Prime System Integrators

broderic on February 22, 2008

This slate article, I believe, is wrong. No matter how much you believe in the US form of government, don’t believe them.

To account for this difference, the three SM-3’s needed new software, hardware, and sensors, and the launching systems had to be given new sensors and software updates. The bulk of this task would have been assigned to high-priced contractors—like Raytheon, the maker of the missile, or Lockheed Martin, maker of the Aegis system. And it would have taken a large crew of engineers to rewrite the code, debug it, and test it over and over again—all within three weeks.

I don’t believe this one bit. I don’t believe that each of these programs, the SM-3 missile or Aegis, would put anything on their ship in 3 weeks. Maybe, to discuss the need to make the changes, but not to create, debug, integrate and install that stuff. It’s as if you had to write your PhD thesis in the last week of your program, and then present it to the board immediately after.

Three weeks is not enough time.

Here’s a better explanation.

Last year, China shoots down a satellite. From here on out with the ballistic missile defense is now geared to shooting down a satellite ourselves. So its one year from the changes to now. A much better timeline for how the navy and its defense contractors work.

Those changes were available last year. It took them three weeks to figure out what to shoot down.

Trust no one.

The truth is out there.

Data Integrity

broderic on January 12, 2008

The other night I posted an old paper from school in which I reviewed Blood Simple. It was from my days at the U in the film program. CMP 403 I think was the movie reviewing class. You sit around Tuesday or Thursday in the movie theatre in the Memorial Building. My instructor at the time was Bill Cosford, the critic for the Miami Herald. He’s since passed away and the theatre has been renamed after his honor.

We spent 14 weeks watching a film at a time. Then we’d turn in some review. I think I got a B in that class. Judging from some of the comments to the post, you guys liked it. I kind of don’t. I realize that maybe I should’ve been less academic with the review. Maybe more like a review you find in the paper. I guess that’s why I got a B in the class. My writing was too academic without a voice.

Yet, you wonder, “Where did that post come from?” “Did you copy it verbatim from a paper?” Nope. It’s on a 720Kb floppy from the early 90s! And getting it off the disk was an adventure.

First, I had to resurrect my PowerBook 190. The laptop battery is dead as well as the clock battery. I have to plug it in to have it running. My old papers are either written in a MS Word 4 or 5 or MacWrite. I have neither on that laptop, but luckily it has DataViz’s MacLink translator software to convert it to Claris write. So I save it to plain ascii text. Thank god for plain ascii text.

Yet, the PowerBook 190 doesn’t have internet connection (dial up, but…). So I save it to a PC floppy and transfer it through sneaker net to my Win95 machine from which I upload it to the net. Downloard it to the MacMini. And voila, post it back up to blogger.

That data is old. Sixteen years. Amazing that I can still read this stuff. In another few, once my PowerBook 190 and my Win95 PC are dead, I won’t be able to revisit this stuff and things go back to the ether from whence they came.

Gastronome Abound

broderic on December 3, 2007

Over the weekend, we celebrated a cousin's birthday by eating and drinking at the Brazilian churrascaria, Fogo de chao, in lovely downtown Baltimore. I'm not usually the one to offer a restaurant review. So I won't, and I'll leave it up to CapitolSwell or even OnoCoffee to jump in with their takes. All I can say is that's a lot of meat. Seated next to these gastronomes the talk drifted of going to Spain and starting a little café. They thought Barcelona. I thought otherwise. The city on the tip of my tongue which I couldn't get out that night was San Sebastian. I think of that place more and more because of the surf and the wild Atlantic that it abuts. Not to put down Catalan whose hot and sexy Mediterranean feel would be welcome any day this cold winter, but I think adventure would wait in the Northern climes of Spain. Anyhoo, I read this piece in Slate today about astonishing number of fine restaurants in the city of San Sebastian. Seems to me to be the place to be. For food. And the surf!http://www.slate.com/id/2178875/entry/2178877/

“Come on, people! In the right hands, knife targeting is safer than driving.”

broderic on September 11, 2007

School has started. Taking two classes. It’s going to be an interesting year.

Both are reading and discussing classes. The first one is a business school class, ethics and social responsibility. I’m glad to know that they like to teach it to the MBA majors, but the corporation is an entirely different beast. The second is software engineering maintenance and software evolution. Sounds boring, but that is also my job. It’s boring, too.

Meh. I’m not complaining. Yet.

Expelliarmus

broderic on July 21, 2007

Home with the rest of the muggles. Harry may be dead. Or may not be. I’ll have to wait to read the book. All over the world, little kids and the older versions are diving into the last book and finding some fun. Yet it must be a bitter ending. Years for this and it ends for them this tonight.

Sad.

It’s so final.

Happy Independence Day!

broderic on July 4, 2007

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

It goes on to list the offences that the King had done to the colonists. If I read it right, it could also be assigned to our one king, the fucktard, George W. Bush. Revolution!

iPhone 2nd Impressions

broderic on July 1, 2007

CapitolSwell has a really thoughtful post on his new iPhone.

