From Germany - The Lotteries of Life

I woke up this morning and spent a few minutes just staring out the window at the German landscape surrounding my parents' house. I couldn't help but wonder why I was privileged to be in this house at this time.


This isn't the only time in my life that I've wondered "why me?" in a good way. There are events almost every day of my life that cause me to stop, wonder, and be grateful for the life I have been given.

I think man's natural tendency is to justify what he has been given. "I've worked long and hard to be able to afford this house," one might say. What about those who've worked long and hard just to put bread on the table? "I sacrificed several years of my young life to go to college to gain an education that would provide me with a better job." What of those who sacrificed several years of their young lives to help their single mothers feed the rest of their families? In general, it's easy to say "I earned this." It's true that we may have earned it. We may have put forth the work and time necessary to achieve our goals, but what about the opportunities to do so in the first place?

These opportunities come from the "lotteries of life". Whether or not you believe in a "Supreme Architect" of this lottery is largely irrelevant (although in my opinion, such a belief helps us to better understand the big picture.) The lottery deals out many different opportunities and circumstances. One example could be birthplace. One child is born in the United States; another in Germany; another in Darfur, Sudan. How would the path of my life be different if I had been born in Sudan? It's a slippery slope to say I somehow earned the right to be born in the U.S. One changed outcome in the lottery of life and I'm not so different from anyone else on this planet after all.

I recently visited Dachau, the site of one of the first concentration camps of the Nazi regime. There is no way to accurately and succinctly describe everything that happened there. How is it that one group of men determined that others were below them based solely on race, based solely on one outcome in the lottery of life? It scares me to think of what judgments may be meted out based on the lot I've received, and conversely what judgments I may pass because of the lot another has received.


While I doubt (and hope) that most of us will not be involved in decisions similar to those made during the Holocaust, I'm convinced that we can improve our lives and the lives of those around us by consciously thinking about the lottery in our everyday decision making process. Doing so makes it easier to put ourselves in their shoes. Think of how different the world could be! What if members of the SS could have easily seen themselves being born to Jewish parents? Would they be so quick to persecute a Jewish boy?

When I think of all the opportunities I've been afforded in my life, I figure I owe it to society to dish out some opportunities of my own. The distribution of wealth across the globe really is rather disturbing. That should mean something for those of us who find ourselves on the higher end.

I'm not suggesting that we all embrace communism or give away all we have. I'm not suggesting that we shouldn't seek to better our own lives and increase our level of comfort. What I am suggesting is that we consider the number of lotteries that, if changed, would put us in someone else's shoes. I like to think 1 or 2 would do the trick. Take my childhood and put it in a low-income, single-parent family. Or in a war zone. I may not be so different from the person I'm judging. Maybe my judgment is just. Maybe they really do deserve their misfortune because of their misdeeds, but I'm not convinced that's my judgment to make. It's hard for me to justify spending thousands of dollars to enjoy being a pilot, and then determine a beggar doesn't deserve my change. I may feel I've earned my full-tuition scholarship, but donating a portion of that to the Perpetual Education Fund seems a wiser investment.

Of course, money can be a touchy subject, and there are rarely universal guidelines that everyone can apply. This doctrine of life's lotteries transcends the realm of dollars and cents however. How would relationships change if we gave each other the benefit of the doubt? We're quick to judge others without understanding the big picture. Indeed, the full picture can never be understood by another; we can never know every detail of another's life that has brought him or her to this point. Judgments must be made, but we should make them conservatively. Imagine if the lotteries of life had dealt us a worse hand. Maybe our life is hard too, but there are enough bad things out there that we likely have not experienced them all. Divorce? Abuse? Poverty? Childhood trauma? Our relationships with people could be much stronger if we didn't jump to judge and gave them the benefit of the doubt.

I'm far from perfect in this area and many could describe me as a hypocrite if I didn't say that I need to work on this as much as anyone else. Writing about it forces me to think about it, and thinking about it is what forces me to change my habits. Publishing something also creates within us a sense of responsibility and accountability that would be lost if we simply discarded our thoughts. I can't foretell the outcomes of these lotteries of life, but I can resolve to treat those around me better, regardless of circumstance.

