7 Here are a few pictures of the OlpcOffice!
9 ==== Hack Hack Hack ====
11 I've been assigned a problem with an invalid serial port baud
12 rate after resume from software suspend.
14 I started investigating the hard way, until ChrisBall pointed
15 me on IRC to talk with the KernelHacker DavidWoodhouse, who
16 obviously had a solution in a few seconds. Unfortunately,
17 it didn't work as we expected and MitchBradley of OpenFirmware
18 joined the conversation to help.
20 Having all the subsystem gurus available to fix your bugs makes
21 things a lot easier... Hehe, I think I like it ;-)
23 And so tomorrow I'll get back to work on a MandelBug with the Xorg's
24 driver for the AMD chipset. When XVIDEO is enabled and you
25 rotate the display with XRANDR, sometimes the X server crashes,
26 sometimes it just hangs and sometimes it survives with a corrupted
27 display. And the bad news is that gdb also hangs.
29 How will I fix this? Easy: I'll go looking for the driver authors
30 first thing tomorrow and beg them to send me a fix :-)
32 By the way, lately I've been hanging regularly in #olpc on FreeNode.
33 My nick is _bernie. Come over to see what's going on!
38 ==== All Night Long ====
40 At 9PM, I'm still here and plan to stay as long as I can :-)
42 <please link to the song "All Night Long" here>
45 ==== Buried In Work Already ====
47 '''WARNING''': Technical AbraCadabra ahead!
49 Today I met most of the team members and bothered a few of them,
50 starting from DanWilliams who helped me debug a problem with a
51 simple mesh networking scenario involving three laptops.
53 Today I've also been assigned some work from ChrisBall, who also
54 helped me out with many small things such as a dead battery,
55 accessing the serial console, etc. I'm currently adding a
56 KernelDebugger command to display the ModelSpecificRegister's
59 But it seems like I will also refer to RedHat's ChrisBlizzard
60 to be assigned more work. We talked about optimizing the
61 video driver for the AmdGeodeCpu, getting the resistive
62 tablet to work and maybe adding "tapping" support to the
65 As you know, I like it even more when I'm allowed to ramble
66 through a zillion different things like this!
69 ==== Sneaky Preview ====
71 I'm writing this from within the OLPC headquarters. I came today for
72 a second interview and to get a few tasks assigned to me :-)
74 I have no time to be more specific. Will tell you the details a little later.
79 '''TODO''': will tell you later
83 '''TODO''': will tell you later
86 >MUM< creepy mummy virus it's taking control here.... :-) WRITE SOON OR IT/SHE WILL DESTROY EVERYTHING!
87 ==== Quite a Trip ====
89 Today I'm leaving the safe and familiar BostonCity to boldly go where I've
92 The current plan is to drive south to ProvidenceCity, BrdigeportCity, NewYorkCity,
93 PhiladelphiaCity, BaltimoreCity and, finally, WashingtonCity. Maybe I'll even
94 push myself down in FloridaState to go see the SpaceShuttle!
96 I could use a GPS. I've seen a few TomTom's, but $299 seems way too
97 much to me for a talking map. Maybe I'll buy a traditional map for
100 Ah, and I will sleep frugally, of course. Hostels and motels when I find
101 them. So, over the next few days I'll be lucky if I have intermittent
102 Internet access and, consequently, I won't probably be able to sync the
108 '''Babbo''': Ma fino ad oggi con quali danari hai vissuto dato che sei partito con 10€ liquidi?
110 '''Bernie''': Ho prelevato i soldi dall'ATM... con il bancomat delle poste! E vedo dai movimenti
111 sul conto che hanno applicato un buon cambio e nessuna penale strana.
115 Today I finally rent a car. It's a SaturnIon, a brand and model I never heard
118 http://www.edmunds.com/media/seo/500/2006.saturn.ion.jpg
120 I felt very comfortable driving all over Europe: Italy, Swiss, Spain, France,
121 Germany, Belgium, and even Greece... But, for some reason, I was quite afraid
122 of driving a car here in the States.
