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10/9/2006
Tom wrote an op-ed for Ferndale Friends urging voters to vote NO on Ferndale's misnamed Human Rights Ordinance. You can read the article online on his blog and if you'd like, leave a comment.
(7/31)
"Based on his positions on issues he's little different than Jennifer Granholm, which either makes Granholm an acceptable Republican governor or DeVos an acceptable Democratic candidate. If both are middle-of-the-road then one of them isn't necessary."
Read the rest at Granholm OK lying about DeVos.
(7/31)
"[Feikens'] op-ed misapplies Article-1 Section II to petition signers claiming they didn't understand what they signed. But the real violation of equal protection and "civil and political rights" was committed by BAMN and the commission itself when they conspired to obstruct citizens' rights to exercise their constitutionally protected franchise to draft petitions, gather signatures, and shape their government."
Read the rest at US District Court Judge John Feikens misses on civil rights commission.
(7/13)
"The media has done a great job telling us how miserable the war in Iraq is going and criticizing our military for the Where's-Waldo search for Osama bin Laden. The media paints a picture of demoralized troops without goals or confidence skulking through a foreign landscape with ungrateful citizens."
Read the rest at Rochelle Riley: Lower all flags until war is over.
(7/12)
"It started over 500 years ago when 39 undocumented boat people, lead by a bossy Italian and with the encouragement of an entire government, invaded islands in the Caribbean simply to do work the islanders weren't willing to do themselves, look for spices and mine gold."
Read the rest at Illegal aliens kill millions over eight-year spree
(7/09)
"Much is said about the search for moderate politicians and the political middle ground. This, supposedly, is where Unity08 thinks the seeds of its ideas may find purchase. But on many topics there simply isn't a middle ground. We speak as though there's political wisdom in splitting the baby, but Unity08's goal is more like the two mothers' from the Old Testament than it is King Solomon's."
Read the rest at Splitting the baby over politics
(6/29)
"We already know they'll not be given a moral context because anything that keeps company with religion isn't allowed in schools. We also know the risks associated with sex (anal or otherwise) won't have the desired impact on 12 and 13-year-olds who think it's a good idea to chat and meet online strangers or even travel to Jericho and convert to Islam without notifying their parents."
Read the rest at Conservative Howell to teach 12 year olds condom use
(6/26)
"... opponents of the state constitutional amendment have started an aggressive media campaign. Aggressive not only because of the frequency of the ads but the ads are as easily misleading as the sponsors accuse the MCRI of being."
Read the rest at Plan bans discrimination, not all affirmative action
(6/21)
"Why do people claim responsibility for tragic events? Terrorists do it for attention and to promote their cause. Against overwhelming evidence, real criminals admit responsibility in exchange for leniency. Emotionally unstable people claim responsibility for crimes they didn't commit to attract attention to themselves."
So what was Birmingham's motivation?
Read the rest at Birmingham Schools did fail, but not how they thought
(6/15)
"The reason the media and press have exploited the most trivial aspects of her new book is they, and the nation, aren't prepared to discuss the point of the chapter those comments are extracted from: The Doctrine of Infallibility. As ground shaking ideas go, criticizing liberals for parading victims as spokesmen is small potatoes compared to the writings of Thomas Sowell and Shelby Steele."
Read the rest at Blondes in Black and the Doctrine of Infallibility
(6/13)
"Where are the politicians and leaders with visions of what Oakland County and the entire South East Michigan region should look like in 10 years? If we haven't them already in office, what are we prepared to do to attract those people to risk candidacy and are we willing to follow and support them?"
Read the rest at Our glass houses
(6/8)
"I believe our union will grow," said Robert Betts, president of UAW Local 2151. "It's like the Romans. The more they persecuted the Christians, the more the faith grew."
Wrong analogy. I have a better one.
Read the rest at UAW and suicide bombers have death-wish in common
(6/2)
"Detroit's and other cities' newspapers have reported claims of increased hostility. There have been townhall style meetings, prayer groups, interfaith services, and media-organized roundtables to discuss how to address the issue. The only thing missing are police reports supporting the claims."
Read the rest at Pardon me, was I hostile to you?
(6/2)
"It finally makes sense: Ted Kennedy imagines himself in tights, handsome as Errol Flynn, redistributing from the rich to the poor. Assisted by his Merry Men with Nancy Pelosi playing Maid Merrian, Barney Frank her understudy, allied against George Bush, the scheming High Sheriff of Nottingham. Mel Brooks is a shoe-in to be the next Democratic Party Chairman."
Read the rest at Democrats in Tights
(5/31)
"This morning on WJR, Frank Beckman, prompted by George Will's review, interviewed Shelby Steele about his new book, White Guilt: How Blacks and Whites Together Destroyed the Promise of the Civil Rights Era. Near the end of the interview, Frank Beckman asked Mr. Steele his advice to Michigan blacks concerning Michigan's Civil Rights Initiative (MCRI). The transcript isn't yet available, but Mr. Steele advised that blacks should vote in favor of the amendment."
