Image provided by: Clackamas Community College; Oregon City, OR
About The Clackamas print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1989-2019 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 31, 2007)
The Commentary Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2007 Clackamas Print 3 Drive is A: Failure lusty Ragsdale Clackamas Print Working in Streeter Hall’s anputer Science and math labs lie college’s main campus, 6 writer has noticed a strange lenomenon. Thriving in this likely indoor habitat is a species sight to be recently extinct, pposedly stamped out of jstence by more highly evolved latures. The surprising survivor is not ianimal worthy of preservation, those reaching for trusty picket ms, bullhorns and Birkenstocks D relax. The unworthy beast [riving in our midst is the 3-and- talf-inch disk, more commonly own as “the Floppy.” Students enrolled in “remedial” mputer science classes, such the CS-9x and CS- t courses, are taught use a Floppy disk as ■ir primary method for (table memory storage. Weighing in at a measly ,1 megabyte maximum yload, the 3-and-a-half- •h drive, or “A: drive,” snot been a feature of »computers for over »years. Even from a oservative perspective, the evolutionary ueline of personal mputers, two years is a drive boasting 128 megabytesyof reusable memory for five bucks - that’s over 90 times more space than a floppy. If one is willing to spend a little more, say as much as $20, and shop arotfhd a little, one can easily find a one-gigabyte (that’s 1028 megabytes - over 730 times the space of a Floppy) USB drive. As I understand, there are two reasons why the CS department chooses to use Floppy disks instead of upgrading to something current: cost and ease-of-use. The question of cost is more complicated than just instructing students to “use Floppies and not USB drives” or vice-versa, but more an issue of the pricey process of overhauling course materials and lesson plans for a large number of classes. However, personally, I believe that the ease of use matter is a moot point because USB drives are easier to use than Floppies. All processes involved with saving and retrieving information are the same for Floppies and USB drives. In addition to near-negligible space available from a Floppy, the devices are notoriously unreliable. Virtually every person with whom I’ve discussed the topic has horror stories about lost or damaged files on the disks. According to my friend and co-worker Laura Bistline, malfunctioning Floppy disks are a common enough problem for CS classes that instructors have approached the Technology Tutors and Lab Monitors, concerned about the preponderance of missing or damaged homework files. ¡time. The memory storage rice that has effectively ilaced the Floppy is the IB drive (a.k.a. Flash ive, Thumb Drive, up Drive; etc.): ■ • Right now, one can go t and purchase a USB Photo illustration by Rachel Gillette Bistline also a technology tutor and lab manager’s office assistant said, ‘T don’t understand why CS teachers come talk to a CS tutor and complain about the disks not working when it’s a Floppy. In my experience, two out of three times [the Floppy is] not going to work.” There are many reasons for upgrading our classes and ditching the disks. Ironically, two of these reasons are cost and ease-of-use. The cost of USB drives has been plummeting rapidly, dropping in price by about 50 percent per year. In a comparison of cost per megabyte, USB drives already blow Floppy disks out of the water, and the price continues to fall. USB drives have already been approved for purchase on campus, with CCC Book Grants. « USB drives are every bit as easy (if not easier) to use; it just plugs into a little port on the PC. Every computer in the Computer Lab has two USB ports right on the front, as well as another faster USB2 port on the back. The most important reason for eliminating Floppy disks from Clackamas is. the students. The purpose of the remedial CS classes and workshops is to introduce the personal computer to new users. I don’t think that teaching students to use obsolete hardware is a proper way for the college to prepare its students for the rapidly changing world of personal computers. Clackamas Print Letters to the Editor: CCC student opines on U. S. soldiers in Iraq Over the break, I spent time with my friend who had just returned from Iraq. I found a iuehero. Although wars may be politi cized, and may be questioned as wrong or unjustified, a hero like [my friend] puts himself on the line, serving to extend and pro tect the freedoms we have. While tihe definition of what war [sic] may be right, the soldier who volunteers and swears to protect our nation is honorable. That subsistence of accept ing and protecting our freedom, regardless of the war and cost even absent of war, is a heroic act This is an ordinary soldier who signed up to put his life on the line to protect and defend all that we have. His service is valiant. This year, I am reminded and am truly thankful to those men and women like him. - 7?w Lussier, CCC Student Democrat, Republican debate misses issue I was one of the people who attended