Nobrainer’s Think Tank

Well my transition to computing at UVA has been less than smooth. In general, UVA has very strict password standards. Most passwords must have a combo of letters, numbers, and other figures. Plus, unlike Clemson, there isn’t one general password that works for most things. Ergo, I have a freaking ton of passwords and barely enough memory to avoid having to have them tattooed on my arm.

My university/office computer is running on WinME. It crashes about 3-4 times a day, and I’m not even doing anything complex. Also, this POS came without Office. WTF kind of university computer comes without Excel and Powerpoint? I’m surprised they made sure it had internet explorer on it.

And, like at Clemson, there is a student server (i.e. the U-Drive) for storage of information to be accessed from anywhere. I spent about 4 hours figuring out that for some reason my home laptop just doesn’t work. The “Home Directory” program apparently doesn’t work with my ISP. But there’s a workaround with some software from Sun. To get this software I think I agreed to some TOS that requires me to castrate myself if my computer gets with 100 miles of a foreigner, or any other person who may have ever travelled to another country. After getting through the 276 step installation process, it turns out that my router probably isn’t compatible anyway.

So the “Home Directory” program is the one which logs you into the server, and creates an accessible “drive.” Via my office computer, I learned that all the damn thing does is map a network drive. So what did I do? I mapped the network drive, and told it to reconnect whenever I turned on my computer.

For some unknown reason (and there may not be because it’s completely fucking ridiculous), whenever you log into a lab computer (which you may not be able to do since you don’t remember which password is the one you need), you are not automatically logged into your “Home Directory”.

Of course these brilliant thinkers apparently didn’t even require lab logins until the last couple years.

At least they don’t use Macs (although a good number of first year engineering students ignored any and all hardware requirements because they got a free i-Pod with their otherwise useless Macs).

Viva Windows!
Viva Clemson!
Viva Free Beer!

Have you ever found random mixed CDs and just put them in your changer for the hell of it?

I think I’ve got about 5 or 6 of them right now, and most of them aren’t that bad. When I say bad I refer to the song selection. Sometimes it’s nice to have someone else make decisions for you, I think. It adds some extra enjoyment to life (assuming the decision maker isn’t a total asshat).

So, next time to see a random CD that someone left behind, give it a shot.

I think I found a big hole in my golf swing. I’m itching to hit the course, but I’ll probably have to settle for the range. I think I might head to Birdwood this weekend to check it out and hit some balls.

I can’t wait until I’m an Exec who gets to golf regularly. Furthermore, I cannot wait to get out and golf with my old college buddies. I hope I get a chance sooner than later.

FORE!!

It seems these days that we continue to espouse American freedom. We also seem to seek “equality” while every day politicians push legislation that makes forgotten groups “more equal”. If you can’t take care of yourself, we’ll take care of you. And if you can do a great job of taking care of yourself, then we’ll use your resources to help those other people. This is one of those ideals that seems great. I still don’t buy it.

A comedian once joked about the irony of banks. People with small balances regularly face fees, and essentially lose money in banks. Whereas the rich can get paid to be rich. The bit was indeed funny.

But can you imagine if the opposite were true? Everyone would have small accounts, and rich people would put their money elsewhere. And then the bank would lose money and probably go out of business. So why should a country be run that way?

I believe the tax code causes many social problems. There are so many exemptions, credits, and bonuses that it is crazy. In my opinion, tax credits for married people probably lead to an increased number of weak marriages: marriages that happend “because it made sense”. In trying to help people with legitimate expenses, I believe the tax code ultimately helps to push people into making serious decisions that they are probably not prepared for. Or, if there weren’t credits for married couples, then the issue of gay couples wanting those credits would become a non-issue.

I don’t believe a flat income tax is right. I think a sales tax is the way to go. Perhaps exemptions should be made for necessities, but exceptions would probably beget exceptions. If the poorest people in the country are buying the same quality and priced foods as the richest people in the country, then they probably have other (mental) issues to deal with. I like a sales tax because my necessecities are not great. That means I can save a greater amount of my money if I want to.

Either way, our country is in a spiral of “equality”. With talk of gay rights or minority rights, I’m generally left wondering why one slate of American rights isn’t the standard. Everyone is equal, but some are more equal.

Those of you know know me, or somehow otherwise follow this blog, probably know that I’m a teaching assistant this semester. It’s for a mandatory first year engineering class. Fifteen other TAs and myself basically are graders and helpers for all the 500+ students in this Excel and MATHCAD based computer class. I asked the professor today how many of the kids actually tend to graduate in engineering. At Clemson of course, only about 1/3 of freshman engineering students end up with an engineering degree. His response, to my surprise, is that almost all of them will stay in engineering, and that due to transfers, more engineers graduate every year than they accept as first year students.

I have also realized that I’m getting old. My receding hairline and I don’t like that.