Read the rest at George Will: White Guilt Deciphered
(5/18)
"Michigan's constitution should address important things like how government works, asserting the equality of its citizens, equal protection, the limits of government, and other big ideas deserving a permanent address in a document intended to stand the test of time. It's not a bulletin board for political Sticky Notes®."
Read the rest at State Senator Gilda Jacobs introduces bill to raise Oakland Co. sales tax to 7%
"The article teases us with how better to treat mothers but it's really about giving everybody more paid time-off and makes apples-to-oranges comparison between the US and economic power-houses like Iceland."
Read the rest at How America really treats its mothers
"Funny, how protests are fine for auto workers and journalists when they're picketing, or illegal immigrants when the media loves them, but send a few kids out protesting the negative influences of the media and suddenly it's just not the best way to do things."
Read the rest at Teens spurn negative influences
(5/16)
"It's hard not to get excited about the proposed loft construction where Ashmore's Truck Rental used to be after viewing the artist's rendering in last week's Mirror. Unless, of course, you live behind it."
Read the rest at Loft construction may begin soon
(5/12)
"because of the 13-year-old's poor decisions two men have been arrested and risk serious charges, the parents risk charges, multiple police agencies scrambled to locate a girl who wasn't kidnapped, the reputation of MySpace has been sullied, and the meaning of an Amber Alert has been diluted."
Read the rest at 13 or 18? Girl's age at issue in web date
(5/11)
".. even with $3/gallon gas consumer confidence is up, inflation is low, and the stock market is reaching record highs--which is good for pensions, IRAs and 401Ks, college savings and other retirement plans. How does an average student like Bush do it?"
Read the rest at How can a tax cut both help and hurt the treasury?
(5/9)
"The problem with too many politicians, and apparently the parties they hail from, is they're trying to find out who their supporters may be instead of articulating a vision of America (or Michigan) and letting the policies and platform speak for themselves and attract supporters. Candidates should want voters to discover who they are. It's called leadership. It's called statesmanship. And so far it's missing from this year's campaigns."
Read the rest at We have to know our voters?.
"This week, by a 30-7 vote, the Michigan Senate passed a resolution calling on the U.S. Congress to pass to the states a constitutional amendment that would base congressional representation on a headcount of citizens only. This is the right idea, for the right reasons, and with constitutional precedent. Let's hope congress is listening."
Read the rest at Remember that clause that read, "..and three fifths of all other persons.."?.
(5/5)
I recently read a debate between two law professors on the on-going illegal immigrants issue being hotly debated everywhere you go. Of the many excellent points raised I found three I wanted to bring attention to.
You can read the article at Illegal Immigration Debate.
(5/4)
"Be honest with yourself and everyone around you. If you own an SUV, large pick-up, or any model Hummer you're hoping gas prices soar. Thanks to the new minimum wage law, teenagers at McDonald's can afford $3/gallon gas. You're hoping it climbs upwards of $6/gallon to separate the men from the boys."
Read the rest at Many people look forward to $5/gallon.
"Banks are generally reluctant to even admit they have programmers. Banks are not in the software business and prefer to buy shrink-wrapped products. This is one of the reasons banks are technological followers and not leaders."
Read the rest at Why don't financial companies give back to open source?.
"When eFinNet was looking for investors we spoke with a lot of individuals and venture capitalists. Everyone read the business plan and was excited about what we were doing. We often wondered, if everyone thought we were really on to something and could see nothing wrong with it, why we didn't attract more investors?"
Read the rest at Angel investors are more than their money.
(5/1)
"Mr. Frink didn't impose pensions, gold-plated health care benefits, or inflated pay. He didn't create a jobs bank with 70000 workers that don't show up for work every day, unlike illegal aliens who only skipped Monday."
Read the rest at The invisible manufacturing czar.
"The state already found $600 million to widen 18 miles of I-75 through Oakland County. Widening I-75 won't lessen Michigan's gas consumption or urban sprawl. Considering the state already has the ability and resources to attempt highway projects why not the vision and resolve for mass transit?"
Read the rest at Plan would let counties raise sales tax for transit.
(4/24)
"Craig Covey is Ferndale's Mayor Pro-Tem (FMPT), CEO of Michigan Aids Prevention Project (CEOMAPP), and a gay white male (GWM). He's excited all those nice supporters for undocumented worker amnesty programs have spirited, cheerful marches but laments their detractors are a bunch of misbehaving poo-poo heads."
Read the rest at Flying Flags Proudly.
