How to play midi files on Linux Mint

While trying out Linux mint I was surprised at it not being able to play midi files out of the box. This can be easily remedied by installing the fluidsynth soundfont plugin for vlc. I'll assume here that you have already the vlc player installed.

Step 1

Open your software manager and search for vlc.

Step 2

Among the results is one for vlc-plugin-fluidsynth. Select it and install it.

Step 3

Open your terminal with  Ctrl+Alt+T

Step  4

We want to associate the format to the player.

Type gksudo gedit /usr/share/applications/defaults.list

Step 5

Press Ctrl+H and search for midi.

Step 6

Replace audio/midi=totem.desktop for audio/midi=vlc.desktop. Save your work and you are done.

Compassion is a limited resource

In a recent special episode of RPPR:  Beyond Lawful Good & Evil: Ethical Concepts in RPGs at Gen Con 2015 host Caleb raised an interesting point about compassion. Starting at 48:30 he notes how persons from opposite sides of the political spectrum work under the assumption that compassion is a limited resource and how this can be made a workable game ethics code. He takes no stance, but it appears, judging by his commentaries that he believes that compassion is in fact unlimited.

No one, I think, wants to be  accused of having too little compassion, but can we have unlimited amounts of it? As I see it, to be compassionate one must give attention to the person or beings one is compassionate about. One cannot be compassionate about someone who's out of mind. And here's the kicker, attention is psychologically limited (ever heard of the Invisible Gorilla?): one cannot pay attention to everything. What's more, it even degrades the more it is used on the short term.  Compassion depends on attention and attention is limited, hence compassion is a limited resource.

As a corollary, for compassion the more particular the better. One cannot be compassionate in the abstract; if it were so, just being compassionate about the whole world would place oneself in the pinnacle with one shot.

Furthermore, is there anybody one can point a finger at that is currently emanating unlimited amounts of compassion? The pope and Dalai Lama come to mind, but even them have to shift their attention from group to another as necessities arise, and old crises tend to fall off unless one retakes them. And there are so many hours of the day anyway.

One can be compassionate enough with the blessed amount we've got. The trick is to use it wisely.

Samsung 850 EVO on a Dell Inspiron 3647

As a current general-purpose desktop the Inspiron 3647 is a great affordable machine. It's only weak spot is the spinning drive, which although has a storage capacity of 1 TB, it's still a mechanical device. I decided to give my dad's brand-new Inspiron a boost by removing the factory drive and installing a Samsung 850 EVO solid-state drive (SSD).

The change of hard drives is just a bit wee difficult owing that the drive for these design is the most inaccessible component of the system. Following the online manual (http://www.manualslib.com/manual/677131/Dell-Inspiron-3647.html), the process was pretty much straightforward. Probably the only tricky part was removing the fan shroud and getting the fingers in to make the disconnections.

An adapter for the smaller size form factor would have been best, but there is no performance hit in leaving the SSD just hanging owing to its lack of movable parts. Also, the rigidity of the sata and power cables gives it enough stability and just leave it there.

In the end, I got everything I asked for: an uneventful installation, BIOS  and Windows 10 ready drive identification, all the speed benefits, identification from the Samsung latest magician software (4.8)  which includes the RAPID mode, which, at least judging by the boot times and performance benchmark numbers is blisteringly fast, and a spare Western Digital extra drive for backups.

Moto e second gen flash review

Sample photo from yours truly

I never bothered for a smartphone, but since I needed a podcast player to replace my defunct Ipod classic, I bought a Moto e second gen (2015) edition as a kind of mini tablet. Here's a flash review

Build & screen

Feels just right on a regular-sized hand and has rubber-like back and edges to forestall slipping. I have been using the phone for over four months now, and thanks to these edges, I have been able to get a good grip on the device, and not even once I have felt it has been at risk of slipping away, as a smooth finish would have surely done.

