Russia Fragment 1: The Tale of Babushka's Computer

I think I'll be posting stuff from the Russia trip in fragments, since there's way too much to try to get down in sequential order and even then I always feel like I'm just reciting a list of Stuff That Happened (We did X. Then we did Y. The trees were beautiful. The wind was cold. They brusquely confiscated the bottle from him.) and I could do that, but I'd rather try to tell stories. In manageable chunks.

That having been said, ( The Tale of Babushka's Computer )

Ask the Friendslist: Where to focus to develop as a programmer?

I love computers. I especially like programming them, finding new and clever ways to make them do things. My favorite course in college was Introduction to Microcontrollers, in which we did all sorts of really fun things with an F1 board running a Motorola HC11; I really enjoyed playing around with the low-level stuff, knowing that this command was causing this particular bit to be set this particular way and having a very specific impact right down to the physical state of the board (it wasn't quite a butterfly, or a magnetized needle and a steady hand, but it felt like the next best thing). So now I'm trying to get an idea of what would be best for me to do to continue to pursue things in that direction and get paid for it. I figure the way I'm juggling my life right now, I could probably make the time to either focus more on keeping current with new technologies or pursue a higher degree, but probably not both.

[Poll #1198243]