Lately, I have been spending quite a bit of time outside, trying to plant grass, moving downed trees, and doing the whole ‘yard’ thing. For the life of me, I really don’t understand why I am going through all this pain as it seems like I am trying to create work for myself… :) Anyway, as I have been working outside, I ran across a couple of critters that I wanted to blog about.
The Snake
One of the biggest ‘dangers’ of moving around old timber outside is the possibility of running across a snake or two. Personally, I like snakes… actually, you could almost call it a morbid fascination. Ever since I was a kid, I have been finding and catching snakes to keep as pets. Of course, the key to being fascinated w/ snakes is to respect them (and their speed) and also to be able to recognize the poisonous ones from the ‘fun’ ones. Poisonous snakes = dead snakes… the others make great pets for a couple days before you let them back into the wild.
So, as I was rooting around woods, I flipped up a log and found a baby snake. It was half buried under the log and I almost took it for a very large earthworm. After close inspection, I found the snake to be so young that I really can’t decide what kind of snake it is. I don’t see any distinguishing features (patterns, spade shaped head, ‘evil eyes’, etc) and my snake reference makes it to either be a harmless ground snake or a copperhead, lol. (Important thing to note: baby snake venom can be much more potent than the big ones… be very careful around these). Since I am unsure of its breed, the snake is going to be transported to a remote location. Of course, pictures have to be taken first. :)
The Toad
The second best yard critter is, of course, the frog. They come in all kinds of varieties, but nothing can be as fun as the backyard toad. The giant ones a great fun (except for their urination defense techniques), but even better are the younger ones. As I was working, I came across the smallest toad I have seen in a long time and I had to take some pictures.
Last but not least
The final yard critter is, of course, man’s best friend. They are slobbery and muddy but you could not ask for a more loving animal. When they are not driving me insane or completely ignoring what I am telling them to do, they are pretty fun… :)
Gotta love critters!
Categories: Personal ,News-Events
posted by nblevins on 7/2/2009 6:28:20 PM
Recently, I have had the privilege to speak at the East Tennessee .Net Users Group as well as Codestock concerning Microsoft Robotics. I have to say that this topic has been a very exciting one for me and I am amazed at the level of interest that people of all ages have concerning this topic. The purpose of this post is to highlight my lessons learned concerning Microsoft Robotics and to provide links and information for those who want to check it out for themselves.
A Few Notes About Robotics
There are several misconceptions that I found when I began working with and presenting on robotics.
- The cost of getting into robotics is too high; I can’t afford the hardware! – This is both true and false. Microsoft Robotics Studio comes pre-packaged with a Simulation Environment that allows you to use your robots in a virtual world. You can start writing code to control your robot long before you invest any money in hardware! It even comes pre-packaged with several template robots to help you start writing code the first day!
- Robotics Studio is expensive - Actually, there are several ways to get Robotics Studio FOR FREE. First off, there is an express edition of Robotics studio. It is fully functional and only lacks the ability to compile your VPL diagrams into C# projects. Also, you can get you hands on the professional editions for free using the awesome Dreamspark and Bizspark programs
- Robotics is too complicated – To be totally honest, using the VPL makes robotics very easy to program. A mildly savvy computer user should not have any troubles starting in Robotics. Once the environment is set up, children could very easily write robotic code using the VPL (some guidance would be required).
My Presentation on Robotics (Mindstorming 101)
If you are interested in checking out my presentation on robotics, please feel free to check out the following links.
- Slidedeck (Coming Soon)
- Video (Coming Soon)
- Code Samples (Coming Soon)
Also, I am always open to hear about other people’s projects and would be more than happy to field whatever questions / concerns you run into while building your first robot. I am, by no means, an expert but I am more than willing to give it my best.
Finally, if you would like for me to present about robotics for a local group, I would be more than happy to do so. Its a great topic! Please give me a shout! (My email addy is nblevins at this-domain.com)
Getting Started
Unfortunately, even though there are quite a few different links and instructional sources for Microsoft Robotics, there are several ‘gaps’ which can be very frustrating for any beginner. Below is a categorized list of links that worked very well for me while I was beginning my journey.
Microsoft Robotics General
- MSDN
- Other Sources
- Lego Mindstorms
Using the Wii Control Set with Robotics
Book Sources
- Programming Microsoft Robotics Studio by Sara Morgan – This is not quite a beginner’s book. It does have some pretty interesting parts, but I found it much more useful after I went through the above MSDN links for a while.
- There are a few other books on Amazon, but I have yet to check them out.
Happy Programming!
Categories:
posted by nblevins on 6/25/2009 9:07:04 PM
This July 17-19, the ETNUG (East Tennessee .Net Users Group) has the honor of participating in the 2nd Annual Michigan Give Camp as a Satellite Camp. Last year, we had a blast working w/ our colleagues in Michigan and I look for this year to be even better. We are currently recruiting any interested parties to join us and help us work for this great cause. If you are interested, please contact me either on this blog, via my twitter account (@nathanblevins), or at givecamp[at]nathanblevins[dot-com].
