Mens sana in corpore sano

Goodbye, blogger

2008-07-01T15:09:00.000-07:00

I have set up a wordpress blog that I am hosting on ipower.com, so this is my last post. I encourage you all still to read my blog at its new location: http://www.loganstafman.com. I won't be updating this blog anymore, and all mobile twittering can be found on that blog as well. So long

--codersarepeople

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

2008-06-30T20:29:00.001-07:00

I saw yet another movie tonight on hulu.com called Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It was an incredibly good movie, but very hard to follow. It's about a man named Joel (Jim Carrey) who has memories of his girlfriend wiped after a fight they have, but then realizes it's a mistake and tries to hide in his own mind. I recommend viewing it along with reading the plot synopsis on wikipedia, because it is not a chronologically sound movie. Another thing I liked about this movie was the soundtrack which included two of my favorite bands, the Electric Light Orchestra and the Polyphonic Spree.

Source: eternalsunshine.com

The Silence of the Lambs

2008-06-29T22:41:00.001-07:00

I watched The Silence of the Lambs today and thought it was a very interesting movie. Having seen Joe dirt, I found the psychopath funny instead of scary. Hannibal Lecter was my favorite character though, because he was so incredibly smart. He was obviously crazy because he ate his victims, but he definitely appealed to me because he was actually interested in people. When Clarice had no agenda but did talk to him, he was really nice, even if slightly creepy. If you haven't seen this movie, I highly recommend it.

--codersarepeople

How we can utilize an RSS Feed

2008-06-28T22:19:00.001-07:00

Every day when I log onto the computer, I have a routine of sites that I go to. I usually go to facebook, xkcd, Cyanide & Happiness, Engadget, Gizmodo, and the list goes on. However, for those of you who don't know what RSS feeds are, there is an easier solution. Either using a web-based RSS Reader, such as Google Reader or Bloglines, or using a desktop-based client, you can have all of this information in one spot. Using the Mac OS X Program called NetNewsWire, I get all of my blogs in one space. For Windows, I reccomend SharpReader, and for Linux, Liferea. If I like to read Engadget, and would like to get all of their posts, I simply click this button in NetNewsWire: and then type the web address into the popup window like so: I will now receive every post to Engadget in NetNewsWire and any other blogs I've subscribed to.

--codersarepeople

Kayaking

2008-06-28T21:56:00.001-07:00

I went kayaking recently on the Wacissa River, so here are a few tips about kayaking I've learned:

Wear sunscreen on your legs. The most exposed part of your body will hurt VERY badly if you do not. As you can see, the splotchiness on my foot does not feel good.

Start going against the current; We started with the current, so the second half (the more tiring one) was spent fighting the current
Wear gloves or change rowing styles to avoid blisters
If you see wildlife, don't be afraid to row closer to it. You're out in nature, so why not?

--codersarepeople

Greasemonkey - reason 101 for using firefox

2008-06-26T12:37:00.001-07:00

For those of you still stuck in Internet Explorer, allow me to introduce you to Grease monkey. This is a plugin which allows you to install scripts which will help you change pages you look at. What does this mean for you? Many, many things. For example, say you forgot a password, but your browser has memorized it. Unfortunately, you can't see the password because it has been changed to dots. So you install the Show Password onMouseOver Script, and then when you place your mouse on the password, your password will appear. Many more useful scrips exist. My favorite is called UnF*** Facebook. Remember back in the day, before facebook added those annoying apps which take forever to load? UnF*** Facebook takes away all of those annoying apps. This transforms a Facebook page as follows:

Get greasemonkey & get any scripts that you want.

Summer Eating Habits

2008-06-25T17:39:00.001-07:00

With a schedule of waking up at 12:00 PM and going to sleep at 2:00 AM, my eating schedule has been out of whack. Yesterday's meals consisted of the following:

A peanutbutter and jelly sandwhich
Some cheez-its
Some chocolate

This is due partially to my awkward hours, but also partially due to the summer-induced laziness that stops me from making food. Anybody who would like to help by getting me out of the house and helping me work up an appetite is more than welcome to.

Ctrl+Alt+Del

2008-06-24T21:26:00.000-07:00

I have recently discovered a very entertaining webcomic called Ctrl+Alt+Del. It appears at first to simply be just another NSFW webcomic about gaming, but it varries in that it offers a reference point for real life gamers, because the main character is way over the edge into video games, and he is also a very entertaining character. A comic like this embodies the strip:
(Copyright: cad-comics.com)

I will now add this to my list of RSS feeds, and if you are at all into video games or some humor, I suggest you read a few strips as well. These include xkcd, Cyanide and Happiness, A Softer World, and Questionable Content.

