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( 3 / 94 )I am currently witnessing a situation I am pretty sure happens all over the world in corporates. One of the corner stones for any corporation is to consist of the right people in the right hierarchical structure to ensure business operates at an optimum, or at least aim for this particular goal. Also this applies to most business sectors, from IT to accounting. Yet with all these human roles and structures, its pretty obvious that there will be some crossroads when two structures meet and must negotiate to achieve a common business goal.
Why is it still so difficult for two business units to work smoothly together...? The number of meetings I have wasted my natural life in, listening to arguments about "Who's responsibility is it? Who will perform the work? Who will manage it?". Yes these question are valid, but not coming from managers with zero understanding of the solution, or from business units themselves trying to avoid any additional work and responsibilities. Another issue is over analysis of a simple concept, like logging or PDF printing. Yesterday my project manager got very concern over how to implement logging, where I have already done everything and is ready for deployment. Even if my work is not done, it would have taken me less than a day to implement, why discuss it for almost a hour? Today I heard that some of the managers arrange this meeting on how a pdf should be made available to a client. The amount of time wasted on arguing about the most trivial of issues is astounding.
The point I am trying to make is simply this, in any corporate IT should be a dictatorship... not a democracy. My company is feeling the pains now for the mistake of allowing each business unit to have its own IT development team, each working totally independent without governance or correlation. The obvious response to this is thats why there is a chief information officer (CIO) in a company, but what if this particular is even less incline to step up and exercise his given authority. All I can hope for now that this situation will change in the near future.
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( 2.9 / 99 )A week ago I went for my first track day in 2008. This would be my second track day on my K7, and was planning to push it a bit harder this time. I started in B-class (will probably stay in this class till I get my racing suit) and stayed in it for a total of 4 session. Weather was bit cloudy but still warm, and at about the second session did the sun come out. Track was pretty good condition in my opinion, so I opened up full out.
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Nearing the end of the second session I started to notice my brakes becoming a bit 'spongy' when braking hard before the corners. After a chat with one of the resident experts I realized my rookie observation. The hard braking and temperature build up caused my brake lines to swell upon braking. At the beginning of the next session the brakes bite down as it should do, but later I felt it again going a bit 'spongy'. Another mistake I made is to pop the bike by accident into neutral, making me end up in the kitty litter. Luckily I was able to keep the bike upright.
;)
;)
Well next on my shopping list is a proper set of braided stainless steel brake lines!
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( 2.9 / 112 )Read More...
char*lie;
double time, me= !0XFACE,
not; int rested, get, out;
main(ly, die) char ly, **die ;{
signed char lotte,
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( 2.9 / 106 )I took this movie from my Oregon Scientific ATC2K Action Cam mounted to my bike going around Zwartkops Raceway. The mounting bracket it still a prototype, will build a better one that should allow for a better view angle of the road.
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( 2.9 / 83 )I recently read in the news that the Dakar Rally has been canceled due to terrorist threats. This for some reason is annoying me extremely! I have been become more and more a fan of the Dakar Rally, especially watching Charley Boorman's 'Race to Dakar' DVD a short while ago. It's already been decided, I WILL take part in the Dakar at some point of my life. Hopefully the authorities will be able to remove the terrorist threat so that the true greatest race can continue its tradition.
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( 2.9 / 93 )After the closing of my Aikido Dojo on such a low note last year, I am very pleased now that the Dojo has opened again and training has started for 2008. This year will be focused on even more on Aikido training and the understanding of what a (or in my opinion) any martial art is all about. Last year has been a real eye opener for me, I have developed a whole new perspective on understanding and approaching a marital art. There is seems this mind set, set of fundamentals and open minded understanding that can, or rather should, be applied by any student when studying and training a martial art.
Photo from Takemusu Aikido South Africa Gasshuku
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( 2.9 / 160 )This past holiday season i decided to load my bike and take it on holiday with me. I strongly feel that Christmas and New Years is meant to be spend with family and loved ones. Hence I packed my bike and gear and headed of to Graaff-Reniet and Port Elizabeth to visit my Grandma's and close friends.
The Eastern Cape province have received quite an amount of rain recently, and its showing. Its one of those part of the world that you need to appreciate before you can actually see its beauty and magnificent. Yet these rains also caused the roads to be washed away and I was stuck on the farm for an extra day.
First thing I did when I arrived in Port Elizabeth is to offload my bike and go for a ride. Its the first time the bike was started at sea level altitude. Took it easy to the nearest gas station, but then I open the throttle all the way. The first thought that went through my mind was "Oh God help me!". The higher air density gave the K7 a huge boost of power, it felt like you entering warp speed! I took a couple of ride during my stay in Port Elizabeth, from which one day was a quick trip to Jeffrey's Bay and back.
Now I have taken my bike for a ride since I got back home, at an altitude of about 1300 meters I guess. And its notable unfortunately that the boost felt at the coast is gone, yet the bike still fly down the highway. But now I wonder, does the lower air pressure felt against your body when accelerating give the impression that the bike is slower?
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( 2.8 / 116 )This last Sunday I attended a track day held at Zwartkops Raceway. Its been a while since I been there, but am at least very familiar with the track and its ins and outs. The difference this time would be that its the first time that I am riding with my GSX-R 1000 K7. I have performed very well with my old FZ6, but things would be different now. Started out with the C-class riders, decided to go slow to get tires warm as well as to have enough time on the track to get used to the bike on the track environment. But got used to the track must faster than I anticipated, by the end of the session I lapped everyone in the group. Upon entering the pits after the first session the one marshal walked straight to me and told me get my behind up to B-class immediately. After getting of the bike, I looked down at my left boot...YIKES!