What is a Give Camp?
Briefly, the main goal of a give camp is to organize talented developers and ask them to donate a small amount of their time in order to develop applications for charities.
Of course, they say it better than I: Michigan Give Camp
I love this idea because I generally prefer to be more involved in charitable contributions rather than trying to simply ‘write a check.’ Often times, I do not have cash in surplus, so events like these give me the chance to use my own skill set to deliver a very valuable service to a worthy cause. Plus it is something I love doing, which makes it even better!
What is a Satellite Give Camp?
This event will be taking place in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Even though there are a lot of great developers in Michigan, it is difficult for many people to participate if they do not live within easy driving distance. As a way to answer that problem, the Michigan Give Camp is asking people to try to organize remote facilities in which they can gather their own teams. These remote teams will be given their own tasks to complete and will be able to function as a completely separate unit. Since remoting is possible, the ETNUG is going to organize their own remote camp and gather together the best and brightest of our area to assist in the effort.
What can you contribute?
The Give Camp is not limited to just one field of expertise. In fact, there is need for Web Apps, Desktop Apps, Database Administration, Design + Layout, etc. Basically, if you have any programming, design, or computer experience, we can use you and would be glad to have you. Any contributions will be welcome!
*Even if you do not have computer experience, we will certainly need assistance w/ other tasks – so please feel free to join us!
What is in it for you?
Truthfully, nothing and everything... lol. The time spent is completely voluntary. There will be no monetary gains for any of the participates However, I am going to make sure that we get some good meals out of it and, hopefully, have a few nice door prizes to give away in the end. Despite these things, I can think of several reasons why this would be not only a fun event but also helpful to you.
- You get the satisfaction of donating your skills to a good cause. This way, I get to do something that I love and still greatly benefit the charities. In fact, the donation of our expertise would equate to a huge monetary contribution.
- You get to meet new people and learn new ideas. As developers, we are always on a quest to learn more / get better. This is a great way to meet that goal and learn about new ideas / concepts.
- You get to network. As any person in the industry could tell you, getting good jobs and opportunities is all about who you know. This is a very visible event that would make an excellent chance for you to get your name out there.
- Fun! This is not a work task. We will be working w/ a great group in a very laid back and enjoyable atmosphere.
What are the Logistics of this event?
The basic format that is suggested by Ann Arbor is using three days(Friday, Saturday, Sunday). However, we are free to organize our remote event in any way that meets our needs, provided that we are within the July 17 - 19 time frame. Once I get a running list of interested parties, we will find out the days / times that will work out for everyone else. I do want to stress that this will not be like 'going to work' but, rather, a nice time to socialize and work with other professionals within our area.
In regards to location, we will most likely meet at a person’s home to work. Since I don’t quite have a feel for the number of people, this is subject to change as we get closer to the event. I will be sure to notify everyone as we get closer to the Give Camp Date.
In conclusion, I really feel that this will be a worthwhile and fun event that will enable us to uniquely assist those in need. If you are interested, please contact me either on this blog, via my twitter account (@nathanblevins), or at givecamp[at]nathanblevins[dot-com].
Please join us!
Categories:
posted by nblevins on 6/15/2009 7:32:47 AM
This year, Crystal and I decided to change things up for our vacation this year. Rather than doing the group vacation w/ all of our peeps, we decided to take a small siesta by ourselves (missed you guys though!). The driving factor for this decision was time constraints, which forced us to take our vacation earlier than usual and conflicted w/ everyone else’s schedule. After much debate and consideration, we decided to try out a cruise. In the past, I had had a bad cruise experience and was not overly excited to try another. However, Crystal managed to coerce me into this cruise and we signed up for trip through the Western Caribbean on the Liberty of the Seas – a Royal Caribbean vessel. I am happy to say that it was a trip of a lifetime and reluctant to admit that my wife was right >.> (but lets just keep that between us…)
When considering how to write about my wonderful trip,I immediately ditched the idea of trying to write a play-by-play of our adventure. I have been accused of being long winded – which is completely unjustified – and I wanted to avoid writing a meandering post that no one would actually read or simply skim <cough> Mike </cough>. In this case, I am going to break up my vacation post into 3 separate posts. They are as follows (I will link the others as I get around to writing them).
- Vacation Highlights and Favorite Moments (this post)
- Cruising 101 – All about what it means to jump on a cruise ship for a week: what there is to do, what the experience is like, and the common misconceptions.
- The Western Caribbean: Labadie, Haiti; Ocho Rios, Jamaica; Georgetown, Grand Cayman; and Cozumel, New Mexico – All about the places we went!
Fun stuff, right?
Anyway, without further ado, here is a list of our favorite vacation moments (in typical countdown fashion).
