Category Archives: Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor Java User Group meeting tonight: format change

Time, Location, and FOOD has changed (and added to program)

The original plan was to start the meeting around 7:00 and have pizza and then Rags Srinivas (Java evangelist from Sun) would start talking about JavaFX Script and plans for the new consumer friendly JRE.   Both topics are of great interest to me, so I have been looking forward to this JUG meeting.

Ah, but then some MORE changes were made. 

  • Instead of PIZZA, there will be a PASTA BAR.  So come earlier, around 6:30 instead of 7 (presentation will start around 7:15).
  • The location changed to ML101, and the room will be open by around 6:15.
  • AFTER the presentation, Rags will hang around for Q&A "Ask the Java Evangelist" session.

Please spread the word.  I hope that this is a great meeting and well attended in spite of the late notice.  I'm looking forward to it. 

See you there!

We’re hiring

Interested?

Bill just posted about our 3 open positions.  We seem to be building up steam these days and we really need some good resources.

I like Bill's post about what we're looking for.  To go even further, we want people who are PASSIONATE about software development.  We're looking for the curious, the interested, the "I can't sleep right now because I have this cool thing on my mind" type of people.  Yes, we sleep and so should you, but you know what I mean.

Anyhow, I know we've talked to some of our blog readers at user group meetings, but when we've contacted people directly they've said, "Yeah, I was thinking about talking to you guys", but hadn't actually done it.  So, do it.  Even if we don't have something that you're interested in now, our local software economy seems to be revving up, so maybe we will have something soon.  Yes, most of the jobs right now are .NET, but we may have some "alternate technology" stuff coming up soon.

Stephan Diehl on PyPy and Stackless Python

Visitor from Germany to speak at the Ann Arbor ITZone, May 16 at 7 pm

Stephan Diehl will be visiting Ann Arbor and we were lucky enough to tap him to do a talk while he's in town.  He will be speaking at the Ann Arbor ITZone, for a special Michigan Python User Group meeting, on May 16 at 7 pm.  He will talk about both pypy and stackless python.

Please join us.  The meeting is open to the public, and free.

The Ann Arbor ITZone/SPARK Central is at 330 E. Liberty (lower level), Ann Arbor, MI.

PyPy
An Implementation of Python in Python
Stackless Python
Simplifying thread-based programming in Python

Will it be SWT or Google Analytics on Tuesday? Or Both?

Tuesday, May 1 Ann Arbor Technical Meetings

It's the first week of the month, and so the Ann Arbor area is hopping with user group meetings.   I already mentioned the AACS meeting (Ruby on Rails), but there are also meetings on Eclipse for SWT Development and Google Analytics at the ITZone.  The Python User Group meeting, which would typically take place on Thursday May 3, is postponed until May 16, for a special event with Stephan Diehl (who will talk about stackless python and pypy).

So here are the meeting announcements for each of the Tuesday night talks.  I guess if you're resourceful, you could attend both, since the Google analytics talk goes until 7 and the Eclipse talk doesn't start until after the open networking at 7 (so probably 7:30)!

——————————————————————————

At the AAJUG meeting, Carlus Henry speaks on:

Eclipse for SWT Development

Date: Tuesday, May 1st, 2007
Time: 7:00PM – 9:00PM EDT

Open Networking starts at 7 PM.

Meeting Location:
Washtenaw Community College, WCC BE158

 http://www.wccnet.org/search/roomlocator/index.php?room=BE158&bego=Go 

PRESENTATION:
===========

I. Introductions
    A. Who am I?
    B. Who are you?
II. Presentation Goals
III. What is SWT
    A. Setting up Eclipse for SWT Development
    B. SWT Demo
VI. What is JFace
    A. JFace Demo
VIII. Eclipse RCP
    A. Case Studies
    B. Demo

 
—————————————————————————————

At the ITZone, Jeff Gillis introduces and demos Google Analytics, a free web site analytics solution from Google used by web site owners and marketers to better understand their users' experiences, optimize content and track marketing performance. Google Analytics also shows advertisers' data about their AdWords ROI so that they can purchase more appropriate keywords and track Ad Group performance.
Date: Tuesday, May 1, 2007.
Networking starts at 5.
Program 5:30-7.
Costs: Members are free, Nonmembers are $25, and students are $5.
Jeff Gillis – Associate Manager, Google Analytics
Jeff has been with Google for more than three years, working on AdWords operations, and since Google acquired and renamed Urchin, with the Google Analytics team. He focuses on marketing and operations for the service, and is a regular contributor to the official Google Analytics blog (http:// analytics.blogspot.com ). Before joining Google, Jeff was a technical solutions specialist for ParentWatch.com in New York City. He graduated with a BA in Literature from Stanford University.

Ruby on Rails at the Ann Arbor Computer Society

Featuring Joe O'Brien of the Columbus Ruby Brigade

Joe O'Brien, who helped to found the Columbus Ruby Brigade, is going to be speaking at the next AACS meeting, on May 2.  Meeting starts around 6 pm (well, that's when the pizza arrives; Joe will probably start talking around 6:30).