(4/18)
I've been holding off writing many technically-oriented postings here for a while while I've considered where to start a techically-oriented blog. I've finally started one called Anything worth doing which is short for "Anything worth doing is worth doing poorly," one of my favorite quotes from a man who knew how to get things done.
Please stop by and visit and feel free to leave a comment.
(4/16)
"Sowell's thorough research both for what's happening today and what happened throughout history shows many well-intentioned government-sponsored programs are not innocent misdirections of resources. They're the political equivalent of munchausen by proxy syndrome. Research showing good intentions don't yield good results is unwelcome when we just want to feel good about ourselves."
Read the rest at Set higher goal: Truly equal education.
One more that bothered me today.
"The biggest transit plan we've heard about is $600 million to widen 18 miles of I-75 from Eight Mile to M-59. That's a plan only an oil company would love."
Read the rest at Local voters may decide transit tax.
(4/14)
"In the grand scheme of things a liquor license is small potatoes. It would be great if more police were available, but there already aren't enough to respond to 911 calls much less cruising blind pigs for bar fights."
Read the rest at 'Highway of blame' leads to shooting of rapper Proof.
(4/11)
"Creativity and critical thought is exercised and expressed through writing and solving mathematical problems, not body piercings and Abercrombie & Fitch. Students are members of a scholastic society that improves their lives and lifts their circumstances and prospects, something gang colors will not afford them."
Read the rest at No more nose rings in school.
(4/3)
"Though Taylor's recruiting children into his army with lethal outcomes is more reprehensible than BAMN's accessorizing their protests with students, both situations demonstrate the extremes desperate political activists will go to further their cause..."
Read the rest at BAMN borrows from Taylor's Liberia.
Retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor recently co-wrote an editorial for the Washington Post, Not By Math Alone, with a warning about people like St. Paul's city council president and human rights director:
"A healthy democracy depends on the participation of citizens, and that participation is learned behavior; it doesn't just happen."
Read the rest at Next to go: snowpersons
(Mar 24, 2006)
"Success is inconvenient." And like success, education is inconvenient. You must do the work yourself. You must take the test yourself. We don't take seriously nor do we care for things as well that are given us than things we purchase with own efforts and time. The Michigan Way, according to our politicians, is to try and make success convenient with as little work or damage to our self esteem as possible.
Read the rest at The Michigan Way.
(Mar 23, 2006)
"In Michigan, this young woman won't be rejected because of her two X chromosomes after the MCRI passes. If she worked harder, volunteered more, took tougher classes, and scored higher than a male student she would be admitted and the male student would have to attend another college..."
Read the rest at To All the Girls I've Rejected.
(Mar 21, 2006)
A March 18'th article posted by Chet Zarko highlighted a Jennifer Granholm letter to the editor that seemed blatantly patronizing to minorities.
[The] relationship between liberals and minorities is necessarily un-equal. One group can not "care for" and "protect" another group they don't feel somehow superior to, or believe can't fend for themselves."
Read the rest at Connerly letter catches granholm hypocrisy on my blog.
(Mar 20, 2006)
"What should our gubernor be doing instead? Prepare a cushion. A really big one. Don't pretend it's a trampoline for economic growth. It's the biggest piece of foam rubber known to humankind prepared in advance of a Katrina-sized disaster that's been making landfall for over 20 years."
Read the rest at Vote for me: I'll suck less than the other guy.
(Feb 21, 2006)
All the fuss over rioting Muslims and cartoons and made for some great perspectives from some of my favorite writers. Below are a couple.
Mark Steyn(Feb 8, 2006) Counterfeits, cults, and cartoons
"Deprogramming is a curious occupation. These are the folks that rescue people from cults and help them recover from the brain washing. The interviewer asked, "How can you recognize a cult?" The response was interesting. "You can't recognize cults except by being familiar with major world religions.
"You can best recognize fakes by knowing what the real thing is."
You can read the rest of the article here
(Jan 20, 2006) From my most recent blog article:
"The proponents of same-sex and traditional marriages are needlessly in opposition to each other. Both sides have forgotten the purpose of marriage and the government has become a rudderless accomplice in states' battles for same-sex marriage and similarly wrongheaded defense-of-marriage amendments in both state and federal constitutions. If both sides understood what a compelling government interest is and marriage's benefit to society all parties could agree on how best to put their money where their mouths are (or should be) -- tax policy."
You can read the rest of the article here
December 16 Russell Trojan has started his own blog and I recommend everyone read it. Besides being a fantastic computer programmer Russ is an ordained minister and philosopher. Too many people think they're philosophizing when they're really only wondering about life. Russ has gone beyond that and his ideas on life are the result of melting his broad reading, Christianity, and logical mind together into a poignant perspective. Good stuff.
December 16 I've started my own blog and my first topic was a predictable one for people who know me and my favorite phrases.
