rich web experience nfjs - ajax vs dhtml

Ok, now I have a yelling obscenities post...... since when did DHTML get re branded as AJAX? I have heard several people talking about simply changing the DOM and that is AJAX? Where is the async part? Where is the xml? Oh well, maybe I am a bit anal. It is really a bit of a semantic thing, but it seems to rub me the wrong way.

rich web experience nfjs

My first session was a success. I went to the Killer Javascript Framework session by David Geary. It was a good high level over view of prototype, script.aculo.us, and rico. I had not heard of Rico before and am excited to use some of its features.

Well, more later. Eating lunch now.

The rich web experience nfjs

Well, nothing really makes me yell obscentities here. Really it is a great conference and we are having a lot of fun. Google, Yahoo, Redhat, Sun, Adobe and a dude from Microsoft (silverlight). A pretty cool group of guys and some great free stuff. I will blog more through out the week.

Family

It makes me want to yell obscenities having to deal with family. A saying I heard years ago sums it up; "You can pick your friends, but you are stuck with your family." I have so much to say on this subject, but I must be careful. This is one of those subjects that I should probably keep my mouth shut about......but that is no fun! I will, however, stay a little on the vague side.

I am sure that all of you have your favorite and not so favorite family members. The ones I am focusing on are the not so favorite ones. You know, the ones I am talking about. They know everything that is best for you and are quick to point out all the places in your life that you screw up. I am sure they have the best intentions (or do they?), but it is annoying all the same. Let me live my life and learn from my own mistakes.

Feel free to share your family annoyances.......

Lack Of Respect For Others

It makes me want to yell obscenities when people have no respect for others. In the last post, I mentioned my wifes car being vandalized. I yelled and screamed obscenities at the world over this. Obviously, a Ford Mustang isn't a high dollar car but it is my wifes favorite. She customized it with accessories, had some artwork painted on it, did the personalized license plate, etc. It is her baby.

We don't have a lot of money, but we do ok. We take care of our things that we do have so they will last. I was raised this way. Another thing that was ingrained in me from an early age is respect for others in all aspects of life. Basically, live and let live.

So, here we come to my frustration. As you read in my last post, someone sliced the mustangs convertable top to shreds. They didn't steal anything and it appears that they didn't even try to rummage through the car. Simply an act of pure nasty vandalism. What is the point? Do people think that, by doing things like this, that it will somehow make them feel better? If it was that nurse aide, do they think that they will get their job back? Or that it will make up for loosing their job? I will go out on a limb here and say that all it did was cause us some frustration, a little lost time and money, and a whole lot of loss of trust in humanity.

Again, I live my life by certain values. I want to live in my space, take care of my family and hopefully have a little fun along the way. So, please, have respect for others!

Do your job!

It makes me want to yell obscenities when people don't perform at their respective jobs. Bottom line? You and your employer entered into a contract with a basic agreement. You work, they pay you. Pretty simple!

Recently, my wife took a position as an RN at a nursing home. She has several nurse aides that work for/with her to take care of the patients. Pretty easy work, just make sure the patients have what they need, take their vital signs, administer their medication, etc. She was working the night shift, so even easier. Most patients are asleep during these hours. Ok, now we get to my frustration.... Most of the nurse aides are asleep during these hours as well! These aides accepted the job to work, not sleep. You need to be awake to answer calls from patients, take vital signs at certain times, etc. Do your job!!!!! My wife has had to wake up the aides over and over just to get them to assist her in doing THEIR job. See, my wife is not one of these nurses that will just sit while the aides do everything. She works with the aides and expects them to work with her.

Well, she really made an aide mad the other night. "I'll get up and do that when I feel like it" was the response she got when she simply asked if the aide had the vital sign sheet for her to sign. This particular aide made a huge scene over it and over the course of the next day or so did end up being fired. Well, through the course of all these events, my wife got her convertible top on her car slashed. There is no proof that is was that aide that did it, but it is awful coincidental! That brings up the next blog post, but you'll just have to wait for that.

Politics

It makes me want to yell obscenities when I hear all the political bantering today. Right wing, left wing, moderate, liberal, conservative..... It's all a bunch of garbage. If people would just put aside their own ambitions and just listen then we could get along. Most peoples anger and bickering come from lack of understanding of the other sides position. Listen! Hear what the others have to say. You will find that we disagree much less than you originally thought. We all want a better world, prosperity, and overall happiness. Just stop and listen!

Bug Reports

It makes me want to yell obscenities when I receive extremely vague bug reports. For example, "The font sizes on the toolbar are not the same." OK, that is true. Is this a problem? If so, should they be the same? What size should they be? That is just one example of the horrid bug reports that I get here at work. I don't mind fixing things, but please, be specific!!

Should

It makes me want to yell obscenities when software requirements have the word 'should' in them. Something like, "The button should open a new window". Should? Does this mean it doesn't have to? Or it can if it feels like it? Should is just too vague, and more like advice then a requirement. I should quit smoking, but I am not going to today!

Winter

It makes me want to yell obscenities when winter seems to drag on forever. I am so ready for it to be summer! I am tired of being cold, having to wear winter coats, and did I mention being cold!?!? It is ironic, though. I grew up in Alaska where the winters were bitter and lasted for what seemed like forever. Now I am in Oklahoma. I have been spoiled by these mild winters and now I whine like a little girl when it gets below freezing. Well, at least the groundhog said it will be an early spring! :-)

Blogs

It makes me want to yell obscenities when I hear the word 'blog'. I hate blogs! I swore I would never have one! Why would anyone care what I write about? Well, I should be more specific.... I hate blogs about nothing. You know the ones I am talking about. I am talking about blogs just like this one!