It sure has been awhile since my last post, and a whole lot has happened.

Firstly, I had found an apartment in the Flatbush area that was seemingly perfect…and just like that, It fell through D:
It sucks, but it’s true.  So for the foreseeable time, I’m still over at my parents house.

These things happen sometimes, so I’m actually not too broken up over it.  I was procrastinating a bit and I totally hadn’t even packed yet, (fortunately.)
All those who wanted to throw me a house-warming party though…still feel free, i’m sure it would still be fun

_+_

Also, my job has been going along nicely (not to jinx it, just to say…)
I have pretty awesome co-workers and my bosses are really receptive to what their employees have to say.
Currently, I’m trying to transition (slowly) from desktop support to the Systems department.  It’s a lot of studying on my own time, but I’ve never shied away from this, so yeah I’m just really busy at the moment.

_+_

I have a TOP SEEECRET project I’m working on with my brother that’s coming along nicely.  Perhaps its better that I’m still going to be  at home so that we can collaborate closely in these crucial beginning stages…

‘Everything happens for a reason’ and all that jazz?
*just as a note: I’m still very receptive to apartment suggestions.  So if you’ve got a cool place to show me, Show me! It can’t hurt…much, right? ;p

_+_

A long time ago, I posted about my pet project: “The Computer Jack” [thecomputerjack.com]  Well, it’s currently in version 2.0, with 2.1 already brewing in my head.

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I’ve also been looking into Blackberry development as a hobby.
I “accidentally” signed up for the Blackberry development conference on March 15th.  I may be going if I have the day off.  It should pretty interesting so I hope I’ll be able to go.

The Blackberry Playbook looks pretty good as an upcoming tablet.  I’m also looking into how to build apps for it, so I can get my free one from Blackberry ;p

Ohh….hmmm…
I’m sure I’m missing a ton of stuff I’ve been doing because I like to keep myself busy…
But there’s always next post!

-N-

BAM! That’s how I do!

Last night, thecomputerjack.com [version 1.0] went live.  It’s a simple website I made so that if you live in the tri-state NYC area you can get in contact with me to service your computer.  If it ain’t broke… contact me anyway! I do computer lessons too!

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Plugs aside:

Over the weekend I came up with another amazing website idea.  This one will require a lot of planning and work though, so I don’t plan to launch that until the beginning of the New Year at least.

ALSO
I need someone on the “inside” to help me find a cheap apartment.  I’m thinking of moving by next spring / early summer and I’ve got a few areas in Brooklyn I want to move to…but I’m still relatively poor so  yeah, lots of forethought and planning required to get an affordable apartment :/

Tomorrow evening I go back to AlphaOne Labs as a fully initiated member (Whoo!)
I’m not sure how this will end up fitting into my already hectic life, but I now embrace the busy atmosphere.  I’m always up to something and it feels great.  I love being productive and seeing the fruits of my labor produce results. YEAAH!

So Tuesday, I finally went to the AlphaOne Labs meetup.  It was a smaller group than I thought, but they were very focused and passionate about their hackerspace, which is cool.

Taken from wikipedia: A hackerspace or hackspace (from Hacker and Space, sometimes referred to as a makerspace) is a real (as opposed to virtual) place where people with common interests, usually in science, technology, or digital or electronic art can meet, socialise and collaborate.

I joined at an interesting time, as they are in the process of getting the space redone and getting funding for the group.
Someone lent me an Arduino board to play around with, I made the LED blink

An Arduino is a programmable micro controller.  I’m learning C Programming in whatever little scraps of spare time I have, and the Arduino platform is based on C, which is great for me.  You can get an Arduino to do lots and lots of things.  Here’s a link to some awesome projects if you’re interested: http://www.arduino.cc/playground/Projects/ArduinoUsers

Arduino bot by Chris Eckert

I’m an absolute beginner when it comes to electronics, so I’m going to concentrate on getting the LED to blink in multiple colors and then, I’d like to purchase one of those LED Scrolling signs and program the Arduino to display messages on there.

At the hackerspace they’re trying to get it so you can wave an RFID membership card in front of the sensor and it unlocks the door for you.  Should be cool.

Everyone knows Edgar Allan Poe was a literary magician.  His command of the English language was legendary, at least in my eyes.  I just wanted to share a stanza or two from a poem I read of his this evening called:

The Magician

…Thou askest me whence I came,—
I came o’er the sleeping sea;
It roused at my torrent of storm and flame,
And howled aloud in its agony,
And swelled to the sky—that sleepy sea./

Thou askest me what I met—
A ship from the Indian shore;
A tall, proud ship with her sails all set,
Far down in the sea that ship I bore
My storm’s wild rushing wings before./

And her men will forever lie
Below the unquiet sea
And tears will dim full many an eye
Of those who shall widows and orphans be,
And their days be years—for their misery….

