March 2022 – KUCC

A glance at KUOSC

KUCC Journal March 26, 2022

Just a club or more than that?

Like in a basket, we keep varieties of fruits. In a similar fashion, under the roof of KUOSC, there are different communities led by different coordinators. As in harry potter, we see them carrying the wands and showcasing their skills, likewise, our community coordinators have their wands as a community where they showcase their skills and talents and help unleash the potential of different members of the DoCSE. If we imagine it with harry potter’s reference, then dumbledore is the Lead Coordinator of KUOSC i.e Mr Saazan Mahat, for the tenure 2021–2022, and all the coordinators follow the rules and regulations provided by him and perform their duties with their own wands, and their skills i.e the field which they are specialized at.

KUOSC, Kathmandu University Open Source Community, the sister wing or we can call it a sister club of KUCC i.e. Kathmandu University Computer Club. KUOSC as often described by many is a vibrant historic community from Kathmandu University that provides a common platform for all FOSS enthusiasts to discuss, share, and learn about free and open-source software. KUOSC is specifically focused on all the Open Source related activities ranging from training programs like Linux Talks, Useful Network Training to advocacy activities like Software Freedom Day celebration and organizing different community level workshops and events.

This is what everyone says, but, KUOSC is actually a family that binds together different passionate coordinators, who aim to ignite the same passion related to different language fields, technical fields, entrepreneurship, writing fields, and design fields. It’s not just an open-source community, it’s the foundation targeting the members to hone their skills, to showcase their talents, to expose them to new opportunities and to make them the master of their craft!

Open Source, as the name suggests, is the term that originated in the context of software development to designate a specific approach to creating computer programs. Today, however, “open source” designates a broader set of values — what we call “the open source way.”

Now, let us know a bit about different communities that are there for this tenure and also, let’s get a little bit more familiar with the community leaders as well.

For this tenure, under the roof of KUOSC, there are altogether 8 communities, which are: 1. Game Development Community

2. Design Community

3. Flutter Community

4. Documentation Community

5. Machine Learning Community

6. CyberSecurity Community

7. Javascript Community

8. Python Community

Before diving into the community leaders, let’s get to know about KUOSC Coordinator.

KUOSC Coordinator:

He is no ordinary guy, he is the Dumbledore and the man behind running this year’s KUOSC. Mr Saazan Mahat, the coordinator of KUOSC, is someone who has been working as a full-stack web developer ( React + Django ) but aspires to become a machine learning engineer in the future. Currently in the third year, Computer Engineering, and is from Chaukot, Dhulikhel. The vision that he carries for this tenure is to create communities of practice in which the healthy open source ecosystem thrives, help the students discover and learn about different programming languages and tools through regularly organized workshops, events, meetups, competitions, boot camps and related opportunities.

Now, going accordingly, let’s get to know the community coordinators.

1. Game Development Coordinator

She is someone who enjoys reading manga, watching animes, gaming and also sketching in her free time. She is the one who believes, there is always that first step that needs to be taken while starting any sort of journey, whether it be diving deep into certain interests or passions or it is on the academic side. She is Ms Aditi Baral, the Game Development Coordinator, for the tenure 2021–2022. She believes this community to be a great help for the one who is just beginning, who is in dilemma for where to begin from, and those who need the kind of help in-game development-related problems.

2. Design Coordinators

The dual power backs up this year’s Design Community. Among them, One is a passionate soul who loves to travel, make human connections and also value human conversations the most. His interests are inclined more toward visual designs, design psychology, and the design-thinking process. He is Mr Sushant Subedi, the Design coordinator for the tenure, 2021–2022.

While the other one loves challenging himself to enhance the current skills so that he can learn new skills to see and achieve a better version of himself. He is totally an ambitious soul, who loves setting goals to achieve new heights. He is Mr Kushal Manadhar, the Design Coordinator for the tenure, 2021–2022, even in his free time, you can find him involved in some kind of designing work or playing games.

Together, they plan to take the Design Community to new levels, expand it, organize programs, workshops, events, not just focusing on the basics, but sharpening each basic that can be sharpened.

3. Flutter Coordinators

The flutter community is also backed up with dual power. Mr Aadarsha Dhakal, the Flutter Coordinator for the tenure, 2021–2022, is the guy who as a developer thinks that “We have used many tools that are open source and are being maintained and developed by many selfless and generous developers, and as a beneficiary, I think it’s every developer’s duty to contribute back in the way they can.”

