jrjBlog

Links Feed - What am I reading?

jrj — Thu, 27 Jul 2006 02:11:00 GMT

I read a lot of blogs, but I seldom post to my own. However, I frequently use Newsgator's "Clippings" functionality to flag blog posts that I find interesting or think I might want to refer to later.

I've added an RSS feed for these "clippings" which you can access at the following URL:

http://services.newsgator.com/ngws/svc/ClippingsRSS.aspx?uid=28642

Managing your day with Outlook 2007

jrj — Thu, 01 Jun 2006 20:16:00 GMT

Melissa MacBeth of the Tasks and Time Management with Outlook blog has a great post about how she manages her email and PIM data using Outlook 2007. It's a great 10,000 foot view of a real-world application of a productivity tool, and I got some real value out of it. For example, I'm trying out the "conversation" view in my inbox for a couple weeks to see how I like it... it was never useful to me before because I process my inbox to empty pretty much every day, but her comments about keeping messages that are likely to see additional thread activity in the inbox until the issue is fully resolved completely changes things for me.

Update: Cingular 8125, the REAL test

jrj — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 02:55:00 GMT

Today, I forgot my tablet PC at home. Normally, this would be completely crippeling-- I would have either run home to pick it up, or I would have called my wife to bring it to me. (Most likely the latter... my wife is a saint.)

However, I decided to turn it into an experement: I wanted to see if I could go a day without my tablet. (Obviously, I was able to use my desktop PC for document creation, long-form email compostion, etc.)

The result? I was fine. I was lucky enough not to have to give any presentations today, so I only needed the phone for taking notes, checking email, and checking the calendar for the next meeting. There was not a single point in the day that I missed my tablet!

I think I'm going to start taking my laptop to fewer meetings. :)

New Toy: Cingular 8125 Windows Mobile Phone

jrj — Tue, 04 Apr 2006 23:41:00 GMT

I've been wanting a new mobile phone for some time now. I bought my previous phone (a Motorola MPX220 SmartPhone) a year and a half ago. At the time, it fit my needs perfectly-- I worked out of the home 99% of the time, and when I went to client sites I always had my tablet PC with me. The only time I used the PDA functionality on my SmartPhone was when I was out running errands or during "personal time." I got a lot of email, but most of it was from readers of my various web sites, and so it was shuttled off into various folders by autofilters. There were only 30-50 messages per day that were actually actionable-- things from coworkers, clients, etc. that required me to actually DO something. And aside from server outage issues (which also sent SMS messages to me) I didn't really have ANY messages that were in the "must-deal-with-NOW-or-else" variety.

Then, I changed careers.

Fast forward a year and a half. I have a new gig at Microsoft, and most of the criteria that existed when I bought my MPX220 have fundimentally changed. I now go to an office every day, and spend the overwhelming majority of my time in meetings and roaming the halls and corridors talking to people. I love my TabletPC, but it's too bulky to take with me EVERYWHERE. Sometimes, I just want to jot down a quick note, or add a task to my list... the SmartPhone was good enough to do this once in a while, but to do it a dozen times a day requires something a little bigger. I also get hundreds of messages per day that are actionable, which is a huge shift... and some of them are in the "must-deal-with-NOW-or-else" variety.

So what did I buy? The Cingular 8125.

The new phone fits my needs perfectly... it has a good-sized thumb keyboard. (I spent 15 minutes typing away on a Treo 700 and on an 8125, and I was able to get 60% more text entered on the 8125 in that time. It's measurably better for my giant claw-shapmed mandibles I call "hands.") It has a great screen-- especially in landscape mode. Perfect for viewing a calendar with a dozen overlapping meetings. Perfect for managing a massive task list with (at last count) 52 projects, 227 tasks, and 18 categories. And perfect for browsing my favorite RSS feeds when I have a free moment. Most importantly, though, I can jot a quick note without having to fight against T9 input.

And email? Moving to a device that has Windows Mobile 2005 (and hence integration with Exchange PUSH email technology) is like night and day. It's a beautiful thing.

I'm thrilled with the device, and I'm really enjoying it. I take my tablet PC only to meeting that I'm responsible for generating notes for distribution... otherwise, the phone/pda hybrid is my meeting companion.

