A Collection of Daily Wisdom by Dennis Sylvester Hurd since September 2003.

In the space of five minutes, I just had to endure two of the 'PC vs. Apple guy' TV commercials. These annoy me no end. Who in the hell is the target audience for that ad campaign? It seems they're always pandering to idiots by insisting they're so simple to use. Perhaps there are fools being fooled though. I just did a web search and and found that Apple's market share has recently been soaring. After this amazing growth, it stood at just a bit more than 8% in the third quarter of this year.

Big deal, eh? If a mass-market consumer product has been around for decades and still cannot even manage 10% market share then it cannot be all that spectacular, can it?

I guess I could be confirmed as staunchly anti-Apple. I've even refused to buy an mp3 player that sports the iPod name just because they wear the little Apple logo. Most importantly, I don't think of their products as being cool, just well-hyped.

Labels: computers, Creative Zen, opinions

On occasion I back away my usual blogging habits. Today, for example, I'm going to shy away from digging up too much from the distant past. Neither will I complain about some device or another that didn't quite live up to my expectations. I won't even paste in some random text from life. Rather than the usual, I do exactly what a blog is supposed to do. I'll simply say something about today.

I was at BCIT this afternoon administering my final exam in the computer lab. We started out with a one-hour review. The listening and writing sections of the examination took three hours. I used that time to correct assignments for my other class.

On the way home, the odometer on my truck turned to 70,000 miles. That's not too much considering I bought it in July of 1996.

It's very frosty outside at the moment, so I have the fireplace cranked up to setting #3. There are rumours of snow over the weekend, even down here near sea level. I hope the weather doesn't interfere with my full-day, weekend classes.

Labels: blogging, Ranger, weather

There are times when I hate having to be at a specific place for an appointment. Tonight's the Annual General Meeting of my apartment complex. It is the night where we go exercise some democracy about how our buildings are run. I don't look forward to gatherings such as this, though. It starts in about 45 minutes.

Labels: complaints, government

This afternoon around half of my students gave their course presentations during class. In the COMM 0004 courses, I have been having the students take on the same topic. Over the years, I've learned a tremendous amount of new information and today's presentations were no exception. I guess one way someone can be a life-long learner is by teaching!

Students seem to be increasingly adept at using MS PowerPoint.

Here's the assignment:

Required Topic on a Local Business
Each student in our class must pick a business that he/she has used while in Vancouver. It may sell a product or provide a service. Concepts and terms used in other college-level courses are expected and encouraged. In other words, your classmates are professionals, so make sure your presentation is too. In advance of the presentation dates, I will ask you to write a memo where you’ll state the name of the business you’ve chosen and the topic you will discuss about it.

Research for this project must prove the presenter has used primary and secondary research techniques. Every presenter should draw up suitable questions and interview someone connected with the business. Researching information from the Internet only would not be considered suitable preparation.

Necessary Length
Each presentation will last eight to ten minutes. Additional time will be used for a question-and-answer period. All questions must be answered fluently.

Use of Visual Aids
A minimum of two overhead-transparencies must be used during the talk. I may be able to arrange lab time for those who wish to use MS PowerPoint; however, you’ll have to let me know in advance of your presentation. Many students use one for an outline that helps to introduce the talk.

Group Evaluation Procedures
Please note that you will be ‘ranking’ your classmates on a ‘scale’. The lower end of the scale means that improvement is needed; whereas, the top of the scale means that the person was truly outstanding. Students will fill in each area as the person is giving his/her presentation. Giving honest and useful appraisal is an important skill that will be useful in many of your future jobs.

Labels: BCIT, software

There are only two, simple goldfish in this little tank. It sits on my computer desk, and its residents take a keen interest in my blogging and email. They also seem very pleased whenever I change their water, so I do so every week.



I can't imagine us having no little pets in the apartment. Being responsible for something else builds character. Of course it'd be more of a commitment to take care of a dog, cat, or horse! However, I like the idea of knowing little lives are nearby. Taking care of fish or our hamster is rewarded with the entertainment of the creatures. They cost next to nothing to buy or keep. I often wonder why some people choose not to have their own animals. Even if space is tight, they come in all sizes. Even if one is frequently away, some require limited care. A house without a pet seems dead.

Labels: pets

In some world cities man-made structures have become synonymous with the location. Making a list would be relatively easy. In London it'd probably be Big Ben. Paris has the Eiffel Tower. What would Rome be without the Coliseum? New York boasts the Statue of Liberty as well as the Empire State Building.

What about Vienna, Austria? There's the Gloriette at Schönbrunn which was blogged in my eJournal and images. There's also this.



This video was taken in the Riesenrad, a Ferris wheel built in 1897. It's 200 feet in diameter and was damaged in World War II. It has become one of Vienna's most popular tourist attractions. We were in in Europe during October of this year.

Labels: Eurotrip 2007, Vienna, YouTube

I recently got a very scary message in my BCIT inbox. I suppose whether something is frightening or not depends a lot on personal perception. In this case, the message was from the Institute's Special Events Office. Okay, so that doesn't sound too awful. It was actually an invitation to a Staff Service & Recognition Ceremony. Even that hardly qualifies as hair-raising. Wait, the content provided the spine-chilling news. A fancy, formal font under the splashy logo, read:

---

Dr. Verna Magee Shepherd, a/ President
cordially invites you to attend

The Annual
Staff Service and Recognition Ceremony

In honour of all BCIT employees who have reached
10 and 15 year milestones in 2007

Tuesday, December 11
1:00 – 2:00 pm
SE2 -The Great Hall

Annual All Staff Christmas Reception to follow ceremony
in the Town Square Café

---

You may still be wondering why the announcement gave me the jitters. It's simple, really. When I was growing up, I always thought that a person's career lasted 40 years. I reckoned after four decades of work, employees ought to take it easy by sitting in a rocking chair on the front porch. I am concerned because I've been at BCIT for a decade. This is on top of another sixteen years of working abroad. Yikes, BCIT alone represents a quarter of my total, self-imposed limit. This is enough to frighten anyone, isn't it?

Labels: BCIT, feelings