Taking Some Time

I am currently working on my last project of the semester. Basically, a client-server application I need to build from the ground up. Along with that, I’m gonna start a new job soon. My first professional, actually in my profession, work. Which means, I am very much trying to keep myself busy with the things I need to do. I have some things I want to write but those will have to wait until I can concentrate on anything other than work. Until then, this blog is going on hiatus. Until mid-September at least. So no worries.


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Eclipse, Tomcat and MySQL for Java Web Development

I am currently working on a web development project for school. Eclipse is pretty much a given. Tomcat is required by the guidelines and I decided to go with the MySQL as my database server. I took the instructions from this page. But here is my “Pro-Version” synopsis for savvy people who just want to get going. My system is a Windows 7 64-bit but this should be valid just about anywhere because these are platform independent bundles. Install the latest JDK if you haven’t already. (I am working of 7u5) Install Tomcat. You can lay it down anywhere, it’s just an unpack. (I use 7) Install Eclipse. It’s also an unpack. Unless you’re not doing Java at all (and here you are) there is no reason not to go for the JavaEE version which contains just about everything. (I use the Juno version) Make sure Eclipse knows where you’ve put your jdk. (If it’s not automatic, I’m sure you can figure it out by yourself) Install MySQL Community Edition (I have 5.5.27). Check in as new user and then select to skip the process. The installation itself is pretty straight forward. You’ll most likely want the developer install. And don’t forget to grab the connector/j library (Mine is 5.1.21) as well. Put connector/j library in a place you can find it. Like in the Java main directory or with your project. Go into your MySQL command prompt and create a new database (“create database something;”). Go back to Eclipse and open Continue Reading →


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David Chillag R.I.P.

I didn’t really know him except through his video lectures and a few live ones I sat through but he truly was a phenomenon. In the Technion there is a running joke that David Chillag is the king and Eliza Malek is the queen of the Mathematics department. It’s a joke that is filled with truth. And I think the sadder part is that future generations will know what they lost. Because every possible Math course in the Technion’s video library is lectured by David Chillag. And I suspect that won’t change unless the material will have a serious overhaul, which won’t happen any time soon. It’s not easy, especially these days, to find a teacher with such an impact that it colours your studies through and through. But Chillag is one of those people whose kindness, attention, social flow and plain old educational skill couldn’t help but leave a mark on so many students. I really do suspect thousands or maybe even tens of thousands mourn his loss even though maybe a quarter of them actually met him in person. He was like Sagan or Feynman. Even though they are long dead, their teachings and strong drive for education still accompany us today. I’m sure Chillag’s spirit will be with us for a while longer. And in the afterlife halls where you stay until you’re forgotten he’s sitting next to those two right now. Maybe calculating the odds on which of them goes first.  


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Document Writing, Calendar and Sattelite TV

Three thoughts I’ve just had. Well, one is about a week old but still. I’m writing this from the waiting room of our garage in Haifa, waiting for Bessie to get her check up and polish. There’s a TV here showing a movie on Yes1 and it jumps and struggles and jitters a whole heck of a lot more than my two year old computer playing a 1080p movie. And people wonder why we don’t have a television connection, just a monitor for movies and games. Right now, when classes are finally over and I am moving into exam season, my calendar is freeing up and for the first time in several months I can see into next Monday. That’s kinda cool. I know this is always presumptous to say but _I am_ writing a book. For those of you who know it, it’s the one I started here and took down for a serious rewrite – Nathanel’s story, which I think could really work as a full length novel. The point is, I had it on Google Docs because I thought it was comfortable to keep it there where it allows me to write from anywhere. But a while back, with Google Drive and the, to my opinion, quite horrific terms of use, I decided to move it to Dropbox. I know Dropbox isn’t completely secure and I should probably encrypt it but I can access it, with full WSIWYG editing, through my Office application here on my phone. Continue Reading →


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מבחן ברשתות

היום יש מבחן אז אין שום דבר יותר מעניין.


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תגים מול תארים

באוקטובר האחרון, אוניברסיטת סטנפורד החלה להציע את קורס המבוא לבינה מלאכותית שלה באינטרנט. זה היה מאוד נחמד לדעת חודש לפני כשנרשמתי לקורס מבוא לבינה מלאכותית בטכניון. אבל לא משנה. בסדר. כל הכבוד על היוזמה. מה שנראה עכשיו הוא שאוניברסיטת סטנפורד היא רק טיפה אחת במה שאולי יהיה גשם של אוניברסיטאות נחשבות יותר ונחשבות פחות שעולות לאינטרנט ובכך גם משנה את איך שציונים מוענקים כיום. מערכת התגים וההישגים מוכרת לכל משחקן כיום. אין כמעט משחק היום שלא מגיע עם מערכת של הישגים שניתן לזקוף לזכותכם. חלקם באנאלים וכוללים לאסוף עשרה דברים מסוימים או להרוג עשרים דברים אחרים. חלקם מעניינים יותר ושולחים אתכם לגלות דברים מעניינים בעולם או בסיפור שלא הייתם מגלים או מנסים לגלות אחרת (דוגמה טובה: Portal 2, Arkham Asylum). כתוצאה או במקביל לכך, מערכת התגים וההישגים הפכה להיות אחד מהמכניקות הפופלאריות יותר במשחוק (gamifacation), הפיכת פעולות יום-יומיות למשחק. והשאלה היא, האם זה טוב כשזה מגיע ללימודים אקדמאיים? לפי דעתי, שוב, זה תלוי באיך עושים את זה. הטענה נגד היא שיש מקומות, כמו ‘אקדמיית קאן‘, מין אוניברסיטה שמתבססת על הסברים קצרים על נושאים פופלאריים, שמחלקת תגים על הקשבה, תגים שאין להם ממש משמעות אקדמית. כמו כן, עומס של תגים שונים ומשונים בקורות החיים יכול בעיקר לבלבל ולא לשמש כמדד טוב. אבל יש תגים לא אקדמיים שכן יכולים להיות שווים משהו, כמו פעילות פורום בנושא ומענה על שאלות, משהו שמראה על ידע ועל יכולת הוראה מסוימת. ולעומת זאת, כשמוסדות ידועים כמו MIT עולי לאינטרנט עם אותו רעיון, אפשר לצפות שהתגים שהם יחלקו יהיו משמעותיים יותר וגם שווים יותר. הטענה בעד היא Continue Reading →


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The Compare/Contrast Essay: Droid 2 vs iPhone 4

I chose to compare these two phones because they are both leading smartphones in the world today. The iPhone has maneuvered itself into the world stage by being an Apple niche product with great design and an avid following, and is now one of the most talked about devices on the planet. The Droid 2, and specifically, the Droid 2 Global, is a QWERTY slider phone, with a full physical keyboard, is loaded with the open Android operating system and powered by a 1.2GHz CPU, making it one of the most powerful and most useful phones today. On the surface, they are both quite the same: They both feature a very high resolution display, a high res camera, lots of RAM, good battery and are lightweight. However, there are differences that sometimes make the world of difference. The more subtle ones are the screen, the processor, dimensions, and the talk time. Although the Droid 2 G’s screen is slightly bigger, a 3.7″ vs the iPhone’s 3.5″, the iPhone presents a crisper image with a slightly higher resolution screen, 329 points per inch vs the Droid’s 264 PPI. The Droid is the first to feature a 1.2GHz processor while the iPhone still uses a 1GHz CPU. Both of their dimensions are roughly the same except for thinness: the iPhone is 9mm thin and the Droid is 14mm. But, considering the Droid features a full keyboard, this is hardly surprising. And while both phones provide several hours of talk time, the Droid Continue Reading →


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