tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12084887412893869682024-02-20T09:46:22.379-08:00Ishunga IncA Blogshingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.comBlogger47125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-20279125938529965502022-03-09T08:46:00.004-08:002022-03-09T08:50:10.606-08:00As Africans we need to introspect about intelligence Hi Ya'll,
<blockquote>Hahahahaha you speak broken English hahahaha.</blockquote>
<blockquote>Awwww s/he has that vavavooom accent to her/his English. S/he is French/Spanish that is why it’s difficult for them to speak English.</blockquote>
Okay, fam, since when are we British fam?
Funny, how when Someone speaks with their Oshi-English they are considered unintelligent by their own. Ridiculer who through no past fault of their own thinks speaking their native or multiple native languages is backwards. Who knows not their own lineage, yet spews that of monarchs in far lands they hold in high prestige like nursery rhythms confessing to their regal-ness. <div><br /></div><div>Funny how the person they want you to assimilate to is actively looking for your indigenous knowledge that which is expressed in proverbs and idioms. cradled in clicks, ululations, the skies, valleys and depths of the soils and Oshana’s, in deserts and “myths” scientific unproven. <div><br /></div><div>Funny how, before a proxy introduction from the learned, brushed off, ignored and even judged as less than all from a smile and hallo in that thick embracing accent. When the guest of honour reads Jones or Johannes or Gabriel as a last name, couldn’t possibly be youuuu. How fast we forget stolen identities we lost, carry, how burdened our shoulders be, how pagan your names with ties to your destiny be. </div><div><br /></div><div>Laugh as you wish, mock as you may, but remember the bud of that joke is a mere reflection upon the still waters that beckon you drown further into the opulence of mental slavery. </div><div><br /></div><div>Never have I seen an accent be the criteria for basic human decency. How woke of you. I am not sure if I am shocked or disappointed. If I should cry or fight. I just know it’s no laughing matter. <div><br /></div><div> Ombili oyoyo holikes
<blockquote>PS. Since people stay catching. The above is no slight to anyone person. But an observation.</blockquote>
The above I had posted on Facebook on the 5th of March 2022 but thought to also add to this blog. <div><br /></div><div> Laterz,
G!
</div></div></div></div>shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0Namibia-22.95764 18.49041-51.26787383617885 -16.66584 5.3525938361788441 53.64666tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-71136746955664884962022-03-09T08:42:00.005-08:002022-03-09T08:54:19.503-08:00Uneducated african in Academic ResearchHi Ya'll, <div><br /></div><div>As part of my PhD studies, I am co-working with rural African communities in underserved communities in Northern Namibia. This has led me to some literature that is not only provocative but also borderline racist. No, it does not come from the mid 19th and 18th centuries but is from the 21st century. To avoid being inflammatory, I will not cite those "studies" in this reflection. But, I would like to add my two cents to the notion of the uneducated african. These two words have a deeper meaning to me, especially, as I reflect upon my life and the many people that have moulded my being. </div><div><br /></div><div>Let me start by posing some questions; </div><div><br /></div><div>1. What is education? </div><div>2. Where does one get this education? </div><div>3. Under which contexts and with which criteria does one classify the validity of education? </div><div><br /></div><div>There are plenty of questions that you could add to the above, but I would like to state here that the history of the African as a subject of investigation has some negative undertones to it. As something to be proded and studied, in it's natural habitat. It is uneducated because it knows not what the investigator knows. Funny, how that in some of the "studies" in indigenous knowledge, that knowledge by that uneducated African is the subject of interest. </div><div><br /></div><div>1. How can that uneducated african possibly know that? </div><div>2. Their "knowledge" is not "scientifically" proven, but we want it nonetheless! But how? </div><div><br /></div><div>Authors and those working in African contexts or in any context that they do not identify with, should introspect and carefully consider word choice. It shows a lack of understanding of the context. It shows a great deal of ethnographic methodology expertise, based on literature by mirror images of the "expert". Applied in foreign lands with contrasting epistemologies among other differences. Sometimes, easy sensational wins, take away and do more harm. </div><div><br /></div><div>The above goes hand in hand with being a decolonial scholar. Interrogating the research methods and the assessors of studies carried out in African settings has a great impact on findings and possible contributions. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>It is never at face value! </b></div><div><br /></div><div>Laterz, </div><div>G!</div>shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0Namibia-22.95764 18.49041-51.26787383617885 -16.66584 5.3525938361788441 53.64666tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-20073011753248336222022-02-14T21:40:00.004-08:002022-02-14T21:43:09.802-08:00Transcribing audio recordings with Microsoft 365<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://www.questionpro.com/blog/qualitative-research-methods/" target="_blank"><img alt="" data-original-height="594" data-original-width="992" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEguURTZaAmHoSls86sicd9Eo8YbepsC0b552hQBPwa-X1YBioD58PojQRHvy9-EFIrNSbGR6UVRKPsdBsdf-z-D_QSP-PC414SMUjqk9LQYrbXG_C9Vpn24KG9RSjaCeqbANc9TPEi9Tiz7ZSUHEyNxni5MlfaVGuCjSja826lyDz0ekc5usreICvAB" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.questionpro.com/blog/qualitative-research-methods/" target="_blank">Qualitative Research methods</a></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /></p><p>Hi ya'll,</p><p>I have been away for a while now. I did not have time to write and share some thoughts.</p><p>Today, I wanted to share how to remove one of the biggest pain points for qualitative researchers. <a href="https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ718580">Interview</a>/<a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1609406917750781">focus group</a>/<a href="https://methods.sagepub.com/case/co-creation-design-applied-research-methods-in-healthcare-service-design" target="_blank">co-design session</a> transcriptions. As qualitative researchers, we often try to understand phenomena through conversations with affected parties. Within the Human-Computer Interaction sessions, we even co-create knowledge and in a sense crowd-source solutions through co-design and co-creation sessions. To aid in the capturing of these sessions and allow for free-flowing of ideas and the conversation. We tend to record those conversations, either as text or video. Once they are recorded, it is advised to transcribe them into the text to allow for further data analysis. This stage serves as a form of <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25158659/#:~:text=Triangulation%20refers%20to%20the%20use,of%20information%20from%20different%20sources." target="_blank">triangulation </a>with field notes.</p><p>However, have you ever tried to transcribe 1 hour of interviews or focus group sessions manually? it is the most exhausting and demotivating experience, no matter how interesting the topic or problem at hand. It takes hours and hours. If your recordings are in English or other common languages, then you are in luck. You are able to speed up the process of transcribing interviews by feeding them through an online transcription service. If you are a student of a university that has a Microsoft 365 subscription, then you are in even better luck. <a href="https://www.office.com/" target="_blank">Microsft 365</a> through Word online, provides you with the possibility of an automatic transcription service. This option only allows for 300 minutes per month. In my opinion that still saves your 300 minutes if not more of data transcribing.</p><p>Caution: After the auto transcription is complete, remember to listen over the recording while following the transcribed text to fix any errors that might've occurred. Software often does not cater for contextual factors and to a greater extent, we still have issues with accents, especially within the global south (Africa).</p><p>Here is how to do that:</p><p>Step 1:</p><p>Sign into Microsoft 365 with the latest version of your browser.</p><p>Step 2:</p><p>Once successfully logged in, open Office online. On the Home tab on the Ribbon. Look to your right and look for the Dictate area.</p><p>Step 3:</p><p>Once you see the Dictate area, click on the dropdown menu ICON. This will give you two options: </p><p>1. Dictate</p><p>2. Transcribe</p><p>Step 4:</p><p>If you have a pre-recorded audio file, click on the Transcribe menu item. This will lead to a window that will ask you to upload the recording or start a recording. Select the upload recording option. Navigate to where you stored the recording and select the recording you wish to transcribe.</p><p>Step 5:</p><p>Once done, select transcribe the recording. It will load and process the recording, after some time (determined also by the recording quality) you will have the transcribed recording.</p><p>Step 6:</p><p>With the recording, you <a href="https://www.transcriptionwing.com/voice-to-text-clean-up-tips-on-how-to-properly-edit-your-machine-transcription/">HAVE TO CLEAN IT UP</a> by listening and correcting any mistakes. You can also change the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4582834/" target="_blank">interviewee codes</a> in the event that you need to anonymise personal identifying information of those on the recording.</p><p>Step 7: </p><p>Once that is done, you can add the transcribed text to the word document for saving and further processing and analysis.</p><p>Disclaimer: unfortunately, even with the transcribed data, you still need to edit a few sections. Data cleaning is part of the exercise. If they are anonymous, you need to code them accordingly.</p><p>Also, if your interview is in a <a href="https://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1908/1908.08971.pdf" target="_blank">non-recognised language</a>, which happens to be the majority of languages in the global south, we still need to transcribe recordings manually. There are other methods we can use to collectively perform data analysis with research participants, however, that is a discussion for another day.</p><p>I hope this blog post was helpful to you, if so, share it with as many people as possible. I will add images to this blog post later. Screenshots etc.