THE JOURNEY HAS BEGUN

Excellence

2014-02-09T01:52:00.003+01:00

Hi guys,

It's been a while since my last post. A lot of things have happened since then.
Most notably, last summer, I did an internship at IBM Research India (in
Bangalore). And currently, I'm doing another one at IBM Research Ireland (in
Dublin).

It's been two and a half years since I started my PhD, which means that I'm in
the middle of my third year. Normally, you should know already what you are
going to write for your thesis.. But, unfortunately, not me :p
Yep, still not sure what to write (or maybe, hopefully, "which" one to write).

Anyway, I have just watched movie clips of Taylor Swift live show performance
and preparation. I'm amazed by the fact that everything was down to perfection.
It then reminded me of Martin Luther King Jr.'s quote: "If a man is called to
be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michaelangelo painted,
or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep
streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, 'Here
lived a great street sweeper who did his job well."

The more down to earth version would be "we should do our best to everything we
do." Then, adding "and be the best" make it to a more ambitious version of it.
I think that this is exactly what we need. Good things come up when everybody
bring their standard to the highest. Shall we?

Problem with Ubuntu 12.04 wireless internet connection on my Thinkpad is solved!

2013-02-07T21:20:00.002+01:00

So, I am very happy today. One of the reason is that I succeed to make the internet (wireless) connection on my Ubuntu 12.04 worked! The problem is a little bit strange because the connection is fine at school and if I used wired connection, but not using wireless connection at my apartment.

After looking for a solution for a while, I find this that works.
http://www.mattkirwan.com/tech/slow-wireless-connection-using-ubuntu-1204-and-a-lenovo-thinkpad-x200/

I reposted the solution here for my convenience (just in case I need it in the future).

It seemed that Ubuntu 12.04 uses the iwlwifi module NOT the iwlagn module. After doing a bit of research the command

lsmod

is used to list the currently loaded modules within the kernel, adjusting this command with a search told me that indeed 12.04 does use the iwlwifi module:

lsmod|grep iwl

As suggested in the above article, it's recommended to 'test' this solution before making any configuration changes. To carry out this 'test', it's a relatively simple process, first we need to disable the iwlwifi module:

sudo rmmod -f iwlwifi

At this point you will see your wireless connection drop, essentially you have disabled wireless by running this command. Now, we need to fire it back up again only this time we are going to pass a temporary config setting which is going to disable wireless 'n', to do this we use modprobe:

sudo modprobe iwlwifi 11n_disable=1

Now, ensure that you are running of the wireless connection only and test your connection, hopefully you will find that things are much speedier - how they should be!?! Assuming that works, the next and final stage is to apply those changes permanently, this is as simple as creating a module config file:

gksudo gedit /etc/modprobe.d/iwlwifi-disable11n.conf

And in that file place the option setting to disable 'n' permanently:

options iwlwifi 11n_disable=1

That's it, everytime modprobe is called (the kernel modules are loaded) this option will be applied and your wireless in your Thinkpad will work like a charm!

Embed pdf for camera-ready

2012-12-10T20:34:00.002+01:00

When submitting a paper for publication, sometimes you can have a problem with "fonts not embedded". Then, you can try this on linux:

gs -q -dNOPAUSE -dBATCH -dPDFSETTINGS=/prepress -sDEVICE=pdfwrite -sOutputFile=<name_pdf_without_brackets> <name_ps/pdf_without_brackets>

The Second Autumn

2012-11-11T10:42:00.002+01:00

This morning, after Sunday mass, I looked into trees in front of me. They lost more than half of their leaves - autumn it is. This is my second autumn in Switzerland.

But why is this special? This is because I have never experienced two autumn in the same country. My first year in Europe, in Dresden, Germany, I arrived in autumn. But then I leave to Vienna, Austria, in the beginning of autumn the year after. Same thing happen for Vienna. In the beginning of autumn the year after, I have to leave to Lausanne, Switzerland.

In this one year, a lot of things happened. I learn (a little bit) of French. I tasted many kind of cheese. Something that I will not bother to do (maybe) had I lived in another country. Going to lakes, mountains, and mountain lakes during summer. I live in 6th floor apartment where mountains is your backdrop. I saw 1 August fireworks in Lausanne (magnificent, given that they do not light fireworks in New Year's eve). Being exposed to three languages (Germany, French, and Italian - and English in the university).

