Journal entries in 'Ruminations' for August, 2006

There's a big debate about Windows vs. Linux, but I think most people versed in the issue acknowledge that Linux has obvious advantages over Windows — most notably security and stability (My Linux server at home had been up for about 180 days until the UPS failed during a power outage last week. We've got Linux machines at work with uptimes of 885 days). I don't think that most people who choose Windows do so because they actually believe Windows is superior to Linux in aspects like those — it's just that Linux's downsides (difficult to configure, more geeky knowledge needed, incompatibility with a lot of hardware due to no manufacturer support, etc.) are enough to outweigh its benefits.

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Speaking of Steve Vai (kind of), one song of his that I've always loved is The Audience Is Listening (7.6 MB MP3). It's such a fun song, and I think non-musicians can appreciate it too. Fun trivia fact: He tracked down his real eighth grade teacher to play the part in the song.

It's a really fun song to play along with on guitar too. I've always enjoyed sitting down with the CD and trying to keep up with him, but there's parts I always have to skip (like that fast syncopated clean part right at the beginning, and, oh, pretty much any part where there is guitar). As part of my little rediscovery of the instrument, I decided to learn the whole song. A bit ambitious, of course, but it's the same way I've gone about re-learning piano — I'd pick songs that were beyond my level (To Zanarkand, various Tori Amos songs) and just attack them slowly until I can play them. The results are usually not what I'd call "successful" — I don't think I've actually managed to learn the entirety of any of those songs — but I think it definitely does help somewhat, so it's worth trying.

I'm easily entertained, and so I probably don't make a very good writing critic. But sometimes you find an author that manages to consistently weave intriguing, thought-provoking narratives with believable characters, and tells you about those characters in a way that is itself entertaining. When you read such writers' work, it's immediately apparent that they are a "virtuoso", a class apart. Like a non-guitarist hearing Steve Vai play, you don't have to be aware of the technical details to be impressed by the performance.

Robert A. Heinlein is one of those writers. I read "The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress" several years ago, and liked it so much that I've reread it at least twice since then. I read Starship Troopers last year, which is almost entirely unrelated to the movie and is much better. Last week I picked up my third Heinlein book, "Stranger In A Strange Land", and as I'm working my way through it at a feverish pace I'm remembering once again what captivating stories he writes.

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