Google’s G2 – Interface is not so intuitive

Posted on December 12, 2009 by viulian.
Categories: WTF.

Let’s assume that you brought a Google G2 phone.
Let’s also assume this common action: from the Menu, you launch an application.

Which of these three buttons will take you to the main menu ?

  1. ‘Menu’ button
  2. ‘Back’ button
  3. ‘Home’ button

In case you did not know the answer, the correct alternative is nr. 3. ‘Home’ button always takes you to the phone’s desktop. The ‘Menu’ button only brings back the application menu – which usually is named ‘Options’ or ‘Settings’ etc. The ‘Back’ button – oh well – this depends on context.

That’s why I love Nokia …

Sunset over the ocean.

Posted on November 29, 2009 by viulian.
Categories: Paintings.

Today I felt like painting again.

As I’m beginner, I’ve looked something easy to reproduce – gradients (I still need to learn to mix colors properly).

The source image is taken from here: http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1414/695463642_f359c200a2.jpg

695463642_f359c200a2 IMG_2028

But I didn’t use edge detects, or paper underneath. I don’t think I got anything right, but I don’t care. Moving all along …

I thought J2EE programming is a mess….

Posted on by viulian.
Categories: Coding.

I’ve been programming J2EE software for many years now. However, I came a long way. From assembly programming (I’ve programmed a small boot-able code, from floppy, with a command prompt – back in the years), but just then my mom was kind enough to buy me a K6-2 266Mhz processor and upgrade the 386 AMD on which I was working on. Eheh.

As years went by, I passed to Perl, Java, PHP, etc .. , *nix administration, j2me, JNI, eeetc and now – I’m working only on J2EE, only here and there maintaining some forums / blogs in PHP.

What I dislike about J2EE is that just a simple form on web needs >20Mb of jars and libraries just to get it going. This seems a huge amount of code (zipped!) just there – as compare to, you know, 48kb games on Z80 that were keeping you hours in front of the TV.

But I just realized in fact the beauty of it. How ?

I am experienced in interacting with legacy databases, Oracle / Informix. I know how to tackle complex systems (or at least I believe I know – but as “Tao of programming” puts it, only Tao is perfect). So I am pretty much drawn on investigating alternatives to monster DBs, and lately I’ve been trying to investigate NoSQL movement. I said that maybe if I can convert and existing open source application (using MySQL / Postgres) to NoSQL (I’ve chose Redis – seemed the most friendlier to me), in the past few days I investigated what source code to modify.

So far I checked SMF (Simplemachines’s php forum), Wordpress (php blogger) and JForum (j2ee forum). What I found disturbing is that the code is littered with SQL code. Everywhere SQL code! Search the code for “select *” and tens of files contain it!

Not to mention that is seems impossible to work with two data sources at the same time (I planned to move only small bits to NoSQL and, as i was building up intuition, to move on the bigger tables, like the posts table or the users table).

It is disappointing … compared to the monster applications based on J2EE, with legacy databases, huge set of business rules and so on … wow, those applications have one thing in common. No matter how many SQLs you want to have, it’s everything into one place. ONE place. Only a couple of files contain everything that is needed… I need to change a query, I go into the mapping files and I do it. As simple as that.

So ibatis (for legacy databases) and ibator are a powerful combination.

I think I will continue to study NoSQL for these open source projects, even if I will end up with a mess of code. It seems to be messy anyway.

Do you think the future belongs to the ‘Cloud’ ?

Posted on November 27, 2009 by viulian.
Categories: Philosophy.

I lost my trust in the ‘Network’ when my sites were wiped out in the VAServe LTD incident. Cloud to the rescue! But some how, the promise of redundancy and high availability of the ‘Cloud’ doesn’t do the trick for me.

I see everybody mentioning the ‘Cloud’, how easy is to deploy everything, how easy is to maintain, or how easy is to have all your documents in one location, available from everywhere, backed up, etc.

On the other hand, I know that people are very individualistic. Given the chance, they move out of the campuses and buy a house. Given the chance, they will stop going to the Post Office to make phone calls by installing one at home. People need control over the stuff they use do every day. Of course, there are exceptions, people have to go to Hospital when they have problems, but still keep a small pharmacy in house, just in case.