6. The Beaches
What is a vacation without a beach? Crystal and I both are very big beach enthusiasts. Although we did not spend as much time at the beach as usual (there was just so many other wonderful things to experience), the beaches in the Caribbean are simply amazing. The islands of the Caribbean can boast as having some of the clearest water in the world. Many times, when looking off your ship, the water is so clear that you can see the bottom of the ocean giving you the impression that your 14 story ship is floating in only 2 feet of water. The water itself is the brightest color of blue. In fact, the water is so blue, that it makes a clear sky look dark. The effect can be quite disorienting.
I could not believe the beauty of the beaches we visited. With their bright blue water and bright white sand, they were a marvelous place to enjoy. During our first beach adventure in Haiti, Crystal and I were so impressed that we both crawled into a hammock, watched the ocean, and enjoyed the serenity for hours. It was nice.
5. Room Service (the Towel Animals)
On a cruise (at least a Royal Caribbean cruise), they really know how to treat people right. The staff on the ship was simply amazing and made me feel like royalty. Of all the staff, I was most impressed w/ our Room Attendant. He was an awesome guy w/ a great sense of humor who when out of his way to make sure that we were as happy as can be. In addition to offering excellent service, the room attendants on cruises often leave ‘Easter eggs’ for their guests in the form of towel animals - something akin to cotton origami. Our room attendant did the same and would use props around the room to enhance his creations. Here are a few pics of what he left us.
I found myself looking forward to coming back into my room each night in order to see what kind of creature was waiting for me. It was a very simple but nice touch to the experience that I really appreciated.
4. The Casino
Not too long ago, I was at a certain person’s bachelor party (I am not breaking B.P. etiquette if I don’t name names) in which we took a trip to a casino. I had never been to a casino before, so I spent much of the time on the slot machines, watching my money get slowly bled from me. It was fun for a while, but relying 100% on chance got boring pretty fast. Our cruise ship had a casino as well and although I was not completely gun-ho for checking it out, Crystal had never been. Consequently, we decided on the amount of money we wanted to waste (cause you NEVER gamble money that you don’t plan to and can’t afford to lose) and gave it a try. Once again, we hit the slot machines and I came to the same conclusion that they were simply a mindless way to waste money. Crystal and I played for a while and then decided to leave.
On our way out, I walked by a dealer who was standing at a Roulette table with no customers. Since I had never played before and she currently did not have anyone else playing, I asked her if she would mind teaching me the game. It was one of those games that you always seen it on TV and I was pretty curious on how it worked. After a brief explanation and about 3 rounds, I was hooked. I LOVE Roulette. The game is awesome and the mathematic undertones are challenging! It involves calculated risk, statistics, and probability. Your play style can wildly based on the different factors of the amount of coverage you wish to have, the amount you have to gamble, how risky you feel, etc. Starting w/ 10 dollars, I ended up playing roulette for almost 2.5 hours building my ‘horde’ beyond 50 dollars and finally walking away w/ 10 dollars.
It was a complete blast and more fun than I had ever anticipated that I would have in a casino. Roulette is the bomb and a great – longer lasting – way to have fun at a casino!
3. The Parrot Guy
While in Mexico, we ran across a vendor who had 3 parrots. If you were willing to pay him 15 bucks, he would allow you to take a picture w/ the parrots, which were on a stand behind him. To be honest I was not totally impressed and, after dealin’ back-n-forth, the guy finally convinced me to pay 10 bucks for Crystal and I to get a picture w/ parrots. We paid the guy and Crystal stood up near the parrots for the first picture. Much to my amazement, the vendor started grabbing parrots and placing them on Crystal! I was totally impressed as he would pose the parrots in whatever position and they would simply stay there until he took a picture. These were Picture Posting Parrots (henceforth known as PPP’s or P3’s)! When my turn came up, I was amazed (and also alarmed) again when he had one of the PPP’s bite my outstretched finger and hang from it as he took pictures. So cool!
The PPP experience was so neat. Being a sucker and giving into this particular vendor request turned into a unique and special memory.
2. Drinking Extravaganza
As all our friends can attest, Crystal and I are not much of drinkers. Growing up, I was instilled w/ a very healthy respect (borderline fear) of drinking. In fact, I was about 23 years old before I tried my first alcoholic beverage. Over the last few years, Crystal and I have been experimenting w/ different drinks, keeping in mind of our limitations and the responsibility involved. While on the cruise, Crystal and I both decided that we would cut loose a little and experiment w/ different types of drinks. Since I know next to nothing about alcoholic drinks, it made some pretty amusing circumstances in which I was trying fish for suggestions on ‘good drinks’ without revealing how much of a noob that I was. Consequently, I came across as a bumbing noob but ended up w/ some pretty cool drinks to try out. Here are some of the drinks that we tried over the week.
Nathan
- Bourbon
- Scotch (my 2nd favorite!)
