Matthew McCullough's Denver Dev

Using the Maven Command Line Interface Plugin

2009-02-19T20:36:00.001-07:00

Maven 1.0 users were spoiled with the console plugin, and now Maven 2.0 users can get a nearly equivalent experience with a high-performance bootstrapped prompt via the Command Line Interface plugin. Watch this quick screencast for a tour of using this plugin and start saving even more time with Maven.

Relocating to a permanent home

2009-02-02T12:43:00.000-07:00

Finally, the Denver Dev blog has a more official home attached to Ambient Ideas. The new URL is: http://ambientideas.com/blog/

This blogspot.com site will continue to stay up and serve up the old articles with comments, but all the existing articles through 2007 have been migrated to the new site as well.

All new posts will be put on the new URL.

Thanks for staying tuned! Up next, an article about Git and how it literally changes team and OSS dynamics.

iPhone SDK, Cocoa & RESTful Web Services, Memory Leak

2009-01-16T15:34:00.000-07:00

Recently, I gave the second version of my iPhone and Java Web Services talk at the Boulder JUG. It was a great audience filled with interest and great questions. I promised them I would continue to load up my Delicious bookmarks with great iPhone links, and I'm doing just that.

Pertinent to that talk, let's quickly revisit that memory leak issue for NSURLConnection. In short, if you call sendSynchronousRequest, you get an internal memory leak of 128 bytes of a NSCFString object from inside the API.

To isolate this from my application coding skills via the iPhone and Java Web Services demo code, let's look at an example called ZipWeather from AppsAmuck. Attach the profile to the ZipWeather, exactly as downloaded. Run it. Type a zip code. It leaks.

It appears that the NSURLConnection:sendSynchronousRequest() Flaking out, even for others, calling this API to Amazon Web Services. I believe it may be the leak contributing to these hiccups. I've tried turning off the cache, but it still leaks. I've tried the async version and it still leaks too.

This Apple article even suggests using this same API in the same way that ZipWeather and my iPhone and Java Web Services app does.

In short, I'm submitting another Radar report to Apple about this and hope it doesn't get closed out as "Unable to reproduce" as João Pavão's defect # 6179277 did. I'm able to reproduce it every time, with everyone's sendSynchronousRequest calls.

I love the platform, but as you all know, one core API bug can really cause a lot of challenges until resolved. Let's hope this one gets resolved very soon!

References:

Open Source - 5 Big Reasons

2009-01-15T09:33:00.001-07:00

I was asked to write a few paragraphs for a client on why they should primarily chose open source software in the current state of our industry. In addition to a few articles supporting these positions, many have posited that we should even use government incentives to further boost OSS as a spark to re-ignite the industry. Leave your feedback on what your feelings are on OSS and I'll look into using some of the responses in my next presentation...

Open source is gaining momentum like never before in the most respected of institutions and enterprises. Originally, the choice to use open source was made only by smaller companies for strictly financial reasons. Those reasons still hold, but are now joined by a chorus of other great points in the current intellectual property, commercial vendor, and economic state that the business world is currently in.

Interoperability is strongest in the Open Source realm. Open Source enjoys the absence of financial motivations to close data inputs, and the existence of desire to have adopters join in and migrate from other open and closed platforms. You'll find that there are numerous import & migration tools for your existing data, and you'll discover that your data is stored in highly interoperable formats for future migration to any platform your business needs dictate.

Cost continues to be a factor leading towards Open Source in today's economic climate. Open Source wins every time on initial acquisition cost, but also on maintenance expenses over time. You can budget for well known project costs without yearly surprise increases in maintenance just because a commercial vendor raises renewal prices.

Quality is also a strong point of Open Source. This can be surprising to teams who think that well funded commercial products would have higher quality due to all the talent on such teams. But Open Source also sports excellent talent, as well as the hidden weapon of breadth of automated unit tests, constantly guarding the product's quality at each and every release.

In this uncertain economic climate, it can actually make more sense to know you perpetually have the full source code to your product. This removes the dangerous dependency on the continued solvency of a particular vendor. Open Source allows you to control and know your software destiny beyond any outside economic influences.

In sum, Open Source presents an attractive package in terms of cost, sustainability, and quality that are a perfect fit for the current business conditions of 2009 and beyond.

Matthew's Social Networks Graph, Winter 2009 Edition

2009-01-11T16:22:00.001-07:00

Every once in a while, I aggregate all my social network links for the new subscribers to the blog. Here's the Winter 2009 edition:

[2009-01-15 Updated with SlideShare, GitHub, Gist]

Developer Syntax Highlighting for Presentations, Copy-And-Paste on the Mac

2009-01-11T15:11:00.001-07:00

Based on some Twitter conversations with @fredjean about the Codex Ruby Gem, I've been inspired to stop taking screenshots of code for slides and rather putting in formatted text. But this isn't as easy to do as it should be. Eclipse 3.4 has lost (for me, and others) the ability to copy and paste rich text so that it appears formatted in the paste destination. Maybe that's a MacOS failure of later Eclipse versions. No matter though, as I drift father from Eclipse usage. My favorite other two editors can fulfill this need nicely with two simple add-ons.

Jim Weirich's blog post about using Ruby and posting source as a means

Dave Thomas (@pragdave) chimes in with his similar thread about presenting code -- gasp -- without Keynote entire.

Textmate: Copy as RTF Bundle (Plugin)

This sweet plugin lets you copy formatted code of any language TextMate recognizes as RTF. Perfectly suitable for pasting into MS Word, Pages, TextEdit, or namely, Keynote. Install it via:

cd ~/Library/Application Support/TextMate/Bundles
git clone git://github.com/drnic/copy-as-rtf-tmbundle.git "Copy as RTF.tmbundle"
Initialized empty Git repository in /Users/mccm06/Library/Application Support/TextMate/Bundles/Copy as RTF.tmbundle/.git/
remote: Counting objects: 34, done.
remote: Compressing objects: 100% (17/17), done.
remote: Total 34 (delta 14), reused 34 (delta 14)
Receiving objects: 100% (34/34), 6.88 KiB, done.
Resolving deltas: 100% (14/14), done.

The copy:

And the paste:

IntelliJ: Copy as HTML Plugin

Similar functionality works from IntelliJ. Just install the plugin "Copy to Clipboard as HTML".

The copy:

And, the paste:

Presentation Techniques in Video Form

2009-01-10T16:44:00.001-07:00

I just finished watching several excellent presenters from a summary page of 10 video clips. Everyone should consider watching these to improve their talks in 2009. These are the superstars of this skillset and there's so much to be learned from them.

Sean Kelly's Web Application Framework Comparison Presentation Video

2009-01-10T11:18:00.001-07:00

Sean Kelly of NOAA and JPL does a head to head comparison of TurboGears, Zope, J2EE, Ruby On Rails and Django. It's articular, fun, fast, and well presented. It's worth your time to listen to expand your horizons.

Mouseless Web Browsing

2009-01-10T11:14:00.001-07:00

I'm a keyboard lover. The productivity from keyboard shortcuts is just amazing. So I'm constantly keeping an eye out for new keyboard navigation techniques. Web browsers have been a sore point, because to click a link with the keyboard you first have to tab to it. This can be, on link heavy pages, 20 or more tabs before I can hit enter. Hardly productive if you ask me.

That's where Mouseless Browsing for Firefox comes in. It puts a number next to each link and you just type the number on the keyboard, press enter, and away you go. It couldn't be easier. Go forth and use the mouse no more for your web browsing efforts and watch your productivity take a leap!

iPhone 2G Network Switching from 850Mhz to 1900Mhz?

2009-01-04T18:18:00.000-07:00

Here's an interesting, though only lightly cross verified fact. AT&T might be moving the 2G network over to the 1900Mhz band (your phones are practically tri-band, nowadays) and using 850Mhz for more of the 3G network. 850Mhz penetrates barriers more easily, thereby yielding, in most cases, a better signal reach and strength. I have noticed and commented to co-workers (prior to this article) an lessened ability to get 2G signal in many of my normal locations around Denver. So to me, this is a consumer scientific same-data-point test, and I'm seeing reduced throughput and signal strength (in some cases, 0 bars now at places I used to be able to get 2 or 3). Comments from anyone with a 1st Gen iPhone?

QuickBooks Pro 2009

2009-01-01T18:34:00.002-07:00

I have used QuickBooks Pro for about 8 years. The upgrade to the 2009 edition is the single worst upgrade ever. And trust me, I've submitted insane everyday-workflow bugs against the other older editions, so saying this is the worst is saying a lot.

Let's articulate.

1) They have redesigned the transaction download screen. So far, I've yet to be able to find ANYONE who thinks it is an improvement. Read these three long forums and reviews for just a smattering of the loathing going on:
An Accountant's Review, request for time-loss reimbursement
Intuit Community Post (got so long, they had to start a new one)
Intuit Community Posts about Online Banking feature destruction in 2009
And those are just the first Google Hits. There are hundreds.

