Older blog entries for AlanHorkan (starting at number 150)

6 Jan 2005 (updated 6 Jan 2005 at 19:54 UTC) »
Be nice
Dave Neary wrote an excellent comment that says many things I have wanted to say for a long time. Coincidentally it seems very relevant that mirwin posted a link to Shirkys writings about groupthink.
Open Source and Free Software developers tend to have very low opinions of Marketing and Management because of some of the low-lifes they have to deal with in their professional capacity. Unfortunately some people go to the other extreme and fail to realise the importance of being nice. Even a non-paying users is still your customer and more importantly each satisfied users is a potentially developer for your project. Helping to spread positive word of mouth is possibly the simplest contribution anyone can make to a project. The Network Effect suggests that the more people you have using something the more useful it becomes, more users means more potential contributors. Anything that discourages more users from getting involved is a bad thing. Some might say that more users will make things difficult to manage, but the beauty of the benovolent dictator and what makes a project successful is when they can harness the flood of users to help the project and manage to make it easier for programmers to get on with programming. A clear purpose and understanding of your target users helps make it easier to direct outside contributors to get involved.
I think it is essential to be nice to users, it is all to easy for those of us who are enthusiastic about Free Software to forget that unlike us most oridinary users will go elsewhere or simply not bother if the software doesn't Just Work.
5 Jan 2005 (updated 5 Jan 2005 at 19:44 UTC) »
Lemony Snickets a Series of Unfortunate Events

Jim Carrey shamelessly hams it up. If you are not a fan of Jim Carrey you may find this performance annoying but I certainly enjoyed it. Remarkably the child actors are not annoying. There is an all star cast full of many recognisable actors and actresses although some are in very minor parts (Dustin Hoffman makes a brief appearance).

The art is fabulous, the painted backdrops very convincingly create the quirky looking world of Lemony Snicket. Even the end credits are beautifully animated. I suspect that these people have worked with Tim Burton in the past.

This is great for a childrens movie and reasonably entertaining for adults. Parents might want to be careful if their children are very young or easily scared but as someone who devoured every Roald Dahl books I could get my hands on, I am very glad to see childrens stories with a bit of menace in them. I'd give it 4/5 and I think this is a film I will enjoy watching over again in years to come.

Neal Stephenson
Last week I read both Snow Crash and Diamond Age. Despite being extremely pessimistic about cyberpunk stories I enjoyed Snow Crash and thought it was quite clever but I think I would have enjoyed it more if I were able to read it in half that time (like I used to be able to). Diamond Age ended abruptly which was annoying and unsatisfying but I enjoyed it in quite a different way from Snow Crash because The Young Ladies Illustrated Primer (as Diamond Age is also known) felt more like a modern fairytale and was much easier to read and the story not burdened with as half as much jargon and technobabble.

Ice Skating
Having already gone skating with the group from Trampolining I had an urge to go again. Ireland is not a very cold place so skating on an actual pond or lake is never going to happen, and for many years the only Ice rink on the whole island has been the one in Belfast so the two temporary ice rinks setup in Dublin for Christmas are a big deal (and relatively expensive). Despite only taking out my rollerblades once or twice I year I really do enjoy skating and I have been meanging to finally learn to skate backwards properly. On Wednesday evening (29th December) I wandered to the RDS to check the times and see when the off peak times were. Unfortunately there were no longer any off peak times but I was lucky enough to notice that local station TV3 were filming part of their breakfast show there early the next morning. In return fora modest donation (far less than the standard ticket price) to the ISPCC and helping to make the place look busy I would get three hours of skating. I decided it was worth getting up at 7 am for and I was skating before the day had even dawned. Three hours skating was a bit much but by the end of it I was able to skate backwards and skate complete laps around the rink backwards (the rink was relatively small, maybe half a hockey field and there was a Christmas tree right in the middle).
5 Jan 2005 (updated 25 Apr 2005 at 13:59 UTC) »
Chrismas Eve
I was away last year and I missed out on our traditional Christmas Eve in the local pub with old school friends but this year it was back to Smyths (formerly O'Briens) of Ranelagh. Maybe it was the red shirt and festive tie I was wearing but the barman asked for proof of age. I resisted the temptation to say we had been drinking there since we were sixteen and he was surprised when I turned out to be older than he was (I'm twenty-four). It was a chance to bump into friends I hadn't seen in months, some I hadn't seen since this regular gathering two years previously and many pints were drunk and even more stories were told. In an unlikely turnaround one of my old friends (an Olympic sailor incedentally) has started teaching. I suppose it makes sense in a way, he knows all the tricks they might try and get away with. The night was finished off according to our own tradition with songs, including a rendition of Happy Birthday Jesus.
After the pub it was onwards to Midnight Mass and then home to sleep and dream of snow.

