David Crowell :: Occasional Thoughts

I had a simple piece of code to grab an RSS feed from another site, and display it formatted the way I wanted.  I used caching, and it worked well on my develepment server.

When deploying to the client's server, it no longer worked.  I did some digging and found out that I'd have to use a proxy.  No big deal, just a few lines of code.  I really didn't like have to add code, and have a setting to disable it, or use a different proxy, or whatever.

Then I discovered, I didn't need to change the code.  Everything in the System.Net namespace can be configured to use a proxy in the web.config file.  I just added these few lines:

I got rid of my second car in two and a half hours.  Two and a half hours from posting it on Craigslist, I had money in my hand.

I am in awe.

I've read a lot of bad reviews of Vista.  When I first got my Thinkpad 11 months ago, I understood.  Vista was different.  It seemed half-baked.  It's startup time was horrendous.

Various patches and updates have since been released, and I don't see a real reason for complaint anymore.  Well, other than the "It's different" complaint.  My Thinkpad now has a startup time comparable with an XP machine.  Copying files works well now.  I really like Vista.

I've been using 32-bit Vista Business for 11 months, and I love it.  I had never used Media Center until recently though.  I subscribed to MSDN, and now have access to a lot of Microsoft software.  I set up some spare hardware I had as a Media Center, running Vista Ultimate.  The machine does not have a TV tuner, but for browsing video on the machine, it's great.  I'm using a wireless keyboard with trackball, and it's connected to my HDTV.

I actually use iTunes more on the machine, but that's just because I have an easy way to rent movies.

I bought my daughter a Dell laptop that came with Vista Home Basic, which I later upgraded to Vista Home Premium.  It's a low-end machine, but works well, and supports Aero.

I started a new job last month.  I was given the opportunity to run 64-bit Vista Business.  I was a bit worried about compatibility, but I've had zero problems.

I now use three machines with Vista on a regular basis, and support a fourth.  It's gotten to where I can't stand XP anymore.

I plan on building myself a new desktop machine for at home.  It will run 64-bit Vista Ultimate.  I can then be sure all of my freeware plays nice in a 64-bit environment.  I have a feeling it will, with no modifications.

So, please, if you're happy with XP, then don't worry about it.  However, when you get a new machine, have an open mind about Vista.

 

I've been posting far too infrequently.  I've been busy with a lifestyle change, an upcoming divorce, and a new job.

I took a permanent position with my former employer.  I'm done with freelancing for a while. 

I hope to make more time to work on projects of my choosing now.  I'd like to dig back into my various freeware applications, and make some updates.

I've mentioned my love/hate relationship with iTunes before.  I'm still using it.  I bought an iPod nano to replace my Sansa.  I've set up a dedicated PC hooked to my new TV for iTunes movie rentals and TV shows.  Yep, I went all in to Apple... other than buying an actual Apple computer.  My Thinkpad with Vista will keep me going for a while longer.  I have been looking longingly at a Macbook Pro though.  Maybe next year.

I was contacted by Packt Publishing back in November to review a book, jQuery Reference Guide.

Unfortunately I've been too busy to do so.  I finally admitted defeat, and emailed them back today, letting them know I would be unable to review the book, and offering to pay for the book that they generously provided.

I have skimmed the book, and it does seem to be a good reference.  It doesn't however seem to mention what version of jQuery it is based on.  That said, I do recommend the book if you already know javascript and DHTML, and want a quicker way of writing client-side code.

I had to quickly get up to speed today on a project using jQuery, and JSON.  I used the Json.NET library to serialize C# objects to JSON.  That part was extremely easy.  On the client end, jQuery has good support for JSON, but I had to dynamically create HTML form fields (mostly radio buttons) from javascript.

I haven't done much with either JSON or jQuery, so it was nice to learn something new.

I installed iTunes Sync, which allows me to easily synchronize a playlist with my Sansa.  It's free, but the developer does accept donations.  Give it a try.

Ahhhhhhh!

I removed iTunes from my laptop a while ago.  I was sick of it's always-running services that use system resources.  I was sick of it's non-standard interface & behavior on Windows.

Oh, and I use a Sandisk Sansa, not an overpriced iPod.

However, I was unable to find a suitable replacement.  Nothing rivals iTunes in it's ability to manage my music collection.  I tried MediaMonkey, Windows Media Player, and a dozen little-known media library applications.

Yesterday, I installed the latest iTunes version back onto my laptop.  I will live with it until something better comes along.  I have, in the past, purchased two albums through iTunes plus.  So it's not all bad.

I used to sell shareware on this site.  I still consider this my business website, although it has pathetically little to do with my freelance business currently.  I plan on changing that, but that's an issue for another time.

I've always believed that business websites should not have third-party advertising on them.  You should be trying to sell your own product or service.

This site, will remain ad-free for the foreseeable future.  However, I have created a new blog about my weight loss attempt, and have decided to drop Google AdSense in there to see how it goes.  I'm considering it an experiment.  I'm not selling anything on that site, and a little advertising can't be all bad.

Several weeks ago I left my full-time job for an attempt at being self-employed.  The freedom is nice, but limited.  Sure, I can choose not to work today.  I can also lose a client.

I have two good clients, one is pretty much full-time, the other, while part-time, seems to need me on short notice.  I also have two other individuals that I do occasional project work for.

If I can stay busy, and I will in the short term, I should do fine.  The longer term outlook is too hazy to know what is going to happen.

If you need .NET development work done, preferably small projects, and are local to the Louisville Kentucky area, we should talk.