Dear Senator McCain,
I have a real fear. I fear, that when you lose (and you will) that you will leave Obama a country that is impossible for him to govern. If anyone understands the consequences of cheap tricks, it should be you. Why are you running a campaign with the same people who smeared you in 2000? Why are you using their cheap tricks?
For a man who claims to be a maverick, known for reaching across the aisle, you have run the most despicable, partisan campaign since W. It is appropriate to question another candidate's credentials, policies, judgment, etc. But you sir have unleashed a dangerous tide by accusing Barack of being an anti-American terrorist. That's dangerous stuff.
Of course, FOX News is more than willing to continue to server their GOP masters. Day in and day out all they can talk about is Ayers. A man who is, in your words, a dried up terrorist. I think you called him irrelevant once too. But that was before you realized you had lost the election. I know you are disappointed but it is better to accept responsibility for the loss and move on than to pursue this childish vendetta.
I once respected you. I once saw you as a Republican who could lead the nation. That perception died months ago. Sir, I can see it in you face. You know this is all true. When the crowd chants "kill him" or "terrorist" the expression of pain on your face is plain to see for the whole world. You don't have a poker face sir.
I remember the Clinton years. Rush Limbaugh, New Gingrich and others filled America with hate. The Clintons were hardly perfect, but I remember 8 years of a raging hypocritical hatred that is not an appropriate avenue for political discourse in this nation. I fear that you have stoked the fires of these rabid anti-everything-but-themselves demagogues. They will wrap themselves in the colors and language of the flag and patriotism. They will spend years sniping at a leader who will try to make this country stronger and greater. I don't want to spend 8 years talking about something that happened years and years ago. I want to focus on the problems of today. You have set the trajectory for America's conservatives for years. The Sarah Palin choice is your fault. The rabid language is you fault. The wild fear and speculation on FOX News, and the ignorant individuals at your rallies are your fault.
Be a man. Own this tragic mistake and spend the next few days repairing the damage you did. Put your nation first sir. It deserves nothing less from you.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Friday, October 3, 2008
Pundits Depress Me
Last night I watched the VP Debate. In all honesty, it was more interesting than the Presidential Debate last week. Both candidates were engaged and on target.
But this morning, I got up and discovered that only two things happened last night.
1) Sarah Palin "exceeded expectations" because she managed to fill 90 seconds of air-time with hot air.
2) Joe Biden "exceeded expectations" by successfully only filling 90 seconds of air-time with hot air.
I listened to the discussion on MSNBC and I checked out FOX. So far, the only people who are actually discussing what the candidates actually said is NPR.
Therefore, if you would like to listen to an actual discussion about the merits of either candidate's positions, you are completely out of luck unless you tune in to NPR. Otherwise, you will hear nothing more than empty blow-hards announcing how their candidate "exceeded expectations".
Maybe I missed something, but I would rather EXPECT that a VP Candidate should have the capacity to discuss the major issues of the day for at least 90 seconds.
In case you missed the actual debate, here are some of the highlights from the somewhat skewed and biased opinion of . . . . me!
Sarah Palin distrusts the entire East Coast.
Sarah Palin wants to expand the powers of the VP. She believes the ability to expand the authority of the VP can be found in the Constitution. Constitutional law experts are now looking through the lost Sea Scrolls for the missing pages of the Constitution that could support this legal position.
She and John McCain and mavericks, but I'm not sure why, since she didn't tell me.
Biden told me that McCain is not a maverick. I presume that he would extend this criticism to Palin, but he never actually said anything about her the entire time. This leads me to conclude that he is A) Afraid of her OR B) Afraid of the media's perception that he beat up a woman. It's 2008. Can we please move past these stereotypes? Please?
Palin believes that tax-cuts for the wealthy will help the American economy. She also manages to simultaneously believe that the government should get out of our lives, while bailing out Wall Street. This displays a remarkably adaptable capacity for compartmentalization, or she doesn't understand what I'm talking about. I really do not understand how anyone can be daft enough to continue running around calling for additional deregulation (she did this cleverly and obliquely), lower taxes (on the wealthy, though she did not say this), and lower government spending. Since the economy is tanking, this seems like a bad time to restrict federal spending. Besides, the $$$$$ we spend in Iraq dwarfs other federal expenditures, other than the proposed federal bail-out of wall street. Since she does not want to get out of Iraq, I am forced to conclude that her spending plan is going to cut the relatively inexpensive federal programs that actually do help people, while maintaining an expensive, disastrous war. Net impact on the national debt - it soars to unprecedented heights.
Biden says he and Obama want to get out of Iraq through a phased draw-down of American forces there. Sarah calls this the White Flag of surrender. Unfortunately, even with over 4,000 American Soldiers lying in coffins, we still can not debate the merits of this war without calling each other unpatriotic.
She did well. She did a good job of articulating the neo-con positions of the Bush Administration. It's almost as if she was able to channel Dick Cheney . .. . . while wearing lip-stick! Impressive. I wish Biden had attacked her more. John McCain was not in the room. He should have focused on his opponent, not the old guy she's running with.
But this morning, I got up and discovered that only two things happened last night.
1) Sarah Palin "exceeded expectations" because she managed to fill 90 seconds of air-time with hot air.
2) Joe Biden "exceeded expectations" by successfully only filling 90 seconds of air-time with hot air.
I listened to the discussion on MSNBC and I checked out FOX. So far, the only people who are actually discussing what the candidates actually said is NPR.
Therefore, if you would like to listen to an actual discussion about the merits of either candidate's positions, you are completely out of luck unless you tune in to NPR. Otherwise, you will hear nothing more than empty blow-hards announcing how their candidate "exceeded expectations".
Maybe I missed something, but I would rather EXPECT that a VP Candidate should have the capacity to discuss the major issues of the day for at least 90 seconds.
In case you missed the actual debate, here are some of the highlights from the somewhat skewed and biased opinion of . . . . me!
Sarah Palin distrusts the entire East Coast.
Sarah Palin wants to expand the powers of the VP. She believes the ability to expand the authority of the VP can be found in the Constitution. Constitutional law experts are now looking through the lost Sea Scrolls for the missing pages of the Constitution that could support this legal position.
She and John McCain and mavericks, but I'm not sure why, since she didn't tell me.
Biden told me that McCain is not a maverick. I presume that he would extend this criticism to Palin, but he never actually said anything about her the entire time. This leads me to conclude that he is A) Afraid of her OR B) Afraid of the media's perception that he beat up a woman. It's 2008. Can we please move past these stereotypes? Please?
