The Ders Blog

Which version of history do you prefer?

2006-06-18T09:50:00.000+09:00

How about a sequel to the Da Vinci Code based on this?

Web professionals indeed

2006-05-13T13:58:00.000+09:00

This link speaks for itself. (Click on homepage)

Fraud

2006-04-02T10:34:00.000+09:00

You've been warned.

Dickhead of the new year

2006-01-10T15:54:00.000+09:00

I discovered a couple of days ago that my secret number to access the voice mail on my cell phone no longer worked. Hoping it was just a glitch, I waited a couple of days and tried again. Still no go. Walking past a KTF store on my way home, I decided to stop in and ask for help.

"Try 0-0-0-0," the guy said. "Tried that." "Try the last 4 digits of your phone #." "What the?" He punched the numbers into my phone, and magically everything worked. The guy looked at me as if I was an idiot.

I've had the same phone number for more than seven years, and my secret number has never ever been what it was today.

Pressed for an explanation, the **** finally told me that all the secret numbers changed on January 1st of this year. Of course. How stupid of me for not knowing.

Spam Singles

2006-01-07T18:23:00.000+09:00

One more testament to Korea's Spam (the meat) love: Spam that's already sliced and ready to put on your sandwichy.

It's not visible in the picture, but there's a notice next to the display asking you to refrain from eating any of the goods until you've left the store. I hate to imagine what prompted such a notice. How tantalizing those Spam Singles must be.

Dogs and Babies

2006-01-04T23:44:00.000+09:00

Dogs and babies are exact opposites. Babies take things from you and throw them on the floor. Dogs run and get things that you've thrown on the floor and bring them to you.

Sony

2005-11-24T18:33:00.000+09:00

Been looking for a good summary of the whole Sony rootkit fiasco. There's a wealth of information to be found, but it's more than most people likely want to read.

Now I've found one: this list of 49 questions by Scott Granneman of SecurityFocus. Enjoy.

This Week in Review

2005-11-14T00:46:00.000+09:00

In the news this week:

Japanese youth are behaving more and more like chimpanzees.

Thirteen good reasons to switch from Internet Explorer to Firefox.

The San Francisco Chronicle is caught plagiarising the New Yorker.

Sony's new copy-prevention system opens a Pandora's box of virus possibilities. Yikes.

And finally, I have terrible news to report. The bird flu as arrived in Hongdae, disguised as a cocktail bar. It's a jungle out there.

Wish List

2005-11-07T20:29:00.000+09:00

I want this book. It's one more must-read for anyone doing web development.

I also want a month off to read it really, really carefully.

(Dream on...)

Hangeul Dei

2005-10-11T22:11:00.000+09:00

If I transliterate Sunday's post into English according to the Ministry of Culture's God-awful Romanization rules, it looks like this:

Hangeul Dei

Tudei in aneureu eobeu Hangeul dei ai aem raiting mai entaireu poseuteu in Hangeul.

Nat daet ai rilli haebeu aeniting peuropaundeu tu sei. Peureuhaepseu ipeu ai woreunteu so reiji ai wodeu reuk eop daet areutikeul eobaut hau Hangeul ijeu deo peureupekteu raiting siseutem aendeu kaen bi yujeudeu peoreu eol deo raenggwijijeu in deo woreudeu... aeniwon haepeun tu rimembeureu diseu areutikeul aendeu haebeu eo ringkeu?

The scary thing is that I can actually read this stuff.

Isn't Hangeul Awesome?

2005-10-10T23:09:00.000+09:00

Upon searching for some of the claimed virtues of Hanguel that I alluded to in my 프리벼스 포스트 I discovered a bit more than I bargained for.

According to the office of the president:

The Korean language has a well-developed and expansive vocabulary, and therefore, it is very difficult to express fully in foreign letters.

Yes, other languages have very limited and boring vocabularies. And someone please explain the cause and effect in the sentence. I don't get it.

However, due to its scientific design, it is quite easy to approximate the sounds of foreign words in the Korean alphabet.

Sure, if you're deaf to any language other than your own. It still amazes me how many people (of all language groups) don't seemt to get that other languages have different sounds than theirs.

The next section takes the cake, however.

The following are some examples of English words expressed in Hangeul.

London - 런던

New York - 뉴욕

Hong Kong - 홍콩

I am a boy - 아이 앰 어 보이

Good morning - 굿 모닝

The last one reads more like goon morning than good morning. That's what I want: to wake up in the morning to a bunch of goons.

In particular, because of its simplicity and the rather small number of letters, Hangeul is very easy to learn even by children and foreigners.

Even foreigners?!?! Amazing. I'm going to get started right away. All these years and I thought the Korean writing system was beyond me because of my, er, foreign-ness.

Next I found a video (direct link) which claims, among other things, that...

Hanguel can express sounds from nature more accurately than other languages.

Again, works for the phoneme-deaf.

Countries that have a language without an alphabet system can use Hangeul as their alphabet without a problem.

They actually show an example of this!

Hanguel is a cultural asset that will facilitate Korea's standing in the world.

Wtf?! How the hell do you facilitate a standing?

The movie also includes a section on "Hangeul dancing" where dancers make the letters with their bodies. Sorry, folks. The Village People already done that about 27 years ago.

한글 데이

2005-10-09T21:38:00.000+09:00

투데이 인 아느르 어브 한글 데이 아이 앰 라이팅 마이 엔타이르 포스트 인 한글.

낫 댓 아이 릴리 해브 애니팅 프로파운드 투 세이. 프르햅스 이프 아이 워른트 소 레이지 아이 워드 륵 업 댓 아르티클 어바웃 하우 한글 이즈 더 프르펙트 라이팅 시스템 앤드 캔 비 유즈드 퍼르 얼 더 랭귀지즈 인 더 워르드... 애니원 해픈 투 리멤브르 디스 아르티클 앤드 해브 어 링크?

the oregon trail

2005-09-18T20:36:00.000+09:00

Having worked at MECC in the early 1980s, I remember this program well. Never imagined it would become a classic.

sell the ranch

2005-09-16T16:34:00.000+09:00

This site speaks for itself.

news can be fun

2005-09-09T20:25:00.000+09:00

These two pieces of news, less than a day apart, had me in stitches.

I'm speechless, revisited

2005-08-28T14:50:00.000+09:00

“Who gives a flying fuck what the polls say,” he screamed at a recent strategy meeting. “I’m the President and I’ll do whatever I goddamned please. They don’t know shit.”