;)
One characteristic with Zwartkops is that its a very short track, lots of packed corners and no real stretches to pick up speed. I was constantly flipping between 2 and 3 gears upon entering/exiting the corners. While getting into my gear shifting grove, I got a tad lazy not to take my left foot out underneath the gear selector. Hence this caused the 'polish job' on my left boot. Not to worry, got that habit removed with the second session in B-Class.
About 5 laps into the B-Class the rain came pouring down. This was deja vu all over for me. Completed the lap and pulled into the pits immediately. Thanks to the rain, one of my mates came down with his ZZR1100 on the last lap, sorry Stephan! There were another incident where some idiot rode like a total arse, and took out another 3 bikers with him. I doubt that his name would appear on the riders list soon!
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( 3 / 125 )Last week Thursday I headed down to Bloemfontein to attend a friend's wedding. Since the rest my family was also attending, I took the opportunity to rather go by bike instead of my car. Whether if that was a good idea is debatable now.
The trip down was not so bad, the K7 was running smoothly as always. I did have nervous incidents since the national highways were pretty congested with all the holiday goers. Some idiot nearly killed himself by trying to be polite and staying in the oncoming traffic lane waiting for me to pass BETWEEN him and the truck in front of me. I waved at him to get back into our lane since a car was about to hit him head on. Luckily he looked in front of him and jumped back into our lane.
So got safely to my destination of Brandfort after about 2:45 riding time. The next day was the wedding, went as most weddings. Got home probably at 12:30 that morning knowing I have to get up in 6 hours to ride back home.
The original plan was to ride back on Sunday, but since my parents are also acting as the support vehicle and that my father had to fly to Sweden Saturday night I pretty much did not have much of a choice. I did check the weather reports last Wednesday, and weather was basically set to cloudy for the most of the northern Free State province.
I left Brandfort, only to be greeted by rain about 30km later.... and for almost 250km afterwards. Every now and then when I think back on it, I reckon I must have been barking mad. The K7 was basically in 'C' mode the whole time, definitely making the bike much more manageable on the wet roads and compensating for any slipping. About an hour into this trip and my clothes were soaking wet. Not to mention the wind chill factor working in as well. Finally after Kroonstad, about 180km from Johannesburg, did the rain stop and pockets of sun was shining thru. But it came to late I think, was shaking so much that later I could not tell the difference if it was me or the bumpy road.
Upon finally and gratefully arriving home, I took of my gear and my arms were blue. First I thought must have been some ink or die that imprinted itself on my skin. I tried to quickly wash it off when I realized it was my actual muscles. Only when standing underneath the hot shower could I see the color slowly disappearing.
This was probably one of the greatest introduction of the hardship of motorcycle riding (apart from falling off of course) and I hope it does not get repeated soon.
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( 2.8 / 90 )Last Friday I traded my old vehicle in for a Corsa Utility Bakkie. So far I am enjoying my new car very much. Oddly I have found the smaller cabin space very comfortable, everything so easily within reach. Now since I am driving a bakkie, I have the capability to load my bike and take it where ever I want. Now my master plan is complete, as my intention was always to load my bike and take it with me when I leave for the Eastern Cape and Port Elizabeth on holiday.
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( 2.9 / 78 )So I received a message from a person in the United States with the same surname. She asked if I am not by any chance some long lost cousin. Unfortunately I am not, but the thought got me thinking. My surname is a very unique one, and I have not met another person yet with the same surname outside of my known family. So a search on my surname returned a surprising number of people.
Right, now to test if Facebook really connects people. I created a group specific for people sharing my surname. Now Facebook only allows you to send invites to people on your friends list, or external email addresses. So what about people who do have Facebook accounts, but are not on my friends list? I simple started sending private messages as invites to the search result, inviting people to join. As the 5th messages was fired off i got this pop up, telling me my account has been disabled because my actions has been sighted as spamming.
Now what was I suppose to do, since Facebook does not provide the functionality for mass invites of Facebook members. After several emails complaining about the ridiculous actions taken against me, the admins opened my account again. I have also not been able to find anywhere on the site the rules for sighting spammers, and how many "invites" am I allowed to fire off a day.
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( 3 / 80 )... 4 wheels move the body, but 2 wheels move the soul!
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( 2.9 / 75 )This past week I went on a bike trip to the Eastern Transvaal province. It was such a great trip and I love every moment of it. Especially since I grew up in that regent. It is without a doubt the most beautiful piece of earth for me.
We pulled away at 5am Saturday morning from Delmas, and head straight to Middelburg and on to Dullstroom. After which the world literally changed with a turn of a page. The road became more twisted between the green hills and small lakes. As we entered this new realm a smile started growing on my face, knowing that it is here where the fun starts!
;)
We reached Lydenburg around 8am and stopped for breakfast. Then we headed off to Sabie first, going through the Long Tom pass. There were some road works on the pass so it took some time to get through. Down Devils Knuckles to Sabie and on to Graskop where we would stay for the night. Did the big cable swing over a ravine as bonus. The afternoon we took the scenic route to Hoedspruit, stopping at God's Windows and Drie Rondawels. After a late lunch we headed back to Graskop to relax after a hard day of riding, with which we already cover over 700km. The Sunday we headed off to Hazy view for breakfast again. Then past White River to Nelspruit, and down the N4 highway to home.
One thing I can say about my K7, what a joy it is to ride! I was surprisingly very comfortable during the trip. Most of the time I had this constant thought about how I can do this for hours. The trip took its toll on my rear tyre, this morning I had it replaced with a new Michelin Pilot Power 2CT tyre. The old one was worn down to the canvas. Overall I won't forget this trip soon, and can't wait for the next one.
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( 3 / 91 );)
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( 2.9 / 70 )"The key to software integration is compromise." - Arconan
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( 2.9 / 62 )I have finally fulfilled one of my promises by flying down Cape Town to visit a good friend. Since he moved down I told him I will come visit someday. So we organized and I joined them on a camping trip to Lamberts Bay to celebrate his cousin's birthday.