Palin believes that tax-cuts for the wealthy will help the American economy. She also manages to simultaneously believe that the government should get out of our lives, while bailing out Wall Street. This displays a remarkably adaptable capacity for compartmentalization, or she doesn't understand what I'm talking about. I really do not understand how anyone can be daft enough to continue running around calling for additional deregulation (she did this cleverly and obliquely), lower taxes (on the wealthy, though she did not say this), and lower government spending. Since the economy is tanking, this seems like a bad time to restrict federal spending. Besides, the $$$$$ we spend in Iraq dwarfs other federal expenditures, other than the proposed federal bail-out of wall street. Since she does not want to get out of Iraq, I am forced to conclude that her spending plan is going to cut the relatively inexpensive federal programs that actually do help people, while maintaining an expensive, disastrous war. Net impact on the national debt - it soars to unprecedented heights.
Biden says he and Obama want to get out of Iraq through a phased draw-down of American forces there. Sarah calls this the White Flag of surrender. Unfortunately, even with over 4,000 American Soldiers lying in coffins, we still can not debate the merits of this war without calling each other unpatriotic.
She did well. She did a good job of articulating the neo-con positions of the Bush Administration. It's almost as if she was able to channel Dick Cheney . .. . . while wearing lip-stick! Impressive. I wish Biden had attacked her more. John McCain was not in the room. He should have focused on his opponent, not the old guy she's running with.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Boo!
I donated to Barack's campaign again. It was only $25, but it helped get him to $10 million in the 24 hours after Palin's speech. Truthfully, it wasn't what she said that made me do it. I disagree with her, and I have some real problems with the idea of her becoming the VP, but her speech didn't prompt me to donate. I donated because of the crowd at the Republican convention.
When Obama spoke, the crowd cheered for his proposals. They cheered for his ideas. They cheered for his hope. When he criticized McCain the crowd cheered even louder, for Barack. When McCain criticizes his opponent, the Republican crowd boos. Loudly. Yeah. They boo. Is this the fourth grade or what?
I don't like the negative energy and I don't want that kind of energy in the White House for 4 more years. It's just a small thing, but I see the difference in the two campaigns and I think it is a microcosm for the more complex policy/personality differences in the campaigns.
I guess it comes from my years working with disabled teens . . . which is a lot like community building in many ways . . . . . because you have to help people work together, I taught those teens that it was OK to cheer for your team, but not OK to boo for the other team. It's un sportsman like. It's undignified. It's rude.
If they keep booing, I'll keep donating. . . . . to the Democrats.
When Obama spoke, the crowd cheered for his proposals. They cheered for his ideas. They cheered for his hope. When he criticized McCain the crowd cheered even louder, for Barack. When McCain criticizes his opponent, the Republican crowd boos. Loudly. Yeah. They boo. Is this the fourth grade or what?
I don't like the negative energy and I don't want that kind of energy in the White House for 4 more years. It's just a small thing, but I see the difference in the two campaigns and I think it is a microcosm for the more complex policy/personality differences in the campaigns.
I guess it comes from my years working with disabled teens . . . which is a lot like community building in many ways . . . . . because you have to help people work together, I taught those teens that it was OK to cheer for your team, but not OK to boo for the other team. It's un sportsman like. It's undignified. It's rude.
If they keep booing, I'll keep donating. . . . . to the Democrats.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Irony
Here's something to ponder.
McCain, and the Republican party are reflexively reminding voters about McCain's war record. Although I'm not convinced this experience indicates any leadership capacity on the part of the candidate, his time in confinement was undoubtedly one of the most important times (especially for him) in his life. Given the obvious fact that I have NEVER been held in confinement, beaten, or tortured, I can not relate to what this experience must mean to him but it's safe to assume it was a profoundly moving experience.
Now, here's the irony. McCain was held by the North Vietnamese government. As a pilot he had access to information which they believed (probably incorrectly) could help them defend themselves against attack from US forces. And, undoubtedly some of his captors enjoyed (shudder) torturing an American fly-boy.
Fast forward to the present day. American detainees (prisoners) at Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib, and numerous undisclosed detention centers through-out the third world have been tortured. Using interrogation techniques developed by Communist regimes during the Cold War, we have beaten, attacked, waer-boarded, and humiliated our detainees. The pictures that I saw coming out of Abu Ghraib were less violent than the torture exprienced by Mr. McCain, but I dare say I would rather be beaten than humiliated both sexually and religiously. There is a real irony in a democracy using land on an island governed by a dictator who we despise to detain (illegally?) "enemy combatants".
The North Koreans wanted information to protect themselves. We torture(d?) detainees to obtain information to protect ourselves. The means differ, but the goals and the ends are scarily similar. Yet, John McCain's experience is simultaneously heroic and tragic , and how dare those bad men torture such a good man! Meanwhile the forces of American power torture those allegedly evil Muslims, and the Republican Party vociferously defends it's right to do so.
Abu Ghraib, Gitmo and other innovations of the Bush Administration were brought to us by many of the same neo-cons (or their proteges) which have joined the McCain campaign since he became the unofficial Republican nominee.
I disagree with torture. I especially disagree with torture when it is undertaken in the false name of liberty. Torture and liberty are not compatible. They are like oil and water. You just can't mix them. At least the North Vietnamese were consistent. Torture is (sadly) consistent with dictatorship. It fits. It's an instrument of power and control. One that doesn't fit well in a democracy like we claim to hold dear.
I don't want to give these neo-cons any more opportunities to besmirch the ideal of freedom for their own twisted goals. The McCain campaign needs to be stopped. I kinda think Palin may be the proverbial straw, but McCain has proven many times that he is tough in a fight.
But, I really do think we should start using this theme of torture against the Republican Party. If his torture was so bad (and it really really was that bad) what is he going to do to make sure that this practice is eliminated? Can we really trust him to eliminate it? I know he has stood up against it in the past but those efforts were largely ceremonial window-dressing thanks to W's signing statement (which is, in and of itself probably illegal, but that's another entry).
It just seems ironic for the Republican party, which has stood up for the right to torture detainees has used their nominee's experience as a victim of torture to highlight his experience and readiness to lead. McCain wants his experience with torture to be a campaign issue, and I'm willing to play along. That means he needs to convince me (unlikely) that he's going to jettison these neo-cons and make sure that American soldiers (or CIA, or FBI, or any other 3-letter agency) are not using the instruments of torture against others. If it was wrong to beat McCain (it was) it is wrong to beat our detainees today. And that is a conversation I don't think the Republican Party wants to have.
