I'm still around.. although mighty slow on the knitting and blogging front. There is some knitting update though. 'Pepper on Paper' socks (derived from Knitty's Thuja) are nearly completed. Toes are underway. Recipient is having to wait for them while I am taking a small break from all things knitting to spend some time with Mum and Dad. Recipient of the jaywalkers LOVED the pair. Recipient of a vest I'd knitted is positively thrilled and recipient of the felted handbag is amazed. :) Nice reactions, eh?!
Pictures of the completed Pepper on Paper will be posted as soon as they're completed. Till then, ciao.
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Sunday, August 06, 2006
Microsoft's MeTooooo
Folks, have you downloaded the free version 7 of Microsoft's IE? I finally got around to installing it a few days back.
For the effort, I got this:
- tabbed browing
- integrated search field
err.. yeah, that's it. Hooboy, what was I expecting?!
Some features of firefox I'm hooked to:
- Folders in the 'links' bar which I can right click and select to be opened in tabs. (IE has no such feature)
- CTRL+L selecting the URL field (IE brings up a dialog box - aarrgh)
- CTRL+F shows up a little field attached to the browser, at the very bottom (IE brings up a dialog box - aaargh)
- characters are searched just as soon as I start typing. (IE has no such feature)
- the unbeatable firefox extensions. Most favorite: del.icio.us tagging extension. (IE has no such feature)
So Microsoft's attempt at a 'metoooo' falls short by far. Get firefox folks. If you so want a link opened in IE, there's an extension that lets you open an IE tab from within a firefox browser. How neat is that!
For the effort, I got this:
- tabbed browing
- integrated search field
err.. yeah, that's it. Hooboy, what was I expecting?!
Some features of firefox I'm hooked to:
- Folders in the 'links' bar which I can right click and select to be opened in tabs. (IE has no such feature)
- CTRL+L selecting the URL field (IE brings up a dialog box - aarrgh)
- CTRL+F shows up a little field attached to the browser, at the very bottom (IE brings up a dialog box - aaargh)
- characters are searched just as soon as I start typing. (IE has no such feature)
- the unbeatable firefox extensions. Most favorite: del.icio.us tagging extension. (IE has no such feature)
So Microsoft's attempt at a 'metoooo' falls short by far. Get firefox folks. If you so want a link opened in IE, there's an extension that lets you open an IE tab from within a firefox browser. How neat is that!
Dirty little secret
I have been pondering over how readily knitters and spinners in the States exchange information, share their inventive techniques and help each other along in the process of learning. The picture painted is very rosy. Everybody is in love with the craft, with the materials, with the social extensions of the craft such as social knitting or knitting for charity, with the taking of classes, with the related online world of patterns and yarn purchases and blogging and podcasting, with yarn fairs and fiber conventions - I could go on. Knitty love is in the air.
This is all perfect. Except, it isn't a fair picture. Doesn't anyone endure muscle/tendon/nerve issues with the repetitive motion? Many of us work on computers and this, along with knitting is a potent combination of repetitive strain. Why then, do I hear so little discussed about this? Why isn't this information shared in the same way? Is rapid knitting really a virtue? Are knitters out there trying to achieve/break the record and injuring themselves?
I have been knitting for about 9 months now and just like anyone out there, I am passionately into it. It took me squarely 3 months to get to the point of so much pain that I had to get medically treated. Since then, I have looked up online and at knitting conventions for information. Knitty has an article on posture (which I have listed in my side bar) and in all of Stitches West, I found one product alone relating to injuries. It was a hand glove and really, it's not a knitting-specific product.
There is a ton of information on computer related RSI (repetitive strain injury) and so very little on knitting. And you cannot really use the former to help the latter coz the requirement of working needles and yarn is very different from tapping keys or clicking mice. Is this our dirty little secret? Are we too afraid that we'll be asked to stop pursuing the hobby if we admit to this problem? What is it? Why aren't we screaming out loud for some information?? Or sharing it vociferously? I am perplexed. No podcaster is talking about it, dammit!
