Open Source CMS Summit 2007, Day 0

Today has been interesting so far. The day started as normal (Steve got up and out and then I did, later ;-) ). I went to the store to get Steve some food for while I'm away, and then I called Matt Rose and Lynn Britten to see if they'd be willing to play in Brighton. I got ahold of Lynn, and he said that, yes, he'd be willing, but he's out of town for the next concert, so contact him next season. I left a message for Matt, and have recently gotten a voicemail that said he could maybe swing a rehearsal and the concert, but that's about it.

So, after I did my calling, I went down to my parents' place, since mom drove me to the airport. She and I had chinese for lunch, and played a couple games of cribbage (she beat me on the first, but I skunked her on the second!). Then, she took me to the airport, and off I went.

The airport wasn't bad, even security didn't give me any hassles (apart from the usual hassle of going through security), but my flight's gate was A64, which was way the heck PAST the original 'A' terminal, down a flight of stairs, a huge walk down ANOTHER (somewhat ghetto) terminal, and at the very end. It was... interesting. There weren't jetways out that far; we boarded the plane via ramp. (The plane was small, about 70 passengers).

The flight was mostly uneventful. I took some pictures out the plane window (um... probably more than I should've), but I don't know how they turned out because I forgot to bring my card reader. :-/ The flight got in early, though, which was nice.

Scott picked me up at the airport in his shiny new Civic Hybrid, which is very nice and rides very smooth. Then, we went by Google for dinner and Scott gave me a whirlwind tour of the main campus. It's amazing. I was very awed, and quite a bit intimidated by all the people there (it was 8 at night, and there were still hordes of people about). Scott showed me his office, which is very cool as well.

On the way to Google, I saw buildings for these companies: Yahoo!, EMC, and Microsoft (seems like there was another one, but I don't remember what it was). It's kinda intimidating to even be near all these giants.

Now, we're back at Scott's apartment (I understand why he has an apartment now; he said that little crappy holes out in Palo Alto cost $1.4 million. Yeah. $1.4 million.), and he's helping Chris with calc and I'm here writing. It's a nice apartment, a decent size for a single.

I'm excited about tomorrow. I just hope my 'awe' circuit doesn't blow before I'm done with the trip. ;-)

Free Software and Forking

Just a couple of essays on forking and Free software.

The first is the Right to Fork, and why it is important in the Free software community.

The second is the Fear of Forking, or Why Linux Won't Fork.

As an extra bonus, I'll also point you to "Corrupted Downloads: What is to be done?" in case you have problems downloading things with IE, and Make Your Open-Source Software GPL-Compatible. Or Else., in case you're trying to decide on a license to use (or just in general. It includes a nice appendix on the XFree86/xorg split), and finally, the GPL is a License, not a Contract.

Quantum Minigolf

Ok, so this is kinda neat. There's a computer game called Quantum Minigolf, in which the ball is a QM ball, meaning that it diffracts and interferes and such. Which is AWESOME. Trust me. Anyway, I haven't had a chance to try the program yet, but I thought I'd post this so I'll remember to later.

A different kind of ending for Harry Potter

So, sci-fi writer John Scalzi recently held a "Write a Scathing Review" contest. Most of the entries are very funny, and you should read them, but I just couldn't pass on this quote from one:

"Not since the infamous last paragraph of the final Harry Potter book two years ago (you remember, when Harry awakes in his cupboard under the stairs and exclaims, "It was all a dream!") have readers been so crushed."

Gilbert and Sullivan Opera Reprints

I just found out today that Kalmus carries reprints of the Gilbert and Sullivan operas, cf. Kalmus G&S Listing. I wish I'd known that a couple years ago! Not that they're cheap, mind you, but at least they're there, which was not evident about 2 1/2 years ago when we did "The Mikado"...

Lost in the Googleplex

I had a very strange dream last night.

For some reason, Scott had decided to take me to work with him, so I was at the Googleplex, sitting at a nearby desk. I was trying to hook up my computer to do some work (and all of Google's computers were running Windows CE or ME or something... CLEARLY a dream [or nightmare?!]), and Scott's boss comes along and decides that she wants to hire me for some reason. The wage she offers isn't as much as I'm making now, but it's working for freakin' Google, so I accept. Then, there's a confusing part with beanbag chairs and cookies (?) and Scott and I go down to this bird sanctuary that Google has on their grounds (in the dream). And we go through an igloo to get there. After that refreshing break, Scott starts to give me a tour of the Googleplex. First we go into the area where they keep the "lower-grade" engineers, and then we end up walking through three movie theaters. Thereafter, Scott disappears, and I have to wander about the Googleplex for a while, but then I see some other people that we both know, and he's left us a riddle to try and find him, which is solved quickly. Somewhere in there I realize that I've completely missed the conference that I went to California to attend, too.

