Funeral Noodles?
Sunday, February 20th - Saturday, February 26th
February
20th
Mood: Alright
Well, today was short. I didn't really do much. I got up just before 2pm
to catch Rovers play Burnley on TV. Other than that I did ohhh...almost
nothing.
I sorta just did a few things I wanted to do. Mail Holly, sort out my work for tomorrow. I'm kinda looking forward to tomorrow - new classes and all that, although I'm not too keen on Wednesday. Erk.
Dan's still working on his, but I've been talking to him about it. I'm glad to see he's catching up, I don't want him getting behind, because although we've got a healthy rivalry going on between us, I want everyone on the course to do well.
I just want to do best. Naturally.
So far, we're about equal, although I think my professional issues work will give me a big advantage. Then again, he's gunna get more marks than me on the assignment for Jeff. In the end I didn't get that final thing working, so I just commented it out (so it would be ignored by the computer), and wrote a note saying it doesn't work, but I'd fix it given more time. Ah well, I did a fair few improvements, so I should get a decent mark, although I'm not expecting a distinction (merit/merit+ I think). Then again, Jeff appears to be a good (i.e. lenient) marker.
Fingers crossed, because I'll be handing it in tomorrow.
Speaking of tomorrow, I'll be pestering Steve about the UML second assignment grades. I submitted my work in weeks ago, and haven't heard anything yet. I wanna know how I'm doing. I think me and Dan will get similar grades again, our work was similar, but Steve seems to prefer me over Dan for some reason. Not sure why, although it might be because I studied similar things to him - maths, physics etc.
Ah well. It's a shame that Steve ain't doing the presentation on Wednesday instead of the people from Lancaster. It makes it a more awkward presenting to unfamiliar people. I'd be alot happier (and more relaxed) if it was just Steve, Violeta, then the rest of the guys from my class (there's no girls, so yes, guys).
Ahhh well. I'll stop waffling about uni.
I didn't do much else. Just played online for a bit of games, the boards were kinda quiet, and nothing's goin on anyway.
Meep.
Still in a funny mood, even though I've no reason to be. Stupid huh?
Kinda unsure about sending that email now. It wasn't anything bad, but you know what I'm like.
=x
Night
Chris.
February 21st
Mood: Alright
*yawn*
Yeah, that was a forced yawn, but I sure feel tired.
I guess it's just been a long day. I should be used to the 12 hour shifts by now, but I guess not. I got up a bit later than normal since I don't have any more morning classes to attend. I went in about 9 anyway so I could print out Jeff's work, submit it etc. Met up with Dan, and kinda just chatted about the assignment and stuff. He seems happier than he did a week or so ago, so I guess that's something. I'm glad, because I don't want him fucking things up at the last (you can tell I watch horse racing). He deserves a good grade at the end of it, because he's put more effort into the work than any of us. Okay, it might be because he's interested in learning it, and I'm impressed the way he holds a uni course, two jobs and married life together at the same time, but he manages.
Just.
So props to him. I know there's the competition between us, but I would be happy if I beat him by one mark, and us both getting a 1.1.
Hey - I can dream!
So yeah - the afternoon class was cancelled, so I just worked on my project some. I made a fair bit of progress today, and got my head around the design much more. I guess I'm nearly done with the design (although I do have to write alot down). I might even finish the section by the end of the week if I work at a similar pace. Fingers crossed, eh? I'd love to have it nailed by the end of the week, so I can spend from next week working on the implementation and such. I really wanna get stuck into it before the work starts piling up again. Right now, I've only this assignment to do. I can really make a big impression on it if I work hard enough...and I'm keen enough. It's just finding the time.
I've still got to sort out the agent design. Hell, I have to decide if I'm even using agents. While it may gain me more marks using agents, I will have more difficulties at both the implementation and final presentation stages. It'll be difficult playing around with JADE and such, which bothers me some. It would be much easier in just java, and I'd probably get it knocked up quicker too.
Hmm.
Speaking of implementing it, the Games Programming book I have is becoming increasingly useful for the project. I'll be able to make the animals react to lions coming to eat them.
Yay.
The evening class with Jeff wasn't exactly exciting either. We didn't do too much. Just printed off some work (amazingly slow. It took 15 minutes to print 13 pages, no joke), and went through the basics of the module - basically what a distributed system is. We're going to make computer programs that work on lots of computers, but acting as one.
Oy. That'll be easy.
*cough*
NOT.
x_X
I get to see Holly tomorrow - yay.
Night.
