New start, again!

A first step towards another new start.

Hopefully, this will work out well! Wish me luck!

Playing with VNC

After reading about Universe from OpenAI, I got the idea of using VNC for something similar to what Universe is trying to achieve. Basically, I need a way to pipe the output of a screen into a program, and was wondering how to go about capturing the screen. Then I happened upon Universe, and read in the blog post by OpenAI about using VNC. Which is a good idea, and so the past few days were spent trying to program a VNC client in Python. I found this and tried to adapt it to work with Kivy, which is a GUI framework for Python that I have been learning recently. After two days, I gave up trying to adapt the PyGame code in the original program into Kivy, and managed to write a Python program with a Kivy base, that can then call up the VNC client running in PyGame.

The next step is to work on a VNC server that can pipe out just the contents of the window that I want, instead of the entire desktop screen. Time to get down to learning more about the VNC framework... ;)

Open offices are bad?

Just saw this today on BBC News.
Why open offices are bad for us

A while ago, open offices, together with hot desking, was all the boom, with all the hype about creativity and such. But as with all things, there are two sides to the coin. While there may be advantages to having an open office concept, there are disadvantages too. Your company is not going to soar just because you did away with the cubicles and office walls.

In Japan, offices are usually open, without cubicles. It seems to be a Japanese business practice. And there was probably some good reason for adopting this style back in the good old days. But with the changing times and a different generation of people using a different set of technology, maybe it is time Japanese offices adopt a different layout, just to see how things may change. Some food for thought.

A divided nation

On November 8, 2016, America voted.

On November 9, 2016, the results came out, and Trump was announced as President-elect.

Even before America took to the polls, there was already division within the country. Even as the two sides debated, attacking each other instead talking about their plans for America. It was an ugly period of campaigning.

Yes, make America great again. That is easy to say, that is easy to understand. But how will Trump go about doing it? Has anyone heard his actual plans to bring jobs back to the US?

And now that the results are out... America remains divided. People have taken to the streets, demonstrating against Trump as President-elect. In my short life, I do not remember seeing demonstrations after the results of the presidential elections in the past.

I just hope that things cool down soon. Because crowds, angry crowds, can soon clash with each other. Small sparks can become big fires. And I don't think we want civil war in the US.

May cooler heads prevail.

New start, again

Another new start.

Yet again.

Hopefully this time, this new road brings me to where I want to go.

To test or to proof?

Some people want to test their hypotheses. Some want to proof their hypotheses.

仮説を検証したい人もいれば、仮説を証明したい人もいる。

The good news is... both options are possible. As long as you know what tools to use and how to use them.

起業家vs経営者

その違いは？

やはり、「リスク」でしょう。

起業家はリスクを負い、ビジネスを行い、リスクを負う分、利益を得る。

経営者は多くの場合、リスクを負うのではなく、（経営）目標に向かってビジネスを行う。

より多く利益を狙うのか、それとも目標を達成すればいいのか？

私はリスクを負う。あなたは？

One more month

One month to go.

Another new start.

Happy Translators' Day

To all translators, Happy Translators' Day.

It is a thankless job, but an important one.

Another year

Wow.

Another year has gone by.

Another year older.

This year is again different. It is my first birthday on another different path.

Another crossroad

At another crossroad in life.

Do I try to push on, knowing that this path may not be suitable for me?

Or do I make a turn now, to walk another unknown path?

Decision-making in uncertainty

Having been in the navy for so many years, I have become very used to making decisions in uncertainty. Being used to drawing my own conclusions from whatever (sparse) information that I may have, assessing the situation based on that understanding, and choosing a course of action that best applies to the uncertain situation.

But as a researcher in Japan, it is kind of like the total opposite. Everything must be based on known facts. Saying anything that is not 100% certain is taking a risk, and should only be spoken if that risk is actually known (quantifiable). This risk-aversion seems to be a cultural thing, I guess. So it will take a bit of taking used to, since I am very used to drawing my own conclusions based on whatever little data I may have.

Let's see how I can make the best out of both worlds.

Your Name 君の名は

The latest movie by Shinkai Makoto, "Your Name" (original Japanese title 君の名は。) is a touching story about two teenagers who switched bodies in their dreams, living each other's lives. The movie has breathtaking scenes of nature and cityscapes, painstakingly detailing places in Japan such as Tokyo station and Shinjuku.

And the story has its own twists and turns that will leave you holding your breath, waiting to see the outcome.

Most of all, it will leave you touched.

And with an important message.
We are all searching for something, but we don't know what it is. But we will know it when we see it.

Have you found what you are looking for?

Linux on Windows 10

It's here!

Now, Windows users can finally run Linux on their computers, without having to dual-boot their systems.

Linux users have Wine to run Windows within Linux, but the other way round did not exist, until now.

As someone who has been using Linux (on and off, sometimes exclusively, sometimes dual-booting with Windows), I must say I am really excited about this new feature. I don't think this will replace a standalone, full Linux install, but it does help when one has to work mainly in Windows, but once in a while pop into Linux to do some work.

Read the announcement by Microsoft here:
Bash on Ubuntu on Windows

And here is how to get Linux running in GUI mode:
How to run GUI Ubuntu Linux in Windows 10

A year

A year since moving to Japan...