http://www.perlmonks.org?node_id=735150

Vote on this poll

Learn more Perl
[bar] 113/23%
Learn a new language / skill
[bar] 82/17%
Contribute to Perl 6 / Parrot
[bar] 18/4%
Contribute to another open source project
[bar] 25/5%
Finally get around to writing that killer module I've always wanted to
[bar] 36/7%
Start my own business
[bar] 46/9%
Write a book
[bar] 20/4%
Help others achieve their potential
[bar] 11/2%
Lose weight
[bar] 52/11%
Kick that $habit
[bar] 16/3%
Stay out of gaol
[bar] 15/3%
Do something else
[bar] 52/11%
486 total votes
Replies are listed 'Best First'.
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by apl (Monsignor) on Jan 09, 2009 at 15:06 UTC
    Finally pass the Turing test...

    (It's the sports questions that always trip me up. 'How do you feel about the Giants?'. I don't know. How should I feel? Betrayed? Embarassed? )

      Oh, man, I'd *never* pass a Turing test if the examiner started asking sports questions.

      On an unrelated note, 'How do you feel about the Giants?' isn't a sports question at all (which may explain why you were confused); it's actually literature. You see, some giants are more or less decent, like the one Gandalf got to close up the Goblin hole, but others, like the ones in The Silver Chair, are just plain mean. There are also friendly giants, but these are less common. HTH.HAND.

      -- 
      We're working on a six-year set of freely redistributable Vacation Bible School materials.
        Well, the half-Giants in the _Harry Potter_ books seemed fairly friendly... 8-)

        BTW, thanks... I'll be stealing your line the next time the question arises...

        ... it's actually literature
        ...and mythology. I think Odin, Thor, Frey, et al, would place them firmly in the minus column. Polyphemus is also generally not the sort to meet in a dark alley. Numerous giants are mentioned in the Old Testament, all of bad disposition. Finally, in a blend of literature and mythology, there is Cthulhu and his lot, who make all the rest look like angels in comparison.

        On the plus side (again from literature), there is Henry_Pym, aka 'Giant Man'. Definitely a good guy, but a 9.9 on the superhero 'Lame Scale'...

      Who are the Giants?
        In the U.S., the name is associated with two sports teams -- one baseball and one football. The baseball team used to be in New York City; they're somewhere in Californai now. The football name plays in New Jersey but is named the New York Giants.

        And, as has been pointed out by by jonadab and illuminatus, they're also well-known in the writings of Tolkien, the Norse, and J.K. Rawlings... 8-)

Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by andreas1234567 (Vicar) on Jan 09, 2009 at 13:12 UTC
    Teach my youngest kid to sit, crawl, walk and eventually code Perl.
    --
      ...all he needs is the sitting part, if he can walk he'll leave the computer before he's done.
        Ambition is good, isn't it? Ok, I'll settle for the first 3 goals then :)
        --
        No matter how great and destructive your problems may seem now, remember, you've probably only seen the tip of them. [1]

        I believe the current popular term is helicopter parent ... due to all the hovering.

        -derby
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by marto (Cardinal) on Jan 09, 2009 at 11:18 UTC

    Survive 2009 :) In addition to this I'd like to achieve a couple of the options above.

    Cheers,

    Martin

Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by Moriarty (Abbot) on Jan 09, 2009 at 11:42 UTC

    There are at least 5 items on that list that I would like to achieve, but my formeost goal in 2009 is to find a job I can do from home so that I can avoid the daily commute.

Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by bschilli (Friar) on Jan 09, 2009 at 14:09 UTC
    I'm trying to lose some weight. Of course that was my goal for 2008, 2007, 2006 ...
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by zentara (Archbishop) on Jan 09, 2009 at 15:02 UTC
      Sorry Zentara, but I think you picked the wrong time to get on the wagon.
      use strict; forget warnings; use Scotch::SingleMalt; my $Intake=Scotch::SingleMalt->new("I'm fine, really"); foreach my $day (@StockMarketDropsAgain) { $Intake->DoubleDown(); }
      disclaimer:No offense intended to Friends of Bill
        Sorry Zentara, but I think you picked the wrong time

        the story of my life .....I have an uncanny habit of predicting winners of sporting games too.....I always root for the losers. Just bet on the opposite of who I pick to win. :-)


        I'm not really a human, but I play one on earth Remember How Lucky You Are
      I've stopped drinking and smoking and now i have no friends :)
        Think ahead... after a 1 year rest for your body, your 2010 goal can be "start drinking and smoking again". :-)

        I'm not really a human, but I play one on earth Remember How Lucky You Are
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by missingthepoint (Friar) on Jan 12, 2009 at 02:10 UTC

    Perfect my time-travelling device, travel back in time to 1999, and start learning Perl when I wish I had...


