prograsm – n.  An algorithm that nails it… just… right.

(Inspired by a typo)

Several weeks ago I finished reading The Ruby Way, Second Edition, by Hal Fulton.  For an 800-page book about a programming language, it was very easy to read from cover to cover.  For one thing, the Ruby language itself is fascinating and fun.  This entertaining subject matter is matched by Hal Fulton’s playful style — the example code is worth reading just for its humor.  Most importantly, Hal makes even the most advanced Ruby concepts easy to understand.  In the spirit of Reg’s What I learned from Language X that makes me a better programmer when I use Language Y, while I was reading this book I thought of (and implemented) three ideas for using the new object syntax in Synergy/DE — each of which was inspired by something I read in The Ruby Way.  I highly recommend this book to anyone who would like to know more about the Ruby language, as well as anyone who ponders programming languages in general.

Then for something completely different, I read Wuthering Heights, by Emily Brontë.  I found this quite entertaining as well, although the ending was less than satisfying to me.  Without spoiling it for you, I’ll just say that the morals of the story seem to be “Don’t thwart true love — you’ll regret it and you’ll turn someone into a monster” and “If you’re patient enough to wait out your troubles, they’ll blow over some day.”  Perhaps in a way, Emily Brontë was ahead of her time in this novel about struggling with inner demons that seems completely devoid of any redemptive transformation.

Next, I had planned to read The Art of the Metaobject Protocol on recommendation from Reg, but I thought that I should finish Paul Graham’s On Lisp first — on the principle that reading two Lisp books at once might cause my head to explode.  I’ve been reading the latter very slowly, mulling over each chapter before moving to the next.  At the rate I’ve been going, I should finish it by Christmas.

Meanwhile, I started The Stars My Destination, by Alfred Bester.  This was my Dad’s favorite sci-fi novel.  I had attempted to read it once when I was too young, and got lost in the details of it.  The last time I visited my mother’s house, I saw the anthology that contains this story sitting on the bookshelf and I asked her if I could have it.

This time through, I’m finding it most enjoyable.  Because it was first published over 50 years ago, reading it involves the added mental activity of comparing the future the author predicts centuries from now with what has already transpired since.  I had to laugh at the notion that Montgomery Ward would still be in business, for instance — but it’s not so laughable to think that retail sales could still be a dominant economic force.

Almost from the start, I began to be annoyed with how quickly the story moves.  It seemed too fast – jumping from scene to scene with shortened dialogue and description.  Then it occurred to me that Bester’s rapid style mimic’s the accelerated lifestyle he’s describing — a lifestyle stemming from the ability to be physically almost anywhere within moments.  It’s interesting how similar his predicted issues of privacy, protection, and marketing seem to those we face in today’s world in which we can be almost anywhere virtually.  Bester’s style has grown on me, and now I’m enjoying his jaunting from place to place.  He certainly knows how to build suspense, and I have a hard time putting it down.

• Six questions to ask yourself before expanding your IT consultancy | IT Consultant | TechRepublic.com
  7. Who’s going to buy the doughnuts, coffee, and aspirin?
  (tags: consulting techrepublic business)
• Tersosity » Consulting Fees
  Why do we consultants repeatedly undersell our services? Is it so we won’t feel guilty taking a gaming break?
  (tags: consulting fees)
• Knowing the superficial side of security is important, too | IT Security | TechRepublic.com
  Better brush up on all the buzzwords, even if you don’t believe in them.
  (tags: security consulting buzzwords)
• Tee utility in Ruby that works on Windows — Chip’s Tips for Developers
  So easy… even a Windows user can do it.
  (tags: ruby tee windows programming)

• IBM To Help Sequence the Chocolate Genome
  This comment thread on Slashdot says a lot more about itself than about the article. Thanks, Joseph.
  (tags: slashdot forums trolls)
• Tech greats bid farewell to Gates – News – Builder AU
  Just look at the smiles on McNealy and Jobs. You know they’re thinking “… and don’t let the door hit your…”
  (tags: microsoft gates)
• Why Freelancers Need Multiple Skills: Handling the Feast or Famine Phenomenon – FreelanceSwitch – The Freelance Blog
  I’m 70% specialist, 30% generalist
  (tags: freelance career skills consulting)
• Print this – UK students outsource IT coursework to India – Management – Breaking Business and Technology News at silicon.com
  Hey, they’re just practicing their delegation skills…
  This link and the two before it are via the Code Project‘s daily newletter.
  (tags: outsourcing india)
• Joe Cocker translated (video)
  At about 1:50 I fell out of my chair. Thanks, Jim.
  (tags: joecocker lyrics video)

