My Blog

This class has been quite the ride in self-realization.  At the risk of sounding repetitive with my previous posts, what I first conceived as my computer-based interests turned out to be completely opposite from what I expected.  I started this semester thinking that I would just take the necessary classes to get involved in network security or something like that which most every company needs.  It seemed a logical path.  Thank goodness I started with this class!  My eyes have been opened to programming and all it is involved in and is capable of.  So my direction has changed, ever so slightly.

Looking back through my progression of blogs, I can actually see myself becoming more and more nerdy.  I often get accused of that, but now I can see why in black-and-white.  That’s Ok.  Nerds are the bosses.  It is interesting, though, not only to see my own progression in nerdiness and discovery of new interests, but also to see just how many new things I have been exposed to in this short semester.  I’m 34 and thought I was fairly well versed in technology.  So much for that.  I’m still 34 and a little better off with technology now, but I have also seen the big picture.  There is so much to learn even that the professors have not yet learned – that hasn’t even been discovered yet – and I have a lot of catching up to do.

Speaking of the big picture, reading through my blogs has made me realize just how Dr. Brown has designed this course and it really makes sense.  Starting with the most basic blocks of computers – binary – and working gradually and comprehesively to what computers are now capable of and where they may take us in the future.  It’s all very exciting stuff and I can’t wait to see where I end up with all this. 

This last lab using Alice has been lots of fun.  I know I previously dogged virtual worlds pretty hard, but it’s really fun to create and manipulate!  Sure, maybe it’s a little like playing God with your own little world, but the complexity of my simple little world in Alice has given me a new respect for God.  I can’t imagine the code behind this place!  And just how do you code free will?  I’m sure we’ll get there eventually.  And I’m sure there will be a great movie made from the consequences.  I just hope I’m somewhere in the credits.

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or, I am what I am.  Virtual reality is another instance that finds me conflicted. 

On one hand, the idea is really cool.  I can go be someone else in a whole different world and explore new things, etc. etc.  The technology and programming behind these worlds is truly humbling.

On the other hand, what’s wrong with who I really am?  Can I not interact with those around me in the real world and make it just as interesting?  I have avoided virtual worlds like Second Life for this reason.  They seem to foster a growing lack of self-esteem.  Someone might be a god or super-important business man in his virtual world, but what has he accomplished in real life, where it really matters?

Some may see these virtual worlds as an escape, which is equally disturbing, but then there are certainly those who use this technology to advance their current earth-based lives.  I’ve heard of businesses marketing through virtual worlds, which makes sense if that is your demographic.  It seems that it could be dangerous to some consumers, though – especially the not-quite-yet-fully-matured youth who most like frequent these programs, especially when there may be real money at stake.

The formation of vitual worlds for simple entertainment I think is pure and should be encouraged.  I just fear that some may take it too far and there will be a Lifetime movie made about the kid who killed his dad because he wanted to see how many credits it would be worth.

As in my last post, I believe there should be a distinct line dividing reality and otherwise.  While the convergence of both makes for a good story line in fiction, realistic consequences need to be considered.

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AI is truly amazing, though a little bit scary at the same time.  The development of AI has created a line that some would not dare cross and others would embrace.  I find myself on the fence here….  I’m truly fascinated by the possibilities AI presents, though at the same time, I don’t think that technology is a step in “knowing” ourselves.  I think there is more to being than simple electrons firing.  Granted, this is a grand part of things and without these electrons working in perfect sequence to the program directing them we certainly would not ‘be’.

hmm.

I guess there has to be a differentiation between ‘intelligence’ and ‘life’ here, though that seems to be getting fuzzy.  Science and science fiction seem to be coming to their own ‘singularity’.  Take, for example, Isaac Asimov’s robot, who really conceives himself as alive – or Johnny 5 for that matter. This looks like where we’re headed, and it ended up bad in both those instances…. not so bad for Johnny 5 since there was a sequel, but you get the gist.

Advanced AI has certainly made gaming more entertaining and will certainly make many people’s lives easier in the future, but we need to be careful to remember who’s in charge.  It’s easy to get carried away with something new, blinding common sense.  Look out.

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We’ve all seen UAV’s (un-manned aerial vehicles) and how amazingly capable they are in modern combat.  We’ve seen videos of the Predator drones dropping smart bombs that land in the bad guys’ lazy boys….  What we don’t usually see in these videos is the guy back on the carrier or at the base “piloting” the drone using a monitor and joysticks.  Though this pilot is undoubtably well trained, mistakes still occur.  From www.ntsb.gov:

“The National Transportation Safety Board has released a preliminary report on the 25 Apr 2006 crash of a Predator UAV while on U.S. border patrol. ” The pilot reported that during the flight the console at PPO-1 ‘locked up’, prompting him to switch control of the UAV to PPO-2. Checklist procedures state that prior to switching operational control between the two consoles, the pilot must match the control positions on the new console to those on the console, which had been controlling the UAV. The pilot stated in an interview that he failed to do this. The result was that the stop/feather control in PPO-2 was in the fuel cutoff position when the switch over from PPO-1 to PPO-2 occurred. As a result, the fuel was cut off to the UAV when control was transferred to PPO-2.”