- Martini (these are AWEFUL!! How can anyone like these??!?!)
- White Russian (my favorite)
- Black Russian
- Rum Shots
- Frozen Margarita
- Labadoosie
Crystal
- Strawberry Pina Colada
- Sex on the Beach (her favorite)
- Some of Nathan’s drinks, followed by much gasping and choking
- Labadoosie
The funniest moment was when Crystal and I decided to have drinks before we ate. Crystal managed to kill off a Sex on the Beach pretty quickly, which went straight to her head and resulted in a slightly imbalanced wife. Being the kind, considerate husband that I am, I took the opportunity to tease her mercilessly and still get pretty tickled thinking about it. Also, I tried to convince Crystal that all drinks had a ‘first your drink it, then you do it’ rule… but, sadly, she was not convinced.
1. Sea Turtle Farm
While in Grand Cayman, Crystal and I had the privilege to visit the local sea turtle farm on the island. Sea Turtle farming is a pretty hot topic in the animal rights world, so I am going to try to avoid that topic and simply say that it was quite a powerful experience to be able to interact w/ these great creatures. When we visited the farm, we were able to walk up to large tanks which contained varying sizes of turtles, which were swimming around, doing their thing. The great thing was that we were allowed to reach into the tank and pull out the turtles to view them and interact w/ them. Here are a few pics:
I don’t think I can express the coolness factor of being able to get ‘hands-on’ w/ these amazing critters. It was a ton of fun and very informative of not only the value of these animals but also the the dire situation that they are currently in. If you ever get the chance to visit a sea turtle farm – do it – as you will not be disappointed.
In Conclusion
All in all, our vacation was amazing. I could write pages about the things we did and the amount of fun that we had. However, I will have to satisfy myself w/ my top “n” list. It suffices to say that this vacation did everything that a vacation should do, providing a nice restful and stress-free time. I can’t wait till next year!
More posts to come soon. Until then, take care.
Categories: Personal ,News-Events
posted by nblevins on 6/7/2009 10:06:28 PM
CodeStock 2009 is finally drawing near! If you are not familiar w/ CodeStock, here is what they have to say about themselves.
“CodeStock is about Community. For Developers, by Developers (with love for SysAdmins and DBAs too!). Last year an idea started at CodeStock to mix Open Spaces within a traditional conference. This year we're going to crank things up to 11 and rip off the knob - and you're being drafted to help!”
Also, Mike wrote a great letter to the community concerning the event as well.
This year, they have some pretty exciting topics ranging from Azure to Ajax to iPhone development! Also, looking over the speaker list, I am amazed at the awesome lineup of talented folks who have volunteered to speak at the conference. It is going to be a great event!
Finally, I am honored to say that one of my session submissions was selected for the CodeStock lineup as well. I will be speaking about Microsoft Robotics. Here is my session info:
Mindstorming 101
Nathan Blevins - ( Area: Other Level: 100)
Ever want to add robotic minions to your plans for world domination? Want to reduce the overhead cost of your human gromits due to the economic downturn? Then this session is for you!
We will be looking into the programming aspects of the robotic world. Using Microsoft Robotics Studio and Lego Mindstorms, we walk through the basic concepts of robotic programming, explore the capabilities of MSRS and the VPL, and, finally, build and demo different kinds of robots.
So, bring your geek hat and you inner Timmy and let’s build some bots. Skynet's the limit!
Anyway, I strongly encourage any and all developers and IT folk in the Knoxville area to attend. You will not only be supporting your local IT community but you will also be doing yourself a favor. It will certainly be worth your time and, at a 25 dollar entry fee, how can you beat the price considering you get free meals and great swag? Its gonna be a great event!
Finally, are you a Twitter user? Check out the Codestock twitter directory to speak w/ the speakers directly (before and after the conference).
Categories: Programming ,News-Events
posted by nblevins on 5/21/2009 11:54:06 AM
… … when they go to anime Mecca (otherwise known as MTAC), have an awesome time, and still remember bring you something back. :)
What is MTAC?
MTAC is an annual anime convention that occurs in Nashville, TN. It is a time when hard-core anime fans can gather together, cosplay, and discuss deep deep issues such as “what Gendo Ikari actually said to Ritsuko” or “Ed’s a woman?!?!”. The event attracts all kinds of persons, including great bands like the Slants, Man Power, and Notorious MSG as well as voice actors, artists, vendors, etc.
Every year, many of the other Knoxville folk go to MTAC, touting the banner of Chainsaw Buffet (you have to experience the site to understand it). While there, they try to interview the bands, do real-time reviews of the latest and greatest in anime, and heckle the talent for the sake of media and entertainment. Although I keep telling myself that I am going to join them ‘next time’, I always seem to miss the boat and the good times.
