Entries Tagged 'work' ↓

Wow. It’s been so long since I posted that there is a drastic change in Wordpress versions. Let’s hope I can even figure out how to publish this. I’ve been keep busy over the last 6 months or so that I haven’t posted. However, I’m finally done school for the year with the exception of taking 1 course in the summer. Here is just a quick overview of the past 6 months, and what I’m currently working on.

• As mentioned above, I’m taking one (1) course, CP317: Software Engineering. I think I’m making a fairly good move by taking it in the summer. There are only 12 people in my class, including me, and the main focus of the course is to use the knowledge taught to complete one large group project. We decided to develop a multi-player networked tank game in Java.
• I’ve been working on a side project through my business EdgeLink Consulting dealing with VoIP and Asterisk. This is a very neat technology with a very wide range of capabilities that I’m very excited to be working with. Expect a post in the next couple of days about Asterisk.
• I was very busy throughout the fall and early winter with the musical that I’m in every year with Laurier Musical Theatre. This year it was How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. It went very well and I’m looking forward to the musical next year.
• I’m also working on some other side projects that you may or may not hear about in the future.

That’s about it for now. You should see something in the next few days on Asterisk and VoIP.

A few months ago I started using a program called MindManager. It’s a very powerful program used to create very aesthetically pleasing mind maps. I’ve been using it as a primary method of note taking in most of my classes. It doesn’t work so well for math, but for anything else, it’s a great option. I like it particularly because it easily allows me to link ideas together by adding relationships within the map, which aids me in recalling the information later.

There is also a feature that lets you add attachments to topics within the map, so that you can add pictures, or anything else that is appropriate. The reason I started using this to take notes was because I watched this video, which is a very good example of how students can make use of this program.

However, it’s not only useful for students, it can be used for anything. I’ve also been using this program to plan out various projects at work, and the recipients of these maps have been very impressed.

I’ve tried out several free alternatives for mind mapping, including FreeMind, but none of them make the maps look as good as MindManager does. It is definitely worth the investment for the product.

MindManager is available for both Windows and Mac.

A while ago on Lifehacker, they did a series called “Show Us Your Go Bag“, where the readers sent in tagged pictures of the contents of their go bag. I never got around to actually sending them a picture of mine, so I’m going to post it here. Clicking on the picture will take you to Flickr where you can see the notes attached to it.

Here is the contents:

• Leather portfolio
• Umbrella (this has come in handy lately)
• Camera
• Large notebook
• Morning newspaper
• Binoculars
• 15-inch Macbook Pro
• Graph paper sticky notes (I got these in highschool, they are fantastic)
• Various pens and pencils
• Calculator
• Ethernet cable (Very thin and small, came with my Fonero)
• Moleskine notebook (to track my to-dos and work)

What’s in your go bag?

Last week a letter came in the mail at work and has been making it’s way around the store. It’s a typical scam letter where someone has died and you can now inherit 77.7M dollars. I’ve scanned it for your enjoyment. It’s quite a good read.

The funny thing is that some people are gullible enough to actually fall for something like this. I found it quite surprising that it actually came through the mail. Usually you just see something like this come through into the junk folder in your email, and you don’t even give a look at it.

You would think by now that there would be legislation against this type of activity, but the police don’t seem to want anything to do with it. It’s one thing if it comes through as an email, but coming as a letter, you are sure to scam more people than usual.