These UAV’s have proven invaluable warfare while potentially saving combat pilots’ lives.  there still is, however, that human element that is inherently imperfect.  Someone is still doing the flying for these amazing vehicles.  For now….

Northrop Grumman is currently developing the first completely autonomous UAV, the X-47B.  Under design since Northrop Grumman won the $636 million contract back in 2007, the X-47B made its first flight in july of this year and demonstrated its first cruise configured flight just last month in October. 

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X-47B First Flight Feb. 4, 2011

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X-47-B First Cruise sept. 30, 2011

The truly amazing thing about this plane is that instead of requiring a pilot at a joystick, it only requires someone with a mouse to command it – “take off, fly, land”. 

By 2013, Northrop Grumman is commited to demonstrating how the X47-B can manage itself on an aircraft carrier, including takeoff, landing, and taxi functions – all of which are currently conducted using hand signals from crew. 

Plans also include completely autonomous mid-air refueling.  One of the two X47-B’s currently built is configured with a boom and receptacle for this mission.

Implications of such a vehicle are, of course, huge for military purposes.  Bear in mind, though, that most technology of this sort begins with miltary agendas, then is eventually handed down for commercial and general purposes.  The possibilities  autonomous flight holds for the transportation department are boundless.  Flight is already one of the safest means of transportation.  Imagine if human error is eliminated. 

When autonomous aircraft become part of the system and aircraft control follows suit, no more controllers falling asleep on shift; no more hijackings by box-cutter.  This is truly a huge leap into the future.

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It was so awesome when I learned that the Robinsons named their robot after me!

I’m so incredibly jealous of the campus-based class for getting to play with Legos.  My grandfather was an immigrant from Denmark, home of the Lego, so I feel a special bond to them, so to speak.  A family reunion in Denmark brought us all to the original Legoland in Billund.  We take our Legos seriously.  That’s why I’m so disappointed that my schedule does not allow me to get to the lab to work with the NXT generation of this beloved block.

Oh, well.  I’ll just have to learn something else.  Researching robotics so far has been very eye-opening.  There are so many different kinds of robots that can do so many different things, it’s hard to decide what to focus on.  I honestly had no idea that robots had already become such a staple in our society.  A lot of what is reality now, certainly seemed science fiction not too long ago.

It’s amazing what man is capable of.  Scary, perhaps, as well.  The singularity that is repeatedly referenced has me really concerned….  It feels like a reckoning that isn’t very far off and I hope I make the cut when it arrives.

Robotics has always been fascinating to me.  I had an Armatron robot when I was a kid that was one of the coolest ‘toys’ I ever owned.  I even incorporated it into a science fair project testing hand-eye coordination.  This is certainly a hugely growing field that I had previously never considered pursuing, though it seems apparent now that it already is and will be a huge part of society.  Food for thought for myself….  It incorporates something I’ve always enjoyed and something I’ve only recently learned to enjoy – programming.

hmm.

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My cup of tea, that is.  As in – this is not my….  Anyway,

I’ve often encountered a virus and thought to myself, “Why on earth would someone want to waste their time creating something like this?”  After reviewing this week’s content, I still wonder. 

Viurses that “phish” for information, I can understand.  Thieves looking for credit cards, etc.  Malware that is directed at a company or corporation, maybe.  I can see a disgruntled employee or customer looking for revenge. 

It’s these viruses that arrive via email from who-knows-where or are “trojan horses” that serve no purpose but to disable your personal system that I don’t understand.  In most cases, the creator of this virus will have no idea that the thing even worked, much less where or with whom it was executed.  I can’t see the benefit.

But then I’m not a hacker, glamourous as it may have become. 

Once again, this course has helped me realize my true interests.  Initially I thought I would be interested in network administration and security, but so far these areas have been of the least attraction to me. 

I’ll have to find my glamour elsewhere…. though certainly not with Scratch.  That program has consumed every evening for the past two weeks and still one bug eludes me.  It has made me want to head to the roof with my laptop just to hear the satisfying sound of shattering plastic on pavement.  I’m going to post my program this evening, but continue to work on it until that last bug is ironed out.

I have to.

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At first glance, Scratch was pretty weak. ”make these sprites dance!”  Yey!

After looking at other students’ projects, I realized that scratch is much more than the initial tutorial made it out to be.  Randy Pausch has emphasized much the same idea.  no matter what things may appear at face value, more may lie underneath. 

Scratch turns out to be a neat proccess that just requires a little bit of work.  Other people’s work and posting has made it more valuable than I first imagined…..  Mr. Pauch’s last lecture mirrors much the same ideal.

I hope that my first attempt at programming inspires the same attitude as that to Mr. Pausch.  he is truly an inspirational individual that drives me to acheive that which I can only hope.

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“SQL”, “database”, “Java”, “computer”, etc. etc….

