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  • What is this obscure error in Google Analytics tracking code on a _trackEvent() call?

    - by Laizer
    I am calling the Google Analytics _trackEvent() function on a web page, and get back an error from the obfuscated Google code. In Firebug, it comes back "q is undefined". In Safari developer console: "TypeError: Result of expression 'q' [undefined] is not an object." As a test, I have reduced the page to only this call, and still get the error back. Besides the necessary elements and the standard Google tracking code, my page is: <script> pageTracker._trackEvent('Survey', 'Checkout - Survey', 'Rating', 3); </script> Results is that error. What's going on here?

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  • How to take first 4 time for each person.

    - by Gopal
    Using Access Database Table ID Time 001 100000 001 100005 001 103000 001 102500 001 110000 001 120000 001 113000 ..., From the above table, i want to take first four time Query like Select id, min(time) from table group by id I want to take first four min(time) for each person Expected Output ID Time 001 100000 001 100005 001 102500 001 103000 002 ..., How to make a query for this condition?

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  • Mercurial - How to stop tracking modified file but keep the first version in repository.

    - by teerapap
    I create the hg repository with my source tree. I want to keep the first version of some files such as Makefile in the repository and then hg don't see it modified even through I modified it. Original problem is that ./configure usually modifies the Makefile but I don't want the build files to committed in the repository. So I want to keep only first version of configure and Makefile in the repository so that everybody who clone my repository can run ./configure by themself and not bother the repository I tried hg remove or hg forget but those are stop tracking and also delete the files in the next revision of reporitory. .hgignore doesn't do the things too. I think of hg revert everytimes I run ./configure or make but it's not efficient way. Are there any better ways?

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  • Get gprof to profile based on wall-clock time?

    - by jetwolf
    My understanding is that by default gprof takes into account CPU time. Is there a way to get it to profile based on wall-clock time? My program does a lot of disk i/o, so the CPU time it uses only represents a fraction of the actual execution time. I need to know which portions of the disk i/o take up the most time.

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  • Working and Studying in Oracle, how I balance my time....

    - by anca.rosu
    Hi, my name is Laura. I am working as an Intern within Executive Administration at Oracle Denmark, whilst studying Information Management at Copenhagen Business school. I have recently handeding a paper on Information Systems which gave me exposure to Oracle. Once completing this paper I came across a job posting on my University’s intranet site and I applied directly online. When I submitted my application for the job offer, I wondered about what language I should use for the application form, as the job posting was in Danish, but the contact person and number looked Irish. I therefore chose English. Later that same day, Fiona, one of Oracle’s Graduates Recruitment Consultants based in Ireland, contacted me. This shows how global Oracle truly is. I went for my face-to-face interview in Oracle Denmark with Charlotte, one of the team managers. I spent 5 minutes waiting in the lobby, just looking around, thinking to myself, I really want to work here. The atmosphere seemed so pleasant with a relaxed approach between colleagues, employees and guests. The interview took about an hour, but we touched on a lot of different subjects. The profile I got of Oraclewas that this is a place where you are encouraged to think for yourself, and you are given the freedom to use your ideas. Later that evening, Fiona called and offered me the job. I was very happy. At Oracle Denmark we have 4 different zones: a Quiet Zone, a Project Zone, a Dialogue Zone and a Call Zone. Everyday when you arrive you consider what will be the most productive for the day’s task, and you take your toolbox and go find a desk in the zone you have decided on. It is therefore very unusual to be next to the same person two days in a row. At Oracle, people are located all over the world, and everybody has team members, colleagues or leaders in other countries, or even other time zones. Initially,I was worried about how I would adapt to this approach but I soon realized I had nothing to worry about and now I appreciate working this way. My colleagues have been very supportive and they have openly welcomed me into my new role. I typically work two days a week and have three days at University. During exam periods, I have the flexibility to work less hours and focus on the exams, in return for putting in more hours at work when needed. The first time I had to ask for time off before handing in a paper, my boss looked at me and said, ”Of course! Your education is the most important!” I hope that by sharing my experiences with you, I can inspire or encourage you to consider Oracle as a potential employer, where you can grow both professionally and personally. If you have any questions related to this article feel free to contact  [email protected].  You can find our job opportunities via http://campus.oracle.com Technorati Tags: Intern,Oracle Denmark,Information Systems,Business school,Copenhagen,Graduates Recruitment,Ireland,Quiet Zone,Project Zone,Dialogue Zone,Call Zone,University,flexibility

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  • In languages which create a new scope each time in a loop block, a new local copy of the local loop

