End of semester; Research Methodolgy; e_Commerce

Well that day has finally dawned - Yes, its the last day of the semester but also more importantly the last day of classes for the course - that's in NO MORE formal classes - Wow, still trying to get my head around that one . . . . so what happens now I hear you saying??? Well - exams start next week with Artificial Intelligence and it will take some artificial and super-human effort but I am confident I will get there - the following week is Designing Usable Systems - DUS . . . I only have two exams - obviously more worried about AI - because of its complexity but also because it's exam makes up 80% of my class mark - as opposed to DUS where I have completed 50% of the work so the exam - maximum counts for 50% - a big difference . . . AI is the big bang approach - which I thought education terms they had moved away from a long time ago - it appears not - problem is we were not given any notes but had plenty of time to address that - I have both the Dechter as well as the Planning so in theory - I shouldn't have any problems . . . . but that is next weeks story . . .

This week - lets see Judi was across visiting me last weekend and left my place Sunday . . .I was supposed to get stuck in but found it hard to get going - I think we have had so much to do with one deadline after another that I have hit a plateau - almost saturation point - you work & work & work to meet a deadline - but then you just move on to meet the next one and this carries on and on . . . it get s to you after a while - but you just pick yourself up, dust yourself off - and get on with it - there have been a whole string of such deadline and this week was no exception - We started Research Methods last week Friday and had a presentation to do this week Friday, we also had a critique to hand in on a previous dissertation . . . things apparently got out of hand and out of a class of 24 - 16 people had asked for an extension . . . . no, not I - he says - I've just never believed in extensions - you get one and it means that your encroaching on the next assignments time and before you know where you are it has all snow-balled - I did get a 24 hour extension once on Java documentation if I remember correctly - there was a reason for that - can't remember what - something to do with them working on the gas or something . . . anyway I did not do well with that part of the project anyway - another thing is you are supposed to loose 10% of the marks so I think you need to give it plenty of thought - its as I say its usually the same people getting extensions . . . whenever I ask certain people they have not yet handed in.

Apart from research methodologies we had our final e-Commerce presentation as well as a portfolio of all our documentation . . . which we are at this late stage still putting together . . .

Thursday had a RM meeting - Nicole, Sonia, Chris and myself - and I was to meet with Christiaan - we were going to do AI - but he phoned at 14h00 - sounded half cut and mumbled something about International students night the night before and alarm clock - to which I replied 'I take it you had a good night then' to which I got a groan of a reply - no AI needed to now he wasn't going to come down in a hurry . . . .

Took wee Micra in for an MOT - was dreading it as wasn't sure what they would find wrong - took it in to Marshall just down the road and thought I'd just walk home - would the heavens not open up and it start pouring just as I dropped it off . . . .women immediately started quizzing me about year of registration and where the papers were etc., - anyway she just got my back up and we did not get off to a good start . . .but I had to ask someone to give me a lift home as there was no way I was walking in that rain . . .cost me about £140 all 'n all - there was a leak in the one lamp and couple of bulbs and draining plus some other rod as part of CV whatever . . . . Micra failed emissions test but they managed to get past that by charging me for some cleaning goodies . . . lol - I had asked them to get me a passenger side mirror but they couldn't get it as they claimed it was non-standard . . .I was very happy in the end as I thought there might be a lot more wrong with it . . .

Only other issue of note I stood down as chair of the BDC - with uni work it wasn't fair as they need more hands on - Brian was elected as chair and I think he will do well - a lot of hard work ahead - if they get funding that is - otherwise they are looking at about another 3 months and that will be the end of it . . . I think they are going to have to change things . . . but time will tell.

Next week its elections - my predictions are that the SNP will be the majority party across Scotland but I don't think the will have an outright majority - I think they will form a coalition govt with Lib Dem's - and it looks very much as if local elections will follow a similar trend although I see them actually controlling quite a number of councils with, I think, quite a few shocks in store - the big story I think will be the massive losses and swing away, by a dis-enchanted public . . . . long may it last - Tommy Sheridan - I think he will get back in . . . do I have money on all of this No - I am not a gambling man - but I may have to eat humble pie - who knows!