124 Maybe it's because the road signs are somewhat different and there are a few
125 subtly different rules, such as turning right on red, not parking in front
126 of hydrants, etc. Most probably, it's because I've seen way too many movies
127 where people get stopped by police and thrown in jail quite easily!
129 Well, so far everything went very well. I mean, except for parking. Parking
130 in downtown is easy if you're willing to pay $10-12 for a few hours.
131 It's a big pain in the ass otherwise... The best way I've found so far
132 is to park near a minor T station and then get the T to downtown :-(
134 And, of course, the car has AutomaticTransmission, which I managed to learn
135 quickly: the trouble comes when you switch the other way around ;-)
137 Ok, today I've driven all around Boston just to get used to it. Tomorrow
138 I'll probably dare getting on the highway to see around.
141 ==== Business Visa? ====
143 Today I've re-read detailed information on the
144 available US visa options:
146 http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/types/types_1262.html
148 Looks like a ''B-1'' Business Visa would do. To get one,
149 I should go to a US ambassy, and ambassys are usually
150 located abroad. Instead of returning to Italy, maybe
151 I could get an appointment in MontrealCity, which is
152 near to the border and also an interesting place to see.
159 Yesterday I applied for this great service: http://www.zipcar.com/ .
160 Isn't it a good idea? Costs less than renting a car and is almost
163 <rasky> http://www.carsharingfirenze.it/ :)
165 Today I walked to their offices to give them my documents
166 and get the magnetic card. They said they will enable it
167 first thing tomorrow *if* the "insurance risk declaration"
168 I got from Italy suffices.
171 ==== Simple shopping ====
173 Consumers must be very simple minded here. First, most
174 shop names are simply dumb: '''Pay Less''', '''Save-A-Lot''',
175 '''Big Deal''', and so on.
177 ''Sounds very '''meno tasse per tutti''' to me... -- PiroPiro''
179 Second, they try to subtle deceptions such as: "take 2 for $24.xx",
180 and, next to it: "take 3 for $21.xx", Which of course is
181 impossible. It's a trap! The little figures placed
182 exactly where you would expect to see the cents, are
183 indeed a small notice: ''EACH''.
185 Today I bought a dozen of razor blades ($1.50), a
186 bottle of shampoo ($1.50) and shower gel ($1.50).
187 But I spent $12 for adjusting the two pair of
188 trousers I had bought a few days ago in the mall!
189 $12 ''EACH'', I mean.
192 ==== Bad Neighborhood ====
194 Walking home alone in the night, I may encounter some ''bad'' guys:
196 http://bender.codewiz.org/wikidata/text/FunWithWeapons.jpg
198 Better be careful :-)
203 ==== Veni, Vidi, ???? ====
205 This morning I shown up at OneLaptopPerChild's headquarters. It's again next to KendallSquare,
206 in OneCambridgeCenter.
208 JimGettys was very kind: he took me to LegalSeaFood for lunch, repaired my ExOh's keyboard (two
209 keys were dead) and introduced me to the team members.
211 They left me with the usual Hollywood formula: "don't call us, we'll call you".
212 But in this particular case, I felt they were sincere :-)
214 I hope to be soon a member of the OLPC core team!
219 ==== Alea Iacta Est ====
221 As promised... Yes, indeed. Everybody please cross their fingers.
223 Babbo:Pregherò perchè tu possa ottenere quello che cerchi.
225 Camy: Mannaggia a voi due ( Bernie e Alberto ) siete cosi..."teneri". Come ho già detto tante volte a Bernie, è fortunato ad avere un babbo cosi! Lo so, lo so che non c'entra nulla con lo stile di questo blog, ma io sono cosi, impulsiva e Bernie lo sa e mi perdonerà.