School-wise... I studied in EPFL, as a PhD student in Distributed Information Lab. I passed my candidacy exam. Having fellow students from many different countries - East European, Africa, West European, Russia, Asia (India, China, Iran), US, Latin America, not so sure about Australia, though. Being exposed to European projects. Have been in meetings in different European cities. Met new people, discuss, and the cities itself - very exciting.

All in all, very grateful about whatever happened during this first year in Switzerland. Starting from this autumn, begin the first step into the second year. Hope that everything will be at least as fine as and as magical as the first year...

Reviewing - how to write a paper

2012-11-01T18:42:00.003+01:00

Below is a link to a presentation slides about how to review. But if we think about it more carefully, this presentation also helps us on how to write a paper. Because, by understanding how reviewers think/make decision, we can increase the probability of our paper being accepted.

So, here it is:
http://liawww.epfl.ch/People/faltings/STAIRS-2004-talk.pdf

Writing

2012-11-01T10:52:00.003+01:00

N. Gregory Mankiw:

I often recommend Strunk and White's The Elements of Style to my students, and I am surprised at how many have never heard of it. (It is the perfect book to leave in the bathroom. Whenever you have a spare minute, open it to a random page and start reading.) I also recommend that students read William Zinsser's On Writing Well to learn how to write and Donald McCloskey's The Rhetoric of Economics to learn how to persuade.

http://www.economics.harvard.edu/files/faculty/40_My_Rules_of_Thumb.pdf

Fireworks finale display in Geneve festival 2011

2012-08-03T16:55:00.000+02:00

skip to 1:15 to skip the intro

Orchestrating

2012-06-14T14:25:00.000+02:00

It turned out that some of Taylor Swift's video contains insight deeper than one might thought. For example, see this video from 2:37 to 2:53
"... When there's a conductor stand, and you have the opportunity to stand on it, and do this (Swift is orchestrating)... Shouldn't you do it? Like, shouldn't we do this (orchestrating), if we have an opportunity to? Isn't that life is all about? doing this (orchestrating) when you can ... "

Me

2012-04-26T22:44:00.000+02:00

Today, a friend of mine sent me a pieces of PhD comics. She knows that it's so me.
It's this.

Learning should be fun!

2012-04-20T09:17:00.000+02:00

Look at the lecturers.
They are quite good, remarkable professor, yet they still do hard-preparing before class.
The lecturers prepare even more than the students. They are debating each other.
The two most important ingredients: enthusiasm from the lecturers, and enthusiasm from the students. So, in the end, it's just: enthusiasm!

Turn it on

2012-04-13T08:40:00.002+02:00

Another chapter in "You is stupid"

Yesterday, in the kitchen.
T: okay, let's cook this up put the pan on the stove, the oil...
(after 5 minutes)
T: Hmm.. it's not hot enough yet
(waiting 5 minutes)
T: Hmm.. it's not hot enough yet
(5 more minutes)
T: Still not hot? (angry) What wrong with this stove???
(Found out that the stove is not turned on yet)
T: Ow, crap.

It's cool to be different

2012-04-09T08:33:00.000+02:00

You think you're alone.. you think you're the only person in the world feeling this way.. you're not

It's cool to be different.
In the real world, if you have something about yourself that's different, you're lucky

You ['re still] got a long life to live. I'd like to think that the best years of my life are still ahead of me.

Stealer!

2012-03-30T12:38:00.003+02:00

Another chapter in "You is stupid"
once upon a time, in a very nice and sunny day,

A: Ok. Now, I stole your idea.
T: Which idea?
A: The one with bla.. bla..
T: Oooohhh... Stealer!
A: ??!!!??
T: Hmm.... (kruk kruk) Thief!

The secret of our great thinkers

2012-03-23T08:46:00.003+01:00

The secret of the great thinkers is to not think. Is this true?

Inspiring scene from Rocky Balboa

2012-03-19T15:30:00.001+01:00

Once upon a time... late afternoon in my office, I had an intensive discussion with my friend about life, motivation, and all related to that. Near the end of the discussion, she gave a video, a short one, about Rocky Balboa. Only one minute video. But inside, you can find a great excuse not to blame anybody else but you, go on, and continue with your life, keep stronger than before.