Chrismas Day
The predictions came true and there was a light snowfall on Christmas Day (which didn't stick). Although there was not enough snow to win any bets at the bookies, I still think it of it as the first White Christmas we've had in years.
An Irish Breakfast never seemed to me like the best idea after a night of Guinness so I ate an ordinary breakfast (cereal, toast and tea) and put aside some sausages and bacon for an early lunch. Christmas dinner is at 4 o'clock in theory but going without lunch, waiting until I am starving and then eating massive amounts of food all in one sitting has never really appealed to me. I had also planned promised myself (since two years previously) I would run the GOAL Mile and I knew I'd feel better with several smaller meals.
The GOAL Mile involves making a small donation to charity and then seeing how long it takes you to run a mile, four laps around the running track at University College Dublin on Christmas morning with a group of runners setting off every 25 minutes. I never quite got around to doing any training during the year as I had hoped but I'm not too unfit thanks to regular cycling and other incidental excercise. The previous night while I was under the affluence of incahol the sceptics didn't I was likely to run the mile in under ten minutes. As we started running it began to snow, as I ran my hands became heavier and heavier like great big clubs. I was glad to be wearing a tracksuit and an extra shirt unlike my older brother who had decided to run in shorts. I managed to complete the mile in eight minutes thirty-seven seconds. Brian, my older more athletic brother beat his previous time of over six minutes with a time of five minutes thirty five. Although I am unlikely to ever run a four minute mile and even six minute mile seems a long way off, I think that with a little practice and milder weather it shouldn't be too difficult to get my time under eight minutes. I set a challenge for myself and I completed it. It was very satisfying and I'm glad I did it, it was a good way to start the day and at the same time raise money for charity.
Guessing the contents of presents before unwrapping them is always fun. My younger brother had mentioned that he had gotten me something he was sure I'd like and had left me wondering all week what it was. I had it my hands and gave it a shake, thought about it a moment and then calmly stated "LEGO". The sound suggested the pieces were small and light, more like LEGO technic than big blocks, so having shaken the package some more and considered my brothers assumption that I would like it, I again calmly stated "Star Wars LEGO". My younger brother was unimpressed but I was well pleased to open it and discover I had guessed correctly. I greatly enjoyed spending many hours (too many) building the lego R2-D2 but mysteriously had more than a few leftover peices when I was done.
(Lots more ordinary Christmas activities happened which I may fill in later when I'm less busy. Or maybe not.)

23 Dec 2004 (updated 5 Jan 2005 at 19:52 UTC) »
Saved!
Lacked bite, but good.

Blade: Trinity
Lacked soul, bloody awful.
I liked the preview two Blade films but this was dire, it was painful. The whole film clunks along from one stupid piece of dialog to the next. This is movie is so bad that Irish reviewers will probably say it is savage or brutual and some smart-ass will put that as a quote on the box to mislead British people into watching it (those little Irish colloquialisms have been exploited in the past).
Blade Trinity is as unfunny as Jessica Biel is hot.
Blade Trinity is as stupid as Jessica Biel is sexy.
There is an unrevealing shower scene with Jessica Biel in it, confirming that this film is aimed at squarely teenage boys as if the incessant pointless profanity and the stupid casting of wrestler Triple H. hadn't already made it obvious enough. And Van Wilder Vampire Slayer? What the hell where the casting people thinking? Were they even thinking? There was some really obtrusive product placement for portable mp3 music players from a certain fruit company which only added to how truly awful and obnoxious this film was.
When I say this film is not funny I mean that only laughs you will get out of this film will be from laughing at how bad it is, I wasn't the only one laughing. (Resident Evil 2 was bad but still better than this.)

Merchant of Venice.
Might have better to have been called the Moneylender of Venice as Al Pacino dominates as Shylock. I usually enjoy Shakespeare and this was no exception. In comparison to a full stage play this was relatively short but it still seemed very long compared to the averge film. I had a few good laughs at some of the British actors some of whom were a very surprising bit of casting. There was some gratuitous nudity - the prostitutes of Venice showing off their wares - but it was brief and their was no real violence. If this were a modern film it would be a romantic story combining with a courtroom drama.
Certainly there was plenty going on and it really held my attention the whole time. Good if you like this sort of thing (Shakespeare), but I'm not sure it was good enough to reach a wider audience.

23 Dec 2004 (updated 18 Jan 2005 at 15:43 UTC) »

I let my mother cut my hair. (Yes I am twenty-four years old and still living at home. Sigh!) It actually turned out okay as she resisted the temptation to give me the hair cut she wanted and instead only cut off a little around the edges as requested. I am now marginally less scruffy looking.

