Category: Life. Don’t talk to me about life.

OLPC G1G1 Program netting $2m a day

As reported on Engadget :

Negroptone’s OLPC Buy One, Give One program has been extended to 31 December, 2007 — well beyond the initial two-weeks originally announced. The deal buys both yourself (or rather, your kid supposedly) and a tot from a developing nation new XOs for just $399. Already, the non-profit claims to be pulling in about $2 Million worth of “donations” each day. They’ve also opened up bulk buying to schools in quantities of 100-999 ($299 each), 1000-9999 ($249 each), or 10,000 and more ($199). Oh, and the program is now officially renamed “Give One, Get One” (GoGo) — we presume BoGo’ing the kids just sounded a tad too dirty.

We ordered one for Zach already, and I’d been curious about how the sales were going. Folks on the #olpc Freenode channel were saying that the manufacturer would build based on orders, and if orders were slow, they wouldn’t ramp up the daily production. But it looks like things are moving briskly.
Yay!

Dear eBay. Fix your HTML. Again.

I know you’re the largest online auction house on the planet. I realize that despite the bazillions of dollars you rake in on a yearly basis, you still haven’t been able to hire a single competent site designer, and after 10-ish years of operation, your site still looks like it was hacked together by a business major playing around with Microsoft FrontPage.
Requiring ActiveX when selecting images to upload is patently ridiculous, particularly when my browser signature specifically says I’m coming from a Linux box.

c.activeXVersion = ‘1,0,3,48’;

You’ll be receiving a bill shortly for the 20 minutes I spent booting my Windows machine, moving images over to it, and recreating my auction from scratch.
Luv, me.

Life snapshot…

“Dad?”
“Yeah zach, what’s up?”
“I’m posting something in a forum, how do you make a link?”
(Dad pauses here, thinking scary thoughts about open forums, but willing to check it out…)
“What forum?”
“OneMoreLevel”
(Another pause to check it out – chats about online games. Okay, this seems innocuous enough…)
(details about how to make a PHPBB link in a forum post)
“Oh, that’s easy, thanks!”
“Enjoy!”
sakkura. My son. Am I ready for this? I mean, he’s already talking smack to other players 🙂 🙂 🙂 . Not sure if this should make me squee with glee or totally give me the heebee jeebees.

It’s 8AM, and you are…listening…

… to rain.
This week has me down in New Jersey visiting my client. These visits are invariably very productive, very tiring, and very important in maintaining an even keel and a steady course on the work that’s being done. (I blame the rain for all the nautical references. Hopefully it doesn’t carry over into my drive to the office). The visit is pretty much a repeat of the other times I’ve been here. The seasons just keep changing, so sometimes it’s hot, sometimes it’s snowing, today, it’s rain.
One thing that has struck me is that I’m actually commuting to work. Up in the morning, do my morning stuff, pack up, drive to the office, do that stuff, then drive back to the hotel. It’s a short commute, only about 9 miles (I keep saying I’ll bike to the office some day, but haven’t yet), but it’s far more of a commute than I have when I’m at home. I’m still not sure about which one is better for me in the long run, but the variation lets me have perspective on it.
In a year, there’ll be a whole new living situation, so it’s not like we’re in a long term situation with the commute. There’s change-a-comin.

Oops :(

IMG_1468.JPGI have a lot of laserdiscs. Last count had it around 210. Since we moved almost 2 years ago, about half of these were stored in the basement in what I thought was a stable box.
Well, it wasn’t.
Apparently the box had shifted and moved around a lot, and ended up with the discs leaning over on one side, where they stayed for a year. The end result is I now have a dozen or so burrito shaped laserdiscs.
I’ve reconfigured the stack, and owing to the fact that laserdiscs weigh a helluva lot, I’ve placed the ‘bent’ discs interleaved at the bottom, and placed the rest on top of them. Hopefully this will restore some sort of flatness.
If I have to write off the bad discs, it won’t be the end of the world. Most are available now on DVD (and have the benefits thereof, like better resolution and added features and stuff), but I don’t like having to replace movies I already own.