2) So, an apology would be in order, right? And just restore the 2008 features, right? Nope. No can do according to "Greg Wright, the product manager for QuickBooks".

"I care a lot about fixing the QuickBooks online banking feature so that it works as well as it used to. ... I can't go into details yet about what our plans are..."
You can find this quote in the forums.

3) The amazon.com rating has dropped so dramatically that Mr. Wright has reached out to customers, pleading for their patience in the form of a review.

4) I have sent Mr. Write a personal email outlining the 8 problems, including the ones in the Online Transactions window, in the latest R05 release. That's right folks, there are 5 service releases for this 2009 app and we just rang in the new year 18 hours ago. And they still haven't even addressed the bugs, and are still asking for our patience to get this screen back to it's '08 behavior. Wow.

I applaud Mr. Wright for replying, but he also better get the team coding/fixing/reverting. Mr. Wright noted "We have the developers working nights and weekends to fix this." Maybe a quick subversion revert is all that's needed guys.

Problem list, from 45 minutes of using it and 2 hours updating it:

1) A forced call in to activate? I am OK with DRM for licensing, but a forced call to try and be sold to all kinds of services that I don't use feels very wrong. It took over 15 minutes of my very valuable time listening to a non-english speaking rep ask me non-sensical questions. I am patient with ESL folks, but one of the questions she kept repeating (I asked and wrote it down carefully so I could send it to you) was "And is role add what?" I tried three times, then eventually just replied, "None". I have no idea what I was answering. She also kept asking me how my Christmas was. That's nice once, but three times? Please, I am busy running a small business. Just give me my code and let me get on with business.

2) No way to disable Online services advertisement at login to the application. Only choices are Later and Sign Up. How about a Never button?

Online/Downloaded Transactions Screen-->

3) Can't copy and paste between any text field in the transactions fields (with mouse right click or keyboard)

4) Billable -- Can't ever get it to stay checked. It flickers off a millisecond after I click it. It does this no matter how many times I click it.

5) Amount is not populated into the split. And I have to use split because that is the only way I can enter a Class. I have to tediously click the "Show Splits" option just to enter a class.

6) Can't do a "Receive Payment from Customer" like I could in 2008. I have to go out and manually do that via the menus, then enter back in to the online transaction view (even worse since it requires all other screens to be closed)

7) Close all other windows? I've never had to do this in any previous version. This is an extremely odd step backwards, given that the new screen is otherwise a net loss of features. Perhaps I could have lived with this if the downloaded transactions screen was more feature-ful than ever before.

8) Have to click NOT AN EXPENSE to get the manual match screen? But it is an expense. So clicking on NOT AN EXPENSE makes no sense. I need a "Match Manually" link like we used to have in 2008.

Presentation Skills of Benjamin Zander

2008-12-27T12:37:00.001-07:00

The presentation skills of Benjamin Zander are absolutely amazing. He says so little, yet so much. He uses paper easels rather than PowerPoint and live demonstrations rather than canned demos. He works the audience and circulates amongst them. What an excellent example to aspire to.

JMeter & Plugins

2008-12-26T18:13:00.001-07:00

I noticed a post on JMeter EJB plugin. It is a short but well written example. My ears are a bit more attuned to Apache JMeter these days after I wrote the first OSS Groovy plugin for JMeter last month. One of my clients is now using it for scalability testing of a JEE application. I highly suggest you take a look and consider contributing ideas or code to the project. I'd be glad to have other contributors.

MacBook Pro (late 2008) "Hot Laptop In Bag" Troubles

2008-12-10T21:27:00.001-07:00

As an owner of two "MacBook Pro (late 2008)" units (gotta love the Apple official model title), I've experienced an overheating issue quite frequently. It's becoming known as "hot laptop in bag, syndrome, v2". Here's a quick tour of the problem with a bunch of the news articles published in just the last few days.

There's a quick description of the problem by Gizmodo then, the actual thread on the Apple site, followed by a suggestion to use SmartSleep to turn on Hibernate mode only, or reset your SMC, or reset your PRAM, or actually get a firmware fix. Take your pick.

And if you don't find that enough, go ahead and check out the electron microscope pictures and spectrograph of the bump composition that says NVidia is not being transparent about the failing video chip problem.

Does this just make you want to run out and buy one of these new units?

Lest you think I'm switching back to PCs, these Macs are still way better than my last Dell D600 that required 4 complete overhauls for failed components in a 90 day period.

JCP Executive Commitee Results

2008-11-18T13:26:00.001-07:00

I applied this year to the EC elections of the JCP for a seat on the Java SE board. I got 15.8% of the vote, but alas, did not win a seat. The PR release for this can be read here.

Standard / Enterprise Edition Executive Committee
Number of eligible voters: 948
Percent voting members casting votes: 26.9%

The top two members have been elected and will serve for the next three years.

Intel Corp. 46.4%
Keil, Werner 24.9%
McCullough, Matthew 15.8%
Tiwari, Shashank 12.7%

Other NFJS Denver Reviews

2008-11-18T10:49:00.000-07:00

Several other attendees, namely Tim Berglund and Mike Brevoort took some excellent notes on the specific sessions they attended at No Fluff Just Stuff. If you want a recap of the sessions so you can best choose what to attend when NFJS hits your city, take a moment to read their summaries.

No Fluff Just Stuff and Open Source in the Enterprise

2008-11-17T07:44:00.001-07:00

My attendance this weekend of the NFJS tour in Denver, CO proved once again to be as valuable as ever. With a heavy penchant for Open Source and its rapid innovation, the speakers showcased technologies that weren't even on people's vocabulary lists just last year. And take note, these are not just technologies for the sake of technology. The speakers such as Ken Sipe, Venkat Sumbramaniam, Stu Halloway, Neal Ford, and more served out a steady stream of reasons why each new technology is a game-changer in its given space.

A quick top 5 list of the best presentations (that I attended):

Hacking, The Dark Arts by Ken Sipe
Towards an Evolutionary Design by Venkat Subramaniam
Git by Stu Halloway
Failing with 100% Test Coverage by Stu Halloway
Mylin by Brian Sam-Bodden

If you have an opportunity to get your employer to purchase a seat for you to attend a stop on the NFJS tour, do it. If you are self employed, then don't even think about not going. This is one of the best ROI's of any conference going today. As Ken Sipe said in his keynote address, you must increase your networking, you must increase your knowledge portfolio, and you must continue to constantly change and improve as we IT professionals work in literally one of the most dynamic industry verticals in the world.

A very interesting article from InformationWeek also touches on the impact of Open Source, like TerraCotta in the Enterprise. With so much Open Source presented at NFJS, one can't help but imagine the NFJS attendees are the drivers of this migration.

SwingX No Longer Funded

2008-10-31T09:44:00.001-06:00

Well, it looks like Swing continues to be a technology that has matured enough to be left out to pasture. In addition to the Swing team departures at Sun, the most recent related event is that SwingX, one of my favorite libraries, has stopped being funded. I don't see this as a huge problem, as most applications are heading to the web nowadays unless they have a hugely compelling reason to be on the desktop (Development IDEs, CAD, Drawing, Graphics apps). JavaFX continues to be the also-ran in the RIA lineup against Flex (forefront) and Silverlight (2nd place).

Open Source Survey Results

2008-10-17T23:07:00.001-06:00

A recent survey reveals the top Open Source packages of 2008. I find it not at all surprising that Firefox tops the list and very interesting that Xerces cracks the top 3.

Ambient Ideas on the iPhone

2008-10-17T23:03:00.001-06:00

Ambient Ideas has officially been accepted into the iPhone Developer Program, meaning we can finally deploy beta software to actual handsets and completed products to the iTunes / iPhone Application Store. Keep an eye out for our upcoming presentations at DJUG on iPhone + Java Web Services integration.

Appcelerator at DOSUG

2008-10-17T22:55:00.001-06:00

Matt Quinlan of Appcelerator visited the Denver Open Source Users Group for our October meeting and gave a great presentation on how Appcelerator is an abstraction layer from your choice of backend web service provider (Java, PHP, ruby, .Net) and also provides a tag library that gives you access to the best of Prototype, JQuery (coming soon), YUI, Scriptaculous, and more.

The best part is how easy it is to try out Appcelerator. Just load up this page and start playing. You'll be hooked in no time and ready to download the SDK installer for your platform of choice.

DJUG October - Ken Sipe on JMX, Spring, MBeans

2008-10-17T22:40:00.000-06:00

Attended DJUG's October meeting, which was sponsored by NFJS and had Ken Sipe as presenter. He gave two presentations, the first on Spring and JMX, the second on 7 Habits of Highly Productive Developers. The room was packed. It was standing room only.

