What’s on your mind?

[yaxomoxay]

Why working with PDF's and PDF Forms is soooooo convoluted?
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I think that there is considerable merit in this.

(And my mother was reading Marsahll McLuhan in the 1960s).



Anytime when what used to be referred to as "normal life" was suspended for a while - such as over the Christmas break, when many people, during those dog days between Christmas and the New Year, had time to think, to brood, to ponder life, to mull over stuff, take stock of their lives, and ask questions of themselves, such as what they actually want from their lives - such self-examinations and personal, private, reappraisals are made.

Thus, some people realised - when they had time to stop and think - that they absolutely loathed their job, and just could not face the thought of ever again having to return to it. And, in turn, that meant, - and it is not just anecdotal, but I have always found it fascinating to contemplate the (considerable) numbers of people who have handed in their notice on their first day on returning to work after the Christmas break in January.

So, taking stock of one's life, and asking questions of technology, the online revolution, and of the digital world, and how you can make room for it in your life without allowing it to dominate or exert excessive control seems to me to be entirely sensible (and inevitable) in the current Covid circumstances.



Fascinating.

These days, I see "happiness" more as a form of acceptance, of becoming comfortable with yourself and with your relationship with your world, personal and professional, and psychological, and having navigated to a place where this has become possible.



Ah, Viktor Frankl; bless my mother.

He was on her shelves as well, and we were encouraged to read his work.



Very well said.



Yes, I remember my mother discussing McLuhan with us; at the time, she was studying for her degree at night, and we were at school, and she eagerly explored such topics at the dinner table, and expected us, as pre-teens, and later, as teenagers, to want to contribute, as well, to these discussions, and encouraged us to read her books (Frankl, McLuhan among many others).

Looks like your mother had great tastes! I'll raise a cup of coffee in her honor.

 

[yaxomoxay]

The Little Book arrived today. I have three books staring at me...feast or famine.

As Marcus Aurelius said: "Why then are you wasting your time on Macrumors? Go read, and report to the God-Emperor yaxo!"

I am of the thought that we dont have a lot of control over the hand we are dealt in life, but we have complete control over how we play it.

Precisely.

 

[Gutwrench]

I am writing from the anteroom of a building where a funeral just concluded.

I met her in 2009 or 2010 and we communicated professionally via email or telephone almost daily since. Funny thing is we never met in person.

She was in need of a professional change and sought a slower life pace so we kept in social contact over this past year and a half. She texted a month ago but I was too busy to reply. And the day slipped away and it fell from my memory. It was the last message from her.

So forgive my dramatic melancholy tone friends and learn from my mistakes; be less mindful to the immediacy and more mindful to what is important.

Stop and take in the beauty of life laid bare in front of you.
Fear less, eat more, diet less.
Love fiercely, shout from a mountain top, yell into an abyss.
Soak in the moment of our days as they are fleeting.

 

[S.B.G]

Why working with PDF's and PDF Forms is soooooo convoluted?

I get a kick out of this rant video on Adobe. 😂

"Adobe Reader is LITERALLY Hitler"

 

[Apple fanboy]

I’m wondering how many posts you need on Macrumors to get an Apple Silicon user title?

 

[Scepticalscribe]

I am of the thought that we dont have a lot of control over the hand we are dealt in life, but we have complete control over how we play it.

Beautifully articulated, and all too very true, but often, this is not something you can comprehend, fully realise or truly understand when you are young.

Why working with PDF's and PDF Forms is soooooo convoluted?

That mystery has yet to be solved, but I strongly suspect that it may come from thinking along the lines of: "if we make it too easy to use they might not respect us or respect our products; whereas complicated and convoluted products may make them take us seriously".

Looks like your mother had great tastes! I'll raise a cup of coffee in her honor.

Thank you.

She would have enjoyed that, and yes, she did have great taste; she also loved studying the history of art, - and adored Kandinsky - and the history of thought, and used to take courses in these subjects over the winter months when golf courses were not interesting for her.

Plato, Aristotle, Raymond Williams and Simone de Beauvoir were also found on her shelves, and again, we were encouraged to want to read them.

And my father had Oscar Wilde, (works and biographies), Shakespeare, and several books on the American Civil War.

