The Grey Shadow

If you forgive me the obviousness, you may have already heard that somewhere else that “common sense is the least common of all senses”. As far as popular wisdom goes, this saying is usually right; but there are two special corollaries:

1. Proposition is specially true in all commercial/business environments; and
2. Proposition is uniquely true in regards to computing.

I don’t have anything to add now to corollary 1. Why is that common sense is so rare in business? Why is that all kinds of weird nonsense gets respect as “business plans” in the corporate world? I don’t know. Maybe because, as some have pointed out, the skills required by the corporate world border on sociopathy. But I do not want to discuss this, at least not now.

The other corollary, however, deserves some attention. Computing is supposedly an area where the best and brightest would reign, and, therefore, the choices made by IT people would be the best ones given the circumstances, right? Yeah, right. The prevalence of Microsoft Windows and Internet Explorer alone belies that.

Therefore, I am planning some posts (at least two) where I would like to examine how current choices in computing defy common sense and, therefore, are paving the way for failure, or for more difficulties. And no, I won’t talk necessarily about Windows or IE; that would be just too obvious. I plan to talk about two issues that are the current fad or are being part of it:

• Cloud computing
• System resources

Stay tuned!

You might remember that I called your attention to Tim’s insightful piece, “The Hidden Danger of Peacemakers“. In response to that, I wrote two opinion pieces. The first one is online at OfB, and you can check it out: When Jerks Abuse an Organization. It was also picked up by VarLinux.org. Food for thought.

Time goes on, and with it, new software releases come and go. So, I think it is appropriate to comment on some software I use. Let’s see:

My GNU/Linux distribution: Slackware. After all these years, I am still a Slackware user. If anything has taught me on Linux distributions during this time, is that Slackware’s stability, speed and ease of use are unmatched. The plus is that is the closest thing to having real Unix running on your box.

In fact, many would be surprised to see Slackware considered “easy-to-use”. Believe me: it is. It is very simple, and while making mistakes might be easy, recovering from the is usually very easy, too. All the defaults are sensible, and almost every software package is untouched and unpatched from the pristine sources upstream. I began using Slackware in version 9.0. The last version I used, version 13.0, was a great one; and right now I am using Slackware-current, the “development” series. Despite being in the cutting edge, -current is surprisingly stable and simple. Slackware is nowhere near perfect, but it is clearly among the best GNU/Linux distributions.

My desktop environment: KDE. I begain to use KDE with the 1.1.x release that came with Red Hat 6.2, back in 2000. I liked it a lot, but it wasn’t adequate to my desktop needs, yet. I took a new look at it when the project relesed version 2.1, and I was instantly hooked. I began to use it as my only desktop environment, and it has been so ever since. When the KDE community released version 4.0, that was a difficult point; I reverted to 3.5 until 4.1 was ready; but then, I used 4.1 and 4.2, and was generally pleased. Now I am using 4.3, and I think it is an excellent environment. Additionally, I began to help the project as a Spanish translator since version 2.2, because I wanted to give back to it.

Screenshot of KDE 4.3 on my computer

My blog software: WordPress. I began to use WordPress back at version 1.2; the latest version I’m using is 2.9, and it’s still a great platform.

I don’t plan to change this stack sometime soon. Right now, KDE SC 4.4 is right around the corner, and I am awaiting it with eager anticipation.

Tim, in a recent blog post, has tackled a subject that touches a sensitive area of Web surfing: ads, and the ethical validity of blocking them. The issue is that an increasing number of Web surfers are taking advantage of ad blocking techniques. For Firefox and Seamonkey there is the well-known Ad Block Plus extension. Internet Explorer can do it with the inPrivate mode. And Konqueror can block ads, too. (And way before, we had Junkbusters). Suffice it to say, the issue of blocking Web ads is not recent.

This is an important question, because advertising is, in many cases, the sole source of revenue for webmasters of many informative and useful Web sites; and even if it is not, it is an important source of income that alleviates the cost of bandwith, equipment, and many other expenses involved in making available online content.

On the other hand, Web ads are clearly annoying to many; that’s why ad blockers are so popular today, and that’s also the reason why many less-than-reputable advertising networks are in a perennial arms race with ad blocking softare, with each one trying to outdo the other.

1. And this points out the main reason why most people try to block ads: they are annoying, yes, written in bold letters. While the initial Web banner ad was generally nice, it began to be annoying because of the cheesy animations… and it has been downhill ever since. The size has changed —they are bigger— and ads became generally more and more and more annoying. We began to see ads in Flash, ads that incorporated sound, ads that broke HTML standards compliance, interstitials, and so on. We have now those stupid moving ads, blinking, appearing in pop-ups, flashing, and making noises. Don’t ever get me started on inappropriate ads, those of the NSFW kind, that too many times have appeared on supposedly safe sites.