LaTeX

2008-06-23T17:42:00.001-07:00

For those of you math nerds out there, who may be writing math equations on the computer, there is a simple solution. It is called LaTeX. For example, was made using LaTeX. I simply used the code

$$\int_{0}^{1}\frac{2}{3}dx=\frac{2}{3}$$

Many of you have probably been spoiled by MathType,
but there are numerous reasons why you should use LaTeX instead. MathType makes pictures, not text, and therefore is out of place in a word document. Also, this LaTeX is absolutely beautiful compared to the ugliness of MathType. A simple tutorial can have you using LaTeX without problems in 5 minutes. So for those of you who plan on taking Calculus BC and want to have pretty powerpoints, those of you writing Mu Alpha Theta tests for next year, or anybody who plans to do math on a computer at any time during the rest of their lives: do your self a favor, and get LaTeX.

(Special thanks to http://servalx02.blogspot.com for the greasemonkey script and CSS code to include LaTeX on blogger.)

--codersarepeople

Arrested Development

2008-06-22T19:28:00.001-07:00

Recently a few friends and I had a series of Arrested Development parties and watched every episode of Arrested Development. For those of you who don't know what Arrested Development is, it's a TV show which is now off the air. With an allstar cast, including Michael Cera and Will Arnett, it is an absolute must-see. This show is absolute genius, and a movie has been anounced, which is so exciting. You can see every episode on hulu.com for free, and legally. Below is the pilot episode. If you haven't seen this show before, I highly encourage you to watch it.

-codersarepeople

FAMAT site (copy from Runiteking1's)

2008-06-20T23:30:00.001-07:00

I am designing the Florida Assaocation of Mu Alpha Theta (FAMAT) student delegate site, and would like your input. So far the only change I've made, apart from information is that the previous site looked like this:

While the new one looks like this:

This means the only difference so far is the picture on the left. I'd like some input from the readers on more changes that they'd like to see in the site (and is the new picture an improvement?). Any problems that anybody finds as well would be very helpful to know. The current site is flordiamaostudents.org, though that may change soon (I will edit the link if needed).

-codersarepeople

Got comments? Post them below!

Breakout

2008-06-10T08:47:00.000-07:00

I have finished the basic elements to the breakout game that I've been writing in JAVA. It's pretty ghetto, because the ball is so big and the bricks are so small, and it doesn't know when you've won, or lost, but it's my first real GUI JAVA project. Here's the game (will work by 7:00 PM 6/10/08):

Your browser is ignoring the <APPLET> tag!

(n.b. There also seems to be a problem with being able to pause it and click and drag the ball to wherever.)

If you want to download the source, the download is here. That link is the jar file, and you simply right click on that and extract it and it will give you the source.

Plans for the rest of the summer include:

North Carolina-July 4th-ish

MAO Nationals - July 10th-18th

JCL Nationals - July 28th-August 2nd

After that I'll be visiting my sister in Boston to look at colleges, and going to Bozeman Montana.

What's up?

2008-06-08T10:43:00.001-07:00

It's been a very long time since my last post, but I hope to start updating again now that it's summer. So, Logan, what have you been up to? Well, a lot has happened since my last post. AP's, end of school, et cetera. So now that it's summer, I have quite a few things to accomplish. Here's my list of things to do this summer, so far:

Learn PHP
~~Finish FLVS AP Computer Science~~
Study for nationals (MAO and JCL)
Build the FAMAT Student delegate site
Study for SAT/SAT II's
Finish my "brick" game

So far, I've only accomplished studying some and finishing AP Computer Science. My "brick" game is a simple JAVA version of the brick w

e all know and love. I'm doing it using Greenfoot technology, so hopefully that'll be easy.

Friday at temple I met a guy who told me to find an open source project and pursue it, so it'll look good on my resume in terms of job searching. So I went to sourceforge.

I've requested to join a project about adding a PostScript IDE to Eclipse. So we'll see where that goes. I hope to keep this updated as well as Runiteking1, and may be joining the quirky quintet.

Youtube breeds insanity

2008-03-19T18:59:00.001-07:00

Yes, this is a youtube rant. I was simply watching this video:

And noticed insanity once again. One quite odd child wrote:
"my mother thought these guys were a cult. i told that they are not. she does not believe me. i listen to the spree when i take lonely walks in the forest. there music makes me happy, happy like peanut on a sunny day in june."
Okay, so what's wrong with this person? This most likely emo child should cut their own wrists for being a really really bad emo. This is like a crappy haiku that I might write.

My mother doesn't
like this cult, but I defy
her control - the spree

Still better, sort of. Anyways, the next insane post I saw was:
"What a cult! They are anti-God! Don't join this dangerous cult! They will drug you and take all your belongings and strip away your individuality by making you wear a robe instead of your own clothes. All the men (except the leader) are named "Todd" and all the women are named "Lorraine". If you do join, just DON'T DRINK THE KOOLAID!!!"

