Psshhh c’mon, man… that’s so cliche. :o|
I tried this one doing the “inking” in Illustrator, then the coloring in Photoshop. Mmm… I didn’t like that heheh. I still don’t have a really satisfactory way of drawing comics. I like the scalability of Illustrator but there are some things that are simpler in Photoshop… I’m no expert in either. :o\
Why go to school? Most would agree it’s to prepare ourselves for our futures. However, it seems most of those peoples’ approach is to prepare themselves… on paper. Examples: In high school/college, why get good grades, high test scores, join clubs and do community service? Because it looks good on your college/grad/med school application/resume.
Ever since being involved in several organizations in college and actually enjoying and learning from those experiences, I realized the most value I got from college wasn’t earning a degree, but rather developing myself in leadership, communication, teamwork, management, service, and meeting and becoming friends with wonderful people. These are things you take with you no matter what job you get, what major you’re in, or how much money you make.
Ramit Sethi elaborates beautifully on this in his blog post “Your College is Not a Technical School“.
Think about your current priorities and where you’re committing your time. Are you doing things so you’ll be better?… or just so you’ll look better?
I must broach a topic that’s on many of our minds, but most of us feel uncomfortable talking about. That’s right… splashback. I’m talkin’ toilet splashback. Especially public toilets.
Still don’t know what I’m talking about? Ugh, fine. Okay you know when you need to go #2 and you’re at a public restroom and you poo and there’s some splashback of the toilet water that sometimes touches your butt? Ech… yeah.
I don’t understand… with all our modern science, you think there’d be a solution by now. Isn’t splashback some sort of health hazard? Think about it. The person who uses the toilet before you does their business. They flush… but how clean is that newly refilled water? I bet it’s not very clean. For heaven’s sake, sometimes you still see bits on the bottom… and I wouldn’t be surprised if some toilets miss entire logs here and there on the first try. Thus, I imagine there’s some pretty nasty bacteria in that water… and then to have that stuff splash back and hit us in the heiny. However, I’m no health expert/scientist, so I can’t say much about that stuff for certain.
At the very least, splashback feels icky. I think we can agree on that.
So… how do we minimize it?
The most simple and effective solution I know of: Place a toilet seat protector sheet in the bowl before you do your business.
You know those seat protector sheets dispensed in most public bathroom stalls? “First pull up, then pull down”? Grab one and toss it in the bowl. Try experimenting to see what’s more effective… folded, slightly crumpled, etc. The point is you want to change the behavior of the usual water surface by having the paper disrupt the typical splash patterns. The paper will “catch” the first few logs, if you will.
What about using toilet paper to cushion the fall instead? I’ve found the seat protectors work sufficiently compared to the layers and effort required with TP for similar results. This may be due to their shape being a broad sheet, plus their waxiness increasing their ability to hold together in their bowl.
This method may not eliminate all splashback, but I’d say about 90%. For something so simple, you get great results. That will have to do until science finds a solution for this problem that touches us on a personal level (literally).
What are your thoughts on splashback? If you have any other methods, please share them in the comments!
Some friends of mine were building a library for an elementary school and what library is complete without a nifty electronic catalog? I set out looking for free catalog software and found the ideal system: A free web application that could be installed and run on pretty much any junky old computer and accessed locally (or publicly, if you wish).
I set this up with the purpose of a school library catalog in mind, built from scratch from salvaged parts, so my instructions are for exactly that. However, this system can be used for many other things, such as a home media library, or equipment checkout system, and can be built in many ways as long as the heart of the system (OpenBiblio) is there.
This procedure is for someone at least somewhat familiar with Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP (or “LAMP”). You should be familiar enough with the system to do basic application installations and take precautions such as disabling directory listing. If that’s not you, find someone who is.
Sounds good? Of course it does. Let’s get crackin’…
The software will run on pretty much any junk PC, since the software really isn’t resource-intensive. I did this setup on a PIII 500MHz machine with 256MB of RAM and it ran just fine, even with 10-15 people simultaneously cataloging on it. Ask your friends for hand-me-downs, or worst case, buy something for uber cheap off Craigslist. You can also install everything on your current computer if you want to run an Apache/MySQL server on it (assuming you know what you’re doing).
LAMP stands for Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP.
Follow the LAMP Installation Walkthrough (using Ubuntu, a popular distribution of Linux recommended for beginners)
I recommend also installing PHPMyAdmin (listed as an optional step after setting the MySQL password).
OpenBiblio is the heart of the system, the “library software”, if you will. It’s a web application that runs on PHP/MySQL, and it has a quick and easy installation, very similar to WordPress.
Login to MySQL and follow the OpenBiblio installations instructions (install_instructions.html), beginning from step 5.
The Lookup addon adds functionality to OpenBiblio by allowing you to lookup books from the Library of Congress database, or other library databases, and downloading their MARC (bibliographic) information.
Download Lookup if you know Linux pretty well and want bibliographic lookup capability: http://www.flos-inc.com/projects/ (”download Lookup files”). Refer to “lookup_install.txt” for installation instructions.