So, if you're in the Ann Arbor area and want to learn about Ruby on Rails, here's your chance.

AACS meetings are free and open to the public.  Annual memberships (just $20) do qualify you for door prizes and to vote in elections.  The May meeting also happens to be election night.

Meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 2, at 6 pm at the Ann Arbor ITZone/Spark Central, 330 E. Liberty (lower level), Ann Arbor, MI.

AACS

Columbus Ruby Brigade

Ruby on Rails

Microsoft Technology Summit 2007

No, you didn't stumble on Bill's blog accidentally. Really, I'm going to Redmond!

I’m heading off to Redmond on Sunday. Yes, Redmond. No, I do not typically develop on the Microsoft platform (at least not recently), but that’s the point of this conference. This is a conference targeted at community leaders not currently developing on the Microsoft platform. It’s an honor to be included (which is a response in large part, I’m sure, to the many hours I put in to help organize CodeMash). Only about 50 people have been invited and we will be meeting with the product and research teams. It sounds like we will have an opportunity to provide feedback to those teams as well as be exposed to the latest cool things that Microsoft has available. I’m looking forward to not only learning about the latest in what Microsoft has to offer, but I’m also interested in meeting the other participants and helping to build that community as well.

My involvement with CodeMash and my participation at the various Open Spaces events that Bruce Eckel has been hosting (including Programming the New Web, Web Frameworks Jam, TurboGears Jam, and most recently, the Java Posse Roundup) has given me the opportunity to realize that I really enjoy building community. I have been involved with this in the past (Ann Arbor Computer Society, and the Ann Arbor ITZone). I’m trying to work with the Ann Arbor Java User group, and I’ve been going to Python User Group meetings as well. A large part of being an entrepreneur in software is networking. I really dislike some aspects of that. I dislike going to meetings and shaking hands, and delivering elevator pitches. What I do like is getting to know people at conferences or user group meetings, learning what they do, who they work with, who they interact with in the community and what technologies they use. I LOVE meeting new people and talking geek stuff with them. I don’t like meeting business people and giving spiels. I know that this business requires a bit of both, but I would really rather spend time with the fun, cool, technical people when I can!

About a week before CodeMash, we created a google group for people to communicate with one another prior to the event. In addition to helping plan logistics, like carpooling, room sharing and such, it gave us an opportunity to build some community in advance of the event. Face it — geeks can be shy. If this helps to bring us out of our shells so that the face-to-face meeting is a little easier, then that’s great. It gives us all some context about the rest of the group, so that when we finally do meet, it’s a bit more relaxed (I think, at least).

Anyhow, I offered to create a group for the MTS2007 and the Microsoft staff took me up on the offer. People have been signing up all week and I’m looking forward to meeting all of them in person.

I’ll blog more from the event (Microsoft is OK with us blogging about it).

Java Posse Roundup: Day 2

Java Posse Roundup: Day 2

Session 1: Java Development Environments

I convened a session on Java Development Environments (IDEs, tools, etc.). My question was, “Is it a benefit or a detriment that we have choice in our tools?”. For comparison, when programming on the Microsoft platform, developers are given tools that work together out of the box. If they choose to add new tools to their arsenal, they can (especially see Jim Holmes book, “Windows Developer Power Tools”, which includes a lot of open source tools for use on the Windows platform.

In any case, as Java developers, we’re not only free to choose our own tools, but sort of forced into choosing and configuring. Yes, there are packages like MyEclipse and NetBeans which bundle things together, but the IDEs have gone back and forth many times in the past several years. I’ve personally tried at least half a dozen. Currently, I’m using Eclipse, but on the recommendation of the group here, I’m encouraged to give NetBeans another try.

The consensus of the group was generally that we’re glad to have options. I’m still left thinking, however, that we spend a lot of time spinning our wheels, evaluating tools, instead of actually solving problems for our customers (or employers).

Session 2: User Groups

The next session that I attended was on User Groups. Graham, a Crested Butte local, is considering starting a user group here, in Crested Butte. He was looking for ideas and suggestions about how to get started, while others were looking for ideas about how to grow their user groups or to keep people coming back.

I held the position of president of the Ann Arbor Computer Society for 2 years, and I got some great advice from past leaders of that group: DELEGATE. I’m not always good at it, but it’s a good objective. Having a strong leader that can delegate tasks to get done is pretty critical, I think. Several (3) of the guys in the session were from Atlanta, and the AJUG has a dynamic and energetic leader, and it sounds like he does a phenomenal job of keeping their user group going. In addition to an annual DevCon, which is well attended, they offer Job Postings for both potential employers and job seekers (JRecruiter). The Ann Arbor JUG also has this, but I want to look at what they’re doing in Atlanta, because it sounds more effective than the blog-like postings on the AAJUG.

Remote user groups (Taos, Crested Butte) face different challenges. There are few area users, and having a JUG may be too restrictive. It sounds like Dean from Taos and Graham from Crested Butte may create a more encompassing group that serves all software developers, rather than limiting to a JUG.

