November 14, 2008
My notes from the SD Best Practices Conference aren't written in prose or anything, but they're still handy so I thought I'd post the notes taken during the keynote given by Joel Spolsky entitled "Building Better Software". Enjoy:
There's a big difference between #1 and #2. Compare David Beckham vs.…
There's a big difference between #1 and #2. Compare David Beckham vs.…
November 06, 2008
There was a Day Four that I attended at the SD Best Practices Conference, even though I'm posting this a week later. As mentioned in the previous post, I wasn't entirely sure which sessions I would be attending that day, but these are the ones that made the cut:
- Do the Right Things: Adapting Require…
October 30, 2008
Day 3 was about Financial Engineering, Quantitative Testing, and Agile Metrics. And as I get ready for Day 4 I realize that burnout is setting in. If you've been to the GDC, then you know it's a bad idea to go to a class every single session - by the end of the week you'll be burned out. So usually…
October 29, 2008
Day 2 of the SD Best Practices conference kicked off with the 1.5 hour sessions, which make for a more engaging day in my opinion than an all-day tutorial session. My Day 2 was focused more on the design and process side, as I went to three agile-related classes and one user interface design relate…
October 27, 2008
Today was Tutorial day at the SD Best Practices conference (not a GDNet event). I attended an all-day session held by Dan Saks and Stephen Dewhurst called "Sooner Rather than Later: Static Coding Techniques for C++".
The major topics covered involved how to use templates, explicit partialization, an…
The major topics covered involved how to use templates, explicit partialization, an…
October 16, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
Recently I picked up a copy of Civilization IV: Colonization, a remake of the classic 1994 Sid Meier game of exploration, conquest, and revolution that I spent many, many hours playing as a teenager. It's part of the reason for my lack of posts here lately.
I'm not one t…
Recently I picked up a copy of Civilization IV: Colonization, a remake of the classic 1994 Sid Meier game of exploration, conquest, and revolution that I spent many, many hours playing as a teenager. It's part of the reason for my lack of posts here lately.
I'm not one t…
October 15, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
I got a laugh out of bbraithwaite's post at Applied Game Design on the parallels between a Lead Game Designer and a college's Department Chair:
I got a laugh out of bbraithwaite's post at Applied Game Design on the parallels between a Lead Game Designer and a college's Department Chair:
One ships games, the other ships students and a designs a sandbox game (termed "a curriculum") in which players (termed "studen…
October 08, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
I don't know the origins of the phrase "project lifecycle", but whoever decided to tie the two words together must have been very insightful. Yes, I'm about to go zen.
Recently a lightbulb went off in my head that the project lifecycle closely mirrors that of life in gen…
I don't know the origins of the phrase "project lifecycle", but whoever decided to tie the two words together must have been very insightful. Yes, I'm about to go zen.
Recently a lightbulb went off in my head that the project lifecycle closely mirrors that of life in gen…
October 01, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
In case you missed it, the Austin GDC Conference Proceedings have been posted online. You can find downloadable presentations and other information on the Austin GDC website. While not all presentations are created equal, there's some nuggets to be found.
In case you missed it, the Austin GDC Conference Proceedings have been posted online. You can find downloadable presentations and other information on the Austin GDC website. While not all presentations are created equal, there's some nuggets to be found.
September 30, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
The silly season of politics is upon us in the United States, yet despite all the rallying, debating, and interviews we can learn a lot not just about the candidates but about the rights and wrongs of management and leadership.
The article I'm about to post was sent to m…
The silly season of politics is upon us in the United States, yet despite all the rallying, debating, and interviews we can learn a lot not just about the candidates but about the rights and wrongs of management and leadership.
The article I'm about to post was sent to m…
September 29, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
Snippets in Visual Studio 2005/2008 are probably an underused feature, but Matt Manela aims to make them a more productive experience and has released a Snippet Designer for Visual Studio .NET 2008 on Codeplex. From his blog:
Snippets in Visual Studio 2005/2008 are probably an underused feature, but Matt Manela aims to make them a more productive experience and has released a Snippet Designer for Visual Studio .NET 2008 on Codeplex. From his blog:
The Snippet Designer was started as an intern…
September 28, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
It's been a busy week and the blog has seen some downtime, but after a few days of silence I'm back to announce that it's official: I'll be attending the Software Development Best Practices conference and expo in Boston October 27-30.