These are all words I previously knew, but didn’t really know about.  They are the types of words you can spout off in a conversation with an equally ignorant person and actually sound smart without really knowing what you’re talking about:  “I logged on to the SQL server to access the customer database using the computer at the store.” — This used to mean, “I clicked on the icon that says ‘SQL’ then looked some stuff up on the whirly-gig I have at work.” – After these first few weeks of class, my vocabulary has become much more substantiated.

Actually using SQL, Java, and CSS is still a little fuzzy to me; I’ll need to look at those tutorials a little more in depth.  It is good to know, however, what exactly it is I’m talking about and how it came to be.

Posting my HTML site proved to be a lot easier and less time-consuming than writing the page.  Filezilla really dummy-proofs the process.  It’s cool that Filezilla lets you look at the code for the program….  Cool and daunting.

After writing the HTML code for this small site, I have truly gained a new repect for programmers – web and otherwise.  I have showed off my site and code to numerous people already, feeling a little bit of pride in what I created with words and symbols.  It’s funny because, when I show someone the site they say, “oh, that’s really nice”, but then I show them the code and they say, “Holy crap!  You wrote all that?!”    That’s where the pride kicks in.  I got a lot of the same type response when I got my pilot’s license.  It always makes you feel good when you surprise someone with your ingenuity.

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   Something I really enjoy about this class is that information is not simply handed to us for regurgitation on test day.  Creating this html webpage has proven quite the exercise in research and patience.  After exploring all of the HTML tutorial links, I owe a big “Thank You” to Tizag.  This website was by far the most helpful for me as it was laid out in an easy to follow and accessible format.  “HTML PadPro” was, at best, confusing.  I’m sure it would be a powerful tool in the right hands, but not knowing in the beginning what tags did and why made any attempt in this program muddled.  The confusion continued with the statement, “Pages generated with a software package will receive a score of zero.”  So I felt it better just to leave that beast alone.

   Learning step-by-step what different tags and elements are capable of, then applying them on my own webpage turned out to be not only more educational, but I imagine more rewarding than using someone else’s program.

   I’m pretty proud of what I’ve created; I can’t wait to post it so someone else can see the fruits of my labor.  The pride comes not from how the page looks or what it includes, but from the fact that I created it and understand all the background behind it.  Seeing just what HTML can do and how versatile it is, I’m really curious about CSS and Javascript.  CSS, while touched on, was not really emphasized anywhere so I didn’t want to delve yet where I’m not expected to be.

   The process started as tedious and confusing, turned to tedious and curious,  proceeded to tedious and interesting, then ended at really cool – “what else can I do?” 

   Once again, my wife has been very understanding.  This sort of exercise sucks me in.  I was very tempted to write this blog in HTML and make it really cool, and I could have stayed stuck to the computer a lot longer than the 6-or-so hours I spent working on the webpage, but I do like having her around.  And she lets me have bacon when I’m good.

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READ 15
WRITE 3
STOP
VALUE 42

All input yields the answer to life, the universe, and everything!
(If you don’t follow, nevermind. This program was really for my own amusement)

The Assembly Language Simulator is actually a pretty cool thing.  It’s very interesting to see how it all breaks down.  The ALS has really helped bring together topics discussed back in week 2′s content, along with the hardware covered last week.  It is almost like a roadmap of the computing process, detailing how what we type in is assembled and goes through each of the pieces - from RAM to registers, registers to RAM, and so on – all controlled by the CU.

What was a bit murkey and seeming like incoherent jargon at certain times all makes perfect sense now, thanks to my new buddy, ALS.  I’ll call him Al for short.

Considering also how the OS is initially loaded from the hard drive by BIOS, I am very happy with my decsion to include an SSD on my last Blog.  Since there are no moving parts to wait on, it makes sense that load time for the OS will be dramatically reduced since we have eliminated Seek Time and Rotational Delay.  The only delay, then, is Data Transfer time.

This has been a total light-bulb chapter for me:  Babbage from week 1 had it all figured out.  The machine speaks one laguage – the aptly-named “machine language”, or binary.  Assemblers and compilers can convert a more manageable language to binary for us, making it easier for us to communicate with the machine.  This software routes all the informatin we give it through the correct hardware channels to achive our desired results.  Computer hardware always seemed so incredibly complicated but, at the risk of sounding repetitive, it now all makes sense.  Information just follows a “hardware path” using “software directions” inputed by the programmer.

I guess what I’m trying to say with that last confusing paragraph, is that it’s neat to see with Al how intangible information follows a physical path within the computer.

I wish I knew more about programming and how the different languages differ and are used to accomplish different results. differ differ differ

Al is neat, but he makes me anxious to know more about how other information like graphics, video, sound, etc. can be worked into programable actions.

Also, it would be interesting to learn exactly how information flows across the internet and how that is processed by the computer.  “The Internet” is another one of those things that I use every day and understand the concept of, but do not understand the workings of.  Like – how exactly does a “hypertext transfer protocol” work?, etc.

I’m sure we’ll find out soon enough.  This week’s content just has me chomping at the bit.

So long, and thanks for all the fish!

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