Mr Gaurav Rizal, the Flutter Coordinator for the tenure, 2021–2022, is the guy who says, he was completely unknown to the deep level of the thing that the coding world provided, but once he fell in love with how and what a single line of code can do, he was totally happy with the decision of falling in love with the idea of coding and started his journey on learning the Flutter and its different scope. Together this duo has planned a timeline where they are totally excited about leading this community to a great height. From the recent ongoing work on the development of the KUCC app to the workshops and boot camps, they have planned together to execute, everything is set to unload as the time comes!

4. Documentation Coordinator

Reading books, drooling over the new release of books and their hardcover, playing badminton, photography, watching anime, creating content, and journaling is what she does in her free time. Balancing every work, giving time to certain tasks at once is what her core beliefs are. She believes, everyone has the potential to reach their desired goals, just sometimes, they lack that inner belief which for sure will be provided if the mind is filled with great thoughts, encouraging words and a calm breathing state. She is Ms Siza Adhikari, the Documentation Coordinator, for the tenure 2021–2022. She hopes to restore the belief that every single person can be a great writer if they start from basics, start from experimenting with different genres of writing if they are guided with a proper set of feedback, and with this team, she is really excited to fulfil the main vision of bringing this community back to life!

5. Machine Learning Coordinator

In his free time, he can be found writing lyrics, composing raps, playing instruments, but, when he is determined and all set to go, he can be found involved in various research-based works and for sure Machine learning workshops. Another strong pillar of KUOSC is Mr Bisheshwor Neupane, who runs the Machine Learning Community. He believes in running this community by motivating and encouraging all the enthusiasts despite where they are in their journey, by teaching the correct approach to machine learning.

6. Cybersecurity Coordinator

A simple guy who dreams of inspiring a secure technological world. He believes information security is the responsibility of not only the ethical hackers or security analysts but every person in the world who uses technology in one or the other way. He thinks being complacent is never an option in life. Totally driven by passion and fueled up with determination, the Cybersecurity Coordinator, Mr Hritik Thapa, has kept his entire focus on uplifting this community and taking it to the heights that it deserves to take by introducing every attendee of the community to scenarios describing how they could get hacked or how they can hack someone/something in an ethical way. The learning curve won’t get constant here though. If you are going to be taught how you could be hacked, you are going to be trained on how to avoid or defend any of those attack scenarios as well. And the theme will be backed by regular workshops, seminars, gatherings, competitions and on-demand events.

7. Javascript Coordinator

An explorer, who loves travelling and has a keen interest in spending time with plants and being around nature. He came across JavaScript while learning HTML/CSS in grade 11. Then, he started learning, exploring, experimenting on various aspects and scopes of Javascript and its domination on things. The way it

influenced him can be seen as his curious soul led him to be the JavaScript Coordinator. He is Mr Sabin Thapa, the man behind knitting successful plans, events for this years’ JavaScript Community. He hopes to help as much as possible to all the newcomers, or even the mid-levels in their JavaScript journey by sharing experiences, helping pick JS technologies and frameworks.

8. Python Coordinator

He is a person who believes in helping and motivating anyone in any way possible. He says, “For the very first time when he came across the python tutorial, he fell in love with it. And ever since, he has fallen in love with it.” He is more inclined and obsessed with automating everything and developing Back-End services. Mr Ishar Maharjan, the Python Coordinator, for the tenure 2021–2022, believes that this community will serve as a great treasure for those who desire to learn and build innovative artefacts (technology) with the magic of Python, and have the enthusiasm for Python and appreciation for its charisma as a language.

Being a coordinator is neither a fun thing, nor it’s a piece of cake, it’s something that adds up responsibilities of taking the leads, taking the responsibility of training the members, fulfilling and meeting the expectations, helping each other grow as a team. But, as they say, everything has its own perks and its own challenges. Despite the challenges, the way everyone works, helps each other grow together as a family inside and outside the KUOSC is an amazing quality that this sister club has retained. Despite all having their own communities to handle, their own problems to solve, own responsibilities to fulfil, whenever needed everyone has each other’s back, and that’s what they say as the proud coordinators of the KUOSC.

