rev.one technologies

Office humor

blog — Fri, 12 Sep 2003 16:38:00 GMT

I need to preface this by saying, yesterday, or office manager came running into our development pit and tripped over our only phone, ripping it out of the wall. Our IT guy was able to replace it with another phone, in a jack right near my desk. So now the funny parts...

We put the phone in a desk drawer. We hate that stupid phone. It's annoying. One extension for all of the developers. Now, when someone chimes in on the intercom, they are muffled, we yell at the phone and throw things at it. The people on the speaker can't hear us, they get frustrated and end up walking all the way into the pit. It's humorous. It will last for a few weeks, until the either we get bored with it or the IT guy removes it from the desk.

In any case it was funny, as I'm writing this. Back to the grind I guess.

If your new, or fairly new to web development with ASP.Net, I ran across these great tutorials on GotDotNet. The tutorials require Microsoft Power Point, but there is exmaple code. Hey, it works for me!

--Thom

Multi Threaded Testing Utility

blog — Thu, 17 Apr 2003 04:56:00 GMT

I had an engineering manager ask me if I could build him a testing tool, that would measure latency in an application that connected to a database. The criteria was something like:

Thread 1: Use ADO.Net to connect to an Access database, perform a sumple select query, bind the dataset to a grid, calculate the time from request to bind, and update a graph on a form. This routine runs continous.

Thread2: Use ADO.Net to connect to a SQL Server database, perform an update query, calculate the the time from request to response, and update a graph on a form. This routine runs continous.

Thread 3: Use ADO.Net to request an XML file from a Web Service, which connects to an Oracle database, executes a procedure, returns the data in an XML file via SOAP, calculate the time from request to response, bind the results to a seperate datagrid, and update a graph on a form. This routine runs continous.

The idea is to see where bottle necks occure in simple database connections. A typical application in this environment may need to connect to all three sources in a transaction. The engineer wanted to see if threading was an option or individual functions within the same process.

So, what are your thoughts? The results, were scary. After spending hours trying to debug crashes (which turned out to be some of my fault and some of ADO), that the machine the application is running on impacts the performance more than the actual processes of the application itself.

Example. We first tried it on a 733 Mhz Pentium III machine with 256 MB of ram. The app crashed after only about 5 minutes. Next on a PII Dual 800 something Mhz with 1.5 GB ram, exceptional performance (obviousley), and on a Toshiba 8100 with 128 MB ram... oh my, bad idea... anyway, we never really made any scientific breakthoughs. We did discover though, that the idea of multi-threading an application for database purposes, didn't give us the high performance that we were looking for. So, we'll keep looking.

Re: Message From Scott M

blog — Sun, 13 Apr 2003 16:20:00 GMT

I read Scott M's message this morning titled "ASPNetWeblog and .NETWeblog Future". After trying to figure out what this meant to me, I realized, that I am probably like so many others, that bloging is an extension of our daily life. True, I am a developer, but that isn't all I am. The world around me shapes things I do, thoughts I have and paths I take. It's inevitable that DotNetWebLogs would have that same evolution.

So, I completely understand that the community wants to keep the focus pretty tight, and I don't have a problem with that. I think it's too bad that some take it to the extreme, but who am I to judge.

So, I will be removing any non-DotNet content from this site and move it to a blog that I will use to share my non-DotNet experiences. This is a shame, because blogs aren’t supposed to be News Groups, with moderators. If the community wants such a tightly focused forum to share information, why wasn't a News Group created?

Off my soap box... I truly appreciate the opportunity to be part of DotNetWebLogs. I am still trying to figure out how to fully take advantage of this medium. But as I do, I am thankful that I do have someplace to share thoughts and ideas.

Do You Have The Skills?

blog — Fri, 11 Apr 2003 21:55:00 GMT

i found this little article in eWeek magazine several months ago. it was rather interesting. as i was facing the job hunt, i thought after reading this i wasn't worthy to hold the title IT Professional. so, after reading this list, tell me, does any one out there really have ALL of these skills? and if so, why?

"Don't even think about trying to get a job in IT without..."

1. The ability to take apart a computer (and put it back together again)
2. Basic skills in Winodws 2000, Windows NT and Linux administration
3. Familiarity with at least one of the significant databases (Oracle, DB2 SQL Server)
4. Experience in security hardening and knowledge of security issues
5. Strong skill in HTML creation and editing
6. At least a working ability to create and edit XML, XML Schema and DTD's
7. Knowledge of a scripting language
8. Working knowledge of at least one significant modern programming language
9. Familiarity with router and switch configuration
10. Experience using an SNMP system to track system faults
11. Ability to automate desktop management tasks such as disk cloning for new system setup
12. Familiarity with (and frequent visits to) key knowledge bases, including BugTraq, Slashdot and major vendor sites
13. People skills, especially the ability to work as part of a team
14. A tough skin

ok, so, i beleive that i have a good portion of these skills. if a general understanding of these skills is your desire, i don't have a problem with that. but come on, an expert in all of these?

i know that technology skills can go hand in hand. a software developer needs to understand computer hardware in order to take advantage of it's capabilities. if your a DBA for instance, isn't it imparative that you understand computer hardware and how it will affect the performance of your database?

most of us in IT do one thing, and we do it pretty well. hardware guys know the PC, Routers, Switches and Operating Systems. software guys know programming languages(s), scripting languages, process flow, database design and GUI's. and i know that many of you out there are a one or two man operation, either for yourself or a company, and wear everyhat. But doesn't that lead to less than optimum production? i guess what I'm trying to say here is, it's one thing to be exposed to technology, it's another to say your an expert.

