Jim Panttaja

I came across this pointer in Guy Kawasaki’s blog to a great summary/taxonomy of data visualization tools and sites by Laura Fitton in Smashing Magazine. It includes references to Swivel and IBM’s ManyEyes which I wrote about in June.

Lot’s of pictures (examples).

I have written a couple of time about the thrill, joy, might I say imperative, of attending live performances (Live Performances, Live Performers). This last weekend, we saw Dave Brubeck and his quartet in an event sponsored by the Healdsburg Jazz Festival.

What a treat. In his 80’s, Mr. Brubeck walks slowly - and when other musicians are featured, he leans back, relaxed, in his seat. But when his hands hit the keys, he shows that he’s still got it.

He is of course a writer as well as performer - and the unfamiliar rhythms (unsquared was in 7/8 I think - and of course the closing number “Take Five”) confused the brain a bit - but in a good way. How do you tap your foot to “Take Five”? But pieces featured each member of his quartet.

The saxophonist, Bobby Millitelo, was a surprise treat.  His fingers could fly - sometimes to follow Mr. Brubeck’s writing (including one piece where he brought out the music), and sometimes in improvisation. And his flute playing on a ballad was inspired. On sax, he played an incredible dynamic and articulation range. In a single line the sax was popping and flowing smoothly, and barely audible up to a strong fortissimo.

Mr. Brubeck’s stories were entertaining - and I found myself hoping for more. Comments about recent reviews (referring the age and grey hair of his quartet - and how they ’stole the show’) were funny - and we only learned how apt as they got in to their groove.

We will remember the performances for a few quirks as well - the sprinklers that were coming on as we arrived - hitting both of us as we walked to the door, the closed bathroom - creating a long line of women at the one open bathroom before the concert and at intermission, and the 80 degree temperature, the pause while they tried to get one of the microphones to work at the beginning of the concert . The Jazz Festival and the Jackson Theater can both do better.

But a great evening. When they finished “Take Five” - it took a few minutes to realize that of course that was the finale - and they were done for the night. They had played a long evening (two long sets) - but we weren’t ready to go home. As they say - “always leave them wanting more”. I can’t imagine Dave Brubeck will ever end an evening any other way.

I have been looking at database products, and found a couple of links (and a couple found me):

• EnterpriseDB offers an Oracle compatible product at a fraction of the Oracle cost. A colleague of ours, Bob Zurek is now their CTO.
• Not unrelated, EnterpriseDB is providing a Postgres Resource Center. Bob wrote about this in his blog.
• Encirq provides a very small footprint database for embedded environments. A former boss of mine at both Tandem and IBM, Steve Weick, is the VP and CTO. Steve has a great history with a variety of database products, including DB2, NonStop SQL, Informix and Cloudscape.

All are things I need to spend more time looking at.

Google has just released the ability to embed maps in a blog.

Here is an example of the trip we took in July and August.

The maps are easy to embed. Once you have created a map you like, click on ‘link to this page’. One of the options is a HTML to be copied in to your page. There are some Google Maps features that this won’t work with - in which case the text when you click on ‘link to this page’ is greyed out.

Last month, Scott Thurm wrote an article in the Wall Street Journal titled Now, It’s Business By Data, but Numbers Still Can’t Tell Future. The article discusses how a number of companies are managing by the numbers. But he points out, “Running a complex enterprise can’t be reduced to a spreadsheet, however.”

In the early 1970s I was working as a contractor for the Oakland Public Schools data processing department. I was writing (and fixing) Fortan and Cobol programs, supporting some old 1401 applications, and serving as a liaison with the statistics department. One September, enrollment took a dive. It was the first year that enrollment had decreased year over year. For a school district (as I recall Oakland was something like the fifth largest in the nation), declining enrollment is devastating to budgets. So they asked me to help them model (predict) what the next years enrollment would be. I spent a bunch of time using various curve fitting techniques to come up with the best estimate I could of the next years enrollment. The statistics department was thrilled - and prepared to take their numbers to the board.

The problem was - none of these techniques applied a year earlier would have predicted the decline that we saw. To me that proved that my methodology could not be trusted. The statisticians were happy to have an ‘answer’ and ignored my concerns.

That is not to say that I don’t like to look at the numbers. I love numbers. But I have learned to take them with a grain of salt.

Last Thursday, Skype had problems and was down for most of two days. There is an explanation on Skype’s website today.