    - by Jian Lin
    It seems that in language like C, Java, and Ruby (as opposed to Javascript), a new scope is created for each iteration of a loop block, and the local variable defined for the loop is actually made into a local variable every single time and recorded in this new scope? For example, in Ruby: p RUBY_VERSION $foo = [] (1..5).each do |i| $foo[i] = lambda { p i } end (1..5).each do |j| $foo[j].call() end the print out is: [MacBook01:~] $ ruby scope.rb "1.8.6" 1 2 3 4 5 [MacBook01:~] $ So, it looks like when a new scope is created, a new local copy of i is also created and recorded in this new scope, so that when the function is executed at a later time, the "i" is found in those scope chains as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 respectively. Is this true? (It sounds like a heavy operation). Contrast that with p RUBY_VERSION $foo = [] i = 0 (1..5).each do |i| $foo[i] = lambda { p i } end (1..5).each do |j| $foo[j].call() end This time, the i is defined before entering the loop, so Ruby 1.8.6 will not put this i in the new scope created for the loop block, and therefore when the i is looked up in the scope chain, it always refer to the i that was in the outside scope, and give 5 every time: [MacBook01:~] $ ruby scope2.rb "1.8.6" 5 5 5 5 5 [MacBook01:~] $ I heard that in Ruby 1.9, i will be treated as a local defined for the loop even when there is an i defined earlier? The operation of creating a new scope, creating a new local copy of i each time through the loop seems heavy, as it seems it wouldn't have matter if we are not invoking the functions at a later time. So when the functions don't need to be invoked at a later time, could the interpreter and the compiler to C / Java try to optimize it so that there is not local copy of i each time?

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  • Real time location tracking - windows program or browser based?

    - by mawg
    I want to track a few hundred, maybe a few thousand people in real time. Let's say that the hardware aspects are sorted out and I can get the data into a database. Now, I want to get it out and show it, in real-time. Weeeell ... "real-enough" time. Let's say that I want to draw a floorplan of a building and plot everyone every 1 to 5 seconds. (I might want to show only certain "kinds" of people at the click of a button; I will need datamining, etc, but let's stick with the worse case scenario). I am comfortable enough with PHP, though not this sort of thing. I personally would be happier with a windows app coded in Delphi, but the trend seems to be to make everything browser based. So, the question, I guess is whether a browser can handle this and whether there are compelling arguments for a windows-based or browser-based solution. If browser-based can handle this (displaying a few thousand data-points a second), and there are no overwhelming arguments for windows then I guess I will go for browser-based and learn a few new tricks. The obvious advantage being that I could also re-use a large part of my code for (vehicle) tracking on Google maps.

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  • how to transfer a time which was zero at year of 0000(maybe) to java.util.Date

    - by hguser
    I have a gps time in the database,and when I do some query,I have to use the java.util.Date,however I found that I do not know how to change the gps time to java.util.Date. Here is a example: The readable time === The GPS time 2010-11-15 13:10:00 === 634254192000000000 2010-11-15 14:10:00 === 634254228000000000 The period of the two date is "36000000000",,obviously it stands for one hour,so I think the unit of the gps time in the db must be nanosecond. 1 hour =3600 seconds= 3600*1000 milliseconds == 3600*1000*10000 nanoseconds Then I try to convert the gps time: Take the " 634254228000000000" as example,it stands for("2010-11-15 14:10:00"); SimpleDateFormat sdf = new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd HH:mm:ssZ"); Date d = new Date(63425422800000L); System.out.println(sdf.format(d)); The result is 3979-11-15 13:00:00+0000. Of course it is wrong,then I try to calculate : 63425422800000/3600000/24/365=2011.xxx So it seems that the gps time here is not calcuated from Epoch(1970-01-01 00:00:00+0000). It maybe something like (0001-01-01 00:00:00+0000). Then I try to use the following method: Date date_0=sdf.parse("0001-01-01 00:00:00+0000"); Date d = new Date(63425422800000L); System.out.println(sdf.format(d.getTime() + date_0.getTime())); The result is: 2010-11-13 13:00:00+0000. :( Now I am confusing about how to calculate this gps time. Any suggestion?

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  • MacX DVD Ripper Pro is Free for How-To Geek Readers (Time Limited!)