December 15 I finished The World is Flat this morning and agree with several of the reviews on Amazon.com that the book was longer than it needed to be and the superfluous text had more to do with the author's self congratulatory writing style than unnecessary examples supporting the book's premise. Still, The World is Flat is valuable reading for its comparisons of America's education system to those of other countries and the ambition of other countries' youth to elevate their standard of living through education against American's apparent sense of success as birthright rather than the reward of hard work and merit.
The book paints such a disturbing educational comparison I was compelled to email subscribers to the Royal Oak Schools' Information Technology Academy Advisory Council describing my sense of urgency for repairing it.
December 14, 2005 For my birthday this year my parents-in-law bought me a copy of Thomas L. Friedman's, The World is Flat, and I'm reading as fast as I can. The book is a scary read. If you believe no one is going to take your job and your children have little competition for their birthright of having more than you for less effort, don't read this book.
One if the most important points the book makes is about the quality of secondary (grades 7-12) and the necessity of post-secondary education to compete for high paying jobs. Michigan residents should already be aware (but aren't according to The Detroit News' Nolan Finley as he writes about it here and here) how important education is considering the disintegration of the state's manufacturing sector.
October 7, 2005 I just read one of those statistics I want to have around when discussing the pogramming languages most everyone else uses.
The lead story in today's Great Lakes IT Report by Matt Roush describes an event at Compuware's HQ in Detroit and:
"Mike Burba, Compuware's marketing director, gave the opening keynote, pointing out the crying need for greater agility in software development. He said the Standish Group's Chaos Report shows that only 28 percent of software development projects succeed, defined as coming in on time, at or under budget, and performing as promised. Another 18 percent are cancelled outright, and 51 percent are challenged -- late, over budget, or lacking expected features."
It's unfair to blame grim statistics like that on a language, a paradigm, or even Microsoft. Customers and management are likely responsible for most of that. But if you're using the same tools everyone else is using why expect different results?
(September 27, 2005) I've been thinking about blog software lately. First, my wife wants to start putting her own comments on our website, but teaching her vi and HTML seem unlikely. Second, there's a lot of things going on in politics and technology I just have to go on the record about. Doing that, however, wouldn't be nearly as fun without your comments and blogs are great mechanisms to support that.
I like the idea of hosting my own blog here but it won't have the exposure of hosted internet blogs. But a hosted blog won't make life easier for my wife. Installing a full-blown CMS isn't going to make my life easier either. CMS systems are complicated chunks of software that require care and feeding.
Send me email with your comments and suggestions.
(April 4, 2005) I have been wanting to learn Lisp for a while now and now there's a great online book by by Peter Siebel called Practical Common Lisp. It will be available in April in hardcover.
(March 29, 2005) I've added two new parcels. One is for a version of Lisp inside VW Smalltalk and another is an interface to dbStar, the old dbVista network database.
(March 5, 2005) Remind to revisit the topic of OO mapping to RDBs. There's too much confusion over how it should be done without any discussion whether it should be done. It shouldn't.
(March 4, 2005)
Peter Seibel has recently completed his book
Practical Common Lisp (at Amazon)
and I'm looking forward to getting it. I'm about as familiar
with Lisp as I am the household uses for
heavy water (H
(February 25, 2005) A little while ago I discussed an epiphany I had about static typing increasing the coupling between modules, and how that is a "bad thing." There's a recent thread in comp.object discussing this very thing, interesting titled, "creaping coupling".
(February 8, 2005) Yes, you're not misreading. This is my first post since August 2004.
While things have been really busy at Hennessey Capital it's been difficult finding time to work on any pet projects much less update the home page here.
But lately I've started looking at Lisp and today I ran across a comp.lang.lisp post by Joel Reymont you need to read. Both the posting and his article on his C++ to Java programming experience.
(8/28) I just release LigGPG-0.1, GNU's Privacy Guard (Made Easy) for Smalltalk. I had a need to PGP encrypt something inside Smalltalk and figured if I did, so might someone else. I'm aware there are already PGP classes available for Smalltalk, but I thought it valuable to hitch the implementation details onto someone else's bandwagon with its own momentum, maintenance, and enhancement.
(7/14) I had an epiphany today.
It started a few days ago during a thread storm in comp.lang.smalltalk (cross-posted to comp.object comp.programming) discussing the virtues of statically typed and dynamically typed languages. The final puzzle piece appeared in a posting suggesting the semantics of OO programming required static checking. As I thought about it I came to quite the opposite conclusion. The gist of OO analysis and design are commonly boiled down to two goals, high cohesion within a module and low coupling between modules.
Those premises are generally accepted in the OO community, but static typing actually works in opposition to low coupling by erecting multiple requirements (contracts) between modules so that it can be mostly verified at compile-time that an exception won't occur at runtime.