Crafted with passion by

Siza Adhikari aka Starter_ Startler

You can find my readings on Medium and Facebook.

Website for KUOSC: http://kucc.ku.edu.np/kuosc/#communities

“ NOT SO PROTECTED !!”

KUCC Journal March 18, 2022

Chaos — — Peace

We are enslaved to the artistic realm of tech for almost every work that we perform. We have a skewed intuitional notion about the technologies we employ. That does not appear to be the situation at all.

What do you think is the foundation of truth? Where do you think we take a stand? What is the motivating force behind our irrational beliefs?

Are you aware of the Big technologies and their way of working?

Would you rather believe me if I told you that one-fourth of your life is spent in the digital space? When compared to the early 10’s, this is a cent per cent gain. Aside from the outrageous rise in engagement in the digital domain post-Covid, effective insightful chirping is yet to be seen.

The globe was anticipated to remain free of conflicts and battles for a long time after World War II, but the ‘cold’ war sprang out swiftly. We hadn’t seen a power fight on a new, less waded virtual battlefield, though. The development of spies and the use of technology for their activities during and after the Cold War altered the curves of the future in unexpected ways.

In the present, the speed at which a layman’s access to the most modern technology of the era is being made accessible is commendable, but the lack of understanding of how these technologies can intrude their ‘Not-So-Personal’ space can be a source of considerable concern. The phrase “Personal Space” was first used in the 1960s to refer to one’s psychologically owned space, but as we can see, this is no longer the case. The space has become a virtual bubble of data that can in no way be described as personal.

Have you ever come across the name “George Orwell”? Doesn’t ring a bell? 1984 by George Orwell?? Of course, now it does!

So, while I was drafting this article, I came across a paper which was about “The invasion of Privacy,” written by Christopher H. Pyle. This article solely focused on the main idea of privacy and also on the prediction made by George Orwell and even some contradiction to his idea. I am reflecting on an idea from one of the paragraphs of the research paper which says“ As Orwell predicted, ministries of state security have found the new technology for invading privacy irresistible; indeed, they have pioneered its development.” For example, much of the early research into hallucinogenic drugs was conducted by the army and the CIA, sometimes with tragic results for unsuspecting human subjects. Computers, which most Americans associate with the socially conscious International Business Machines Corporation, are equally the brainchild of the military intelligence services, which have used their wizardry to breach the privacy of foreign and domestic communications.
As if this were not enough, officials use the same sort of secrecy ploys used in 1984 to deprive the people of accurate information and to distort history. Orwell understood that the primary purpose of all official efforts to debase language and undermine the reliability of information is to strip citizens of the capacity and confidence to make moral judgments about the government’s use of power.

In simple words, if we want to summarize the concept from the above paragraph, it simply demonstrates chillingly that nothing invades privacy more than the manipulation of communications in order to destroy the ability of individuals to know the truth and thereby defend themselves against psychological manipulation.

Many of us believe that this digital space, which we use to express our personal views, concerns, and activities, is being thrown out without the user’s consent and left in the world of zeros and ones to either work as a tool to gain more control over the layman or to earn tons of money via various digital methods and medium for the top 1%, who still have access to more than 80% of global wealth via various digital methods and medium.

On one hand, while the impact of cutting-edge technology on facilitating virtual social interaction is commendable, its impact on reducing physical engagement, drying and dying human empathy, a factor in a variety of personality disorders, should also be considered. Early screen exposure on a child is a risk factor for obesity and sleep issues, according to a study published in the “US NATIONAL LIBRARY OF MEDICINE”.

Aside from that, we have some evidence on how the invasion of our personal space has not yet been a deciding factor at all.

Only in the year 2021, as reported, have we had some situations that might make us swallow our words:

Considering the fact that the global population stands at about 7.753 billion, the data breach of about 5 billion records should have been a matter of trouble but still not enough light is being put upon. This year’s records are at an all-time high, as they were in prior years too. We’d be fools to believe such a large amount of data could be obtained in a day or two. This has been a methodical process for a long time before finally being this naked.

Not only that, but the fundamental components that underpin human life are also being pushed into this unified digital world. Despite the fact that the world’s greatest economies remain wary of digital assets, their rising appeal and acceptability might be the topic of research. Following the invasion of our personal space, it has been brought forward in the United Nations that our digital pockets are also being invaded in the quest for power.

