Category: Wikipedia

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My photo of Kirk McLean now being used on Wikipedia

While being held up on the couch yesterday afternoon with some sinuses getting the best of me, I got a quick message on Flickr requesting my permission to use one of my photos on Wikipedia. When I discovered that it was for Vancouver Canucks legend Kirk McLean, I was glad to fire back a quick response and say hell yeah!

The shot itself came from what has become an annual tradition for Rebecca and I, the Vancouver Sun Raise-a-Reader day.

Here’s the original shot of McLean as Rebecca is handing him her copy of that day’s Vancouver Sun to autograph, adding to our collection of papers from previous years.

Kirk McLean on Raise A Reader Day 2009

This is actually the second photo I’ve been asked my permission to use on Wikipedia. While it’s not being used as the primary photo for the entry, this photo is also being used on the entry for the current mayor of Surrey, B.C., Diane Watts.

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Fob and what it stands for

One of those rare occasions where Rebecca and I get to walk into work together, I asked her what “F.O.B.” stands for this morning. This is in reference to those keyless entry things that are becoming the standard for getting into many secured buildings. You wave it in front of the pad, something beeps or the light goes green, and the door unlocks to let you in.

The one for our building is smaller than my thumb. It’s too small to act like a key chain ornament, but the one I had in my old apartment in the states was big enough to hurt small children. Actually, it was more of a credit card in size, but you get the picture.

Turns out, and thanks to Wikipedia, this isn’t an abbreviation. It’s the given name of the device.

A key fob is a decorative item many people often carry with their keys, on a ring or a chain, for ease of tactile identification, to provide a better grip, or to make a personal statement. Key fobs are often mistakenly called “key rings” or “key chains” in colloquial usage.

Fobs vary considerably in size, style and functionality. Most commonly they are simple discs of smooth metal or plastic, typically with a message or symbol such as that of a logo (as with conference tchotchke) or a sign of an important group affiliation. A fob may be symbolic or strictly aesthetic, but it can also be a small tool. Many fobs are small flashlights, compasses, calculators, penknives, store discount cards, bottle openers, or USB flash drives.

Electronic key fobs are used for remote keyless entry systems on motor vehicles. Early electric key fobs operated using infrared and required a clear line of sight to function. These could be copied using a programmable remote control. More recent models use challenge-response authentication over radio frequency, so these are harder to copy and do not need line of sight to operate. Programming these remotes sometimes require the automotive dealership to connect a diagnostic tool but many of them can be self-programmed by following a sequence of steps in the vehicle and usually requires at least 1 working key. [wiki]

So now I know, and in case you didn’t, you do now. For the longest time, I thought it stood for something but never took the effort to find out until now. Sadly, it’s not “frequency operated bobber” like Rebecca thought, but I think it should be from now on.

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Hoser

As I mentioned in a recent episode of RadioZoom, I’ve recently discovered the origin of the world “hoser”. Now, that’s not to say that I’ve never heard the word before, nor have I misunderstood its implication. I don’t know how or why, but it’s been apart of my vocabulary since I was fifteen. I can also say with absolute truth that I have never seen Strange Brew[imdb] in its entirety. Maybe most of it, but not all at once or in chronological order. Weird, eh?

Truth be told, it was because of this post by Alanah on Canucks and Beyond that it came to light. Of course, the Wikipedia entry on it also sheds some insight.

Hoser is both a slang term and a stereotype, originating from and used primarily in Canada.

Like the very similar term hosehead, it originally referred to farmers of the Canadian prairies, who would siphon gas from farming vehicles with a hose during the Great Depression of the 1930s. The expression has since been converted to the verb ‘to hose’ as in to trick, deceive, or steal – for example: “That card-shark sure hosed me.” Hosed has an additional meaning of becoming drunk – for example: “Let’s go out and get hosed.”

Alternatively, the term may orginate as a variation of “loser”; in amateur games of hockey the losing team would have to “hose down” the rink, resurface the ice with a water hose. [wikipedia]

It’s the last explanation that I’m sticking with for now. I mean, the rest of it makes sense, but relating it back to hockey works for me. I think I also equate it with calling someone a dork or slightly inept. At the same time, and at least for me, it’s hardly has a derogatory term to it. I’ll call someone “hoser” as much as I’ll call them “dude”. Plus, it’s just fun to say.

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Being brave on Wikipedia

I can’t be the only one who hesitates to make their first edits on Wikipedia, can I? Because after pouring over the ins, outs, dos, and don’t-even-think-about-its, there is a lot to consider.

I have to say, it’s not that much different than doing IRC back in those glory days of 1996. You join the community, interact, edit, create stuff, and if you do something wrong, you could have all of your contributions deleted, banned, or even get yourself kicked off the system. Sure, the whole thing about Wikipedia is to encourage you to join in on the fun, but you have to get into taking the first steps. Intimidating, but there’s truth in not knowing until you try, right?

I actually made three, completely new entries, all for the radio stations that I used to meddle with; KRUI, WSUI, and KSUI. I was pretty amazed that there wasn’t something there sooner. Hopefully more people will come along to contribute, but I’ll try to add more as I have the time. There’s also that whole memory thing. I have to try to do this when something creeps up on me and get the facts down before I forget… again.