Insecurity by obscurity

Today, many people who own a computer don't have a clue about its "inner workings". We're content to let our programs run without worrying about the 1's and 0's running around inside. Unfortunately, when we plugged these systems into the Internet a decade or so ago, we set ourselves up to be attacked by those "in the know". All forms of malware programs began to surface, and some are just as insidious today.

I deem this concept "insecurity by obscurity", a play on the "security by obscurity" mindset often found in IT departments. The obscurity of how a computer works and how programs execute leads us to make poor decisions in how we interact with the Internet. We unknowingly or mistakingly download and execute dangerous programs. We are lulled into believing a password box has our best interests at heart. If we can't see what we're typing, how could anyone else?

Security experts continue to combat these forms of malware, but the total solution involves empowering computer users with the knowledge they need. There has been progress in this area with viruses and spyware becoming household terms (and therefore virus scanners and spyware removers following suit) but my fear is that we will constantly be one step behind in securing the information and assets that exist on our own computers.

I could talk about this all day

One of my favorite quotes that comes from taking a course is "we could take a whole semester to cover just this topic". Please let me know the course number for that course so I can be sure NOT to take it. If I'm bored within 30 seconds of talking about it, the last thing I want to do is take a course that covers it for a whole semester.

Yeah you can cover our song, just don't do a good job

The Romantics are suing Activision Inc., the makers of Guitar Hero, for making a song sound too close to their original recording.

Activision legally purchased the rights to cover the song. Apparently, they just forgot that they weren't supposed to do a good job covering the song. As fans or guitar heroes, we wouldn't want the song to sound like the original, now would we? Never mind that the game that The Romantics may try to take off the shelf will actually increase exposure of their song and probably increase their profits. Never mind what it says about a song if it's so easily reproducible in a cover.

So next time, Activision, when you're covering such a basic song, be sure to miss a few notes or mess up a few words. Instead of saying "That's what I like about you", maybe you could say "That's what you hate about me". Or maybe "That's what I hate about The Romantics".

You have discovered open-source software

It really is amazing how much things have changed in the past two decades. Names such as Microsoft, Apple, Novell, and Netscape were either nonexistent or just beginning to develop. It raises the question: how long will these companies stick around? Some have already seen signs of weakening or acquisition such as Novell and Netscape. Microsoft and Apple have become household names, but some have suggested this may not be the case in the future. Some analysts have even suggested that Google, while in its glory days now, may not always be so prevalent.

One interesting phenomenon of our time is open-source software. It's really quite amazing that virtual communities have flourished and come together to develop software such as Apache and Linux for free. In a way, these are the Picassos and Michaelangelos of our time, contributing to the culture of our society.

I have to say that I am somewhat biased on the subject of open-source software. Over half of my working experience has been in supporting commercial software for a business as well as a university. I have also recently accepted an offer to work for Microsoft. So I obviously feel there is merit to the idea of corporate development of software.

The real questions have to do with what will come next. My roommates and I have enjoyed playing Civilization IV as of late. In that game, you go through the technologies of history and it says things like "You have discovered combustion" or "You have discovered computers". What will be discovered next? We have seen serfdom, slavery, communism, and capitalism. The Economist alluded to the potential of open-source production to replace capitalist methods we see today, and not only in software. Will we ever be at the point where all software will be developed and distributed for free?

Perhaps I'm just not a visionary, but it's hard for me to see. I think a lot of great things have come and will continue to come out of the open-source movement. Many improvements in technology or software come from individual or collective genius, which lends itself well to volunteers in the open-source community. However, other technological breakthroughs require an R&D budget of a corporation. Some in the open-source community get this budget from other corporations in an attempt to subvert Microsoft or other companies. If you were to take away these capitalistic intricacies, then what?

The bottom line, for me at least, is that if it weren't for the compensation of a company, I couldn't see myself creating software. How long can innovation continue without compensation? Who knows - some may argue that because I feel this way, I shouldn't even be involved in the software development process. Maybe they're right. If not though, think of all the technology that we would lose by not rewarding the innovators.

Looks like I'll remain a capitalist for now. I just hope that doesn't hurt me later in the game when another civilization discovers the next form of production...