I am writing from the anteroom of a building where a funeral just concluded.

I met her in 2009 or 2010 and we communicated professionally via email or telephone almost daily since. Funny thing is we never met in person.

She was in need of a professional change and sought a slower life pace so we kept in social contact over this past year and a half. She texted a month ago but I was too busy to reply. And the day slipped away and it fell from my memory. It was the last message from her.

So forgive my dramatic melancholy tone friends and learn from my mistakes; be less mindful to the immediacy and more mindful to what is important.

Stop and take in the beauty of life laid bare in front of you.
Fear less, eat more, diet less.
Love fiercely, shout from a mountain top, yell into an abyss.
Soak in the moment of our days as they are fleeting.

Superb post, and how right you are.

One of the things I have enjoyed (perhaps paradoxically) as the pandemic waxes and wanes and then waxes and wanes again, is keeping in touch with friends and family by email, or phoning them and having the sort of in-depth and lengthy conversations that we used to enjoy in our teens or twenties, when life was - or seemed to be - less frantically and frenetically busy.

These days, I think it good to try to make the time to stay in touch, to put the effort into maintaining and sustaining the relationships and friendships that matter to you, and to let those you care for know that you hold them in high esteem, and regard them with warmth.

 

[Mefisto]

When all of this craziness is over, I'm moving to Idyllwild, California.

Their mayor is a dog (a literal dog, not in the sense that many human politicians are..), and there's even an annual film festival. If that wasn't enough, it looks beautiful there. A good place to escape the glare and blare of, well, everything.

And seriously. A dog as the mayor? Why is this not a more widespread custom?

Went out earlier today and got some new guitar picks. The old adage "You can build a deck by hammering the screws into the wood, but a screwdriver (the tool, not the drink) will be faster and better" rings also true when it comes to instrument accessories. It's funny when you think you just can't play something, and then notice that it was mostly the pick you were using. Even funnier when you notice you've been basically using the wrong kind of picks for the better part of twenty years...

I need to go to get a few lab tests done in the morning. Haven't been to any health related establishments since the craziness started. Am very interested in how it goes.

 

[MacBH928]

Kids today take auto-save for granted, they don’t know the feeling of the app crashing and losing all your work. This feature is feat of human technology.

I would like to thank who invented it for his contributions for the improvement of humanity. Noble prize worthy.

 

[1042686]

Kids today take auto-save for granted, they don’t know the feeling of the app crashing and losing all your work. This feature is feat of human technology.

I would like to thank who invented it for his contributions for the improvement of humanity. Noble prize worthy.

This should be an Easter egg feature built into word processor suites. Have it randomly feign a crash around midterms or final and fake a loss of data.

Give it a good 10 minutes so, then a window calmly Let’s the user know that their data has been recovered.

 

[SocialKonstruct]

I am thinking how to get motivated to write a paper either today or tomorrow. No energy tonight :\

 

[Apple fanboy]

Kids today take auto-save for granted, they don’t know the feeling of the app crashing and losing all your work. This feature is feat of human technology.

I would like to thank who invented it for his contributions for the improvement of humanity. Noble prize worthy.

This should be an Easter egg feature built into word processor suites. Have it randomly feign a crash around midterms or final and fake a loss of data.

Give it a good 10 minutes so, then a window calmly Let’s the user know that their data has been recovered.

Pffft. You think auto save is a marvel? Some of us did all our schoolwork with pen and paper. We had to go to the library to get a book to look something up!

No wonder I hated school so much.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Pffft. You think auto save is a marvel? Some of us did all our schoolwork with pen and paper. We had to go to the library to get a book to look something up!

No wonder I hated school so much.

I love libraries, the quest (for information, sources, knowledge), the quietness, the quaint but intense atmosphere of mental (or even, intellectual) activity.

And - personally, at least, I find pen and paper to be invaluable. There is no better way to note something, or to retain that information than thinking about it and writing it down.

 

[Apple fanboy]

I love libraries, the quest (for information, sources, knowledge), the quietness, the quaint but intense atmosphere of mental (or even, intellectual) activity.

