Smallish Post

For the Strength of Youth is a powerful set of guidelines for teenagers of the LDS faith.  It's teachings are simple enough that they can be followed, while at the same time being complex enough to require faith and trust.  I believe it truly captures the ideas behind being a parent, where there are guidelines given that can't always be explained are understood, yet the importance is there nonetheless.  While this pamphlet was written specifically for those of the LDS faith, I believe that the precepts offered within it could be positively applied to any teenager.  The reason for this is that the book helps teenagers to embrace their current opportunities in life and to not rush into the future.  This is done by counseling dating ages, appropriate swimwear, and movies ratings to be avoided.  For the Strength of Youth can empower our teenagers to do that which is right.

Role Playing Games Smallish Post

We look at athletes who have spent thousands of hours perfecting their art and pay them millions of dollars.  We share a national and societal pride in these men and women who have developed and fine-tuned their skills to a professional level.  I believe that excelling in an MMORPG should be viewed as an equivalent achievement.  Not everyone is born with the height to excel in basketball, or the potential weight to excel in sumo-wrestling, and not everyone is born with the cognitive ability to master a MMORPG.  However, as a society, we often ridicule these "gamer" professionals while we are willing to pay great sums of money to watch their Michael Jordan counterparts play different "games".  I believe that society as a whole has trouble understanding the reality required to master the virtual world.  If a line for excessive gaming must be drawn, we may need to remember that sports are simply games as well.  When is too much MMO gaming?  When is too much basketball?

Position Vlog

Here Comes Everybody

      Social media is shaping society in a way that has never been seen before.  It allows amateurs to enter the same arena as professionals, and allows all biased views of every story to be told.  Social media turns the pauper into a prince, and the prince into a meme.  The pauper, or the "regular joe", can now have his voice heard as though he were a prince giving a royal decree.  The prince, or anyone of superhuman status, such as an athlete, or a politician, or genuine royalty, are popularized further through memes and jokes.  I don't believe there has ever been a time of such blatant and complete mockery of those in a high status positions.  While kings, presidents, and stars have always been ridiculed to an extent, the general public has never had an opportunity as they do with social media to join the attack.  Social media has formed a new mold for society to fall into, and it is different than anything ever experienced before.
     In addition to social media turning the tides on how we view our fellow man, it has allowed for certain social interactions that were never available beforehand.  Social media has allowed the outcast to find a home, and the friendless to find support.  Via the abundance of social groups on sites such as Facebook, and Twitter, those people who may have lived an isolated life can now find support.  There are social groups for teenagers addicted to gaming, for struggling homosexuals, as well as for all other groups who have suffered in isolation in the past.  Social media allows a sense of brotherhood and camaraderie among those people.  It allows those who would have suffered in isolation to revel in support and comfort instead, realizing that they are not alone in the world.  Social media connects the world, and allows necessary support connections that have never been available before.

   

The Women

I have written, and re-written this blog entry trying to find my opinion on women in technical fields.  What I have found is that I don't really have an opinion on women in the technical fields.  I don't know whether it is an abundance of ignorance, or if I am just overly apathetic, but I have not seen this as a problem in my experiences.  Thus far, I have not spent too much time thinking about women in these fields.  I do acknowledge that there are typically more men in these fields than women, but the reason behind that alludes me.  I believe that people should do whatever they are interested in, whether it be women in computer science, or men filling the role as homemakers.  Maybe we will see a higher number of women in these, and maybe not, but I personally do not see a problem either way.

Smallish Post: OSS

The idea of open source software (OSS) seems to scare many computer users.  When considering these user fears, the mantra "you get what you pay for" comes to mind.  It is understandable that people are wary of the quality of a product without a price tag.  This fear, however, is not well grounded.  OSS often provides developers and users a unique opportunity to aid in the growth and development of very desirable software.  When the creator allows the users to add and improve on an initial product, the synergistic outcome often outperforms initial expectations.  This can include, but is not limited to, less "buggy" software, better user experience, faster and more efficient software, special customization that goes beyond the vision of the creator, and much more. In addition to creating better software, OSS invokes a sense of camaraderie and community among developers who's voices may otherwise be unheard.  OSS allows the hobbyist programmer to develop alongside the professional to create brilliance.  OSS, or freeware, may seem scary, but the reality is that it is powerful, lasting, and happens to be free!

Smallish Post

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has eagerly adopted technology.  The church has integrated computer capabilities into many facets of their business, from keeping records, to finances, to modern social networking.  Both young and old members have been encouraged to hop on the "tech" bandwagon, and to learn of the possibilities of modern technology, including how to use it safely and efficiently.  While there are dangers with increasing technology, the church has not shied away from the positive possibilities.  It is remarkable how accepting religions have become since the Puritanical days of burning at the stake for being a witch.  It has been inspiring to watch a religious organization have such vigor towards "magic", and the good that modern day witches (programmers) can conjure.

Smallish Post: Even the Professionals Make Mistakes

Throughout my life, there have been many times where I have been reading a professionally published piece of literature with a typo.  The only issues that I can usually spot are spelling issues as my grammar has always left something lacking.  It makes me wonder how these works got through so many levels of editing and checking and no one noticed that that one particular word was wrong!  I don't know if there really is a solution to the problem as I'm sure that the editors are already doing their best to ensure a correct publication.  I think it is rather a funny and comforting item to note, that even the professionals make mistakes.  To analyze this from a more spiritual perspective, there truly isn't perfection in this world, even for those who are at the top of their game, so to speak.  The only thing that we can all do is strive for perfection and continue to better ourselves each day.