We camped for two days, and it was loads of fun. Me and my mate Gregg started drinking straight after he picked me up at the airport. When everyone arrived at his house we still did not packed the car. We left at around 3pm for Lamberts Bay which is a 2.30 hours drive up the west coast from Cape Town. Got there round about 8pm after nightfall. It was very difficulty to scope the place out in the dark, so I had no idea where I was.
;)
Next morning things became more clear. My friend, his wife and myself took a walk on the beach and a bit through town. This is when I got to make out what was going on around me. The town seemed a bit deserted, lots of house locked up. I realized they are all vacation houses, only occupied over the holiday seasons. The small harbor was also very quiet, with only a few small boats anchored inside.
That night two more friends joined us and we all had a big bash. Cooked up an great "Beef and Beer" potjie and yes some of us drinked even more beer. Overall the weekend was one for the books and I enjoyed it thoroughly. Looking forward to hook-up with my mates when going to Port Elizabeth for the December holidays.
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( 3.1 / 69 )Here is a picture used to rule the English player out before grounding the ball, people are going to talk about it for some time to come...
;)
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( 3 / 67 )This week i finished my year exams. Went pretty well, except for one exam I blundered. I paced myself for a 3 hour exam, but it was actually a 2 hour exam. Hence I did not finished through my own stupidity. Oh well want can I say. Luckily if I fail the module I can at least retake it.
But yet again there came up 2 issues with how the university format their questions in the exams. Apart from writing full program source code, the rest are multiple choice question. Yet there is a particular why that they post a question. No more choice the right or wrong one, now is goes like "choose the MOST right answer, choose the MOST incorrect answer". They seem to purposefully go out of their way to confuse students and to test them on choosing their correct answer, irrespective of the other options which sometimes are also perfectly valid answers.
EXAMPLE:
Example what an accelerator key is...
A) Accelerator key is for example when a user press CTRL-SHIFT-F7 to perform an action.
B) Accelerator key (also known as a chord) is when a user press several keys similtaniously to perform a specific action.
C) ...some other stupid option....
Now in my mind A and B is exactly the same thing, but its obvious that they will be expecting option B. Why beat around the bush, you get right and you get wrong. But it seems that every IT related handbook explains the exact same concept in their own word, but you are forced to answer in their own words.
The birth of politics, my yes is more correct than your yes.
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( 3 / 71 )
Well it had to happen sometime i guess. Most guys think that i am fortunate to live within 2km of a Teazers club. Teazers as most South Africans know is probably the top strip club franchise around. Anyways a group of my friends thought we have nothing to loose, and i had a crappy week so i thought what the hell.
It was pretty hilarious i must admit, i basically got a bit drunk while watching rugby replays on TV. My one male and female friend kept exchanging glances to all the strippers dancing around us (and at each other). The remaining friend went absolutely ga-ga of the all fresh eastern European imports. He had 3 lap dances, one of which offered a two for one special. He is totally amazed how woman with such beauty and "friendliness" would take up stripping as a profession vs. becoming his girlfriend so that he can take her home and strip her anyways. It does make for an interesting debate about career ethics, but thats a story for another day.
Anyways probably the admirable (or some would think stupid) thing i did was to offer to cover the bill and they can pay me back since no one had a wallet or cash on them. They will pay me back, except for one but i already expected that. Well to close the post this event is just another t-shirt on a continuous growing pile. Never had interest, seen one woman naked you seen them all. Even the one stripper asked if i was gay since i did not "look" at her like a starved dog looking at a meatloaf. I don't get turned on by a beautiful woman...but what i can actually do with her, thats a different story.
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( 3 / 66 )"I have found a way to steal the sun from the sky." - Fly from the inside, Shinedown
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( 2.9 / 57 )"The only sanity i have left is on 2 wheels." - Arconan
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( 2.9 / 51 )This picture was taken by my best mate's brother, Hendri Coetzer, whom is the head trainer at The Photographer School. Amazing picture taken on one of their recent trips to the Kalahari. And believe me when i say these fellows don't do photoshop.
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( 3 / 47 )Well I got some criticism and a few compliments on my post about Facebook. One thing I do expect is that some people might think I am too full of myself to be on Facebook (for those people, read my motto at the bottom of my profile). Anyways truth be told every now and then the idea of signing up has crossed my mind, but only because of trend I have noticed to develop in social environments. Facebook undoubtedly has had one of the hugest impact on modern cultures. Where I started to pay attention on its effects is when I am out in the open and notice that its now almost become the preferred way to communicate. More and more I hear people rather exchange Facebook details than cellphone numbers. Also when asked what is your cellphone or email, the response is "You can get me on Facebook..."
I can't remember even when last was I part of a conversation where a topic has no relation or started on Facebook. I find this social trend astonishing. It blows me away thinking that simplicity can have such a global effect on people. Up to a point when you are frown upon when you admit you have not signed up. Question is, should I now also blow out the same horn as everyone else to be heard?
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( 3 / 70 )A question that's is usually on the mind of any IT department head. But its not that simple to measure it. You can't say application development will be guaranteed to be faster on Windows or Linux or .Net or Java. There is so many factors that needs to be calculated, and more than often the result is not exactly what is desired. Probably one of the major factors is the type of individual and what environment he is most skilled (and comfortable) in. The head of the department to which i am contracting to brought up the point of development speed using Java and using .Net. I have been coding Java for a solid 8 years now, where as the department head comes from a VB back ground.
One point that he used for an argument, was the development platform ability to provide access to a PC's serial ports (he is working on some home automation project for himself). He made the point that in .Net it was so simple to get a Serial port object and perform I/O operations on it. With Java you need to download the Java Communication API separately and apparently you have to write more lines of code to actually get to a point where you can perform I/O operations. I have not yet used the Java Communication API so i would not know, but the concept got me thinking.