Chris Adamson was also in attendance. He is an editor for java.net, and he offered to help solicit updates for the JUG list that they maintain. GREAT IDEA, since they really have gotten out of date.

The basic “take-aways” from the session were:

1.Start small. None of the big groups started big. We all started with 2 or 3 people who wanted to get around and talk about cool stuff.
2.Have a compelling reason for people to attend meetings. Good content, opportunities to learn about jobs, etc.
3.Mix in local and national speakers, if you can. National speakers provide visibility to the group, while local speakers get experience talking to a group of people.

Some groups charge dues, while others are free. Some are corporate sponsored, others are not. You just have to find what works in your area.

I would love to create a “meta-group” of JUGs or other user group leaders who might communicate on an eGroup or such to toss ideas back and forth. Maybe we can start with the list on Java.Net?

Java User Groups on Java.net: http://tinyurl.com/36r2ku

Here’s a view of what Sun coined as the Top 50 JUGS:

http://wiki.java.net/bin/view/JUGs/SunTop50JUGProgram

Session 3: Convergence of Desktop/Web/Mobile

Joe Nuxoll convened a session on the convergence of desktop, web, and mobile application development. Questions were raised about how to determine which platform to develop for, or if it made sense to sometimes build a web app that could be used on a desktop. Mobile has its own set of challenges, but even so, we’re becoming more demanding about what we expect in mobile apps.

One real key is that a lot of time users don’t even know where they’re running up against web/desktop boundaries. One good example of this is Google Earth and Google Maps. Google Earth is clearly a desktop app but it accesses the web to get data that Google maps also uses. Sketchup is a nice application that also pushes these boundaries, in connection with Google Earth.

Joe’s pretty adamant about good user interface design, regardless of desktop or mobile or web. Everyone pretty much agreed that we have to use the right tool for the job, and that it’s not always clear what people need when looking at what people are CURRENTLY doing. Sometimes we need to mix stuff up and come up with a new way of interacting with the user. There are some really cool demos from demo.com that really push this envelope.

TurboGears 1.0 is released!

TurboGears, which has been at 1.0b1 for a while now, was released as 1.0 today. Here’s a link to an IRC chat that describes what that means, and more about the future of the TurboGears project.

http://irclog.turbogears.org/archive/freenode/turbogears/2007/01/03 (scroll down to timestamp 17:00 for the relevant info).

This is all great timing, since the TurboGears Jam is starting in just a week and a half, here in Ann Arbor. It’s January 14-16 (more details on Bruce Eckel’s site: http://mindview.net/Conferences/TurboGearsJam/).

Here’s Kevin’s mention of the TurboGears Jam from the IRC chat:

Next minor item: I'd just like to remind folks that Bruce Eckel's TurboGears Jam is happening here in Ann Arbor, Michigan in less than two weeks. It should be a lot of fun and I hear that Bruce creates a great learning environment at these kinds of events. I will be at the Jam as much as I can. Also, I'll be introducing TurboGears at CodeMash in Sandusky, Ohio later that same week.

I’m really looking forward to the TurboGears Jam, and I’m excited to see what 1.0 has to offer that I haven’t already seen in 1.0b1. If you haven’t already signed up, I think that there’s still room for a few more people. Join us! Sunday is “introductory day” with pricing that allows you to attend Sunday only (great for those who want exposure to TurboGears, but can’t justify it to their bosses … yet). Monday and Tuesday should give us a lot of time to experiment.

Announcing Thinking in Java OpenLevel Seminar

SRT Solutions is pleased to announce that Bruce Eckel will be coming to Ann Arbor January 22-26, 2007, to train developers in Java. This seminar will provide training in Java 5 for developers from beginning to advanced. This model will be tailored to the individual learning styles of the participants.

You'll be doing exercises from the 4th edition of Thinking in Java, in groups and within a supportive environment. You will move at the speed that is comfortable for you, learning at your optimal rate. Guidance is available if your group gets stuck.

For more information and to register for Java 5 training, go to http://mindview.net/Seminars/ThinkingInJava

Thinking in Java: An OpenLevel Seminar

TurboGears Jam

I’m very excited to announce that Bruce Eckel is going to do a TurboGears Jam in Ann Arbor, Michigan from January 14-16, 2007. That’s a Sunday-Tuesday, which gives people who can’t get time off of work to learn a new technology ample opportunity to pursue it on their own. Bruce is offering pricing based on whether you attend just Sunday or Sunday through Tuesday.

My company, SRT Solutions, here in Ann Arbor, is “on the ground” to help coordinate the event, which will be held at the Ann Arbor ITZone (SPARK Central). Bruce will offer us some guidance and his never-ending Python experience and excitement. Kevin Dangoor (creator of TurboGears) and Mark Ramm (author of the emergent Turbo Gears book: Rapid Web Applications in TurboGears) are Ann Arborites who have expressed interest in attending and participating. I sure hope that they can come!

I can’t wait! Hope to see old friends (you know who you are) and meet new friends at this event! Judging from the turnout at the Ann Arbor Computer Society meeting last week, where TurboGears was the topic, I’m pretty sure that this is going to be a well-attended event!