The Knurled Knob and the Sprocket

Computing in the early 1990s was an honest, full-contact discipline anchored in heavy gauge steel and unyielding physics. Setting up an eight-line bulletin board system at the Higher Colleges of Technology meant seating an intelligent, processor-backed Galactiboard into an ISA slot with orthopedic force to stop DOS from choking on IRQ traffic. The hardware demanded respect and drew blood. Every channel terminated in a white, USRobotics Sportster Series modem, complete with nine square red LEDs, microscopic configuration DIP switches on the belly pan, and an analog volume thumbwheel with genuine mechanical resistance. Dropping a tiny zinc 6-32 machine screw into the chassis meant hoisting a thirty-pound tower over your head and shaking it violently to keep loose metal off the motherboard traces. It was loud, your knuckles took a beating, and the room smelled of warm phenolic resin, but every problem had a tangible, physical address you could conquer with a screwdriver and a Centronics wire bail latch.

The transition to modern silicon promised liberation from that mechanical grind, but it merely replaced tactile honesty with sealed, capacitive sterility. The industry swept away the knurled brass knobs, the viscous analog potentiometers, and the heavy 50-pin SCSI termination blocks, replacing them with fragile wafers of glass and microscopic USB-C leaves that buckle under pocket lint. Yet eliminating the physical friction did nothing to reduce the operational drag. Instead of diagnosing crossed serial lines once with a breakout box, the user is now sentenced to an endless loop of multi-factor authentication prompts, silent background sync failures, overnight firmware regressions, and the neurotic chore of keeping lithium-ion cells balanced between forty and eighty-eight percent. The blood on the chassis edges disappeared, but it was exchanged for a chronic, low-boil administrative irritation delivered through a smudge-prone touchscreen.

This trade-off exposes the fundamental joke of the Jetson Paradox, which we mocked as 1960s pop satire only to build it in full corporate reality. William Hanna and Joseph Barbera understood that no matter how thoroughly you automate the factory, the absurdity of human toil remains entirely intact. George Jetson sky-commuted three thousand feet above ground level to work a three-hour shift at Spacely Space Sprockets, only to collapse in agony from pushing a single red starter button. We spent forty years polishing the heavy iron into invisible cloud portals, naively expecting that frictionless tools would deliver an unburdened life. We automated the copper bus, banished the mechanical clatter of the spindle, and shrunk the mainframe into our pockets, only to find ourselves exhausted by the exact same hollow busywork while Spacely's digital cogs spin endlessly on a finger-smudged screen.

Taxes are the Only Filing I Do Nowadays

Our Air France flight landed at our airport a week ago! Well, that surely seems like a quick seven days!

   

I just discovered I first mentioned doing income taxes in this journal twenty years ago! In those days I had to load the software by using a CD ROM.  I don't know which is more amazing, the changes in technology or the fact I'm still adding journal entries to the SAME blogger.com account.

The weather looked a lot like the photo during most of the day.  It's nearly 7:00 pm and just about the same.  We did run uptown to the Walmart but I am most happy with the fact, I NETFILED both of our 2024 tax season returns this afternoon.  I already got back the 'Notice of Assessments'.

The KISS Principle in Action

The Sri Lankan house dog called, Browna in 2004.

Day 59 - "Keep It Simple, Stupid"   That might have been coined 60 years ago by the US Navy for system design, but it was commonly used in my profession too.  I taught Technical English to adult, second-language learners.  Okay, I often substituted the final word as "Students" when in the classroom! Or I just ran around between the tables making kissing sounds on my right arm.

The goal of most business and technical language situations is focused on getting something done.  Avoiding ambiguity is key.  So, my students had to quit trying to impress me with obscure vocabulary and use a variety of sentence structures that usually tended to be less complex and more to the point.  As it turns out,  it is pretty damned hard explaining something well using short, concise language structures.  It's difficult to put complex thoughts into straightforward text.

I was thinking of these things as I noticed my blog post of two days ago seemed simplistic.  I saw how I had repeated some words over and over, especially the term, Sri Lankan dogs.

I wondered if many teachers are using software text analysis nowadays.  I recall, we ran reading exercises through a Windows application called RightWriter in the Foundations Program at the UAE Higher Colleges of Technology in the early 1990s.