    Life is denied by lack of attention,
    whether it be to cleaning windows
    or trying to write a masterpiece...
    -- Nadia Boulanger

      Oh! Is there some undocumented magic attached to localtime :)

      Ah! But wouldn't using knowledge you have now to give yourself knowledge that you didn't have then ... Um!

      Wouldn't giving yourself the knowledge then that you need now to ... Um!

      Bottom line: causality loops; time paradox; holes in the space time continuum; universal annihilation and all that good stuff :)


      Examine what is said, not who speaks -- Silence betokens consent -- Love the truth but pardon error.
      "Science is about questioning the status quo. Questioning authority".
      In the absence of evidence, opinion is indistinguishable from prejudice.
        Oh! Is there some undocumented magic attached to localtime :)

        Yesssss..... It's very deep magic. Which avoids all those sticky time-space problems. In fact, it's highly classified and I'll probably be shot for talking about it. So when the men from Three Letter Agencies come, tell them I said NOTHING.


        Life is denied by lack of attention,
        whether it be to cleaning windows
        or trying to write a masterpiece...
        -- Nadia Boulanger
      please do tell me when you get the time machine right...so i can also time travel back to 2000..lawl
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by BrowserUk (Patriarch) on Jan 11, 2009 at 15:29 UTC

    Given the sad news, making it to 2010 seems like ambition enough.

      When you are young....it's "take it a year at a time"

      When you are working age, it's "take it a week at a time"

      When you get older, it's "take it a day at a time"

      Finally you realize, "take it a breath at a time".


      I'm not really a human, but I play one on earth Remember How Lucky You Are
      BrowserUk,
      2008 was a scary year healthwise for my family. This may sound a bit strange but before getting married and starting a family, not only was I not afraid to die - I felt ready. While I would love to write a book or win the lottery, my foremost goal in 2009 is to do what I can to have a healthy and happy family - mentally, physically, and spiritually.

      Cheers - L~R

Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by wilsond (Scribe) on Jan 10, 2009 at 06:31 UTC
    Learn C. I know lots of Perl, but not enough C. I want to contribute to some C/C++ open source apps, but I can't do that yet.
      Learn C.

      I tried that four different times. (Well, technically it was C++ two of those times.) It... didn't take. These languages are so feature-impoverished, you absolutely cannot believe it. You do not want to program in C or C++. It's not fun.

      Do yourself a favor: pick a language to learn that sometimes gets positive reactions from people who have previously used Perl. Ruby, for instance.

        I would just completely ignore C, but so many projects out there use it and I'm helpless when it comes to making modifications to them or contributing to the projects code-wise.

        I feel pain also! But I have no idea to write a perl module for my C/C++ colleagues! :(

        In my opnion, perl embed is the only flaw of perl5. That's why I'm drooling about perl6 & parrot.


        I am trying to improve my English skills, if you see a mistake please feel free to reply or /msg me a correction

Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by svenXY (Deacon) on Jan 09, 2009 at 15:06 UTC
    ... make another cute baby (which will hopefully become a perl admirer someday as well)
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by Illuminatus (Curate) on Jan 14, 2009 at 15:50 UTC
    I intend to learn more about Perl to start my own business to write a killer module that will write a book that will help others achieve their potential, by losing weight and kicking their $habits. This book will be so influential that many will see it as being of divine origin, and will believe that by adhering to it they will avoid Gaol, Sheol, as well as (for some inexplicable reason) Creole. In order to demonstrate that the book was simply a product of Perl, I will then contribute this module to CPAN (an open-source project) and donate most of the proceeds to the Perl6/Parrot project.