    - by The Geek
    Want to rip a DVD to your hard drive, but don’t have a software package to do it? How-To Geek readers can get the normally non-free MacX DVD Ripper Pro for free, but only if you download your copy and install it before Saturday. Here’s how to get it. This time-limited offer is available to anybody for the next couple of days—just head to the download site, install the software package, and use the key provided. It’s as simple as that. Note: despite the confusion of the name, it’s available for both Mac and Windows. Latest Features How-To Geek ETC MacX DVD Ripper Pro is Free for How-To Geek Readers (Time Limited!) HTG Explains: What’s a Solid State Drive and What Do I Need to Know? How to Get Amazing Color from Photos in Photoshop, GIMP, and Paint.NET Learn To Adjust Contrast Like a Pro in Photoshop, GIMP, and Paint.NET Have You Ever Wondered How Your Operating System Got Its Name? Should You Delete Windows 7 Service Pack Backup Files to Save Space? Save Files Directly from Your Browser to the Cloud in Chrome and Iron The Steve Jobs Chronicles – Charlie and the Apple Factory [Video] Google Chrome Updates; Faster, Cleaner Menus, Encrypted Password Syncing, and More Glowing Chess Set Combines LEDs, Chess, and DIY Electronics Fun Peaceful Alpine River on a Sunny Day [Wallpaper] Fast Society Creates Mini and Mobile Temporary Social Networks

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  • Do we have enough time to build an electric car future?

    - by julien.groues
    A recent article from Greenbang has posed the question 'Do we have enough time to build an electric car future?'. The writer discusses that, although the future of transport might lie with electric cars, there is concern regarding whether we'll be able to build the market and infrastructure required to support them, before carbon and oil constraints create difficulties in powering the vehicles. Of course, the increasing use of Electric vehicles (EVs) is going to put excessive pressure on energy grids, as large volumes of electricity will need to be directed to charging points, which in turn must handle fluctuating demand at peak times. EVs are increasing in popularity as a sustainable method of transport to reduce carbon consumption, and electric utilities will have the opportunity, and the challenge, to quickly determine the best methods to fuel these vehicles and accommodate the associated increases in demand for energy. Critically, efficient software is required to provide diagnostic and predictive capabilities related to EV refuelling - for example, anticipated electricity flow will need to be addressed as the number of EVs on the road increases, and electricity will need to be directed to specific areas on-demand as vehicles attempt to recharge en-mass. But a smart grid infrastructure can meet these demands, intelligently. The implementation of a smart grid is not in the distant future, it is an achievable reality for utilities via simple installation of new software and technologies, which can be done incrementally for those facing existing legacy systems or concerned with upfront costs. The smart grid is integral to the monitoring and control of energy use as well as the future-proofing of the energy grid. A smart grid will be critical to meeting the electricity requirements of new EVs and will ensure their successful deployment by providing a reliable foundation for the data handling required to record and manage electricity distribution - from recording and assessing energy usage, to analysing data and sharing information with consumers via green billing. http://www.greenbang.com/do-we-have-enough-time-to-build-an-electric-car-future_14248.html

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  • How can I reduce the amount of time it takes to fully regression test an application ready for release?

    - by DrLazer
    An app I work on is being developed with a modified version of scrum. If you are not familiar with scrum, it's just an alternative approach to a more traditional watefall model, where a series of features are worked on for a set amount of time known as a sprint. The app is written in C# and makes use of WPF. We use Visual C# 2010 Express edition as an IDE. If we work on a sprint and add in a few new features, but do not plan to release until a further sprint is complete, then regression testing is not an issue as such. We just test the new features and give the app a good once over. However, if a release is planned that our customers can download - a full regression test is factored in. In the past this wasn't a big deal, it took 3 or 4 days and the devs simply fix up any bugs found in the regression phase, but now, as the app is getting larger and larger and incorporating more and more features, the regression is spanning out for weeks. I am interested in any methods that people know of or use that can decrease this time. At the moment the only ideas I have are to either start writing Unit Tests, which I have never fully tried out in a commercial environment, or to research the possibilty of any UI Automation API's or tools that would allow me to write a program to perform a series of batch tests. I know literally nothing about the possibilities of UI automation so any information would be valuable. I don't know that much about Unit testing either, how complicated can the tests be? Is it possible to get Unit tests to use the UI? Are there any other methods I should consider? Thanks for reading, and for any advice in advance. Edit: Thanks for the information. Does anybody know of any alternatives to what has been mentioned so far (NUnit, RhinoMocks and CodedUI)?

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  • both IPV4 and IPV6 at the same time over DSL connection?

    - by namiheike
    Let me describe my situation: while I connect computer with the wire, I've got an IPV6 address automatically, there's a "Wired connection" tab in network manager, and I can access an website that support IPV6 (google,facebook,twitter...)with a hosts file, or use the proxy like google.com.sixxs.org But if I want to access the whole internet, I have to create a DSL connection with username and password that ISP gave me. BUT after I change my connection into this DSL connection, I cannot access website over IPV6, even there's the site's ipv6 address in /etc/hosts, then I realize that I lose my IPV6 connection, because the ping6 says connect: Network is unreachable. the problem is, there's no IPV6 tab or options about IPV6 in the configure of DSL connection. It feels like I can only use one connection at the same time, but the DSL doesn't support IPV6 and the wired connection doesn't support IPV4(I mean, there's no way to input the password the ISP gave me) maybe make somebody uncomfortable, but when I work in MS windows, there's no such problem, (maybe just feel like) I can access V4 and V6 at the same time. So how to solve with this? thanks a lot. I'm in 11.10 + gnome3

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  • When is the right time to join open source project for programmer?

