“Transcendent Man” – A crash course in transhumanism.

I recently had the chance to watch the documentary “Transcendent Man, ” which both summarizes the ideas and work of Ray Kurweil while simultaneously painting a bit of a background on his life and motivations.  I have to say, that once the credits rolled, I walked away feeling rather sad but full of new thoughts on what’s coming down the road in the future.  Kurzweil’s ideas and timelines are clearly motivated by a personal quest to never die (and even to resurrect the dead, in fact), which pushes him from a brilliant inventor into the realm of a pseudo-religious prophet of technological salvation.  To put it bluntly, many consider him a “crackpot,” and while the film isn’t shy about Kurzweil’s critics,  I  would have enjoyed a greater effort in the film to dispel that notion.  Regardless of whether his ideas are pure fantasy or accurate predictions, every time I read something he writes, or hear him speak, my mind and imagination open up; I consider things that I never would have before and it’s exciting.    I feel that this is the reason that Kurzweil continues to fascinate people year after year.  Even if you’re not willing to travel with him down the full path of his thought, he’s worth listening to because he changes the way you think about the future, about what it means to be human, and about how you will respond to the rapid changes that are defining our lives more and more.

While the film focuses on Kurzweil, I actually found the other people interviewed to be more interesting in a lot of cases. I particularly enjoyed the eccentricity with which “artificial brain builder”  Hugo De Garris expressed his ideas, and the sober analysis of Wired Editor, Kevin Kelly.  If you have never read any of Kurweil’s books, or are completely unfamiliar with ideas like Transhumanism, this doc is recommended as a crash course.  For anyone with a passing knowledge of the subject there’s probably not much new for you here.

Status

Wow it’s been awhile.  I miss blogging.  Life has been abundant of late and I’m still amazed I survived October.  The big news is that I got a job.  I’m officially a web designer/front end coder at J House Media.  I love it.  They do great work.  I’m learning so much and doing so much that I’m really proud of.  It’s a good situation.

I’ve been designing a lot of sites, but none of them have gone live yet, so I can’t quite show off.  I’ll let you know.  I’ve severely cut back on my freelance work for now and have spent the last couple of months wrapping up contracts that I’d signed before being hired.  I’m glad things are slowing down  a bit finally.

That’s it for now, but as I re-organize my life I hope to include more time for blogging.

Browser Undead: ways to survive ie6

Every web designer out there pretty much loathes Internet Explorer.  The latest iteration made some encouraging leaps forward in terms of accepting a universal standard or three.  The world has changed so much since the 90′s and we all know of and love our freedom of choice when it comes to browser selection.  Microsoft’s stubborn insistence on ignoring standards for years has resulted in double the workload for developers.  Testing sites across a variety of browsers and correcting the inevitable bugs takes a lot of time, which results in lower profits for designers like me.

So ie8 is ok; ie7 is tolerable…but ie6?  It’s a nightmare; the freak child of design indifference coupled with bizarre proprietary features. [aside: Who out there loves, or truly understands the idea behind ie's filters, anyway?]   I recently had a rude awakening when a client sent me a screen-grab of a site I had thoroughly tested in Firefox, Safari, Chrome, ie7, ie8 and ie8 compatibility mode.  I had the bizarre idea this year that with the release of ie8, we could lay the eight year old ie6 to rest.  I dropped support in my coding for the browser.  I also forgot to mention this in my contract.

Here’s the thing:  We’re designers (I’m making assumptions since you’re reading this).  We love the web…a lot.  In high school, they called us nerds and didn’t understand us at all.  Now, they call us “the web guy” and don’t understand us at all.  Other human beings think more about the rest of the world, rather than thinking about computers 24/7.  Amazing but true.  The other terrible truth is that around 15% of the population still uses the 6.  So while you and I downloaded the latest and greatest the day it came out, there are a lot of people out there (read that as “clients and their customers”) are firing up eight year old browsers to read their email.  So as i stared down the ugly screen-grab of my beautiful site ripped to shreds by the rotting zombie horde of ie6 browser bugs that I thought dead, I realized one thing:  I’m going to need some bigger guns.

As a designer I have two main problems with ie6: lack of support for .png images and CSS layouts that are inconsistent with all the other browsers on the planet.  In terms of understanding the bugs, I mentioned some good resources in this post. My favorite remains sitepoint.com.  Understanding bugs is not our purpose here, though.  Our purpose is finding guns…big guns.  For web developers software = guns, and I found some good stuff in my latest search.  The other good news?  I only use free stuff.

