Arranged Delirium

One nice thing about being an academic is that every seven years (hopefully) we get to enjoy a sabbatical. This is a time away from teaching where we get to focus on our other work: research, course development, reading, etc. I’m fortunate enough to be entering this period right now. So, I won’t be teaching again until January of 2011. Sweet!

What will I be working on, you ask? Well, I have a number of projects I’d like to finish - too many really. So I need to try to focus on limiting my work. Aside from finishing a few things that are hanging around, I want to take my new work in three directions:

• Publications - I have several articles I need to wrap up and an edited text I’m hoping to start work on.
• Web Design Text - different than my research, this is a title that would be useful for web development courses
• Course Development - specifically, I’m going to develop a mobile applications design/development course
• Photography - I have thousands of images that need my attention, and I’m looking to spend some time with this creative work

So what does this mean for Arranged Delirium? A couple of things. First, I’ll likely post about fun things more than regular technology developments; and second, I’ll probably post less often for a bit. I’ll also likely take this time to re-design the site and update the server software on the back end.

As a follow-up to my earlier post and a display of my Geekdom, I present to you the soliloquy of Sir Patrick Stewart. (a.k.a. Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the USS Enterprise during the Star Trek: The Next Generation series. Five Stars.)

OK - technically it’s not a soliloquy, but an interview from the PBS documentary Digital Nation...but still. I agree with absolutely everything he says, and that is an extremely rare circumstance. He must be brilliant! In all seriousness, I appreciate his critical views on technology, along with his exuberant appreciation for the positive elements it brings.

I’m often asked to recommend image editing software, especially given the expense of Photoshop. My answers vary depending upon what is available when I’ve been asked; but Pixelmator has been a fairly consistent recommendation. It’s matured nicely. Truthfully, it would be my editor of choice, with the exception of a few strategic tools (like healing brushes) that makes Photoshop something I just can’t live without. Oh, and it’s Mac only, which means it isn’t an option for many…

But if you are looking for an affordable image editing application, you can’t beat it - Pixelmator is available for $59 online, and less if you buy through Amazon. Michael Roach has authored a review here of what’s been updates in the new version.

While the Oil Spill (yes, it deserves to be capitalized) in the Gulf is a horrendous tragedy and not something to make light of, I have been able to find some comfort by making fun of BP. Here’s a funny video from UCB Comedy that does a good job of relating how we all must feel (warning - you might want to keep the volume down on this one due to language at the end):

My ongoing like/hate relationship with Facebook continues. But I’ve decided it’s time to deal and make a decision about it. I’ve been so close to deleting my account fro months, but whenever I log in to do so, I just can’t seem to bring myself to it. In fact, whenever I log in, 30 minutes mysteriously disappears. It’s freakin’ evil!

(You can find directions for deleting your account here.)

Anyway, I’ve decided to simply keep the account and address the privacy concerns. This has always been the root of my issue with the service. Facebook started as a tool that was inherently limited - to academic accounts - thus there were some boundaries to the extent of where the information could go. Where Facebook has failed repeatedly over the years, largely due to it’s founder’s disdain for privacy concerns, is that it has more broadly distributed our information without giving users the choice of whether to share that information or not. The problem of course, is that you have to Opt-In for privacy, not Opt-Out for the distribution of your content (which remember, Facebook owns once you put it up there).

So for myself, I decided to strip out a lot of information (which I would have had to share to keep in my account), delete all applications (please don’t send me app requests people!) and limit my personal imagery to my Flickr account. In Facebook’s defense they have recently implemented some much better privacy controls which make it possible to maintain an account if your careful. (And, if you care about maintaining some privacy.) Here’s an article with some more info on the topic as well as some ideas for protecting yourself; although I’d imagine any directions are already out of date since Facebook has been scrambling to change the privacy settings so much recently - still, it’s a good read.

This also seems like a gratuitous opportunity for me to once again re-link to one of my favorite Facebook movies: