Plan of Attack

[jarandhel]

I've got a couple of new projects I'm working on in my spare time. Nothing major, really, I'm just working on improving my computer skills to make myself more proficient in the field, and hopefully eventually more hireable. Not to mention that I'm enough of a geek that it's actually fun for me. ;-)


My main goal is programming. I want to get my skills in that area up to snuff to do something REAL. I've been itching for it ever since I got a taste of shell scripting. It woke something up inside me that I haven't really felt in a number of years. The same thing that drove me to learn to "program" in Logo and BASIC in my free time when I was a kid.

I'm not sure yet what language I'll be working with. I'd like to do some work with shell scripting just to get back up to speed on basic programming techniques and to get more familiar with the command line tools that are standard under various Linux distros. I'd also like to play with the GNUStep framework a bit, since the last major attempt I made at learning to program was under Apple's Cocoa and they are fundamentally similar. Apart from that, there are a number of programming languages and frameworks I am interested in and I have not yet decided in what order to approach them or where to focus my efforts.

I'm also not really sure what to try to program. I'd kind of like to try my hand at some sort of substantial application, but at the moment I have no ideas and I'm not sure I quite have the skills yet. I might poke around at some open-source applications and see how they're put together and if I can make any minor improvements, though. Failing that, games are probably the most logical course for me right now... they're potentially fun, so they should hold my interest, and many of the same programming skills are required to create them that would go into making more sophisticated programs.

I also need to get more involved in technomagic. For a pagan/energyworker involved in IT, my relationship with the metaphysical side of computing is honestly abysmal. I know some of the theory. I know that virtual space can serve as ritual space. I know the trick of using hard drives and cd rom drives as prayer wheels, though I have not made use of that yet. I know how to embed energy signatures in email, and how to read energy signatures from written content on the internet. In theory, I even know how to charge webpages and images on webpages, though I have not extensively tested that theory. But that's about it. And most of it, I don't put into practice extensively. I need to change that. I need to figure out how to blend my magical practices and technology more intimately. And yes, I think the word need is appropriate here. Computers and technology are a very big part of my life, and at the moment that aspect is almost completely isolated from my spirituality and magic use, which is an equally big part of my life. I need to learn a path which balances the two and brings them into contact with one another.

Last, but not least, I'd like to try putting together some custom bootable Linux cds. No real reason, it's just a skillset I would like to have. I've made a custom SLAX cd before, but that was with the help of a windows-based tool. And really, while SLAX is an ok distro, it's not my favorite. Probably I'm going to work on creating a debian one, since that's my main testing system at the moment. I need to consider, though, what focus I would like the livecd to have. Security? Anonymity? Programming? Webdesign? Basic Multipurpose? Recovery? Gaming? At this rate I might end up making a suite of livecds to suit my purposes. It's not like I don't already carry dozens with me, of various distros.

Anyway, that's my battle plan. That's the stuff I want to learn outside of school. Wish me luck. :)