Now, of course, a similar analysis is available for free online.  I put my blog post through Text Inspector and did come up with a Flesch Kincaid grade level score of below sixth grade.  I was pleased.  I was quite pleased!  Remember, this is one scale where it's usually much better to score low.

Let Me Pass!

My passwords were a complete mess.  I knew a few had been kicking around since my days with MS Internet Explorer.  There were site-duplicates that had been imported over the years, as I paraded through a long list of browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, and my current Chromium-based MS Edge.  I had never used the same password for different sites but came up with a clever mnemonic solution to keep them all unique.  However, the length and allowed complexity of allowed passwords has increased.

This week, I took a plunge by installing a password manager.  Bitwarden was an obvious choice as it is free.  Getting rid of the passwords saved over the years by Google and now MS Edge was painfully slow and irksome.  It took even longer to devise a longer password convention to keep each site memorable enough so that I can still login without a crutch.  Next, I set out to change every single one.  I sometimes enjoy repetitive, mindless, and time-consuming tasks.  It's a gift.

As it stands right now, I have nearly 100 different credentials for Internet use.  This is because I was able to weed out more than 30% of the former sites I no longer visit.  It feels much better being organized even if it involves things that remain mostly unseen.

I Guess Wasting Time is Fine

I never use the standard navigation in my 2019 Hyundai KONA Electric. I found the system was really clunky and not very helpful. The car is compatible with Android Auto, so I use the better and much more familiar way to get around. It seems my phone can take me anywhere I want to go. Plus, I can listen to Spotify or talk with my Google Assistant about life. I really don't know why car companies try unsuccessfully to create their own software systems and poorly reinvent the same wheel.

However, I saw in a FB forum that the new Hyundai North American maps were available for download. I didn't believe the instructions when they said it'd take an hour!  I can do a lot of work on a computer in an hour.  Now, I can clearly see why Tesla and its automatic software patches are a thing of beauty. The instructions alone to update my maps were nine pages.  Oh wait, that was just the part to get my download. Another seven pages of instructions tell me how to install once in have the SD card and I'm in the vehicle.

The MnSOFT Map Downloader v2.0.14.0 seemed like it might be a breeze. It unzips files directly onto the SD card. However, the software finished part of the process and simply vanished from my screen when only 6.6% was complete.  I'm sure they don't want to cache the data because it is proprietary.  I had to keep trying to get the complete download at least a half dozen more times.  It was a great pleasure when it finally hit 100% after 7:00 pm.



I guess I'll try the rest of the installation in the car tomorrow!

One of the Certainties

Day 128 - Right off the bat this morning, one accomplishment was I filed our Canadian tax returns. Honestly, it is getting easier and easier. In Canada, I never did our taxes without software. In the late 90s, I remember buying boxed versions to print out the forms. I'd then, drop them off at a tax center in Surrey, BC. I started e-filing as soon as that became an option in the early 2000s. Even then, doing taxes was a struggle as one needed to collect all the forms which arrived by post and type in the data. Even as late as 2015, during our first winter of retirement, I recall arranging for an earlier flight because we had to get back before our tax-filing deadline. Canadians must do so by April 30th.

This year I downloaded my software at the end of January. This was the first time I let TurboTax® suck in all our data directly from the Canada Revenue Agency's website. There were only a few things to add such as our charitable donations. Also each year, I decide if we'd benefit from pension-splitting and a few other options. I reviewed all the numbers even though I didn't have to. We are poor folk, so our taxes are easy.





The weather in Kuala Lumpur is muggy now. We had a huge thunderstorm at around 1:00 this afternoon. Jay took it slow today as he's not feeling well. It is not flu-like but rather probably something he ate. I went out at dusk just to see the Night Market stalls. Every Saturday, on the street behind us, vendors selling food, clothing, and sundry items set up. Crowds come to walk, munch, and gawk. The area near the Masjid India is still going through some street redevelopment. I consider this our part of Kuala Lumpur and I'm glad to see the progress.

Android on the Netbook

Okay. Why would I spend time learning how to override Acer's Windows 10 boot sequence, download an ISO copy of Lollipop, and figure out how to use the Rufus app to created a bootable USB drive?