As my contribution to bringing this to the table, in my future posts, I will detail out my experiences with the RSI issues I had to deal with and my findings from the process.
Please do leave a comment on what your thoughts are about the physical problems associated with passionate knitting.
This is all perfect. Except, it isn't a fair picture. Doesn't anyone endure muscle/tendon/nerve issues with the repetitive motion? Many of us work on computers and this, along with knitting is a potent combination of repetitive strain. Why then, do I hear so little discussed about this? Why isn't this information shared in the same way? Is rapid knitting really a virtue? Are knitters out there trying to achieve/break the record and injuring themselves?
I have been knitting for about 9 months now and just like anyone out there, I am passionately into it. It took me squarely 3 months to get to the point of so much pain that I had to get medically treated. Since then, I have looked up online and at knitting conventions for information. Knitty has an article on posture (which I have listed in my side bar) and in all of Stitches West, I found one product alone relating to injuries. It was a hand glove and really, it's not a knitting-specific product.
There is a ton of information on computer related RSI (repetitive strain injury) and so very little on knitting. And you cannot really use the former to help the latter coz the requirement of working needles and yarn is very different from tapping keys or clicking mice. Is this our dirty little secret? Are we too afraid that we'll be asked to stop pursuing the hobby if we admit to this problem? What is it? Why aren't we screaming out loud for some information?? Or sharing it vociferously? I am perplexed. No podcaster is talking about it, dammit!
As my contribution to bringing this to the table, in my future posts, I will detail out my experiences with the RSI issues I had to deal with and my findings from the process.
Please do leave a comment on what your thoughts are about the physical problems associated with passionate knitting.
The wiki experiment
This one deserves a post. I had briefly encountered wikis several years back and have been curious about them ever since. Other teams at my workplace maintained wikis as informal information bases and this especially suits teams that write a lot of code.
What is a wiki? For those in the dark, it's an online application that looks a lot like a regular website. Except that it lets you edit your content online. This nifty application lets you focus on the content more than the nitty gritties of getting the files published. A great side-effect is that we can now have more than one person editing the content. Anyone with permissions can modify/add to the content and create new webpages within the site. But watch out - it has its own little syntax shortcuts that influence formatting of text or any other content.
Just recently I chanced upon wiki services online and found that one could launch a wiki just as easily as a blog. Or so I thought. The registration was simple enough. But very quickly I have uncovered the challenges.
A wiki is no fun without a bunch of people updating it. And you want this team or group to be as excited about logging in information as you are. ie, despite the learning curve in understanding the formatting of text. For a programmer, this might be trivial but I surely cannot see non-software folks warming to the idea of watching every punctuation mark that gets interpreted as a text formatting cue.
Despite all, I am continuing to give my wiki an honest shot! Documenting my many experiments can get a boost with this. Do check out my Deep Thought Workshop wiki.
What is a wiki? For those in the dark, it's an online application that looks a lot like a regular website. Except that it lets you edit your content online. This nifty application lets you focus on the content more than the nitty gritties of getting the files published. A great side-effect is that we can now have more than one person editing the content. Anyone with permissions can modify/add to the content and create new webpages within the site. But watch out - it has its own little syntax shortcuts that influence formatting of text or any other content.
Just recently I chanced upon wiki services online and found that one could launch a wiki just as easily as a blog. Or so I thought. The registration was simple enough. But very quickly I have uncovered the challenges.
A wiki is no fun without a bunch of people updating it. And you want this team or group to be as excited about logging in information as you are. ie, despite the learning curve in understanding the formatting of text. For a programmer, this might be trivial but I surely cannot see non-software folks warming to the idea of watching every punctuation mark that gets interpreted as a text formatting cue.
Despite all, I am continuing to give my wiki an honest shot! Documenting my many experiments can get a boost with this. Do check out my Deep Thought Workshop wiki.
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Pepper on Paper
News Flash:
A new pair of socks is in the works. This time it's Knitty's Thuja. I am calling my version 'Pepper on Paper'.
