banned outright either. As far as I’m concerned while Roe v. Wade was a poorly-constructed decision*, it got us to a more reasonable place in terms of the law. The whole focus in selecting both Justices Roberts & Alito was on abortion. This struck me as unsound and more than a little off-putting regarding how the Republican party makes decisions on social issues. Alito’s previous opinions especially came off as mindlessly dogmatic to the point of willful ignorance about how spousal content might relate to domestic violence issues.

Neither of these two points were covered unfairly by the author. Although, I thought Toobin glossed over the reasons why people would be opposed to using international precedents in Supreme Court cases. The abortion issue was presented much more fairly. In the end, I would recommend this book as interesting and informative. Only I don’t think it will necessarily make you feel better about decision-making in the upper levels of the United States government.

*Based on the analysis of someone who took "Constitutional Law" as her second government elective requirement in college (ie - no expert).

Link to full post.

Monday Miscellany

1) Gene Therapy Reduces Death Due To Radiation in Mice. Since it’s looking less and less likely that we’ll be able to stop nuclear proliferation, this means if some nut job does try to set off a bomb we’ll be able to do something proactive to minimize the effect of the fall-out. Good news.

2) So, last week Comet 17P/Holmes got enormously brighter. No one’s really sure why...Although, many people have their eyes on the sky and there are theories. The link also contains some fantastic pictures showing the scale of the event and links to photos from all over the planet. Several people at work have been sky-watching to get a glimpse.

3) 5 Scientific Reasons A Zombie Apocalypse Could Happen. I have a sudden desire to take up camping and stock up on “boom-sticks”. I particularly like this quote:

Scientists have already created a nano-cyborg, by fusing a tiny silicone chip to a virus. The first thing they found out is these cyborgs can still operate for up to a month after the death of the host. Notice how nano scientists went right for zombification, even at this early stage. They know where the horror is.

4) 5 Ways Environmentalists Can Be Less Annoying. "There are some people that, for whatever reason, you can agree with completely about political, environmental, or social issues, but still just want to hit in the face repeatedly." Hallelujah! My personal favorite is number four - "Read A Book [on statistics]". Oh thank you. Poor understanding of the science is one of my long pet-peeves with die-hard environmentalists.....I had some poor experiences in college. Have you ever tried explaining the intricacies and fallibility of climate modeling to Spanish majors? (shudder)

5) THIS MAKES ME FURIOUS. Not only is ComCast “shaping traffic” by interfering with and cutting off P2P traffic (including the wholly legal LotusNotes), they are instructing their service representatives to LIE about it to their customers. WHAT PUNKS. It sounds like their employees aren’t really happy about the situation either. Why else would so many of them be risking their jobs to rat out the company? Hopefully, someone will hit upper management with a clue-by-four soon. More information here and here.

Link to full post.

Sunday, October 28, 2007

Ubuntu Tweaks: Mainly Desktop-Related Stuff

Now that my Ubuntu install is complete and my major glitch corrected, I’ve been tweaking Ubuntu. Between the Ubuntu Help Forums "Tips And Tutorials" and "October 2007 Desktops" threads, in the last week my desktop has undergone an evolution of sorts. Below is information on some handy tricks. They range from the simple to the complicated.

In the full post are the following:
1) Automatically Importing Photos with F-Spot
2) Using WinAmp Skins with XMMS
3) Installing Avant Windows Navigator and Beryl
4) Adding Applications to Start-Up

1) Automatically Importing Photos with F-Spot: The tutorial covers three steps:

(1) Changing your photo import program: Took <30 seconds. Works no problem.
(2)
Changing where imported photos are saved: I skipped this step. My photos are saved by category/type on my external HD so I prefer having them in my “Home” folder and re-organizing them after importing.
(3)
Ensuring you properly delete files from your memory card: Ubuntu’s default stance isn’t to delete files but to “Move to Trash”. On removable media, it creates a hidden trash folder. Since you can’t see it, you think you’ve gotten rid of files that are still around. Not only did it help with the camera but I finally got rid on the Trash folder on my flash drive.

2) Using Winamp skins for XMMS: I’m glad I found this. The XMMS skins package in the Ubuntu repositories is only OK. It turned out being less work than the tutorial even shows. The only trick is knowing where to put the skin files you download. XMMS does the rest. The folder already exists but it’s hidden so you have to mark “show hidden files” in Nautilus. But then you just download skins from the websites provided and switch out as desired. And there’s tons of skins available. I liked the selections so much I spent several hours Thursday customizing desktop themes to match the new skins. My first attempt at this, didn't go so well. I went from this.....

to this.....
It looks like the Easter Bunny threw up on my computer. I quickly went back and ended up with a green theme....