There are a number of posts (look at the responses to the Skype blog) with various reactions to the blog - but I have to start by taking it at face value. Microsoft released their (monthly) patch release, and the rebooting that ensued - meant that all of the machines had to reconnect to Skype. That mass reconnection caused a failure in one of Skype’s algorithms.

At Sapias, we would see mini-versions of this when our network connectivity failed, or when there was a problem with one of our carriers. When connectivity was restored, there was a bunch of data (the size of the bunch directly proportional to the down time) that devices started to deliver to us - all at once. We would also see it every morning, as vehicles which had gone out of coverage the night before (with some drivers taking their vehicles home - out of cell range), came back in to coverage, and had some quantity of messages to deliver all at once.

Of course these things are better when they happen often (like our every morning load at Sapias). If they happen often, they aren’t unusual, and you know that you can react well to them. They are more troublesome when they are rare. Although some people are skeptical that the monthly Microsoft patch could cause this, I can imagine a case where that patch was unusual - and required some different level of restart. The key is that a company like Skype (and I aspire to having as many users as they have one day), has to figure out how to test for things that are very difficult to test for. Unless you have millions of internal users, or can simulate millions of users - with millions of machines, it is pretty hard to do.

It is another reminder that you can’t test quality in - you have to figure out in the architecture how to be bullet-proof. And regardless of how you test, there are always going to be cases that you didn’t anticipate. In this case, it sounds like Skype had algorithms to try to react to similar scenarios - but they failed. Perhaps another argument for not getting too fancy. Sometimes the fancy scheme is the one that fails.

So – time zones are simple. In the continental United States, there are four: Pacific Standard Time, Mountain Standard Time, Central Standard Time and Eastern Standard Time. Each an hour a part. The goal is to have all of us have a relatively normal ‘day’. With the sun rising at a reasonable hour, and the sun setting at a reasonable hour. Of course these don’t quite work. Boston (and especially the Cape) should really be in the next time zone over – but it is more convenient for them to be on the same time zone as the rest of the east coast. As a result – at the beginning of summer – the sun comes up about 4:00am.

But then – we got Daylight Saving Time. This meant that each spring, we set the clock forward an hour (spring forward), and then return the time in the fall (fall back). (This made the official sunrise on June 20th this year be a ‘reasonable’ 5:07am). The goal was to save energy – since much of our energy consumption is in the evening. If we made more of the evening be light outside – then we wouldn’t use as much electricity (See the Wikipedia entry for history – it ties the idea back to ancient Rome, to Ben Franklin, to a first failed experiment in the US during World War I, and then the beginning of adoption in World War II Time) See this page on the State of California’s web site, which references a study that showed that using Daylight Saving Time reduced the daily consumption of electricity is trimmed 1 percent.

So you now have Pacific Daylight Time, Mountain Daylight Time, Central Daylight Time and Eastern Daylight Time.

In the 1950s, the railroads didn’t use Daylight Saving Time. I grew up in Barstow, California. Barstow had the largest railroad switching yards west of Chicago. My baby sitter’s husband worked for the railroad. So in their house, the clocks all were set to Pacific Standard time all year. This added to a kindergartener’s confusion as I learned to tell time (and for you kids - this was when clocks had hands - none of this digital stuff).

But wait – there’s more. Arizona decided not to honor Daylight Saving Time. So Arizona stays on Mountain Standard Time through the suumer – which then matches Pacific Daylight Time.

Ah – but just when you understand that – and you are traveling on vacation through Arizona – you discover that the Navajo Nation (which is a large part of Arizona) does do Daylight Saving Time. And the National Monuments in Arizona (like Canyon de Chelly) run on Mountain Daylight Time.

I have gotten used to my cell phone/organizer (now an iPhone) handling time for me. It is set so that when I get off a plane in some random city, it syncs with the cell network, and shows the local time. On our recent trip, this has failed miserably. Nevada is PDT, Idaho is MDT, but at one point while in Nevada – I must have picked up an Idaho cell network – and phone shifted to MDT. And much of the time in Arizona I found my phone off by an hour (sometimes one direction, sometimes the other).

For many purposes on vacation – none of this matters. But knowing when things open and close (like the coffee shop, for example) can be quite crucial.

Managing systems that work across time zones – and had to work through Daylight Saving Time shifts is a challenge. Are there two 2:00AMs on a given day? Is 2:00AM before 1:30AM? Does the user want to see it in the vehicle’s time (at Sapias we tracked fleets of trucks), or the viewer’s time? As I was writing this - I was prepared to describe how Indiana has ny number of different ways of recognizing Daylight Saving Time (or not…) - but I discovered that a couple of years ago they fixed this. All of Indiana now honors Daylight Saving Time.