Ring of Light of Death Revisited

I mentioned my Xbox woes in a previous blog post. After 2 years of faithful service, my roommate's Xbox 360 has encountered the same blinking red lights as mine did. Somehow we went from a situation where we were supposed to have 2 Xbox 360s to a situation where we have none.

The odds of two failing within a couple weeks of each other seem slim, right? It seems like there must be something wrong with what we are doing... But his lasted for 2 years... But wait! Then I remember that everyone at UPS knows the box and Microsoft has lost over $1 billion in repairing the consoles.

Anyway, we'll be Xboxless for 2 weeks or so. Guess it's time to be social... with someone who has an Xbox.

WTH?

Yeah that's right, I'm the creator of "WTH".

Too often these days we let slip a WT* (in this case * represents a letter between E and G, but I won't post it here because of the profane nature of the letter). I'm not a vulgar person, so I tend to throw out a "WTH" when necessary. It's still not pretty, especially when H is used for hell as opposed to heck, but it's at least an acronym I could feel comfortable saying around my mom.

For the overly conscious, I also offer the derivative WTW (what in the world) which I have also been known to use on occasion.

Halo vs. Hollywood

I know it's already been brought up before but I just think it's interesting that Hollywood execs are blaming low box office sales on the release of Halo 3. Granted, some estimates have put Halo 3's revenue at over $300 million. That's a significant chunk of the entertainment change that the box office relies on.

What I don't get is the assumption of the overlap. Do many people consider Halo 3 as a replacement for all other entertainment? What about movies in particular? I think I'm more inclined to agree with this assessment posted by "Jonathan". Yes, a video game could keep people from going to the movies. But bad movies, bad plots, and bad advertising can also keep people from going to the movies. Heartbreak Kid with Ben Stiller seems to be the poster child of movies that were "robbed" by Halo. Maybe it wasn't Halo. Maybe it's related to the fact that every time I saw a commercial for the movie, I reaffirmed my decision not to go see it in theaters.

I won't try to recreate the satirical pro-Halo 3 viewpoint, despite how tempting it may be. I just think that if they are worried that the 18 to 34-year-old male demographic has been swayed away from theaters, just come out with a decent flick. I think we all could have found $8 and 3 hours away from our couch to see something like Bourne Ultimatum, had it come out in October.

The UPS Store

I forgot to mention in my last post that when I went to the UPS store to ship off my brand-new-broken Xbox, someone walked in right behind me who was also shipping one. The store employee said something to the effect of "yeah we've had a lot of these go out in the last couple of weeks." When I shipped some things back from Washington back in August, someone was there shipping one off as well and the store employee said the same thing. Is it just me or should a store that specializes in shipping all shapes and sizes of boxes not be able to recognize that there is a particularly high concentration of a certain type of box? To say nothing of being able to identify it as an Xboxbox...

Ring of Light of Death

I succumbed to the temptation of those around me. I bought an Xbox 360. Some would consider it an impulse buy. There was some buyer's remorse. But when I plugged it in and turned it on and saw the welcome splash screen, that all went away. I navigated around the menus of my newfound toy.

I went to the system tab. It's the first tab to check out when you're a nerd. First option, set system time. Set the month, set the day, set the year, set the hour. Set the minute and the Xbox froze. Turn off the Xbox, turn it back on. Three flashing red lights.
After talking to India, they told me what I could expect on the repair process. It would take 3-4 weeks. This is what is annoying to me. With most other defective things that you buy, you can return them to the store to get a new one. Not with video game consoles (at least with most stores). And they won't just send me a new one. The console is treated as any other console under warranty. They first attempt to repair it before giving you a new one.

In the meantime, my buyer's remorse is back, and I have nothing to soothe my open wound. I've spent $xxx just so I could wait a month to use the product. Something needs to change with their policies so that a person doesn't have to buy a console and wait a month to use it.

And what recompense do I get for my inconvenience? A month's subscription to Xbox LIVE. Approximate retail value? $5. They have a funny way of measuring my inconvenience.

