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  • Inactive JSRs looking for Spec Leads

    - by heathervc
    You may have noticed that some JSRs have a classification of "Inactive" on their JSR page.  The introduction of this term in 2009 was part of an effort to enable and encourage more transparency into the development of JSRs.  You can read more about Inactive JSRs here and also in the JCP FAQ.The following JSR proposals have been Inactive since at least 2009. If you are a JCP Member and are interested in taking over the Specification Lead role for one of these JSRs, please contact the PMO at [email protected] on or before 23 April 2012. With that message, please include the following: the subject line "Spec Lead for JSR ###," where '###' is the JSR number which JCP Member you represent why you wish to take over the Specification lead role Here is the current list of Inactive JSRs for which Members can request to become Specification Leads: JSR 122, JAIN JCAT JSR 161, JAIN ENUM API Specification JSR 182, JPay - Payment API for the Java Platform JSR 210, OSS Service Quality Management API JSR 241, The Groovy Programming Language JSR 251, Pricing API JSR 278, Resource Management API for Java ME JSR 304, Mobile Telephony API v2 JSR 305, Annotations for Software Defect Detection JSR 320, Services Framework

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  • The last word on C++ AMP...

    - by Daniel Moth
    Well, not the last word, but the last blog post I plan to do here on that topic. Over the last 12 months, I have published 45 blog posts related to C++ AMP on the Parallel Programming in Native Code, and the rest of the team has published even more. Occasionally I'll link to some of them from my own blog here, but today I decided to stop doing that - so if you relied on my personal blog pointing you to C++ AMP content, it is time you subscribed to the msdn blog. I will continue to blog about other topics here of course, so stay tuned. So, for the last time, I encourage you to read the latest two blog posts I published on the team blog bringing together essential reading material on C++ AMP Learn C++ AMP - a collection of links to take you from zero to hero. Present on C++ AMP - a walkthrough on how to give a presentation including slides. Got questions on C++ AMP? Hit the msdn forum! Comments about this post by Daniel Moth welcome at the original blog.

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  • getting started as a web developer [closed]

    - by kmote
    I have over 10 years of programming experience building (Windows-based) desktop applications and utilities (VC++, C#, Python). My goal over the next year is to start transitioning to web application development. I want to teach myself the fundamental tools and technologies that would be considered essential for building professional, online, interactive, visually-stunning, data-driven web apps -- the kind described in Google's recently released "Field Guide: Building Great Web Applications". So my question is, what are the primary, most commonly-used technologies that seasoned professionals will need in their tool belt in the coming years? My plan was to start coming up to speed in Javascript, HTML5, & CSS, and then to do a deep dive into ASP.NET and Ajax, along with SQL DBs. (I was surprised to not be able to find a single book at Amazon with a broad, general scope like this, which caused me to start second-guessing this approach.) So, seasoned professionals: am I on the right track? Are there some glaring omissions in my list? Or some unnecessary inclusions? I would welcome any book suggestions along these lines as well.

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  • Is error suppression acceptable in role of logic mechanism?

    - by Rarst
    This came up in code review at work in context of PHP and @ operator. However I want to try keep this in more generic form, since few question about it I found on SO got bogged down in technical specifics. Accessing array field, which is not set, results in error message and is commonly handled by following logic (pseudo code): if field value is set output field value Code in question was doing it like: start ignoring errors output field value stop ignoring errors The reasoning for latter was that it's more compact and readable code in this specific case. I feel that those benefits do not justify misuse (IMO) of language mechanics. Is such code is being "clever" in a bad way? Is discarding possible error (for any reason) acceptable practice over explicitly handling it (even if that leads to more extensive and/or intensive code)? Is it acceptable for programming operators to cross boundaries of intended use (like in this case using error handling for controlling output)? Edit I wanted to keep it more generic, but specific code being discussed was like this: if ( isset($array['field']) ) { echo '<li>' . $array['field'] . '</li>'; } vs the following example: echo '<li>' . @$array['field'] . '</li>';

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  • Relationship between SOA and OOA

    - by TheSilverBullet
    Thomas Erl defines SOA as follows in his site: Service-oriented computing represents a new generation distributed computing platform. As such, it encompasses many things, including its own design paradigm and design principles, design pattern catalogs, pattern languages, a distinct architectural model, and related concepts, technologies, and frameworks. This definitely sounds like a whole new category which is parallel to object orientation. Almost one in which you would expect an entirely new language to exist for. Like procedural C and object oriented C#. Here is my understanding: In real life, we don't have entirely new language for SOA. And most application which have SOA architecture have an object oriented design underneath it. SOA is a "strategy" to make the entire application/service distributed and reliable. SOA needs OOPS working underneath it. Is this correct? Where does SOA (if at all it does) fit in with object oriented programming practices? Edit: I have learnt through answers that OOA and SOA work with each other and cannot be compared (in a "which is better" way). I have changed the title to "Relationship between SOA and OOA" rather than "comparison".