Enjoying that video, I found another, longer video that repeat the same spirit from Rocky Balboa. This is the video:

And this is the short one:

2012-02-17T11:36:00.002+01:00

I have just read this (below). It's been a while since I read it last time. But I still think that this is pretty damn funny (and true *of course).

Here it is:
=====================
We always hear "the rules" from the female side. Now here are the rules
from the male side. These are our rules! Please note ... these are
all numbered '1' ON PURPOSE!

1. Learn to work the toilet seat. You're a big girl. If it's up, put
it down. We need it up, you need it down. You don't hear us
complaining about you leaving it down.

1. Shopping is NOT a sport. And no, we are never going to think of
it that way.

1. Crying is blackmail.

1. Ask for what you want. Let us be clear on this one: Subtle hints
do not work! Strong hints do not work! Obvious hints do not work! Just say it!

1. Yes, and No are perfectly acceptable answers to almost every question.

1. Come to us with a problem only if you want help solving it.
That's what we do. Sympathy is what your girlfriends are for.

1. A headache that lasts for 17 months is a problem. See a doctor.

1. Anything we said 6 months ago is inadmissible in an argument.
In fact, all comments become null and void after 7 days.

1. If you won't dress like the Victoria's Secret girls, don't expect
us to act like soap opera guys.

1. If you think you're fat, you probably are. Don't ask us.

1. If something we said can be interpreted two ways, and one of the
ways makes you sad or angry, we meant the other one.

1. You can either ask us to do something or tell us how you want it
done. Not both. If you already know best how to do it, just do it yourself.

1. Whenever possible, please say whatever you have to say
during commercials.

1. Christopher Columbus did not need directions and neither do we.

1. ALL men see in only 16 colors, like Windows default settings. Peach,
for example, is a fruit, not a color. Pumpkin is also a fruit. We have
no idea what mauve is.

1. If it itches, it will be scratched. We do that.

1. If we ask what is wrong and you say "nothing," we will act
like nothing's wrong. We know you are lying, but it is just not worth
the hassle.

1. If you ask a question you don't want an answer to, expect an
answer you don't want to hear.

1. When we have to go somewhere, absolutely anything you wear is fine.
Really.

1. Don't ask us what we're thinking about unless you are prepared
to discuss such topics as baseball, the shotgun formation, or monster
trucks.

1. You have enough clothes.

1. You have too many shoes.

1. I am in shape. Round is a shape.

1. Thank you for reading this; Yes, I know, I have to sleep on the
couch tonight, but did you know men really don't mind that, it's like
camping.
- unknown

7, and it is dark

2012-01-19T08:55:00.002+01:00

When I woke up this morning (and stayed in bed till 7am), this what I thought I would post in facebook: "Going to EPFL at 7, and it is dark. It's 7AM or PM? It's AM! Seriously?"

IT IS.

For you who came from Europe, or other places with 4 season, maybe this condition is not weird at all. But for us, for example: me, who came from Indonesia (country near the equator), it is weird. If somebody told you 7, and it is dark, then we can safely assume that it is 7PM.

Back to my master education, I can say this.
"Therefore, we can put it formally. Given the time is 7, and the condition outside (bright/dark) we can decide whether it is 7AM or 7PM"

Well, but again, that is not true for summer/winter. In summer, both 7AM and 7PM are bright, and in winter both of them are dark.

Okay, I think I have to stop now. For me this difference is (one of) what makes our world interesting (and always interesting) place to live.

2011-09-29T12:08:00.001+02:00

This morning, I was searching about "Stanford". Yes, that Stanford.

I read this wonderful articles about getting into Stanford:

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_do_you_get_into_Stanford_University

Some of the part that I would like to share (see the complete entry below):

So, you ask, who are these people who are admitted? Well, one girl I know is the national fencing champion and a biomedical researcher. Another is the 20th ranked junior tennis player in the world and has been recruited for tennis at Stanford. Another guy started a photography business to take care of his impoverished family and wrote a fantastic essay about the obstacles he has overcome. Another won first place in the National Chemistry Olympiad and developed an educational computer program that her high school will use for years to come. Another girl was her state violin champion, a chemistry researcher, and a Juilliard professor said her violin playing was possibly the best he'd ever heard from a high school student. Another wrote 3 books in 3 different languages and ran a fashion show to raise money to bring clean water to rural India.

