constructive nonconformist

A Design Problem ...

A design problem is not an optimization problem.

— Christopher Alexander, quoted on Projectionist

SOA: Time For a Rethink

We need loosely-coupled services, not orchestration.

… the key really is to “Test fast, fail fast, adjust fast.”

— Michael Nygard
Wide Awake Developers: SOA: Time For a Rethink

Do You Talk to Your Compiler?

Do you talk to your development tools?

On Emeril Live, Emeril Lagasse would sometimes make funny little humming noises as he worked. I found it charming in a dorky way. Emeril’s example makes me feel better when I catch myself talking out loud to my compiler.

Urgency is Poisonous

… in the software industry urgency is self-imposed and morale-busting.

— Jason Fried
Signal vs. Noise: Urgency is poisonous

Successful Large Systems

There is a rule of thumb that says that every successful large system is a development of a slightly smaller working system. You apply that rule recursively.

— Bjarne Stroustrup
Artima: Elegance and Other Design Ideals

Professional Praise

Here’s a story:

I’m working as an in-house software engineer for Nameless Big Co creating software for internal use.

I’m at an all-hands meeting for my business unit group. A very important person in a nice expensive suit is at the podium. Apparently we’re honored to have him come and speak to us. What he has to say is engaging until he gets to a certain point.

He tells us he’s had a career in financial services IT and we’re the best and brightest IT organization he has ever worked with. I think of the inefficiencies and poor decisions we deal with every day. It’s normal stuff for a large organization and for a software development management chain heavy on MBA’s. I don’t think we’re more clever than average.

Why is Mr. VIP laying on the superlatives? Is he out of touch? Is he measuring differently? Is he just trying to be a cheerleader? Is he marketing to us?

Striving to be the best and the brightest is incompatible with being uncritical enough to accept his hyperbole. I tune out. He’s pushing more noise than signal.

Here’s a second story:

The lead architect has moved some of my code from a particular project down into a core library so he could use it on another project. “You saved me a lot of time.” He tells me. “You did some good work on that project and I want to leverage it across the other projects.”

Here’s a guy whose technical chops I respect and he found my code useful. It’s a small thing but it made my day.

Peer praise is meaningful.

Internet Explorer's Maximum URL Length

Note to self: Internet Explorer has a maximum URL size limit of 2,083 characters. Passing a longer URL (like maybe a URL with a dynamically built query string) to IE 7.0 will produce a cryptic error page (even with ‘Friendly’ turned off) that says “Internet Explorer cannot display the webpage” and then misleadingly suggests that the server can not be reached. Don’t waste time troubleshooting network connections or DNS lookups. Don’t be puzzled by why the same URL works in FireFox and Safari.

Joy in the Job

Ponderous Programmer: Crazy is as Crazy Does - Joy in the job

iPhone SDK: Rogue Amoeba's Code Signing and You

From the Rogue Amoeba Blog post Code Signing and You:

However, the environment is different in one important way. Apple is the gatekeeper:

“Phones will only run apps signed by Apple. It also applies FairPlay to the package.”
Twitter message from Deric Horn on March 6, 2008

Let me repeat that: if Apple doesn’t sign your iPhone app, it does not run.

This makes more sense than what I was thinking. It means an iPhone OS device doesn’t need to know thousands of valid certificates.

In addition to upgrading applications will the App Store be capable of removing applications?

iPhone SDK and More Questions

John Gruber has posted More Questions on his Daring Fireball blog about the iPhone SDK. I can answer one of his questions.

• So it seems like the answer to my question yesterday about how users will be prevented from running apps downloaded directly from developers (rather than through the App Store) is that unsigned apps will only work on your iPhone if you pay (and get approved) for a $99 iPhone developer account. But does that mean that approved developers will be able to freely exchange unsigned apps with each other?

An unsigned app will not run on an iPhone at all.¹ The only place an unsigned iPhone OS application will run is on the simulator.

I doubt that the barrier for the $99 iPhone developer program is higher than for other types of code signing certificates. The iPhone code signing certs are issued to either individuals or organizations. Apple’s approval for the App Store will be on a application by application basis.

If you as a developer get an application or two approved for the App Store and it later turns that you’re breaking Apple’s rules, it seems safe to presume that one of Apple’s possible recourses is to revoke your certificate and all your (as in signed with your cert) iPhone OS applications will stop working.

¹ iPhone OS Programming Guide: Working with a Device