Note: I don't think McCain himself is directly responsible for these acts of torture. But, as a Senator, he is indirectly responsible for the behavior and composure of our troops. He has made some efforts to combat this, but it is an issue that should be incredibly uncomfortable for many of McCain's advisers, who have continuously defended W's right to torture detainees. I would also like to know if the "new" non-straight-talk-express John McCain still feels as strongly about this as the old John McCain who seemed like a much better Senator.
McCain, and the Republican party are reflexively reminding voters about McCain's war record. Although I'm not convinced this experience indicates any leadership capacity on the part of the candidate, his time in confinement was undoubtedly one of the most important times (especially for him) in his life. Given the obvious fact that I have NEVER been held in confinement, beaten, or tortured, I can not relate to what this experience must mean to him but it's safe to assume it was a profoundly moving experience.
Now, here's the irony. McCain was held by the North Vietnamese government. As a pilot he had access to information which they believed (probably incorrectly) could help them defend themselves against attack from US forces. And, undoubtedly some of his captors enjoyed (shudder) torturing an American fly-boy.
Fast forward to the present day. American detainees (prisoners) at Guantanamo, Abu Ghraib, and numerous undisclosed detention centers through-out the third world have been tortured. Using interrogation techniques developed by Communist regimes during the Cold War, we have beaten, attacked, waer-boarded, and humiliated our detainees. The pictures that I saw coming out of Abu Ghraib were less violent than the torture exprienced by Mr. McCain, but I dare say I would rather be beaten than humiliated both sexually and religiously. There is a real irony in a democracy using land on an island governed by a dictator who we despise to detain (illegally?) "enemy combatants".
The North Koreans wanted information to protect themselves. We torture(d?) detainees to obtain information to protect ourselves. The means differ, but the goals and the ends are scarily similar. Yet, John McCain's experience is simultaneously heroic and tragic , and how dare those bad men torture such a good man! Meanwhile the forces of American power torture those allegedly evil Muslims, and the Republican Party vociferously defends it's right to do so.
Abu Ghraib, Gitmo and other innovations of the Bush Administration were brought to us by many of the same neo-cons (or their proteges) which have joined the McCain campaign since he became the unofficial Republican nominee.
I disagree with torture. I especially disagree with torture when it is undertaken in the false name of liberty. Torture and liberty are not compatible. They are like oil and water. You just can't mix them. At least the North Vietnamese were consistent. Torture is (sadly) consistent with dictatorship. It fits. It's an instrument of power and control. One that doesn't fit well in a democracy like we claim to hold dear.
I don't want to give these neo-cons any more opportunities to besmirch the ideal of freedom for their own twisted goals. The McCain campaign needs to be stopped. I kinda think Palin may be the proverbial straw, but McCain has proven many times that he is tough in a fight.
But, I really do think we should start using this theme of torture against the Republican Party. If his torture was so bad (and it really really was that bad) what is he going to do to make sure that this practice is eliminated? Can we really trust him to eliminate it? I know he has stood up against it in the past but those efforts were largely ceremonial window-dressing thanks to W's signing statement (which is, in and of itself probably illegal, but that's another entry).
It just seems ironic for the Republican party, which has stood up for the right to torture detainees has used their nominee's experience as a victim of torture to highlight his experience and readiness to lead. McCain wants his experience with torture to be a campaign issue, and I'm willing to play along. That means he needs to convince me (unlikely) that he's going to jettison these neo-cons and make sure that American soldiers (or CIA, or FBI, or any other 3-letter agency) are not using the instruments of torture against others. If it was wrong to beat McCain (it was) it is wrong to beat our detainees today. And that is a conversation I don't think the Republican Party wants to have.
Note: I don't think McCain himself is directly responsible for these acts of torture. But, as a Senator, he is indirectly responsible for the behavior and composure of our troops. He has made some efforts to combat this, but it is an issue that should be incredibly uncomfortable for many of McCain's advisers, who have continuously defended W's right to torture detainees. I would also like to know if the "new" non-straight-talk-express John McCain still feels as strongly about this as the old John McCain who seemed like a much better Senator.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Freedom
"My freedom to swing my fist ends at your nose."
This quote is in many versions on the Internet. They are all a little different. They are all a lot the same.
I've been thinking about this quote recently. It's a neat quote, which I have often attributed to one of the Founding Fathers, but I'm not really sure it was Ben Franklin who said it. But, it doesn't matter.
I've been thinking about freedom a lot. Maybe it's because of a certain convention in Denver. Dunno.
But, what is freedom and what does it mean to me?
Freedom is being able to disagree, on important, substantive issues, without fear of being seen as unpatriotic. Freedom is being able to express myself, without fear of being hurt, professionally or personally. Freedom is being safe from fear - real and imagined.
For the last 8 years, the Bush Administration has made all of less free. The McCain Campaign is trying to use the same legacy of fear. But I think Americans are sick of being afraid. Americans are tired of labeling the opposition of being unpatriotic.
I'm not afraid.
--andy
This quote is in many versions on the Internet. They are all a little different. They are all a lot the same.
I've been thinking about this quote recently. It's a neat quote, which I have often attributed to one of the Founding Fathers, but I'm not really sure it was Ben Franklin who said it. But, it doesn't matter.
I've been thinking about freedom a lot. Maybe it's because of a certain convention in Denver. Dunno.
But, what is freedom and what does it mean to me?
Freedom is being able to disagree, on important, substantive issues, without fear of being seen as unpatriotic. Freedom is being able to express myself, without fear of being hurt, professionally or personally. Freedom is being safe from fear - real and imagined.
For the last 8 years, the Bush Administration has made all of less free. The McCain Campaign is trying to use the same legacy of fear. But I think Americans are sick of being afraid. Americans are tired of labeling the opposition of being unpatriotic.
I'm not afraid.
--andy
Monday, August 25, 2008
Dear Biden
Mr. Biden, allow me to introduce myself. I'm the kind of guy you need to convince. While the mainstream media practically falls over itself to congratulate you on being picked as Obama's vice presidential candidate, I'm not convinced you are a good choice for the job.
Let me recap some recent history. You were for the war in Iraq before you were against it. You have a nasty habit of putting your foot in your mouth and then you like to take a good long while to chew on it before spitting it out. For example, I recall a certain comment about a certain clean African American . . . oh yeah . . . . your running mate.
I voted for Obama. I never considered voting for you. With you on the ticket, I must consider the idea of putting you within one heart beat of the Presidency. Will I vote for you? Yes. I will. Am I as enthusiastic about the ticket as I was this time last week? No. Am I going to donate again to the campaign? I don't know.
Convince me.
Let me recap some recent history. You were for the war in Iraq before you were against it. You have a nasty habit of putting your foot in your mouth and then you like to take a good long while to chew on it before spitting it out. For example, I recall a certain comment about a certain clean African American . . . oh yeah . . . . your running mate.