Fortunately, at this point I found out about the October 2007 Desktops thread in the forums. Basically, people post screenshots of their desktop layouts along with info about how they set it up. WOW. After browsing through the thread, I traveled over to Gnome Art and indulged in a downloading frenzy for wallpapers, windows borders, application themes, you name it. At first I attempted to keep the green theme:

But I got over it. After all this downloading, this was my desktop:
Clean (nothing open)

Busy


3) Avant Window Navigator: While flipping through the Desktop thread, I wondered what was the really cool taskbar panel on the bottom of everybody's screens? Thankfully, someone linked to their page explaining how to build desktops. They in turn linked the AWN Forums which in turn linked some detailed instructions on how to install this supremely cool panel.

Looking at these instructions, at first I thought this WAY beyond me. The install involved a LOT of command line stuff (which I'm not that experienced with). But, it was mainly cut-and-paste so I gave it a shot. After two tries, it installed with one problem. There was this unsightly black bar at the bottom of my desktop.

What the hell? The help forum had the answer though. Apparently, you need to install the beryl windows manager & effects package. I'd heard about it but again it seemed a bit out of my current league. Nevertheless, I wanted this taskbar perfect. So, I attempted to install the beryl package from the command line. Unfortunately, this did not make the unsightly black bar go away. After some investigating, I came across these handy instructions for installing Beryl. It turns out, I had only installed the Beryl package but not the other two support packages necessary for beryl to run (beryl-manager and emerald themes). Once I got those and activated Beryl, the ugly black bar went away. After all this tweaking, my final desktop is this:
Clean

Busy


4) Adding Applications to Start-Up: After installing AWN & Beryl, this is really easy. You have to make this modification to open Beryl & AWN each time you log-in. But it takes about ten seconds. All you have to do is go to "System" --> "Preferences" --> "Sessions". There is a "Start-Up Programs" tab, just click "New" to add AWN, Beryl and Beagle (installed with AWN). After that, your new taskbar should appear automatically when you log-in.

PS - Can I just say how awesome Beryl is? I put off installing this because it is a bit above my current proficiency with Ubuntu. And I've only used it a couple hours, but this is a seriously cool feature. I love the semi-transparent windows that wobble when you move them! It's probably going to take me weeks to really figure out how to get the most out of this application but I'm definitely looking forward to the experience.

Link to full post.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Why I Read to the Right.

When I started this weblog, it was with the intent to say something about myself. Right now, I'm just getting into blogging and while I have more important things to talk about than "Stargate", I want to wait under I'm sure I can do justice to the issues. In service to this goal, I started a series of essays on topics I've like to cover eventually. Well, one of those essays is going in the trash today. Because I came across someone who said the exact same thing about a million times better than I ever could.

What am I talking about? See full post for explanation.


Via The Smallest Minority, I read "How I Cured MySelf of Leftism". You see, it's been bugging me for years why I enjoyed conservative political discourse more than liberal discourse. Personally, I'm more libertarian than anything but I'm not really hard-core about it either. Most of the politically-oriented weblogs I read are center to right. I've in the past tried to read both left & right blogs. But, the left ones always grated even when I would agree with their positions. But Dr. Bob Godwin explains it all:

At the same time, for the person who is not under the hypnotic psycho-spiritual spell of contemporary liberalism, it is strikingly devoid of actual religious wisdom or real ideas. As such, it is driven by vague, spiritually infused ideals and feelings, such as "sticking up for the little guy," or "war is not the answer." On the other hand, conservatism is not so much based on ideas, but on simply observing what works, and then generalizing from there. It is actually refreshingly free of dogma, and full of dynamic tension. For example, at the heart of conservatism is an ongoing, unresolvable dialectic between freedom and virtue.

Jackpot! This is what I had been trying (and failing) to say in my essay. And reading Godwin's words highlights the consistency (for me) between my politics and my work. As an engineer, what I'd like and what makes me look good has to be secondary (or further) to WHAT WORKS. Because if the seatbelt doesn't work, is it worth some stranger's life if I "feel good" about the design?

Which leads to another thing that always annoys me about modern liberalism. The "Clap If You Believe In The Cause! The Cause Will Die If You Don't BELIEVE" component. Bill Whittle called it Magic a while back. The belief that people and history can be fundamentally changed by edict. That once the right laws are in place and everybody can only think double-plus good thoughts, humanity will automatically mold itself into your image of what it should be. I always found the belief in such "magic" repellent. Because I believe humanity is and should be larger than any single idea or philosophy. Because when ever human societies try to get too "pure", it all goes horribly wrong.

Or to conclude with more wit than I alone possess:
"...the dwarfs found out how to turn lead into gold by doing it the hard way. The difference between that and the easy way is that the hard way works."

William: "I'm sure we can pull together, sir."
Vetinari: "Oh, I do hope not, I really do hope not. Pulling together is the aim of despotism and tyranny. Free men pull in all kinds of directions. It's the only way to make progress."

Both courtesy of Terry Pratchett via the Electric Escape.

Link to full post.

Krav Maga 4th & 5th Class

4th Class: I skipped the write-up last week. Last Saturday ended up being chocked-full of errands and by the time I got home, I forgot to post. We covered choking again, this time without a wall. Also, we had a different instructor. She was TINY but fast. They also did a little bit of a work-out including jumping rope. Unfortunately, they didn’t have a jump rope short enough for me. The only way I could use the rope I had was to hold onto the rope portion below the handles. But then I had trouble keeping up when we switched back and forth between jump ropes and push-ups.