    - by Mahesh
    Most of the newcomers in programming start with basic projects to start with programming. Most of the C++ progammers spend some time with puzzles and contests but this is not always helpful. Sometimes you've to spend some time on real projects. Starting your own open source project could be a problem in self-learning for newbie cause of lack of mentors and peers who can't look at your code and give suggestions. Open source projects can solve this problem, some projects could be best suited for new programmers. Besides everybody is newbie at some point. So i'll try and make this question a bit from beginners perspective. I tried few questions on stack overflow before asking this like How do i join & Bare minimum you need and how to get involved with open source and what level of programming etc. But this is not helping me when it comes to self-evaluating with skills. How to find that out ? How can i check what it takes to join open source project and am i really that comfortable with huge source code etc. My question is when to consider yourself comfortable joining open source programming ? I mean how will you test yourself that you're ready to take burden of big/small projects of open source ? how will you test yourself to see if you could work with version control/other programmers/tight schedule etc ?

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  • Splitting a tetris game apart - where to put time-management?

    - by nightcracker
    I am creating a tetris game in C++ & SDL, and I'm trying to do it "good" by making it object-oriented and keeping scopes small. So far I have the following structure: A main with some lowlevel SDL set up and handling input A game class that keeps track of score and provides the interface for main (move block down, etc) A map class that keeps track of the current game field, which blocks are where. Used by the game class. A block class that consists of the current falling block, used by game. A renderer class abstracting low level SDL to a format where you render "tetris blocks". Used by map and block. Now I have a though time where to place the time-management of this game. For example, where should be decided when a block bumps the bottom of the screen how long it takes the current block locks in place and a new block spawns? I also have an other unrelated question, is there some place where you can find some standard data on tetris like standard score tables, rulesets, timings, etc?

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  • In which fields does quality of the software product matter as much as the completion time?

    - by Nav
    Someone told me that if the software product meets clients expectations, it is good quality. But I've worked with Interaction Designers (the same kind of people who made Gmail's interface and usability so cool!), and I've loved working with them because even though they came up with hundreds of changes in requirements, and emphasised on many many subtle details, when the software was complete, I could look at the product and say WOW! The current place I work, the only thing that matters is completing the project on time. As long as it works and as long as the client says it's ok, nobody bothers to improve it. I'm not talking about gold-plating, but I believe that for a programmer to enjoy his (well, maybe her too ;) ) job, they should be able to proudly say that "Hey, I made that software" and that comes only when the product is of good quality. Apart from your opinions on this, I'd also like to know which fields (Eg. Aerospace, Finance etc.) could I find companies (or you could mention the company name) where the quality of a product is as important as completing the project on time?

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  • Do you write unit tests for all the time in TDD?

    - by mcaaltuntas
    I have been designing and developing code with TDD style for a long time. What disturbs me about TDD is writing tests for code that does not contain any business logic or interesting behaviour. I know TDD is a design activity more than testing but sometimes I feel it's useless to write tests in these scenarios. For example I have a simple scenario like "When user clicks check button, it should check file's validity". For this scenario I usually start writing tests for presenter/controller class like the one below. @Test public void when_user_clicks_check_it_should_check_selected_file_validity(){ MediaService service =mock(MediaService); View view =mock(View); when(view.getSelectedFile).thenReturns("c:\\Dir\\file.avi"); MediaController controller =new MediaController(service,view); controller.check(); verify(service).check("c:\\Dir\\file.avi"); } As you can see there is no design decision or interesting code to verify behaviour. I am testing values from view passed to MediaService. I usually write but don't like these kind of tests. What do yo do about these situations ? Do you write tests for all the time ? UPDATE : I have changed the test name and code after complaints. Some users said that you should write tests for the trivial cases like this so in the future someone might add interesting behaviour. But what about “Code for today, design for tomorrow.” ? If someone, including myself, adds more interesting code in the future the test can be created for it then. Why should I do it now for the trivial cases ?

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  • Are scheduled job servers the right choice for a time sensitive game engine?

