13 years of Primary and Secondary education is hardly worth blogging about, but the first week of university after 13 years of the same thing is undoubtedly interesting by any scale.

And so my first week of university concluded yesterday (Friday). It is always a little hard to get back into a weekly routine after three months of well-deserved vacation. And also, the first lectures in every subject are about the same introductory information. The first week is also a great time to join an interest club/society, meet new people, and to explore the campus.

Macquarie Uni is right next to the shopping centre, which makes it easy for me to walk right over and have cheap lunch. Also good for killing time between lectures.

And to sweeten it all, I have Mondays off. Which makes it very convenient to cram study in catch up sleep.

I hope 2010 goes well for all of you.

Recently there’s been lots of commentary and criticism about location social networks and services such as Google Latitude, Foursquare and Loopt. A website called Please Rob Me set up this week has aggregated users’ tweets from Foursquare and reported these users as not being at home. The point they are getting across is that when one broadcasts their location, they also tell their followers that they are not at home.

Initially Foursquare has responded to the site with this blog post. The main point it tries to convey is that your data is only broadcast within your group of Foursquare friends, unless you choose otherwise. Many users choose to broadcast their locations on Facebook and Twitter, which is the feature that Please Rob Me is trying to exploit as the weak point of one’s privacy.

I’d like to point out a few things about the use of these social networks that emphasise users’ control of their own data.

First, it’s pretty obvious that you are responsible for what you put on the internet, and that when information is public, it is effectively out of your control. You have the choice of revealing your home or not, obviously. Thus this is where Please Rob Me fails. If people don’t share their home information, then telling people where you are is not a problem.

Second, and to build the case against Please Rob Me, you can control what your network of friends can see. Facebook allows you to control what information is seen by who. Foursquare gives you the option of broadcasting your location to Facebook friends and/or Twitter followers. It is up to the user to decide how comfortable they are with sharing their location. It surprises me how much people are sharing about themselves unknowingly.

On a side note, someone asked me whether I trusted everyone in my Facebook friend list. Well the answer is yes. The reason is, that I don’t add ‘randoms’ and I know exactly who is on my friend list. I have a policy when it comes to adding friends on my list, and I do trust them with my location information.

This forces the user to be aware about the information they share, and be smart about it. For example, I know exactly how many people have access to my home address. Please Rob Me essentially is a wake up call to those who share liberally.

But let’s look at the other side of this argument: the benefits of location social networks.

The obvious benefit is that you are able to see whether your friends are near you, so you can meet up and do cool stuff together. Foursquare’s points system encourages you to explore your city, and meet up with friends too.

Another reason who location social networks are useful, is to let someone know where you are. I have used Latitude for this purpose before.

So to sum up, the user is in control of their information, it is up to them to decide how comfortable they are sharing different types of information, and also to be aware of who the information is reaching.

What’s interesting is that at the start of every year, we say that the year ahead will be the best one has ever seen. It begins to wear off about 20 years after (you don’t see older people make such a claim do you?) but for now the statement still holds.

2009 has been a fantastic year. I’ve finished Year 12, that’s something. Next year begins the next step of many steps into this wide world of ours.

I’m not a fan of talking about the past. Although I do it often, looking back on it, it has been a very foolish act. Instead, now I will talk about the future more often.

I guess this is what many people do at this time, in the form of New Year’s Resolutions. (Mine will come tomorrow)

But for now, I’m here to tell you what I’ll be doing differently next year. It’s not a big thing, but it has a big impact.

Tell the truth.

Yes, it’s that simple. This past year, I’ve realised that in order to please others, the truth had to be manipulated in some way.

From now on, it’s the raw truth, whether you like it or not. It is undesirable to see a web of lies and cover-ups cloud one’s thoughts and judgement. It is undesirable for one to believe that everything is okay. Nothing is perfect, it shouldn’t be. After all, if the world was perfect, there would be nothing to make us think.

Obviously someone or something will be upset or disturbed by truth in any case. This is not a concern, because when such truth is divulged, it teaches one to deal with the consequence of the truth and to move on.

It is not right for someone to influence or dictate the direction of one’s thoughts or life. Everyone is unique and this is what preserves the diversity in society.

Thank you for reading my blog in 2009, and a Happy New Year to you all.

Apologies for the lack of posts recently.

Last night was Barker’s speech night, and my last speech night.

Speech night has become known for the exhaustive prize list, Year 12 antics during the prize giving, and of course the Headmaster’s (herein referred to as K) speech.

What we have come to love about K’s speech is the length (purported to have been 40 minutes one year, but this year’s was 21 minutes long), the content (has ranged from famous men, to Canadian mountains), and the relevance to Barker ways (interpretations can vary). The evening and the day after speech night the intertubes are abuzz about the choice of subject, the relevancy and overall, whether the speech was good or not!

(For the record, this year’s speech was 21 minutes long which focused on three influential men: Galileo Galilei, Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin and their perseverance to reach their goals. The relevance (as interpreted by some people) was questionable.)

Next on the list, Year 12 antics. This year’s Year 12 has been very supportive of each other, as was evident in the various call outs during the prize giving. Most memorable was Willo’s standing ovation, for his magnificent achievements. There were a few others, including the frenzied call out for Jono Chung’s prizes and Jono Mui’s additional handshake.

Now I’ll talk about why I’ve called this an Illusionary Speech Night (for Year 12s).

Firstly, the prize winners are selected on the performance in the school assessments which count for 50% of the final HSC mark. While these people are to be congratulated, and for some will represent what they achieved in the written Board of Studies exams, not everyone who wins on speech night will ‘win’ in their HSC results. To ‘win’ is to win in the relative sense, which means it is different for each person.

