Talaya's Blog
The First Entry
18 Aug 2011
This is the first entry. Today I'm messing around with Muse - Actually adding content, rather than trying to design stuff. Haven't crashed it yet today, but it's only been an hour and I've only been averaging 2-3 crashes per day. I think that counts as doing my part to beta test. ^^
0 comments
This is the first entry. Today I'm messing around with Muse - Actually adding content, rather than trying to design stuff. Haven't crashed it yet today, but it's only been an hour and I've only been averaging 2-3 crashes per day. I think that counts as doing my part to beta test. ^^
0 comments
Diary is Alive!
03 Oct 2011
Managed to get the PHP working and everything linking right. Yay! Found some more issues with Muse, and I'm still breaking everything I touch worse than usual - but things are slowly getting worked out. Maybe my issues with Snow Leopard will start getting resolved too?
Putting together my resume (which is now live-ish :) ). I need to find part-time work that I can do on my own time. If anyone knows of anything - or just desperately wants to give me a job - I'd appreciate knowing about it too.
0 comments
Managed to get the PHP working and everything linking right. Yay! Found some more issues with Muse, and I'm still breaking everything I touch worse than usual - but things are slowly getting worked out. Maybe my issues with Snow Leopard will start getting resolved too?
Putting together my resume (which is now live-ish :) ). I need to find part-time work that I can do on my own time. If anyone knows of anything - or just desperately wants to give me a job - I'd appreciate knowing about it too.
0 comments
Broken Scripts in Muse
03 Oct 2011
So my galleries are down... something about new naming conventions for Muse scripts. Trying to get something else to work broke my galleries. :P They'll be back soon. I should really just re-do them and make them look half-way decent - which might mean doing them by hand, but that's ok.
My nav-bar is also broken, but not unusable. It's missing a gradient behind it is all. Maybe it's a bad thing that I'm so used to everything in my life only working half-way? *shrug*
Also on my list is to pull up my content boxes so that I don't get this awful double-scroll thing. -_- In Muse they look right 'cause they are higher.
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So my galleries are down... something about new naming conventions for Muse scripts. Trying to get something else to work broke my galleries. :P They'll be back soon. I should really just re-do them and make them look half-way decent - which might mean doing them by hand, but that's ok.
My nav-bar is also broken, but not unusable. It's missing a gradient behind it is all. Maybe it's a bad thing that I'm so used to everything in my life only working half-way? *shrug*
Also on my list is to pull up my content boxes so that I don't get this awful double-scroll thing. -_- In Muse they look right 'cause they are higher.
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Snow Leopard Must Die.
04 Oct 2011
It broke my fonts. I could write forever about my history and issues with Fonts, but I won't. It's enough to say they are ALL broken.
0 comments
It broke my fonts. I could write forever about my history and issues with Fonts, but I won't. It's enough to say they are ALL broken.
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Mish-Mash
06 Oct 2011
Today I'm working on a mash-up of Muse, hand-coded functionality and Cute News integration. Should be fun.
Unfortunately I had to re-export my site from Muse. Which changed some names of classes I had poached and used elsewhere... such as in the title formatting of my diary. So they look bad now. -_- I'll fix them later.
0 comments
Today I'm working on a mash-up of Muse, hand-coded functionality and Cute News integration. Should be fun.
Unfortunately I had to re-export my site from Muse. Which changed some names of classes I had poached and used elsewhere... such as in the title formatting of my diary. So they look bad now. -_- I'll fix them later.
0 comments
Fonts. Suck. Ass.
07 Oct 2011
I have to re-load ALL and I mean ALL of my fonts. Some setting, which admittedly was probably my fuck-up, told Font Explorer to move - not copy - all of my fonts to some undisclosed location. And now Font Explorer doesn't know where to find them either.
There is hope. The newest Suitcase (Suitcase Fusion 3) is rumored to be much, Much better than previous versions, and unbelievable as it sounds, better than Font Explorer. I have my doubts, but at this point, I'm willing to try just about anything.