5th Class: Just got back. Today was punching combinations. I'm really glad they make us wear gloves because I could feel the difference after the last class (previously my knuckles were sore ). The punches are pretty straightforward BUT when they start adding in the occasional elbow, I started to mess up. Also, holding the focus mitts is just as hard as punching when you have to move them around to be in the place for the attacker's punch. I am getting better though. Compared to the first class I took, it is getting easier for me to spot what I doing wrong OR when the instructor explains how to improve, I can correct quicker and remember better.

Also, I’m considering taking another course at this same fitness center after the class wraps up next week. They offer several strength-building and cardio classes that build on the self-defense they teach. My punches especially could use some OOMPH. I’m a bit torn between KM Cardio and Kettle Bell.

Link to full post.

Thursday, October 25, 2007

Fun At Work

At my lovely office, various co-workers rotate birthday cake baking duties. For instance, a couple months ago my friend baked checkerboard cake:

Occasionally, someone boring (like me) just requests “Funfetti” cake for their birthday. But every so often my co-workers are given free reign and they really think outside the cake-mix box. Today was one of those days. I present:
Kitty Litter Cake

It looks disgusting but was surprisingly good.

Also, the birthday boy’s nameplate had been changed as well.

Our office has a history of nameplate creativity. Once, we pulled a prank on my team leader when he had a “This Space For Rent” nameplate up. While he was out-of-town, we cleaned out his desk and put a “SOLD” sticker over the nameplate. I’ve also been “modified”. A couple of years ago, during the immigration protests I caught a terrible stomach virus. When I returned to work, my last name had been changed to its Hispanic version and someone had tucked a little Mexican flag behind the plate. These nameplate changes are common enough that before important visits, in addition to a request to tidy our work spaces, we are reminded that “name plates should reflect actual employee names instead of aliases”.

Cakes & Nameplate Fun: Just a couple reasons why my co-workers RULE.

Link to full post.

First Lady in UAE

This photo says just about everything I need to know about the place of women in Western versus Arabic societies. Via JammieWearingFool.

Link to full post.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Stargate: Atlantis Fifth Season?

Four episodes into season 4, the Sci-Fi channel has decided to renew Stargate: Atlantis for a fifth season! I would definitely agree...The four episodes aired have been among the strongest SGA ever.

Link to full post.

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Tuesday Randomness

This miscellaneous ended up quite photo-oriented. No idea how...

1) From the Planetary Society weblog, check out this photo:


That smudge that comes and goes is the Dawn Spacecraft!




2) Browsing the Ubuntu Help forums today, I came across Lightening. It’s a Calendar add-on for Thunderbird! I’ve already installed it and started tweaking. Evolution? What’s that?

3) Everyone on-line is making fun of the CIA's new counter-terrorism logo:











My opinion: MOCKING JUSTIFIED.
Terrorism isn't like smoking people. If ninja terrorists with AK-47s attack, do we just point at the logo? And the ninja terrorists will be all "Oh, this is a non-terrorism zone? Ooops, our bad." and leave?

4) From Germany, room-specific wallpaper.
While cool, I'm sure my eyes would start twitching in their sockets if I stare too long.










5) COME ON DEC 1st! Thanks to a ticket giveaway at work I get to see "The Ten Tenors" with a friend. Everyone in office was taking the "STOMP" tickets but I got curious and looked them up on Wikipedia. After work, I checked out some performances on YouTube. (2 videos below the cut)

Largo Al Factotum

AND Great Balls of Fire

Eclectic and fun. COME ON DEC 1st!

Link to full post.

Monday, October 22, 2007

Culinary Discovery, Korea

Several months ago, one of my co-workers tried an unusual appetizer while in Korea. He didn’t know what these things were, only that his Japanese guide in Korea wouldn’t eat them. He tried them and thought they were OK. He took a picture of the plate to show us:


So, this weekend, I’m browsing BoingBoing and they link an article on the most disgusting canned foods. Lo & behold, the mystery appetizer is on the list. It turns out he ate....(answer below cut)

Silkworm pupae!

Now, I’m a moderately adventurous eater. For example: I’ve eaten raw squid and bbq chicken’s feet. However, pupae of any kind is well outside my comfort zone (shudder).

Link to full post.

E-Mail Clients, Add-ons & Themes, Oh My!

This weekend I dedicated myself to resolving the one major bug remaining after my permanent install of Ubuntu: Evolution will receive mail but not send it.

Below the cut: My solution and discovering add-ons/themes from Mozilla.

After perusing the Ubuntu help forums, I find this is not a unique problem. Apparently, several major e-mail services recently switched authentication procedures for SMTP email servers. Unfortunately, most of them didn’t really give warning to their customers beforehand so a lot of people were left flat-footed.

