Archive for the ‘Rants’ Category
Dojo and Javascript
Posted by: jeffro in Rants, Technology, Work on August 20th, 2006
I have been neck deep in the often misunderstood world of Javascript. We decided to use the Dojo framework to add some ‘bling’ to our new web app currently in production. I made some killer site designs and really wowed the management with everything I purported Dojo could do. Everything was approved and I was off to production to begin creating the templates that would become the oh-so familiar interface of our new customer service application.
I sensed something was wrong the first day I started full scale production. I was getting some really weird errors and I could never seem to ‘find’ my functions or variables. I thought it was probably just because I was a bit rusty at the ole’ Javascript, so I brushed it off and pushed forward. After a week of production and only one form done, it became screamingly apparent that there were major dificiencies in Dojo. Like the inability to reference namespaces in widgets, so I would have to cram everything into the global scope so the function calls could be found. The sheer amount of js code that is downloaded on every request. Sure, some of it is cached, but I never count on it. Other oddities began to creep up and I finally ended up scrapping alot of my stuff and doing it the old fashioned way. Pop open a window with a form and submit it normally. Finally I am making progress again. I will revisit Dojo in the future, right now I have to get the beta version of this software out the door. 
Buying windows
If you have every had any experience with buying new windows you will probably know what I am talking about here. We had a guy over to the house the other night and he gave us his whole song and dance about why we should buy his company’s windows. It was all well and good until he showed us the estimate for doing the windows and the install. Needless to say from the build-up, the estimate was _WAY_ higher than we were estimating. Like, in the twelve-thousand-too-high range. It wasn’t a trivial amount.
After aspirating an icecube and mumbling about pink elephants and corduroy pants for a few seconds I regained my composure. I politely told him that his estimate was downright insulting and to wait in the living room whilst I go upstairs to get the dueling pistols. He countered with his savvy sales-men like tactics of juggling bowling pins and snappy rhetoric about long since dead politicians. Not to be outdone, I rebutted with sheer brute logic and a mastery of the english language not seen since rainman. Baffled by my mumbling and inability to look up from the floor, the sales men countered with the most devious weapon in his arsenal, he lowered the price by one thousand dollars! Sweet buttered molasses! I was stunned! A thousand from way too much equals……carry the three…divide by pi..STILL too much damn money! Then he countered with the montly payments spread out the next 70 years. I had to admit the monthly payments weren’t bad if you looked at it in that light, but I didn’t think my sons children would much appreciate inheriting debit incurred by their grandfather over a house they’ve never seen.
I think it goes without saying that we didn’t buy any windows from the guy. In fact, we didn’t buy windows from anyone. After turning over all the couch cushions it turned out that we were far poorer than first anticipated.
Back in the saddle
We are back from a great vacation. I used up the remainder of my vacation time tho, so its going to be the last for the year. Considering that there is only one more month left in the year, it shouldn’t be too bad. It was almost hot at my parents house too, that is just wrong. For a place that routinely gets snow in early October, I shouldn’t be wearing shorts in late November when I go outside there.
Mer and I have ramped up production on finding a house. We _NEED_ to move. Period. It is really starting to effect us in odd ways. We considered moving back to Pittsburgh, but there is just too much potential here for me to go back to a vanilla development job again. Eastern Pennsylvania is still in our sights, just not sure exactly where yet. We are going out to look at some houses this weekend, we have our fingers crossed.
Wouldn’t do it if I didn’t love it
And another late night. But the end is in sight. Most decidedly. The meeting with the client has been set, Wednesday is the day we will be presenting this, emm, well, thingee, to the people that pay us money to develope this, ummm . . . stuff. There isn’t going to be much there, really. For the first round all we are doing is replicating the functionality of their original flat-file HR database. Now, the original HR employee database was amazing hack job that was pulled off by none other than, well, me. Then after they kept asking for more and more functionality, “we” talked them into upgrading the whole thing to a more enterprise class solution. They couldn’t beat the price, just let us keep supplying you with computers and we’ll whore out the programmer to you for free! Did we say whore!? We meant lend, yes, thats it.
I feel so used 
Its late and I will probably end up editing this post in the morning, when I am more rested…oh wait, that only if I actually get to sleep tonight. A sweet retirement, only 30 years away..
Housing prices
I am in the market for a house. These days it seems that everyone is either in the Realty business or is closely related to someone who is. Its a good market, lots of money, housing prices are high and there is pleanty of money to go around. Where is all the money coming from tho?
Have you been watching the news? Ever notice how much money China has been pumping into the US economy? Mainly in US Treasury Bonds, but they have had to consume enormous amounts to keep their currency fixed against the dollar. Which in turn has enabled the US to keep interest rates very low.
Hmm, whats the connection you might ask? China is under pressure from the US to raise the value of the Yuan against the American dollar, this makes for cheap Chinese good that they can then flood into the US market. (Don’t we all just love cheap stuff from China) Except if they raise the value of the yuan against the dollar it will have a profound impact on the interest rates. It already has in fact. Recently China bumped the exchange rate from 8.11 to 8.1097 and it had the immediate effect of moving the yield from a 10 year Treasure note from 4.16 percent to 4.28 percent.
This is not a good time to be buying a house in a bubble area, or own one in a bubble area for that matter.
