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Click the comic to see it on its original page.

All the talk about McCain “not being conservative enough” to my ears is like complaining that Jamie Lynn Spears isn’t as screwed up as big sister Britney.

(To her credit, she’s trying really hard.)

Next Tuesday is the second Tuesday of the month, which means: Ruby/Rails Project Night, hosted by TSOT!

The Quick Version

• When: Tuesday, February 12th, 2008:
  • Doors open around 5:30 p.m.
  • Presentations begin sometime between 6 – 6:30 p.m.
  • Arrive early to get fed!
• Where: TSOT developer office, 151 Bloor Street West (just east of Avenue Road), Suite 1130
• Admission: FREE (but please register!)
• Register with: Corina Newby or Joey deVilla

About Ruby/Rails Project Night

Ruby/Rails Project Night is a Toronto-area gathering held at the TSOT developer office on the second Tuesday of every month. It’s an event that lets people developing projects in either Ruby or Ruby on Rails show them off in front of their peers in 20-30 minute presentations. Presenters are encouraged to go into as much technical detail as they like (even showing the code, if they’re so inclined) and cover all sorts of aspects of their projects, from programming issues to visual design and usability to the business of making a living off their software.

Whether you code in Ruby and Rails for a living like we do, dabble in it in your spare time or are just curious as to what the fuss is all about, we encourage you to come to our office next Tuesday for Ruby/Rails Project Night! It’s a chance for you to see software that’s being developed right here in town and to mingle with other developers interested in Ruby and Rails. We provide food and drink, so you can focus on the presentations and not your grumbling stomach.

Who’s Presenting

Yours Truly will start the night with an opening monologue to get things going, after which I’ll be followed the the evening’s main presentations:

• How to Avoid Hanging Yourself in Rails, by Rowan Hick. This presentation is subtitled “or: Optimizing Your ActiveRecord Associations”.
• EasyBrandingTools.com: Mike Bowler and Steve Vetzal will talk about their project that helps new businesses be memorable.
• CRMS – Clinical Research Management System. Luke Galea will present this project, a Rails and Prolog/XSB application that manages drug and procedure trials at some of the biggest hospitals in the U.S..

What Happened at the Last Ruby/Rails Project Night?

Click the photo to see it on its Flickr page.

Check out this article, which has a quick write-up and photos.

Today marks the start of Chinese New Year, and this year, it’s the Year of the Rat.

Remy from Ratatouille.

Here’s what Spring’s Greeting Cards’ site has to say about the Year of the Rat:

A Rat Year is a time of hard work, activity, and renewal. This is a good year to begin a new job, get married, launch a product or make a fresh start. Ventures begun now may not yield fast returns, but opportunities will come for people who are well prepared and resourceful. The best way for you to succeed is to be patient, let things develop slowly, and make the most of every opening you can find.

Splinter from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Here’s what TheHolidaySpot.com has to say:

The Rat year is a year of plenty, bringing opportunity and good prospects. It will be marked by speculation and fluctuations in the prices of commodities and the stock market; the world economy in general will boom. Business will be on the upswing, fortunes can be made and it will be an easy time to accumulate wealth. However, this is also the time to make long-term investment plans as the bonanza the year of the Rat brings will serve to see us through the bleak years that may follow. All ventures begun at this time will be successful if one prepares well. But do not take chances or unnecessary risks: the year of the Rat is still ruled by the cold of winter and the darkness of night. Those who speculate indiscriminately and overextend themselves will come to a sad reckoning.

On the whole, this will be a happier year than most: free from explosive events and wars and with far less catastrophes than, say, the years of the Tiger or the Dragon.

Nonetheless, it will be spicy. It promises a lot of bickering, bargaining and petty arguments that will do little harm. A congenial time that will find most of us socializing and enjoying ourselves.

Ratso Rizzo from Midnight Cowboy.

“Professional Feng Shui Researcher and Practitioner Raymond Lo has a lengthy write-up of what to expect in the Year of the Rat. Here’s an excerpt from the opening:

The Year of the Rat, 2008, in the Hsia calendar, is symbolized by two elements – with earth sitting on top of water. According to the cycle of birth and destruction, which governs the inter-relationship between the elements, earth is the conqueror of water. Therefore, earth sitting on water is a symbol of control. But the water of the Rat year is very strong and the earth floating on top of water has no foundation and cannot control the ocean of water. As such, instead of conquering water, it is more like confrontation between earth and water elements. The Earth on top is Yang earth which symbolizes a mountain, and mountain gives sense of stability and firmness. But such floating earth in the ocean is weak in foundation and the stability appears to be fragile. This elemental relationship will bring a year which apparently is more stable but there are a lot of underlying tensions and confrontations.

