Schinckel.net

Imagine...64

I’m still toying with the idea of writing a “What If?” novel about John Lennon, but I’m stuck for ideas about what would have changed. One idea is to write a “Butterfly Effect’’ story resulting in Chapman’s suicide, therefore Lennon’s survival.

Old Scholar

I am wearing my Adelaide High School “Non Scholae Sed Vitae” lanyard, and a woman just wanted to know if she could buy one, as she is an Old Scholar.

txt2pml.py

I found a heap of Palm TEXt REAd documents, but I don’t like the way they appear as (Doc) in PalmReader. So I wrote a script to convert them to PML, the format used by DropBook to make PNRd PPrs documents.

Basically, I found that on OS X the translation of txt2pdbdoc -d (decode back into text) wasn’t so good; a heap of characters needed to be changed.

I did have them all listed here, but if I edit them, ecto fucks up the encoding!

I also changed the === to an 80% horizontal line.

The [[[ - ]]] blocks were indented, and a footer line [* <Text>] is indented also.

I assumed the only use of a / was for italics, and _ for underlining.

I also assume the first non-empty, non === line is the Title, and the Author line starts with By. I use this info to create a ‘Title Page’.

The tricky bit was getting the Chapter Heading sorted, I needed to break the text into a list of strings to do this, and scan through. This slows the script down a lot, but it still works okay. I might profile it a bit and see where the slowdown is.

Anyway, here’s the latest version I’ve uploaded: txt2pml.py

I plan to make a version to process Project Gutenberg texts, but that’s on the back burner.

If I Made 64...

John Lennon would have turned 64 Yesterday, (all my troubles…), if he hadn’t been gunned down in 1980 by Mark Chapman. An article linked to made a mention of Chapman attempting suicide at some stage - and it made me think about what might have changed in the world had this one man, who changed history, not had his chance? I was looking for a topic for my NaNoWriMo novel, perhaps this could be it…

Blog with ecto.scpt

Yesterday I talked about blogging from my Palm Zire 21.

Here is the complete AppleScript for Blog with ecto.scpt. Copy this, paste it into Script Editor, and save it to ~/Library/Scripts/Folder Action Scripts/Blog with ecto.scpt

Then right-click on the folder you want monitored - I use ~/Documents/Palm/Matthew Schinckel/NoteTaker/Blog and away you go. For best results, use with MacNoteTaker. Obviously, ecto is required.

All code is ©2004 Matthew Schinckel, but may be freely used with attribution.

Note: the formatting is removed, because ecto wasn’t quite doing it right, but Script Editor will figure it out.

 1
 2
 3
 4
 5
 6
 7
 8
 9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36

on adding folder items to this_folder after receiving added_items
– Set this to true to automatically post the item(s)
– Leave as false so you can check the data.
set autopost to false
repeat with each_file in added_items
tell application “Finder”
set filename to (name of each_file) as text
open for access each_file
set entry_body to (read each_file)
close access each_file
end tell
try
set entry_title to filename
set date_stamp to word 3 of filename & “/” & word 2 of filename ¬
& “/” & word 1 of filename & ” ” & word 4 of filename
set entry_date to false
set entry_date to date date_stamp
set entry_title to first paragraph of entry_body
set entry_body to text ((count characters of entry_title) + 2) ¬
thru end of entry_body
end try
–—— You WILL need to change the next line!
set my_blog to “Life According to Matt”
tell application “ecto”
set my_doc to make new document at front with properties ¬
{entry title:entry_title, current blog:my_blog, ¬
body text:entry_body}
if false is not entry_date then
set entry date of my_doc to entry_date
end if
if true is autopost then
do post my_doc
end if
end tell
end repeat
end adding folder items to

200 Things...

This is going around, thought I’d stake my claims. Mine are in Bold. My comments are in Italics.