Bizarre. I wonder if it means anything, and, if so, what?

A Canticle for Leibowitz

Walter M. Miller, Jr.

Written in 1959, A Canticle for Leibowitz is meant as a dire warning of man's technological hubris. It has three sections, each set in a different time, but all of them after the "Flame Deluge", a nuclear battle that throws humanity into a centuries-long dark age. But the book is about a monastery, and an order of monks.

The first section, "Fiat Homo" (Let there be Man), is about a monk in the Albertian Order of Leibowitz, some six hundred years after the Flame Deluge. The monks of the Order of Leibowitz are, as they call themselves, "bookleggers and memorizers," tasked with preserving what little remained of humanity's pre-deluge knowledge in the form of books hidden safely away in the abbey, called the Memorabilia.

The next section, "Fiat Lux" (Let there be Light), is the beginning of the renaissance, when knowlege is again beginning to be revered. The monks keep the Memorabilia for this time, but those who return to seek the knowledge are as those who allowed the Deluge to happen in the first place: men too afraid for their own gains to allow themselves to act to stop the inevitable march of Destruction. But the Order is not idle. Although the time has come for knowledge to be restored to the world, the monks themselves don't simply hand it over. They become active participants in the quest for knowledge, as they were for a time before the deluge; scientists as well as monks. And so we pass into the third section of the book...

...called "Fiat Voluntas Tua" (Thy Will Be Done). Humanity has surpassed the technological prowess of its former state, but is it wise enough to keep from (nearly) destroying itself again? This section also explores the question of humanity's responsibility to relieve suffering, and how far to go in such a quest.

I first read A Canticle for Leibowitz in 10th grade, as an assigned book. I have adored it ever since, and so when I was looking for a book to finish off my gift certificates, I picked it up without hesitation.

It is a masterwork of science fiction and of literature, because it forces us to contemplate on not only our actions and their consequences, potentially centuries down the line, but the actions of those who have come before us and shaped the world we live in today. Miller doesn't exaggerate his characters or the setting. It is what it is, following naturally from the events of the Flame Deluge. Throughout the book, although the setting is desolate and the outlook grim, there remains a kernel of hope, as represented by the Order of Leibowitz. Even at the very end, the Order is resolute in its calling, to preserve the knowledge of mankind.

I can relate to this ideal. I don't know whether I have always considered myself to be an "archiver", or whether this book planted the idea in my head, but it has always resonated with me. And the warnings of the book are relevant today, even if the specific threat of the flame deluge is not.

Finally, a couple of passages from the book:

"Ignorance is King. Many would not profit by his abdication. Many enrich themselves by means of his dark monarchy. They are his Court, and in his name they defraud and govern, enrich themselves and perpetuate their power. ... They press the battle upon the world when their interests are threatened, and the violence which follows will last until the structure of society as it now exists is leveled to rubble, and a new society emerges." (From "Fiat Lux", chapter 20)

The closer men came to perfecting for themselves a paradise, the more impatient they seemed to become with it, and with themselves as well. They made a garden of pleasure, and became progressively more miserable with it as it grew in richness and power and beauty; for then, perhaps, it was easier for them to see that something was missing in the garden, some tree or shrub that would not grow. When the world was in darkness and wretchedness, it could believe in perfection and yearn for it. But when the world became bright with reason and riches, it began to sense the narrowness of the needle's eye, and that rankled for a world no longer willing to believe or yearn. Well, they were going to destroy it again, were they—this garden Earth, civilized and knowing, to be torn apart again that Man might hope again in wretched darkness. (From "Fiat Voluntas Tua", chapter 26)

EDIT:Ok, so apparently I don't know how to spell knowledge. Also fixed other typos.

Using MySQL with MS Access over the internet

With my recent work in MS Access*, I've learned some new things that I thought I'd share with you. This post has step-by-step instructions for using MS Access to connect to a MySQL database.

First of all, if you want to connect, you'll need to make sure you have the MyODBC driver installed on your machine.