Double unfortunately, that’s not the only problem with my Evolution install. I fixed the authentication error and got another error involving sending email. I couldn’t find any reference to this particular error in the Ubuntu forums. Frustrated, I decided to try Thunderbird instead. Several people had commented it was a good replacement for Evolution especially if they focus mainly on e-mail like me and not calendars, memos, etc.

Thunderbird had the exact same authentication problem but it was a LOT easier to fix thanks to this super-helpful thread in the Mozilla forums. My change consisted of expanding my email user-name to the full email address under the Edit-->Account Settings-->Outgoing Server (SMTP). That’s it. After some transferring of contacts & saving of e-mails, Thunderbird is now my e-mail client. I also installed a lovely To-Do List application. It’s simple and easy-to-use.

During this whole endeavor, I discovered Mozilla themes & add-ons for Thunderbird & Firefox. The add-ons I am a bit hesitant about. I only installed the Snap Shots and BlogRovr add-ons which I like so far.

You can also download themes to change the appearance of both Firefox and Thunderbird. And they have some good ones. I’ve got a purple-themed desktop now, so I’m now using Modern Modoki in Firefox and Outlook 2003 SilverTB in Thunderbird.
Check it out:

I installed several other themes but they don’t really go with my current desktop. I'll play around with them later.

Link to full post.

Thursday, October 18, 2007

Ok, Harry Potter Fans Are Cool Too.

So I go on-line to join in the YAY! from tonight's episode of Supernatural...In the process I come across...."The Potter Puppet Pals"



ROTFLMAO doesn't even cover it.

I know I'm always gushing about Stargate fandom, but it appears the Harry Potter fans are holding their own.

Link to full post.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Classmates.Com - Making Keeping In Touch Difficult and Costly

I attended my 10yr reunion this last summer. Classmates.com has been our contact place since we graduated and they organized the reunion (which was great). After the reunion, they sent out an e-mail list for everyone. Unfortunately, this list had many typos and mistakes rendering it pretty much useless. My e-mail was correct BUT several others I knew were not. Also, there were several people missing from the list that attended the reunion.

I've been getting e-mails that several people (more than usual) have visited my profile on Classmates recently. But Classmates doesn't tell you who's visiting unless you fork out the dough for "gold membership". So, I thought "Jessica, why don't you post your email address? That way if they want to contact you, they can."

IT'S NOT ALLOWED...Classmates.com has super-special error messages for just such an occasion. In fact, they referenced their "Terms of Service" which states explicitly that it is a violation of Member Conduct. The key sentence from the Member Conduct section:

"* Don't post telephone numbers, street addresses, last names*, URLs or email addresses in Content that is publicly accessible on the Website."

This doesn't distinguish between people posting others' info without consent and someone choosing to post their own information. Which is Stupid.

There's an easy way around this restriction (at least until they catch me) BUT isn't Classmates.com supposed to be helping us keep in contact? Wouldn't that be easier to achieve if say, people who wanted to share their contact info could do so? Why should people pay for what's freely and legally available elsewhere? My e-mail is posted on my weblog and last.Fm account. It is not secret information nor a violation of my privacy if I choose to share it.

In addition, there is no reason for them to be charging for e-mail addresses. Classmates.com is an ad-rich site with pop-ups, special deals, etc. They have other sources of revenue. Like Blogger, they could provide a simple option in the profile page "share e-mail? Y/N" and still charge for access to their dating service and other more complicated features.

I greatly enjoyed meeting with old friends at the reunion and a number of us had planned to correspond on various topics. Because of Classmates poor execution of the mailing list and their ass-backwards e-mail policy, this won't happen. In a day-and-age of Social networks galore, this is ridiculous.

*Classmates.com slogan from the site is "real people. real names."

Link to full post.

Sunday, October 14, 2007

Ubuntu Permanent Install - Finally!

I have finally (after several study sessions, stops & starts) completed the Ubuntu permanent install to make my switchover complete. For the most part, the process was painless. However, I did have two or three minor glitches.

Discussion of previous steps in my "Convert to Ubuntu" process can be found at these locations:
Linux Switch - Sources & Info
My Wubi Install Issues
Installing More RAM
Wubi Installed!
Ubuntu First Impressions
Playing Music Files in Ubuntu
Other Ubuntu Applications
Using GParted on External HD

Below the cut defragmentation/backing up windows, partitioning with Partition Manager and using LVPM.


I. Defragmenting & Backing Up Windows

This was my main hold-up in completely the install. Here’s the list of problems/applications:
1) Windows Default Fragmenter: Doesn’t allow me to exclude the Wubi (Ubuntu temp install) folders. So, not useful at all.

