Ionrock Dot Org

I don't know what is about having a computer outside of your home that makes a person want to share what is going on in their own life. I really think there is some research possibilities there that could be very interesting. Once again I find myself at the Diner and using the free wireless. Yes I have a test tomorrow and I know I should be studying. But, I also have Sonic Youth's Murry Street playing and a killer headache (unrelated). The obvious thing to do is to take a minute to clear my head with a little blogging.

It is funny because while I am sure I am somewhat addicted to computers, still realize that there are some pretty interesting benefits. Mobile computing is a pretty revolutionary idea. The fact that you can walk around and have the capability of processing 1024 bit numbers in a mere few seconds or two is pretty mind boggling when not too long ago such numbers were completely out of reach. I understand they are just numbers but, the implications are still there. These numbers make it possible to display text, play media, process information and communicate across the globe. To think that I am sitting in a room with about 10 other people who have this capability (in fact more as my laptop is pretty weak) is a pretty amazing thing.

I remember in my IST 110 class, the intro course to IST where they teach you that you are going to work in groups and like it... darn it, we gave a presentation about the car of the future. My ideas were obviously lost on the crowds as I could see the bewilderment in their eyes throughout our presentation. Nonetheless, I feel we did predict the future regarding mobile computing. One of our assumptions was regarding network access. We are hearing more and more about wi-fi access for free in cities and in some rural communities. It is just a matter of time before networks become all but common place and some would argue they already are. Anyway, we made the assumption that each and every processor would have the capability to be a small hub of sorts. Each electronic device would have an address that would allow transparent communication wirelessly to any other device in an anonymous fashion in order to provide wireless access to all. Each network would eventually reach some central servers for things like dns type services and most homes would be hardwired to some central Internet as we currently know it. Such a network would allow vast amounts of information to be sent to people very quickly, making things like cable or videos (in the blockbuster sense of the word) virtually the same.

Now I know someone must be saying to themselves, "Eric!!! You are a genius!" and yes you are correct! But really I think these ideas are already out there with things like bluetooth that do essentially what I am talking about. With the commercial gains already lost to some venture capitalist, the question becomes what does this mean from a social context. I think the fact that I am producing this blog at the moment is proof enough that there will be quite a bit of information out there to sink your teeth, gums, most of your face, a good portion of your limbs and possibly your torso into. I don't think this is bad but I do think that it is different. Up until this point media and information from a digital standpoint has revolved around the person producing the signal or content. The future puts the lens on those actually creating the content. Musicians, artists, directors, etc. will all have some serious competition with very little profit. What is good is competition. Some truly amazing inspiring things can rise to the surface while most will just be able to put a pretty face on crap. It will be exciting.

So, what does it all mean? I don't know and I don't care too terribly much. I am not going to let my kids have their own computer and I will hopefully be pretty jaded with the whole technological culture at that time so I can think more about making good music and developing advanced technology because it is interesting. I also will be playing with my kids a ton and driving a van. A big plushy van, baby.

So today and yesterday I have taken my laptop to The Diner for some wireless access. This has been the first place I have gotten my laptop to work with a router since installing debian. Given, I have kind of slacked on the time I have spent messing around with it at other locations. I am just glad to know it works at this point. I also have found that I am much more interested in blogging when I am away from home. I think when I am at home there is just nothing new. Here at the diner though there is a plethora of culture to take in (yes I said "plethora"). Actually, I think the real reason has to do with the fact that I have no wolfenstein: enemy territory to sway my attention from real work. Once I again I find myself in the shadows of hypocrisy as I have always considered gaming to be a utterly useless waste of computer resources when there were other things like compiling to be done. I guess as I get older and code more I realize that my world is much less intellectual than I would think.

This is just fine with me. As a young man in high school I believe I had a real issue with looking down on people. At the time I was still quick to notice it but even in my noticing my prejudice I took pride that I could see my own weakness. A truly recursive issue, this quest for perfection. In any sense I am glad that I do this less and less as time goes on. It is a tiring task to constantly think you are better than others when the truth is you are only as good as yourself... Yup, I am getting lamer by the second. I am going to quit blogging for tonight because I fear I will get even more caught up in the madness.