226 A dire il vero anch'io sto in ansia per lui :-) speriamo bene...
228 Bernie: Via, non fatemi venire il magone voi due :-)
232 ==== International Dinner ====
234 FedericoLucifredi and his wife Irena were so kind to invite me at their place for a
235 fine dinner with appetizers, SirloinSteak (see pic below), several side
236 dishes and... Even a PinotNoir!
238 http://www.fairburysteaks.com/images/bci-sirloin-round-bone.gif
240 There were also Mauro -- Federico's colleague at Ximian -- and Irena's
241 friend who's a physics professor from Providence and could speak perfect
242 French and, surprisingly, even Italian!
244 What can I say? I think I got a pound or two that night, but it was
252 There's a cinema in building 26 @ EmAiTee, and it's cheap.
257 If you're curious, my room rent is $500 per month. Utilities,
258 forniture and DSL Internet access are included.
260 It's not cheap, but it's also not too expensive for Boston.
261 They told me that only Manhattan is more expensive here on
264 ==== CurriculumVitae ====
266 ...is almost ready. A friend told me that I'd better have
267 also a synthetic resume of 1-2 pages for the impatient.
270 Well, I said I'd be finished by last Monday, but then I
271 managed to slip past my own deadline visiting NewYorkCity,
272 moving in my current room and in other frivolous ways.
274 Now I have no excuses: the time has come. Next Monday I
275 ''will'' write my proposal. Seriously.
279 ==== Exchange Rates ====
281 Looks like I'd better convert all my money to dollars *now*:
283 http://www.x-rates.com/d/USD/EUR/graph30.html
285 What do you think about it?
287 Babbo:penso che $ continuerà a svalutare. Perderai soldi.
289 ==== StataCenter ====
291 I forgot to tell you about the kewlest building in EmAiTee:
293 http://www.eecs.mit.edu/images/big-stata12.jpg
295 See also: http://www.eecs.mit.edu/stata-link.html
299 After a long time, I finally get to (ab)use MIT's wi-fi and
300 barf my short-term brain buffer into my BrainDump.
302 Tonight we went to an Irish pub next to Kendall, where I got
303 to know a few more Ximian employees. I got rumors that
304 the famous kernel hacker RobertLove would be there, so after
305 a while I turned to the guy next to me and asked: "Is
306 RobertLove really going to come?". And he replied: "Speaking."
308 Another guy told me: "Hi, I'm BAHB". "Pardon?". "BAHB!".
309 "What???". Federico promptly helped me out: "Ha detto che si
312 The beer was good. I discovered that a BlueMoon is the
313 nearest approximation of a WeisseBeer I can find here,
314 and I'm not at all displeased by its taste.
318 My landlord has recently switched DSL provider and Internet
319 doesn't work any more: the sync light on the modem flashes.
320 It seems that crappy ISPs are a common disease in the States
323 Yesterday, he called for service and, finally, they told him
324 they would send a tech today from 8AM to 18PM. They refused
325 to be more specific. And so I've agreed to wait here to let
326 the guy in... I care about it for myself too!
330 By the way, today I'm exactly 150 pounds (use GoogleCalculator
331 to get it to SI units).
333 150 pounds = 68.0388555 kilograms
339 They told me Roxbury is quite an infamous suburb of Boston.
340 And my first impression confirms that: shops are uglier,
341 parks and streets are somewhat dirtier (but not as much as
342 in NewYorkCity!) and, most importantly, some of the neighbors
343 look creepy. Especially in the night, streets are crowded by
344 people with criminal faces and many homeless.
346 You know I'm not the type who's easily scared off by a bunch
347 of zombies, but I'll feel much better when I'll drive a car.
351 I've finally settled in my room. There's no need to describe the house
352 in detail, as it's the most typical colonial design: two floors plus
353 basement, front and back yards, sliding windows, wooden floors
354 everywhere. You've come to know them very well from the movies.
356 Today I went to the mall to gather the essentials: a blankets,
357 a pillow case and some bath towels. The bed is comfortable and
358 I was quite tired already, therefore I fell asleep early in the
359 evening and kept on until 8 AM.
