兩週一聚﹕一件小事

前言﹕這是一個叫「兩周一聚」的活動。是網友米雪兒發起。每月十五日﹑三十日﹐一班住在世界不同角落的香港人都會一起寫同一個題目。今天是第十六次相聚,由Sherry 出題﹐主題定為「一件小事」。

現在認識我的人﹐也許以為我從小也是個品學兼優的好學生。沒有人會知道中二那年﹐成績表上還給校長用紅筆寫上Fighting一字。打架發生在小息時間﹐什麼原因開始打架已經忘記了﹐大慨是一些雞毛蒜皮的瑣碎事。在男校打架是很通普的事情﹐只要有人開始打架﹐其他同學便聚過會來圍觀﹐在打架兩人身後圍圈搖旗吶喊。通常打架不會持續很久﹐風紀或老師來到﹐大家就一哄而散。

那次很不幸校長剛巧路過﹐他是個非常嚴肅的外藉修士﹐所有學生也懼怕他。他沒有審問我們打架的理由﹐二話不說便當場下旨責罰我們。兩個人一起到校長室外站罰一星期﹐每天小息﹐午飯和放學後也要去報到。接下來的一個星期﹐我們二人每天返學的所有時間﹐便一起共同渡過。放學後校長見我們只是站著罰企沒事幹﹐便物盡其用叫我們去執垃圾。執垃圾至少可以活動可以談話﹐總算比罰企乾悶好一點。打架罰留堂當然不可以讓阿媽知道﹐那個星期我每天找藉口說有課外活動﹐要留到五時才放學回家﹐倒也給我胡混過去。

由於這次事年是校長直接處分﹐班主任並不知道打架的事。那個學期的成績表﹐神奇地操行仍然獲得優良的成績。可是派成績表當年﹐不知何解由校長親自派發﹐他記得我打架受罰﹐於是在成攣表上御筆親批寫上Fighting一字。我也不記得回家結果如何﹐大慨給阿媽藤條炆豬肉﹐打到躲在桌子底下吧。可能我不知天高地厚﹐中二成績表被校長劃花了﹐中三還敢膽粗粗去考風紀。我當然知道成績表寫著打架有問題﹐於是我用沙膠把Fighting那個字擦去﹐把成績表影印拿去面試。騙那些高年級的風紀隊長﹐說阿媽怕我弄掉成績表﹐只給我拿副本出來用。想不到竟然又給我過關﹐成功加入風紀。事後回想起來﹐有點後悔擦掉Fighting那個字。其實可以先影印一份﹐塗改第一份副本後再影印。畢竟給校長在成績表寫打架﹐並不是每個學生也有的殊榮啊。

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若果想參加兩周一聚的朋友﹐可以參看這個網頁

My favorite text editor

Vim Logo

Vi has been my favorite text editor for many years. I learned how to use Vi in university and I never use any other text editor since then. Vi is an open source software and it come with any Linux distribution. Vi is still the most powerful and most efficient text editor even when comparing to the newer GUI based text editor nowadays. Unlike the newer editor, you won’t find any bell and whistle user friendly features in Vi. You have to master at least the basic shortcut keys and commands to get start. Many first time Vi user are hopelessly lost when they are welcome by a blank screen that they can’t even type a single character or exit.

Once the short cut keys become your second nature, Vi is a lot faster than any other GUI text editor. Your finger never have to leave the keyboard or even touch the mouse. Vi has a a different design philosophy than other editors. Vi is modal editor, which means you have to toggle between different modes. In navigation mode you can move the cursor, search, replace, copy and delete text. In insert mode, you enter the text. Many people argue that the modal editor is so out dated and it is inferior to GUI text editor. But they forget all editor are implicit modal editor. They can not type at the same time when they take their hand off the keyboard, moving the mouse to click the menu item.

Vi and Emacs are the two text editors of choice for all geeks or real programmer. Each side has gathered a cult of followers with Tim O’Reilly as the figure head for the Vi camp and Linus Torvalds as the figure head for the Emacs camp. Asking the question of which editor is better often becomes a religious debate. It is true that Emacs is more flexible and powerful than Vi, thanks to its LISP engine at the core. Emacs is good at many things but I think Vi is better on text editing. I found the Emacs commands are too hard to use and worse of all not very finger friendly. Although Vi and Emacs users may debate among themselves which editor is better, they all agree Vi or Emacs are far better than the other toy editors.

Useful links:
download Vi
Vi Tutorial
Vi Tips and Tricks

Mars Is Hard

Human should look above our head gazing into the stars instead of look down on the mundane Earth. Environmental protection is just an intermediate solutions that buy us more time The Earth won’t last forever. Space is the final frontier.