In terms of solving the positioning issue, Microsoft has created a slick tool called Super Preview that’s available for download here.  It lets you simultaneously compare a url in different versions of ie.  Thank you!  It’s stable and helps you see problems very quickly.  Half the problem is finding the bugs, and this tool does a pretty good job.  One issue I had is that it doesn’t seem to represent ie filters (specifically alpha) which is pretty crippling if you’re dealing with fixing .png’s.  Another piece of software that shows a lot of promise, and handles both the positioning and the .png issue,  is IE Tester, available for download here.  It’s currently an alpha release, and has the inherent instability related to alphas BUT it does a solid job, and has a lot of features that Super Preview lacks.  Make sure you run the program as an adminitrator (right-click > run as administrator) otherwise it’ll crash if it encounters Flash or a CSS filter (our main reason for using this rather than Super Preview).  Here’s hoping for a stable beta soon.  So now we see our bugs, and armed with sitepoint, we crush ‘em.  On to .png’s!

.Png image files are awesome for a lot of reasons.  One of their most awesome capabilities is the inclusion of alpha channels, which allow a varying degree of transparency.  As a designer, transparency is priceless.  It lets you make things shiny, or draw drop-shadows with ease.  You want this.  You need this.  ie6 says you can’t have it.  I say, thank you Angus Turnbull for writing a nice little script, aptly named the IE png fix.  His site and the instructions included in the download explain it well.  Another option that comes with a great explanation, is this entry on 24 Ways.

That should put your ie woes to rest in no time, which hopefully means you get some rest too.

There goes a couple months of my life…

My latest contract was allll consuming, and one of the first things to go was blogging time.  So sad.  The good news is, I’m launching the thing, I’m proud of it, and the client seems pleased as well.  You can’t ask for more than that.  There is that list of revisions they’ve requested though…I’ll get on to that after I’m done here.

The two biggest technologies employed by the project I’m wrapping up are Drupal and PHP…both of which I was relatively new at and both of which I now know much, much more.  Drupal’s been a real pleasure to work with, and I anticipate doing most of my work through it in the future.  Themeing was relatively simple and I added custom PHP code to it without too much trouble.

Anyway, I’ll do a post-mortem when the thing is actually up.

The really important tidbit of information is that Bethesda announced another expansion for Fallout 3.  Be excited.

Here’s the skinny.

Killing aliens…America’s other favorite sport.

Ok.  Back to code.  Nerd points etc.

The Cloud is Not a Binary Choice

Cloud computing has gotten huge attention over the past couple of years and opened up a whole new way to do business, collaborate, and even game.  This shift has large hardware and software corporations panicking as the potential to stream processing intensive applications to cheap consumer hardware such as netbooks becomes viable.  The hype surrounding cloud-based technology is overwhelming.  While its implications do change the way we’ll approach computing forever, I do not believe that the Cloud presents an “either/or” situation.  The future is a blending of the best aspects of the Cloud and the Personal Computer, and when the hype blows over we’ll realize we’re all the better for it.

Here’s what’s strange to me: The Cloud is older than the PC.  Before Apple and Microsoft set out to put computers in all of our homes there were terminals and mainframes.  Before it was cost-effective (or  possible) to put a computer in a small box on your desk, the only people who had the resources to pay for and maintain room-sized computers were big companies like IBM, or large organizations like the military and universities.  Users accessed these giant computers via a terminal, which boils down to a monitor, modem, and keyboard.  Questions were posed to the remote computers, and the answers were transmitted back to the user.  When it became cheaper and more efficient to achieve these same tasks locally on desktop machines, users migrated to that model.   The way I see it, our demand for computation has shifted back to where our needs exceed our ability to afford them locally.  The Cloud still requires physical hardware somewhere on the planet.  Google and Amazon are the new IBM of yesteryear.  As soon as cloud-hype subsides, and hardware prices come down, people will migrate back to local computers ( powerful PC’s or their future equivalent).

The Clouds also has flaws in other regards when compared to local computing.  These have been discussed at length elsewhere, but they can be summarized as concerns regarding security, access, and reliability.  The security concern is obvious:  If someone else is hosting your sensitive data on their server they have the only true control over that data.  Furthermore, should they choose to utilize a 3rd party’s server space to host your data, you won’t even know who has your information.  The company you’re contracted with might not even know where exactly your records reside.  The cloud is, by nature, nebulous.  Knowing exactly where your stuff is, and how it’s protected, is of great value.  Should the cost of local hardware decrease, I believe the trend for anyone dealing with sensitive data will lean towards local solutions.