A new pair of socks is in the works. This time it's Knitty's Thuja. I am calling my version 'Pepper on Paper'.
A personal database of patterns and recipes
I was recently confounded with a serious problem. I needed to organize my patterns and recipes in a database as things were pretty much out of hand. They were all over the place - in books, magazines, in notebooks, on 5 different accounts sitting on 3 different computers and even some residing in my memory, waiting to be documented. A little dire, yeah.
So I put together a wish list for my database:
- centralized so I can access it from anywhere in the world without having to keep separate copies (no installed applications, please.)
- easily searchable
- highly categorized
- picture upload capability
- possibility to include comments in journaling format
- feature that allows emailing of my recipe/pattern at the click of a button
First, I looked up online personal databases for recipes. Kraft Foods has one. FoodTV has another. What I did not fancy was the requirement that I 'submit' my recipe to the message board to be able to add it to my collection. That, or I had a limit to the number of recipes I could collect. In anycase, what about my knitting patterns?
So I contemplated starting a new blog. Which reminded me of another important item for my wishlist:
- restricted access
Blog with authentication was a candidate. I did much research. The issue here? Only TypePad has an authentication service. And it's too expensive for me. Wordpress can be installed and configured for access but what about the domain name and web account I'd need? Much too much overhead.
I slept over this issue and woke up with a solution which I tested out today: Gmail. This is how it'd work: Start a new Gmail account. Write out the pattern/recipe in a new mail and send this to yourself. Upload pictures if you like.
Gmail's response to my wishlist:
+ Great search
+ Easy tagging (using labels and filters),
+ I only need to 'reply' to the main message to include additional comments to the recipe/pattern,
+ thumbprint of uploaded image shows up in the body of the mail. Perfect for recipes and patterns
+ emailing the content out to family/friends is the original intent of Gmail!
+ restricted access is part of the deal
Oh, and the best of all, I can finally make good use of the content-sensitive advertising!
The catch though is that I am not aware of how to export a bunch of mails in a document format so I can create a PDF or e-book of sorts. You see where I'm getting at? A personal printed cookbook or pattern book with my gmail account as source. Wouldn't that be awesome? Any ideas?
So I put together a wish list for my database:
- centralized so I can access it from anywhere in the world without having to keep separate copies (no installed applications, please.)
- easily searchable
- highly categorized
- picture upload capability
- possibility to include comments in journaling format
- feature that allows emailing of my recipe/pattern at the click of a button
First, I looked up online personal databases for recipes. Kraft Foods has one. FoodTV has another. What I did not fancy was the requirement that I 'submit' my recipe to the message board to be able to add it to my collection. That, or I had a limit to the number of recipes I could collect. In anycase, what about my knitting patterns?
So I contemplated starting a new blog. Which reminded me of another important item for my wishlist:
- restricted access
Blog with authentication was a candidate. I did much research. The issue here? Only TypePad has an authentication service. And it's too expensive for me. Wordpress can be installed and configured for access but what about the domain name and web account I'd need? Much too much overhead.
I slept over this issue and woke up with a solution which I tested out today: Gmail. This is how it'd work: Start a new Gmail account. Write out the pattern/recipe in a new mail and send this to yourself. Upload pictures if you like.
Gmail's response to my wishlist:
+ Great search
+ Easy tagging (using labels and filters),
+ I only need to 'reply' to the main message to include additional comments to the recipe/pattern,
+ thumbprint of uploaded image shows up in the body of the mail. Perfect for recipes and patterns
+ emailing the content out to family/friends is the original intent of Gmail!
+ restricted access is part of the deal
Oh, and the best of all, I can finally make good use of the content-sensitive advertising!
The catch though is that I am not aware of how to export a bunch of mails in a document format so I can create a PDF or e-book of sorts. You see where I'm getting at? A personal printed cookbook or pattern book with my gmail account as source. Wouldn't that be awesome? Any ideas?
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