Monthly Archive for April, 2008

stackoverflow

Published
by
Brooke Kuhlmann
on April 30, 2008
in Software
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stackoverflow, if you haven’t discovered it already, is a website and podcast that has the goal of being a place for programming discussions as well as a repository of code snippets and examples. In essence, a great place for us in the programming community to hang out and learn.

The site is being hosted by Joel Spolsky and Jeff Atwood and is only a week or two old. I applaud what these guys are doing and look forward to seeing how the site matures.

Aeonscope Categories Widget 1.0.0

Published
by
Brooke Kuhlmann
on April 29, 2008
in Software
. 0 Comments

Aeonscope Categories Widget Icon

Documentation

Visit the main page for more info.

Enhancements

  • Surfaced functionality as found in the wp_list_categories WordPress function. This allows you customize how your categories are displayed as part of your site theme. For an example of this widget in action, take a look at how it is being used on this site.

Fixes

  • None at the moment.

Downloads

Twitter Workflow

Published
by
Brooke Kuhlmann
on April 28, 2008
in Software
. 0 Comments

Twitter Logo
© Twitter

I admit that I wasn’t the first get into Twitter. Even now I use it in moderation. That being said, I do enjoy Twitter and wish that more people that I know would make use of it. At least for me, sharing what you are up to and what you are learning can be quite educational.

Here is how I have integrated Twitter into my daily workflow.

Subscribing

I don’t follow, I subscribe. Yeah, instead of following people on Twitter, which is the default behavior, I just subscribe to the syndicated feed at the bottom of a person’s Twitter page. Like so:

Twitter Feed

Reading

Every day, during lunch, I check my syndicated feeds…

Feed Folders

…using a feed reader, like Vienna, to see what is new. Occasionally, I’ll do a quick pulse check in the morning and evening but that’s about it.

Writing

As for posting new content to Twitter, I’ll use the following MacOS dashboard widgets:

Twitter Widgets

(Top widget: Twidget, bottom widget: TinyURL - sorry, I forget where I got this but can e-mail it to you.)

If mobile, I’ll compose an SMS text message from my iPhone.

Rules of Thumb

  1. Never subscribe to someone that averages more than 15 tweets a day unless they are really good. You’ve got other stuff to read and at a certain point it just becomes noise.
  2. Never post more than 15 tweets a day with occasional exceptions for those special moments. Hey, you are just one voice out of many that someone might be paying attention to, so try to make your stuff worthwhile.

Related Resources

Check out my Twitter and Mac OS pages to learn more.

Aeonscope Core Java Library 1.1.0

Published
by
Brooke Kuhlmann
on April 16, 2008
in Software
. 0 Comments

Aeonscope Core Java Library Logo

Documentation

New requirements have been added for Apache Commons Collections and Codec. These details can be found on the main page.

Enhancements

  • Chrono - Added this class as a way to record the duration of time with the ability to start, stop, and reset time.
  • MeasurementKit - Added centering for int and float values.
  • GraphicKit - Added this utility class for dealing with screen resolutions and the resizing of rectangles.
  • Log4jKit - Added this utility class to aid in the logging of messages.
  • FileInfo - Added this class as a way to surface human readable information about files such as file size, date, time, checksum, and a few other conveniences.
  • JDOMKit - Added methods to aid in acquiring the XML document or root element objects from a XML file. Optional validation support is included as well. Also added methods that can write a collection of element producers to file and print documents and elements to the system console.

Fixes

  • None at the moment.

Downloads

Introducing Tags

Published
by
Brooke Kuhlmann
on April 14, 2008
in Announcements
. 0 Comments

I have recently started tagging my posts which allows for finer grained grouping of information on this site. The tag cloud, as shown above, is a view of the new tags being applied to past posts on this site.

The ability to tag posts was introduced in WordPress 2.3 but it wasn’t until I upgraded to WordPress 2.5 that I finally got around to tagging my posts. Not all of my posts are tagged yet but they will be as time rolls on. I still have 250 more posts to tag properly!

Starting a Business

Published
by
Brooke Kuhlmann
on April 11, 2008
in Business
. 0 Comments

Introduction

The following is a capture of some useful getting started tips and related resources to help get your new business up and running.

Getting Started

  1. Study the following web sites for context: Business - a government site for business information, My New Company - pay a fee and have someone else to setup your business for you, and Startup Nation - another resource worth checking out.
  2. Follow this checklist as a basic guide.
  3. Write a business plan. Here is an outline.
  4. Check out the IRS Online Classroom which has a collection of online training videos. They are dry and filmed just like those wonderful driver education videos of years past but can answer a few tax questions along with use cases and examples.

Limited Liability Company (LLC) Quick Steps

Since I am based in Colorado, here are the steps I went through to establish my company as an LLC in the State of Colorado.

  1. Read the new business checklist or this checklist as found on the Colorado state web sites.
  2. Register your new business (cost is $50). Tip: There is no need to apply for an Federal Employer ID Number (FEIN) a.k.a. Employer ID Number (EIN) when you create an LLC but if you want to learn more check out the IRS EIN document.
  3. Setup your business accounts (i.e. checking and savings) for your business with your favorite bank. All you need is your drivers license and the bank will search for your newly created business via the state web site.
  4. Dust off your recycling bin and prepare yourself for a new form of snail mail spam.

Elopement

Published
by
Brooke Kuhlmann
on April 7, 2008
in Announcements
. 0 Comments

Elopement Icon

Yep, Kate and I have decided to elope. We are still reserving September 6th of this year for the grand ring exchange but it will just be the two of us and…well…the motorcycle, of course!

Despite this change of events, we are still having a party. It will be held at our place, in the Springs, which should make it easier on all of you. I admit that I had grand schemes of holding the event in a remote location in the mountains but I know that not everyone shares my love of the road so we believe this is best for everyone involved. Here are the details:

  • Date: September 27th, 2008
  • Time: All day but food will most likely be served in the afternoon.
  • Location: Our Place (if you don’t know where it is by now then e-mail me and I’ll set you straight)

Kate has written up additional details on the Elopement page. If you have questions, leave comments here or just contact me directly. Otherwise, see you on September 27th!

The Advent of Berserk Technologies

Published
by
Brooke Kuhlmann
on April 1, 2008
in Business
. 0 Comments

Berserk Technologies Logo

I have mentioned starting my own company in the past and now it has become a reality! Today is the first day of a new company: Berserk Technologies.

While there is no official web site for the company as of yet, I have created a page on this site to capture some of the details. Baby steps, ya know.

…and no, this is not an April Fool’s Joke.