    - by maple_shaft
    I am currently architecting and designing an exciting new web application that will be entering into some areas that I have very little experience in, game development. The application is not necessarily a game, but there are some very time sensitive tasks and scheduled jobs that a server will need to run to perform game related activities (Eg. New match up starts at noon every day for a 12 day tournament, updating scoreboards at 5pm every day, etc...) In the past I have typically used cron jobs with the Quartz Scheduler running within a web application server, but I know that this isn't likely a scalable solution for the truly massive userbase that management is telling me to expect (Granted they are management and are probably highly optimistic about this) and also for how important the role of these tasks are in this web application. The other important thing I want to consider is that I want to avoid SPOF (Single Point Of Failure). If the primary job server goes down, another job server should be able to successfully run the job in its place. I suppose this can be done appropriately record locking and database transactions. My question is if scheduled jobs like CRON running on a web application server are a wise design choice given the time sensitive game tasks of this application, or is there something more appropriate for running a scalable game engine parallel to the web application servers?

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  • How can I reduce the amount of time it takes to fully regression test an application ready for release?

    - by DrLazer
    An app I work on is being developed with a modified version of scrum. If you are not familiar with scrum, it's just an alternative approach to a more traditional watefall model, where a series of features are worked on for a set amount of time known as a sprint. The app is written in C# and makes use of WPF. We use Visual C# 2010 Express edition as an IDE. If we work on a sprint and add in a few new features, but do not plan to release until a further sprint is complete, then regression testing is not an issue as such. We just test the new features and give the app a good once over. However, if a release is planned that our customers can download - a full regression test is factored in. In the past this wasn't a big deal, it took 3 or 4 days and the devs simply fix up any bugs found in the regression phase, but now, as the app is getting larger and larger and incorporating more and more features, the regression is spanning out for weeks. I am interested in any methods that people know of or use that can decrease this time. At the moment the only ideas I have are to either start writing Unit Tests, which I have never fully tried out in a commercial environment, or to research the possibilty of any UI Automation API's or tools that would allow me to write a program to perform a series of batch tests. I know literally nothing about the possibilities of UI automation so any information would be valuable. I don't know that much about Unit testing either, how complicated can the tests be? Is it possible to get Unit tests to use the UI? Are there any other methods I should consider? Thanks for reading, and for any advice in advance.

