Following my yearly plan , going to the darkside ?

I am back again ..
First thing .. I managed to get to Constanta .. 10 h in the first day and 12h in the second day.The good thing is that I got there the bad is that I was among the last.
Strange enough there were several guys with new road bikes that did not make it.
The worst local brand "DHS" was present , some competitors used the damn bikes and got there .. with 100 Euros bikes. It's not all in the equipment after all.
The organization was not perfect and strange enough only the ones that left the group and went ahead got to Constanta , 60 km before a call to buses was made to pickup everybody , I and a couple of friends on MTB's were ahead and managed to continue.
The final descent to Constanta (at 21:00 I think) was made in complete darkness and at full (MTB) speed .. fantastic.As I and other fat cyclists learned 150 km (90 miles almost) are not something to do on a MTB when fighting wind and hills. Eventually we all got there .. but it was not easy.
Getting to Constanta made me think I can do what I really want to do .. so last week I went to Iasi and finished "Programming Ruby" by Pragmatic Programmers .. I really think I am able to write basic Ruby programs but still I am not ready to make the switch just yet but I do intend to use Ruby for prototyping.
And finally I bought the vouchers for SCEA as I intend to pass the Sun certification finally (part 2 and 3). I decided to really dedicate 2h /day (at least) to it to make sure I pass it before July 23rd.
Last but not least I intend to start a master in Management ( Management of IT projects) which finally puts me in the "DARK" side of programming - management.
To quote Jack O'Neill in Stargate : " I spent my whole life sticking it to the man .. now I am the man".
For starters I still think I need to pass the certification to increase the chances of getting a real architect Job .. or a senior software developer (as in respected senior software developer not the stuff I have to get through)


Written from my Thinkpad

Biking the metric century and Ruby

So I am back on the bike and although I did not loose any weight recently I managed to get back on the bike for 3 weeks now.
For the weekend I brought my Decathlon hybrid bike to Bucharest from my hometown.
It was a 5h 120 km long trip with a lot of tail wind :) making me coast with 25km/h.
I was tired but I managed to break my old 7h and a half record with the Dahon.
Kind of scary considering I will have to do 275 km this Saturday and Sunday together with more trained people at a 24 km/h average (without the tail wind).Guess I will post Monday morning about it.
Also as a programmer I started to learn Ruby as a new programming language.
Funny enough it is a scripting language but is very popular and then I do agree that a true programmer must be capable of learning more than 1 language.
So I am a Java programmer but being able to use Php and/or Ruby means I am not limited to one (albeit very good ) technology when finding the solution to problems and that is an advantage.
On the other hand I do not think I will ever master Ruby as much as I do master Java.
While choosing this new language I was debating between Python and Ruby .. and I still am a bit but as my favorite "guru" Martin Fowler supports Ruby .. and as the "pragmatic programmers" chose Ruby I need to investigate it first.
I have in my mind to write 2 apps to replace my current Java and PHP ones.
One in Ruby (intranet) and one in Python (online on Google App Engine).
Meanwhile I want to start on my Architect certification but apparently can't afford it.


Written from my Thinkpad.

An old 2006 post ..to remember

Here is what I thought on J2EE and PHP in 2006 :) 4 years ago:




Hello
I used to develop with PHP because I had no J2EE tech experience.
I wanted to develop something fast .. with PHP it really worked (I was in my 4th year at the university)-and I am thankful for that ...
as I had a strong C background then.
At my previous work place I was employed as a Java web programmer but then forced to switch to PHP because they said that J2EE was not worth it
... thinking back about the bussiness I would agree now .
Let me tell you why I moved to J2EE
1) I have a BsC in CS and PHP programming has no methodology attached(I would like to see some design methodology applied to PHP but can't)
, no patterns that you can use as guideline .. except when you already know them from other languages and implement them willingly .. .that's not always the case.
2) When my ex-boss gave me the specifications for a new project they where so scarce that it all sounded like monkey bussiness ..
do something that looks good and it's simple (easy to say for the boss). I had to reuse code from the existing codebase (written in a spaghetti form) but using
the high-tech method copy-paste (or monkey see -monkey do).
3) Being a PHP programmer .. as amazing as it is for a beginner in programming languages is seen as an underqualified job for a person with a BsC in CS and you are
paid accordingly : I now earn 70% more as a beginner web programmer in J2EE then as a PHP experienced (3 years) programmer.- I learned patterns .UML , EJB , algorithms ,OO tehniques and stuff that a PHP programmer does not need to care about.
As a PHP programmer I had difficulties explaining why we should use Smarty at my work place .... they thought it was a waste of time to separate bussiness logic from presentation .. and stood by the idea until I left (I used to develop my code with OOP when posissible and they called the best thing for code reuse indentation(to copy-paste it better).
4)Bussiness applicationes (E-Bussiness) demand the use of J2EE desperately .. PHP is really behind here.
Of course if I want to develop some blog site it would be ok to use PHP and Apache2 and place it on my old k6-II server with a MySQL support.
But ... if I want something like E-bay or Amazon .... I can't even think about the complexity involved with PHP.
As a hobby or as freelancing PHP rocks ... just don't use it for bank operations
PS : What really amazed me was when some of my colleaques presented their graduate projects (with advanced software engineering tech involved) in PHP
while I struggled to develop it in Java (without EJB it's true) - they have done a nice job and followed rules from SE ..
but for me PHP was not even on the list for a serious project.


