Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls, Dogs, Goldfish, Reptiles and Cats (with or without pipes).  This Thursday and Friday the time it comes for you to vote, for your Student President of The Dundee School of Computing.

A simple and beautifully lazy method of voting this shall be, suited to us, computer scientists.  Elections will be online, and all we’ll have to do is logon to my dundee and click a button.  But who??? Who shall one vote for???  Well of course, I know who I think you should vote for.  Please, allow me to tell you about the candidate that is me, Andy Barratt.

Truth be told, I’m already doing this job.  As Year Rep for first year I’ve been approached on several occassions not just by first years, but by members of all years and staff.  Whether it be issues that have appeared, or even praise that has been wanted to be passed onto staff, I’ve devoted my time to doing this for you.

I don’t only attend staff student meetings, I try to keep a good relationship with all staff to be able to approach them at anytime.  Due to this I’ve been able to speak directly with staff about all sorts of topics.  From issues with grading inconsistancies, concerns about lack of space in labs and even, though unfortunately, issues with students being bullied by other students.

If you choose to vote for me as Student President, I’ll be able to attend School Board Meetings, work alot closer with DUSA (Dundee University Student Association) and therefore have a much better understanding of what’s happening throughout the School and University.  This will make helping you alot easier.

I guess what I’m saying is this.  I’m going to always strive to help at the School of Computing.  I’m always going to be available to talk to and I’m always going to work to make things better for you.  However, if you do choose to vote for me, Andy Barratt, this Thursday and Friday, my helping you will be made an awful lot easier.

Thanks for your time.

Andy Barratt

1st Year Class Rep

p.s.  Still not sure who Andy Barratt is?  Visit my website, it’s a portal to my twitter, facebook, blog and even me acting a fool with a wooden fish on youtube.  Delve into my life at www.andybarratt.co.uk

p.p.s. I’m open to all topic of questions, just shoot.

A few people have been asking me what arduino is. My response is this, arduino is anything.

An open source language combined with a low cost micro computer the technology called arduino which can be hooked up to sensors, lights, buzzers, speakers, other computers, mobile phones, internet connections and so much more. It comes in different forms such as basic chips and flexible boards that can be sewn into clothing.

There’s a workshop today at 2 in the user centre, queen mother building. So if you want to make a coat that flashes messages across you with your gruesome chat up lines, or if you want to make a rover that roams through disaster zones and monitors survivors vital signs, we hope to see you there. All ready I’m meeting people who have hooked up their sofa to inform twitter when they’ve sat down.

Make anything you want. Two hours is all it takes to get you started. See you there.

Most classes have been cancelled and most buildings are closed.  Yet Dundee University is amok with students.  The snows that were nearly all melted have been replaced by a shower that having started in the early hours of the morning has only just yielded in the last few minutes.

The green outside the union is overlooked by a snowman towering higher than any student in attendance, having been constructed by dozens of large snowballs, each three times the size of a bowling ball.  Here in the warmth of the School of Computing, an individual cannot walk to the shop without the compulsory snow ball fight as some form of right of way.  Though the lack of classes, the campus is busier than ever.

A group of half a dozen roll by a snowball bigger than themselves with great care not to get trapped underneath.  They struggle with the ball as they get it onto the green where after a great war of snow, the massive structure cracks in two.  No spirit is lost as one student shouts “that can be the head” and the mass is turned into another figure to observe the days goings on.

Planned events come and go weekly on campus, but this unscheduled extravaganza has attracted more than any other will, at least until next snowfall.

What if I don’t want scientifically formulated?  What if I want randomly formulated?

“This one will cut right through kitchen grease, but this one here tastes great with flame grilled beef!”

It is the fourth day of Advent and I’m eating a cream egg.  A most delicious cream egg it is too, why am I in such a good mood you may be asking.  Well, other that the cream egg and the fact that it’s coming up to Christmas, I’ve just ordered a brand new MacBook, this means that the poor little iBook G4 that I’m currently typing on will soon be going into retirement, off to the computer after life, or as the case may be, my wife.

So how, I hear you scream, could I possibly afford a brand new Apple MacBook 2.4Ghz?  Well it seems that the university believe I require it for my studies due to various aspects of my Aspergers Syndrome, a mental difficulty that I have and rarely speak of though it seems to merit a post when it wins me a finely achitectured laptop.  Merry Christmas to me, my mind is saying.  It’s like a sorry present, sorry you’re a weirdo that everyone hates, have a MacBook… ok then :-D

Sitting at my computer desk, the phone rings. This results in a mad rush as I run around, finding the controls to turn down the music. I pick up the phone and answer.

No one replies and so I repeat myself in case they didn’t hear me, nothing. Now a little frustrated, I start to conclude that it’s the third silent auto call of the week, then it beeps. With a minor amount of unmentionable language I start running about again trying to remember how to start the long forgotten fax machine. I get there and find the clever little thing has already brought itself out of its long hibernation and is happily purring away as it takes receipt of the fax.

After a couple of minutes, I realise, this fax was not meant for me.

I am presented with two pages, they contain a ladies name, her address, her telephone number, her bank account number, her sort code. Everything I’d need to set up some rather profitable bank transfers. At first I’m thinking that this is some sort of scam, then with careful reading I see that this was meant for a bank in Dundee, my hometown.

The first thing that occurred to me was that I should call the lady who’s bank account this belonged to. I did after all have her name and telephone number. On the end of the line is the ladies son, a gentleman setting up telephone banking for his elderly mother. He explains to me that the bank has been messing around and making mistakes all round but of course, he never expected them to be sending his mothers bank account details to random strangers living on the Hilltown. We arrange for me to send him the worrying paper work and so the matter is in his hands.

But it leaves me wondering. This is just one isolated incident, how many more have their been? How many more will there be? How many people could see my bank details and how many people would just ignore them?

Tayside House

Originally uploaded by Andy Paul Barratt

My favourite shot so far.

Hidden tower

Originally uploaded by Andy Paul Barratt

Dundee was swallowed for days by the haar. It’s spooky having your city completely hidden from sight for days on end.

I haven’t written for a while, here. This is due to the fact that I’ve been writing a novel. It’s one of those things everyone’s supposed to do at some point in their life so I figured that seeing as my life has been moving so fast I may as well do all the things your supposed to do before thirty, before twenty five. So, I’ve got five years, I’ve figured I could finish a novel in a month or two and work on learning a foreign language before abseiling down some popular landmark, once I’ve got the vertigo sorted of course. Look out for my new book though, coming soon, once I find someone stupid enough to publish it.

Nothing… nothing happened, just, nothing… absolutely, nothing, happened… nothing.

The above has been a review by Andy Barratt of the motion picture Garden State.