Ugh. Christmas Shopping. The highlight of traipsing around crowded shops carrying heaving bags was when I saw a hot blonde I thought I recognised and to my surprise she winked at me and flashed a naughty little smile. I was very pleasantly surprised and caught off gaurd I panicked a little as I couldn't remember her name and so instead of stopping and talking I kept on walking. A few minutes later I was eventually able to recall the name of the lovely Aisling but it was too late. Oh well, with any luck I'll bump into her on campus when term restarts.

Thank Poland! Software patents will not be crippling Europeans just yet.

14 Dec 2004 (updated 29 Sep 2006 at 13:36 UTC) »
The GNU Image Manipulation Program, a.k.a The GIMP
If I were a wiser man and wanted an easier life I would not get myself involved in dicussions like these (and again about the name). I've recently noticed an increase in the number of people complaining about the name of the GIMP and for the first time someone was bothered enough by the name to file a bug report requesting the name of the GIMP should be changed.
Despite knowing from the start that it was a losing arguement and was likely to be contentious I wanted to know once and for all why the name was so important and why patches that made it easier for others to change the name for themselves would not even be accepted. Note that I am not trying to get the project itself to change name as this would be far too complicated and require changing all sorts of code and documentation and the website, and I knew it was extremely unlikely this would ever happen. All I was asking was why patches that would allow users to reconfigure the name more easily would not be accepted. Sven Neumann was kind enough to clearly explain how the brand was important and how they wanted to keep it strong and that even making it easier to change the name would might hurt the strength of the brand. It was also made clear that they did not wish to encourage commercial development of the GNU Image manipulation program.
The dicussion also taught me a new meaning of the word gimp, as I never knew it was used to describe a type of "narrow flat braid or rounded cord".
All things considered it went fairly well - for a discussion that no one really wanted to have - but I'm glad I brought it up and that we now have clear and definitive answers for the next time anyone asks about changing the name of the GNU Image Manipulation Program (i.e. it is never going to happen and if you want to change it you absolutely will need to fork or at least maintain your own patches).
Ha ha ha ha ha! Hilarious.
Microsoft normally makes me cry out of frustration but this makes me laugh.
11 Dec 2004 (updated 1 Dec 2005 at 19:14 UTC) »

Over the past few weeks I've done quite a few things but not written about them here.

I went to hear Senator John McCain speak at Trinity College Dublin as a guest of the University Philosophical Society. I rejoined the University Trampolining Club. I met beautiful people and made friends with strangers. I went ice-skating. I watched the Duellists, the Wraith, and probably a few other films I cannot recall right now. I'm also helping choose the Splash screen for version 2.2 of the GNU Image Manipulation Program.

Grand Old Party
Last year Republican and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich came and spoke to the University Philosophical Society (the Phil for short). Mr. Gingrich was a consumate politician, well spoken and very slick and able to quickly respond to any comments off the cuff.
The crowd was much bigger for Senator John Mc. Cain easily filling the Ed Burke lecture theatre (the largest in Trinity) but unfortunately his prewritten introductory speech was fairly dry, I don't imagine he had the opportunity to rehearse it much. Although not entirely his fault I admit I was falling asleep during this part of his address (I had run straight from a Trampolining session and hadn't eaten in hours) but things got much better when it came to questions and answers from an interviewer and the audience. I'd have to say I think Newt Gingrich was a slightly better speaker but what struck me as remarkable about John Mc Cain was that unlike most politicians he was hardly evasive at all and actually answered the questions asked (wherease Mr Gingrich was very evasive).
This was particulary note-worthy because just the previous week our own Taoiseach Bertie Ahern* had spoken at the Phil but shamefully absconded without allowing any opportunity for questions and answers. Protests had been considered but the more pragmatic approach of actively engaging in dicussion was chosen instead so quite a few people were furious to be so rudely ignored and the event exploited as a photo opportunity. While most guests are in a hurry to dodge questions McCain actually requested that the questions and answer session continue and go over time.
Aside from being refreshingly forthright about his opinions Senator McCain also managed to be funny and although I believe he was reusing an old joke (from the Tonight Show with Jay Leno I was told) they were at least new to us.