With the iPhone there is a conscienciousness [sic] which slows ones actions so you see the whole picture. Seeing the whole picture gives one clarity beyond clarity. the iPhone is the Kwisatz Haderach from Dune, the sleeper has awaken.

This is a good stepping point for my second impression of the iPhone. I remember complaining to whoever would listen that I wouldn’t get an iPhone because I didn’t use my cellphone in that manner. I hardly had the need for using mobile internet. It cost too much already and was slow. Yet, I did buy the iPhone for use as a mobile internet device. If it had phone capabilities then more power to it.

So I primarily was drooling over the need for mobile internet. At a cost of $20, I get unlimited EDGE network data transfers. Will I be using it as much? Well, the iPhone comes with WiFi. I got it working after some fiddling with settings, resetting the iPhone, and rebooting a couple of times. I haven’t noticed if the WiFi is faster, but at times it can be slower.

Safari on this thing rocks. The user interface has just been fun to learn. Plus when I am not using it, I am starting to make gestures on the trackpad of my TiBook. I tried to page up by flicking my finger. Weird! The fonts screen are too small though. I think I may need to start wearing my glasses. Or go for a checkup.

I have crashed several apps already. You’re working in one and then, swoosh, you’re back at the main screen. When you reconnect with your computer, iTunes will ask to send the crash reports to Apple. I looked at the logs and they’re pretty interesting.

Syncing is something strange. You have to use iTunes. I wish they had a standalone app to do this. It’s awkward to use. If you uncheck items that you had previously checked, then synced, those items are deleted from the phone which, to me, was unexpected. Syncing is one way — from your computer to the iPhone. I wanted to update some of my contacts on my computer, but it wanted to erase the changes.

Google maps rocks. It’s got a traffic report on it which I have to wait until monday to test out. That iPhone commercial is true. You can find the nearest seafood restaurant near you and call it or get directions.

Mail is fun and frustrating. I have it syncing with my yahoo email account, but can also do it with my Mindspring accounts as well. There’s no spam filter so you better get used to sorting by hand. It’s also doesn’t have the check box thing to do batch operations on. If you want to move a file to a folder, you have to open up each one and do it by hand. I am thinking about a new yahoo mail address, so I can get a fresh start on it.

I have been texting more. Mainly with Margaux. My plan has 200 free text messages. The way the iPnone displays them similar to an iChat session seems to me to make it more easier to use all 200 in a month. Hilarious.

The iPhone forces you do become more digital. Before, I barely cared about my mac addressbook, ical and others, but now with the ability to take it on the road with me I think I have to update those things better. It is truly a convergence device.

Colnel Mustard in the Library

broderic on May 26, 2007

It’s gonna be the biggest thing this summer. No, not any of the lame third editions of movies, but Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallow. It’s gonna be big. Real big. And you’ll just have to go along with the hype.

To get you started, here’s some fancy speculation about some plot points for the finale.

It’s ludicrous, but somewhat believable. Yet, most everything you can say about the Potter series can come true. I’ve been known to dabble. In fact, I think that it will be Harry who dies with Hermione very saddened.

The Children of Hurin

broderic on May 1, 2007

I had finished this book sometime last week. Loved it, but I had read it already in its various forms. It made me tear up at the Finduilas part. Damn, Morgoth Bauglir! I curse thee! May you stay locked up in The Void for all eternity.

I wonder how those who haven’t read The Silmarillion are going to react to this book. Dark and forboding it is, and nothing like The Lord of the Rings. Those elves and men are not as nice. Everyone is more like Boromir. Turin mainly.

B+

Playing Catch Up

broderic on April 20, 2007

I haven’t been posting regularly. As if you didn’t know. I’ve been too busy. Some of the things I had due are almost done and now I have found some time to breathe. Let me post something to know that BrowserMetrics the blog still has a pulse.

First off most of my friends in the side bar are also silent except for Margeaux. She’s been blogging up a storm compared to me and the others. Of course she has spent most of this month doing nothing but writing. Yet, she has time to read The Children of Hurin? Hmm.

Second, I did catch Grindhouse opening weekend, and from the looks of things, its closing weekend as well. 3 of 5 stars is my rating. First, Rodriguez makes bad films. Including Sin City. So when he set out to make a bad movie, it’s doubly the worst of it all. The problem with his film was that it was too much like USA Up All Night from the eighties. No one told us that the shit playing at the grindhouse is really the shit you watched on cable drunk. I paid money for this? Tarantino’s half is more of a problem. It was too serious in tone and completely clashed with the previous Rodriguez part. “I went to the grindhouse and a Tarantino movie started!” Plus it was talky. I wonder if you went to a grindhouse to watch talking. Yes, it was dark and disturbing at times, but in the sense it was Tarantino. At least his bad acting was overshadowed by the badness of the films.

Third school. At least the class I am taking now. It sucks. I have a new WindBlows laptop though. And a dead Dell box. Linux is just as lame. Computers should help you be productive not throw obstacles in your way. They just need to work sometimes.

That’s it for now. I don’t like writing much. But there it is.