Whoa...
From Capitol Hill Blue

geek humor

2005-08-28T12:12:00.000+09:00

Geek humor at it's best. Enjoy.

required reading

2005-08-27T21:28:00.000+09:00

Required reading for anyone doing web development:

Dive Into Accessibility - especially this
Software installation made difficult
Internet Explorer formatting issues
11 steps to a better brain
The W3C Markup Validation Service
QuirksMode

And on the lighter side...
Computer Stupidities
Morons in web space!

UPDATE (9/17): Here's one more, especially idea #2.

Sysadmin Day

2005-07-29T22:35:00.000+09:00

Have you thanked your system administrator yet?

aha moment

2005-07-26T10:46:00.000+09:00

So that's why the current U.S. administration is such a mess. All the experts in every field left six years ago and have been replaced "with 'positive-minded, people-friendly sexperts, advice columnists and astrologers.'"

innovation

2005-07-12T22:10:00.000+09:00

I have two of these CD racks: nice, wooden, heavy-duty, modular racks, each of which holds about 70 CDs.

Unfortunately, they leave no place either for DVDs or those tall 2-CD sets. Notice how poor Hector Lavoe is inconveniently squeezed on top of all the other CDs.

Never fear. The nice people at the oddly named DIY stores on Wausan Street (that's the road that passes by the main gate of Hongik University) will make anything you want; just give them the dimensions.

On Saturday I went into one store and asked them to make me this:

Notice the ample space for Hector; also good for a few DVDs.

Apparently they liked my design. When I went today to pick it up, I noticed they had made not one but several and were putting them on display.

Get your combination CD/DVD rack today!

Perhaps I should get a patent (commentary here and here) ...

How's that spelled?

2005-07-10T23:14:00.000+09:00

Apparently 선릉 is spelled Cheongnyangni in English.

subway ad

2005-07-09T17:43:00.000+09:00

Bald people take note. You too can have a plant growing out of your head.

not a rant

2005-07-01T21:37:00.000+09:00

Every once in a while amidst all the rude pushing and shoving in a city like this, there is the occasional mind-boggling act of consideration. Well, mine was today in a public restroom in the subway.

While doing my business, I noticed a typical-looking businessman spending an exhorbitant amount of time looking at himself in the mirror. While not totally unheard of, it did seem rather odd--- until I realized that he was just killing time, waiting for me to finish. You see, I had unwittingly chosen the same position he had just used, and his bag and umbrella were still on the ledge in front of me.

There was, in fact, plenty of room for him to reach around me to get his things (and it wouldn't have bothered me one bit if he had done so), but he chose instead simply to wait.

Now he may have been waiting just because he was afraid of me, but it seems unlikely. I'm not very threatening-looking, and, being on my way home from work, I was dressed more or less respectably. Chalk it up to at least one guy who has a clue.

Only in New York

2005-06-23T22:58:00.000+09:00

The news just gets weirder and weirder. From the NY Times (login required):

An attempt to raise the world's largest ice pop in a city square ended with a scene straight out of a disaster film -- but much stickier.

The 25-foot-tall, 17 1/2-ton treat of frozen Snapple juice melted faster than expected Tuesday, flooding Union Square in downtown Manhattan with kiwi-strawberry-flavored fluid that sent pedestrians scurrying for higher ground.

Firefighters closed off several streets and used hoses to wash away the sugary goo. Some passers-by slipped in the puddles, but no serious injuries were reported.

Once again, I'm speechless.

Foreigners excluded from Korean sites

2005-06-20T19:14:00.000+09:00

There's a report in today's Korea Times about the difficulties the foreign community in Korea has accessing many Korean web sites. They specifically mention the problem (well-known to expats) of the numerous sites that require a Korean citizen ID number to access. They mention a few sites which allow you bypass the ID number requirement by faxing/emailing a copy of your alien registration card, but even that approach is criticized as being unnecessarily inconvenient.

I wanted to leave a comment at the end of the article, but I can't unless I create an account... which requires that I send them a copy of my alien registration card.

Am I the only one that sees the irony here?

Composition final

2005-06-13T01:18:00.000+09:00

These are the possible writing topics (from our textbook) for the composition final:

What I have never said to my mother or father
Something I want to learn, and why
How I learn best, and how I don't learn at all
My dream job
My nightmare job
If I were running a company

I will give you three or four of the above topics, and you will need to choose one of them to write about.

Happy studying~

birthday wish

2005-05-27T15:10:00.000+09:00

Not like it's my birthday any time soon, but when it is, I want one of these.

Yes, I'm a geek.

more on phones

2005-05-23T21:04:00.000+09:00

A recent review in the New York Times (login required) of the new Samsung MM-A800 cell phone notes that despite the phone's impressive list of functions, the user interface leaves something to be desired.

The trouble is, all of these features saddle the poor little device with a complexity that will boggle even the veteran cell fan. You have to wade your way through a staggering 583 menu commands, along with far too many pointless "Are you sure?" confirmations, to find them all. Just looking up your own phone number requires eight button presses, for goodness' sake.

This is exactly the same complaint that I have with my new Samsung phone, the relatively low-tech SPH-E3200. There are a lot of cool features, but the user interface is atrocious. I'd love to trade it in for a programmable phone, one where I can design the menus to my liking. Any suggestions?

Tacos & Doughnuts

2005-05-17T18:39:00.000+09:00

For those living in/around Sinchon, if you haven't given the taco stand a visit yet, you're missing out.

Today for dinner I had four tacos, three of them luxury. I'd only ordered three, but they accidentally gave me regular instead of the luxury that I'd asked for. To apologize, the guy insisted on giving me an extra for free... well, I couldn't just leave it, could I?

Then at Krispy Kreme they are still giving away free donuts, even before you order. It's buy one, get one free, only backwards. You get one free and then buy one - maybe.

Four tacos, a few cups of Pepsi, and two donuts later, I'm positively stuffed. Brian, you'd have been proud of me.

And that, my friends, is why God made Pepto-Bismol.

Blogpoly

2005-05-14T12:21:00.000+09:00

Blogpoly, anyone?

Via Boing Boing as usual.

Writing diamonds

2005-05-11T14:06:00.000+09:00

A 7-sentence diamond paragraph has the following structure:

simple sentence
compound sentence
complex sentence
compound-complex sentence
complex sentence
compound sentence
simple sentence

For example:

Trains are fun. I like riding trains, and I also like watching them go by. Before the train arrives, we hear the ding-da-ding-da-ding of the crossing gates warning us to get off the tracks. Then comes the roar of the locomotive, and after the locomotive has passed, we can listed to the soothing clackety-clack of metal wheels jumping from one piece of rail to the next. Whenever a train goes by my apartment, I stop what I'm doing and listen. Well, yesterday I did, but today they are digging it all up to make a subway line. I'm going to miss those trains!