JMX Presentation Takeaways:

You need to use JMX.
Would you fly a plane without instruments?
Then why fly software without JMX data on its in-flight status?
Java 5 and above has MBean server.
JSR 3 (literally, the 3rd JSR ever) = JMX
JDK 6 -> Even Simpler -> GetPlatformMBeanServer()

Verizon Pantech UM175 Mobile Wireless Card on Mac OS 10.5 with Native Drivers

2008-10-17T22:01:00.000-06:00

Apple has a discussion forum going on this very card, but I couldn't make heads or tails of which was actually the right solution. So, I present to you here, screenshots and a walkthrough of the setup.

1) Purchase a Verizon Pantech UM175, one of the latest USB wireless cards from Verizon. Should be able to get it for $0 with a 2 year contract.

2) Plug it in. Mac OSX 10.5 Leopard will detect it as a modem

3) Change the settings per the screenshots below
3.a) Vendor: Sierra, Model: CDMA, Dial Mode: Ignore dial tone when dialing
3.b) Telephone Number: #777, Account Name: YOURNUMBER@vzw3g.com, Password: VZW

JQuery bridges the Open Source / Java / Microsoft Divide

2008-09-28T16:22:00.001-06:00

JQuery is, in my opinion, the most unique JavaScript libraries in terms of being able to modify content on-the-fly. One such incredibly useful example that I'm able to apply often, is adding PDF icons and _newwindow targets to all URLs with .PDF as an extension on all pages in a site without ever touching the source of the pages themselves, but rather just on one common include page.

Well, this library just got a major injection of Redmond steroids by the announcement, by way of Dion Almaer of Google, that Microsoft will be adding it to its standard development platform. Scott Guthrie has a quick demo of IntelliSense integration with JQuery in the ASP.NET toolset.

It's neat to see technologies such as Hibernate, ORM, and Linq or actual implementations, such a JQuery in this case, span the borders to what I consider the three development realms - Open Source, Java and Microsoft.

Be nice. But not too nice.

2008-09-22T21:53:00.001-06:00

An article I picked up about "being too nice" from Tim Berglund that was published on CIO.com hits a very sensitive spot. It indicates that being too nice, when it means compromising your position and ideas, is a career risk. When you step back and think about it, that makes perfect sense. I have taken a cautious few steps towards the solidarity-of-position, even when it poses small endangerments of conflict. I am already starting to see some of the benefits. But this is truly a fine line to walk. Don't take it too far.

Spring Framework License Change

2008-09-20T15:19:00.001-06:00

I'm hearing a huge buzz across the blogsphere about the maintenance changes to the Spring Framework. It appears at first interpretation that only the first three bug fix drops will be community available, and the others will be available only to paying enterprise customers.

Perhaps more concerning and going hand in hand with this is that largely only internal Spring employees are working on the codebase fixing bugs. If the community were allowed to be more involved, perhaps this strange commercialization positioning would not be necessary. Lastly, the venerable Matt Raible can't even get access to the Spring 3.0 source code. If it is an open source product, where's the source?

Please offer your comments and feedback. I'm interested to hear even more opinions on this change.

Update 2008-09-23 3:30 PM: More buzz on this at DZone.com from some respected names.

Update 2008-09-23 8:30 PM: And yet another update from the SpringSource team directly in the form of an FAQ.

Setting up Sun's VisualVM on Mac OSX

2008-09-08T21:55:00.001-06:00

There is a relatively new tool out from Sun call the VisualVM. It is, in short a super new version of JConsole. In fact, it even runs all the extensions you have previously written for JConsole. Nice job Sun! You can profile, take snapshots, and watch in real time, threads, memory usage, and so much more of any local or remote java application.

Now, it takes a little bit of a trick to get it to work on Mac OSX. You need the latest Java 6 JDK installed, though it can monitor apps running on JRE 1.4 through JRE 7.0. But if you don't set it as your default JDK, which can cause many apps such as Eclipse and CyberDuck to stop working, then you'll need to use the --jdkhome option when launching visualvm. I set up a shell script to do so. The full invocation is as follows:

visualvm --jdkhome /System/Library/Frameworks/JavaVM.framework/Versions/1.6.0/Home/

There is even a getting started guide that shows you the basic features. And if video is more your style, there's a vodcast that shows off this new app as well. If you still can't get enough of this new tool, there's a neat DZone overview written by Geertjan Wielenga.

DNS, Tertiary SubDomain Tricks for Web 2.0 Apps

2008-09-03T22:03:00.001-06:00

Never really thought about this approach before, but if your DNS * record for your domain maps to your web server, you can use just a servlet filter or whatever other technology you want to use to capture custom tertiary level subdomains URLs and redirect to a user-specific page.

For example, if you want http://matthew.ambientideas.com to take your users to a user-profile page, there's no need to wire in your DNS to your software app, constantly updating it per user. You just capture the URL, parse out the tertiary domain part, and redirect, say, to http://ambientideas.com/users/?user=matthew. Easy, straightforward and cool. Kudos to Jordan for the first implementation for an upcoming app from Ambient Ideas.

Ubiquity - QuickSilver Like Plugin for Firefox

2008-09-01T17:24:00.001-06:00

If you like Quicksilver for your Mac, then you should check out Ubiquity for Firefox. Same concept, with the power extended to the browser. Video review available.

Monty Python Investigates Erlang Programming

2008-09-01T09:48:00.001-06:00

Got this link from my Twitter network, and haven't laughed this hard in weeks. If the crew of Monty Python all got together and decided to do a show about the programming language Erlang, this is what it would look like. 80's haircuts (70's?), DTS telephone systems, and prolific use of Sun Workstations with X Windows in 16 colors (or is it monochrome?). Erlang has a bit more modern web site now, but the video image will forever be emblazoned in my mind.

Useful Apple Mac OSX Java Mailing Lists

2008-08-29T19:05:00.001-06:00

The official Apple Mac OSX Java Mailing List Archives contain some excellent technical insights, with replies directly back from Apple in many cases. There's even one great particular article in question that explains what in the world the A folder is in your /System/Library/Frameworks/JavaVM directory.

Neal Ford's Productive Programmer, 2nd Printing

2008-08-12T21:53:00.001-06:00

Neal Ford just wrote a very generous post about the second printing of "The Productive Programmer", a book I highly recommend and have encouraged many fellow developers to go to SoftPro and purchase. He thanked the technical reviewers that contributed, including some of my acquaintances such as Greg Ostravich of the Denver Java Users Group and Venkat Subramaniam.

The section, to be generously added to the 2nd printing reads:

"A special thanks goes out to the technical reviewers for this book. Without their hard work and dedication, this book would suffer lots of silly mistakes and confusing explanations. Thanks to Greg Ostravich (who has reviewed every book of mine for the last few years and gotten no recognition, unfortunately), Venkat Subramaniam, David Bock, Nathaniel Schutta, and Matthew McCullough."

Petcha Kucha - Should Open Source User Groups Use This?

2008-07-18T09:43:00.000-06:00

When running an Open Source Group such as the Denver Open Source Users Group or attending another technical Users Group, I find folks engaged 50% and falling asleep wanting the presenter to just finish up the other 50% of the time. It is painful to be in audience when wanting such a speaker to wrap up. It is ever worse when occasionally you ARE that speaker they want to wrap up.

Maybe it's time we rehearse so well for the "quick dips" into some technologies that we could present them in Petcha Kucha format. This is a type of presentation that lasts exactly 400 seconds with each slide on screen for exactly 20 seconds. It requires impressive rehearsal and great density of information. Code demos could come as an after-session roundtable or just be downloaded at home by the audience, as they wouldn't really fit into such a format.

What do you think? Leave a comment. Your input will be fashioned into DOSUG's future meetings.

Too Much Reliance on Software

2008-07-17T09:46:00.001-06:00

When we begin to rely on software wholly, utterly, and without any safety-net or reservation, we end up with signs like this:

If the machines were capable of laughing at us, they certainly would. Maybe we should reconsider the importance of intelligence, skill, and creativity in the humans working with the computers as well.

Neal Ford's "The Productive Programmer" book is now available

2008-07-10T08:05:00.000-06:00

I am excited to tell you that I received one of the very first copies of the O'Reilly Neal Ford book, "The Productive Programmer", as a result of being one of the tech editors (Greg Ostravich, Venkat Subramaniam). The book is excellent and I am proud to have contributed effort to it. Neal was a great guy to work with -- responsive, cordial, and appreciative.

This book offers some neat, language agnostic tips and tricks for your daily work life as a programmer. You'll find yourself incorporating no fewer than 5 of these the first day after you've picked up the book. It offers suggestions such as keyboard shortcut "helper apps" and ways to create shell scripts to stop you from performing repetitive tasks manually. Grab a copy from your local bookstore as soon as you can.

Collaboration in Eclipse

2008-06-30T10:26:00.001-06:00

There's an amazing new version of the ECF plugin for Eclipse that allows for remote Collaboration in Eclipse via the XMPP (Jabber, GTalk). Just log in to your GTalk account and start sharing editors with a friend.