Blackness; A week of deadlines - DUS; MedioPlus; Java;

Well its another week and as promised here are a few Blackness photo's - OK technically they were not taken this week - don't tell anyone though . . . went for a walk with Mandy, Zack (our canine friend - a wee bit overweight - so he needed the walk - I can't talk) Judi & I - was a lovely neck of the woods - don't know it so it was a novel experience for me. Photo's: above me the famous Blackness Castle; Blackness the village & Marina; Judi after the walk; lovely colour from the flowers; looking out across to the Forth Road & Railway bridge; a tree trunk in the woods; Blackness Castle through the trees (as seen from the other side); my walk mates leading the way (me & my camera - continually stopping to click here and there) - A solitary tree that caught our eye.


Well its another week behind me - the end of the semester fast approaches - its been a hard week - 1 research paper - 2 presentations & 1 practical assignment with detailed report - I thought the report was a formality with the focus being on the code - but then I reread the spec - guess what it says a brief description of your program 10 pages I nearly died . . .on the spot . . .so bottom-line I never got the program to work - I think I was close - I know your saying a miss is as good as a mile . . .but I'm getting ahead of myself - that all happened on Friday - lets get back to last weekend . . .
Well Judi and I had discussed things and decided, realistically I had far too much work for us to see each other last weekend - she would end up feeling guilty and God forbid I didn't make any of my deadlines . . . a treacherous slope and easy to say its fine I'll manage . . . in retrospect as much as I didn't like it it was the correct decision - there is just no way I would ahve been able to cope - I worked last week solid - I was off the whole week - went in once for a meeting and that was it . . .

Anyway this week kicked off with AI on Monday - it was revision class and shhh! but some of it is actually making sense - I think if I now took the course again it would all fall into place - sadly that will not happen and my exam is on May 2nd - next weekend is looking more and more like another weekend where Judi & I will only see each other briefly . . . . Monday afternoon met with my e-Commerce team mates - they all showed up this time and I was able to share with them what my vision was and the presentation . . . all in prep for our initial presentaion for Tuesday . . . I nearly fainted when Murvin told me he had not started his DUS research papaer which had to be handed in the next day . . .I told him I had been working on it solid for a week and the formatting alone had taken me 1/2 a day - so I wished him good luck.

Tuesday morning - after a long night preparing the said research paper for hand-in was the launch of MedioPlus - our e-Commerce online music / tv / film / sporting & corporate and special events company - presentation was not flawless - but went down well . . . basically need some more work - everyone presented and all involved - meeting Monday next week to finalise material for hand in on Tuesday and sort out presentation . . . . Afternoon went well - was a wee bit nervous and at last minute PowerPoint played up on Mac . . .some of the slides images went a weird blue colour instead of white . . . . Murvin did not make it and by Friday was still working on it and had not handed in . . . we were given a mark out of 18 for research paper & out of 7 for presentation . . . Murvin did not do either so must have lost the 7 marks already . . .Oh well each to their own . . .

I was totally exhausted and knew I still had to finish my prgramming and write my report for Friday moring hand-in . . . couldn't work Tuesday evening - I contacted Murv and asked if he would help me on Thursday with program - he agreed and it was Wednesady evening before I was able to start report - to cut a long story short finished report Friday morning 10h30 and handed in - as I was saying code does not work but most of it is there - justhope what is there and my report pull me through.


Wednesday was just AI and Peter turned up with model answers - which sometimes left me more confused . . . that's AI for you - I did ask manay a question and received many an answer - sometimes when you don't know enough you can't ask meaningful questions . . .

Anyway - next week - have e-Commerce final presntation and hand-in portfolio which documents each week and how idea developed . . . Friday - presentation for Research Methodology + Essay and inbetween study for AI exam - hope to answer an old AI exam paper and hand it in for marking . . .

That was the week that was my life . . . - Judi here for the weekend - thank goodness . . . . lol - I missed her. . . .

Cyber Twin - Second Life - Hard at Work . . believe it or not

This week's photo's - lets see - starts off in Gourock / Port Glasgow - a memorial to old viking ship - what looks like a customs boat on patrol ?? - then it's further along the coast to Wemyss Bay - lots of nostalgia for me - my Gran had a B&B in Rothesay and this was where we always got the ferry across . . .funny how certain things stick in your memory - rushing down this wooden walkway for the ferry . . . then its Largs ferry - the church of Scotland & a yacht at sea - the view from the MacDougall Brisbane bridge over a river full of rocks - then its back into Glasgow the Doulton fountain and & an old carpet factory built in the architectural style of a Venitian Palace - don't ask me??? (next week Blackness) -

OK - always experimenting - that's me - with IT and new software, that is Judi . . try this out - see what you think - look's promising . . . . feedback welcome . . .

