Clocks and flies are of interest to me because ... they move.
What is fascinating about moving things is that they are naturally amenable to animation. And I am a True Believer in the important and constructive role that animation can play in education/training/communication in general and in applied mathematics fields such as OR/MS in particular.
I am also a True Believer in the Keep it simple, mate! principle. In the case of my work on educationally rich modules this means that I prefer to use JavaScript rather than more complex web based programming environments such as Java, Flash, Shockwave, etc.
My interest in flies goes back to 1989 when I immigrated to Australia. Shooing off flies is an essential skill in some parts of this beautiful country! So for many years I had to cope with flies buzzing around my web site. The Australian Tourism Commission may not like this, but ... this is a fact of life here!
My interest in clocks goes back to 1995 when I created my first web site. I have been using virtual clocks ever since.
I was therefore delighted when a new breed of JavaScript virtual clocks burst unto the market in 2002. There is only one way to describe the spread of this type of clock: clockmania
In a very small way these creatures tell us how far behind we are in exploiting existing technologies for educational/training and more generally communication purposes.
The flying clock featured in this page is a modified version of a JavaScript I found at javascript.internet.com/clocks/ where it is attributed to Amy Cook from NCGODDESS. I modified it so that it can be used by Netscape 6.x and higher browsers. I also modified the color scheme and added some new features.
For your convenience we arrange a plain black backround below so that you will have a better view of the flying clock.
Regarding the good old flies, for your convenience we provide an environmentally friendly anti-ants spray. Use it freely, or if you prefer, kill the flies with a click of your mouse.
Disclaimer: This page, its contents and style, are the responsibility of the author (Moshe Sniedovich) and do not represent the views, policies or opinions of The University of Melbourne.