I love these...

2005-05-09T23:21:00.000+09:00

Try this one out. (Via Boing Boing.)

a good-sized bowl

2005-05-08T18:21:00.000+09:00

Bought some Quaker Oats the other day and discovered the following health advice printed on the box:

Eating a good-sized bowl of Quaker Oatmeal for 30 days will actually help remove cholesterol from your body.

Rather vague, isn't it? How much oatmeal is in a "good-sized bowl"? And are you supposed to plug away at the same bowl of oatmeal for 30 days as it says, or did they really mean one bowlful every day for 30 days?

According to Quaker, "A good-sized bowl of oatmeal is equivalent to 1-1/2 cups of cooked oatmeal." Another page equates that 1-1/2 cups to 3/4 cups of dry oats. Fair enough, but why doesn't it say this on the box?

On their website they also clarify that you should start with a new bowl each day. In fact, they tell you to eat the bowl itself: "... the best way to demonstrate oatmeal's cholesterol lowering benefits is to eat a good-sized bowl each day for at least 30 days." I think we get the idea, but I also think that they could benefit from a careful proofreader.

random

2005-04-30T12:28:00.000+09:00

I think this somehow relates to teaching freshmen: (link)

Via Language Log.

Grading blogs

2005-04-29T17:57:00.000+09:00

It's hard to put a grade on a blog. I mean, who's to say that this blog is better than that blog. They're different, that's all.

Nevertheless, the student blogs are part of the course, and, as such, they need to be graded. The question is, how?

Well, the two main criteria are frequency of posts (at least twice a week) and depth of content. The latter is very subjective, but pretty much if you write much more than, "Hi, Blog. I'm happy today," then you get full points.

Then there were the points taken off for settings that weren't quite right... most notably for the timestamps being wrong or for it being difficult or impossible to leave comments.

Although I'd mentioned the settings in the original assignment and at least once in class, several students missed one or both of these... but quickly corrected their settings as soon as the grade papers came out. I came away with the feeling that I really should have told them that these kinds of things were important.

So... (and I've taught you all never to begin a sentence with so, right?) For those who fix their settings, I'll be giving the points back retroactively. In fact, a few of you will notice that your scores have already gone up by a point or two.

After all, I want your blogging to be a happy experience. Cheers!

Composition midterm

2005-04-16T11:36:00.000+09:00

These are the possible writing topics (from our textbook) for the composition midterm:

One thing I don't like about my life
How I want my children to be like me
A person in this class I would like to get to know better and why
Ways I am different from my family
Ways I am like my family
Why my parents are (were) so happy

I will give you three or four of the above topics, and you will need to choose one of them to write about.

Happy studying~

My phone!

2005-04-13T18:39:00.000+09:00

Missing: One vintage 2000 cell phone, the small sleek white Neomi model from Hyundai.

Last seen in the Dasan cafeteria at lunchtime. Handsome reward for its safe return.

I'm now consoling myself with a strawberry yogurt that's only two days past its expiration and a delicious cup of strong, piping hot coffee.

(Geez, it's not like anyone ever calls anyway...)

普通話

2005-04-01T19:17:00.000+09:00

Looks like some are already preparing for the fall of the American Empire.

"Gee, I wish I'd studied ~~English~~ Chinese more when I was young!"

via The Asia Pages.

iPod health warnings

2005-03-27T12:20:00.000+09:00

Some commentary on the iPod, from my favorite IT news source.

Warnings: contains some adult content, contains high-falutin' vocabulary, contains serious social commentary.

Additional warning: Verbs the word iPod, resulting in the inflections iPodding and iPodder.

Personal note: I never really cared for the personal headphone systems, although I enjoy music a lot. Am I ahead of the times or behind?

Cheap broadband

2005-03-21T22:08:00.000+09:00

Korea ranks the cheapest among developed countries in broadband Internet service at €13 per month. Iceland is the most expensive at €48/month.

Bet Kalbi is expensive in Iceland, too.

Would you like an altimeter with that, too?

2005-03-17T22:21:00.000+09:00

Apple's new Powerbooks now come equipped with internal motion sensors. Originally designed as part of a safety mechanism to protect your hard drive if you drop the computer, some have apparently found other uses (login required) for this feature. Genius.

Update: For those without a NY Times id, here's the intersting part:

First, this guy wrote a little free software program that actually rotates your windows on the screen as you tilt the laptop, so they always remain "upright"!

Then this guy wrote a tiny program, which you can also download if you're technically savvy, that switches to the previous or next song playing in iTunes when you tilt the laptop in the appropriate direction. Wicked--and clever.

(from Pogue's Posts)

Pass the blame

2005-03-12T17:21:00.000+09:00

News like this gets me hot around the collar.

Ok, let's see. You were asked if you wanted to run an untrusted Java program from a mysterious site. You say yes. Your computer goes berzerk. You're surprised because... ?

To be sure, this is a nasty, nasty program. But the fact that it's written in Java is irrelevant. It could've been written in any language. The choice of browser you were using when you got it is also irrelevant. Any Java-enabled broswer is supposed to run a Java program if it's asked to; to do otherwise would be seriously broken behavior.

Ok, I admit. It would be better if it were more difficult for the user to screw himself, and in future browsers it probably will be. Meanwhile, however, if you clicked on YES, you have no one to blame but yourself.

There. I feel better.

UPDATE (3/16): Looks like a few others (scroll down to near the bottom) had similar reactions to this, ahem, news.

Score one for the Koreans

2005-03-12T15:41:00.001+09:00

From Observations of an ELT student:

Mixed-group activities are organised: Fun & Games, quizzes etc. During a quiz, a Korean student deemed rather slow by the teachers is placed next to you so you might 'help' him. He is by far the most intelligent, educated, well-read, heck - the most brilliant person you've met there. He says he keeps quiet in class because the discussion topics are soooo boring and brainless. You bow back to him in reverence every time you see him for the rest of the course.

Classroom fiasco

2005-03-09T23:55:00.000+09:00

The Mass Communications class was assigned to GA403, but someone made a mistake on the schedule and sent them all to GA401 instead. Nobody noticed the mistake because GA401 was empty at that hour -- empty, that is, until we showed up today expecting the room to be ours.

The hoops I had to go through to find this out... thanks are due to our kind assistant Minjin who sorted things out. We'll be in GA401 on Monday. Cheers!

Security & coffee

2005-03-08T22:23:00.000+09:00

Computer security has become such a huge field, and there are so many different ways to be a cyber criminal these days. There are those who gain unauthorized access to your computer and steal some of your computing power. There are those who copy personal data and may or may not do devestating harm with it. There are those who try to cause destruction (e.g. erase your hard drive). There are those who try to get your money. There are those who break security just for the challenge.

