The Life and Times of a Slacker

Prevent Users From Becoming root

2012-10-29T13:24:00.001-04:00

As a Linux engineer I cringe when I see regular users at a root prompt. We've been trying to sort out the necessary sudo lockdowns to prevent it. We now have a fairly comprehensive configuration preventing various means of elevating one's privileges permanently. By no means is this complete and infallible. As my friend Shawn Butts pointed out: shell = root.

My hope is that by eliminating the obvious means, a user will have to endeavor to find a way to gain the root account. In doing so they will have exhibited a willful intent to bypass the security lockdowns.

Add the following line to the /etc/sudoers file (you don't have to call it "Custom"):

## Custom
Cmnd_Alias BANNED = /usr/bin/visudo, /*/bin/* /etc/sudoers, /bin/*sh, /*/bin/* /etc/shadow, /*/bin/* /etc/passwd, /*/bin/* /etc/group, /bin/su *root*, /usr/bin/passwd *root*, /usr/sbin/usermod, /usr/sbin/groupmod

## Custom
Cmnd_Alias BANNED = /bin/*sh, /bin/su *root*, /usr/bin/passwd *root*, /usr/sbin/visudo, /usr/sbin/usermod, /usr/sbin/groupmod, /bin/* [!""]* /etc/sudoers, /usr/bin/* [!""]* /etc/sudoers, /bin/* [!""]* /etc/passwd, /usr/bin/* [!""]* /etc/passwd, /bin/* [!""]* /etc/shadow, /usr/bin/* [!""]* /etc/shadow, /bin/* [!""]* /etc/group, /usr/bin/* [!""]* /etc/group, /bin/ln /bin/*sh, /bin/ln /bin/vi [!""]*, /bin/ln /usr/bin/vim [!""]*, /bin/ln /bin/sed [!""]*, /bin/ln /bin/awk [!""]*

This will prevent:

Editing the sudoers file (/usr/bin/visudo, /*/bin/* /etc/sudoers) and granting themselves more permissions than they should have*
Opening a root shell (/bin*sh)
Editing the shadow file (/*/bin/* /etc/shadow) and removing the root password*
Editing the passwd file (/*/bin/* /etc/passwd) and changing their primary group*
Modifying the group they belong to (/*/bin/* /etc/group) preventing them from directly adding themselves to the root group*
Switching to the root user (/bin/su *root*)
Changing the root password (/usr/bin/passwd *root*)
Running usermod and adding themselves to the root group (/usr/sbin/usermod)
Running groupmod and changing the GID of their primary group (/usr/sbin/groupmod; not actually necessary as groupmod won't allow changing a GID to one which already exists, but thrown in for good measure)

UPDATE:

Added the prevention of the creation of hard links (/bin/ln <command> [!""]*)

This requires changing the permissions of /bin/ln so that only root can execute it which will force sudo.
This has the potential of causing issues later when applications are installed and the installer needs to create links (hard or symbolic). We are willing to take on that headache when it comes.

Added the prevention of executing other commands with options against interesting files (/bin/* [!""]* <file>).

in both the /bin/ln and this rule, the bang (!) is negated by the !BANNED option on the group permissions line.
Example:

user runs sudo /bin/sed -i '/BANNED/ s/^/#/' /etc/sudoers
The rule states that /bin/sed cannot be run with only a space. Therefore, options are required (in this case, the -i fulfills the requirement).
The !BANNED option says not [!""]* which essentially means you cannot not have only a space (a space is mandatory).
Following me there? I'm confused myself. I just know it works.

Yes, the rule is getting longer. Figuring it out is fun, though, and in the process we're locking our systems down further.

UPDATE 2:
I'm aware that this solution isn't 100%. Knowing that, the goal has shifted from completely preventing root access to implementing as many controls as possible to prevent it. This allows us to assume that if a person continues to circumvent the policies in place he has no respect for the policy or our intent. With this in mind we have a broader avenue to consider the user hostile and implement further controls on him directly.

* This will actually prevent opening the files with any application, not just an editor. I've also verified that it will prevent running symlinks to other applications (eg. sudo ~/notvim /etc/sudoers). What it doesn't do is prevent the use of hard links.

With that line in place, configure your restricted group/user like so:

%custadmins    ALL=(ALL) ALL, /bin/su [!-]*, !BANNED

Where custadmins is replaced with whichever user/group you are restricting.

This will allow users in the custadmins group to execute any command except the commands listed above in the BANNED list. Additionally, it will allow them to su to any user (except root as per the BANNED list) in order to do work as that user (eg. Switching to the oracle user to work on the Oracle database). However, it will not allow passing the - (hyphen) option to su (/bin/su [!-]*). The purpose of that is to not place a user in the environment of another user which is not restricted in the way the custadmins group is.

Example:

User A runs sudo su - oracle and becomes the oracle user with the associated login environment (including sudo permissions)
User A (as oracle) then runs sudo su - and becomes root

By not allowing the hyphen:

User A runs sudo su - oracle and is denied permission based on the [!-]* modifier in the /etc/sudoers file
User A then runs sudo su oracle (without the hyphen) and becomes oracle, but still retains User A’s login environment (including sudo permissions)
User A (as oracle) then runs sudo su - and is denied permission

Finally, the !BANNED entry disallows anything in the BANNED list from being run.

As previously stated, this is not complete. If you have suggestions to further enhance this please post them in the comments.

Bird, bird bird. Bird is the word. Or alarm...whatever

2011-07-10T15:06:00.002-04:00

Lately, due to the fickle nature of my room when it comes to temperature fluctuations, I've been sleeping with my window open. It allows the heat from outside to balance out the cold from the AC and vice versa. One side affect of this has been acquiring the ability to sleep through a lot of noise.

One that I haven't slept through all that much is the birds. This isn't really a big deal now since I'm working again and waking up at about the same time they start their morning chorus.

At first I didn't really pay much attention to it. Then, it started to sound curious. I realized that they were changing their tune every few seconds. I found it odd but didn't put much more thought into it.

A few days later as I was waking up on a Sunday, I heard them again. They performed the same song as the last time. The difference is that this time I finally realized what I was hearing. Quite frankly, I'm a bit perturbed by it.

The birds were singing the Car Alarm Song.

That same, obnoxious song that I hear randomly during the day that indicates that absolutely no one is trying to steal a car. The only thing on the plus side is that it isn't actually a car alarm. Birds don't sound so bad when they sing it. However, it doesn't really make me feel good that we're having that kind of affect on the local birds. Poor things have no idea they're picking up a bad habit.

Here We Are Again

2011-06-12T18:30:00.003-04:00

Chances are you already know this, but I'm unemployed again. I lost my job in April after losing my shit with a coworker who decided that he had the night off when he didn't. I ended up having to work a double shift because of it.

It was more a perfect storm of people being out actually. One guy was given the night off. Another called in sick. The third guy asked for the night off and was told that if he could find someone to cover his shift he could have it. He never found that person and when his belligerence became too much to bear I threatened to knock his skull off. He cried to HR and I was fired the next day.

One the one hand, I should thank him. I was miserable at Carpathia and being free from that poorly run organization was a major relief. On the other hand, I still want to knock dude's skull off (even more so now) because A: he refused to come into work and B: he got me fired by being a pussy.

I've been extended a conditional job offer which pivots on the awarding of a contract to the company that conditionally hired me. It has been a couple weeks since I returned the signed offer, but they still haven't secured the contract.

