Quote: First Desire
It is easier to surpress the first desire than to satisfy all that follow it. – Ben Franklin
Simple Code Is Complex
“Producing code that’s readable, maintainable, and simple is a great goal. But simple code is much harder to write than complex code. It’s easy to throw code at a problem until it goes away. Simple code, on the other hand, is what you get when you remove all the complexity from the code. ” -DSLs in BOO by Ayende Rahien
The Doctor. Doctor Who? Just, The Doctor.
This must be a parapraxis (a.k.a) Freudian slip posting because yesterday was Valentines Day and the object of this posting is to say how much I’ve enjoyed the Doctor Who series. The recent episodes, all be it a bit bizarre , have been clean and entertaining. Normally I associate British television with Monty Python which is nuts or something more shoddy and crudely cocked up (Was that too vulgar? I’m still trying to figure out the lingo) like A Clockwork Orange.
The entire 40+ years of Doctor Who extend beyond my life experience but based on the original and current episodes the stories are unique and clean science fiction entertainment. While the science isn’t as interesting or realistic as Star Trek the application and consequences of science and technology are portrayed in imaginative ways. Just to prove I’m not completely biased I will admit some of the episodes are low budget corny flicks but I appreciate the imaginative plots and clean content.
For the record, Tom Baker is my favorite doctor. Louise Jameson as Leela is my favorite companion, especially in The Talons of Weng-Chiang. Christopher Eccleston did a great job at portraying the doctor as an adventurer and could have been my favorite but Tom Baker is just more.. well.. for lack of a better word, doctorly! David Tennant is another great doctor but he seems a bit too silly and internally conflicted to be a strong doctor.
All opinions about favorite doctors are relative. If time and space can be relative in the TARDIS then I reserve the ability to change my mind.
Why Only One Adam?
In the tropical wilderness of Costa Rica I randomly came across the most interesting book, A Treasury of Jewish Folklore. The book was discretely tucked away in the midst of a coffee shop library. For a week I found myself skipping about the book reading thought provoking and comical stories from Jewish Folklore.
A fitting posting for Valentines day, the story below is from the book and has remained in my memory.
Why did God create only one Adam and not many at a time?
He did this to demonstrate that one man in himself is an entire universe. Also He wished to teach mankind that he who kills one human being is as guilty as if he had destroyed the entire world. Similarly, he who saves the life of one single human being is as worthy as if he had saved all humanity.
God created only one man so that people should not try to feel superior to one another and boast of their lineage in this wise: “I am descended from a more distinguished Adam than you.”
He also did this so that the heathen should not be able to say that, since many men had been created at the same time, it was conclusive proof that there was more than one God.
Lastly, He did this in order to establish His Own power and glory. When a maker of coins does his work he uses only one mould and then all the coins emerge alike. But the King of Kings, blessed be His name, has created all mankind in the mould of Adam, and even so no man is identical to another. For this reason each person must respect himself and say with dignity: “God created the world on my account. Therefore let me not lose eternal life because of some vain passion!”
An excerpt from A Treasury of Jewish Folklore. Copyright 1948 by Crown Publishers. “Why Only One Adam”, page 6. Adapted from the Agada in the Talmud.
The article provides a thought provoking reason each person is unique. While I don’t completely agree with the philosophy of all the points it is worth extending the article to include an additional thought.
Adam was created in God’s perfect image and we share in Adam’s fallen image, not God’s perfect image. How amazing the love of God that Jesus the Messiah should come to redeem the children of Adam, which are but a poor reflection of the perfect image of Adam.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” -John 3:16 NIV
Review of iPassPort Wireless Micro Keyboard and Touchpad
Background
My home theater PC was in desperate need of a new wireless input device. The conventional wireless keyboard and mouse was exceptionally cumbersome and finding a flat surface for the mouse defeated the purpose of sitting comfortably on the couch. Several companies sell specialty wireless keyboards that include a touchpad or trackball but I wasn’t willing to pay almost $100 for the luxury of my home theater PC.
Solution
The iPazzPort Wireless Micro Keyboard and Touchpad came to my attention from a Hack A Day posting. It fit my two requirements for the home theater PC. It could provide easy mouse input with occasional keyboard input and it was small. Oh, and it was almost half the cost of a specialty wireless keyboard/touchpad device.
Where to Buy
In my excitement, the first choice was to purchase from the USB Geek store listed in the Hack A Day article. However, after a few minutes of looking around I came across the EFO store which appeared to sell the same exact unit for $20 cheaper. The EFO site didn’t instill confidence in me but I went against my better judgment and ended up saving $20. My purchase date was 11/29/09 and I was extremely surprised to see it in my mailbox shipped all the way from China in under 10 days (via USPS).
Review of the iPazzPort
I like it! The EFO store page contains links at the bottom of the page to accurate reviews that cover the basics. This review focuses on some of the things the other reviews leave out.
- Battery life – My iPazzPort has only been recharged twice over the last two months of usage. On average it is used for 5 minutes each day and is seldom switched off. Pretty good in my opinion.
- Wake up – The device changes to low power mode after about 3 minutes of usage. The only way to wake it up and regain usage is to press one of the buttons about 3 times quickly or power cycle the device. This appears to be by design but I find it is too short of a sleep delay. This isn’t so great.
- The buttons – Most QWERTY cell phones are a pleasure to type with compare to the iPazzPort. Typing in simple web addresses or search requests is about the extent of the typing you’ll want to do with this. The buttons are uncomfortable to press because of their size and contour. If they were more raised and required less pressure to press it could be comparable to most cell phones.
Bottom Line
As a wireless touchpad the iPazzPort is a great device for the money even if the keyboard is cumbersome to use. Despite my hesitation, buying from EFO was was OK.