Has a roomy 4.5 inch display which is readable for regular eyes. Yes, the screen is reflective under sunlight and impossible to look at under it, but once you get under a shade it's fine. Clicking something on the lock screen is a bit unresponsive as some very few times you have to try again to get the action done. Otherwise fine.

Android OS

Clean and without bloatware.  However for an android first-timer, the OS  and apps feel convoluted compared with Apple's IOS. I imagine that not technically-savy might need help for first-time setup.

Probably the biggest letdown coming from Motorola is that this phone will be stuck on Lollipop meaning it will not be upgradable to Marshmallow. Depending on your point of view, this might or might not be something of importance. As I see it, none of the features offered by Marshmallow would really benefit the Moto e as it already has commendable battery usage and lacks a fingerprint reader. The other minor features are minor really.

Speed

Having experienced only the Samsung Nexus 6, the Moto e one feels zippy enough. Every once in a long while it gets laggy, but it sorts itself out after a reboot or even by letting it be.

Battery & Memory

Lasts for me the whole day. In fact I could go with my semi-light use (no phone calls) for ~3 days without charging. The battery is replaceable and the memory is expandable to 32gb.

Camera/Video

Basic for basic stuff. No flash and zoom is done digitally.

Podcast & audio

The audio sounds of lesser quality as compared to the ipod, however, unless you have golden-ears, you can quickly adjust. Podcast Addict does the job for me, but it only did after scratching my head figuring it out.  For its part, the Audible app, does allow for chapter skips from the lockscreen which is a boon and remembers the playback position across devices.  The WSJ auto-updates on the library, but you have to give it the go-ahead for downloading. Maybe it's just me but the bundled Play Music app from Google so minimalist for standard mp3 playing as to make it unacceptable. Months in, I cannot still figure it out. There's an FM radio app as well, but you need to have the headphones on to tune in.

Google Integration

Not having a google account for your phone is a waste. Google drive app is especially useful, since it can be used to transfer files to and from your phone without buying yet another cable.

Wifi & localization

The wifi is as fast as you can expect in accordance with your source hotspot. Has GPS.

Conclusion

For my intents and purposes this phone makes me not want to look back to a dedicated MP3 player. There's room for improvement here and there, but the android apps and features and its affordability makes it hard to look for anything else if someone's looking for an entry phone. Recommended.

4 stars

On the importance of learning to cook

Back in junior high we had cooking classes. With the benefit of hindsight I now know what was all that about. Those classes were not primarily taught for the student to fix himself something when hungry, but to develop discipline and to learn how to follow orders. Some, or maybe the greater part of us, want to go our own way and particularly at that age. Following a cooking recipe demands, not only attention, but the suspension of one's own wants and idiosyncrasies. The recipe is tried and true, has clear concepts and a step by step process. If one just follows the steps as given, the results are there anyone to see and taste. Immediate feedback, cause and effect and consistent results are the name of the game. By just trying, mavericks can see the results of their actions, and begin to adapt themselves to circumstances that demand, as said, discipline.

Emeril and star chefs can get away with adding extra salt, garlic, or whatever (Bam!), because they already have mastery on their craft and know the limits of the elements they working with.  Mastery comes from discipline and only then one is allowed to push the bounds of the art.

There's also the part of shared experience. Much like in sports there's a meeting of minds in cooking. Having watched played in team sports or at least watched, one can make one's point across or get by having actually gotten one's hands into the  thick mess of things. 

Eat that Frog! book review

Quite understandably one can be skeptical of the mounds of self-help books, considering the huge volumes of useless junk out there. However, there are some worthwhile titles among the refuse. Eat that that frog! by Brian Tracy is one of them.

In his book, Tracy puts forth his system of efficiency based around the idea of attacking the most unappetizing/ important tasks first. This sounds common sense, but it is surprising how often we forget  to do so. Tracy distills and packages these and other concepts into bite-sized chapters and tryouts that bring the ideas to the forefront for ready use. By the time one reaches the productive years one is supposed to have a working approach to task management, but not everyone gets to develop one on their own or have actual mentoring on these simple, yet quite important, techniques. The great value of this book is that it supplements this potential lack and quite possibly boosts the plusses that are already there.

