Substance and Style: Strange Bedfellows? January 17, 2007
Posted by TimTheFoolMan in Communication, Computers, Knowledge Workers, Language, Mac vs PC, Macintosh, Management, Science & Technology, Technical Writing, Technology, Windows, Writing.add a comment
Oddly enough, those of us who are highly technology centered frequently forget that most of the rest of the world is not. As a result, the truly geeky among us probably don’t use HTML e-mail, use plain text instead of a fancy font when building a to-do list, and probably don’t worry a bit about how our PC looks. The rest of the world, however, seems to want technology to be visually appealing and esthetically pleasing.
Mercedes is famous for describing its cars with the slogan: “Form follows function.” However, anyone who’s looked at any Mercedes for more than a moment would realize that these cars embody a certain style as well. Does this minimalist approach extend elsewhere? Is it ridiculous to expect style and substance to co-exist, or does the very presence of style suggest that there is no substance? (more…)
Soundbite Theology December 4, 2006
Posted by TimTheFoolMan in Language, Learning, Morality, Religion, Religion, Philosophy, and Science.6 comments
Tonight, a good friend of mine was complimenting me on my speaking voice after I did some narration for my church’s Living Christmas Tree. (Note: The link is to a tree similar to what my church does. That’s not my church, or our tree.) In accepting his compliment, I acknowleged that I felt that God had blessed me with a voice for public speaking, and felt compelled to put forth my best effort.
He responded by saying “Collossians 3:23… Whatever you do, do it as you would do it unto the Lord and not for men.”
In spite of the fact that I have been active in the Baptist church all of my life (including my time “in utero”), there are times that someone quoting scripture rubs me the wrong way. “Why?” you might ask, since what my friend said seemed completely valid, and perfectly in-context.
The best way for me to describe my negative reaction, is to introduce you to the term that comes to mind, which is the title of this blog: Soundbite theology. It drives me absolutely nutty. (more…)
Books, Books, and More Books October 2, 2006
Posted by TimTheFoolMan in Books, Communication, Education, Family, Language, Learning, Memory, Parenting/Children, Reflections, Religion, Self-Worth.5 comments
Tiffany tagged me, so I am therefore obligated by blogging tradition to answer the same list of questions. The theme here, as the title suggests, is books.
Before I dive into the list and my answers, I should point out that I used to read far more books than I currently do. This is in part a result of the Internet, and its vast array of possibilities for reading. (Unfortunately, most of the fiction on the Internet is material that is presented as non-fiction.) I love books. Hopefully, that love will be obvious in this list. (more…)
To My Son (at Graduation) May 24, 2006
Posted by TimTheFoolMan in Family, Friends, Humor, Language, Love, Morality, Parenting/Children, Self-Worth.7 comments
Hopefully, none of the things we want to say to you this morning will be new. We hope you’ve heard them all before, from us, many times. Even so, this is a good opportunity for us to repeat these things.
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How to Buy Books (And Not by their Cover) April 4, 2006
Posted by TimTheFoolMan in Books, Computers, Language, Learning, Science & Technology, Technology.2 comments
As a tech-oriented person and avid book owner, I have been constantly faced with the dilemma of how to choose between a myriad of selections at the local bookstore, or when shopping at Amazon or Barnes & Noble online. After reading about Donald Knuth’s methodology for grading comp-sci projects (solving long and complex programming problems), I modified my approach, and have been using the following method for the past few years. (more…)
A Fool and his Words are Soon Parted 