I also came across a poem from the Gothic author Ann Radcliffe, it’s 10 pages, which is quite long for a poem but it has some really good stanza flow.

The Magic Mirrors

…It was an oak, whose trunk within
A foul and watching spirit lay,
Whose night-shrieks in the tempest-din,
Filled the traveller with dismay:

It was an oak, whose sinewy boughs
Threw a dark horror o’er the ground;
Whose high, gaunt top and warrior-brows
With the storms of ages frowned.

Its trunk was never touched with light,
So wide and deep the branching shade
Of leaves, that, on a starry night,
A gleam, like break of morning, shed.

But the brook, stealing from the brake,
Showed a glimpse of brighter ray,
When on it’s dewy banks did take
Will-o’ -the Wisp his mystic way….

I had never heard of Ann Radcliffe before, but her supernatural writings pushed her to great popularity in the 18th century.  She had a knack for describing exotic places in picturesque detail that she in truth had never been to.  I hope to develop that talent because I love getting immersed in some good atmosphere.  I will most likely continue reading her works, as I enjoyed reading The Magic Mirrors.

Does my brain ever get a rest?  I’m not so sure.  But it’s all good.  2010 is shaping up to be one of the best year of my life.  A lot of stuff is slowly being put into motion that I’ve been wanting to do for so so long.

After heavy contemplation, I’m going to be launching a computer site where people can hire me to fix their computers (tri-state NYC area only!!!).  I wasn’t sure I still wanted to do this now that I have a “real” job building my career…but for many reasons, I’m deciding to do this as a side business.  If I only have a few clients, I’ll chalk that up as a success.  I’m a firm believer in multiple streams of income, why not?  Your job should be your steady source of income, your bread and butter, but I think its wise to also have something on the side especially in these economic times.

After that site gets launched, I’ll be adding a link to it as well.  [It's almost finished guys!] Also, I plan to add another page to this site that will chronicle my technology/computer pursuits.  There’s so much going on, and I realize that for anyone who stumbles onto my site, they may or may not be technically inclined.

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I’ve also recently rediscovered the importance of music in my life.  I have been trying to study for my Microsoft 70-680 certification exam and because the subject matter was a little dry, my eyes would glaze over and my mind would wander aimlessly until I closed the massive book in frustration…
Well, I have an iPhone and I downloaded the app called ooTunes.  It’s a phenomenal internet streaming radio app with loads of stations organized by name, genre, country, and more.

I got hooked on this station called: Trance Moon Dark.
It plays dark trance…which sounds vaguely like computers dying.  After I hit play on this channel, its like my mind switches into UBER FOCUS MODE, and all I think about is the task at hand.  Funny enough, if I try to listen to this station without having something to concentrate on…it becomes too much and I switch to something else.

—

Life is for creation.  Go create.

Right now, I’m studying for the Microsoft Configuring Windows 7: 70-680 MCTS exam.  I’ve hit a wall.  I will most honestly say that it is among the most boring exams I have freely chosen to tackle, (and I have CompTIA A+, Network+, Security+ and Apple Certification under my belt.)

So, what am I to do? Give up? It’s not required…
Well, I can’t give up because through mentioning the fact that I was aiming to take this exam, my employer has graciously offered to pay for ALL 5 Microsoft Exams I plan to take.

Yes, I am stuck doing 4 more Microsoft exams when I’m through slogging through this one.

So…it’s time to get creative.

When studying for an exam, I normally sit there diligently taking notes, and highlighting key phrases in the book.
Well…i’m going to cut that down to a bare minimum.  It’s just not going fast enough.  I’m retaining the info, but I’m getting tripped up in the methodology.

I’m using this 800 page+ monster and the writing is dense as hell.

Thankfully I own an iPhone.

One day I searched the appstore for 70-680…why I don’t know…I must have been desperate. Lo and behold, I actually found apps to help you train for this exam!

There’s a Microsoft 70-680 MeasureUP Exam Prep iPhone app that lets you take practice tests right there on your phone! I always have my phone, so this will come in handy for when the test looms closer and I start to freak out… the layout of the exams seem very authentic to the exam, and I’m really glad I found this.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ms-70-680/id357189926?mt=8

Also…guess what. There’s a mobile version of the 800 page book I was slogging around.  Now, I bought the ebook before I got the actual Microsoft book.  If you don’t want to invest in the pricey book, just get the iPhone app.  Since my job paid for all my books, I also have the hard copy (which comes in handy too, I love physical books).