</p><p>Laterz,</p><p>G</p><p><br /></p>shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0Namibia-22.95764 18.49041-51.26787383617885 -16.66584 5.3525938361788441 53.64666tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-13474718461130298462021-07-27T09:52:00.001-07:002021-07-27T09:52:21.523-07:00My encounter with Neo-Nazis in Leipzig Germany<p>Today, I am reflecting on my time at <a href="https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/122975-47#overview">itCampus Software- & Systemhaus GmbH</a> - <a href="https://www.softwareag.com/en_corporate.html">A SOFTWARE AG COMPANY</a> as a Master Thesis student (<a href="https://www.uni-mannheim.de/">University of Mannheim</a>) and User Researcher, almost 7 years ago. Working in the User Experience department with some of the most influential people in my career thus far. Under the leadership of Katharina Goering a thought leader in UX and innovation. This saw me move from Mannheim to Leipzig (part of former East Germany). Fun fact, the day I moved to Leipzig there was a Neo-Nazi protest happening. However, there was also a gegen (against) Nazi protest happening on the same day. Black guy with impeccable timing I am. In my building lived a Neo-Nazi, how did I know this? There were stickers on the street with his picture informing the residents that a neo-Nazi lived amongst us. Did I mention the day I wandered into a Nazi Bar in Leipzig, oblivious to this I sat down and asked for a beer? The entire bar went silent. Luckily, I had worn a t-shirt that said "Hug me I am Namibian" and had Our Flag on it. One of the guys in that bar walked over to me as asked if I knew where I was. I replied, "yeaaah in a bar". He then informed me, of what was at hand. Myself having grown up in Katutura knew never to show fear. I asked him what they stood for and what their agenda was. They were shocked that I was not fearful. We had a pleasant conversation, beer in hand and I came to realise then that most of them were scared of the unknown. But did I tell them that? nope. Did I order a second beer? nope. I high tailed out of there the moment my beer was finished and told them "see you around", said with a smirk.</p><p>The above is but an interlude, this post is really about my time at itCampus. I learned the concept of effective communication, which I now apply to all spheres of life. I recall the working environment as being inspiring, the office space as a building that encourages trying. A team spirit across departments and a level of trust in employees to do the right thing I have not experienced since. This was inherent in the culture of the organisation, embodied by staff. I am not saying there were no challenges, but I relished the freedom to work when I was most productive. I got the opportunity to work on real products for real clients and learned so much in the process. The colleagues in that department were so helpful it made my thesis journey easier. Having an Academic Supervisor in Dr Martin Kretzer and Katharina Goering was not easy, I needed to balance both academia and industry relevance. I am not sure I did a great job on both fronts, but like a sponge, I soaked up as much as I could. </p><p>My Master's research investigated the possibility of using the mobile-first approach for the design of predictive data analytics applications. Some of the outcomes were a set of meta-requirements and design principles.</p><p>Mind you, this was when technologies like <a href="https://www.sap.com/products/hana.html">SAP HANA</a>, <a href="https://hadoop.apache.org/">Hadoop Bigdata</a> and <a href="https://www.ibm.com/cloud/blog/hadoop-vs-spark">Spark</a>, Apama among others were on the rise. This gave me an appreciation for UX design on large projects. We also re-design <a href="https://www.apamacommunity.com/" target="_blank">APAMA's </a>UX during my time at itCampus Software- & Systemhaus GmbH - A SOFTWARE AG COMPANY.</p><p>Did I mention that I also attempted the <a href="https://germanupa.de/">UX-UPA</a> certification in German? I failed this examination. But for me what was important is that I tried and took that opportunity to learn!</p><p>That was it for my reflections of the day. Remember to keep trying and taking up opportunities as they come. One day I will share how I got the Thesis student position with itCampus. </p><p>Laterz,</p><p>G!</p>shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-67452133489607400512020-01-08T00:43:00.000-08:002020-01-08T00:43:04.114-08:00Story time: How I learned of being more...<br />
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<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 12pt;">It is often funny when one
wishes to write a story about their journey: a journey in most cases at the
beginning. In this short write-up, I wish to share with you the concept of
limited scope. This is about my transformation, how it came about and how
chance changed my life forever.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: Times, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I remember clearly as day
being grade 12 -high school- learners, with my friends discussing future plans
of futures bright. Secretly, I did not know what I wanted after high school.
See, I grew up in a system that says, go to school, go to varsity, get a job
and be successful (whatever that means). At the time of being grade 12 learners,
there was a new wave of thinking, leaning more towards doing what you love. The
thing is, I am one of those people with many "loves". Long story
short, my friends and I all wanted to become engineers, myself being great at
chemistry, felt chemical engineering would best suit me. Plans were made, UNI’s
applied to and final exams are written. I failed Physical Science dismally, well is
there any other way? let's just say during the time of my exams a lot was going
on. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Let's rewind a little,
during exam time, my dad whom I have lived with since grade 2 fell sick, this
was literally my best friend, father, etc. Once, I got home and he asked how
the first paper went, I just broke down and sobbed telling him I failed. In
true dad fashion sick as he was, he said the following words I hold dear
to-date "<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">So, you failed? now you are crying!? you have more subjects to write,
get over yourself and take all that shame, disappointment and channel it into
your next subjects and papers"</i></b>. I looked at him, frail as he was,
his face with a look of optimism and no care in the world. I listened and tried
to do the best I could. One thing was sure; I was not getting into any
engineering program!</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I have always been one of
those people that had sureness about things. I knew I failed Physical Science
and passed all my other subjects. I qualified for varsity admission but not
engineering. Mom came and took dad back home with her. I followed shortly after
my exams. That was one of the longest holidays of my life, but much like many
before this one, I buried myself into village life, tending the fields in the
early mornings (3-4am until 8-10am depending on cloud coverage) and took the
cattle and donkeys out graving in the afternoons. The latter was my favourite
part of the day, I could dream of all I wanted to do with my life and the
pivoting I had to do. Though, I still did not know what I wanted to do with my
life after high school. Holiday ended and I got a letter saying I got admission
into pure sciences at one university and Information Technology (IT) at
another. Guess where I went? IT, of course, the only reason being that there were
low pass rates in it and I figured if people are failing then this meant I
would be one of the few to graduate. I never backed away from a good challenge
and to-date-and-some-extend still don't. I just choose my battles’ that is all.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The first year came, none of
my friends, in-fact <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">nobody</i></b> from my science class came to the same university as I
did, time to make new friends. I took this in stride and found amazing friends
early on. However, I was still unsure if where I was, was where I wanted or am supposed
to be. I went into a mini depression (self-diagnosed) that year, I told nobody
and kept on keeping. It even came to a point where I was using my dad as a scapegoat
not to attend outings. -<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Oh</i>, dad got better
and returned to the city-. I somehow got myself out of that and started to feel
at home in my new environment. A new dream was born, half-baked, and now
looking back, I was still lost. My new dream was to graduate, get a job, buy a
car, live in a flat and enjoy life. That was my dream!</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">In my last year of
studies, I saw an advert for an internship in Germany, by this time my grades
had tanked, because as I mentioned before, I was one of those that were sure of
things, so I only studied half the content and only answered half of the
assessments, because I figured I only needed half to pass, so why waste my time
on the rest (boy was I wrong!). I got called for an interview, then an in-person interview then two more phone interviews. By the end of that year I had
secured an internship with Daimler AG in Stuttgart Germany. I felt pretty over
the moon about this, as it was more time for me to figure out what I wanted to
do. Fast-forward and we are in Germany, some Namibians, a Motswana and a South
African intern. One day we were having a discussion and the topic of varsity
grades came up, I was so embarrassed as it seemed everybody else had overall
grades in the '80s to 90's even. I felt so ashamed at how I intentionally
dimmed my out light and half-assed my way through varsity. It was at that
moment that it came to me that most people do not know what they want in life,
but simply do well with what they have. I made a decision to give what I was
doing a try and a chance for me to love it! It worked! I have been in love with
my field ever since that day.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Upon my return to Namibia,
I enrolled in an Honours postgrad programme, by the end of that year, I was
awarded the best Honours student in my year for the said programme. A far cry from
my previous performances, now, granted I was paying for my own studies at this
point so the motivation might also have come from the money leaving my wallet.
Before I could complete that programme an opportunity for an MSc came up and I
took it up with both hands. This saw me back in Germany at the prestigious
University of Mannheim. Referred to as the Harvard of Germany for its excellent
reputation in business and economics by the newspaper, Die Zeit.</span><span style="font-family: "Times","serif";"></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I was overjoyed, but still
unsure of how I got in, the imposter syndrome kicked in for a while. My first
semester there was filled with partying, chilling (I became an expert at this)
and being an international student in Europe, doing touristy stuff :-). By the
end of the first term, I had only passed 1 module and failed all other modules.
