Same here. Some of the worst seasonal allergies I've ever had was while living in Germany. I'm not sure what exactly was responsible; my guess at the time was some sort of grass but I don't know for sure.
I live in the Yukon so will now be in sync with BC time again after this change. The concerns about commuting to school in the dark seem almost comical, given the experiences of everybody here with the winter darkness.
For other reasons, I also wish we were closer to solar noon though. High noon is actually closer to 2pm here and seems to push the whole day back in the summer. The best (warmest) parts of the day get pushed too late into the afternoon.
Technologies: C, R, Python, Multiple flavours of SQL
Resume/CV: Link in bio
Email: colin.luoma (at) gmail.com
I have several years experience as a data analyst, mostly in the video games industry and, more recently, in public service. A large part of this has been data engineering work which I've always found I tend to enjoy more than the analysis side. I've also always maintained a personal interest in programming working on side projects, and so, I am looking to transition into a development/data engineering role.
Lately, I have been spending my time in the embedded space working on retro game console accessories which has been very rewarding. I would love carry some of this experience into a professional role.
I used to get this same feeling during lectures in uni. Often the information was presented well and, along with some clear examples, everything seemed to make perfect sense.
It wasn't until working through practice problems later, on my own, did it become clear how much detail I was missing.
That's been exactly my experience as well. Sometimes doing a little research on a lunch break gives enough direction on how to spend available time later on my project.
Accepting that progress will be slow has been the most difficult adjustment, and applies to more than just side-projects. Choosing books or games also becomes a more strategic decision when what used to be a weekend sprint, turns into a several week marathon.
I think I'm throwing in the towel on my 7 Plus this year. I'd love to keep it around for a bit longer but too many apps and websites are no longer functional. It's starting to become a usability issue.
I grew up in BC as well and never heard it. My parents were from Ontario and always called it the flipper. Because it flips channels I guess. Felt like every household had a different name for it though.
Currently working on a USB/Bluetooth to Sega Dreamcast controller adapter.
It's based on the Raspberry Pi Pico 2/W board and originally started as a fun project to play around with the PIO features of the RP chips and get my Steam Controller working on the Dreamcast. It has since expanded to support more controllers, keyboards, mice, and acts as VMU - the Dreamcast's memory card - while plugged in. Building the dongle itself has also been a fun exercise in 3d printing, cad and pcb design.
I'd really like to expand the amount of supported USB devices as I only have access to a limited amount of hardware that I can test myself. I've started looking into if I can use the SDL Game Controller DB (https://github.com/mdqinc/SDL_GameControllerDB) to kind of crowd source support for a bunch of controllers. I'm definitely open to other ideas though. I feel like I'm slowly learning that USB controllers are minefield of one-offs and edge cases.
The PIO functionality, I think, is a killer feature for interfacing with retro consoles. I've been working on a Sega Dreamcast controller adapter and the PIO made it pretty easy to start interfacing with the console's custom protocol, even for somebody with near-zero experience in this kind of thing.
What would you look for to see if somebody is 'staying relevant'? Side projects? Personally, I would like to explore new technologies, and am still excited to learn, but feel limited by what is actually needed/required in my day-to-day which is unlikely to change.
I feel you, extremely frustrating when the phone is otherwise in good working order. I've started to get update prompts from apps, on my aging iPhone, even though no new versions exist for my OS.