Campaigning, debate, and a bottle of rye

Disclaimer: This blog post is being made while under the influence.

So the campaign has begun to get my brother in law elected to a municipal councilor position, and the past couple days have been devoted to that. Last night was spent putting up signs to get the word out, and tonight was an introduction and a small debate about the current issues.

I don't know how well my candidate did, it's kind of up in the air. There are five people running and two positions open. One person has been in the position for 21 years, so it's likely that he will be put back in. Old people hate change, and I live in a retirement village. I think my candidate was a little too stiff and did not speak directly on the issues, but danced around them by generalizing like a typical politician. The others did the same thing, but I would vote for the guy with the plan. While we may not have lost votes, I don't think we gained very many either.

While watching the debates, I imagined myself up on the podium delivering my platform and addressing the issues along with them. I am typically a shy person and keep to myself, so I don't know if I could actually say what I am thinking. My mind is up to the task of being a politician, but I question my demeanor. Two of the candidates are pretty much dead in the water, one killed themselves tonight by demonstrating their inability to communicate and the other by attacking the competition while at the same time targeting their father, because his father served on the council and made the mistakes he talked about. It's down to three people, so it's a coin flip as to who makes it right now.

Maybe next election, or the one after, I will try to get myself in to office. My area is a retirement village, so I don't know how willing they would be to put a 26 year old into office, but if I present good enough ideas then they won't really have a choice now will they? It's sad that the only people who vote in my county are the elderly.

I think I've rambled enough for now in my rye induced epilogue, so I'll stop now. On an off note, I think I should cut back on how much I drink during the week, I have to head off to school sometime tomorrow.

P.S. God bless Firefox's spelling checker.

Wii!

The Wii countdown has begun! I don't know why I'm counting it down, because I can't afford it to begin with. Who knows? It just feels right. Who else wants a Wii?

More cases of Democrat votes changing to Republican votes

Maybe Diebold has created Skynet, and it's determined that the best way to send us into a barren, machine ruled, post-apocalyptic world is to keep the Republicans where they are. All hail our machine overlords.

The trouble with free elections is, you never know who is going to win. - Leonid Brezhnev

Unless, of course, you rig the election.

He touched the screen for gubernatorial candidate Jim Davis, a Democrat, but the review screen repeatedly registered the Republican, Charlie Crist.

There have been no cases of a vote for a Republican being mistaken as a vote for a Democrat. If it is indeed a "bug", then that "bug" is a Republican. Why can't the US of A take a lesson from Canada and stick to paper voting? Sure, if they really wanted to rig the election they could change the vote after the confirmation screen, but that would make it awful hard to have plausible deniability now, wouldn't it? There are enough careless, not to mention stupid, people in this world that a glitch here and there is enough to swing a vote. This coming election promises to be a circus.

The issue seems to be with the touch screens, which seems like an innocent enough excuse, but ATMs use touch screens... how often do they give you $40 when you ask for $60?

Derek Boogaard versus Todd Fedoruk - fight of the night

Boogaard is just scary, I don't know why anyone would want to have a go with him. Fedoruk ends up with a broken orbital bone and a broken cheek bone.

Clicksor is dead

Not only dead, but murdered; the blood is on my hands. I got a little tired of the not only irrelevant ads, but the downright inappropriate ones as well. I cannot morally recommend using their service to any would be advertiser.

Once upon a Friday night

I have been surprisingly unproductive these past few days. The blog posts I want to pump out just aren't getting moved along and the projects I have on the go aren't really going. Despite all that, I've been going through the motions to put another project on the table that should keep me busy for a few months. I'm starting to think that my limited attention span is going to bite me in the ass someday, because when you take into account my regular college work, I should be constantly busy. Oh well, that's just how it goes.

My goal for this weekend is to finish a significant portion of the calendar system I've been making for the college and maybe finish up the rest of Scurvy, which is a project that I don't really want to release the specifics of here. Once I get those two projects done I think it would be in my interest to find some money (trust me, the ads aren't doing too much) so I can get my own personal web server going on the net that can host a high traffic application.