the stimulating debate fflanged by the Democrat and Republican chibs. It was an excel- lent examination of the differences on various issues between file two patties, and I am grateful to the students who arranged it One of toe topics touched on was lie subject of illegal immigra- ton. This is a very complex prob lem, both for legal North American citizens and for legal and illegal American students several terms immigrants. I have thoughts and ago wrote an essay concerning feelings on both sides of toe issue, his entering toe country illegally but in fills letter, I would like to before takmg file steps needed point out two matters which ordi to become a legal citizen of toe narily do not come up in discus United States. He said that the sions. «Mexican government charges First, almost all of our ances those who wish to immigrate tors were illegal immigrants; we here file American equivalent of took toe land from toe native tribes $300.00. This may not seem like who lived here before we came much to us, but it is a fortune for Second, one of my Mexican- most Mexicans. Therefore, only C o -E ditors - in -C hief : Sam Krause, Clackamas Print Katie Wilson 19600 S. Molalla Ave. Oregon City, OR 97045 (503) 657-6958 ex. 2309 C opy E ditor : Colleen Watkins N ews E ditor : Megan Koler C o -C ommentary E ditors : Matt Olson, The Clackamas Print is a weekly student publication and is distributed every Wednesday except finals week. David Stark F eature E ditor : Laura Cameron S ports E ditor : Mike Guidice A&E E ditor : Tayo Stalnaker P hoto E ditor : Adam J. Manley A d M anager : Eli zabefb Hitz S taff W riters : Nicholas wealthy Mexicans can immigrate legally. I believe boto parties need to take these two points into con sideration in forming policies on illegal immigration. - Diane Averill, English Instructor To send a letter to the editor, e-mail it to chiefed@clackamas.edu, or drop it off at The Print office, Roger Rook 135. P hotographers : Juno Dean, Brandymarie Faulhaber Baker, Benjamin Caldwell, Leia Dickerson, Jennifer Jenkins, Frank D epartment A dviser : Linda Vogt Jordan, Jennesa Palmer, Dustin Ragsdale, Andrea Simpson, Jeff D epartment S ecretary : Christine Sorensen, Off Tammik, Liz Travers Frey P roduction A ssistants : Jesse Dees, Joseph Elliot, Rachel Gillette, Andrea Simpson With Tayo Stalnaker John Edward confirms that “mediums ” are small people When it comes to pinheads, self proclaimed “medium,” and host of toe shows Crossing Over and Cross Country, John Edward could be toe granddaddy of them all. Edward and other “mediums” use a mixture of both “hot” and “cold” readings during tapings of their tele vision shows and live performances. With a “hot” reading, Edward has his associates speak with toe audience before file show and then tell him all toe information they have gathered about various audience members. “Cold” reading is toe opposite, but I’ll get to that later. Now, Edward will not admit he does “hot” readings (for obvious reasons), but toere have been many accounts from people who have attended tapings and live shows say ing otherwise. Here are two exam ples: 1. A few years back, Dateline on NBC proved that Edward does “hot” readings and even caught him in toe act on air. 2. The James Randi Association (a “psychic-debunkers” group) received a letter from a Crossing Over audience member describing how Edward’s production assistants bugged toe green room and used “ringers” in the audience. During a cold reading (which is what Edward does most of toe time), he’s just making a series of guesses of “What dead person is in the room.” He starts throwing out names and letters with the hopes that one of the audience members will have a dead relative of toe same name. After Edward guesses correctly on a name, he then tries to describe them by using even more guesses. Edward, as well as every other medi um on the planet, is usually wrong when describing toe dead person and describing their death. He just keeps guessing until he gets it right Watching Crossing Over, nobody would think that Edward has so many “misses.” Well, thanks to the power of editing, a show that takes two to three hours to tape is whittled down to 58 minutes of Edward making no mistakes of all. What really made Edward a pin head was 9/11. A month after the terrorist attacks, he created a show that would feature him talking to fire dead victims and their families. Fortunately, toere was enough public backlash to force studio execs to drop toe show. Edward has made millions from other peoples’ misery, and is a truly disgusting individual. His syndi cated programs Crossing Over and Cross Country are still as popular as ever, and he’s sold millions of books worldwide. Humans are a curious and gullible sort, and Mr. Edward has used that to make him one of file big gest pinheads on toe planet Jon Edward’s Pinhead rating is 5 out of 5. G oals : The Clackamas Print aims to report the news in an honest, unbiased, professional manner. The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the stu dent body college administration, its faculty or 77« Print. E-mail comments to chiefed@dackamas. edu.