I've been sliding along while looking for work and trying my hardest to not have to go back onto unemployment. It's getting to the point where I may have to, though. If I don't have any good news by the middle of next week I'll be putting in my paperwork.

Until then, I'll be stressing over funds and trying to still enjoy myself.

Beer. Oh, beer.

2010-10-09T19:26:00.002-04:00

Beer. Oh, beer. What have you done for me?
You've made me loud
You've made me bold
You've made me have to pee

Beer. Oh, beer. Why do I like you so?
You've helped wash down a plate of wings
and the flames contained within
But then I had a few to many
and you set my head a-spin

Beer. Oh, beer. Can I ever let you go?
So many styles of brew
So many flavors to taste
I don't think so, no

Beer. Oh, beer. You'll always be my friend.
There are times when you're a jerk
and you make me feel like crap
But all-in-all we get along
Hey Barkeep, pull one from the tap!

I was bored.

Script Update

2010-06-06T17:04:00.014-04:00

In the last post I mentioned I wanted to combine the two Perl scripts into one since they are related. After some futzing about with why things weren't doing what I wanted and some bizarre output was being generated, I've finally got them together doing everything in one script:

#!/usr/bin/perl

use strict;
use warnings;
use Lingua::JA::Numbers;

my $len = $ARGV[0];
my (@numList, @rom, @kana, @kanji, %randList);
open(OUTFILE, '>', 'converted.csv');
binmode OUTFILE, ":utf8";

while ((scalar(keys %randList)) != $ARGV[1]){
 $randList{int (rand (1 . 0 x (int (rand $len))))} = 1;
}

@numList = keys %randList;

for my $num (@numList){
 my $jaRom = Lingua::JA::Numbers->new($num, {style=>'romaji'});
 my $jaKana = Lingua::JA::Numbers->new($num, {style=>'hiragana'});
 my $jaKanji = Lingua::JA::Numbers->new($num, {style=>'kanji'});
 push @rom, $jaRom;
 push @kana, $jaKana;
 push @kanji, $jaKanji;
}

my (@hyphens, @noHyphens);
for my $strg (@rom){
 @hyphens = Lingua::JA::Numbers::to_string($strg);
 foreach my $val (@hyphens){
   $val =~ s/-//g;
 }
 push @noHyphens, join(' ', @hyphens);
}

@rom = @noHyphens;

for (my $i = 0; $i < (scalar @numList); ++$i){
  print OUTFILE $numList[$i] . "," . $rom[$i] . "," . $kana[$i] . 
+ "," . $kanji[$i] . "\n";
}

close OUTFILE;

Basically, just run it with two numeric arguments: one to determine the max length the generated numbers will be and the second for how many numbers you want to create. The output is placed in converted.csv as a comma-separated list. This makes it easy to import into a spreadsheet (as was the request of the person who asked for the script).

A Few (very short) Scripts

2010-05-29T18:48:00.013-04:00

A few weeks ago a person I follow in Twitter asked if anyone could write a script that would change the names of every file in a directory. The files had a particular naming format. He wanted to maintain part of that format and only change one small part. His example was to change bob-1234.png to tom-1234.png.

Initially I didn't pay much attention to the request because I'm not strong with bash and that seemed to be the most appropriate language in which to script something like that. About a week or so after he first asked he asked again because no one else filled the request. I decided I'd take a stab at it. What better way to learn something than to do it, eh? Of course, bash is easier than often convince myself of and the script I came up with is simple and short. I'm sure that there is someone out there who would take what I created and make it shorter. More so the Perl scripts that come after.

I shouldn't be surprised that after I wrote this I discovered that Linux has a command called rename that will do exactly what this script does (openSUSE does, anyway. I don't know if it is standard across distros). That command is called...rename. /facepalm Although, to my credit, that never came up in Google when I searched for info on how to do this.

#!/bin/bash                  

if test "$#" != "1"; then
  echo "USAGE: rename.sh path_to_directory'"
  echo "eg. rename.sh /home/user/pictures/"
  exit
else     
  cd $1
  for oldfile in *
  do
    newfile=`echo $oldfile |awk '{split($i,a,"-")} {print "fat-"a[2]}'`
    mv $oldfile $newfile 
  done
fi

With the exception of the directory I hardcoded everything because he asked for a specific purpose. Changing that wouldn't be much harder than to code in more built-in bash variables to handle the extra arguments passed to the script. I assume.

The next script he asked for converts numbers from to Japanese. There are three ways to write a number in Japanese (technically four, but the fourth, katakana, isn't normally used for numbers): romaji, hiragana and kanji. This was something I thought Perl would be better suited for because CPAN typically has something that someone else wrote because they already wanted to do what you're trying. That simplifies writing scripts. Simply install the module(s), tell Perl you're using them and write your script. All the heavy lifting has been done. All you have to do is put the pieces together. In this case, the module I needed to use is called Lingua::JA::Numbers.

#!/usr/bin/perl

use warnings;
use strict;
use Lingua::JA::Numbers;

my (@numList, $converted = "converted_numbers.txt";
open(OUTFILE, ">$converted");
binmode OUTFILE, ":utf8";

while (<>){
  push @numList, $_;
  chomp(@numList);
}

for my $num (@numList){
  my $jaRom = Lingua::JA::Numbers->new($num, {style=>'romaji'});
  my $jaKana = Lingua::JA::Numbers->new($num, {style=>'hiragana'});
  my $jaKanji = Lingua::JA::Numbers->new($num, {style=>'kanji'});
  print OUTFILE $num . "\n";
  print OUTFILE $jaRom . "\n";
  print OUTFILE $jaKana . "\n";
  print OUTFILE $jaKanji . "\n\n";
}

close OUTFILE;

I wrote this last script because the above script relies on a list of numbers that the person running it has created. That could get tedious. Instead I wanted to be able to generate a list of random numbers that could easily be fed into it. The problem is that the rand() function of most (if not all) programming languages will generate random numbers of a fixed length. I wanted random numbers of random length. Anything from 0-$whatever_max_lenght_I_chose. My friend JJ suggested
rand(0,rand(0,$x))which, knowing him, is PHP. The $x I assume is user supplied. I haven't tested this out so I'm not sure if it works. Since it would be used in conjunction with the number conversion script above I wanted it to be in Perl to simplify combining them should I ever bother. Perl's rand() function doesn't take two parameters so I had to make up a way to give it that second parameter. I had to figure out how to randomize the length and then pass that to rand() for the actual number generation.

#!/usr/bin/perl                       

use warnings;
use strict;

my $len = 6;
my %numList;

for (my $i=0; $i<=$ARGV[0]; $i++){
  my $genlen = int rand($len);
  my $max = 1 . 0 x $genlen;
  my $num = int rand($max);
  $numList{$num} = 1;
}

foreach my $key (keys %numList){
  print $key . "\n";
}

The way I came up with randomizing the length is to create a single digit random number by assigning a single digit number to $len and using that as the parameter for rand(). I then use that random number to create the length of the random number I'm actually going to use by appending $len zeros to a 1. In this case I will get anywhere from zero to six zeros with a resulting length for the actual number generation being from one to seven digits (1-1000000). In practice though, the actual length of the numbers goes from one to length($max)-1.

The reason I used a hash for the list of numbers instead of an array or simply printing them out directly is because I didn't want to get the same number more than once. Hash keys have to be unique. If a key is already in the table its value will be overwritten with the newest value assigned to the key instead of a new key being added. Arrays can have multiple instances of the same value and it won't complain. I don't care about the values so I assign "1" to all of the keys.

