Work and work and... Naxos

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.

Underwater

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.

A Simulated Network with Qemu and Sockets

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.

Eating Out in the Labyrinth

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.

Kurz zu den Wahlen vom Juni

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.

Airplanes now with "integrated literature consoles"

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.

Δημοψήφισμα 17 Ιουνίου

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 τον 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 μέσο Internet. Δεν είμαι καθόλου υπέρ του να ψηφίζουμε μέσο ιντερνέτι (το θεωρώ πάρα πολύ ανασφαλής), αλλά αυτή την φορά το δοκίμασα.

Τι είναι λοιπών τα θέματα και τι ψήφησα...