Rampidbyter Rampid byter: A byte of my .Net developing life.

I had an experience this weekend that I don’t think I’ll soon forget. I woke up early Saturday (5am) morning and went about my routine of trying to sleep in. I ended up giving up around 7am. I went upstairs and figured I’d check to see what was going on in the world on my desktop since I still haven’t replaced my Windows Phone 7 (another story.)

I logged into the usual sites, Google+, Facebook, Yammer, and Twitter. I skim through all of them and then I noticed it. A buddy had posted a plea for help, that his dad was missing, and that he needed help searching for him at 7:30am. I looked at the clock, it was 7:15am. I sent a quick comment saying I was on my way. I didn’t even shower. I grabbed my gear, cargo jeans, carhart jacket, warm socks, ball cap, and bolted from the house after getting the OK from the wife.

I made it to the search operation meeting area, and pulled in behind a parked police cruiser. I walked over to join the last search party heading into the woods and waited while the chief explained where we were going into the woods in coordination with the other groups that were searching. It’s at this point Trent, the son of the missing hunter, walks over to join the group along with his wife. We all entered the woods together and split up into two groups. I went with Trent, his wife, and an EMT off into a sector close to where his father may have been hunting.

We covered a lot of ground, most of it uphill, and visibility was very poor heading up to the top of the hill. I got filled in that his father most likely was wearing cameo, no reflective material as he was bow hunting, and that we should look for blood or any tracks. His cell phone was on and that they knew that he was within two miles so he was most definitely somewhere in the 60+ acre of woods. By this point I was told that any blood would be black and hard to see but to stay vigilant.

I learned a few things during the search that still bother me. Mainly that the EMT and police rely on hard-copy printed aerial maps while Trent was using Google maps to pinpoint our position far better. The EMT we were with had a basic phone and was surprised of the availability of such technological capabilities. While I don’t doubt the capability of their on-foot searching experience I can’t imagine how much more effective they’d be with properly applied technology.

We kept heading towards clearings that showed signs of recent deer activity as the most likely locations where his father would have been staking out for a good shot. We’d heard some radio chatter that a single arrow was found with a few climbing spikes not far from where we were located. We were advised that it was highly likely we were in the area that he’d be found. I don’t really know how much area we covered after that announcement, but we were heading into another thicket when the EMT shouted ‘They found him!’ We all rushed back to the EMT (we were spread out 20+ feet canvasing the area barely able to see each other).

It was silent for a moment waiting for any additional information. Very silent. We heard the news he was deceased. I looked at the EMT, back at Trent, and then his wife started crying. Trent and his wife embraced. I still can’t describe the look on his face. Pain hidden behind a solemn expression. His eyes were tearing slightly but he held his composure. The EMT and I made eye contact and shared the same thought. He placed his hand out on Trent’s shoulder, who was still consoling his wife, and squeezed. I did the same to the other shoulder.

We were close to where they found him. The other side of the clearing where we’d gone right instead of left. It was a while later when we exited the woods to join with the returning search parties. I splintered off to head to the back where I met with another buddy who I’d not seen in quite some time. Neither one of us had words that adequately described what we were thinking or the situation. I felt my heart jumping into my throat at the pain this must have caused the family. I waited around a while so I could get the chance to again express how truly sorry I was for his loss. I left shortly after. On the way home I called my dad and told him how much I love him.

First post in a while.

Here is a little catch up on where I’ve been.

Full-time Work Life

My contract ended after seven months of working for a celebrity owned financial services company. I liked the people so much, and the small office environment that it changed my heart on never working as a full-timer again. They extended an offer even though I had been very adamant about remaining a consultant, and I surprisingly accepted. I’ve been there for over nine months total now, and still enjoying what I’m doing.

MacBook Development Machine

MacBook Air as a development machine has been a lot of headaches. Only within the last two weeks have things stopped kernel panicing on a bi-weekly basis. I think the latest Parallels 6 update combined with continual Mac OS updates fixed the problem. Knocking on wood. Still absolutely love the hardware. To this day I still only use one monitor and no other external peripherals.

Windows Phone 7 Development

Windows Phone 7 development has been a headache. I frankly got fed up and bailed off the platform. Mango was just released recently. The only problem is Visual Studio Service Pack 1 will not install on my VM. No VS SP1, no mango.

Android Development

After getting fed up with Windows Phone 7 I started looking at Android. Another consultant with whom I work with on a daily basis happened to be a very big Android fan. Having become a moderately advanced developer on the platform over the past year he’s ended up showing me the ropes. I ended up catching the bug, and have recently purchased an Eee Transformer (as of last week) that has become my new learning project. Still think Java is outdated.

Mobile Development

Within the past six months or so I’ve become very versed in mobile development and platforms. In particular the ‘early’ adoption of the jQuery Mobile library. I plan to write a few ongoing blog posts about jQuery Mobile to help spare others the same ‘early’ adoption headaches.