After those two projects are out of the way I think I'll start doing proof of concept for Limestone (my newest project) to see how viable it might be, and hopefully within a week or two my group will be able to start coding on Doubloon.

As for blog posts, another goal for this weekend is to do the final editing on the game review I've been neglecting for the past week and also get about five or six more updates done. Stay tuned, it should be a busy weekend.

Three upcoming PC games I simply must have

Numero uno: Spore (Electronic Arts)

Spore is a sandbox game that is Will Wright's (the Sims series) newest baby. You start as a tiny organism consisting of a few cells, and collect evolution points (by eating less fortunate organisms) to create a more elaborate creature. You grow and grow, and your 2D screen then becomes 3D, you're in the ocean. You continue to evolve, eventually trading in your gills for a trusty pair of lungs and become a landlubber. Every time you break new ground the game gets a little bigger and you can do a little more. Eventually, you form civilizations and become bent on spreading your seed across the galaxy.

What makes this game unique? The creature editor. You can, literally, create anything you want. The game will procedurally animate and texture your creature to figure out what it should look like, sound like, and how it should move. Its only limitation is your creativity.

Number two: Supreme Commander (THQ)

Outside of Warcraft and Starcraft, RTS games have never really interested me. Supreme Commander has me salivating. Its scale is like nothing ever seen before, and finally we have an RTS game that uses 3D space effectively. Bullets are no longer random rolls for damage. Bullets are real, physical things in the game world. Projectiles are all calculated with real physics to determine whether they hit or miss, and how much damage they do. Different planes can fly at different altitudes, some weapons can't shoot high, and missiles actually travel from one point to another. Starcraft has nukes, but if you look at Supreme Commander, you realize that Starcraft has nothing. Google it if you haven't heard of it.

The finale: Neverwinter Nights 2 (Atari)

I haven't followed this game very closely, but I loved the first one. Improved graphics, scripting, gameplay, and a whole new singleplayer story to play through are enough for me to slap down $60 to play it.

What are three PC games you simply must have?

Ads, work, and a slain beast

The battle of the ads is underway, with the aforementioned mediocre adsense actually leading the bunch. The scores sit at ...

Adsense: $0.65
Bidvertiser: $0.00
Clicksor: $0.00

Some of these are CPM ads, but I haven't earned any money from anything but clicks yet. If clicks don't happen then there isn't really a point of using bidvertiser, because that's the only thing they pay out for. The funny thing is that I'm actually interested in the current advertisement but am prohibited from checking it out myself.

Onto the work.

Our group has been charged with creating an inventory tracking system for the college, but the organizational hierarchy has us spinning in circles instead of being able to actually do some work on it. One of our members has jumped the gun and started coding on the project anyways, but they skipped the entire planning stage. It's not like they don't know any better, because we started a project prior to this and the planning stages have been essential to getting it right the first time. I'm tempted to start on my own solution, so I can have some leverage when it comes time to redo everything and actually work as a group.

And as to that beast that was slain? That was my World Issues midterm. I'm not sure how well I did on it, but I know I at least passed it. Hell, I could even get 100% on it, I'm just not confident of it. Some questions needed blind guessing, and blind guess I did!

I mentioned some entries that might happen tonight in my last post, but there might have to be further delays. If I start coding on a project then I will have limited free time before settling down to watch my beloved Maple Leafs take on the Ottawa Senators tonight. I might settle for kicking out a smaller post that's been floating around in my head for a while, we'll see. Until then, waffle! (pie)

I'm a frequent procrastinator

The first sentence I read when I opened my textbook was:

The student of global politics today deserves some pity.

They aren't lying. This book is nearly impossible to read and connecting it to the material covered in class leaves me mystified on what might be on the exam. Luckily, my exam outline is vague enough that it also leaves me completely clueless (but at least I know that there will be short answer questions on the test, thanks Teach!)

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad if I didn't leave the reading to the last minute, but I'm going to step away from my internal locus of control for a minute and blame my inability to study on the double header of hockey that TSN is showing tonight. Go Oilers go.