I guess, 'cause I can. Oh, and it's windy and pouring out.

Guess You'd Call Me, "Old Money"

Familarity doesn't always breed contempt. Although that is the saying, it's also true that we sometimes stick with something because we like it. Such is the case with software I use to track my finances. I have continued to use Microsoft Money right through the company's abandonment of the product. I have too much old data that I don't want to throw away. In fact, a quick check of this blog showed that I was complaining about that more than five years ago. In the intervening period, I've been continuing to plug numbers, nearly daily, into the same piece of software code.



Last week, I hit on a good idea due to having the shiny, new netbook. I thought it'd be better to be able to access the file from the newer computer as well as the faithful work laptop. The cloud of course offers that ability with ease. So, I can just point to the same file on my Skydrive. I found the old CD and installed.

Of course it worked like a charm, but I rather accidentally came across some information on the Internet. It seems that Microsoft has offered a free sunset version of the software since 2010. As they no longer have servers to support the software, they moved the help information to a local file. This final version will never need activation and can be installed without access to an original CD. Kudos, to them for bothering to offer this.

http://www.microsoft.com/en-ca/download/details.aspx?id=20738

Home Suite Home

There was a time I knew MS Office like the back of my hand. I could footnote in Word like a pro. I regularly used Excel for keeping complex, student grades. I even did simple database projects in Access. Now, pretty much the full extent of my time in that suite amounts to reading a few attachments in memos from work.

So, I'm not sure if spending $11 for my home-use license through BCIT was a remarkable bargain or a waste of eleven loonies.

I installed Microsoft Office Professional Plus on two computers this afternoon. It took a whole lot less time to install the current version than it did to uninstall the old Office 2007 programs. I figured I should install the newer version simply to keep up on slightly more modern software packages.

Having to sign in, promises the ability to work from any location and on different devices. Also, perhaps the newer, flat interface is slightly more attractive. At least the colours now better match the rest of the icons on my Win 8.1 netbook.

I can't be alone in my new problem though. I have important files spread over several SkyDrives, a Google Drive account, and Dropbox. It's now harder than ever knowing 'where in the cloud' my files are. So much for making things easier.

Headed Straight to Oblivion

Obliviate the following items from the beginning of time?

A few months back I was amused enough by this Chrome dialog box to post a screen capture on Flickr. I was looking for the method to clean the browser's cache. Thinking a little outside the box keeps people on their toes. You know, it doesn't cost anything to be a little funny. I wish more people, involved in running the world, would take this example to heart.

A Very Social Nerd

I will admit my interests might be considered odd by some. I bet there are oodles of geeks who'd think otherwise though. The reason I'm offering this insight is that I spent a few hours this morning loading an alternate operating system on my netbook. I was not aware that it'd been more than two hours! One learns that if one truly loves an activity, then time seems to fly.

It's taken many years to acknowledge it, but now I'm aware I absolutely love playing with hardware and software. This situation is not shared by the majority my friends and colleagues. To put it more succinctly, I have never personally known another nerd. That's a little sad, I know. I don't consider it a personal problem however; rather, it's just a failing on the part of others.

I teach English to adult learners. I have been doing a similar thing, in different situations, for over 30 years. I would humbly suggest that I have been one of the better classroom instructors in most of the programs in which I've taught. Yet, I have never been able to find colleagues who share my interest in technology. For example, I would think if teaching writing skills, one would desire to be up to date on the latest in Internet social networking. After all, isn't that the place to 'put into practice' all those silly grammar worksheets? I guess not really. Perhaps it is easier to just do things the way one has always done in the past. In my view though, a man or woman with no inclination to learn about technology by playing with it, cannot be a good teacher.



Right now, because the sky is fairly clear, I wanted to go to the park to write this. My phone can act as a 3G wifi spot, so I am typing on the netbook. There's a duck about a meter away looking for things in the grass. So, I guess I'm not the only unusual creature here in Tipperary Park right now. This netbook as served me well for a couple of years. It's one of the very first Acer One models and still going strong. I've not only used it during every class I teach, but slipped it into the end pouch on my carry-on bag when travelling on various continents. It's so old it runs Windows XP.