Just do a search for MCTS Configuring Windows 7 and BAM the book pictured above is ready for purchase ($5.99)

I’m also downloading an evaluation copy of Windows 7 to use in a virtual machine for my home and work computer.
I figure I’ll focus on just skimming the content, doing the exercises and Q&A and look up any concept I don’t grasp.

This will hopefully work out better for me… my old study tricks just don’t work with these exams…

So, my twitter feed is full of writers/authors and technologists because those are things I’m primarily interested in.  In a way, it motivates me to continue working on the things I’m working on because it’s like we’re all trudging along together.  In another way, it’s kind of discouraging when you’re just drifting along not getting anything accomplished.

I recently took and passed the Security+ certification exam.

This is a computer certification that states you know the foundations of computer security.  I studied hard for it, and I’m proud I passed it.  I’m also studying hard for the beginning of a series of Microsoft certifications.

I just feel like there isn’t time enough in the day to do everything I’d like though.  I know eventually, I will do most of the things I set out to do. I just don’t like putting things on hold to accomplish other things.

What I’m talking about is writing. You know the term, “Use it or Lose it” ? That’s already happened to me with Japanese. I spent all of high school and some of my brief college experience learning Japanese.  Now I’ve come to forget nearly everything I learned, (about 5 years of Japanese) because I stopped speaking it.

I don’t want that to happen with writing. I don’t write daily, and even though I push myself to write even a few sentences, its often difficult and I’m left staring at a blank page, or a few sentences of utter drivel until I’ve wasted enough time that I move on to something else.

I also don’t read like I used to. I’m a firm believer that a good writer is a good reader. But I just don’t have time when I’m trying to advance my tech career by devouring large computer tomes of information. (Most computer books are easily 500 pages+)

It sounds like I’m making excuses.
And I am. Many writers/authors/bloggers/poets lead busy lives as well.
I guess it comes down to, do I want to write or not?
And despite it all, if I do… just go ahead and do it~!

Voluntas.

Today 75% of the office where I work got bitten by World Cup fever and as such could think/speak of little else but Soccer.  This of course, was an amazing opportunity for me to generally slack off as well, and so under the guise of creating a report for my manager (which I actually did finish, go me!) I decided it was time to refresh and trick out my phone, the Nokia e71x.

Yes, I have an unhealthy obsession for cellphones.  I have once owned a total of THREE ACTIVE cellphones…at once.  I’m now back down to two.  My personal, Nokia e71x, and my business line a Blackberry 8310.

I have since turned my e71x from its stock Black color to Gray to Gold (interesting color choice that was) and now it’s WHITE…tadaa!

This is probably going to be boring for 98% of who ever ends up reading this…but I’m a geek so, let me tell you about my phone

First…there was a LOOONG time that I was dissatisfied with this phone.  I decided to try something different when I chose the e71x as my personal phone.  I was used to Windows Mobile and Blackberry, and I considered myself a power user of both.  But I was like…”Hmm Symbian is a pretty popular platform and this phone got AMAZING reviews…” (well the unlocked e71 did). So I was like, “What the heck, let’s try this smartphone out.”

Well, I was happy with it for like 2 months intially…and then I quickly got bored of it.  It became misery to own the e71x because I was CONVINCED there were no modern applications for it.  I kept seeing lists of, “Must have Symbian apps” and 90% of the apps were UTILITIES…
Yes, utilities are helpful, but they’re hardly FUN or even relevant to my PRODUCTIVITY.  So for awhile, I really only used my phone as a wifi router for my iPod Touch…which had FUN AND PRODUCTIVE apps.

Cutting to the chase, I have seen the light…

The Symbian platform does INDEED have a plethora of applications.  You just need to be prepared to go on a hunting excavation to find all the useful and fun nuggets out there.  These apps are even more obscure to find sometimes than back in the old Windows Mobile 5.0 days where central app stores were a minority.

Here are JUST SOME of the cool things I have:

Coreplayer for Symbian
A really awesome media player.  This thing plays so many formats and really, this should be one of the FIRST things you install on your symbian s60 phone…if you have such an obscure device

Bolt Browser
The default browser for symbian is…O.K.  It’s not bad but it’s not good either.  It’s also not the fastest.  I HATE waiting for every. little. thing. to. render. on the the default browser.  Plus, the default browser is devoid of tabbed browsing, so that kinda sucks too.  Enter BOLT.  I used use Opera Mobile 10 which is also good, but I think Bolt is better, and faster.  Plus, Bolt recently upgraded and guess what, Tabbed Browsing! (Opera does this too).
The Bolt browser is also available on different platforms, and if you have a Blackberry, you better install this too!  The current state of the blackberry browser is just sad…::shakes head::

Joikuspot
Turn your 3G cell signal into a wifi hotspot for other devices (including your laptop or an iPod Touch) to connect to and use for internet.  Genius.  One of my MOST used apps.