I think I can boil my comments down to a few statements:
I'll expound more on this another time. It's already 2AM and sleep might help me workout more examples of how this premise can either be strengthened or torn apart.
(7/11) I've been thinking a lot about computer languages and the idioms they work with, and was reminded of a story that I think is relevant.
A friend of mine moved to Mexico and told me he thought he knew how to speak Spanish until one night when he actually had a dream in Spanish. It wasn't until then that he stopped thinking in English and translating to Spanish. I believe a similar things happens with computer languages, or perhaps more accurately, language paradigms. It's not until we're familiar with the immediate and non-immediate contexts of a language and its literature that we're able to compose compact expressions that really have the look & feel of the language. Simple familiarity with Spanish may have allowed him to speak adequately with his neighbors, but it wasn't until his "conversion" that he was able to really communicate with the nuances of wit, humor, and persuasion. Not until then was he able to share a common idiom with his neighbors and coworkers.
This is where I think we must travel when we learn a new language--especially one that represents a new paradigm. This is why, if you want to learn OO, I suggest learning Smalltalk. It is without contest (that I know of) the most object oriented language today, even after its invention in the 70s.
(6/28) There have been modifications to the EfiStdIO and GNUPlot parcels. No real bug fixes but better ways of doing things along with some goodies. Again, I use them all the time on Linux so I'm confident they'll work for you.
(6/21) Yes, I know it's been a month since I posted anything but I've got a good excuse for that--I've been busy! And when you're a programmer, being busy is a good thing.
Everyone has a favorite subject that's really an excuse for religous debate. One of mine is dynamic typing v. static typing. Having done both I much prefer the former and find the latter to be a crutch for programmers unable to grasp the intent of OOP.
Having now potentially offended many, I still recommend an (another) article I was recently made aware of comparing the two approaches that makes for good reading. I haven't gotten all the way through it but I liked the way it started.
(5/12) I'm a little late sharing this news with people but the really amazing thing is I'm not even going to bother putting it into my own words. I think Patrick Logan did a great job in his blob entry, Making it Stick.
(5/8) Because I've so much spare time I've started yet another project called CoordiDate.org to collect everything we know about calendars, standards, etc. into one place. Stop by for a visit to learn more.
(4/20) Dr. Alan Kay will receive the 2003 Turing Award for his work in the '70s inventing the language Smalltalk. You can read more about it at InternetNews. Congratulations Dr. Kay!
(4/19) An important bug fix to the Store for Sybase parcel has been released. Be sure to visit articles/parcels/ and download 0.3 if you've already downloaded 0.2.
(4/15) Today I issued the first release of a Sybase interface for Cincom's Store Source Management System. You can read more about it at articles/parcels -- at least until I give it its own page.
(4/5) I haven't gotten into programming WAP or WDML (is that it?) for cellphones/pdas, but I'd like to. I need a new phone and am looking at a couple that offer Wireless Access Protocol (WAP) which means I can browse the net from my cellphone.
But how would browser forms get filled out on such a small input format? Check-out www.w3.org/MarkUp/Forms/. More cool stuff from the folks at the w3!
(4/4) We will never be satisified with language comparisons. If our favorite language doens't place well we'll often be convinced the sample code was intentionally dumbed-down in another language's favor. Regardless, they're fun to read. Personally, if the comparison comes from someplace reputable I suspect the code is reputable. At least, its representative of the practiced art by the majority of coders. Face it, if it was superb code we'd be fooling ourselves.
Anyway, let's get right to it. Dave Harris posted this messages to comp.object. that I wanted to make sure I didn't lose--and my bookmarks have become too many to be anything other than a haystack. First, there's this one from The Advisors, then there's this one and this one that all basically say the same thing. Coding in C++ and Java are nearly equivalent productivity-wise, and each are nearly three times slower than coding in Smalltalk. How about that!
From my cursory inspection all the languages I was familiar with landed just about where I expected them to land. More on that another time.
(3/24) Well, its not as new as it is recently noticed by your's truly, but Sun's new Technology Directory, Tim Bray has written an interesting blog, Future Languages. Sun's new Software CTO seems to anticipate the decline of statically typed languages like C++ and Java in favor of dynamically typed ones like Python and my favorite, Smalltalk. It's worth noting that I had already discovered his references to Bruce Eckel's, Robert Martin's, and Paul Graham's writings and reported them here (though in not a very timly fashion to be newsworthy).
This view may or may not cause a problem in Sunnyvale. Working to collect as much intellectual property as possible for Java, Sun actually owns some pretty neat technology, like Self, possibly the only language more OO than Smalltalk.
(3/12) Paul Graham is at it again with What you can't say, an essay about taboos, politial correctness, the discovery of truth, and time travel. This guy's a brilliant writer and seems to easily deal with topics many of us would wouldn't dare visit. And yet, his articles seem both blunt and inoffensive at the same time. I wish I could write like that.