(And which kind are you, he asks in jest.)

Seriously, what got me thinking about this was a piece today on the inconsistency of computer security. No brilliant conclusions; just thought it was interesting.

It was also interesting to me that the ads provided by Google were all about coffee.

When music is scary

2005-03-01T17:03:00.000+09:00

The music they play at my gym is positively awful. It's a bad mix of bad pop songs remade into even worse quick-tempo exercise music. (Is there such a genre?) As I don't spend a whole lot of time in the gym (in fact, I spend as little time as possible), I've been able to train myself to just ignore it.

Today I discovered that there is one thing scarier than listing to the music: listening to the guy next to me singing along.

The Stroop Effect

2005-02-26T16:45:00.000+09:00

Try this... (via Language Log.)

A Must-read

2005-02-26T14:56:00.000+09:00

Hakon Lie, Chief Technology Officer of Opera Software, speaks out on Bill Gates and interoperability. Worth a careful read. Also worth following the links.

Fly Untied

2005-02-26T14:01:00.000+09:00

Seoul -> San Francisco

The movies cycle approximately every two hours. Since most of the feature films are actually somewhat shorter than two hours, there is some dead time between the end of the movie you're watching and the beginning of the next movie.

But after the second movie, the dead time seemed inordinately long. Finally decided to investigate.

I pressed the call button. Waited. No response. Pressed the call button again. Waited some more. Still no response. Got up and went to the back of the plane, where I found the flight attendant on duty sitting on a crate reading the paper. Asked him politely about the movies. Nobody bothered to reset it, he ventured. He seemed decidedly annoyed that I was back there bothering him, but at least he said he'd check.

He checked, and soon the movies were running again. Welcome to the friendly skies.

And then there was their poor excuse for breakfast just before we landed: a piece of bread with some melted cheese and some fruit. Was hungrier after eating it than before, I think.

Fortunately, I made it through customs quickly and was able to make a bee line for the food court.

San Francisco -> Seoul

Predicting a long check-in line, I arrived at the airport three hours early. Sure enough, I was in line for a good half-hour, and the line grew considerably behind me.

Sorry, there are no seats available. You'll have to get your seat assignment at the gate. No seats?! The flight doesn't leave for 2½ hours! The other passengers have pre-assigned seats. Pre-assigned seats? News to me. Well, some travel agents don't tell people about that.

Don't tell people? What is this, some kind of secret club? Well, I have a secret, too: which airline I'm flying next time. I can give you a hint, though. It won't be United.

(I did actually get a seat on that flight... the center of five.)

Oh, and the dearth of food on the way over should have been a warning to me to stuff myself before getting on the plane back. After 12 miserable hours on that plane (and believe me, I ate every little morsel they gave me) I was ready to drop from hunger.

It could've been worse, I suppose. Not sure how, but it probably could've.

Nickel Power

2005-02-06T13:25:00.000+09:00

"And how would you like to pay for your new Jaguar?"

"I'll be paying in nickels..."

At 5 grams per nickel, how many friends would you need to help you carry the money?

Jim Crow Bus Lanes

2005-02-05T13:07:00.000+09:00

Gotta feel sorry for those green buses. The blue and the red whiz by in the speedy center lane while the poor green have to sit in traffic with the single-passenger cars. Once in a while, a daring green will zip into the center lane, speed by 20 or so cars and other greens, and then dart back into traffic. Whew! Hope nobody saw that. And if someone saw? Does the green get a ticket? What for? Driving a bus of the wrong color in the bus lane?

Honestly, I thought the purpose of the center lanes was to get people out of their cars and onto the buses. Instead, we have introduced the caste system to public transportation. Really, nothing good can come of this.

How 'bout that pee h dee?

2005-01-30T01:04:00.000+09:00

I'm speechless. Someone please tell me it's a joke.

Brain Matters

2005-01-22T16:19:00.000+09:00

Men and women's Brains really are different, according to a study at the University of California, Irvine.

The study shows women having more white matter and men more gray matter related to intellectual skill ... These findings suggest that human evolution has created two different types of brains ...

(But we knew this already!)

[The research] may help to explain why men tend to excel in tasks requiring more local processing (like mathematics), while women tend to excel at integrating and assimilating information from distributed gray-matter regions in the brain, such as required for language facility.

Two thoughts come to mind:

All these talented female students really are talented; it's now just favoritism on my part.
I'm going to have a really hard time meeting a woman who likes geeky games.

Wilmido

2005-01-21T20:26:00.000+09:00

It came out in print nearly a month ago, but it took the Seoul Classified a while to get it onto their (extremely annoying) website. What is it? It's nothing other than a full-length feature article on some ficticious place called Wilmido. I read it, thinking gosh, how have I never heard of this place, until I realized that the article was actually about Wolmido, a place I've been to several times.

My favorite part, however, was this:

I had heard stories about Wilmido (Seoul’s answer to the Jersey boardwalk?), but no one could ever give me specifics.

Do you suppose it's because they had no clue what you were talking about?

Bus Information

2005-01-19T17:25:00.000+09:00

Yesterday the Korea Times reported the launch of new "...online services to help foreign residents and visitors learn how to use the somewhat complicated public bus system." Long overdue and much appreciated. However, I see some problems.

Their website is confusing to navigate and badly broken in places. I could not get any kind of map to come up. The search button was nonfunctional. Formatting was strange, and vital information was sometimes obscured. Perhaps it works better on a Korean system with a MS browser; who knows. As it was, I wasn't able to get anywhere. I did, however, managed to get an error dump.

Also, the problem of lack of information is not limited to foreigners. In fact, nearly all the foreigners I've seen out and about are finding their way around quite easily. On the other had, I regularly see confused locals. Either they're staring at the (totally uninformative) route maps at the bus stop scratching their heads, or they're asking the driver of every bus that comes by, "Did this use to be bus 131?"

Speaking of information at the bus stops, is the website information a bit more accurate? I have yet to see a bus information posting that's 100% accurate - inaccuracies in route maps, missing route maps, misplaced "you are here" indicators, route maps from routes that don't actually stop there - no wonder people are scratching their heads.

It's a shame, because I found the changes last summer to be a positive step in terms of convenience for the rider. But even the most convenient bus system in the world is useless if we can't figure out which bus to take.