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  • So now Google has said no to old browsers when can the rest of us follow suit?

    - by Richard
    Google recently announced that they will no longer support older browsers on Aug 1st: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-13639875 http://gmailblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/our-plans-to-support-modern-browsers.html For this reason, soon Google Apps will only support modern browsers. Beginning August 1st, we’ll support the current and prior major release of Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer and Safari on a rolling basis. Each time a new version is released, we’ll begin supporting the update and stop supporting the third-oldest version. There is nothing worse than looking at the patching of code that takes place to support older browsers. If we could all move towards a standards only web (I'm looking at you IE9) then surely we could spend more time programming good web apps and less trying to make them run equally on terrible non standards compliant older browsers. So when can the rest of us expect to be able to tell our clients that we no longer support older browsers? Because it seems that large corporates will continue to run older browsers and even if google chrome frame can be installed without admin privileges (it's coming soon, currently in beta) we can't expect all users to be motivated to do this. I appreciate any thoughts.

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  • Add copyright notice to a website

    - by PeeHaa
    Not really a programming question, but I find it related. If not (or you find this question too subjective), please tell me, yell at me, swear at me, kick me in the nuts, or just vote to close :) I've read some questions and answers here on SO about adding copyright notices, but not the specific ones I am looking for. I want to add a copyright notice to a website I created. Something like (c) Me 2010. All rights reserved. I am aware that everything written by someone is automatically copyrighted (if I'm not mistaken and perhaps depending on country laws). I see some sites use the following format for this (c) Me 2009-2010. However for me that makes no sense to add an 'end-date' to the notice. I am aware I can code to update the notice every year, but I just find it strange. Or is it just me? Another question is: I also use copyrighted code from others (they are all mentioned in the credits incl. links to their licenses ofc) on my site. Would it still be OK to add the copyright notice to the site with only Me in it? So to sum it up I have 2 questions: What is THE RIGHT WAYTM of adding a copyright notice on a website (or code or whatever)? If there is one. Is it allowed to copyright code with other copyrighted code within it?

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  • Assignments in mock return values

    - by zerkms
    (I will show examples using php and phpunit but this may be applied to any programming language) The case: let's say we have a method A::foo that delegates some work to class M and returns the value as-is. Which of these solutions would you choose: $mock = $this->getMock('M'); $mock->expects($this->once()) ->method('bar') ->will($this->returnValue('baz')); $obj = new A($mock); $this->assertEquals('baz', $obj->foo()); or $mock = $this->getMock('M'); $mock->expects($this->once()) ->method('bar') ->will($this->returnValue($result = 'baz')); $obj = new A($mock); $this->assertEquals($result, $obj->foo()); or $result = 'baz'; $mock = $this->getMock('M'); $mock->expects($this->once()) ->method('bar') ->will($this->returnValue($result)); $obj = new A($mock); $this->assertEquals($result, $obj->foo()); Personally I always follow the 2nd solution, but just 10 minutes ago I had a conversation with couple of developers who said that it is "too tricky" and chose 3rd or 1st. So what would you usually do? And do you have any conventions to follow in such cases?

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  • Should I use a config file or database for storing business rules?

    - by foiseworth
    I have recently been reading The Pragmatic Programmer which states that: Details mess up our pristine code—especially if they change frequently. Every time we have to go in and change the code to accommodate some change in business logic, or in the law, or in management's personal tastes of the day, we run the risk of breaking the system—of introducing a new bug. Hunt, Andrew; Thomas, David (1999-10-20). The Pragmatic Programmer: From Journeyman to Master (Kindle Locations 2651-2653). Pearson Education (USA). Kindle Edition. I am currently programming a web app that has some models that have properties that can only be from a set of values, e.g. (not actual example as the web app data confidential): light-type = sphere / cube / cylinder The light type can only be the above three values but according to TPP I should always code as if they could change and place their values in a config file. As there are several incidents of this throughout the app, my question is: Should I store possibly values like these in: a config file: 'light-types' = array(sphere, cube, cylinder), 'other-type' = value, 'etc = etc-value a single table in a database with one line for each config item a database with a table for each config item (e.g. table: light_types; columns: id, name) some other way? Many thanks for any assistance / expertise offered.