Starting with a whole new set of font files will probably help everything - no matter if that's actually the main problem. Because I'm me it can't be just one problem. It's got to be at least a few compounded into one tangled mess of errors.
0 comments
I have to re-load ALL and I mean ALL of my fonts. Some setting, which admittedly was probably my fuck-up, told Font Explorer to move - not copy - all of my fonts to some undisclosed location. And now Font Explorer doesn't know where to find them either.
There is hope. The newest Suitcase (Suitcase Fusion 3) is rumored to be much, Much better than previous versions, and unbelievable as it sounds, better than Font Explorer. I have my doubts, but at this point, I'm willing to try just about anything.
Starting with a whole new set of font files will probably help everything - no matter if that's actually the main problem. Because I'm me it can't be just one problem. It's got to be at least a few compounded into one tangled mess of errors.
0 comments
Tweaks and Twitches
09 Oct 2011
Yesterday I put my current Resume into InDesign and sent it off to a bunch of people. I hope they don't think it's too weird that I sent it out on Saturday, but it's a little late to do anything about it now.
I have a couple big problems with doing my resume:
1. I'm over- and under-qualified. Why would I wait tables when I've worked at SFI? Why would I want an administrative position when I'm a professional Graphic Designer? People don't hire over-qualified people because they're afraid they'll leave after only a few months. I'm pretty good at assuring people that I won't when I meet them in person both with my arguments and with the conflicting image of being a young professional. But if I send my resume to a restaurant for a grunt job, I look like I'm having a mid-life crisis.
On the other hand, I'm not technically qualified for anything that my resume makes me look suited for. I don't have a degree, I'm not bonded, I'm not certified in anything, and I'm young. I'm not actually qualified for most of the jobs I've done. Again, I can usually assuage these doubts if I'm in person. I speak well, I am a professional and I look like I know what I'm doing. But from a piece of paper... It almost looks like I made most of it up.
2. Almost all of my jobs have been significantly different than what I technically get paid for. At the Reporter, for example, I'm called a "Graphic Designer" and that is some of what I do, but it mis-represents the larger portions of the job. A lot of what I do at the paper is technical. Not creative. I act as tech support, I chase down ads, I help manage the dummy, I make sure everything is built to spec, I update copy, and sometimes I design things from scratch. And that's one of the easy ones to explain.
3. My skills list is long and varied. I'm not an expert in a whole lot, but I know a little about a lot of things. Most of my jobs involve figuring out how to do things no one else knows how to do. I end up figuring out how to use a tool effectively, training someone else on it, and then I'm assigned to the next thing that needs figuring out. As a result, I know how to do a whole lot of tasks, and a lot of heuristics get added to my tool-box, but I don't end up an expert in a whole lot of areas. Again, I feel like I'm making up my skills list - but that's my main skill and I can't add it: Make It Up. Get It Done. Make It Work. Figure It Out. It's a hell of a lot more valuable than most of the things I actually know how to do right away.
Today I'm working on tweaking my site and building my galleries. The carpet is being ripped out at my house and I'm not really into hanging out with real people atm. I am streaming though, so come hang out with me over chat. :)
0 comments
Yesterday I put my current Resume into InDesign and sent it off to a bunch of people. I hope they don't think it's too weird that I sent it out on Saturday, but it's a little late to do anything about it now.
I have a couple big problems with doing my resume:
1. I'm over- and under-qualified. Why would I wait tables when I've worked at SFI? Why would I want an administrative position when I'm a professional Graphic Designer? People don't hire over-qualified people because they're afraid they'll leave after only a few months. I'm pretty good at assuring people that I won't when I meet them in person both with my arguments and with the conflicting image of being a young professional. But if I send my resume to a restaurant for a grunt job, I look like I'm having a mid-life crisis.
On the other hand, I'm not technically qualified for anything that my resume makes me look suited for. I don't have a degree, I'm not bonded, I'm not certified in anything, and I'm young. I'm not actually qualified for most of the jobs I've done. Again, I can usually assuage these doubts if I'm in person. I speak well, I am a professional and I look like I know what I'm doing. But from a piece of paper... It almost looks like I made most of it up.