2) JkDefrag: Recommended by the Ubuntu forums, this sucker about gave me a heart attack the first time I tried it. The file linked in the forums is the graphical interface ONLY. I had to download a separate file which is the actual program. Unfortunately, JkDeFrag is automatic. When I opened the program to install the Graphical interface, it started to defragment without letting me exclude the “Wubi” folders. I got out quick and restarted to verify my Ubuntu install wasn’t messed up. So, never mind on that one. However, when all other attempts had failed, I found the linked page through wikipedia and downloaded a zip file which installed everything you need with the GUI right off. It allowed me to exclude the Wubi folders and defragmented no problem. The only downside to the program after I go it to work is there is a poor visualization of your hard drive (color-coded graphic showing you files). I went back to the Windows standard defragmenter & analyzed the disk just get clear feedback. It does allow you to save log-files of your defrag but the files didn't explicitly state which files had been defragmentated.

3) UltraDefrag: Through Wikipedia’s page on defragmentation, I found this program. However, while it works no problem, it has an automatic exclusion of System Volume files. These files happen to be my worst fragmented files. There’s supposedly an option to defrag system files during reboot but it doesn’t work for me. You get the program flag, an explanation that it’s defragging and a “Press Any Key To Exit” warning. After about ten seconds, it automatically exits and none of the files have been defragged. I am still glad I installed this: it helped during the partitioning phase (see Section II).

So, defragmenting was a bit more complicated than I expected. This is the one step in the process I had actually done before. But somehow, it was the most frustrating & time consuming out of all the steps. Honestly, would it have killed Microsoft to give you the option to exclude folders?!

Backing up my files involved opening the Maxtor software that came with my external hard drive and clicking "Back Up Now". It took 30 minutes (to copy everything). Very straightforward and no problems.


II. Partitioning with PartitionMagic


In the case of your internal drive, you cannot partition the hard drive using GParted. The drive has to be mounted in order to run the operating system. It has to be unmounted to allow partitioning. However, the guys who made Wubi provided a link to a really awesome tool called Partition Manager.

This application lets you access partitioning during boot-up and it basically runs a stripped down Ubuntu desktop. Included are GParted, screenshots, various system utilities and a file manager. It also lets you save you log-files from partitioning. This way even if there's a problem, you can save the files and post them to the help forums. I was really impressed with this tool.

My sole problem involved re-sizing the Windows partition. For some reason, it would only accept re-sizing down to a certain point and if I went beyond that, the operation failed. I even tried re-sizing in two steps (8-9 gigs the first time, another 5-6 the second). The first was OK, the second got the same error as before. I have no idea what's caused this. But, I made sure to make my ext3 partition next to my ntfs partition so that later I can re-size them easily.

Also, something else happened I don't understand completely. When I first re-booted after partitioning, I attempted to go into the Ubuntu install. That did not work. I began to panic. Next re-boot, I tried the Windows install. And the UltraDefrag program earned its keep. While I couldn't figure out how to defrag during boot, it told me my "volume was dirty" and ran some kind of "Check Disk" program. It ran a sequence verifying files, indexes and security descriptors. Next time I tried to boot into Ubuntu it worked fine.

All in all, partitioning was more straightforward than I expected. And the Partition Manager tool is fantastic. I highly recommend it. And UltraDefrag while oddly not useful to me for defragmenting, did clean things up after partitioning so I'm glad I had installed that.

III. Using LVPM

Loop-mounted Virtual Partition Manager was incredibly easy. Probably the easiest major step in my Ubuntu transition process. The whole process from download to re-boot took me less than two hours. The program followed the screenshots and process outlined in the instructions with no deviations or problems what so ever. Honestly, this was the best part about the whole process.

IV. Conclusion

I'm so glad to get this finished. As I've used Ubuntu the last couple of months, I've developed a list of "Things I'll Try After I Finish The Install". Now I can jump into that.

All in all, I'm really very satisfied with the transfer process to Ubuntu using Wubi/LVPM. It did have its problems but they were all understandable and surmountable with a Ubuntu book and study of the help forums. This process has been a real education for me. I've been hyping Ubuntu to all my friends and I intend to continue doing so.

Link to full post.

Saturday, October 13, 2007

Krav Maga, 2nd/3rd Classes

2nd Class - Missed (overslept....for an 11AM class) *is embarrassed*

3rd Class - Just got back. Thankfully, I wasn't too far behind. Each session is kind of independent. The instructor mixed it up a bit by holding the class in the parking garage below the fitness center. He had a good reason. Parking garages are common settings for attacks so he thought we should get used to the setting. At first, everybody was a bit uncertain about it.

I have a real problem with over-thinking my moves; I kept stopping whenever I messed up (which would be disastrous in a real attack). AND apologizing when I accidentally hit my "attacker". By the end of the class, I quit doing it. But it does say something doesn't it? You get so used to not using violence that even when it's OK, you are still reacting like you are in a normal non-violent situation. In a real life attack, I won't have thirty minutes to paradigm shift.

Link to full post.

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Atlas Shrugged: 50 Years In Print

Fifty years ago today, Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged" hit the bookshelves for the first time. I cannot express fully how much reading Rand and "Atlas Shrugged" in particular changed my life.