</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Another wakeup call came
to me in the form of a friend that sat me down and asked if I traveled
thousands of kilometers just to fail. She gave me some studying tips and in the
following semester I took extra credits, my grades improved. Even with the
extra workload, I managed to escape being kicked out (German unis do not play
when it comes to this, Ordnung muss sein). Since then, I have made the effort
to remind myself that it is I that is responsible for me and to always do the
best I can because regret hinders living in the moment. Reflecting and regretting,
are not the same thing, one enables you to improve and the other allows you to
wallow in your past failures.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I now no longer aim to be
okay nor be average, because that is not who I was born to be. No one is really
born to be average; it is self-doubt that causes us to aspire to be such. <i><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">I AIM TO BE THE BEST I CAN BE</b>.</i> Granted there
are times when I reflect and think I could have done more/better. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">This piece has been long
but through it all, I wish to tell you to grab opportunities that come your
way, sometimes simply trying is all it takes to propel you to the next chapter
of your life. I now believe I have the best job ever, I teach, interact and do
research and get to build tech communities in Namibia and around the world, how
cool is that!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I am still not sure if
this is what I want to keep doing forever, but for now, I am having fun,
after all, we are metaphysical multi-dimensional beings! I have just taken the
first few steps on a very very long journey. I look forward to it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Laterz,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">G!</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-25550260188545808602018-09-13T07:41:00.004-07:002018-09-13T08:57:50.873-07:00Living it UP at PyCon Nigeria<div style="text-align: justify;">
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Hi Ya'll,</div>
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It has been a while since I posted something on this blog. A lot has happened and I had to take some time off. I am not fully back yet, but am slowly getting back into the groove of things. For starters, I have dropped off a few projects that I was working on, most of them successfully complete, while others are in parked mode. The basic idea is: I need to re-focus and re-strategise on what I would like to do in the coming five (5) years.</div>
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In short, I have something installed for you, watch this space.</div>
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Anyhow, this post is about <a href="https://pycon.ng/" target="_blank">PyCon Nigeria</a>, I am here, writing this very post from <a href="https://lagosstate.gov.ng/" target="_blank">Lagos, Nigeria</a>. </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs7wZDJVbVwIMOBaAbCPuW4gSb-q7YErPQZncPafqSoz_r_xmtfO-0pjOoOpRqmkMoHIke3QVO8xJTbarsS702tgyIMn_C-SPjcBUbcfKvR_S4sTpE0pYIOerYTlunXhtfKge-LO8sSGA/s1600/lagos4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1465" data-original-width="1600" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs7wZDJVbVwIMOBaAbCPuW4gSb-q7YErPQZncPafqSoz_r_xmtfO-0pjOoOpRqmkMoHIke3QVO8xJTbarsS702tgyIMn_C-SPjcBUbcfKvR_S4sTpE0pYIOerYTlunXhtfKge-LO8sSGA/s320/lagos4.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">PyConNG!!!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpvP_alxOGpa2KKmzriMlaKM4EoVDYiEyd1-bW4G3S96_qw0k0v7h4IJv9LUNIajP_teUHxOdKguqsTxnj1ADgIoaolOvu1tPybGMrRd5mV20WRjixSpOzLf3WgW_kjiyAggcF9jlvXiM/s1600/lagos1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpvP_alxOGpa2KKmzriMlaKM4EoVDYiEyd1-bW4G3S96_qw0k0v7h4IJv9LUNIajP_teUHxOdKguqsTxnj1ADgIoaolOvu1tPybGMrRd5mV20WRjixSpOzLf3WgW_kjiyAggcF9jlvXiM/s320/lagos1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I think that is me in Lagos! :-)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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This is a <a href="https://www.python.org/" target="_blank">Python programming language</a> conference and is currently underway, it will run from September 13 (today) - 15, 2019. Well, rather let me say that it focuses on the language and the many cool uses of the programming language, from web apps to data sciences. </div>
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The first day (today) is dedicated to tutorials - split into two streams. One stream is focusing solely on <a href="https://djangogirls.org/pyconng/" target="_blank">Django Girls</a>. Django Girls workshop have become a must have at PyCons across the world. They are intentional, directed and strategic workshops for girls that wish to join the tech space. In my opinion, they are a great way to provide a gateway or opportunity to those girls that would otherwise not have access to knowledge, open and safe space to learn how to code. The content is available online ex-post and the community around it is awesome if help is needed.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdnfrOiHxRBXd2lKh65icpg3P_HlTxve3gEr6VRMn6Gb_hdwuslg1-xfNxDxNLqD6XryOAt3NmByV_G_0u5viVRh6GZYrJZN9tO2PwnGRv3IBj7y-j4n_T32k4myZqQjWyWXfLZN-KZKc/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-09-13+at+15.32.56.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="603" data-original-width="807" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdnfrOiHxRBXd2lKh65icpg3P_HlTxve3gEr6VRMn6Gb_hdwuslg1-xfNxDxNLqD6XryOAt3NmByV_G_0u5viVRh6GZYrJZN9tO2PwnGRv3IBj7y-j4n_T32k4myZqQjWyWXfLZN-KZKc/s320/Screen+Shot+2018-09-13+at+15.32.56.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Django Girls Participants</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTRtlKB-yi3F6Pe1USe5mavEDLewl74nEdhBmI0pIh7chFAbqdN9E9IThUDcPxhOv9t-m24QZYyfU9L2igHh1g-6ds1yphYmH16n2vccLEGeOhjh0n3HtxzhUWEJC10agv_fXAnKPVMM8/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-09-13+at+15.33.09.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="525" data-original-width="803" height="209" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTRtlKB-yi3F6Pe1USe5mavEDLewl74nEdhBmI0pIh7chFAbqdN9E9IThUDcPxhOv9t-m24QZYyfU9L2igHh1g-6ds1yphYmH16n2vccLEGeOhjh0n3HtxzhUWEJC10agv_fXAnKPVMM8/s320/Screen+Shot+2018-09-13+at+15.33.09.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Django Girls coaches and mentors</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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While the other stream focuses on more intermediate to advanced topics, i.e. Deep Learning, Exploratory Data Analysis with Python, etc. Within the Deep learning tutorial, Keras and TensorFlow were introduced and some sample datasets shared. We learned how to perform pre-processing etc.<br />
<br />
While the Exploratory data analysis introduced the participants to numpy, pandas and matplotlib.pyplot and seaborn. All these for looking at large datasets for descriptive insights. The combination of the above tools enables an analyst to understand and play around with data to gauge meaning from it. Within this tutorial, the difference between a data science analyst and engineer were said to be that a data science engineer generally would create the data models for machine learning algorithms.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoj1RdMRTXdZwAexg6qIEywe-iwfNyEeQtsRYXn9iroV5sSLktXIWmn-cSGWw7qHNyyDTSzIYdvXJ-g0QD_I-3AmP7DleNA-UGTXblcEUzsVzSqa_PZUA24m2jxC8bpy0IkAT8qYJEtIw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-09-13+at+15.38.10.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="452" data-original-width="457" height="315" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoj1RdMRTXdZwAexg6qIEywe-iwfNyEeQtsRYXn9iroV5sSLktXIWmn-cSGWw7qHNyyDTSzIYdvXJ-g0QD_I-3AmP7DleNA-UGTXblcEUzsVzSqa_PZUA24m2jxC8bpy0IkAT8qYJEtIw/s320/Screen+Shot+2018-09-13+at+15.38.10.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kelvin giving a workshop on Exploratory Data Analysis with Python</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdtt-eobzliz_jyYKq-DO-rnd5LEySZzUkJTk_tM7C6VkyNuYK8JzVJ3r6rhC_1iW281ZXAKOQnYRpXW-U0OdtImbU62Z3xz1OlXhcjkktMIQjyFwEtvaWlBqK3H9n3oZLq-nHNCWCh5U/s1600/tut2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="768" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdtt-eobzliz_jyYKq-DO-rnd5LEySZzUkJTk_tM7C6VkyNuYK8JzVJ3r6rhC_1iW281ZXAKOQnYRpXW-U0OdtImbU62Z3xz1OlXhcjkktMIQjyFwEtvaWlBqK3H9n3oZLq-nHNCWCh5U/s320/tut2.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ogban giving the workshop on Deep Learning</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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The above tutorials taught me a whole lot, when the github links are made available I will share them!</div>
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The detailed program for PyCon Nigeria is available <a href="https://pycon.ng/schedule/" target="_blank">here</a>.</div>
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Tomorrow and the day after will be talks, talks, and tutorials!</div>
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I will update that tomorrow!</div>
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Laterz ya'll,</div>
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G!</div>
shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-63970541118107157192017-09-19T07:39:00.000-07:002017-09-19T07:39:15.012-07:00Keeper: A Namibia ComicHi ya'll,<br />
<br />
So it has been a moment since the last time I posted anything, really!<br />
<br />
Damn, its but less than three months before the year ends and I have not fulfilled my blogging promises. In any case, such is life, some plans tend to take a back seat to others, or are there even others. 'Nuf said!<br />
<br />
This post is about a really great project that some young Namibians have been working on. According to the Authors (Silas Nangolo Mentos and <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=Nkondjashili&src=typd" target="_blank">Shaimemanya Ndeutapo Kondjashili</a>) of the Namibian comic book; Keeper (wish i could get the cool font here), they met at the defacto skate park in Windhoek - <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustineum_Secondary_School" target="_blank">Augustineum Secondary School</a> - things happened and the idea blossomed. The comic book has great artwork and I can say that I love it. Being that this is Issue # 1 and Vol 1 I think we have much to expect.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdR7HHplRcEz7nyrmxpCovI2VailuNxmIFYYDa7jiprZqewuhCJQRgtySUrmq_gOB7pCzwCsPkmdoi-L4HStoDgKPZpNG1-kcW41SW3FvZPqcsyvQ-9iusXDaDJ2Bg4Zkes_VqHSiiS-4/s1600/bridgeinthedark.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="974" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdR7HHplRcEz7nyrmxpCovI2VailuNxmIFYYDa7jiprZqewuhCJQRgtySUrmq_gOB7pCzwCsPkmdoi-L4HStoDgKPZpNG1-kcW41SW3FvZPqcsyvQ-9iusXDaDJ2Bg4Zkes_VqHSiiS-4/s320/bridgeinthedark.jpg" width="246" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">@Shingapi eyeing Vol 1 Issue 1 of Keeper</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Should I tell of what the contents are? Naah I think it best you buy a copy for yourself, it costs N$30.00, now that is a not even a bargain, its a freebee!!<br />
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To get your copy, contact: <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=Nkondjashili&src=typd" target="_blank">@Nkondjashili</a><br />
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I hope they are not sold out btw!<br />
<br />
Laterz,<br />
<br />
G!<br />
<br />shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-49004651382516829172016-11-26T22:22:00.003-08:002016-11-26T22:22:39.019-08:00PyCon Zimbabwe 2016 in HarareHi ya'll,<br />
<br />
So for the past few days I have been in <a href="http://www.zimbabwetourism.net/" target="_blank">Zimbabwe</a> and I boy ohh boy... Firstly my trip here was delayed by two (2) hours!!!!! that pissed me off because at the time I was busy trying to get some food but at the same time I was being paranoid that I might get left behind. The reason is that the restaurant in the departures area does not seem to have a speaker, so all I would hear were faint sounds of announcements the message in them? I have no idea! What pissed me off more was that I was trying to eat this amazing cheese burger but couldn't enjoy it because I constantly had to question whether the flight is boarding or not. That's that thank goodness they had wine on the flight to Harare :-).<br />