I voted for Obama. I never considered voting for you. With you on the ticket, I must consider the idea of putting you within one heart beat of the Presidency. Will I vote for you? Yes. I will. Am I as enthusiastic about the ticket as I was this time last week? No. Am I going to donate again to the campaign? I don't know.
Convince me.
New Toys!
I have been ill all weekend.
YUCK!
In fact, I was so drained from the weekend that I stayed home from work today to rest and recover from sleeping all weekend! :-) It sounds like a scam but I don't think it is at all. I'm tired. I knew I would not be able to concentrate at my usual levels, so going to work would have been a waste of everyone's time and energy.
I also thought I could use the time to work on the project I'm working on for Linux.com (more about that later). I sat down and started pounding on emacs and finally the screen on my venerable HP zv6000 finally died. The hinge(s?) has been broken for several months now and the laptop has needed a brace (like a wall) to keep the screen up. I tried giving the laptop some viagra, but it just can't keep it up anymore. Sadly, the screen was otherwise fine. But, the lose hinge(s) have been wearing at the connecting cable and recently the screen developed a dead-space line in the middle of the screen. I called HP to see what it would cost me to buy the parts to repair the machine. The hinge kit was ~$80.00 US.
Ouch! This is a ~4 year old machine! Instead I chose to buy a brand new 19" LG-flatscreen monitor. It's purty. It cost me $215 w/ tax. I'm going to buy myself a new desktop system for my birthday, and now I won't need to buy a screen for it! I also bought a MS ergonomic keyboard. It's a strange world where the only ergonomic keyboard in the store is "made" by a company known for it's crappy software. Ironically, they make wonderful hardware. Maybe Bill and ilk missed their true calling! Unlike most of the other keyboards, this is NOT a battery powered keyboard. It actually plugs in to the computer, so I don't have to worry about my battery fading on me when I'm on deadline. And, I have to say that it feels groovy on my wrists.
Well, I should get back to the project that I'm getting paid for and write some more about this later, butI though I would mention that Ubuntu was able to locate and use BOTH new peripherals WITHOUT needing any new drivers. However, setting up the screen would have been intimidating for a new user. I had to go CLI on it, and force Ubuntu to reconfigure my xserver, and I'll admit that my log in screen is still kinda creepy looking.
Oh well. I'll get these things all working one of these days!
YUCK!
In fact, I was so drained from the weekend that I stayed home from work today to rest and recover from sleeping all weekend! :-) It sounds like a scam but I don't think it is at all. I'm tired. I knew I would not be able to concentrate at my usual levels, so going to work would have been a waste of everyone's time and energy.
I also thought I could use the time to work on the project I'm working on for Linux.com (more about that later). I sat down and started pounding on emacs and finally the screen on my venerable HP zv6000 finally died. The hinge(s?) has been broken for several months now and the laptop has needed a brace (like a wall) to keep the screen up. I tried giving the laptop some viagra, but it just can't keep it up anymore. Sadly, the screen was otherwise fine. But, the lose hinge(s) have been wearing at the connecting cable and recently the screen developed a dead-space line in the middle of the screen. I called HP to see what it would cost me to buy the parts to repair the machine. The hinge kit was ~$80.00 US.
Ouch! This is a ~4 year old machine! Instead I chose to buy a brand new 19" LG-flatscreen monitor. It's purty. It cost me $215 w/ tax. I'm going to buy myself a new desktop system for my birthday, and now I won't need to buy a screen for it! I also bought a MS ergonomic keyboard. It's a strange world where the only ergonomic keyboard in the store is "made" by a company known for it's crappy software. Ironically, they make wonderful hardware. Maybe Bill and ilk missed their true calling! Unlike most of the other keyboards, this is NOT a battery powered keyboard. It actually plugs in to the computer, so I don't have to worry about my battery fading on me when I'm on deadline. And, I have to say that it feels groovy on my wrists.
Well, I should get back to the project that I'm getting paid for and write some more about this later, butI though I would mention that Ubuntu was able to locate and use BOTH new peripherals WITHOUT needing any new drivers. However, setting up the screen would have been intimidating for a new user. I had to go CLI on it, and force Ubuntu to reconfigure my xserver, and I'll admit that my log in screen is still kinda creepy looking.
Oh well. I'll get these things all working one of these days!
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Ctrl <-> CAPS
I just swapped the keyboard mapping for my Ctrl Key and CAPS key.
If you understand what that means, save me. If you don't, just toss me some pity.
But, I have to admit that I am happy to welcome my new emacs overlord. . . . . . .
If you understand what that means, save me. If you don't, just toss me some pity.
But, I have to admit that I am happy to welcome my new emacs overlord. . . . . . .
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Monday, August 18, 2008
Emacs
I want everyone to understand how hard this post is to write. I have been a vim user for a long time. Vim has some real advantages - it's light, easy to use, and is installed on most unix systems by default. Last, but not least, google-reader uses vim style key bindings!
Until recently, vim did everything I needed it to and it did it well.
But, my current job requires me to write a lot of SPSS syntax. The only SPSS syntax highlighting files that I can find for vim are outdated and crufty. After I found PSPP, a project by the FSF, I suspected that my days with vim might be numbered. I was right.
SURPRISE!!!! PSPP integrates very well with emacs. There is even a major-mode for emacs, which makes editing SPSS syntax a dream.
So, with a heavy heart, I sat down and read the emacs tutorial.
And I liked it. Yeah, that's right. I actually liked what I saw. I don't want to get completely lost in the massive OS that is emacs, but I did enjoy using it today. Regexp is a little different and my fingers need to learn some new moves, but that will come.
eegads. the bazaar hath cometh.
Until recently, vim did everything I needed it to and it did it well.
But, my current job requires me to write a lot of SPSS syntax. The only SPSS syntax highlighting files that I can find for vim are outdated and crufty. After I found PSPP, a project by the FSF, I suspected that my days with vim might be numbered. I was right.
SURPRISE!!!! PSPP integrates very well with emacs. There is even a major-mode for emacs, which makes editing SPSS syntax a dream.
So, with a heavy heart, I sat down and read the emacs tutorial.
And I liked it. Yeah, that's right. I actually liked what I saw. I don't want to get completely lost in the massive OS that is emacs, but I did enjoy using it today. Regexp is a little different and my fingers need to learn some new moves, but that will come.
eegads. the bazaar hath cometh.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
The Road Warrior Cometh
Next month, I become the ultimate Road Warrior! Mad Max can't touch this insanity. I leave on September 8th for beautiful Oklahoma, a state I have not spent much time in. I will not return until September 26th.