Access is largely a temporary concern.  At the moment, using the cloud can be frustrating because wireless service is not omnipresent.  Technology is capable of overcoming this weakness, and will do so in the next few years.  Customers have demanded it, and companies have responded.  3G is only the beginning.

There is the secondary issue of the reliability of Cloud based services.  It doesn’t matter if you’re connected to the internet if Google Apps is down and you can’t access the critical content you need immediately.  There are basic functions that are migrating to the cloud that, quite frankly, are weakened in translation.

I’ve been focusing on weaknesses of the Cloud, because often, all I hear is positive hype.   I’m actually a huge fan of utilizing the Cloud, and do so daily.  My concern is that we’re throwing tasks to remote servers whether the task benefits or not.  The strength of collaboration offered by Cloud based services is undeniable.  I do business with clients on the other side of the country and it feels identical to dealing with local clients.  This is phenomenal, powerful, and efficient.  Equally powerful is the scalable nature of Cloud-based resources.  A small-start up  can purchase servers on an as-needed basis.  This reduces the upfront costs and better serves the end-user.   It’s aspects such as these that mean the cloud is here to stay, and make it a good thing for all of us.  I simply believe that there are tasks that will always be better suited to local platforms, and people’s desire for individual freedom and control of their own resources will lead them back to Personal Computing.  The Cloud won’t kill the PC, merely empower it further.

From designer to developer: a logical leap

What goes on in my mind is comparable to stew. There is no recipe for stew, really. You just sort of throw a bunch of crap you think might work well together in a pot over medium heat and hope for the best. More often than not, the result is delicious (or maybe I’m just always hungry). One of the great strengths of stew is its improvisational nature: you can hit on unexpectedly great flavor combinations by combining “incompatible” elements. Unfortunately, the flip-side of this strength is that it’s incredibly hard to discern how you arrived at that amazing flavor, should you try to reproduce your legendarily tasty stew.

In terms of my brain, I like to pour in whatever interests me at the moment, let it simmer in there for awhile with everything else I’ve been thinking about for awhile…and then do something. It’s incredibly hard for me to separate all of the individual influences on an idea or experience, or obtain a “recipe” of any sort whatsoever. All I know is that I’m having quite a bit of fun at the moment, and my current direction is a culmination of years of disparate interests coming together.

It’s strange to me how we label ourselves in order to try and achieve some idea of an identity. For me, I’ve been wandering around as a “creative.” I’m not arrogant enough at the moment to call myself an artist, but I’m certainly artistic, have a keen interest in art (of all forms) and have occasional bouts of self-expression. This label has its origin in my high school experience of social and micro-cultural ostracism. I was an “art guy.” A select few fellow bizzar-o friends got it, and everyone else just knew me as the dude who drew pictures and produced the weekly school news program.

There’s an incredibly self-limiting stereotype that goes along with being a “creative.” It’s born out of a paradigm that came about in the era of corporate vertical organization and has been dead for years now. Ready for the lie I told myself for years? “I’m a creative. I’m a designer. I don’t do code.” This is a ludicrous statement that I subconsciously absorbed and believed until very recently. In truth, a designer (and especially a web designer) that “doesn’t do code” is akin to an architect who “doesn’t do floor plans.” The deeper I delve into code, the more I realize it’s a tool every bit as vital as Photoshop, and I regret not starting the journey sooner. If you desire to do any work online the bottom line is you must learn code.

For me, my quest to learn code began from a purely economic standpoint. There’s far less competition for jobs involving code, the jobs pay better, and much back-end functionality is similar enough that if you’re doing similar projects you can build on and improve existing work you’ve done in the past. Sold. I started adding developer sites and blogs to my reading alongside my ramblings on design blogs. I also took a trip to the book store and purchased some books (I still love margin notes too much to do everything online). To my unexpected delight, I found that creating code is actually incredibly creative! My brain loved it! The stew got tastier.