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We arrived in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harare" target="_blank">Harare</a> and to my surprise it was not as I would read in international media but exactly as my Zimbabwean friends told me: lovely, beautiful and the people uber nice! The only thing I knew was the address of where I was to go and then got into a Metered Taxi. The ride to the accommodation and venue (<a href="http://www.zesantc.co.zw/" target="_blank">Zesa National Training Centre</a>) for <a href="http://zw.pycon.org/" target="_blank">#PyConZim 2016</a> was educational as the Taxi driver took me through Mbare which according to him is the oldest suburb of Harare and those that come to Harare and never go there have never been to Harare. Towards the end I had to pay USD 40 from the Airport to Belvedere, I figured that was expensive but when in Harare (Rome) you know...<br />
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Day 1 of PyCon Zimbabwe was an amazing experience as I got to meet up with Humphrey and Anna my friends that I had made from <a href="http://na.pycon.org/en/" target="_blank">PyConNA 2016</a> and part of the organising committee of this PyCon. I told them about my Taxi Ride and the cost there of and was duly informed that I might have gotten ripped off. Ohh well figures, that's what happens when you don't ask all these questions upfront, you tend to get ripped off :-D. Nonetheless, I respect your hustle Mr. Taxi Driver no hard feelings!<br />
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The keynote was amazing and very inspirational it was from Michael Place the Project Maintainer of SaltStack. The remainder of the day was filled with <a href="https://djangogirls.org/harare/" target="_blank">Django Girls</a> and workshops. I attended a workshop on using <a href="https://kivy.org/#home" target="_blank">Kivy to develop Android Applications</a>. The cherry on the cake was the conference dinner for speakers and Django Girls coaches.. I will write a separate blog post about this one OMG!<br />
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Day 2 started off well and I must say one of the most inspirational talks gave me a quote that will join the list of quotes to live by "Don't be a problem Admirer, rather be a solution provider", it was by a gentleman from <a href="http://www.uz.ac.zw/" target="_blank">University of Zimbabwe</a>, he self taught Python and used it to analyse Stock Market data great insights but they are still working to perfect it.<br />
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I also happen to be giving a talk on this day, I put on a brave face and when the time came I gave it my best and I think I did good, my only hope that I don't freeze (that didn't happen) so I guess the verdict is that I did good :-D. My Talk was on whether <a href="http://zw.pycon.org/ux-design.html" target="_blank">Developers should consider UX design within their projects.</a><br />
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There was so much more, I was live tweeting the event in parts and if you are interested please check out <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/pyconzim?src=hash" target="_blank">#pyconzim</a> on Twitter and follow me on <a href="https://twitter.com/Shingapi" target="_blank">@shingapi</a><br />
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I will write about four (4) more posts about my time in Zimbabwe, for now it's breakfast time :-)<br />
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- PyCon Zim Conference Dinner<br />
- Taking Local Transport in Harare<br />
- Visiting the B2C Coworking space in Harare<br />
- Tour of Harare<br />
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<i><b>Laterz,</b></i><br />
<i><b>G!</b></i><br />
<br />
<br />shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-52940929712091029662016-11-10T06:03:00.001-08:002016-11-10T06:04:02.526-08:00A night to rememberHi y'all,<br />
<br />
So the other day I am sitting in my office doing some "work" of course! Bored to the core as the repetitive nature of some tasks can be. Time seemed to be moving so gat darn slow and the stack of papers seemed to have an auto-refill from HELL!<br />
<br />
That was a side track the point is around 15h47 I get a call from a dear friend and partner in crime of mine. Yes! I am well aware of how precise that time is, I check while writing this post. The gist of all this blahh blahh is that I got an invite be her plus one (1). Being I was bored I was ready to leave the office. The only thing that kept me in the office was the idea of eventually being stuck in traffic for a few minutes to an hour while we battle congestion on the way to the venue.<br />
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After about two (2) hours of anxiously waiting it out we made our way to the lovely <a href="http://www.rivercrossing.com.na/" target="_blank">River Crossing Lodge</a> just on the outskirts of Windhoek (5 minutes) on the airport road, located on a 6500 hectare game reserve. That place has an amazing view of Windhoek and surrounding mountains. For some reason it reminds me of being at the Cattle Post and having a proper braai and cold ones :-). In true Namibian fashion most of the guests were late, but my friend and I being the odd people out of a Nation, we showed up a few minutes early, about thirty (30) I think, well I know it was thirty minutes: I checked! The birthday girl (lady) arrived and so did the majority of guests. The reception was a sundowner/ red skies and champagne affair, we introduced ourselves and a few words from the the attendees started the event off on a good note ... at this point I skipped so much but I will make this plug... we picked up the professional photographer on our way to River Crossing, a mini photo-session and it was time to enter the venue.<br />
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Our table was set in a room and it seemed as though we were the only group in this magnificent room that had a chandelier from the gods and a central fireplace to melt any heart: well at least any liker of things, lovely flower arrangements and lined with bottles of Moet and Chandon!<br />
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I had so much fun that I ended up carrying out a bottle of Moet as we departed the lovely Lodge! I can't wait for the next trip out to River Crossing.<br />
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On a side note, river crossing is not accessible to Ferrari's, sports cars in general or drop suspension vehicles. But the view from up there is totally worth it. They have this pool that sits between to dinning areas and a balcony that overlooks the Aus mountains. (I might add a picture or two sometime soon).<br />
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Thank you to my friend and her friends friends, it was indeed nice meeting y'all,<br />
<br />
<b>Laterz,</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>G!</b>shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-48127326746233656232016-04-27T09:49:00.005-07:002016-04-27T09:54:40.296-07:00Moonlight and All that I/It/He Is-Was-Is; repeat!Hi ya'll,<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7FQpkYpyDegF3vXqjCL5VpdsI9WSU2jhrYFRgmXby3xTpVaz-UxnKtE8SKhVN0Tw_-7fJe8p0FOFvspbibWQ_9ziKvna8fJ0nN-Ae9o5dVWcY4ZKwZOcQRLFuf0Y8x2ZpFLxK3Yw0hUw/s1600/Cgn7jVFUgAAXvuU.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7FQpkYpyDegF3vXqjCL5VpdsI9WSU2jhrYFRgmXby3xTpVaz-UxnKtE8SKhVN0Tw_-7fJe8p0FOFvspbibWQ_9ziKvna8fJ0nN-Ae9o5dVWcY4ZKwZOcQRLFuf0Y8x2ZpFLxK3Yw0hUw/s320/Cgn7jVFUgAAXvuU.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(Photo Credit: Gabriel Nhinda)</span></div>
<br />
I sit here wondering but pondering really of what has become of the child. Bewildered as I reminisce of all the freedom and carefree spirited-ness that a child embodies. Have you ever just thought, I mean really honesty thought and analysed your thoughts of the boy/girl child you are?<br />
<br />
I don't know, but there is something fragile about growing-up rich in fear, fear of failure, fear in success (whatever that even means!), fear in all things life. Somethings make no sense to me most times and I choose to ignore them. Why? you may ask! I see no reason why I should spend time wondering why I do not understand other peoples behavior at times, after all as a friend once put it "They don't care anyway". But back to my initial thought. There is something about the moonlight that simply takes me to a place of peace, a place where I could swear I was much younger and have no worries or none that I could care to worry about in that moment. As a child I was many things, but what I never was, was involved, in other peoples opinions of me that is. Then every so often technology catches up to me and I remember exactly where in time I am and more so, who I have become. Carefree in the moment, moonlight kissed as the pale dimmed light hits the dark ebony night darkness, crickets creek, a dog barks every so often, yet I ponderrr rrr. I wonder, does peace ever come to one once in a while, has life plateaued for most? Have I eaten lunch today? Then again the plethora of worries quickly rush the calm of night. Mmmaannn growing up aint easy, But, butttttttt; The journey is amazing.<br />
<br />
Life is an Onyandi, I could swear it is, you grow up sheltered and nestled in the bust of your mothers kitchen ("hekupe okutya oye ngaa nyoko" - Oshikwanyama Proverb), well fed, protected but the camouflaged leafs until you ripen. As time passed by the umbilical cord that once held you on so tightly loosens or is it that the onyandi simply grows strong enough? idk the point is; it falls to the ground. The leafs that once sheltered you from predator birds et. al. wilting; green-olive-orange- brown- fallen! Under a false sense of bigness, know-it-all, self-riotousness and other me me me's you explore the world, only to have a goat eat you up, shit you out and now you are covered in Shit!!!! Home is the one place you wish to go back to. But, where is home in this Shit view to life you have? eventually the the rains come and in a storm you are caught, fertile soils engulf you, you feel a swell in your tummy and roots shortly begin to for, a beautiful shoot grows from your core, goats again! damn-it, shoot is gone again!. The second rains come and the shoot sprouts, leafs grow a lime green and the face of your father imprints on it, now you know! Then you remember all the talks given at the kitchen, and the process repeats;<br />
<br />
<i> "As time passed by the umbilical cord that once held you on so tightly loosens or is it that the onyandi simply grows strong enough? idk the point is; it falls to the ground. The leafs that once sheltered you from predator birds et. al. wilting; green-olive-orange- brown- fallen!"</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
The one thing we seem to neglect and see is that, leafs are part of a tree and just like we have roots, the tree from where this fruit fell still lives! The moonlight reminds me of that time, hehehehehe aahhh lekwata, oopps ovalumenhu ihaayolo eengandja!<br />
<br />
I can stop being a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Namib_Desert_Horse" target="_blank">Namib-desert horse</a> now, roots await to be formed, and surely ...<br />
<br />
<i><b>Laterz,</b></i><br />
<i><b><br /></b></i>
<i><b>G!</b></i>shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-27759444042064117742016-04-27T01:41:00.004-07:002016-04-27T01:41:31.137-07:00Leipzig Throw BackHi Ya'll,<br />
<br />
So it has been a moment since my last post, although I did say that I would blog more often. I guess I fell off the wagon AGAIN. This time I will not promise anything but I shall try to keep my blog posts more frequent.<br />
<br />
I was going through my hard-drive the other day and I saw some pictures from <a href="http://www.leipzig.de/" target="_blank">Leipzig</a>, I mean that was such a long time ago I can barely believe it has been more than 2 years since I lived in Germany.<br />
<br />