Obviously this person was joking around, but as pointed out by our good friend Randall Munroe (xkcd), it is impossible to write something so absurd that people must realize that you are joking.

alt text:"try to post a YouTube comment so stupid that people realize you must be joking. (Hint: this is impossible)"

While this guy was being funny, people attacked him. Oh my, what has this world come to?

Doctor Who

2008-03-11T15:25:00.001-07:00

So I found this new show I like, called Doctor Who. It's a British show about this guy who is "the doctor", who is an alien. It has really good music as well. I highly recommend you check it out if you get the time, all of its episodes can be found at http://www.tubeyak.com/showthread.php/watch_doctor_online-7517/index.html

Hai-cool

2008-02-28T21:54:00.000-08:00

I have too much work
to be on the internet
when it is this hour.

Stuff White People Like

2008-02-26T13:49:00.000-08:00

I really like this blog, and I really like its title. So there.

http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.wordpress.com/

Pandora

2008-02-12T20:44:00.000-08:00

So everybody knows about Pandora, that music genome thing, right? Well, I've been thinking that it is the indie music lover's dream. I've been listening to music on it a lot recently, and writing down the artists I like songs of. While it's usually not indie music that I listen to, I've found that it's a good way to learn about good "underground" bands/artists. This is perfect for indie lovers, because it's only good if nobody else has ever heard of it. Preferably, only the band members and yourself should know about it. Even then, that's a stretch. If you could somehow drug one of the members so that they themselves don't know...
Anyways, it's a random thought, but it made me laugh a bit.

Cub

2008-02-05T20:52:00.000-08:00

So I discovered a kind of girly band that I like anyways. It's called Cub, and of course they're from Canada. They describe themselves as indiepop, I don't know if I'd say that, but I guess they are somewhat. Also, sometimes, they can sound a bit nasaly, which is annoying. Anyways, you should check them out on youtube if you get the chance. New York City is my favorite one. You can search for others if you enjoy it.

And here's to you Mrs. Robinson

2008-02-02T20:01:00.000-08:00

I saw "The Graduate" at Tallahassee Little Theatre tonight. It was, if nothing else, very well done. It was pretty funny at points, and it was really thoroughly enjoyable. My only complaint is that they had an unnecessary full-frontal nudity part in there. If you can deal with that, I highly recommend going to see it. It's on tomorrow night, if you want to go.

NFTY-SAR Winter Kallah: much more fun than expected

2008-01-21T14:29:00.000-08:00

The National Federation of Temple Youth - South Atlantic Region Winter Kallah was held here in Tallahassee this weekend. I had never been to a kallah before, and expected not to enjoy this, because of NFTY's huge whoredom that is their reputation. However, I ended up enjoying this, and may even skip Chiles Regional to go to Spring Kallah. Here's a basic rundown of the weekend.

Friday: Everybody arrives. I have to house 5 people. Holy crap. Anyways, they turn out to be pretty cool people. Most of them are from Jacksonville's JAFTY (Jacksonville area Federation of Temple Youth?). I know one of them from camp, so that's pretty cool. We all go to services, which suck because they are temple-type services, not camp services. Afterwards, there is a short skit, and we find out that the theme is "Legends of the Hidden Temple: Discovering Judaism." We also find out that we get cool shirts to go along with it. We are then put into rooms where we meet new people. Personally, I didn't meet anybody new, but maybe that's just because I was not expecting to, or trying to. We played some fun games then went home.

Saturday: In the morning, we had services. Much better because they were in camp style. Then we had lunch and some people from NFTY-STR (South Tropical Region) talk about Kutz camp. Boring. We had a pretty cool song session after that, but the rest of the day was mainly boring because it was Social action programming, meaning we got into groups, talked about problems in the world, went to a homeless place, etc. We then had a not bad havdalah service, and went home. At my house, we all watched Juno and went to bed after talking about girls they were hoping to hook up with. Quite entertaining after all.

Sunday: We spent the first 6 hours of the day at The FSU Rez (Rock wall, low ropes course, etc.) It was the coldest I can remember being, including when I went skiing. It was about 20 degrees with wind chill factored in. We were split into our team colors (I was on the Blue Whales). This forced me to interact with others outside of TASTY (Tallahassee Area Senior Youth Group). I ended up spending most of the time talking to a girl from Charleston, which was pretty fun. Except for the biting, freezing cold. Then, we went to my house for a few hours, ate dinner, played tennis, and went back to temple. Services (which we missed most of because our ride was late) then meeting the candidates. Then a dance, which consisted of Jeremy and I making fun of all the sex going on on the dance floor. I also hung out with a few other TASTY-ites and my friend from Charleston. I felt almost social, given that TASTY, except Jeremy and I, was so antisocial that they only interacted among themselves. We then were dismissed to our homes. We stayed up late, watched Mean Girls, and made fun of people who said they were going to hook up and didn't. Entertainment.