Error Dump

2005-01-19T16:30:00.000+09:00


HTTP Status 500 -



type Exception report



message



description The server encountered an internal error () that prevented it from fulfilling this request.



exception



org.apache.jasper.JasperException: For input string: "undefined"

	at org.apache.jasper.servlet.JspServletWrapper.service(JspServletWrapper.java:254)

	at org.apache.jasper.servlet.JspServlet.serviceJspFile(JspServlet.java:295)

	at org.apache.jasper.servlet.JspServlet.service(JspServlet.java:241)

	at javax.servlet.http.HttpServlet.service(HttpServlet.java:853)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.ApplicationFilterChain.internalDoFilter(ApplicationFilterChain.java:247)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.ApplicationFilterChain.doFilter(ApplicationFilterChain.java:193)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardWrapperValve.invoke(StandardWrapperValve.java:256)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline$StandardPipelineValveContext.invokeNext(StandardPipeline.java:643)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline.invoke(StandardPipeline.java:480)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.ContainerBase.invoke(ContainerBase.java:995)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardContextValve.invoke(StandardContextValve.java:191)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline$StandardPipelineValveContext.invokeNext(StandardPipeline.java:643)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline.invoke(StandardPipeline.java:480)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.ContainerBase.invoke(ContainerBase.java:995)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardContext.invoke(StandardContext.java:2422)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardHostValve.invoke(StandardHostValve.java:180)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline$StandardPipelineValveContext.invokeNext(StandardPipeline.java:643)

	at org.apache.catalina.valves.ErrorDispatcherValve.invoke(ErrorDispatcherValve.java:171)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline$StandardPipelineValveContext.invokeNext(StandardPipeline.java:641)

	at org.apache.catalina.valves.ErrorReportValve.invoke(ErrorReportValve.java:163)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline$StandardPipelineValveContext.invokeNext(StandardPipeline.java:641)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline.invoke(StandardPipeline.java:480)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.ContainerBase.invoke(ContainerBase.java:995)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardEngineValve.invoke(StandardEngineValve.java:174)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline$StandardPipelineValveContext.invokeNext(StandardPipeline.java:643)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline.invoke(StandardPipeline.java:480)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.ContainerBase.invoke(ContainerBase.java:995)

	at org.apache.coyote.tomcat4.CoyoteAdapter.service(CoyoteAdapter.java:199)

	at org.apache.jk.server.JkCoyoteHandler.invoke(JkCoyoteHandler.java:324)

	at org.apache.jk.common.HandlerRequest.invoke(HandlerRequest.java:395)

	at org.apache.jk.common.ChannelSocket.invoke(ChannelSocket.java:673)

	at org.apache.jk.common.ChannelSocket.processConnection(ChannelSocket.java:615)

	at org.apache.jk.common.SocketConnection.runIt(ChannelSocket.java:786)

	at org.apache.tomcat.util.threads.ThreadPool$ControlRunnable.run(ThreadPool.java:683)

	at java.lang.Thread.run(Thread.java:534)



root cause



java.lang.NumberFormatException: For input string: "undefined"

	at java.lang.NumberFormatException.forInputString(NumberFormatException.java:48)

	at java.lang.Integer.parseInt(Integer.java:468)

	at java.lang.Integer.parseInt(Integer.java:518)

	at org.apache.jsp.BusDataListByMap_jsp._jspService(BusDataListByMap_jsp.java:57)

	at org.apache.jasper.runtime.HttpJspBase.service(HttpJspBase.java:137)

	at javax.servlet.http.HttpServlet.service(HttpServlet.java:853)

	at org.apache.jasper.servlet.JspServletWrapper.service(JspServletWrapper.java:210)

	at org.apache.jasper.servlet.JspServlet.serviceJspFile(JspServlet.java:295)

	at org.apache.jasper.servlet.JspServlet.service(JspServlet.java:241)

	at javax.servlet.http.HttpServlet.service(HttpServlet.java:853)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.ApplicationFilterChain.internalDoFilter(ApplicationFilterChain.java:247)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.ApplicationFilterChain.doFilter(ApplicationFilterChain.java:193)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardWrapperValve.invoke(StandardWrapperValve.java:256)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline$StandardPipelineValveContext.invokeNext(StandardPipeline.java:643)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline.invoke(StandardPipeline.java:480)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.ContainerBase.invoke(ContainerBase.java:995)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardContextValve.invoke(StandardContextValve.java:191)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline$StandardPipelineValveContext.invokeNext(StandardPipeline.java:643)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline.invoke(StandardPipeline.java:480)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.ContainerBase.invoke(ContainerBase.java:995)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardContext.invoke(StandardContext.java:2422)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardHostValve.invoke(StandardHostValve.java:180)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline$StandardPipelineValveContext.invokeNext(StandardPipeline.java:643)

	at org.apache.catalina.valves.ErrorDispatcherValve.invoke(ErrorDispatcherValve.java:171)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline$StandardPipelineValveContext.invokeNext(StandardPipeline.java:641)

	at org.apache.catalina.valves.ErrorReportValve.invoke(ErrorReportValve.java:163)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline$StandardPipelineValveContext.invokeNext(StandardPipeline.java:641)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline.invoke(StandardPipeline.java:480)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.ContainerBase.invoke(ContainerBase.java:995)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardEngineValve.invoke(StandardEngineValve.java:174)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline$StandardPipelineValveContext.invokeNext(StandardPipeline.java:643)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.StandardPipeline.invoke(StandardPipeline.java:480)

	at org.apache.catalina.core.ContainerBase.invoke(ContainerBase.java:995)

	at org.apache.coyote.tomcat4.CoyoteAdapter.service(CoyoteAdapter.java:199)

	at org.apache.jk.server.JkCoyoteHandler.invoke(JkCoyoteHandler.java:324)

	at org.apache.jk.common.HandlerRequest.invoke(HandlerRequest.java:395)

	at org.apache.jk.common.ChannelSocket.invoke(ChannelSocket.java:673)

	at org.apache.jk.common.ChannelSocket.processConnection(ChannelSocket.java:615)

	at org.apache.jk.common.SocketConnection.runIt(ChannelSocket.java:786)

	at org.apache.tomcat.util.threads.ThreadPool$ControlRunnable.run(ThreadPool.java:683)

	at java.lang.Thread.run(Thread.java:534)

A Malicious Tool

2005-01-12T15:02:00.000+09:00

Microsoft debuts a malicious software removal tool today.

Would that be a tool to remove malicious software? Or a malicious tool to remove software?

Electric Nativity

2004-12-27T01:44:00.000+09:00

This just in:

In Normal, Ill., wind chill readings below zero compelled Epiphany Catholic Church to warm the camel, goats and sheep in its live Nativity scene with king-size electric blankets. The wise men, Mary and Joseph were given battery-powered heaters to carry in their pockets, and Jesus was played by a doll instead of a baby.

