[A DevLife post]
Monthly Archives: February 2007
How conference speaking changes your dreams (the ones you have when sleeping)
There are dreams that are common for people; the one where you are flying, the one where you suddenly realize you have no clothes on and the one where you walk into college or high school class and there is a big test and you realize you haven’t been to any classes all year.
Since I’ve been speaking at conferences, the last one of those has shifted, not once but twice.
I have often dreamt that I walked into a room to do a conference session and realized I hadn’t even prepared it!
Last night I dreamt that I gave a new talk at a user group and was about to give it again about 1/2 hour later. I thought the talk had gone really well. While I was setting up to do the 2nd iteration of the talk, I asked someone (I think it was Dave Noderer) how he thought the first talk went. “Okay,” he told me, “but I think it would have been nice if you had done some demos.”
Luckily something woke me up from my sleep while I was trying to figure out how I was going to solve this problem with only about 10 minutes before the session started.
I do actually have a talk that is totally codeless; it is a session that explains some basic security concepts. But in this dream, I was doing a talk on ADO.NET, so no code demos probably wasn’t such a good thing.
Another local, independent bookstore forced to close
In December, Deer Leap Books in Bristol VT , a wonderful local independent bookstore, closed it’s doors. It wasn’t for lack of local support, but it still wasn’t enough to compete with Amazon, etc.
Today, I saw in the local paper that another fabulous indy bookstore, The Book Rack & Children’s Pages (this one in Essex, VT) is also closing. Very sad. I thought their formula was strong enough to keep them going. (Here’s the article.)
These are wonderful community places. The store’s owner is going to get involved with a recently formed organization called Local First Vermont, to help other Vermont businesses.
Vermont IT Jobs: The Flynn (Burlington) needs a geek!
The Flynn is our major arts center in Burlington. They have an urgent need for some tech support. If you know anyone that can fill this, send them their way!
Computer Support Assistant
Job Description
This is a temporary job needed immediately. This person will be responsible for on-site user support for various software and hardware related issues. We are looking for someone who has enough technical knowledge to relieve some of the technical support issues from the current staff. Some data entry may be required. The qualifications for this job include:
· Experience supporting users in a variety of applications including Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook.
· Experience with Windows XP and Windows 2003. Experience with Macintosh OS helpful.
· Experience supporting a variety of hardware issues including HP printer support.
· Excellent troubleshooting and decision-making skills.
· Strong communication skills and ability to prioritize and multitask.
High School Diploma and experience in Information Technology is a must.
30-40 hours per week, for 3-6 months. Flexibility with schedule possible.
Send resume and cover letter to:
Carol Custard
Systems Support Specialist
Rev 01/29/07
Another first in tech awards for women: VT Engineer of the Year
Frances Allen’s Turing award has rightfully created a big buzz as she is the first female in the award’s 40 year history to get this incredibly prestigous technology award. (I love Larry O’Brien’s comment about Grace Hopper (which Kate pointed out to me)!)
But you probably didn’t hear that the Vermont Engineer of the Year award, which has been in place for 46 years went to its’ first female recipient this year, too.
Katherine Norris worked at IBM for 38 years. She started in Fishkill in 1967 and moved up to Vermont to work at the IBM plant eleven years later. She retired only last year.
Can you imagine being a woman in Engineering at MIT in the 60’s? That’s not just engeineering, it’s pioneering!
Read more in this Burlington Free Press article.
Do I have a marketing/art department? No – it’s just PowerPoint 2007.
Yah – sounds like a paid message but really, I’m so loving PPT 2007. Here’s one reason why…
[A DevLife post]
Chris & Bob Show – Full Day of FREE .NET 3.0 Training in Burlington on March 1
Did I really forget to blog this? I know I have sent out emails to VTdotNET members, but we now have TWO MSDN events in March right here in Burlington.
In addition to the “classic” MSDN event on March 13th (Vista/.NET 3.0/Office 2007 Development) [register here: http://www.msdnevents.com/march/]
…
there is the Chris & Bob Road Show.
Chris Bowen (our new D.E.) and Bob Familiar, also fo Microsoft New England, will be presenting a full day of .NET 3.0 development. It’s free. it’s at the sheraton. It’s March 1st. Here are details and registration info.
You can thank Bove’s Restaurant for this being on our schedule. Chris is an addict!
Code Camp 7 : Westin hotel rates just dropped!
The Waltham Westin is our favorite place to stay when we go to Code Camp in Waltham, MA. The next one, Code Camp 7: Deer in the Headlights! is coming Mar 31 – Apr 1.
The Westin has a great bar/lounge area so it’s a nice place to hang out with all the CC geeks! Breakfast is pretty expensive, but there’s always Dunkin Donuts!
The only problem is that it’s a pricey hotel, but if you keep your eyes open, they will occasionally have specials. Last night, I happened to check (even though I already had a reserveration elsewhere) and the [online non-refundable] room rate for that weekend is now $92 before taxes.
So I’ve cancelled the other, and booked at the Westin along with my roomie, Laura Blood.
Turing Award goes to it’s first woman!
Frances Allen, who has a grand legacy at IBM with her work in compilers was awarded the Turing Award this year. The award has been around since 1966. She’s the first woman who has ever gotten it. Very cool. Thanks to Carl Franklin for making sure I didn’t miss this!
Letting go of a legacy application
After 17 years hobbling along on a now shaky FoxPro 2.6 application, it was time to pay the piper and write a shiny new program. Was it worth the effort? Heck yeah! Read more…
A DevLife post