Chris.
February 22nd
Mood: Gah
Can't stop thinking. Blah. Stupid thing. I shouldn't be thinking. It's
never good. I tend to over-analyse things, over worry etc.
My nails are bitten to the bone now - probably subconcious worry about tomorrow. I've gone back to how I used to be! It's not fair!
Today wasn't so bad, I got to spend the day with Holly, although the time kinda flew. Never seems like long enough. Meh. We did the usual really - town laps followed by a visit to the music block. We ended up watching the performance they did at the Cellar two weeks before. On the way out I ran into someone...=x!
Also ran into someone else in town. Double =x!
So yeah, I guess I'm in a better mood than I was over the weekend. So that's something. I guess making progress with my work, while seeing Holly has helped. I'm thinking too much right now but that only came on recently. While I was swotting up for this presentation, because I just KNOW they're going to ask me daft questions I ain't got a clue about. So I wanna be ready for them.
Or at least a few buzzwords that 'll get me a few good marks.
You know what's funny? Spam offering you wigs. I guess the words got around. O_O
So yeah, I'm feeling a bit hmmm..ish. Thinking too much is never good.
I'm gunna go and work on the project a bit more before tomorrow. The more au fait I am with it, the easier it will be for me to answer their questions.
Hopefully.
=x
Night.
Chris.
February 23rd
Mood: Good
Shocking. Just shocking.
The presentation went decently, but I could have done better I guess. The sleeplessness from the night before didn't help, and the fact it's as cold as a mother outside. But yeah - the two guys I was presentating to tried catching me out with questions.
But I got them with answers.
How are you going to get the animals to behave? Using JADE and Java. Oh....
How will the lions hunt? They'll attack a herd of gazelles,
who will run off in random directions. AHA! They don't do that!
They run away as a herd. Well, yeah, but it will use a flocking algorithm
to keep them together, but not too close. Oh...
How are you going to keep the populations balanced - most simulations have major problems? I'm going to introduce random natural disasters, like disease, flooding and asteroid impact to reduce the population of all species. Oh...
It went on like that for a bit, but I answered it.
But yeah, the reason why it's shocking is because they think my project is too ambitious and that I won't pull it off.
Never, ever underestimate teh Bobness. Those that underestimate me often see me going out my way to prove them wrong. Just because that's the type of guy I am.
Lovable.
*cough*
But yeah, the reason I'm writing alot more confidently than yesterday is because I feel alot happier now. Maybe my mood over the weekend was due to this? Maybe it was because I found out the grade for my feasibility study.
85% baby.
That's even higher than last year, and the equivalent of an A++. Yes, it was that good.
So yeah, I came first again.
Score.
I worked out my average for this year. It's 78.5%, where the minimum for a 1.1 (the highest grade) is 70%.
Result.
I'm aware that the percentages have different weightings, but even so, the fact I'm getting the highest grades on the hardest year means I can step up a level when I put the effort in.
B].
I just need to spend the next 2 weeks perfecting the design and analysis sections of the report, so that I can start implementing the thing. I'm still worried about the animation, but I've got a major hand with the AI side of it now. Dan loaned me a book from the same series as the Java Games Programming that tells you how to get things working. It's helped get me add more content to the design section, which is always a bonus, especially when it adds buzz words in there.
Every time I say "buzz words" I think of Dilbert and how they play "Buzz Word Bingo" lol.
For those that don't get it, no worries, it's a business thing. Not that I've ever worked in an office or a business.
=x
So yeah, I'm just working on diagrams and natural disasters at the moment. I've got the design nailed, which is a start, right? That book I've got has pretty much sorted my genetic algorithms, which is nice.
Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you about the prank I played on Nick yesterday. For every assignment we submit, we have to hand in a cover sheet saying what the assignment is, who wrote it, who it's for and what it covers. For example:
LECTURER: Jeff Allen
STUDENT: The Bob
ASSIGNMENT: INTELLIGENT AGENTS
ASSIGNMENT CRITERIA: Initialise Program, Modify code, learn Jade
However, we weren't given one for Jeff, so we had to make our own up. So, I made up my own assignment criteria:
ASSIGNMENT CRITERIA: Get a high grade, beat Nick
I gave a copy to Dan as well. We both submitted ours. However, that's only a bit of a laugh. The real kick was when I made another for Nick:
ASSIGNMENT CRITERIA: Actually hand work in on time, actually pass module, do some work for once
Nick's not the most observant, so I knew he wouldn't notice. What I didn't realise was he'd write below it, and *still* not notice. Bloody blind git :p
The house is getting a bit of a major tidy up for Holly coming on Saturday, it's weird lol. Not used to it like this, but it is better. Well, except my sisters room. God, just looking at it makes me frustrated. It's THAT messy.
