I want to clear out the bushes around the eucalyptus tree, and put in a deck and an outdoor kitchen. Maybe do some landscaping also, and maybe plant some blackberries with trellises along the east wall. Paint the shed, add some lighting.
Maybe I should ask the landlord first?
in search of the next code editor
What about hyperlinks?
when you've got the ctrl key held down, becomes:
Note, this does not replace good tooltips, which are also requisite. The difference is that hyperlinks denote navigation, whereas tooltips bring the help to you, in context. We should have both, and there should be a back button for reversing all navigations. Some editors already have this.
class Hello
{
public Hello()
{
print("Hello World.");
}
}
when you've got the ctrl key held down, becomes:
When you click the link, keywords and library functions bring up help, symbols navigate to declaration or definition, as appropriate.class Hello
{
public Hello()
{
print("Hello World.");
}
}
Note, this does not replace good tooltips, which are also requisite. The difference is that hyperlinks denote navigation, whereas tooltips bring the help to you, in context. We should have both, and there should be a back button for reversing all navigations. Some editors already have this.
don't open that email!
The New York Times reports today that White House officials simply refused to open an email from the EPA last year because they knew it contained a policy recommendation they didn't like -- part of the Administration's on-going battle with scientists at the EPA over global warming issues. (TPM)The hallmark of this administration, to me, has always been their willingness to break every rule and ignore every convention, if they felt they could do so without facing consequences. It seems to be a deliberate policy: exercise every avenue of power that you can, to prove that you can, in case you need it later. Establish every precedent you can get away with. You see this time and time again in the scandals over the years: signing statements, war propaganda, politicizing the Department of Justice, politicizing science, and warrantless wiretapping... The administration will ignore laws it does not like, and will defy congress and the courts in an attempt to define its own reality.
Ignoring a policy email is childish and dysfunctional, but if no one will hold them accountable for it, it is ultimately an effective tactic. By taking impeachment off the table, and by refusing to enforce its subpoena power, and by ratifying telecom immunity, the Democratic Congress has shown that it is unable or unwilling to enforce discipline. So apparently we just have to ride it out. My prediction is that Congress will remember its oversight powers as soon as the next president takes office. Sucker.
the meta game of castle construction
There's a site called Chore Wars where everyone in your household can create a character, and their character in game earns experience and goes up level every time the player does some housework in real life. You have to trust the players to self report accurately, but for small households that's not a problem. Not only does it wrap a metagame around the (questionable) game of housework, but it provides a reward and accountability system at the same time. If everyone in the house is level 20-25, except John who is level 5, you know who's been shirking.
I think this idea could be applied to castle design, development, construction, and maintenance. It would require maintaining a database of tasks (quests?), allowing users to create accounts, tracking completion of tasks, assigning XP rewards. Generate a list of obstacles to overcome on the path to awesome communal castledom, and create a reward system for individuals who help the community overcome those obstacles. Designing a room is worth 1000XP, creating architectural drawings is worth double, building a wall is worth a 5000XP, making dinner for the crew is worth 70XP, feeding the fish is worth 20XP, etc.. Every dollar you donate to the general fund is worth 1XP. Community administrators and moderators edit the XP values of all tasks, and tasks that go undone accumulate XP, so that eventually they will be picked up by someone, and the system self-regulates.
Then layer a system of IRL rewards for achieving levels. Castle priveleges are the main reward. Level 50+ contributors can live at the castle for the rest of their lives, level 5 contributors can stay free for a few days, and so on. Even (and especially) the founders are bound by these rules, and the rules are voted on by all contributors with voting rights (level 10+?). The community gets the benefits of crowd collaboration, and evades the tragedy of the commons. There's palpable status, not to mention material rewards for participation. The many kinds of participation all funnel in to a common community reward system that's not primarily monetary, which is key for a system built primarily on love.
Thoughts?
I think this idea could be applied to castle design, development, construction, and maintenance. It would require maintaining a database of tasks (quests?), allowing users to create accounts, tracking completion of tasks, assigning XP rewards. Generate a list of obstacles to overcome on the path to awesome communal castledom, and create a reward system for individuals who help the community overcome those obstacles. Designing a room is worth 1000XP, creating architectural drawings is worth double, building a wall is worth a 5000XP, making dinner for the crew is worth 70XP, feeding the fish is worth 20XP, etc.. Every dollar you donate to the general fund is worth 1XP. Community administrators and moderators edit the XP values of all tasks, and tasks that go undone accumulate XP, so that eventually they will be picked up by someone, and the system self-regulates.