Read More...
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( 2.9 / 61 )Well today our Sensei closed our Dojo due to issues that started between him and fellow students, and I am deeply hurt that it came to this. Fortunately our 2nd Dojo will remain open, so I can continue my training. Initially I thought I should do a write-up on all issues and voice my opinion on them, but then I thought I will just post this...
What does this mean to you as a person?
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( 2.7 / 93 )Will i took my K7 on her very first breakfast run. Everyone were very impressed and pleased with my choice and the changes i have made to it. Yet again on the closed road section i was allowed the opportunity to open it up and get the speedo limiter at 299km/h again. Otherwise i kept the speed rather slow, and used the run to get comfortable with the bike's cornering capabilities.
Its was a very nice run with a great group of people!
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( 2.8 / 77 )I graded today. I was a very tough exam, but i personally feel much more satisfied with my performance compared to my last grading. Only major slip up i made was to confuse Uchi and Soto Mawari with my Kaiten Nage techniques. Otherwise were there small slip ups, but i was able to recognize them immediately and correct on them. Looking forward to my Ikkyu grading.
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( 2.9 / 64 )... gets up to go to the bedroom. Once in the bedroom the masochist gets on the bed, bends over and shouts "hit me, hit me!".
The sadist just looks at the masochist and replies "... nope!"
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( 2.9 / 88 )This past Sunday was my 26th birthday. I have done my first quarter century in this world, and more than ready to tackle the rest. Now if you read my previous entries, I was in an accident with my FZ6, which was a blessing in a disguise since now I don’t have to sell it. I also started to have a growing interest in the new Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K7. Also I started a new job and things seem to be going well on that front as too. So on this note, I thought it would be a good I idea to get myself a kick-ass birthday present….and here she is…..
An AWESOME bike! I picked it up last Friday afternoon, and up and till Sunday night I already clocked over 700km on it. The level of performance, speed and comfort is just so unbelievable. On Sunday a friend from my previous work and myself took a nice long ride to a town named Parys in the Freestate province. The road was a very good choice to ride a new engine in, pretty straight and no too many turns. During the whole trip I basically kept the bike in 4th and 5th most of the time, slowly winding it up to 11 000 rpm then slowing it down to 3000 rpm. I believe in the concept of constantly applying variable pressure on the piston rings so that they seal better. Ok yes and I did took it up to 280 km/h at one stretch…;-)
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( 3 / 73 )So i recently got my TyTN back from my cellular service provider repair center. I only had the phone for like 20 hours before it got smashed with my recent motorcycle accident. So now i thought i might post some of my thoughts on my latest gadget. The HTC TyTN is the first PDA-like phone that i have owned, so firstly i am still feeling my around MickeySoft Mobile 5. So far so good actually, getting used to the functions, and the sliding qwerty took must quicker to get used to than i originally expected.
The one hand operation takes a bit getting used to, especially with the power of button on the top right hand side. Every time i try to press the button is accidentally slide the keyboard out a bit. Apart from that i am actually enjoying the phone, most of my issues has been setting Debian Etch up to access my phone via Bluetooth PAN service to surf the net. One thing which i found disappointing is that the phone is unable to share its internet only over Bluetooth and not Wifi as well. Pity, could just as well hooked my phone up to my Wifi router and then access the net on my pc via normal LAN.
I will probably upgrade to Windows Mobile 6 some time soon, but got no need for it at this time. One thing i will investigate in the near future is the Java capabilities.
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( 2.9 / 71 )A requirement came up for me to try and get cross-domain authentication going between WebSphere Portal 6 and other external websites running on WebSphere. Now WebSphere already implements a technology framework called LTPA(Lightweight Third Party Authentication), which caters for seamless access to any application running within the same domain on the WebSphere platform. Unfortunatly this framework does not cater for cross-domain, so something else needed to be thought of.
After some researching i tried to develop a custom JAAS login module, but did not have any success with it. After further reading i decide to give the Trust Association Interceptor (TAI) component a go, and within less than a hour i was surfing across domain like it was going out of fashion. The TAI component is way more simple to implement versus a JAAS Login Module, and very adaptable to requirements it would seem.
Now during my working experience with WebSphere Portal, there were a couple a times where cross domain authentication came up as an issue. I guess if the issue was made my responsibility much earlier, i would have probably solved this issue then...
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( 2.9 / 96 )
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( 2.6 / 74 )I have been receiving several invites to join (the so called phenomenon) Facebook. It seems there is no person in any first-world country that is not registered. Well for the few (and probably very unlikely) that reads this article and do not know what Facebook is about, it’s a simple social networking application that allows you to keep contact with all your friends. I am sure this description will suffice for any mere mortal trying to figure out what Facebook is all about. There are numerous social network services on the internet like Facebook though (MySpace, Bibo, Ringo), each with their own bells and whistles. Also there seem to be a new big thing out every 6 – 12 months. And with each iteration of the hottest “friends” website, I get invited by my friends whom just jump from one service to another.
One thing that also has bothered me for sometime now is the amount of technological resources wasted on the global internet. Being a social networking site or a brand new online dating (is there any difference?), what happens to all the old accounts on the previous service which suddenly seems not to be cool anymore? Huge amounts of storage spaces, all now going to waste. And the explanation is pretty simple actually. It seems people are more attracted to novelties than actual functionality when it comes to most online services. And it is those novel ideas that set any service apart from it peers, giving them the edge, creating higher clientele. And I guess it probably safe to say its Facebook’s chance to stand in the lime light, but for how long?
Read More...
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( 2.9 / 53 )... there was a woman that was not full of crap
... but that was a really long time ago
... and only for one day! ;-)
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( 3 / 67 )Talk about the wheel turning!