Below is a picture of me playing some Basketball in the <a href="http://www.leipzig.de/freizeit-kultur-und-tourismus/parks-waelder-und-friedhoefe/parks-und-gruenanlagen/clara-zetkin-park/" target="_blank">Clara Zetkins Park</a> with a group of really cool ballers from Leipzig. They have a Facebook group called <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/595035167182266/" target="_blank">Zocke im ClaraPark</a>, they organise pick-up games every now and then, but if you go to the courts you will find someone there. what I did was just go jogging through the park and if I found somebody there then, then I played else I continued with a jog.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV8wqTUHn1_h8VFdSyAlv8T_6-pHVmdT-8SmsqtbvvXqntGZbAF07VmzOshfcRCGim8Hiigb12Ek5xZ8W6wNUZxPpZPpFNWas_TMjsHpVN3sxGUWneu4auX3BlZllFbr0POMqpGHrdkS4/s1600/sundayball.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV8wqTUHn1_h8VFdSyAlv8T_6-pHVmdT-8SmsqtbvvXqntGZbAF07VmzOshfcRCGim8Hiigb12Ek5xZ8W6wNUZxPpZPpFNWas_TMjsHpVN3sxGUWneu4auX3BlZllFbr0POMqpGHrdkS4/s320/sundayball.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(Photo credit: I have no idea)</span><br />
<br />
Pictures really do bring back some memories.<br />
<br />
Anyhow, twas nice to see this picture.<br />
<br />
<b><i>Laterz,</i></b><br />
<b><i><br /></i></b>
<b><i>G!</i></b>shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-4159468155039340052016-03-30T15:35:00.001-07:002016-03-31T02:32:50.300-07:00Connecting Eenhana<div style="text-align: justify;">
Hi Ya;ll,</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
So a while back (last year) I<a href="http://shingapi.blogspot.com/2015/07/community-mesh-network-in-northern.html" target="_blank"> blogged about the connecting Eenhana project.</a> Well we are it again.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
We have been in Eenhana since Yesterday (29 March 2016) setting up and doing maintenance on the remaining nodes. I must say by the end of the day, we had accomplished a lot. Firstly, we conducted some Basic Networks Workshop with; Active Youths from the <a href="http://www.mynssc.gov.na/ohangwena" target="_blank">Eenhana Multi-Purpose Youth Resource Centre</a>, personnel from the <a href="https://www.nta.com.na/?page_id=855" target="_blank">Vocational Training Centre</a>, <a href="http://en.unesco.org/radioict/radios/ohangwena-radio" target="_blank">Ohangwena Community Radio Station</a>, Community members, etc.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This was a welcomed sight for me as it gave me the chance to stand in-front of a different audience to give a lecture on Networks; a subject matter that I enjoy!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Unbeknownst to me, we had to give the workshop in Oshiwambo (which is most spoken indigenous language in Namibia) and English. The last time somebody asked me to explain anything Technology related in Oshiwambo was years back in my undergrad when my grandma (I suspect being pushed my DAD) queried what I was studying at University. The answer to that question was something in the lines of "Ohandiilongele ounongononi wokulonga noi topatopifo, oshoyo nyee ee Computer handilongifwa kovanhu no nghee hatudulu oku puupaleka elongifo lado" (which roughly translates to "I am studying the science of computer and how they are used by people and how to best make them easier for people to use efficiently") NB: Note the roughly translates! To this my grandma replied "kandeshi [girls name] naye osho tiilongele osho, hapo yee okuli kokakoligi keemwedi nee, omolwashike ovo tolilongele eedula adishe odo?" translated roughly "Kandeshi [who is my grandma's neighbours daughter's niece-in-law] is also studying the same thing but a college and she will only be there for 4 months, why do you have to study for so long?"; this is the point I knew dad had something to do with this line of questions from grandma, because according to him (then) I was wasting time and when I am done playing around with computers, I should let him know so I can go study something of real value i.e. Medicine, Engineering, Education or even become a pastor (This is because during dad's time these were the fields considered real fields that result in rewarding careers).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In any case, don't mind the side soap episode, we conducted the workshops in both languages, I was the first to go, giving a class on Basic Networks, starting all the way from Data, Information, Data Communication Systems, Data Representation, Categories of Computer Networks, Standards in Computer Networks (we have a laugh about this as I made the reference to how we are raised in the Northern regions to always greet everyone we pass EVEN strangers!). Another example (activity) that lifted spirits was when we played the whisper and pass the message on game, to illustrate why one of the characteristics of networks is Accuracy BTW: By the time the message reached the final person, it had done a complete 180 degree! :D </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The sessions that followed were led by Sebulon David who is from the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/glowdomfoundation/" target="_blank">Glowdom Foundation</a> a local NGO that aims to use ICTs for involving the local Eenhana community at large and those "towns" and villages around. He gave his presentation on a deeper level to networks (on a basic level), about IP addresses etc.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
But I think the best part of the day was when Shetu Sheetekela, a final year Computer Science and Mathematics student at the University of Namibia (UNAM), gave a Basic Networks Configuration practical workshop session. Armed with the theory from the morning session, the participants, setup a peer-to-peer network to share music, folders, and other files. After a successful peer-to-peer practical, Shetu and Manfred Makawa (an Alumni of the School of Computing at UNAM [Well he will graduate later in April so technically he is still a student :D :D :D but don't tell him I said that :D]), setup one of the Nano Stations and then connected about 3 - 4 laptops to show how the same setup as on peer-peer topologies can be used for when there are multiple peers and even wirelessly. This had the participants wanting for more, so some of them took control of the laptops to see how this actually works. This was followed by so many inquisitive questions about networks, how they improve our lives and how exactly that setup was done.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In the background, Manfred, Anastasia Shipepe (Who is my colleague at the <a href="http://www.unam.edu.na/faculty-of-science/computer-science/" target="_blank">School of Computing</a>), Astofel Henok (An Employee of the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TateInstituteOfTechnology/" target="_blank">TATE Institute of Technology</a>), Sebulon and myself did some Administrative work in the background. Also preparing for the next day, I guess technically that would be today. We unmounted some of the existing <a href="https://www.ubnt.com/airmax/nanostationm/" target="_blank">Nano Stations</a> and <a href="http://villagetelco.org/mesh-potato/" target="_blank">Mesh Potatoes</a> to reconfigure those that were not working optimally. By the way, we just finished doing that! yay Team!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Overall, I would say that we went over the expectations I had for YESTERDAY, TODAY, will be more technical work on how to setup nodes and how to troubleshoot them, additionally, <a href="https://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=46154" target="_blank">DNS server configurations</a> will also be part and parcel of the day, if we have enough time we could start on <a href="https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/Guide/Introduction_to_Web_development" target="_blank">Basic Web Development</a> with Annastasia.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Tomorrow should see another blissful day of collaboration, innovation and technology!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Laterz </b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>G!</b></div>
shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-46745139530631585082016-02-01T06:33:00.004-08:002016-03-14T01:42:25.118-07:00Python on WindowsHi ya'll,<br />
<br />
So in my <a href="http://shingapi.blogspot.com/2016/02/python-on-windows.html" target="_blank">previous post</a> I wrote about the <a href="http://na.pycon.org/" target="_blank">PyCon Namibia 2016</a> conference that took part from 25 - 29 January 2016.<br />
<br />
I had some people actually send me e-mails asking on how to install <a href="https://www.python.org/" target="_blank">Python </a>on Windows. And this post will give a short way to install and start using Python on Windows.<br />
<br />
The following steps assume that you have internet access on your laptop and that you have administrative privileges on the computer you wish to install Python on.<br />
<br />
Additionally it also assumes that you know a little about basic systems administration on Windows or at the very least a power user.<br />
<br />
LEGO!!<br />
<br />
FYI: This only works for Windows 7 and newer versions<br />
<br />
To install Python on Windows:<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li>Go to The Python.org website under Downloads and <a href="https://www.python.org/downloads/windows/" target="_blank">Download the Windows executable installation file </a></li>
<li>Get the 2.7.x version although there are developers that are trying to push for the 3.x versions, I still feel that the latest version might not be as stable (then again me likes 2.7)</li>
<li>Once the download is complete:</li>
<ul>
<li>Double click on the executable file to install</li>
<li>Make sure to acknowledge the Windows security prompt</li>
<li>Go through the wizard leaving all settings to their defaults</li>
<li>Once installation is complete, click finish</li>
</ul>
<li>Python is installed on your Windows Operating system.</li>
</ol>
<br />
So now that you have install Python you are wondering how do I do the basic tutorials to learn the language?<br />
<br />
Well you need to use the command prompt. To open command prompt:<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
1. Click on the Windows button on your keyboard and type cmd then press enter, this will open the command prompt Window.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>or</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
2. Press Windows + X, this will display a menu to your left, select command prompt from that menu.</div>
<br />
Now that you have the command prompt open type "python" (without the quotation marks).<br />
<br />
You will get an error, this is because to command prompt does not have the environmental variable to run python from it.<br />
<br />
To solve this and make sure you can use python via command prompt edit the environmental variables, as follows:<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li> Press Windows + X</li>
<li>Select System</li>
<li>Select Advanced system settings (on your left, under Control Panel Home)</li>
<li>Under the advanced tab, select Environmental Variables (at the very bottom of the system properties window).</li>
<li>If you don't have the path already available, create one else edit the existing one.</li>
<li>To create a new User Variable</li>
<ul>
<li>Click on New</li>
<li>Enter a Variable name: "path"</li>
<li>Enter the Variable value: "<i>C:\Windows\System32;C:\Python27;C:\Python27\python.exe;C:\Python27\Scripts\;C:\Python27\Lib\site-packages\django\bin;</i>"</li>
</ul>
</ol>
<div>
Don't mind the "<i>C:\Python27\Lib\site-packages\django\bin;</i>", we will use this in the tutorial to come on getting Django setup.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Now for testing, if you have your command prompt open, close it and open it again.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Type "<i>python</i>", you should get something like <i>>>></i>; this means that you can start using python again.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I hope this was useful, leave a comment if not or yes.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<br />
<br />
<b><i>Laterz,</i></b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>G!</b>shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-90682177927175523612016-02-01T06:04:00.002-08:002016-03-14T01:42:25.148-07:00Start to year (PyCon Namibia 2016)Hi ya'll,<br />
<br />
I trust that the new year is going well. Mine started off with a bang!<br />
<br />