And - personally, at least, I find pen and paper to be invaluable. There is no better way to note something, or to retain that information than thinking about it and writing it down.

Not great if you are dyslexic though!

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Not great if you are dyslexic though!

But an absolute refuge and sanctuary for bookish sorts; you don't have to socialise, and you can escape into all sorts of inviting and fascinating worlds, both fact and fiction (and indeed, fantasy).

 

[Apple fanboy]

But an absolute refuge and sanctuary for bookish sorts; you don't have to socialise, and you can escape into all sorts of inviting and fascinating worlds, both fact and fiction (and indeed, fantasy).

I get the library part. I mean more the having to do handwritten school work. Spell check is a godsend to someone like me!

 

[BigMcGuire]

But an absolute refuge and sanctuary for bookish sorts; you don't have to socialise, and you can escape into all sorts of inviting and fascinating worlds, both fact and fiction (and indeed, fantasy).

Grew up going to the library every week as a kid. One of the highlights of my week. Without a doubt, this had a huge impact on my ability to tackle more complex topics later in life (computers, management).

Wish I read more now.

In high school we had professors that didn’t let us use the internet for reports, had to use books. Loved those assignments

 

[1042686]

I didn’t have internet capable computers for schoolwork until college. Everything was books & paper.

I hadn’t thought about the positive impact going paperless & cloudbased has helped teachers be more productive - A little less time grading (Spell check for example) and more time teaching.

 

[yaxomoxay]

And - personally, at least, I find pen and paper to be invaluable. There is no better way to note something, or to retain that information than thinking about it and writing it down.

Yep, I mentioned a few weeks back. The more I try to go paperless, the more I end up using paper products. There are undeniable advantages about using tools such as Evernote or OneNote, but my brain retains more information when I write it down on paper, and I do notice a substantial difference in retention between reading from a screen and reading from a printed page. The solution is probably a mix of the two worlds.

 

[Clix Pix]

Having spent my professional career in libraries, needless to say I am more than fond of them! I grew up in an era where we learned and used cursive writing, where we used textbooks and reference books for learning, where when we went to the library we had to use the card catalog to find specific material and where it was placed. As for providing extra copies of something, the teachers all had to use the mimeograph machine, with its characteristic, distinctive ink and odor! The scent would waft through the school's hallways as someone was using the machine in the main office.

I remember in college and graduate school being enthralled by the magic wrought by a photocopier -- wow, look at THAT!

Term papers and such in high school, college and graduate school were all prepared on a typewriter -- a MANUAL typewriter, a graduation gift my parents gave me when I graduated from high school. It wasn't until later that I first saw and used an electric one and again was enthralled. Wow, so much faster and easier to type! I loved the IBM Selectric, with its choice of type styles/fonts via the little balls. Word processing machines fascinated me, too, when I saw them, and of course I was intrigued by computers and the possibilities inherent there.....

Much as I love my computers and devices, I will say that I still prefer to keep my grocery list via a pad and pen on the kitchen counter so that as I realize I'm running low on something I can quickly jot it down, and when it is time to head to the store, simply rip off the piece of paper and stick it in my pocket for reference while shopping. I also still keep a calendar on the fridge where I note all upcoming events, appointments and such.

Yes, I find that I tend to retain things much better if I have read them in print on a real page rather than simply online on the computer, iPad or iPhone. I definitely find that it works better for me to write things down, especially if doing a pros-and-cons decision-making sort of thing or when trying to pull together my thoughts for an important letter or document.

 

[LizKat]

I get the library part. I mean more the having to do handwritten school work. Spell check is a godsend to someone like me!

I find it disheartening though that proofreaders and even copy editors at publishing houses will now rely on spellcheck to extent of allowing so many contextual errors, sometimes matters of grammar, more often just a word that is spelled correctly but is nonetheless the wrong word for the occasion: actual or near homophones like petal vs pedal, peddle, or reign vs rein, rain... I rather fear the problem isn't that though so much as that publicly traded companies have long since laid off so many good editors while trying to meet profit expectations.