"That we wouldn't want to risk," Monsignor Eric Powell said.

I'm speechless.

Web Security

2004-12-25T13:03:00.000+09:00

From yesterday's New York Times:

As though [Internet Explorer] weren't vulnerable enough to spyware, secret ActiveX controls and other hacker attacks, security experts have now unveiled an even more insidious hole. Phishers (people who try to intercept your Web passwords and private information) can now make any text they like appear in the address bar. They can, for example, make it look like you're viewing the Web page of PayPal or eBay; when you "log in," you'll actually be sending your account information straight into the phishers' databases.

As someone who used to work in the software industry, it blows my mind that the programmers at Microsoft are so incompetent as to create a beast as flawed as IE.

Xmas

2004-12-25T10:42:00.000+09:00

A single guy's perfect Christmas morning:

Wake up late.
Eat leftover pizza for breakfast

What more could anyone want?

Marry Xmas

2004-12-22T23:21:00.000+09:00

Is that an order? And what if I don't?

Shutdown

2004-12-18T14:26:00.000+09:00

Reboot options

heh heh

2004-12-09T20:49:00.000+09:00

One of my pet peeves is the mound of advertizing litter that accumulates daily in our mailboxes and taped to the walls and door of my building.

This afternoon I came home just in time to see a lady furiously stuffing flyers into our already litter-filled mailboxes. Gotcha! Caught red-handed. The timing couldn't have been better; she got to my box just as I got to her.

I pulled the flyer out of my box and gave it back to her, telling her very bluntly to take it with her (가지고 가세요). Take it with me (갖고 가라고?) she blurted back, seeming shocked that anyone would interfere with her business. I ignored her and proceeded up the stairs to my apartment.

Later I decided to stop and see just what she was promoting, partly out of curiousity and partly to make sure I never went to her store.

The flyer was from the city, an announcement of the temporary relocation of the Donggyo-dong office.

Sorry, lady. I owe you an apology. You sure did look nervous, though.

My poor sense of time

2004-12-05T17:06:00.001+09:00

I measured the distances to the four previously mentioned stores. Following the route I normally take, the distances are 90, 180, 380, and 560 meters, respectively. If, as I claimed the other day, these four journeys take 0.5, 1, 5, and 8 minutes, then my walking speed must be a whopping 180 meters/minute for the nearby stores, 76 m/m for the Yes! Mart, and only 70 m/m when going to the Nonghyup. Either I slow down dramatically as the distance increases, or I have a very poor sense of time.

Jesusland

2004-12-04T01:21:00.000+09:00

Truly amazing!

More cool maps...

Land of Convenience II

2004-12-03T23:22:00.000+09:00

If I need groceries, I have several choices. I can walk 30 seconds to the tiny, friendly corner store. No vegetables or frozen goods, but they carry most other day-to-day needs. If they don't have what I need, I can walk an additional 30 seconds to the slightly larger corner store, where they have a bit more variety, including some frozen goods.

For more serious shopping, I can walk five minutes to the Yes! Mart, which is a small version of a western-style supermarket - fresh meat and vegetables, toiletries, breakfast cereal (albeit limited) - and better prices than the corner stores. And if the Yes! Mart doesn't have what I need, I can walk eight minutes to the ever-crowded but well-stocked Nonghyup.

Tonight I had just a few things to buy (got to keep my fridge stocked!) so I opted for the Yes! Mart. Now I go to the Yes! Mart fairly often, but not quite often enough to be known as a regular, so it's sort of hit or miss whether me and the staff recognize each other or not. Tonight, it was a not.

The nice lady at the checkout was busy ringing up the sale, and noticing that I had brought my own bag, she politely told me she'd pack it as soon as she got me my change. That's quite all right, I told her, I'm happy to pack my own bag. Shockwave hits; the foreigner has understood everything she said and is answering her in her own language. The usual questions follow: where are you from, how long have you been here, what do you do. Thankfully avoided the dreaded why are you still single question.

Then I decided for once to turn the tables and ask her some questions: do a lot of foreigners shop here (they do, and they're from a lot of different countries), do they speak Korean (some of them do, though the adoption agency nearby generates a lot of short-term visitors). She then volunteered that she has so much curiousity about foreigners and hopes we can chat more later.

Curiousity about foreigners? Wants to talk?

Lonely housewife?

Not married (guessing mid to late 30s) and desperate for a boyfriend?

Wants to emigrate?

There was no indication that she wanted to learn English...

Land of Convenience

2004-11-29T22:03:00.000+09:00

Seoul, land of convenience.

Where else do they pre-sort or medication into bite-sized packets so you don't have to think about what you're taking? (Don't know, really, but it's not the U. S. of A.)

Where else can you find a thousand different bus lines connecting every corner of the city, all with service every few minutes or better?

Where else can you hike to the top of a mountain and find an enterprising street-vendor (trail-vendor?) selling drinks for those who happened not to pack enough water?

Where else can you go to the beach completely unprepared, only to find bathing suits, towels, water-toys, lockers, showers, and who knows what else, all for rent or sale?

Where else can you fall out of bed at 7 in the morning, wander down the street, and have a nice lady cook you a large delicious healthy breakfast and then wash the dishes for you... all for under US$4?

But best of all... walking past the Nonghyup supermarket on my way home tonight I was thinking about stopping to buy some of those delicious giant pears that are in season these days. Not wanting to fight the crowds in the checkout line, I was debating whether or not to actually stop. No matter; Nonghyup has conveniently set up an outside fruit stand just for people like me. Pears in four sizes of giant. I chose five of the medium-giant variety and was on my way in under a minute.

Gotta love this city!

Feeling human again

2004-11-18T21:35:00.000+09:00

... little by little.

I don't get sick very often, but when the flu hits, it hits hard. It did the unimaginable: kept me home from school for a day.

Tomorrow is class make-up day, but I suspect that attendance will be low. One class unanimously voted in favor of doing the extra work as homework, and the other... well, we'll see. In any case, I'll be there... to lend a hand to the Sogang Herald people if nothing else.

Cheers!

Happy Halloween

2004-10-31T23:04:00.000+09:00

Carve your own virtual pumpkin... especially for all the expats who missed out on the usual Halloween fun.

Hope you enjoy it :)

Letter to a piss-drunk idiot

2004-10-24T23:56:00.000+09:00

To the idiot who decided to make the local 24-hour diner your bedroom last night:

You're pathetic. I don't care how much Korean you do or don't know; it was obvious that they were telling you to wake up, put your socks and shoes back on, pay for your meal, and GET THE HELL OUT. It's people like you who give foreigners here a bad name. Go home.

