X-Git-Url: https://codewiz.org/gitweb?p=wiki.git;a=blobdiff_plain;f=JanuaryBlog;h=14513855e5165e6ab4a1cc9c935636a8b239966e;hp=fd1f840a31a13738a76cb672d39156ff6092b234;hb=d1cf4ba3d8bc4a3a1e4f4986a1ceb80647cb89d5;hpb=c4df7ae40265ce3a583b3c9396787e778659c71e diff --git a/JanuaryBlog b/JanuaryBlog index fd1f840..1451385 100644 --- a/JanuaryBlog +++ b/JanuaryBlog @@ -1,5 +1,169 @@ +The story continues at FebruaryBlog + == Bernie's brain backup for January 2008 == +=== Sun 27th === + +==== Down Under ==== + +Yesterday I had to clear my room, pack my stuff at OneCambridgeCenter, and +say goodbye to many, many good friends and colleges. I don't even know when +I'll be able to see them again. Not exactly a happy day, you may have guessed. + +Today, after 22 hours of flight, I started to have visions. At the baggage reclaim, +I thought I was talking with the kernel god LinusTorvalds. He said that userspace +is easy and that he cannot exactly agree iwith some of the choices made in Python. +We'd really get along if it wasn't just a dream :-) + +Later on, I reached the hotel and got into the elevator with a ginger guy +that looked vaguely familiar. I asked if he was going at LCA. + + -- //Yes.// + + -- //Are you a software developer?// + + -- //Well... not primarily...// + +Blink! + + -- //Oh, you must be JonathanCorbet, the editor of LinuxWeeklyNews!// + + - //Indeed.// + +Today was a really exciting day! I needed something like this to compensate, +at least partially, for leaving Boston. + +---- + +Hi Bernie! Just stepped here looking for the photos of XOs hanging from the ceiling (i wanted to show them to my father) and found you leaving! + +So, have a nice journey, enjoy conf.au and see you soon! + +-- PiroPiro + +=== Sat, 19th === + +==== Another trip to NY ==== + +I'm planning to go to NewYorkCity tomorrow with a bunch of friends. +But this time I guess we'll catch a different transportation: +we were booking the FungWah (aka ShittyBus), when ChrisBall came +and looked at us funny. "Are you sure? Those buses have a habit +of catching fire on the highway". + +Apparently, it is really true: + + http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fung_Wah_Bus_Transportation_Inc.#Safety + +=== Sun, 13th === + +=== Bernie the rockstar ==== + +If you were considering hiring me, or entrusting me to do anything serious, you'd better watch this first: + + * [[BernieIronMaiden.ogg]] - [1.8MB] if you have the free OggTheora codec + * [[BernieIronMaiden.mov]] - [3.6MB] if you're stuck with proprietary QuickTime codecs + * //nothing// - [0MB] if you're stuck with the proprietary MediaPlayer or RealPlayer codecs + + +**Q:** why doesn't my browser play the link right away rather than asking me to download it? \\ +**A:** because my wiki doesn't support mime-magic yet + +**Q:** why don't you just let apache serve media files? \\ +**A:** because a CGI has no way to "handoff" a file to the web server once they've been invoked + +==== Food and Power ==== + +Here's a stupid movie by SamuelKlein, ArjunSarwal and myself: + + * [[FoodAndPower/FoodAndPowerHigh.ogg]] - [62MB] OggTheora stream, quality 10 + * [[FoodAndPower/FoodAndPowerMed.ogg]] - [26MB] OggTheora stream, quality 7 + * [[FoodAndPower/FoodAndPowerLow.ogg]] - [16MB] OggTheora stream, quality 5 + +If your computer cannot play the above links, you should really consider installing +a free media player, or just switching to Linux which comes with all the free media +players and codecs out of the box. Meanwhile, here's a workaround: + + * [[FoodAndPower/FoodAndPower.avi]] - [103MB] original AVI stream from our shitty camera + +These also prove the quality of the OggTheora codec. After seeing this, I think +I'd recommend using it for its technical advantages in addition to its legal advantages. + +In producing these movies, I found out that: + + * mencoder has bad support for ogg-theora + * transcode kinda sucks + * ffmpeg seems the best command-line encoder of the three I tried + * The easiest solution if all you need is encoding anything to Theora is ffmpeg2theora. + All you have to do is: + {{{ + ffmpeg2theora FoodAndPower.avi + }}} + + +=== Sat, 12th === + +==== Cow power! ==== + +My good friend ArjunSarwal recently made the [[http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/10/26/0541205 | Slashdot front page]] +with his story about [[http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Cow_Power| Cow Power]]! + +=== Fri, 11th === + +==== Crank, Crank! ==== + +Today we got this pleasant surprise. + +See the movie: [[OlpcCrank/StephenReillyCranking.mov]]. +The guy cranking is DanielDrake, Gentoo kernel maintainer +and wireless guru. + +{{OlpcCrank/ArjunCrankingSmall.jpg | ArjunSarwal cranking}} +{{OlpcCrank/ArjunCranking2Small.jpg | ArjunSarwal cranking}} +{{OlpcCrank/StephenCrankingSmall.jpg | StephenReilly cranking}} +{{OlpcCrank/StephenCranking2Small.jpg | StephenReilly cranking}} + +Larger versions of these pics are available at OlpcCrank. + +=== Sat 5th === + +==== The little computer that just won't die! ==== + +OneLaptopPerChild is not enough. There should definitely be +{{OneAmigaPerChild/OneAmigaPerChild | OneAmigaPerChild}}! + +{{OneAmigaPerChild/OneAmigaPerChildSmaller.jpg}} + +Look [[OneAmigaPerChild/OneAmigaPerChild | here]] for additional details. +A big thankyou to MicheleConsoleBattilana for providing a free copy of +AmigaForever, a fine tribute to the coolest platform ever! + +=== Thu 3rd === + +==== The XaoS strikes back! ==== + +I enjoyed bundling this OldSkool activity for the XO: + +http://wiki.laptop.org/images/8/8c/XaoS-screenshot4.png + +See: http://wiki.laptop.org/go/XaoS + +It certainly needs some more sugarization work for which I have no time. + + +=== Wed 2st === + +==== Haiku Laptop ==== + +Today we shipped our machine affected by dlo#5575 (touchpad mostly unfunctional) +to Japan for further inspection by ALPS. Just before closing up the plastic case, +I've left inside a little fortune cookie for them: + +{{HaikuXoSmall.jpg}} + +If you're wondering what it means, it's a piece of japanese poetry called a HaikuPoem. +Google for it. + === Tue 1st === ==== Trip to Walden Pond ==== @@ -10,11 +174,11 @@ So, Adam, Arjun and myself went to this [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walden_Po place, where the famous American poet [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_David_Thoreau|Thoreau]] lived in complete isolation for 2 years in a cabin made of wood. -[[WaldenPond1Small.jpg|Arjun (left) and Me (guess who?)]] +{{WaldenPond1Small.jpg|Arjun (left) and Me (guess who?)}} On this very nice lake, I stupdily tried to run on the ice and fell badly, hitting my jaw and cheek on the hard ice. Little cut, big bump... no permanent consequences. Maybe I should consider a health insurance? -[[WaldenPond2Small.jpg|Me (the really crazy one) and Adam (the really worried one)]] -[[ThoreauCabinSmall.jpg|The there of us in the site of Thoreau's cabin]] +{{WaldenPond2Small.jpg|Me (the really crazy one) and Adam (the really worried one)}} +{{ThoreauCabinSmall.jpg|The three of us in the site of Thoreau's cabin}}