Oh don't mind that, it's just my bulging tricep

Those who know me know that I enjoy playing a few songs on Guitar Hero now and again. So after a 4 day hiatus, including a vacation to California, MackAck invited me to play a few songs. But I couldn't. I was terrible. I tried to "5-star" Aerosmith's "Same Old Song and Dance" but to no avail. Had I lost my touch? Granted, I'm not the best fake guitar player out there (2741st the last time I checked) but this is something that should have been within my reach.

It wasn't until the next day that I figured out what the problem was. My fingering dexterity had been jeopardized by a workout session in California. We went to the gym, and I worked my triceps. They were sore for days. The next day I woke up and played the same song before class and got 5 stars on the first try. Whew... still got it.

Those who know that I enjoy Guitar Hero most likely also know that I don't work out regularly. It's a habit I need to acquire... if only I didn't hate it so much. Here I am, faced with the dilemma. The more I work out, the worse I am at Guitar Hero. It's yet another embodiment of the principle of jocks vs. nerds. Which side should I choose?

MP3s

Copyright protection has gone too far in the digital domain. My ideal situation is one where all my digital media is available on my computer. I should be able to instantaneously access any piece of digital media that I "own". I have done what I can to rip all my CDs into music files on my computer. I have organized all my photos from my digital camera and even scanned several dozen hard copy photographs. But digital rights management has gone too far.

The business model for media companies needs to be revamped. We're now at the point where making a copy of a DVD on my computer can be considered illegal, regardless of what I plan to do with it, thanks to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998. Therefore, putting videos I own on my computer, or making a backup of a DVD in case of future damage, is a legal risk. What we need is not more copy-protection techniques and technologies. What we need is a paradigm shift.

I agree with Orson Scott Card when he says that America will do the right thing if we embrace business practices that will support the artists while relaxing copy protection. Of all my music purchases in the last year, about 80% can be attributed to a preliminary screening where a friend gave me an MP3 file. I'm against circumventing copyright law, but I'm all for word-of-mouth advertising. And in some cases, that means sharing an MP3.

Vampire Electronics

CNN reported on vampire electronics, which are devices that consume electricity even when in an "off" state. The state is really more of a standby state, in which some functionality still draws power such as clocks, timers, etc. With 5% of electricity going to "standby power" it's time to think about what really needs it. How many clocks do we need? DVD players, microwaves, ovens, and cable boxes act as clocks. Some of these devices could be unplugged or better yet have an actual "off" state that does not consume power. Or maybe we should invest in the electric companies and let rising electricity prices put away a nice nest egg for retirement!

Where have all the women gone?

I've often wondered why there seem to be so few women that graduate from the Computer Science program in our university. Of course, there are so few that even start in the program, but even fewer that finish. While I'm sure many men don't finish as well, the numbers are not as obvious.

One temptation is to use some variation of the "girls play with dolls, boys play with trucks" argument. I think this really does have some universal application but I'm hesitant to say how far-reaching. Just because there are stereotypes or general inclinations doesn't mean we should follow them. I've met enough girls who are great with logic, math, computers and have what it takes to "do all things computer science." Working in my last job, I was so happy that there were such great women on our teams who brought amazing perspectives and balance that would have otherwise been severely lacking.

The way I see it, many women may shy away from being in an environment that I often don't enjoy myself. We should spend more time on the concepts and on the logic. Some candidates on which to spend less time? Talking about favorite Linux distros. Bashing/praising Microsoft/Apple/Linux. Casually mentioning that vi is NP-complete.

I think the reason that the major is so unbalanced is that the number of male nerds in one room has reached critical mass, which causes a chain reaction making the room unsuitable for normal human life. In a situation where women are already swimming upstream, we're filling the stream with quirkiness and geekiness and social awkwardness that really isn't necessary. Let's take it back to basics and change the classroom back into a place that fosters normal human interaction and learning.

Online gaming addicting?

There's no doubt that playing games online with other people is more "addicting" than playing by yourself. This doesn't apply just to video games. Any entertaining activity that can be changed to involve other people adds a new level of excitement and keeps people coming back for more. In the case of games, it adds to the replay value - the game becomes as dynamic as people are dynamic. Gone are the days of static, repeatable content. (Those who have actually played MMORPGs may disagree with that last statement!)