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Imagine life without Wikipedia

I was thinking about this the other night. This fall will mark ten years since I was a freshman in college. I can’t imagine what it would be like to enter the University of Iowa with the amount of tools that I have at my disposal now. RSS feeds are one thing, and it puts the mandatory subscriptions to newspapers to shame. If you think paying for college is expensive, try being a poor college student and having to shovel out cash for a one year subscription to the New York Times that you’ll only need for about four months.

Then there is Wikipedia. Google is one thing, but a laptop and campus wide Wi-Fi would make life completely insane. Look at the coming iPhone and what that would be like. The Internet is at our fingertips now. Literally!

There I would be, sitting in my introduction to neuroscience[wiki] courses, wondering what I might be able to find about synapses[wiki] that the professor is talking about. I’ll spare you the boredom from there, but that entry sent me on a trip to memory lane about a lot of subjects that I studied back in the day. IPSP’s[wiki], EPSP’s[wiki], protozoa[wiki]…

A recent article in the Guardian speaks about the rise in popularity of Wikipedia and how it seems to be outranking Google. I can’t say that is too far off the mark. I use the two in tandem. If I’m not searching directly on Wikipedia, I’m searching Google for the entry on Wikipedia that I want.

I recall my high school days when the Internet was “installed” in the library. A lot of my teachers disliked the idea of students doing research there. It was ok if we parsed other libraries, online, for information, mainly to find other publications. Taking something we found and applying it to whatever we were assigned to complete through research? They made us cite it in the bibliography with a method that was intended to be excruciating so we’d think twice before finding a website for research about something like “polyvinyl chloride”.

Side note, polyvinyl chloride is the full name of PVC. PVC is a type of plastic. While doing research in the same library that I’ve already mentioned, I also discovered that PVC is a common material used in S&M and fetish costumes. Needless to say, that raised some eyebrows of my instructors. A piece of information that has stuck with me to this day, all because of a trip to my local library. Who knew? Buy hey! There’s a wiki for it!

Wikipedia is handy and an everyday tool for me. Still, I’m a little lost on something. I’ve thought about starting an entry for various things, mainly the podcasts that I’m doing. Is that the correct thing to do, or should one wait for someone else to start a wiki for them? I might go ahead and do it anyway. If that makes me come off as selfish, then so be it.

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Time for Thanksgiving, part one

I’ve known for a long time in my life that there were two things that were celebrated in Canada that we simply didn’t where I grew up back in the states. One of those is Boxing Day, but even that isn’t completely the truth. We had a family friend who was originally from England, and the holiday celebrations we took part in at her home taught me a lot about British traditions as a young kid. Those traditions are commonly found here, so I’m a little up to speed on what’s going on there.

Now, I guess the next holiday I’m talking about isn’t so much the fact that it isn’t celebrated back in the U.S. It’s just done at a different time, maybe even a little differently, depending on culture and tradition. Of course, I’m talking about Thanksgiving[wiki]. Canadian Thanksgiving[wiki], to be exact.

I’m well versed in the history of American Thanksgiving[wiki]. I’ve drawn my fair share of turkeys and Pilgrim hats, watched football games after being stuffed with food, and devoured enough pumpkin pies in my life.

Canadian Thanksgiving, on the other hand, is something that I only know of in its existence. One of those days on the calendar that said, “Thanksgiving (Canada)”.  So, why not dive into what Wikipedia has to say about it together, shall we?

The first and original Thanksgiving comes from Canada. In Canada, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday in October. Unlike the American tradition of remembering Pilgrims and settling in the New World, Canadians give thanks for a successful harvest.

The history of Thanksgiving in Canada goes back to an English explorer, Martin Frobisher, who had been trying to find a northern passage to the Orient. He did not succeed but he did establish a settlement in Canada. In the year 1578, he held a formal ceremony, in what is now the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, to give thanks for surviving the long journey. This is considered the first Canadian Thanksgiving, and the first Thanksgiving to have taken place in North America. Other settlers arrived and continued these ceremonies. He was later knighted and had an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean in northern Canada named after him – Frobisher Bay.

At the same time, French settlers, having crossed the ocean and arrived in Canada with explorer Samuel de Champlain, also held huge feasts of thanks. They even formed ‘The Order of Good Cheer’ and gladly shared their food with their Native-Canadian neighbours.

After the Seven Year’s War ended in 1763 handing over Canada to the British, the citizens of Halifax held a special day of Thanksgiving.

During the American Revolution, American refugees who remained loyal (United Empire Loyalists) to Great Britain were exiled from the United States and came to Canada. They brought the customs and practices of the American Thanksgiving to Canada.

Eventually in 1879, the Canadian Parliament declared November 6th a day of Thanksgiving and a national holiday in Canada. Over the years many dates were used for Thanksgiving, the most popular was the 3rd Monday in October. After World War I, both Armistice Day and Thanksgiving were celebrated on the Monday of the week in which November 11th occurred. Ten years later, in 1931, the two days became separate holidays and Armistice Day was renamed Remembrance Day.

Finally, on January 31st, 1957, the Canadian Parliament proclaimed…

“A Day of General Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed … to be observed on the 2nd Monday in October.” [wikipedia]

Learn something new everyday, eh? At least I feel better knowing more about the feast we are about to have on Monday.  We will be celebrating American Thanksgiving in our little home when the day comes. However, we’re going to do it our way. I’m going to try my hand at making a nice lamb roast for Rebecca. However, if I am gainfully employed at that point, then we’re heading somewhere super swanky, nice, and making someone cook that lamb for us.