Yesterday, I read an article on Digg throwing around the possibility that some people are simply going to let the bank foreclose because their property values have dropped so significantly.  I have a suggestion for averting it, but before you read my suggestion, please read the article yourself here: http://www.slate.com/id/2188982/pagenum/all/#page_start

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Note: This is a response to a friend’s blog entry, located here.

Sometimes, I feel like I am missing out on something because I do not have a mainstream item.  There is no doubt that we all have desires, but it’s the motive and method of satisfying or controlling our desires that places us in our situations.  It is one of the many ways we are accountable to our actions.  With respect to money issues, I heard accusations such as the notion that the only thing that matters is the bottom line and that people’s appearance of being affluent is riding on credit.  The latter came from my Dad; and as much as I resent hearing his opinions every now and then, there are times when he is right.

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The tree is up, the presents are placed, the lights are on, and invitations are sent for our family Christmas gathering.  After all is done, I am left contemplating whether the winter money drain known as Christmas is really up to the hype.  While one of my friends dislikes it because of the way people put on some sort of phony mask on only for this time of the year, I dislike it for the concentrated peer pressure of giving presents.  It’s hard for me to come up with a present for everybody, let alone finance it.  Furthermore, I have a tendency to give friends useful things rather than consumables.  Finally, would it not be better if I gave presents on someone’s birthday instead?  After all, birthdays require effort to remember… Christmas does not.

Ultimately, Christmas is a great time for friends and family to gather.  For Christians, it is a time for us to commemorate the birth of the Saviour who took on the world’s sins and to strive to follow Him by repenting.  If I don’t show up with presents, just remember that I still care about you.  Happy Holidays!

As of Ubuntu 7.04 (Feisty Fawn), the distribution featured something known as “Restricted Drivers Manager” to appease open-source purists who basically believe that anything closed-source is bad.  I believe that this could not be further from the truth.  I believe that being open means:

• Creating a better alternative for cheaper
• Presenting all the choices to the end-user
• Being willing to meet other vendors halfway
• Enabling the end-user to pick and choose a solution that would work for him/her.

From making mistakes installing the nVidia graphics card drivers on my computer numerous times, I have finally learned the magic sequence to do things without ever touching the Restricted Drivers Manager.  I call it the 10-Step Program to 3D Acceleration:

1. Install OS
2. Update.  If there is no kernel update, skip to Step 6
3. Reboot (into the new kernel, obviously)
4. Uninstall everything that has to do with the old kernel, install build-essential
   
5. Reboot
6. Install graphics drivers and configure accordingly
7. Reboot
8. Test 3D acceleration
9. Install programs
10. Restore files (if any)

The Restricted Drivers Manager will tempt you to click on it twice, but ignore it like an itch and it will go away.

Thus far, I have had two people (both women) come up to me and say that I either need a blank check to get new clothing or that I need to go out and buy something “stylish.”  With this blog post, I would like to set the record straight.  My only standard for myself is that I am dressed in a tidy manner and I keep the brand to myself as a way to track which brands are of inferior quality (you have to try very, very hard to mess up clothing).  As one of my friends say, “functionality over fashion,” which is a universal truth for me.  When people say that I need a makeover, I feel insulted.  I will adapt when I feel the need to, and I will try new things at my own whim.

Over the past couple years, innovative services such as P2P, VoIP, and Internet TV made the Internet so much more useful. A clear sign that telecom providers are unable or unwilling to carry these services is the net neutrality debate. It is a given that these companies would sell consumers more speed than what they could provide on the basis that the nightmare scenario that everybody uses said maximum speed simultaneously is highly unlikely. It is also a given that many companies are out for profit, and that has been one of the major barriers to innovation in our capitalistic world today. Taking a page from the University of Texas at Austin ITS playbook, I would like to suggest a middle ground where competitors can somehow play fair.

My proposed solution revolves about one question: Would you rather be limited by speed or the actual amount of data transferred? Like many of my friends, I would rather be limited by the latter. Therefore, I would like to propose Internet service plans in which the speed remains constant, but the quota is tiered. Once a user exceeds this quota, they are reverted to slower speeds (in my University’s case, it is dial-up speeds, but that’s adjustable) or given the option to buy more data transfer allocation. I believe that this would be mutually beneficial to innovators and service providers alike because:

• It is an objective method to penalize those who use “disproportionate amounts of resources”
• It opens streams of revenue in the form of customers purchasing extra data transfer allocations when they must have the speed.
• It has the potential to raise awareness of additional services the ISP provides (e.g. Use ___ with our service and it will not count against your transfer allocation).

