Lianko.com

[Site Updates]
Before I start the actual post, which will be quite long winded, I’ll quickly notify you of some updates.

First, I have a new linkware layout up, and second I’ve been thinking about an opinion article about reviewing web logs (aka blogs). I know this is widely frowned upon, yet I’m not quite clear why. I’d be grateful if you could tell me your opinion on the topic. Think of it a helping hand in a research. :). Third, I’ve added some restrictions to my Copyright Notice
[/Site Updates]

[The Wonders of E-Drama aka the 'Real' Blog Content]

I’ve been following a rather ridiculous e-drama these days (well ok: yesterday), which seems to have finished already (unfortunately - hey! who doesn’t like them?). Contrary to what you may think, my problem is not really the lack of oportunity for my oh-so-valuable feedback, but rather the conclusion that seems to have marked this drama.

Conclusion 1: To be or not be … a layout.

Instigator 1: No images = no layout
Instigator 2: Text layouts can’t be “pulled off”
Insulted webmasters: Accessibility all the waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

Instigator 1 is 100% wrong, of course. A layout refers to the way information is displayed on a site/page/paper/etc. Therefore, even if I only have a html head and body tags, with random text typed inside the body, I DO still have a layout. Granted, it is not a very interesting one, but it IS one nonetheless.

Instigator 2 is also wrong. He claims that “nobody can pull off a text layout”. Has he actually SEEN every single text layout created? Not to mention those that are YET to be created? AS a side note, I’m also guilty of preferring the layouts using decorative images to the ones using pure CSS, nevertheless I believe that Becky’s current layout is a very good example of a “well pulled off text layout”.Flamed Webmasters: Accessibility seems to be all the hype these days. I am most definitely NOT condemning anyone for making their sites 100% accessible, on the contrary: it’s all quite admirable. This doesn’t mean, though that once in a while you couldn’t try using some small images.

Conclusion 2: Who are you to judge me?

Instigator: My site is so much more interesting and better looking than yours, that you can’t afford to argue with me.
Webmaster: Your site is so yesterday’s news.

Like I said in my Taking Up Reviewing article, you don’t really need to have any kind of ability in order to be able to have an opinion on something. Sure, it helps if you DO know how to accomplish that something, so you can provide a more constructive form of criticism, but ultimately it all comes down to (no pun intended) whether you like or dislike a certain something.

While I agree that the instigator’s site can’t compare to the webmaster’s, it truly is a petty comeback to tell someone that “you’re one to talk”. I know I’m reviewing lots of people with wonderful layouts, displaying skills I can only hope to achieve in a rather distant future. Nevertheless I’m fully entitled to have an opinion on their work. They uploaded their sites on the web, for visitors to see and admire, however no one can achieve a 100% visitor-proof layout.

Therefore PLEASE: if you’re going to prove your superior whatnot, try something other than “your not qualified to criticize, because… “. He/she is qualified. Of course, the instigator ignored the webmaster’s comment policy (make the comment relevant to the entry), repeatedly so… thus making a fool of herself (as well as himself). But the fact remains: E-Dramas are fun to watch, but incredibly stupid to take part in…. Of course, this begs the question of what I am doing here now…

I’ve always prided myself on never having encountered an exam where I didn’t know the answer to at least half of the questions. However, the day when I had to stare at the test and wonder which subject should I start ‘decorating’ (since none really told me anything), has finally come. To make things worse: I had to endure it double time, since I couldn’t fit in the classroom for the first session (too many students took the course).

Session1: Waiting for the ax to fall
——————————————————
Door to the classroom opens as another teacher steps in.

Student A (peers into the classroom): They’re not writing!
Other Students: Quit joking. You can only see the back rows.
Student A (dramatically): They all have their heads in their hands! I SWEAR.
Other Students (seriously panicked): Really?? We’re up next!

In the meantime the ‘visiting’ professor exits and smiles kindly, probably attempting to remember us from first year’s Algorithms (EVERYONE was taught by him).

Professor (jokingly): Are you on strike?
Student B: No, we just didn’t fit in the class. We’re up in 20 minutes.
Professor: Oh… but why so glum?
Student C (miserably): We don’t know anything.
Professor (smirking): WHY don’t you know anything? It can’t be that difficult.
Me (whispering): Is he mocking us for not having chosen his course¹?
Student B: Yes… I believe he is.

… and then, there was the actual exam, of course.

Session 2: On the scaffold
——————————————-
Professor scrawls (no that is NOT writing) the subjects on the blackboard. Students stare at the questions bewildered. Have we unknowingly taken up Martian Language?

Me (uncertainly): What did you write at question 3?

Classmate stares at Vera and shows her his nearly blank (he had the questions written) paper. Vera considers suicide… writes something, which she hopes has something to do with the questions… and time’s up.