2. Almost all of my jobs have been significantly different than what I technically get paid for. At the Reporter, for example, I'm called a "Graphic Designer" and that is some of what I do, but it mis-represents the larger portions of the job. A lot of what I do at the paper is technical. Not creative. I act as tech support, I chase down ads, I help manage the dummy, I make sure everything is built to spec, I update copy, and sometimes I design things from scratch. And that's one of the easy ones to explain.
3. My skills list is long and varied. I'm not an expert in a whole lot, but I know a little about a lot of things. Most of my jobs involve figuring out how to do things no one else knows how to do. I end up figuring out how to use a tool effectively, training someone else on it, and then I'm assigned to the next thing that needs figuring out. As a result, I know how to do a whole lot of tasks, and a lot of heuristics get added to my tool-box, but I don't end up an expert in a whole lot of areas. Again, I feel like I'm making up my skills list - but that's my main skill and I can't add it: Make It Up. Get It Done. Make It Work. Figure It Out. It's a hell of a lot more valuable than most of the things I actually know how to do right away.
Today I'm working on tweaking my site and building my galleries. The carpet is being ripped out at my house and I'm not really into hanging out with real people atm. I am streaming though, so come hang out with me over chat. :)
0 comments
Site Update
10 Oct 2011
Good News First:
My site is up! And it looks better than it has in a while. All the pages look like a set. Everything is functional. No more double-scrolling. All the menus are the same and have the correct addresses. Everything looks and works the way it was intended to look. :)
My resume has been sent out to various people and I've got my fingers crossed. I have a few parties to go to (which is actually how I find jobs... rather than sending my resume out) and will soon have business cards to hand out at said parties.
The downstairs carpet at my house has been completely torn out and will soon be replaced with laminate (fake-wood). Which will be So much cooler than the stinky beige carpet.
I haven't been telling people things they don't need to hear. *pats self on back*
I have new Cute Shoes! ^^ Yay!
I'm under-budget for the month! Yay!
Someone liked one of my designs for their ad so much they're going to re-design their site to look like it.
The Bad News Next:
I'm not happy with the gallery layouts. Yes, they work and look as intended, but I'm now realizing I didn't think the functionality or design through all the way:
• The scrolling along the bottom is unintuitive at best and annoying at worst.
• You can't change pictures by hitting the left/right arrow keys or by clicking on the big picture.
• You can't zoom in to see the amount of detail in my digital paintings.
• There's no where to put captions or other information specific to the selected image.
• The image-to-page-size adjustment is awkward.
• It doesn't auto-play.
There are certain people in certain offices I need to talk to about not responding to certain emails.
I still need to look over the curriculum materials we'll be using this weekend... -_-;
I have various little tasks that need to be done that make up bigger tasks that seem unwieldily and like they'll open up all the Pandora's Boxes that I've hidden away in a pretend shoebox in my pretend closet.
But all in all, moving. Getting stuff done. Pushing things in the right direction. :)
0 comments
Good News First:
My site is up! And it looks better than it has in a while. All the pages look like a set. Everything is functional. No more double-scrolling. All the menus are the same and have the correct addresses. Everything looks and works the way it was intended to look. :)
My resume has been sent out to various people and I've got my fingers crossed. I have a few parties to go to (which is actually how I find jobs... rather than sending my resume out) and will soon have business cards to hand out at said parties.
The downstairs carpet at my house has been completely torn out and will soon be replaced with laminate (fake-wood). Which will be So much cooler than the stinky beige carpet.
I haven't been telling people things they don't need to hear. *pats self on back*
I have new Cute Shoes! ^^ Yay!
I'm under-budget for the month! Yay!
Someone liked one of my designs for their ad so much they're going to re-design their site to look like it.
The Bad News Next:
I'm not happy with the gallery layouts. Yes, they work and look as intended, but I'm now realizing I didn't think the functionality or design through all the way:
• The scrolling along the bottom is unintuitive at best and annoying at worst.
