NEWS

Tips for hiring new engineers

Mark Dennehy has a thoughtful entry on the hiring of new engineers, well worth reading if you are on the other side of the interviewing process while looking for software engineers here in Ireland:

Tips for hiring new engineers

Added: 2008-04-28 19:32:45

The Jimmy Cake

The Jimmy Cake have a new album out:

The Jimmy Cake

I've been a fan of this band ever since I heard this amazing track performed live on RTE's "Songs from a Room" television programme:

My Brass Buttons

Well worth checking out.

Added: 2008-04-27 12:41:52

Red Snapper are back!

Great news for acid jazz fans everywhere, they have some excellent new tracks up on their My Space page and are working on a new album:

Red Snapper on MySpace

Added: 2008-04-27 12:29:20

NASA Spacecraft Images Mars Moon in Colour and in 3D

NASA have released some amazing high resolution photographs of Phobos, larger moon of Mars:

NASA Spacecraft Images Mars Moon in Color and in 3D

Added: 2008-04-10 21:04:25

Super Mario in 14kB Javascript

Written as a proof of concept, here is a playable demo of a Super Mario game with sound which is written in 14kb of Javascript:

Super Mario in 14kB Javascript

Very impressive!

Added: 2008-04-10 13:59:12

Bluebook ad for O2

Someone has posted the O2 Bluebook ad on YouTube:

Bluebook ad for O2

It is a really nice ad I think, if a little abstract. As the service is not available in Ireland (unfortunately), the ad is not running on TV and cinemas here so YouTube is the only place to see it.

More information about Bluebook itself can be found here:

Bluebook

Update: the video of the ad can be found here in much higher quality:

O2 Bluebook Memories

Added: 2008-03-08 23:23:58

An Insurgency of Quality

Alan Cooper gives a powerhouse performance on the importance of reclaiming quality as a key deliverable of software development in this excellent keynote presentation:

An Insurgency of Quality

Some of the key points I took from watching this video are:

  1. Modern management is industrial in outlook.
  2. Software development is a post-industrial activity, so software projects and the managers running them often have completely different World views.
  3. You cannot reduce cost of software development, only the quality.
  4. Difficult to measure ROI (Return On Investment) of software development.
  5. Developers cannot be managed in the traditional sense, only facilitated.
  6. Viewing software development as a craft (not an industry).
  7. Software developers respect competence, not authority.
  8. Combination of Agile Methods for design, and RUP (Rational Unified Process) for implementation.
  9. Document your success!

It is a thought provoking presentation well worth your time.

Added: 2008-02-18 21:10:30

Mozilla Lightning

In work I am constantly being sent meeting requests by managers who are using Outlook on Windows. But I am using Thunderbird on Linux, which can't make sense of these meeting requests so simply displays the VCalendar meta data in all of its ugliness by default.

Recently I discovered that I can use Lightning from Mozilla, which integrates the Mozilla Sunbird calendar application with Mozilla Thunderbird to offer some very nice features, including the ability to create a calendar event based on a meeting invitation, including those coming from Outlook:

Mozilla Lightning

Well worth checking out by Thunderbird users on all platforms. Mozilla really are producing some great software these days!

Added: 2008-01-17 10:13:25

Sun acquires MySQL

Wow, this is pretty shocking news:

Sun acquires MySQL

Added: 2008-01-16 15:41:24

Computer History Museum

The Computer History Museum have a great site on YouTube, which has some fascinating videos on the history of computers and their usage:

Computer History Museum on YouTube

My personal favourite is the video celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Commodore 64:

Commodore 64 - 25th Anniversary Celebration

Like many computer geeks my age, the Commodore 64 was the first home computer I owned, where I first became exposed to programming while writing simple applications in BASIC. I still remember waiting ages for games to load from cassette tapes!

The interview with Jack Tramiel is fascinating, its worth watching for business and technology enthusiasts alike. At 92 minutes in duration it is very long though, you have been warned!

Added: 2008-01-10 19:25:26

BUSINESS

1. Understanding the Need for New...
2. Defining the Knowledge-based E...
3. Sun and Microsoft Settle Out o...
4. Google Ranking Tips Part 1, by...
5. Google Ranking Tips Part 3, by...
6. Sun Microsystems set to Divers...
7. Google Ranking Tips Part 2, by...
8. The Benefits of Click-Wrap Con...
9. Overture is Coming to Ireland
10. Google is Coming to Ireland
X. Show All

Understanding the Need for New Computer Technologies

In this opinion piece, an argument is presented in favour of embracing technology innovations in order to gain from any possible competitive advantages.

Added: 2005-07-31
Defining the Knowledge-based Economy

This article looks at knowledge in the wider economy, and how it is likely to affect firms and individuals alike.

Added: 2004-10-29
Sun and Microsoft Settle Out of Court

Sun Microsystems received a $1.6 billion cash handout from Microsoft, on condition that it drop all long standing legal actions against the company.

Added: 2004-05-05
Google Ranking Tips Part 1, by David Callan.

In this comprehensive three-part article by David Callan of AKAMargeting.com, the workings of the World's most popular search engine are laid bare.

Added: 2004-01-23
Google Ranking Tips Part 3, by David Callan.

In this comprehensive three-part article by David Callan of AKAMargeting.com, the workings of the World's most popular search engine are laid bare.

Added: 2004-01-23
Sun Microsystems set to Diversify into the Microprocessor Market

Sun Microsystems is set to enter the PC-based microprocessor market later this year, with the first of a series of offerings based on grid processing.

Added: 2004-01-23
Google Ranking Tips Part 2, by David Callan.