Imagine starting the working year with a conference :-). From the 25 -29 January 2016 we held the first ever <a href="http://na.pycon.org/" target="_blank">PyCon Namibia 2016</a> conference ever. This was actually technically the second conference that focuses on Python and some Django in Namibia. The first even took place around the same time last year. It was called <a href="http://python-namibia.org/" target="_blank">Python Namibia 2015</a>. This specific saw about 70 participants from all over the world. Building on the 2015 even PyCon Namibia 2016 actually had more participants, workshop leaders and speakers from all over the world. For me personally it was the first one that had a lot of people from other African countries (Then again it is only the second one thus far so... ).<br />
<br />
For this year the PyCon <a href="http://www.gov.na/about-namibia" target="_blank">Namibia </a>2016 had one of the furthest travelling participants from <a href="http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/" target="_blank">Canada</a>! yay! But more impressive is that he has very strong roots in West Africa within about 4 countries.<br />
<br />
That is the start to the year.<br />
<br />
Thanks y'll,<br />
<br />
<b><i>Laterz,</i></b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>G!</b>shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-71241762931000165342016-01-04T01:18:00.006-08:002016-03-14T01:42:25.136-07:00Merry New year (2016)Hi ya'll,<br />
<br />
It seems like ages ago when I decided to start this blog. Yes, I am fully aware that my postings have not been consistent, for that I apologise. On the bright side I can successfully say that I have figured a few things and will be making writing even a little piece a frequent thing. Thought I have not yet decided on the frequency.<br />
<br />
In any case I am trusting that most of you have returned safely from you travels (if you weren't working that is). I myself had me a MERRY NEW YEAR!!<br />
<br />
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<br />
But even more exciting it is almost 2 years since I returned back home .... yaaay :)<br />
<br />
It amazes me how time flies so fast, it seems like only a few months ago I was in limbo as to what I was to do with the rest of my life now that I have returned to the #hometurf. Now, things seem much clearer and I have settled relatively well although there are a few things that still puzzle me about home. Someone once made the comment "you only left for two (2) and a half years, how can you be so shocked at some of these things? like who does that?". It was a valid question but in order to understand the significant change that one can undergo within a period of six (6) months, you would have to have lived somewhere else for an extended period of time. There are some schools of thought that contest that you cannot see the cracks within a system when you thought of it, designed it, developed it, tested it, and gave it up with no maintenance.<br />
<br />
I guess what I am trying to say is that when you step out of a group (out of group cohesion) you tend to notice some of the things that the group does, those things that may not be productive, putting the group as a whole about 5 steps back for every 1 step. Also the point of living is growing, when you live in a community that is not necessarily your own, you tend to study the community from it pros and cons to trying to have a deep understanding of why the individuals in that community do and say what they do and say.<br />
<br />
I do not claim to be an ethnographer but I have observed some trends living in various communities and from that I have grasped some concepts, ideas, and ways doing things; that in my opinion would and could greatly improve our society as a whole. Yes, I just ranted for a minute.<br />
<br />
Anyway, the year 2016 is here and so many things to do and accomplish, I say let us be realistic with our expectations, set S.M.A.R.T. goals and objectives coupled with some fun amidst the crazy busy work life.<br />
<br />
Merry New Year (2019)<br />
<br />
<b><i>Laterz,</i></b><br />
<b><i><br /></i></b>
<b><i>G!</i></b><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-56238533176173808092015-08-03T23:42:00.002-07:002016-03-14T01:42:25.121-07:00Winter Nights; boredom Hi ya'll,<br />
<br />
So I have been thinking lately that I need to find a new hobby.<br />
<br />
Someone I told asked me why?<br />
<br />
I don't know but of late I have been feeling like I have way too much time on my hands. The reasons are many but some that I think are pertinent at present are:<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li>I have officially become more efficient at doing what I do thus resulting in me having more time available.</li>
<li>I have become more lazy, and thus refuse to do more than what is required of me (I highly doubt this!)</li>
<li>Most of the businesses I started have finally started to take root and I don't have to baby sit them anymore.</li>
</ol>
<div>
The above are in my mind the most significant possible reasons.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
below are some of the activities I would like to start embarking on:</div>
<div>
<ol>
<li>Writing poetry (I had really good comments on my poem I wrote in German, titled: <a href="https://shingapi.blogspot.com/b/post-preview?token=F7sl-U4BAAA.9OklhUCFOYzOFWH4KRv9xw.SOWbQQk2Oe2zjl2VbLY39A&postId=5477161228347739142&type=POST#!/2014/01/a-poem-apart-sch-schanden.html" target="_blank">A Poem Apart: Sch Schänden!</a>)</li>
<li>Swimming (I started with this but stopped because I didn't have enough time to be attending my classes as often as I wished)</li>
<li>Horse riding (The last time I was on one was a long time ago at the farm and I had to make an emergency exit from the horse, long story for another post maybe).</li>
<li>Mixology (making 'em cocktail; I actually did this when I was a student in Germany at some parties and I must say I liked it).</li>
</ol>
<div>
If you have any other suggestion do leave a comment, But oohhhh just remembered maybe blog everyday could be number 5.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Laterz,</b></div>
</div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
<b>G!</b></div>
shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-31843092949009545542015-07-14T01:00:00.000-07:002016-03-14T01:42:25.098-07:00Community Mesh Network in Northern NamibiaHi ya'll,<br />
<br />
The last few weeks saw the end of the first semester at the University where I lecture. There was a mini recess which usually means that the University closes down and the vacations start.<br />
<br />
I was however fortunate enough to have a Professor in my School that got some funding to set-up a community network in Northern Namibia. The basic idea behind this network is that it is build by the people for the people with the knowledge and tutelage of networks experts and facilitators.<br />
<br />
All in all the setup took many months of planning and many others of strategising how all will be done. The first week saw us travel from the capital Windhoek to Eenhana. Eenhana is the capital of the Ohangwena Region. The Ohangwena Region has the highest concentration of the Namibian Population (Well at least most of the people come from there).<br />
<br />
Being that the population of Namibia is only about 2.3 Million people, it is characterised with development inequalities. This is not a new phenomenon as sparsely populated countries tend to have a center where all the developmental activities take place. The Ohangwena region is no different from the picture painted above. This means that there is a big disparity between the well of the no so fortunate. However, the CONNECTING EENHANA project mains to bridge one of the issues that plague the Region. The Internet of Things aims to connect as many people as possible. The aim is that there is a school of thought that argues that having access to information can have a great effect on the number of people that can come out of poverty.<br />
<br />
The idea of a community network in not unique to Namibia but a philosophy and practice that has been rolled out in other parts of the world. The first week dealt with collecting needs and potential uses by the local community. Parallel to that, there was a technical team that dealt with scouting for locations that would be optimal locations for placing base stations for the placement of the routers that would connect the many nodes.<br />
<br />
A further note will be made on a later update.<br />
<br />
<b>Laterz,</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>G!</b>shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-40864878883232964772015-06-23T03:41:00.001-07:002016-03-14T01:42:25.109-07:00Semester one<div style="text-align: justify;">
Hi ya'll,</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
So the first semester as a Lecturer is finally coming to an end for me. This is totally crazy!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I never imagined I would be a lecturer, could it be the fact that I was maybe not the best student to have in any class; on account that I was a passive aggressive, narcissistic, and a little bit of a know-it-all kind of student? I don't know!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
But the one thing I was a never was an over achiever, well not until I really encountered some students from Germany on my first trip there as an intern working for <a href="http://www.daimler.com/" target="_blank">Daimler</a>. That was the time i realised that what I was doing, merely coasting along and doing just enough to pass was not cutting it.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I mean, there were tests and exams that I would stop writing just because I knew that I had answered enough questions to pass (even the detail of the answers!). It even got to the point were I would only study half the material intentionally with the aim of seeing if I could successfully guess what the lecturer would as for exams (could it be that I was conducting little experiments and dangerously treading a thing line?). Well, most of the times I was right except for one subject in my Bachelors that I could not figure out. In essence I couldn't figure out what he (the lecturer) would ask for exams because I never attended his lectures, yet I was one of this best students when it came to assignments and tests. But that damn exam, I just couldn't figure out.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In retrospect I think that was the day I decided to start attending lectures. Aced the exam, but just enough to pass, then walked out (even though I knew every answer to all the questions twasn't interesting to me at the time). I sometimes wonder; if had I given more effort, would I have been an honour student?</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Well, that was answered when after returning home from Germany I enrolled for the Honours Degree. Gave it the best I could, with backsliding tendencies of laziness at first. I quickly got accustomed to getting A's and being the top student in my year. It felt good!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I tried my very best not to answer as many questions in classes: because I once managed to finish reading all the assigned reading for a class in the first month of the semester, so I kinda had an advantage on tests, assignments and classes. It worked well and yes the Award for Best student in that study programme was awarded to me.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
What I am getting at is that often times I saw myself in some of my students through this semester and it was looking into the inside from the outside, a sort of Deja Vu if you will.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I enjoyed the semester, I might have gotten attached to my students a little bit much and always expect the best from them, sometimes they deliver but at the end of the semester almost all of them I can successfully say have acquired a new sense of work ethic.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Maybe I am trying to correct the wrongs I did as a student to myself, by not fully recognising my true potential academically. But, that pushes my students to always give high quality work and for that I give myself a pat of the back.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In terms of pedagogy I am still learning how to fully deal with the different personalities. Often times the pedagogical approach was changed to accommodate as many students as possible. Most times it worked but other times not. I hope and know that the lessons learned from this semester will result in more fun classes and assignments for the students and myself.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