For the record this post was also written on my old Thinkpad .. I love the machine if only it would be reliable.

Back on the bike.

I admit it . I am unable to keep a diet :) . I managed to loose 20 kg in 2 months .. and now I am putting it all back.
Because I am a bit desperate I managed to fix my Dahon D7HG (with the help of 2 bikeshops).
The only big problem I have now is the fact that my Shimano Nexus 7 needs some adjustement and nobody can do it for me.
So recently I managed to get some riding ... about 100 kms in 2 long weekends.Needless to say after each ride I feel better , more relaxed and in a state of deep harmony with everything around (yes .. Nirvana,flow .. you name it it's great).
Starting tomorrow I will start commuting to work again and see whether the magic effects of biking work. They usually do :).
I am committed to doing about 100 km /week .. with 24km commute/ day I should easily get to 120km + other shopping rides .. it should do the trick.
People are starting to get back in their cars and today the used car fair organized each Sunday in Bucharest caused major road blocks .. it looks like we finally finished with the economic crisis. I will keep riding my bikes nevertheless.
Also I am trying to do a group ride on May 1st Bucharest-Urziceni -Constanta .. a 2 day touring trip for which I will take the old hybrid (the big wheel size is suited for touring ).
I decided to continue to improve my concentration skills and for once not to try to switch jobs again .. some continuum is required in my career.
And the best part .. my Thinkpad is working .. with interruptions so I am typing this on my old (2005) R51. I will not buy another laptop .. not ever again at least not for serious development work.
I bought an Asus K52 JR for my wife and guess what it is also overheating .. a brand new 2010 laptop.
Oups .. had to switch back to the desktop to finish the post .. damn Thinkpad died again .. so not more then 1h of productivity .. kind of forces you to be in the zone.

The great "open space" move

So finally it happened. After 1 month of being threatened(that is planning) we were finally moved to the "open space" .. a room where people get to work with little to no natural light , constant noise and interruptions and impossible to change temperature,ventilation,smells .. the nightmare of every introvert (and I am definitely one)

Anyway I discovered this was not as bad I expected .. not when your boss is right there on the floor next to you. People would finally refrain from making noise when they could be seen very easy and that is a good thing (something I did not count on).
However I expect this to change very soon and I prepared some classical music to listen to while coding ( the classical headphones solutions). I can't stand white noise for now so I will have to find good music.
Of course my monitor could be seen not only by my boss but also by 4-5 other persons plus passers by on the hallway.
Of course my back was turned to a door (and a high traffic area) and I had no saying in how I would be positioned. Of course I was told that nothing I do should be private so unless I have something to hide I should be happy people can see everything I do always. Of course there is no privacy whatsoever.
So the classic solution to this would be to stay late (and do overtime) to compensate for the lack of concentration. Before I did that and in the 2 h of overtime(when finally I would get some peace and quiet) I would fix things that I couldn't in the 8h at work (and enjoy coding also).
Well not any more .. I decided to spend exactly 8h at work and then run away as fast as possible (or bike away I hope very soon). I do not need nor want to code in these unfriendly conditions.
The next time my manager will tell me that the performance is poor I will tell him to read Peopleware (not even gonna buy it for him),Code Complete and JoelOnSoftware ... enough is enough I would rather spend more time on the bike than in the bull pen.


