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H1B workers

Ξ May 28th, 2009 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Blog |

US: H-1B workers outnumber unemployed techies

The Burbs on the Holiday Weekend

Ξ May 26th, 2009 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Blog |

Momorial Day Weekend is always a big event on Long Island. It marks the beginning of the Summer Season. Long Island kind of rocks all summer long. We have tons of beaches, BBQ’s, Lakes, Fishing, Boating, Hiking, Biking .. etc.

We had a great weekend. On Friday, we spent some time with some of my old High School friends in Flushing. We sat outside around the ol’ chiminea (outdoor fireplace), had a beer or two and smoked expensive cigars. It was great company and we didn’t get home till close to 3:30 in the morning. It was nice to get together with the boys.
Also this year, Rosie and I jumped on the Bridgeport Port Jefferson Ferry and took the quick trip to Ct. from our house. We BBQ’d, sat around other outdoor chimineas and went to the beach there over the weekend, and came back on the ferry Sunday Night.

I have to say, I really enjoyed the outdoor fireplaces, so on Monday, we picked one up ourselves. They aren’t terribly expensive, we got this one. I set it up last night, and sat out in the backyard next to my fire under the stars. It was quite nice.

DC3 Challenge

Ξ May 26th, 2009 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Blog, GeekSpeak |

For the last few semesters, I’ve been in the same class with a few other fellows. We’ve decided to undertake the DC3 Challenge this year. It seems like it’ll be a fun project to work on.

School - Summer Session 1 (Linux Systems Programming)

Ξ May 26th, 2009 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Blog |

I’m taking Linux Systems Programming over the summer this year.  I’m trying to finish up my course work by the end of the Spring Semester.  Judging by the the syllabus for the class, it will be quite an educational Summer.  I have a lot of experience as a UNIX/Linux C programmer, but we will be covering some interesting topics including pipes, sockets, shells, signals, etc.   I’m really looking forward to this, it should be quite interesting.

Russian Hackers

Ξ May 22nd, 2009 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Blog |

worth a read:Outlaw Legends: Secrets of Russian Hackers

I keep saying that Russian and Chinese hackers are getting away with a lot more then they should. Nobody in the US is hacking anymore; perhaps we need a few good technical people here to start hitting back.

LI Ducks Baseball

Ξ May 20th, 2009 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Blog |

I went to my very first Long Island Ducks baseball game last night. They play in the town of Central Islip, a few towns away from us. While the Ducks are a professional baseball team, they are not apart of the MLB, you can check out the wikipedia on them which describes it a little better. Anyway, I had a great time. The ballpark was small enough that every seat in the house was a good one. You felt like you were right on top of the game. One of the nicest ballparks I’ve ever been in. I think I may actually like the Ducks better then the bigger NY teams (Mets/Yankees). The players probably aren’t on steroids. I’d started losing interest in MLB when all the steroid alligations started becoming public. MLB’s position of wrist slapping peeves me off. Players caught using steroids should be banned from the game. Period. We watch the sport because they are supposed to be the best athletes playing a stratigic game. Anyone can take performance enhancers. It’s cheating and it’s an unfair advantage.

Watching the Ducks play, one gets nostalgic for old time baseball. When players played because they loved the game, not because they were going to make millions in endorcement deals. These guys aren’t getting millions of dollars playing ball, but they play hard and they are good. If you like baseball, the tickets are cheap (in the $10-$15 range) and it’s a nice evening out. Here’s the Schedule, if you’re interested in taking in a game let me know, I’ll go with you. I’ll probably take my parents to a few games this year too. I think they’d like it. My Dad is a baseball (Yankees) nut. He loves a good game. Mom enjoys watching too.

home ownership

Ξ May 18th, 2009 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Blog |

The last few weeks have somewhat surprised me.  I’ve become quite the do-it-yourselfer.  Painting, cutting molding, patio furniture, cleaning gutters, potting plants, etc.  There are endless little jobs to do around the house.  It’s actually kind of fun.  It makes me feel creative.  I’ve watched a lot less TV since we’ve moved in.

Another thing I’ve taken to is sitting out in the yard.  It.s so peaceful out there.  It’s kind of like being in your own little world.  I’ve got to get a bar-b-queue and a fire pit.  critical path.

Long Island

Ξ May 13th, 2009 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Blog |

So far, I think we made the right decision to live out here.  The people are friendly, we haven’t encountered much traffic, and the shopping is great.  We’re acclimating quite well I think.  We have a grill and outdoor furniture coming tomorrow, and we’ve just gotten a landscaper to keep things looking neat and clean.  We’re still living out of boxes and still have to bring everything from our storage unit out, but overall it’s been nice.  I’m growing to love the place.

The commute  seems to be what everyone asks about.  It’s not bad actually.  the LIRR is VERY comfortable.  I jump on, and either read or do something like .. blog .. for instance.  Sometimes I fall asleep.  Honestly, the worst part of my commute is between Penn Station and 50th street & 5th Avenue.  I’ve been trying different ways to make that part better.  I’m going to try the M4 bus today.  It leaves me a block from work.  Getting to midtown takes about 1 hour.

Anywho, I’m gonna take a nap now.  ttyl

Dell Mini Vs. Aspire ONE

Ξ May 6th, 2009 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Blog, GeekSpeak |

My job gave me a Dell Mini.  It has a built in broadband card, and overall I have some good things to day about it.  The Gents I work with all put Mac OS X on theirs, but I slapped Umbutu Linux on mine.  I figured it would be easier to update the latest software, and also take advantage of a ton of software repositories.  Overall I give it good grades.  I also have an Acer Aspire One netbook.  There are  pro’s and con’s to each of them.

1) the Acer Aspire ONE has a MUCH nicer keyboard.  It seems a little more cramped at first, but once you get used to it, it’s fairly easy to deal with.  One of the better features is the ability to turn off the mouse pad with a function key (Fn F7 I think).  When you use these small Keyboards, your thumb will eventually hit the mouse pad and your curser will end up on another part of the screen.  This doesn’t seem like a big deal until it happens to you a few times per email or document you write.

2) The Dell Mini has a built in broadband card.  It’s nice not having to carry an external one around in my bag.  That  being said, the external one I have is quite a bit faster.

3) The Acer has 120GB Disk space, the Dell Mini has about 32GB disk space.  That being said, because of the Dell Solid State drive, it boots much faster.  It just doesnt hold much.

Another semester in the can

Ξ May 6th, 2009 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Blog |

School finished up this week.  Just a few more classes till I finish up.  This semester was quite good.  I learned a ton about Java programming, and I can actually say I feel fairly proficient at it.  What really made the semester is the group of fellows in the class.  This is our second semester together.  Each Tuesday we’d meet up for a few beers.  I definitely needed that.  Many of us are in a Linux course over the summer together too.  I look forward to tossing down a few more brews.