The fascinating talks about meta developing its own universe called ‘metaverse’, the talk of the town ‘web 3.0’, ‘NFTs’, ‘Blockchain’ and others that we never thought of before. The fear that this turns out to be a “wall of worry” prevails much deeper than supposed. Technology can for sure give birth to new opportunities for privacy invasion, manipulation, and control, but it does not by itself create the structure of power that commits those abuses, there. Moreover, Technology can also improve the quality of arrest records since computers can be programmed to block the distribution of incomplete records and to purge outdated information systematically. As in Orwell’s words, the idea of political challenge would be surely agreed, too, by wresting these systems from the exclusive control of professionals and technocrats and restraining these professionals and technocrats to think in larger, more humane terms.

Now my dear readers, don’t you think the time has come for us to actually think hard about cultivating a solid data protection culture?

Despite all these, we are on our own and solely responsible for all the goodwill of ourselves.

Sangam Ghimire

Computer Science, Undergraduate

Kathmandu University, Dhulikhel, Nepal

The female lead in Fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM)

KUCC Journal March 8, 2022

Oh, being a girl and studying engineering must be tough for you?
No, actually, changing the mentality that a girl cannot study engineering is tough for me!

According to the data taken in 2021, 49.6% of the total population of the world is females. But have you ever wondered what per cent of the females in the world are working in the fields of STEM? The statistics taken to date tell a lot about women involved in the STEM field. The paragraphs following confront a few of those.

STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. It’s important as it teaches critical thinking abilities and instils a passion for innovation and exploration that fuel success across a variety of tasks and disciplines. According to the research, 83% of boys in high school opt for STEM subjects, while only 64% of girls opt for STEM subjects. 13% of the surveyed male university students were taking engineering courses, compared to just 2% of female university students. The data makes it absolutely clear that more of the male population of the world is involved in the STEM field.

Women are more inclined towards other fields rather than the fields related to STEM. In 2015, women received more than half of the bachelor’s degrees awarded in the biological sciences, but far less in computer sciences (18%), engineering (20%), physical sciences (39%) and mathematics (43%), according to the National Girls Collaborative Project. Talking about Nepal, women represent only between 5% and 10% of the total population enrolled in IT.

There definitely must be some reasons for women being more inclined towards fields other than STEM. The stereotype that persists in society that women are not meant to be in the STEM field has somewhere created this huge gender gap in STEM. Most females keep themselves aloof from these fields as they think they could handle their work-family-life balance better in other streams like humanities. Some females also did not show much interest in STEM subjects while the others found no women role models in tech. The gender bias that females experience in the workspaces has also increased the number of women who quit technical jobs. The misconception (which still exists) that women are not efficient enough to build a career in the STEM field has made a huge impact on the graph representing women in tech. ‘No man is born learned’. People must keep this in consideration before symbolizing women as ‘inefficient’.

Organizations and communities have sprung like mushrooms to help women understand their potential and cope with unnecessary comments that come to their ears and pull them off the track of success. Listing down some of the national and international organizations that have made commendable changes and have empowered women.

1. Girls in Tech

2. Anita Borg Institute

3. Black Girls Code

4. Girls Who Code

5. Smart Cheli

6. Women Leader in Technology

7. Women Lead Nepal

8. Shequal Foundation

Along with these organizations, any individual, be it male or female has a responsibility to help close the gap that exists. Comments like “For a woman, you are skilled at this,” or “You are too beautiful for an engineer” should be stopped and women must be encouraged to work and excel themselves in STEM sectors. The tech industry must be gender friendly rather than a ‘boys’ only club’.The growth of women in the STEM field is remarkable and working on the positive side would help in creating history.

Melina Shakya

Reality Check: Coding

KUCC Journal March 4, 2022

Hey, what do you do?
I code 😎

As portrayed in the movies, those who are termed as “The Coders” are usually people depicted as having dorky glasses, surrounding themselves with wide screens with dark themes, thousands of numbers and lines of codes floating around in their screen, and only God knows what they type out in some seconds that makes them successfully hack any website, no matter how secure it is. Weren’t you fascinated & inspired by that act of coolness? I am not sure about you, but, I definitely became a big fan of those cool stuff, dark themes, headphones, working space, and many more!

But, let me ask you this, “Are movies actually showing us the reality?”

