Summer 2015 June 24 Wednesday

78 degrees this morning, Walk 41:32 minutes (estimated, forgot to stop stopwatch).

Reading a Business Week magazine on “Coding” and “Code”.  The entire magazine is devoted to that subject and I decided I was going to read it from cover to cover.  I’m not trying to memorize anything, just get an idea.  

Actually, I understand a lot of it from past experience and classes etc., but I am learning a lot.  I am  trying to  read it in small bites, otherwise I would probably drown in a world of confusion.  

I have to admit, reading about Code and how it works I am even more amazed at how so much can be accomplished with so little  

It seems that most of it (including movies from early movies to the latest) is nothing but illusion.  You only think you are  seeing it.  Apparently computers are the same way, it just moves so fast it is an illusion.

Doesn’t mean it isn’t valuable and obviously accomplishes a lot!  

I am finding I probably don’t understand it yet, since I can’t explain it.

The article did note that algorithms are nothing but Code and there is nothing magical about them, except if they are done right, they can be very valuable, if not…..

Back to the “garbage in, garbage out” principle.

Kind of like stereotypes, if they work they are great, if they don’t, it can create a lot of problems.

Thinking about this during my walk this morning.  I think an “Algorithm” probably was responsible for my being charged a deposit in error (or maybe even not being charged a deposit when I first got utilities!).  

Our neighborhood already has “nextdoor.com”, which I was glad to see.  While (like an algorithm!) it is only as good as what is put in, it can be very valuable. 

6 23 15 Dream

Dream I was in someplace, I believe in a restaurant.  

People would keep stopping by and talking with me about things.  (I was dreaming I was the past City Manager in what appeared to be a city I worked in a very long time go in Kansas, but I was never City Manager there).  I would carefully tell people I was not city manger, but try to answer their question.

Some times the questions spread into my current job.

The dream changed to me sitting outside under a tree (I believe a house I lived in in Kansas a long time ago.)

In he dream, the house was across from a school and a lot of children came over and sat and talked and visited, probably before school and at recess.  They would leave bottles of water, iPods, cameras and glasses laying around and I would say leave them there, they will get them.

Right before I woke up, I had gotten up outside and dropped my iPhone.  I looked for it on the ground, which was camouflaged  to hide the iPhone.  Someone found it near a water meter and gave it to me.

I woke up

I have absolutely no idea of the meaning of this dream!

That’s it for now, Wednesday, June 24, 2015.