So those are a few scripts I wrote recently. Short. Not widely useful. But they do what I wrote them to do.

Unfair Disadvantage

2010-02-24T23:17:00.002-05:00

They say that alcoholism is a disease. That puts in line with cancer and the flu.

When the flu has passed you're no longer sick. "I'm over it" you might say.

If cancer has been eradicated from your body you're said to be a survivor.

Why is it then, that for the rest of your life if you never put another drink to your lips you're condemned to forever be "in recovery" never to be fully cured of the disease?

It's the Droid I Was Looking For

2009-12-05T19:00:00.011-05:00

So yeah, an overused joke since the Motorola Droid was released by Verizon last month. But, I can't not make some kind of clever title for these things. It wouldn't be fun if I didn't.

I like it. It's a handy device and as far as I'm concerned it lives up to the hype. But then, I'm not a power gadget-user. It does have some shortfalls, though.

I think the biggest annoyance that I've encountered is that there is no way (that I've found) to move the cursor around when entering text with the virtual keyboard. I've only found that I can either delete every bit of text I've entered to make a correction or I can tap on the screen in the vicinity of where I want it to go and hope the cursor ends up there. Kinda kludgy. The physical keyboard is capable of doing this with the D-pad. Why there is no method when using the virtual keyboard eludes me.

One other thing I'd like is to be able to take screenshots without worrying about rooting the device (think the iPhone equivalent called jailbreaking). I just discovered that the iPhone has built in functionality to take screenshots; no app needed. I wish the Droid had the same functionality. Unfortunately, the only methods so far are to use apps that require the aforementioned rooting (which I'm not even sure is possible on the Droid yet) or to use this process: How to take screenshots of the Motorola DROID. These instructions are for Windows but with a few modifications it will work on Linux.

It doesn't seem like you need to download or install the USB driver. However, you still need to do the following:

Installing the Android SDK is a simple matter of downloading and untarring the file. Installing the Java SDK requires chmod'ing the .bin file to be executable and installing via sudo. At the end of the Java install are a few notes. One is for starting the Java applet server something-or-another. Write that down so you have it for future reference then run it via sudo.

Once everything is in place you'll want to add a udev file to /etc/udev/rules.d. I don't know what the numbering scheme is for; I still have to read up on udev. I made a file called 90-android.rules and added the following line to it based on this comment:

SUBSYSTEMS=="usb|usb_device", ATTRS{idVendor}=="22b8",
ATTRS{idProduct}=="41db", MODE="0666", OWNER="me"

I broke that line up into two so it would fit within the confines of this blog. However, when you enter it into your editor it needs to be on one line. This allows you to run the adb command under the Android SDK tools directory as yourself and have it do anything useful. Otherwise you'd have to run it via sudo. Once that is set up you can follow the instructions at the link above to get the screenshot.

Actually, a couple more notes: the instructions at the link above say to run ddms.bat. On Linux it is just ddms. The instructions also say to install all of those Android SDK libraries from that URL. I didn't install any of them when I did this on Linux. I suppose if you actually plan on building apps for the Android OS you'll want them but for just screenshots they aren't necessary.

On The Importance Of Not Burning Bridges

2009-11-17T14:56:00.003-05:00

It's been over a year since I lost my job. Since then I've been living on unemployment and the hope that I would find a position that matched my skills. Unfortunately, the economy finally caught up to the IT sector. This meant that it was easier for companies to find more experienced personnel to fill lower level jobs leaving me and my mid-level experience fighting for breath. Already having that going against me I somehow lost all my interviewing knowledge and turned into Mush Mouth whenever I got one.

All the while I was imposing my presence upon my good friend Ted. Granted, it wasn't for free but, considering he has his own life to live it was no doubt a nuisance at times. That option soon came to a mutually understood conclusion: He didn't want me around forever and I didn't want to stress our friendship over it. Therefore, I moved west to Portland, OR to stay with my older sister, her husband and one of my younger sisters.

I don't want to say it was a mistake. After all, I got to see family that I haven't seen in who knows how long (which itself is a rather stressful event but fortunately, not as stressful as I always make it out to be). But, when you go from one state that has a glut of job seekers with relatively few positions to a state that a) has even fewer opportunities and b) is profoundly influenced by its proximity to Redmond, WA (said individual being a decidedly Linux admin) one has to wonder why he'd do such a thing.

So, here I am three months after leaving Massachusetts almost to the day and I'm packing up all my stuff for yet another cross-country trek. Why? Because when I left Virginia in April of 2008 it was of my own accord. I wasn't fired or even asked to leave. I left simply because I wanted to move back to Massachusetts. I left on good terms and pledged my support as a generally unpaid consultant (I say "generally unpaid" because there was compensation). Once I lost my job I let my boss in Virginia know that I was more than willing to return if they had a position available to me.

Understandably, being a small operation personnel-wise there wasn't anything readily available. I held on to hope that at some point, if I didn't find anything else, something would open up. My hope became even more persistent when I found out the small company I worked for in the past was bought up by a larger company. This left me thinking one of two things (if not both) would happen. Either they would expand their employee base due to more public exposure bringing in more business or existing employees who don't like working for large corporations would seek their fortunes elsewhere. I don't know how the buyout has affected their business opportunities but I can tell you that there are people who left. Whether or not it was due to the latter of the two outcomes above is not known to me but I do have my suspicion on at least one of them.

Regardless, what I had long hoped for came to pass. Due to the good terms I left on and their belief that I'm actually a good sys admin I got a call from Ye Olde Boss (not to be confused with Ye Old Boss; two different things and he'd likely beat me if I actually called him old). I would return to the same title and pay as when I left. The schedule is less than ideal but, who am I to complain? They gave me a job and history dictates that eventually I'll be able to adjust that even if it is a couple years from now.

Tomorrow morning I will fly out of Portland, stop in Long Beach and 13+ hours after starting my journey, land at Dulles International Airport for my third time living in Virginia. This time, I plan on sticking around a bit longer. I love Massachusetts but I love having a job more. Of course, if I could combine Massachusetts and ServerVault into one glorious destination I would. In fact, even after I started my job after leaving ServerVault I secretly hoped either they would open a branch datacenter up there since their CTO is a native or a massive winged creature would pluck the building from its foundation and fly it to Massachusetts. Neither proved feasible so I'm settling for moving back to Virginia.

Yoiks, and away!

A Deer In Headlights

2009-09-30T14:33:00.000-04:00

Used to be I could calmly answer a question with thought-out, articulate answers. These days are different. I've lost my confidence. I prepare myself with knowledge on the material I'll be interviewing on. I look at the company's website to get an understanding of what they do and how they do it. But, as soon as I sit down across from the person interviewing me it gets tossed aside and I flounder about like...well...like a founder. I'm even aware of how I react to the questions. I tell myself: "Remain calm. Allow yourself time to answer the question. Don't get flustered." It never works. I invariably walk into a verbal faceplant.

It isn't like I don't know what I'm doing. I've worked with servers. I use Linux on my laptop so I'm not a stranger to how it is configured and presented. If I didn't have a particular skill I wouldn't have put it on my résumé. Unfortunately, having been out of practice for an entire year now, my skills have lost their edge so even the simplest technical question becomes a mental Mount Everest. Each time I'm presented with a summit to climb I fall back down to the base and a bit more of my confidence is blown away.