Trying out some different ads

On a quick aside before I go missing for a day or so, I haven't been overly impressed with adsense so I'm trying out a few different ads to see if they're any better. While I cannot give you specifics on click through rates or pay per click, I am allowed to tell you how much I have earned. Adsense has amounted to a grand total of.... *drum roll* ... $0.50.

I didn't start doing this to make money, but I am a college student after all, money is my friend! Lack of money is also the enemy, and right now, I have a lot of enemies. The problem with advertisements is that they require clicks, and people have been conditioned to block ads from their sight. If anyone has any tips on how to get more clicks or just on advertising in general, please drop me a comment.

Also, if any of these ads rub you the wrong way, tell me and I'll think about changing them. I'm trying not to clutter my blog with ads, and I think I've somewhat successfully incorporated them in a way that doesn't interfere with the content of my blog, but if you feel I've failed then tell me so I can fix it.

World Issues becomes Justin's Issues

I may be a software engineering student, but that doesn't mean I'm exempt from the college cramming useless classes down my throat in the name of a broader learning experience. This semester my "elective" (is it really an elective if you're only given four choices?) is World Issues. The class hasn't been that bad so far, despite having an eccentric professor who is a touch senile, but a midterm this way comes. From now until Thursday I will be entrenched in the bowels of my textbook in an attempt to prepare for what promises to be an exciting (is the sarcasm dripping yet?) affair.

I'm currently working on a game review and another movie review, which should be available either Thursday night or Friday. "So you want to be a computer programmer - part 2" will be made available by Monday night, hopefully. My weekend will be spent preparing for municipal elections, so we'll see how much I'm able to keep track of my writing. Until then, waffle! (pie)

Why I switched to Firefox and you should too!

It took me a long time to switch to Firefox, but after I did I realized how much sooner I should have. If you're an Internet Explorer user, keep reading! Switching to Firefox is like taking a deep breath of fresh air. No more pop ups, no more spyware to clean out every week, no more viruses sneaking onto your computer just by looking at a website. The internet is yours again. If this is enough to convince you to switch, click the link to the right and click "Get Firefox with Google Toolbar" to ease your pain (if you can't see the links, go to the main page of my blog by clicking here). If you aren't convinced then keep on reading, because here are some reasons why I think everyone should use Firefox.

Security

Internet Explorer uses something called ActiveX controls, which allow hackers to exploit your computer and install spyware and viruses. Firefox doesn'et let that happen! Firefox keeps your computer safe from the internet and lets you browse with peace of mind. Ask yourself... do you really NEED all those spyware removal programs? Do you WANT to have to use them?

Extensions!

Extensions allow you to add things to your browser. Do you look at websites to see what the weather is going to be like? Why should you have to? Firefox allows you to check the weather with a quick glance! Sick of ad banners? Install an ad blocker! You don't have to see an advertisement ever again! Want to check your gmail account without logging in? It can do that too! Want to speed up your internet? Install the Fasterfox extension! Bored? Try the Stumble Upon website to find random sites that interest YOU! There are thousands of extensions and they are EASY to install! Just click a link and Firefox handles it for you, and they're all housed on Firefox's secure servers.

Pop Up Blocking

Internet Explorer has a pop up blocker, but it's nothing when compared to Firefox's. When I was using Internet Explorer, it might have blocked one in five advertisements from showing up. With Firefox, I haven't had to close a pop up for MONTHS. If a site requires that you have pop ups enabled, Firefox lets you know! Allowing that pop up is as simple as clicking a button.

Tabbed Browsing

Ever had 10 browser windows open? Ever thought to yourself just how much of a waste of space that is? Firefox can fix that. Firefox allows you to view multiple websites in the same browser window! Switching to another page is as easy as clicking a tab, and your task bar belongs to YOU again.

Download Manager

With IE, every download has its own window to keep track of. Have you ever asked yourself why? Why does everything needs its own window and why does Internet Explorer have to monopolize your task bar? With Firefox's download manager, everything is handled in one window. You can track all of your downloads at once and open them right from there when they're finished. Firefox allows you to be more productive and leave room for what really matters, your work!

