He makes you think

Posted on November 30, 2011 by Bryan

I’m a big Haruki Murakami fan. I recently started reading his latest book 1Q84. It’s a big book….about 1000 pages. While I’ve barely made a dent, I’ve already got the feeling that I have no idea what I’ve gotten myself into. After I read The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, my perception of everyday life changed. I instantly wanted to share the book and the experience with everyone. 1Q84 is the next step at opening my mind, and I think it’s the perfect book to challenge myself with at this time.

2011 is almost at an end. It has been a difficult year. A lot has happened with my family. My beliefs and commitments have been challenged. And through it, I feel like it’s been one of my most creative years. Tough times lead to suffering only if you let it. Being challenged physically, mentally and emotionally can open you up to the present moment and who you are deep at the core.

Posted in Moments |

AmtrackConnect

Posted on November 26, 2011 by Bryan

Oh free wifi, how you tease me so. I was thrilled to find that Amtrak finally installed wifi on many of the northeast corridor trains. Ideas started to swim around my head about what could be accomplished during the few uninterrupted hours I’d find myself with while traveling for the holiday. Unfortunately, while the network is easily detected….it’s not so easy to connect to. I got on once for five minutes and then spent the rest of the train ride trying to reconnect. Fair to say, I accomplished little, thanks AmtrakDisconnected.

Posted in Uncategorized |

Short Review: Mobile First by Luke Wroblewski

Posted on November 22, 2011 by Bryan

While not entirely what I expected, lukew gives readers a lot to think about when considering a mobile strategy. Since I’m more of a developer than a biz dev guy, I would have appreciated more technical examples. To the author’s credit, he did point out in the intro that Mobile First was not a technical book and the examples he did use perfectly illustrated the issues he wants website architects to consider. Overall, this book is a good primer for anyone new to thinking about the mobile web experience.

Posted in Web Development | Tagged |

Getting over SQL fears

Posted on November 21, 2011 by Bryan

Something about updating, altering and dropping tables in a database makes my palms sweat. With more practice, I’m hoping these fears fade, but for now, each time I execute anything other than a select, I imagine that I’m pushing a big red button.

After completing the SQL programming course, I’m feeling more confident. For instance, the other day, I performed an update on 2000 rows based on the results of a select. This is pretty basic stuff to a lot of developers, but for me, when it executed successfully, it gave me the same thrill as seeing “Hello, World!” on my first html web page.

This is part of why I love working on the web. There is always going to be something new to learn, and something that will always give you that exciting “I did it!” feeling.

Posted in Web Development | Tagged |

Keeping up with my mind

Posted on November 17, 2011 by Bryan

I’ve mentioned it before, I love to read and learn new things. I try to read across disciplines, since you never know what lessons you’ll learn from unexpected places. But I have a problem with keeping up with the ideas I get from everything I view and read. Mood boards, idea journals are great, but what good are they if that’s where the thoughts die? Maybe I should be reading more about putting ideas to action. Any suggestions?

Posted in Uncategorized |

Ouch, that hurt

Posted on October 20, 2011 by Bryan

I’ve been hearing all this buzz about your “klout” score. I didn’t pay it much mind. But then yesterday, I attended Mashery’s The Business of the API conference. It was only a one day event, but it was packed with great presenters talking about what makes a good API and how to make developers happy and encourage them to use your data (if you want them to). One of the presenters was from Klout, and then other presenters mentioned Klout, so I have to rush home and get my score. Now I never felt like I was putting myself out there as an influencer, but I do feel like I know what I’m doing and talking about. Seeing such a low score was not only eye-opening, but also a challenge to see what it takes to earn a few more points and move up from “feeder.” Wish me luck.

Posted in Uncategorized |

Roosevelt Island Small Pox Hospital

Posted on October 9, 2011 by Bryan

Today is one of those days when I wish I had my camera with me while out for a run. The south end of Roosevelt Island in NYC has been under construction for quiet some time. At the end of the island is a Small Pox Hospital, known as the Renwick Ruin. As I approached the south end of the island, I was happy to see the pedestrian gate was open, so I ventured in. I was surprised to find a beautiful park with paved paths that make their way right up to the ruins. The paths wind through wild flower gardens with benches throughout. I think the park is a memorial of some sort, and from what I saw today, a nice addition to an island that still feels like one of NYC’s best kept secrets.

Posted in Moments | Tagged |

SQL in the morning

Posted on October 8, 2011 by Bryan

Nothing like a little SQL with your morning coffee. Today is the third session if the SQL course I’m taking. So far it has been mostly review, but it’s been a good refresher. This week I had to write a lot of queries at work, but the timing would not have been more appropriate.

A question I will have to ask my instructor….from a performance perspective, is it more efficient to perform transforms using function on the values in SQL or with the server side script?

Posted in Web Development | Tagged |

Finding time, having fun

Posted on October 5, 2011 by Bryan

Side projects are important. I know this, and I have lots of ideas I want to explore. But it always comes down to finding time. I’ve tried to assign myself to-dos and create events in my calendar, but when the assignments are for personal projects and growth, it is so easy to put them off, reschedule or just ignore. Giving myself an assignment is work. When it comes to my day job, I’m focused and efficient. I make sketches and organize all the pieces of the project. While I could do the same for personal projects, it takes away the fun. For myself, I create and build, but without a finished project or goal in mind. One day, something may materialize, but for now, I’m having fun while learning and I want to find more time to keep playing.

Posted in Uncategorized |

Deeper into SQL

Posted on September 25, 2011 by Bryan

In my daily job, I deal with a lot of SQL code. For the most part, I am fine with the select statement. It’s the update, alter, delete statements that trigger the paranoid side of my brain which tells me I’m about to make a big, serious error I will never be able to recover from….ever.

So I decided to take a class, and it started yesterday. While I know there is a ton of information on the web and in books, sometimes nothing can replace being forced to focus on one topic for 4 hours on a Saturday morning.

One of the problems I face is knowing the current SQL code I work with is slow and inefficient, but lacking the language to talk about the problem with other developers. While I’m confident I’ll learn what I need to do to improve the queries, I’m hoping to also gain the skills to talk about the code.

Posted in Web Development | Tagged |