1. Q: What the hell is "mttlg" supposed to mean?
A: It's a creative way of condensing my name for a login. Take a look at my name - Matt Lug. Now take out the vowels. There you go.
2. Q: Why didn't you just use "mlug" "mattl" "mml" "mattlug" "matt" "lug" "lugm" or something like that?
A: Because I didn't want to. A creative person needs a creative login. Unfortunately, I'm not creative enough to come up with some cool alias (or take a name from a science fiction or fantasy book and claim it as my own), so I just played around with my name.
3. Q: Do you have a life outside of the internet?
A: Yes and no. I just finished school a little over a year ago, so I'm still working on unpacking and figuring out what my job is. Occasionally I write something and put it on my web site. I also travel about once a year and post pictures from the trips on this web site. Other than that, no, I do not have a life.
4. Q: Are there any pictures of you on this site?
A: Not that I know of. Pictures of me do exist, but I usually don't have them. The pictures of me that I do have I usually don't feel like putting on the web. Sorry. There hasn't really been any demand for pictures of me, so I don't think anyone is being inconvenienced. I have found a picture of me on the 2004 Democratic National Convention web site, but only as a dark figure in the corner of this picture.
5. Q: You need a girlfriend.
A: That position is currently filled.
6. Q: You seem like a really cool guy, can I be your girlfriend?
A: See above.
8. Q: Have you ever had any secret admirers who found you on the web?
A: Yes, one. Here's the message:
Received: from pyro.WPI.EDU (pyro.WPI.EDU [130.215.24.193]) by bigboote.WPI.EDU (8.7.1/8.7.1) with SMTP id UAA21014 for
Date: Mon, 09 Oct 95 20:14:56 -0700
From: "Unknown_Netscape_User@wpi.edu"
Organization: WPI
X-Mailer: Mozilla 1.2N (Windows; I; 16bit)
MIME-Version: 1.0
To: mttlg@WPI.EDU
Subject: web page
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
X-UIDL: 427b78972eda599ec3934e7f76572fa9
Status: RO
X-Status:
I saw your web page and you were asking for someone to e-mail
you...so I did. I also just want to say your page reallyyyy cool
and you did a good job. your jokes are very funny...I like mym
en with a sense of humor. Who knows maybe someday fate will
bring us together.
...Becky
I never heard from her again and I never found out who she was.
1. Q: What kind of computers do you have?
A: My current main system is an Apple Power Mac G4 Dual 800 running Mac OS X 10.1.5. I also have a UMAX SuperMac S900/400, PowerMac 7500/225, a UMAX SuperMac C600/240 (which may or may not end up running Linux someday), a slightly flaky PowerBook 3400/240, a slightly beat up PowerBook 5300/100, a recently resurrected Apple Macintosh SE/30, a rather useless Mac Classic, and a 300MHz PII Windows 98 minitower I put together for no particular reason. Don't believe me? Take a look.
2. Q: What do you do with all those computers?
A: Whatever I feel like doing. I usually just do basic things like word processing, spreadsheets, graphics stuff, web site work, internet stuff, digital video editing/DVD creation, and assorted other things. Each computer has certain peripherals that I use, like a CD-RW drive, scanner, QuickCam, VCR, analog to DV converter, DVD-ROM drive, DVD-R drive, etc. I don't own a TV, so I use my computers for watching television and DVD movies. I also have quite a bit of networking hardware (10Base-T and 100Base-T), so I have everything networked.
3. Q: Why do you use Macs? Everyone knows that Macs suck and Apple is going out of business.
A: Go away. My computers work just fine for me. If you are really concerned about the kind of computers I use, seek professional help.
4. Q: Why don't you run Linux like every other geek with random computer hardware strewn all over the place?
A: First of all, I'm not a true geek. While I know my way around a real CLI fairly well and have been known to write a shell script or modify a Perl script now and then, I'd rather do things with my computers than do things to them. Yes, Lynx is the ultimate web browser and Emacs rocks, but I'm quite happy with Mozilla and BBEdit. I almost got Linux installed on a cheap box I put together mostly out of spare parts, but I soon lost interest. Don't get me wrong, I love a good *nix, but I just didn't have any use for Linux at the time, and I only have a couple days experience of running a *nix system. For now, Mac OS X is enough for me. And please, no jokes about my last name, I get mistaken for a LUG often enough as it is.
5. Q: What hardware is involved in the creation and maintenance of this site?
A: Most of the web pages and graphics were created on my 7500, S900, and most recently my DP800. I use a Casio QV-2000UX for pictures and a UMAX Vista S-6E scanner to scan in photographs.
6. Q: What software is involved in the creation and maintenance of this site?
A: I primarily use GraphicConverter to do all my graphic work, BBEdit Lite to write all the HTML, and Mozilla to test the pages. Occasionally I'll use MS Internet Explorer, Netscape, or MacLynx to test the site on different browsers, and I might even fire up the ol' Windows box if I feel like it.