You can see this in action in this video.

Wiring Hacker Synapses - Upload a Document to Scribd

QuickSilver for Linux

2008-06-11T09:50:00.001-06:00

There's a new Linux competitor to QuickSilver in town. It's called GNOME Do, and it just reached version 0.5.

It offers the same quick keyboard shortcut commands that QuickSilver does. Noun-verb-directobject goodness abounds.

If you've never used QuickSilver on the Mac, use it for a week, and you'll never be the same again. The keyboard takes on a whole new power.

Seth Godin Books

2008-06-08T23:36:00.001-06:00

Here are some excellent books on marketing by Seth Godin that I'm also done reading. At first you'll say, "I'm not a marketer, so why would I read these?" One quick read through these books will change forever how you look at things that are marketed to you every day. It will make you a cynic about most ads, and also give you an entirely new vantage point on whatever you job is and how you "market" it to other people, perhaps without even knowing it. He also has a web site and more useful / very insightful blog. Even his video of his talk at Google is pretty good, though a bit longer than it should have been. I love his story about, "If cat food were being marketed to cats, it would come in one flavor, MOUSE! Instead, it is being marketed to people so it comes in flavors like Grilled Salmon. Because of course, cats in the wild start open fires and GRILL the salmon they catch in the river."

High Tech Way to Walk to Work

2008-06-08T13:43:00.001-06:00

I can hardly believe this work/exercise unit is truly in production, but sure enough, it is...

And although I can hear you runners out there getting excited, you will be dismayed that it maxes out at 2.0MPH. They are trying to be hip marketers with this YouTube video, but somehow, I just can't see any of my coworkers crying out for this, nor getting an employer to pay for it.

No More JFrames

2008-03-23T15:54:00.001-06:00

I just read an interesting overview of the JSR-296 Framework. It basically takes away the mundane setup of your main application frame. I think many individuals have been using Eclipse RCP and NetBeans Application Framework to accomplish this in much too heavyweight a fashion. JSR-296 provides a very simple and lightweight way to restore application UI state, set up the main application title, and set the default close operation.

Read more about it at this DZone article by Geertjan Wielenga.

JavaFX Script Presentation at NCAR

2008-02-25T09:38:00.001-07:00

Last Wednesday I had the privilege of being invited to speak about JavaFX at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, CO. It was a great audience with some very interesting questions. Thanks to Ken Kim and his team for a great speaking experience.

Also, thanks to these folks, the JavaFX Script slides I was presenting got awarded "Slideshow of the Day" on slideshare.net for a second time in just one week. These slides were the most viewed and downloaded of any slides on the site. Very exciting.

JavaFX Presentation with Jim Weaver

2008-02-13T13:33:00.002-07:00

Jim Weaver gave an excellent talk on JavaFX Script last night at the Boulder Java Users Group. He had deep code examples and showcased his NFJS-style winner-wheel example. Always a hit with the audience. His blog has entries about it can be found here and here. I did a little intro talk prior to that on JavaFX Script as well. My slides can be found at slideshare.net along with some of our other past DOSUG presentations as well (just search for DOSUG in the search box).

How To Remove Stuck Sidebar Items in MacOS

2008-02-10T11:59:00.001-07:00

Well, here's one of those things that isn't Mac-easy on Mac OS. Say you create a sidebar link to a server. Say you no longer have access to that server. Whoa. Can't click on it and remove it. Just keeps popping up an error message. Well, it turns out you have to follow these instructions and edit the ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.sidebarlists.plist file to purge the offending link. Come on! You have to be kidding Steve, right?

JavaFX: Can You Do This?

2008-01-23T09:52:00.001-07:00

I saw a blog post today that showcased some amazing effects in flash for a user interface. I wonder if this can be easily accomplished using Java 3d and JavaFX in concert?

Check out the Screenvader User Interface

Upcoming JavaFX Script Presentation

2008-01-21T23:14:00.001-07:00

Just a quick heads up. My intro and Jim Weaver's advanced JavaFX Script presentations will be in Boulder on Feb 12 and Denver on Feb 13. Come and learn about the latest language from the folks at Sun.

MsgFiler and OmniFocus Help Me Cut the eMail Clutter Fast

2008-01-02T22:52:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while, I post about productivity apps. This time, I've got two that you should go and purchase, now. If you don't you are simply wasting valuable time.

The first is MsgFiler. I've been using it every since I switch to Mac. With a CMD-9 keystroke, it lets you move messages into folders anywhere in your mail folders hierarchy. And trust me, I have a huge hierarchy. I received and sent a little over 28,000 retainable (doesn't count junk or ones I threw out) messages this year. So I need a tool like this, desperately. And Adam Tow, the developer, even takes the time to email back to his users; a rarity these days. He just rewrote the app for Leopard in Cocoa, and it is amazingly fast (perhaps 5x its previous speed).

The second product is a GTD implementation called OmniFocus. It is a task manager on steroids for those of us trying to live the GTD way of life. Couldn't live without it now. I'm hooked.

Better Presentations

2007-12-16T12:51:00.001-07:00

I've been gathering some really cool links to giving better presentations. If you are an occasional presenter, take a look at the following:

Rock Your Presentation with the Right Tools and Apps

No Fluff Just Stuff Conference

2007-12-16T12:43:00.001-07:00

Several weeks ago, I attended one of the best conferences on software development ever. It was pure learning, from truly knowledgeable speakers. If you've never been before, attend a No Fluff Just Stuff conference as soon as you can! Jay Zimmerman has even indicated that he'll be able to send a NFJS speaker to the Denver Open Source Users Group this coming year. Can't wait!

Eclipse Plugin Management

2007-12-16T10:13:00.001-07:00

How to Manage Your Eclipse Add-Ons Painlessly is an interesting summary of the three tools that can be used to efficiently manage Eclipse plugins. Those are, in no special order, Pulse, Yoxos, and EasyEclipse.

Stop manually managing your plugins and download one of the tools/distributions listed above.

Denver Open Source Users Group: Aggregated Java Conferences, Events Calendars

2007-11-25T19:23:00.000-07:00

Denver Open Source User Group Members,

Several folks, including Jay Zimmerman, have recently mentioned that someone should put together an aggregated calendar of Java events on both the local (Denver) and International level. Well, I've taken the time this weekend to make a first stab at both.

I've just published two webcal calendars (works with Outlook, Mac iCal, many other client apps) that will aid all of us in expanding our exposure to programming related events.

The first calendar is for Java Conferences on the National and International level, and can be added to Outlook or iCal via:

webcal://icalx.com/public/programr/Java%20Conferences%20&%20Speaking%20Events.ics

and has an awesome web-viewer as well:

http://www.icalx.com/html/programr/year.php?cal=Java+Conferences+%26+Speaking+Events&getdate=20071125

and the second is for Denver and Front Range Java-related events:

webcal://icalx.com/public/programr/Denver%20Developer%20Events.ics

and also has a web-viewer:

http://www.icalx.com/html/programr/year.php?cal=Denver+Developer+Events&getdate=20071125

If you notice any discrepancies, please let me know right away and I'll correct them for the benefit of all. If you also see any events that should be added, send those my way.

I will also be posting these links for future reference at the DOSUG web site:

http://www.denveropensource.org/presenterresources

Comments, feedback, and corrections welcome. Send them to matthewm@ambientideas.com.

Sincerely,

Matthew McCullough

Managing Partner

Ambient Ideas, LLC

http://www.ambientideas.com

VMWare Importer

2007-11-21T14:05:00.001-07:00

VMware Importer makes migrating from Parallels a snap
from The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) by Mat Lu
In our post yesterday on VMware Fusion 1.1 we mentioned that VMware had also included a beta of their new Importer application. However, after using it tonight, I thought it was worth a separate post of its own, because it makes migrating from Parallels to Fusion incredibly easy. The amazing thing is that I converted an old Parallels 2.5 WinXP VM which Parallel's 3 itself had not been able to import successfully! Basically, when you start the Importer it gives you a window in which to drop the Parallels .pvs file (just Win2000, WinXP, Win2003 Server or Vista at this time). It asks you where you want to save the new Virtual Machine and a few minutes later, boom it starts right up in Fusion -- no muss and no fuss.

Flock Browser

2007-11-21T13:40:00.001-07:00

I've just discovered the Flock web browser, based on Firefox. It is like taken to the next level. If you use Blogging tools, and Social Bookmarks, you must check out this browser! It offers convenience-tools (built-in) for all kinds of Social Web activities.

Groovy for Java Developers

2007-11-18T18:14:00.001-07:00

This is a great VideoCast of a Groovy introduction. I liked Scott Davis' better at No Fluff Just Stuff (www.nofluffjuststuff.com), but this is still a good one.

clipped from www.theserverside.com

Jeff Brown on Groovy for Java Developers

Posted by: Nitin Bharti on November 14, 2007 DIGG
Groovy, an agile dynamic language for the Java platform, has a Java-like syntax along with many features inspired by languages like Python, Ruby and Smalltalk.

