I've been doing most of my posting over at multiply, including cool things like pics and video. Here's my multiply page, if you happen to have an account.

It's fun, convenient, and makes it easier for me to keep up with the Circle by channeling my Circle stimulus through my email. (it's honestly the first useful application of HTML email I've seen.)

Rosetta Code activity has stabilized, at around 140 visits per day, and two or three edits per day. That means it's time to spread the word again, not of Rosetta Code as this "hip new site", but as an interesting programmer's and learner's tool.

If you know someone who programs for enjoyment, has a passion for a particular programming language, or even is just starting out learning how to program, refer them to Rosetta Code to learn and contribute.

A couple nights ago, I heard a sound whose importance I dismissed. Turns out, I'd heard a shooting. I did analyze the sound in my head at the time, though. (You know, that whole paranoa thing.) It sounded to me like a small-caliber (.32 or .38) semi-auto. I didn't think much of it at the time, though...the only thing that suggested it might not be firecrackers was the rhythm of the pops.

The shooting took place on the 200 block of Gold Ave. I live on the 100 block. Judging by Google maps, the shooting was 500-1000 feet away.

I don't know any more details than that, right now.

I'm tired. I've been playing catch-up all week, student organization activities and responsibilities are accelerating, and Rosetta Code has begun growing at a rate difficult to keep up with.

I attended a screening of Wild Hogs tonight. It stars Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence, John Travolta and William H. Macy, as middle-aged professionals who ride bikes as a hobby, and are each going through a midlife crisis. Therein lies the irony; All of the stars have been in major roles in blockbusters at some point in their lives, but haven't had much exposure Hollywood since. Essentially, unintentionally, the actors play themselves. It's for this reason I went to see the movie.

I got a lot more out of the movie than I had anticipated. The movie takes comedic elements from a variety of genres, from slapstick to action to sexual themes to--get this--geekdom. (In fact, if you even slightly consider yourself a geek, you must go see this movie, just for William H. Macy's character. I swear, some technophile was in on the writing of this script.)

The plot starts out somewhat slow, but you don't notice it. Once the main characters meet the antagonists, the plot gains an element of tension that stays through the movie as relationships are developed. Then the tension snaps, and friendships get tested.

The ending was good. It seems anticlimactic, but only if you were focusing on the wrong part of the plot. It comes off somewhat sappy, though.

If the movie had needed to be carried--which it didn't--the comedy would have done it. I've never heard an audience laugh that much. There was comedy in there for everyone; While there were a few moments where the entire audience laughed, there were several spots where only individual elements laughed.

Five stars. But I'm not a real movie critic.

It's probably a faux pass to link to Digg from Slashdot, but I don't really care. Someone (not me) created a Digg entry pointing to Rosetta Code. If you've got a Digg account, please stop over there and "digg" it. :-)

I'm generally irritable today. Yesterday, I spent nine hours working with my bio-dad on a telecom installation, as an apprentice. To my mind, it went well enough, considering it was the first time I'd ever worked with a patch panel. He, however, was upset that it had taken 50% longer to do 32 ports than the computer estimated it would take a trained professional to do all 48.

Nine hours, six of which were spent with all my weight on the bridge of my left foot. And the closest thing I got to encouragement was "You were going faster once you got to the second half of that panel." At one point, he took the vocal tone of a parent scolding an eight-year-old.

I don't need that shit. Tell me what I'm doing wrong. Fine. I need to know that so I can get better. But also tell me what I'm doing right.

Through my brother, I've learned that my bio-dad's philosophy is that lack of criticism is equivalent to praise. It's no wonder he can't find anybody to work as a long-term employee. He's got no people skills.

If this rant sounds childish or silly, that's because it probably is. It's a symptom of the reason I'm irritable today. Ah well. I'll be fine in a couple days.

A "suspicious package" was found at GRCC, in the area between the Main Building and Cook Hall. Both buings have been evacuated.

Official notification: (Via friend's cell phone.)

I work in the Applied Technology Center, which is across campus...That's where I am now. I've got a class in the Cook Hall which is scheduled to start in a couple hours. I wonder if class will be canceled.

As far as the "suspicious package" is concerned...It's probably just someone being oversensitive. It's stupid, really.

Update:

All clear. No real details. From GRCC's NewsLink:

No further details yet.

Same rules, but I'll go over them again.

I'll start off with two words or nouns. Anyone who replies to my journal entry directly needs to provide a word relating to those to words.

Anyone who replies to one of those replies needs to provide a word related to the parent comment's as well as the second of the words I listed.

Beyond that depth, it's simple: A reply must provide a word related to the parent and grandparent comments' words.

Don't feel the need to limit your replies to just the most recent comment. Slashdot's discussion system supports threaded discussion; Let's abuse it! If you can come up with a suitable reply to a comment in the middle of a thread, go ahead and add the reply!

Remember, provide only one word per comment.

Here are my two starting words:

• pencil
• gas

Question for the folks out there with some experience with mod_rewrite. I need to replace all occurances of "+" in the URL with "%2B", but I can't seem to come up with a working rule.

Help?

Some time last night, our bathroom pipes froze.

The coldest it got while I was watching was -6F. I had the faucet in the bathroom dribbling, to try to prevent this.

Update: It warmed up to 9F today. The sink pipes unfroze, but the toilet pipes hadn't. JK's dad came by with a couple of electric heaters, and we were able to unfreeze those as well. Turned out there was heat tape on the hot and cold pipes, but the tape on the cold pipes was mostly unwrapped.

JK might be a lazy jerk (He didn't even come out of his room to greet his dad.), but his dad's been a big help this winter.

The pipes didn't burst, fortunately.

The situation I'm in write now is so cliche, even a hack novelist wouldn't use it.

In addition to being a poor college student whose student loans check is late, and whose first full paycheck isn't going to arrive until next week, I'm stuck in an apartment whose furnace is failing, while it's 7 degrees Farenheit (-13 degrees Celsius, to all you non-USians) outside, with drafty windows.

The thermostat is set to 90 degrees, but the actual temperature in the house has been hovering between 50 and 60 degrees all day. I've spent most of my time lying under a blanket reading Snow Crash. The rest of it, sleeping.

At first, I thought it was funny, just because of the guy in the video. Then I found it hilarious, because it actually goes out and grabs quotes.

(Or, at least, it doesn't display stock prices if your browser blocks the flash applet from accessing remote sites.)

And I love the guy's expression; I can really empathize with that, at times.

Anyway, here's the link you've been waiting for.

I caught this on comp.os.linux.misc. Recognizing the sender as an old-school troll, I immediately dismissed it. Later, half-asleep, I realized it reads like a Microsoft groupie's wet dream.

Subject: Why does anyone run Linux, when Solaris is open source?
From: Mike Cox
Sender: mikecox@mikecox
Date: 01/31/2007 06:52 PM
Newsgroups: comp.unix.solaris, comp.os.linux.advocacy, comp.os.linux.misc

Update: Fixed half-asleep grammar.

I'm planning on spending this summer with my brother in Seattle. I could take Greyhound, and visit any of you folks that fall between Michigan and the Pacific Ocean.

Time frame would be May-June. I know some of you folks live in the Rockies and westward. How many of you folks would like to meet up? I don't care how convoluted the route gets, really, so long as I'm able to save up the cash for the bus fare.