Deep Breath.

Aaaaand, we’re back.
What an insane couple of days. There’s a whole series of posts brewing in my head right now, but I’ll just touch on probably the one that’s most on my mind.
Last week, I was in mid-preparation for Ubercon, an awesome gaming convention I regularly work down in NJ. CONGO has been pretty idle for the last few months as the summer is not a big time for conventions. With a week to go until Ubercon started, it was time to pull out all the hardware and make sure everything was working.
Well, unsurprisingly, it wasn’t.
The first major issue was coming to the conclusion that endor, the venerable server of dozens of conventions, really wasn’t going to handle Yet Another Apt Upgrade. It was still running on a baseline Debian Sarge install that had been upgraded a dozen times over the years, and finally, after enough apt tweaking had gone on, a dependency just wouldn’t resolve, and the machine would not take new upgrades. It was time to nuke from orbit and reinstall the OS from an Ubuntu baseline.
No problem, sez I. I whip out my Gutsy Gibbon Ubuntu CD, do a quick database dump and backup, install Ubuntu, and restore my home directory and databases. Reinstalled CONGO, loaded the working databases and…
stopped.
See, CONGO was my first big Java application. And as such, it has some… intriguing ways of doing database work. And by ‘intriguing’ I mean butt-ass stupid. In particular, not using PreparedStatements for SQL commands, not checking for failed transactions, etc etc. While this was okay for a fairly static application, once you replace the entire OS underneath it, things start to get a little squirrely. And, well, we had squirrels aplenty.
So over the space of 3 days I basically had to rewrite every SQL interraction in CONGO, resulting in some fairly major code changes, and all of this 3 days before a con.
Add on top of this the fact that I’m also using a brand new printer from Evolis for the first time under Linux. There’s a whole nother post about this experience, but it did bring yet another variable into play. Oh, and did I mention that I rewrote the print routine in CONGO to generate PDFs on the fly and use them for badge rendering? Yep, also new.
Needless to say, things were a little panicy leading up to the event. Fortunately, by Wednesday afternoon, I had things fairly well stabilized, the code worked, endor was stable and functioning properly, and I could start packing for the event with a clear conscience.

The end result? It all worked. The convention went fine, the printer behaved wonderfully, running badges twice as fast as my old Fargo printers, and we had only minor glitches through the weekend. There’s still some work to do to get endor ready for larger events, but for a week that started out with totally broken software, an unuseable server, and an untested printing system, things went mighty well.
Onwards.

Mame Cabinet, continued.




IMG_1239.JPG

Originally uploaded by eidolon

Well last night I put in some time to assemble the frame for the pedestal. This is the bottom third of the cabinet, and will contain the PC and other hardware necessary.

It’s pretty solid (and heavy) at the moment. Once I fabricate the front and rear panels, it’ll be ready for hardware to be installed. I hope to do one of the panels tomorrow before I leave for Ubercon, so it’ll hold up for the event.

This whole project has been quite therapeutic for me. It’s getting me to get up from behind my desk and go down and work in the shop. My shop is cleaner and more organized than it’s ever been, and I feel like I’m accomplishing something. On the one hand I’m looking forward to showing off the end product, but on the other hand, the travelling the road has been rewarding in it’s own right.