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  • The Art of Productivity

    - by dwahlin
    Getting things done has always been a challenge regardless of gender, age, race, skill, or job position. No matter how hard some people try, they end up procrastinating tasks until the last minute. Some people simply focus better when they know they’re out of time and can’t procrastinate any longer. How many times have you put off working on a term paper in school until the very last minute? With only a few hours left your mental energy and focus seem to kick in to high gear especially as you realize that you either get the paper done now or risk failing. It’s amazing how a little pressure can turn into a motivator and allow our minds to focus on a given task. Some people seem to specialize in procrastinating just about everything they do while others tend to be the “doers” who get a lot done and ultimately rise up the ladder at work. What’s the difference between these types of people? Is it pure laziness or are other factors at play? I think that some people are certainly more motivated than others, but I also think a lot of it is based on the process that “doers” tend to follow - whether knowingly or unknowingly. While I’ve certainly fought battles with procrastination, I’ve always had a knack for being able to get a lot done in a relatively short amount of time. I think a lot of my “get it done” attitude goes back to the the strong work ethic my parents instilled in me at a young age. I remember my dad saying, “You need to learn to work hard!” when I was around 5 years old. I remember that moment specifically because I was on a tractor with him the first time I heard it while he was trying to move some large rocks into a pile. The tractor was big but so were the rocks and my dad had to balance the tractor perfectly so that it didn’t tip forward too far. It was challenging work and somewhat tedious but my dad finished the task and taught me a few important lessons along the way including persistence, the importance of having a skill, and getting the job done right without skimping along the way. In this post I’m going to list a few of the techniques and processes I follow that I hope may be beneficial to others. I blogged about the general concept back in 2009 but thought I’d share some updated information and lessons learned since then. Most of the ideas that follow came from learning and refining my daily work process over the years. However, since most of the ideas are common sense (at least in my opinion), I suspect they can be found in other productivity processes that are out there. Let’s start off with one of the most important yet simple tips: Start Each Day with a List. Start Each Day with a List What are you planning to get done today? Do you keep track of everything in your head or rely on your calendar? While most of us think that we’re pretty good at managing “to do” lists strictly in our head you might be surprised at how affective writing out lists can be. By writing out tasks you’re forced to focus on the most important tasks to accomplish that day, commit yourself to those tasks, and have an easy way to track what was supposed to get done and what actually got done. Start every morning by making a list of specific tasks that you want to accomplish throughout the day. I’ll even go so far as to fill in times when I’d like to work on tasks if I have a lot of meetings or other events tying up my calendar on a given day. I’m not a big fan of using paper since I type a lot faster than I write (plus I write like a 3rd grader according to my wife), so I use the Sticky Notes feature available in Windows. Here’s an example of yesterday’s sticky note: What do you add to your list? That’s the subject of the next tip. Focus on Small Tasks It’s no secret that focusing on small, manageable tasks is more effective than trying to focus on large and more vague tasks. When you make your list each morning only add tasks that you can accomplish within a given time period. For example, if I only have 30 minutes blocked out to work on an article I don’t list “Write Article”. If I do that I’ll end up wasting 30 minutes stressing about how I’m going to get the article done in 30 minutes and ultimately get nothing done. Instead, I’ll list something like “Write Introductory Paragraphs for Article”. The next day I may add, “Write first section of article” or something that’s small and manageable – something I’m confident that I can get done. You’ll find that once you’ve knocked out several smaller tasks it’s easy to continue completing others since you want to keep the momentum going. In addition to keeping my tasks focused and small, I also make a conscious effort to limit my list to 4 or 5 tasks initially. I’ve found that if I list more than 5 tasks I feel a bit overwhelmed which hurts my productivity. It’s easy to add additional tasks as you complete others and you get the added benefit of that confidence boost of knowing that you’re being productive and getting things done as you remove tasks and add others. Getting Started is the Hardest (Yet Easiest) Part I’ve always found that getting started is the hardest part and one of the biggest contributors to procrastination. Getting started working on tasks is a lot like getting a large rock pushed to the bottom of a hill. It’s difficult to get the rock rolling at first, but once you manage to get it rocking some it’s really easy to get it rolling on its way to the bottom. As an example, I’ve written 100s of articles for technical magazines over the years and have really struggled with the initial introductory paragraphs. Keep in mind that these are the paragraphs that don’t really add that much value (in my opinion anyway). They introduce the reader to the subject matter and nothing more. What a waste of time for me to sit there stressing about how to start the article. On more than one occasion I’ve spent more than an hour trying to come up with 2-3 paragraphs of text.  Talk about a productivity killer! Whether you’re struggling with a writing task, some code for a project, an email, or other tasks, jumping in without thinking too much is the best way to get started I’ve found. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t have an overall plan when jumping into a task, but on some occasions you’ll find that if you simply jump into the task and stop worrying about doing everything perfectly that things will flow more smoothly. For my introductory paragraph problem I give myself 5 minutes to write out some general concepts about what I know the article will cover and then spend another 10-15 minutes going back and refining that information. That way I actually have some ideas to work with rather than a blank sheet of paper. If I still find myself struggling I’ll write the rest of the article first and then circle back to the introductory paragraphs once I’m done. To sum this tip up: Jump into a task without thinking too hard about it. It’s better to to get the rock at the top of the hill rocking some than doing nothing at all. You can always go back and refine your work.   