This means I will spend two weekends in Oklahoma. And here's the really crazy part - I'm OK with all of this. Oklahoma is not a particularly large state and it just happens to have several nifty looking climbing areas. I'm going to lug the gear down there with me and spend the weekends climbing and camping in the Wichita Mountain Wilderness Preserve. I don't have a lot of granite experience and this looks like my opportunity to get some!
Now I just need to get some partners. If you happen to know any climbers in the Lawton Oklahoma region, give them my name and number please!
This means I will spend two weekends in Oklahoma. And here's the really crazy part - I'm OK with all of this. Oklahoma is not a particularly large state and it just happens to have several nifty looking climbing areas. I'm going to lug the gear down there with me and spend the weekends climbing and camping in the Wichita Mountain Wilderness Preserve. I don't have a lot of granite experience and this looks like my opportunity to get some!
Now I just need to get some partners. If you happen to know any climbers in the Lawton Oklahoma region, give them my name and number please!
Monday, August 11, 2008
5.10 !!
I onsighted a 5.10 this weekend at the Shanty cliffs in the Adirondacks. It was a mixed route, but the crux was 100% trad. I can't remember the name of it (I rarely remember the name) but the crux was a fun THIN finger crack that went up and right. You come off a good horizontal onto some thin fingers and as you crank up and right the feet get progressively poor. The last 2 - 3 moves (height dependent) are nearly featureless.
I got the route clean, but my partners did not. Unfortunately, the #5 brassy I placed in the crux popped the second time one of my partners fell. It held her on her first fall, but she pulled it in fall #2. She thinks it failed because she pushed out away from the wall to make her fall cleaner. I thought the placement was pretty secure, so I'm bothered that it failed.
I got the route clean, but my partners did not. Unfortunately, the #5 brassy I placed in the crux popped the second time one of my partners fell. It held her on her first fall, but she pulled it in fall #2. She thinks it failed because she pushed out away from the wall to make her fall cleaner. I thought the placement was pretty secure, so I'm bothered that it failed.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Mass. MOCA - The Journey
Karen, Lea, Tony and I went to Mass. MOCA on Saturday. It was phenomenal. We saw lots of interesting and provocative modern art AND we got to see 3 Charlie Chaplin short films, set to live orchestral music. It was an incredible show. Karen and I had never before watched an entire Chaplin film, so this was really quite an experience for both of us.
The movies were absolutely hilarious. The three shorts all starred the same 4-5 people. The plots were simple and timeless, and even the young children in the audience were laughing hysterically as Chaplin and company kicked, poked, prodded and amused themselves, for our entertainment.
I can truly admit that I am officially a big fan of the tramp.
If I get some of the pictures from the show from Karen's camera, I'll post them here.
The movies were absolutely hilarious. The three shorts all starred the same 4-5 people. The plots were simple and timeless, and even the young children in the audience were laughing hysterically as Chaplin and company kicked, poked, prodded and amused themselves, for our entertainment.
I can truly admit that I am officially a big fan of the tramp.
If I get some of the pictures from the show from Karen's camera, I'll post them here.
Friday, August 1, 2008
Bats in my belfry
Great Scotts! There are bats in my belfry! Last night we were woken up to find an errant bat had stumbled into our bedroom. It took about an hour to help it get back outside. This would be weird enough in it's own right but this is the third time this week!
Either they go back outside or I'm building a super computer in the basement and calling it the bat-computer. And, then I'll go get some black tights, a bad-ass sports car and I'll go get my bad-ass on.
Either they go back outside or I'm building a super computer in the basement and calling it the bat-computer. And, then I'll go get some black tights, a bad-ass sports car and I'll go get my bad-ass on.
McCain, Obama and Britney . . A Threesome I Must Forget
The Huffington Post ran an interesting article yesterday on a new McCain attack ad.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/07/30/mccain-ad-links-paris-hil_n_115841.html
The Huffington Post is undoubtedly a partisan news source, but at least it is openly partisan. The ad itself though is 100% McCain Campaign. After viewing the video, I realized that the find folks at the Huffington Post got it wrong. The attack isn't damaging to Obama because of how it attacks him; it's damaging because of how it attacks us.
Disclosure: I have donated money to the Obama campaign.
As with many other McCain Campaign ads, it uses a backdrop sound of a crowd chanting:
"Obama! Obama! Obama!"
The ad then smoothly segues into a comparing Obama to mega stars such as Britney Spears, who are also infamous for their various problems and foibles. But, the McCain ad has failed to take note of one fact . . . Britney is only a megastar because we (the people of the United States) made her one. She's not royalty. She wasn't born/married into this position of stardom. Obama's incredible popularity and yes, stardom come from the American people.
So when McCain points out his rivals star-power and then derides it with comparisons to Britney Spears understand that he is really attacking every single person who has ever supported (by vote, money or chant) the Obama campaign.
So here's some free advice for the McCain campaign. Attacking voters is not an effective way to win elections. Attack ads take on a whole new dimension when they attack the supporters of a candidate rather than the candidate himself.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/07/30/mccain-ad-links-paris-hil_n_115841.html
The Huffington Post is undoubtedly a partisan news source, but at least it is openly partisan. The ad itself though is 100% McCain Campaign. After viewing the video, I realized that the find folks at the Huffington Post got it wrong. The attack isn't damaging to Obama because of how it attacks him; it's damaging because of how it attacks us.
Disclosure: I have donated money to the Obama campaign.
As with many other McCain Campaign ads, it uses a backdrop sound of a crowd chanting:
"Obama! Obama! Obama!"
The ad then smoothly segues into a comparing Obama to mega stars such as Britney Spears, who are also infamous for their various problems and foibles. But, the McCain ad has failed to take note of one fact . . . Britney is only a megastar because we (the people of the United States) made her one. She's not royalty. She wasn't born/married into this position of stardom. Obama's incredible popularity and yes, stardom come from the American people.
So when McCain points out his rivals star-power and then derides it with comparisons to Britney Spears understand that he is really attacking every single person who has ever supported (by vote, money or chant) the Obama campaign.
So here's some free advice for the McCain campaign. Attacking voters is not an effective way to win elections. Attack ads take on a whole new dimension when they attack the supporters of a candidate rather than the candidate himself.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Small World
It's a small world after-all. Friends, co-workers and acquaintances all know that I have 3 main interests in life. I spend most of my time and energy in life talking about:
As a result of my interests, or rather, non-interests; I usually skip/skim the conference photos and discussions of food, personal stories, etc. I'm there for my inner geek. Well today while browsing through Planet Ubuntu, I saw the following picture on Cody Somerville's blog.