When playing with Chrome extensions yesterday, I discovered one called jolicloud and it looked interesting, even though it's to be updated soon. When visiting their site, I also noticed JoliOS, a type of packaged Ubuntu for the cloud. I decided to give it a go. The netbook is set to duel-boot, so I can choose between it and Windows upon start up. I am definitely liking what I'm seeing. Anybody want to talk about it with me?

Suddenly Snatched by the Fox

I've been faithful for years. I never understood why, even though it was free, users would bother downloading an alternative browser. MS Internet Explorer, although not groundbreaking, is always updated just frequently enough to keep it from becoming irrelevant. I have been a computer user long enough to remember first using Netscape and then eventually settling on whatever was the current version of IE. Most recently, I remember downloading IE 7 while it was still in beta.

For some reason, still unknown even to me, I just switched to Firefox 3. I had the older version on my computer and it recently updated itself. I had always kept two browsers on my system primarily to see how my site looks in both screens. I am always surprised that pages rarely render identically. For example, I like how IE 7 shows my picture in the right column of this blog. For some reason, when one makes the screen smaller using Firefox, my photo can appear larger than the column. Something small like that doesn't really interfere with usability; yet, it's annoying nevertheless.

On a lark, I wanted a change. I completely made the switch, insofar as I see a new icon wherever I used to see the familiar old one for IE. I weeded out and exported my favorites, ahem, bookmarks. Anyway, I've endured the hour of pain involved in learning how to accomplish familiar things in a slightly different way. Firefox seems faster. I have to admit open source software can implement browser changes more quickly than can be done with the staid, old albatross of Microsoft.

I crave venturing away from the routine with computers and this was much cheaper than buying a new laptop.

You Light Up My Life

A whole lot of entries here are falling into the category of I-can-remember-such-and-such. Maybe I'm thinking about how things have changed as I have a birthday coming up next week. Today, I was considering how easy it is to make attractive and effective documents. Earlier, I was putting together questions for my course's midterm exam. I don't spend a lot of time in a word processor nowadays. I find this interesting as it was probably the primary way I spent my time when computers first came out in the 1980's. I suppose we were just happy to be able to fix corrections before they hit the paper in those days. It was the final goodbye to correction fluid and ribbons. The paper which slowly emerged from a noisy dot-matrix printer, although nothing to brag about by today's standards, still looked better than something typed on most manual typewriters.

It wasn't long after learning key sequences for Wordstar, that we began to expect more. WordPerfect shipped with a ton of proprietary .WGM graphics to spruce up one's letters and memos. Nothing that ran under DOS was really WYSWYG at the time though.

Now, the average user can spit out something that looks quite impressive. Rather than relying on clip art, it's simple to paste directly from an Internet image search. I was thinking of this as I came across some old midterm tests where objects for writing a technical description were sketched and physically glued to the sheets before photocopying. Now I can instantly find a picture of almost anything. Say, I want to include a table lamp on a worksheet. I have nearly an unlimited selection at my fingertips.

Just in case any of my present students stop by here, I'll warn that a lamp is not an object on tomorrow's midterm examination!

Movin' On Up

Today, I'll only add a couple of techie things that could nearly go without saying. They involve:

The Windows Vista SP1 Upgrade

My PlayStation 3 Upgrade to V2.2

I updated Vista to Service Pack 1 at least a week ago. I hadn't had a lick of trouble with Vista before the 440 megabyte download and have had none since. With a sufficiently capable hardware, I wouldn't fear advising anyone run the newest OS from Microsoft. The software's bad press may have more to do with people being politically correct (by being anit-MS) than any actual trouble with the code. My update was mostly a non-event except for one fact. After the 45 minutes of installation, the computer didn't start up with the built-in web server online. I do have to add that all the previous configuration data was there, I just needed to open the ISS and click start.



Earlier this week, the other upgrade went without much fanfare as well. Back when I first talked about buying a PlayStation as a Blu-ray player, it was because none of the existing players for sale were ready for the implementation of profile 2.0. In the most recent update, my PS3 suddenly gained this as a new feature. Boy, I'm the first on the block for this one! That means it can access the addition of Internet features on a BD. Since the first release with any interactivity isn't due for another ten days, that's pretty much a moot point at the moment. One useful enhancement is that if one stops viewing a DVD or Blu-ray disc, the player remembers the exact location. Even if one removes the disc in the interim, it'll remember. That's useful, except I generally watch things straight through anyway.