Stanford (and for that matter Princeton, Harvard, MIT, etc...) are all looking for the future leaders of the world, and they are looking for signals that show them that you are this kind of material.

Then, when first semester of senior year rolls around, pour your heart and soul into that Stanford application, and maybe, just maybe, an admissions officer pouring through piles of essays, transcripts, and recommendations will stop at your application and think, This kid is destined for greatness: this kid is a Stanford kid.

==================
Again, this article is not mine. I've got it from: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_do_you_get_into_Stanford_University

First of all, there is no magic formula that can guarantee your admission to a school like Stanford. The admissions office receives applications from the absolute best students in the world, and all of them have stellar grades, astronomical test scores, pages of extracurricular activities, glowing teacher recommendations, and essays they've slaved over for months. The Stanford Office of Undergraduate Admissions says that about 80% of students have the grades and SAT scores for admission and the rest is up to activities, recommendations, essays, and the like. So, the question is, how do you whittle down that 80% of qualified students to the 9% who are admitted?

Many people are surprised when someone who has a seemingly stellar resume is rejected, like a friend of mine who was valedictorian, class president, NHS president, an intern for a corporate attorney, had 1000s of volunteer hours, perfect SAT score, teachers who called her the best student they've ever had, and a double legacy (her father went to Stanford for undergrad and grad, a huge plus for admissions). Nonetheless, she was rejected.

What people don't think about is that Stanford's admissions is a competition on a worldwide level. There are 36,000 high schools in America. That means 36,000 valedictorians, 36,000 class presidents, and so on. So, those trappings on her resume are wholly unspectacular, because everyone has them. You have to have things that no one in the world has, otherwise, to Stanford, you are wholly unspectacular.

Also, you should realize that Stanford isn't looking for the best students: they're looking for the best people, the people who will be the most successful in life, the people who will become rich and famous, and uphold and enhance the Stanford name. I know people who were admitted with 1700 SATs and GPAs that barely but them in the top quartile of their class - and no, they were not legacies or minorities. The reason they were admitted is that Stanford realized that they will become great, while many of their perfect-scoring valedictorian peers are destined for a life of anonymity.

So, you ask, who are these people who are admitted? Well, one girl I know is the national fencing champion and a biomedical researcher. Another is the 20th ranked junior tennis player in the world and has been recruited for tennis at Stanford. Another guy started a photography business to take care of his impoverished family and wrote a fantastic essay about the obstacles he has overcome. Another won first place in the National Chemistry Olympiad and developed an educational computer program that her high school will use for years to come. Another girl was her state violin champion, a chemistry researcher, and a Juilliard professor said her violin playing was possibly the best he'd ever heard from a high school student. Another wrote 3 books in 3 different languages and ran a fashion show to raise money to bring clean water to rural India.

Can there really be 2,400 people who have that sort of resume? No. Some are accepted with slightly less amazing stories if they are an underrepresented minority (black, Hispanic, or Native American) or they are a legacy (one of their parents went to Stanford). And some , like me, feel like the admissions officer must've accidentally put us in the admit pile when we should've been rejected. But really, what I think happened with people like me - people who didn't win any national championships, write any books, make any breakthrough research discoveries, overcome severe economic obstacles, or run half-million-dollar fundraisers - is that Stanford saw something in all those recommendations, essays, and short answers a sign of untapped greatness; there was something that made the admissions officers think that we are capable of doing something amazing if given the resources of an institution like Stanford. I can only hope that I fulfill their speculations.

All in all, its practically impossible to predict your chances at admission to a school like Stanford. My best advice is to get out and do something. If you come up with an idea for a new gadget, or you see something you'd like to change about the world, or there is some skill or art that you excel at and that you love, get out and do it! Starting building that gadget, start that fundraiser or protest, practice at that skill. Then, when first semester of senior year rolls around, pour your heart and soul into that Stanford application, and maybe, just maybe, an admissions officer pouring through piles of essays, transcripts, and recommendations will stop at your application and think, This kid is destined for greatness: this kid is a Stanford kid.