While I had read and enjoyed her other well-known works ("Anthem" & "The Fountainhead"), it was "Atlas" with it's female protagonist, excellent mystery and absolutely frustrating description of Objectivism that entralled me. I never claimed to be an "Objectivist" per se (indeed I found their occasional dogmatism quite ironic). And a great bit of my intellectual enjoyment of the book derived from the fact I completely disagreed with what she was saying. The Gold Standard? Seriously? That #^@$*%* Radio Speech? Hell, the entire John Galt character?

Agree or disagree, the book engaged me on all mental levels simultaneously. I was emotionally invested in the characters. I still tear up thinking about what happened to Eddie Willers. I was intellectually engaged in the ideas presented, forcing myself to think about WHY I thought the things I did, what was my basis for my opinions about the world, freedom and capitalism. And I felt connected to this author, through the character of Dagny and through Ayn Rand's distinct if sometimes biting voice. As a teenager, I couldn't get over the fact that someone that rational had even been alive in 1957, much less thinking along the same lines as me.

So much of who I am, I first confronted while reading "Atlas Shrugged": The beauty of invention, love of creating something, solving a puzzle. These were implicit, unnamed things always present in me. But reading this book gave me the courage to name, treasure and acknowledge them. I clearly remember the first running of the John Galt Line and the invention of Rearden Metal as moments that made me feel so much, I had to pause. Even now, I still am in little bit in love with the act of invention, the (long-drawn out) process by which you make something. As an engineer I consider myself quite fortunate to have some insight into the mental gymnastics required to produce something and send it out into the world. And the first time I remember loving that process AND knowing that admiration for what it was, came from reading "Atlas Shrugged".

It's a very schizophrenic read for me, more so today than originally. I literally go from one sentence to the next: "That is the most profound & beautiful defense of individualism ever." (reads next line) "What a horrible idea! Wait until I get my hands on this Ayn chick." Also, everyone talks about Francisco D'Anconia's money speech but I greatly prefer his speech on sex. Then & now, I find it quite erotic. It also cemented my life-long crush on the dear wayward copper baron.

Whether it's providing intellectual development, making a teenager feel a bit less alone or infuriating someone enough to go out & prove her wrong, I do love Ayn Rand's masterpiece.

Thank you Ayn Rand for a life-changing, mind-bending and opinion-testing work of literature.

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Monday, October 8, 2007

AWESOME!



Which Female Action Hero Are You?

You are The Bride. When you get an idea in your head, you simply won't let it go! You constantly search for normalcy, love, and sometimes revenge--and your vicious stubbornness inspires you to fight to the death to get what you want.
Find Your Character @ BrainFall.com


Does it say something about me that this test result both makes complete sense and makes me insanely happy?

Link to full post.

Monday Links-Of-Wonder!

Disclaimer: This post was generated while listening to The Cult's “High Octane Cult”. I have no idea what it's done to me.

1) Lost Archimedes Works Found In Re-Used Pages of Medieval Prayer Book. AND these recovered works hint that Archimedes was laying the early groundwork for calculus. And by early, I mean, 2000 years early! There's a book out Nov 1st called “The Archimedes Codex” which describes both the effort to recover the texts and the mathematical importance of what was found. I'm definitely adding it to my “To-Read” list. Fascinating.

2) Using LOL Cat Posters to reveal Deep Secrets. I don't know what to think of this. The Internet does some strange things to social interaction doesn't it? Few of these are funny. Most are quite sad. I guess it's good these people have some way to vent.

3) Underwater Robots “Buzzed” By Sperm Whales. Part One. Part Two. Apparently Sperm whales have been getting a bit curious about all these mechanical interlopers.

4) The 9 Manliest Names in the World. What makes it comedy gold is that they placed a founder of Quantum Physics and a NASA scientist on a list that includes Magnus ver Magnusson. Also, there's someone in the US Navy named COMMANDER FLEX PLEXICO! I love my country.

Link to full post.

Recent Reading

On last week’s trip to Mexico, instead of reading the ginormous history book I brought, I read several sci-fi books. Bracing for all-day meetings, I felt like lighter fare.

“The Engines of God” by Jack McDevitt. Excellent. Even better than “Chindi”. It’s sort of an interplanetary mystery weaving in xenoarcheology, Earth religious history, terraforming debates and technical wizardry. I meant to just start this one evening in Monterrey but I could not put it down. I ended up staying up much too late to finish it. I highly recommend this one.

“Eternity Road” also by Jack McDevitt. Totally different story by the same author. Still excellent though. It’s set in a version of Earth devastated by a plague some 800 years ago. The remnants of our civilization litter the landscape, providing fodder for speculation by those that remain. While populated with great characters and excellent world-building, I found it a bit disturbing. The idea that so much of who we are could be lost irrevocably. Even with the ending, there’s so much lost that none of the characters think to miss. It made for a mildly heartbreaking read.

“The Magician’s Guild” by Trudi Caravan. Very good fantasy story. This is part one of a trilogy and a solid opener. It has good characters, detailed but coherent world-building and a rip-roaring plot. I really like the complexity shown in the different types of characters. There’s Thieves of various levels of trustworthiness, Magicians good and bad, slum toughs, upper echelon nobility and everything in between. Part suspense (will they track her down?), part coming of age story (what path will Sonea choose?), all-round good read. I’ll be picking up the other two books in the series next time I’m at the bookstore.