Check out some of this year’s exploits:
Meanwhile… (back to the main story)
If you spend any time around me whatsoever, you will find out that I am a huge Dragon Ball fan. Dragon Ball is one of those shows that has the perfect mix of humor, action, and insanity that keeps me laughing but also excited about the progression of events. Even though it has some well deserved criticism concerning some epically long power-up scenes *cough* Namek Saga *cough*, I appreciate the show as a great piece of staple anime as well as fighting anime at its best. For me, the main draw of Dragon Ball is in its characters and their development. How can you not love the self-centered Bulma, the innocent Goku, prideful Vegeta, and, of course, the perverted Master Roshi? (TBH, I aspire to be an old man like Master Roshi someday – don’t tell Crystal) It is exciting to watch the characters grow and develop especially through all 473+ episodes and movies, lol.
Of the characters in Dragon Ball, one of the most intriguing is Krillin. Although he is neither the strongest nor the smartest, he time and again proves his loyalty by sticking by his friends’ side through thick and thin. He is a character that is distinctly human who strives to be as good as possible, but is willing to admit doubt, fear, and, sometimes, a certain amount of deviousness. He is simply a very fun character who I feel that I can easily relate with. Of course, Krillin’s shining moment was the scene in which he convinces Master Roshi to train Goku and him by offering an ‘even exchange’.
So, as I was saying before, the ‘gang’ brought back an excellent gift, which was in homage to my Dragon Ball obsession. The gift was a signed original drawing of Krillin, drawn by Sonny Strait (the American voice actor of Krillin). It is really friggin’ cool!
Not only that, but Charlie (one of the more vocal Chainsaw Buffet’ers) was able to get Sonny to give the CB some props (which I had to embed here).
Chainsaw Buffet Post
Anyway, I just wanted to take a quick moment to share my awesome MTAC gift and to put a bit of Dragon Ball love out on the interwebs.
John, Jen, Dylan, et all – Thanks for the awesome gift! I really do appreciate it.
Categories: Personal ,Misc
posted by nblevins on 4/15/2009 8:26:57 PM
The other day, Crystal told me that she had a surprise planned for me and that I was not allowed to plan anything for this Tuesday night (today). Since I am a sucker for surprises and go WAY out of my way to make sure that I don't figure them out, I was completely set back when Crystal guided me to the TN Theater on Gay Street. Much to my surprise, they were playing John Doyle’s Sweeney Todd, which ranks somewhere among my favorite movies. Although the movie was excellent, I was very excited at the possibility to see the play, as it was originally intended, because I had the sneaking suspicion that I would like it much more (sorry Mr. Depp). I am happy to say that my suspicions were correct!
A Quick Note About the Theater
I know that this is common sense, but I do want to articulate that plays are a different creature altogether than their movie counterparts. Much like a movie, they have a very limited amount of time to convey a large story. Unlike the movies, they have very limited casts, very limited resources, and the disadvantage of using a very small stage and amount of props to pull off their act. In order for a play to be ‘as good as’ a movie in delivery and content, not only do the actors have to be masters of their craft, but also the planners and set builders have to be imaginative w/ the resources that they have and yet make sure that those resources clearly convey the intended message. It is a very difficult balance to keep.
Also, considering that a play is live, there are SO MANY things that can go wrong. Don’t believe me? Ask me sometime about how I nearly electrocuted myself and killed all the power on one of TWC’s opening nights, lol. It is a tough business and deserves ALOT of respect.
On with the show!
So, the show itself was excellent. I don’t want to waste much time trying to compare the play to the movie, but there are a few facts that stood out. Much to my surprise, the play (even this one was an adaptation of the original work) followed exactly the same path as the movie. This is either a testament to the attention to detail of Mr. Burton or a testament to the popularity of Mr. Burton’s work. :) I did find it helpful that I somewhat knew the storyline, as it added to the suspense and also helped me completely understand all the divergent plotlines. As for the musical numbers, they were nearly identical to those found in the movie, however they blended into one another much more seamlessly than the movie itself. The movie had quite a bit more dialog whereas the musical is much more… uh… well… musical.
The Cast and Acting
I cannot even being to say enough about the cast. They were AMAZING. The awesome aspect of this play was that the actors handled every aspect of the play. Not only were they the singers, but they were also the musicians. Each of them played at least 2 instruments throughout the show, rotating in and out of the center stage while the story progressed. I kept feeling my jaw dropping as one person would be singing, pick up a flute, switch attention to the other actor, and start playing the music to that actor’s numbers. Of course, we are not simply talking about instrument solos – they acted as a small orchestra having violas, flutes, tubas, violins, pianos, guitars, horns, bells, etc. These were all shared and divvyed out among 8ish actors. WOW!