As a prisoner of war I was kept in the dark and fed on scraps. Why would I want to do that again?
the response of Senator John McCain when asked if he would ever consider becoming Vice President.
Mr. Colm Green listed some of the slanders that the Bush campaign team had thrown at Senator McCain during the 2000 presidentail race and asked which of these insults was it that convinced him to help campaign for Bush in 2004? Always the pragmatic polician Senator McCain didn't provide the Bush baiting the audience had been hoping for. He replied that he thought the candidates were very similar and that his voting record shows he agrees with Bush more often than he agrees with Kerry and that he considered Bush was the better candidate. He also made it clear that despite his disagreements that he did agree with Bush on many issues and that he would be doing his constituents a disservice if he were to still hold a grudge about the 2000 presidential campaign.
Senator McCain was asked what he might have done differently after September 11th and he made very diplomatic comments about not second guessing things with perfect hindsight and pointed to the success in Afghanistan but of the things he said the one that I found most interesting was his desire to encourage people in to voluntary public service and he suggested that he would have pushed for people to sign up to the Peace Core and to fight terrorism from the bottom up by making the world a better place. I feel I should mention that someone in the audience made a specific point about explaining how the Irish people had gone from having the deepest sympathies for Americans after September 11 to thousands of normal ordinary people protesting on the streets against George W. Bush and there was not anti-Americanism so much as their protest was against George W. Bush (a point of view which I am pretty sure almost half of American voters understand).
The evening was sponsored by Diagio (makers of Guinness) and there was a grand old party** after the meeting. There was a selection of free drinks available and all kinds of snack laid out on the table, even a cheese plate and crackers! This was by far the most up-market reception I had ever seen at the Phil. The free Guiness was good so I can only assume it was that last pint of Budweiser that finished off the end of the evening that required I make a call to God on the big white porcelain phone.
The Trinty News covered the visit of John McCain to Trinity

* Taoiseach is an Irish word literally meaning leader, and the political office is equivalent to Prime Minister.
** I shouldn't need to explain this reference, but in case anyone is in any doubt I am well aware what it means.

Trampolining
Trampolining is a lot of fun and harder than it looks. It also happens to be one of the few activities that fits in with my timetable. When I'm not feeling sore and a little overstreched in muscles I hardly knew I had, I am feeling a lot healthier as a result of the extra exercise and I have gotten to know a good crowd of new people (although some of them worry me, like Karl the Christmas Decoration Kleptomaniac). As the group now has three Alans there is a threat of my getting a dubious nickname.
The group went ice skating last night, as the temporary ice rink was nearby to where I live I went along to watch. As I had thought the tickets were all prebooked I didn't expect to get the chance to go skating (and I'm permanently penniless at the moment anyway). In a wonderful gesture of Christmas spirit a women who had hurt her back and was unable to go skating with the rest of her office party very generously gave me her ticket and I was out in the ice like a flash.


Thursday was the Phil Christmas party and Kathleen twisted my arm and convinced me to enjoy the free booze and chocolate biscuits. There were lots of young and beautiful people there, with all the new fresh faces I was momentarily reminded of my age and the realisation how Trinity was in many ways completely different from when I started but in others still very much the same.

7 Dec 2004 (updated 22 Apr 2005 at 17:45 UTC) »
Ants and Bees
Normally I loathe acronyms because so often they are completely unnecessary and merely allow the author to be a little bit lazier and make things more difficult for their audience to understand. Scientists and Engineers have a habit of using complicated techinical words to make themselves seem smarter and to exclude otherwise intelligent people when in fact their inability to explain the more complex words in simpler ways shows their lack of intelligence. Computer Science is something that is "easy when you know how" but has a very steep learning curve until you eventually do figure things out, so it is particularly annoying when people needlessly complicate subjects with pointless acronyms and horde some piece of knownledge because they got there first. Sometimes I have cringed with embarassment at the tragic comedy of lecturers going on at great length to do little more than expand acronyms and explain moderately complicated English words.
Despite all that there are times when acronyms can be used effectively. Terms like Laser, Radar and Scuba are all fairly easily pronouncable and have come to stand on their own so much so that people are hard pressed to explain what they stand for (and even in the case of Scuba, Aqua Lung is a far more expressive term).
The reason I mention this is that in the Sunday newspapers I read about a survey by Novell about managing business security. They describe two signficant categories of people who are the cause of many security problems and they manage to do so using memorable acronyms that both describe the behaviours of these groups and serve as a memorable metaphor at the same time. One group was described as Apathetic Non-Techinical Staff (ANTS), the other group (with a slightly more contrived acronym) was described as Busy Empolyees Endangering Security (BEES). Having seen those attitudes before I was well impressed that someone was able to sum up the problem in so clear and succint a way. Whoever at Novell that wrote the report did an excellent job and that is a very significant amount of writing skill and serious thought to be putting into that kind of work.

This Slashdot discussion about literacy in coporate America furthers the point that time saved by sloppy writing is far outweighed by the how it wastes other peoples time.

Odds are I've made many grammar, spelling and punctuation errors in this message. That's Moens Law of Corrections for you.

141 older entries...

New Advogato Features

New HTML Parser: The long-awaited libxml2 based HTML parser code is live. It needs further work but already handles most markup better than the original parser.

Keep up with the latest Advogato features by reading the Advogato status blog.

If you're a C programmer with some spare time, take a look at the mod_virgule project page and help us with one of the tasks on the ToDo list!