Gravity
One of the best Twitter clients I have EVER used.  Worth the price.

Nokia Messaging Email

For some reason, when I bought the e71x it came with some crappy email client that couldn’t even render HTML emails.  Ugh. It was like reading your email off of a command line!  Nokia thankfully released Nokia Messaging Email and I have to say it’s pretty awesome.  It renders HTML email pretty accurately and fast…and you know the fabled Blackberry Email Service…the instant Push to your device??? Well, Nokia Messaging Email is SO close i’m often amazed.  I sometimes get email on my Nokia before I get them on my desktop or Blackberry.  No i’m not lying.

SBSH Calendar

I have a really bad memory.  Horrendous.  So I often rely on calendars and lists to remember EVERYTHING.  Imagine my dismay when I opened up the default Symbian s60v3 calendar and saw this:

Where are the entries for detail? The default PIM functionality was sorely lacking and uninspired…
It reminds me of the default Blackberry Calendar, it too is boring and lacking but there are good alternatives for Blackberry as well.

ANYWAY, imagine my glee when I found SBSH Calendar.  A ton of functions and views and space to write notes and to-dos.  PLUS, COLORCODING!  YAY!

QuickOffice Premier 6

It’s like Microsoft Office on the go.  Truly indispensable.  Plus this program will open .zip and .rar files too!  Handy…

vBagX
A Gameboy Advance emulator…on your phone! Yay! Pokemon, Crash Bandicoot, Baulders Gate,   Tekken, Warioware…on the go where ever I am.  Never a dull moment.

Knights of the Dark Edge
A really awesome fighting game for your Symbian phone.  The graphics are really awesome too

Mobbler
Stream your favorite music on your symbian device.  It’s just like Pandora which is awesome.

Man… I’m actually tiring myself out typing all this quality content about this phone, and I actually haven’t even scratched the surface.  These are just some of the programs that make me keep my phone handy for the day, there are many many more out there on the internet.
I’m not going to say that Symbian phones (Nokia smartphones) are for everyone.  If you’re a bonfide geek, then knock yourself out.  I know it’s trendy to talk about Android and the Google phones, and while yes Android is impressive, I think Symbian is a hidden gem that people in America just don’t get.

Try something new out, you might just like it.

I’ve been cleaning my space for the past week and a half.  It was truly a horror to behold in the past, and I realized that I was slowly going crazy with madness the more I let the garbage take over.

At first, I thought throwing out a huge chunk of my things was going to be hard.  I’m a sentimental person and I love looking back on things and smiling with remembrance. But then I realized that I had stopped doing that awhile ago, and I would just stare blankly at the mess.  So, after I started throwing things out I realized just how freeing it can be.  Every paper, trinket, forgotten bauble that I trashed, got me a square of living breathing room.

Aaah.  Order.

Enough about my room.  It will be glorious, but it’s still a work in progress, (like this blog).  I started reading for pleasure recently again.  I love to read, but as a result of focusing on my career, I left pleasure reading to the wayside as I dove into technical manuals and computer books.
That’s all fine and well, but there is a tiny creative side to me that was slowly dying in the process and that didn’t sit well with me, so I’m trying to bring it out of hiding again.

I have been reading short stories in the Steampunk genre to reignite my imagination because Steampunk is so fantastical to begin with.  To describe Steampunk to people who don’t know:

Steampunk is a subgenre of speculative fiction, usually set in an anachronistic Victorian or quasi-Victorian alternate history setting. It could be described by the slogan “What the past would look like if the future had happened sooner.” It includes fiction with science fiction, fantasy or horror themes.

Find out more about it here: Design Tavern

Steampunk Magazine is a fantastic grassroots zine about the genre that features high quality articles and stories.

Hey guys.

There’s something you have to realize about me.  I’m very very vain.  I try to keep it hidden but sometimes you just gotta bite the bullet and admit your faults, [even if they are far and few between ].

Well anyway, my point is.  What’s shown here is not even a tenth of what I have planned for this site.  Being a sort of perfectionist, I never would have launched nastassiacarmona.com if everything wasn’t fully in order…but being a procrastinator that also probably means you wouldn’t be reading this right now.

I do believe it’s far more important that I have this web space up here rather than not have anything, so I will continue to post here on a somewhat frequent basis just to get your eyes trained to reading my rambles.

Hopefully, as you visit my blog you’ll start to see it manifest into something totally awesome.

At least, that’s how it goes in my head…