Comments on: Gone to the Beach http://www.annezelenka.com/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach a blog about the connected age Fri, 29 Aug 2008 21:24:13 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5 By: Anne 2.0 » Blog Archive » An Unsatisfying Read http://www.annezelenka.com/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-194 Anne 2.0 » Blog Archive » An Unsatisfying Read Sat, 10 Jun 2006 18:47:52 +0000 http://www.annezelenka.com/testbed/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-194 [...] Fortunately, novelty doesn’t require that we ditch our spouse or partner, change jobs, or move to a new state, though I can attest to the exhilaration of state-to-state moves. You can bring new things into your life just by taking a mindful stance: pay closer attention to everyday experiences, refrain from prejudging using rigid concepts, and draw new distinctions even in the context of familiar activities. Berns’ research provides an empirical basis for understanding how mindfulness can make our lives more satisfying. [...] […] Fortunately, novelty doesn’t require that we ditch our spouse or partner, change jobs, or move to a new state, though I can attest to the exhilaration of state-to-state moves. You can bring new things into your life just by taking a mindful stance: pay closer attention to everyday experiences, refrain from prejudging using rigid concepts, and draw new distinctions even in the context of familiar activities. Berns’ research provides an empirical basis for understanding how mindfulness can make our lives more satisfying. […]

]]> By: pono http://www.annezelenka.com/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-193 pono Wed, 08 Mar 2006 04:47:05 +0000 http://www.annezelenka.com/testbed/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-193 I'll throw in my .02 for OS X as well. The SMB file sharing has been painless. Office X for my wife's Hawaii DOE work. Darwin Ports and Fink for those Un*xy things that don't "./configure; make" smoothly and that I'm too lazy/stupid to port. I've almost got the Active Directory single signon working at the office, but for the screwy kerberos set up we use. I haven't suffered a kernel panic since upgrading from the earliest 10.2.x revs. One hideously geeky thing to moan about is the threading. Apple has made the system service threading finer over the years, reducing the blocks while something or another calls i/o or whatever other system service. The speed of thread spawning has left something to be desired, although it's improving. I guess if they only had so many FTEs to go around, and they spent more of them on improving the overall user experience than on kernel tweaking, I can live with that. My practice has been to run Linux on whatever older Mac was put out to stud as a server when I got a newer system, and OS X on that newer system. I’ll throw in my .02 for OS X as well. The SMB file sharing has been painless. Office X for my wife’s Hawaii DOE work. Darwin Ports and Fink for those Un*xy things that don’t “./configure; make” smoothly and that I’m too lazy/stupid to port. I’ve almost got the Active Directory single signon working at the office, but for the screwy kerberos set up we use. I haven’t suffered a kernel panic since upgrading from the earliest 10.2.x revs.

One hideously geeky thing to moan about is the threading. Apple has made the system service threading finer over the years, reducing the blocks while something or another calls i/o or whatever other system service. The speed of thread spawning has left something to be desired, although it’s improving. I guess if they only had so many FTEs to go around, and they spent more of them on improving the overall user experience than on kernel tweaking, I can live with that.

My practice has been to run Linux on whatever older Mac was put out to stud as a server when I got a newer system, and OS X on that newer system.

]]> By: Anne Zelenka http://www.annezelenka.com/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-192 Anne Zelenka Tue, 07 Mar 2006 00:04:15 +0000 http://www.annezelenka.com/testbed/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-192 Thanks, Ryan. My gut says go for a Mac. You've confirmed it. Thanks, Ryan. My gut says go for a Mac. You’ve confirmed it.

]]> By: ryan http://www.annezelenka.com/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-191 ryan Mon, 06 Mar 2006 16:29:52 +0000 http://www.annezelenka.com/testbed/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-191 Mac does SMB (windows filesharing) built in natively. You should have absolutely no problems whatsoever. I have office, and I exchange office docs with no problem with windows people. I also use Entourage with an exchange server - that works fairly well, some minor glitches, but not the end of the world. There is a remote desktop client so if you set up RDC on your windows machine you can control it from your Mac. I do all my work on my powerbook - including my linux development at work. I don't actually compile on my own box, but X11 server is for free and works well. Plus you get access to all sorts of really cool productivity apps such as OmniGraffle and DEVONthink. Also the whole iLife suite is pretty awesome. I really like mac mail. Etc etc etc. One of the most amazing things about working with a Mac is that it really raises my expectations out of design and software. You'll love it, I'm sure. Mac does SMB (windows filesharing) built in natively. You should have absolutely no problems whatsoever. I have office, and I exchange office docs with no problem with windows people. I also use Entourage with an exchange server - that works fairly well, some minor glitches, but not the end of the world. There is a remote desktop client so if you set up RDC on your windows machine you can control it from your Mac.