In this presentation, recorded at the recent Grails Exchange event in London (organized by Skills Matter), Jeff Brown, core member of the Grails development team, demonstrates the power of Groovy through many interactive examples and explains how Java developers can leverage that power in their enterprise applications.

The slides for this presentation can be downloaded here (1.57 MB)

Developer Salaries Increase Double Digits

2007-11-05T19:07:00.000-07:00

Developer salaries as reported by Robert Half Technology have
increased in the double digits and .Net and Java programmers are
earning a 10% premium over their LAMP counterparts.

http://www.regdeveloper.co.uk/2007/11/02/2008_salaries/

$25000 Prize Awarded for Simplest Turing Machine Ever

2007-10-28T12:06:00.000-06:00

Math, as related to Computer Science is highly intriguing to me. This article especially caught my eye, since I saw the challenge posted some five months ago. Well, in an untypically fast timeframe for math solutions, Alex Smith from Birmingham, UK has proved that this machine is indeed universal -- the simplest (first?) 2,3 Turing Machine ever proven to be so.

Just two states and three colors. It is almost a puzzle in and of itself that such a simple machine can be universal. This is a nice rebuttal to the academics that state most innovative solutions in mathematics have already been done by our predecessors. Alex Smith has quite negated that statement through his proof.

Open Source Billing Solutions

2007-10-26T17:08:00.001-06:00

I was asked about Open Source Billing solutions via email today. It had been a while since I had reviewed this space, but a few minutes in my deli.cio.us network revealed some interesting titles:

Freeside billing and trouble ticketing (primarily geared towards ISPs)
CitrusDB (CRM, Customer Care, and Billing for ISPs, Consulting and Telcos)
JBilling (I'm pleased to see that one is based on the JEE platform)

Al, Scott, I hope you find these products beneficial. Let us know which one you settle with and I'll post your review here.

No Java 6 On Mac Ever?

2007-10-25T20:50:00.001-06:00

We're hearing rumors that there might not ever be Java 6 on Mac. Say it isn't so!

UPDATE: Well folks, it isn't looking good. Leopard is Java 5 and the Java 6 preview has been ripped down from the Mac Developer site. What gives Steve? Some of your biggest fans are Java coders. If you can't get a final Java 6 to them soon we'll be the laughing stock and will have to resort back to any platform that does delivery Java 6.

A Better Java Collections Library from Google

2007-10-25T07:29:00.000-06:00

I'm working on a project that is going to need extreme performance capabilities, as well as some unique libraries. Of course, any good Open Source practitioner should do some searching and check their deli.cio.us network's bookmarks before writing their own library. I stumbled across the Google Collections library and an article that interviews the authors. This exactly fits the bill. The Google Collections library offers such nice-to-haves as Multimap with a sensible interface (e.g. calling multimap.put(bar, baz) rather than building up a list first). Here's some code from another related Google Collections series of articles to show the before-and-after benefits:

Before:

Map<Salesperson, List<Sale>> map = new Hashmap<SalesPerson, List<Sale>>(); public void makeSale(Salesperson salesPerson, Sale sale) { List<Sale> sales = map.get(salesPerson); if (sales == null) { sales = new ArrayList<Sale>(); map.put(salesPerson, sales); } sales.add(sale); }

After:

Multimap<Salesperson, Sale> multimap = new ArrayListMultimap<Salesperson,Sale>(); public void makeSale(Salesperson salesPerson, Sale sale) { multimap.put(salesperson, sale); }

Jobs, Sponsors, and more presenters at DOSUG

2007-10-24T09:11:00.001-06:00

The momentum at the Denver Open Source Users Group is really growing. We have three new sponsor companies, including Atlassian and Robert Half Technology. 35 folks showed up at the last meeting and we've got 4 more presenters on board for the coming months. We even have new prizes: more books, shirts, and other graciously donated items such as an IntelliJ IDEA 7 license.

The talk about Grid Computing and Apache Commons Configuration were well received.

Please, Don't Unit Test GUIs

2007-10-24T09:01:00.001-06:00

I'm on the side of thinking that believes companies spend way too much money unit testing GUIs when their business logic (their real value, most of the time) hasn't even got great JUnit coverage. I'm not completely against testing GUIs, but let's get our priorities straight -- make sure the business logic is tested first, then we'll talk about the UI. This developer has an article that shares some of the same sentiments and even mentions how Martin Fowler has frequent "Don'ts" but then leaves it to the user to track them down.

Social Bookmarking Explained

2007-10-24T08:58:00.001-06:00

Here's a quick video explaining to the uninitiated how Social Bookmarking works. For folks thinking that bookmarks in IE or Firefox are good enough, this is an excellent tool for convincing them otherwise.

Present like Steve, Not like Bill

2007-10-16T07:33:00.001-06:00

Jordan over at Ambient Ideas Photography sent me a unique article that contrasts and compares Bill Gates' and Steve Jobs' presentation styles. One is brief, the other is wordy. One uses minimalistic slides, the other writes prolifically in slides. Whom would you rather listen to?

Check In With Clients To Avoid Problems

2007-10-15T09:00:00.000-06:00

Lifehacker has an excellent but short point. Keep in touch with clients on a weekly basis to smooth the relationship and keep on top of what they need done and what they see as priorities.

10 Absolute Nos in Consulting For Web Design

2007-10-15T08:21:00.000-06:00

Samuel makes the excellent point that we all need to be reminded of. Some "yes" answers in web design lead only to a bad experience for both developer and client. So it is best to consistently say no to these dangerous questions, such as "can I pay for all the work at the end of the project?" Read 10 Absolute "No's!" for Freelancers at the Wake Up Later blog.

A Programmer On Crete

2007-10-14T20:25:00.000-06:00

I never thought I would see the day when a famous software developer lived on the same island of Crete, Greece that I grew up on. It is remote, and still had a 1950s switchboard telephone control system when I was there in the late 1980s. But then again, to each his own. This is an excellent article from Java Champion, Heinz Kabutz on becoming a better programmer through a few (albeit rather basic) suggestions.

Scalability Research

2007-10-14T17:15:00.000-06:00

I'm doing a presentation at the Denver Open Source Users Group on Thursday and thought I'd post some of my research here. If you aren't signed up to the Yahoo Group for DOSUG hop over and do it so that you get our monthly meeting annoucements.

Scalability research links:

The Scalability Revolution: From Dead End to Open Road
Grid Technologies
Software Architecture Mistakes
"Start considering performance and scalability early, create performance models to try to predict key performance metrics and spot bottlenecks and get stuck into some practical proof-of-concept work as your design ideas are forming. This will all help to increase confidence that there aren’t any performance and scalability demons lurking in your design."-Eoin Woods, enterprise architect at UBS Investment Bank.
High-Performance, Scalable Applications on Amazon EC2
Google Can't Keep Up With User Space Consumption
"Google claims that people are devouring capacity with photos and other attachments on its Gmail e-mail service faster than the company can add to it at its current pace"
Amazon Architecture
Scalable Web Architectures: Thoughts on Scalability
Getting More Grunt with Terracotta
What Is Scalability?
Reimplementing RMI
Working with Terracotta
Terracotta: Java Scalability Library
GridGain: Java Grid Processing Framework
GigaSpaces: Extreme Computing Framework
Amazon EC2: Cloud Comnputing
Amazon S3: Scalable Storage

Come on down for our Thursday 6:00pm Meeting in the Denver Tech Center Microsoft Offices and share your scalability experiences with the forum.

Is The Desktop Application Nearly Dead?

2007-10-12T09:19:00.000-06:00

In my consultant capacity, I am helping engineer several applications. One is a Desktop App that has been a Java Swing based application for about 4 years. On version 3.0, it was recommended to switch to a Web Based Application, and a proposal to reuse 80% of the infrastructure was put forward. But instead, the client chose to revamp the Swing app. I think this is an unwise choice, especially for the nature of this CRM application.

The deployment and distribution costs of desktop apps are quickly becoming an unnecessary cost. Dietrich Kappe makes a similar point here.

His list of reasons for choosing a desktop app over a web app are brief, and only three points in length:

1. It is unwise to expose the application to the outside world. Example: power plant management software.

2. The application calls for integration with custom hardware or mobile devices. Example: scientific software that integrates with custom measurement devices.

3. The application requires fine control of the underlying video/audio hardware. Example: first-person shooters.

Write clearer code by inverting your nesting

2007-10-04T17:26:00.000-06:00

Taylor Gautier has an excellent explanation of how to test your precoditions early in your method, fail FAST, and get out as early as possible. This is a key point that I strive to communicate in my consulting engagements, and leaves code that others can maintain so much more easily.

Short, concise and readable code - invert your logic and stop nesting already!