Some people think that upgrading is a hassle. On the other hand, I tend to salute companies who make firmware improvements rather than attempting to sell a whole new piece of equipment for each baby-step forward.

Give Me My Money!

I run some of Microsoft's Home Productivity software. I was really hooked on their Digital Image products but they pulled the rug out from under me and have completely dropped that product line. I cannot quite understand why it's not profitable to keep publishing newer versions. I learned to love the software's interface and still find it extremely intuitive for most of my needs. This fall I ran out to get Adobe Photoshop Elements 6 and have tried to make the transition. More often than not, however, I simply open up the now defunct Microsoft program.

Apparently the same is happening with the localized version of MS Money. I am still using the 2006 copy and as it's a tax write-off would surely upgrade if given the opportunity. Unfortunately, the only offering in Canada is for a base option that cannot open files created in previous versions.

Rather than the normal rants against Microsoft for what they're doing, I'd like to go on record for being disappointed by what they're not doing. Namely, I'd like updates to my favourite, old MS Home software.

Saving Money and Trees

Tax season is officially here. In Canada the main form from the employer must arrive by the end of February. It's called a T4 slip. In the past, I'd always waited until that form arrived in my mailbox before going out to buy QuickTax, the software that allows individuals to prepare their own tax returns. It's pretty straight-forward and the software helps one get the details correct. I especially like the ability to play with what/if scenarios.

I cannot remember exactly, but I'd say that I've been filing directly from my computer for at least four or five years. Actually, I really can't recall when I last drove to drop off a printed form in the Surrey office of Revenue Canada. Any owed tax or rebates are all done through electronic banking too.

This year, though, was the first time I could view my own T4 statement directly from BCIT web services. So as to be less paper dependent, and of course more environmentally friendly, I think I'll forgo purchasing the software on CD in a box this year. If I download the program, then I will help to continue the trend toward paperless taxes.

Version 6 Plus

I once purchased a boxed copy of Pinnacle Studio V9 so I could edit camcorder tapes. I think I only managed one project with it. That software just didn't seem to work like I do. I don't mind occasionally wasting money on computer software as I really have bought very little over the past two decades. The total cost has been very little if compared to the money I've dumped into hardware since the mid-1980's.

I defaulted to another video editing program. I got a free working evaluation copy of Ulead MovieFactory V3.0 that came with a LG DVD drive once. I used it for the tools as well as putting together video. I liked it so much I bought an online version 5.0 of it in 2006. Since then, I've managed to create a number discs with vacation videos. I like how the basic interface works. It functions well in 16x9 mode with the captured files from our old Sony camcorder.



Today, I decided I could upgrade the software. It's now owned by Corel Corporation. The price of MovieFactory 6.0 Plus was heavily discounted as I had the product key from the previous version. It was all seamlessly selected, paid for, downloaded, and installed after lunch. The program and bonus disk weighed in at over 800 megabytes, but .. hey .. that's why we have broadband, right? Now I'm already to eventually burn on Blu-ray or HD-DVD whichever wins as a computer storage solution.

Now I've got a new problem though. It'd be damn nice to work with files from true High-Def. video source. It's okay; I only work in order to buy trips and toys for myself.

Zune too Soon

There's a dearth of good podcast aggregator software for those of us who refuse to hop on the iTunes bandwagon. The Zencast software from the folks at Creative works well enough but it feels clunky and odd.

I heard rumors that podcasting was being integrated into the new Microsoft Zune software. It shouldn't matter much that I don't have one. I sort of believe there might eventually be one in my future. Anyhow, I simply wanted something to fetch my podcasts and arrange them nicely in a sub-directory on my hard disk. SyncToy would be able to quickly move them to my Zen Stone.



It works but I have a few comments about the Zune software. The first problem is that I live in Canada. That in no way sounds like a problem until I learned that excludes me from participating at all. I am well aware that the local shops don't carry the devices but there are major malls just across the border from most Canadian cities, eh? If I type in my hotmail address I get shown quickly to a page which says:

The Zune service is not yet available in your region.
Thanks for your interest! Please continue to check Zune.net for the latest news and information.