• You can't change pictures by hitting the left/right arrow keys or by clicking on the big picture.
• You can't zoom in to see the amount of detail in my digital paintings.
• There's no where to put captions or other information specific to the selected image.
• The image-to-page-size adjustment is awkward.
• It doesn't auto-play.
There are certain people in certain offices I need to talk to about not responding to certain emails.
I still need to look over the curriculum materials we'll be using this weekend... -_-;
I have various little tasks that need to be done that make up bigger tasks that seem unwieldily and like they'll open up all the Pandora's Boxes that I've hidden away in a pretend shoebox in my pretend closet.
But all in all, moving. Getting stuff done. Pushing things in the right direction. :)
0 comments
Pre-Load Issues
11 Oct 2011
Muse has pre-load issues. I thought it might just be me, but apparently not. So I've reported it as a bug. Maybe it'll get worked out relatively quickly.
Luckily it only happens when the site is not at-best: When you're loading it for the first time, just started up your browser, have weird settings... It's still not a good thing, but it could be a lot worse.
0 comments
Muse has pre-load issues. I thought it might just be me, but apparently not. So I've reported it as a bug. Maybe it'll get worked out relatively quickly.
Luckily it only happens when the site is not at-best: When you're loading it for the first time, just started up your browser, have weird settings... It's still not a good thing, but it could be a lot worse.
0 comments
Netlogo Day
11 Oct 2011
I don't feel like working on my site today. I also don't feel like doing any of the other things I should be doing. Or playing Minecraft. Or...
No, what I really feel like doing is simply being brilliant and doing non-visual things that I'll get nice little pats on the head for (even if it's just me patting myself on the head). Which means developing tools and toys in Netlogo. I'm making it a Netlogo day. :)
I wonder if it'll be worth it to stream...
0 comments
I don't feel like working on my site today. I also don't feel like doing any of the other things I should be doing. Or playing Minecraft. Or...
No, what I really feel like doing is simply being brilliant and doing non-visual things that I'll get nice little pats on the head for (even if it's just me patting myself on the head). Which means developing tools and toys in Netlogo. I'm making it a Netlogo day. :)
I wonder if it'll be worth it to stream...
0 comments
One Hour Ad Re-make
13 Oct 2011
I figured out a way I can do Freelance work!
In case you don't know, I am banned from talking to clients at the Reporter because I have a tendency to tell them what I really think. This same handicap makes it kinda hard to do freelance. On top of that, I don't actually like being told how to do my job just because I need the money.
"How," you ask in puzzlement "does one do freelance work without meeting clients?"
The answer is in Remaking ads (and other fairly simple things) that are terrible and letting the client decide whether or not they want to keep the new design for $60 a piece. The catch is that I have to do each piece in under one hour.
People send in terrible ads (not raw ideas for ads) and I redesign them using approximately the same information and taking cues from layout and color. I send them the redesign and if they decide to use it they pay me $60. If they decide not to use it they don't have to pay me anything, but they're then banned from submitting the same thing twice.
If they like it So Much that they decide to redesign other things to match it, they can either pay me to design the new pieces too, or they can pay me to release the copyright so that someone else can redesign they're other stuff.
Clients have No Input during the design process. No adding of unnecessary verbiage, no complaining if I take stuff out, no "I don't like that color!", no "Can't you just move it up a tad?", etc. The only changes they get to make are for spelling mistakes or misinformation (phone numbers, wrong dates, etc.).
I can't tell you how many employers have tried to give me busy-work after they give me what they think is a whole day's worth of work and I finish it in three hours. I work ridiculously fast compared to most designers.
Which is actually a problem a lot of the time. My asking price is $60/hour with some exceptions for non-profits or other people I like. Which sounds like a lot, but consider that what takes me an hour would often take another designer or production artist Several hours. You end up paying less with me even though I insist on a one hour minimum.