World Clock
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( 2.9 / 47 )Man this one is really winding me up. I am currently spending my time to reorganize my development team's workstations. Everyone is currently running WebSphere Portal V6.0.0.1. Now this one machine keeps throwing the following error when i try to enable LDAP security, even after a full delete and reinstall :
[wsadmin] com.ibm.ws.scripting.ScriptingException: com.ibm.websphere.managemen
t.exception.ConfigServiceException: WKSP0008E RepositoryException while checking
the state of cells/*****/applications/wmmApp.ear/deployments/wmmApp/wmm.interna
l.ejb.jar/META-INF/ibm-ejb-jar-bnd.xmi in the master repository --com.ibm.ws.sm.
workspace.WorkSpaceException: WKSP0016E Error get digest for cells/****/applica
tions/wmmApp.ear/deployments/wmmApp/wmm.internal.ejb.jar/META-INF/ibm-ejb-jar-bn
d.xmi.workspace_save --java.io.IOException: The system cannot find the specified
file, either the filename is too long on Windows system or run out of file desc
riptor on UNIX platform. java.io.FileNotFoundException: C:\t\Script113f7566244\w
orkspace\cells\****\applications\wmmApp.ear\deployments\wmmApp\wmm.internal.ejb
.jar\META-INF\ibm-ejb-jar-bnd.xmi.workspace_save (The system cannot find the pat
h specified)
IBM does provide a support note to rectify this problem, which i did and still the problem occurs. You can see in the included error message that the path starts with "c:\t" which i configured, and still it complains of filename length. The rest of the path is generated, which is obviously out of my control.
Now i have a bigger issue than the one above. Fine Microsoft Windoze NTFS still works on 255 filename limit, but would you not expect that by NOW that companies will still recognize this fact and implement their software to properly support their target platform. Well until Microsoft get their WinFS woes sorted out.
Well i am planning to change to a linux development environment, which mind you i have been praying for the last 6 years! ;-)
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( 2.9 / 122 )Well i have made it. First 31 days of contracting, and seems to be going well (touch wood). And irony is that my boss approached me about signing up for a permanent position. I am not sure about it this though, i went through some effort to change my life for the contracting world. Then on the other hand i really like this place and people, so what to do. Will take take the weekend to make up my mind.
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( 2.7 / 82 )Well is just had to happen to me... again. I took my bike to some dealers in Pretoria so see what price they will give me for it. Did not go as well as i hoped for, but that does not matter now. On my way back to the office in mid-day traffic some idiot took me out on the highway. For what is typical of peak traffic that people in the fast lane brake for stupid reasons, made this person decide its better to "quickly" jump to the middle lane. What he did not plan on was that i was right next to him. Its hardly a year a ago when a Maserati driver took me out in exactly the same fashion, but this time the knock was to much. Bike got out of control and i bailed. Took a hard knock on the left side of my body, but after just slided my way of the highway. Bike is not happy, whole right hand side is damaged. Best of all is that the driver was driving a company vehicle... without a license. Typical South Africa i guess. Man what did i do wrong to deserve this?
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( 2.9 / 62 )Well about 2 weekends ago i took the new GSXR-1000 K7 for spin, and man was i surprised. I never thought it would have been so comfortable and precise. I am a regular reader of the UK Superbike Magazine, and one thing that one of the journalist mentioned really stood out for me personally on this bike. He mentioned that no matter if you are doing 100 km/h or 200 km/h, the handling keeps its consistency and precision. This was so true, and it generated in me some respect towards Suzuki.
Now the Yamaha R1 is still a beautiful bike, but the GSRX-1000 is just starting to make more sense to be used as a road bike. I would like a bike that i can simply ride where ever there is tar, and GSXR-1000 seems to fit the bill. Its very broad range of power delivery makes it much simpler to get used to the bike. I have started to get my ducks in a row, hopefully a month from now i will have a new one.
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( 3 / 55 )What a week... felt good actually doing something worthwhile with my time. I started my new position last Monday. Basically hit the ground running, but i am used to that. What i find highly ironic, is that the architecture that i have to re-engineer was done by certain company whom i have worked with at a previous project. So yet again, i am fixing stuff. The difference time around is that my new company is actually willing to listen to me...
Now what i have seen so many a times, is that developers and architects design and implement solutions that are seriously over complicated. Its like everyone has the impression that going for gold translates into implementing a mammoth of a system, irrelevant from what the client actually needs. For instance, why would someone develop a middle layer, which consist of 2 consecutive web-services calls before reaching the backend... all in the same vertical stack and is never intended to be consumed by any other system. This has such a huge amount of overhead over a simple web application that needs to make simple backend call, where a simple EJB or DAO approach would have been so much simpler.
Its like the quest of grandeur totally overshadows reason and common sense. It usually goes like “yes but then we can does this, and this and this....”. Now i will usually expect this from a typical client and rightly so, but coming from an architect bothers me a bit, especially when i know they have no solid experience with the proposed technologies. Likewise i would love to keep trying something new with the latest technologies, but not at the price of designing a solution that i am not at least 90% sure i actually can deliver.
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( 2.9 / 55 )Well its done, i have submitted my resignation to my current employer yesterday, and signed the new contract short while ago. I will be starting at my new company as contractor on the 25 June. Really looking forward to this, because it will allow me to do so much more with my career and personal life.
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( 2.8 / 112 )I was sitting at home yesterday and very bored. Not keen on riding because my rear tyre was worn to the canvas. But screw it, i got up and got it replace with a new Michelin Pilot Road2 tyre. Was originally opting for the Power 2CT tyre, but after having chatted with the fitment guys on other people's experienes and checking the specs i decided otherwise.
The reason i went for the Road2 is because it was rated much better for all round usage, and one particular point. When you look at the percentage hard and soft compound structure on each tyre, you will see the Power has actually a much larger 'hard' section in the middle than the Road2. The feedback that the guys have been getting is that this becomes an issue when you in a nice low lean when turning, when the tyre contact point is right on the line where the 'soft' and 'hard' compounds meet. Apparently the tyre becomes a bit unstable as grip gets shifted between the two compounds. Read More...