I’m hoping to set aside some time each week to catch up more on my blogging. We’ll see. Till then just know MVC 3 rocks. For now I’m off to play Duke Nukem Forever.

-R

This week has seen the passing of an achievement in my life so many post-graduates aspire to. I finally paid off my student loans in full. It has been six long years with thousands of dollars in interest, and finally the burden has been lifted. This time next week when I get a pay check will bring with it the first time my education has had a positive ROI.

A long while ago before the iPad came out I made a post about the iPad being the perfect business device. In the last few months of actually owning the iPad, and actually taking it to work I can safely say it’s “almost” the perfect business PC. It’s kind of funny that at the clients I sit in a cube next to another guy with an iPad. In addition the main network admin at the facility also has an iPad at work. Each of us bring it to work for different purposes. The network admin uses it to troubleshoot network outages, mobile email device, and other associated duties. The developer I mentioned uses it for a variety of things such as at-home leisure gaming, project management, to-do task manager, notes, and development testing for the new apps being developed at the clients.

I wish I could say I use my iPad for more business related activities. I do take notes on it, reference development blogs/material, personal and business emails, and social media applications. I primarily use it as a mobile email device where I can have access to emails without needing them on a work PC. I mostly enjoy the ability to email a PDF to my iPad email address, import it into iBooks, and then have the ability to read that PDF at any time with the device.

The iPad has certainly changed the way I interact with computers. I take it with me almost everywhere. It’s my GPS, book shelf, TV, arcade gaming device, online comic reader, news source, and my social media device. I have all of my comics linked on the home screen, tech blogs, and new sites all available with a single tap. The best thing again is the pinch so I can change the screen to hide all the ads or distracting site floaters to get straight to the content meat. I can watch tech demonstrations via YouTube, and I can regularly update my Facebook and Twitter statuses for no one to read.

After having it for so long it’s still hard to justify the purchase of the device. It’s easy to sway people though. Since starting at the client people constantly stop to ask questions about the iPad. We actually managed to make a fellow developer so envious of our iPads that he went on a lunch break to buy one. It was neat seeing the device unboxed and his excitement, but as soon as he turned it on the iTunes prompt displayed. It’s kind of a buzz kill we all have to go through on first unboxing.

Still with any device there are problems. The big problem with the iPad is its design leads it to be primarily a data consumption device. Tapping out words with the virtual keyboard is slow, and is very cumbersome depending on how the device is held. That is a very big impact to producing any content via the device. Sure, they make an iPad keyboard dock called the Mac Air (ha.) Seriously though considering the price you might as well buy a Mac Air instead of an iPad if you actually want to create content in any timely manner on a very portable device. Still for being a consumption laden device it does its primary job well. The only limitation in fact is AT&T on 3G or availability of free wifi when you’re roaming.

Again, it’s “almost” there to being the perfect business device. The intuitive interfaces, the easy-to-use app store integration, and natural gesture motions make the device a gem of simplistic computing. The consistency and enforcement of development standards helps alleviate any bottlenecks to downloading an app and using it immediately. Don’t get me wrong I still don’t condone the Marxist control that Apple has over the device, but since the devices are easily rooted it’s still an even playing field. Either way it goes the iPad is still the only tablet device you could ever need.

I sold a few books through Amazon the last week or so. The first time ever doing so. Amazon bills a credit for about $4 for shipping the books. I made a rookie mistake by taking the first book to be shipped by UPS. The cheapest shipping available from UPS was $14 plus an added tax along with sales tax racking the total cost to over $16 to ship ONE book. Because I was at my second business day I went ahead and ate the costs, which cut my profits in half on the sale. Come to realize I could have just gone to USPS and paid for media mail. With both an padded book-sized envelop, shipping, and a confirmation number included came out to be nearly $4 even. Rookie mistake learned. USPS beats the pants of UPS in costs and quality of service for shipping. Plus they also sell stamps so it can be a two-for-one kind of deal going there.

This past Friday I did something that nobody I have ever known has done intentionally. Against all recommendations of friends and family I put in my two-week notice to my current employer. I did so without a net. I finally had the kick I needed to start giving full attention to making my dream a reality in getting my own company up and running. It’s incredibly risky, and as everyone I know is quick to point out the “economy” is horrible.

I have some neat ideas, two baked products, and one micro service I’m launching this month. I am really hoping to take on a few short-term contracts to make ends meet, and will be living off my savings for a few months. Worse case I will have spent a month or two without employment, improved my development skills, and will have experimented with several neat up-and-coming technologies.

This is possibly the scariest but most exciting stage in my life. I have never been without a full-time job in my working life. I have tried several times to get my business going but always was hindered by long working weeks, clients calling during my work hours, and brain burn-out afterhours having spent a better part of eleven hours programming at work. I can’t wait to see what it’s like having sixty hours a week (drive included) extra to do work compared to the ten hours previously burning the midnight oil.

