Up at 4:45 am to do a software application release/install, with a colleague. Fortunately, this can be accomplished at home. install went fine without any issues. Our testers/validators are scheduled to start testing at 7. Will have to wait until 8 for them to finish with that before (maybe) heading back to bed for a few hours. My body/head does not like getting up this early. I remember doing … [Read more...]
Good day at work – probably was coding a new enhancement
July 31, 2018 By
Gotta be quick, we’re about to pull into the (Beautiful Downtown) AV transit station. Had a great day today work-wise. Yesterday wasn’t so bad either. In fact, had a great week last week as well. Most of the time work is just ordinary, but there are some days when it’s really fun and not the usual boring, or not challenging enough routine. Hope everyone out there had a good day too. BigB. 😉🤓 … [Read more...]
IOS 12 upgrade on the iPad
July 30, 2018 By
Upgraded the iPad to IOS 12.0 BETA yesterday (?) - “everything” is crashing (safari mostly, but sometimes FB, Photos, and a couple of other apps, like my banking app, etc.) Huh - now did I follow their strongly suggested recommendation of backing up the iPad first before upgrading? Who me? Now why would I want to do that? Apple never sends out buggy upgrades (in my usual experience). [updated: … [Read more...]
Robots
July 25, 2018 By
Frigging amazing. I remember how auto workers (in the 80s?) were (rightly so) afraid that these robots would be taking their jobs. It turned out that people were needed to program them (what you just saw was pretty good programming at work), AND people who could fix them when they broke. The only issue I had with this one’s programming was that “he” didn’t scoop up the bottle cap from the floor … [Read more...]
IT departments – different standards, different policy/procedures
August 19, 2016 By
It's interesting: "large" (Fortune 500) companies with IT depts, each of them have their own way of doing things, their own policies and procedures, etc. Unisys was a bit "loosey-goosey" with the app I worked on, allowing the developers to move new code into production (I.e., having privileged / admin access). While, both Wells Fargo and USPS, definitely did NOT and do NOT allow this to be done … [Read more...]
Third Trivent Financial interview scheduled for Thursday
July 26, 2016 By
Thrivent Financial job update: Three weeks ago, initial 15-20 min phone "get to know you" interview with director in Appleton, WI. Last week, three person video conference interview with mgr (WI), team lead (MPLS) and a non-team tech (WI). Not sure if mgr is the mgr of the team I would be on, or mgr of other teams. Got the impression they were mgr of other team(s), but could be mistaken. Call … [Read more...]
Tesla, Auto-Pilot, and software development
July 1, 2016 By
Reading a pretty cool and short (text)book (yawn), called "A gentle introduction to the art of object-oriented programming in Java. (yes, a truly exciting two volume set) Uses as an example, the programming of a robot. Reading this book, and also reading the recent news posted by my former colleague Charles Rader, about the first fatal accident with Tesla's autonomous self-driving car, makes me … [Read more...]
Supporting really old applications
November 3, 2015 By
Article on supporting really old computer programs (opens in a new window) Really interesting story about supporting a 60 yr old "computer application"...and not being able to find people that know the older programming languages [they mention Fortran, Assembly, even ALGOL.] I know that some of the code (programs) I wrote in the early to mid nineties are still running - twenty or more yrs later … [Read more...]
U/ST Final grade for Object Oriented Software Analysis (“UML” class)
July 21, 2015 By
i'm just one lucky SOB [son of bob?]. Been logging into U/St. Thomas almost on a daily basis. Grade was posted today for the summer class: "A-", giving an overall GPA of 3.52. Last course starts after Labor day. … [Read more...]
U/Saint Thomas – Summer class final exam
July 13, 2015 By
So, the final exam tonight (for my "Object oriented software analysis & design" class) was closed book, but we could bring a double sided cheat sheet to use. I got there, and the whole row behind me (4-5 people) were poring over copies of someone's cheat sheet - font size 6, double column - I laughingly made a comment about the font size, so one person handled me a copy. I showed them that I … [Read more...]