At the whim of a thing greater than I…

Tonights plan had been fairly straightforward. Go out to Pittsburgh via 2 USAir flights. One to Philadelphia, then on to Pittsburgh.
Flight the first, no problem. Checked in, no lines, through security like champ, some idling before getting on the plane, and off we went. I was a little concerned about our delayed departure, because the overlap in Philadelphia wasn’t that much, only about 40 minutes. We landed about 20 minutes late, but I knew the departing gate was only about 100 yards from our arrival gate. No problem.
Well, slight problem.
My departing flight has been delayed 3 times now. The airport monitors stubbornly still say “Departure at 10:45 ON TIME”, despite the fact that it is now 11:30, and the gate display says “Departing: 2:13am”
It’s quite a full flight, and the gate folks are doing their best, but there’s just no plane to put us on, and the plane we want is on it’s way from Chicago to Pittsburgh, where it will land, refuel, and fly to Philadelphia to get us. At the moment it’s flying between Chicago and Pittsburgh.
I’m taking it in stride. Much as I’d like to be in Pittsburgh and enjoying the company that awaits me there, I have my laptop, wireless, reasonable food via the ABP on the concourse, and a convenient power outlet. I’m considering a long bout of Eve.
Perhaps there’ll be more updates as this adventure (?) continues. For now, I’d just like send out a huge thank you to the United States aviation infrastructure. You’ve taken what should be a wonderous and exciting adventure and turned it into a waiting room.
Update, next day – In the end, the plane left Philadelphia at 2:03am, and arrived in Pittsburgh at 2:55. Total time lounging in Philadelphia: 3 hours, 45 minutes.

Radio Silence

And now a word from our intrepid explorer…
I’ve been quiet the last couple of days due to some health issues involving an abcessed tooth, hence the reason there’s been a shortage of geeky blatherings of late. Through the magic of Amoxicilin and liberal use of Tylenol, I’m back to almost human again, though there’s a long road of further dental work ahead.
I’d like to take a moment to talk about pain though.
I’ve never had direct experience with chronic pain. The sort of pain that is omnipresent, and can never really be ignored. The last 3 days though have given me a glimpse of what it’s like. Even with vast doses of Tylenol, the ache is always there, and I can tell within minutes when it’s time to re-dose.
On the one hand, I can generally deal with pain on a point by point basis. “This is going to hurt” “Okay.” What I can’t deal with is the constant, wavering hurt that never goes away. The worst part of it is it completely destroyed any attempts at concentration. I couldn’t latch onto a concept for more than a few minutes before being distracted or whiny. For someone like me who is VERY active mentally, this was horrifying. My pain level was waffling between “Ow” and “I want to curl up in a ball and whimper”. I hated every minute of it.
Now I’m back on something approaching functionality, and there is a sigh of relief heard in the land. Not only from me but from other important folks in my life, who have had to deal with me being far wiftier than I am even on my worst days.
Thanks for everyone for their patience. We now return you to your previously scheduled life, already in progress.

Closeup day, tools, and workspaces.

The geekitude quotient is low this weekend, at least in the realm of oo-shiny bits that blinken and wiggle. It’s fall closeup time for our house in Maine, and my brother in law and I drove the just-over-two hours up to the house yesterday and did all the little things necessary to idle a house for 8 months through a Maine winter. Primarily this had to do with draining and prepping the plumbing so the pipes wouldn’t freeze and splode. Fortunately, the weather was magnificent, with the leaves just changing colors and a crisp high-50’s temperature and clear blue skies.
“But where’s the geekery? There’s supposed to be a an earth shattering whee!”
Okay, there’s a little bit.
I’m getting myself organized with my tools and workspaces. There’s a bunch of Chez Geek projects in the pipeline that really do require a well assembled toolbox, plus enough power tools so that I’m not doing things like trying to bore a 1 7/8″ wide hole with a 3/4″ masonry bit. This process has been ongoing for some time (I mentioned my Ryobi 18v rechargeable tools when hottubs were flying), and things have steadily been ‘filling out’ since then.
The problem I was starting to hit is where to put all the stuff. My workbench is wonderful (a tech adjustable height bench with drawers, power outlets, and overhead lighting), but there was really no place for ‘tools’ other than some shelving and my toolbox.
Solved! On the way back from Maine, my BIL and I stopped by his mothers place, and we removed a 5 drawer rolling Craftsman toolbox that was my FIL’s (now unused). It still had a handful of tools in it (some new sockets which I desperately needed, as well as a very good craftsman screwdriver set). That toolbox is now happily ensconced next to my workbench, and I’ll be migrating all my smaller tools into it in the next week. Finally, I have a place to store all my drill and power bits!
Tools are fun.