It's Standard

Microsoft never follows standards, and they expect you to not care. Well, you SHOULD care! Ever seen websites that just don't work how they should? Ever seen websites that don't look right? That's because of how Internet Explorer "sees" the web. Firefox is W3C compliant, it shows the web how it was intended to be seen.

These are just SOME of the benefits of switching to Firefox. Just remember these three words - Safe. Fast. Easy. That's Firefox. Switch over by clicking "Get Firefox" on my list of links and start surfing the internet for the first time.

Get traffic to your blog!

I recently discovered some sites which allow you to advertise your blog, which I think is extremely important in a world where a blog is made every half second. What's the point of writing on one of these things if no one reads it? You can check out Blog Mad here, and Blog Explosion here.

For Blog Mad, you submit your site and then read other blogs, each blog you read gets you one credit. One credit gets you one view. There are other ways for earning credits, such as playing games or hosting banners (see side bar, check out some of the ones I have to get the idea). Blog Explosion is the same kind of concept, but I haven't checked it out too much yet. Hopefully I can get a decent amount of views out of this, since getting a readership going for a new blog is almost impossible.

If you found this blog by way of Blog Mad or Blog Explosion, drop me a comment! Leave your blog's URL and I promise I'll check it out. If you are interested in trading links, I can advertise your blog on mine if you advertise mine. Let's be friends! :)

Movie Review: The Grudge 2

It is with heavy heart that my first movie review on this blog has to be this steaming pile, but it's what I most recently went to see. The Grudge 2 can easily be summed up as 100 minutes of plotless miasma that introduces more main characters than the director has braincells for no other purpose than to have them killed off in a fashion that grew old about five minutes after The Ring hit theaters. For those wondering exactly what happens in the movie, imagine The Grudge, then take away all plot elements and leave all the bits where powder white children jump out of shadows. Then proceed to kill everyone that appears on camera. Yes, everyone. Don't expect a reason, an explanation, or even creative death scenes. Viola, you have The Grudge 2.

The suckitude of this movie is not limited to the writing, directing, or producing, it extends very much into the acting department. It is stunning that such a vast cast of people can produce the exact same unconvincing guise of terror, which comes off more as vague confusion, in the face of the reality bending supernatural of meowing children hiding underneath your desk without so much the courtesy of performing sexual favours. You paid something (most likely your sanity) to see this movie, it might as well have been that.

The makers of this movie must have been somewhat aware of the travesty that they were filming, because they made a marvelous connection with the audience right around the point where the entranced woman starts vomiting milk back into the jug she just emptied. This is exactly what the theater is doing right around this point as they become overwhelmed by the thought that they are actually paying to see this. In a striking parallel to reality, the friend watching her walks away without a care in the world while she takes a cellphone call, with your money burning a hole in her back pocket. This is, apparently, exactly what Sony Pictures is doing right about now while you empty your stomach contents onto the fly paper floor of the theater. And they wonder why movies aren't pulling in as much money lately.

Words fail to describe exactly how pointless this movie really is, and anyone who is considering spending their $12 to watch it should know that they would easily be more entertained by spinning in circles for the duration that this shite fest is running.

Giving this movie a score of 0 out of 10 almost seems too generous.

So you want to be a computer programmer - part 1

This is the first installment of what I hope to be a long list of guides and tutorials for the aspiring beginner. I will not pretend to be all knowing, but instead I intend to share my personal experiences and insights to help out anyone looking to follow in my footsteps (god help you). The key for an absolute beginner to the programming world is mind numbingly obvious...