Mary and I always choose on the spring forward or fall back day - when we want to take advantage of - or lose - our hour. That works fine as long as we don’t have appointments on Sunday. And I need to make sure I am never in Arizona - and especially not in the Navajo Nation on either of those days - it would be too much to cope with.

I have enjoyed the National Flute Association convention in Albuquerque, but have had not time to post. I am now on the way home (Mary is driving - so it is ok). Here are a few random notes - a few on playing (both my playing - and advice from others on playing), on composers, and on outstanding players:

• Although the convention really starts Thursday, we arrived Wednesday so I could play three hours of rehearsal on Wednesday, and another Thursday morning, and perform with the 240 piece Fiesta Flute Orchestra. So after being in town about 18 hours, I had already played my flute for almost five hours. What a treat. Some of the pieces were written for flute choir (anywhere from four to eight parts for flute, alto flute, bass flute, and sometimes piccolo), others were written specifically for a larger group like this (maybe not quite like this) and include parts for contra bass flute. It is a great sound - and fun to be in the middle of it (see my earlier post on this).
• Attending this convention is also a humbling experience - many of these musicians started playing at an early age (I started at 8 - but playing in a small group at the Thompson Elementary School isn’t really the same as some of these people’s beginnings)
• The opening night concert was phenomenal. It was devoted to music with origins in the southwest - or South America. Robert Mirabel, with roots in Taos led off. He set the tone for the evening as a musician, a showman - but in particular someone who plays from the heart - with enthusiasm. I bought some of his sheet music, and hope to work on some of his pieces. Carlos Nakai talked, and played briefly. He was interrupted by a cell phone ringing in the audience - and was both not pleased - and thrown - by the occurrence. But his comments about playing from the heart rang (no pun intended) true. And it was something that is often missing in the rendition of ‘classical’ flute music - we all work hard to play the notes - but forget (or perhaps just haven’t gotten to) the feel.
• I met a composer named Edie Hill. When we first saw her in her booth - she looked uncomfortable and perhaps bored in this environment. After hearing one of her pieces played I chatted with her. The piece was beautiful - and beautifully played. I looked at the sheet music - a bit beyond my skills. But we did talk. Not surprisingly, she knows my cousin Lisa Bielawa, and her father, Herb Bielawa - both composers.
• Linda Chatterton played the piece by Edie Hill. She commissioned the piece. Many of the artists at the convention commission pieces, and the NFA also pays for some commissions. This is obviously a great way to extent the repertoire (The Liebermann Piccolo Concerto which I practice was a commission - more on this a later), but also supports and encourages composers. There were many composers at the convention (Katherine Hoover, Gary Schocker, Daniel Dorff, Martin Amlin, Christopher Caliendo, Phyllis Louke, Nancy Nourse,  Todd Malicoate - in addition to Edie Hill). Some with a reputation and following (I attended Katherine Hoover’s 70th birthday tribute), othersless well known - but looking for a following. Linda also played a second piece, Tarantella by Vladimir Tsybin. This piece she heard when a Chinese student visited her school. He had a bootleg copy - and she worked from a copy of that copy. She finally found a Russian printing of it. It was a lively, interesting taratella - certainly worthy of being ‘found’ in this way.
• I attended several sessions on jazz, including two master classes (Holly Hoffman and Bradley Leighton), two recitals (Holly Hoffman and Ali Ryerson), and a performance of Ali Ryerson’s Flute Big Band, put together for the convention. Imagine a big band composed of 22 flutes, and an incredible rhythm section. Holly and Ali have played together with Frank Wess as Flutology - a sextet featuring three flutes. Great sounds, great solos - although at one point hearing at least six of the group ’solo’ simultaneously didn’t really work.
• One of the observations from the master classes is exactly the advice that George Nichols, who heads the Healdsburg Saxophone Trio, keeps giving to Bruce and me: listen to recordings of the pieces, know the tune (the head), and know the words. Then you can play the tune. And (echoing Carlos Nakai) - play from the heart. It made me want to go right to my room and practice again…
• I ran in to Walfrid Kujala several times during the convention (I actually never said hello to him - and he absolutely would not know who I am). Wally was the piccoloist of the Chicago Symphony for almost 50 years. His son, Steve plays flute in LA (currently in Wicked among other things). Wally gave a master class. Both students did a credible job to start with - and Wally was incredibly supportive. What I found particularly interesting is that he had premiered the first piece (called Three Pieces, by Katherine Hoover), and was able to pass on comments from Katherine Hoover that he had gotten when he performed it for her. The Liebermann he had played - and he was able to offer detailed comments on when he took breaths, and where he used alternate fingerings. At a previous convention, I sat in on a master class at which Jan Gippo (Piccoloist for the St. Loius Symphony - who had premiered this work) offered his comments. What great experience - handing thoughts, experiences and suggestions to the next generation.
• I ran in to Wally Kujala again in two sessions where his son Steve was performing works with audience participation. One was a work that he had created for his father’s retirement from the Chicago Symphony. Steve handed out parts - and Steve, his dad, and his dad’s wife played ’solo’ parts with audience members participation. Another session was a reconstruction of Steve’s Tutti Flutti - which is now 25 years old. Again he handed out parts (I played bass flute), led a rehearsal, and then we performed the piece (for ourselves) with Steve and Wally playing lead parts.
• I also bought a new booklet by Jan Gippo, in which he says that when he started out - he felt that playing techniques and tricks (like alternate fingerings) were well guarded secrets - his new booklet - and actually his whole career - have been focused on turning that around.
• My primary purchases were of sheet music. I was tempted by a case from Wiseman Cases. This case would allow me to have my bass, alto, C flutes and piccolo all in a single case. I have a bag that is big enough - but it is awkward. On this trip I left my alto and piccolo at home - and wish I had brought them. So maybe I will pop for the Wiseman case this year. It is well designed, compact and light.