No surprise then, that a recent study found MMORPG players spent more time playing in a given week than other control groups with less-enthralling games. The part that worries me is the trade-off described - the players were happier with the gaming experience though less healthy. We need to control the amount of time we dedicate to any one activity, regardless of whether or not we are addicted. Without moderation and balance, we suffer the inevitable consequences of reduced physical, spiritual, and social health.

Security vs. Functionality

Imagine a world found only in science fiction novels or movies. In this world, almost any piece of information is readily available through the ubiquitous computer. What distinguishes our world from this world? Obviously, new developments in information technology, data retrieval methods, and human-computer interaction will make this more of a reality. But what about privacy and security?

In many cases, I believe the technology exists now but we are holding ourselves back. We are cautious to make information more available because we worry about the security and privacy of that data. In our world where acronyms such as PII (Personally Identifiable Information) and SOX (Sarbanes-Oxley Act) have become buzzwords, technology professionals know that just because data can be made available, doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. Our fear of hackers, phishers, and social engineering keeps us from benefiting from technological advances.

Ultimately, this is a good thing. Networks and the Internet are based on trust. If we can't trust that our information will be protected in an environment, we won't invest the resources to set up that environment. Take, for example, the idea of storing our medical records in a centrally available location. I think everyone would agree that it would be great to have that information readily accessible by any doctor to whom you grant access. However, we'd also agree that our medical records should not be accessible by anyone else. That causes some problems in the design and implementation of a good idea.

This is why I think we've seen less technological innovation in the data realm than we otherwise would have. The fear of hackers, viruses, and insecure data destroys trust - the very trust necessary to establish new environments to store and share data in new ways. The technology is there, and the innovation is abundant, but the trust takes time and resources to foster. We'd have a lot more personal information available if we could trust it would be used properly.

Storing and integrating personal information into the stream of public information available on the Internet is an interesting problem we face today regarding trust. As more people are equipping themselves with personal digital assistants of all types, innovation will lead to PDAs that are truly "assistants" in every sense of the word. They will be able to assist in making decisions because all information necessary will be available to them. Not sure what to have for breakfast? A check of your past meals plus your dietetic analysis could make a suggestion. Worried about where your daughter is? GPS coordinates translated and relayed to you could put your mind at ease. To these examples, our minds scream, "What about security and privacy!?" Those are valid trust issues that we need to solve. Or else, we forfeit amazing, innovative advances in technology.

There is good news. We do move forward. It's rare for a bank today to not have an online presence, thereby making its information available. Social networking sites continue to spread using their viral appeal. Let's hope that this trust continues to grow (without ignoring security) and innovation will not be stifled by fear.

MyFamilySpace

We live in a world where technology enhances what we do. Conversely, if technology doesn't enhance a particular area, it becomes antiquated. Fortunately, technology has significantly enhanced genealogical research.

Social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook have made it easy to stay in touch with those we care about... if they're alive. The easier it is to stay in touch with a group of people, the harder it is with all others. Thankfully, sites such as FamilySearch have made it easy to "stay in touch" with those who have passed on. Good thing too. Otherwise, we'd see a lot less family history research these days.

So it's easy to stay in touch with our Facebook friends, and our kindred dead... who's left? Time to get grandma an email account... before she becomes antiquated.

Facebook API

This year Facebook opened up their APIs to the world and challenged everyone to build custom applications. In this way, users could add what they felt was missing functionality. This leads to some really cool possibilities in rapid application development (RAD), many of which we see in mashup-creating sites such as Microsoft Popfly.

However, the problem I have with this system is best shown in a graphical format (to the right). It seems every time I login to Facebook, I have to decline requests to add applications.

Facebook has introduced a technological "advancement" and now it's up to us to deal with it, like it or not. I really do like the idea but I hope that Facebook will innovate a better management solution than this.

The who? Oh the Therac-25.

I had never heard of the Therac-25 until this week. What an intriguing story to read and to learn from! It's common knowledge that software has bugs, but what is interesting in this case is the exclusion of software as the culprit in initial investigations. Hardware malfunction was the assumption from the beginning. Only in later examinations was it found that there were serious software defects.

