Saturday, February 25, 2017

Checking for Errors - Why Bother?

Is checking for errors important? Why bother for the process and normally, takes longer time to execute a task? There must be a reason and this is why.

At a glance, this promotional panel at GSC Pavilion KL for the upcoming Life (2017) movie looks great with good printing resolution.
However, when I take a closer look, I got confused with who is Ryan Reynolds and Rebecca Ferguson. They designer got mixed up with the two main stars in the movie.
Errors like this do happen and it is very common but the implication of some errors can be fatal!

Is this the designer fault to allow such error to occurs? Maybe but they cannot be blamed for everything. Sometime it could be due to the constraint of time to push things out for production and there is no checking in the entire process - from the person who provides the information, the designer who didn't check or ignorance, the superior who need to approve the artwork (if any), the printer, production, and lastly the personnel at the cinema.

Anyway, we all make mistakes. If only there is compliance to a proper control process, personnel who are more alert or maybe more time were given to designer (whom might be too exhausted with too many deadlines to fulfill until their quality is being compromised), the error could have been corrected before it goes public.

Somehow, I belief in this: "Fast, Good and Cheap - we can only pick TWO". What say you?

Saturday, February 18, 2017

Reflection from Watching Passengers (2016)

This is not a spoiler as I do not want to tell the story of the movie Passengers (2016) directed by Mortem Tyldum. I just want to say something about this movie, more like a reflection.
#1: Why do people want to look for a new colony?
In the movie, it is all about space traveling where a human can be transported to a new colony planet. People are willing to pay and travel hundreds over the years to start a new life. It doesn't matter if space traveling is possible in the future, we are already seeing thousands of people leaving their home every year to look for a new life, or merely just to survive. When we have to leave our home and take the risk to find a new place to survive, it is not a good sign at all.
#2: Can automation replace ALL humans?
Automation is going to be how we live in the future. Basically, jobs can be replaced by robots, in this movie, it's the Android. From bartender, chef, waiter, cleaner to pilot, almost all jobs can be replaced by robots. So, what are the jobs left for human beings? The designer and programmer of robots? As much as automation and Artificial Intelligence (A.I) been used in the movie to show how advanced our future can be, the main problem of the spaceship due to an accident cannot be solved without humans. However, only a few people needed to solve a problem because of the availability of A.I. There go our jobs in the future.

#3: Is the right decision always right?
People make a decision every day and we always want to make the right decision. Is the right decision always right? Somehow, we do not bother what is right or wrong when we come to a stage where we just want to get things done for the good of oneself. In the movie, Jim went through a typical process of decision making to wake Aurora from hibernation. Did he make the right decision? The movie shows some plots where it supports the decision made by Jim, but it was a criminal decision, a decision that is like killing someone. Yet, Jim is the hero in the movie, saving thousands of lives. I say it is complicated when it comes to what is the right thing to do.
#4: Are we differentiated by our wealth?
Another highlight in this movie is on the services available for a different classification of a passenger. The gold class passenger can access to more choices of meals and a much better room but no the economic class. Is this something new? Not at all because we experience this in our everyday life. This is just a norm, a widely accepted practice around the world now and...maybe forever. We are living in a world of differentiation, perhaps the word discrimination can describe this better. Like it or not, this classification of passengers will stay. So if you want the gold class services, maybe you can learn from Jim.
#5: Don't tell Android everything.
Lastly, don't let your android have access to all your data. The android can be a good companion to you but it is just a system designed to serve the user. It doesn't have judgmental decision when it comes to emotional related matters. The morale of the story, be careful with your privacy on Android, it don't mean harm but it can be dangerous.