I've tried to do what I can to maintain my knowledge. I read technical books. I've been studying for a certification exam. Again, I use Linux on my laptop. It seems I haven't done enough or perhaps I haven't been doing it right. I don't have a vast array of projects that I'd like to do for personal reasons that would allow me to apply my skills outside of work on my own terms to accomplish my own goals. Perhaps that is a lack of motivation. But then, I just don't have the need to build another router out of an old P133 in order to share Internet access.

So what should I do? It was suggested that I take a class to learn how to interview. Would that work? I already know how to interview. That isn't the problem. The problem is the mental block I appear to have created which is preventing me from presenting myself confidently. How does one get over that? Go on more interviews? Maybe that is what a class could provide. I'll have to look into it.

In the meantime I'll just keep looking.

Twivia: Perl Script For Posting Short Trivia To Your Twitter Stream

2009-09-18T12:19:00.022-04:00

Every morning I post a piece of trivia to my Twitter stream. Typically, I copy and paste it from an email I receive. I decided that it would do well as an automated event so, I looked around the Internet for a sufficiently long list of trivia that I had faith was relatively factual. I then wrote a Perl script that would pull a line from this list and send it to my Twitter.

Initially I thought it was going to be a bit more complicated than it is. Probably because of the method I was thinking of using for determining if a fact had been used already: move each line from one file to another in what amounts to a cut and paste operation. Strangely, Perl doesn't have an easy method of doing this despite its basis in text manipulation. Fortunately, it is rendered moot by the fact that the method I worked out is probably a more efficient and somewhat more elegant solution (which might be why Perl doesn't need a cut and paste method). I'm not a fan of obfuscation so I coded it plainly.

The only Perl module necessary is Net::Twitter. This provides an interface to the Twitter API. Net::Twitter is quite expansive in its capabilities but we only need the most basic of its methods here. I'm not going to go into explaining it, though. The man page will provide more than enough information.

#!/usr/bin/perl                

use strict;
use warnings;
use Net::Twitter;

# Necessary for proper file I/O
my $flag = 0;
my $ifn = "/PATH/TO/TRIVIA.FILE";
my $ofn = "/PATH/TO/TEMPORARY/TRIVIA.FILE";

# Establish Twitter interface
my $user = "xxx";
my $pass = "xxx";
my $nt = Net::Twitter->new(
 traits   => [qw/API::REST/],
 username => $user,
 password => $pass
);

open IN, $ifn or die "Cannot open $ifn for reading: $!";
open OUT, ">$ofn" or die "Cannot open $ofn for writing: $!";

while (<IN>) { 
 if ($flag == 0) {
  # If a line is commented out write it to the output file
  # and move on
  if ($_ =~ m/^#/) {
   print OUT $_;
   next;
  } else {
   # Print the first uncommented line to the output file
   # prepending it with a hash mark then tweet it.
   print OUT "#$_";
   my $result = $nt->update('{ trivia } ' . $_);

   # Set the flag to 1 so all remaining lines in the file are
   # written to the output file without adding comment hashes.
   $flag = 1;
  }
 } else {
  print OUT $_;
 }
}

close OUT;
close IN;

# rename the output file to the input file.
rename $ofn, $ifn;

The trivia list is simply a text file with one fact per line. Naturally, this means \n delimited.

After I found a list of facts online I ran it through another script to get rid of any that would be too long. I prepend all of my trivia with the "{ trivia } " label so in this case my facts can't be more than 129 characters in order to not go over Twitter's 140 character limit. Additionally, the other script stripped out any blank lines as well as any extra characters and whitespace that was at the beginning of a line.

I wrote this on a Linux computer but, if you run Mac OS X and have Perl installed, it will likely work. However, if you want to run it on a Windows PC you may have to modify the code if for nothing more than to match directory structure or to call perl properly. Also, I have it set up as a cron job. I imagine Mac OS X allows this to be done and if not I'm sure there is another job scheduling utility available. Windows uses Task Scheduler.

Egad. Did I actually call this thing Twivia?

Go West, Young Man

2009-08-24T23:25:00.011-04:00

Ok, maybe not so young but, defintely west.

Car: 2000 Volkswagen GTI 2.8L VR6
Miles Driven: ~3059
Avg. MPG: ~27.5
Avg. MPH: ~66
Time in Transit: ~46h 3m*
Cost of Gas: $270.39**
Cost of food: $83.34

I'll work on providing more detail once I'm able to compile my thoughts. I'm still a bit out of sorts due to this move and it will take a while to make sense of it all.

Some of these are estimated because I forgot to write down the stats before going out for dinner the night I arrived. I had to make educated guesses at how far I'd driven when we went out. Chances are the avg. MPG/MPH aren't off by much but the time and distance are probably a bit more inaccurate.

* time actually spent driving with short stops for food/gas
** not counting the fill before I left Worcester; I had estimated $300-$400. I'm happy to see I came in below that.

Anime/Manga: Genshiken

2009-07-22T01:33:00.009-04:00

I'm not sure where it falls categorically but, Genshiken is also one of my all-time favorites. I don't know if I had finished watching it when I posted my previous entry which may explain why it isn't in the list. I bring up "category" because in my last post moritheil commented that I was missing a couple. This started out as a rebuttal comment to that but I decided that with what I was writing I could turn it into its own entry. Genshiken could be considered a social commentary. After all, it deals with the subculture of otaku and how others interact and relate to them. But, more-so how they interact with each other.

The series, created by Shimoku Kio, centers around a fictional Shiiou University student club called The Society for the Study of Modern Visual Culture and takes its name by combining portions of its Japanese title (Gendai Shikaku Bunka Kenkyūkai). It opens with freshman Kanji Sasahara deciding which club to join. After trial, error and a bit of second-guessing he decides on Genshiken. He is joined by other freshmen Makoto Kousaka and Saki Kasukabe (who is an aberration as far as members go). At this point we are introduced to existing members Harunobu Madarame, Souichiro Tanaka, Mitsunori Kugayama and the sitting president of the club simply known as "Prez" (we never learn his actual name).

Initially, Genshiken is a club with no direction. They have interests and do things together but don't seem to have any particular goals. While this seems to suit them just fine, it lends itself to conflict at times. But, as new characters are introduced (specifically Kanako Ohno and Chika Ogiue) and each member's individual interests become more developed we see the group meld and their focus become clearer. As a result we see growth not only in the story itself but in each character creating a more cohesive group of friends with more than just similar interests in mind (even when some of the characters do their hardest to fight the notion of otaku).

One of the more interesting aspects of this series is how well the anime follows the manga. The way both trace the lives of the characters through their time in college and how their relationships evolve is amazing. However, I'm not used to seeing an anime adaptation be so tightly bound to the origin manga. Sadly though, it didn't get past the second 1/3 of the manga. Considering how close to the manga the anime scripting was done I'm surprised. Especially considering how tightly things are wrapped up in the manga (I wonder how many times I can say "manga" in one paragraph before it gets annoying).

Granted, as with any adaptation from print to visual media, some aspects have to be compromised in order to fit constraints. Genshiken is no different. While the flow of the anime certainly captures the evolution of its characters, it does so in a more condensed fashion. Additionally, since it doesn't follow the manga to the end we don't get to see the full exploration of three of the characters (Sasahara, Ogiue and Kosukabe). This is a certain point of failure in my opinion. However, the anime does take Sasahara's storyline a little further than the other two. But only slightly.

