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	Welcome To My Home... October 6, 2002 Seeking Direction College is a lot different than I expected it to be. All through high school, I viewed my classes with criticism. I was forced to take classes that taught me (what I consider to be) completely useless information. And the things that I actually wanted to learn were often either not offered or taught by someone with less understanding of the subject than a relatively bright squid. Then I came to college - one step closer to this mythical real world that everyone was so fond of talking about in high school. Finally, I would have the opportunity to pursue subjects of my interest that could actually be useful for something. In reality, college turned out to be just like high school, except with no friends and more expensive books. Granted, I'm taking mostly general education classes right now, but that's one of the things I'm talking about. I've had twelve years of general education, during which time I've already decided which areas I would like to pursue, and which are completely useless to me. College, I had hoped, would give me more freedom in this area. The classes I want to take are buried under so many unrelated prerequisites that it seems like I'll never have the opportunities to do what I want. I browse the internet and see people years younger than me with an advanced knowledge of things that I haven't even begun to learn. How can these people have led such drastically different lives than I to have been exposed to such different opportunities? Why must I take two years of art history classes just to be able to take a one semester class to learn a computer graphics program? And then not even one of the programs that I truly want to learn. I came to college with a very serious attitude; I came here to learn, and it was important that I do everything possible to get the most out of my classes. Sadly, however, I can feel myself starting to sink back into the apathetic cynicism I developed throughout my high school experience. I decided to take up C++ programming again. I needed an activity to take my mind of stuff and make me feel like I'm not just wasting my time here. But instead of giving me a sense that I was accomplishing something, I became even more discouraged than ever. There are scores of different versions of the C++ language alone, and dozens of different compilers available - none of which seem to be compatible with each other. I can't look at others' code to learn, because I can't even get it to work. Then there are hundreds of preprocessors made by everyone from first-level students to professional programmers, all of which are both used and shunned by different people, depending who you ask. A great deal of tutorials I find focus on DOS programming. Some focus on Windows programming. Most I can't even determine which operating system it is intended for. The whole deal is just completely overwhelming. I don't know what I'm supposed to be learning, where to start, or how anything relates to anything else. I hate this. Comments October 6, 2002 Darnit I'm out of food again. Quick note: If you're already in a crummy mood, don't add the Schindler's List soundtrack to your playlist. I wish I liked the crap that everybody else listens to. If music is your drug of choice, turn down the volume - second-hand smoke kills. Sometimes I envy the deaf. I've updated my art section. Maybe I'll start drawing again. October 7, 2002 You should have... You should have gone to school in Great Britian. Over there they only take two to three years of undergraduate schooling, but its all relevent to their field of study. No G.E.!!!! Yes, over here, GE classes suck and when I first came to college, I felt I was taking classes that were below the level I was in high school. Remember that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, eventually all the classes you are taking will pertain to your interests. Meanwhile, rules were made to be broken. If you want to take a computer graphics class with seemingly unrelevent pre-reqs, take it. Ussually computer registration does not check, and if you don't tell anyone, no one will know. However, don't try to take Computer Graphics 2 before CG1, that might turn out badly. If you feel you need to do it by the book or registration doesn't let you, go talk to the professor. Ussually if you have a genuine interest in their class they'll accomadate you. Thats all for now, just a helpful tip from a college senior. -Julie October 7, 2002 I Haven't Given Up I found a nice set of C++ tutorials written specifically for the compiler I am using. So I'll see what I can do. Hegemonia: Legions of Iron has a playable demo out. It looks absolutely amazing, but the learning curve's a bit too steep for my tastes. Unlike Homeworld, which is really the only logical thing to compare it to, Hegemonia does not have any sort of tutorial. You just need to read the key shortcuts and figure out what you're doing. One good thing is that it has wonderful music - all of which is already in mp3 format. I have started to draw again. (Mainly during math). If I ever start drawing some good stuff, I might consider finding access to a scanner and posting it. I need to determine a topic for my history term paper. Anything of "historical relavence" from the beginning of civilization to about 1500 AD. Recently, we've been studying Buddhism, and I actually kind of like a lot of their ideas. However, I fear that a topic in Buddhism could make for a painfully boring paper. Other ideas I've been considering are researching an ancient Egyptian ruler or religion; something about the fall of Rome; or something concerning the civilization at Pompeii. It needs to be a pretty specific topic, and there are a lot of directions I can go with any of those, though, so I've got some decisions to make. How much closer I am to choosing a topic by Friday will determine, in part, whether I come home this weekend. The Fun 'n Folly homepage has been updated with the brand new Halloween collage. For your viewing pleasure. Enjoy. October 7, 2002 And Now I'm Sick This week just keeps getting better and better. October 7, 2002 One of the best things... One of the best things about Warren college for engineers is their severe lack of GEs. All that's really required for an engineer are six classes of something that could be defined as Social Studies (probably communication or poli sci) and Humanities (yay, philosophy!). Everything else goes straight to your major. Granted, I don't need Chem 6A or MAE 9 (C/C++ Programming), but hell, from an introductory point of view, it works towards Bioengineering quite well. Have a passion for your major, see the connection to your GEs and you'll have a passion for your GEs. But I congratulate you on your need to keep yourself busy. I currently am attempting to learn more Photoshop and how to DJ... as well as engross myself in the works of Dali, Plato, and the history of Atlantis.... *sigh* First quarter is supposed to be this easy right? Music is my drug of choice and by god, it's going to be my roommate's as well, whether he likes it or not. Today I pumped it so loud that the guy across the suite (all the way across) who normally blasts his music told me to turn it down. Whoops. You can always expect music coming out of FR-232... perhaps I should invest in a new speaker system.... -Victor		Quick Links - Fun 'n Folly - Juggling Club - RF Haunt - RF Gallery News/Updates HOME - Latest Post ARCHIVE - Full Archive <- PREV | NEXT -> 10/6 - Seeking Direction 10/4 - The Privacy Issue 10/2 - It's Not Just Fun... 9/30 - Things That Move 9/26 - Seven Minutes 9/24 - The Many Uses of a Frozen Corndog Box 9/23 - For Better or For Worse 9/21 - I'm Trying to Study! 9/19 - Face the Music 9/16 - Nineteen and Counting Previous 10 shown Read More... 8/6/02 - First Post HOME - Latest Post ARCHIVE - Full Archive
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