It better be tidy for Saturday, I got a girl to impress.
;)
Night.
Chris.
February
24th
Mood: Pretty Good
Well, today wasn't so bad. I did achieve a fair bit tonight.
Better than yesterday that's for sure. I forgot to mention yesterday how the dentist was patronising me throughout the check up. He started telling me what plaque is.
And there was me thinking it was something you put on the side of buildings.
*roll eyes*
He also told me how long I need to brush my teeth. I already know! Just because I don't do it often as I should doesn't make me an idiot. Bloody United fan.
Also last night, I watched Saw the movie. It was pretty good, and I can see why it got positive reviews. I'll admit I didn't see the twists coming, so it was well written, but I would have liked to have learned more about the killer himself. A good sequal idea would be to have it from an investigative perspective, rather than a victim perspective. If it explained the killers motivations and inspirations, while having someone like Denzel Washington (always a good cop) playing the cop, something like Se7en, you'd be sorted for a good movie.
If done well of course.
The house is finally looking good.
Ish.
Yay.
So I spent most of the afternoon working on my project. I've spent nearly a week solid working on the design section of the report, and it's getting a little boring, so I decided to actually get cracking with the programming. I started off with a splash screen (a screen that welcomes the user, allowing them to continue to the program or close before anything happens). So I make a cool picture, make a form and everything and run the program.
Didn't work.
Hmmm. No picture.
So I changed the code some. Tried again.
Nothing.
I did this for an hour. I got pretty pissed off, and gave up. Later on that evening, I solved the problem. I'd put the wrong file name for the image.
¬.¬
That's all that was wrong. My code was fine.
Bastard!
But yeah, I've made alot of progress since then. I've got menu's, and tabbed panes, and buttons and such. Okay, there's little functionality, but it looks good. Tomorrow I'm going to add a toolbar and a few dialog boxes to get the user started. At least I'll have something to show off when I get in on Monday, right?
Too ambitious my ass!
Rant time everybody! The rant of the week is
*drum roll*
Security guards!
Yes! Those rent-a-cops that can't get into the force that do nothing but stare at any teenagers that wander in to the store. Yes, I'm perfectly aware there are plenty of people, especially teenagers, that shoplift. But I'm not one of them. I've got money - I'm obviously in your store to at least browse for something, so when you're following me around, and staring at everything I touch, you're suggesting I'm about to do something wrong.
I wouldn't mind it, you know, he's doing his job, watching people. But it's not as if I'm wearing a trenchcoat and looking shifty. This security guard on Tuesday followed me, Holly and Kay to every aisle. The girls were looking at toiletries, and almost bought something, but this fool-of-a-security guard starts walking towards us, and pretends to walk by innocently.
Hint mate, if you're going to keep an eye on someone, at least be more sly. Don't stare at shoppers. Don't pressure buyers so much they decide not to buy your products.
Idiot.
Then again, HMV are just as guilty as Morrisons. They stare at me. I was deciding what CD to purchase, and the whole time, the security stared at me. Well PARDON ME FOR PAYING YOUR WAGES!
Fucker.
The one in Morrison's annoyed me so much, I almost said something to him. I almost challenged him asking him why he was so convinced I was going to nick something. But I decided not to.
Shame really.
Sister's been a pain as well today. She still hasn't sorted her room, and she's been using the little phone credit I have. Grrr. She doesn't even care!
>.<
Was talking to Jon earlier, he's getting to know Motion Man, and he's after a new site. A bit of a convo later, here we are planning how I might be making Motion Man's website.
RESULT!
For those that are unaware of who Motion Man is, he's a rapper featured on a Linkin Park album. I've spoke to him online before, and he seemed pretty cool. Shame his voice makes me want to burn things.
Ah well. =)
Night.
Chris.
Mood: Good
Ahh, tomorrow's the day.
Should be good, if all goes to plan.
Then again, when do things ever go to plan?
C'est la vie.
So, yeah. I didn't do too much today. Well, I did, just nothing exciting. Woke up in the late afternoon (sister kept having arguments with my parents about goodness knows what and kept waking me up!).
Most of the day was spent tidying up and just making sure things are ready tomorrow. I mean, this is kinda important to me. Holly's a special girl, so I want to make the right impression. She'll be the first girlfriend of mine to meet my parents.