Then there are the inexplicable and sometimes awful choices made by autocorrect programs on the fly. I type very fast but with spectacular inaccuracy. Meanwhile Apple may have substituted some "real" word that's completely off the map of plausible intent, but that may escape my attention when I glance back a few sentences. Sometimes the end result of that is far more inappropriate (or strikes pure wonder into a reader) than if I'd just misspelled a word in an email.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Yes, @Clix Pix: I am a passionate believer in handwritten shopping and "to do" lists; absolutely invaluable, and I love the physical action of crossing out, and/or ticking, those actions that have been completed, or items successfully purchased.

At the moment, there are two beside me, as I type this, both on yellow post-its, written in ink (with my fountain pen, I sincerely hope that it doesn't rain tomorrow); today's list, (purchased items crossed out, and those not available marked with a big, fat "x"), and tomorrow's.

And I always loved the atmosphere of libraries - the respect for, indeed, reverence for, learning and knowledge and information.

Yes, reading (material, books, articles) online is an amazing resource, but I still far prefer the physical feel of a book in my hand, and find that I retain information (including from newspapers or periodicals) far better if I read a hard copy, a physical copy, than when reading online.

Some of my former students, now teaching themselves, have told me that they have noticed that students retain information far better if they make notes by hand, than if they type what they hear at a lecture into an iPad or computer.

Nowadays, when attending meetings, in person or virtually, I still always take detailed notes by hand (written with a fountain pen, into a Leuchtturm1917 notebook); if necessary, I can always condense, or edit, these notes into a document on my computer.

@LizKat: Sympathies on issues of spelling or grammar; I'm completely in agreement with you on such matters.

 

[BigMcGuire]

I learned to type on a typewriter as a child. Spending my youth watching Data on Star Trek - I wanted to be just like him so I spent years learning to type on Mavis Beacon. I can hold 150+wpm easily even today and have spurts that pass 170.

That said, typing notes vs handwritten notes? No contest.... Handwritten notes are retained far better. For work, I'm often slated to be the note taker because of my typing speed so... OneNote it is for work.

I have shifted a lot of my handwriting to my iPad (Notability). Still getting used to it, but it has almost taken over every pen/paper notebook I have. There is nothing like going outside with a pen/paper (or iPad) and taking whatever is in your head and writing it down - there are few things more de-stressing than this for me.

I miss libraries... my wife and I would always make a point to buy a few books from Barnes N Nobles every few months and then gift them to our local library when we've read them. We try to read on Libby - our local library staff says that helps. At the start of every year our library requires an in-person visit to update contact information and to prove activity to keep a library card - it has become something we look forward to.

Most of my reading now days is done on Apple Books and Kindle. I still am not happy how almost every ebook I buy is $3-$5 more expensive than a hardback book. But I do it. I find a $13 ebook to be far more rewarding than many other forms of entertainment.

 

[0128672]

I miss libraries... my wife and I would always make a point to buy a few books from Barnes N Nobles every few months and then gift them to our local library when we've read them. We try to read on Libby - our local library staff says that helps. At the start of every year our library requires an in-person visit to update contact information and to prove activity to keep a library card - it has become something we look forward to.

Most of my reading now days is done on Apple Books and Kindle. I still am not happy how almost every ebook I buy is $3-$5 more expensive than a hardback book. But I do it. I find a $13 ebook to be far more rewarding than many other forms of entertainment.

Missing my library is on my top three list, especially the pleasure of spending a hot summer afternoon in the stacks. I've been ordering used hardbacks from Better World Books because I don't want to pay the ebook prices, and I like BWB's literacy donations with every purchase. And there's the excellent Project Gutenberg library of 60,000 free public domain titles, and more being added all the time; I should know, I'm one of its volunteer proofreaders.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Missing my library is on my top three list, especially the pleasure of spending a hot summer afternoon in the stacks. I've been ordering used hardbacks from Better World Books because I don't want to pay the ebook prices, and I like BWB's literacy donations with every purchase. And there's the excellent Project Gutenberg library of 60,000 free public domain titles, and more being added all the time; I should know, I'm one of its volunteer proofreaders.

A volunteer proofreader for the Project Gutenberg library? How wonderful.

I am also looking forward to when libraries can re-open; I would argue that they are one of the most cultured and civilised (public) spaces a city can have.

 

[AngerDanger]

Khao soi