BusinessWeek devotes double issue to “computer programming”
July 1, 2015 By
Not my quote: “It’s no longer acceptable to be ignorant about the ways it <BSW: "software"> works,” he said. “If everybody brought the same ignorance about software to medicine, it would be insane, we would be mocked.” “Software is a completely different discipline and we wanted to help to demystify it for the world that doesn’t think that way. What if you explain code in the same way you … [Read more...]
Mid Term for Summer Session
June 23, 2015 By
School-wise: As mentioned last week, I had my mid-term exam (for "Object Oriented Software Analysis and Design" - which is always a mouthful to say) a week ago. I don't do well on tests, I blank out, I don't study as much as I should before taking the thing, I can't remember "crap", and did I mention, I get exam taker's/writer's block?? Well, after taking it last week, I guesstimated I would be … [Read more...]
Summer class project assignment
June 2, 2015 By
Crap, got a school project team assignment due tomorrow night, having to create a VISIO diagram(s), not having the MS software on my machine (long story), running out of steam (due to spending 4 hours in the blazing sun, and not getting a good night's sleep last night), and last but not least, I'm being babysat by Lailah tomorrow so I won't have time to work on it during the day. Must. Do. Class. … [Read more...]
Part 2: Year long software development project finally goes “Live”
April 6, 2014 By
[It's really too bad I didn't really do any of the design nor programming on this project - I would have tried, at least, to make it a bit less complex than it currently is]. Anyway, after working on a particular software development project at <current employer> since January, 2013, it finally went live this past week, of all things, on April 1st. If you visit your local post office, and … [Read more...]
Class #4 at Saint Thomas: Software Process Management
March 30, 2014 By
Tomorrow is 4th class session of seven sessions (alternating Saturdays, started mid Feb.), so it's mid term exam tomorrow, just not ready for it. Course is Software Process Mgmt, which, I know most of you would find it to be a snore, but, this semester, I have a great instructor, and he really knows how to teach - just has a ton of energy and a great teaching style (quite unlike the instructor for … [Read more...]
Part 1: Year long software development project finally goes “Live” (NOT!)
January 19, 2014 By
In at work, at OMG, 4am, watching over the shoulder (logically, not physically) as my production support person installs my software release that I've been working on for past 12 months. Longest software development effort ever (for me). Not used to 's red tape of software development process. My effort was completed in early sept, and it's taken 4 months for it to move from customer acceptance … [Read more...]
U/ST class: Software Analysis and Design Tools – OVER!
December 11, 2013 By
Last night of class (System Analysis and Design Tools) was last night, submitted my video presentation on time (via YouTube, will share the link - haha - later), had a cold so my voice was pretty raw and didn't follow my script as much as I should've, but overall, I think I did a pretty good job with it. Still have a 2 page writing assignment due by next Tues. Although the class was on an … [Read more...]
Class #3 at Saint Thomas: Systems Analysis & Design Tools
September 11, 2013 By
Well, I started my third Masters course at U/Saint Thomas last night: SEIS620 – Systems Analysis and Design Tools – 14 evening sessions, a bit more than 3 hours per session. So far, the instructor is a hoot and based on the first night, he should make this topic quite interesting. There are almost twenty of us, this time about 2/3s male and 1/3 female – unlike last semester where it leaned … [Read more...]
Final Grade: SEIS 610 Software Engineering Spring 2013
May 28, 2013 By
So, I went onto the Saint Thomas website today, looking for my final grade - I did this last week but apparently may have been looking in the wrong place, since Dr. Lai doesn't use the "Black Board" tool where grades were posted in our Technical communications class last Fall. Anyway, I found my grade and I was pleasantly pleased to see it was a "B+". One of my project group members received … [Read more...]
Teaching kids computer science (AKA programming) [Pioneer Press article]
May 6, 2013 By
Front page article from last Sunday's (4/27) Pioneer Press by Christopher Magan: Headline: Computer-coding classes teach students skills they're not getting in school. Obi Abulu loves computers. "He learned to click a mouse before he learned to write," says Attracta Abulu, the Woodbury seventh-grader's mother. But when it came to learning more about how the software and technology … [Read more...]