Then layer a system of IRL rewards for achieving levels. Castle priveleges are the main reward. Level 50+ contributors can live at the castle for the rest of their lives, level 5 contributors can stay free for a few days, and so on. Even (and especially) the founders are bound by these rules, and the rules are voted on by all contributors with voting rights (level 10+?). The community gets the benefits of crowd collaboration, and evades the tragedy of the commons. There's palpable status, not to mention material rewards for participation. The many kinds of participation all funnel in to a common community reward system that's not primarily monetary, which is key for a system built primarily on love.
Thoughts?
media bias: drama
Check this out:
Obama McCain Net
Electoral-Vote.com 304 221 Obama +83
FiveThirtyEight.com 300 238 Obama +62
Real Clear Politics 238 190 Obama +48
Rasmussen Reports 260 240 Obama +20
The media's bias is in favor of drama, so the race is always tied.
rampage, cont'd.
This is our patio, now with lights.
I think it mostly worked out.
The steel cables keep the lights from hanging down and annoying me. The lamp isn't perfect, but it's a kinda fun.
Now it's party time.
I think it mostly worked out.
The steel cables keep the lights from hanging down and annoying me. The lamp isn't perfect, but it's a kinda fun.Now it's party time.
our extended identities, and implications
I read an interesting article that goes like this: It really does hurt to sell one of your possessions, independent of how much monetary value you put on it.
I am certainly a frequent victim of this effect; I almost never sell anything, and I find it very difficult to throw things away. Some members of my family* have it even worse than I do. Instead of getting into the neuroscience of this though, I'm going to riff on the broader implications. This result implies that we, as individuals, have a sense of self that extends well beyond our physical bodies, and well into the things around us that make up our daily lives. And, I would argue, also to the people around us, and also to their possessions. This expanded self-identification allows us to empathize well with our friends and families and neighbors, because we literally do feel their pain, or a shadow of it, when something goes wrong or something is lost. If my friend sells his car, I feel sad.
The degree to which my mood tracks the well-being of my car and my computer can be a bit disturbing, frankly, and I think that as we integrate more and more technology into our lives, more of our identities will become digital, and we will identify more with digital 'things.' We already identify strongly with our blogs, our online avatars, our email inboxes, our weighted companion cubes.
Is this effect exploitable? Why yes! Give someone a free gift, where the gift ties them into continuing to pay for your services. If they accept the gift, they will be far more likely to pay monthly fees than to find a cheaper service provider, because parting with the gift will cause them pain. See: cellphones, MMORPGs.
Anyway, I love the idea that our selves are not sharply defined by the borders of our physical bodies, but extend in very real, physiological ways, far out into the world we care about. Overlap in self-identification creates community and shared responsibility. Good times.
*Ahem, K.
I am certainly a frequent victim of this effect; I almost never sell anything, and I find it very difficult to throw things away. Some members of my family* have it even worse than I do. Instead of getting into the neuroscience of this though, I'm going to riff on the broader implications. This result implies that we, as individuals, have a sense of self that extends well beyond our physical bodies, and well into the things around us that make up our daily lives. And, I would argue, also to the people around us, and also to their possessions. This expanded self-identification allows us to empathize well with our friends and families and neighbors, because we literally do feel their pain, or a shadow of it, when something goes wrong or something is lost. If my friend sells his car, I feel sad.
The degree to which my mood tracks the well-being of my car and my computer can be a bit disturbing, frankly, and I think that as we integrate more and more technology into our lives, more of our identities will become digital, and we will identify more with digital 'things.' We already identify strongly with our blogs, our online avatars, our email inboxes, our weighted companion cubes.
Is this effect exploitable? Why yes! Give someone a free gift, where the gift ties them into continuing to pay for your services. If they accept the gift, they will be far more likely to pay monthly fees than to find a cheaper service provider, because parting with the gift will cause them pain. See: cellphones, MMORPGs.
Anyway, I love the idea that our selves are not sharply defined by the borders of our physical bodies, but extend in very real, physiological ways, far out into the world we care about. Overlap in self-identification creates community and shared responsibility. Good times.