Yeah, thanks a lot, indeed.

Even with Web 2.0 I still sort of like Redmond's insistence in having code sit on each local machine. I somewhat still agree that life shouldn't entirely be experienced though a browser. It is possible to just download the software alone, so I did. The software recognized my IP as being north of border!

I installed. The software seems to be typically Microsoftish. What that means is in about three releases from now it'll unusable. Then after another, it'll be rock solid and soon catch up in popularity to iTunes. That should be in about five years, I'd say. First off, software developers, please allow us to cut and paste into the add-podcast box. How did you let it out the door with that major fault? Nobody wants to type in an arcane xml URL. In addition, let us do a complete podcast update with single button. As it stands I have no idea when it's going to pick up my feeds. Lastly, it'd surely be nice to have it run in the background. You know what I mean. When I close, I want it running over by the clock and not be forced to keep it open on the task bar. These seem like such simple things that I cannot understand how it was released these annoyances. How come I never get to beta anything? Send me a free 80GB Zune and I'll give you more useful advice ...

The interface is somewhat appealing so I allowed it to rummage through my music collection. I think under most circumstances I'll probably use it to locate and play music rather than running MediaPlayer.

Tell Us Something New

This afternoon around half of my students gave their course presentations during class. In the COMM 0004 courses, I have been having the students take on the same topic. Over the years, I've learned a tremendous amount of new information and today's presentations were no exception. I guess one way someone can be a life-long learner is by teaching!

Students seem to be increasingly adept at using MS PowerPoint.

Here's the assignment:

Required Topic on a Local Business
Each student in our class must pick a business that he/she has used while in Vancouver. It may sell a product or provide a service. Concepts and terms used in other college-level courses are expected and encouraged. In other words, your classmates are professionals, so make sure your presentation is too. In advance of the presentation dates, I will ask you to write a memo where you’ll state the name of the business you’ve chosen and the topic you will discuss about it.

Research for this project must prove the presenter has used primary and secondary research techniques. Every presenter should draw up suitable questions and interview someone connected with the business. Researching information from the Internet only would not be considered suitable preparation.

Necessary Length
Each presentation will last eight to ten minutes. Additional time will be used for a question-and-answer period. All questions must be answered fluently.

Use of Visual Aids
A minimum of two overhead-transparencies must be used during the talk. I may be able to arrange lab time for those who wish to use MS PowerPoint; however, you’ll have to let me know in advance of your presentation. Many students use one for an outline that helps to introduce the talk.

Group Evaluation Procedures
Please note that you will be ‘ranking’ your classmates on a ‘scale’. The lower end of the scale means that improvement is needed; whereas, the top of the scale means that the person was truly outstanding. Students will fill in each area as the person is giving his/her presentation. Giving honest and useful appraisal is an important skill that will be useful in many of your future jobs.

Teaching Old Dogs

CHANGE IS GOOD
Every so often, it's good to change the way one works. This is especially true with computers although a switch often feels painful at first. I think it's natural to feel resistance in having to relearn skills. After the initial disorientation, however, one probably barrels though tasks more efficiently. Internet Explorer 7 is a case in point. I've been running it for years now, beginning back when it was just a beta on XP. Now, when I leave the confines of Vista for my work PC, I find it a chore to work with the previous version. All my increased productivity in the new version doesn't help me cope in dealing with the old code.

OUT WITH THE OLD
I've really grown to love the simplicity of the Microsoft's image editing products. The interface seems to match so well to the things I want to do. In fact, it's so easy to touch up digital photos, that almost none touch my Flickr account unedited. I like to think I can take anything out of the camera and make it better. Due to this fact, I felt anger when I first discovered that Microsoft has dropped its Digital Image products.

IN WITH THE NEW
I decided that I had to move on although my old copy of Digital Image Pro works fine on this new computer. As it would no longer be upgraded, I wanted to migrate to a more popular package. Yesterday, I picked up Adobe Photoshop Elements 6.0 at the BCIT Bookstore. It must be more popular as it can be used as a verb nowadays. As I begin using the product, I'll let you know how much pain is needed for the switch.