The book will benefit the most those who feel overwhelmed by their jobs. That said,it can also benefit those who feel they are already quite efficient in them. For these persons,the book warrants even a small peek to see if they can refine even more their habits.

Probably the only 'negative' aspect is the it centers exclusively on business life with much emphasis on importance on achieving and doing as a necessity of life.  Other areas of one's life are also important and probably one of the regular time-management books can help balance this one out by taking the personal into view and consideration.  With that caveat, you can't really go wrong with this one.

Tusculan Disputations & List of StoicTexts

Wouldn't it be wonderful if you could be convinced not to worry about death, pain, and other mental anguishes with no tricks or drugs? Well, there is some old school medicine that does work. Somehow, antique stuff tends to pushed back by newer, shinier offers, but the Tusculan Disputations, among others, deserve to be brought back to the foreground. Written by Cicero in dialogue form after retiring from public office and taking philosophy full time,  it delivers on this promise.

It consists of five journées (can't find an English equivalent: 'days' doesn't quite capture it) of Cicero and interlocutor covering different evils, one at a time. These are: on Death, on Pain, On Affliction, on Other Tribulations (Fear, Joy, Desire) and On How Happiness can be Attained by Oneself. Though presented sequentially, each one can be read by itself and each is prologued with an address to Brutus (yes, that Brutus) to which the work as a whole is dedicated. Chronologically, the Disputations can be placed second in a series of related treatises that also include On the Ends of Good and Bad Things (De Finibus) and On the Nature of the Gods. These treatises, and more, were written in a down period of Cicero's life where he no longer held an important sway on Rome's politics and was grieving over the loss of his daughter.

There are only two participants: Cicero and his interlocutor.The opponent or interlocutor hardly puts up a fight and is always overwhelmed by Cicero's reasonings. These cover all the bases and if something somehow is left out, it is usually pretty minor. Unlike in some Plato's Dialogues, the interlocutor has the courtesy to allow the defendant, in this case Cicero, lengthier, uninterrupted expositions.

Some working knowledge of mythology, a prior read of the Iliad, a passing familiarity with Plato's Dialogues (Apology, Fedo)  and a feel for Roman history I'd say are required to not get lost in the references. Other than that it is an easy straightforward read.

Technically, Cicero's philosophy belongs to that of the New Academy (I think) and tries to stay away as much as possible from the Epicureans and avoid the argumentative excesses of the Stoics. However, I feel that he leans more to the latter.

Far from being a disjointed collection of maxims and viewpoints, Cicero's work is meticulously crafted and seamlessly systematic  which makes it a joy to read. In the end, Cicero's arguments are very convincing, even if you assume a show-me attitude. He completely won me over on each and every of the five days and has changed me for the better. By itself it can work as a self contained secular life philosophy (though I still feel that the Bible and divine revelation is what really allows it to turn full circle).

The Tusculan was the best book I read in 2013. Now that I'm on a roll here I'll mention my "Hall Of Fame" stoic writings:

1. The Tusculan
2. Epictetus' Discourses
3. On Anger by Seneca
4. Epictetus' Handbook
5. Seneca's Letters to Lucilius
6. Seneca's other Moral Dialogues 
7. Meditations of Marcus Aurelius. 
8. Fragments of the Ancient Stoics
9. Musonius Rufus' Sayings
10. On Duties by Cicero

The first three by themselves make an unbeatable trio.

Honorable mentions:

• Life is a Dream by Calderón de la Barca. Worth a read in any case
• Boethius' Consolation of Philosophy

And one more thing: if you are interested in the life itself of Cicero, there's a great bio from Anthony Trollope on Librivox. Although the ongoing theme with it is that Cicero is wrongly accused by other authors of being a coward or unsteady in his views and political affiliations, it is a fine read for all the detail and context that Trollope provides. I'm re-listening to it right now. If you're in a hurry, Plutarch's life on him might suit you.