*Ahem, K.
home improvement rampage
I'm on a roll.
Replacing the ceiling fan was kindof a big leap for me, in this regard. I had to crawl up into the attic, remove the old fan, wire up the new one, expand the hole in the drywall ceiling, mount the new one, and then clean the whole thing up. Our attic space is cramped and dirty, just fyi. I mean... it's not the worst thing I've ever done in hyperspace (space above or between rooms); I once spent several hours with a hammer drill removing several hundred pounds of concrete from above someone's closet. But it comes back to the ownership question. I've never put that level of commitment into a place that wasn't in some way my responsibility, so that me feel good.
- I replaced the showerhead with one a new one that I removed the flow regulator from, so that our shower it has good water pressure now.
- I found and installed the bug screens for my bedroom window.
- I replaced a couple light bulbs.
- I replaced the ceiling fan in the bathroom (!)
- I made a little shop space for myself in the garage.
- I reorganized my closet/pantry space in the hallway.
- I finished working on the nightstand.
- sand and paint the bathroom ceiling?
- replace or refinish the bathroom lights (they're all rusty and gross)
- outdoor lighting, or shade, or decoration for the patio area.
- other mysterious projects?
Replacing the ceiling fan was kindof a big leap for me, in this regard. I had to crawl up into the attic, remove the old fan, wire up the new one, expand the hole in the drywall ceiling, mount the new one, and then clean the whole thing up. Our attic space is cramped and dirty, just fyi. I mean... it's not the worst thing I've ever done in hyperspace (space above or between rooms); I once spent several hours with a hammer drill removing several hundred pounds of concrete from above someone's closet. But it comes back to the ownership question. I've never put that level of commitment into a place that wasn't in some way my responsibility, so that me feel good.
please knock to be entered
The people in the office next to ours are guilty of some truly world-class bad signage.
Let's go through them one by one, from the point of view of a customer, walking down the hall looking for these people.
Ok, so there are three companies in this suite. Sure, no problem. One of these companies is probably the one I'm here to see. I'll just--
Whoa, okay, that's a little strange for a office door. Am I welcome here? Maybe they've had problems with delinquent teenagers or homeless people? Let's see...
Okay, now I'm confused; I can come in, but only if I'm not trespassing. Well at least this seems to imply that there is a business here that wants customers. Since I'm here to see these people I'll probably be fine. The sign says I should just come in, so I'll just open the d--
Oh, a doorbell. Well, maybe I'll ring the doorbell then, instead of walking in? Maybe then they can determine whether or not I'm trespassing... Here goes, ringing the--
Wait, what? Okay, I don't even know where to begin unpacking this one. First of all, I came here to talk to you people, not to be probed or penetrated IN ANY WAY. Second of all, if I did want to be entered, whatever that means, should I knock or ring the doorbell? Maybe the doorbell is for people who don't want to be entered? It's pretty ambiguous. I know one thing for sure: I am not walking through that door. I am leaving and driving home.
Here it is all together, in all its glory:
The cognitive dissonance of this display is startling. Why does nobody talk to the manager and say, "look, your signs are awful and they are scaring us." I... just... the... HOW CAN THIS BE THE PUBLIC FACE OF YOUR BUSINESS? IT'S COMPLETELY SCHIZOPHRENIC! WHERE IS YOUR SENSE OF PRIDE?
I mean, how hard is it to create a display that doesn't argue vigorously with itself?
!
AFTERWORD
...I like to try to give people the benefit of the doubt wherever possible, but this just kills me. The grammar issue with the paper sign is probably the funniest, but it's honestly just the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back. What really, really bothers me about this door, day in and day out as I walk past it, is it's blithe ignorance of its own conflicting messaging. The concepts conveyed by the signs on this door are in direct opposition to eachother, and its left to the reader to sort it all out. Thus the signs more than cancel themselves out, they leave the reader with a vague uneasiness about the entire business. These signs are almost certainly driving away customers, and I guess that bothers me.
Let's go through them one by one, from the point of view of a customer, walking down the hall looking for these people.
Ok, so there are three companies in this suite. Sure, no problem. One of these companies is probably the one I'm here to see. I'll just--
Whoa, okay, that's a little strange for a office door. Am I welcome here? Maybe they've had problems with delinquent teenagers or homeless people? Let's see...