Have you ever heard this maxim:

"A method should have one and only one exit point"

Well, it couldn't be more wrong. The following are the attributes of a well written method; it should:

perform one and only one function,
be short and to the point,
be easy to read and understand,
and it should have a descriptive, accurate and concise name.

Notice that none of these points says anything about how or where a method should exit. To write a clean, easy to read method, follow these guidelines:

follow a template. consistent flow is easier to read.
check your pre conditions early. If they fail, exit fast
nesting is bad. avoid it. invert your logic at every step of the way.

First, the template:

[return value] [method name](parameters)
[throws clause]
{
  [check pre conditions]

  [core logic]
}

Pretty simple, right? So what's this about invert your logic? Well have a look at the template up there. Do you see any nesting? Right....neither do I. So let me illustrate a common idiom, one that uses in particular the if/else if/else pattern and the single exit strategy:

/**
* Returns the element at index
*/
public Object getElement(int index)
{
  Object theItem = null;
  boolean listError = false;
  boolean indexError = false;

  if (list != null) {
    if (index > 0 && index < list.size()) {
      theItem = list.elementAt(index);
    } else {
      indexError = true;
    }
  } else {
    listError = true;
  }

  if (listError) {
    throw new Exception("Bad list");
  } else if (indexError) {
    throw new IndexOutOfBoundsException("Bad index");
  } else {
    return theItem;
  }
}

Wow, what a mouthful. And I didn't even put in a few while loops, case structures and other nonsense I usually see that ends up with code nested 4 and 6 levels deep. Let me rewrite that code up there making it match the pattern I suggested, inverting the logic, and then I will explain what I did.

/**
* Returns the element at index
*/
public Object getElement(int index)
{
   if (list == null) {
       throw new Exception("Bad list");
   }

   if (index < 0 || index >= list.size()) {
       throw new IndexOutOfBoundsException("Bad index");
   }

   return list.elementAt(index);
}

Remember when I said check your pre-conditions first, and exit fast. What this allows you to do is evaluate all of the conditions under which your method will fail, and if you detect something amiss, handle it immediately. This strategy is flexible - if the pre-conditions for your class or your method change, you can add and substract the tests for those pre-conditions using this structure without having to modify surrounding code. The worst offender I see is always of the following pattern:

if (condition_to_succeed_is_true) {
   do_something();
} else {
   do_error();
}

The problem with this is that the reader of your code has to put the conditional test onto their mental stack while they digest what do_something() is doing. If do_something() happens to be long, or complicated, you'll probably blow the mental stack of the reader, forcing them to look at the condition again just to figure out why the do_error() is being done.

On the other hand, when you line up your pre-condition tests linearly, there is no mental stack, the reader simply processes each in turn, and then, when they are all done, they are able to process the real meat - the do_something() - part of your method without all the baggage from your pre-condition tests. So inverting your logic means taking the above test, inverting the condition, and writing it as:

if (!condition_to_succeed_is_true) {
   do_error();
   return;
}

do_something();

So I hope you remember your CS classes and De Morgan's laws - I find coding like this makes me use them all the time.

There's one other benefit this strategy has, and that's when you are writing synchronized blocks. When you write a synchronized block, you absolutely must strive to perform as little work as is absolutely necessary inside the synchronized block.

Let's look at the problem we have when we use the normal pattern I described above, combined with synchronization -- the code now becomes:

synchronized (lock) {
   if (condition_to_succeed_is_true) {
       do_something();
   } else {
       do_error();
   }
}

Ugggh! There's no way, in Java, to release the lock before you perform do_something()! (Which we presume takes time and shouldn't be performed under lock). If you invert the logic, however, you can test the condition and release the lock as soon as you've tested it (note that it's often the case that you might need to use some data you acquired during the lock, in that case you should make a copy on the local stack under the lock, and then release it which I have shown below):

synchronized (lock) {
   if (!condition_to_succeed_is_true) {
       do_error();
       return;
   }
   state = copy_state();
}

do_something(state);

Remember, in these examples I am assuming that do_something(...) is the non trivial part of your method, both in lines of code, complexity, and execution time.

One more thing - I find that using 4 spaces to indent code blocks instead of 2 helps to break me of the habit of nesting my code because it acts like an automatic brake on the indentation level.

http://javathink.blogspot.com/2006/10/short-concise-and-readable-code-invert.html

Productivity Tool Links

2007-09-26T06:58:00.000-06:00

Consider these three tools to boost your consulting productivity:

A collaboration calendar and pages tool (Free and Paid subscriptions):
http://www.backpackit.com/tour
A project status reporting web site (Free):
http://www.projectstat.us/
And a library of aging stock photography (Free):
http://www.morguefile.com/

How To Write A Press Release for Your Services

2007-09-26T06:52:00.000-06:00

An interesting article about maximizing your freelancing exposure through a press release about research you've performed or skills you've gained:

"If you have an interesting story to tell, a press release will help you to make newspaper editors aware of it.

Maybe you recently won an award. Maybe you stumbled upon some interesting information in the field you work in. Or maybe your design contributed towards some kind of achievement on behalf of your client.

Depending on the scale and content of your story, you can send your press release to marketing websites, marketing magazines, the relevant trade press, the regional press, and even the business section of the national press."

Examples:

"How a mouse can make you look 10 years younger.

A release in a fashion magazine about the work of a Photoshop specialist who touches up photo-portraits.

Color purple gets people spending.

A release in an advertising magazine about how purple advertisements are the most effective at driving sales.

Company makes $500,000 by opening doors six inches wider.

A release in a marketing magazine, about how a photographer advised her door manufacturing client to re-shoot the company catalog. Photos of closed doors were changed to doors that were slightly ajar—a decision which resulted in extra sales.

How to hire a full-service marketing agency for just ten bucks.

A release about a new breed of freelance copywriter/designers, featuring a freelance designer who has recently integrated copywriting into her service—and is introducing the service to new clients for ten dollars per page."

http://freelanceswitch.com/finding/how-to-write-a-press-release-for-your-services/

25 Tips for Freelancing

2007-09-26T06:49:00.000-06:00

25 Freelance Tips for Maximizing Your Income

An excellent article by Raj Dash

Original Article Link:

http://performancing.com/25-freelance-tips-for-maximizing-your-income

Some people are just freelancers at heart. They enjoy the freedom of choosing what they'll work on, the variety of work, the opportunity to work with different people, often the chance to work at home, and many other benefits. But there's the good with the bad, and often that includes dry spells mixed in with being overworked.

Here are some tips for maximizing your freelance income, whether it's for blogging services, copywriting, design, SEO or something else. The bulk of these tips are gathered from my own experience as a long-time freelancer, but the references are skewed towards some of my favorite freelance and blogging-related blogs, as well as a few of my own posts on various blogs.

1. Don't accept all work.

If you're not going to enjoy it, or the project rate is high but the equivalent hourly rate is low, then think twice before accepting. Also, some clients just require too much of your time for too little return. (I.e., remember the Pareto Principle.)

2. Leverage your research time.

If you work in a certain niche, without conflict for multiple clients, you can often research for mutliple projects at once. For example, if you're writing feature articles on the same topic for two or more clients, you might be able to research online for them simultaneously. Assuming you are paid by the article/ project, they will hardly care that you got work done faster.

3. Recycle your efforts.

If you've collected enough notes sufficient for several articles on a topic, or sketched multiple designs for several logos, or whatever, recycle that effort. Can you produce several distinct works that could be sold to anyone besides the client in question? Or can you give these away on your blog? That in it itself would display your abilities and potentially draw future clients, for just a bit more effort.

4. Have multiple income streams.

Building multiple income streams can go hand in hand with recycling your efforts, or it could refer to having other means of revenue that do not take you away from your main business.

5. Learn proper multi-tasking.

A lot of bloggers are slamming multi-tasking, but it's worked for me for a long time. You just have to multitask properly and apply it where it can be applied (non-physical work). It's especially useful if you're juggling multiple projects. Multi-tasking is efficient handling of simultaneous tasks, not tasks done at the same time. There's a huge difference.

6. Get in the flow.

Multi-tasking is all well and good, but when you actually work on a client's project, be dedicated - get in the flow.

7. Use efficient bookkeeping.

Keep receipts for everything relating to your work, no matter how frivolous. It just may be tax-deductible. This is especially important if you have a clearly delinated home office area. You can write off some expense based on ratio of office space to home.

8. Don't undersell yourself.

Set rates based on a simple formula:

* Rate = $D/ B hrs.

* D is the desired salary per year that you want.

* B is the total number of billable hours that you think you can secure in a given year. Most consultants/ freelancers estimate B on the basis of 15 billable days per month, for an 8-hour day. So that's 15 d/mth x 8 hr/d x 12 mth/yr = 1440 hrs/yr. The rest of each month will usually be spent doing administrative work, seeking out new clients, improving skills, researching, or possibly vacationing. Don't forget to factor in vacation time, any professional costs such as subscriptions, your operating costs, etc.

