The third Monday of January is Martin Luther King day. If you, like me, missed this then you can easily catch up by reading about him, or even better reading his work – my favorite is Letter from Birmingham Jail (1963) and listening to his speeches. Ten audio files of his speeches have been collected here.
The best collection of everything above is here.
It’s cold, it’s dark and I’m tired. This is not really the inspiration I need to put on my running gear and go out. I browsed around flickr hoping to find something inspiring but no luck. I came across this image which was very nice but does it make me feel like running? Nope. Nice photo though.
Photo by Kookalamanza
There is no disguising the fact that some days exercise is boring. But some days it is nigh impossible to get out of the chair. So admitting this online helps. It may be the wrong weather but that cannot be helped, it’s time to get dressed and go. Thankfully my iPod is loaded and helps me divert my attention from the running. It’s loaded with different lectures and podcasts. The latest is a series of lectures on the history of China. So it’s out into the darkness and into the Ming dynasty.
After spending the best part of a morning doing admin, in particular going through my inbox only to discover what I have missed, I realize (not for the first time) that I need to be more systematic about my work. In particular I need to divide my day in a more efficient manner.
For me the three main productivity and time thieves are:
Interruptions and short meetings – this is because I try to work before and after but interruptions and short meetings make me lose my chain of thought and send me off on a different tangent. A well placed interruption can create a chain of events that cause a whole day to be lost.
Travel time – Since I spend several hours a week on trains (mainly) I need to reconsider the way in which travel can be seen. This time must be used more efficiently. Computer work is possible but not desirable. Reading may be the optimal use of train travel.
Administration – By this I mean the whole process of ensuring that my research and teaching works. It is everything from maintaining email correspondence to filling out the reports. The actual time spent with administration concerns and annoyances is almost as high as the time spent actually carrying out the administrative tasks.
The plan: A proposal of a new work order for myself.
First of all I need to create a meetings and administration day. On this day the main point of going to work will be not to write or to research. It will be to efficiently resolve my administration tasks. This will also free up my mind from thinking about administration.
Second of all I need to create the opposite of an administration day and this is my Creativity day. The whole point of this day will be to think. Not to write but to think. A whole day to work out solutions to problems, lay plans and develop ideas. This day should not be spent writing. Of course I will make notes but maybe I will do this longhand with a paper and pen. This day should be as unplugged as possible. Little or no computer use.
Third I will create two research and writing days. This will include writing out the ideas from the creativity day, carrying out research, writing articles, chapters and books. Writing research proposals belongs to the administration day and should not be done here. These days should be relatively unplugged – keeping Internet use to a minimum.
Fourth and last will be the teaching day. During this day I will lecture and guide, have student meetings and seminars. Since I have a low teaching burden at present this should be more than enough and the time not spent in teaching should be used in preparing for teaching and teaching administration.
Naturally an idea like this cannot work without making sure that there are exceptions. Every now and then I am sure that the plan will implode but the idea is to strive for improvement.
When will you blog? The exception to the rule
However while the focus of these days is as mentioned I do believe that there is a need to apply oneself to work on a regular basis. Therefore in each day I will include one hour of academic writing (except on the two research and writing days since this is already included). One hour of other writing (mostly emails & this blog).
This is the basic plan and I am sure that it will require some fine tuning but I hope to be quite strict about its application. It’s not a new idea that the freedom embedded in academia requires a great deal of self discipline but what is new for me is the attempt to implement a strict organized regime instead of trying to solve things on a priority basis.
The Handbook of Applied Cryptography by Alfred J. Menezes, Paul C. van Oorschot and Scott A. Vanstone is available free online for download. This is an important book – in my discussions with online activists I try to explain the importance of them doing all they can to protect themselves. This is certainly a step in the right direction.
The book is not under a particularly generous license but it is available. Make sure you read the copyright notice.
The FSCONS conference was really good. I managed to speak to many interesting people and my presentation turned into a very good interactive discussion with the audience. The only thing that is wrong is that I am unable to attend the second day which is today. The reason for this is that my grandmother is 90. This is a birthday that cannot be missed so I am on the train to Stockholm.
