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The Magpie Developer
Jeff Atwood is one of the best programmer/writers around. I love reading his stuff, some I agree wholeheartedly with, other stuff we disagree, but this post is about a dead-on as they come. This idea has been floating in my head for a long time, but it is hard for me to conceptualize it in words, Atwood does a brilliant job at it. Must read for any developer. |
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Andy Olmsted's Last Blog Entry.
(Warning: Pretty rough) No matter how you feel politically about the war, this reminds you that each number people throw around as statistics is a human life. This is extremely well written, and pretty rough on your soul towards the end, but something everyone should read. Its a shitty situation all around, but there is always a human face behind the statistics and I want to make sure I never forget that. |
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Drinking stories that put yours to shame
Via Keith
To preserve his body during the voyage home, the second-in-command stored Nelson's body in the ship's vat of rum and halted all liquor rations to the crew. Not a bad idea, but when the ship reached port, officials went to retrieve Nelson's body and found the vat dry.
Disregarding good taste (in every sense), the crew had been secretly drinking from it the entire way home. After that, naval rum was referred to as Nelson's Blood. |
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making vodka pills in 24 hours
Recently, Chef Fabian was experimenting further with the Adria/Torreblanca technique of making 'vodka pills.' I use this word to describe the process of making liquid-filled candies by pouring flavored alcohol syrups into cornstarch and letting it set until a hard outer shell forms. |
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Strategy Letter VI - joelonsoftware.com
As a programmer, thanks to plummeting memory prices, and CPU speeds doubling every year, you had a choice. You could spend six months rewriting your inner loops in Assembler, or take six months off to play drums in a rock and roll band, and in either case, your program would run faster. Assembler programmers don’t have groupies.
Entire Article is Dead On. A must read for anyone in the software biz. |
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(Friday, October 29)
New Kids on the Block dance made me laugh hard
With all the election/Halliburton/Weapons Cache crap going on it was nice to get this and laugh my ass off at it. Hey every body do the New Kids Dance. Jurassic 5 rocks. Charlie Tuna in de casa. Click to view.
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(Thursday, October 28)
MSNBC - FBI probes Pentagon over Halliburton deals
A news flash I am sure you won't see on Foxnews.com (or ABC)...
"FBI agents this week sought permission to interview Bunnatine Greenhouse, the Army Corps of Engineers' chief contracting officer who went public last weekend with allegations that her agency unfairly awarded a Halliburton subsidiary no-bid contracts worth billions of dollars in Iraq, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press."
MSNBC - FBI probes Pentagon over Halliburton deals:
UPDATE:
Google news
CNN
MSNBC
Foxnews
I wonder if it is true? Thats our tax money boys and girls, it comes out of everyone of our paychecks....
This is precisely why I would never vote Bush. That is MY MONEY that I trust that my Govt will spend correctly in armoring our soldiers (even if I don't agree with the war) do you want to know where it goes? It goes to "$2,000" toilet seats in the latrines that line the coat pockets of people who sit on the board at Kellog. And you fucking know what pisses me off the most? They point their fingers at companies like Target that are French owned and say "BEWARE of those guys, they are unamerican". When they are stealing from American Tax Payer's money that could go to other causes to liberate countries or create democracies EVERY FUCKING DAY. And I don't want to get the "unfortunately, it happens every day in Gov't" emails on this one. Here is FINALLY a valid investigation into it. Thank God. I just wish it would have happened 6 months before the election so we can see how conniving and scrupulous Bush/Cheney really are. I would rather have an assmonger like Kerry in their, atleast he isn't pilfering for personal gain for the board of trustees of daddy's, uncle James', and the Vice Pres' former company.
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Interview with TiVo legal head, and HBO clips your wings | PVRblog
PVRBlog has a good write up (along with a link to the wired article) about how Tivo is shaving off certain features. ReplayTV (what we use) has yet to do this but it seems that HBO has Anounced that their content will so be locked using this new method, along with Pay Per View movies. It is funny to me to see how these features have been available for at least 2+ years yet it has taken Movie studios/TV studios 2 years to catch up. To me it shows a disconnection from its audience. I had the ability over 14 months ago to take a program (from any channel at any time) to nab if off my replayTV from my home network. Throw it into mpeg, burn it to a DVD or throw it around the net. To be honest I really don't have the time to do it, but by looking at the traffic on Bittorrent sites some people do. And to do it in High None the less.
