A large amount of time doing data analysis is the process of cleaning, importing, reorganising and generally not actually analysing data but getting it ready to analyse. I’ve been trying to get over the idea to non-coders in the group that strict naming conventions (for example) are important and very helpful to the poor person who has to deal with the data.

Last night was the night of this year’s MetaNook. It was the fourth time that the local hackers, most notably MetaMeute and Chaotikum, joined forces to organize a night full of beginner-friendly introductions, advanced tech talks, and project presentations. My talk contribution this year was a brief introduction in the “magic” of the command-line.

Last night was the night of this year’s MetaNook. It was the fourth time that the local hackers, most notably MetaMeute and Chaotikum, joined forces to organize a night full of beginner-friendly introductions, advanced tech talks, and project presentations. My talk contribution this year was a brief introduction in the “magic” of the command-line.

Having a good working environment is vital for feeling comfortable being productive. This extends to computational tools and the command shell is an integral part of the daily work for many of us. It’s a good idea to configure the shell’s interface to be efficient and pleasant to use.

Having a good working environment is vital for feeling comfortable being productive. This extends to computational tools and the command shell is an integral part of the daily work for many of us. It’s a good idea to configure the shell’s interface to be efficient and pleasant to use.

One of the many great things about free and open source software and the whole GNU/Linux ecosystem are the simple yet powerful tools available. The possibilities enabled by almost trivial programs are incredible. A very positive side effect this has on me is that I like to go and explore technologies with the tools at my disposal.

One of the many great things about free and open source software and the whole GNU/Linux ecosystem are the simple yet powerful tools available. The possibilities enabled by almost trivial programs are incredible. A very positive side effect this has on me is that I like to go and explore technologies with the tools at my disposal.

A couple of friends and I just discussed the idea of Russian Process Roulette: Everybody starts a little program which kills processes at random. The winner is the one whose computer remains usable the longest. Is this crazy? Yes. Immature? Sure. Fun? Definitely. Adviced against to actually play unless the consequences are fully understood? That too. Playing the game is as simple as starting a command like the following: while sleep 600;

A couple of friends and I just discussed the idea of Russian Process Roulette: Everybody starts a little program which kills processes at random. The winner is the one whose computer remains usable the longest. Is this crazy? Yes. Immature? Sure. Fun? Definitely. Adviced against to actually play unless the consequences are fully understood? That too. Playing the game is as simple as starting a command like the following: while sleep 600;