Huh. 35 year ago I was the sole maintainer of an in-house SQL-like database query language. The application was transforming relational data into a more concise and efficient format for use in an embedded application (AT&T 5ESS digital switch). All the mapping was done in this SQL-like language. One of my power users mentioned the difficulty they had in actually changing logic based on the values in the database. For example, to perform different logic based on whether a column was a 1 or a 2, they'd have to write two querys: one for 1 and another for 2. Possible, sure, but not very clean or efficient. To address this, I implemented an if() function.
I have two. I agree it's quiet on the lowest speed but it's loud on the medium and high speeds so mine are setup to run 24/7 on the lowest speed regardless of the air quality. The air quality in my house is good and they run nearly always at the low speed anyways. Buy them while they are on sale.
I lived in one house that initially had hot water baseboard heat. A hot-air furnace was retrofitted into a closet and got its "fresh air" from a hole in the closet door (i.e. there was no incoming air). During the winter the air would get extremely "stale." Bathroom smells would linger for hours. It was oppressive.
My first development job was as a software developer at Bell Labs in Naperville working on the 5E. I started at the end of 5E4 (the 4th revision) and then worked on 5E5 and 5E6. I went from school writing maybe 1000 line programs to maintaining and enhancing a system comprised of millions of lines of code and hundreds of developers. Most of the code itself was very simple but it was the interactions between modules and switching features that was very complex.
Slightly tangential but I was discussing high-school English book selection with a relatively new English teacher. He was frustrated that his 9th/10th grade students were uninterested in the books. He was hamstrung in book selection by budget (buying new books wasn't an option) and essentially seniority (he couldn't select any books that were read in more advanced classes even though few of his students will take those classes). So the system was unintentionally teaching most kids that reading books was boring.
I skimmed the article and one of the things that occurred to me is that it was lucky that they worked as a busboy for a bit. Lucky in the sense that there was plenty of opportunity to try various social approaches on the many people they encountered each day. Most of us only interact with a few people in total each week and don't get any encounter resets. I remember a few years ago living in a small town and dreading being invited to the rare party. I'd met everyone, had a brief encounter, and neither they nor I had any desire to further the interaction.
I have the same name as a former MLB player. We both use Yahoo Mail. I was there first and use my name without the middle initial as my email address. He uses his middle initial. I've received many emails for him where people have overlooked the use of his middle initial. Sometimes it takes me a second to realize the mistake and I'm wondering WTF is this email on about.