By the way, just in case you really didn't understand them, they were speaking to you very politely. They were also about to the call the police.

Politics (yecch)

2004-10-19T23:49:00.000+09:00

Got my absentee ballot today.

There are six choices for president and vice president. By party and in order shown on the ballot: Peace and Freedom, Democratic, Green, Republican, Libertarian, and American Independent. I like the idea of peace and freedom, and I think it's appropriate that they're listed first. However, as green is my favorite color, I think I'll vote Green.

But seriously... there's more than just the president at stake.

A quick search on the candiates in congressional races revealed this gem:

Rep. Fortney "Pete" Stark, D-Calif., is the foul-mouthed poster boy for Liberal Double Standards.

There he was on Capitol Hill last week, sounding more like Eminem than an eminent lawmaker, hurling epithets such as "fruitcake" and "c--ks----r" at Republicans during a mark-up session on pension funds legislation of all things.

...

Further goading McInnis, a married Republican gentleman, Stark lashed out: "You little fruitcake. You little fruitcake. I said you are a fruitcake."

Guess if McInnis were single or even just a regular man it wouldn't be so bad. And later, with reference to the alleged "c--------r" remark:

Homosexual-rights groups, whose fax machines and phone lines would have been on fire had the comments been made by any prominent conservative, shrugged at Stark's remarks. "I think he meant nothing by it," Human Rights Campaign official Winnie Stachelberg told Fox News.

How dare they not be outraged!

Thank you, Ms. Malkin. Rep. Stark has my vote.

I'm disappointed...

2004-10-11T21:29:00.000+09:00

... with the new school cafeteria.

We waited six weeks for what, a new paint job? I could've painted it myself in a week. The food is acceptable, but it used to be better. The ambiance is the same, though for a school cafeteria that's hardly an issue. The price is the same as before for the Korean meal, but you get less. The more expensive so-called western meal seemed to be a little larger, but it didn't appear to be edible so I gave it a miss. To top it all off, everything is now self-service.

Really disappointed.

The aliens have landed!

2004-10-03T16:58:00.000+09:00

Crash-landed, more like it. They left a huge hole in the middle of Turkey!

Enjoy your life today, before it's too late!

짜증

2004-10-03T13:13:00.000+09:00

The only thing worse than getting up early in the morning on the weekend to go swimming is getting up early in the morning on the weekend to go swimming and going all the way to the pool only to find out that it's CLOSED without notice and the ajumma is laughing at me because I didn't magically know this already.

Language Log

2004-10-03T03:58:00.000+09:00

Great site. Includes a linguistic analysis of the Kerry-Bush debate. Brilliant.

A really cool interactive map

2004-09-29T14:15:00.000+09:00

The Seoul City website to promote their new address system includes a very detailed interactive map of Seoul. So much fun; there's even a ruler function that let's you measure the distance from anywhere to anywhere else.

Distances (as the crow flies) from my apartment in Seogyo-dong:

Macondo: 280 meters.
Hongdae subway: 350 meters.
The pool: 390 meters.
Brian's cafe: 590 meters.
Sinchon subway: 700 meters.
US 66: 770 meters.
The Han River: 1330 meters.
My office: 1450 meters.

Uh-oh, have I given away too much information?

Unlike the disasterous bus information website, which uses proprietary MSIE Javascript methods and is therefore useless to me (see known problem #4), the address finder is done in Java and has a slow but nice interface. Stay away from the English part of the site, though; it's a mess.

(Incidentally, the bus information website problem is not unprecedented. A quick search turned up a similar problem two years ago with the official Dutch Railways site.)

Actually, I was happy to see the new street signs and address plates go up a couple of years ago. I can't tell you how frustrated I get with bad directions. Once I missed a friend's wedding entirely because the standard-issue map from the wedding hall was completely wrong. (There were 9 of us together, and we all looked at the map and agreed we had followed it correctly.) As it turns out, no one actually reads these maps; it's a famous wedding hall, so just ask anyone where it is...

So now I always ask for the building number, and the conversation usually goes something like this:

"What's the building number?"

"Huh?"

"You know, the number pasted next to the front door of the building."

"What number?"

"This number!"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Go look by the door. There should be a number."

"I never saw one. We're down the street from the 7-11."

"What's the name of the street?"

"Huh?"

"The street name!"

"I don't know about a street name."

"Isn't there a green sign with the name of the street on it?"

"I never saw one. It's a small street. Just look for the 7-11."

...and so on.

My new refrigerator

2004-09-22T22:28:00.000+09:00

I bought the fridge.

I reversed the door myself. It wasn't that hard. I made the necessary holes with a leftover self-tapping screw from an earlier home-improvement project.

The Daewoo refrigerator people are idiots.

SMS-printing bike, anyone?

2004-09-15T09:15:00.000+09:00

I was reluctant to blog this as I'm trying to keep this blog nonpolitical, but last week my dad sent me this link (thanks, Dad!) to what has got to be the coolest master's thesis ever. It's worth a look.

Unfortunately, it's gotten him arrested. We all know what a threat a hi-tech bicycle is to national security.

Electric fans

2004-09-12T22:35:00.000+09:00

It's a Straight Dope classic:

Damnedest thing . . . this death-by-electric-fan story seems to be a common belief in Korea, even among knowledgeable medical people. If this is an indication of the national impressionability quotient, I could make a fortune selling these guys laundry balls.

Well gee, I feel fortunate. I don't even own a fan. Ya suppose sleeping with the A/C on full blast could be worse?

Update: Looks like Big D beat me to the post. Read with caution.

Update: Big D has now vanished.

Richochet Robot!

2004-09-12T16:05:00.000+09:00

Long time no post. If I were one of my students, I'd have an F on my blog right now... it's always hectic at the beginning of a new semester, isn't it?

Yesterday I braved the pouring rain and finally went out and bought my very own copy of Ricochet Robot. Thanks to Brian and his café for turning me on to this excellent game.

It will also be my dating litmus test. Women who enjoy games like Ricochet Robot are almost certainly fun to date. Women who don't are probably not.

SWM, 30s, seeks SF who enjoys geeky games...

(Picture from Boardgame Geek)

Sunday night at Hongdae

2004-08-29T22:40:00.000+09:00

This city just gets weirder every day. Tonight I was having dinner at my favorite outdoor galbi restaurant when a troupe of dancing fairies danced past us playing silly toy instruments. Yes, they even had fluffy white wings.

I don't think I even want to know.

Update: I think they were angels, not fairies.

We'll miss you.