By charging $60 per piece and not spending more than an hour on each one, I meet my $/hr goal and everyone who gets an ad gets a Damn Good Deal (seriously $60/ad is an awesome price). And if they decide they don't like it, they don't have to pay a dime, and I only wasted an hour of my time.
I like this scheme. :)
0 comments
I figured out a way I can do Freelance work!
In case you don't know, I am banned from talking to clients at the Reporter because I have a tendency to tell them what I really think. This same handicap makes it kinda hard to do freelance. On top of that, I don't actually like being told how to do my job just because I need the money.
"How," you ask in puzzlement "does one do freelance work without meeting clients?"
The answer is in Remaking ads (and other fairly simple things) that are terrible and letting the client decide whether or not they want to keep the new design for $60 a piece. The catch is that I have to do each piece in under one hour.
People send in terrible ads (not raw ideas for ads) and I redesign them using approximately the same information and taking cues from layout and color. I send them the redesign and if they decide to use it they pay me $60. If they decide not to use it they don't have to pay me anything, but they're then banned from submitting the same thing twice.
If they like it So Much that they decide to redesign other things to match it, they can either pay me to design the new pieces too, or they can pay me to release the copyright so that someone else can redesign they're other stuff.
Clients have No Input during the design process. No adding of unnecessary verbiage, no complaining if I take stuff out, no "I don't like that color!", no "Can't you just move it up a tad?", etc. The only changes they get to make are for spelling mistakes or misinformation (phone numbers, wrong dates, etc.).
I can't tell you how many employers have tried to give me busy-work after they give me what they think is a whole day's worth of work and I finish it in three hours. I work ridiculously fast compared to most designers.
Which is actually a problem a lot of the time. My asking price is $60/hour with some exceptions for non-profits or other people I like. Which sounds like a lot, but consider that what takes me an hour would often take another designer or production artist Several hours. You end up paying less with me even though I insist on a one hour minimum.
By charging $60 per piece and not spending more than an hour on each one, I meet my $/hr goal and everyone who gets an ad gets a Damn Good Deal (seriously $60/ad is an awesome price). And if they decide they don't like it, they don't have to pay a dime, and I only wasted an hour of my time.
I like this scheme. :)
0 comments
Supercomputing Challenge Kickoff
15 Oct 2011
Today and yesterday have been a mess. I signed up to help out at the Challenge Kickoff this year like I always do, and the schedule changed at the last second like it always does.
I was originally scheduled for Parallel Processing (which I've never seen dones) and the Bilingual track of Starlogo TNG (I don't speak spanish), both as a secondary instructor (the person at the front of the class is Primary, the person helping out and keeping an eye on everything from the back is Secondary).
Later it changed to Parallel Processing and Dice and Data, which then became Data Analysis because Dice and Data is redundant for some students but Data Analysis isn't. Or something.
On Thursday Afternoon, I find out that the Primary instructor who I was partnered with dropped out at the last second and now I'm Primary on both Parallel Processing and Data Analysis - neither of which I've seen or taught.
We did great considering our Total lack of experience and our insufficient materials. We tossed out half of the material for Parallel Processing and I gave the students the wrong instructions for copying out data for Data Analysis - which resulted in us having data about US holidays rather than Rainfall.
I am SERIOUSLY not happy about having to teach both again tomorrow. And one of them Will Not be filmed like we though it would. I dunno, maybe I'll feel differently in the morning but...
The solution to this problem of getting thrown into things I've never seen and wondering what the point of it all is: Next year, I'm bullying Harry into letting go of doing the Netlogo curriculum and I'm rewriting it and doing Only that.
2 comments
Today and yesterday have been a mess. I signed up to help out at the Challenge Kickoff this year like I always do, and the schedule changed at the last second like it always does.
I was originally scheduled for Parallel Processing (which I've never seen dones) and the Bilingual track of Starlogo TNG (I don't speak spanish), both as a secondary instructor (the person at the front of the class is Primary, the person helping out and keeping an eye on everything from the back is Secondary).
Later it changed to Parallel Processing and Dice and Data, which then became Data Analysis because Dice and Data is redundant for some students but Data Analysis isn't. Or something.