As part of the FSCONS the Free Software Foundation Europe created and handed out the first Free Software Scandinavian Award. Since I was on the award committee I know first hand how interesting reviewing and discussing Free Software projects and initiatives can be. Here is the press release about the award which went to the excellent Norwegian project Skolelinux:
Free Software Foundation Europe is proud to announce that the Norwegian project Skolelinux is the winner of the first Free Software Scandinavian Award handed out at during the Free Software Conference Scandinavia 2007 in Göteborg friday 2007-12-07.
Skolelinux has under a long period of time worked hard to promote the use of Free Software as well as the use of free and open standards and file formats. By using low cost or spare hardware, schools and other public institutions can find a free and cheap IT solution made to meet their needs.
Skolelinux captures a big part of the free software spirit; sharing and reusing. By focusing on schools, Skolelinux makes sure students, tomorrow’s computer users, and decision makers, can grow up in a spirit of sharing, reusing and learning from family, friends and neighbours.
The goals of Skolelinux are to:
* Provide a complete software solution using free software tailored for the needs and use-cases in educational scenarios.
* Pre-configured for easy installation (standalone, as well as network-wide roll out).
* Easy to use, maintain, and administer.
* Supporting your native language.
* Classify and package all free software related to education.
* Write documentation to describe how to use the various software (in an educational context).
* International availability, currently being translated into more than 50 languages.
Skolelinux has combined important, and dedicated work contributions with technical knowledge and political skills.
The adoption of Skolelinux in so many countries around the globe shows that the use of Free Software and open standards has really been spreading in a very positiv way.
The next milestone is that we are now seeing the merge of different school systems based on Free Software. The largest example is the merge between Skolelinux and the very successful Spanish GNU/LinEx project which has at the moment more than 250.000 users and 80.000 work stations in use in schools in Extremadura. The one laptop for every two pupils project.
Both Skolelinux and the GNU/LinEx buildts on Debian GNU/Linux and can enjoy the many synergy effects.
By focusing on schools the Skolelinux project shows by example how Free Software can be used. The jury finds this strategy important for the continued use of free and open standards.
Short about Skolelinux:
GNU/Linux in Schools
Skolelinux is free, stable, future secured, sustainable, and is upgraded frequently
– no license problems
– easy and time saving administration
– security updates are made quickly available
– simple system updating
– good administration of the software packets
– older PC ‘s can be used as thin clients
– no dependence on commercial interests/vendor lock inAbout the leadership:
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The Skolelinux project has “doer democracy” which means that the active persons decide! The merit lies in your contributions not in your title.The free, open source code in the project is very valuable because the source code is available making it is easy to change and
customize. This is illustrated by the many languages that are being supported. In a digitalized world it is important for the survival of the cultures that even small national languages are being actively supported.The collaboration platform:
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The Skolelinux version 3.0r1 is now available. There has been a valuable collaboration between the following countries: Germany, Spain , France, Greece and Norway. Lately also with a Canadian School project.For some years now there have been regular meetings between different free software school systems and projects. The reason being to share cool applications and avoid double work. A win-win situation for all.
Congratulations again to Skolelinux. We wish you continued growths and success.
The Scandinavian Free Software Award
————————————The Scandinavian Free Software Award has been designed for Nordic citizens, projects or organizations that make an outstanding contribution to the Free Software movement. Free Software projects, efforts, achievements of all kinds – including work done by Nordic citizens which has had a large effect in other parts of the world are eligible to be nominated. It is the aim of FSCONS 2007 that this award becomes an annual event.
Jury 2007:
The jury is compiled by Nordic citizens only. This year the members are:
– Anne Østergaard (Gnome Foundation, Denmark)
– Henrik Sandklef (FSFE, Sweden)
– Jonas Öberg (FSFE, Sweden)
– Marcus Rejås (FSFE, Sweden)
– Mathias Klang (FSFE, Sweden)
– Petter Reinholdtsen (NUUG, Norway)
Here is the complete list of nominated projects.
Ever since this summer when I got my shiny new laptop I have been longing to personalise it. I knew that I wanted to engrave it with something eye-catching and symbolic. Since I really liked my last engraving I decided to go with the same again.
My image of choice is based on a wonderful drawing of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza Reflections by Gene Colan from 1998.