Strunk N White

The way we speak, write, or express ourselves is a large part of who we are and how we are perceived by the world around us. Accents, nuances, physical expressions, and mannerisms are all things that distinguish us as individuals for good or bad. How we write a resume could be the difference between a future career or not. As I read 'The Elements of Style' I was impressed at how many of the lessons are things that I personally err with. Something as simple as a comma can mean the difference between "Let's eat Grandpa!" and "Let's eat, Grandpa", which give very different messages to the world. In our age of tweeting and texting, I find that we have lost a respect for the use of the English language that would put us in quite a barbaric state in the wrong setting. As we write without eloquence, with our grammar strewn madly about the sentence, a certain negative impression is given to the world. In just the same way as stereotypes are given to those who may have the less than desirable proverbial "burger-flipping" job, a poor text can leave the reader with an undesirable impression of the writer. Just as the way we speak sends a message about who we are to the world, the way we write sends an equally powerful message in this digital age.

With such a predicament at our hands, what can we do to remedy the situation? How can we save our progeny from poor writing? It is something that I have pondered as I read through the book, "how can we influence the world to be better". We have such excellent reference material at our finger tips in this technological age, yet the epidemic rages on. While this post will end with these questions unsanswered, I believe that there is still something that we can do as individuals. If we all make an effort to do what we can to perfect the writing of ourselves and our posterity, there will be lasting positive effects.

General Conference Tweeting

Following twitter during conference was a surprisingly neat experience. I was able to see how talks were affecting lives in real time. I found it so neat that I kept it up throughout a few sessions. It is definitely something I will do in the future.

Current Event: Electronic Money

To truly appreciate this post, you should begin by looking at the following comic. http://xkcd.com/538/ Sweden is on the verge of turning away from using cash entirely. It would be an entire society where money would be insured by more than the fear of the looming $5 wrench. With credit card companies handling fraudulent charges, and banks always trying to be on the cutting edge of cyber security, there is no reason that we should have to use something as insecure as cash. If you get mugged and lose your wallet full of cash, chances are you are out of luck, but if cash was out of the picture, that fear would be subsided. The turn from cash could potentially stop, or at least hinder, entire branches of crime. It could affect currency forgery, money laundering, and even take it's toll on the drug/black market. The one concern that Sweden has is that this would negatively affect their elderly citizens, but as the article so quaintly puts it "admittedly that’s a short term problem to overcome." There is little security in this world, especially for a cash based society. With so much of what we have being volatile, should we not, as Sweden, do all that we can to protect that which can be protected? http://www.geek.com/news/sweden-may-be-first-country-to-eliminate-cash-1514483/

Current Event: Thanks, Yahoo!

What if I told you I would give you $1000 a minute to scrub the bathroom floor? Most people would be very eager to accept that offer. Now let us imagine instead of the cash, I allow you to take anything you find when cleaning the floor. Sounds like a grand ripoff compared to the first option. This is equivalent to the offer that Yahoo is making to those who find and report their bugs. While large companies like Facebook and Google offer substantial cash bounties for their bugs, Yahoo is offering next to nothing for theirs. In addition to the meager amount offered, it is being offered as in store credit on a specified subset of worthless Yahoo paraphernalia. I can't imagine why anyone would do this equivalent of floor scrubbing when such lucrative options exist elsewhere. Yahoo is apparently here to stay, but in order to compete with the other Goliath companies, they will need to take a look around and make some more compelling offers. Article: http://www.geek.com/apps/yahoo-rewards-vulnerability-reporting-with-a-12-50-discount-voucher-1572317/

Current Event - Awkward GTA V Purchase

ATTENTION: WE MUST THINK BEFORE WE ACT! It shocks me at times when I see the lack of common courtesy that exists around the world. There are so many incidents that occur on a daily basis where we act callously or carelessly to other human beings. It is interesting to note how silly many of our actions make us look to any passerby. If we all took the mantra for ourselves to truly think before we act, the world could be a much kinder place. In addition to having said or done something you may regret under these circumstances, you have now created a negative image of yourself for the world. If we were living in a tech free age, this behavior may have been more tolerated simply by the fact that it often went unseen by the masses. In our age, however, where the intimate details of our lives are available to strangers online almost instantaneously, we must be vigilant. If we are not, we will surely be captured in the world wide spider web as an arrogant or impolite person. I truly feel that the world has lost a sense of chivalry and common courtesy that once demanded honor and respect and caused all of us to think before we acted. The Most Awkward GTA V Purchase

Technology is an ever developing field, market, and lifestyle. Technology grows in ways that are both unpredictable and unreliable. A piece of software that meant life or death to a business in the early 1990's would be considered a relic at this point in time. The development of tablets and touch screen devices on a such a large scale is something that the pioneers of this field could not have foreseen. I find it truly interesting that the features and technologies that we incorporate in such an integral part of our daily life will be almost comical in the coming generations. The market for technology continues to blossom as well. The users of software and hardware have morphed from the "tech geek" to the modern day John or Jane Doe. Everyone is now in the market for a device to keep you connected, entertained, or efficient. This has evolved into a lifestyle that we carry with us everywhere we go. This life is with us as we walk down the street with cords coming from our ears, to when we lay down at night and speak to our device and tell it to "wake me up in the morning". Technology is today, but technology will always be a market of the future.

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