Adding to this amazing fact, the actors also had the task of setting up the stages between scenes. In this case, there were an plethora of props laying across the stage and the actors would manipulate, move, and set up while to story flowed. This might sound as if it would be distracting, but each movement was often choreographed or so reasonable that it added to the story rather than taking away. So, the scene quickly morphed from a boat deck, to a diner, to a courtroom, to a street corner, back into a diner, etc. Of course, the cost of this great effect was that they actors never got a break. They were either playing instruments, moving props, or acting / telling the story. I was simply dumbstruck by the amount of skill and dexterity that this would require.
One of the main props was actually a coffin as often used as the Mr. Todd’s barber chair. Needless to say, there was some really great symbolism / foreshadowing going on. It was pleasantly difficult to soak it all in as the actors worked across the stage.
Looking up for some information on the cast, I ran across a very small YouTube snippet of my favorite scene. Although this really does not do it justice, I embedded the video below (notice the cast playing the music for this number in the background)
Kudos to the actors. They did an excellent job!
In Conclusion
All in all, I have to say that I had a great time. Not only did I get to enjoy a very dark and hilarious storyline, but it was presented by true masters who knew how to tell a good story. I sincerely wish that they were still playing in town as I would have to beg and plead everyone to go check them out and support them. Maybe next year!
Categories: Personal ,News-Events
posted by nblevins on 4/7/2009 9:11:28 PM
Some of my fondest memories from growing up are those of my pet dogs. Its seems as if I have always had an animal companion to greet me when I got home, play w/ me when I was outside, and to just be there when I was feeling a little down. There is something wonderful about simple animal comforts – their selfless love – and the fact that they are always 110% excited to see you. I am very grateful to Mom and Dad for always going out of their way to make sure that I could enjoy the experience of owning a pet while I was growing up.
Since moving to Knoxville, I have not been able to justify getting a dog. Due to the fact that we lived close to the interstate and that it probably would have ended up w/ a note stapled to it (gonna have to dig up a link that this story…), I have had to forgo the pleasure of reliving some of my childhood by getting a dog.
Now that Crystal and I have our own place, we decided that we were finally in a position to start looking around for a new pet. Of course, being the realist and all, I justified this as getting an animal to assist w/ the guarding and protection of our investments in our home (which really meant – I want a dog like I had when I was a kid!) and Crystal, of course agreed w/ my assessment adding that she would feel safer at night knowing that the dog would help w/ alerting us of potential strangers (which really meant – I want PUPPIES!!!).
After looking around in newspapers, the different animal shelters (the human society guidelines suck, btw – blog post on this later), and asking around, we could not really find anything that was doable. When we did find what we wanted – either we were deemed as ‘unfit’ (refer to the Human Society and their standards sucking above) or the dogs were for sell for an exorbitant price. Anyway, to make a long story short – we found a listing on Craig’s List list for puppies as was able to get one… I mean… two… ;)
Without further ago, let me introduce Reox (blue collar) and Saber(red collar)…
Reox and Saber are children of a mostly lab mother (w/ some cocker spaniel) and a mutt father. Reox, the male, probably leans more in the lab direction, being the bigger dog, having those sad lab eyes, and the easy temperament. Saber, on the other hand, probably takes after her father’s breed more – being a smaller dog, feisty as can be, and completely destructive (in a good way).
In case you were wondering, their name sakes come from two different sources. For those anime fans, Saber is named after the main character in Fates Stay Night (one of the best animes ever). Reox is named after a dwarven god from the Dragonlance series and also, as most of your all know, is the gamer name that I use the most.
So, we now have two puppies running around and the most popular question we have been asked is, “What do the cats think about it?” Well, I think I will let Tater speak for both of the cats:
This picture was taken after Reox decided to ‘hitch a ride’ by grabbing Tater’s tail and being drug around the house. Good times! Of course, Tater finally grew tired of it and had to establish his authority…
All in all, we are totally happy w/ our new additions. In fact we are so pleased that the constant scooping of feces and cleaning up of ‘oopses’ are only a minor irritation. TBH, we are really enjoying them and I think they will be great companions!
Categories: Personal ,News-Events
posted by nblevins on 3/31/2009 9:51:07 PM
Crystal and I have been spending quite of bit of time working outside on improving the look and feel of our home. Although I have never considered myself much of a ‘yard person’ (always felt like a rather pointless endeavor to me), I have to admit that I am really enjoying the process of setting up and planning for the exterior of our home. I am not sure if it is an ownership / vested interest thing, but I have found that I am having a blast sewing grass, planting plants, and picking appropriate items for our yard.