Okay, now I'm confused; I can come in, but only if I'm not trespassing. Well at least this seems to imply that there is a business here that wants customers. Since I'm here to see these people I'll probably be fine. The sign says I should just come in, so I'll just open the d--
Oh, a doorbell. Well, maybe I'll ring the doorbell then, instead of walking in? Maybe then they can determine whether or not I'm trespassing... Here goes, ringing the--
Wait, what? Okay, I don't even know where to begin unpacking this one. First of all, I came here to talk to you people, not to be probed or penetrated IN ANY WAY. Second of all, if I did want to be entered, whatever that means, should I knock or ring the doorbell? Maybe the doorbell is for people who don't want to be entered? It's pretty ambiguous. I know one thing for sure: I am not walking through that door. I am leaving and driving home.
Here it is all together, in all its glory:
The cognitive dissonance of this display is startling. Why does nobody talk to the manager and say, "look, your signs are awful and they are scaring us." I... just... the... HOW CAN THIS BE THE PUBLIC FACE OF YOUR BUSINESS? IT'S COMPLETELY SCHIZOPHRENIC! WHERE IS YOUR SENSE OF PRIDE?
I mean, how hard is it to create a display that doesn't argue vigorously with itself?
!
AFTERWORD
...I like to try to give people the benefit of the doubt wherever possible, but this just kills me. The grammar issue with the paper sign is probably the funniest, but it's honestly just the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back. What really, really bothers me about this door, day in and day out as I walk past it, is it's blithe ignorance of its own conflicting messaging. The concepts conveyed by the signs on this door are in direct opposition to eachother, and its left to the reader to sort it all out. Thus the signs more than cancel themselves out, they leave the reader with a vague uneasiness about the entire business. These signs are almost certainly driving away customers, and I guess that bothers me.
The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks
Holy crap this is fantastic. Or at least, this is my exact rant, distilled, in blog form. Thank you internets, for doing my work for me.
depressing
Here is an interesting story about FBI agents at Guantanamo Bay, and what they observed there. With tables.
United States Budget Game
I found this "game" really fascinating.
Make a federal budget and compare your budget with other budgets made by people in your demographic group, or other demographic group. It's put together American Public Media, the big operator of public radio stations, with relatively authoritative numbers from the Congressional Budget Office, etc..
The interface is kinda dumb, but if you push through it, it's an interesting high-level view of US government spending. You pick from an array of cards that let you affect the budget by implementing different policies, and you try to earn badges that reflect your political values.
Taken as a game, it's easy to min/max, and cut everything that doesn't get you a badge, but taken seriously it's a pretty good tool. Go play, and see what badges you earn, and how far out you push the budget bust. Then come back and put your results in the comments.
Make a federal budget and compare your budget with other budgets made by people in your demographic group, or other demographic group. It's put together American Public Media, the big operator of public radio stations, with relatively authoritative numbers from the Congressional Budget Office, etc..
The interface is kinda dumb, but if you push through it, it's an interesting high-level view of US government spending. You pick from an array of cards that let you affect the budget by implementing different policies, and you try to earn badges that reflect your political values.
Taken as a game, it's easy to min/max, and cut everything that doesn't get you a badge, but taken seriously it's a pretty good tool. Go play, and see what badges you earn, and how far out you push the budget bust. Then come back and put your results in the comments.
weekend
It was great to see everyone yesterday, and the Jonathan Coulton concert was totally awesome. I really wasn't expecting them to take their clothes off(!) but hey, it all worked out.
fort drawings
Here are a couple of drawings from my plans for the fort. The rope bridge is not shown, but will go across between the two sections. Each of the pillars will be sunk a couple feet into the ground with concrete, and there will be ropes closing the gaps in the rails. The flooring is not shown, but will likely be treated 1x8 or similar. Also not shown is the ladder leading to the crows nest.
If you have any concerns or suggestions let me know, and if you'd like to play around with the model itself, let me know and I'll email it you. It's a google sketchup file; sketchup is a free tool, so you can just download it and use it to view the model.
If you have any concerns or suggestions let me know, and if you'd like to play around with the model itself, let me know and I'll email it you. It's a google sketchup file; sketchup is a free tool, so you can just download it and use it to view the model.
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