Your online space (either public or not) is rented to you (get access if paying) and is not private property.

Hence, if I apply the same independence metaphor to the ‘Cloud’, I believe that given advancements in storage hardware (fast, reliable, cheap) coupled with high speed LAN and WAN networks – everybody will start to use their own hosted small clouds, in house, and not shared with thousands.

Right now the ‘Cloud’ solves some problems that you face when dealing with day to day issues:

  • hardware is difficult to maintain and is costly both due to time and money (paperwork / approvals / money / contracts).
  • software is not easy to maintain (bugs, security vulnerabilities, administrators, trained personnel)
  • spam is hard to fight against

Thus, I applaud the monster feat that the ‘Cloud’ companies created / manage. However, I feel that given the right circumstances people will choose to have their online profile as a private property than shared in the ‘Cloud’. This didn’t happen for electricity (still far more cheaper to buy electricity than to operate your own generator). But related to hardware, people already did the switch from mainframes to personal computers once.

The cycle starts again.

Granada in Aquarelle

Posted on by viulian.
Categories: Paintings.

I’ve started to paint. Didn’t do it in the past … let’s say… 25 years!

Here’s the first result:

Original Aquarelle

Hehe.

But I cheated a bit :D

a) Edge detect in GIMP.
b) Print on A4.
c) Put the A4 page underneath the painting paper.
d) Paint!

Is fun, it fills like being a child again …

Aleea Botanistelor

Posted on April 10, 2009 by viulian.
Categories: Azi am fost puţin cinic.

Cand nu prea ai ce face, plecat fiind in strainatate, incepi sa faci trucaje la poze :D (e generalizat, dar mi se aplica doar mie!)

Iata originalul (multumesc dl. Escu – fotografie facuta in Gradina Botanica)

Aleea Botanistilor

Aleea Botanistilor

Asa ca imi manifestai si eu frustrarea singuratatii:

Aleea Botanistelor

Aleea Botanistelor

Heheeee…

Blondele din Alicante

Posted on March 31, 2009 by viulian.
Categories: Alicante.

In Romania, cand vezi de departe o blonda, slaba, ingrijita, frumoasa, delicata… stii sigur ca are 15 ani.

Aici, are 60-15.

'Spread your wings and fly fly through the starry night'

Posted on March 29, 2009 by viulian.
Categories: Alicante.

A pure happy hardcore remix of the original ‘2 Brothers on the 4th Floor – Fly’:

Please enable Javascript and Flash to view this Flash video.

Come on lift your head high
Reaching out for the sky
Spread your wings out and fly right through the starry night
You’re unique, you’re o.k.
Never must be afraid
Spread your wings out and fly right through the starry night.
Through the starry night. (2x)

Originalul este aici.

Varianta originala… mai include si versurile:

Now put your dancing shoes on.
It’s time to realize you can rise to the top.
Now don’t you ever stop.
Sometimes in live when you feel like giving up.
You got to keep your head up.
Be the best you can.
Strive in your live to make a masterplan.

Cat ma pot regasi in ele… mi se pare ca am facut un atat de mare salt, incat nu-mi vine sa cred.

Ma bucur cat pot – pana va interveni plictisul :)

Gucci sau 'Toate produsele la 10 RON' ?

Posted on March 22, 2009 by viulian.
Categories: Alicante.

Unul din primele lucruri care m-au busculat aici in Alicante, este cat de frumos si cu bun gust se imbraca oamenii. Cand mergi pe strada, seara sau Duminica, toti sunt imbracati bine si parfumati. O placere sa te invarti printre oameni normali dar imbracati bine. Blugii nu sunt la moda, doar motociclistii ii poarta, sau cei saracuti.

Dar daca stau si ma gandesc, la parterul blocurilor aici nu gasesti ‘toate produsele la 10ron’ ci Gucci / Dolce & Gabana / Versace, samd … comparativ cu Bucuresti unde nu dai de ele decat in magazinele de lux.

