Modern Web Design

If you are a guy who spends a lot of time on web application development, then check this out and tell me if you agree:

http://tapestryjava.blogspot.com/2008/06/time-breakdown-of-modern-web-design.html

Now.. this is so true, isn't it!

Do you own PT AX100 E/U?

For some time now, the device (which I personally love) kept misbehaving. Every 5min it turned itself of... very, very annoying when you watch e.g. an action movie.

If you too have this problem, this is what you should do to fix it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jGwB05_gdk

Gmail-like text overflow

Today I've learned how to implement a nice gmail effect of text overflow. I was trying to build it for few hours with no good effect. I googled a bit and found the "correct" answer on this blog:

http://ajaxian.com/archives/learning-from-gmail

It's a very useful feature if you like to implement your web UI using liquid layout. The user may see more if he has a bigger screen (which is fine.. I like to know that having a big screen is actually a plus when I browse the net). Also, the effect allows your table to look more consistent independently on the screen resolution of the client viewing it. That's really nice!

Here's the style that I used:

...

  .grid {
     table-layout: fixed;
     width: 100%;
  }
  .grid * td {
     white-space: nowrap;
     empty-cells: show;
     overflow: hidden;
  }

...

  <table class="grid">
   <col style="width:100px"/>
   <col />
   <col style="width:100px"/>
   <tbody>
    <tr>
     <td style="padding-left:10px;">Other</td>
     <td>
      <a href="#">
        Very long text.
      </a>
     </td>
     <td style="padding-left:10px;">Other</td>
    </tr>
   </tbody>
  </table>

...

And here's how it looks like:



I've dropped the "width:100%" property. It seems to be not necessary. Have a happy coding!

Impressed by Groovy and Grails

For the last few days I've been playing around with Grails framework just to get to know what it is about. I must say that I am really... no, that's to small for it... extremely impressed by its completeness, maturity and ease of use.

Building web applications is not an easy task. It involves many different subjects such as architectural deign, build process design and automation, database integration, user interface design, security, more and more stuff, etc. Grails covers all of those subjects within one, easy to understand framework. This stuff is really amazing!

Till now, I have been thinking that the only right technology for building web applications is Java. Well, I still think so, but now I would additionaly say... yes, it's Java but extended by Grails framework.

I really recommend you to take a look at the Apress'es book "The Definitive Guide to Grails 2nd Edition (2009)". Read a few chapters and discover what it means to quickly build complex web apps with an Agile framework.



Here's amazon link: The Definitive Guide to Grails 2nd Edition

... } finally { certified = true; }

Yeah, I finally got certified!

It has been one of my TODOs for a few years now. The problem always was that I could never find time to prepare myself really well for this. There was this huge book to read, mock tests to do, etc. and lots of other task apart from that. I am happy that I didn't forget and finaly did what I planned to do.

I scored 84% and must say that I am pretty happy about it. Anything above 95% would probably mean that I am not a human beeing anymore but a Java compiler instead.

Some of the questinos were extremely hard but there were also no-brainers. Anyway, if you think that you could pass the SCJP exam without any preparation (because you have multiple years of expierience with Java) then you are totaly wrong! I screwed up mostly "Concurrency" questions even though I scored above 90% with Whizlabs Mock tests. It's just not predictable what kind of problems you may get to solve on the exam.

Now I may learn Groovy in piece :-)

What's it gonna be?

Finally, THE TEST!

If everything goes well, I will get certified tommorow. After writing tons of code samples, reading the book, practicing with Mock test I am still not sure what's it gonna be!

Today I've learned something new! Would you expect something like this could print "true"?

  Integer i = 18;
  Integer j = 18;
  System.out.println(i == j);

Interetingly, all samples shown below will print "false":

  Integer i = 18;
  Integer j = new Integer(18);
  System.out.println(i == j);

 ...

  Integer i = 128;
  Integer j = 128;
  System.out.println(i == j);

 ...

  Integer i = new Integer(18);
  Integer j = new Integer(18);
  System.out.println(i == j);

Eeeh? Yes! Try it yourself! I'm not kidding! And there is more examples similar to the one shown above (e.g. Double.NaN == Double.NaN ... returns false).

Well, it's gonna be tough, that's for sure!

Wish me luck!

Getting certified with Wizlabs and Kathy Sierra’s book

Whizlabs did really good job with their “Examination Preparation Software”. I am really satisfied with their web based application (running on Google Gears) and the sample SCJP tests that they are providing. Part of the satisfaction is probably caused by the fact that I don’t have to pay for the software myself, but most importantly I feel that I get well prepared for the Sun’s exam. The cost is low… about $50 (like an average book, maybe two books) but I think it’s worth the money. Apart from the “Preparation Tests”, Whizlabs also provides possibility to review all your answers and generate a nice progress report for you (so that you can see where you are with your current knowledge).



Sample tests of course are not enough to get ready for the exam (even though Whizlabs seems to say they are). I recommend reading a book by Kathy Sierra and Bert Bates. It’s totally great. It is well written and I guarantee that you can learn a lot not only for the examination but also for the “real world” programming. It is also important to write tons of sample code just to burn the gathered knowledge into your brain.