I do all my work on my powerbook - including my linux development at work. I don’t actually compile on my own box, but X11 server is for free and works well.

Plus you get access to all sorts of really cool productivity apps such as OmniGraffle and DEVONthink. Also the whole iLife suite is pretty awesome. I really like mac mail.

Etc etc etc.

One of the most amazing things about working with a Mac is that it really raises my expectations out of design and software. You’ll love it, I’m sure.

]]> By: Anne Zelenka http://www.annezelenka.com/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-190 Anne Zelenka Sun, 05 Mar 2006 09:22:56 +0000 http://www.annezelenka.com/testbed/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-190 Thanks, Ryan, I was hoping someone would jump in with a suggestion. I will probably get a Mac. Even if I have trouble getting the PC and Mac to talk together, that's just fodder for the blog. Thanks, Ryan, I was hoping someone would jump in with a suggestion. I will probably get a Mac. Even if I have trouble getting the PC and Mac to talk together, that’s just fodder for the blog.

]]> By: ryan http://www.annezelenka.com/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-189 ryan Sun, 05 Mar 2006 09:08:07 +0000 http://www.annezelenka.com/testbed/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-189 Mac vs PC - pretty simple, go with the Mac. I've used OS X for 4 years now. Previously it was Linux. I haven't used Windows full time since Windows 3.1/95 days. OS X is everything you want Linux to be, but is not. Plus Objective C/xcode is really cool and fun. Mac vs PC - pretty simple, go with the Mac. I’ve used OS X for 4 years now. Previously it was Linux. I haven’t used Windows full time since Windows 3.1/95 days. OS X is everything you want Linux to be, but is not.

Plus Objective C/xcode is really cool and fun.

]]> By: Anne Zelenka http://www.annezelenka.com/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-188 Anne Zelenka Sun, 05 Mar 2006 08:39:47 +0000 http://www.annezelenka.com/testbed/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-188 Hal, it doesn't matter to me whether it's about age or gender or both; it's a disparaging stereotype and a tired cliche. Time to retire it. Joy - I like your infantile comments! Don't stop! Glad you liked the list of OPML resources. Hal, it doesn’t matter to me whether it’s about age or gender or both; it’s a disparaging stereotype and a tired cliche. Time to retire it.

Joy - I like your infantile comments! Don’t stop! Glad you liked the list of OPML resources.

]]> By: gingajoy http://www.annezelenka.com/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-187 gingajoy Sat, 04 Mar 2006 03:59:45 +0000 http://www.annezelenka.com/testbed/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-187 anne, iv've just discovered your post for BlogHer. Great stuff! Makes me think i need to be blogging more about my work experiences (other than infantile comments, that is;-) Great list of resources, so thanks. anne, iv’ve just discovered your post for BlogHer. Great stuff! Makes me think i need to be blogging more about my work experiences (other than infantile comments, that is;-) Great list of resources, so thanks.

]]> By: Hal O'Brien http://www.annezelenka.com/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-186 Hal O'Brien Fri, 03 Mar 2006 07:50:38 +0000 http://www.annezelenka.com/testbed/2006/02/gone-to-the-beach#comment-186 <i>"The next blogger who writes "make your software easy enough for my mother to use" goes to the naughty corner."</i> I tend to see that not as a gender-based thing, but as an age-based thing. Make it easy enough for people in the previous generation to use, who simply haven't had the immersion later generations have. I would use "father", but he's been dead since 1970, so that's an image that doesn't come readily to mind. I can certainly say that when I worked a telephone support line for all users of a particular platform <i>{cough}</i>, the callers tended to skew elderly, Southern, and female. I make no judgment from that, just as I make no judgment from the fact I entered the raw data for an employer where liquor stores that were burned down in the Rodney King riots were overwhlemingly owned by Korean-Americans, even when liquor stores owned by other ethnicities were just next door or down the block. Rather, like Damon Runyon, I'd say that's the way to bet after the first <i>{x}</i> samples. It was a question of probabilities, not certainties by any means. “The next blogger who writes “make your software easy enough for my mother to use” goes to the naughty corner.”

I tend to see that not as a gender-based thing, but as an age-based thing. Make it easy enough for people in the previous generation to use, who simply haven’t had the immersion later generations have.

I would use “father”, but he’s been dead since 1970, so that’s an image that doesn’t come readily to mind.

I can certainly say that when I worked a telephone support line for all users of a particular platform {cough}, the callers tended to skew elderly, Southern, and female. I make no judgment from that, just as I make no judgment from the fact I entered the raw data for an employer where liquor stores that were burned down in the Rodney King riots were overwhlemingly owned by Korean-Americans, even when liquor stores owned by other ethnicities were just next door or down the block. Rather, like Damon Runyon, I’d say that’s the way to bet after the first {x} samples. It was a question of probabilities, not certainties by any means.

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