One of the most intimidating aspects of getting started with code is the sheer number of languages you can learn. As a designer, I already had a working knowledge of HTML and CSS, and I did a lot of work with WordPress and Joomla. Both of these technologies are open source (free) and driven by PHP, which is also open source. Therefore the next logical step for me was to learn PHP. This gives me the capability to create advanced applications for clients, such as custom e-commerce solutions, or Content Management Systems (CMS). The next language I plan to learn is Flex, which in an open source development environment for apps that run in Flash Player and AIR (desktop applications – ex. Tweet Deck). This would allow for the creation of gorgeous interactive interfaces and media presentation methods. Do you see the logical progression of creative capabilities by taking this path? Let me break it down:

• HTML : contains a page’s core content  (examples: every web page ever.  resources: W3 Schools )
• CSS: controls the presentation of that content (example: CSS zen Garden.   resources: site point)
• PHP: allows your pages to communicate with your web server and prepare HTML in a manner customized to individual users’ needs.  In other words, allows for interactivity.  (examples: Facebook, WordPress.  resources: php.net , Learn PHP 5)
• Flex: allows for the creation of dynamic and elegant interfaces etc.  (examples: Adobe Official Site.  resources: learn Flex in a week)

So there you are.  My path from designer to designer/developer was a kind of unintentional flow, a mash-up of  “conflicted” interests, and now makes for a very tasty stew.

New Contracts & My Dad’s Book

Good news.   I officially am officially partnering with Bold Springs Nursery to bring their site re-design to light.  I’m very excited about this one. They’re demanding a lot, and as I sketch out some of the initial layouts, I know it’s going to be great for their customers.   Nobody has anything remotely like we’re planning.

Also, my dad wrote a book!  I haven’t read it, but I did make a web site for him.  Check  it out here!

New Web Site

My new web site is up! I’m still working out the IE kinks, so fire up the ‘Fox and take a look: zachalig.com.

Man, that was a late night, and I have an early meeting. Time for bed.

Converting DVD’s to uploadable files for free

The problem: A client hands you a DVD suitable for playing in any DVD player and  says “add the second segment to my website.”  You’re a web designer, not an editor, so how do you go about selecting a specific segment of that DVD, convert it to a suitable format, and upload it…without shelling out a grand for Final Cut?

The solution: MPEG Streamclip from Squared5.  Yes, the website and user interface are clunky – but this piece of software is a rare gem.

Streamclip relies on a certain codec (video compression technique) that does not ship with Quicktime Player.  You can either purchase the codec from Apple (boo) or download Quicktime Alternative from fileHippo.com for free (yay).  It’s critical that you download the correct version (1.81), which can be found here.  I’m fairly certain that if you are using OSX your only option is to buy the codec from Apple.  If you happen to own Final  Cut, you already have it.

So, you’ve downloaded Quicktime Alternative and MPEG Streamclip.  Let’s get started!

If you’re installing Quicktime Alternative, be sure to uninstall any other Quicktime software you have floating around on your machine (in XP: start>settings>control panel>add/remove programs).  Once the old Quicktime is gone, run the installer for Quicktime Alternative.

Now run the installer for MPEG Streamclip and launch the program.  Insert the DVD you want to rip from into the drive and select File>Open DVD.  And…presto!  There’s your DVD above a friendly Quicktime interface.  So, press play or drag the playhead around to where you want your clip to start.  Choose Edit>Select In (or press “i”).  Now scrub to where you’re ending your clip and choose Edit>Select Out (or press “o”).  Now  choose File>Export [insert format of choice here].  Select your export options as you see fit and choose a place to save your new file.

You’re done!  And you spent no money!  Now upload that sucker to YouTube and embed away!

Economic Woes

I joined the club today.  Count me amoung those who’ve lost their jobs to economic collapse.  I no longer have my day job with Athens Area Habitat for Humanity.  The non-profit sector has been hit hard.  I know for a fact that they have no home sponsors lined up once they finish the homes they’re working on currently and that a huge chunk of their funding comes from government sources (ie deficit and cut prone sources).   I knew my head would be the first to roll.  I was the newest on staff and worked in the office, not directly with home building.  My job was basically to take care of all the various unsundry whatever that everyone else had no time for.  Now it just won’t happen at all.

Strangely, I feel relieved today.  While the whole money issue is going to be a crunch, I feel as if I’ve just started a new chapter. I may feel differently in a few weeks, but I’m looking forward to job hunting tomorrow.

Oh, I also secured my biggest web contract to date today.   With job stability being such a joke, why go after a salary anyway?  Now if Obama can just get this health plan passed before I break any bones…