To check to see if it's installed:

• Go to Start->Control Panel->Administrative Tools->Data Sources(ODBC).


• Click on the "Drivers" tab, and look to see if there's a MySQL ODBC driver installed. Mine was near the bottom.

To Install it if it's not:

• Go to http://dev.mysql.com/downloads/connector/odbc/3.51.html and
  download and install the windows driver.

Then, we'll need to set up the connection:

• Go to Data Sources(ODBC) again.


• Go to the "User DSN" tab and click "Add...".
  
• Choose the MySQL driver.
  
• Use a descriptive name for "Data Source Name". If you intend to use the smae MS Access database on multiple computers, you should make sure this name is the same on each.


• Use the hostname or IP address of the server for "Server", the username for "User" and the appropriate password.


• Click on the database dropbox, and select the database you're insterested in (it may take a moment).


• Go to the "Connect options" tab, and enter "set wait_timeout = 28800" in "Initial statement". That sets the timeout to 8 hours, which should be enough time to do your work. :-)


• Go to the "Advanced" tab.


• Under "Flags 1" check "Return matching rows"


• Click OK.

You may also find the information on MySQL's website ( http://www.mysql.com/ ) and http://www.ucl.ac.uk/is/mysql/access/index.html useful.

* I don't condone the use of MS Access (or any other MS program) when you're given an option, but sometimes you don't have one, ie, your client wants to use it.

The Book of Carrots

So, I've been playing with WikiWrit, the "Holy Book Anyone Can Edit". And it's much fun. I must admit, however, that I am most pleased with the Book of Carrots (yep, I wrote it...), and so I shall now share it with you.

The Book of Carrots

The day was Saturday, a bit after lunch, when God looked upon his Garden, Eden, and saw that, truly, the weeds had sprung up again, even though he'd weeded it just last week.

And so God took up His Almighty Trowel, and put on His Almighty Gardening Gloves, and went into His Garden to dig up all the weeds and make sure He'd gotten all the roots this time.

And lo, whilst kneeled among the Plants of his garden, God noticed a rather largish root that He was Absolutely Certain He hadn't planted there, and was about to dig it up when He became enthralled with its strange orangish color. And so, He dug it up anyway, but instead of throwing it away in the trash with all the other weeds of the Garden, He took it into the house and washed it.

Admiring its color again, he proceeded to take a bite, and found that it was delicious. And, because it was crunchy, He named it the Carrot, which was mighty convenient since Man (who had been doing some rather unorthodox experiments involving long-term genetic engineering) had also named it Carrot.

And so the Carrot became God's chosen vegetable, and was given a nice plot in the Garden to grow in, and venerated by Man, for God then commanded, "Thou Shalt Eat All thy Vegetables, Especially thy Carrots, or Thou Shalt Surely be made to Sit at the Table Until thou hast."

And God spoke to His prophet, Betty Crocker, and told her the number of ways to cook a Carrot, which is Five, and she gave Him some good recipes for lasagna, which much pleased the Lord.

(Scholar's Note: it is from this tale that we learn to embrace the unexpected, for it may be Entirely Worth It, and why pious children must always finish their vegetables. Addtionally, we learn of a hitherto-unmentioned prophet.)

The Top 5 Ways to Make Friends and Influence People (on the web)

5. Pop-up ads

4. (unjustified) DMCA take-down notices sent to their ISP.

3. Death Threats

2. Large, introductory flash animations with no 'skip intro' option

1. Embedded, automatically-playing, no-controls visible audio or video files. (MySpace, I'm looking at you).

Cribbage-- ("Cribbage Minus Minus")

This Cribbage variant was developed by Steve Mathias and Geoffrey Lehr for use with a five-suited deck, like the Stardeck, that makes it easy to distinguish the fifth suit from the others, although it could be played with other decks.

Play is as normal, except that stars (or whatever the fifth suit is) have negative values during the play of the hand, and when counting fifteens after the hand. "Negative fifteen" (eg Q✫, 5✫) still counts as 2 points. Combinations that are identical to another combination except for cards which sum to zero are illegal. (eg, 9♠ 10♠ 4✫ is worth 2 points, but Q✫ 10♠ 10♦ 5♦ is not a valid combination). Stars count as normal for pairs, runs, nobs, etc.

Once the count reaches 31 during play, it is reset to zero, even if a player holds a star and could still play.