Roosta

Today I did something a little surprising: absolutely nothing. I shouldn’t have been surprised. My last break was a week and a half ago, and the time in between has been unusually exhausting. I’ve become worn out, one of the big risks of a long trip. One of my guidebooks warns that this problem will correct itself automatically if one doesn’t plan in advance. Today was the first day I was forced to stay put, so the correction happened and I slept all day. Of course, it helped that I was in Portland, one of those cities where hanging out has been raised to an art form (see July 21st). This hotel has something of a view. My room faces west, so it gets the mountain view Portland is known for (see July 23rd). The center ... read more

Well, today is the day. The first of several days where I have to stay put, involuntarily. I’m not looking forward to it. Still, it has to be somewhere, and Portland is the best available. I chose the city mostly due to the effect it would have on my schedule. I need to have my car fixed by the end of August, because the next month will involve a number of dusty desert environments. I went through the month looking for a chunk of time that covered an area I could drive in a single day. The drive from Portland to southern Oregon along the coast, for better or worse, is the best thing to sacrifice. By perfect coincidence, this strands me in the city I called the perfect hangout earlier in the trip (see July ... read more

Today is my single day in one of the more dramatic sections of Oregon, the coast. I had planned for it to be longer, but need some of the time to get my car fixed. The Oregon coast consists of Pacific surf crashing against volcanic rocks. Much of it resembles Queets Beach (see July 27th) in the Olympics, including the lack of development. The Oregon Coast is unique in that most of it is protected by a series of state parks. They are the legacy of a far sighted governor in the early 1900s, Oswald West, who did much to ensure the preservation of the Oregon landscape. To get to the beaches, I have to drive through th... read more

With Siggraph over, today is my day to explore the area around Vancouver. I need to squeeze it all in today, because my Canada visit permit (see August 6th) expires tomorrow. As noted yesterday, Vancouver Harbor sits in front of a mountain range, the North Shore Mountains. All of it at this point is protected by parks. I first saw one of them. Every visitor to Vancouver is bombarded with advertisements for the Capilano Suspension Bridge, a private attraction of a wooden slat suspension bridge over a deep narrow canyon. It was built in 1889, so they call themselves “Vancouver’s first thrill ride”. Only visitors who do deep research (or know a native) find out that there is a similar bridge in another part... read more

Today was entirely dedicated to Siggraph. My first item was the WebGL forum. WebGL is a standard from the same group that produced OpenGL (see August 8th) for displaying graphics in web browsers, and it uses much of the same technology. Most web graphics currently are done with proprietary browser add-ons like Adobe Flash. Many developers hate this, for several reasons. Most importantly, proprietary standards are controlled by a single company, which they can change at any time to promote their interests. Microsoft’s tight integration between Windows and other software shows the problems this can cause competitors. Also importantly, the browser plugins are often large and sap performance. These issue... read more

Today was a day for a large amount of art, some which is cutting edge now and some which was cutting edge a century ago. It started with the modern kind, at Siggraph. Every year, the organizers of the art gallery host a reception. The event is another chance to meet the artists and other art aficionados, and discuss the work. Much of the discussion evolved around how the work was made and the ways it pushes the boundaries of existing techniques. On one level, this type of exploration is the point of the conference gallery. On another level, though, it’s a little frustrating. Art in more traditional forums is about ideas, and how the art piece expresses those ideas. I felt the heavy emphasis on technology got in the way of that (for a fantastic ... read more

Today was a day dedicated to Siggraph. It started with a donut shop. I asked the front desk people at my hotel where I could find Canadian food in Vancouver. Thanks to the domination of food trends from elsewhere, this is surprisingly difficult. They directed me to Tim Horton’s, which is basically the Canadian Dunkin Donuts. I know the name from seeing their ads in Canadian hockey rinks during NHL games. Almost a quarter of their donuts are made with some form of maple syrup. They taste great. After breakfast, I am rather annoyed at one aspect of the convention center. Like most, this one has food vendors inside the building. Like most, their prices are noticeably higher than anything else in the vicinity. The reason I am annoyed about this is that the Tim Horton’s ... read more