02 June 2012
Work and work and... Naxos
Island life again
Here I am again in Naxos, arrived yesterday evening with the afternoon
boat. The boat was full, but few foreign tourists, Greeks had a 3 day
weekend. For once, I didn't much move around on the boat, neither much
enjoying the air and the see. Instead I was reading. Now I'm here
to work (lot's of coding to do), for which the quiet life here on
the island is just the right thing. Again there is also good quality
Internet access in the house here... which is on the one hand good for
looking up work related stuff, on the other hand it's a distraction.
The other work plan is photography. I have something of a concept what I
want to do. Actually that is saying way too much. It's more of a rough
aesthetical idea of what kind of picture I'm looking for. It's not like
I know exactly what pictures I want to take or where, but I have a
bit of a feeling how I want the pictures to look like. Going from that
idea I'm now moving around, trying to align my "concept" with what I
see. Who knows, it might take me somewhere in the end.
05 June 2012
Underwater
There's not only work in life
There's not only work in life. Being on Naxos gives me the chance to go for a nice swim when work is done. The weather is fine for swimming, though the kite surfer dudes are probably fuming in their campers and rented rooms: almost no wind means no play for them.
My new (not really so new any more) underwater camera (Lumix) is holding up fine. The Pentax had the advantage that it could be set to fixed focus, but other than that the Lumix image quality appears to be slightly better.
09 June 2012
A Simulated Network with Qemu and Sockets
Set it up fast and simple
I was trying to test some networking stuff with various operating
systems. I have neither the patience nor the hardware to set up a bunch
of real machines with those systems to try out things. So qemu came to
my mind to simulate these things - which would be good enough for my
problem case.
According to my study of the various parts of documentation on qemu, the
fastest way to get this going was to set up a "socket" based network.
That way, a couple of virtual machines can share a virtual network. They
don't have access to the host's network connection - and therefore to
the Internet though - unless you set up one of the guest OS systems as a
router and set up some routing. I wasn't going to do that, as in my
problem case a bit of isolation is a good thing.
Continue reading "A Simulated Network with Qemu and Sockets"
12 June 2012
Eating Out in the Labyrinth
Restaurant Labyrinth on Naxos
Whenever I'm on Naxos, I try to eat at this place at least once. This is
not typical, traditional Greek cuisine. They do their own recipes
mostly, using topical ingredients and with some topical inspiration.
What comes out is often amusing and surprising, like the combination of
chicken fillet and shrimps (yummy, if you believe me).
I like the salad with green apples and yogurt sauce a lot. What I also
tend to order is the risotto (actually more of a rice dish) with
mussels, shrimps and ouzo in the sauce. There is a selection of other surprising and creative
dishes, and from time to time I have to convince myself to not just
order what I know and like, but to try the other stuff too.
The Λαβίρηνθος (lavirinthos) is not on the cheap side. We calculate
about 15 - 18 Euros per person, but it's worth it for the food and the
atmosphere. In summer you sit outside in the patio of the restaurant.
There's no sea view, as the place is in the middle of the small streets
of the old town (that's the labyrinth the place is named after). The
style of the place makes up for the lack of view though.
18 June 2012
Kurz zu den Wahlen vom Juni
Schlecht geschlafen
Via vb von den Nachdenkseiten:
"Hallo Griechen! Entweder Ihr wählt richtig! Oder wir helfen Euch nicht mehr!"
Ein Artikel zur Rolle der Medien, der PR, der EU und der Neoliberalen Seilschaften und den Wahlen in Griechenland. Mit einem Abstecher zum Zustand der Demokratie heutzutage.
Mir selber hat das Resultat etwas die Hoffnung genommen. Ich habe die Nacht fast nicht schlafen können. Jetzt kommen wieder die gleichen Verbrecher, Lügner und Diebe an die Macht wie vorher. Und das nur wegen einer Angstkampagne und einem kriminellen Wahlgesetz, das aus 3% Unterschied im Resultat fast schon eine absolute Mehrheit produziert. Die Misere und das Leiden wird weitergehen.
Zeit meine Informations-Aufgabe zur direkten Demokratie in Griechenland wieder verstärkt aufzunehmen.
19 June 2012
Airplanes now with "integrated literature consoles"
ebook on plane
On my flight to Switzerland I was reading with the ebook reader. After a
while I got bored holding it in my right hand, then my left hand, then
back to the right hand... The table was too low to place it comfortably,
so I had to find another solution.
Good for me that airlines these days have "integrated literature
consoles" in the backside of your front seat. These integrated consoles
are of the "bring your own ebook reader" variety, but apart from that
they work fine. How do they work?
- Bring your own ebook reader (here my Bookeen Odyssey).
- Rotate the display to landscape mode.
- Turn the flap of the cover around and put it into the newspaper pocket
of the front seat.
- Read.
- Lift your hand and "click" on the touchscreen to turn pages.
The result is a very relaxed and healthy reading posture, due to the
ergonomics of having the reader nearly at eye level and having your hands free.
20 June 2012
Δημοψήφισμα 17 Ιουνίου
Ψήφησα... τι θα ψηφίσατε εσείς;
Την 17 Ιουλίου 2012 είχαμε τρία δημοψηφίσματα. Αυτά ήταν για θέματα
που αφορούν την Ελβετική ομοσπονδία. Σαν Ελβετός του εξωτερικού δεν έχω
δικαίωμα να ψηφίζω για θέματα των καντονιών ή κάποιου δήμου. Όλα τα
δημοψηφίσματα μαζεύονται και γίνονται σε τέσσερα σαββατοκύριακα το χρόνο.
Σε μερικά καντόνια υπάρχει ένα πειραματικό πρόγραμμα που επιτρέπει στους
"απόδημους" να ψηφίζουν μέσω Internet. Δεν είμαι καθόλου υπέρ του να
ψηφίζουμε μέσω ιντερνέτι (το θεωρώ πάρα πολύ ανασφαλές), αλλά αυτή την
φορά το δοκίμασα.
Τι είναι λοιπόν τα θέματα και τι ψήφισα...
Continue reading "Δημοψήφισμα 17 Ιουνίου"