(3/7) There's been significant improvements to the Smalltalk parcel for OpenLDAP. Namely, I've tested using TLS/SSL. This is good news. Smalltalk programs can now communicate with directories over encrypted connections. Keep up on them by watching the article on OpenLDAP/ST.
(2/24) There have been multiple improvements to my Smalltalk parcel for algebra. You can read about the fixes and enhancements (exponents) here.
(2/11) I've recenlty been playing with OpenCMS for a project I'm working on. Parts of it look to be great while others are less so. I've started accumulating my thoughts here.
(1/13) I haven't read the entire text, but Unskilled and unaware of it: How difficulties in recognizing one's own incompetence lead to inflated self-assessments starts out too funny to not pass on to visitors. The premise is that some people know what they don't know, and are therefor more intelligent than people who don't know what they don't know and are dangerous to those around them. Looks to be a good read. There's links inside the article if you'd like to subscribe to the journal originally publishing the article.
(1/4) Yes, I'm still on the recipe-kick-thing. In a current thread in comp.object several people are debating the benefits and drawbacks of OO from both engineering and sociological standpoints (later in the thread--not early). All this reminds me how much more advanced cooking is than programming. Cooks know how long something will take to prepare and cook. My wife, Tiffani, got Rachel Ray's 2nd 30 Minute Meals, and guess what? Each meal takes approximately 30 minutes. If only we could be so accurate when estimating programming projects.
(1/3) I've been doing a lot of reading on Content Management Systems of late. For anyone else needing to do some CMS research checkout www.cmswatch.com and www.cmswire.com. Good resources both.
(1/2) Happy New Year!
I was watching Tiffani make something from a recipe book this holiday and realized it was a lot like building software, only she was better at it. I mean that. Most programmers suffer the not-invented-here syndrome and prefer to roll-their-own than use components that already exist. When cooking, you can raise your own chickens for eggs or buy eggs at the store. Too many programmers prefer raising their own chickens.
Can programming be more like cooking? I think so. There's a lot about it that smells object-oriented (see early comment). Additionally, cooks can start from-scratch or use ingredients that give them a head start. Dinner is ready quicker when you get a head start. It's ready even quicker when you order take out. Software, like food, is built with some ingredients from-scratch and others prepared. In some cases it's in our clients' interests to order take out.
In that vien, I can either write my own CMS or use one from a vendor that specializes in CMS products. Many consulting/contracting houses would prefer to bill their clients to build their own, which may account for the more than 250 products out there in the under-$15000 range. There are still more CMS products that aren't detectable in that range because they were home-grown. Ask any of those contracting houses for a CMS and they'll recommend their own--even though that's not their specialty.
(12/22) I've just discovered my cellphone can receive text messages. Visit http://www.cingular.com/sendamessage and type-in my cellphone number. I didn't know that option was enabled. Imagine my surprise...
(12/18) I've recently enabled WebDAV on my server at home so I can update it from (nearly) anywhere. If this message shows up it's working. This is a babystep towards playing with basic content management system stuffs. I'm a tad concerned I had to allow nobody group access to my public_html directory so the web server Apache could write to the files, but it's working regardless my anxieties.
I use the opensource cadaver tool to move the files up and down. The biggest missing feature that I see (or don't see) is the (in)ability to configure a proxy.
(12/08) Where did my link to Alan Kay's Early History of Smalltalk go? I thought I had a link to it somewhere around here but it has mysteriously disappeared. Well, it has not so mystersiously reappeared.
I'm teaching a class on J2EE this week and was reminded that things may be becoming too abstract. This is on the heels of a conversation I had with Chris Beale, a consultant at Pillar Technology about technology getting too complicated for its own good. In our attempts to make things easier to program we seem only to be spreading complexity across more technologies instead of simplifying them. Will someone remind me to revisit this topic or would someone like to debate it with me? Let me know. It's worth exploring.
(11/20) Apparently I forget as much as I read. Regarding my 11-15 posting below, there was an interesting discussion on this topic in comp.lang.smalltalk when the referenced announcement was made. Heck, I even participated in it. I should remember things like that before I shoot off my fingers...
(11/15) Do I really do that much reading? While researching Java for a class I'm teaching next week on J2EE, I ran across a usenet thread that mentioned Strongtalk, a version of Smalltalk that included radically new approaches to optimizing Smalltalk and introduced a typing system. The good news is it worked. The bad news is that Sun bought the comany and redirected its efforts to Java so a commerical Strongtalk was never relased, and the only available version is for Windows and doesn't include the VM's source code.
