Over the weekend I installed the latest Flickr Uploadr for Win32. The install popped up the familiar “Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 Redistributable” installer as part of its installation. Microsoft Visual C++ 8 is still solid and widely used.
Category: Technology
Biting Brit Commentary
In this piece from the UK’s Register, Dominic Connor savages British Computer Science Higher Ed: No wonder CompSci grads are unemployed His biting style is a little over the top, but entertaining. I hope not everything he claims is true. A couple gems: Java fanboys tell me that it is “easier” than C++, and seem… Continue reading Biting Brit Commentary
Fixing it in the hardware
I wrote a graphics-intensive application for one client. He reported that when he tried to drag it from one monitor to another it seemed to lock up. Then he reported the fix: adjusting the fan for one of his multi-monitor video cards, to keep it from overheating. When you push bits all day, it’s hard… Continue reading Fixing it in the hardware
Dora Full Circle(s)
Dora the Explorer turns ten. It’s a TV show, but it pretends the TV is a computer. (When Dora asks where something is, you see a mouse go across the screen and click it.) But we watch it off of the Netflix instant queue on our computer. So our computer acts like a TV acting… Continue reading Dora Full Circle(s)
C/C++ IDEs
Wikipedia compares C/C++ IDE’s, and Netbeans C/C++ pack looks surprisingly good. But being written in Java, I suspect that it’s as resource-hungry as large Java apps are.
Global hackers caught
The perpetrators of what sounds like a big zombie-net have been arrested: Three Spaniards arrested in alleged global hacking scheme Apparently, 13 million computers were infected.
TIOBE Index: The 2009 Programming Language Survey
Tiobe’s 2009 Programming Language Survey is an interesting read. I write in a variety of languages: as it turns out, seven of the top eight. Very interesting that C seems to be such a constant. And far more constant even than its second place suggests, since six of the top eight languages use a syntax… Continue reading TIOBE Index: The 2009 Programming Language Survey
Scrum
Here’s an interesting read: the Scrum development framework. Methodology, strategy and work-flow all rolled into one rather informal process. Not specifically for software projects, either.
Gentle Introductions (to Programming)
Here are two applications to help learn the basics of programming: Alice.org (aka, Alice) teaches computer programming by letting you “program” things in an animated virtual world. WizBang is a visual programming tool that lets the learner drop and connect symbols. Both are free to use. Wikipedia keeps a more exhaustive list of visual programming… Continue reading Gentle Introductions (to Programming)
Ten Whole Megabytes
When I was in college, I rented a friend’s computer for a year. It had an amazing ten megabyte hard drive, and I loved it! I didn’t have to boot it with two single-sided single-density 360KB floppy disks. It was great! And ten whole megabytes! I figured I could type non-stop for decades before I… Continue reading Ten Whole Megabytes