More input

While I respect the opinions above, please keep in mind that there ARE specific things you can do to have a great shot at Stanford beyond simply working hard.
It all comes down to the application itself and how you TELL YOUR STORY. Essays, short answers, supplemental materials, and teacher recs are all critical pieces of that story.
At the end of the day, any machine can score 2400 on the SAT and 5's on ten AP tests. But very few can really sound like a unique individual with distinct passions and specific goals in life. Get those messages across and you'll stand a great chance.

Even More Input

I am a senior at Stanford majoring in Economics, and I whole heartedly second (third?) the opinions above. I got in on a 1350 SAT (old score), 30 ACT and a 4.2 GPA (Salutatorian in HS class). I was also a two sport All-League Varsity athlete from a medium sized public school in California. The Stanford coaches knew who I was but I was not officially recruited, although I eventually ended up on the varsity team.

As you can see, my "numbers" were well below many of those who applied. From what I've gathered from the admissions office, the numbers are the deal breakers, the essays and recommendations are the deal makers. Stanford gets plenty of valedictorians and 2400's on the SATs. What I mean by this is that the average kid applying to Stanford has amazing grades, tests scores and extra-curriculars. The biggest thing is that its about your expressed ambitions, experiences, and recommendations, rather than your metrics. Ultimately, its not about how many hours you put in to community service, but rather what it taught you and how you hope to apply to those lessons to your future goals. It's not about how many clubs you're in, it's about which club inspired you to do something great while you were a sophomore in high school. Quality and depth are definitely better than quantity and a unique experience is definitely better than many generic extra-curriculars (NHS, volunteering, etc.). For you HS freshman and sophomores out there, I promise that you will be much better off, both in terms of college admissions and personal satisfaction, if you dedicate yourselves to a few core areas (grades, sports, businesses, non-profit, etc.) rather than trying to spread yourselves too thin. For you HS juniors and seniors, it's never too late.

Stanford (and for that matter Princeton, Harvard, MIT, etc...) are all looking for the future leaders of the world, and they are looking for signals that show them that you are this kind of material. Grades and test scores don't show them enough; plenty of hard-working kids can do that. You have to show them intelligence + hardworking + leadership material. There were many of my peers that had many more "bullet points" on their transcripts. I got in because I was able to express, through my essays, the fact that my problems as a high school senior were trivial compared to the challenges my parents had faced as a college dropout and a two time cancer survivor, respectively.

Finally, I want to emphasize that a dedicated student will do great things at whichever college they attend. If you do not get into your top choices, don't worry. Motivation and hard work count for much more in the real world (and grad school) than the crap shoot that is undergraduate admissions. Keep working hard and commit to doing great things. Good luck.

Even more

People who get into top schools can post the stories of how they got in at www.dreamschoolstories.com. I got into Stanford (my top choice) and wrote about it there. You can find my story under "From Austin, TX to Stanford". Good luck!

[Get Your] Erasmus Mundus [Done]

2011-09-11T09:41:00.003+02:00

Okay, it's September now. As usual, 'the war' will soon begin.
Do you think you want to get a scholarship to Europe?
Do you want to experience new cultures?
Traveling while study? And yet still get paid for your study?

What? still not enough? It's like you get paid for study (for Master or Doctorate) and traveling (at least two countries) in the same time.

The main thing the most important of all is: preparation. Believe me, whoever you are you can get it. The main language is English.

1. For master degree, check the website here http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/erasmus_mundus/results_compendia/selected_projects_action_1_master_courses_en.php

2. For doctorate degree, check the website here http://eacea.ec.europa.eu/erasmus_mundus/results_compendia/selected_projects_action_1_joint_doctorates_en.php

3. There are a lot of course offered, right? So, choose some. But this is the important one. Later your choice will determine whether you will get your Erasmus Mundus or not. Click the individual website provided for each course. Read the descriptions. Determine which ones you like the most. Read the requirements to apply (do you fit there?). In the end, you can apply for 3 different courses. So, narrow down your choice into 3 in the end. Tips: choose one that you are really like (even though you know that you have only a little chance), choose one course that you think your chance is the biggest there, and one more course is up to you.

4. Okay, so now we get 3 courses already. Take notes all of the thing required to apply. English test, such as TOEFL or IELTS? when is the deadline? Letter of Recommendation? Statement of Purpose? Graduation certificate? Academics Transcript? Curriculum Vitae? All requirements are stated on each course's website. Remember that each course has different requirements.