In this comprehensive three-part article by David Callan of AKAMargeting.com, the workings of the World's most popular search engine are laid bare.

Added: 2004-01-23
The Benefits of Click-Wrap Contracts over Shrink-Wrap Contracts

A discussion of the benefits of click-wrap contracts over shrink-wrap contracts.

Added: 2003-11-27
Overture is Coming to Ireland

A discussion on Overture locating its European hub in Ireland.

Added: 2003-04-27
Google is Coming to Ireland

A discussion on Google locating its European Operations Centre in Ireland.

Added: 2003-03-30
DESIGN

1. Handling Content Migration wit...
2. An Introduction to Object Orie...
3. Why its good to write Your Own...
4. Scalable Web Design Part 2: Li...
5. Dynamic Force-frame Effect for...
6. Scalable Web Design Part 1: In...
7. Layers Part 4: Clipping Layers
8. Layers Part 3: Animated Layer...
9. Screen Resolution
10. Which Browser to Design For?
X. Show All

Handling Content Migration with 301 Re-directs from a 404 Error Page

A tutorial describing how to use 301 re-directs from a 404 error page, to ease the transition of content migration from one location to another.

Added: 2007-02-11
An Introduction to Object Oriented Programming with PHP

A basic introduction to core object oriented concepts using PHP.

Added: 2006-12-04
Why its good to write Your Own Framework

There are many top-quality web frameworks available for PHP, but sometimes you might consider writing your own framework. This article looks at the reasons why you might want to.

Added: 2006-06-16
Scalable Web Design Part 2: Liquid Design

Liquid Design: matching your browser window's inner resolution.

Added: 2002-09-20
Dynamic Force-frame Effect for Iframes

Forcing your iframe-based pages to stay framed using Javascript.

Added: 2002-06-26
Scalable Web Design Part 1: Introductory Concepts

Introduction to scalable web design techniques.

Added: 2001-12-21
Layers Part 4: Clipping Layers

Introduction to clipping layers with CSS.

Added: 2001-10-21
Layers Part 3: Animated Layer Opacity

Controlling a layers opacity using JavaScript.

Added: 2001-08-08
Screen Resolution

Help on which resolution to design for.

Added: 2001-08-06
Which Browser to Design For?

Help on deciding what browser to design for.

Added: 2001-08-05
IMAGERY

1. Implementing an Image Cache fo...
2. Basic Shapes in PHP GD
3. Introduction to GD
4. Building Composite Shapes in S...
5. Basic Animation in SVG
6. Detecting the SVG Viewer
7. Basic Shapes in SVG
8. Working With PNG
9. Simulated Depth of Field
10. Dynamic Image Resizing
X. Show All

Implementing an Image Cache for PHP GD

Tutorial describing how to implement an image cache on a web server for PHP GD applications.

Added: 2004-12-24
Basic Shapes in PHP GD

A tutorial on drawing basic shapes in the GD graphics library of PHP.

Added: 2004-12-23
Introduction to GD

An introduction to the PHP GD graphics library.

Added: 2004-07-30
Building Composite Shapes in SVG

Guide to building custom shapes in SVG, composed of several primitive shapes.

Added: 2004-05-05
Basic Animation in SVG

A basic introduction to animation techniques in the SVG format.

Added: 2003-12-19
Detecting the SVG Viewer

Using client-side scripting to detect the Adobe SVG Viewer plug-in.

Added: 2003-07-27
Basic Shapes in SVG

A basic introduction to using the SVG format to draw shapes.

Added: 2003-03-01
Working With PNG

Making use of the PNG graphic format, in the latest browsers.

Added: 2002-08-24
Simulated Depth of Field

Simulated depth of field effect using JavaScript.

Added: 2001-09-08
Dynamic Image Resizing

Using JavaScript to resize images on the fly.

Added: 2001-08-13
BROWSING

1. An Introduction to Version Con...
2. An Introductory Guide to Intel...
3. Working with MySQL Connector/O...
4. Building a PHP 5 Web Server on...
5. Running Scheduled Backups with...
6. Multi-Dimensional Databases: R...
7. Comparison of Relational and M...
8. Multi-Dimensional Databases: C...
9. Introduction to Multi-Dimensio...
10. Where Not to Use a Multi-Dimen...
X. Show All

An Introduction to Version Control Using Subversion

An introduction to the benefits of source control using the open source Subversion application.

Added: 2005-10-02
An Introductory Guide to Intelligent Agents

In this article intelligent agents are introduced, as well as a discussion of the possible impacts on business organisations of their usage.

Added: 2005-01-28
Working with MySQL Connector/ODBC and Office

This tutorial provides a description of how to access MySQL databases from MS Office.

Added: 2004-10-01
Building a PHP 5 Web Server on Windows IIS

A detailed tutorial on how to build a PHP 5 web server on Windows.

Added: 2004-09-02
Running Scheduled Backups with Xcopy

A tutorial on how to set up scheduled backups with Xcopy on Windows.

Added: 2004-03-26
Multi-Dimensional Databases: References

An overview of multi-dimensional databases and their usage.

Added: 2003-11-27
Comparison of Relational and Multi-Dimensional Database Structures

An overview of multi-dimensional databases and their usage.

Added: 2003-11-27
Multi-Dimensional Databases: Conclusion

An overview of multi-dimensional databases and their usage.

Added: 2003-11-27
Introduction to Multi-Dimensional Databases

An overview of multi-dimensional databases and their usage.

Added: 2003-11-27
Where Not to Use a Multi-Dimensional Database

An overview of multi-dimensional databases and their usage.

Added: 2003-11-27

Version 5.2

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