Learn a Productivity Technique and Stick to It There are a lot of different productivity programs and seminars out there being sold by companies. I’ve always laughed at how much money people spend on some of these motivational programs/seminars because I think that being productive isn’t that hard if you create a re-useable set of steps and processes to follow. That’s not to say that some of these programs/seminars aren’t worth the money of course because I know they’ve definitely benefited some people that have a hard time getting things done and staying focused. One of the best productivity techniques I’ve ever learned is called the “Pomodoro Technique” and it’s completely free. This technique is an extremely simple way to manage your time without having to remember a bunch of steps, color coding mechanisms, or other processes. The technique was originally developed by Francesco Cirillo in the 80s and can be implemented with a simple timer. In a nutshell here’s how the technique works: Pick a task to work on Set the timer to 25 minutes and work on the task Once the timer rings record your time Take a 5 minute break Repeat the process Here’s why the technique works well for me: It forces me to focus on a single task for 25 minutes. In the past I had no time goal in mind and just worked aimlessly on a task until I got interrupted or bored. 25 minutes is a small enough chunk of time for me to stay focused. Any distractions that may come up have to wait until after the timer goes off. If the distraction is really important then I stop the timer and record my time up to that point. When the timer is running I act as if I only have 25 minutes total for the task (like you’re down to the last 25 minutes before turning in your term paper….frantically working to get it done) which helps me stay focused and turns into a “beat the clock” type of game. It’s actually kind of fun if you treat it that way and really helps me focus on a the task at hand. I automatically know how much time I’m spending on a given task (more on this later) by using this technique. I know that I have 5 minutes after each pomodoro (the 25 minute sprint) to waste on anything I’d like including visiting a website, stepping away from the computer, etc. which also helps me stay focused when the 25 minute timer is counting down. I use this technique so much that I decided to build a program for Windows 8 called Pomodoro Focus (I plan to blog about how it was built in a later post). It’s a Windows Store application that allows people to track tasks, productive time spent on tasks, interruption time experienced while working on a given task, and the number of pomodoros completed. If a time estimate is given when the task is initially created, Pomodoro Focus will also show the task completion percentage. I like it because it allows me to track my tasks, time spent on tasks (very useful in the consulting world), and even how much time I wasted on tasks (pressing the pause button while working on a task starts the interruption timer). I recently added a new feature that charts productive and interruption time for tasks since I wanted to see how productive I was from week to week and month to month. A few screenshots from the Pomodoro Focus app are shown next, I had a lot of fun building it and use it myself to as I work on tasks.   There are certainly many other productivity techniques and processes out there (and a slew of books describing them), but the Pomodoro Technique has been the simplest and most effective technique I’ve ever come across for staying focused and getting things done.   Persistence is Key Getting things done is great but one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned in life is that persistence is key especially when you’re trying to get something done that at times seems insurmountable. Small tasks ultimately lead to larger tasks getting accomplished, however, it’s not all roses along the way as some of the smaller tasks may come with their own share of bumps and bruises that lead to discouragement about the end goal and whether or not it is worth achieving at all. I’ve been on several long-term projects over my career as a software developer (I have one personal project going right now that fits well here) and found that repeating, “Persistence is the key!” over and over to myself really helps. Not every project turns out to be successful, but if you don’t show persistence through the hard times you’ll never know if you succeeded or not. Likewise, if you don’t persistently stick to the process of creating a daily list, follow a productivity process, etc. then the odds of consistently staying productive aren’t good.   Track Your Time How much time do you actually spend working on various tasks? If you don’t currently track time spent answering emails, on phone calls, and working on various tasks then you might be surprised to find out that a task that you thought was going to take you 30 minutes ultimately ended up taking 2 hours. If you don’t track the time you spend working on tasks how can you expect to learn from your mistakes, optimize your time better, and become more productive? That’s another reason why I like the Pomodoro Technique – it makes it easy to stay focused on tasks while also tracking how much time I’m working on a given task.   Eliminate Distractions I blogged about this final tip several years ago but wanted to bring it up again. If you want to be productive (and ultimately successful at whatever you’re doing) then you can’t waste a lot of time playing games or on Twitter, Facebook, or other time sucking websites. If you see an article you’re interested in that has no relation at all to the tasks you’re trying to accomplish then bookmark it and read it when you have some spare time (such as during a pomodoro break). Fighting the temptation to check your friends’ status updates on Facebook? Resist the urge and realize how much those types of activities are hurting your productivity and taking away from your focus. I’ll admit that eliminating distractions is still tough for me personally and something I have to constantly battle. But, I’ve made a conscious decision to cut back on my visits and updates to Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and other sites. Sure, my Klout score has suffered as a result lately, but does anyone actually care about those types of scores aside from your online “friends” (few of whom you’ve actually met in person)? :-) Ultimately it comes down to self-discipline and how badly you want to be productive and successful in your career, life goals, hobbies, or whatever you’re working on. Rather than having your homepage take you to a time wasting news site, game site, social site, picture site, or others, how about adding something like the following as your homepage? Every time your browser opens you’ll see a personal message which helps keep you on the right track. You can download my ubber-sophisticated homepage here if interested. Summary Is there a single set of steps that if followed can ultimately lead to productivity? I don’t think so since one size has never fit all. Every person is different, works in their own unique way, and has their own set of motivators, distractions, and more. While I certainly don’t consider myself to be an expert on the subject of productivity, I do think that if you learn what steps work best for you and gradually refine them over time that you can come up with a personal productivity process that can serve you well. Productivity is definitely an “art” that anyone can learn with a little practice and persistence. You’ve seen some of the steps that I personally like to follow and I hope you find some of them useful in boosting your productivity. If you have others you use please leave a comment. I’m always looking for ways to improve.

