Eclipse (eclipse.org) is no-install, just drop it into a directory and run it.
Java is a reasonably widespread run-time environment, though as a language, it may not fit the bill for "tinkering." Eclipse supports other languages, too.
If you're looking for a lightweight web container, try Jetty. No installation required, and you can run your own J2EE application (again, if that's "tinkering").
But yes, on your own dime is probably good advice. Look for ways to improve your value to the company. Start with the traditional: learn to do your boss's job (with her/his knowledge, of course).
I've found two screens invaluable at work -- try opening an IDE, browser(s), database, code repository, etc. on one screen... no. If you're willing to lug the weight, it sounds great. I wouldn't want to travel with it (and my wife REALLY wouldn't want to travel with it), but I would consider it for "limited mobility" use.
With that many cores, it sounds powerful enough to usefully run a database & web server; and connectivity these days is such that you could well have those available on your wireless network anyway.
Dilbert's Garbage Man. "Who would throw away a perfectly good robot, when all it needs is a neuro-spectrum field calibration?" "You can borrow my __X__ [time machine,...]." But yes, Asok and Alice are up there.
Might work for a while, but probably not longer term. "Available" doesn't mean "looked at," so anyone who might get caught will probably be OK until they irk someone who knows about the program.
Is it just me, or does anyone else have a hard time believing that anyone (that reads/.) spends THAT much time "coding" HTML, that dealing with a compressed format... which will surely go over well with one's colleagues... and is a good candidate for a code-obfuscation contest... would be useful?
"Who here doesn't think a TNG-style Holodeck would lead to the downfall of our civilization?"
Don't forget: Lt. Barclay (the one who was always in some sorry circumstance -- turned into a giant spider, or whatever) eventually managed to pull himself out of that trap. If he can do it, so can Humanity!
"How it was" -- when the value of the system was concentrated in the hardware. The whole system was set up to serve the most valuable part, and software was seen as "directions to run the hardware" -- important, one supposed, but not the showy part. With commodity hardware, the value is in the bits and bytes now.
My experience:
1. Find out what's important to HER. For instance, birthdays never seemed a big deal to me, but she likes a little bit of a celebration -- nothing fancy, mind, but a few ribbons here & there.
2. Listen beyond the words. Something that doesn't usually bother her might get to her sometimes; find out why she was unhappy to start with. Work, relationship, family,...
3. Do something unexpected and nice once in a while.
4. Trust her. I know it sounds obvious, but I was hesitant to tell her about some things first. I did, anyway, and eventually found that it's much less a big deal when you're in it together.
Good luck!
Agreed. Using odometers to track mileage gets them the information they need, and not the information more subject to abuse, at less cost.
The federal government doesn't need to track individual cars, just the aggregate. Lots of state DOTs already do that, with standard traffic-analysis tools. Why build more bureaucracy?
Yahoo! has a handy page (http://developer.yahoo.com/performance/) with lots of good info. It includes YSlow (a Firefox add-on), a set of "Best Practices," and some good research. Also references a couple of O'Reilly books (which, to be fair, I haven't read).
More specifically, CSS sprites (see http://www.alistapart.com/articles/sprites/) and consolidating Javascript may be back (reducing HTTP requests), and a few other things that may surprise or inform.
Buy the Home Despot or Black & Decker book, learn some new skills. You will save a ton, and can use those skills next time around. (Words of warning: read the explanations first, especially for plumbing and electrical, and check into permits/inspections. And draw good diagrams -- it'll pay off handsomely in short order.)
If your IT department is getting their act together, you might be able to sell management on CMMI or similar certification (e.g., ISO). That's an external standard with a demonstrable (or at least quite plausible) ROI. That may be a little process-heavy for your taste, but it's something.
That sounds sensible. Like some other respondents here, I got into the field around age 30. I picked up an MS in Computer Science, which I recommend (night school), while working in the industry. I had some CS training in college and worked as a programmer in a field I was well acquainted with, both of which helped. Getting some broad experience looks good on a resume and will inform and help direct your career search later. (And btw, a LOT of people use Excel, so it pays to have a good feel for it.)
Further advice: pay attention to "best practices." They're the difference between a well-trained amateur and a professional. For instance, professionals will: spend enough time on design; refactor early and often; test earlier and oftener (built-in regression tests help, along the lines of XUnit); and remain open to new ideas.
Slashdot Mirror
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118884/quotes
Why build one, when you can build two at twice the price?
Eclipse (eclipse.org) is no-install, just drop it into a directory and run it. Java is a reasonably widespread run-time environment, though as a language, it may not fit the bill for "tinkering." Eclipse supports other languages, too. If you're looking for a lightweight web container, try Jetty. No installation required, and you can run your own J2EE application (again, if that's "tinkering"). But yes, on your own dime is probably good advice. Look for ways to improve your value to the company. Start with the traditional: learn to do your boss's job (with her/his knowledge, of course).
