First Post (27FEB2005)
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senatorhung's pad
ramblings of an information troubleshooter
locating serendipity
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Monday, 10APR2006:
with the big office move i'm
undertaking, i was pretty
ecstatic that
this
show came together as well as
it did. i was a bit lost for
ideas, but then someone mentioned
that a GPS course was going to be
held at the AFN right outside the
radio booth during my show. the
rest was serendipity in action :)
Aur.Oral Exposures setlist for 10apr2006:
- Where to Begin - Bowling for Soup
- Where Would I Be ? - Stompin' Tom Connors
- Where the Hell Are You ? - Jr. Gone Wild
- Lost Together - Blue Rodeo
- Lost Star - The Jesus and Mary Chain
- Lost Highway - Lori Yates
- Going Nowhere Somehow - White Town
- Show Me the Way to Get Out of This World
('Cause That's Where Everything Is) - Peggy Lee
- A Thousand Miles from Nowhere (acoustic)
- Dwight Yoakam
- time's out of place - The Blue Shadows
- Place That's Insane - The Northern Pikes
- Henri's Arctic Outfitters - Royal Canadian Air Farce
- Leave This Place - The Walk
- Find Another Fool - Quarterflash
- Don't Look Back in Anger - Oasis
- Look For Me (I'll Be Around) - Neko Case
- Find the Out - Slobberbone
- Where You Found Me - The Men
- Where I Want to Be - Jimmie Inch
- Losing Streak - Jack De Keyzer
- link of the day:
endangered serendipity:
Technology undercuts serendipity.
It makes it possible to direct our
energies all in the name of saving
time. Ironically, though, it seems
that we are losing time - the
meaningful time we once used to
indulge ourselves in the related
pleasures of search and discovery.
We're efficient, but empty.
now, while i agree with the gist of
these comments, that many technologies
have the effect of undercutting
serendipity, i must say that as a
librarian, the cataloguing and
classifications systems that we use
are all about enhancing serendipity.
many 'a-ha' moments of discovery in
a library are not random occurrences,
but have been pre-figured by the
librarian's awareness of user needs
in shelving similar materials
together or applying appropriate
keywords in a library catalogue
record.
the biggest advantage that google has
is that it has been able to overlay a
very simplistic interface over some
very complex computer algorithms. the
click click answer process has almost
become routine, but you can't argue
that serendipity can't occur - rather
that the user isn't in the frame of
mind to be open to the possibility of
it, and the system isn't designed to
promote it, and in fact, actively
discourages it (ads, excepted, of
course).
i also disagree with the column's
comment that the downloading universe
has diminished the exposure of
listeners to the breadth of music.
my take is more along the lines of
this
article which argues that P2P
downloading has actually enhanced
the opportunity to access a wealth
of music:
I believe Napster re-engaged us
with music, and reminded us how
rewarding the discovery of music
can be. It exposed us to sounds
we wouldn't have heard through
traditional channels, and
challenged us to expand our
repertoire of listening material.
For audiences, it provided an
opportunity to sample music from
genres that we previously had no
access to.
Your neighbourhood record store
stocked only the tiniest sliver
of music being made around the
world.
Now, access to all this new music,
and volumes from the pioneers of
blues, rock and jazz, is dizzying.
It has led, ultimately, into the
creation of more complex, informed
content.
the whole social infrastructure
that has been built up around the
availability of digital music -
mix trading, personalized radio
stations, myspace, etc., has served
to expand musical horizons by
leveraging the system of community
recommendations to bring attention
to music that deserves to be heard
more than the clear channel club of
corporate radio allows. yes, this
is not quite the random serendipity
that the columnist rhapsodizes over,
but the music has to be AVAILABLE
first, before it can be discovered.
constructing proper infrastructures
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Tuesday, 11APR2006:
just came back from the astro
where i watched 'v for vendetta'.
a fantastic film that reminds us
that freedom requires vigilance.
natalie portman was great and her
shaved head look was *very* sexy.
the film was updated a bit from
its graphic novel origins so that
it commented a bit more pointedly
on the bush era and its excesses.
i laughed out loud a couple of
times, especially when the studio
audience applauded on cue, prompted
by both an electronic sign and a
swath of pointed guns.
favourite quote: "artists use
lies to tell the truth, while
politicians use them to cover
the truth up."
i'm not sure if that was in the
alan moore original (or taken from
some more famous source that i
don't recall). alan moore has
attempted to assert his moral
rights by
asking
that his name be taken off of the
movie and when that request was
not readily granted, he has also
asked that his name be removed from
the original books themselves, since
he doesn't 'own' them and feels that
the publisher is trading unfairly on
his name recognition with readers.
this dispute arises from how both 'v
for vendetta' and 'the watchmen',
arguably his most influential creation,
were signed away to the publisher dc
comics with the understanding that the
copyrights would
revert
back to the creators once the
books went out of print. but since
the books have never gone out of print,
the creators will likely never regain
those copyrights.
spent the day assisting derek with
putting up some strapping so that
the library shelves could be mounted
properly to the walls. then it was
more unpacking. at the old site are
only the monographs, my own office
paraphernilia and a whole bunch of
unreviewed stuff that should be
chucked rather than moved if they
ain't going to be of any use.
the neat thing about the move
situation is that it has forced me
to engage 100% in my daily tasks.
the important things are getting
done and the less important things
are ... less important. i ask
myself whether there is anything
that i'd rather be doing right now,
and i come up blank. i do wish
that i had a bit more time for
reflection, but then i'd have to
give up some of my poker time :)
- link of the day: joel spolsky
comments about the
importance
of infrastructure
Management's primary responsibility is
to create the illusion that a software
company can be run by writing code,
because that's what programmers do.
And while it would be great to have
programmers who are also great at sales,
graphic design, system administration,
and cooking, it's unrealistic. Like
teaching a pig to sing, it wastes your
time and it annoys the pig.
Microsoft does such a good job at
creating this abstraction that Microsoft
alumni have a notoriously hard time
starting companies. They simply can't
believe how much went on below decks and
they have no idea how to reproduce it.
...
the very best thing that infrastructure
can do is disappear completely.
gambling away the holidays
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Friday, 14APR2006:
to commemorate today's good friday
holiday, i attended *two* different
poker functions. first i stopped
by brennan's pad where 12 of us
started late in the afternoon. i
hung on for ages as short stack
before finally busting out in 7th.
i dropped a few more bucks in a
cash game on the side, but eddie's
spicy chili made up for some of the
loss.
i did recover some ground at the
next table hosted by shawn and
kevin. 5 of us played, with a
couple of rebuys laid out for
each ultra-quick game. with the
blinds going up steadily and
speedily, many times bets were
all-in before the flop. i
managed to catch a few boards and
ended up at least even for the day.
insider knowledge
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Saturday, 15APR2006:
went in to the office for a bit
to continue unpacking the endless
stream of bankers' boxes. from
there, i went up to the astro to
catch 'inside man'. a very smart
movie, with great actors who make
the caper flick sing. clive owen
again impressed with his intensity,
denzel was oh-so-smooth as the
master of his destiny and jodie
foster was ultra-sophisticated.
very much enjoyed !
when i got home, i continued the
media marathon by watching a couple
more episodes of 'northern exposure'
from my season 3 dvd set. someone
said that they don't even take notice
anymore of strange things that happen
here in the arctic, but this t.v.
show definitely showcases some of the
varied flavour of northern living.
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