Once you have that hourly rate, translate that in to flat project rates, when necessary. You'll eventually get a sense for how long a particular task takes, but you might take in less than you want when you first start out.

9. Track your time.

Keep track of your hours spent, even on a project for which you quoted a flat project rate. This will help ensure you are not charging too little or taking too long on some tasks. This will also help if you outsource any work. You'll learn how long a task should take, plus a buffer for someone with less experience. Consider time and task management tools, or a web-based spreadsheet such as Zoho Sheet or Google Spreadsheets so that you can share information with hires.

10. Consider work insurance.

This goes by different names but is essentially liability insurance for freelancers and contract consultants. Some clients in certain industries (e.g., software development) will not sign with you without liability insurance. While this doesn't technically save you money, in given industries it increases your chances of getting high paid work.

11. Value your time.

It's one thing to track your time, but if you're wasting part of your day's productive periods not working, then you're effectively reducing potential income. This applies whether you're working at home or in an office. Learn to get the most of your work day, and learn your productive times.

12. Catalog ideas.

Record any ideas for future work as you have them, even if you can't get to them immediately. I like to use mind mapping software if I need to show hierarchy of ideas and outlines. Other times, I just make a flat list. When I find a lull in my schedule, I explore these ideas. Often, I'll find that when someone asks me to do some work, knowing my areas of interest, I'll have something relevant already scoped out. Thus, some of my legwork is already done, and someone is offering to pay me to complete it.

13. Blog.

if you're not already a blogger, no matter what service you freelance, establishing a blog and writing quality content (tutorials, resource lists, reviews, essays) will help promote and establish your authority and eventually bring work. That, of course, depends on what you're writing about. Your blog's topics should be closely related to the services you offer. Just make sure that you are drawing in potential clients, not just random readers. You can track general visitor behavior to your blog with Performancing's own PMetrics and the new plugin.

14. Network.

If you do good work, it's likely that you might start getting more work than you can handle. You can turn it down or pass it on to a colleague. No doubt they or another colleague will do the same for you. Or pay it forward. So network online and make sure you're networking on purpose.

15. Delegate.

Alternately, you can build your business. One drawback with freelancing is that there are only so many hours in the day and week. There's a limit to how many new clients you can take on. However, if you've learned some project management skills and can motivate and manage a small team, you can delegate tasks to people still learning the ropes. This of course changes you from being a lone freelancer to essentially being a consulting firm. You do the billing, allowing room for a reasonable wage/ rate for team members, and a management fee for yourself - since you have expenses and are ultimately responsible for the work.

16. Partner up.

Partnerships with other freelancer offering complementary services allows you to jointly offer packages. If you're working online, this might include a partnership amongst designers, writers, SEOs, SMMs, marketers, and analysts (web analytics). This allows you to work with Fortune 500 companies, who often prefer to work with a full-service firm. Make sure that someone interfaces with each partner to make the services cohesive.

17. Be professional.

While the way you look isn't as much of an issue if you're working online, generally being professional goes a long way to impressing clients. Meet deadlines, make clients happy.

18. Be timely with invoices.

If you don't send out invoices on a timely basis, it's unlikely you'll be paid for work on a timely basis. Do yourself a favor and try out a good web-based invoicing tool, some of which send auto reminders and even accept payment online. Either that or use PayPal and request a fraction (25-50%) of the fee upfront, before work begins.

19. Invest.

If you do have great clients who pay up early, put some money into a safe investment, such as a federally-insured online savings account or a short-term government bond. Do this especially with money you've set aside for income taxes, if you are not required to make such payments on a quarterly basis.

20. Know your tools.

There are tons of web-based freelance tools out there, many of them available free of charge or for a small monthly fee. They might not only save you money but often increase work efficiency as well, leaving you more time for more billable work. Or relaxation. What's more, some of them allow real-time collaboration with partners, teammates, and/or clients.

21. Know your resources.

There are numerous sites popping up that list freelance gigs. You might not always need them, but it's good to know they're available. A lull in your work schedule might be filled with a short-term gig.

22. Get repeat business.

Repeat business from existing clients is more valuable and less stressful. They are a known parameter, and there is less effort on your part in securing even more work later on.

23. Get referral business.

Your current happy clients are often more than willing to give referrals, especially if you offer a referral bonus. Just watch out for the lies told to freelancers.

24. Draw positive attention.

There are positive ways to draw attention to yourself or your website that pay off in the long-run - either through establishing authority or straight out requests for your services. My favorite examples are Seth Godin with his free, oddly-named, informative ebooks, and Hugh MacLeod with his savagely funny Gaping Void cartoons, also available free through a blog widget.

25. Stay healthy.

It should go without saying, but many of us freelancers run ourselves ragged. We don't take breaks to recharge ourselves, to relieve ourselves of stress. And you already know that stress brings illness, which reduces billable time. Of course, you can do research or admin work when you're ill.

Ten Lies

2007-09-25T20:59:00.000-06:00

I found this interesting "Top Ten" list by Markus Merz. Worth a quick read for future thought when you are acting as a freelancer and your potential customer mentions one of these:

1. "Do this one cheap (or free) and we'll make it up on the next one."

2. "We never pay a cent until we see the final product."

3. "Do this for us and you'll get great exposure! The jobs will just pour in!"

4. On looking at sketches or concepts: "Well, we aren't sure if we want to use you yet, but leave your material here so I can talk to my partner/investor/wife/clergy."

5. "Well, the job isn't CANCELLED, just delayed. Keep the account open and we'll continue in a month or two."

6. "Contract? We don't need no stinking contact! Aren't we friends?"

7. "Send me a bill after the work goes to press."

8. "The last guy did it for XXX dollars."

9. "Our budget is XXX dollars, firm."

10. "We are having financial problems. Give us the work, we'll make some money and we'll pay you. Simple."

Original Article:

http://performancing.com/revenue/top-ten-lies-every-freelance-writer-or-artist-must-know

http://www.paintercreativity.com/articles/top-10-lies.html

10 Things You Didn't Know about Firebug

2007-09-23T11:05:00.000-06:00

Some quick tips on power-using the FireBug plugin for FireFox

http://web-wire.blogspot.com/2007/04/10-things-you-didnt-know-about-firebug.html

30 Fonts You Want to Have

2007-09-23T10:07:00.000-06:00

An excellent list of fonts for print projects:

"We’ve compiled our own list of 30 fonts we think you should have if you don’t already have them. The list is a mix of some popular ones as listed in a “Favorite Font” thread over at Mintpages, and some of them I have added myself because I happen to be a big fan on them. Each font also has a url listed where you can grab it from"

http://www.devlounge.net/articles/30-fonts-you-want-to-have

Why visual metaphors work

2007-09-23T10:04:00.000-06:00

An excellent article about visual metaphors in web design:

"Metaphors visually enhance the subject at hand. Metaphors make you think, inviting you to analyze how two subjects relate. On the web, visual metaphors can enhance content and a site’s purpose dramatically. This works magnificently if you seek to capture the attention of an audience for more than a quick glance."

http://www.devlounge.net/articles/visual-metaphors-7-rockstar-examples-on-the-web

Process Your Inbox To Zero

2007-09-23T09:58:00.004-06:00

This is one of the most sensible presentations I've heard in ages.
Process your inbox to zero. Mark things down as tasks. Do short
things immediately.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=973149761529535925&hl=en

How do you upgrade the hard drives in the Mac Pro

2007-09-23T09:58:00.003-06:00

Ever wondered how to add another drive to your MacPro? Here's how:

http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/mac_pro/faq/mac-pro-how-to-upgrade-hard-drives-what-type-supported.html

Weak Hash Map Breaks

2007-09-23T09:58:00.002-06:00

WeakHashMap in Java has some serious issues.

http://blogs.azulsystems.com/cliff/2007/08/why-weakhashmap.html

The 3D Hologram Is Here

2007-09-23T09:58:00.001-06:00

Researchers at USC have taken another step towards that holiest of sci-fi dreams: the 3D holographic display. Using a spinning mirror covered with a "holographic diffuser," a special DVI implementation, and a high-speed projector, the team's device can project a three-dimensional image that can be viewed from 360 degrees.

http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/31/researchers-develop-a-360-degree-holographic-display/

Log Everything All The Time

2007-09-23T09:58:00.000-06:00

An interesting article on the feasibility (result: it is feasible) to
log your system's behavior all the time so that when a problem crops
up, you have log data to pore over. The traditional approach is to
only turn it on when there is a problem, but sometimes, that's far
too late to be helpful.