2. Another problem with the use of the ads is the ad networks. If ads were just a linked element from the same Web site offering the advertisement, that would not be a problem. However, they usually come from ad networks; and believe me, the enormous lag they add to navigation is, in some cases, unbearable. The pun that says that the World Wide Web became the World Wide Wait is the responsibility, in great part, of ad networks. Just think of it yourself. How many times have you stared to a blank page of a site, supposedly loading? You wait, and wait, and wait… that is, until you decide to enable ad blocking and them all of the site loads like a charm. The ad networks would like to serve ads in your site, right, but the performance of their servers is downright abysmal.

3. Finally, another reason why so many people choose to block Web ads is privacy. By using cookies —third party cookies— Big Ad Network Brother is able to track your surfing habits; they can learn that you have browsed OverthrowGovernment.com as many times as you have browsed MyLocalNews.net. They can learn about your sex, your age, your preferences, and other information that can be potentially all linked back to you. This bulk of data is used to serve ads that are “relevant” to you (yeah, right), and also is sold to any interested party.

I really don’t know why is that the state of Web advertising became so terrible. People is fond of comparing online media to printed media; but you open a magazine and the ads down there don’t blink at you, or require extraneous plugins (Flash), or make annoying noises, nor make a scan of what you read and then phone home… you get my idea? And ad rates in printed mags are usually way higher than Web ads! that’s right: the advertisements pay much less in the Web for the latitude of being more invasive than ever.

Because of all these reasons, I have ad blockers available on all my graphical browsers. Note that I said “available”, not “enabled”. When a Webpage becomes too annoying, I enable ad blocking, and I can continue browsing with no problem at all. However, I recongnize that this is not a definitive solution.

Whan should we do when confronting this reality? Should we move to a “walled-garden” model (i.e., subscription model with no ads?). In my opinion, the walled-garden approach is never a good one. Under this approach, I think a Webmaster would stand a far lesser chance of making decent money from a Web site. In addition, the epic freedom of information and the global exchange of ideas would end, taking with it the chief reason why people surf the Web today. In extremis, the Web would implode and die.

We must recognize, then, that the only way that stands any chance of long-term feasibility is so far the persistence of Web advertising. However, if this alternative is to be fully realized without the widespread blocking of today, Web ads must evolve. They must load fast, should not impose an unreasonable load in system resources (such as is the case with Javascript-laden ads, heavy images, Flash or other plugins, etc.), should not be annoying, should be appropriate, and should be far more respectful of end-user privacy; and all of this, while representing solidly the message the advertiser wants to be delivered. But it looks like we are just too far behind on realizing this dream…

So, what should one do to cope with annoying help ads? Here is some advice taken from my personal experience.

1. Block all plugins by default. Enable them on-demand only. Especially, do not forget to install the Flashblock extension in Firefox, and enable on-demand only loading in Konqueror. Really; Adobe Flash is the scourge of the Web and, besides YouTube, I did not see too many useful examples of it. However, there are valid exceptions and that’s why I am not advising its uninstallation. Keep it around, but restrained. In this way, you will block all annoying Flash-based ads, while still retaining the ability to use the technology when it is really appropriate. Do this with a clear conscience. I feel no pity for advertisers who feel that it is their right to abuse your system resources, annoy you with sound, or put you at risk from Flash malware just for the privilege of showing you an ad. If they want to show us an advertisement, let that be in plain HTML.

2. Block third-party cookies. In this way, you prevent Big Brother advertisers from stealing your personal data while you still allow the parent site to set cookies that might be useful for site navigation.

3. If the animations are becoming just too annoying, disable them. Firefox, if I remember correctly, has a setting where animations are allowed to cycle once and then stop. But Konqueror in this case is the best: animations are allowed; but there is always a right-click setting of “Stop animations”. In that way, animations are allowed until they become too annoying, and then they can be stopped on demand by a right-click.

4. Finally, if all else fails, you may resort to ad-blocking; but remember, the Webmaster depends on the income of the ads to maintain the site. Consider leaving the site if you find the ads unbearable.

The issue of Web ads is really complex, as I have tried to show here. Let’s pray that the advertising industry —an industry known for its lack of values, their ruthlessness and their extreme greed— begin to use some common sense, and choose to behave.

As a flip-side piece to my 2009 evaluation post, I would like to set some things that I should take into account regarding the year 2010:

In the personal side, it is clearly evident that I should become more careful about my own health. It is also clear that I should do this not only because of myself, but because I am a steward of God’s creation of my own body, and because I am indebted to people who love me and appreciate me. It is going to be a tough effort, no doubt; but I should do it nonetheless.

