Stock recommendation: Now is a good time to buy GOOG

I think that now is a good time — no, a GREAT time — to buy some Google stock.

In order to make successful investments, it helps if you buy stock while it has been undervalued. In other words, buy low and sell high. The price of Google stock dipped recently, probably due to the news that Google was no longer going to censor its content for the Chinese market. This is an emotional reaction that laypeople often make. Google has a great future, it has high capitalization, and industry analysts rate it highly. It is in a GREAT position to do well, and so I would jump on it soon. Right away, in fact, before the market corrects for this overreaction.

Cardio DVDs

I borrowed a bunch of cardio exercise DVDs from the public library — too many for me to watch within a week, I’ll admit. I just wanted to sample various ones and pick out little exercises that I liked. This gives me some more ideas for diverse moves that I can try while doing cardio work in front of the TV.

Yes, it’s a time-saving effort.

I liked Gilad’s DVD — the one that I watched, that is. Denise Austin’s DVDs are pretty good, but they cater more to women. Still, some of the exercises are usable.

I didn’t borrow any Kathy Smith videos, but I do like the ones that I’ve watched in the past. She’s very charming and her fitness really shows.

I borrowed some of the old BodyShaping DVDs once. They were okay; the problem was that they were really meant as general fitness DVDs, so you don’t have a lot of time for each aerobics segment. And frankly, I don’t think there’s a whole lot that I can learn from the weight training parts. Perhaps if they had some more segments on nutrition, they’d be more relevant to my trimming down program.

REPRINT: When Is A Software Engineer Not A Software Engineer? (Part II)

This is part two of a publicly available article. It has been posted here with permission from the original author.

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I think this happens because modern programming tools have made proper code design seem like a nuisance.  In the early years of computing, people were forced to write out their software designs, pondering many fine details before they ever sat down in front of the computer.  Nowadays, with our fast compilers and interactive debugging systems, programmers often find it more convenient to simply sit down and start coding, with just a modicum of software design.  Mind you, I do understand that this is sometimes more efficient—when the programming task is fairly routine, for example.  However, when such design-as-you-go software development becomes standard practice, then you have the makings of utter chaos.

In part, this problem is also rooted in the malleable nature of computer software.  No self-respecting civil engineer would design a bridge by slapping girders together until he has something that works; after all, if the bridge collapses, it could take months to rebuild it.  Similarly, no sensible architect would want to build a house without blueprints and floor plans.  Yet it is commonplace for programmers to develop software using poorly chosen functions and only the sketchiest of designs.  After all, if the software doesn’t work, they can always find the bug and fix it—at least, in theory.  In practice, these bugs are often difficult to detect, and fixing them can require extensive surgery.  The consequences of an ill-designed software program can be disastrous indeed.

For this reason, I believe that high-tech companies need to give software engineering the respect that it deserves.  They need to develop a true culture of systematic software design, instead of merely settling for “whatever works.”  A company that’s looking toward the future must pay proper devotion to the principles of software maintainability, proper documentation and elegant, robust design.  It must also inculcate a culture of true software engineering among its employees.  The failure to do so may work in the short-term, but it is a recipe for long-term disaster.

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About the Author:

V. B. Velasco Jr is a senior electrical and software engineer at a small biotech company that provides ELISPOT readers, immune monitoring services, and serum-free media.

REPRINT: When Is A Software Engineer Not A Software Engineer? (Part I)

The following is part one of a publicly available article.  It has been posted here with permission from the original author.

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The title of “software engineer” has got to be among the most highly abused in the corporate high-tech world.  It’s also one of the most popular.

And why not?  It sounds a lot better than “computer programmer,” and it looks much better on one’s business card.  Unfortunately, it’s often inaccurate.  Engineering is, after all, the application of sound technical principles to develop systems that are robust, efficient and elegant.  I’ve found that a great many software engineers can develop working programs, but do little or no real engineering design.