Critical safety software today still may have some bugs in it, although hopefully not of this magnitude. I imagine companies are better about extensively reviewing the software, just as they do the hardware. Still, the responsibility ultimately lies with the programmer to do everything possible to build safety into the software design and the software itself.

That can be tricky for newer programmers who often sacrifice safety for time. Perhaps it stems from the university mindset that when the program compiles and runs, it is complete. If better software design principles were incorporated in university courses, maybe the caliber of software produced in industry would increase.

Now to convince students that every "hello world" program could result in damage to property or loss of life...

The Biggest Entertainment Event of the Year

What event could prompt my roommate to plan a month in advance to request a week off work, and spark a 14-day countdown until that time? A vacation in the tropics? Not quite. A religious holiday? Getting closer. It's the long-awaited Halo 3 release.

I love video games. I remember waiting for some of my favorite games (also the 3rd part of a series) such as Super Mario Bros. 3, Final Fantasy III, and Mega Man 3, and enjoying them in their 8-bit and 16-bit glories. A lot has changed in the past 20 years. The third installment of the Halo series is expected to bring in $150 million the first day. It's more than any film or TV premiere. These games are no longer sitting on the sidelines of the entertainment playing field. They're the main players.

What is most intriguing about Halo 3 and similar games is the replay value, particularly online. The amount of man-hours that will be allocated to Xbox LIVE in the name of Halo will be in the billions.

It's too late to discuss whether or not the investment is worth it. The game is here and billions of hours will be spent. It's up to us to decide how we will react individually. Only recently has mankind had the resources (particularly time) to live a second life in a virtual world. Balance is the key.

So let's evaluate our time budget and make sure we're not neglecting our primary life (the one that doesn't plug in to the wall). Then once we're done, we'll grab some game fuel and join in on the action...

Selfish Technologies?

In the past century, technology has made life much more convenient, and for that I am deeply grateful. I don't know how I would live without the modern conveniences and luxuries to which I have grown so accustomed. They make me much more productive. However, I often find the following equation to be true: increased productivity equals increased free time equals increased time in front of the TV (or insert other indulgences here). The question is how do we use these technologies in a way that keeps us from being selfish and spiritually lacking?

For the answer, I turn to my grandpa. After working for several decades as an ophthalmologist, he could have retired and retreated from the world. However, his interest in technology helped him to remain current in relevant medical knowledge. This allowed him to serve two medical missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He spent nearly two years in Ghana, teaching individuals how to perform cataract surgery in a nation plagued by blindness. He later spent a year in South Africa as Area Medical Advisor. To this day he freely serves his neighbors in any way he can.

My grandpa often remarks, "What would my parents think if they saw that I can press a button inside my car and my garage door opens?" Good question. What would my great-grandparents think if they saw how I use technology? Would they be impressed with how much good I accomplish or would they be full of sorrow at the sight of spiritual depravity? Hopefully the former, but I suspect that dichotomy exists within each of us.

Technology is not something to be shunned in the name of spiritual development. Nevertheless, we must embrace it in a way that not only better serves ourselves, but enables us to better serve our fellow men. That will be one of the true tests of mankind in the 21st century.

The Cost of Convenient Data

The digital age has put information at our fingertips in unprecedented amounts and at unprecedented speeds. It's the reason why I can write this blog post while listening to any subset of the songs in my library, without getting up to find a new CD. (tape? record?) I can browse through all of my photos without removing the old Rubbermaid tub from the closet and searching for the album I want.

Neil Postman pointed out that "culture always pays a price for technology." What price do we pay for this convenience? Desensitization. Just over 20 years ago, the space shuttle Challenger disintegrated and time stopped. In 2003, Columbia disintegrated on re-entry and it made its way in and out of everyone's RSS feeds for a couple weeks. Even on September 11, 2001 - arguably the day with the largest historical impact thus far in my life - my day was relatively routine.

Cost/benefit analysis? As long as a few keystrokes allow me to listen to Debussy rather than finding the 8-track (and the 8-track player?), the benefits outweigh the costs. However, society needs a way to "re-sensitize." My guess is that this will happen on an individual level, rather than societal. For me, I take a step back from the constant stream of information and realize the magnitude of the events transpiring around me. Then I plug myself back in.