Section 1.

Week 4. Using ftp and telnet.
09/18/95
Curtis Nakao
Psy. 409
Dr. James

Section 2.

How difficult was this week's task?

Very easy 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Very hard
This week's rating= 9

How much negative emotions did it cost you, all in all?

Very little 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Very much
This week's rating= 8

How valuable for later use is this knowledge or skill going to be for you?

Not useful 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Very useful
This week's rating= 9

How likely is it that you'll be getting good at this week's tasks?

Not likely 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Very likely
This week's rating= 7

How Satisfied are you with the computer and Internet systems?

Not satisfied 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Very satisfied
This week's rating= 7

How hard did you try to get through this week's tasks?

Gave up 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Refused to give up
This week's rating= 7

Section 3.

This week's task got a lot easier thanks to my friend Kevin Jung. I asked him about how to use the ftp from home and he explained some of the changes that I needed in order to be able to use it from home. If you have a question and want to ask him, click HERE for his e-mail. The main reason that I could not get into the CSS server from home was because it was not listed as one of the ftp sites. I did not know that you had to add it to the list, but I do now because it is now on it.

How do you copy someone else's file? I tried to get into the other files from generation one the server said access denied. I went backwards through the directories but I could not get into the Psy. 409a files. I think that I may have to view the files in Netscape and then use the path from there. I will try that the next time that I will be in Netscape. Is there a shorter way?

Finally beginning to understand how to use ftp was released a great deal of pressure from my nearly exploding brain but not being able to copy someone else's file to complete the task almost brought it back to a nearly explosive level. I am beginning to get a little bit more apprehensive when trying to do things that I have not yet done before. I seem to be getting frustrated a lot quicker. If it does not work for me within a few tries, I get all riled up and have to quit for a little while before trying something else. I do eventually go back to the task at hand but it seems as though I am caught in a vicious cycle. I sure am looking forward to using Netscape again so that I can test out my new theory. I have got my fingers crossed for that one. But if I get stuck again, Dr. James and Kevin will be hearing from me.

I feel that this is one lesson that will be well learned. I do not know if altering someone else's file is really that ethical but if it possible to learn something by going through someone else's file I am all for it.

Now that I know how to use ftp, I can really see how valuable it can be to a person. It is much easier to move files from one place to another and you can collect other files, as long as it is legal, to add to your own.

I hope that I will be able to get much better at completing the tasks that are given because we are still pretty much in the beginning of our learning stage and at this point in time it does not look very promising for me. As long as there are open avenues for help and information, I should be able to get through it.

This section seems to have stabilized a little. I gain a little knowledge as well as a little frustration. The Internet system works just fine for me. I do not seem to have very many problems with it. It is just that fact that most of the computer systems that I have access to are much too slow. And a lot of the times that I am able to use my roommates computer, It usually takes a long time before I can logged on unless I stay up until the wee hours of the morning or get up extra early. Even that does not help when you still have to wait forever for the computer load and run the program. I also cannot seem to do as much as I would like because the constraints on my time are so tight. And thanks to the budget cuts, there are not as many opportunities for me to get on the computers to do my assigned tasks.

Yes, I am still waiting to get word on my new computer system. My uncle owns a little computer service center and is trying to help me get a good computer at the lowest possible price. After all, I am still a student who pays for his own education and car bills.

It was another trying week at the computer hoping to be able to break through and conquer the world of the computer and it's many resources. The ratings were a little lower than any of the previous weeks mainly due to the lack of available computer time. The technophobic stress reaction, my own new term, was beginning to get the best of me but I tried to press on as best I could. I do admit that I had given up quite a bit more often than I would have liked but everyone has their limits.

I cannot tell you for a fact whether or there were any really noticeable differences in any of the tasks because I was not able to do them. The ftp parts of the asks involved seemed relatively straight forward, but the inability to do any of the other tasks made this incomplete.

I feel like I should be able to write a book on how to feel lacunae. For the past two weeks I have been feeling quite the part. I mean, if everyone else can do it, why can't I? It is probably because everyone else asks a lot more questions than I do. I still have that hard headed mentality that if I work at it long enough, I should be able to figure it out. After this week though, I think that I will make a very definite and concerted effort to change that mind set. I now realize that in order to overcome my technological deficiencies, I have to try to sponge off of other people's knowledge.

I would say that learning how to use ftp could be considered a step in the right the direction but it still feels like for every step forward, I take a half a step back. I guess it is still considered forward motion, just a little bit slower than normal. Hopefully I will be able to get the rtftohtml conversion to work so I can post at least these first four weeks onto my Home Page. Now that would be another step forward and no backwards motion.

After this week's tasks and little bits of knowledge it looks likes I am finally going to start moving ahead. I am really going to seek more help in one way or another to try to catch up to everyone else. Wish me luck.

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