:$!
But yeah, will be good, I hope.
I've managed to make some more progress with my project. It's got working toolbars, and all the buttons and menu's now have action listeners, which means I just have to create the functionality behind it now. I was going to 'bolt in' the terrain generator, but considering it's heading on for 2am, and I've got to be up at 8am, I've decided not to bother tonight. Sunday maybe.
It's looking good though. I know it doesn't do much right now, but if I keep this up, it should be pretty fun. It'll give me something to show off before Steve's class as well.
Speaking of projects, I read Terry's work so far. Yikes. He's miles ahead of me right now. He's practically finished his paperwork, while I've done roughly the same, while only 1/3 of the progress. Yikes.
It had better pay off!
Hmm, what else can I write about today? I'm a little short on ideas.
Laughed at a few stupid people on the LPU. Someone said UFO's don't exist because the bible doesn't mention them.
Yeah, that's how I reacted.
He also said how the bible mentions dinosaurs (which he thinks are the same as dragons) and unicorns.
Woah boy.
Kay texted me this morning, turns out she's bruised a bone after crowd surfing. At..(wait for it)...
...
..
.
a Simple Plan concert.
Don't all laugh at once ;).
Sister finally sorted her room. Sorta. It's not brilliant, but I'll explain it's my sister's room. I don't know if my sister worked hard enough for that cream egg I promised her though.
Hmm! Decisions, decisions.
Night.
Chris.
February
26th
Mood: Great
I haven't used that smilie in a while.
Well, apart from two incidents, today went swimmingly.
Especially because of one thing, but I'm going to be all mysterious and not say what. And no, it wasn't anything physical before you get any funny ideas you perverts! =P It was something said. But that's all you're getting out of me.
NESS, B. SERIAL RANK 2938
/Nazi Interrogation
So yeah, I got up not-so-bright and early to finish off tidying up. Wasn't perfect, but decent enough. Went out, hung with Holly and the others in the afternoon - normal Saturday afternoon really - didn't do anything exciting except get a Cream Egg McFlurry.
Gorgeous.
Got home (later than planned thanks to a stubborn Ollie and laughable queue's at Tesco's), and just chatted for a bit. Oh yeah, Holly met my mum. Briefly lol, but yeah, it's a first. It's funny, as we approached the door, I started getting nervous. I've not really been nervous in a long time. Not to that extent anyway. So yeah, we ate, and then I showed Holly the Rainbow thing I mentioned a few weeks ago. God it's so wrong =P.
I also showed off my very limited-function program for my project. Okay, it doesn't look like much, but it is! I promise! It's complicated stuff! I didn't do any work on it today, obviously lol. I'll try do some more work on it tomorrow, I want to make some more progress before Monday so I can show it off.
=P
Something else that was funny was Holly's reaction of the mouse. It's a trackball mouse, which means it's a standard mouse, inverted, so you move the ball, rather than the mouse. It lights up too!
The evening was pretty good. We did leave later than normal, getting into town for 9ish. Things kept changing because everyone got kicked out of the Cellar 'cos they didn't have any ID.
D'oh.
Ended up in the Napier, and Om made a guest appearance. Everyone in there seemed quiet, which made me feel kinda bad. However, things picked up once we got to Vies. Sorta. It went pretty well, and no funny mood appearances. Well, there was a moment someone had a MAJOR sense of humour by-pass that pissed me off (didn't involve me, but yeah), but it was sorted later. It was quite a drama-filled night, but I think it came good in the end.
Today was a bit of a milestone for me and Holly. I mean, I think we got closer today, amongst other things. But it was nice being with her for so long. But now it'll seem like a long while til I see her on Tuesday. Time 'll drag in Jeff's class (I'm not sure I'm even going to be too keen on it. It's kinda sucky really, 'cos the only other modules I could take are two networking ones, which bore me daft.
Suckage, but oh well. I guess this class and the project will compliment one another to a certain degree. I just wanna get cracking with my program. My next goal is to bolt the terrain generator into the existing UI, so that when the user clicks to start a new game, and specifies the amount of land, the map is generated and presented on screen. After that, I don't know what I'm going to do. I guess I should write a list of 'goals' I want to achieve. It makes me feel as if I'm making fast progress, while keeping me focused on one part at a time.
Ah well, I'm going, I need to catch up on my sleep and rest my leg. I hurt it in the pit - it was pretty fun tonight.
Night.
Chris.
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