For step 2, your OpenBiblio MySQL data directory is most likely under “/var/lib/mysql/”. For example, if you named your OpenBiblio MySQL database “OpenBiblio” and you’re in the Lookup installation directory, you’d type “sudo mv cutter.* /var/lib/mysql/OpenBiblio“.
This is a protocol required by the Lookup addon. This is where you need Linux know-how… something I don’t have. At this point, I don’t have much idea what’s going on, but try entering the commands and hope it somehow works. :oP :o)
Results, woohoo!
No library checkout system is complete without a barcode scanner. This may be the only purchase you need to make. Typical “gun”-looking scanners cost ~$100, but you can get a contact/swipey scanner for ~$15 (including shipping). The CueCat barcode scanner (pictured below) is available on eBay or www.cuecats.com. Make sure you purchase a modified version, or search for the simple mod instructions on Google. The CueCat is available in PS2 and USB.
If you made it this far, I assume you can poke around and figure out how everything works. As for maintenance, I recommend periodically backing up the database by exporting it using PHPMyAdmin.
Here’s some documentation for your own use or for you to distribute. Please give credit where credit is due, and if you believe you can make improvements, please do so and drop me a note. :o)
Instructions for Use and Maintenance of Library Electronic Catalog (PDF)
There are several do-it-yourself earbud cord wraps out there. Some are nice, some are… resourceful. I’ve seen some made of foam (from old flip-flops maybe) or credit cards, but I have yet to see one as cheap (or at least readily available) as my very own. I misplace my earbud cord wraps all the time, so it’s great to have ones that are compact, easily replaceable, quick to make, and easily disposable. Oh, and functional. heh.
Congratulations. You have a fully functional Poor Man’s Earbud Cord Wrap. Standard Edition.
The Standard Edition is usually suitable enough to prevent tangling, and it usually stays wrapped if you’re storing the earbuds somewhere that doesn’t get tossed around too much. However, if you want to be baller and you have a pair of scissors and 15 seconds to spare, consider upgrading to the Deluxe Edition. The Deluxe Edition makes sure the cord stays wrapped around the holder.
To upgrade, cut a small ~1/4″ slit in the “spine”, perpendicular to it, and a small “branch” slit off that so you can push out the “tab” to create a small hole, which I call the Cord Holder Hole.
After wrapping the cord around the holder, tuck a piece of the remaining cord into the Cord Holder Hole. As you can see, the Cord Holder Hole is a hole that holds cord. (That’s what she said.)
[Update]: Welcome Lifehacker readers! Be sure to check out my comics and subscribe to my RSS feed. If you’re interested in tips like the above, look through my other guides.
A big part of college life is flyering. Most likely you are bombarded by students handing you flyers on the way to class, or one day you will be the one trying to force flyers into another student’s hands. If that day should come, here are some tips to prepare yourself.
Do you want to hand out more than one flyer per minute? Do you want to become the ULTIMATE UNSTOPPABLE FORCE OF RAW FLYERING POWER?
Yes. Yes, you do.
I assume you’re forced to flyer, you’ve got your stack of distributables, and you’re on Bruinwalk (if you’re at UCLA, otherwise your college equivalent of its flyering “gauntlet”). Suck it up and keep reading.
Flyering involves making an actual effort to hand out flyers. The typical attitude/excuse for sitting at the table instead of flyering (besides fear of rejection) is “if they’re really interested, they’ll approach me.” Think about it… how often does that happen? Number of flyers per hour you’ll hand out with that attitude: 0.75 (only because someone on Bruinwalk recognized you and stopped to chat and take a pity flyer… maybe.)
There are two keys to flyering like a crazy mofo:
It’s easy ignoring someone spewing lines over a crowd. “Party this Saturday” or whatever. They’re not talking to you. You don’t care. You can ignore them. But.. say someone is looking right at you, establishing eye contact, clearly addressing you.. “Hey come out to our party this Saturday”… hey, they’re actually talking to you. The person flyering is much more likely to get a response, even if it’s a “no thanks” or a little head shake.
DO:
Work the Approach: Don’t expect them to do any work. Most people avoid flyers, so what makes you think anyone would go through any trouble to obtain a flyer?
DO:
CONFIDENCE. You’re not likely to take a flyer from someone who doesn’t seem like they believe in what they’re selling. Present your flyers not like “Umm… please take a flyer? Ow–.. my feelings.”.. but more like “YO B*%@H. Take a flyer cuz you know you wanna be part of this sh*%.. hellllz yeeeahhhh.” But don’t say that.
There’s always going to be those who intentionally avoid/ignore you (I used to be one). They keep walking, despite your hand being right in front of them. Oh they know you’re there. They hear you. They’re just too badass to even establish eye contact or decline politely. It happens. Move on.
There are those who never take flyers and a few who like to take flyers. This guide doesn’t guarantee 100% of the people you approach will take your flyer, but it helps maximize your effectiveness among the “undecided” crowd in between. With the right attitude and favorable conditions/material/cause, you can be a 100+/hr flyererer! :oD
Do YOU have strategies for flyering like a crazy mofo? Please share :o)
(A comic from Below the Mean):