- Rock Climbing
- Politics
- Linux (Ubuntu in particular)
As a result of my interests, or rather, non-interests; I usually skip/skim the conference photos and discussions of food, personal stories, etc. I'm there for my inner geek. Well today while browsing through Planet Ubuntu, I saw the following picture on Cody Somerville's blog.
HI NICK!
Imagine my surprise when I realized the sleeping guy in the photo is an old friend of mine from college! Years ago he and I lived in the same house with some other great guys who I have lost contact with. When we lived together I was a pretty rank neophyte linux user and couldn't convince my techie friend Nick that Linux was the way of the future. Imagine my surprise and joy when I found that Nick is now a contributor to Ubuntu Linux (YEAH!) and has a much more complete Launchpad page than I do.
I guess this gives me some new motivation to use Launchpad to host that SPSS -> R-CRAN translation I've been talking about. But that means I need to get off of here and get back to work so I have something to post.
The moral of the story? It's a small, small world. (and everyone should use Linux like my friend Nick!)
I guess this gives me some new motivation to use Launchpad to host that SPSS -> R-CRAN translation I've been talking about. But that means I need to get off of here and get back to work so I have something to post.
The moral of the story? It's a small, small world. (and everyone should use Linux like my friend Nick!)
Ubuntu: Try II
A few months ago I tried to switch my laptop from Windows XP to Linux. In the end, it didn't work out and I had to repartition the drive. There were a couple of problems with my initial attempt to use Linux @ work.
1) OpenOffice.org is NOT 100% compatible with Miscosoft Word.
2) Microsoft Access
3) SPSS
Regarding #3, I know that SPSS now has versions that work on Linux but it's rather difficult to convince your boss to pay for a new license (over $1000) when they have a Windows license that works just fine. PSPP isn't mature enough yet to really replace SPSS in a heavy use environment and R-CRAN isn't an option since I'm the only one who knows how to use it.
Try II should yield better results. My old laptop still has Windows installed so I can use applications like SPSS and Access via VNC/RDP. As an added benefit I can make one laptop crunch the numbers while I continue to work on my main system. There are days where this results in a real productivity improvement for me.
As I become more familiar with the formatting disagreements between OOo and MS Office, my other problems should resolve on their own.
1) OpenOffice.org is NOT 100% compatible with Miscosoft Word.
2) Microsoft Access
3) SPSS
Regarding #3, I know that SPSS now has versions that work on Linux but it's rather difficult to convince your boss to pay for a new license (over $1000) when they have a Windows license that works just fine. PSPP isn't mature enough yet to really replace SPSS in a heavy use environment and R-CRAN isn't an option since I'm the only one who knows how to use it.
Try II should yield better results. My old laptop still has Windows installed so I can use applications like SPSS and Access via VNC/RDP. As an added benefit I can make one laptop crunch the numbers while I continue to work on my main system. There are days where this results in a real productivity improvement for me.
As I become more familiar with the formatting disagreements between OOo and MS Office, my other problems should resolve on their own.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Recycling
I convinced the powers that be here at work that we really should be recycling. After they researched my proposal they discovered that it would cost the company $0 to recycle paper. I work for a consulting firm and we go through paper like Sherman went through Atlanta.
Years ago I thought being dedicated to the environment meant I had to go to protests and get arrested occasionally. I'm not sure I accomplished much but it was a good time. Today I actually accomplished something very real and very tangible (you'd have to see the piles of paper around here to believe it) and I didn't even piss anyone off.
Be the change.
Years ago I thought being dedicated to the environment meant I had to go to protests and get arrested occasionally. I'm not sure I accomplished much but it was a good time. Today I actually accomplished something very real and very tangible (you'd have to see the piles of paper around here to believe it) and I didn't even piss anyone off.
Be the change.
Friday, May 16, 2008
National Bike To Work Day
Yes, I biked to work today. In fact, I biked to work 3 times this week and 3 times last week. At this rate, I will cut my gasoline usage (for work) by 60% this summer. Sadly, I travel quite a bit so there will be weeks where I am out of town and will not ride my bike. By the end of the summer, I'll be lucky if I can cut into my gas consumption by 50%.
SMACK DOWN
Damn. Some people should just give up and learn some history. I don't watch TV, so I rarely catch the humor that is modern American journalism.
You Tube Link
My favorite part of the entire exchange is when the "liberal" tells the "conservative" if he read a certain book and the "conservative" replies by asking him if he had seen a movie. Classic. When a movie is elevated to the status of a book . . . Wow. . . . Classic.
More importantly, this is a phenomenal example of the importance of history. George Bush has made a pretty direct comparison between Barack's stated willingness to talk to someone we don't like (Hamas, Syria, etc.) and Chamberlain's weak kneed capitulation to the Nazis at Munich. Personally, I think Chamberlain gets a bad rap. Hitler was going to start WWII one way or the other. At the time, there was no way for Chamberlain to know this. I agree with the usual critique that Chamberlain should have stood up to Hitler, but I also think it's important to acknowledge the personal views and convictions (see Peace in our time speech) that led to the policy of appeasement (a phrase coined by Chamberlain). Had Chamberlain forcefully opposed Hitler @ Munich, WWII would not have been avoided. It's reasonable to assume that it would have started a little earlier and the ultimate outcome would not have been radically different. In fact, by 38 & 39, Britain was busy re-arming itself (Thanks to Churchill and others like him) and the delay in the start of hostilities arguably gave England a chance to arm itself before going to war with a much stronger enemy.
Anywho, comparing Barack's willingness to engage in dialog with Chamberlain's actions are, in a word, ridiculous. This is especially coming from a President who has been willing to enter into multi-lateral conversations with North Korea and has met with the leadership of "Communist" China, in spite of their obvious qualities as dictatorships, rampant abuses of civil rights, etc.
But, most Americans don't know enough history to be able interpret the President's Knesset speech for what it is - more BS. Our educational system is so mired in nonsense that it's impossible for students to get interested in topics like history. Test scores don't result in better students. Better trained teachers result in better students. More funding for modern school books, computers, and up-to-date technologies result in better students. But, that's another discussion.
You Tube Link
My favorite part of the entire exchange is when the "liberal" tells the "conservative" if he read a certain book and the "conservative" replies by asking him if he had seen a movie. Classic. When a movie is elevated to the status of a book . . . Wow. . . . Classic.
