Random: Google Weather API November 23, 2009

Get the weather in your app using Google:

• Weather API documentation (sort of) http://blog.emerick.org/2008/05/07/google-weather-api-feed-documentation/

Office: Reading Word Documents November 23, 2009

• Visual Studio Tools for Office (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_Studio_Tools_for_Office)
  • Word Object Model Overview

    (http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/kw65a0we(VS.100).aspx)

  • Structure of a Word Document
    (http://www.linguistics.ucsb.edu/faculty/cumming/WordForLinguists/Index.htm)
• Apache POI Java Library (http://poi.apache.org/)

Search: Search Engines for CD/DVD November 20, 2009

Search engines for files on a CD/DVD:

• Search Maker Pro (http://www.searchmakerpro.com/index.html)
• Zoom Search (http://www.wrensoft.com/zoom/)
• Adobe Catalog (http://help.adobe.com/en_US/Acrobat/9.0/Professional/WS58a04a822e3e50102bd615109794195ff-7c36.w.html)

 

YAGNI November 17, 2009

You ain’t gonna need it
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/YAGNI

Energy: Game Console Power Consumption November 15, 2009

Power consumption of games consoles. Wii wins.

• Wii  <20W – the green option
• XBox360 ~185W
• PS3 ~195W
• PC ~200W

See http://www.hardcoreware.net/xbox-360-ps3-wii-power-consumption/2/

Random: Tree Generation November 15, 2009

Algorithmic Botany

http://algorithmicbotany.org/

Energy: Piezo Leaf November 15, 2009

Flapping Piezo-Leaf Generator for Wind Energy Harvesting

http://ccsl.mae.cornell.edu/node/116

BizTalk: Continuous Integration November 13, 2009

This sample code outlines how to set up Continuous Integration, Automated Unit Tests, and to create an MSI Package using Team Foundation Server 2008 (TFS) with BizTalk Server 2009.

Setting Up Continuous Integration, Unit Tests, and MSI Creation in BizTalk 2009 Sample Code
http://www.biztalkgurus.com/media/p/23834.aspx

 

SCRUM: Resources and Comments November 13, 2009

Resources

• Scrum Wiki (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrum_(development))
• It’s about common sense (http://www.controlchaos.com/about/index.php)

Criticism

• http://www.codeinstructions.com/search/label/Agile

Personal View

I like:

• Visibility of tasks (typically on a whiteboard)
• The concept of task ownership – taking on tasks as and when you can
• The sprint – keeps the team well focussed

I dislike:

• Micro focus – the team can lose sight of the big picture
• Say something, say anything – sometimes there isn’t much to say in a daily stand up and it’s excrutiating to go round finding out what people are doing especially if they are immersed in a long task. This is probably something to do with…
• Scrum size - I have been involved in mega Scrums with far too many people in the circle. Whatever happened to the Scrum of Scrums?
• Ego – Some people just say too much

SCRUM: VSTS 2008 November 10, 2009

SCRUM Template for Visual Studio Team System
http://www.codeplex.com/VSTSScrum