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( 2.7 / 68 )Well I have been very frustrated the last two years in terms of my career, probably because i was not going anywhere. I can't remember when last i was given a task that was actually of some sort of challenge. And I do mean technically, not solving problems due to incompetence. The last few months I did follow up on opportunities for a new job. There were a couple of good one's, but they all fell through the mat.
Now the wait seems to be over, I have been successful for a contracting position at a major insurance company as a Portal/Web Services specialist. Since I have been a permanent employee all my life, this would be my first step into the world of contracting. Luckily I do know a lot of contractors, most of whom have been trying for the last few years to get me into it. Since I basically have no more patients for the false promises that I got the last few years, it is time to start working for myself and get a move on in my career.
All that is left is to put this in black and white this monday.
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( 3 / 60 )So went racing around Zwartkops Raceway again, and it just keeps getting more fun. This time around i though screw it, lets join the B-Class riders. Well my and my trustee FZ6 did not seize to impress. Keeping the corners nice and tight, i was able to gain enough time to keep up with most 1000cc riders.
;)
This time around i was constantly scrapping pegs around most of the corners. It is so much fun leaning with the FZ6, it makes you think wish that the corner was tighter so that you can go lower. This is all possibly with my set of Michilen Pilot Sport tyres, naturally. But my tread on the rear is basically worn, so I am taking it easy till payday before buying a new rear Pilot Power 2CT tyre. Read More...
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( 3.1 / 68 )So recently i bought my self a nice Polar Heart Monitor F4 watch with chest strap. I have been training for a while now with my flatmate Damian, and i guess i wanted something to help me train rather than spending half my time figuring out the computers on the machines.
;)
I have not been disappointed since. It does what it suppose to do, nothing more and less. One thing i have to mention, the two-button interface to access all the functionality has a very good design concept in my personal opinion.
I have currently set my target heart rate zone to 70%-80% of my max heart rate, which translates to 137-156 bpm. Well so far so good, I have worked my way up to a level where i can endure a total workout time of 55min, with at least 35min in the target heart zone. Typical routine would consist of 10min cycling, super-circuit routine, stomach exercises, 10 min treadmill. I am currently pondering of ways to mix up my usual routines to spend more time on the treadmill and increase my time in the target zone.
But one thing is for sure, I have not felt this fit for years. And results is also starting to show. i suspect i might even weight below 90kg, the lowest for the last 6 years. For most of this i must thank Damian, who showed me another side of physical training. I know my why around when it comes at weight and strength training, but it has lost it appeal for me.
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( 2.9 / 50 )
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( 3 / 62 )
;)
Thanks Broodforce!
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( 3 / 70 )Well well another situation of (probably) politics and personal choice over logic. I had to developed a SMSC client as a freelancer. My code was based on the SMPP v3.4 spec. One of the requirements was to connect to 2 different service providers.
While the one was running like a charm, the second would just keep hanging (lets say its service provider A and B respectively). The network connection will be kept alive, but all SMPP packets just halted to come through. When someone tried to send a message from their cellphone it would display an error "message could not be delivered". Only when i manually stopped my client and started it again will the messages start coming through again. I admit it did puzzle me for a bit.
After having a discussion with one of service provider's A network administrators i realized that service provider B requires my client to initiate the ENQUIRE_LINK packet. The reason why network A has been working is because their server was doing it automatically and the SMPP Java implementation that i have been using responded accordingly. I was pretty annoyed with this, because of now i have to add more logic into my code to cater for different SMSC Server implementations. From what i can find in the spec is that it does not state if the responsibility lies with the server or client to send the ENQUIRE_LINK packet.
Well surely this can be debated over a cup of coffee, but there is still one thing that makes me want to pull out my hair. Network B SMSC server expects my client to send out ENQUIRE_LINK packets and hangs if nothing is received causing absolutely nothing to function. Right, so then why the HELL does it still keep the TCP network alive!?
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( 2.8 / 70 )Did my motorcycle license test today and passed. Finally one less thing to deal with the government. I have been trying for months to get an appointment for a test. Luckily one of the driving schools got me in today due to a cancellation. I also booked a K53 Motorcycle License course just before my actual test. The guy took me through the ins and outs, and after a hour of training it was time for the test. The test only lasted about 15 min. The instructor knew i was doing a training course just before, which i think counted to my advantage. I was only required to do every technique once, hence the 15 min before i was done.
So what next, hmmmm.... maybe go test ride the new 2007 Kawasaki Z1000.
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( 2.9 / 130 )Yesterday I went on my first official track day at Zwartkop raceway in Centurion. Oddly enough I can’t remember why I have not been to a track day before, but still I really enjoyed myself. My FZ6 got a set of Michelin Pilot Sport fitted, with reduced pressure: 1.5 bar in front and 2.1 bar at the rear. With the first session I joined the D group to warm up my tires and get a feel for the track, after which I continued riding with the C group.
;)
Read More...
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( 2.6 / 91 )Well it has been a very relaxing Easter weekend for me. I decided to take the off time to get on my bike and take a ride. My parents decided to drive down to Brandfort in the Free State Province to visit some friends, so jumped at the opportunity to use them as my support vehicle.
;)
I got on my bike the Friday morning at 6:30am. Sun was hardly up, and the air was very nippy. But this was not a problem for my fleece apple warmer and thermal long johns. Traffic was almost non-existent, almost like no one has planned to go away for the long weekend. Was nice easy cruising, trying to stay above 180km/h. Yet again my FZ6 was running like pretty well, it was purely a case of relaxing while listening to my tunes. Read More...
