Why "Scalars"?
Why did I create this page?
A few Thank You's
Background information and technical stuff
Finding a name for this web page was probably the biggest stumbling block in a long line of stumbling blocks. In fact, it was weeks after I first conceptualized the idea of breaking the page into four central themes ("me" "you" "us" "them") that I decided upon "Scalars."
I use the word 'scalar' in the broadest of senses. When searching for the all-elusive perfect title, I tried and tried to find some term that would somehow connect the four themes. I was spitting stuff out left and right (like 'divisions' and 'communities' and 'blocks'), but nothing stuck. Then, finally, it happened. It took me a night of intense study in math to finally discover a scalar.
Scalar, in the sense that it is taught in math in physics classes, is just some quantity that can be multiplied to a system without changing the basic structure of the system. For instance, the equation "y = 2x + 4" is the same as "2y = 4x + 8", with the only difference being that the second equation was multiplied by 2, a scalar.
And what does this have to do with designing a web page focused
on four themes? Well, while *trying* to study math I realized
that scalars can be seen in our own lives. Essentially, there
isn't much of a difference between me, you, us and them. The difference
is just a matter of numbers. For example, I, when grouped with
a few others, become "us." I'm still the same, but yet
I'm different. You might be a part of "us", too, or
maybe you're a stranger, alone, or maybe even part of "them."
And perhaps some of "us" also stand apart as members
of "them." I think everything is related very strongly.
We stay the same, but our factors are continuously changing.
There are three reasons why I felt the need to create a minute
niche in the far reaches of cyber-space. No reason is concretely
the most important. Rather, on different days each of the three
reasons carry different weights.
Partly, I designed a web page to challenge myself. I've always
been annoyed at knowing how many of my friends have pages…
which always left me feeling like I was a fool for not being able
to do the same. When it reached a point where everyone (including
everyone's kindly grandmother) had a page, I decided I might as
well join the crowd. So I learned how to create HTML documents.
And I touched up on my artistic skills. And I learned how to make
it all accessible to the general public by putting my page on
a server. So I finally did something about it.
That's not enough to make a page, though. I would never spent so much time on a project that wasn't graded or evaluated if I didn't have a deeper purpose behind it. My aspiration behind "Scalars" was to make myself more expressive. One of the biggest qualms I have with myself is that I feel that only rarely do I adequately express who I am. Most people don't know me fully, even after spending a lot of time with me. I'm both frustrated and disappointed at myself when I think about it. Maybe "Scalars" will let people have a more complete view into me and my world. At least I hope it will accomplish this.
Finally, creating "Scalars" has been an amazing healing
process. After losing a very important part of my life last year,
I felt very disenchanted from the people around me. I had a very
hard time discerning my own values and the friendships and acquaintances
I've built over my entire lifetime. Hence, "Scalars"
took on a form that let me evaluate my relationships with my friends
and family and everyone else I know. I spent a lot of time thinking
about the bonds between people; how easily bonds can be strengthened,
or twisted and re-forged, or shattered. So I let myself explore
everything that I had been burying.
Many more people than I could possibly thank helped me out during the design process of "Scalars", giving me feedback about readability, visual appearance, and even suggesting additions to the page. All their input was and still is greatly appreciated.
However, there are a few people who I'd like to distinctly thank. First, my roommate from last year, Jacob Lipman, and his girlfriend, Aliza Reder, for putting up with me while I was deeply engrossed on the computer. Many a night did I spend hoarding the phone line and just plain being a third wheel. I hope they didn't mind too much!
My two best friends, Scott Harper and David Doherty, need some mentioning, too. You won't be seeing much of them around these pages, but that's only because there is only two known pictures in existence of the three of us together. As you might guess, I don't have access to either. Anyway, they've been close friends for numerous years now (David since first grade, Scott since seventh), and if it weren't for there influence on my life, much of "Scalars" would be entirely different. Long live "The Loser's Club."
A few other "Thank You's", if you don't mind: to Julie and Kavita for housing me this past summer, to the Taco Bell corporation for their continued support, and to Lara, as she walked all the way beside me, and then turned 180 degrees and high tailed it.
More seriously, I have to thank my girlfriend Michele. (I'm sorry
my dear, the word is out now.) Not only has she put up with me
since eighth grade, but she's also actually begun to like me!
To spare myself from any random copyright law, I'd like to state that everything was conceptualized, designed, and created solely by myself, unless otherwise noted.
Here's an answer key if you can't figure out what the backgrounds are on each of the sections: Me = hand prints; You = eyeballs; Us = interlocking hands; Them = crowd. The backgrounds for Begin and Main are just backgrounds, plain and simple.
All graphic files are either saved in the .GIF or .JPG format. No graphic exceeds 50 k. Sound files are in the .WAV format. No sound file exceeds 27 k. Basically, all files are small enough to display quickly using at 14.4 kbs modem.
If anyone is interested, I created this web page through both the use of a Macintosh Quadra 840 AV and a Packard-Bell Pack-Mate 5400CDT.
All photos were scanned on an HP ScanJet IIcx. Photo editing was done through both Adobe Photo Shop 2.5 and Corel Graphics 6. Sounds were recorded and manipulated through Microsoft Windows 95 Sound Recorder. The typeface used for the headers is OCR A Extended, provided by Corel Graphics 6. HTML code was helped by Internet Assistant for Microsoft Word 2.0.
This page lives and breathes under one megabyte on the Open Computer Facilities' server, located at the University of California, Berkeley.
And that's about it!