the hand-off

while waiting for the train this morning, i became very confused at why i had not put together a powerpoint presentation for my meeting today. i had created detailed documentation of my application, and even a microsoft visio diagram.....................but no powerpoint. needless to say, i had to get some ideas and create a powerpoint presentation ASAP. i successfully finished the presentation 3 minutes before my meeting. it went really smoothly, and both attendees seemed to understand what was going on. we'll see. the true test comes 6 months down the line when they begin to use my utility and i get an email screaming for help.

my flight leaves at noon tomorrow. so, this is my last blog from berkeley for now. maybe i will be here next summer. hopefully *fingers crossed*, i will be at ibm research in new york. i may be away from the internet for about 3 weeks (i will be in atlanta) until i get back to cambridge. it's been fun.

one more day

my last day at uc berkeley is tomorrow. i have almost wrapped everything up. only a few minor documentation modifications remain.

productive morning, sluggish afternoon

i am glad that i came into work with a non-stop work attitude. because, if i had not gotten all the major work i needed to do today done before lunchtime, it would not have gotten done. i finished documenting my application and determining the final format is all there is left as far as that goes. i have a a hectic morning today and friday as far as email, following up, scheduling, etc. etc. etc..................i need an assistant.

anyway, there are still some minor issues to try and work out before i leave, but the major utility is done. i am just waiting on my meeting time later in the week to hand this off and debrief.

my last friday in the bay

things started full tilt as soon as i walked through the office door today. i was able to keep my head together in the midst of all the chaos though. wrapping up this software project has definitely taken more time than expected. i have an elevated respect for individuals that do this for a living on a much LARGER scale. it's a very tedious process: initial coding, testing, editing, documentation and commenting, quality assurance, security, fault-tolerance.................the list goes on and on. i am just glad that i am done and can relax now. i say done, but knowing me, i will find more changes to implement to make my life interesting.

p.s. - i think it should be illegal to let your kids listen to president george w. bush. he definitely passed the buck (among many other things) on national television this morning with NO SHAME AT ALL.

FINISHED..............FINALLY

i can safely and proudly say that i am finished with my application after many weeks of diligent work. anymore functions added before wednesday will be strictly additions to a complete utility. i can definitely see more functionality being added, but i am very confident in the base utility of my programs. it was a good learning experience................easily said now that i am not presently stuck or going through the "learning process."

for the remaining days, i can clean some things up, write up some documentation, get my thoughts together, commit some talking points for my advisor to paper, and ENJOY THE BAY!!!

another day full of banging my head against the wall

ok, so i am almost there, but these nagging issues have made work MISERABLE this whole week. i finally have a solution to the problem i am fighting now, but for some reason, it is not working as expected. i plan to look at it about 15 more minutes until i call it night. it's been a long day.

on a good note, i have a VERY POSITIVE meeting with professor dave patterson today that brightened my spirits.

*big sigh*

after a long day and endless brain racking, i finally figured out a solution to what should have been a "minor" problem. anyway.....................i am glad this is over so i can focus on tightening up other small issues to be COMPLETELY done with my project. this fiasco turned into a major problem, but the fire is out now....or at least.......under control.

odds and ends & final testing

so, last week was a big step towards being completely done with my project this summer. now, i am in the process of testing and debugging some minor anomalies to be totally finished. i am hoping that this week (tomorrow/wednesday LATEST) i can completely wash my hands of all this and enjoy my final week here in the bay area. of course, i ran into some unexpected and STRANGE problems in my testing today. i think i will call it a day, get a good night's rest, and come in refreshed tomorrow. i hate to say it, but today was probably useless other than some personal errands/tasks.

p.s. - where were you 5 years ago when you heard about the 9/11 attacks? i had just come out of calculus 3 recitation and was headed to physics 2 lecture before class/school was canceled for the day.

near success

almost there. a great finish to a good week.

getting closer

another day of good progress has put me closer to finalizing my project for the summer. i still have some porting, debugging, and testing to do though. oh yea, don't forget about the documentation to make hand-off/support MUCH easier for others and LESS of a headache for me once i leave. i have learned a great deal that i can use in the future, so i am excited. this was not a wasted experience by ANY means. i am glad i decided to come. i did not mean for this to sound like i am leaving tomorrow or anything, but these were the ideas that came to me. it's been a long day, and i am just now preparing to leave. tomorrow's friday though. i really need to end the week on a positive note.

feeling my way through

as my time in berkeley begins to come to an end, i FINALLY made a huge step towards completing the application i am working on. i must do some ore testing tomorrow. then, the documentation period starts. i have my fingers crossed that all goes well.

overwhelmed

after an awesome weekend, i had to re-focus and get back to work today. however.............there was this HUGE feeling of doubt and uncertainty to overcome before i could begin working. i was able to put this past me, but it kept emerging in my mind. the cause of this feeling........................i was around many old friends during the weekend, and they are working (on their way to financial independence) and beginning their family lives. and me..............what am i doing? i am a STUDENT.......working on my phd............all alone. i can deal with the student thing and being broke, but i am REALLY tired of being alone and without the people that care the most about me. especially, being without the one i care most about.