Logitech MX Revolution Mouse

Since I work in high tech, I couldn’t pass up quoting his prediction for the industry:

With respect to the hi-tech industries sector, as represented by the NASDAQ. I have postulated that this industry is mainly represented by the metal element [the five elements of Chinese tradition are metal, wood, fire, water and earth]. As such, the prosperity of hi-tech industry requires the strong appearance of water and wood, which are symbols of productivity and money of the metal industry. In 2008 the water element, meaning activities to hi-tech industries is very strong. As such, it is anticipated that the year is favorable for hi-tech or internet types of business. But the absence of wood in this year could mean there are more activities without real substantial money gains.

Raymond Lo also says that the Year of the Rat brings the “Flower of Love” for those born in the year of the Pig, Rabbit and Goat.

NOM NOM NOM!

And finally, although it’s not likely to catch on here, rat is becoming a popular dish in some places.

The battery on my MotoKRZR cell phone can’t hold a charge for longer than an hour. I went to the nearby Bell World, where they wanted:

a) A sales receipt. I can’t provide this as it was a free promo phone given to me by mega-PR firm Hill and Knowlton to promote Moto phones.
b) The phone itself. They tell me that they can’t simply sell me a new battery — it has to go back to service.

If that hasn’t turned me off Bell Canada as a mobile provider, the note at the bottom of their web page about fees for Blackberry, Windows Mobile and Palm devices certainly does. I quote:

System Access Fees are charged by all wireless companies to help pay for the network and the ongoing software, technology and other upgrades to that network. Generally, the higher the fee, the greater the opportunity to invest in network quality to enhance your experience. Just one more reason to choose Bell.

That’s right: we pay more not for better service, but for the opportunity for better service. I should use that trick the next time I negotiate my salary. They’d have been better off just skipping this mealy-mouthed explanation of why they charge more, or perhaps simply said “We’re counting on your laziness so that we don’t have to be competitive.”

So, folks — which Canadian mobile provider is the least lousy of the bunch?

Update

This isn’t the first time I’ve been annoyed with Bell Canada — see my 2003 entry, Hell Canada, in which I deal with bureaucratic ineptitude at the Bell Canada store.

Cracked.com has a great article titled The 9 Most Badass Bible Verses. Rather than keep you in suspense, here’s number one:

The things you had to do back then just to get the approval of your future father-in-law! I think Wendy’s dad was satisfied that I had a haircut, a degree and a job.

I still have to use the sizable gift certificate for GotStyle that sister and brother-in-law gave me for my birthday. So which outfit should I get — the shirt/tie combo with the exact same colour and pattern, or should I rock out like the guy on the left with the “Old-school Fred from Scooby-Doo” neck kerchief and Bay City Rollers hairdo?

Photo courtesy of Miss Fipi Lele.

That’s right — DemoCamp, the gathering of the bright lights of Toronto’s tech community takes place in a couple of weeks! Here are the details:

• When: Monday, February 25th, from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. (Doors typically open around 5 – 5:30)
• Where: Toronto Board of Trade, 1 First Canadian Place (King and Bay), Toronto, Ontario, Canada
• Niceties include: Free food and a cash bar
• Cost: Free, but you have to sign up, and there’s also the option of making a donation (see below)
• After-party: After the presentations, we’ll adjourn to the nearby Duke of Westminster (77 Adelaide Street West)

I’ll go into more detail about DemoCamp in a later posting, but in the meantime, here are some handy links to get you started:

• We use this Eventbrite page for sign-ups. You need to sign up to attend, and there are three sign-up options:
  • You can “purchase” a free ticket, which as the name implies, means that it costs nothing
  • You can purchase a Community Supporter ticket for $5
  • You can purchase a Community All-Star ticket for $10 (I bought one just now)
• You’ll find more details about the event at the DemoCamp 17 page on the BarCamp wiki.
• If you want to do a demo or Ignite presentation at DemoCamp 17, sign up here.
• DemoCamp sells sponsorships! Sponsorship means prominent placement of your logo during the opening comments, and a representative from your company or organization gets 2 minutes at the podium. Sponsorships go for a mere $200 — contact Jay Goldman for details.

As I wrote earlier, I’ll post more details later.