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  • Where have I been for the last month?

    - by MarkPearl
    So, I have been pretty quiet for the last month or so. True, it has been holiday time and I went to Cape Town for a stunning week of sunshine and blue skies, but the second I got back home I spent the remainder of my holiday on my pc viewing tutorials on www.tekpub.com Craig Shoemaker, who I got in contact with because of his podcast, sent me a 1 month free subscription to the site and it has been really appreciated. I have done a lot of WPF programming in the past, but not any asp.net stuff and so I used the time to get a peek at asp.net mvc2 as well as a bunch of other technologies. I just wished I had more spare time to do the rest of the videos. While I didn’t understand all of what was being shown on the asp.net stuff (it required previous asp.net expertise), the site was a really good jump start to someone wanting to learn a new technology and broaden the horizons and I would highly recommend it, My only gripe is that in South Africa we have limited bandwidth and bandwidth speeds and so I spent a lot of my monthly bandwidth on the site and had to top up with my ISP several times because of the high quality video captures that the site did. I would have preferred to download the video’s, but apparently that is only available to people who have the yearly subscription fee. Other than that, great site and thanks a ton Craig!

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  • Maker Faire Report - Teaching Kids Java SE Embedded for Internet of Things (IoT)

    - by hinkmond
    I had a great time at this year's Maker Faire 2014 in San Mateo, Calif. where Jake Kuramoto and the AppsLab crew including Noel Portugal, Anthony Lai, Raymond, and Tony set up a super demo at the DiY table. It was a simple way to learn how Java SE Embedded technology could be used to code the Internet of Things (IoT) devices on the table. The best part of our set-up was seeing the kids sit down and do some coding without all the complexity of a Computer Science course. It was very encouraging to see how interested the kids were when walking them through the programming steps, then seeing their eyes light up when telling them, "You just coded a Java enabled Internet of Things device!" as the Raspberry Pi-connected devices turned on or started to move from their Java Embedded program. See: The AppsLab at Maker Faire It will be interesting to see how this next generation of kids grow up with all these Internet of Things devices around them and watch how they will program them. Hopefully, they will be using Java SE Embedded technology to do so. From the looks of it at this year's Maker Faire, we might have a bunch of motivated young Java SE Embedded coders coming up the ranks soon. Well, they have to get through middle school first, but they're on their way! Hinkmond

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  • JavaOne Technology Conference Is Coming to Russia

    - by Tori Wieldt
    JavaOne Russia 17-18 AprilRussian Academy of Sciences, MoscowRegister Now JavaOne and Oracle Develop 2012 Russia offers a wide variety of sessions, hands-on labs, keynotes, demos, and the opportunity to network with developer peers. If you’re looking for in-depth sessions on Java technologies and tools, this is the conference for you. Your registration also gets you into Oracle Develop sessions as well, so you can learn about application servers, cloud development and, of course, database development. The JavaOne Russia tracks are:Client-Side Technologies and Rich User ExperiencesLearn about developments in Java for the desktop and practices for building rich, immersive, and powerful user experiences across multiple hardware platforms and form factors. Core Java PlatformDiscover the latest innovations in Java virtual machines. Get deep technical explanations in security and networking and enhancements that allow dynamic programming languages to drive Java platform adoption. Java EE Web Profile, Platform Technologies, Web Services, and the Cloud Update your knowledge on topics such as Web application development, persistence, security, and transactions. This track will also address modularity, enterprise caching, Web sockets, and internet identity. Mobile, Java Card, Embedded, and DevicesThis track is devoted to Java technology as the ultimate platform for mobile computing. It also covers embedded and device usages of Java technologies, including Java SE, Java ME, Java Card, and JavaFX. Share this event: #oracleRU

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  • Beginners guide to developing optimization software