Another time I will write more about some of the performances that I attended, and some of the pieces that I purchased.

I am generally pretty good with animals. Dogs will come up to me - cats that no one can pick up will crawl in my lap - in fact a baby horse once tried very hard to crawl in to my lap (I am told you aren’t supposed to sit down in a horse pasture with a mother and her baby - but I didn’t know that at the time).

We have spent much of the last three days in indian lands (Canyon De Chelly, Chinle, Arizona, Hubbell Trading Post). Some of the tour books had warned of the dogs running lose in campgrounds, and everywhere. These dogs don’t appear to have owners. They aren’t really a problem - they are generally behaved (I won’t go overboard and say well behaved).

Yesterday, as we visited the Hubbell Trading Post, one dog wandered up after his morning dip in the local creek. He looked scruffy - as only a wet dog can - and hadn’t actually notice us yet. I greeted him with my usual ‘hi puppy’. Intended as a term of endearment. I never knew a dog could deliver a dirty look - but that is what I got.

Last night, we camped in Grants, New Mexico. We got the site furthest from the office - with a great view of the thunder and lightning storm that moved through. But it was next to the ‘dog run’. I understood the Hubbell dog’s disgust with me - because we watched the parade of “puppies” - on their way to do their business. Owners in tow. “Puppies” that had probably never seen a creek.

We did make it to Dead Horse Point as Mary projected (Landed in Moab). The views are incredible (Mary took this picture).

We were here once before - the weather in August can match the image created by the name of this place. But the last two days have been reasonable. Some cloud cover (a little rain), and temperatures that only barely reached 100. We were able to bicycle yesterday in the mid-80s.

Everyone does different things on vacation - yesterday we road our bikes on a ‘moderate’ ride to Gemini Bridges (twin arches with a sheer drop), we did a little sight-seeing in Canyonlands National Park, we took a hike out to the point for sunset, I practiced my Saxophone and Bass Flute (The Healdsburg Saxophone Trio and Healdsburg Community Band are both playing for the Healdsburg Sesquicentennial on August 18th, and I am playing Bass Flute in the Fiesta Flute Orchestra at the National Flute Association Convention in Albuquerque next week - 170 flutes all at the same time), and we both followed up on email - moving some things forward for our new company (setting up interviews, making introductions).

On the bike ride, we saw two leopard lizards (unfortunately one had been run over by the jeep that had just passed us). There was a related species in the mojave desert where I grew up - though they were rarely seen.

Today we head south - to Canyon de Chelly National Monument in Arizona. We haven’t been to this National Monument before, and are looking forward to it. Probably a stop on the way in Moab at an internet cafe (we haven’t had cell phone service (AT&T) at Dead Horse Point, but the wireless modem (Sprint) has kept us in touch with the world - though it certainly isn’t at EVDO speeds here.)

Time to make my morning Latte.