Since I want to accentuate the Don Quixote and Sancho Panza I removed the background and their reflections in the water. What is left is the two riders. I contacted Mr Colan to tell him of my plans to modify and engrave the image onto my computer. This is not a question of copyright law but I wanted to have permission from the artist as a mark of respect.
So I took my powerbook to the engraver (a firm called Brion) and this is what happened – for a full set of large images check out my flickr account. Many people who choose to modify there powerbooks in this way tend to go with the lazer engraving but I prefer the effect of the diamond drill engraving since it makes for a very nice finish based on shiny lines – very classical.
First strap it in
The outline
Drilling Quixote
Drilling details
The finished product
It’s done! I have finally got around to engraving my new laptop. I will be writing up a proper description of the event but I felt a need to show you the result. For those of you who have been around here for a while you may recognise the choice of picture. I was considering changing this for something new but I really liked the imagery of Don Quixote.
I tried to tell a friend that sometimes I feel like Don Q himself and other times I feel like Sancho Panza’s donkey. Naturally my friend replied that I was a part of the establishment and therefore, despite all illusions to the contrary, I was simply a windmill…
It’s been some time since I took a proper photo walk but I still take lots of photo’s. Some time ago I even went professional on Flickr so I guess I am officially one step closer to being Web2.0 or maybe I am just a beta…
Anyway all my public photo’s are on Flickr (check them out) and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license.
Vintage Grill
Ok, so I have already written about my lack of enthusiasm in the newest ebook reader. That’s putting it mildly. But when I read Steven Poole’s 14 point list about what the ebook of the future must be able to do in order to beat the book I laughed out loud – so since it is Friday I thought that we all needed a laugh at Amazon’s expense…
So the ebook of the future:
1 It will have an inexhaustible source of energy and never need recharging.
2 It will have resolution as good as print. (No, Amazon, really as good as print.)
3 It will be able to survive coffee and wine spills, days of intense sunlight, dropping in the ocean, light charring, and falling completely into two or more pieces, while still remaining perfectly readable afterwards.
4 It will allow me to scribble notes and/or doodles in the margins, with my choice of mechanical pencil or fine Muji fibre-tip pen (black). (Note, typing in the margins with a crappy thumb keyboard is not an acceptable alternative.)
5 It will allow me to riffle through it and thus get a quick, intuitive look at the book’s argumentative or narrative structure.
6 It will allow me to tear off the corner of a page to write down my phone number (or someone else’s).
7 It will display to other people in coffee shops and on public transport the title of what I am reading, so as to advertise my erudition or quirky sense of humour.
8 It will be physically handsome, not drop-dead fugly. (Note to Amazon: for pity’s sake, next time, head-hunt people from Sony or Apple.)
9 Indeed, the books on it will still be designed, by typesetters and graphic artists, so as to feed our aesthetic pleasure.
10 I will still be able to lend or give books to friends, or swap books in and out of the honour library of much-read novels in a Mediterranean seaside bar.
11 I will be able to use the ebook as a reliable flat surface for rolling cigarettes or other leaf-based refreshments, without worrying about debris shorting the motherboard.
12 When I receive the updated edition of the Oxford Companion to Philosophy, I will be able to press the previous edition into service as a stand for the left-hand music speaker on my desk.
13 The ebook will function, morever, as both bug-crusher and discretionary hat. Placed on my face, it will make a soft roof against the sun on the beach.
14 I will still be able to hurl a fatuous tome such as Jeff Gomez’s Print Is Dead across the room without thereby destroying my ability to read any other books.
Steven Poole’s book Trigger Happy is a pioneering work in the history and aesthetics of computer games. As an experiment (triggered by Amazon Kindle & DRM discussions) Steven is giving away his book for free, with no DRM attached under a Creative Commons BY-NC-ND license.
Trigger Happy is a book about the aesthetics of videogames — what they share with cinema, the history of painting, or literature; and what makes them different, in terms of form, psychology and semiotics. It was first published in 2000; this is the revised edition with the Afterword written in
20042001. (Update: as requested in comments, the 2004 Afterword can now be read here.)
The book will be available online for “a limited period only” and therefore his (and my) advice is to grab it while its hot!
Hopefully we shall also be able to find out more about the results of the experiment. Whether or not it increases or decreases sales, generates interest or has any interesting unexpected consequences. Stay tuned to Steven’s blog.