And then, there’s time to reveal the marks. Everyone’s nerves are strung high, waiting on edge, yet the professor takes his sweat time as per usual. And finally… it’s my turn to inquire about my marks: “Artificial Intelligence” (AI) and “Instructive Machines and Form Recognition” (IMFR), the latter being the one with the horrific exam.

Epilogue: May I strangle you? RIGHT NOW??
—————————————————————–
Vera sits down carefully, dearly wishing she hadn’t hurried so much. Those two students in front of her had flunked IMRF, she most certainly didn’t want to take the dreadful exam again.

Me: I’m Vera C, from group xxx.

Tutoring assistant shuffles some papers and professor looks at Vera’s mark, careful not to let the latter see.

Professor (jovially): So Vera, what mark do you think you have?
Me (mentally strangling the professor): Ah no… just please tell me. I don’t like to assume.
Professor (in a coaxing tone²): No really, what mark do you think you’ve earned?
Me (grudgingly): Well… I was hoping for 80 or 90%.
Assistant (smiling): 90% it is!

Vera smiles uneasily, since she knew her AI mark would be fine (3 cheers for tutoring assistants ).

Me: And… um… what about IMFR?
Tutoring assistant (eagerly shuffling papers): That’s also 90%.
Professor: This is confidential, but your written paper was quite poor.

Vera is torn between ‘Who cares?’, ‘May I strangle you… NOW??’ and ‘Who’s fault is THAT?’

Vera (smiles uneasily): Yes… I… um… didn’t do too well there. I know.

Vera hurriedly jumps up, eager to escape as soon as possible.

Classmate: What did you get?
Me (elated): 90%
Classmates (impressed): For both?

Vera nearly crashes into the teacher’s desk³.

Me (beaming): Yes.

So no strangling the teacher, after all there are still those who need to pass. Nevertheless, I fully agree with a classmate’s “toasting reason”, after the AI exam (written the day after the disastrous exam):

To Professor X!
May he have a long - however not particularly pleasant - life!
CHEERS!!

You can bet that everyone clinked glasses whole-heartedly to that. If I weren’t finishing university this year, I’d definitely make a vow not to choose ANY of his subjects again. As such: good riddance!

_________________________________
¹ Starting 2^nd year we have so called optional classes, meaning that we can choose from 2 to 5 subjects for a certain course (called optional course). Most students chose IMFR because it was supposed to lack an exam… or it did last year.

² At least I think that was the professor’s intention. To me, it was just plain creepy. Then again, I was sitting 5cm from him, so I could be biased.

³ I’m not sure HOW I could miss it, then again, the classmate is cute…

This will probably be my last post until after the finals (that’s the beginning of February - for those curious) - and as far as things look now, I might even come out a much more pious person

Remember my rant on Senior Students? In case you hadn’t noticed, it was a rant specifically geared towards a certain professor. Guess what he came up with yesterday morning? After advertising during the whole semester that there will be no other evaluation method than a project (a really nasty one at that - thanks), he decides that - for some unintelligible reason - his students couldn’t possibly be stressed enough:

Professor: Oh… by the way, next week we’ll be having a small written exam during the lecture.
Student (aghast): Er… what kind of exam?
Professor (airily): Oh you know, nothing to worry about. Just some small general knowledge facts. You know, from what we discussed during the lectures.

Everyone looks at the professor aghast.

Student: And um… how much does it weigh in the final average?
Professor: 40 20 40 … no, DON’T WRITE THAT DOWN! I don’t know yet.

Students all drop dead… metaphorically speaking (they still have Computer Networks to stress about).

Now before you go on harping about why no pone pays attention during class - let me just say that we didn’t do ANYTHING worthwhile during the lectures. The first three were spent by the professor asking us what SciFi named project we’d like to implement. The following parts were filled with students presenting essays that 99.99% of them had no idea about - which is exactly how they presented them. Is it a wonder if everyone was practically sleeping during the class?

And the final part of it… we found out he didn’t even study Computer Science in university, has no idea how to get rid of a Message Box (by clicking the OK button - in case you’re wondering) and never looks at your program’s code (so he can’t help you out if you’re stumped - and believe me you ARE stumped, since nothing you’ll do will ever be enough). Yours truly has a sneaky suspicion that he can’t even write code himself. Life’s so unfair !

P.S. Sorry about the comments in Internet Explorer6 (maybe even 7 dunno, haven’t installed it). I’m working on it, still if you have any suggestion regarding it, don’t hesitate to tell me.

[edit] I truly love group projects… especially the part where we all gather ’round the window and start ooh-ing and aah-ing about the sudden rain (our brains were fried by the project I mentioned before). Unfortunately, It seems that they also leave me quite empty-headed. I can’t believe I told a classmate “My mom has no ears” instead of “My mom has no hole in her ears”.