    - by Florenc
    I am novice in "serious" programming i.e. applications that deal with real-life applications and software projects that go beyond school assignments. My interests include optimization, operations research, algorithms and lately i discovered how much I do like software design/development/engineering. I have already developed some simple desktop applications for some "famous" problems like TSP using heuristc approaches, a VRP solver (in progress) and so on. While developing this kind of software I actually used basic concepts taught at school such as object-orientation analysis and design. But, I found these courses rather elementary and quite boring (for my expectations). So I decided to go a little further and start developing "real" software (and this is where I realized how important and interesting software engineering/design is.) Now, here's my issue: I can not find a "study guide" for developing software of this kind. Currently, there are numerous resources out there (books, websites, tutorials) in designing and developing complex IS, web applications, smartphone apps but I can't find a book for example entitled "optimization software development". Definetly, someone could claim that "design patterns apply to software in general" but that's not my point. My point is that I could simply use my imagination for "simple" implementations, but what happens, when my imagination can not go further? In other words I'm looking for a guide/path to bridge the gap between: Mathematics-Algorithm Design-Software Engineering-Optimization-Software development

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  • Project Management Software / 1 maybe 2 developers

    - by Ominus
    I am looking for software that I can use to "manage" multiple projects (5 - 10). Here are the features I would like but any recommendation is welcome. Bug/Feature tracking on a per project basis. Some way to keep all documents, diagrams, specs, requirements, in one place with the project. Better yet a tool where all these things or most of them could be authored. Task management during the development phase with milestones and estimates/actuals. Git integration I have been doing contract work and i have been doing really well for myself as far as getting projects but its becoming VERY hard to manage everything in an efficient manner. I am trying to learn about best practices when it comes to software programming methodologies and the more I read the more i realize that I am just managing these projects poorly. I am getting things done but the more I take on the less "solid" everything is. I am afraid if I don't get some good solid tools/practices in place I am going to do my customers and myself a disservice. The problem is that there are SO many options that its hard to weed through them all. I was at a point today where I had decided that I would just code my own (there is some irony here)! Obviously everyone has their likes dislikes I would love to hear from some of you lone programmers and how you manage everything since our needs aren't exactly the same thing that a large team might need. I also want a solution that can scale to 2 maybe 3 developers if I end up hiring some people to help with my work load. Thanks again for your usual insights!

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  • SQL language drawbacks, The Third Manifesto

    - by David Portabella
    Sometime ago I read about SQL language drawbacks (the basic language specification, not vendor specific), and one of the drawbacks was that the language does not allow to create a set of tuples that don't come from a table. For instance, SELECT firstName, lastName from people; this creates a set of tuples coming from the table people. Now, if I don't have this table people, and I want to return a constant, I'd need something like this to return a set of two tuples (this would not require to have a table): SELECT VALUES('james', 'dean'), ('tom', 'cruisse'); Why I would need that? Because of the same reasons that we can define constants (not only basic types, but objects and arrays also) in any advanced programming language. Workarounds, Yes, I could create a temporal table, fill the data, and SELECT from that table. This is a hack, to overcome the drawbacks of the poor SQL language. I think that I read about this somewhere in "The Third Manifesto", but I don't find the paragraph/example talking about this concrete drawback anymore. Do you know a reference about it?

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  • Virtual Developer Day - EMEA-friendly time

    - by Tori Wieldt
    OTN's Virtual Developer Day lets you learn about the latest technical improvements in Java without leaving your desk/couch/park bench. Watch informative tutorials on your laptop and improve your Java programming expertise and engage in live chat sessions with Java experts, all for FREE.  OTN Virtual Developer Day: Java Europe/Africa/Middle East - June 25 09:00 to 13:00 BST / 10:00 to 14:00 CEST / 13:30 to 17:30 IST / 12:00 to 16:00 MSK / 08:00 to 12:00 Corresponding UTC (GMT) After a short keynote, you can dive into one of these three tracks:  Java SE 8 Track Learn about the features scheduled for Java SE 8, including Lambda expressions, extension methods for interfaces and a new Date and Time API. Learn how to create basic apps with JavaFX.  Java EE Track Take a close look at the new functionality in Java EE 7. Get presentations and demos on JSON, WebSockets, Batch, Concurrency, JAX-RS 2, JMS 2,  Java Embedded Track Provides an introductions to the Raspberry Pi, the Keil board, ARM architecture, and how to make it all work with Java Embedded. You know Java, now really know Java. Register now!