2004-08-23T16:45:00.000+09:00

Learned today that one of my two gorgeous officemates is going to England next month to start her Ph.D.

Good luck! I'm going to miss you.

River Rafting

2004-08-22T20:55:00.000+09:00

Add river rafting to my list of things not to do here.

Our guide pulled a half-conscious body out of the river, his face covered with blood. I looked around; there seemed to be bodies everywhere. One young woman was clinging on to the side of our boat, gasping in pain. Another young woman had managed to climb back into her capsized boat and watched in horror as blood streamed down her husband's face while he lay motionless in the back of our boat. She was far enough away that she could do nothing but watch.

We pulled a couple more bodies from the river. Others were frantically counting heads. I was simultaneously trying to help paddle and make room for the additional passengers, suddendly feeling very thankful that earlier in the journey we had deliberately fallen overboard to practice pulling each other back into the boat.

We were 14 altogether, including the two guides. I was lucky to be in the boat with the more experienced of the two. The river was unusually fast on account of the recent rain, and we had just passed one of the more exciting rapids. Our companion boat had come face to face with a huge rock, flipped over and dumped at least one person onto the rock and everyone into the raging river.

Once everyone had been accounted for, we looked for a place we could stop. The man was still bleeding but conscious. His wife of three months continued to watch him in horror, still too far away to do anything but watch. A little further downstream we found a small, sandy, shore-like patch ahead so we paddled over to it and pulled the boats ashore.

It seemed like an eternity while we sat helpless on the rocks. Still in the boat, the man seemed to be bleeding from the corner of his right eye. His wife was clutching his arm and bawling. The rest of us could only sit there and wait. One of the guides found a piece of shoe in the river and used it as a compress to help stop the bleeding. He held it in place while the other guide climbed up the rocks to the road above to flag down a passing car for help.

I watched idly as a lone shoe was caught in a small eddy current and was bobbing in place just a few meters from shore. I wondered if it belonged to one of us, and should I swim out and rescue it. Eventually the question became moot as the shoe gradually drifted toward shore, so I walked over and plucked it out.

The guide came back from the road with the news that help was on its way. They helped the man and his shaking wife up the rocks and they were off to the hospital. Eventually a van came for the rest of us; we abandoned the boats and went back to home base.

The man's glasses had shattered as he hit the rock face first, cutting a gash in his eyebrow. Luckily his eye was spared. Thanks to my shoe-watching, he now had both his shoes. The young woman who had been gasping in pain was in fact okay; it turns out she was more shocked than hurt. The rest of us were shaken, but relatively unhurt. I lost part of one fingernail, causing me to wince when I type s, x or w a little too hard. But mostly I'm glad we got out of the river where we did, because the rapids downstream were a good deal more difficult than the ones we went through.

Refrigerators

2004-08-19T18:33:00.000+09:00

I just found out that my favorite breakfast place is going out of business next week. Really a shame; they have good food, friendly service, and it's barely a minute walk from my place.

Maybe it's finally time to get that new 2-door refrigerator I've been wanting to get so I can actually cook a meal at home. Imagine that, home cooking.

Actually, I tried to buy this refrigerator a few months ago but was told by the nice Daewoo salespeople it doesn't exist in Korea. It's only for export. Suppose it's really a GM fridge?

Then I found a domestic model that is practically identical - the only apparent difference is a slightly better inside-door layout. I went to buy it, cash in hand.

The hitch came when I asked for the door to open to the left, rather than to the right as most refrigerators open. My kitchen layout is such that a left-opening fridge would be a great convenience, and if I'm going to spend the money for a brand new model, I should get what I want, right?

The sales guy was a bit surprised at my request, but when I showed him on the display model how the door was obviously designed to be reversible, he proceeded to try to order it for me.

Long story short, he got the total runaround, poor guy. So we looked again carefully and determined that all that was needed was to drill two small holes in the chassis where the center metal door brace hooks on (see below) and I could reverse the door myself. Surprise, neither the manufacturing people nor the service people were willing to touch it.

So they lost a sale. Unfortunately I still want that fridge, so there's a large (details tbd) reward for anyone who can get me either model with the door reversed.

The export model:

The domestic model:

Ever feel like an animal in a zoo?

2004-08-16T23:35:00.000+09:00

Banner reads: "Dr. Lee's Veterinary Medical Center For Foreigners. Dogs, Cats, Rabbits, Rats, Birds and Exotic Animals"

Need I say more?

Seoul bus madness

2004-08-14T22:59:00.000+09:00

One of the great benefits of the new fare system is the (nearly) free transfers. The other day I rode all over town on one fare. At some point I passed the 10km mark and was charged an extra 100 won, oh no. I would have paid more doing the same journey 10 years ago with those old 300 won tokens.

On the downside, it is now more complicated to charge your friend's fare on your magic fare card. The machines are programmed to accept only one fare per card; two fares require driver intervention. Unfortunately, the new system requires driver intervention before the first swipe, which is a problem because passengers are accustomed to swiping their cards and then saying one more fare, please.

Most buses have prominent signs reminding passengers who want to share a card to please tell the driver before they swipe. Today I sat directly behind the driver and watched repeatedly as passengers got on, saw the signs, politely told the driver two fares please, and then promptly swiped their cards before the driver had a chance to press the required button on his control panel.

Ginkgo Trees

2004-08-10T19:21:00.000+09:00

Did you know that the ginkgo tree has been around for some 270,000,000 years, making it the oldest species of tree in existence today? Pretty cool, eh?

Even more interesting to me is the word ginkgo, which is Japanese for bank (yes, as in deposit your money). How did bank become ginkgo in English? Well in Korean (but not in Japanese), bank and ginkgo are homonyms. Coincidence?

The things we learn under the guise of studying a language.

Beat the heat

2004-08-09T17:57:00.000+09:00

It's August. August in Seoul is hot. Awfully hot. It's the perfect time to stay home all day in my air-conditioned pad and write. If I had an office job, it would be the perfect time to stay in the air-conditioned office all day and work.

Nowadays Korean friends repeatedly ask me when I'm going to take my summer vacation and get out of Seoul to "beat the heat." Traditionally August was so unbearable in Korea that the population would migrate to the countryside, the beach, the rivers, etc. to try to cool down a bit.

Sounds like a good idea, but nowadays the countryside, the beach, and the rivers are jam-packed with vacationers baking in the hot sun. I can't imagine that they're really beating the heat, though I don't mind having the city relatively empty.

Ok, Seoul isn't really that empty, and I'm still a sweat bomb every time I walk out my door, but it is amusing that this tradition has survived so well into the modern, air-conditioned era.

I'll be taking my vacation in October when the weather is nicer.