-E
Interview with TiVo legal head, and HBO clips your wings | PVRblog
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Microsoft codename roulette wheel lands on "Whitehorse"
I am at mixed feelings on this. I honestly do not feel threatened by a computer doing application design (as compared to my excellent skillz) but this is a pretty big move by Microsoft. I think this could easily turn into a Rational-esque code generation type of application. I generate a lot of my code with personal code generators that I have written myself. I think Code generation is the future, I just like having direct control over the generation of the code. I love CodeSmith I use it every day almost, I love my own code generators that I have written. I love MS application Blocks, but when it comes to Business Objects, the functionality of the Bus Obj is so specific to the task at hand that I think it is good to program certain aspects of them by hand. Just my 2 cents. This will definitely have a bigger effect on MS programmers than the media attention/discussion it is garnering today (which is not a lot).
Microsoft codename roulette wheel lands on "Whitehorse"
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Indian Outsourcing Email
I am part of a lot of Email Usergroups that deal with Programming Jobs in the Atlanta Area. I like to kinda keep a pulse on the job market. Since I landed my last job (which I really dig) I only check out the emails in passing more as a gauge on the Atlanta industry (what languages are hot, experience, etc) and lately on one of the chains there has been a pretty big email battle going back and forth with an American programmer, a Russian programmer (who lives/programs in Russia and uses the Usergroup to pickup sales leads) and today I got an email from an Indian programmer who lives here in the states and has been working in ATL on and H1-B since 1994. Very interesting email and basically reinstates my earlier posts about H-1Bs. My main focus point is what I have stated all along 'you do not have to worry if you truly are a good programmer' and also I would like to add a side note 'even if you are just as good of a programmer as an H1-B, you will generally get the job because of better communication skills' I foresee a pretty big drop in companies like Wippro in the next couple of years. Not from bad work necessarily (which still could be the case) but from a balancing of the market in outsourcing in China. China stands to take over a lot of the Outsourcing market as it grows into a semi-capitalist society. Anyway here is the letter I found very interesting from the H1-B Indian programmer working in Atlanta, and describes in a great way how saturation of any professional market is never a good thing for any country. Regardless of who they are.
Email to the Atlanta Group (who is in midst of an H1-B argument) [I changed some of the names]:
I just read this e-mail from Bob. Though I am an Indian, I agree with him so much, I could not resist sending this message.
I am an Indian. Born, brought up and educated in India. Came here on a H1B back in 1994.
A lot of today's H1Bs coming from India are not upto the mark, except, those that are from some reputed Indian companies.
Here is a message I sent to Jim Jubak of MSN Money Central back in 2003 in response to his article "The threat of the job-is-worth-less recovery"
http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/P62365.asp that he never cared to respond:
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Dear Mr. Jubak:
I read your article. It was an interesting one.
I am originally from southern Indian state called Andhra Pradesh. I am currently working in the US. You might have heard of Hyderabad - it is the capital city of Andhra Pradesh.
I wanted to reveal some facts about the current state of Indian education system (especially Andhra Pradesh's).
Out of those 300,000 engineers produced by India every year, about 65,000 of them are produced by Andhra Pradesh alone. Isn't it odd for one of the 27 states to produce as much as 1/5 th of the engineers? All, thanks to the current cheif minister of Andhra Pradesh, who, in last 5 years or so, authorized a wave of new engineering colleges to be set up to meet the global demand for engineers.
Here is the fact sheet showing number of institutions:
Source: Commissionerate of Industries - Gov. of Andhra Pradesh - http://www.apind.com/apfactsheet.html)
174 - Engineering Colleges - Awarding Bachelors & Masters degrees in Engineering
103 - Polytechnical colleges - Awarding Diplomas in Engineering
502 - BCA colleges - Awarding Bachelors degree in Computer Applications
236 - MCA colleges - Awarding Masters degrees in Computer Applications
143 - MBA colleges - Awarding Masters degress in Business Administration
12 - Medical Colleges - Awarding MBBS and MDs in Medicine
564 - ITI Institutes - Providing vocational training.
Education has now become a pure business. Almost every politician owns an Engineering college, easiest way of making money. Most of these do not even have adequate infrastructure, let alone teaching staff.
Most of the institutions encourage and help students to cheat in examinations, so, their institute can show a higher percentage of graduations, in turn bringing more prospective students for the next acadamic year. It is has become a business after all. It is equivalent to buying a engineering degree for about $8,000, only difference is, you need to attend classes for 4 years, before you are awarded one (in some cases you can buy them outright for a bit more).
Thank god the Government did not allow this kind of dilution in medicine(only 12 Medical colleges), they would have killed a lot of patients.