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  • Tracking changes in Entity Framework 4.0 using POCO Dynamic Proxies across multiple data contexts.

    - by Rob Packwood
    I started messing with EF 4.0 because I am curious about the POCO possibilities... I wanted to simulate disconnected web environment and wrote the following code to simulate this: Save a test object in the database. Retrieve the test object Dispose of the DataContext associated with the test object I used to retrieve it Update the test object Create a new data context and persist the changes on the test object that are automatically tracked within the DynamicProxy generated against my POCO object. The problem is that when I call dataContext.SaveChanges in the Test method above, the updates are not applied. The testStore entity shows a status of "Modified" when I check its EntityStateTracker, but it is no longer modified when I view it within the new dataContext's Stores property. I would have thought that calling the Attach method on the new dataContext would also bring the object's "Modified" state over, but that appears to not be the case. Is there something I am missing? I am definitely working with self-tracking POCOs using DynamicProxies. private static void SaveTestStore(string storeName = "TestStore") { using (var context = new DataContext()) { Store newStore = context.Stores.CreateObject(); newStore.Name = storeName; context.Stores.AddObject(newStore); context.SaveChanges(); } } private static Store GetStore(string storeName = "TestStore") { using (var context = new DataContext()) { return (from store in context.Stores where store.Name == storeName select store).SingleOrDefault(); } } [Test] public void Test_Store_Update_Using_Different_DataContext() { SaveTestStore(); Store testStore = GetStore(); testStore.Name = "Updated"; using (var dataContext = new DataContext()) { dataContext.Stores.Attach(testStore); dataContext.SaveChanges(SaveOptions.DetectChangesBeforeSave); } Store updatedStore = GetStore("Updated"); Assert.IsNotNull(updatedStore); }

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  • Javascript floodlight tracking iframe leaves browser window blank, please help!

    - by Ben Paton
    Hello, I have been asked to implement a javascript floodlight tag onto my site which is to be called everytime a customer downloads a pdf file. I have tried to implement this as follows: <script type="text/javascript"> function appForm() { var axel = Math.random() + ""; var a = axel * 10000000000000; document.write('<IFRAME SRC="http://fls.doubleclick.net/activityi;src=1234567;type=count123;cat=123do456;ord=1;num='+ a + '?" WIDTH=1 HEIGHT=1 FRAMEBORDER=0></IFRAME>'); return false; } <a href="appForm.pdf" target="_blank" onClick="appForm();">Download PDF</a> This seems to almost work. The pdf file opens in a new window. But the window where you clicked the download link turns blank. Is there a way of opening this tracking iframe and then having the pdf opening without the parent window going blank? Your help will be very much appreciated on this.

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  • Can I use a plaintext diff algorithm for tracking XML changes?

    - by rinogo
    Hi all! Interesting question for you here. I'm working in Flex/AS3 on (for simplicity) an XML editor. I need to provide undo/redo functionality. Of course, one solution is to store the entire source text with each edit. However, to conserve memory, I'd like to store the diffs instead (these diffs will also be used to transmit updates to the server for auto-saving). My question is - can I use a plaintext diff algorithm for tracking these XML changes? My research on the internet indicates that I cannot do so. However, I'm obviously missing something. Plaintext diff provides functionality that is purportedly: diff(text, text') - diffs patch(text, diffs) - text' XML is simply text, so why can't I just use diff() and patch() to transform the text reliably? For example: Let's say that I'm a poet. When I write poetry, I use lots of funky punctuation... You know, like <, /, and . (You might see where I'm going with this...) If I'm writing my poetry in an application that uses diffs to provide undo/redo functionality, does my poetry become garbled when I undo/redo my edits? It's just text! Why does it make a difference to the algorithm? I obviously don't get something here...Thanks for explaining! :) -Rich

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  • Combining JavaScript for Google Analytics with yours. (Asynchronous tracking.)

    - by lorenzo 72
    I have a JavaScript file which is loaded up at the end of my HTML page. Rather than adding the script code for asynchronous tracking for Google in yet another script I would rather combine the two scripts together. So instead of this: <html> ... <script src="myScript.js"> <!-- google analytics --> <script type="text/javascript"> var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-XXXXX-X']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; (document.getElementsByTagName('head')[0] || document.getElementsByTagName('body')[0]).appendChild(ga); })(); </script> </html> I would have that bit of code in the second script tag at the end of my 'myScript.js'. I have not found one place in google documentation where it suggests to combine the script with yours.

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  • How to control Time zone formatting in System.Xml.Serialization or during application execution?

    - by Beal
    I'm developing a C# .Net Application that is executing on a system located in the Central Time Zone. The application gets information from a third party using an API they provide. I have used the WSDL to produce the code that my application access the API with...their reporting API allows you to define a start date and end date for the report. These are C# DateTime fields and XSD:dateTime. Now when I set the start date and end dates and allow the API to create the SOAP messages the dates don't always include a Time Zone unless I set the date fields using the ToLocalTime method; however, the method will create the DateTime fields in the Central Time Zone (CST) but I need to have it create these fields in the Pacific Time Zone (PST). If I set my machine time to PST all is good...but of course that causes other time issues. What methods can I use to control the formatting of the DateTime? Alternatively, is there a application setting that can be set in C# that allows timezone control?

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