5. As the rule of thumb, personalize each application as far as you can. For example: it is not a good idea to use one statement of purpose for three of them, which means that your statement of purpose is a general statement of purpose. Tailor each statement of purpose match with the course description and your uniquness towards that course.

6. Apply for 3 of them! Who knows which course will accept you? Nobody knows for now (well I hope you will know it by May next year :)). So, why don't maximize the quota that European Commission gave you.

So, I wish you the best of luck, and see you in Europe!

Adsense

2011-09-10T13:08:00.000+02:00

Hey, I have just started using my adsense account :) Well, actually I have applied for it since a long time ago for this blog, but google reject my application. Now, that I have developed my website, I tried to apply it again. It turned out that google approve it! Now as you can see there is some ads also in this blog. How about my earnings? Not, bad. Yesterday I've got 3.95$ (estimated earnings). Okay, then hope that I could have a side job as a successful adsenser and share my adsense experience with you guys.

Acknowledgement

2011-08-28T16:37:00.005+02:00

As I have just finished my master thesis, if somebody asked me "what is your most favorite part of your thesis?" I will answer right away: "My acknowledgement." (what?)

Yeah, my acknowledgement. You see, almost every part of my thesis have been read and reviewed by my supervisors, which in the end have to be revised. Sometimes the reviews are too details, up to words to words basis.

However, this is not the case with my acknowledgement. My supervisors did not touch it. When I offered my acknowledgment to be read, he said "No, Tri. That's your privacy".
Wow, it means I can be creative :p Okay, then. Let's get it on.

Tri's original:

========================================
I would to say thanks:

To Prof. Thomas Eiter, who let me work with him and his group on such an interesting topic. Every meeting with him is always exciting and encouraging, and every word from him is always insightful.

To Thomas Krennwallner and Minh Dao-Tran, together with Prof. Eiter they made such a great team to support me from the beginning 'till the end. I cannot imagine finishing all the works without them.

To Peter Schueller, who always there to help me with dlvhex system.

To Eva Nedoma, secretary of our groups; who always eager to help with office and bureaucratic matters. Every morning before anybody comes, she also makes sure that we have enough coffee and milk in our kitchen.

To all of my partners in crime in the third floor: Tran Trung Kien, Carmine Dodaro, Xiao Guohui, Patrik Schneider, and Umut Oztok. I cannot imagine spending my time in the lab without you, guys. All of our jokes, discussions, lunches, and even stupidity, made me 'alive'.

To all of my friends and colleagues for their understanding, support, and encouragement during my 'thesis mode'.

Finally, to my wonderful mother, sister, and families back home who always believe in me.

- Tri -

========================================

See my complete master thesis here.

Sächsische Schweiz

2011-07-31T18:01:00.000+02:00

Want the English version? See below the Indonesian one.

Kadang2 aku merasa aku ingin sekali menjadi menteri pariwisata. Kok bisa?
Ini berawal dari acara hiking sewaktu aku masih di Dresden, tahun lalu. Bulan November 2009 kalau tidak salah. Kita hiking di sebuah tempat yg bernama Saxony Switzerland. Dinamakan seperti itu krn tempatnya di Jerman di daerah saxony, tapi tempatnya mirip Switzerland (suasananya maksudnya). Sungai Elbe mengalir dengan tebing curam di sisinya. Terlihat bagus sekali. Pemandangan alam yg akan membuat kita berhenti sejenak utk menikmati keindahannya.

Nah, ceritanya ini hikingnya tidak jauh beda sebenarnya dengan di Indonesia (kecuali utk landscape-nya tentu saja). Kita melewati areal hutan. Mendaki. Berjalan melewati semak2. Berhati-hati. Namun ada satu hal yg terlihat sangat berbeda. Areal hiking ini benar2 dirawat. Utk beberapa daerah yg curam, mereka menyediakan step2. Tanahnya dibuat sedemikian rupa sehingga menjadi seperti anak tangga. Besi utk berpegangan pun disediakan. Jalan2 utk melewati tebing batu yg sempit pun disediakan. Ibarat petualangan alam, ini adalah hal2 yg mgkn dilakukan petualang profesional. Tapi ini tidak bahkan kita2 yg cuma mahasiswa pun bisa menikmatinya, sekretaris jurusan, professor kita, sampai asisten2nya waktu itu. Dalam perjalanan, kami pun tidak jarang bertemu dengan kakek2 atau nenek2 (dalam hati, "hah?").
Bahkan yg lebih gila lagi, di atas, saya sempat melihat ada org dengan kursi roda. Dienkzzz.... bagaimana pula ini bisa terjadi??? Ditambah ada restoran di puncak tebingnya (???) mikir ga bagaimana mereka transport kebutuhan restorannya ke atas? Pakai helikopter? pakai elevator rahasia? (heaaa... imajinasi mulai bermain di sini :p ) Ga tau deh...

