Asymptomatic

There must be intelligent life down here

Google Maps Quirks
July 16, 2013
Google maps UX

I've been using Google Maps at home to find out how long it would take to get from one place to another before I actually do it.  Route planning is really essential to arriving on time, and planning ahead for traffic, when possible, is a useful way to avoid being late for that important meeting or missing the bobblehead give-away at the ballpark.  But it's with this use of Google Maps that I am frustrated, in part because it could do more, and in part because it seems like some features have been omitted in Google's latest Maps re-build.

My first issue is with a new feature that is actually something I've been longing for on Google Maps for the longest time.  I can now create a "Home" address and a "Work" address that reflect those locations, so I no longer have to enter the addresses for those places instead.  This is so handy, since (let's admit it) when Google knows everything about me already, it seems stupid for them not to use that information to make my life easier.  But it has one quirk that I'm not easily able to figure out.

Your Flat-File "CMS" is not a CMS
June 28, 2013
CMS content management

There are a ton of these things popping up these days, these small-footprint flat-file "CMS" tools, and I'm here to tell you that they are not content management systems.

Yes, they manage content. I suppose. I mean, you could say they manage content by allowing you to organize your own content in some pre-determined file structure, if that's what you mean.  If you consider that "content management".

Fast Accomplishment
June 26, 2013
TV fascinating accomplishment knitting

Watching TV is a fast accomplishment. I can easily be a good TV watcher. I can sit down, watch a show, and be done. I can even have an opinion on what I watched and be an expert. So easy. Watch a season, watch a complete series; accomplished. Nothing like TV for a quick win. Maybe this is why people fall so easily for TV.

I want a quick win that isn't superficial. Brewing beer has been like this for me, I think. It's easy enough to get to success. Mastery is another story, but practice brings it all within reach. It's hard to brew beer all the time, though. Frankly, I'm tired of drinking it all.

Grand Summer Plan
June 25, 2013
kids summer break

The kids are basically home on their own this summer.  Nana is there to keep them out of my hair three days a week, but apart from that, they're on their own to figure out what they're going to do all day, be it outside or playing games indoors.  But this undirected summer "activity" selection more often than not ends up with the kids on the couch staring at the screen, with or without a game controller in hand.

This summer, we wanted to give them something to focus on, maybe attract their attention and learn something.  We wanted to provide them a direction for discovery, and not necessarily some mandatory activities to try to force them to enjoy.  Obviously, there are chores to complete.  And there are some activities that are mandatory for this discovery, but I think we've worked out a good plan.

Job, Ideally
June 17, 2013
life work

I've been thinking lately about what my ideal, realistic job might be, and what concessions I might make to get close to that job.  I'm going to just spew those ideas here, in no particular order.

My ideal job would have a corporate office close to home, and have the ability to work from home on days when it would be preferable to have focused solitude away from the office or necessary to participate in home activities, like A/C installation or other home maintenance. "The office" would be in a building that is not a soulless corporate center building filled with sterile cubicles and Ikea-Lego desks, but would have some character all its own -- something you would enjoy showing off to family and other people in the industry, who would envy your daily environs.  It would be a place you would look forward to going.  And yet, the company would be flexible enough to let you work completely remotely for months at a time, for whatever reason.  As opposed to the sentiment I hear a lot where people who work remotely come into the office and learn to like coming into the office, I'd like the sentiment to be more one where the office is just one of many potential tools that builds team cohesion.