Start at the beginning

People are drawn to computer programming for many unique and different reasons, and I will guarantee that none of those reasons involve writing "Hello, World!" to an otherwise empty console. If you got lost there, don't stop reading! I'll do my best to explain everything, if not here then in a future installment. I'll take a guess and say that the reason most people want to be programmers is because of everyones favourite scapegoat: Video games! And why shouldn't they be? Video games provide hours of enjoyment at a level of involvement that spits in the face of non-interactive forms of entertainment such as television, movies, books, and music. In fact, video games combine all of those elements together and put you in control. The same thing that makes video games so great is the same thing that makes them hard to make, they're complex! If you want to be a programmer, don't go in with the hopes of making the next Counter-Strike or World of Warcraft any time soon. Becoming a good programmer takes a lot of time, a lot of work, and a lot of perseverance. Rushing in to attempt a complex game to start off will probably scare you away from the field completely. To become a good programmer, you must...

Be patient

I've mentioned how much time and work this field is, but I want to stress it some more. You will be faced with many challenges over your career and a lot of the time, most of the time, you won't have a clue on where to start on the problem. If you read some tutorials and begin to feel a little overwhelmed then take a deep breath and remember my words. Be Patient.

Be humble

I'll be the first to admit that my ego is not exactly small, but I imagine I'm not the only person who is confident in their ability. Being confident is important, but there is a distinction between confidence and pride. Pride will make your life as a programmer much more difficult than it needs to be. If you don't understand something or you need a little help, asking for it should be one of your first courses of action, not your last. Don't be ashamed to ask for assistance, it will save you hours and hours of work. One word of caution though, is not to exhaust those doing the helping! Always at least make an attempt at solving something yourself before picking someone else's brain, they'll thank you for it.

Make mistakes

This might seem a little strange, but after you get your feet wet a little you will understand it perfectly. You learn a lot more from your mistakes than you do from doing something perfectly the first time. In fact, if something I write compiles on the first try I feel uneasy, because even the best programmer in the world makes mistakes. As a beginner, I encourage you to intentionally make mistakes in order to get used to the error messages that compilers throw at you. Take your functioning code and start erasing parts of it to see what happens. You will understand the errors better if you know what's wrong before reading the message, instead of having something not work and having no clue what might be wrong. Making mistakes will save you a lot of time when your programs get to be big and complex.

That about does it for this installment of "So you want to be a computer programmer", and for those of you feeling a little let down about there not being any actual code to ingest, I'm sorry. I promise that there will be an actual tutorial down the road somewhat soon! Within the next one or two articles I will start an introduction to the C programming language to help get you on your way to being a computer programmer! Until next time, waffle! (pie)

The obligatory first post

Ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages, welcome to the most fantabulously menial and ultimately superfluous blog on the planet! This is not my first attempt at a blog, but it's my most recent attempt at one. Shouldn't that be motivation enough for you to keep reading? That's right, I thought so.

Since you're going to keep checking up on this periodically, I suppose I should let you know a little about myself. My name is Justin and I live somewhere in Ontario, Canada. I'm a twenty-something college student enrolled in software engineering. My interests range from all things Geek to normal people stuff such as sports (you can probably guess, hockey is my favourite), movies, music, reading, writing, and occassionaly I like to skydive while wearing nothing but women's underwear! Alright, that last one might not be totally honest (I sometimes throw on a skirt).

Here is a list of some of the topics you might see me writing about on this thingy-jobby:

- My school work (aka, slandering my professors)
- The Toronto Maple Leafs (that's a hockey team, I know, I know, hockey isn't a real sport).
- Product reviews, be it software, games, books, a website, or a power drill.
- Stories (I occassionally write!)
- Poetry (worst. poems. ever.)
- And, finally, the random events in my life. Aside from crossdressing and skydiving, this category might be a little empty, or if not empty, uninteresting.

Of course, I'm completely open to suggestions if you want me to write about something. Send me an email (if I decide to list it) or leave some comments on my posts.

On top of being a junior software engineer, I'm also an aspiring beginner web programmer who mostly deals in PHP/MySQL. I'm in a group along with two other classmates who sometimes provide custom solutions to those who ask (and are willing to pay). We also deal in Ruby on Rails, Django, and assorted other fun.

That about sums up the obligatory first post, which, as usual, has ran on longer than I intended. Until next time, waffle! (pie)