Monday: We got there and had bagels for breakfast. Imagine that. Then we had a silly plenary where the board dressed up as pirates. The first motion was for the board to "drop trow", after which the board all pulled down their pants. Then the sargent-at-arms was dubbed, and we continued with regional elections. We also made silly signs to hold up, like "Our Caucus is TASTY" during the caucuses. We discussed getting our voting delegate to motion that our TASTY caucus be lengthened. That might've been too far though. After this, we had a friendship circle, said our goodbyes, and it was over.

All in all, I'm happy I went, and I may be a more active participant now because of this. Spring Kallah is during Chiles Regional, but I may skip our regional, so we'll see.

AP Computer Science Project

2008-01-01T14:37:00.000-08:00

http://www.callibeth.com/COMPSCI

Made with iWeb. Very Easy to use, but NO flash embedding. That annoyed me a lot.

Linux - Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy - not fun

2007-12-29T11:31:00.000-08:00

So I spent about 12 hours setting up Ubuntu 7.10 on another partition. This was not fun. To get it fully functioning, a lot of work is required.

I downloaded gparted and booted from a LiveCD. It shrunk my mac partition leaving 40 gigs for linux, and not touching any data on my mac partition. Most pleasant part of the entire thing.
The Gutsy LiveCD wouldn't show any GUI until I searched high and low to find out that at boot I needed to hit F6 and change the code to nospash. Dumb.
It installed fine, but with a MacBook, a lot of work still remained. I had to install my wireless driver with sudo apt-get install command, and that worked fine. However, the nvidia driver sent me to the edge of insanity. I was told everything possible, and tried everything possible to get this dumb thing working. First I changed xorg.conf driver from nvidia to nv, to find out that nv drivers don't support 3D acceleration, so I changed it to vesa. It was supposed to be nvidia. Dumb. I ended up having to uninstall and reinstall nvidia-glx-new, but I thought I'd done that. The point is, it took me way too long.

Result? Happy linux. One problem still remains: I need to figure out the mount point so that I can access things like music from the linux partition. I'll leave that for later though. Otherwise, this has been a nice break. Somewhat nice, at least.

Image preloading

2007-12-09T16:00:00.000-08:00

Facebook images now preload, meaning it downloads them before you click on the link to go to the next photo. While this does make surfing a lot quicker, I have some problems I've noticed that REALLY bug me. I'm sure facebook will fix them soon, but until then, here they are:

Every now and then, some code shows up on the page, which is annoying.
Any tags since the change no longer show up at the bottom.
If you start in one album, but you're looking and photos of a person, then it will say that all of the photos are from the first album you started surfing in.
This is going to be hell on my temporary folders. I delete them manually because I often want to keep some cached stuff, but now I'm going to have to delete a lot more often.

I know these seem minor, but I had to complain. The only thing that won't be fixed is my biggest complaint, number 4. One day maybe I'll work for facebook and suggest allowing users to choose their method of surfing. Though I'd rather work at google. But who wouldn't, right?

Becoming alert

2007-12-03T14:39:00.000-08:00

We're doing a section in psychology right now about dreaming and sleeping. I've never had a lucid dream (one where you recognize what's going on, then change it). In fact I rarely remember my dreams. I'd like to utilize at least a tiny part of the 1/3 of my life wasted by sleep, so I'm going to start waking myself up and writing my dreams down. If I get too fatigued, I'll just try writing them down as soon as I wake up. I rarely remember my dreams, so this could be challenging. I am excited to utilize this extra brain power, and I'm curious to see what results.

To realize that I'm in a dream is a whole other endeavor. I am working on becoming more alert in every day life, after realizing that I am just coasting through school every day like a zombie. Unless something exciting occurs, I rarely snap out of it. Thinking about this has just made me daydream more though, which is not helping my alertness. I'll report on my progress in about a week hopefully.

First post

2007-11-29T20:30:00.000-08:00

The obligatory first post. I have a few aims with this blog.

Don't post every day. Also don't post only once a month. I don't want to have too much or too little to say in each post.
Post intelligent posts. Full sentences aren't required, but none of this u instead of you crap. I also would like to stop using ellipses, which I overuse way too much.
Nothing about my feelings in this one. Well, certainly nothing aimed at anybody, and nothing vague. That's what other ugly blogs are for.

I sincerely hope that I can keep to these aims, while remaining interesting. I realize that I am a terrible writer. The title means "A strong mind in a strong body". I realize I don't exactly have a strong body, but it's a nice quote, and I think it embodies my ideas for this blog.