The premature ending of the anime is especially troublesome when I take into account one specific point of the manga. I'll readily admit that I'm an emotional water balloon, ready to pop at the slightest provocation. I get teary eyed over rather mundane parts of any story. However, there was one point in reading the manga where I actually went beyond the teary trickle and felt my body shudder with a sob. The imagery was that powerful after reading everything leading up to it. There was no writing. Simply a stream of images which captured the emotion beautifully (I'm getting teary again just thinking about it).

I would implore anyone who has only seen the anime to read the manga. Its conclusion is far more satisfying. However, if you've read the manga and haven't seen the anime, enjoy it as it is well made and and follows along quite well both narratively and stylistically. Just don't expect to receive the same gratification.

One final note regarding the anime. The ED is one of the best I've heard. Bīdama by Saori Astumi is a perfect match and is one of the few EDs of any series that I'll sit through the credits for each time I watch an episode.

Anime: Noob Primer

2009-06-05T01:11:00.007-04:00

I've said it before but, as far as otoku-ism goes, I'm far from the epitome. I'm actually jealous of those that have committed themselves to every aspect of anime, manga, dorama and Japanese-culture-in-general. I wish I were as dedicated to something as those I've been relying on for my inspiration. That said, I propose a challenge: 5 Anime for Noobs. What would my Otaku Life Coach recommend for the anime newcomer? The following are my choices.

1. Eureka Seven

This is probably my all-time favorite. The story isn't as cookie cutter as so many others, the visuals are amazing, and it is just the right length at 52 episodes; not too short but not unnecessarily long.

I don't typically watch anything dubbed in English because of the habit of the voice actors to overact. However, this is one of the (very) few series I've seen of which I like the English dub. I haven't seen it in Japanese with subtitles so I don't have anything to compare it to, though. I'm going to pick up the complete collection when it is released so I'll be able to do so then.

2. Last Exile

This is another which has an English dub that I like. It is also one of my favorites. The character designs were done by Range Murata. It is a steampunk anime. As such, it takes place in an alternate universe which makes great use of steam technology.

3. Jubei-chan

I can see myself being alone with this one but I found it to be very entertaining. It had a nice mix of comedy and action. There is a part 2 but it isn't as good. I don't recommend the English dub with this.

4. Gunbuster

This is a six-episode OAV from 1988. Another giant-robot-fights-giant-space-aliens anime. What I like about it though, is that it brings into account Einstein's Theory of Relativity. In order to get to their targets Noriko Hidaka and Rei Sakuma must travel near the speed of light. As a result, time passes differently for them and they have to deal with the results of this when they get back to Earth. It makes for a great story.

In my opinion, the final scene of the final episode is one of the best in anime. At least, it's one of the best out of the relatively small sample I've seen.

There is a second part which was released by GAINAX in 2004. It is good in its own right but pales when compared to the original.

5. Read or Die

This is another OAV but only 3 episodes long. I found it to be rather short but the story is interesting. There is a series which acts as a sequel but I find it somewhat lacking when compared to this. That isn't to say it isn't good, though.

So there you go. Those are 5 animes I can highly recommend for anyone that hasn't seen much if any and would like to see more. They only represent my opinion on what would make a good introduction to anime and with the exception of Eureka Seven and Last Exile don't necessarily make up my Top 5.

Movie: New Tale of Zatoichi

2009-05-27T21:29:00.002-04:00

After I saw my first Zatoichi film I was hooked. It was Zatoichi: The Festival of Fire. Afterward I decided I wanted to watch all of the films in order. This turned out to be a good thing because I've learned that the films have a continuity which begin with the first. Actually, I can't tell yet if it is a long-term continuity or simply an overlap of story from one film to the next. New Tale of Zatoichi is the fourth that I've watched.

Zatoichi (played by Shintaro Katsu) is a blind masseuse and member of the Yakuza who travels around feudal Japan making a living gambling and, naturally, giving massages. So far as I can tell, each film plays on the same theme: that of a repentant criminal helping the weak and less fortunate. Despite his attempts to go straight his past continuously catches up to him and keeps him from being able to settle down and find true happiness. Regardless of the all-too-familiar premise the series keeps me locked in because let's face it, the Japanese know how to tell a story.

I'll be honest, everything above pretty much sums up each of the films I've seen so far. The only difference is the village in which it happens. I'd have to say that the continuity of the subplot is what makes each one unique. That said there is little more about this entry into the series that I can speak of at great length without giving a scene by scene recount. I can only think to give a very brief synopsis which seems stunted.

In New Tale of Zatoichi we find him returning to the village where he was born and learned his swordsmanship. He is followed by the brothers of another man he killed in another town (part of the ongoing story) and he must again face his past. While home he encounters a plot by a local gang to kidnap the son of a wealthy man. We also encounter another recurring theme: a woman of an unremarkable life falling in love with Zatoichi despite his handicap (this is of significant importance considering the class stratification of the time).

The first two films are in black and white. I was expecting this one to be as well but was surprised to see it in color. While I was initially disappointed it took all of five minutes to get used to and in doing so came to appreciate an early example of the Japanese love of high contrast and inky black shadows. Looking back, I recall seeing this in the first two films but, New Tale used it to a greater extent and to great effect. The daytime scenes are somewhat washed out but still maintain a degree of contrast. My guess is that the grayscale of black and white would have made the effect a bit difficult to watch if used as much as in this film. Perhaps filming in color allowed the director to explore this technique a bit more.

Suffice it to say that I love this series so far and considering it's status in Japanese entertainment history, I'm likely to continue enjoying it.

Anime: Gundam Universe

2009-05-20T18:10:00.005-04:00

I'm of the mind that every medium has classics which should be experienced for its appreciation. Film has The Godfather, Rebel Without A Cause and many, many others. Literature has Hemingway, Dickens, etc. Music has Bach, Chopin, and of course Mozart among countless others. However, I don't limit the notion of classics to only the standard art/entertainment mediums. Nor do I limit the period of time. For instance, I consider The Sex Pistols to be classic for modern music. I consider Scooby Doo, Where Are You? to be classic for American animation. Similarly I consider Mobile Suit Gundam to be classic for anime.

Yesterday I enjoyed a brief dialogue with Michael Pinto regarding the Gundam Universe. I had mentioned in my Twitter feed that I had begun a project with a personal goal of viewing every entry into the Gundam anime canon. His response was that he didn't get into Gundam and that it was mostly designed to sell toys rather than entertain (I'm both paraphrasing and adding what may be my own interpretation; I'm sure he'll correct me if the latter proves true).

This may be true and I certainly acknowledge that anime has its share of series which, like most American cartoons from the 80s on, are merely vehicles for moving merchandise. However, I pointed out that even though this is the case for many of the cartoons that we children of the 80s grew up with, it didn't make them any less important to our childhoods. I cited GI Joe specifically.

I do know that GI Joe was around long before the marketability of a chrome-faced Cobra Commander. This has no bearing on that particular issue, though. Additionally, the issue of merchandising isn't really important to my goal.

I don't go into my project expecting to be blown away by the quality of the animation, writing or character development. I merely wish to broaden my anime experience and build a stronger foundation on which to view modern anime. Nor do I limit my scope to Gundam. Michael informed me that he preferred the Macross Universe (otherwise known to most Americans as its adapted form: Robotech) which I also consider to be another anime classic and will, in time, engage in a similar fashion. Likewise with Lupin III. (Fortunately, Lupin III is a smaller franchise and won't require as much of my life to complete as Gundam.)

