Stream of Stuff

[geckzilla]

All of those Windowses are kind of overkill, aren't they? Seems like a waste of hard drive space. What the heck are you actually developing? I managed to get an Ubuntu VM running because I thought I could overcome the lack of GUI for most of those useful-looking python programs scientists seem to love but I couldn't find the Linux equivalent of double-clicking an .exe file and getting it to start. I just stared at the console and had no idea what to type. How sad.

[Chris Peterson]

All of those Windowses are kind of overkill, aren't they? Seems like a waste of hard drive space. What the heck are you actually developing? I managed to get an Ubuntu VM running because I thought I could overcome the lack of GUI for most of those useful-looking python programs scientists seem to love but I couldn't find the Linux equivalent of double-clicking an .exe file and getting it to start. I just stared at the console and had no idea what to type. How sad.

Well, hard disk space is dirt cheap. I do website development, and also do consulting that requires running apps developed for different operating systems. So it's convenient to have them all. Also, when somebody is having problems, I can come fairly close to duplicating their environment. It's a lot easier to walk somebody through a procedure when you're running the same OS, given Microsoft's propensity for subtly changing all their menus with every new release.

I know what you mean about Linux. While it's very useful for many things, I always get a laugh from anyone who thinks it stands a chance of making any serious cut into the desktop computing world. (Probably, you just downloaded a python file, or wrote one, and tried to run it? Like other operating systems, you can set associations, to avoid some kind of hideous command line invocation to run a simple script. But you also have to manually set the permissions for most scripts to be executable. I can just see myself trying to walk my mother through all that on the phone! Linux as a primary desktop system is only for the hardest core geeks.)

[geckzilla]

I downloaded a lot of things. SciPy, NumPy, and some other dependencies necessary for DrizzlePac. I think I actually did get it "installed" properly but the problem is I don't exactly know what it does so I only had a vague goal in mind. The biggest problem is that the FITS files are huge and moving them between my Windows environment and the VM one required setting up a cumbersome FTP process when what I really need is either a real Linux box with Photoshop running in WINE or to natively execute Python scripts in Windows. The latter, which I would prefer, I spent at least a week trying to get work with no progress other than perhaps inventing some new profanity.

[rstevenson]

... Actually, maybe you could find a sucker looking for an iPad, and get yourself an Android tablet. I've used both, and there's really no comparison.

I'm surprsied at you Chris. When you have a suspected electrical issue with a computer (or anything else, for that matter) you do not sell it on to a "sucker." Or was the "sucker" you were referring to anyone who is willing to buy an iOS device? Either way, it's an unpleasant thing to say.

Rob

[geckzilla]

Hey Rob, want to buy an iPad?

[Chris Peterson]

I'm surprsied at you Chris. When you have a suspected electrical issue with a computer (or anything else, for that matter) you do not sell it on to a "sucker." Or was the "sucker" you were referring to anyone who is willing to buy an iOS device? Either way, it's an unpleasant thing to say.

The latter. When is good advice unpleasant?

I don't know if something is broken, or if it's a design defect. From the comments about other people seeing the same issue, it seems more like the latter, in which case, I would have no problem selling it.

[geckzilla]

The thing works fine. While it would be interesting to uncover that I have been handling some terribly dangerous device which only takes the right set of conditions to kill me, I am pretty sure the boogie man does not exist in this case. A mild shock no different from getting out of the car and shutting the door (every. single. time.) is the worst you are going to get from it.

[bystander]

owlice likes apple.

[Chris Peterson]

owlice likes apple.

Good for her. Then I'd recommend that she choose one for herself. I offer my professional advice to many clients, but in the end, the best thing for anybody is what they like best and what works best for them. It's not a religion with me.

[Chris Peterson]

The thing works fine. While it would be interesting to uncover that I have been handling some terribly dangerous device which only takes the right set of conditions to kill me, I am pretty sure the boogie man does not exist in this case. A mild shock no different from getting out of the car and shutting the door (every. single. time.) is the worst you are going to get from it.

A 30V AC signal can kill you. It just depends on how much current the device can provide (a factor of internal impedances), and how much gets across your skin (if you're reading something on the tablet that makes you all nervous and sweaty, it might be game over...)

[geckzilla]

If I ever disappear one day, you'll know what happened.

[Chris Peterson]

If I ever disappear one day, you'll know what happened.

Gone to be with Steve?

[geckzilla]

Yes, and then we can have awkward afterlife conversations about how one of his iPads killed me and I can ask him if he approves of the memorial statue in Cupertino.

[MargaritaMc]

Actually, maybe you could find a sucker looking for an iPad, and get yourself an Android tablet. I've used both, and there's really no comparison.

You're the first person I've come across who, like me, prefers Android to iPad, Chris! I've got both and never use the iPad as I've found the Nexus 7 much more Margarita-friendly. I've also got a couple of laptops, one with Windows 8.1 and the other with Ubuntu, but I only use them occasionally, mostly for Stellarium or spreadsheets.

M

[Chris Peterson]

You're the first person I've come across who, like me, prefers Android to iPad, Chris!

I think I probably know three or four people with Android tablets for every one with an iPad.

For me, it's not a lot to do with the OS, which from a user perspective is pretty much the same with either. I like the open environment and range of uncontrolled apps. It's one of the main reasons I don't like Mac desktops, either. Of course, others like the security of a highly controlled hardware and application environment.