Every year about 200,000 students take an entrance examnation (like SAT) to get admission into Engineering colleges. Generally 65,000 of them qualify, but, now there are as many seats available. They are comtemplating on removing this qualifying exam also, as it does not make sense any more.
In 1988, I stood 120th among about 60,000 examnees in this exam. Andhra Pradesh was just producing 5,000 engineers a year then.
Most of these engineers don't even have enough aptitude to clear 12th grade. These are the ones that are willing to work at any salary, leading to loss of jobs here in US.
I have a lot more to say. I wish I can talk to you.
You can probably send in an investigative journalist to Andhra Pradesh to unearth the real facts about Indian Education System.
Thanks for your time and look forward to talking to you.
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Cyanbane.com V2.0
Well the new look is still a work in progress. But The release party for the new design that happened tonight at my place was a blast. (ok it consisted of me and a Cuba Libre (rum (25%) and diet lime coke (75%) [Cuba Libre Ninguna Calor�a?]). Thanks to Joel and Mike for their help with it. If you want to get in touch with them shoot me an email and I will hook you up. It is still a work in progress I hope to have it how I want it by this weekend. And Yes if you don't like Brazil you are a fascist and I just love the sound of bunnies.
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(Sunday, October 24)
TheMusic.com
When I am REALLY Rich...
There are few things that I collect with a passion. Star Wars Legos are one of these things. I also collect old Vinyl Albums from late 60's/70's bands (Santana, Pink Floyd) and I have always wanted to have a complete set of Beatles albums on Vinyl. While doing research on a complete list last year I came upon the fact that hardcore serious Beatles collectors were defined by thier possession of the "Butcher Album". I finally figured out (and saw a picture of the 'Butcher Record Cover") a year or so ago, but I thought it was neat when I opened up my hotmail emailbox today and discovered I had been sent an advertisement selling it for a mere 2K (probably as much as i have payed for my whole star wars Lego collection. Alas, it is still a pretty good item to have. And If anyone ever showed me they had one I would love to listen to it (although it would sound the same to my ears as the successors with different covers, I would still love to say I have heard one before I die).
-E
TheMusic.com
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(Friday, October 22)
MSNBC - Afghan, Iraq wars collide
It is funny when I talk to hardcore Bush supporters and they say that they want GW as President for the next 4 years becuase he is strong on Terrorism. I almost want to balk at them and say No, he was strong on Iraq, and there was a time when he was strong on Afghanistan (which he should have been). With both candidates in an almost perfect tie going into next week, there are some pretty amazing things being written up in major newspapers which makes me think this election might actually swing towards Kerry. I support Kerry (becuase of lack of a better candidate) but I never really have him a fighting chance against GW. I was always going to vote against GW, but Kerry actually showed pretty good character/strong will at the debate and bsaically switched my vote from Bardanik/Nader realm to the democratic realm. It seems he is getting some decent support from not only major media outlets but also some pretty high ups in Washington who are Republicans. I must say I am impressed with Kerry and I really do not know how this election will play out. It is very interesting how much of a roel either way the two non major party political candidates are going to have on this election. The below article is a great (albiet long) write up on GW's mistake in reorganizing resources for Iraq while not keeping an eye on Afghanistan. Good read.
As the war on terrorism enters its fourth year, its results are sufficiently diffuse -- and obscured in secrecy -- to resist easy measure. Interpretations of the public record are also polarized by the claims and counterclaims of the presidential campaign. Bush has staked his reelection on an argument that defense of the U.S. homeland requires unyielding resolve to take the fight to the terrorists. His opponent, Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.), portrays the Bush strategy as based on false assumptions and poor choices, particularly when it came to Iraq.
MSNBC - Afghan, Iraq wars collide
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Allakhazam.com: Final Fantasy XI: Thread: Where The Avatar's Really Come From.
For all my FFXI Summoner's a little history....
"Carbuncle ~ He's Greek and means a beautiful gem of a deep red color, they also called it anthrax no lie.
Ifrit ~ Is From Islamic Mythology and is a Jinn or a Genie he is from the class of spirits below the level of angels and Devils noted for their strength and cunning. An ifrit is an enormous winged creature of smoke, either male or female, who lives underground and frequents ruins. Ifrits live in a society structured along ancient Arab tribal lines, complete with kings, tribes, and clans
Titan ~ a little more comonly know, from Greek mythology and is One of a family of giants, the children of Uranus and Gaea, who sought to rule heaven and were overthrown and supplanted by the family of Zeus.