    Unfortunately, while most people will associate its Perl origin as proof of lack of metaphysical implications, others will see it as affirmation of Perl's divine origin, and form a Monastic order devoted to its worship. Some people will believe anything...

Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by targetsmart (Curate) on Jan 23, 2009 at 12:33 UTC
    Learn more Perl(especially CGI and mod_perl) and contribute to perlmonks (share knowledge).
    In other words, I am planning to dedicate myself to perl, because I love perl.
    Do more projects with perl, use perl shell, develop all the required tools to make myself organized (eg, planner, project tracker, etc., practicing whatever I learnt).
    Writing at-least a module and contribute to CPAN.
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by Bass-Fighter (Beadle) on Jan 12, 2009 at 07:34 UTC
    I only have 1 goal for 2009 and 1 for 2011

    the one in 2009 is to get a girlfriend.
    so, girl here who wants to have a boyfriend?^^

    2011 is getting my bachelor elektronic enginering.
    that is it:-)

      My goal for 2009 is to stop caring that this year it will be 5 years since I had a "date."
        be happy that you had a date. I never got 1 at all... everytime there came something as reason to don't show up... and that is very frustrating...
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by puudeli (Pilgrim) on Jan 12, 2009 at 07:45 UTC
    First and foremost I intend to stay employed. M/S Reduction arrives to docks within the next 6 weeks :-/
    --
    seek $her, $from, $everywhere if exists $true{love};
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by Joost (Canon) on Jan 16, 2009 at 20:33 UTC
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by marcussen (Pilgrim) on Jan 12, 2009 at 00:20 UTC

    Most/All of the above

    Confucius says kill mosquito unless cannon
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by wolfger (Deacon) on Jan 12, 2009 at 17:33 UTC

    My one and only New Year's resolution was to fight at least (on average) once per week. So far I'm 0/1, and likely to go 0/2, but I've got plenty of time to hit 52/52 still. Secondary goals... Lose weight (almost guaranteed if I hit my primary goal), and don't become unemployed (which is, really, beyond my control).

      I've got plenty of time to hit 52/52 still.

      Shouldn't that be 26/26? :-)

Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by alandev (Scribe) on Jan 23, 2009 at 07:50 UTC
    move into a new role in my job and to start contributing to any open source project
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by gloryhack (Deacon) on Jan 11, 2009 at 02:50 UTC
    Hmmm... I have two businesses, one of which I intend to pursue with drive and purpose in order to realize its full potential, and steadily increase its passive income streams.

    But that's my fallback goal. My foremost goal is to win a monsterfrous lottery jackpot and retire, leaving all of the rats to race without me.

    Oh, and world peace.

      yeah, to win the lottery is nice, but I dont think I will retire after that :P I'm just 18, so I think that is a little too soon:-)
        :-) My oldest grandson is just six years younger than you!
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by apok (Acolyte) on Jan 11, 2009 at 12:59 UTC

    Successfully make the move from "science IT" to proper bioinformatics. Or, failing that given the job market, work on mastering neural networks.

    -----
    "Ask not what you can do for your country. Ask what's for lunch."
    -- Orson Welles
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by shmem (Chancellor) on Jan 12, 2009 at 00:45 UTC

    Given that the path to hell is paved with good resolutions, none of the above. But eventually some of that list might happen while trying to do/avoid other work... ;-)

Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by vek (Prior) on Jan 14, 2009 at 18:28 UTC

    After more than a year's absence, start actively posting here again. Where did 2008 go anyway?

    -- vek --
      nowhere, perl always stays here :-)
      work on my zhong wen. write a few new papers. master gaussian processes.
        You could always write those papers in Zhong Wen, it would give you the opportunity to practice your calligraphy.
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by tweetiepooh (Hermit) on Jan 19, 2009 at 14:34 UTC
    See, Perl is classy, we have "gaol" not "jail".
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by girarde (Hermit) on Jan 10, 2009 at 21:45 UTC
    CCNA, baby!
      And while "Other" technically covers it, I think that "Get out of gaol" should be a choice.
Re: My foremost goal in 2009 is to:
by Anonymous Monk on Jan 18, 2009 at 12:44 UTC
    be born

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