With that I signoff and will be blogging on other matters.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Laterz,</b></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>G!</b></div>
shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-25928395387347370292015-06-13T02:35:00.000-07:002016-03-14T01:42:25.094-07:00Programming on SupercomputersHi ya'll,<br />
<br />
So as a pass time I have decided to keep myself busy with learning activities. One such activity is the <a href="https://www.itmasters.edu.au/" target="_blank">IT Masters </a>course on <a href="https://www.itmasters.edu.au/free-short-course-programming-super-computers/" target="_blank">Programming on Supercomputers</a>. The class is scheduled to start on the 17th of June 2015 and i can't wait.<br />
<br />
Some of the sample content of this course is listed below:<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li>Porting code to the <a href="http://www.zdnet.com/article/intels-next-big-thing-knights-landing/" target="_blank">Xeon Phi</a></li>
<li>Coding Linear Methods for Regression</li>
<li>Model Assessment and Selection</li>
<li>Additive Models, Trees and Related Methods</li>
<li>Support Vector Machines and Flexible Discriminants'</li>
<li>Neural Networks</li>
<li>Developing using Prototype Methods and <a href="http://scikit-learn.org/stable/modules/neighbors.html" target="_blank">Nearest Neighbours</a></li>
<li>Supervised and Unsupervised Learning</li>
</ol>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
It is a 5 week long class and it has both live lectures by way of Webinars, alternatively the content will also be available as recordings for later viewing.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
But the best part is that between "Lectures", there will be extra reading and practical labs to enable testing of a Xeon Phi and CUDA based system.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I can't wait GPU programming, this is just the start. Imagine what kind of supercomputing you can expect...</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Laterz,</b></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
G!</div>
shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-33294422787060655022015-06-11T05:11:00.001-07:002016-03-14T01:42:25.102-07:00Life UpdateHi Ya'll,<br />
<br />
I trust most of you have been doing well. Ame ondili nawa lela.<br />
<br />
So it has been a while since I posted anything on this blog and in all honesty I will make it a weekly thing from now on "That's what I said... 7 months ago". In any-case, I have been a busy worker bee, finally worked on my business ideas; well some of them at least, got a full-time job; pat on my back ;-) and traveled rather extensively (for how busy I am).<br />
<br />
But that is not the most exciting news as of yet. Lately, I regained my interest and passion for old cars and finally got my <b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volkswagen_Beetle" target="_blank">Classic VW Beetle</a></b> fixed and running. The amazing feeling one gets from a tuned classic beetle Engine is crazy good. She runs as smooth as a baby's bottom and the rush you I get from driving it, I just can't explain. I am looking to name her, but I am thinking <b>HEIDI </b>mostly because it is German, sounds like a trusty person, did I mention its a German name?<br />
<br />
Anyhow, at present I just have to sort out some registration issues and we (HEIDI and I) might start taking holidays together.<br />
<br />
On the other side of things, I just bought about 5 new books by Namibian Authors, well actually just 4. The 5th book I worked for, how? Well, the bookstore that I buy my books from called <a href="http://travelnewsnamibia.com/news/orumbonde-books-windhoek/#.VXl5Zc9Viko" target="_blank">Orumbonde Bookstore</a>, which is located at the Arts and Crafts Centre in Windhoek, Namibia: Is run by a Gentleman by the name of Wolfram who also happens to be a scholar of African Studies. He wrote a book called <span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, clean, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; line-height: 16.0030002593994px;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Colonising-Camera-Photographs-Namibian-History/dp/0821412612" target="_blank">The Colonising Camera: Photographs in the Making of Namibian History</a></span> and book that looks at well how the colonial era dealt with images etc. I did a small job for him and he gifted said book to me. The exciting thing about it is that, it is the last book to have been printed and for sale. yaaayyy mee!<br />
<br />
Ohh well, time to get back to work,
Twas nice updating this blog again,<br />
<br />
<b>Laterz,</b><br />
<br />
G!shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-80772893290448278192015-02-03T00:25:00.000-08:002016-03-14T01:42:25.141-07:00Python Namibia 2015<div class="tr_bq">
Hi ya'll,</div>
<br />
It has been a while since my last update, but it was all for a good reason. Some wise man once said "All good things come to those who wait".<br />
<br />
Diving into this short post; this year I have the pleasure of attending the #PythonNamibia2015 conference at the University of Namibia, this is a conference that is organized by Cardiff University and the University of Namibia.<br />
<br />
Obviously, the organization of the conference has many industrial sponsors and the Python community at large (This is not the aim of this post).<br />
<br />
Below, are a few quotes from the inauguration event on day 1 of the conference:<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<h3>
"International software developers are well versed in teschnologies but there is always a margin of misinterpretation of local realities" #PythonNamibia2015 - Dr. Hangula</h3>
<blockquote>
<br />"Sufficient training of Software Developers is important for our economic development" #PythonNamibia2015 - Dr. Hangula<br /><br /><h3>
"This conference is important as it furthers the cause of fighting the need of dependence" #PythonNamibia2015 - Dr. Hangula</h3>
</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote>
ParticipatoryDesign can better the code qualitiy of an application within #python<br />#PythonNamibia2015</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote>
How do we factor UX into python programming within the context of #Namibia?<br />#PythonNamibia2015</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote>
@GitHub is a really cool tool for collaboration within the #PythonCommunity<br />#PythonNamibia2015</blockquote>
<br />
If you read from the beginning of this post you will realize that I write "attending", this is because the conference is still running.<br />
<br />
This post is not very well organized because it is written on the fly.<br />
<br />
<i>Laterz,</i><br />
<br />
<b>G!</b>shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-92220086355590454432014-10-06T06:51:00.001-07:002016-03-14T01:42:25.151-07:00XAML and C# programming<b>Hi ya'll,</b><br />
<br />
So a few months back I blogged about developing a <a href="http://shingapi.blogspot.com/2013/05/windows-8-winrt-app.html?view=magazine" target="_blank">Windows 8 WinRT application for my Master's degree project</a>. Sometime back a friend asked me why we did not use JavaScript instead of XAML and C# according to him "XAML was killed by Steve Jobs", seeing that iOS doesn't utilize flash etc.<br />
<br />
Today i just got confirmation that I didn't waste my time learning XAML, in all honesty XAML is not that hard or maybe I just didn't dive really deep. But then again how much deeper can you get than creating the User Interface of a mobile application?<br />
<br />
Anyway back to the article, it was written by Kevin Dockx, who happens to be an expert on the subject matter and is actually rather well-known within the XAML developer community, especially in Europe. He is of the idea that XAML actually has a bright future especially for those developers using it for develop Business Applications.<br />
<br />
Furthermore he adds that the advent of <a href="http://xamarin.com/" target="_blank">Xamarin</a> into the Microsoft Partners community is actually a plus. Because now XAML developers can develop once and run on iOS and Android as well.<br />
<br />
Well friend if you are reading this I guess that read the article for yourself, it is titled <a href="http://blog.pluralsight.com/future-of-xaml" target="_blank">What is the future of XAML?</a><br />
<br />
It feels good to know that my time and skills will still be needed and to think I almost moved to JavaScript.<br />
<br />
<b>Laterz,</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>G!</b>shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-16722658431608624682014-09-20T08:36:00.002-07:002016-03-14T01:42:25.091-07:00My interesting neighbors in LeipzigHi ya'll,<br />
<br />
So from my post from the <a href="http://shingapi.blogspot.com/2014/08/mannheim-vs-leipzig.html" target="_blank">2nd of August</a> I stated that I would blog about my neighbors in Leipzig. Well here goes...<br />
<br />
In Leipzig I stayed in the suburb of Plagwitz which in located on the southern end of Leipzig about 12 mins tram ride to the city centre. Believe it or not that is considered relatively central. It is the old industrial area of the city and is characterized with some old abandoned factories and some that were converted to lofty offices and trendy apartment blocks.<br />
<br />
The majoring of the people that stay here are students and young professionals. But also young couples with babies and young children, this is mainly because of its proximity to parks and it is relatively quiet. Also I have noticed that there were also a number of strange people hanging around there. Strange in the sense that whenever I saw them they always looked like they were doing nothing.<br />
<br />
Being the curious cat that I am i started keeping tabs on these people. I came to find out that some where my neighbors, the floors below and directly above my apartment. Also they had parties and barbecues almost the same-time each month. Once by coincidence we met at the teller in a super market and I saw that they were on welfare. I knew this because some of my Germany friends had told me that there were some people that were living on welfare in Germany. You would not believe the amount of stories I heard about this, but the most common one is that they are lazy and are basically freeloaders living off the rest of the productive country. This intrigued me to an extend, keeping my distance I observed them further, I came to notice that one coupled had 5 children and 2 dogs (I knew about the dogs because there was one that couldn't stop yapping all night long!! grrr). Anyway, that being said, of the stories that I heard, apparently having children in Germany is also one other way the people on social welfare made a living because there is something called Kinder Geld, basically you get money for each child. Also some states give parents some money to stay home with their children because the state run creches are full. However in other parts of Germany the creches are closed down due to the low birthrate etc.<br />
<br />
Back to my neighbors, on Christmas eve 2013 a young boy knocked on my door to borrow some butter and the following day to ask for some sugar. Germans love Holidays and gift giving. This was the first time a neighbor has ever borrowed anything from me in Germany, the few times I have interactions with some of my neighbors was when my music was too loud and they wanted to sleep at 20:00 pm on a Saturday or when we shared an awkward elevator ride and exchanged looks accampanied by greetings with long pauses.<br />
<br />
After about 4 - 5 months of living there one of the families moved out, the ones that lived above me. The entire building smelled like cigarettes and pee for about a good fortnight. Also the family that lived below me move out later that same month, I cannot remember when exactly it was but I know it was the same month because I had a series of out of town trips that month. Anyway now comes the interesting part.<br />
<br />