On a quick side note, I am wondering if this blog actual helps my writing. I know I take a minute at times to think of interesting things to say but I wonder if I am improving as a writer. Time will tell.... oh yes! Time WILL tell! (I am grounding myself from this blog for a while...)

I have been learning python and it is an absolute joy. I had read quite a bit about it and how elegant and "smart" a language it is. There was an article that said great thinkers in computer science use python and the author of "The Cathedral and the Bazaar" was also very enthusiastic about it. The turning point for me was actually having a good reason to learn the language. With the research I am doing with NIKE, we decided python could be a very good option. I was a little biased just because I knew I wanted to learn it and I have little to no interest in learning perl (and yes I know perl is very similar to php).

Since I really didn't know python at all except for a few small hello world examples and such, I figured I should get on the stick and learn something about it. Well tonight I am proud to say that I have successfully connected to a database and parsed a little xml. I am pumped to say the least. It was extremely easy to get in the flow of the language. What has stood out the most is the efficiency. Python is really like reading a good book that will never be made into a movie. You just have to read it to understand.

I still am not totally qualified to make criticism regarding python but I really think I will not have much criticism to make when the time comes. Already the benefits of python have been apparent. I am becoming accustomed to the documentation and things are working well for me. I still need to get some system admin stuff working but overall, it has been simple and elegant fun. Try it out.

I wanted to give a quick hello to anyone coming here from the NIKE page. I am doing some research with Dongwon Lee and having a great time in process.

I am specifically wasting time. I have been working and coding all day and I am pooped. Enough is enough. I need to waste some time and what is the biggest time waster of all? Blogging of course! I have realized I have a definite dislike of blogger culture. Now this does not mean I dislike bloggers or anything remotely close to this kind of thought. I am not spreading a blanket of negativity about blogging or those who partake in the conversation that is blogging. With that said, it just feels like a huge waste of time. There are instances where blogging is very effective and useful. The many "bloggers" who publish articles about how to write code, design sites, write better, etc. Then there are those who keep a diary of their experiences along with clever stories and such. These kinds of blogs can be a joy to read and offer a bit of fun throughout the day.

What gets on my nerves is those who are a part of this designer/blogger scene that gossip and remark on the culture as though it really matters. Again, call me a hypocrite since this is exactly what I so often do here. The big difference is I really don't care and my posts are not very important. I don't really care that much about getting readers. In fact I almost enjoy my ambiguity because this blog is more of a scratchpad of sorts than actual published content.

What got me thinking about this is this. I found it on Matt's site. It is some blogger criticizing Paul Scrivins (sp?) because of his, so called "controversial" opinions. Now I have read his site(s) and it has its ups and downs. But lets get real, he is talking about a select group of hip designers and saying whether or not he likes or dislikes their work. This is not very important and it is nothing to get excited about. It is definitly not something that tons of people should take the time to comment on. My point here is that too manypeople are taking the time to read all these blogs, write comments, etc., when there are better things to do.

Ok, I know. I am a big fat hypocrite. I plead the 5th.

This weekend Lauren and I went to Philidelphia to see Deerhoof with some friends. The show was great and it was really nice to get out of State College. After the show (it ended at 11:30 pm), we hung out with our friend's friends (I liked the illiteration there). They were really great people and we ended up staying at their place that night. They had an enormous place. It was like a small grocery store with ultra cheap rent. When I hang out with people that really have a "space" instead of an apartment it makes me wonder if I am getting enough art in my diet. Lauren and I are pretty basic kids who don't really do much when it comes to art. We are definite fans and I think we can talk a very nice talk about "real art" yet, I sometimes wish I had a more consistant relationship with art.

It is almost childish to think that being around art more will somehow make your life better or make you a more interesting person. Think kind of thinking does not make much sense because it discounts anything you do as unimportant. It is understandable to think that working on discovering web services and learning programming languages is not the most important thing in the world. At the same time, these things are not simple or easy. Whether or not I need more art in my life I would like to try to make some adjustments in this regard. I would like to push myself to decorate our apartment. I would like to consider dressing a little nicer. I would even like to consider getting a better haircut....

I completely lost my train of thought and after reading what little text I typed I realize that I just can't blog at the moment. It is just too annoying at the moment. The one thing I would like to say (I will probably edit this blog at some point b/c of its pointless nature), I am way into Qdoba. Any restaurant that understands the importance of cilantro is ok in my book.