I’ll be speaking at the Twin Cities Java Users Group tomorrow.
I hope to meet a number of people from my former team, and I do hope some of my new teammates will come out as well.
In case you aren’t able to make it, but are interested in learning what I’m going to speak about … here’s a sneak preview.
JSR-315-ServletSpec3.0-Damodar-Chetty-swengsol.com
See you there!
I’ve been playing with the best way to display code snippets, and came across an amazing little plugin called SyntaxHighlighter Evolved by Viper007Bond.
This is a sample usage of the syntax highlighter:
wrap your code within
[xml]
<html xmlns =”http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml”
xmlns:C=”http://mynamespace.swengsol.com/contacts”>
<head><title>Contacts sorted by organization<title><head>
<body>
<C:organization>
…
[/xml]
which displays:
<html xmlns =”http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml” xmlns:C=”http://mynamespace.swengsol.com/contacts”> <head><title>Contacts sorted by organization<title><head> <body> <C:organization> ...
In particular, note the JavaScript magic when you hover over the pretty syntax layout.
I’m getting more and more impressed with the WordPress architecture the more time I spend with it!
And, to think that all this is being done with PHP!
I’m definitely looking forward to teaching PHP and MySQL in my course on Internet Application Development over at Metro State in the fall.
For more information on this plugin – see http://en.support.wordpress.com/code/posting-source-code/.
Quick tip:
In WordPress, do any pasting of source code within the HTML view. Pasting code into the Visual editor does not seem to work well. Once you have the code pasted as
[sourcecode language=”java”]… source code here …[/sourcecode]
you can then switch to the Visual editor to complete your edits.
Here are a few reviews that discuss my book:
http://www.amazon.com/review/R6B6I68PW7FPD/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm
http://blog.bielu.com/2010/01/tomcat-6-developers-guide-book-review.html
http://blog.bielu.com/2010/01/tomcat-6-developers-guide-book-review.html#links
I had a chance to discuss Tomcat (and my book) at the Object Technology User Group (OTUG) meeting at the University of St Thomas.
I’ve read that people are often more scared of death than of public speaking. And, there’s nothing more terrifying than crashing and burning in front of a live audience. In many ways, I consider these nothing less than interviews with the entire set of attendees comprising the panel!
So I treat every presentation with the greatest respect.
Devi had attended my previous presentation at the Tek Systems Java Users Group back in December and had given me some nice pointers on how to spruce up my presentation. All of which I incorporated into my delivery this time round.
I follow a simple three point strategy for all my presentations.
First, I go heavy on diagrams and light on the text. I like to leave an unadorned diagram on the screen, and then paint word pictures to fill in the gaps. The upside is that everyone remains focused on me, while allowing me the flexibility of tailoring the discussion based on the interests/experience profile of the group.
I’ve seen too many presentations where the presenter is simply reading off of the slides. My solution is to simply not have any text on them 
Second, I divide my presentation into core and optional areas. I have a single core track that absolutely needs to be covered. Then I have one of two optional tracks that I can pick from depending on the time available or on audience interest.
At OTUG, we had almost 2.5 hours, so I covered the core aspects of chapters 1 through 3. Once that was done, I continued on with my optional track of Java class loading mechanics. Time permitting, I would have been able to go over my other optional track (which I left unused) – a live demonstration of Tomcat and a sample web application running dissected within Eclipse.
(I have a third optional track that I’m developing … but its not ready for sharing just yet. )
Finally, I’m an animated presenter and I get very excited when talking about Tomcat and advanced Java concepts. So my third strategy is to play to my strengths.
The best presenters I’ve seen are masters at closing the distance between the audience and themselves – for instance by using humor, or by their infectious enthusiasm for a topic. I try hard to convey my excitement by engaging the audience in a discussion on Tomcat; and by staying agile around the podium. Its not uncommon to see me gesticulating animatedly at various parts of the screen, or walking towards the audience to eliminate the physical distance between myself and the audience.
The audience was very receptive and very gracious – and so the talk went on for almost a half hour longer than expected. We started at around 6:00 and were done at 8:30. There were interesting conversations that followed, and I finally made my way home only around 10pm!
I had hoped to put the kids to bed, but they were already fast asleep by the time I got in.
So, Two down, Four more to go!
Dec 8, 2010 – Tek Systems JUG
Feb 16, 2010 – OTUG
My upcoming events:
Mar 8, 2010 – Twin Cities Java Users Group
Mar 30, 2010 – Madison JUG
Mar 31, 2010 – Milwaukee JUG
Apr 20, 2010 – Chicago JUG
Yes, I know that’s a strong statement … but this is the very last time that I buy a HP computer.
I currently have two HP notebooks (you’d think I’d have learned after the first) and I’ve had nothing but trouble with both. By comparison, I have a Toshiba that’s been running like a champ for over 7 years, and there’s my Dell that’s been rock solid after 3 years.
So, come on HP – 0 for 2 is a terrible record.
Both my HPs overheat. One of them won’t even turn on anymore – and what irks me the most? It dies the month after my warranty expires!
(I was fortunate to have backed up all my files – so I’m grateful for that.)
I know of two other family members who have had issues with HP machines too.
So, as a great president once said … “Fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can’t get fooled again.”
From now on its only Dell … and as the raven quoth, NEVERMORE!
Update Feb 17,2009: The display death turned out to be an intermittent issue. The display comes on at its own volition, and then at other times, refuses to. However, it finally given up the ghost just before the OTUG presentation. Many hard restarts and cusswords later, I’ve decided to leave it alone … for now at least.
[Interestingly, a friend mentioned that this might be the result of a power inverter issue with HP notebooks. ]
Check out this link or Google this problem … HP is a company that is in dire need of lessons in customer service: https://forums11.itrc.hp.com/service/forums/bizsupport/questionanswer.do?threadId=1268843
As of January 20, 2010 Comcast is providing its subscribers with free access to the Norton Security Suite. This is huge news for those who are Symantec fans, as well as for those who can barely tolerate McAfee.
As you can tell, I’m excited by this move, and immediately installed Norton – replacing the Kaspersky software that I had running on one of my notebooks. And I love it!
I can’t wait to replace the McAfee installs on my other computers.
The free license is valid for up to 7 workstations for residential subscribers.
Check out this press release from Symantec.
Then head on out here to grab the install from Comcast.