Also, the camera phone on this device is MUCH better than the one on the MPX220... great for quick casual pictures. Will it compete with a digital SLR? Uh... no. But it's not supposed to. It's about as good as can be expected for a 1.3 megapixel camera integrated in with a cell phone.

What about the phone itself?

Well, when my brother-in-law asked me what phone (with PDA functionality) he should buy, I told him that there were two major classes of phones...

1.) Phones with integrated PDA functionality (like most SmartPhones)

2.) PDAs with integrated phone functionality (like most PocketPC phones.)

I explained that, while this was a subtle distinction, it was an important one. I think it is key to look at what you use more often, and optimze for that use. Well, I almost never use my phone. Last month, I racked up a mere 38 minutes. My average monthly usage? 42 minutes. I'm just not a phone guy. The overwhelming majority of my phone calls consist of "Yeah... I'm in a meeting. I'll swing by and talk to you about that when I'm done."

For this kind of use, the 8125 has served me perfectly... I'm the wrong guy to ask to judge its quality as a phone because if it had glaring flaws (which I don't think it does) I probably wouldn't really notice them. The only way I interact with the phone is with my excellent Motorola bluetooth headset-- I either click the button on the earphone to answer an incoming call, or I click the little button and say "Rachel Home" and it calls my wife. I don't really interact with my phone much even in the rare cases I actually use it.

Bottom line, I'm thrilled with the purchase. It's a good device, and was VERY reasonably priced. ($299 is the price currently shown on the Cingular web site... I paid a tad less than that because of some special discounts.) Great value for the money.

Inbox to empty: the holy grail of modern productivity

jrj — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 22:49:00 GMT

Merlin Mann of 43Folders (one of my faborite personal productivity sites) has a great series of articles (with more to come) about getting your email inbox to empty, and dealing with the overwhelming amount of email some technology professionals receive.

I get hundreds and hundreds of emails a day, but the real challenge is that the percentage of these messages that are actually actionable is growing every day. Managing the tornado of work created by all this email can be a real challenge, and 43F is providing some powerful insight in this series.

As Mann is fond of pointing out with his restaraunt analogy ("We're in the business of making sandwiches, not stacking orders!") they key is increasing the efficiency of the processing step, and to separate processing from actually DOING.

Every one of these posts is worth reading on its own, but you really need to read the whole series to get the total benefit. Good stuff.

The great programmer

jrj — Sun, 19 Mar 2006 00:01:00 GMT

On a private discussion forum that I frequent, someone asked for advice I would give to a 16 year old that they were mentoring that had an interest in programming. A healthy debate ensued about what constitured a real programmer. I asserted the following: (Edited for brevity)

"On one hand, I think that you're not a "real programmer" unless you can write C/C++ (or similar) and have a good sense of the assembler that will be output by the compiler."

"However, I have to admit that modern languages like C# and Java are really compelling and incredibly powerful... I just feel that anyone who learns these higher level languages without understanding what's happening a little closer to the metal isn't really a programmer."

I went on to recommend a couple of great books:

Ivor Horton's Beginning C++ (a fantastic author with a great style for explaining stuff to beginners.)
Hackers Delight by Warren (A lot of fun)
CODE by Petzold (one of my favorite books and authors of all times-- great for someone who wants to get into programming.)
Once he gets a little deeper, if he wants to understand some of the underlying computer science type concepts, I can heartily recommend "The Art of Programming" which is a fantastic three-volume set by Knuth.

As can be predicted, a flame war ensued... I won't post the others' comments because I feel that they belong to them, and posting them would violate the letter and spirit of the terms of this private forum. However, my final response was as follows:

"...The smartest developers know how to best leverage the right tool for the job. Often times, that's a great integrated development environment (i.e. VisualStudio.NET) and often it's a higher level language (like C# or Java, or even Ruby or ColdFusion!) However, when building a complex application, there are often times situations where the right tool for the job is C or even Assembler, and the great developers know how to move down into that level when appropriate."

"Also, it is impossible to write great code at even the highest level of abstraction without knowing exactly what's hapening in the layers underneath you. To use a more concrete example, I'm not saying great programmers don't use C# and VisualStudio.NET-- I'm saying that when they do, they understand the IL (Intermediate Language) code that will be generated by the compiler, and the understand what Assembly will be generated when that IL is eventually compiled and run on a processor."