Leviathan ~ Is from a Hebrew Word that means Twisted or Coiled, and Is mentioned in the Book of Job as a sort of chaos animal in the shape of a crocodile or a serpent. In other bible texts it is taken to mean a whale or dolphin, because the animal is there described as living in the sea. Later the Leviathan became a symbol of evil, an anti-divine power (some sort of devil) which will be destroyed on Judgement Day.
Garuda ~ Is from Indian Mythology and Is still worshiped as a god today but not inependently His Position is Shared With Genesh and Yes I said His. Garuda is the king of the birds. He mocks the wind with the speed of his flight. As the appointed charger of Vishnu ( Ramuh in Human Form ) he is venerated by all, including humans. Garuda is the son of Kashyap, a great sage, and Vinata, a daughter of Daksha, a famous king. He was hatched from an egg Vinata laid. He has the head, wings, talons, and beak of an eagle and the body and limbs of a man. He has a white face, red wings and golden body. When he was born he was so brilliant that he was mistaken for Agni, the god of fire, and worshipped. I guess SE wanted to make Him a little more sexy for the Game.
Allakhazam.com: Final Fantasy XI: Thread: Where The Avatar's Really Come From.:
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Worldwild Life Living Planet Report 2004
Every year the World Wild Life Council puts out a Living Planet Report. Check the Blog archives for last years. Unfortunalty this year we continued to slide. The biggest suck to me personally is the dark blue spots over China and India. They have always been over the US :( Canada, Mexico, and Europe. Unfortunaly they grow. I need to move farther out of the city :) And for everyone's info the HROC is 1.20% which is the Human Rate of Consumption which is basically we (as a human population around the world) use 20% more natural resources this year than the world can produce. Our US deficiet still sucks worse. I wonder if there is someone I can vote for that might change *attempt* to change both... hmmm..
2004 Living Planet Report
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Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see
Last night on Lost Dominic Monaghan's character has a Tatoo on his arm that I noticed says:
"Living is easy with eyes closed"
I was in the shower this mornign and started singing it to myself and finally foundthe beat and figured out what song it was from. wonder if it has any meaning to the show?
"Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see
It's getting hard to be someone but it all works out
It doesn't matter much to me
Let me take you down, 'cos I'm going to Strawberry Fields
Nothing is real, and nothing to get hungabout
Strawberry Fields forever"
Strawberry Fields Forever - The Beatles
If Locke turns up having a tatoo of "GooogooGaajoob" then I am really gonna freak out.
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CNN.com - Kerry takes aim at Bush's Iraq policy - Oct 20, 2004
He said evidence that Abu Musab al Zarqawi, the man believed to be behind the beheadings in Iraq, has professed his allegiance to bin Laden proves Iraq is a central front in the war on terror.
"If al Zarqawi and his associate were not busy fighting American forces in Iraq, does Senator Kerry think he would lead a productive and peaceful life?" Bush asked.
God Damn it GW. He is in Iraq because you invited him their by the chaos engulfed war zone. Is that better than him being here? Yes . Would he be in Iraq today if we had never gone to war with Iraq. I do not believe so. Could he have been in another country causing terrorism to other people? Yes. Could he have also been caught had we continued focusing on Afghanistan? Yes. We made the wrong choice with Iraq people. (Myself included). We believed that GW posessed knowledge that we did not. To his credit he did, it was just wrong. Whose to blame? I am not sure. My vote is you fire the guy at the top.
CNN.com - Kerry takes aim at Bush's Iraq policy - Oct 20, 2004:
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Rhetorical Questions
I was just asked one of the most Rhetorical Questions in my life, and it made me laugh so hard that someone could come up with something so witty. Very cool.
The Questions is:
"[In regards to John Kerry,] why would you vote for a man dumb enough to believe George Bush?"
awesome. That may be the best sentence to describe this election. Hands down.
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One of the Best Albums This Year - I "Shat" you not.
Who woud have thought one of the most innovative and creative CDs I have heard in the last couple of months would have come from Captain Kirk? Great CD. 9/10 stars in my book. (There are only a handful of 10/10s for me) Please everyone find a way to listen to this. The album is arranged by Ben Folds and has a slew of guest appearnaces from Henry Rollins to Brad Paisley. Just a great album. The Rollins song is awsome, as is Common People (Pulp cover). So good.
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Andy's New Puppy
Andy got a new Puppy! She is a beautiful chocolate lab. Check out some pix he sent here.
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i have been reading/listening too 