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  • Series On Embedded Development (Part 3) - Runtime Optionality

    - by Darryl Mocek
    What is runtime optionality? Runtime optionality means writing and packaging your code in such a way that all of the features are available at runtime, but aren't loaded and used if the feature isn't used. The code is separate, and you can even remove the code to save persistent storage if you know the feature will not be used. In native programming terms, it's splitting your application into separate shared libraries so you only have to load what you're using, which means it only impacts volatile memory when enabled at runtime. All the functionality is there, but if it's not used at runtime, it's not loaded. A good example of this in Java is JVMTI, Java's Virtual Machine Tool Interface. On smaller, embedded platforms, these libraries may not be there. If the libraries are not there, there's no effect on the runtime as long as you don't try to use the JVMTI features. There is a trade-off between size/performance and flexibility here. Putting code in separate libraries means loading that code will take longer and it will typically take up more persistent space. However, if the code is rarely used, you can save volatile memory by including it in a separate library. You can also use this method in Java by putting rarely-used code into one or more separate JAR's. Loading a JAR and parsing it takes CPU cycles and volatile memory. Putting all of your application's code into a single JAR means more processing for that JAR. Consider putting rarely-used code in a separate library/JAR.

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  • What are the most necessary non-language specific things a programmer needs to know?

    - by Josh
    I've been thinking about this a lot lately. Right now I work at a little web company, am almost done with school, and have written an iPhone app, but I'm not sure what else I need to focus my learning energies on. I've decided I want to do software programming, so I've been actively reading everything I can get my hands on that deals with Objective-C / C++ (Cocoa, OpenGL, etc). But those are not the things I'm talking about. I know I need to "master" a language or two. What I'm talking about are the other "things". Things such as learning and using source control, design patterns, etc. What thing (or things, just one per response), would you say I should concurrently be focusing on? You can consider in your answer that I'm wanting to do the aforementioned career path, but you don't have to. I just want a nice list of things to research, and actually use in my career. Also, can someone help me with tagging this? I'm not sure what exactly would be a good tag for such a question.

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  • Weird behavior when using pointers [migrated]

    - by Kinan Al Sarmini
    When I run this code on MS VS C++ 2010: #include <iostream> int main() { const int a = 10; const int *b = &a; int *c = (int *)b; *c = 10000; std::cout << c << " " << &a << std::endl; std::cout << *c << " " << a << " " << *(&a) << std::endl; return 0; } The output is: 0037F784 0037F784 10000 10 10 The motivation for writing that code was this sentence from "The C++ Programming Language" by Stroustrup: "It is possible to explicitly remove the restrictions on a pointer to const by explicit type conversion". I know that trying to modify a constant is conceptually wrong, but I find this result quite weird. Can anyone explain the reason behind it?

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  • If your algorithm is correct, does it matter how long it took you to write it?

    - by John Isaacks
    I recently found out that Facebook had a programming challenge that if completed correctly you automatically get a phone interview. There is a sample challenge that asks you to write an algorithm that can solve a Tower of Hanoi type problem. Given a number of pegs and discs, an initial and final configuration; Your algorithm must determine the fewest steps possible to get to the final configuration and output the steps. This sample challenge gives you a 45 minute time limit but allows you to still test your code to see if it passes once your time limit expires. I did not know of any cute math solution that could solve it, and I didn't want to look for one since I think that would be cheating. So I tried to solve the challenge the best I could on my own. I was able to make an algorithm that worked and passed. However, it took me over 4 hours to make, much longer than the 45 minute requirement. Since it took me so much longer than the allotted time, I have not attempted the actual challenge. This got me wondering though, in reality does it really matter that it took me that long? I mean is this a sign that I will not be able to get a job at a place like this (not just Facebook, but Google, Fog Creek, etc.) and need to lower my aspirations, or does the fact that I actually passed on my first attempt even though it took too long be taken as good?

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  • When does a programmer know when a new job is not right?

    - by Mysterion
    I believe that the interview process is a selling of both parties - what can the employee offer the employer and vice versa. Assuming an individual has been careful in selecting their new employer (via thorough questioning in the interview process), however when they arrive at the job they find the employer has not been honest about certain aspects of the job. Examples of this dishonesty could include: The employee making it clear that technical excellence is an important factor, which is promised by the employer, but is not fully delivered or a good technical structure does not exist. The employee states they want to work on well architected and short (lets say less than 1 yr) long projects, yet when they start they find they are placed on a poorly architected older project. The employee being told of a pair programming environment to get him up to speed on the project, but being left to his own devices/questioning on arrival. The employee is promised a culture that encourages innovation and technical excellence but finds that this is not the case (eg. using technology for knowledge retention is laughed at). I know that a lot of famous developers feel that you make the place you work at. Is it realistic for a new employee with limited experience in the industry (say less than 5 years) to be able to join the company and change attitudes or even challenge the employer on the perceived dishonesty? Should they stay in this job or cut their losses?

