What I sort of look like
Just in case you ever want to scratch your eyes out: here's sort of what I look like when I look in the mirror.
My advice on how to vote
I don't normally tell people how to vote in the US - just to vote - but by gum, I'm as mad as I can be. I'm not going to tell you for whom to vote, nor can I tell you who I'll vote for, but I'll tell you this: my vote is for sale to any politician who'll meet these requirements.
Spring changes its license structure
The reason SpringSource's license change bothers me so much is not the specific change. It bothers me because Spring has done a good job embedding itself in successful projects, and now they've shown that they're willing to change the license, and I have no guarantee or confidence they won't change it to something more onerous in the future.
I have seeeeeeen the light, brothers and sisters!
Okay, that's a little hokey - but one test with OpenSpaces opened my eyes.
I spent a lot of time on a specific architectural piece on an application I'm writing, only to run up against some thorny concurrency issues. I've always said that you should measure before optimizing; I didn't follow my own advice. Here's what I found when I decided to use completely unoptimized code... man, was I dumb.
Is Spring better than EJB?
Hmm. Answer: yes.
It's like boxing: is Boxer A better than Boxer B? Well... sure, as long as Boxer A makes sure he beats the crap out of Boxer B when they fight, and that's all up to Boxer A.
Spring and the Damage Done
... with apologies to Neil Young
Spring's great, but IMO it's based on a need that didn't really exist. It's only after it "won" the battle between it and J2EE that it had a legitimate raison d'être - and I still find that to be of questionable merit.
Hey, JBoss? Two words: duhhhhhhhh
JBoss as an app server is fine, but sometimes its proponents are clueless.
JBoss, you pointed out that most committers were customers first. Your users are naturally going to be the people who are most invested in your product, and are going to have the most expertise. They're the natural place to draw your committers from. This isn't worth pointing out. Saying it may make you look wise to some of the punters, but let's be honest: duhhhhhhh.
Facebook sucks.
I admit to being a member. I don't know why I'm one, though.
I can't stand Facebook - viral, idiotic applications with little quality control. I don't see how it stays online, or why.
Suuuuure, we'll get fooled again
Meet the new boss - same as the old boss.
The Democrats gained control of Congress through angst over the war in Iraq, and over the Republicans' retarded, ridiculous, stupid, egregious fiscal policy. That's great! -- Except that the Democrats are exactly the same. What we need is a third party, one that's actually distinguishable from the others.
Father's Day
Great. Another Father's Day. When will it end?
I hate holidays like this - my father is dead, as are my other paternal influences, and I'm not comfortable having to accept stuff like this.
Bayes for Java
Okay, fine, I'll write something about ci-bayes
I have a library for doing bayesian analysis, for Java, called ci-bayes. It's a working project, it's pretty fast, and I think it's better than the alternatives for Java.
Login walls blow - but not having them is even worse
They're designed to make sure you are who you are - and that's good.
On "jQuery Selector RefCardz," commenters are complaining about the registration, which prevents the use of spam-blocked or anonymous remailers. Cry me a river, folks.