Does this sound harsh?  Perhaps, but I’ve also found it hard to deny.  I’ve encountered very few software engineers, for example, who have clean, crisp and readable coding styles—an essential element of elegant software design.  I’ve also encountered a preponderance of cryptically written functions, clumsy software abstractions and bizarre spaghetti code.  To my dismay, I’ve discovered that even among computer science graduates, many reduce object-oriented programming to the mere use of private data, public functions and object instantiations.  It’s enough to break a teacher’s heart.

Now, I won’t go so far as to say that most programmers write spaghetti code.  That would not be fair.  However, I do think that relatively few programmers have a deep appreciation for the artistry of software development.  That’s not to say that they’re ignorant of such things; not at all.  Rather, it’s more that the engineering aspects of elegant code design are all too often neglected.

(To be continued…)

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About the Author:

V. B. Velasco Jr is a senior electrical and software engineer at a small biotech company that provides ELISPOT software, colony counters, and serum-free media.

Lindy hop moves

Here is a list of lindy hop moves that I need to practice and master.
Swingout from the open and closed positions
Lindy circle
She goes
He goes
Outside turn
Rollaway
RJ  (I think my instructor is using the wrong terminology here)
RJ with a turn
RJ with follow-through
Texas tommy
8-count tuck turn
Reverse swingout
This strange unnamed “pretzel” move
Basic dip
Dip with a turn
Another dip where the woman almost sits on the guy’s lap
Handpress with no turn, a single turn, or a double turn
Hip catch and hip catch with a turn

Where is Karen Austin?

Whatever happened to Karen Austin?

A quick look at her IMDB entry shows that she’s now 54 years old and still acting.  Wow.  That’s especially impressive for a woman, since their marketability as actresses tends to go down as they age.

She was more than just a pretty face with beautiful eyes.

Annoying gym gal

I can’t forget this very annoying woman at my gym.

I attend this cardio workout class every Saturday morning.  One day, she showed up and took up a spot in one corner at the front.  Instead of following along with the moves though — marching, grapevines, lunges, and the like — she kept twisting and dancing in place, occasionally letting out with a big “Whoop!” to the music.

Yeah, she was annoying.  However, I figured that she might be intimidated by some of the moves, even though they weren’t very complex.  So after the class, I walked over, welcomed her to the group, and asked if she needed help with any of the moves.

Her response?  In a sing song voice, she said, “Oh, no.  I just like doing my own thing.”

Lady, if you want to do your own thing, stay at home.  What’s the point of joining the group if you’re not going to follow along?

BTW, the same goes for this other fella who never follows along with the group either.  I can understand not being coordinated, and I can understand not being in shape.  At the very least though, try to roughly follow the moves, for pity’s sake!  If you keep making up your own moves, and if you fail to move in the same direction as the rest of the group, then you should probably join another class.  Either that or make up your own routine.

Don’t be an idiot when using PowerPoint

There’s a great article about people who read their PowerPoint slides to the crowd when giving presentations.  The author rightfully asserts that this is an insult to one’s audience.  It’s also a sign of poor preparation and/or an inability to communicate effectively.  I’d even argue that it frequently indicates a lack of mastery of one’s subject matter.

One reader reported that according to a survey he conducted, 73% of presenters rely on the slides to remind them what to say.  Now that’s horrible.  I don’t mind it when the slides help prompt one’s flow of thought or serve as occasional reminders, but you have to be better prepared than that.

I love a snappy slogan

Most small companies aren’t very clever when it comes to writing their advertising copy.  That’s why it’s always a pleasure when I come across one that actually puts some quality thought into their ads and marketing flyers.

Consider this company, for example.  Their website copy needs improvement; however, their marketing materials were clearly thought through very well.  Look at the downloadable copy of their line of colony counters, for example.  I thought that the slogan they came up with was clever and had a lot of impact, but without being overly cutesy.

Batman: The Brave and the Bold

This is an interesting new series on the Cartoon Network. Not bad, but it does have some rough spots.

I like their imperious take on Aquaman, though I think that they’ve gone a bit overboard in that regard.  I also like the way they depict Green Arrow, and I especially like the way they gave little Speedy some significant airtime.  Their characterization of the Blue Beetles hasn’t been bad either.

On the other hand, I absolutely detest the way they depicted the Elongated Man.  The voice they gave him was utterly atrocious as well.