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( 3 / 91 )Well last Saturday a fellow Aikidoka and I did our Sankyo grading after a day long Gasshku. Needless to say we both were dog tired. The grading was a lot tougher than we expected. I personally was just very annoyed with myself, with all the technical mistakes i have made. But i passed, and we all know our Sensei does not give grades away freely. Guess the only thing i can do now is to make sure that i train harder for my next grading and get myself back up to scratch.
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( 3 / 85 )Man i hate that plastic scratching sound! Only difference is the car actually slammed the side of my bike. Luckily i was still able to regain control of my bike stop next to the road.
Stupid Driver Causes Bike Crash - Click Here for more great videos and pictures!
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( 3 / 74 )Erotic is when you only use a feather, kinky is when you use the whole chicken!
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( 2.9 / 90 )Another Sunday another run. Its days like this that I treasure the beautiful African sky. Not a single cloud in the sky, just endless blue. Was not to keen on going a run this morning because I have reached a service interval on the FZ6, but yesterday I thought what the hell. As usual I met up the Rock Riders at the Total garage with my friends from CIT Menlyn Gideon and Frikkie.
;)
So Helmut decided would a trip round Lanseria towards Die Bosvelder would be a nice trip. The Lanseria road is a bit controversial, people enjoy the turns and hills, but the condition of the road is not as good as it used to be. Well I still enjoyed it, still able to enjoy the road, even with a bit of traffic. Read More...
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( 2.9 / 101 )I got recently informed that my application for position in another company was unsuccessful. When I asked for the reason why I was not accepted, the lady responded “We feel your Java skills are not strong enough…” Right something is not kosher!
How’s this for a paradigm, who could now at this moment recall the exact wrench size to use when changing a tyre…? Does that make you a “not so strong” mechanic? So what happens when you pick up a wrong wrench? So it does not fit, so you use logical deduction and pick and larger or smaller one. Hey it fits; you change the tire, moving on. Does it mean when a person do not have the apparent knowledge of a specific subject, that he/she does not possess the intellect be able to learn, use or operate it? Read More...
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( 2.8 / 67 )No I have not had a recent bad experience on some dating site. It’s only the dynamics of modern society that I find interesting. People using modern technology, for one of man’s most irrational desire…. true love. Or is it?
Although I can say I am not on any these sites or clubs, I have met a few people who has been and still are. I find it quite interesting their experiences, unfortunately I can’t say any of them have had a “successful” one. Some are very embarrassed at the fact that they have a “dating profile” online. Then others are more liberal and think there is nothing wrong with it, but still I believe both are after the same thing. “No issues, nice personality, can make me smile, blah blah blah, the usual”. Is this truly what everyone wants; is it true that everyone seems to want the same thing? Like they say there are many ways to skin a cat. It just seems to me people only express themselves on what they want in one way though. On the contrary I have met more people who are not sure what they want out of a relationship, or can’t understand why they keep getting into relationship that does not work out.
Well guys seem to hugely abuse this online dating thing. The girls I have met that does online dating, just keep complaining how guys lie on their apparent profiles, even the pictures are fake. And this of course does not help much the honest people who are online to actually meet someone worth dating.
Yet again the promise of technology is foiled by the ignorance of common people.
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( 3 / 78 )About two days ago I stopped by boys at CIT Menlyn, just to chat and show the one guy the movie clip I have of him popping a wheelie on his Yamaha R1. Gideon has been asking when I am trading my Fazer in for the R1. Bastard knows I will do it in a heart beat ;-) But I have reached that awkward point again, after talking to a lot of people on their experience and reading about all the new write ups in the new models coming up. The question is, what the hell so should I buy next?
Ok, my heart is with Yamaha and will always be my first choice. I always have been saying that I am getting the new R1 as my next bike. But will also admit that I am having second thoughts about my Fazer. The bike is just getting better and better. I can’t imagine that a bike can be so versatile in terms of sport riding. What I really enjoy the most is the amount of seating positions you can play around with, and how the bike adapts with you. I remember when starting on the bike I was basically sitting as far back and comfortable as I can. Then I started to lean forward, pivoting around the fuel cap with my hips when leaning in the turn. Now these days I tend to sit upfront as possible, trying to put more weight on the front wheel. It’s almost like adopting a typical Buell Lighting riding position, got me looking at them again. Well I had a bit of thought, and would really not mind have the same type of ride, but obviously with a litre engine.
;)
And the verdict is … the Kawasaki Z1000. The more and more I think about it, the more would I really not mind to ride this bike. I have not actually been on one yet, but according to all the write ups in the bike magazines it is the one that will give me what I want. A reliable all-round hooligan bike that can do just about everything just short of climbing Everest. Well I have some time before reaching that bridge, but sure would not mind to buy one now!
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( 2.9 / 97 )I was invited by my dealer Gideon from CIT Menlyn to join them on a run yesterday. They were taking out 2 new guys and wanted to know if i would join them. Cool Beans.
;)
Well i actually got home at about 6am yesterday morning, was out on a boys night. Lets just say i am going to need some therapy for all the things i saw on Saturday night. Any hows i got home to was the liqueur out of my hair and clean up before going on the run. Met up with the group in Pretoria at about 7am, and everyone were of at about 8am. As we got on the highway i could see who were the "hotheads" in the group. More specifically these two guys, not one with a proper riding jacket on. Read More...
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( 2.9 / 65 )I was invited by my dealer Gideon from CIT Menlyn to join them on a run yesterday. They were taking out 2 new guys and wanted to know if i would join them. Cool Beans.
Well i actually got home at about 6am yesterday morning, was out on a boys night. Lets just say i am going to need some therapy for all the things i saw on Saturday night. Any hows i got home to wash the liqueur out of my hair and clean up before going on the run. Met up with the group in Pretoria at about 7am, and everyone were there at about 8am. As we got on the highway i could see who were the "hotheads" in the group. More specifically these two guys, not one with a proper riding jacket on. Read More...