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  • Adding root bone in 3DS Max?

    - by carlturtle
    my animation artist has made me a nice first person pair of arms, animated it, textured it, and given it to me. Then he went on vacation. I am programming my animations, and I am trying to test the model he has given me. Building my project gives me a warning: Multiple skeletons were found in the file. The first skeleton, named "frame l upperarm" has been moved to be a child of the scene root. The other, "frame r upperarm", will be ignored. Fragment identifier "frame r upperarm". Then an error: "Vertex is bound to bone "frame l forearm", but this bone is not present in the skeleton." I realize this means that there are two skeletons, as said in this problem: Importing 3d model with multiple skeletons I have 3DS Max, but I have no idea how to use it, and Google/CGTalk/Plycount turn up nothing relevant on how to add a root bone or combine skeletons. If anyone knows how, it would help me out greatly. Thanks.

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  • Are null references really a bad thing?

    - by Tim Goodman
    I've heard it said that the inclusion of null references in programming languages is the "billion dollar mistake". But why? Sure, they can cause NullReferenceExceptions, but so what? Any element of the language can be a source of errors if used improperly. And what's the alternative? I suppose instead of saying this: Customer c = Customer.GetByLastName("Goodman"); // returns null if not found if (c != null) { Console.WriteLine(c.FirstName + " " + c.LastName + " is awesome!"); } else { Console.WriteLine("There was no customer named Goodman. How lame!"); } You could say this: if (Customer.ExistsWithLastName("Goodman")) { Customer c = Customer.GetByLastName("Goodman") // throws error if not found Console.WriteLine(c.FirstName + " " + c.LastName + " is awesome!"); } else { Console.WriteLine("There was no customer named Goodman. How lame!"); } But how is that better? Either way, if you forget to check that the customer exists, you get an exception. I suppose that a CustomerNotFoundException is a bit easier to debug than a NullReferenceException by virtue of being more descriptive. Is that all there is to it?

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  • What's wrong with circular references?

    - by dash-tom-bang
    I was involved in a programming discussion today where I made some statements that basically assumed axiomatically that circular references (between modules, classes, whatever) are generally bad. Once I got through with my pitch, my coworker asked, "what's wrong with circular references?" I've got strong feelings on this, but it's hard for me to verbalize concisely and concretely. Any explanation that I may come up with tends to rely on other items that I too consider axioms ("can't use in isolation, so can't test", "unknown/undefined behavior as state mutates in the participating objects", etc.), but I'd love to hear a concise reason for why circular references are bad that don't take the kinds of leaps of faith that my own brain does, having spent many hours over the years untangling them to understand, fix, and extend various bits of code. Edit: I am not asking about homogenous circular references, like those in a doubly-linked list or pointer-to-parent. This question is really asking about "larger scope" circular references, like libA calling libB which calls back to libA. Substitute 'module' for 'lib' if you like. Thanks for all of the answers so far!

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  • Self-imposed lockout from program

    - by Alex
    I'm plagued with a lack of willpower. I recently started looking for solutions, and came across a program for macs called SelfControl which completely blocks one's access to a given set of websites for a given period of time (you can delete the program/restart your computer/do almost anything and it will still block those sites for the specified time period, and doesn't require a password to do it.) Unfortunately, there are no windows analogues. The one that comes the closest is Cold Turkey. It has the functionality whereby you set a time in the future, specify a list of websites (or programs - eg explorer, firefox, chrome) and you are blocked from accessing them for the whole duration. No password can undo it, no system reboot, etc. The problem is that the program is a buggy piece of garbage, and in order to ensure that you're not locked out from websites forever, you have to run an uninstaller which is just an exe file accessible at any time which completely defeats the purpose of a self-imposed program lockout. I want to make a better version of that program, or find a simple way to prevent access to a given set of programs over a given period of time with no way around it. I've only taken a few introductory courses in java (math major), but the internet is really having a negative effect on my studies, and the only way I can do work is to eliminate all distractions. What do I need to learn in order to make a program with the following properties: Given a set of .exe files, and a time in the future , this program will prevent access to the given .exe files until current time = given time restarting the computer doesn't interfere with the program, one can't uninstall the program until current time = given time, one can't create another instance of the program to block itself I don't care how much programming knowledge i need to acquire in order to make this program, so please give me a specific list of things that I need to study in order to make this happen, or if something like this exists, then please let me know.

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