One of our more recent projects that we took on was the planting Crystal’s flower garden. Although I never really gave it much thought, apparently there is quite a bit of preparation / work that goes into your basic flower garden. There are seeds to be bought, soil to be turned, and equipment to be procured. Crystal, of course, knew almost exactly what she wanted and how to get things done, so I had the pleasure of taking the back seat and being the ‘flower wing-man.’ Being the supportive husband that I am, I silently suffered through the grueling hours of flower selection, served as the ‘smell tester’ for each and every variety (giving the appropriate grunt where applicable), and slaved away at hole-digging duties throughout the flower gardening process (admittedly, Crystal dug her fair share). [Stoopid flowers… ;) ]
Through it all, I hate to admit that I had quite a bit of fun working with Crystal on this project. Even though, this may cost me quite a few man points, I was really pleased with the final result of our labor and thought it would be worth the risk to share it with the world:
Now that Crystal has proven that she has such a green thumb, I think that I need to let her take over the lawn, which is currently my project. Apparently, I am proving to be a bit of a failure in this department, lol. It is not that I am doing ‘horrible’… after all I can clearly see a few blades of grass here or there…
Categories: Personal
posted by nblevins on 3/24/2009 8:40:21 PM
For quite some time, I have been meaning to start writing a series of posts concerning the tools that I use from day to day as a programmer. Although this concept is nothing new, as everyone and their brother has posts about this topic, I feel the urge to add my opinions to the lot.
Why Have Tools and How To Use Them
Tools are needed for a variety of reasons. Some tools make us much more efficient, which allows us to work faster, reduce repetitive typing / browsing / etc. Other tools serve as organizational aides, giving us the ability to focus on topics without forgetting or burning brain-cpu cycles on non-applicable thoughts at the time. Finally, other tools allow for collaboration, which allows us to utilize the efforts of our peers in order to accomplish the task in a faster more organized manner. Despite the underlying goal of the tool, it seems that every tool’s main purpose is to save us time, which is our most valuable personal commodity.
The above statement is pretty obvious, so - why have I wasted your time in making you read it? Basically, I wanted to frame the discussion for this key point: Tools are great items and can save you a great deal of stress et al, but you have to invest in the tool in order to gain benefit from said tool. Most people fail when adopting a tool because they do not take the time to fully understand their tool. They do not go beyond the initial cost (be it time, resources, or money) of using the tool in order to find that efficiency nirvana. After just giving it a few seconds of their time, they quickly pass judgment and then subject the rest of their world to their naive-expert opinions via their blogs, tweets, etc. Everyone does this to some degree, so we have to be mindful of this and try to avoid it as much as we can. Due to this, I generally try to follow a few guidelines to avoid making this mistake:
- Read the instructions – I know, its totally lame and against the man-code to read the instructions. Suck it up and read them. Also, don’t just scan them. Assume that this tool will someday have a function that could save your life. If you do not know that function at the crucial moment, you will quite possibly (but highly unlikely) die. :) Also, pay special attention to your shortcut keys. Those are efficiency tools within efficiency tools. You don’t have to know them all, but 10 to 15 of the most important will not hurt.
- Make yourself use the tool for no less than 2 weeks – If it is a simple tool, put it up to the litmus test by trying to use it in your day to day life for at least 2 weeks. The more complex the tool – the longer this test should last. Two weeks is simply a arbitrary baseline whereas 2 months is more appropriate at times. This may involve a bit of extra work on your side, especially if your are trying to maintain a legacy tool at the same time. The main purpose of this test is to not only ensure that the tool works in the context that you wish to place it, but to also make sure you have an appropriate grasp of the tool before you go crazy in its adoption. There is nothing worse than selling someone on an awesome tool and then spoiling any chance it has due to the fact that you were inept in its use.
- Find someone who uses the tool and ask them to show you how they use it – Tools can have many different uses and sometimes we are not always the most inventive in their use. It always helps to see how other people are using your tool and seeing if they have something to teach you. Unless you were the writer of that tool (and probably still if you were), I can guarantee you that you will always learn something new by watching someone else use it.
- Finally, invest in your tool beyond just using it – Once you find the tool that you like, be sure to contact the vendor / creator. Let them know what you love / hate. Donate time / $$ to their cause if they are open source (even if it is only 10 bucks). Participate in their forums and press for new feature sets. You will be amazed on the amount of impact a small group of people who give vocal input have on a project’s direction.
Following these basic concepts is a pretty easy task, but we tend to cut corners, which will eventually end up only robbing us of our productivity in the end. Let’s try to avoid this outcome.
Today’s Tool Highlight – Evernote
Today, as I was trolling around on Twitter (another great tool), I managed to stumble across a conversation between Dave Penton (aka @dpenton) and Chris Benard (aka @cbenard). Here is the basic conversation that evolved:
Chris Benard:
David Penton:
Chris Benard:
Since I have been intending to write a bit on this subject anyway, I agreed to post a bit about this tool, which is perhaps my one of my favorite and most versatile tools.
What is Evernote?
In its most basic form, Evernote is a note-taking system that gives you a high level of functionality on a very basic concept – keeping notes. Even though there are a plethora of note taking systems, Evernote excels in that it not only gives you a pretty slick functionality for categorization, searching, and sharing, but it also makes itself available to a plethora of platforms so that you can use on your computer, via the web, via your phone (iPhone, Windows Mobile, or generic web-capable phone), and even via email. Here is what Evernote has to say about themselves as well:
“Evernote allows you to easily capture information in any environment using whatever device or platform you find most convenient, and makes this information accessible and searchable at any time, from anywhere. Did we mention that it's free?”