The real ‘prize’ will be one’s individual HSC results, which, at time of writing, will be released in one week. Only then will one know whether they have won or not.

Looking down the track, the real ‘prize’ will be the contribution one makes to this changing world. The real ‘prize’ will be the consequences, good or bad, of the path that one takes. The real ‘prize’ will be the satisfaction that you will have gained from making a difference, whether officially recognised or not.

It was good seeing you all again.

After writing the last post, I remembered that I had two more things to say.

1. Everyone is saying, “Make sure you thank your teachers for all the hard work they have done for you.” Well, the best way to thank them is to gain the best possible result in the HSC exams. They’ll be happy that their hard work has paid off, and you will be happy that you have a great result.

2. It’s almost a week since that wonderful last day of school. There are probably many thank you messages that you didn’t write on people’s shirts that morning. May I suggest that you hand-write letters to these people. I know I am…

All the best for HSC 2009.

This thought has been niggling me for the past day, and I wanted to get this off my chest.

So yesterday was the last day of school. The day began with a meet at Wahroonga Park, then a train ride to Waitara and finally a scooter ride from the station to school.

First off, I’d like to say that it was fantastic photographing you all. There are some great pictures of the most important day this year. It felt great documenting this wonderful day.

Second, I’m rather happy that this year’s celebrations didn’t produce any police cases, lawsuits and major injuries. Thinking about it, it was probably the best type of Year 12 celebration. At least we didn’t vandalise or damage school property or steal a car or something like that.  All we did was disrupt traffic for a very short time, and that’s the best possible outcome.

It’s not often that we get an opportunity to do something like this. So as every old saying goes, “Make the most of it.”

And we did.

Tomorrow is my last day of high school.

Being at Barker for 10 years (since the beginning) is no mean feat. There have been so many fantastic experiences over the years. There have been so many friendships made, changed, and broken. There were the good times, and the bad times. And we’ve all been through it all. Together as one. As the Class of 2009.

Many of us have planned to do so much in these last few weeks. However in reality, only a fraction of these things have been done. For me, it is physically and mentally impossible to do what I had planned in the space of a week. There are so many people to thank, so many people to recognise and yes, so many people to hug.

Tomorrow will be filled with many emotions. I know that some of us, myself included, will get a bit teary. I think it’s normal though. School has made up a majority of our lives, in the grand scheme of things. It has dictated and directed many minutes of the days. It will be interesting to see how life progresses without this.

I still have so much more to say, but now I must rest.

For those who don’t know: Last Thursday 27 August, a girl in Year 11 died whilst skiing at Perisher Valley yesterday. Please read this SMH article to understand what is written below. Tomorrow, I’ll write an analysis of today’s media coverage.

Today, we witnessed a tragedy, spirit and camaraderie. The events of today were attended by all, many with tears in their faces. Many of us didn’t know her personally, but we all shared the grief of today.

It is hard to comprehend something that is usually not associated with youth. Especially when it is so close to home.

This morning began with a memorial service, attended by Year 11 in the Chapel. Many who were there knew Amelia well. Many in Year 12 also knew her and remembered her elsewhere. Television and radio news media were outside the Chapel covering the service.

The first half of today was a time of remembrance; coming to terms with what had happened. Flowers lined the steps of the Chapel following the service. Flags flew at half mast, almost a grave symbol in itself. Many took the option of not taking class for part of the day.

By the afternoon the mood had lightened, but was still solemn, a party mix of lollies assisting. Most Year 11 and 12 students had gone home.

It is now evening, and Facebook statuses continue to pay tribute to what was a full, active life tragically cut short. Messages of support have also been passed on to friends and families down at Perisher Valley.

Rest in Peace, Amelia.

Tomorrow (Friday) is the deadline for HSC English Extension 2 major works. As part of their work, a reflection statement is written to, supposedly, ‘reflect’ on the major work they have composed. This week, the phrase has been uttered many times, in different ways, expressions and the like.

Given that Year 12 finish school in a matter of weeks, I took this phrase and thought, “What has been great about this part of my life?” I am, of course, referring to the last 12 months or so of high school.

I really want people to reflect on what has been great in the last year, in the last three years, or in my case, the last 10 years at Barker. The next few weeks, free of assessments and exams, are a great time to pause and reflect. There are other things we can think about too:

• As above, your time in high school
• Friendships and relationships
• Contributions you have made to a group e.g. choir, rugby team, debating team
• Personal achevements academically, socially, etc.

And also especially for you all:

• Your sense of belonging over the past year
• What you have done to change yours or others’ sense of belonging
• Initiatives you have started to affect others’ belonging

I think that this a good way to realise what achievements you have made over the last year, and will give an insight into what lies ahead. Life sometimes throws too much at us. Everyone needs a way to release and understand what’s going on. This is just one way to do just that.

Happy reflecting!

Six weeks ago, many of us never thought that this day would come. For the last two weeks, I and everyone in year 12 have had trial examinations. These are the final school assessments before the HSC exams in October.  I must say, that even with all the hype surrounding Trial exams, everyone handled it quite well. As with the last exam period, I went around motivating everyone (and myself) to do the best we can. On the library wall, there is a poster that says:

The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trials.

For those who are wondering, yes, I put that up. I felt that it was rather witty concerning the last two weeks.

And now, we are all celebrating the end of these exams with drinks all round. I’m happy that everyone’s happy.

I’m also happy to say that a massive creative burst is on the table. You’ll see a lot more posts about lots of things very soon. Now, I’m celebrating.