"Bottom line, it's not about what tools you choose to use-- it's about the degree to which you understand what those tools do, and how they work. It's about understanding the layers beneath you."

"Real programmer is probably not the best description. But there is definitely a line that separates people with a firm foundation in computer science and people who know how to write PHP (and only PHP.) A great developer can pick up a new language in a weekend-- he or she is not dependant on knowledge of a given platform." Of course, we've gone way off course from the question the original poster was asking. :)"

"Read books. Lots of books. If it sparks your interest, you may decide you want to go to school and study it... but you don't have to. Experement-- try things out. Learn. When "hello world" works for the first time, stand back and be proud of your achievement, but don't stop there... seek to understand WHY it works, and think critically about what is happening underneath the covers. It's a tough process, but it's rewarding... you may not see the light at the end of the tunnel when you first start out on the journey, but the way out is through. It can be incredibly rewarding."

I stand behind this, and think it's good advice for aspiring developers.

--- JRJ

A hidden advantage of HDTV

jrj — Thu, 02 Feb 2006 11:45:00 GMT

I discovered a hidden advantage to having an HDTV: within 15 minutes of sending the invitation to your Super Bowl party, 100% of the invitees RSVP "yes."

Here's looking forward to Super Bowl Sunday in all its high definition glory... go Seahawks!

Welcome to the new jrjBlog!

jrj — Tue, 31 Jan 2006 00:13:00 GMT

As you may have noticed, a few things have changed around here. I've moved the jrjBlog to blogs.msdn.com as part of an overall site redesign. (The redesign hasn't happened yet, so don't get all worked up about the fact that this page looks like crap. Please excuse the dust during our construction!) I'm repurposing the jrj.org domain as a personal web page for my family, and refocusing the jrjBlog around a few key subjects. There were a ton of reasons for the blog move (which I will explain in depth in an article at some point) but the bottom line is that the Blogger software I was using didn't support categories and multiple feeds, and just wasn't able to support some of the directions I want to take the jrjBlog in the coming months.
Don't worry... all the old archives are still alive, and all the old permalinks still work. I'm not going to convert all the old posts to the new blogging software though, because it was really important to me to start with a clean slate because I'm lazy.

I mentioned before that I'm refocusing the jrjBlog... the blog will be a place for me to talk about my passions.

Computers and Software
At the core, I've always been a geek. I'm fascinated by the software industry, and not just because it's my career. My first "PC" was a Commodore Vic-20, and ever since then I've been hooked. Every time I think I'm getting bored with the software industry, a new revolution comes along that re-invigorates my passion, and nothing has ever had me more excited than the next wave of technologies from MS, including Windows Vista and the upcoming Office 12... it was enough to make me sell my company and come to work for Microsoft.

Personal Productivity
OK, I admit it... I'm a personal productivity geek. I've always been into tweaking my personal system, and am highly susceptible to "productivity porn." Admittedly, my work makes personal productivity something of a survival skill, but I have a real passion for the "meta work" of managing all the open loops in my life and work using a series of both digital and analog tools. The journey towards the elusive "perfect system" is just interesting to me as the system itself.

Digital Media
Convergence. As computers and software become more powerful, it's increasingly practical to move entertainment experiences (music, movies, television, etc.) into the digital domain, where they mix with your digital memories (photos, home movies, etc.) Anyone who has used a PVR, and has watched HDTV knows they can never go back.

Poker
I love the game of poker, and not just because there was a time in my life where it was the source of the majority of my income. I don't play as often as I used to, but I still find my way to a casino from time to time, and have been known to whittle away the late hours in front of my computer playing on-line. (To say nothing of my favorite home game, but that's just an excuse to hang out with a few close friends.) Now poker is just a hobby instead of a second job, but it's no less important to me.

One thing I want to make clear, though... even though I'm moving the jrjBlog to the MSDN blog site, this is still a personal blog. The opinions shared are my own, and don't reflect the views of my employer. In fact, any similarities between my opinions and Microsoft's are pure coincidence. :)

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the new blog-- I'm really excited about the opportunity to start out from a clean slate, and have a lot of stuff planned for the near future. Stay tuned!