Ditched Sprint. I’m saving $70 a month with Cricket’s unlimited text and unlimited talk. My new phone service plus iPad data plan costs exactly $70 per month combined, and still ends up with me saving $40 per month compared to Sprint. If Sprint had the EVO in stock I might be talking about my EVO instead of a new carrier.

I was in a Chinese buffet today near my new work, and whenever a worker walked around to refill my drink the expression on the waiter’s faces was one as if they’ve just been to a funeral. It wasn’t just a single waiter. I’ve never seen such an unhappy brood of workers in my life. That struck me in that every single Chinese buffet I’ve been in I don’t think I can ever recall even a single smile on anyone’s faces. I think the only time I’ve even seen a hint of a smile was when cashing out to leave when asked whether everything was alright.

Is it me or is being a waiter in a Chinese restaurant the most depressing job in the world?

Really perturbed by the recent move of AT&T to change data plan structure of the iPad 3G. I am about a week into using the 3G service after having signed up for the now defunct “unlimited” plan just last week. I’m still using it off-and-on while at work to listen to Pandora. I even hit the 606MB mark today.

The thing that bothers me the most about the plan change is that the allowed usage dropped significantly per month with more reoccurring charges in the event of exceeding the usage limit. That is complete and utter bull fecal mater. At thirty dollars a month I was still on edge after considering using the service, and the availability of the “unlimited'” plan being the ONLY selling point for me going 3G over the iPad WIFI only model.

For a device touted as the new way of doing portable computing and portable entertainment the sudden loss of a “unlimited” plan, zero alternatives to AT&T, and the increased reoccurring costs of using my portable data device  makes the device a novelty to be used occasionally at best. Frankly with that in mind FUCK YOU AT&T. Also, Apple, fuck you too buddy. Apple, you stuck us with AT&T. I don’t care for them one bit, but I bought the iPad 3G because I COULD get an unlimited plan at an OK price. For doing nothing more than streaming some music for a month by the months end with the new plans I'd have spent more to access the internet through a crap network than I do through my awesome Time Warner Roadrunner Business Class connection. Seriously?

Now I’ve seen a few other people rant and rave about how AT&T isn’t the culprit, and how AT&T is just trying to recoup for the overly consumed “cheap” network usage. I’d like to point those individuals to the fact that the US is decades behind on upgrading our networks. The US is seriously lagging behind countries like Japan, South Korea, and Finland who are spanking the US’s butt on broadband speeds. Why? Because we’re stuck with legacy outdated telecoms so far removed from quality of service that the entire country is held behind because of their cold almost dead hands strangling the pipes.

Bah, and here I was starting to think PC was becoming more and more “Professional Computer” instead of “Personal Computer” because of my newfound Appledom. PC I’m sorry I doubted you buddy.

I went through the enlistment process for the US Army. There was a fair bit of paperwork that required guaranteeing a person isn’t gay. I do know that much. When I was at boot camp there were two guys dismissed from the army for having sex in a bathroom who were caught by a drill sergeant. They both had women at home and most of us suspected that it was a ploy just to get out of boot camp. Let’s face it besides the occasional nightly beatings, constant exercise, and coming to grips with being “owned” for the first time in a persons life boot camp makes or breaks a person.

The thing I think is nice is that there IS a “don’t ask don’t tell” policy. In a room full of 148 guys we knew the outright gay ones. The sometimes perverted ones who’d stand in the group shower leaning against the wall starring at the constant flow of sausage as it passed by the door. We knew. We all knew. Not saying there weren’t a few that we didn’t know, which there probably was. Every person walking through those Army entrance doors were different. The one thing that was the same at the end of the day was they were all soldiers.

The problem isn’t so much that you’re not allowed to be gay. Nope, not a problem at all with most so long as you’re not a creepy son of a gun and keep it to yourself. The biggest problem is that sodomy is a violation of the army code of conduct. Anyone caught getting even a blow job violated policy. The Army has regulation for everything. Seriously, with sex you’re only allowed to have sex in the missionary position. I had to sit through a class where we actually were told how to have sex, and were instructed that if we deviated from the acceptable position be smart don’t take pictures. They will bring disciplinary actions against you. If you’re gay it’s kind of obvious you’re not going to be having missionary sex. At least I'm not informed enough to know whether that is indeed possible for gays, and honestly don’t feel particularly compelled to Google that.

In my opinion I don’t believe that policy should be repealed or changed in any way. Having a formal policy in place won’t change how people are treated. I understand it will keep those who are ousted from being discharged. I’d ideally just let the person’s service record distinguish whether they were let go in those cases. The thing that bothers me personally is everyone is up in arms about the ‘right to be gay’. I think if you had a room full of naked women walk into a shower to find a naked guy standing there watching them the consensus would be to kick the guy out. Why should that be any different if it happened to be a lesbian standing there instead? It’s still just not right to give that one person a free pass. Not saying there may not be others among them who are gay but they’re not outright displaying it. It’s all about work as a team, act like a team, or get out.