It is official :- I am a MacDaddy

It has been almost three weeks since I purchased my Mac Book Pro, and I LOVE IT!!!!!!

Just for a little more background information on me, I hate spending money on myself.  I think that I may have some kind of complex or something.  Around Christmas time last year, I was debating purchasing a Mac.  I went to the store, played around with one or two, had the concierge service help me out with using it, and lost my nerve and walked out empty handed.  Not this Christmas. I literally got up out of bed and headed straight to the Apple store and purchased my Mac before I lost my nerve.

However, after doing some reflecting, I now realize that I should have been using a Mac all along.  I was getting to the point where I was adding tweaks to my Windows system so that it looked and behaved like a Mac.  For example, I installed the following software on my Windows so that it simulated a more Mac kind of feel.

• RocketDock - Dock bar for Windows
  
• Cygwin - Linux / Shell emulator for Windows
  
• VirtuaWin - Multiple Desktops
• Launchy - Allows for the launching of applications through shortcut keys

Now that I have a Mac, I do not need these applications anymore.  These features come standard.

Although it has not been all roses converting over to a Mac, more on that later, I have to say that I am definitely enjoying my new machine and the features that it has to offer.

Nifty little Java trick...

In Java, there are many times when you have to deal with collections.  The code that is required in order to build a collection can be pretty cumbersome and usually follows the following pattern:

List strList = new ArrayList;
strList.add("1");
strList.add("2");
strList.add("3");

This code above can easily be changed to one line of code as such:

List strList = Arrays.asList("1", "2", "3");

I have found this little trick especially useful when writing unit tests.

If you plan on using this test in production level code, then you should be aware that creating a list in this fashion, does not allow for editing the list later. Instead, you should wrap the newly formed list in a constructor like so:

List strList = new ArrayList(Arrays.asList("1", "2", "3"));

Enjoy...

Grand Rapids BarCamp 2009

Grand Rapids Barcamp 2009 starts tonight!!!

Unfortunately, this is going to be the first BarCamp that I will not be attending.  I was really looking forward to going, but I cannot work it into the schedule.  I hope that everyone has a great time tonight and tomorrow....

Congratulations Google!!!!

Finally after 5 years....Gmail is finally out of Beta......

Now I can finally start using Gmail....hehehehehe

Do you think that people really waited for it to get out of beta before they created a Gmail account?

Eclipse Templates - Iterating Over a Map

Here is another code template. This one, I cannot take the credit for, but I have added it to my toolbox of great Eclipse Templates. It will give you the ability to iterate over a Map using the Map.Entry. Enjoy:

for (Iterator<Map.Entry<${type},${type2}>> it = ${variableName:var(java.util.Map)}.entrySet().iterator(); it.hasNext();) {  
    Map.Entry<${type},${type2}> entry = it.next();  
       ${type} key = entry.getKey();  
       ${type2} value = entry.getValue();  
       // do something with the key and the value  
}

Eclipse Templates - Jakarta Commons ToString, HashCode, Equals

Hey everyone,

I just wanted to take the time to share with you a code template that I created that has been very helpful in a project that I am currently working on. This template will give you the ability to create the toString(), equals(), hashCode() methods using the Jakarta Commons library. Enjoy:

${:import(org.apache.commons.lang.builder.EqualsBuilder,org.apache.commons.lang.builder.HashCodeBuilder,org.apache.commons.lang.builder.ReflectionToStringBuilder)}
@Override
public boolean equals(Object obj) {
return EqualsBuilder.reflectionEquals(this, obj);
}

@Override
public String toString() {
return ReflectionToStringBuilder.toString(this);
}

@Override
public int hashCode() {
return HashCodeBuilder.reflectionHashCode(this);
}

Code Retreat - Hope I can make it.

Okay, okay, okay. I admit it. I am a huge geek. Because of that, this announcement sounds too cool to pass up. Let's see if I will be able to attend or not:

Greetings!

Are you a programmer who is serious about improving your craft? Do you love coding with others who feel the same way? Do you spend too much time toiling in thankless corporate legacy-code saltmines? Do you remember the joy of programming?

If so, please contact me. We are putting together a group of attendees for the first CodeRetreat, a week from Saturday in Ann Arbor, MI:

http://coderetreat.ning.com/

You need not be agile, and you need not be a Master-level programmer, to attend. You do need to be passionate about craft, open-minded, with a good attitude, a sense of humor, and a laptop.

We'll likely work in Eclipse and RubyMine.

We'll do everything in pairs or tuples.

We'll supply free food.

We'll code 80% of the time, and discuss 20% of the time.

Then, at the end of the day, we'll go out for beers.

It will be a blast.

If you know anyone else who might have fun and fit in at CodeRetreat #1, please send them our way as well.