$269/yr, though that may have gone up for newer subscribers. (http://www.corcell.com/)
I've found two screens invaluable at work -- try opening an IDE, browser(s), database, code repository, etc. on one screen... no. If you're willing to lug the weight, it sounds great. I wouldn't want to travel with it (and my wife REALLY wouldn't want to travel with it), but I would consider it for "limited mobility" use. With that many cores, it sounds powerful enough to usefully run a database & web server; and connectivity these days is such that you could well have those available on your wireless network anyway.
Dilbert's Garbage Man. "Who would throw away a perfectly good robot, when all it needs is a neuro-spectrum field calibration?" "You can borrow my __X__ [time machine, ...]." But yes, Asok and Alice are up there.
Maybe the FBI would be more interested...
Why not send the data to "law enforcement" in real-time, and let them worry about storing it?
... Without that connectivity, it's a doorstop (and a light-weight one at that, so it doesn't even do very good at blocking a door open).
You're thinking Douglas Adams here. "Paperweight" is the traditional term, though you don't see as many these days.
Might work for a while, but probably not longer term. "Available" doesn't mean "looked at," so anyone who might get caught will probably be OK until they irk someone who knows about the program.
Is it just me, or does anyone else have a hard time believing that anyone (that reads /.) spends THAT much time "coding" HTML, that dealing with a compressed format... which will surely go over well with one's colleagues... and is a good candidate for a code-obfuscation contest... would be useful?
"Who here doesn't think a TNG-style Holodeck would lead to the downfall of our civilization?" Don't forget: Lt. Barclay (the one who was always in some sorry circumstance -- turned into a giant spider, or whatever) eventually managed to pull himself out of that trap. If he can do it, so can Humanity!
... the money to the users who suffered damage?
"How it was" -- when the value of the system was concentrated in the hardware. The whole system was set up to serve the most valuable part, and software was seen as "directions to run the hardware" -- important, one supposed, but not the showy part. With commodity hardware, the value is in the bits and bytes now.
My experience: 1. Find out what's important to HER. For instance, birthdays never seemed a big deal to me, but she likes a little bit of a celebration -- nothing fancy, mind, but a few ribbons here & there. 2. Listen beyond the words. Something that doesn't usually bother her might get to her sometimes; find out why she was unhappy to start with. Work, relationship, family, ...
3. Do something unexpected and nice once in a while.
4. Trust her. I know it sounds obvious, but I was hesitant to tell her about some things first. I did, anyway, and eventually found that it's much less a big deal when you're in it together.
Good luck!
Agreed. Using odometers to track mileage gets them the information they need, and not the information more subject to abuse, at less cost.
The federal government doesn't need to track individual cars, just the aggregate. Lots of state DOTs already do that, with standard traffic-analysis tools. Why build more bureaucracy?
Don't forget: this is a GOVERNMENT program. Remember digital TV? By the time it's implemented, your "'65 Porsche" will be a 2065 Porsche.
Yahoo! has a handy page (http://developer.yahoo.com/performance/) with lots of good info. It includes YSlow (a Firefox add-on), a set of "Best Practices," and some good research. Also references a couple of O'Reilly books (which, to be fair, I haven't read).
More specifically, CSS sprites (see http://www.alistapart.com/articles/sprites/) and consolidating Javascript may be back (reducing HTTP requests), and a few other things that may surprise or inform.
Buy the Home Despot or Black & Decker book, learn some new skills. You will save a ton, and can use those skills next time around. (Words of warning: read the explanations first, especially for plumbing and electrical, and check into permits/inspections. And draw good diagrams -- it'll pay off handsomely in short order.)
"Agile Methodologies" = OK, maybe (management's answer). "Lightweight processes," ditto, if you can convince them that there is a process.
"Extreme Programming" = skateboarding, and btw your urinalysis appointment is in 10 minutes.
If your IT department is getting their act together, you might be able to sell management on CMMI or similar certification (e.g., ISO). That's an external standard with a demonstrable (or at least quite plausible) ROI. That may be a little process-heavy for your taste, but it's something.
That sounds sensible. Like some other respondents here, I got into the field around age 30. I picked up an MS in Computer Science, which I recommend (night school), while working in the industry. I had some CS training in college and worked as a programmer in a field I was well acquainted with, both of which helped. Getting some broad experience looks good on a resume and will inform and help direct your career search later. (And btw, a LOT of people use Excel, so it pays to have a good feel for it.)
Further advice: pay attention to "best practices." They're the difference between a well-trained amateur and a professional. For instance, professionals will: spend enough time on design; refactor early and often; test earlier and oftener (built-in regression tests help, along the lines of XUnit); and remain open to new ideas.
Good luck.