There are likely to be more added to my list of classic anime to be experienced. In fact, I'm also watching Martian Successor Nadesico via discs obtained from RentAnime but for now, Gundam is the focus of any project. I'll keep you posted on its progress.

Anime: Tetsuwan Birdy DECODE

2009-05-12T23:20:00.009-04:00

There are plenty of bloggers out there with the lowdown on all things otaku. I'm not one of them. Regardless of that I wanted to try my hand at writing a review to see if I could do it and how it would turn out. The series I chose isn't exactly new: Tetsuwan Birdy DECODE. However, I enjoyed the OVA and was happy to see it expanded into a full series.

To be honest, I wasn't even aware this was turned into a full series until it had finished airing and the fansub groups were completing their work on the last couple episodes (more on that later). On top of that, it would appear that season two has already finished so I'm still behind the times.

Before I go further I need to stress that I've only seen the OVA and season 1. Having not seen season 2 I can only make assumptions about what I expect to see based on the story arc from the OVA and what was left out of and included in season 1. That said, let's move on.

The story starts with Birdy Cephon Altera, a Federation police officer chasing after a criminal named Geega who has stolen something called the Ryunka. He eventually escapes and makes his way to Earth. Birdy follows him. While searching for him she assumes the identity of famous idol Arita Shion in order to pay the bills while living amongst humans.

After a couple years she has finally found Geega but, while engaging in a battle with him, inadvertently kills high school student Senkawa Tsutomu. Advanced alien technology is used to repair Tsutomu's body but, in the meantime, his mind must be placed in Birdy's body in order to keep him alive. The remainder of the story is centered around Tsutomu's attempts at leading a relatively normal life while Birdy continues the investigation into the theft of the Ryunka. This is made possible by technology that allows Birdy to shape-shift into a form that mimics Tsutomu's body.

Having seen the OVA, I found myself feeling like the series was dragging on in some places. However,this only happened in one or two episodes. The fact that they expanded what was initially a 4-episode, 2-hour OVA into a 26-episode series spanning two seasons is probably to blame for that. Aside from that, I think the expansion was done well. They expounded on the story in the OVA but I didn't get the impression that they were making stuff up just to fill the time. It seemed like they took the OVA as an outline and wrote in the details but made sure to keep it all coherent.

This series doesn't escape some of the typical situations found in anime. For instance, Tsutomu being left alone after his father has been reassigned at work forcing Dad to move to another town (Mom goes with him). Also, the inclusion of the sick schoolmate archetype whose parents are dead (this character is used as one vehicle for the story).

One thing I did like was that another typical situation, "the first kiss", was handled in what I see as an atypical manner. I'm used to seeing it portrayed as an awkward, embarrassing event which often leads to someone getting smacked. But then, that could have more to do with the types of anime I usually watch than anything else. Instead, it was done relatively maturely and in an endearing manner. There weren't any awkward apologies or flustered words.

The story arc for season 1 is loosely based on the overall story arc of the OVA, however, it only covers a portion of it. The main protagonist in the OVA isn't that in season 1. Instead, another protagonist in the OVA is given an analogue in the series and is elevated to the primary with some character modifications. In fact, we don't even see the OVA's protagonist until the final minute of the final episode of season 1. This, and the "To Be Continued..." teaser indicate that the OVA's arc will be further fleshed out in season 2. I assume that to be the case, anyway. I'll find out once I watch it.

The character animation in this series often switches between detailed and minimalistic. This isn't necessarily a bad thing though because it allows for fluidity in some scenes without bogging down the viewer with unnecessary detail. It can be a bizarre thing to see, though, when a character's face morphs from being nothing more than colored blobs for eyes to a relatively full-featured face. Fortunately, I was too busy being interested in the plot to care about that. This didn't make it any less noticeable, however.

I'll be honest, I don't remember much about the OP. When I watch anime, unless I find a song particularly entertaining I generally skip over it and get right into the show. I can tell you that it is called Sora and is performed by Hearts Grow (and I had to look that much up). Other than that, I found it forgettable.

The ED on the other hand I like. It is called Let's Go Together by Afromania. It isn't a song that blows me away like "don't say 'lazy'" from K-ON! but it is fun and I am entertained by it to the point where I'll let it play in the background while I do other things.

Overall, I like this series and I can't wait to watch season 2. I'm glad the OVA was expanded.

Now, a comment on fansubs:
Yes, technically they are illegal. However, unless I can rent a series from RentAnime I don't always have another option for viewing something before I buy it. More and more I can find series being streamed online either as simulcasts or by the licensor but, that still doesn't fill all the gaps. Considering the publishers often turn a blind eye to the fansub culture in hopes it fosters a buying public I'm not going to feel guilty about it.

If I like a series after viewing a fansub, I'll buy it. If I don't like it, I don't buy it. It really isn't any different from watching it on TV with the exception of the added honor system of buying it afterward if I like it instead of holding onto an unlicensed version. I plan on buying Testuwan Birdy DECODE.

Future Move

2009-05-06T18:35:00.004-04:00

I created this blog a while ago but when I did I had to create a second account. I don't recall why. Suffice it to say that having to log out of my main Google account and into another for the sole purpose of posting here has finally become too frustrating. As a result, I'm looking into migrating to Wordpress. I don't know when it will be because I need to figure it out first to include site design. I'm also going to see about hosting it under my own, already existing domain which I never get to use. Maybe I'll be motivated to turn it into something more than just a place for me to talk about crap no one cares about.

I'll post here when the move will take place but don't hold your breath.

I Like Anime. Wanna Fight About It?

2009-05-04T12:20:00.009-04:00

So yeah, I like anime. Many people who know me know I like cartoons in general. More often than not, I'd rather watch a cartoon than any live action show on TV. In the past few years, though, my interests have shifted from what you'd find on Cartoon Network to mostly anime. This has as much to do with quality as evolution of interest.

It isn't always easy being an anime fan, though. As a 30-something I've found it awkward telling people that I do like it. It has to do with the popular, skewed view of what anime is. Thanks to a few shows which are either popular now or have been popular in the past there is a view of what anime is which isn't entirely accurate. Yes, there are series which star pointy-haired, super freaks out to save the world from grotesquely strong aliens. And we can't talk about anime without talking about giant robots piloted by emo teens (hell, anime practically invented emo). Finally, yes, there are innumerable series which portray tentacled creatures having their ways with women. Once one gets past these generalizations it isn't hard to see that anime is much like any other form of entertainment: there are genres, sub-genres, cross-genres, sub-cross-genres and so on ad nauseum. Unfortunately, these get swept aside by the public-at-large because all they see are the shows that have become annoyingly popular or stereotyped. I will be fair though, much like any other genre, it is easy to find rehashed ideas. This seems to have become a bigger problem in the past decade due to what some are calling an "anime bubble".

Another issue I think the non-anime watching public can't get past is that "cartoons are for kids". This is a cultural issue which has become the case more in the past 20 years since the Children's Television Act was signed into law. I don't know about you but as someone who watched cartoons in the decade-plus prior to and well after it's enactment I saw a significant change in the quality of animated entertainment. The notion that "cartoons are for kids" became more and more a reality. Granted, there are cartoons which harken back to a day before the drivel but unfortunately, they are few.