7. Q: Yur L4|\/|3, y dont u have ne warez heer?
A: Go away. I do not distribute commercial software or otherwise restricted copyrighted material. There are plenty of warez sites out there, I'm sure you can find one.
1. Q: Why do you write?
A: Because I feel like it. I also find that it is a way to vent excess creativity and hold off insanity for a little while longer.
2. Q: Hey, aren't engineers supposed to be bad writers?
A: Not as far as I know. Many of them are bad writers because they have poor communication skills in general. Successful engineers tend to be able to communicate ideas effectively. Additionally, the internet has caused technical people to abbreviate words and phrases in informal communication, leading to a severe lack of excercise in formal written communication. You will not find any of those cryptic abbreviations on this site because I don't use them. You'd be amazed at how much your typing improves when you type everything out all the time.
3. Q: What kind of writing do you enjoy the most?
A: The kind I can profit from. Unfortunately, I have not yet done any of that writing yet. I almost did (a poem I wrote won an award a while ago), but the prize that was supposed to be in the mail never showed up. Aside from that, I usually prefer whatever seems interesting at the moment. Poetry usually just happens for no particular reason, essays are usually the result of something I'm thinking about, and fictional works happen whenever I have an idea for one. And of course these web pages are made because they are necessary, usually for obvious reasons.
4. Q: What are you working on now?
A: Nothing. I recently finished my Master's thesis (which won't be available to the public for another year or so), so I need a break from writing. I hope to someday finish the text for my Portugal trip site.
1. Q: Why do you have so many books?
A: Because you can never have too many books.
2. Q: Where do you get all those books, and why aren't you broke?
A: Most of my books come from used book sales, where you can get hundreds of books for a few dollars. Since the price is so low, I grab anything that looks interesting, whether it's a dual language 3 volume set of The Divine Comedy, an Isaac Asimov book club edition hardcover, or a random book from the late 19th century.
3. Q: Why do you have so many books you haven't read?
A: Well, first of all I have a lot of books. Second, I usually read in bursts, so it isn't unusual for me to not read anything for months and then read several books in one week.
4. Q: Do you ever sell books? or: Will you sell me a book that's on your list?
A: I will occasionally sell books on eBay for various reasons, usually because I picked up extras from a book sale or replaced a book with a better version. I usually have extras of various books around, so feel free to ask if you see a book you are interested in, but don't be surprised if I'm not interested in selling.
1. Q: How do you manage to travel so much?
A: I don't really. I had a few opportunities to travel overseas, and I didn't pass them up. Lately I've been limited to the US, but there are still lots of pictures I haven't put up here yet.
2. Q: Why do you use a digital camera?
A: Convenience. If I restrain myself, I can usually limit myself to 500 or so pictures on a two week trip. If I don't, I can go through that much in a long weekend. That's a lot of rolls of film, and that assumes that I get the picture right every time; otherwise the actual yield could be significantly less than the exposures used. You never know when you will be able to get a good shot, and once you leave somewhere, you may never get another chance. A digital camera gives you instant feedback, which is absolutely essential, especially inside large buildings such as cathedrals, where lighting conditions can be far from ideal and flashes may not be allowed. The results speak for themselves - compare my pictures from Sicily to my pictures from Portugal to see how the switch from film to digital changed how I take pictures.
3. Q: I really like one of your pictures, can you send me the original file or a printed version?
A: File: I would be happy to send you a full-size version, but it will not be the original. I will add information denoting myself as the creator. Additionally, the file may not be redistributed (including display on the web) without my permission.
Print: I can send you a copy of any picture for the cost of materials and postage. Prints will most likely be made with an Epson Stylus Photo 875DC inkjet printer on Epson Heavyweight Matte paper. Availability of this service may vary. This is not a business, so anything will be at my convenience only.
Send all requests to me at: mttlg.net Comment Form.
4. Q: What's the deal with your Portugal section?
A: It's been a very busy <insert random number> years, so I haven't had a chance to go through my notes and travel guides to finish the Portugal section. Until someone gives me money (and lots of it) to do all of the things I'd like to do in my spare time, some things will have to be put off. I do have plenty of information to work from, so if you have any questions about a specific place (city, hotel, etc.), I won't have any trouble answering them. If I build up enough momentum from my current web site renovation, I might get around to it soon. Or maybe not.
5. Q: I'm having trouble with your photo sections, what can I do to have an easier time with them?
A: Please e-mail me at mttlg.net Comment Form with any specific problems you are having. Things have moved around a bit, and I recently changed web hostin companies, so something might have broken along the way. I do check my error logs, so I'll notice any bad links. Navigation should be fairly easy to figure out, but feel free to send me any suggestions you have.