Hihihi... oke, skrg kalau dibandingkan dengan Indonesia. Oke lah, kita bisa yakin bahwa keindahan alam kita tidak kalah. Bahkan hampir semua org setuju bahwa untuk Indonesia, kekayaan pariwisata dari keindahan alamnya hampir tidak terbatas. Laut? Sungai? Air terjun? Gunung? Hutan? Bukit? kecuali gurun, dan grand canyon, mgkn kita punya semuanya. Bahkan, mau salju? daki sana ke puncak Jayawijaya, hihihi... Hanya saja seberapa akses yg kita berikan utk semua itu? Sangat minim sekali. Tidak jarang kita tidak tahu ada obyek wisata ini atau itu. Jangankan utk wisatawan, kadang2 orang di dekat daerahnya saja tidak tahu :p

So, closure:
Seandainya saja, seandainya, kita sediakan lahan promosi yg tepat, minimal menginformasikan ada tempat wisata ini, itu. Set up aksesnya. Hampir di setiap bandara atau terminal waktu saya bepergian selama di europe mereka selalu ada peta utk pariwisata. Bagaimana kalau kita jg lakukan hal seperti itu? Terlihat sangat sederhana bukan? Namun efeknya bisa besar. Hanya mgkn perlu meeting, set up designnya, udah tinggal cetak dan letakkan brosurnya. Aku ingin di setiap bandara/terminal/stasiun terdekat terdapat peta tempat2 wisata dan ada transport ke situ. Lalu disediakan manajemen yg tepat utk tempat pariwisatanya, mulai dari loket, pemeliharaan, fasilitas toilet, tempat makan, tempat beristirahat, penyelenggaran event2 tertentu, atau bahkan website utk daerah itu. Aku ingin melihat Indonesia lebih baik lagi.

Hihihi... okay now the English verson

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It's true that I wrote the English version based on the Indonesian version, but this is not word-by-word translation. I read the Indonesian version, then think and wrote in English. Don't worry, more less they have the same content, only with a slight modification and sense. If you have just read the Indonesian version, you can also read the English version below. It will give you a slightly different feeling. There are some Indonesian word that cannot be really translated literally to English, and there are some ideas that sometimes could be presented better using Indonesian, or English.

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Sometimes, I feel like I want to be a minister of tourism. Huh?
It all started from the hiking event that organized by my faculty, back when I was in Dresden, Germany. Around November 2009. The place called Saxony Switzerland, because it was in Saxony area, Germany, but the environment is just like when you are in Switzerland. Elbe river in the middle with cliffs on its sides. It was very beautiful, really such a breath-taking view.

Okay, the hiking part is not so different compared when I did it in Indonesia. We walk across forest, climb, and be careful. But, there is one thing different. This hiking area was really well-care. For the steep part, they provide us steps. They made they ground so that it acts like a stairs for us. Irons for our hands to hold are also provided. So it's not really dangerous after all. I can imagine that actually if we want to do this kind of stuff and see the beautiful view, we must be a professional climber. But not. We are just normal students, professors, his secretary, and research assistant. Even I met some grandpas and grandmas (huh?)!
What even more surprising is that I met a handicap people with a wheel chair in the top. How can they get here? - I said to myself. The surprise is not stop there. There is a restaurant on top of the cliff. How can they transport the restaurant needs? Helicopter? Underground elevator? anyone, please tell me :p

Okay, let's compare to Indonesia. Well, we know that Indonesian also has a very good nature. Many people agree that Indonesia has many tourism places with a very natural beautiful view. Beach? Ocean? River? Waterfall? Mountain? Forest? Hill? maybe except for desert and grand canyon, Indonesia has it all :p Even actually if you want snow, you can climb Jayawijaya peak (but, of course I've never did it, I saw and feel my first snow when I was in Germany). However what about the access that is given to them? So minimal. Even there is a case when the people nearby do not know about the places. So bad.

