A Person, Artist, Software Engineer, Geologist.

Words are simple, short and yet can evoke so many emotions. Case in point (from the way back files) :  The words "Won't Fix".  This originated from a QA engineer that has created an issue for modification to how a feature operated.  Fair enough.  The request was talked about and decided that this modification would not be implemented.  The issue was closed with the QA engineer using the words, "Won't Fix". Simple words but they express much about the perception of the QA engineer.  "Won't Fix" seems to indicate that 1) the feature is broken and 2) the development engineer is ignoring a known error.  Of course the perception from development engineer may have been that 1) the feature operates as expected and 2) making the suggested change would not be beneficial to the product. So much in a simple word. So how simple can a word be and still contain so much subjectivity and emotion behind it? "Hacked" - That code is "hack...

Lately there has been a call by governments to teach computer programming to more students and at an earlier age.  This is coming from both the UK and the US and I can understand this concern with an emerging workforce lacking the skills required to compete with it's business demands. I understand this goal, as you always want the most educated and creative population as possible.  Knowledge is always beneficial to individuals,  communities and countries.  Every student will not have the aptitude for programming, but it should not be scary to them either. Teaching software development is not the same as a trade school with the goal of lesson drills and testing for repeating those lessons.  As with any good education the ability to understand and apply what has been learned in new conditions and solve problems is the real goal. Teaching 1 million Visual Basic programmers would not go far to increasing our technology workforce. Teaching 1 million knowledgabl...

The Susan G. Komen "Stomp for the Cure" was last weekend.  I've been doing this event for about the last 8 years as it covers both my love for snowshoeing and supporting breast cancer research.  But this year has been different with the fiasco of Komen cutting off and then restoring funding of Planned Parenthood, in what was viewed as a very political move by some of it's leadership. What does this have to do with Software.  Well it's about how an organization can confuse it's mission for it's self.  There was no confusion for their donors, the mission was women's health and not the Komen foundation.  The talk at the snowshoe was all about how they would not have participated if the funding was not restored, with many still very ticked off at Komen. Back to software.  I suspect this is the same thing that happened to Microsoft in the mobile market.  They used to own the smartphone segment and being Microsoft, it appears they expected the market and...

Yes, I have an iMac and iPad at home but I work in a world of Windows and Linux.  Apple for me is not a religion but opportunity.  Not in the monetary sort of way but in mental or opening up of ideas and thoughts. I've lived with the grey windowing boxes for so long following the needs of the enterprise that nothing seemed to really change.  Faster processors, bloated software and frankly the same terrible UI that me and everyone developed.  Yuck.  The web has helped open up the options but it was still confined to the philosophy of mouse and menus.  Even the new Ribbon toolbars in Office is a feeble attempt to break out of the same tired UI that has trapped us all.  This tells you just how stuck MS thinking is.  It's changing of late but I'm not convinced they can make their vision stick. Event the news this week of Android royalty telling developers to ditch the menu button in their apps is another nail in the coffin of old UI's. Apple has...