Asa ca una din cele mai mari deosebiri intre Spania si Romania este ca spaniolii se respecta. Serviciile sunt scumpe, dar asta inseamna ca vanzatorii, receptionerii, functionarii – mai tot ce inseamna cei implicati in servicii pentru clienti – ei bine, toti isi permit si ei sa-si cumpere lucruri bune. Si cum toata lumea este platita bine, isi permit atunci ragazul de a avea cu adevarat grija de ei. Mult mai putin stressati, foarte comunicativi sau detasati, par a se gandi doar la vacanta de vara si nu la problemele cotidiene.

Cand pleaca de la servici se opresc intr-un bar, un pub aparte pe care strainii nu-l cunosc si nici nu intra, galagios, niste tejghele lungi pe de o parte si de alta unde se sta in picioare la o bere si niste alune – asta inainte de a servi cina la un alt restaurant sau acasa.

Spre deosebire de Romania unde de la munca toti alearga spre casa pentru a gasi un pic de normalitate comparativ cu stressul de la munca, nebunia din trafic si banii putini. Incredibil cata ‘civilizatie’ poate creea banul. Incredibil cata animalicitate si dorinta de a razbi creeaza lipsa lui – cata lupta pentru imaginea de sine, si cata putina atentie pentru sine.

Cred ca incapatanarea de a ‘razbi’ se citeste cel mai mult pe chipul femeilor, in Romania. Multe inabordabile, crispate, imbracate ori ostentativ ori exagerat de bine – reci insa, de zici ca se ocupa de Banca Mondiala si de criza lumii, nu de cum sa-si numere putinii bani care le mai raman. Aici insa nu e asa. Femeile sunt relaxate, zambesc, te saluta, sunt curioase… nu viseaza la milionari sau la ceva / cineva care sa le scoata din monotonie si sa le ofere lumea la picioare. Par a dori sa se simta bine, sa se relaxeze, fara privirea de jucator de poker la mai toate tipele pe care le vedeam in metrou in Bucuresti.

Apropos de Metrou in Bucuresti – jumate din calatori asculta muzica la casti. Aici n-am vazut asa ceva. Toata lumea are telefoane normale, am calatorit o gramada cu mijloacele de transport in comun si n-am vazut iphone la nimeni. Asta nu inseamna ca sunt saraci. Doar ca fiecare pare multumit cu ceea ce are, fara sa simta nevoia de ‘competitie’ cu cei din jurul lui.

Romanii sunt inca prinsi in ideea de ‘trebuie sa arat ca am’ pe cand spaniolii par prinsi in ideea de ‘abia astept sa ma simt bine, si nu de telefon depinde asta, ci de prietenii cu care o sa plec intr-o excursie’.

Primul Ness in Alicante

Posted on by viulian.
Categories: Alicante.

Eheeee,

A trecut o saptamana si o zi de cand am ajuns in Alicante.

Imi cer scuze fata de toti care au asteptat vesti de la mine. Mi-am uitat incarcatorul de la laptop acasa, si a trebuit sa comand un altul de pe internet (m-am grabit, Duminica trecuta cand am comandat) deoarece puteam sa cumpar Luni un incarcator generic (de la super market) dar na, disperarea m-a facut sa comand unul original de pe net. A sosit abia Joi.. si de aceea n-am fost pe net.

Si dupa cateva alergaturi, am apartament inchiriat in care m-am mutat ieri, am net, am ceva mancarica in frigider si strictul necesar de haine si cosmetice asa ca imi facui si eu un Ness si am postat primul post pe blog legat de viata in Spania.

Voi mai posta o gramada :) totul este nou, asemanator cu Romania, dar muuult mult mai multa normalitate aici.

Iata si pozele facute in primele zile: http://hex.ro/gallery/v/spania/alicante-pics-first-week/

[daca vreti o experienta frumoasa la navigarea pozelor, recomand instalarea CoolIris - merge pentru Internet Explorer / Firefox, se downloadeaza de aici: http://www.cooliris.com/ - iar pe Hex.ro exista suport pentru asa ceva]