On Life, Golf Balls and Coffee
A professor once stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him.
When the class began wordlessly, he picked up a very large glass jar and filled it with golf balls. He then asked the students before him, if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly and the pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous “Yes.”
The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand.
The students laughed.
“Now” said the professor, as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things – Family, Children, Health, Friends and Favorite passions – things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, Your life would still be full.”
“The pebbles are the other things that matter like your Job, House and Car. The sand is everything else, the small stuff.”
“If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued, “there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, You will never have room for the things that are important to you. So, pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.”
“Play with your children. Take time to get medical check-ups. Take your partner out to dinner. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal.”
“Take care of the golf balls first – the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”
One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled. “I’m glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.”
Moral of the story:
When things in life seems almost too much to handle; when 24 hours is not enough, remember the glass jar, golf balls and the 2 cups of coffee… then ask me out for some ;)
iPAD: No handwriting recognition, no deal!
Let me start off by stating the obvious. I will never buy an iPAD (1st generation as of writing unless you have insider news on the 2nd generation).
Everyone seems to be harping that the iPAD doesn’t serves up Flash support, webcam and lack of an OLED screen. While those are nice features to have and I’m sure eventually Apple would eventually put them in on the next iteration seeing that even the little iPod has a camera now.
For but me the deal breaker is the fact that a glorious 9.5” screen lacks handwriting support. Now I’m not asking Steve to cram in a stylus but not able to use my finger as an input device on a multi-touch screen is just absurd!
Cracked.com has it right. It’s just a big iPhone! I quote: “When was the last time someone sold a computer that couldn’t multi-task?!” For all the screen size it’s still just a large iPhone. I can’t imagine why if it’s not running OSX it cannot be any thinner seeing that it’s just a larger screen taped to an iPhone sized circuit board (possibly with a bulge at the lower right corner in the shape of an iPhone).
Adam Frucci sums it up nicely:
Big, Ugly Bezel
Have you seen the bezel on this thing?! It’s huge! I know you don’t want to accidentally input a command when your thumb is holding it, but come on.No Multitasking
This is a backbreaker. If this is supposed to be a replacement for netbooks, how can it possibly not have multitasking? Are you saying I can’t listen to Pandora while writing a document? I can’t have my Twitter app open at the same time as my browser? I can’t have AIM open at the same time as my email? Are you kidding me? This alone guarantees that I will not buy this product.No Cameras
No front facing camera is one thing. But no back facing camera either? Why the hell not? I can’t imagine what the downside was for including at least one camera. Could this thing not handle video iChat?Touch Keyboard
So much for Apple revolutionizing tablet inputs; this is the same big, ugly touchscreen keyboard we’ve seen on other tablets, and unless you’re lying on the couch with your knees propping it up, it’ll be awkward to use.No HDMI Out
Want to watch those nice HD videos you downloaded from iTunes on your TV? Too damned bad! If you were truly loyal, you’d just buy an AppleTV already.The Name iPad
Get ready for Maxi pad jokes, and lots of ‘em!No Flash
No Flash is annoying but not a dealbreaker on the iPhone and iPod Touch. On something that’s supposed to be closer to a netbook or laptop? It will leave huge, gaping holes in websites. I hope you don’t care about streaming video! God knows not many casual internet users do. Oh wait, nevermind, they all do.Adapters, Adapters, Adapters
So much for those smooth lines. If you want to plug anything into this, such as a digital camera, you need all sorts of ugly adapters. You need an adapter for USB for god’s sake.It’s Not Widescreen
Widescreen movies look lousy on this thing thanks to its 4:3 screen, according to Blam, who checked out some of Star Trek on one. It’s like owning a 4:3 TV all over again!Doesn’t Support T-Mobile 3G
Sure, it’s "unlocked." But it won’t work on T-Mobile, and it uses microSIMs that literally no one else uses.A Closed App Ecosystem
The iPad only runs apps from the App Store. The same App Store that is notorious for banning apps for no real reason, such as Google Voice. Sure, netbooks might not have touchscreens, but you can install whatever software you’d like on them. Want to run a different browser on your iPad? Too bad!
All that being said, unless the 2nd generation comes with built in webcam and freaking allows me to take notes while in a meeting (best if it comes built in with a tricorder) I WILL CONTINUE TO REDICULE ANYONE THAT BUS AN iPAD!
My Workflow For A Day
Diagram above shows my workflow on Friday. Lines are movements, black dots are mouse inactivity and circles are mouse clicks.
Brunei 2010 Post 4
Finally it’s the Saturday that I’ve been waiting for!
I’m still a couple of documentations to go but at least the field work for the head quarters is complete. Another week for the subsidiary and I’m all good.
My colleague has decided to spend Friday evening travelling to Miri (3 hours away) but I declined to join. They had this craving for alcohol and a good night out but there’s nothing that interest me there that I can’t get back in KL. Besides I’d need the rest.
I managed to get the photos downloaded from the camera. Picture below is how the Brunei city center looks like: Clean, paved and devoid of people. Picture below was taken on the very first day I arrived, pictured: me and colleague Jiaa Jiaa.
Driving around Brunei is a pleasure.. partially due to the low petrol prices and also the roads are well paved. Drivers in Brunei is also a courteous bunch. They stop a car space away from you if you need to cross a road, zebra crossing or not. Drivers here use the turn signal, never honk and always obey the law (even the SUV’s). The only grieve I have to complain is they never knew how to enter a roundabout.
According to wikipedia there is only 400,000 among the population but there is also 200,000 expatriates living and working there. With the same currency rate as Singapore, their purchasing power is quite high although the shopping experience is less developed.
We haven’t managed to locate a nice enough beach. Google maps is not detailed enough and tourist maps are almost non existent here. From random driving around we found our little corner for some picnic and sand kicking. Apparently the location is still pristine and mostly used by fisherman’s to cast away. But for the afternoon it’s just nice to be carefree.
It’s nice to have a full team from KL for a change. After knowing everyone at work at least we can get to keep in touch once the project is completed.
We met up with Guan Hui from Finance and actually had fun having dinner at an unlit rock strewn sea grabbing at our meals to prevent them from being blown away. The wind is strong but it never smelly fishy. The dinner part is great, the company even better. It wasn’t something that can be done on a whim back in KL.
Loving it here!
