Dreaming in Code

HF's brother gave "Dreaming in Code" to HF as a lunar New Year's day present. HF was very glad - HF really likes book. Though the words of the book was difficult ones (more than those of Steven King's), the story was quite interesting. 

Here is one-line summary: Software is really HARD, by nature. Also the author emphasized that there is no silver bullet, which is also a famous quote of F.Brooks. 

HF's conclusion: There may be no silver bullet for software engineering methodology, but abstraction matters.

동생이 설 선물로 준 Dreaming in Code를 다 읽었다. 단어가 꽤 어려운 편이라 스토리의 제 맛을 다 이해할수는 없었지만 (솔직히 말하면 저자가 글을 잘 쓰지 못했기 때문이라고 생각한다), IT분야의 사람이라면 공감할만한 내용들로 이루어져 있는 책. 아마존에는 별점을 높게 받지는 못한것도 어찌보면 당연한 것이다. 

Dreaming in Code: Two Dozen Programmers, Three Years, 4,732 Bugs, and One Quest for Transcendent Software by Scott Rosenberg 

What's that?

One shiny day, Ho wears a jean and a blue baseball cap and runs to the mirror to see herself. But Ho discovers something. "What's that?"

1월의 어느날 햇볕 좋은 오후 1시경, 밖에 나가볼까 하고 차려입은 HO. 거울을 보러 가다가 바닥의 무엇인가를 발견하고 들여다보다.

HF's another acceptance to IEICE Trans.

IEICE로의 세번째 논문 게재승인이 났다. 작년 광복절에 Electronics Letter에 제출한후 이유없이 게재불가가 나서 속상했던 논문이다. 아이디어와 효과면에서 가장 자신있었던 연구였기에 기쁘다.

Today, I got another acceptance to IEICE Transactions on Information and Systems. Half a year of paperwork brought me two acceptances and one conditional acceptance. I'm quite satisfied.

--

HF

Mindful Reading

최근 데이빗 브룩스의 책 "보보스"를 읽고 있다. 위트있는 책이고, 재미있는 주제를 다루었다. 비록 번역서이기 때문에 원문의 느낌이 많이 희석된 느낌을 주지만. 최근 책들을 많이 읽고 있는데, 읽을책이 많아서이기도 하고, 책 읽을 짬을 내기가 힘들기도 해서 속독으로 읽고 있는데, 그렇기 때문에 원하는만큼 다 이해를 못하고 있다. 그 속독이란것이 이미 습관이 되었기 때문에 속독을 안 하기란 더욱 어렵다. 속독은 책을 일견(일독과 일견은 다른것이다)해 나아가면서, 중요한 부분들만을 선별하여 집중해 머리에 넣는것이다. TV에 나오는 속독의 달인들은 일견과정에서 집중이 이루어질수도 있지만, 나로서는 뛰다-걷다를 반복하는 식의 그런 속독 방식을 하고 있다. 신문, 잡지등은 이러한 속독에 만족을 하지만, 가끔씩 보게되는 좋은 책들은 속독 때문에 잘 이해하고 싶은 것도 100% 이해를 못하는 현상이 나타나서 안타깝다. '버릴곳이 한군데도 없는책' 이라거나 영어로 'very concise writing on essential things' 정도로 말해질 수 있는 책들도 속독으로 읽다보면 비교적 많은 부분이 그냥 지나가버리게 되는것이다.

HO에게 속독을 가르칠지에 대해서 상당히 고민하게 된다. 속독을 배우면 좋은점은 분명히 있기는 한데... 그게 주로 빨리빨리시대의 한국에서의 장점이기때문이다.

When I read something, I just skim it. I found myself skimming words, paragraphs, or even pages whenever I tried to concentrate on reading. Skimming became a habit since my childhood. My father bought a book on 'fast-reading.' What a super ability it is! Imagine you can read a book 10 times faster than other people. I instantaneously read the book and practice the skill. Finally I attained the _super ability_. What I didn't know at that time is that everything costs something, whether it is imminent or beneath the surface. 'Fast-reading' is a method of skimming with an ability to concentrate on only meaningful parts. If a reading material is composed of meaningful parts, to be comprehended well, and not-so-meaningful parts, then 'fast-reading' shines. But a problem occurs if a reading material is a kind of textbook or a kind of gem, which must be comprehended entirely or every part is worth reading carefully. As I said, 'fast-reading' easily becomes a _habit_, which cannot be easily controlled consciously by brain. When I read some books, I regret of learning 'fast-reading' (or of not learning 'fast-reading' properly). 

Recently I'm reading "Bobos In Paradise" by David Brooks (Korean translation version). I enjoyed reading it. It's dealing formal subject with a humor, which is the style I like. Though the book gets not-good rating (three and a half stars) in Amazon.com, I can recommend this to anyone.

Bobos In Paradise: The New Upper Class and How They Got There David Brooks

I'm enjoying reading it, but I repeatedly found myself skimming it. The power of habit is enormous. I've finished nearly two-third of this book. The words floating around my brain are only 'Bobos', 'culture vs counter-culture.' I'm very sorry that I cannot fully absorb the thing I want to absorb. If the "mindful living" way of Buddhism enhances the quality of living, "mindful reading" may enhance the quality of reading, IMHO. 

--

HF

HF got another conditional acceptance.

 HF의 두번째 논문 역시 IEICE로부터 조건부 개제 승인을 받다. 리뷰어로부터 좋은 아이디어라는 코멘트도.

Another journal paper of HF got a conditional acceptance to IEICE Transactions for Fundamentals. The reviewer commented that "a few improvements of description is required to make readers understand your excellent ideas." Cool comments. :-)

Anger

HF has a bad temper, overwhelming him very easily. Though he regrets after a while, the spilt milk cannot be filled again. It's a natural consequences that he picked up "Anger" by Thich Nhat Hanh as next book after his reading of "This Year I Will...". M.J.Ryan also mentioned in her book that "Anger" is an excellent book for controlling temper.

 

Anger: Wisdom for Cooling the Flames Thich Nhat Hanh

Korean translation is smooth and it was a easy read. The book makes importance on "mindful living". Mindful living means that wherever you go or whatever you do, mind should be there. For example, (1) whatever you eat, sense every taste of the food; (2) when you breathe, sense the in and out of the breathe; (3) when you walk, sense every movement of body. It's a kind of self-discipline in Buddhism. In similar manner, one can keep from anger when one can face and sense anger, the book suggests and M.J.Ryan also mentions. HF determined to try the approach and he picked up "Gem of Buhddist Wisdom" after reading "Anger."

Gems of Buddhist wisdom

"This Year I Will..."

Recently I'm reading "This Year I Will..." by M.J.Ryan.

This one was taken from the bookshelf of my father. Since that was December 2008, I took this book to make a New Year's resolution and to make it happen. I find this book is quite appealing. 

This Year I Will...: How to Finally Change a Habit, Keep a Resolution, or Make a Dream Come True M. J. Ryan

Last year, I thought that I needed to enhance myself and started to read some books. "This Year I Will..." is the second attempt. I started by reading "Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience" by Mihaly Csikszent. It's worth reading. I'll read this book regularly.

Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience Mihaly Csikszent

New Year's Resolution of HF

It's New Year's day of year 2009.

For HF, last year was "The Year of Doctoral Dissertation."

It was a very long way and HF is very glad to finish it.

Today, HF names this year as two:

(1) The Year of Haskell (a programming language), (2) The Year of Fitness.

Learning English and reading books are also HF's plan, though those are not be named as "The Year of ..."

But his family comes first always.