Monthly Archives: January 2010
Zig Zag Illusion by Robert Harbin
I have been collecting and performing magic since I was nine years old. However, when it comes to software my best advice is to avoid as much magic as you can. It is easy to think writing software that does all sorts of magicis a good thing. But after years of being burnt by such software I have come to the earth shattering conclusion that there is no place for magic in software.
The worst kind of software is code with multiple side-effects – it is a nightmare to maintain and never does quite enough magic to make it worthwhile. It doesn’t mean you can’t write useful scripts and routines that perform multiple tasks, but each task in the script needs to be spelled out rather than things happening “as if by magic.”
This revelation might seem obvious to many but for me it has really only been in the last five years that the truth has become crystal clear. These days I aim for simple and explicit code and although I like to think what I write is still cool, it is no longer magical.
iPhone 3GS
Motorola RAZR V3
2010 is clearly the year of upgrades.
I’m not a big cell phone user – I only use my cell phone for voice calls, no texts or emails and certainly no apps. I’ve had a trusty Razor (Motorola RAZR V3) for about four years now, and have been very happy with it. I had no plans on “upgrading” anytime soon.
For Christmas two of my best friends purchased an iPhone gift card for me and so I decided maybe now was the time to upgrade. My wife and kids were already on iPhones and Blackberrys, so how bad could it be?
I received my iPhone (3Gs 16GB) a few days ago and must admit if I had some spare time it does look pretty slick. The thought of having my music, photos, contacts, and easy access to emails and the web is quite interesting, not to mention all the cool apps that are available.
So far I have just synced up my iTunes and Outlook. I have not really customized it – my son offers every day to help me. I’m quite sure when I finally give into the potential I’ll be as wild about it as everyone else.
I’m not 100% sure having access to all the things that remind me of work all the time is a good thing, but we will see. You have to admit we’ve come a long way from my little Moto.