The guy that moved into the apartment below me was very strange each time we met around the staircase he would either go back into this apartment and wait till he heard the front door of the building close (I tested this theory so I know I am right) or rush either down or up the stairs (I knew he was rushing because he nearly tripped and fell a few time). The funny thing is that our schedules seem to have been synced and we met often. I would greet and he would ignore or mumble something.<br />
<br />
Later on I found out he was a neo-nazi and he was actually on a poster in the neighborhood as a "watch out" neo-nazi in our midst kind of thing. Again I was not rattled but rather bewildered as to why he did not attack me, I wanted to ask but decided it is best not to poke the teddy bear ;).<br />
<br />
Ohh I nearly forgot, there was a fight that happened a few days before the family that lived above me moved out. It was a weekend when I was home alone and my roommates had all traveled, yes it was Easter, that's it. I was being all laid back and king of the castle having a series marathon, eating junk foood and drinking beer mode, when all of a sudden there was loud banging on my apartment door. Man oh man, I took a broom stick went to the door, the moment I opened the door the guy apologized and ran up a floor. That was when the entire altercation occurred, all I heard were things falling over and something about somebody sleeping with somebody's woman etc... They were audible but not comprehensible as they spoke a Saxonian Dialect that to date I can merely pick out some words.<br />
<br />
This continued for about 30 mins, the next thing that followed was the breaking sound of glass and what seemed to be a huge thunder (I guess it was a supplex slam to the floor). Outside my apartment door I heard somebody running down the stairs, it turned out to be the woman that they were talking about I presumed because she was outside calling the man that was banging on my door to go down the stairs so they could leave. After about 1 -2 mins the gentleman left as well.<br />
<br />
That was the last I saw of either one of them. I now ask myself what would I have done with a broom stick hehehehehehehehe<br />
<br />
I told ya'll it was some interesting stuff.<br />
<br />
Laterz,<br />
<br />
G!shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-41885702934164266122014-09-20T07:52:00.005-07:002016-03-14T01:42:25.111-07:00Namibia; home where the rooster crows<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="DE">Hi Ya’ll,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
I have been rather
silent of late. It is partly because of laziness and because I moved back to
#Namibia. I move towards the middle of last month and needed some time adjust.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Being home is awesome,
I must say that my time here started on a high note and that could be a
contributing factor on why I think that being home rocks. Firstly seeing my
Family is the most amazing feeling that I cannot put in words. It is a feeling
of homeliness if that is even a word. Don’t get me wrong I enjoyed my time in
Germany and Europe but for some reason I always felt like there was something
missing. I guess I now know what it is. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
My first week I spent
in the capital #Windhoek, were I joined the last minute preparations for a
cousins wedding. Now this was the start of my party time here. It was filled
with family and friends alike. I loved being part of this wedding because I got
to see some family members I have not seen in almost 7 years. Additionally it
was a good way to ease into the Namibian lifestyle again. Most importantly my I
gained another cousin… yay <span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
The following week I
had to rush to the village as there was another party my parents organized in
celebration of my dads retirement. That was the start of the hectic travelling
and all the work that comes with organizing a party without the help of an
events company.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
On the very day I
arrived I have to get a 4x4 and drive to the farm to go collect bull to be
slaughtered, there is no party in Namibia without an abundance of meat. I
arrived on the farm at about 02:00 am because I was partially lost. It has been
a while since I had gone there. Additionally the new Okongo to Rundu road makes
travelling easier whereas I have been used to driving via Cassablanca and
through the dusty road of Luwaya. Okay these are all excuses for being lost, if
my friend JD reads this post he will laugh as he says I get lost easily, well I
do but just is towns such as Mannheim that have mathematical puzzles for
streets. The streets of Mannheim are like Cell References in Microsoft Excel!<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Anyway I had to pick
up the bull in the morning and drove back to the village the very same day. Upon
arrival I was alone and had to figure out a way to keep the bull secured (Because,
if you let it go it will run away and you would have to go look for it; more unnecessary
work). If it were up to me I would’ve dropped it off at an abitour and picked
but the packed meat, but noo we had to kill it ourselves at home. Well don’t
get me wrong I have no quelms about slaughtering animals for consumption, I just
think some of the leg work could be avoided by utilizing the facilities that
already exist.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
In a nutshell though
Namibia has made major strides towards development, we still stick to many of
our roots especially when it comes to how we slaughter cattle. On this alone
there is a whole blog series I could write about. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
As the days proceeded
and the preparations drew to a close, most the family member that were to
attended showed up. Man did I miss them, this is what home is all about,
laughter filled the air especially during the night when everybody was hurdled
around the fire eating grilled meat and telling stories of how the past few
years have been since we last spoke.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
It somehow still
amazes me how close I still felt to most of my family members. I mean for some
it felt like I haven’t seen them for about 5 – 10 years yet after speaking to
them for 30 minutes if feels as though we only last met a day ago. I missed
this feeling when I was in Germany. I guess that is why we have the saying “Keimbo
okeimbo” which translates to “home is home”.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Anyway as all the
people left the house started to feel more empty and only my parents and the
residents of dads home were l left (In my culture the house belongs to the man not
to both husband and wife). Routine kicked in, we would all be awake before the
rooster crows, as traditionally young people are to be out of their bedrooms
before the sun rises. I would go check if all the cows slept in the kraal the
night before and walk around the fence to see what needs mending and everybody
else has their own tasks to do. The little ones pick up plastic and other
rubbish that might have been swept into the homestead overnight and after that
go feed the chickens. Mom would always be awake preparing her morning soup (yum).
Once the sun was well up we would all converge and have breakfast together and
discuss the chores for the day.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
That is the village
life I enjoy it so much but I had to leave to come make a living in the city. I
can’t wait for the day I go back home for another visit. Notice I said home,
that is because for me, the village is HOME.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Now the city life is beckoning
and I have just realized that it is very difficult to get around inn Windhoek
without your own car. For this reason I am busy fixing GiGi which is my 1953
Volkswagen beetle. I can’t wait till she recovers from this slump. Roam the
city we shall <span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span>.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Well I will update
this part of my life often (I know I skipped all the details about the party,
that is deliberate because there is simply just too much to tell and telling a
story half is worse than not telling at all.) <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Laterz,<o:p></o:p></div>
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G!<o:p></o:p></div>
shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1208488741289386968.post-56981603178355981842014-09-20T07:27:00.002-07:002016-03-14T01:42:25.124-07:00Cattle Ranching in Namibia<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Hi ya’ll,</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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I am not sure if I have mentioned
this before but I come from a farming family and that means that I spent a lot
of my childhood on a farm. What is with the intro dude?<o:p></o:p></div>
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Well, today I aim at giving a
little insight on what it is like to farm in Namibia. Namibia is a semi-desert
land that is about 2.3 times the size of Germany. The rainfall in not
dependable and for the past few years we have been experiencing weird climatic
changes. From over-flooded to rains not coming at all. The majority of
Namibians are pastoral and tend to farm on communal land that has been assigned
to them during the Apartheid era of Namibia’s history (The apartheid government
created homelands that did not belong to the people and they merely rented the
land and paid and annual tax – which is still done to date- that is how they
forced most people to work on farms etc. *This according to my grand neighbor
in the village*).<o:p></o:p></div>
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These lands are on fertile soil
but the dependence on rain means that the land is only used during the rainy
season. That also means that the grass only grows ones per year and the farmers
must make do with what is available. The crops they grow are mostly for
subsistence purposes and selling is only done during some bartering
transactions for meat or other necessities. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The animals they keep are cattle,
goats, pigs, donkeys, sheep, chickens, and in some cases horses and turkeys. As
of last year my village was severely affected by one of the worst droughts that
my country has seen in 30 years. When I was studying in Germany I often heard
stories of how bad it was, but being that my people tend to exaggerate I
thought it being wolf’s cry. Seeing first-hand how some of my neighbors has been
reduced it only brings sadness to my heart being that most men depended on
those cattle as in my culture a man’s wealth and social status is often
partially attributed to the number of cattle he has. Some have been reduced
from a flock of 20 to a mere 3 -6. Being that having such a small number of
cattle is seen as demeaning in a way, they give it to other men that have more
cattle and those that send their cattle away can say that their flock has gone
for feeding elsewhere where the area is less affected. Thus saving face.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Any way to cut a long story
short, most cattle ranching operations are done on communal land. The small
scale commercial farmers that are north of a so called red-line are suffering
the most. The redline is a line that was also established by the apartheid
government as a way to control disease that originates from Angola and Northern
Namibia apparently. However my opinion is that it was put there to keep the
prices of the black farmers that are mostly on the negative side of the "redline" lower than those of the white farmers that occupy the lands that are in the
most productive area (receives the highest rainfall) of the country. It baffles
me that this law has been in place until recent times but the Law Reform
Society of Namibia is doing us some justice. For them I take my hat off.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Well the bottom line of this post
is that, even though it seems cattle ranching in Namibia is a dream; it is not.
It is for the passionate and it takes guts and perseverance. The unfavorable
climatic conditions of the country take the practice to new levels of
difficulty.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Laterz,<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<b>G! </b><o:p></o:p></div>
shingapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17433600558043799803noreply@blogger.com0