Getting Started with Python

As usual, I’ve started a new project! Getting to grips with the Python programming language is actually quite fun. I’ve had a few bits and bobs that I was originally going to tackle in PowerShell but I decided to try them in Python instead.

On the whole, the experience hasn’t been half as bad as I suspected it might be. If anything (and somewhat logically now I think of it) exposure to other programming languages has helped me understand structures and flow much more easily. Who knew tinkering with C, C#, Powershell and Golang would work out so well!

Once I’ve got something helpful, I was going to get some listings up here. I’m particularly happy with a recent program I put together for a quick method of uploading a json file over ftp… stop snoring! 😀

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Sorry if the site looks odd

Hi everyone!
I’m in the process of learning Cascading Style Sheets again (I played with them a bit when I was younger).

As the site is quiet, I’m going to be using it to try out some new looks on a WordPress framework so I’m really sorry if the site looks weird for a couple of weeks/months!!

On the plus side, I’ll hopefully have a couple of new themes to use on here and if anybody’s interested I could do a quick run through of what I did to make them.

More soon (I hope)!

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Reset Screens After Docking or Remote Control

If you find that you’ve docked and your screens aren’t responding, maybe you’ve been remote controlling your PC from somewhere else… Just hold down Windows+Ctrl+Shift and tap B. It forces Windows 10 to poll it’s screens again to see if anything has changed.

That’ll fix it a lot of times and save you needing to reboot or anything like that.

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Getting the Spell Checker to work after a fresh install of Raspbian

This post is more to help me remember than anything else. After installing Raspbian on my new Pi Zero W this evening, I found that the spell checker just doesn’t work in LibreOffice or anywhere else for that matter.

The easy fix is to install a spell checker dictionary manually. Get a console going and type sudo apt-get install myspell-en-gb 
Pretty simple when you know the answer! 🙂

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Conclusions From the Photo Journal Experiment

Let me just start by saying that I have nothing but the utmost respect for people who take on projects like the 365 Challenge where people take a picture a day for a year.
I tried something mildly similar except I tried to take a picture a day but would instead just publish one if I didn’t get one that day. It’s surprisingly difficult to do but I can definitely see the draw of it.

As you can probably see from the previous posts to this one, I attempted a photo journal of my own for a month. The pressure to create an image a day is not something that can be easily conveyed. It sounds easy and in the most part is, if you have the time to properly prepare. This is where things get a lot more interesting.
Preparation requires time and energy; two things that a full-time job can use up pretty fast if you’re busy.
The month I attempted the project was a busy one at work. I wanted to see if a 365 project could be done while at full tilt. In short it can’t. I ended up taking shots which felt more like holiday snaps than images I’d be happy to publish under any other circumstances.

I’m still taking pictures but without the feeling that I risk making it a chore to keep up a self imposed deadline.
The month was a real eye opener in a number of ways. The difficulty of being creative (I’m usually very much more a consumer) and the need to keep coming up with fresh ideas for shots was something else. One bonus I hadn’t really taken into account and something I’ve since noticed is that my life has never been as well documented as when I created those photos every day. A month feels a lot longer when you get to the end of it and see all the places you’ve been and things you’ve seen.

Will I try a photo journal in future? Yes. Absolutely. It’s the single most creative thing I’ve done with this website if nothing else. Will I post a photo a day? Maybe but only if I can publish photos taken on previous days. I’d like to document what I’m up to more, even if its only me reading or viewing the website.

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