What can Evernote do for you?
Now that I have made the pitch for the wonders of Evernote, let me delve a bit into its possibilities. What can Evernote do for you? The best answer would be “whatever you choose to use it for.” Thanks, Captain Obvious!
Although this response is rather evasive / generic, it is very accurate. At its most basic level, Evernote is a text / screen capture system with many different accessibility options. This means that anything that you may type into or view on your screen is subject to being organized and captured in Evernote. To be honest, the possibilities are pretty endless. For the sake of brevity, I think the best description of how to use Evernote would be to describe of few of my use-case scenarios and let you draw your own conclusions.
Evernote Use Cases
In my day to day use, I tend to mainly use the Evernote windows application. Although the web application is very handy (as well as the mobile options), I tend to prefer web-capable desktop applications in order to allow for offline sessions and, usually, more stable control /functionality. In addition, the desktop application has great synchronization features, which allows me to sync my Evernotes from my work pc to my home pc. This has all kinds of uses that range from quick capturing that pesky code issue that you want to mull over later to reminding yourself to feed the cats when you get home. For the most part, Evernote, for me, is an information filter through which I am able to quickly make note of and process any information that floats across my desk while I am at work. Of course, my favorite feature of the windows application is the context menu addition that allows me to right-click and send any item that I am working with quickly into Evernote, without ever missing a beat (with some exceptions).
I can’t stress how much of a time saver this is for me b/c I can continue working on a single purpose without forgetting an errant yet excellent thought or allowing myself to become distracted and wasting the time I spent to ramp up to the task at hand.
Blogs and information processing:
Every morning, I start my day by scanning my blogs via FeedDemon (btw, this is another awesome tool that has great synergy bonus w/ Evernote). Usually, when I open my blogs, the list looks something like this:
Currently I follow somewhere around 150 unique blogs, most of which are either news or programming information. Considering that I generally only allow myself around 30 mins to process / read through potentially 100 – 150 articles, it is needless to say that I have to have someway to capture the gems of information for later perusal and to cull the ‘junk’. This is where Evernote excels. As I read the blogs, I can quickly right click on either the entire portion or on the specific portion of the article and send the note on its merry way to Evernote.
Later, usually when I get home, I will check my entries, categorize them and then read through them at my leisure. Evernote allows you to specify a default ‘notebook’ in which incoming notes can be dumped. This makes it very easy for me to simply make a ‘uncategorized’ notebook that captures the days information to be processed and fine-tuned later. Of course, the desktop application gives you nice drag-n-drop features, easy editing, and other cool features to boot.
Twitter and time maintenance:
Twitter is a great tool and I currently follow hundreds of people. Needless to say, I spend quite a bit of time reading different thoughts and ideas on Twitter that range from the inane such as @dkoren ‘s wondering whether moleskine is actually make from the skin of mole to @elijahmanor ‘s frequent posts on great tech topics.
However Twitter does present a bit of a problem in that it is a constant stream of information and, as a programmer, my concentration on the task at hand is critical. I can’t afford to allow myself to stop what I am doing every 10 mins to read a totally off-topic concept.
In comes Evernote… Elijah posts a link, I quickly follow that link, use the context menu to add the information to Evernote, and Evernote not only adds the text of my selection of the page, but will also capture the URL, and auto title the note for quick reference later. SWEET! Now I have a concept saved for later perusal and I can keep on being efficient on the task at hand. On the flip side, if I am truly interested in if moleskine notebooks are indeed made from moles, I can quickly hammer out a note to investigate this later.
Remember the Milk / Random Thoughts
Finally, Evernote is awesome to use for mundane stuff as well. This includes todo lists, task lists, Christmas lists for the spouse, great blog ideas, random images that you might want to see later, or a quick dump of temp data that you might need tomorrow. No matter the item, Evernote will keep track of it for you and it will always be on-hand whenever you need it. Often times, I will use Evernote’s built in screen clipper to save quick images of things of note / items into a note and then email them to an interested party.
Currently, I am opting to use Evernote to save important links and categorize them. Although other tools, such as delicious and IE’s built in bookmarks are good for this, I simply appreciate the ease in which I can add / process this information in Evernote.
In conclusion…
All in all, Evernote is a great tool that allows me to quickly process information, categorize it, and remain efficiently on the task at hand. It has literally saved me hours of time and kept me from allowing thinks to slip through the cracks. Also, thanks to its integration into so many different products (did I mention that it integrates into Office products?), I can quickly utilizes its abilities without having to switch my working context. Give it a try and let me know – What do YOU use Evernote to do?
Categories: Programming
posted by nblevins on 3/3/2009 11:27:00 PM