What You Will Find Here:
- Articles on the GNU/Linux Operating System
- Mathematics and Physics using GNU/Linux Tools
- Photography and Image Processing with GNU/Linux
- Resume (password required)
This is a new site and more will be added as time goes on.
To learn more click any link on the left.
A Philosophical (web philosophy, that is) Preface
This site is entirely hand coded and uses no javascript and only minimal CSS. I greatly favor substance over form and since my intention is only to convey information I will avoid the latest fashion trends in web design (not that I would be very good with them anyway).
This site is also aimed at desktop workstations only. I make no attempt to accommodate mobile devices. Although the layout of this site is somewhat dynamic it is best viewed with a large monitor at 1920x1080 (1080p) or 2560x1440 (2K) resolution. The ideal computing experience is one that totally immerses the user and small screens just don't allow that. Any view port under 27" makes, in my opinion, a very unsatisfying web experience.
There is no tracking or cookies of any kind on this site (aside from the unavoidable server logs). My goal is to create an informative exhibit and I have no need or desire to know who, what, or how anyone uses these pages. Any interaction between the user and the developer should be above board and by means of the usual open channels.
Javascript, or any other language, that allows a foreign entity to execute code on a user's machine is, to me, complete anathema. It may be true that javascript allows web developers greater convenience and that not everything can be done on the remote server, but javascript can easily be leveraged to go well beyond any sort of benign activity, and if it can it most certainly will be done. In my opinion, the computing world should demand an end to javascript, and any or all equivalents, for all uses other than to support the conveyance of information.
My concerns also extend beyond just web pages.
The original point and purpose of the Internet was to be a highly decentralized platform that would allow a free and open exchange between independent parties. There was never the intention of having ruling or controlling bodies or boards. But central authority seems to be creeping in regardless. Google, as one prime example, has been exerting a kind of de facto dominance through its centralized services and its popular web browser. In particular, Google is now demanding that all web sites shift to end-to-end HTTPS encryption and is actually "punishing" those sites that refuse to do so by lowering their search rankings. If this is not outright despotism then I cannot say what would be.
This web site is HTTP only. There is no sensitive data being exchanged here. It is all free and open information. Consequently, I see no need whatsoever for using the HTTPS protocol. To comply with Google's demands for encryption would entail more expense on my part for no real gain whatsoever. Visitors may certainly see exaggerated and dire warnings when they access this URL, especially when using the Google browser, but that is a penalty that I am willing to accept.
Furthermore, even though I disdain the use of javascript or any other client-side programming, I am literally forced to use MathJax, a mathematics equation formatter that is based on javascript, within my math pages because Google has decided unilaterally to deprecate MathML within their Chrome/Chromium browser, and other browsers (if there are any remaining) will be compelled to follow suit. MathML is a wonderful and easy way to format equations that could be developed into even more powerful tools but Google has effectively destroyed it.
Google, and other so-called "high-tech" players, should not be permitted to exert their influence over the Internet and they will be able to do so only if we, the global user community, allow them. In my own minuscule and certainly insignificant way I am not bowing to the pseudo-authority of Google or any other large Internet presence. I can only hope that others will always do the same.