On Thursday Afternoon, I find out that the Primary instructor who I was partnered with dropped out at the last second and now I'm Primary on both Parallel Processing and Data Analysis - neither of which I've seen or taught.
We did great considering our Total lack of experience and our insufficient materials. We tossed out half of the material for Parallel Processing and I gave the students the wrong instructions for copying out data for Data Analysis - which resulted in us having data about US holidays rather than Rainfall.
I am SERIOUSLY not happy about having to teach both again tomorrow. And one of them Will Not be filmed like we though it would. I dunno, maybe I'll feel differently in the morning but...
The solution to this problem of getting thrown into things I've never seen and wondering what the point of it all is: Next year, I'm bullying Harry into letting go of doing the Netlogo curriculum and I'm rewriting it and doing Only that.
2 comments
Supercomputing Challenge
20 Oct 2011
I always learn a lot from going to the Kickoff. Or decide a lot. Something between the two.
Ignoring the aftermath and stuff that's become much bigger than I really have time to manage (curricular development, defining computational science, pointing out hard truths, etc.), one of the most prominent moments is a conversation I had with a teacher about what the hell we're doing here. I think I amused her just by being me. Perfectly fine with me. :)
I won't go into the whole conversation, but at one point she asked me why I was involved with the Challenge? Why did I get started, and why am I still here? It's a good question, considering my various frustrations with the Challenge, its sister programs and the various paradigms involved.
I like systems. ALL systems. I like political games in the real world. I like biological systems. I like curricular systems. I electrical schematics. I like mathematical strategies. I like language and grammar. I like games. I Like Systems. And that's why I'm a part of the Challenge. That's (one reason) why I can't let it go. I enjoy it.
Maybe I'll decided that's not the primary reason in a month or two, but for the moment, I like this explanation.
0 comments
I always learn a lot from going to the Kickoff. Or decide a lot. Something between the two.
Ignoring the aftermath and stuff that's become much bigger than I really have time to manage (curricular development, defining computational science, pointing out hard truths, etc.), one of the most prominent moments is a conversation I had with a teacher about what the hell we're doing here. I think I amused her just by being me. Perfectly fine with me. :)
I won't go into the whole conversation, but at one point she asked me why I was involved with the Challenge? Why did I get started, and why am I still here? It's a good question, considering my various frustrations with the Challenge, its sister programs and the various paradigms involved.
I like systems. ALL systems. I like political games in the real world. I like biological systems. I like curricular systems. I electrical schematics. I like mathematical strategies. I like language and grammar. I like games. I Like Systems. And that's why I'm a part of the Challenge. That's (one reason) why I can't let it go. I enjoy it.
Maybe I'll decided that's not the primary reason in a month or two, but for the moment, I like this explanation.
0 comments
Fiend Branding
30 Oct 2011
As many of you non-existent people may have noticed, I don't actually have the name of my "business" anywhere on my site. Today I'm looking at the various things I do and attempting (once again) to divide the things I do into sensible categories. I'll probably give up pretty quick, but it'll keep me occupied for a bit.
Right now, I'm thinking I definitely need divisions for Graphic Design (pictures) and Informational Discovery and Presentation (code, technical writing, research, informational structures/architecture, etc.). But the two cross over quite a bit, so I need a site designed both visually and navigationally so that they can have common-ground, but can be differentiated effectively.
I'm also still on the look-out for a computer of my own.
1 comments
As many of you non-existent people may have noticed, I don't actually have the name of my "business" anywhere on my site. Today I'm looking at the various things I do and attempting (once again) to divide the things I do into sensible categories. I'll probably give up pretty quick, but it'll keep me occupied for a bit.
Right now, I'm thinking I definitely need divisions for Graphic Design (pictures) and Informational Discovery and Presentation (code, technical writing, research, informational structures/architecture, etc.). But the two cross over quite a bit, so I need a site designed both visually and navigationally so that they can have common-ground, but can be differentiated effectively.
I'm also still on the look-out for a computer of my own.
1 comments
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