After a bit of messing about - I have now chosen the picture of Roy (Rutger Hauer) from the BladeRunner film - he was a replicant in this film (If you haven't seen it - do yourself a favour and get it) basically a robot - one of my all time favouite films and it has stood up well to time . . .

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Its been a busy week for me in terms of study - and I've being doing plenty of it - Judi & I agreed not to see each other that's how serious it was . . . lol. SO what have I been doing well I have a research paper to present on Handheld & Mobile Internet Browsers for Designing Usable Systems - seems to ahve taken forever to get it together . . .anyway its finished - that's for Tuesday - I have a presentation for e-C0ommerce - my iMedio idea - the all singing all dancing Internet based company for legal high quality music / films / TV / Sports & Corporate events - a £2.5m budget to get us going but once we are up and running there will be no stopping us . . . Apart from this just (OK only just started AI - found great material on Wikipedia ) also Java to be handed in on Friday that still needs quite a bit of work - and I am also working on my Research Methodology - assignment due in on 27 April - AI exam is just around the corner and I need a lot of work there still - I estimate about 10 days solid study needed there - which I am not going to get but hey! I will make it . . .its a purely theoretically based subject . . .but I am on it.

Other development this week was signing up for my Second Life avitar . . .that is the cartoon type picture that is me (Woodruff) taken in Second Life . . . I'll keep you posted of this as it goes along - I am looking at doing my dissertation on this - possible developing an online training presence and developing the material for this - could do it as a pilot for some company and then evaluate its effectiveness - I'll need to start working on that as soon as possible - makes sure I know what I am doing and then take it from there . . . get a technology based company that is willing to get there staff to undertake some training in this environment - loads to learn and research still . . .just round the corner though.






















The last part of What the rest of the World knows about South Africa

Q: Does it ever get windy in South Africa? I have never seen it rain on TV, so how do the plants grow? (UK)

A: We import all plants fully grown and then just sit around watching them die.


Q: Will I be able to see elephants in the street? (USA)

A: Depends how much you've been drinking or sniffing.


Q: I want to walk from Durban to Cape Town - can I follow the railroad tracks? (Sweden)

A: Sure, it's only two thousand kilometres. Take lots of water.


Q: Is it safe to run around in the bushes in South Africa? (Sweden)

A: So it's true what they say about Swedes.

Thats all for this week . . . .

Happy Easter - Loch Lomond photo blog

All the photo's are taken around Loch Lomond - starting with the Birds of Prey - who were on display as we arrived - as you can see the weather was glorious and I've decided to limit this week's photo's to Loch Lomond - Drumkinnon Tower - which is now an aquarium - the farmers market; the bike & canoe stand etc., - 2 jet ski's making straight for me - a motor boat keeping an eye on the canoeists making sure they don't get away . . lol. Then we went up past Balmaha and ended up at Rowardennan were we ended up on the jetty and a picture of the Rowardennan hotel . . . . I think that just about covers it . . . Oh and a lovely portal - which is a memorial to soldiers who have given there life . . . with the hills in the background - a somewhat surreal picture when looked at through the portal . . . OK I have loaded the webshots player as well - (after deleting all my photo's from the blog I decided I was not happy with the player as it crops the pictures sometimes and I did not like the fact that you were not able to see the whole photo -silly I know but made all the difference to me) - I you feel like it let me know which you prefer - whether you think the player is good enough - I have loads of other photo's from the week will see whether I load them or keep them for the next few weeks????

Howdy & Happy Easter all - well I've been on holiday for the week - Judi took a week's leave as well - so this is the longest time we have had together since having met . . . well we've had a great time - spent half the time here and half in Edinburgh . . . . couldn't have asked for better weather - it was sunshine all the way and today Sunday was the first day that it was overcast and windy . . . a little bit on the cold side. So this week is all in pictures . . . . tons of uni work to do now and time to make up for projects / presentations etc.,


Loch Lomond