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( 2.9 / 96 )I like this pic a lot!
;)
Pretty much the feeling that was going around at Loftus Versveld this last Saturday. I believe the Blue Bulls should thank their stars for getting that last try in for the win. Overall the game play was not very impressive, and a lot of criticism coming from the crowds.
I must give it to the Australian and New Zealand players, they earn their salaries. Its like the South African's play with a mindset of being at the field position that want to be at, not where they should be to support the team. Classic highschool mentally, standing somewhere waiting for the ball to come to you so that you of all people can score that try.
Hopefully soon we South Africans will get our heads out and start thinking where we should be on the field.
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( 3 / 80 )Had a nice breakfast run this morning with some mates of mine. First I am sorry for the fellow rider (sorry i forgot his name as it was his first run with us) who came of this bike, glad to hear his injuries was not too serious. I hope a speedy recovery for him. Apart for the unfortunate mishap it was actually a very enjoyable biking day. Nice high speed runs and long sweeping turns. Especially with a great group of riders to hang out with.
;)
We met up 6:30 this morning at the News Café Centurion, nice and early. It was pretty chilly, definite indication that summer is starting to slow down. Everyone was already at the meeting point with my arrival, everyone apart from the group leader. Let’s just say he had a rough night. We pulled away and met up the PineHaven Garage on route to Krugersdorp. After waiting for the remaining riders of the group we head of on the run. Read More...
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( 3 / 84 )Well yes I admit it, I have often engaged in behind the scene humour of how dumb computer users are. We who work in the IT trenches, fixing network problems and supporting systems take some pleasure exchanging war stories of the stupidity of mankind and how people can’t understand that you cannot plug your modem into your network port a.k.a. ID 10 T error…
Ok ok. Yes not everyone is as technical inclined like me, and that’s all fine. I do not expect a client to understand the pro’s and cons of putting javascript validation in a html page. But lately there is something else that has been bothering me. The purpose why software get developed, and what are they intended to do for the users. We can all go with the sales rep’s response “This software will allow you to do your work faster and more efficiently”. Question is what is truly faster and what is truly more efficient. Is faster actually when you reduce a user’s interaction with a software application from 4 button clicks to 1? Is it truly more efficient when a user does not need to worry about what gets entered into the system, because it will validate everything on its own? It’s like more and more software gets developed to literally think for people, and I am not referring to the recovery procedures when a nuclear power plant experiences a melt down. Read More...
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( 3 / 104 )I have come to the point to change my bike tyres, the previous set of Dunlop tyres have worked great. I got over 10 000 Km on my rear, but tread is basically gone. After asking around i then decided to go on a set of Michelin Pilot Sport tyres. Since I tend to ride like a Rossi wanna-be I though it would be interesting to try out the more sport orientated set.
Well I am pretty broke after the holiday season spending, but I though what the hell. I got a set for a very good price. I also bought a BMC Racing Filter as my current was clogging up. Got it all fitted this past week, and have been riding most of the weekend. At first I got a bit worried when I started riding on the new tyres, kept looking down checking that my tyres are not running flat, but they seem fine !? The bike was definitely riding more softly on the road. Then I convinced myself to just leave it and ride it, slowly pushing it further and see what the tires do. Ironically I was at a biker birthday party this weekend as well, chatted with a fellow rider who fitted Michelin Pilot Power on the rear, and laughed when I described my experience of mine. Hey also have noticed how softly the tires are riding and also thought they were running flat.
So far I think these Michelin Pilot Sports are awesome tyres, it hold so well and ride softer over the road. With addition of the BMC filters the bike overall is joy to ride, so comfortable when cruising on the highway. I am planning to go down to the track in the near future and see what the bike is overall made of.
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( 3 / 79 )In my experience in the I.T. industry I have became aware of certain trend that seems to be developing in the corporate world. It’s a big bucks business designing more "efficient and effective" business processes with the latest and greatest in technology. But are businesses really that keen to actually move forward with it?
Usually when stepping into a new project, I go with the impression that I am going to work on something new. A system never be done before, overcoming all the short comings of the old system, making the world a much better place. Taking from your lessons learned from your last project, getting the latest methodology available, download the latest releases of development components and frameworks. These are things that I usually look forward when starting on a new project.
Then why does this never happen! Why does it always turn out to be a light overhaul of an existing system, worse even it must look and feel the same. More and more the client and managers are to concern how the end users will accept the new system and don’t want to make it more foreign to the end users. With this mentality the resulting solution usually ends up being almost an exact copy of the old system, just with new face and code…?! Professionals get gunned down from the skies by designers and managers, mostly about the most basic and logical of design issues. It also happens to people that is keen in taking a step forward, using the latest and greatest in the software development world. Someone who wants to implement something noteworthy, to be able to say I have developed with some sense of pride and achievement.
The biggest kick for me of software development is doing what has not been done before, go where no coder has gone before. Building solutions that you are actually eager to point out and say “I developed that”. But I find that now difficult to do. Most of my work done lately has been discarded on the basis of management deciding they don’t need it anymore / suddenly found a better product / change their minds on what they wanted. Even worse spending 2 year of your life on a project you know that is doomed to fail, a system that will hardly last the next 2 years. Even trying to raise all the flags and pointing out pit-falls, still it’s going down in a endless downwards spiral.
Is their any pride left in being a software developer, or is the world changing so that we come no more than brick layers.
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( 2.9 / 83 )Well i thought what the hell, i need to get away. My cousin works on game farm 50 odd kilometres from the town of Piet Retief in the province of Mpumalanga (formerly known as Eastern Transvaal). Me and riding partner Gregg have already been planning this trip a while back, but we both came down with the flu on the particular planned weekend....
Read More...
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( 2.9 / 82 )
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