361 '''WARNING: TIME WARP OCCURRED'''
365 '''WARNING: TIME WARP IMMINENT'''
369 Alberto: Attento a convertire € in $ perchè € si sta apprezzando,e quindi $ svalutando rispetto a €.
371 Belle le foto scovate da Massimo. Have a good stay in Btn.
373 Massimo: Bernie, you taught me: http://www.google.com/search?q=100+USD+in+EUR
376 Massimo: Since Bernie could not give us any picture, I had to use flickr: here they are!
378 http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=bernardo+innocenti
380 Piro: what in the heaven is RMS doing dressed like a camp tent? :D
384 ==== BankOfAmerica ====
386 I went to BankOfAmerica and opened a bank account. I went there wearing a yellow T-shirt
387 and a weary pair of jeans. In the beginning, they referred me to a young guy who quickly
388 tried to offer me a student's saving account. When I queried for interest rates, credit
389 cards, and dollar/euro conversion rates, they finally realized that I was going to move
392 When I've shown them my balance, they immediately switched me to a very polite girl who
393 took all the time to explain me everything in detail until after their closing time and
394 recommended me to open *3* different accounts to get a rate of 4.80% with no fees!
395 I totally hate when people judge you by your wealth, dressing, or other stupid status
396 symbols, but maybe a bank is the only exception where it makes sense to do so.
398 Banking appears to be far, far simpler here. I already feel like I know
399 everything while in Italy I still can't read most of the paperwork I get from
402 Batt: Or maybe american bankers are so skilled that you are happy while, in truth, they have stolen your money forever :-P
404 Massimo: Yahr yahr! He didn't realize they already got 4.80% of his balance from his pocket with a magician move! Yahr yahr! Anyway... 4-5% rate is not absurd in the US. It has always been almost like this as far as I can remember (maybe sometimes it was even 6-7%). It's useful for someone (like bernie), but tragic for someone who does not have any money and to buy a house with those mortgages it's almost impossible. Still, the US has got a very low rate in comparison with other extra-european countries.
408 ==== Good News, Everyone! ====
410 '''After a long struggling, I've finally found a room!'''
412 And I'll be moving in *today*! But I'm writing on Thursday the 3rd, actually (aren't you thinking fourth-dimentionally yet?).
414 The room is nice and comes with some forniture, including a desk. It's on the second floor
415 of a house where the landlord lives with her wife and a very friendly puppy.I like it
416 that way: all those houses shared by students I've seen so far tend to become unmaintained
417 and dirty quite quickly, while this one is a real house with a fully operational kitchen,
418 bathroom and even a clean back garden!
420 My landlord is Armenian, but have been living here in Boston for a long time. My first
421 impression is he's a very nice person, honest and easy going. I haven't met his wife yet --
422 she'll be back on Sunday.
424 I'm afraid the house is a bit far away from MIT, in southern Boston. But that won't
425 be a problem as soon as I buy a car. There may even be a chance to rent or buy the
426 car readily from my landlord's son.
428 I don't know the address yet. I should, but I forgot the sheet on the table when I went there. And I can't call my landlord either because I've stolen his cell phone by mistake also. Yeah, I reckon I mustn't a good impression, actually :-)
431 '''Camy''': the landlord lives with '''his''' wife
433 ==== Do You Speak English? ====
435 Some of you will be pissed off by this change, but I'm starting to make
436 some international friends here and none of them could read Italian.
438 Writing in English is also what I need to improve my writing skills.
439 For the few of you who barely know English, some more reading surely won't hurt!
441 [[http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fbender.codewiz.org%2Fwiki%2FMayBlog&langpair=en%7Cit=en Google Translator]]
444 As always, I'd very much appreciate being told about any mistake I make.
446 ''Massimo: ok, let's start with those horrible contractions my poor eyes had to read: '''Won't''' and '''I'd'''. Hey Bernie! You already went back home from NYC. Ain't gonna play with ya 'nymore!''