More importantly, this is a phenomenal example of the importance of history. George Bush has made a pretty direct comparison between Barack's stated willingness to talk to someone we don't like (Hamas, Syria, etc.) and Chamberlain's weak kneed capitulation to the Nazis at Munich. Personally, I think Chamberlain gets a bad rap. Hitler was going to start WWII one way or the other. At the time, there was no way for Chamberlain to know this. I agree with the usual critique that Chamberlain should have stood up to Hitler, but I also think it's important to acknowledge the personal views and convictions (see Peace in our time speech) that led to the policy of appeasement (a phrase coined by Chamberlain). Had Chamberlain forcefully opposed Hitler @ Munich, WWII would not have been avoided. It's reasonable to assume that it would have started a little earlier and the ultimate outcome would not have been radically different. In fact, by 38 & 39, Britain was busy re-arming itself (Thanks to Churchill and others like him) and the delay in the start of hostilities arguably gave England a chance to arm itself before going to war with a much stronger enemy.
Anywho, comparing Barack's willingness to engage in dialog with Chamberlain's actions are, in a word, ridiculous. This is especially coming from a President who has been willing to enter into multi-lateral conversations with North Korea and has met with the leadership of "Communist" China, in spite of their obvious qualities as dictatorships, rampant abuses of civil rights, etc.
But, most Americans don't know enough history to be able interpret the President's Knesset speech for what it is - more BS. Our educational system is so mired in nonsense that it's impossible for students to get interested in topics like history. Test scores don't result in better students. Better trained teachers result in better students. More funding for modern school books, computers, and up-to-date technologies result in better students. But, that's another discussion.
Should do more here
You know, I really should post more here. In 10 years I'll look back at this and say - WOW. How amusing. I tend to write long-winded emails and copy large numbers of people in on them. I think I should just tell people to read my blog and stop sending them my long-winded ramblings.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Biking To Work
Yesterday I took the plunge and bought a road bike. I guess that means I'm a "roadie" now. I took my new toy out for a spin yesterday and loved every minute of it (except the long grueling hill at the end, but I was expecting it). Now that I own a road bike, it's time to put it to use. This week or next week I will commute to work for the first time (ever) without a car. By the end of the summer, I intend to be riding roughly 3 times per week. But I have to start off slow or risk hurting myself. So, this week I _may_ make the commute once, or I may just ride some more and commute next week. We'll see how sore I am tomorrow from Sunday's ride.
--andy
--andy
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
On the brighter side of life, I can happily report that I have installed a NEW copy of Linux of an old laptop for my girlfriend. She will continue to use Windows on her personal laptop but will use my old stuff for familiarizing herself with Linux. She is considering a switch but wants to be sure she can be comfortable and productive in an open-source environment.
I definitely hope this works out better than my attempt to convert at work. :-)
I decided to start her out on Ubuntu. It's stable and well-featured. Because of this I have decided to switch my main platform back to Gnome (Ubuntu) rather than my usual KDE based environment. As much as I like KDE, it can be overwhelming for new users and Ubuntu's Gnome implementation always seems to feel more polished than it's KDE equivalent.
So, although KDE 4 looks AMAZING, I'm going to go with "works" for right now. If/when KDE 4 becomes as solid as Ubuntu's Gnome, I'll try it out again. In the mean time I have several thousand pictures that aren't very well organized at this moment because of F-Spot's rather crappy import. It REALLY should be able to label photos with EXIF tags.
Oh well. Maybe I'll start from scratch and move along.
I definitely hope this works out better than my attempt to convert at work. :-)
I decided to start her out on Ubuntu. It's stable and well-featured. Because of this I have decided to switch my main platform back to Gnome (Ubuntu) rather than my usual KDE based environment. As much as I like KDE, it can be overwhelming for new users and Ubuntu's Gnome implementation always seems to feel more polished than it's KDE equivalent.
So, although KDE 4 looks AMAZING, I'm going to go with "works" for right now. If/when KDE 4 becomes as solid as Ubuntu's Gnome, I'll try it out again. In the mean time I have several thousand pictures that aren't very well organized at this moment because of F-Spot's rather crappy import. It REALLY should be able to label photos with EXIF tags.
Oh well. Maybe I'll start from scratch and move along.
Didn't Work Out
Well, it happens. I wound up deleting Kubuntu from my work machine and restoring XP to the entire hard-drive. My boss is kinda wondering why I was unproductive for a couple of days :-).
Why you ask?
Simple. More and more people are sending me .docx and .xlsx files which are files made by Office 2007. I can't open them under Linux. I can't keep asking people to convert them to .doc and .xls forever. With Office 2003, I was able to install a simple update from MS that will let me open and edit these newer files.
I have also developed a disturbingly long list of problems OOo has when saving .doc files. For example, if you highlight text in OOo, Word users will struggle to un-highlight the text because it's not highlighted. OOo uses a different Word function / featurethat NOBODY ever actually uses besides OOo.
So, I am back on Windows but at least I'm using a large number of cross-platform open-source tools. OOo IS installed and I use it when / where I can. I have Songbird installed as my media player. I'm using R for statistical analysis. And there are a few useful Windows-Only Apps that I'm using like Tinn-R. I may have to try and install Tinn-R in Wine to see how it works.
The upshot? I'm stuck with Windows until OOo, or some other Linux Office Suite, offers compelling, stable, accurate and complete Office Open XML read/write.
Why you ask?
Simple. More and more people are sending me .docx and .xlsx files which are files made by Office 2007. I can't open them under Linux. I can't keep asking people to convert them to .doc and .xls forever. With Office 2003, I was able to install a simple update from MS that will let me open and edit these newer files.
I have also developed a disturbingly long list of problems OOo has when saving .doc files. For example, if you highlight text in OOo, Word users will struggle to un-highlight the text because it's not highlighted. OOo uses a different Word function / featurethat NOBODY ever actually uses besides OOo.
So, I am back on Windows but at least I'm using a large number of cross-platform open-source tools. OOo IS installed and I use it when / where I can. I have Songbird installed as my media player. I'm using R for statistical analysis. And there are a few useful Windows-Only Apps that I'm using like Tinn-R. I may have to try and install Tinn-R in Wine to see how it works.
The upshot? I'm stuck with Windows until OOo, or some other Linux Office Suite, offers compelling, stable, accurate and complete Office Open XML read/write.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Open Letter to the Speaker of the House
Today I spent a few minutes thanking Madam Pelosi for her leadership and courage in standing up the Bush Administration and the spineless entity we call the Democratic Senate.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Madam Speaker,
I am nothing more than a citizen concerned with the policies and decisions of the Bush Administration.
Prior Congresses failed in their duty and obligation to provide Congressional oversight to an administration that abused both executive privilege and the trust of the American people.
When I learned that the House of Representatives decided to go on break WITHOUT renewing the flawed warrantless wiretapping bill, I was relieved.