http://highscalability.com/log-everything-all-time

Scriptaculous sample pages

2007-09-23T09:57:00.000-06:00

Lots of Scriptaculous sample pages. This is a JavaScript library
that we heavily use in our projects to achieve some awesome cross-
browser special effects, such as "accordions", "crossfading", and
"carousels"

http://www.scriptaculoussamplr.leonardofaria.net/

Maven Complex, But Worth The Effort

2007-09-23T09:56:00.000-06:00

Maven is one of those tools that takes a while to grasp and get
rocking with. But once you do, you actually feel sorry for the
"make" and "ant" users out there. Maven looks like a Formula One
racecar next to a 1950s VW Beetle.

http://mr-mcwong.blogspot.com/2007/09/dealing-with-maven-bloat-and-

complexity_05.html

Overcoming clients with bad taste…

2007-09-22T17:48:00.001-06:00

http://www.creativeui.com/2007/08/27/overcoming-clients-with-bad-taste/

AJAX Security A Major Concern

2007-09-22T17:47:00.003-06:00

AJAX, implemented improperly, is a major source of current web app
vulnerabilities. I've even found some in the sites I use every week
for business with vendors.

http://searchsoftwarequality.techtarget.com/originalContent/

0,289142,sid92_gci1270910,00.html

JUnit Testing of Inner Classes

2007-09-22T17:47:00.001-06:00

JUnit has, as I showed in a recent presentation I gave at DOSUG, a great feature for testing inner classes that are sometimes very helpful and clarifying in unit test composition.

http://www.ghostganz.com/blog/articles/2007/09/14/junit-hidden-feature-enclosed

Minimalism Taking Web Design by Storm

2007-09-22T17:46:00.001-06:00

A concept we've tried to share with clients with mixed success is
"minimalism". Too much content or too much activity on a web page
merely disturbs the user, and doesn't necessarily satisfy their
craving for information. The Apple iPod is the chief example of this
that everyone can relate to. They eventually did away with the
buttons, leaving just one central "jog wheel" to control a very
powerful device. Sales climbed. The device was lauded as a
breakthrough. This pattern can be applied to all kinds of web
interfaces as well, but the willingness of of clients to let us do
that is still not quite there.

http://rainfall-daffinson.com/minimalism/

Cheap Laser Listening Device

2007-08-26T14:28:00.000-06:00

With a few parts from around-the-office components and a quick trip
to Radio Shack, you can create a device that allows you to listen in
to conversations on the INSIDE of windows that you point the laser
at. Previously, the realm of spies, now in the reach of soldering-
capable nerds everywhere.

http://www.metacafe.com/fplayer/767822/laser_espionage_microphone_how_to.swf

Quiet Programmers

2007-08-24T16:55:00.000-06:00

An interesting article about the environment Programmers need to put the design into their heads...

"Ran across a couple of essays that might sound sort of esoteric but are both approachable and useful for us layfolk.

The first is a piece by Paul Graham called “Holding a Program in One’s Head,” and it resonated with me because the optimal conditions for the creative process of writing code sound very similar to those for writing prose. “A good programmer working intensively on his own code can hold it in his mind the way a mathematician holds a problem he’s working on,” Graham begins. “Mathematicians don’t answer questions by working them out on paper the way schoolchildren are taught to. They do more in their heads: they try to understand a problem space well enough that they can walk around it the way you can walk around the memory of the house you grew up in. At its best programming is the same. You hold the whole program in your head, and you can manipulate it at will. … Ordinary programmers working in typical office conditions never enter this mode. Or to put it more dramatically, ordinary programmers working in typical office conditions never really understand the problems they’re solving.” Graham offers eight suggestions to help get into that zone, conditions that not coincidentally are the hallmarks of innovative, off-the-books, labor-of-love projects."

http://svextra.com/blogs/gmsv/2007/08/quiet_programmers_and_loud_music.html

Tips for Google Searching more efficiently

2007-08-22T19:18:00.000-06:00

A couple of quick tips to enhance and refine your Googling experience...

http://greattime.true.ws/2007/06/20-tips-for-more-efficient-google.html

Why you really just want to stop using Windows some days

2007-08-22T15:36:00.000-06:00

Error Message: Your Password Must Be at Least 18770 Characters and Cannot Repeat Any of Your Previous 30689 Passwords

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/276304?

Handcrafted Software Experiences

2007-08-22T07:51:00.000-06:00

Interesting article about a company formed by ex-Microsofties...

"A team of ex-Microsofties leftto create Jackson Fish Market, with the tagline "Handcrafted Software Experiences," in November 2006. In their introductory blog post, co-founder Hillel Coopermantalks about his grandfather's fish store, Jackson Fish, a "small businesses was run by family, with everyone pitching in as best they could" and which sold "handcrafted products" that "that both address a core customer need, but also make them feel emotionally satisfied, content, and… happy." They credit 37 Signals with much of the inspiration behind the company.

They're working on a number of projects, and "They're Beautiful" is the first to launch. It's a free virtual flowers site. Users can send a virtual bouquet to any email address (even without registering). The recipient sees the bouquet and can choose to put it in their Greenhouse on the site by registering. They then must return every few days to "water" the flowers and keep them from wilting.

http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/07/08/ex-microsoft-team-launches-theyre-beautiful/

Remote control for iTunes from iPhone

2007-08-21T21:33:00.000-06:00

Create a Sailing Clicker Remote Control on iPhone and use your iPhone as a remote control for music:

http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/xml/library/x-iphonexmlphp/?ca=dnw-831

Offline sources driving online searches

2007-08-20T22:24:00.000-06:00

Seeking answers to searching questions: Today brings two developments in the continuing efforts to better understand and measure online search. First, search engine marketing firm iProspect released a study that found, among other things, that 67 percent of online searches were driven by offline sources, specifically television ads, word of mouth, print ads, brick-and-mortar stores, and radio ads. What's more, the study found, 39 percent of those searches resulted in a purchase. "It's intuitive, said iProspect President Robert Murray. "It makes sense that offline channel messaging could pique a user's curiosity enough to motivate them to search for additional information. But, most offline advertising doesn't exactly make it easy for customers to find a company's website." The big takeaway from the research, Murray said, is that "today, it's incumbent upon marketers to integrate search with their offline efforts. Quite simply, their offline messaging needs to be memorable and facilitate search, and their search efforts need to echo that messaging and integrate those keywords. The bottom line is that integration is no longer optional."

Diagram of programming paradigms

2007-08-20T18:43:00.000-06:00

Here's a handy PDF that offers a diagram of programming paradigms. Say that three times fast.

http://www.info.ucl.ac.be/~pvr/paradigmsDIAGRAMeng.pdf

Currying? Food words in JavaScript Coding Constructs?

2007-08-20T13:18:00.000-06:00

http://www.coryhudson.com/blog/2007/03/10/javascript-currying-redux/

Even Joel on Software has read Design of Everyday Things

2007-08-20T09:55:00.000-06:00

Joel on Software has read one of my favorite books, mentioned in his rant about the Office 2007 box:

http://www.joelonsoftware.com/items/2007/08/18.html

The Book:

http://www.amazon.com/Design-Everyday-Things-Donald-Norman/dp/0385267746

His other book:

http://www.amazon.com/Emotional-Design-Love-Everyday-Things/dp/0465051367/ref=sr_1_2/104-0861752-4542326?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1187624787&sr=1-2

And all Donald Norman's books:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/104-0861752-4542326?%5Fencoding=UTF8&search-type=ss&index=books&field-author=Donald%20Norman

Joel: This is the same box that Vista comes in. Nick White over at Microsoft seems proud of the novel design, but from the comments on the web it seems I'm not the only one who couldn't figure out how to open it. It seems like even rudimentary usability testing would have revealed the problem. A box that many people can't figure out how to open without a Google search is an unusually pathetic failure of design. As the line goes from Billy Madison: "I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul."

Another interesting rant on Vista -- the third in three days by Windows lovers, no less:

"I've been using Vista on my home laptop since it shipped, and can say with some conviction that nobody should be using it as their primary operating system -- it simply has no redeeming merits to overcome the compatibility headaches it causes. Whenever anyone asks, my advice is to stay with Windows XP (and to purchase new systems with XP preinstalled)."

Hoverbox & Lightbox Examples

2007-08-20T09:41:00.000-06:00

Always wanted to display a gallery of images in a manner that makes
efficient use of screen real estate and doesn't require clicks? Here
are some useful links:

Starting Article:
http://mondaybynoon.com/2007/02/19/suckerfish-hoverlightbox-redux/

Redux Demo:
http://mondaybynoon.com/examples/suckerfish_hoverlightbox_redux/

Original Demo:
http://host.sonspring.com/hoverbox/

Info:
http://sonspring.com/journal/hoverbox-image-gallery

Excellent presentation techniques outline

2007-08-16T16:13:00.000-06:00

Be a better presenter. Read these tips.

http://www.pubcon.com/blog/index.cgi?mode=viewone&blog=1187123220

Scott Davis at DJUG

2007-08-08T20:12:00.000-06:00

Restoring MacOS

2007-07-28T08:53:00.000-06:00

Hopefully this will cure the slow boot and other oddities...