"Well, what about The Simpson or Family Guy?" While I'm a fan of these shows The Simpsons hasn't been very relevant for at least 10 years and Family Guy points to another problem I've developed with American animated entertainment; that of extremes. We either make cartoons for children or we make cartoons for adults (see Adult Swim's original shows. Although, to be fair, they show anime, too). There typically is no middle ground (save for at least the one example mentioned above). Anime series, on the other hand, often appeal to a range of age groups. That appeal probably has to do with one of the things I enjoy about anime. One can be watching a show which is emotionally involved only to have the tender moments broken up with subtle bouts of humor.

Once you get past the blobby eyes in so many of them it is easy to see that they often portray their stories in the same manner we as living beings face our lives. Understandably, we don't deal with the often fantastical aspects of their stories but that's contextually irrelevant. The fact of the matter is, we don't manage our lives strictly using crude humor (or humor in general, for that matter) nor do we make everything fluffy and gloss over the difficult aspects in juvenile ways. We apply all of our emotions and cognitive reasoning in order to understand and deal with our situations. Most anime does the same. Even the popular shows about the pointy-haired super freaks.

That actually hits on a big reason for why I like anime so much. Even being animated they tell essentially the same stories that live-action shows often do. However, I prefer anime over said live-action shows because it's not only easier to get past the hokiness of some of the narratives but they actually embrace it whereas live-action shows often do their best to portray fiction as possible reality. In other words anime doesn't take itself too seriously.

So yeah, I like anime.

Getting On

2009-04-14T10:54:00.003-04:00

Note: It actually hasn't been as long since my last post as the dates indicate. I posted a little over a month ago but due to the topic and the repercussions it could have on my employment I withdrew the post. It looks like Google's cache no longer has it either which is fortunate for me. For posterity's sake though, I saved a local copy. Mostly because I was quite proud of the humor. Mind you, there were no negative comments or incriminating information. Just a bit too much...liberty.

It's been seven months since I lost my job. Since then I've been doing things to keep myself busy and sane. For the most part, that means looking for another job. Initially, it seemed like that would be a simple matter. In the latter part of last year there were quite a few Linux admin roles to vie for. However, the recession has since hit the IT industry and opportunities have all but dried up.

In the meantime I've lowered my expectations. Considering I've been out of a datacenter for so long and books can only give one so much practice, my skills are beginning to dull. As a result, I'm no longer expectant of a job that pays the same as the last one. I'm still looking for a Linux admin role but not one that lands all of the responsibilities for the network on my shoulders. While I shudder at the thought of it, I'm even warming up to the idea of a job that includes some desktop support.

I'm currently waiting to hear back from one potential employer who wants to bring me in for an interview. He worries that I'll skip out in a month or two when something a bit higher-level is offered to me. I nearly flipped my lid when the recruiter told me this. I wasn't angry, just surprised considering the conversation I had with the individual doing the hiring. I thought I had diverted that notion during the interview.

He had asked me what my long-term goal was, say, two to three years down the road. I told him that for me that was short term and that I saw long term as being five to ten years off. For the near-term, I told him I was looking for a job more or less like he was describing the position as which would allow me to grow and learn so that later, in the long-term, I could progress and take a more engineering-type role.

Hopefully, my explanation to the recruiter and my vocal animation was enough to convince him that I was not looking for a stop-over on my way to a better job a month down the road. Yes, I do plan on moving up and if that requires another company in ten years, so be it. But, right now I just want to get back into the swing of things and learn more of what I need to succeed in this industry.

Absolving An anti-Apple Attitude

2009-03-07T14:18:00.003-05:00

It isn't that I despise Apple. I dislike a lot of business practices such as tying the hardware to the software and vice-versa. Actually, if one drills down, that is really the only thing Apple as a company does that I really don't like. The fact of the matter is, they make excellent hardware and an OS that is comparable (I pull up short of calling OS X the best out there).

Quite frankly, and I'm sure I'm not the only one that feels this way, it is all the fanboys that cause me to dislike Apple. All the people that swear by Apple for no other reason than to make their own farts smell better.

Look, Apple is innovative. They know how to turn a computer into more than a boring beige box. In fact, they've turned the computer and its array of accessories into fashion items. That's all well and good but, please, they aren't gods. They've had their share of failures and will continue to do so. Steve Jobs? He's proving to be just as human as the rest of us and will likely prove it ultimately in the next year or two if his disease is as bad as some make it out to be.

Now, if I could get past the idea that if I were to buy an Apple product I'd be lumped in with the blithering idiots who can't see beyond their iPhones I'd be more inclined to buy one. Actually, the only thing I would buy is an iPhone; I could jailbreak it and un-tether myself from the Apple monopoly (which would resolve conflict #1 mentioned at the beginning of this post, and ironically, allow me to tether to other services).

I suppose if I don't rub in peoples' faces that I own an iPhone it wouldn't be such a bad proposal. While it wouldn't be an easy task (having to use the phone in public and all) I could be less of an asshole about it than some people I've seen. Being a Linux proponent I also know of Linux fanboys and the arrogance some of them portray. I've successfully avoided that as far as I'm aware.

Another issue making me reconsider the iPhone is the lack of Android-based options. I prefer the openness of the Android OS and that it isn't tied to any one device. However, while a second HTC Android-based phone is in the works, it will only be available in Europe for the foreseeable future. Granted, I could buy a G1 and simply replace it when something new comes along but the G1 gives me the impression that it is what it is: a dot-zero release which I try to avoid. Besides, I find some of the Android short-comings a bit more than tolerable; Outlook support, for instance. When I get another job I expect to need email and with Android only supporting GMail, it isn't going to be a good work phone.

I think at this point I've more or less decided my next phone will be an iPhone. I can jailbreak it and enjoy freedom Steve Jobs doesn't want me to have and I can take advantage of many features other companies build into their products by supporting the iPhone/iPod interface. The only thing I now have to resolve is paying $25 more per month for a cell/data/messaging plan that I need to pay AT&T than I would for similar service from T-Mobile for the G1. For a two-year contract that comes out to $600; not chump change.

Overdue Update

2009-02-04T13:42:00.008-05:00

Cripes. I don't even remember what I wrote last. I guess I should go look...bear with me.

(insert Jeopardy theme here)

Ok, I'm back. Baseball and the HoF. Not very relevant right now. Though I'm happy to see Varitek is going to be behind the dish again next season. His numbers might not return but at least he'll be able to control the pitching staff.

About a week after my last post I moved out of my apartment and back into the bedroom in Ted's house. It isn't the best option for either me or Ted but it does the job of providing me with a roof over my head. Honestly, that's the biggest piece of information I have to share. Three weeks since my last post and I really have nothing to speak of.

I guess that isn't entirely true. I did have a job interview which led to a second interview which led nowhere.

I have a problem with recall. Put me in front of a computer and I can usually remember how to do what I need to do. If I can't remember off the top of my head I know where to get the information necessary to accomplish the task. Sit me down and randomly ask me to write an SQL statement that involves JOINS and I lock up. Easy enough to learn when needed but after being out of work for nearly five months my skills are getting rusty. I'm relying on my O'Reilly book collection to keep me as fresh as possible.

Unfortunately, most organizations don't care that technology is a moving target and knowing where to find the answers is an important skill. They want experts and I'll be the first to admit that I'm not one. When I interviewed at SV Rich asked me where to find the answer to something I don't know. That he stopped me as soon as I said "Google" was indication that they know how IT behaves and that no one person holds all the information he or she will ever need but that knowing how to get it is just as necessary. It would be nice if I could find another SV in Massachusetts. Hell, I'd be willing to move back to VA if they'd take me back *hint hint*.