Thank you Madam Speaker for upholding the rights and freedoms of Americans.
I support your decision to confront the White House on this important matter. Hold the Executive branch and private corporations (AT&T) responsible for their actions. Freedom stands on a foundation of accountability, not secrecy.
--Andy Choens
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dear Madam Speaker,
I am nothing more than a citizen concerned with the policies and decisions of the Bush Administration.
Prior Congresses failed in their duty and obligation to provide Congressional oversight to an administration that abused both executive privilege and the trust of the American people.
When I learned that the House of Representatives decided to go on break WITHOUT renewing the flawed warrantless wiretapping bill, I was relieved.
Thank you Madam Speaker for upholding the rights and freedoms of Americans.
I support your decision to confront the White House on this important matter. Hold the Executive branch and private corporations (AT&T) responsible for their actions. Freedom stands on a foundation of accountability, not secrecy.
--Andy Choens
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Almost Forgot
In the coming days, weeks, months, etc. I will provide updates on the success (or lack thereof) of my conversion of Linux at work. I converted all of my personal computers to Linux more than 5 years ago. I expect this process will be very similar. I will find some things very hard to do but I will figure out how to succeed. In the process I will learn more about Linux and computers.
Taking The Open Source Plunge
Today, I spent most of my day installing Kubuntu onto my work laptop. No, I haven't told my boss. Even though the hard-drive is a miserly 40 GB, I decided to partition it and install Kubuntu. A fait accompli will be easier to deal with that asking for permission. :-)
I am sick and tired of trying to get work done in an environment (Windows) that is clearly not meant to help me get my work done. The default installed tools are clearly inadequate. MS Office, while faster than OpenOffice.org, drives me bonkers.
Since starting at this company, I have successfully avoided using Outlook, etc. For almost 6 months, I have used FireFox, Thunderbird, jEdit, and other open-source tools. But, I missed Konqi, Kate, and the other tools I have been using regularly for years.
Because of some bad sectors on the hard-drive and my own overly cautious reactions, it took me most of the day to install Kubuntu. I'm still in the process of importing calendars, contacts, and other important information but most of the conversion is complete.
Right now I have 90% of the tools I need for my job. I am a policy analyst for a consulting firm that specializes in human services. Here is how I plan on getting my work done.
Browser - Konqueror, FireFox (More than adequate.)
Pim / Email - Kontact (I will miss some things from the T-bird + Lightning combo I was using.)
Documents - Writer
Spreadsheets - Calc
Access Database - umm, reboot and use Access . . . . . . .
Statistics - R-CRAN (Rkward, Kate, Rcmdr), Qalculate, Gnumeric
That pretty much covers what I need. Of course, I will also be using (and loving) Amarok and the other great KDE tools. Too bad I don't really have room to install all of my favorite KDE toys!
I am sick and tired of trying to get work done in an environment (Windows) that is clearly not meant to help me get my work done. The default installed tools are clearly inadequate. MS Office, while faster than OpenOffice.org, drives me bonkers.
Since starting at this company, I have successfully avoided using Outlook, etc. For almost 6 months, I have used FireFox, Thunderbird, jEdit, and other open-source tools. But, I missed Konqi, Kate, and the other tools I have been using regularly for years.
Because of some bad sectors on the hard-drive and my own overly cautious reactions, it took me most of the day to install Kubuntu. I'm still in the process of importing calendars, contacts, and other important information but most of the conversion is complete.
Right now I have 90% of the tools I need for my job. I am a policy analyst for a consulting firm that specializes in human services. Here is how I plan on getting my work done.
Browser - Konqueror, FireFox (More than adequate.)
Pim / Email - Kontact (I will miss some things from the T-bird + Lightning combo I was using.)
Documents - Writer
Spreadsheets - Calc
Access Database - umm, reboot and use Access . . . . . . .
Statistics - R-CRAN (Rkward, Kate, Rcmdr), Qalculate, Gnumeric
That pretty much covers what I need. Of course, I will also be using (and loving) Amarok and the other great KDE tools. Too bad I don't really have room to install all of my favorite KDE toys!
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Open Source Tools
One area of computers that really really interests me is how I can integrate open source software in my own personal work-flow at work. I work as a researcher/policy analyst for a small consulting firm. We specialize in research and policy in the human services field. As an avid Linux user it is _killing_ me to use Windows at work. I have every intention of replacing Windows with Kubuntu at my first real opportunity. But, before I do that, I need to meet a few criteria:
I am also learning R this week. I have decided to focus my efforts on the JGR (Java R GUI) and RKward. RKward isn't cross platform (yet) but it does appear to be a powerful R interface. JGR has the advantage of being distributed within R-CRAN itself and is completely cross platform, thanks to Java. This week I am going to focus my efforts at work on JGR and learn RKward in my free time at home.
As for Access, I am exploring Kexi in the KOffice packages for migration and I am interested in learning more about virtualization. At some point I need to put Kubuntu onto this laptop and make a stronger commitment to my open source ideals.
- Microsoft Office Compatibility - I don't mean similar, I mean EXACT. OOo currently has some real weaknesses (highlight, bullets to name a few) that limits my ability to use it at work.
- Access - Related to #1, but needs to be separate. We use Access for everything. Clients often send us data packets in Access files and we have literally hundreds of data sets from past projects stored in this format. Any migration solution that does not GUARANTEE continued access to this information is dead in the water.
- Exchange - Our groupware server is currently running Horde but we may switch to Exchange in the coming months. If we do, I need a client side solution for my email, calendar, etc.
- SPSS - We mostly use SPSS for data analysis. I think R can become a drop-in replacement for SPSS but I need to learn it.
- Cross Platform - I want to help move the company away from it's reliance on the Microsoft beast. In order to do this, I need to be able to give people specific tools they can use on Windows AND Linux in order to help make the transition smoother.
I am also learning R this week. I have decided to focus my efforts on the JGR (Java R GUI) and RKward. RKward isn't cross platform (yet) but it does appear to be a powerful R interface. JGR has the advantage of being distributed within R-CRAN itself and is completely cross platform, thanks to Java. This week I am going to focus my efforts at work on JGR and learn RKward in my free time at home.
As for Access, I am exploring Kexi in the KOffice packages for migration and I am interested in learning more about virtualization. At some point I need to put Kubuntu onto this laptop and make a stronger commitment to my open source ideals.
Adirondacks Ice
Feb. 2 - 3 was my first ice climbing trip in the Daks. We drove up to the Chapel Pond area and climbed Chapel Pond Slab (W2) Chouinard's Gully (W3) and a short but fun W4-.
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