This is a conference I've wanted to …
It's been a busy week and the blog has seen some downtime, but after a few days of silence I'm back to announce that it's official: I'll be attending the Software Development Best Practices conference and expo in Boston October 27-30.
This is a conference I've wanted to …
September 23, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
Clinton Keith has a new post about managing Shared Infrastructure teams in an agile project environment. According to Keith, a Shared Infrastructure (SI) team is one that "provides low-level support such as engine, audio, online, etc services" that multiple products rel…
Clinton Keith has a new post about managing Shared Infrastructure teams in an agile project environment. According to Keith, a Shared Infrastructure (SI) team is one that "provides low-level support such as engine, audio, online, etc services" that multiple products rel…
September 17, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
Today a co-worker sent a link he found on StackOverflow.com of a presentation video by Dave Thomas, co-author of The Pragmatic Programmer and owner of a consultancy by a similar name.
In his presentation, called "Developing Expertise: Herding Racehorses, Racing Sheep", T…
Today a co-worker sent a link he found on StackOverflow.com of a presentation video by Dave Thomas, co-author of The Pragmatic Programmer and owner of a consultancy by a similar name.
In his presentation, called "Developing Expertise: Herding Racehorses, Racing Sheep", T…
September 16, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
Forrester Research released a new study that you can purchase for a cool $775 USD arguing that serious games are "poised to take off" in the next seven years.
I wholeheartedly agree. This is a space on the verge of hitting it big, and the evidence is mounting after the s…
Forrester Research released a new study that you can purchase for a cool $775 USD arguing that serious games are "poised to take off" in the next seven years.
I wholeheartedly agree. This is a space on the verge of hitting it big, and the evidence is mounting after the s…
September 14, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
Do you challenge the conventional wisdom? Or do you tend to stick with what you know?
It's in our natural human tendency to stick with what we know, despite knowing that moving toward the future requires us to challenge today's ideas. It's part of our survival instinct t…
Do you challenge the conventional wisdom? Or do you tend to stick with what you know?
It's in our natural human tendency to stick with what we know, despite knowing that moving toward the future requires us to challenge today's ideas. It's part of our survival instinct t…
September 09, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
I just noticed that GameDev.net posted a news item about the Spore prototype games that have been made public. From the Spore website:
I just noticed that GameDev.net posted a news item about the Spore prototype games that have been made public. From the Spore website:
"One of the ways in which we explore possible design directions is by building simple, playable prototypes that we can play around with …
September 07, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
If I remember right, a few months ago these guys had nothing much more than a video on YouTube, but since then they've productized their technology to create CamSpace. It's very cool stuff that has a lot of potential to improve the man-machAAine interface. Think Minorit…
If I remember right, a few months ago these guys had nothing much more than a video on YouTube, but since then they've productized their technology to create CamSpace. It's very cool stuff that has a lot of potential to improve the man-machAAine interface. Think Minorit…
September 02, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
A co-worker and I were discussing some executive decisions involving a project under development when my co-worker had one of those "Aha!" light bulb moment. He went to the whiteboard and drew two spirals.
One of the spirals had arrows spiraling outward with the words "w…
A co-worker and I were discussing some executive decisions involving a project under development when my co-worker had one of those "Aha!" light bulb moment. He went to the whiteboard and drew two spirals.
One of the spirals had arrows spiraling outward with the words "w…
August 30, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
The game-object component architecture seems to be a design technique that's gaining (or has already gained?) traction in the gaming industry. We've implemented a similar design at my daytime workplace with a slant toward simulation training, but until it gets further a…
The game-object component architecture seems to be a design technique that's gaining (or has already gained?) traction in the gaming industry. We've implemented a similar design at my daytime workplace with a slant toward simulation training, but until it gets further a…
August 25, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
I'm a proud Vista user and have raved about it to my friends and colleagues, yet it's amazed me to hear some of the responses I get when I say I use Vista. I don't mean good responses, either.