So, closure:
If, If Indonesia provide a good marketing, at least an informative advertisement (the simplest advertisement). Setting up access to the places.
Almost at every airport or terminal in every city when I was traveling in Europe, I can always look for a map or a guide about the places of interest on that city.
What if Indonesia also doing something like that? It looks so simple isn't it? But might had a huge effect. Just set one meeting, set up the content and design, then print it out and put the brochure or advertisement. I wanna see in every airport, bus terminal, or train station in Indonesia there is a guide map or information about tourism places in that area, what can we do, what can we see, what events are held, and how can we get there. Then, provide a good management on that place. Started from the ticket counter, maintenance, toilet, place to eat, rest, events or even website for that particular area.

In the end, I wanna see a better Indonesia.

I don't know

2011-07-30T20:34:00.000+02:00

Hihihi... as the title suggest, I do not really know what should I write :p

Actually there are a lot of things that I should do, but so little time. Let us discuss it one by one:
1. There are a lot of experience that I've got from my life here in Europe. I believe, that could be an interesting book :p, but let see.
2. Again, but this is not from my life, it is from my education. My master study in computational logic is a kind of unique study that I believe not many knows it in my country back to Indonesia. I should documented it too. Again, a book? Let's see (again???)
3. I love to do data mining and machine learning stuff. But, not as no.2, this kind of study has gained its popularity in Indonesia. However, there are still a lot of support that need to be given for the development of the field itself.
4. I love to play in many data mining challenges. But due to the excessive work that my thesis gave me, I do not really have time for that. So sad.
5. Starts from next October, I will move to Switzerland. There are some materials that I should read in order to know the field of my future professor well (prof. Karl Aberer).
6. And of course my thesis, my presentation and poster (yeah here in Vienna, in TU Wien, each student that doing his/her thesis should also create a scientific poster for his/her work).

Hmm... what else? and stay cool, of course :p
And let's hope that the list does not increase or ... let it increase by other stuffs?

- Tri -

Thanks

2011-06-16T16:01:00.001+02:00

So, I have just been into one (short) summer school in Lausanne for last Tuesday-Wednesday. One of the presenter (lecturer) passing his recent book around.

I read this excerpt from acknowledgement of that book:
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To my wife ...., for all her love, support and patience while I wrote this book
To my son ..., for reminding me that growth takes time
To my family, without their support and help I would never have finished
To my students and PhD students, because teaching is the best way of learning
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At that time, I said to myself "wow, I want this kind of life". Well, I know that I am still not there yet. But I know that I want it :p

And in the end of his presentation, when I switched off his laptop, I saw his desktop (just a glance). A picture of his wife and his son, together in a garden (which I supposed could be their backyard) smile happily to the camera (I bet he is the one who took the picture :p). His wife hug his son from behind :) That's just something, isn't it?

Friends

2011-06-16T15:55:00.000+02:00

Friends is everything. Well, not 'everything' obviously, but, some how I realized
that I always been helped by my friends. And yes, I love them. I love them all.

I would love to chat with them. Make some stupid things to make them laugh (if they laugh).
But sometimes I also realized that I can be a jerk too :p (just too mean to them).

I know that a human being cannot live without others. And that's very true fact.
I don't know why, once, this week, I realized this fact when I open the door of my lab :p (so strange)
Either because my friends in my lab are just too damn good for me, or because I want to meet some friends that I did not meet for a long time.

Okay, I will close this post with:
In my lab, I and two other friends always laugh (and had a great time) everytime one of us say "anywho" or "anyhow". Strange?
Do you know why? [Yes/No] Yes
There is one of my thesis supervisor that (kinda) often come to our lab. And everytime he would to change the topic of his conversation, or just simply to end it, instead of saying "anyway" (that most of us usually say), he said "anywho" or sometimes (if you get lucky) "anyhow"
For us it sounds strange, and he always do that that make us realized that it is his trademark (to always said "anywho" or "anyhow"
Maybe 'anyhow' still acceptable, but anywho??? Come on....