Other than that and the occassional social event with Ted and his (and by extension, my) friends not much else has been happening. I'm still trying to learn Japanese and I spend a lot of time playing video games.

Speaking of video games, Ken, a friend and former colleague has a large hand in vNES; an online Nintendo Entertainment System emulator. If you want to be able to play NES again and want to do so wherever you have a computer and internet connection I recommend looking into it.

It can be a bit awkward using a keyboard instead of an actual controller though. Because of this I ordered a couple new NES controllers and a USB adapter. With the assistance of a keymapper (Xpadder in my case) I can now play the original NES games that I loved when I was younger (and even more that I never knew about). I should probably buy a second adapter in case someone wants to go head-to-head in Tecmo Bowl.

The Moral Aspect of the Baseball Hall of Fame

2009-01-11T15:55:00.004-05:00

I read a blog post by Kirk Minihane over at WEEI.com. For the most part he makes some good arguments regarding who should be elected in and why. One player he mentioned made me question one of his opinions on why. That being the moral arguments against a player. Specifically, he presumes that some of the 500+ sports journalists who are sent ballots will not give Rickey Henderson a vote because of the moral high horse he says they are on.

He then went on to make his argument in favor of Mark McGwire based only on his numbers and ignoring any moral aspects of his game-play. This specifically got me thinking about how the moral aspect should be considered as well. Perhaps not as significantly as statistics but, when the players behavior off the field places him in a wider public arena than simply playing the game did perhaps we should look harder at why.

This was the email I sent to Mr. Minihane:

Suppose Bonds is found guilty and it is proven he took steroids. Based on the numbers he's a lock, however in this hypothetical situation it would be shown that his power numbers were obtained via less than scrupulous methods. Should the numbers be deflated or do we ignore the cheating and only count the stats effectively ignoring the moral aspect? Keep in mind that McGwire wasn't technically cheating since the substances he used (or, at least, admitted to using) weren't banned at the time making his numbers, if nothing else, legally legitimate.

You may think that the moral high-horse is all some journalists have but we hold less public professions to high moral standards. Even if someone we've never heard of is shown to take immoral action in order to get a leg up on the competition we toss them to the lions. Why then shouldn't we do the same for what is one of the most public professions in the country if not the world?

You could argue that professional ball players don't ask to be role models and shouldn't be held to a role model's standards. If so then they shouldn't have gone into such a public profession. But, that is deviating from the original question and could open up a completely different debate dealing with off-field behavior that benefited the player on the field versus off-field behavior that was more detrimental to the player's image and quality of play.

That fact is they *are* in a public profession and whether they chose to be or not, they are held as role models for innumerable youth the world over. If the choices they made to improve their play can be considered either illegal or morally reprehensible in the public eye then that should be considered.

Fame isn't strictly due to skill. If it were we wouldn't see players like Don Mattingly on the ballot; an average player at best but a fan favorite. Compare that to Bonds who, on the surface, appears to be well above average but is despised by both fans and the media. According to the online Princeton dictionary fame is also defined as "favorable public reputation" (http://as200l.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=fame). Where is the favorable reputation in Bonds' case?

I suppose what all this boils down to is this: if you put McGwire in based only on numbers ignoring any moral aspect, how do you handle the Bonds situation which will have greater negative impact on the Hall of Fame?

Personally, I feel that should Bonds be found guilty of either perjury or use of steroids (the latter would certainly be a precursor to the former) that he should not be voted in. I also feel that his presence on the ballot should be withheld until the outcome of any legal issues should they last longer than the waiting period for being placed on the ballot.

As for McGwire, I admit to being somewhat hypocritical. He admitted to using androstenedione which wasn't banned from the sport at the time nor is it illegal. This clears him from any wrongdoing from the point of view of the baseball rulebook and the law. However, that doesn't legitimize using it. The problem is that he refuses to speak on the matter. This places him in a negative light and gives rise to questions as to why he won't discuss it. Regardless, in my opinion due to the lack of information in the McGwire case compared to the the glut of information in the Bonds case, McGwire is more deserving of being elected into the Hall.

Free To Be Me...Hopefully pt 3

2009-01-09T23:04:00.006-05:00

I finally finished reading the book about third culture kids that I bought last month. On the one hand it was an interesting read. On the other, it didn't exactly tell me anything that I didn't already recognize if only subconciously. I've always pretty much been aware of who I am and why. Seeing some of this in print essentially served to validate my awareness (I say "some" because I am defined by more than just having lived overseas).

While the book was useful it isn't a spot-on description of what I and many others have experienced. My dad pointed this out when he told me that ours (mine, my sister's and others' like us) wasn't quite the same experience as that described throughout most of the book. Specifically, while the experiences being described in the book were primarily those of children who were fully submerged in a culture, ours were as children only partially submerged.

We had an American oasis plopped in the middle of a foreign culture. As a result we were able to experience our surroundings but also find refuge in our own little America when necessary (such as when going to school).

This isn't to say my experience was 100% unique. I still dealt with the separation anxiety of moving around numerous times (even before going overseas) and having to deal with losing friends while, at the same time, being confronted with the need to gradually blend into my new surroundings and make new friends. While I can still claim to be a third culture kid I realize it is in the more refined category of military brat. I always knew I was a military brat (even though we traveled as civilians) I just never fully understood what it means to be one. Actually, until I pursue more reading on that I still won't but, I am closer to full understanding.

I just need to select a quality book about military brats which isn't patronizing. I've found books but I don't want to buy any of them until I know how well they deal with the topic.

Is the Ethical Use of Human Byproducts Possible?

2009-01-08T15:33:00.004-05:00

A few days ago an article was posted on a message board of which I'm a member (The article can be found at forbes.com). It is about a Beverly Hills cosmetic surgeon who used liposuctioned fat to make biodiesel. On the message board people were expressing things from mild humor to nausea.

I'm wondering where the nausea factor comes in. I suppose it is understandable as most people associate using human byproducts with things like horror movies and insane people that make masks from the skin of their victims. Add to that the history which has been burned into our minds by the maniacs known as Nazis and it is easy to find the nastiness in this.

So, my question is this: is it possible to find uses for such things as voluntarily liberated body-fat without drawing connections to a horrendous past? Sure there are the sanitation and medical waste issues to deal with but if animal fat can be broken down into biodiesel why not human fat. Especially if the person providing has given permission to use it in such a way.

I don't make the following comment out of lack of respect for those who lost their lives to those maniacs but I would like to point out that there are many parts of present day medicine which exists as a result of that insanity. Much of what we know about anatomy, for instance, is a result of it.

I would love to provide a truly objective representation of the ethics of using said medical knowledge but unfortunately, all I've been able to uncover are writings by those who are ethnically and spiritually affected (eg this article) as well as those who don't bother to address that aspect of the discussion (eg this one). The former have, what I consider, a justifiable bias in their opinion and the later treats the issue as if the experiments were 100% medical in nature and not the result of murderous insanity. I suppose the latter would be the best objective argument but in some cases, sterilizing the subject matter of any humanity is nausea-inducing by itself.

FWIW: Once you've seen Dachau in person you gain a firm understanding of the horrendous nature of those maniacs. I certainly don't offer my thoughts out of insensitivity. I was deeply moved by what I saw there. I merely try to look at what exists as opposed to what we would like to exist in terms of things we cannot change.