Yet even when I get a negative response about Vista, it turns out most people …
I'm a proud Vista user and have raved about it to my friends and colleagues, yet it's amazed me to hear some of the responses I get when I say I use Vista. I don't mean good responses, either.
Yet even when I get a negative response about Vista, it turns out most people …
August 24, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
I came across this via the Agile Advice blog:
I came across this via the Agile Advice blog:
"Bob C. Martin (Uncle Bob to you and me) suggested, in his "quintessence" keynote at the Agile2008 conference that he had the perfect metric for code quality. Cyclomatic complexity and others were interesting mostly to those …
August 17, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
Before Tropical Storm Fay's mandatory visitor evacuation forced me to leave earlier than planned, I was enjoying some great weather and boating in Key Largo for my birthday weekend.
I go there to get away from the hectic for a few days, sometimes even unplugging from the…
Before Tropical Storm Fay's mandatory visitor evacuation forced me to leave earlier than planned, I was enjoying some great weather and boating in Key Largo for my birthday weekend.
I go there to get away from the hectic for a few days, sometimes even unplugging from the…
August 14, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
I'm really surprised someone didn't ask "Why do people pirate games?" sooner in a public forum. Kudos to cliffski for doing it. This story has been all over slashdot and a few other high traffic locations. I'm surprised the GameDev.net news staff hasn't picked it up (hi…
I'm really surprised someone didn't ask "Why do people pirate games?" sooner in a public forum. Kudos to cliffski for doing it. This story has been all over slashdot and a few other high traffic locations. I'm surprised the GameDev.net news staff hasn't picked it up (hi…
August 13, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
What makes a better software engineer?
This is a question I've asked myself often over the years, primarily because I'm constantly asked to teach others how I "do things". The problem is that I don't know how I do things - I just do it, like Nike. No really, I once said …
What makes a better software engineer?
This is a question I've asked myself often over the years, primarily because I'm constantly asked to teach others how I "do things". The problem is that I don't know how I do things - I just do it, like Nike. No really, I once said …
August 09, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
Intel's announcement of Larrabee the other day is certainly something to watch out for in the future. Of course, Intel has had other fantastic announcements in the past only for them to flop - no pun intended.
So now I'm curious what the other industry players are going …
Intel's announcement of Larrabee the other day is certainly something to watch out for in the future. Of course, Intel has had other fantastic announcements in the past only for them to flop - no pun intended.
So now I'm curious what the other industry players are going …
August 02, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
I came across this on the GameDev.net forums this morning: The Tao of Programming. Classic.
And yet, so true, with hidden lessons to be learned.
I came across this on the GameDev.net forums this morning: The Tao of Programming. Classic.
And yet, so true, with hidden lessons to be learned.
August 01, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
We hit our milestone last week - a few hours ahead of schedule actually - but crunch isn't over for me yet. I have a few more days to go. I have to admit the 70+ hour weeks are getting a little old, though.
Of course, this crunch is a little different in that I'm prepari…
We hit our milestone last week - a few hours ahead of schedule actually - but crunch isn't over for me yet. I have a few more days to go. I have to admit the 70+ hour weeks are getting a little old, though.
Of course, this crunch is a little different in that I'm prepari…
July 12, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
I'm in the midst of crunch, so it's been hard to keep up with anything outside of the work crunch world. We have around 2.5 weeks until the major milestone, which is more of a status milestone saying "this is what we have" than a deliverable. But it's an important one, …
I'm in the midst of crunch, so it's been hard to keep up with anything outside of the work crunch world. We have around 2.5 weeks until the major milestone, which is more of a status milestone saying "this is what we have" than a deliverable. But it's an important one, …
July 04, 2008
Cross-posted at Code.Implant.
Some food for thought from WALL-E director Andrew Stanton:
Some food for thought from WALL-E director Andrew Stanton:
Life is nothing but imperfection and the computer likes perfection, so we spent probably 90% of our time putting in all of the imperfections, whether it's in the design of something or just the unconscious stuff.…
Advertisement
Popular Blogs
Advertisement