Whim Tech: A Retrospective
Kevin Martin | Tech Manager
| Published 12/12/03
Graphic By: John Cordiano
Four Seasons. Four "Whim" seasons translates to
two years for most of us. For four Whim Seasons I've served a dual role at
Whim as the "Resident Geek" and as the "Head Geek." If anyone has any doubts
about how fast things move in the technology world, let's take a moment to
reflect over what Whim Tech has evaluated and reviewed in the last 2 years.
Season 10; Fall 2001
While I was just a Resident Geek during this season, I happily produced a
lot of content. During this season the Motorola Star Tac 3700 was
standard-issue for high-end cellular users. The Creative Nomad MP3 player
was popular with the high-budget crowd (only $354 for 20gb). The Nomad was
the size of a standard Discman. Fast forward to today's iPod, and you see a
great change. æThe battle between Palm and Handspring was just starting to
heat up. Palm's m505 was top of the line, but I would have been happy with
the Visor Pro. It has 16Mb of memory and the glory of a monochrome screen.
Instant Messaging took a leap forward in this season with the infamous
"Smarter Child" appearing.
Season 11: Spring 2002
From adjunct Geek to Head Geek in the few weeks of Christmas Break, I began
my journey as a Whim "God" and author of "Ask The Geek." During this season
of Whim, Dell computer released the C400, a remarkable compact laptop. It
proved to be popular. In a publicity stunt turned public education, Whim
Tech hosted it's first ever "Breast Technologies Week." For this edition,
Priya created what I consider one of the most beautiful
graphics ever made for Whim. There have been many artistic and creative
ones, but none were quite this beautiful. It was during this season that the
"next step" in mp3 players was reviewed. The Rio Riot offered the same ole
20gb as the Nomad but included FM Radio and rechargeable batteries. æ
Season 12: æFall 2002
With a full semester as "Head Geek" under my belt, the Tech section grew in
ways that only experience can cause. Writers were offered incentives to
write, and new frontiers were forged. Ask The Geek and SFYA returned, and a
new cast of Tech writers appeared at Whim. John Cordiano (later to become
Executive Director), Brice Hutchings (later to become Asst. Tech Manager),
and Nick Pietron (later to become Vent Manager and Tartan
Editor) all contributed to Tech's growth. Perhaps the most amusing content
came from Jonelle Thackston, whom I blackmailed ("Write for me, or I'll
quit!"). Also this season we saw the first of Andrew Kinback's Sex Toys
reviews (a "taboo" topic that rattled administrators), and at last the
review of the i-Pod. The i-Pod made the Creative and Rio products look
pathetic. Amanda Hoffer won the Tech Prolific Writers contest with her
weekly column. Her dedication and a very similar effort of Jonelle Thackston
were not overlooked.
Season 13: æSpring 2003
What was to be Whim's "Lucky 13" was more like Tech's Lucky 13. Increasing
the "bounty" of the Tech Prolific Writers Contest paid off. Tech published
over 90 original articles. The Handspring Prism was looked back on, and
Breast Technologies Week returned to a happy reception with sponsored bra
reviews. A small army of games came out and were reviewed, as were consumer
favorites such as the Casio PC Untie watch, P4 Processors, Final Draft Pro
and the cutting edge Palm Tungsten T. Kinback returned with more sex toys to
tease the masses with, while the more tame Thackston taught how to create
webpages in her weekly column. Once more, Tech plowed forward reviewing
technologies often left untouched by other mediums. Pet toys, water guns,
hybrid cars, sun block and even online shopping were covered. The work load
was enormous. Over 90 new, original articles were written in a single
semester by students. This was a feat I do not believe has ever been matched
by any other section of Student Media, regardless of the medium. Brice
Hutchings joined me as the Asst. Tech Manager. Brice worked tirelessly, not
only putting most of the articles into the necessary code for publication,
but he also continued writing. It's not possible to convey to Brice how much
I appreciated his help during this busy season. æ
Season 14: Fall 2003
A change in seasons brought a change in Whim's leadership. After five
seasons as the head of Whim (and several more seasons as Tech Manager),
Rachel Pastirik stepped down. Rachel's objective was to graduate at last,
something she'll do at the end of this semester. I'm envious, considering
that I started college before her but will graduate after her. John
Cordiano, who was formerly a lowly writer for Tech, was now in charge of the
whole ball game. Season 14 has turned out to be a "rest" season for Whim. I
returned once more with "Ask The Geek," while Amanda Hoffer continued her
SFYA saga and stepped into Brice's large shoes. Indeed, Season 14 has seen a
shift in reviews of PDA's and PDA software. Whim veteran Shaun Corley
stepped forward with a frequent column explaining Sci-Fi technologies to the
uninitiated. Another Whim "vet", Jenn Peterson returned with good news on
what exactly "On-Star" is.
Season 14 brought with it another "Prolific Writers Contest." Amanda Hoffer,
the champion for the previous two semesters, was barred from winning
"intermediate" prizes for being in the lead during random points in the
semester. Since she remained loyal as a puppy to Tech, I was spared having
to give out the intermediate prizes since it was always her or I who was in
the lead. Therefore it comes as no surprise that during her last semester at
RU and with Whim, she will take the honors of being my final Most Prolific
Writer Champion. Final? Yes. You see, this Geek is getting old and tired.
OK, so I've always been old and tired compared to most Whimmers. I am taking
a chapter out of Rachel Pastirik's book, and I am stepping down from my Whim
management position. Whim has new, fresh blood, a fresh look and a
leadership team who no longer needs hand-holding from a "seasoned vet."
What's more important is if I plan to make money and graduate, it's time to
focus in on the work and cut back on the "fun."
Yes, I just called Whim "fun." Even during the "infamous" Whim Wars of
Season 13, I still had fun. I enjoy my job very much and already am feeling
a little envious of whoever will take over my seat at the Whim executive
meetings. Don't fret though.... The Geek will return during Season 15 as
"Whim's Resident Geek" but not as "Whim's Resident Head Geek." Next
semester, I plan for more PDA and PDA software reviews, as well as some
other larger writing assignments that Whim Tech hasn't taken on since Season
3. What are these? Well, you'll have to read to find out, or join Whim's staff and hear all about them at the
staff meetings. While I can't announce who my replacement will be at this
time, I'm sure everyone will be relieved to not have to see my ugly face
every time they visit Whim Tech. If you, our loyal (very loyal if you are
still reading) readers, still want to see Ask The Geek in the new season, e-mail us, and let
us know! The final decision of Ask The Geek is in the hands of the new Tech
Manager and you, our loyal readers. Meanwhile, I will continue to fight my
war against technology ignorance and technological failures.
I have
enjoyed my time as the Head Geek at Whim, and I look forward to seeing Whim
Tech grow and prosper. Gen. McArthor said, "People of the Philippines, I
shall return!" I say "Loyal readers of Whim, I shall reboot!"
Happy Computing!
-- Kevin Martin is Whim's resident Geek. He is now
taking his war against technology failures and ignorance to new frontiers.
"Loyal people, I shall reboot!"
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