In this sense, Sun is as guilty as Microsoft in stunting progress in language research. Very disappointing. Perhaps someday the people who developed Strongtalk will be able to return to Strongtalk and develop a product for the marketplace.
(11/13) While reading a debate in comp.object on the stupidity of programmers (really) I ran across two postings that included exerpts from this paper buy Richard Gabriel. Lower on this page I preserved for posterity a quote of his on the disappointment of OO because people prefering strong typing (like Java and C++) have ruined it. I haven't read the paper yet but it's on my reading list.
(11/05) Recently I had a conversation with another consultant and he commented on how things seem more difficult today than they did "before." He went on to say that programmers need to know more now than they did back in the 70s and 80s. And perhaps that's true. They need to know about Java and Java Servers, XML, Struts, methodologies, project management offices, scripting languages, pages, servlets, beans, jdbc, relational stuff, middleware, menus, buttons, popups, dropdowns, objects, procedural, functional, etc. etc. etc. At the same time Gartner is reporting 70% of software projects fail. Have we made things too complicated? Have too people come to associate complexity with progress? How can we make our projects simpler? I, for one, wouldn't be against simpler languages. Java is getting out of hand but no one seems to notice since they quickest solution to complicated languages is cheaper programmers overseas.
In an attempt to control the damage programmers can do to themselves hoards of them have opted for languages with speed governors, guard rails, and other programmer restraint systems in the guise of type (straight-) jackets. They figure the slower they go the less likely they are to make a mistake. Oddly, all we've discovered is they go more slowly.
(10/31) Happy Halloween!
I recently reread a paper by Paul Graham equating hackers and painters and was reminded of something in Computer Science--that very little is new. Alan Kay's Early History of Smalltalk (link below) demonstrated over and over again how most of this stuff already existed by the mid 1960s.
"What we can say with some confidence is that these are the glory days of hacking. In most fields the great work is done early on. The paintings made between 1430 and 1500 are still unsurpassed. Shakespeare appeared just as professional theater was being born, and pushed the medium so far that every playwright since has had to live in his shadow. Albrecht Durer did the same thing with engraving, and Jane Austen with the novel.
"Over and over we see the same pattern. A new medium appears, and people are so excited about it that they explore most of its possibilities in the first couple generations. Hacking seems to be in this phase now.
(10/22) On 10/6 I posted a notice (below) of how Eric Raymond things the small of death is in the air for Sun Microsystems. This reminded me of a short essay suggesting Sun's Java strategy would backfire. Give it a read for in interesting refresher in microeconomics.
(10/10) Are frameworks getting in the way of productivity? When are frameworks 100lb tools for 1oz problems? What type of applications are you developing?
www.catalysis.org provides and approach that brings a calculus to object oriented analysis to prove a model is both abstract and precise. Lots of good information and highly recommended by Ken Faw, Sr. VP at Pillar Technology.
(10/7) Anyone interested in lightweight languages should enjoy last year's Lightweight Languages Workshop at MIT. The conference videos are put on the web and offer some interesting introduction to some of the lesser known languages out there. Have your RealPlayer ready and visit http://ll2.ai.mit.edu/. Also there's a page on Actor Prolog at http://www.cplire.ru/Lab144/. Lastly, there's a paper on Building Backtracking into Smalltalk.
What really is the liklihood that Sun will go out of business? Eric Raymond thinks Wall Street is rating Sun as junk and the smell of death is in the air.
Are your consultants consulting or conspiring? How confident are you that if you were going to do something really stupid but would profit your consultants they would tell you not to do it? How confident are you your technology projects aren't Enron-ettes in waiting? Suppose you were thinking of rewriting your legacy system in Java. That's a lot of consulting and contracting work. Would your consultant tell you there was a way to preserve your legacy investment and in-fact increase its ROI (where else has it to go) without rewriting? Would they be willing to pass-up a lucrative jobs-creation project like your's?
(10/6) I sometimes wonder if I should be blogging. It seems everyone else is, but then, when was I to do what everyone else was doing?
(10/2) I was recently reminded how daunting a system rewrite can be and the many good reasons there seem to be to justify such an undertaking. At the same time I was also reminded of an essay I found at JoelOnSoftware on how rewrites may not be the best strategy.
There's a subtle reason that programmers always want to throw away the code and start over. The reason is that they think the old code is a mess. And here is the interesting observation: they are probably wrong.
After teaching both Java Programming and OOA&D classes these last six weeks, I was recently reminded of a good analogy for teaching people object orientation--Recipes!
I had used blueprints for homes, reminding my students that a blueprint describes what it looks like, the materials its made of, number of bedrooms, their sizes, etc., but you still can't move into it. You need to build a home (instantiate it) before you have something (an object) you can move into. The only problem with this is I couldn't think on my feet of really good, relatable, extensions to this analogy to make sure it really sinks in.