Which brings me back to biking ...
Hopefully my trusted Dahon D7HG will be fixed this week and I will enjoy some full 28 km round trip commute to work. This should help concentration and also my general well being (not to mention weight loss). So hopefully this blog will also be on biking again ..
Just thinking about biking makes me happy so I am even thinking about buying a 26'' foldable bike(Dahon Matrix , Montaque Paratrooper) if I can't fix the old Dahon.
Unfortunately I can't afford a new bike for the moment not since I had the accident and ruined my wife's bike.

Steward delegation vs. Gopher delegation

In the beginning of the year I finished reading 3 very interesting books:
"Getting Things Done" - David Allen
"7 Habits of highly succesful people" - Stephen Covey
"How to win friends and influence people"- Dale Carnegie

The most influential for me was definitely "7 habits of highly succesful people" and I like the way the author describes the leading of a team.
There are principles like this described in Dale Carnegie's book and as a human doing knowledge work - computer programming for the record I do agree with the "stewardship" approach.
The problem is that the IT world especially in Romania is filled with the "Gopher" delegation that is the boss controls everything and is responsible for everything and the developers are just dumb peons doing the grunt work.
I do not think this is a productive approach for either the company or employee as the employee looses his confidence and ability to learn and the managers of the company get way too low into details to do anything productive.

Today was just another day when I could barely think. I am trying to setup a steward delegation system in my team that is everybody get's his section to develop and be responsible for and we meet at the end of the day to see how far we all advanced.

Unfortunately the way the before-me leader did it was by gopher delegation and people try to follow the same pattern. I have to admit with beginner developers it is easier to manage by Gopher delegation then by steward delegation but I feel that I am going nowhere with Gopher Delegation.
So today I did implement about 95% of what I wanted to implement ... but people in my team did not do so well and I was supposed to guide them and help them. The thing is I do not always know how to do it and I can't always analyse their problems as I should - the result is a mountain of interruptions coming at me and destroying the one thing I love when coding : " The Flow".
No flow means no productivity and people should understand this sooner or later when doing the coding. Did I mention that "Gopher delegation" style of management is always associated with open plan offices ?
Communication is valuable , but when talking about your holidays while people around are working I suggest you do it elsewhere and yes I know you will hate me for that , it's just that I don't care.

Debt-free

Finally I managed to pay for my car so if I exclude my rent and other bills I am finally debt free.
My first goal for the year is accomplished.
The feeling is very good to say the least .. so good that I don't think I will sign another loan contract again. I read this on a site (can't remember where) : "Think before you act , listen before you speak , earn before you borrow" .
The last part is the one most people don't think very often until they are forced to by economical realities.
As far as I am concerned I think it is just a matter of economical planning for a person and/or family.
If you want a new car and you do not have the money for it is simply means you can't afford it.The same goes for a new laptop , bike or anything else.
Borrowing money to buy these items would mean just lying to yourself.

Of course the culture we live in and the media always go for instant gratification at any cost. "I want to have it and have it now" .. yes but at a cost the cost of your future and your life. Guess who gets to use this trick : the banks world wide.
That was before the crisis. Commercials would show a bike (with an almost naked woman attached) and say : "Do you want to wait until you are 80 to get this ? " and people would buy that kind of nonsense and run to the bank asking for the biggest loan possible. Something like 10 years loan for a car was not unheard of and people would buy a 20.000 Euro car with 400 Euro salary/month (which is financial suicide if you ask me). I kept hearing : 20.000 Euro is nothing .. from people that would need 4 years in salary to get that kind of money (never mind saving).
The bank profits were huge and more important they would expand to almost every street corner.
People including the ones that should have been wiser (my dad) kept telling me that saving is not worth it and getting debt is a good thing .. but I still believe that even in business common sense is more important then the so called money-sense (or at least as important). Selling your future is never an option (never ever) and I hope people will understand that before our civilisation crashes down burning.

I read the famous book Rich dad,poor dad and the one thing I agree with is that borrowing for non-assets is something a smart person should never do. So borrowing money for a car/computer or worse case food is something that should never happen.. borrowing money to fund a start-up on the other hand might be ok if you believe in it and are willing to make it happen (but even then saving might be better).
Unfortunately even in my country it has become impossible to save money for a house (in a short period of time) so renting is my option for now(especially because the place I rent is ok and not very expensive).
Now I need to learn about something only the people in the communist past of our country did .. saving (and maybe investing).