• Microsoft Pledges Windows XP Support Through 2014
  After all, they won’t have a successor OS until 2010.
  (tags: microsoft vista xp)
• RhymeZone rhyming dictionary and thesaurus
  Cool tool! Save some time making it rhyme (Thanks to teeni the Internet genie)
  (tags: dictionary rhyme reference tools)
• Chad Perrin: SOB » Corporate Responsibility
  We have met the enemy, and they are “we”.
  (tags: corporatism libertarianism)
• Tiny Shetland island declares independence – Yahoo! News
  Of all things freedom’s most fine. Thanks, Paul.
  (tags: liberty shetlandislands forvik)
• The Top 100 best places to work in IT
  #0. Right here in my home office.
  Thanks, Toni.
  (tags: technology career workplace)
• Quote Details: Emerson Pugh: If the human mind… – The Quotations Page
  So if we do ever become complex enough to understand it as it is now, will it then have become even more complex in the process?
  (tags: ai intelligence humanity)
• Arjan`s World » LINKBLOG for June 25, 2008
  Arjan always has great software development links — somehow I got in there this time! Thanks, Arjan!
  (tags: consulting linklove)

Well, it seems that all of my sites were down from sometime yesterday afternoon until about noon today, including my email server.  Worse yet, when they were resurrected, all content (both database and page content) was reverted to the way things stood sometime early yesterday morning.  All comments that users made since that time, as well as a minor theme change I made, were lost.

I’m still waiting for an explanation from my hosting service.  Their sites were down, too, so I couldn’t even send them email or log an incident online.  I’ve always raved about how dependable they were.  I guess I should have knocked on wood.

• IT work is ‘boring,’ students | Tech News on ZDNet
  Let them think it’s boring; I’ll keep my closures to myself.
  (tags: it career)
• BBC NEWS | Technology | ‘Shake-up’ for internet proposed
  Better get in line for “.lol” and “.omg”
  (tags: domains tld icann)
• 10 personality traits of a highly effective independent consultant | IT Consultant | TechRepublic.com
  11. Attractive. Not really necessary, but it helps improve my score
  (tags: consulting techrepublic personality)
• Web Trek II: The Wrath of the Single Blogolope
  Boldly going where no blog has gone before…
  (tags: humor blogging startrek linklove)
• Credit Where Credit is Due | Vtroom
  “Chip Equips” — that’s one I hadn’t thought of.
  (tags: linklove friends blogging plugins wordpress comments)

• Subscribe to comment edits plugin for WordPress — Chip’s Tips for Developers
  Because you can never have too many email notifications
  (tags: wordpress php comments email)
• Whose fault when clients pay late?
  #0. You let them get away with it before, so…
  (tags: consulting payment)
• BBC NEWS | Entertainment | US comedian George Carlin dies
  “Tonight’s forecast: Dark.”
  (tags: georgecarlin obituaries)

• NASA – Bright Chunks at Phoenix Lander’s Mars Site Must Have Been Ice
  Do you grok the significance of this discovery?
  (tags: mars water phoenix)
• YouTube – Hot Chip – Camden Electric Ballroom 22/11/07
  Amazing what you can find with a vanity google…
  (tags: vanity search hotchip camden)
• Chip Camden Cottage
  Doesn’t look at all like my place.
  (tags: chip camden)
• PERSONAL BLOGS AND THE WORKPLACE
  Bill Boushka discusses many examples of the impact of exposing yourself online
  (tags: blogging privacy)
• AP Settles Dispute with Drudge Retort | Workbench
  But we haven’t reached the end of the story yet.
  (tags: blogging copyright dmca legal ap drudgeretort)
• T-shirt of the week: Theory of Internet | Geekend | TechRepublic.com
  Not quite. But the ratio of number of Internet users to infinity is directly related to the ratio of Internet content quality to that of Shakespeare.
  (tags: internet shakespeare monkeys infinity typewriter)

• Chad Perrin: SOB » Kelo Day and Eminent Domain
  Your mortgage company isn’t the only organization with strings attached to your property
  (tags: eminentdomain liberty libertarianism propertyrights)
• Bill Gates: 10 Unforgettable Moments
  The man you love to hate, and hate to love
  (tags: gates history microsoft)
• Wikipedia:Don’t stuff beans up your nose – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  Don’t tell people not to stuff beans up their noses.
  Thanks, Chad.
  (tags: wikipedia apotheon behavior)
• Firefox web browser | Faster, more secure, & customizable
  Have you downloaded version 3 yet?
  (tags: firefox mozilla)
• What We’ve Learned from Animals : HighCallingBlogs.com
  More animal wisdom
  (tags: animals lessons meme)