Link to full post.

San Antonio Eating: Thai Corner

Inspired by the awesome food-blogging of “Stargate: Atlantis” producer Joseph Mallozzi, I’m going to talk about one of my favorite local restaurants: Thai Corner.

Pictured below (Top to Bottom): Potstickers, Black Noodle, Crystal Noodle, Indian Noodle and Seasame Chicken






My co-workers and I have been steadily going through everything on their lunch menu; we haven’t found a dud yet. In addition to the expected lunch-plate appetizers of eggrolls and crab rangoon, they offer the option of potstickers (pictured) or a small cucumber salad. Both are excellent.

Besides the entrees pictured above, I can vouch for the “Green Curry”, “Pad Thai” and “Garlic Chicken”. My favorite is the “Crystal Noodle”. Their “Pad Thai” is also excellent (and a step above nearby Pei-Wei). My most recent discovery is “Indian Noodle”. I gave it a shot today at lunch. It sent me back to college when my two Indian roommates would cook these amazing curries. It’s not on the lunch menu but it’s definitely worth a try.

If you’re in the area and feeling up for a change, this is definitely the place for you.

How to get there:
Located at Loop 1604 and Bandera Rd
From 1604 exit “Bandera/Helotes/State Highway 16” (the signs usually say one of the three)
Go towards the corner with the “Silverado 16” movie theater (outside 1604 on the south side of Bandera)
It’s in the shopping center next to the theater, on the end closest to the theater.

How to get more info: Thai Corner On-Line (includes full menus and more pictures)

Link to full post.

Friday, October 5, 2007

Stargate Fans Rock (or Rap as the case may be)

While checking out LiveJournal for reaction to tonight's episode (Where Dr. Weir was totally badass), I came across several links to "unofficial" promos for "Stargate: Atlantis".

Here they are:
Super-Fan Joe
Super-Fan Jason
Super-Fan David

Also, I found David Hewlett (Dr. McKay) reply-rapping to this absolutely awesome Stargate rap made by a fan of the show who also happens to be a musician.

Stargate fandom always gives me a "WHOOSH" of geeky joy.

Link to full post.

Overheard at Work, pt 6

“Your moving hand brings songs to life!” – Label from “Soundable Hand Puppet” packaging

Link to full post.

On the Road Again: Monterrey, Mexico

Since I had to spend the week on the road and in meetings, I decided to take full advantage. This post is the result: My 1st picspam!

Teaser:
More below the cut.

The trip down was relatively uneventful.
Except for that.


Lunch in Del Rio resulted in this discovery:
If you eyes are sensitive, please avoid the Denny's in Laredo.


The Rio Grande:
Note: According to the plaque on the right, our trunk was still in the US when this picture was taken.


We had to stop at the border to get our business visas (or we wouldn’t pass the checkpoint on the otherside of Nuevo Laredo).
I was trying to get a picture of the white rock (top) because it had this really cool cracked pattern. I missed.


Nuevo Laredo has several nice plazas with life-size statues, gazebos and trees.
Of course, not everyone warrents the star treatment.


The border is an interesting place. There’s Spanish signs on the US side and English signs on the Mexico side. But sometimes, there’s Spanglish:
Origins: English “Junk” --> Spanish approximation “Yon-kay”.


With the Forum in town, our usually strictly business travellers hotel was packed with this huge gaggle of pink-clad women. I have no idea who they were but they took up most of the parking lot with their three tour buses. Anyway, I got a room at the very end of the hotel. But I had a nice view:


As I sat down for my breakfast in the hotel lobby, I happened to look down:
How had I missed that before?


Since Monterrey is part-desert, they make water conservation a priority. The result are these:
When you push on the lever, the water flows. But if you release the lever, the water stops. I greatly prefer the above design to the motion sensors on sinks at our US office. Those are buggy and prone to malfunction.


For lunch, the “El Buey” taco stand.
These are the nice ladies who made our tacos.


After a long day of meetings, we had a lovely dinner of Mexican-style sushi...
Among other things.

On local TV, they were showing some exhibition shows from the Forum. Wednesday was apparently China’s night to shine. I was not initially impressed. The first act I caught was a Chinese River-Dancing Juggler.
Thigh high faux leather boots are exceedingly unmasculine.

But they got better.

The hands-down, best of the night were these guys:
Imagine an even more-brightly attired Chinese version of the Barn-Dancing scene from “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” with no fight at the end.


Thursday I get up early, and notice these around my hotel room.

They aren’t crazy but I find them interesting anyway.


Instead of the free hotel breakfast, we decided to check out a taco place on the way to the plant.
New for me: “Asado de puerco” tacos. Yummy.


After 1.65 days of meetings (and some progress), we left Monterrey.
Magno says “Moo!” [trans. - "Adios!"]


Northern Nuevo Leon:



Six Hours In Car = Help Me.