Then I thought of recipes. Cookbooks. I can't eat a recipe until I build it (instantiate) it. What's better, cookbooks are organized by kinds of recipes, and there are variations on recipes. I need to develop this further.
I'm certain I'm probably note the first one to think of this so I'm going to go search around to see who else might have done so already.
(9/30) ComputerWorld and other trade rags are reporting companies are turning off email in response to the unending stream of spam and viruses. When do you think they might seriously consider using Macintoshes or loading Linux? It won't stop the spam (causes no damage) but neither Apple's Mac OS X or Linux are infected by Windows bugs.
(9/22) It looks as though The Object Oriented Paradigm goes as far back as Plato.
(9/20) It recently occurred to me that off-shore development is an appealing cost-cutting measure for companies thinking the cost of software development is high because of the cost of programmers, and not the cost of poor management, poorly designed projects, poor requirements, uncooperative user, and insufficient analysis of the business problem. The problem is the same poor management and design practices will continue to be done, delivering similarly disappointing results but for less expense. Well, that's one way to do it...
Ivan Tomek's book, The Joy of Smalltalk is a great text introducing programmers to the pleasure of using a (real) object oriented programming language. The rest just look like C. His listing of of more free books is available here.
(8/28) In Why do IT projects fail?, consultant Sue Young does a great job telling it like it is. If you're involved, or about to be involved, in an IT project, this is a great read.
(8/14) Programming languages are not created equal. If they were, what motivation would there be to move from one to another? Why would C programmers move to C++ then Java and perhaps maybe to C#? Read what Paul Graham had to say about it (a LISP advocate) in Revenge of the Nerds.
I'd proud to announce I'm joining Pillar Technology as a consultant/instructor/architect/mentor. They do great work and have a lot of bright people working with them. If you're interested in what we can do for you, let me know!
(8/13) Have you ever heard of Smalltalk Meetup Day? Neither had I! Visit http://smalltalk.meetup.com to register yourself today. If you're in the Detroit area the next meeting is Wednesday, September 3, at 7PM. Future meetings are held the first Wednesday of every month (according to the website).
Even if you're not a Smalltalker, but are curious about the language and who might be using it locally, signup to join us!
(8/12) A few days ago I posted a message to comp.object asking what people thought the most important features of OO programming were. One of the respondants included a link to a talk Bjarne Stroustrup, inventor of C++, gave at OOPSLA '95. There is some great stuff in there about the value of OO programming and the design goals of C++. Some of the factors influencing the design of C++ and the problems C++ addressed no longer exist, and it may be time to move on to other languages. I'll write more about this later.
(8/6) I guess I'm accumulating a bunch of links having to do with the comparative values of dynamic v. static typing, and early v. late binding. Here's a quote from a debate that I just had to save for posterity's sake. Actually, the heck with posterity, I wanted to save it for myself.
(7/29) Looking for something witty to put on the bottom of your e-mail or usenet postings? Here are some of my favorites.
Boy, what a great day! Sometimes the best part about reading is finding an author capable of saying what it is I want to say but am too inarticulate to, well, articulate. Paul Graham is one of those writers, and his article on his suspicions regarding Java is an excellent example. These are the reasons I don't like it as well as the reasons I'm learning to program in it anyway.
(7/28) Some of you may know I design and write computer programs for a living. I recently read a posting in comp.lang.smalltalk about Bruce Eckel's epiphany on statically-typed languages. It was such a great read I wanted to include a link to it here. His observation that such realizations might only be possible by learning new languages is worth noting.
The posting also included a link to a Paul Graham lecture at Harvard.
(6/19) Tif's going to get the cub scout patches today. Here's the standings from emails and phone calls through this AM.
(6/9) Rob Verschoor, author and frequent contributor to sybase.public.ase.* news groups included in his ASE XML Tool pages a pointer to is. If you're visiting us to investigate this great ISQL replacement, don't hesistate to send me email with questions. Like many GNU packages is is built from source. If you'd like binaries for Linux I can provide them.
(5/6) I've moved the location of the article Standard IO in VW Smalltalk to its own directory. More and more this seems the thing to do since many of the articles come with something else to download.
I've created a wrapper for gnuplot from inside VW Smalltalk. I use it to create graphs inside my SSPs.
(5/4) Some of you may know I enjoy programming in Smalltalk. It's always good to see it in the news. Here's recent article from Information Week.
(3/31) Better than writing about my own opensource projects is having someone else write about them. Check out this article by Robert Kellock, one of isectd's contributors.
On Monday, March 3, 2003, Ferndale's Board of Education met with Ferndale's City Council and I was there!
One thing I haven't had posted for a while is the story I wrote about finding my birth-mother, Sharon. You can read it here.
I've also written various articles on computer technology
I also maintain an open-source middleware software project called isectd.
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