Last week I was on a much needed break, so back to business this week.
Technology
Before enrolling in seminary I worked in a call center doing tech support. I love computers and I love fixing them. However, from my perspective, the call center I worked in did not actually want techs, but rather customer service reps who were capable of doing tech support. It was somewhat of a mismatch. I cared about fixing whatever problem the caller was having, but my managers seemed to care more about how nice and pleasant I was being. The phone rings incessantly, and you do indeed find any and every excuse to get off the phones. I was, and still am, a tech. I am not a customer service rep. I can fix computers. I cannot make people who are angry, frustrated, and irritated feel better over the phone (though fortunately most of the time the callers were not angry when they called in). So all that to link you this article about someone’s experience in a tech support call center: Thank you for calling tech support, now please die.
Music
I’d give you an explanation of the lyrics, but I’m not sure anyone actually knows what this song is about…
The Jimi Hendrix Experience – All Along The Watchtower
Theology
In my opinion this article makes a good point: it is harder to endure prosperity and well being than it is poverty and pain. Meaninglessness does not come from being weary of pain, but from being weary of pleasure. Pray for me — I’m blest
I love theology. In fact I love it so much I have a blog where I write about it. It’s really the foundation and framework of my life. Everything either grows from it or gets evaluated by it. I also love computers and technology. In fact I have an associate and a bachelor’s degree in this area. I also like music and find that some songs have good things to say. Unfortunately these last two areas rarely make it into my blog posts. So I’ve decided to start doing a weekly(ish) feature sharing some interesting things from those areas.
Technology
First, a new feature in Windows 10, called WiFi Sense, which is actually not new because it already exists in Windows Phone 8.1, has caused quite a stir the past few days. It seems to be mostly unwarranted though. Here are a couple of articles about it:
The biggest issues for me are the lack of awareness about the feature, and how they are going to restrict the network access to strictly the Internet.
Second, North America is officially out of IPv4 address. This is one of those behind the scenes issues that network admins, Internet Service Providers, and other IT related organizations have known about for quite some time. So if you’re curious about one of the things that keeps the Internet infrastructure operating here’s a nice article on the topic: http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2015/07/us-exhausts-new-ipv4-addresses-waitlist-begins/
Music
This song brings up some interesting ideas for me. It talks about the dangers of seeking something ‘real’ in a digital world. In such a world nothing ages or dies. It can seem tempting at first, but such a world fails to satisfy us because it isn’t real. In reality we do age and we do die and such a world simply avoids these realities and provides no answer to them. The song calls to start a revolution against such a world. This, in my mind, is a good thing to do, but for me it brings up the question, ‘On what basis will such a revolution be grounded ?’ Christianity provides such a basis, but unfortunately this solution seems to have already been rejected by the larger culture. Here is the song w/ lyrics posted underneath.
We spin the world like a pinball machine
We have thoughts of a life in abundance
Day and night we wish movies were real
And what is behind the screen is our entrance
I’m like a satellite
Transmitting different eras
I am the voice of the next generation
Completely digital
Create synthetic auras
Start a revolution now
You will never have to cry
Cause the future is sold
You can never die
And you’ll never grow old
But everything
Surrounding you is digital
Never break the mold
You do as you’re told
Freedom is for sale
If you give them control
Erase return
In a digital world
I know it feels like you are part of a dream
You can fly and fight wars without judgement
You respawn and mistakes will repeal
But you will always be searching for an answer
I’m like a satellite
Transmitting different eras
I am the voice of the next generation
Completely digital
Create synthetic auras
Start a revolution now
Theology
I appreciate this blog very much. The author spends much of his time countering modernist thought with classical Christian answers. This post deals with the issue of gender and its basic point is that we exist as male and female and we cannot exist any other way. He, of course, goes into much more depth on the issue.
SRQTom 