Continue reading Mars Is Hard

巾幗梟雄

Rosy Business

無線劇集一向垃圾﹐無線的古裝劇更是垃圾中的垃圾。想不到垃圾堆中藏珍珠﹐《巾幗梟雄》竟然讓我每晚追看。或許無線自己也感到意外﹐這套劇沒有豪華的明星陣容﹐起用兩個萬年綠葉當主角﹐在贏得收視之餘還贏盡口碑。或許無線對這套小成本製作從來沒有什麼期望﹐不怕冒險放手讓編劇發揮創作自由﹐寫出一個有別於給師奶看婆媽劇的劇本。看《巾幗梟雄》就如劇中柴九的金句一樣﹐只能用痛快二字來形容。

若果只看劇情簡介﹐說清未太平軍動亂時代﹐富可敵國米商的妻妾爭遺產的故事﹐恐怕會完全提不起興趣收看。再加上無線古裝劇一向的馬虎製作﹐無銀最大米商只有電視城古裝街一間小舖﹐飢荒動盪亂世中米倉連守衛也沒有﹐更不要說青幫三千兄弟﹐沙家幫六百兄弟﹐太平軍數萬士兵﹐來來去去也是那十幾個臨記。雖然故事背景行貨到不能夠再行貨﹐製作簡陋到不能再簡陋﹐編劇把故事重點帶到觀眾意想不到的新方向。爭產勾心鬥角只是配菜﹐主菜由兩主角全力支撐。一條主線講述四奶奶屢憑機智保護無錫稻米無應﹐帶領百娃避過飢荒大災難﹐另一條主線講述柴九在四奶奶的裁培下﹐從小人物向上爬的奮鬥史。

四奶奶與柴九雖是男女主角﹐不過編劇沒有浪費篇幅在感情戲上。四奶奶與柴九的關係很獨特﹐在無線劇集中應該從未出現過。他們從上司和下屬關係關始﹐一個是四面受敵的女強人上司﹐一個自負懷材不遇的下屬新人。一起經歷過無數大風大浪大起大跌﹐從孤立無援的谷底攀上事業的最高峰。柴九是有真才實幹﹐他的機智多次為四奶奶反敗為勝。不過柴九少年氣盛也闖出不少大禍﹐四奶奶亦要多次出手相救。到最後編劇也沒有明確交待兩人的感情﹐我倒認為現在隱晦的描寫更好交待兩人複雜的關係。他們已經超出男女情人的關係﹐大既昇華至曾一起打天下﹐到達生死之交的知己境界。

大家族爭產的故事雖仍貫穿全劇﹐但正印奸角大奶奶和長子必文只是白臉小丑﹐根本未夠班與四奶奶過招﹐時勢才是四奶奶的最大敵人。從開場第一集飢民搶運糧車﹐到全城殺鳥惹蟲禍﹐三子必武遭綁架著索﹐蝗禍吃盡殼物耕作﹐與青幫談判漕運費﹐太平天國攻佔無錫﹐四奶奶每次在緊要關頭﹐也能展示出頂級行政總裁的風範。有些評論甚至從《巾幗梟雄》說到現代企業的社會責任﹐領導人材的特質﹐談論商管理論。佷少無線劇集能夠引起這麼大的迴響﹐遠遠超出觀眾對故事大綱的預期。在電視機旁的每個打工仔心中﹐也希望遇到一個像四奶奶般有承擔有遠見有魄力的好上司。

其實只有四奶奶的好上司還不夠﹐若非一路遇上正直善良的貴人﹐恐怕她就算再多材幹也英雄無用武之地。若非蔣大老爺有先見之明﹐把慶豐年全權交給四奶奶打理﹐這套劇集恐怕落入婆媽爭產的舊公式。若非鐵帽子王爺和太平軍趙師帥也是勤政愛民的好官﹐四奶奶早已給奸黨奪去米行﹐空有一腔熱誠和滿腦子材幹也無可作為。很可惜天下烏鴉一樣黑﹐現實中的四奶奶沒有高層關照﹐搞不好還嫌她阻著大家發財。《巾幗梟雄》的四奶奶雖然讓人眼前一亮﹐可惜劇集還是跳不出中國傳統的奴材心態。百姓除了寄望遇上四奶奶的父母官外﹐還要寄望天子英明體恤蒼生。我理想中的故事結局﹐是把背景移後到民國初年﹐柴九沒有染上咯血病﹐靠著沙家幫兄弟起家打天下﹐一路打到做大軍閥雄據一方﹐有足夠實力保護在領地經商濟貧的四奶奶。

10 gaffes: What were they thinking?

Maybe common sense is not so common, especially in the hi-tech industry.  I wonder who makes those blunders, executives with engineering background or executives without engineering background.

Continue reading 10 gaffes: What were they thinking?