Do Not Read This Title

Had a talk with guy from UTAS and it looks like I'll be doing "some units" of coursework (depending on how much credit I can get) to complete a GD and then a 6 month thesis to get a MA.

The "problem" is I should be "doing units that will lay the foundations for the MA component (minor thesis) in a specific area." Fairly obviously, the "specific area" would be Australian, most likely Tasmanian (Louise at the museum is keen to find me relevant topics :) history but the list of relevant units offered next year is, um, a little light in that area.

In fact I seem to have a choice of:

* Australia 1788 to 1901 (by distance)

Or, by special arrangement,

* Nineteenth Century Tasmania

So I went and looked at some related websites. Not usuable sources and not contradictory, although some of them added details in interesting places, but different enough to stimulate ideas about how I can order the material I have to use. We have inspiration.

Also found this, which is rather cool if you're into really old books http://www.bl.uk/treasures/treasuresinfull.html & http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/ttp/digitisation.html

Final quiz for first year history unit is done! (For a score of 14/15, even though I'd only read about half two-thirds of the material for this one.) So I'm done with that unit.

All I have now is an essay for the archaeology unit and I am all done. Yah. And all done on time, even early. (Except the quiz for the archaeology unit, which I thought had to be done at the end of May. On the timetable for the unit, the end weeks for the last topics are this week & next week, but the quiz which covers all the topics including one we didn't do, had to be done by 9th May. I'm sure this makes sense somewhere.)

Anyway, my main aim for this semester was to get all the assignments done on time, because by biggest worry about studying externally was that I wouldn't have the motivation to get the work done on time.

Essay has to be printed out and posted today. All ready to do.

Except, printer is printing blank pages no matter what I do to it.

So, I'll take it in somewhere and have it printed out.

Except, floppy disks have all disappeared.

No matter. I have a pile of CD-Rs.

Except in the middle of writing a CD, the DVD-Writer spits it and now just wants to sit in the corner and make weird noises.

*sigh*

But I found some floppies in the bottom of a desk drawer. From this century too. So I copied my PDF file onto two of them and went into Officeworks.

Officeworks' Printworks computers no longer have floppy drives.

All right, I have to pick up something from Regal Press (printing company) around the corner, maybe they can print them out. They're happy to and take one of my foppy disks upstairs.

And can't read the file. They try emailing it themsevles with no luck. The second floppy doesn't work either.

But there is one more thing to try. I go into one of the new computer shops that advertised Internet access and ask if I can download a PDF from the Internet and print it out. Yes, I put a copy of this file on my website and emailed it myself, at two different addresses.

The guy at the counter says "Sure." And my essay finally gets printed out. Without any page numbers. :)






I am reminded of a computing assignment from years ago, which I was printing on our C64 at home. I had just 5 pieces of paper left, which was one more than I needed. Then the cat came along, threw two of those pieces of paper into the air and stuck her claws through them.