The bitter truth is that the movie only portrays “the satisfactory part of coding but miserably fails to address the stressful coding process and in fact totally neglects it.” The movies also set completely wrong and unrealistic standards for people which includes always wearing glasses and having a lot of expensive monitors just to begin the journey into coding. The movie shows us the final phase of coding that works just as instructed, leaving us with no understanding of thousand of hours spent developing that idea, all those frustrating hours spent trying to learn different languages and syntax, the errors that prevented the code from running, the bugs that had to be fixed a hundred times, the caffeine intake, the breaking of a REM cycle, those backaches, headaches and the unusual working hours.

People often think that coders just sit and write code all day long. It’s not just to write code; a lot of time is spent brainstorming the idea! You have to understand what the problem is so that you can think of concrete and best possible solutions. As it’s basic to plan out, to lay out the ideas, the strategies, before beginning anything! There’s a lot of bugs, there’s a lot of issues. You’re going to be fixing bugs. You’re going to have to spend more time interpreting someone else’s code and dealing with it than you will create new code.

People assume coders to have known everything on their own and the brain is academically gifted. There is a lot of hard work, patience, understanding, and practice behind their so-called perfect demeanour. Neither I am here trying to scare the chills out of you, nor, I am trying to demotivate you. But, as I see the people romanticizing the pleasant part of coding way too much, I’m just trying to show the other side of the story.

Coding is the behind-the-scenes of everything created on the internet. Our world revolves around technology and understanding how it works will never do you anything wrong. Understanding humans have never been a piece of cake. So imagine how difficult it would be to comprehend computers. Even while it may appear terrifying, it is worth the effort. Computers don’t comprehend human language, so we learn their language to communicate with them and develop something that will work for us. Coding is a medium to bring your idea into the real world. Even though your approach may appear unrealistic to a certain extent for people who find it difficult to think about undertaking original tasks rather than existing ones. However, having a good grasp of what you want to do and knowing the fundamentals of coding makes it happen for you. Coding helps us utilize our own code to automate a lot of the repetitive tasks you have to do on a daily basis.

Launching your own apps based on your drafts codes sounds the most satisfying thing to do. Coding allows you to be successful on your own, rather than relying entirely on a 9-to-5 job for your success. Not only that but, it makes it easier to keep track of your progress because you start with printf (“Hello world!”); and work your way up to your dream startup. Coding is a powerful skill that everyone should learn at some point in their lives. Moreover, learning how to code doesn’t require an ideal age or an ideal institution; you can start learning it regardless of your age or the sector you work for. You can find all the basics about coding on the internet that addresses all your queries and allows you to begin coding with the bare minimum of resources.

What is it like to walk into a classroom full of computer students? We find students that have been coding since they were in class eight and students that are just about to start. Students that have already begun working for startups and have access to really impressive gadgets. Entering a class full of coding enthusiasts may seem intimidating to novices but this isn’t an excuse to think you’re unworthy. With time, you’ll get there; you just need to get started.

Getting a computer science degree is always a good idea because it allows you to work on projects throughout your university life and meet individuals who share your interest in coding, as well as connect you to better internship prospects.

My personal experience with coding is bittersweet. Stack Overflow is my best friend and some random youtube tutor teaches me more than what I’ve learned in an entire academic semester. I’ve spent hours searching for probable errors because I missed a “;” on line 11th of my codes. The same piece of code works and doesn’t work at the same time. I thought getting a degree in computer science would just require learning about computers but the heavy textbooks of physics, math, chemistry follow you as well. The engineering drawing which makes you feel so miserable at times is also taught in the very first year which makes you rethink choosing engineering as your major!

Coding is cool, it is an art. Art helps us experiment with our ideas, brainstorm every single piece that we have just to create something on our own with the same resources that are needed in the learning process. It might be frustrating at times but equally rewarding. It is not as tough as it is thought of and not as simple as it seems. If you possess the skill of coding, this will help you no matter which sector you work for.
I hope whichever phase of coding you are in, whether you are just in the beginning or somewhere in the middle, lost in the mess, I believe that you can get your way out of it and successfully achieve your WHY for beginning your journey into coding.

Dilasha Upadhyay
CS, First Year

Just a club or more than that?

Hey, what do you do? I code 😎

But, let me ask you this, “Are movies actually showing us the reality?”

Hey, what do you do?
I code 😎