Access and SQL Server

blog — Wed, 02 Apr 2003 05:13:00 GMT

Wow, one whole post in the month of March. The month really sucked.

Anyway, I have been living a nightmare what I call Microsoft Access. What a scourge that product is. I was hired to perform an intermediate upgrade from Access 2000 to SQL Server 7. I have done this a few times, with pretty good success. After looking at the database, it was quite clear that linked tables would be best until a full upgrade to SQL Server could be performed.

Well, that just isn't how it worked out. First, the upsizing tool in Access 2000 sucks. I understand that most of the time objects and syntax can't directly be translated. But instead of giving me the opportunity to fix this during the upsize, it just bypasses the whole thing. What the ...

In any case, after realizing that the only real long term scalable solution was to fully move the database to SQL Server 7, the Client agreed and we are moving that way. So, I will find it very unlikely I will do another 'interim conversion'. It's all or nothing baby.

Thom

Things are looking up!

blog — Fri, 07 Mar 2003 21:18:00 GMT

Well, after 3 weeks, it looks as though things are looking up. I have managed to secure some long term contract work, that although may not be everything I wanted to do, but brings money into my bank none the less.

Now maybe I can get back to doing things I love, like developing software! Yee-haw!

Thom

I am humbled, again...

blog — Wed, 26 Feb 2003 06:44:00 GMT

I spent a significant amount of time tonight reading blogs and browsing sites of those claiming an advanced knowledge of the .NET platform. Man, I am humbled, as the saying goes, I'M NOT WORTHY! Some of you out there have an understanding that I only dream of having. It's a tad intimidating. The depth of the knowledge is incredible. The resources are vast. It is just amazing. I aspire to one day stand in your midsts.

I had some one call me on the phone this morning pushing certifications. I don't have one, and this person quoted that I would increase my value by 25% by just possesing one. Is this really true? Is there really that much of a difference? Can someone who has a certification actually be that much more valuable? Trust me, I am not knocking certs. I wish I had one, if only for the perceived value. I know people put a lot of work and energy into certs. But have they really gained anything by having them? Tell me.

Cool Cases

blog — Wed, 26 Feb 2003 06:36:00 GMT

If you own a PDA, check this site out, GrinderGear.com. Their cases just ROCK!

Web Services and .Net

blog — Wed, 26 Feb 2003 05:25:00 GMT

Many of you have already seen this set of articles, but for those who may stop by my blog could find them of useful. Thanks to Roy Osherove and Christian Weyer.

// Article: Web Services & .NET

Still Looking

blog — Tue, 25 Feb 2003 04:31:00 GMT

ok, day 12... have been spending my time looking for work. work would be a full time job, contract work, contract to hire work... any thing. a lot of people say 'yeah, i think we have something, i'll get back to you.' ok, so, i'm waiting. looks like i am going to have to start making more aggressive moves.

saw a so-so movie today, 'How to lose a man in 10 days'. the only good thing in this movie was Kate Hudson.

trying to fill out these unemployment papers. man, there a lot of hoops. not even sure if it's worth it. i will get in a week what i used to make in a day. god, what an eye opener. it's not even worth it. i just realized, that no matter what i do, it's futile to collect unemployment. oh well...

anyway, i ahve been a licensed realtor for about 10 years. thinking maybe i will get back into that business. so, what is the percentage of people in the technology field losing their jobs that change fields? is it high? is this kind of like mother nature weeding out the unfit so those that have the skills can get work? there was a few years where, if you could say the word computers, people would throw a huge amount of cash at you, and you took it and ran. the odd days of our industry. sitting around watching stock options make people bazillionares. me... my gazillion options are worth more on the paper they are printed on. oh yeah, after they laid me off, they gave me the opportunity to purchase the options that had vested up to my 'release' date. what the hell is that? sure, let me pay you for options that are, well, worthless. i think not.

started unpacking my box from the office i used to have. funny all of the things you seem to accumulate. cdr's with no labels. folders full of papers you have no idea why you kept them. frequent eater cards to places you haven't been to in years. a coffee mug that fell behind your monitor. pencils, pens, post-it's, folders, binders, paper pads, tacks, glue, staples, sugar packets, odd computer parts...
well, i guess i'll end now. trying to stay motivated. trying to stay above the rim. see ya!