[geckzilla]

I've never used an Android device before. I don't even know what their font anti-aliasing philosophy is.

[Chris Peterson]

I've never used an Android device before. I don't even know what their font anti-aliasing philosophy is.

Well... the fonts are anti-aliased. Beyond that, I didn't know there was any philosophy involved.

[geckzilla]

There is with Apple and Microsoft. For Apple, the philosophy is to stay true to the font. For Microsoft, the font's nuances may be sacrificed for screen legibility. It's probably things like this which cause Apple to forge ahead of the rest with smaller and smaller pixels. Microsoft's ClearType is notably better than Apple's faithful reproduction of fonts.

[Chris Peterson]

There is with Apple and Microsoft. For Apple, the philosophy is to stay true to the font. For Microsoft, the font's nuances may be sacrificed for screen legibility. It's probably things like this which cause Apple to forge ahead of the rest with smaller and smaller pixels. Microsoft's ClearType is notably better than Apple's faithful reproduction of fonts.

I only use OS X in a VM under Windows, and the fonts don't look too great. Just assumed it was a VM rendering thing. Maybe it is. Or maybe it's a deliberate lack of anti-aliasing by Apple. Don't know. Didn't even know it was an issue. I agree that ClearType looks fantastic. You only need to turn if off to see how bad native fonts are. My tablet is better than 300 dpi. You need a magnifying glass to even detect the pixels. I know that Android uses font anti-aliasing. But on these super high res screens, it hardly matters.

I'd like the screens on my desktop to have that same resolution, but it's not easy to get... and not cheap. Unfortunately, the growth in portable devices has come at the expense of slowing down the development of desktop computing. Seems like most of the effort now is directed at gaming graphics. Not my thing.

[geckzilla]

For some reason everyone wants desktop screens to be bigger. Haven't figured that out. I'd much rather have a smaller screen with higher resolution. It's not like I'm sitting across the room from it.

[Nitpicker]

These days, most engineering designers who use CADD software, use 2 large monitors side by side as one continuous desktop. Once you try it, it is very hard to go back to a single laptop screen. I even know one designer who uses 3 large monitors.

[Chris Peterson]

For some reason everyone wants desktop screens to be bigger. Haven't figured that out. I'd much rather have a smaller screen with higher resolution. It's not like I'm sitting across the room from it.

I use a pair of large monitors. I'd like both larger and higher res.

[Nitpicker]

For some reason everyone wants desktop screens to be bigger. Haven't figured that out. I'd much rather have a smaller screen with higher resolution. It's not like I'm sitting across the room from it.

I use a pair of large monitors. I'd like both larger and higher res.

My twin monitors only just fit on my desk. I want a bigger desk for bigger monitors.

[MargaritaMc]

I am going to ask what may well be either a stupid question or an impossible one - or both.

I want to begin to understand what you guys are talking about when you are discussing computers (e.g.s at random: writing code, python, anti-aliasing fonts, WINE) : have you any thoughts on where I might start?

Without being a bighead, I can say that I'm not dim, and when I've got on the track of a subject I can usually master it. Like I'm currently doing with mathematics, which I knew practically zero about just one year ago, but am now at least weighing up calculus and whether I can begin it yet.

With maths, I was able to find a lead into finding out what the fundamentals were that I didn't know that I needed to learn before I could do the subject proper. (I had missed some very basic arithmetic as a child, which I was easily able to catch up on via a MOOC course.)

Obviously, I use my various machines and know enough to be able to install Ubuntu on one of them. But I'd really LOVE to be able to understand at a deeper level. I did a very basic-level internet course on understanding computers over twelve years back, which at least means that I know what terms like hard drive, motherboard, processor, and operating system mean, and know that programming is done through various levels of languages (machine code, Cobol, are words that I have heard) but that is kindergarten level.

Living here, I can't get to any physical course. But, I've got the internet!

Has anyone any ideas?

Margarita (an aspiring geek)

[Nitpicker]

That is an excellent question Margarita.

I work primarily as a computer programmer. I have an engineering degree and very few of my peers at university decided to get into computing or programming in the same way I did. We learnt only a little about computer programming at university, but I wanted to do a thesis that involved the development of some number crunching computer code, so I largely taught myself how to program. Back then, it was largely in Fortran or C. These days, you could probably just stick to C or C++. C is a good language because it offers a nice compromise between mathematical notation, and a syntax suitable for addressing computer memory in a fairly direct way.

To get into the kinds of computer programming that a mathematician or scientist would be interested in, the best foundation is a sound knowledge of mathematics, especially discrete mathematics and logic, but also binary and hexadecimal arithmetic. It is much easier for a mathematician to learn programming than for a programmer to learn maths. Start out slow, and stick to that pace for a while. Take the time to understand how the compiler works (there are several free or cheap C compilers & linkers available, which parse your source code to create machine executable files). Get a good reference book on the language. Write a few small programs to do fundamental things like reading and writing text files, reading screen input and writing screen output, calculating prime numbers, etc. When you decide to try for something more complex, break it down into small pieces (this is the essence of computer programming). Don't feel you have to rush to get into the graphical side of things. Set yourself programming tasks involving lots of tedious calculations that you would never bother to try by hand. Gain an understanding of the range of integer and real numbers, and the precision possible, as well as the speed of calculations.

Only learn as much about fixing hardware and software problems as you need to. You probably don't want all your friends asking you to fix their computers.