Regarding work, it is clear that I should go look for a better job. This would include a better-paying day job, and also see whether I can improve on my translation practice. A tough call, again.

In my studies, I have several goals, but the most important of these is to try to keep as high as GPA as possible and to read as much as I can.

As for the computer stuff, it looks like this year is going to be interesting in both Slackware and KDE fronts. I just converted the laptop to Slackware-current, and so far it’s great.

Finally, I should improve my spiritual life, in church attendance and in devotional practice.

All in all, this is just a small sample of what I see ahead for me in 2010. Please keep me in your prayers.

Tim recently wrote a great piece at Open for Business. He tells about the hidden danger posed by people trying to transform church discipline into just another feel-happy church program. Definitely worth a read and your careful consideration: The Hidden Danger of Peacemakers.

Oh my. 2009 was such a year! It was a year full of news good and not so good, and it came and went in style, but all was so hectic! But I digress. The year 2009 was a year full of blessings, challenges, and opportunities and one more reason to be able to give thanks to the Lord.

In the work front, things were not so easy. I got a much needed raise; but falling U.S. Dollar prices and a serious threat of cuts in our fundings reminded me of how unstable my position is despite the good efforts of Rev. S., my patient, kind, and understanding boss. Now, more than ever, it is clear that I should look for a job that could allow me to improve on my weak finances. For that reason, I went to see Uncle M. (you’re right, the big shot lawyer) to see if he can get me a position in the Judiciary Power (one of our three branches of government). He told me upfront that the situation is not very good, but he would look into that for me anyway. Now, I am awaiting for news. Let’s pray for that.

As for my personal life, things were more or less okay, but this year will mark the departure of Don Victorio, my father in law. He was quite a character, and I liked him a lot. His countenance and ideals were the perfect embodiement of the Quixotic archetype; but despite his quirks he was a kind, generous, and fair gentleman. We all miss him. As you may have read in my previous post, too, one of my sisters got married near the end of the year, and it was a joyful moment for all the family.

I also realized that I was having increasing problems with sleep, tiredness and lack of concentration. This made me see a doctor yesterday, and he gave me some news I would rather not hear. I am going to write about this ASAP.

Regarding my spiritual life, I recognize that I should really get my act together. A number of circumstances that act very well as excuses —tiredness, my hatred of praise bands, noise and music, and the disagreements with the current church leadership, and so on— all led to a dismal attendance to church services. One may chose to ignore this fact, but the truth is that my spiritual life will not be helped by it. I am trying to revert this dreaded habit, but it is not easy.

In my academic life (i.e., law school) things went very good. I was able to study on full scholarship thanks to a perfect 5.0 (equivalent to a 4.0 in the American system). We had some difficult subjects, but thankfully I was able to pass all of them with flying colors. I got an 5 in everything save for one course, where I got a 4. But I am happy, and I look forward to my third year with confidence and anticipation.

Well, this is a short summary of what happened on 2009. Please keep me in your prayers. Stay tuned!

A typical manger scene from Paraguay.

for my eyes have seen your salvation
that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and for glory to your people Israel.
(Luke 2:30-32, ESV [show]Luke 2:30-32 [30]for my eyes have seen your salvation [31]that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, [32]a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel."
)

I would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

The year that just passed was a difficult one, but the Lord granted us His love, comfort and wonderful provision in all times. More than anything, I have seen the Nunc Dimitis (Simeon’s song, Luke 2:29-32 [show]Luke 2:29-32 [29]"Lord, now you are letting your servant(1) depart in peace, according to your word; [30]for my eyes have seen your salvation [31]that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, [32]a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel." Footnotes 1. [2:29] Greek 'bondservant'
) become a reality in my life.

On Christmas Eve we had generally a good time. Since my father in law passed last June, we had to spend the traditional Christmas Eve dinner with my in-laws. We ended up having a wonderful time, not exempt of tears, of course, but all in all it was full of gratitude and joy for the gift of Christ’s presence among humanity.

Later, we had some hectic times since one of my sisters married on Sunday, December 27. It was a beautiful time, only that it was too hot, even for a late evening. Our clothes were drenched. But we were very happy.

Then, we spend the New Year’s Eve dinner with Mom and my other sister (the married one was too busy in her honeymoon ). It was a peaceful time, and that allowed me to think long and hard about the blessings that God granted us along the year.

I hope you had a wonderful time these holidays, and may God grant you peace, hope, forgiveness, and happiness.