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Sep. 4th, 2003
Burning Monkeys!
Sep. 4th, 2003 09:49 amThe demo for Burning Monkey Solitaire 3 has been released! Mac (OS9 and X) and Windows versions are available. Haven't played it yet (this is a solitaire game meant to be played with the sound on, and I'm at work), but the first two rank as my favorite online card games ever (along with everything else Freeverse has done). Don't forget to go to the Help menu and select the "Why is it called Burning Monkey?" option. :-)
Could somebody tell me why Alton Brown's Book Tour isn't coming to Atlanta? The man lives here, you'd think there'd be a local store who'd want him putting in an appearance.
Well, that was interesting
Sep. 4th, 2003 02:29 pmSo, the system was down for a couple of hours this morning for a directory rebuild (and don't let me get started on the idiocy of our backend admin taking a vacation on the first full week of classes, or his wrapped-around-his-finger boss (who is not my boss, for those wondering) letting him, even though he has no competent backup). And at 10, I was supposed to talk to class of grad students about using LL to teach. Since I couldn't get the faculty member coordinating the class on the phone, I had to head over there, and after I explained the situation, she asked if I could still chat with the students for a bit.
Surprisingly, I managed to speak and answer questions for forty minutes. It was a unique challenge. Having to describe the actions required without having the computer to demonstrate it on is something I thought would be nearly impossible, but it actually forced me to think of different ways of articulating some common concepts. It also was a nice chance to really hone some of my teaching skills. Much as I detest public speaking in the traditional lecture sense, I'm really good at the small seminar-style stuff, and it was nice to do it in setting that didn't require me to be at a computer. It reminded me of the Path Not Taken, which, had I taken it, would have me on the tenure track, teaching Marlowe to a bunch of attentive college students.
I don't regret this path one bit (especially given my knowledge of departmental politics and faculty salaries), but it's still nice to remember that there were other paths I could have taken. And years later, I can look back and know that I could have taken the other path, and still kicked ass. No whining and regretting that path; we all have paths, and making choices is what life's about. But knowing where those major paths forked is a nice way of maintaining some perspective.
Yeah, I'm rambling. That's what happens when it takes two hours of work interruptions to finish a post.
Surprisingly, I managed to speak and answer questions for forty minutes. It was a unique challenge. Having to describe the actions required without having the computer to demonstrate it on is something I thought would be nearly impossible, but it actually forced me to think of different ways of articulating some common concepts. It also was a nice chance to really hone some of my teaching skills. Much as I detest public speaking in the traditional lecture sense, I'm really good at the small seminar-style stuff, and it was nice to do it in setting that didn't require me to be at a computer. It reminded me of the Path Not Taken, which, had I taken it, would have me on the tenure track, teaching Marlowe to a bunch of attentive college students.
I don't regret this path one bit (especially given my knowledge of departmental politics and faculty salaries), but it's still nice to remember that there were other paths I could have taken. And years later, I can look back and know that I could have taken the other path, and still kicked ass. No whining and regretting that path; we all have paths, and making choices is what life's about. But knowing where those major paths forked is a nice way of maintaining some perspective.
Yeah, I'm rambling. That's what happens when it takes two hours of work interruptions to finish a post.
New Brad Meltzer!
Sep. 4th, 2003 02:56 pmThe Zero Game comes out in January! Wonder what comic references he'll slip into this one. :-)