The XO Laptop – OLPC comes true.

I rarely get involved in rallying folks to humanitarian causes or try to entice people to donate time any money to charities. When I do, it’s generally about something I feel quite strongly about.
About 2 years ago the faculty members at the MIT Media lab launched a project called One Laptop Per Child, the idea being that if a laptop could be built for $100, millions could be produced and distributed all through the developing nations through donations, government support, and other forms of philanthropy. The driving force is to try and make a direct impact on the socio-technological gap that is so apparent across the worlds population.
The result of this project is the XO Laptop, a machine designed by the OLPC team to address the specific challenges that will be encountered by children using the machine where there are no power outlets, or no internet, and where conditions may not be as squeaky clean as they are in your typical home office. The laptop itself, by modern standards, is underpowered, but the design is so open, so green, and so sturdy, you can’t help but be impressed.
This is a laptop designed for children to carry around with them, anywhere, anytime. It is waterproof, dirt proof, the battery lasts many many hours, it can network itself to other laptops arond it (a ‘mesh’), and it can run off a $10 solar panel (and recharge from it too).
There is an excellent video review of the XO by David Pogue on the NY Times website. Even if you aren’t interested in the machine directly, watch the video for an idea of what it’s all about.
Now, the XO laptop didn’t come in at $100. It actually came in at $183. As things ramp up, they hope to get the price down, but it’s still a little more than they anticipated.
So as part of their launch, the OLPC project has a special offer.
On November 12th, you can go to XOgiving.org and enroll in the “Give one, get one” program. You pay $400, and get an XO laptop of your very own. “Wait, $400? That’s twice what you said!” – Yes, it is. Because if you purchase an XO laptop for $400, a second laptop will be sent to a child in a developing nation.
My wife and I are seriously considering one of these laptops for our 8 year old son, and the added benefit of benefiting a child elsewhere is just icing on the cake.
If nothing else, watch the David Pogue video for all the details on the machine. It’s a remarkably green, well designed, and rugged little machine.

Sick Day

Today I am, alas, home sick. Something horrible has taken up residence in my sinuses and is producing an amazing amount of… well, you get the picture.
Colds like this turn my brain to tapioca. I can’t focus, I can’t get into the groove I need to get things done. So I’m taking this opportunity to catch up on some movie watching that I’ve been putting off because of lack of time.
Today’s entertainment has been re-watching Lord of the Rings with the directors commentary turned on. I picked up one of the various ‘directors cuts’ at some point, and unlike many people, I’ve only watched the entire 3-movie series through once. (Okay, once in the theaters, once at home), so I am a long way from losing my sense of wonder about the whole thing.
I just finished up Fellowship, with the commentary track on, and, as I have every time I’ve seen this sequence, or read it, or even talked about it, I am completely gobsmacked by the final scene in Moria between Gandalf and the Balrog. It brings tears to my eyes, I start hyperventilating, I am simply floored by the intensity, emotion, and wonder of the story…

You cannot pass!
I am a servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor. You cannot pass!
The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udûn. Go back to the Shadow! You cannot pass!

When the balrog brings the sword down on Gandalf, and he deflects it with a shining globe of pure white power. Ahhh…
And then, the final words…

Fly, you fools!

Sometime soon I’ll sit down with Zach and we’ll watch the movies together (he hasn’t seen them). I’ve watched out of the corner of my eye when we’ve shown him other movies, watching to see if he ‘gets it’ – if he feels the same sense of wonderment I have, and he does. They are magical moments for me (when the Death Star (mark 1) is destroyed… the other one is in Titan AE when the Titan first ‘powers up’…)
The directors commentary while watching Fellowship added a lot to it for me, because Peter Jackson et al were so passionate about the story, and the characters, and Tolkien’s vision for Middle Earth, it really came through in the decisions they made.
I probably won’t make it through the other movies today, but this brief interlude has been…. precious.