Getting Car-Searched by Mexican Federales = Not The Most Relaxing Way to Keep Up Your Spanish

Getting Home to Find Tivo Recorded the Supernatural Season Premiere = AWESOME.

Link to full post.

Monday, October 1, 2007

My Last.Fm Best Finds

This is a test of the Last.FM playlist widget. Hopefully, this will work. Below is the player widget which should play several songs I’ve found thru Last.fm. These are the ones that made me stop what I was doing and really listen.

Updated: I wanted to add more songs to my playlist but still preserve these "finds" so instead of the playlist widget, here's links to 30-second clips of the songs on Last.Fm.

The Safaris - Mystic Island Drums
Jools Holland & Joe Strummer - The Return of the Blues Cowboy
Buena Vista Social Club - Chicharronero
Cream - Wrapping Paper
Katie Melua - Halfway Up the Hindu Kush
Gotan Project - Paris, Texas
The Pogues - Turkish Songs of the Damned
Radiohead - Like Spinning Plates
Eric Clapton - San Francisco Bay Blues
The Cult - Fire Woman
Interpol - C'mere
Gene Autry - Don't Fence Me In
Christina Aguilera - Slow Down Baby
The Byrds - The World Turns All Around Her
The Detroit Cobras - I Wanna Holler
The Dave Brubeck Quartet - Take Five
The Clash - Clash City Rockers

Link to full post.

Monday Hit List

I haven’t done a hit list in a while. Blogging may be minimal for rest of the week due to travel.

1) 10 Ways the World Could End (and what we can actually do about it). Yet another awesome talk from TED. This lecture while scary, does point out that for the first time in human history we have the ability to really do something about these potential catastrophes.

2) Radiohead Distributing Music Without Record Label. They are distributing directly through their website on a “pay-what-you-think-its-worth” basis. Very cool idea. I feel the sudden urge to buy an album.

3) Excerpts from a 1943 Guide to Handling Female Employees. Back then = 100% serious. Now = 100% funny. My favorite:

3. General experience indicates that "husky" girls - those who are just a little on the heavy side - are more even-tempered and efficient than their underweight sisters.

4) How To Install MoBlock. It’s a program that prevents someone else from tracking your online activities. Very cool and handy considering the “information-gathering” tactics used by the RIAA and MPAA nowadays.

5) Six Dead From Brain Eating Amoeba. I do not remember who said it but “Never underestimate the ability of reality to outweird fiction.” I’m suddenly really glad I didn’t go tubing on any Texas rivers this summer.

6) Texas Lawmakers Violating The Law! THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE. One of the offenders is a woman pushing for a law requiring photo IDs to vote. Talk about not practicing what she preaches! I intend to write my State Legislator a very stern letter. For Texans, here’s a list of state legislators in case you don’t know who yours is.

Link to full post.

Animal Weirdness

Two Items of interest.

1) The Micropolitan Museum. A collection of photographs of microscopic creatures. They are gorgueus! My favorites are the water fleas.

2) Two-Headed Turtle. It's been a while since I linked any weird animals. I kinda missed it.

Link to full post.

Recent Reading

Between work, DVD watching and travelling, I haven’t had as much time as I’d like to read lately. But I did manage to knock some smaller books off my “To-Read” list:

“The Oregon Trail” by Francis Parkman. This is an excellent travelogue of the the Old West. The author has some very clear prejudices but he writes concisely and without the wordy style so many 19th century authors were prone to. The work describes inter-tribal Indian wars, shortages of food, disease and personality conflicts among the travellers. The buffalo hunting chapters (toward the end) are especially weird reading for me. One instance in particular comes to mind where they had hundreds of pounds of meat but still kept chasing after and shooting every buffalo they came across. I’m not the most eco-oriented person on the planet, but it struck me hugely wasteful.

“Chindi” by Jack McDevitt. I picked this up at “Half-Price Books” a week ago. It’s a nice science fiction story with an interesting premise, good characters and a thrilling conclusion. McDevitt did an excellent job with the cast of characters, creating believable people from their time and place that act and react like real people in extraordinary circumstances. I’m always on the lookout for a writer with multiple works and this is in the middle of a sorta series of books loosely connected but set in the same future universe. Definitely a good way to spend 2-3 hours.

“The Buried Book” by David Damrosch. This tells the story of how the long-lost “Epic of Giglamesh” was recovered through 19th century archeology and translation. It covers some biography of the characters involved (the esteemed Mr. Budge ends up looking like a true a**hole). Also, there’s some great discussion of what Assyrian court life was like and what factors led to the story being recorded millennia ago. All in all, it was an excellent work of literary history. The only odd thing is at the end when the author tries to connect the universal appeal of the Giglamesh story to the current War on Terror in order to discount the idea of a “clash of civilizations”. It doesn’t really fit with the rest of the book in terms of tone or structure. It’s like the author switched from literary history to op-ed for the last chapter. Still a recommended read though.

There’s more traveling next week for work. Hopefully, I can get a couple more books read then as well.

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