  1. Bought everyone in the pub a drink
  2. Swam with wild dolphins I’ve patted them from the boat, but we were right out to sea.
  3. Climbed a mountain
  4. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
  5. Been inside the Great Pyramid
  6. Held a tarantula
  7. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
  8. Said “I love you” and meant it
  9. Hugged a tree
  10. Done a striptease
  11. Bungee jumped
  12. Visited Paris
  13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
  14. Stayed up all night long, and watched the sun rise
  15. Seen the Northern Lights
  16. Gone to a huge sports game
  17. Walked the stairs to the top of the Leaning Tower of Pisa
  18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
  19. Touched an iceberg
  20. Slept under the stars
  21. Changed a baby’s diaper
  22. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
  23. Watched a meteor shower
  24. Gotten drunk on champagne
  25. Given more than you can afford to charity
  26. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
  27. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
  28. Had a food fight
  29. Bet on a winning horse
  30. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
  31. Asked out a stranger
  32. Had a snowball fight I’ve never even seen real snow!
  33. Photocopied your bottom on the office photocopier
  34. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
  35. Held a lamb Hey, I grew up on a sheep farm. I’ve held countless lambs. Jason, no Comments please!
  36. Enacted a favorite fantasy
  37. Taken a midnight skinny dip
  38. Taken an ice cold bath
  39. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar
  40. Seen a total eclipse
  41. Ridden a roller coaster
  42. Hit a home run
  43. Fit three weeks miraculously into three days
  44. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
  45. Adopted an accent for an entire day
  46. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
  47. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
  48. Had two hard drives for your computer
  49. Visited all 50 states
  50. Loved your job for all accounts
  51. Taken care of someone who was shit-faced
  52. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
  53. Had amazing friends
  54. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
  55. Watched wild whales
  56. Stolen a sign
  57. Backpacked in Europe
  58. Taken a road-trip
  59. Rock climbing
  60. Lied to foreign government’s official in that country to avoid notice
  61. Midnight walk on the beach
  62. Sky diving
  63. Visited Ireland
  64. Been heartbroken longer then you were actually in love
  65. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them
  66. Visited Japan
  67. Benchpressed your own weight
  68. Milked a cow
  69. Alphabetized your records
  70. Pretended to be a superhero
  71. Sung karaoke
  72. Lounged around in bed all day
  73. Posed nude in front of strangers
  74. Scuba diving
  75. Got it on to “Let’s Get It On” by Marvin Gaye
  76. Kissed in the rain
  77. Played in the mud
  78. Played in the rain
  79. Gone to a drive-in theater
  80. Done something you should regret, but don’t regret it
  81. Visited the Great Wall of China
  82. Discovered that someone who’s not supposed to have known about your blog has discovered your blog
  83. Dropped Windows in favor of something better
  84. Started a business
  85. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
  86. Toured ancient sites
  87. Taken a martial arts class
  88. Swordfought for the honor of a woman
  89. Played D&D; for more than 6 hours straight
  90. Gotten married
  91. Been in a movie
  92. Crashed a party
  93. Loved someone you shouldn’t have
  94. Kissed someone so passionately it made them dizzy
  95. Gotten divorced
  96. Had sex at the office
  97. Gone without food for 5 days
  98. Made cookies from scratch
  99. Won first prize in a costume contest Although, if there ever was a contest, I’d win with my Monkey outfit!
  100. Ridden a gondola in Venice
  101. Gotten a tattoo
  102. Found that the texture of some materials can turn you on
  103. Rafted the Snake River
  104. Been on television news programs as an “expert”
  105. Got flowers for no reason Well, she thought there was a reason.
  106. Masturbated in a public place
  107. Got so drunk you don’t remember anything
  108. Been addicted to some form of illegal drug
  109. Performed on stage
> I'm an ordinary man, Who desires nothing more Than just an ordinary chance, To live exactly as he likes, And do precisely what he wants...
  1. Been to Las Vegas Gonna go, and get married by Elvis. True.
  2. Recorded music
  3. Eaten shark
  4. Had a one-night stand
  5. Gone to Thailand
  6. Seen Siouxsie live
  7. Bought a house
  8. Been in a combat zone
  9. Buried one/both of your parents
  10. Shaved or waxed your pubic hair off
  11. Been on a cruise ship
  12. Spoken more than one language fluently
  13. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone
  14. Bounced a check
  15. Performed in Rocky Horror
  16. Read - and understood - your credit report
  17. Raised children
  18. Recently bought and played with a favorite childhood toy
  19. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
  20. Created and named your own constellation of stars
  21. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
  22. Found out something significant that your ancestors did Designed the first portable “Iron Lung”, amongst other things.
  23. Called or written your Congress person
  24. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
  25. ?more than once? - More than thrice?
  26. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
  27. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking
  28. Had an abortion or your female partner did
  29. Had plastic surgery
  30. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived
  31. Wrote articles for a large publication
  32. Lost over 100 pounds
  33. Held someone while they were having a flashback
  34. Piloted an airplane
  35. Petted a stingray
  36. Broken someone’s heart
  37. Helped an animal give birth
  38. Been fired or laid off from a job
  39. Won money on a T.V. game show Wayne won a Car!
  40. Broken a bone Ribs are bones!
  41. Killed a human being
  42. Gone on an African photo safari
  43. Ridden a motorcycle
  44. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100 mph
  45. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced
  46. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
  47. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
  48. Ridden a horse
  49. Had major surgery Jaq has!
  50. Had sex on a moving train
  51. Had a snake as a pet
  52. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
  53. Slept through an entire flight: takeoff, flight, and landing
  54. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
  55. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
  56. Visited all 7 continents
  57. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
  58. Eaten kangaroo meat
  59. Fallen in love at an ancient Mayan burial ground
  60. Been a sperm or egg donor
  61. Eaten sushi
  62. Had your picture in the newspaper On the front page!
  63. Had 2 (or more) healthy romantic relationships for over a year in your lifetime
  64. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about
  65. Gotten someone fired for their actions
  66. Gone back to school
  67. Parasailed
  68. Changed your name
  69. Petted a cockroach
  70. Eaten fried green tomatoes
  71. Read The Iliad
  72. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read Pick any one of: Heller, Hemingway, Steinbeck, Hawkins.
  73. Dined in a restaurant and stolen silverware, plates, cups because your apartment needed them Stolen glasses from a pub for said reason.
  74. ?and gotten 86’ed from the restaurant because you did it so many times, they figured out it was you
  75. Taught yourself an art from scratch
  76. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
  77. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt
  78. Skipped all your school reunions
  79. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
  80. Been elected to public office
  81. Written your own computer language
  82. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream
  83. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
  84. Built your own PC from parts
  85. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you
  86. Had a booth at a street fair
  87. Dyed your hair
  88. Been a DJ
  89. Found out someone was going to dump you via LiveJournal
  90. Written your own role playing game
  91. Been arrested Been cautioned, and had my Mother visited by the local police (I was underage, see #024, and living away from home).

Last Updated: 31/07/2019.