While I salute those who carry this country forward in technological advances, this is where I am willing to meet those with an obligation to please their stockholders.

The Virginia Tech shooting that occurred on Monday, April 16, 2007 hit home for many college students. It surpassed The University of Texas at Austin’s tower shooting in 1966. Additionally, with the advent of technology, many others were able to pay tribute to those who passed on as a result. Many events occurred over this week: Some explored the killer’s motives, some pointed fingers, and some sought to exacerbate the pain and suffering. These events have served as triggers to some of my anger, and while some may disagree with my feelings, I would like to express them here. Read the rest of this entry »

My spring break consisted of formatting all the computers in my house and reinstalling Windows XP. We also added a new server for printing. The print server runs Ubuntu Linux 6.10 and was capable of sharing the printer through Samba or CUPS (i.e. a HTTP address). I am writing this to share with you the frustration of trying to find that file that contains the driver. Instead, I was forced to install the entire suite of software HP wants me to install. Even then, I was unable to change the port to a network port. What happened to the old days?

I remember the days when installing a printer involved the process of plugging it in, putting in a CD, and going through Windows’ “Add New Printer” wizard. and selecting the .ini file. The printer proceeds to just work. If this printer were to be on the network, I would do the procedures again on each client with insignificant adaptations to the procedure.

I continue to wish for those days because it gives me the control I need to get a job done right in the most efficient and economical fashion possible. In the course of making things easier and more “idiot-proof,” I believe that the manufacturers actually complicated the process and introduced more points where things could go wrong. Perhaps this happens only because I am using an all-in-one printer and that I should separate printer and scanner again. Nevertheless, I believe that consumers should have control should they desire it. I, for one, am not willing to buy a $300 printer for the sake of its networking capabilities; and I am sure that some cannot justify buying one printer for each computer. Indeed, I see it as uneconomical and harmful to the environment.

Over the past half-month, I have gone through a good bit of stuff. Here is just a small sampling of them:

I. Trip to Topeka
I went to Topeka with the University of Texas Solar Vehicles Team to a get-together of all the solar car teams interested in competing in the 2008 race. We turned a race that was doubtful to happen to something that will definitely happen through our enthusiasm. If you think we are going to build those pancakes again, think again — we have put forth these new rules:

• Upright seating, strobe lights, external emergency disconnects, and daytime running lights are now required for all cars.
• For teams that are able to afford the more expensive gallium-arsenide cells, they are limited to an array size of 6m². However, teams using the regular cells are still allowed 8m².

These rules slow down the cars, make things more of an engineering challenge, and emphasize safety, which is most paramount.

II. Battle of the Buildings
Battle of the Buildings is a Whitis Court tradition where the Residence Hall Council (RHC) puts on a series of events to make the buildings compete against each other. Not only did we have our own versions of Project Runway and Iron Chef, we also had a talent show and some field days. One year brought on so many changes! On the bright side, more residents participated in the program and were very competitive and all the buildings broke a building’s dominance. However, the breaking of this dominance was the result of some changes in the way the events were scored. I was not involved in the scoring process, but I think that the changes took more factors into account and gave buildings with fewer residents a fighting chance. In any case, the results stand thus:

1. LLB
2. LLC
3. LLF (my building!)

III. Heck Week
Last week was another one of those weeks where I have three tests crammed in one week. To compound that, I had two back-to-back tests on Friday. My matricies class troubles me.

IV. Faith in Crises
In politics, I have always seen the attempt to legislate morality as attempts to trap the other party. Well, this time, it looks like the party of “family values” has fallen in their own trap. First, there is Mark Foley, who resigned because of sexually explicit emails to male Congressional pages (reference). To add to this mess, a pastor who strongly condemned homosexuality was retroactively caught for having gay sex and drugs over the past three years (reference).

I will admit that for a few brief moments, I would gloat at the revealing of this hypocrisy. However, I am saddened that we do not have strong-willed people to guide us, that people have fallen to their weakness of will. I am quite sure that the news has shaken the faith of a few. For those people, I have this: Remember that God is perfect and humans are not. There are unfortunate instances where religion will be invoked as rhetorical devices. Your best defense against those would be your convictions and living by them. Embrace and practice what you think is right and reject what you think is wrong.