The past few months have also seen my University Graduation 3 days after my Daughters Birth, Family Visits, Job Applications, Job Interviews, and finally Permanency in my Servers Position.

Aside from that I have been working with some friends on converting the old TA Server to the C# .Net/Python version (PyTA). I have also been busy in mapping out my development goals and objectives for the coming months and years.

David Allens Getting Things Done

In order to better manage my time and my priorities I have been implementing and reviewing David Allen’s “Getting Things Done”, and have been operating my own install of GTD-PHP. I have been using this to manage all aspects of my life, from professional to personal projects. This has allowed me a lot greater control of my personal and professional life and allowed me to manage my time far more effectively than ever before. Currently in this system I am managing 100 Active Projects, 44 Someday/Maybe Projects, and within those I have currently 147 Actions within those. I am still in the process of determining Next actions for some of these projects, but at least having visibility of all these things I need to do has given me greater control of managing the most important of these. Most of the projects without next actions are someday/maybe projects, and the others that are not could be put in someday/maybe until such time as I have time to process their next actions. I definitely encourage anybody to try this method of organisation, time management, prioritisation because it has helped me to lower my stress and be able to switch off from work when I get home. Just note that it does tend to increase the likelihood of adding more projects to your list than you started out doing .

Aside from this I have been attempting to build an Application Audit script at work that will pull the NAL objects from our system through LDAP. I have started coding this type of script now as a class which is in a .vbs file and then for implementing its use I have started using .wsf files to include and execute the required code. This adds to the usability of my existing code and makes my code far more acccessible for reuse in other applications. I had already started writing these types of classes before for my Ini File Handler, but previously I had been including the VBScript files internally using a manual Include function:

Function Include(vbsFile)
   Set fso = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")
   If fso.FileExists(vbsFile) Then
      Set f = fso.OpenTextFile(vbsFile)
      s = f.ReadAll()
      f.Close
      ExecuteGlobal s
   End If
End Function

The .wsf include method is so much cleaner:

<script language="VBScript" src="Applications.vbs"/>

When I have managed to get my projects and actions further under control I will have to provide updates. I have some plans for the XNA in a Day series which I started with breakout, but that is some way off. I am also planning on overhauling some of my previous projects and actually actioning them.

Cheers, Chris.

Out of these websites I like Dymocks the most, though here are the improvements I would have for the design of the site and the ordering system:

1. Make its design scale to the screen. It appears to be designed for 1024×768, not higher or lower.
2. Make the “Sort By” drop down box actually sort the Items.
3. Modify the “Add To Basket” feature so that instead of taking you away from the search page to immediately view your basket, it shades the background of the selected item, adds a “copies” field, and allows you to keep browsing the rest of the items in your list.
4. Along with the above option there should be a “Go to Cart” button above and below each search page, and a “Go to Cart” button next to each selected item (next to a “Remove from Cart” button)
5. There should be no need to select whether I am searching for a Keyword, Author, Title, Subject, ISBN or Series. By entering in search terms, all of these options should be searched for the most relevant results.
6. On the Cart page there should be a “Continue Shopping” button (like on A&R, this is absent from Dymocks, and so the Browser Back Button is required) to take you back to the last search page.
7. The search results page should have the search field at the top to enable a new search to be conducted from the current page.
8. Tie in to Wikipedia for Information on Authors/Books.

Basically it should be the Dymocks Bookstore with a couple of features from the other sites, and some “AJAX” style features that do not require reloading the page in order to post selections. As this will be built in ASP.NET, the scripting will most likely be VBScript.

CIS3006 has me completing the Project Specification. The Project Specification is a combination of the Software Requirements Specification and the Software Design Description. This will be taking up the rest of my time this evening, and will take a few nights during the coming week. I am relying heavily on the process from Systems Analysis and Design (CIS3002) from last Semester. I already have a fully functional GZipped File Format that I have been successfully saving and loading XML to and from my Data Store. The Data Store is already set up with all the tables and relations it needs to successfully implement the Library. I am just needing to build the Classes to validate the information and then build the GUI on top of that, then build in the reporting.

Both of these Assignments are due on the 27th, which leaves under a week to complete both. Once this double is over with, there will be no major assignment pairing for the rest of the semester. There is a double due on the 22nd of October, but one is a CIS3006 Project Report, and I hope to have the project completed by that point in time.

Cheers, Chris.

I have set up a Data Store and  have it saving to an XML Memory Stream and GZipping that to a File. I am working on using the GZip stream to create my own Zipped folder type to store all my data files. As of 3am I have the stream working in preliminary testing, so now I just need to add a few more Get functions and test it using some live data.

The First Project Report has been Posted Today. I think I could have this entire project completed within the next 4 weeks, well ahead of schedule.

Cheers, Chris.

I have also done the first Assignment, which was an Online Test, for CIS3008 (Systems Planning and Management). Worth 5%, I have picked up 4.5% of my result already. I have started work on the modules for CIS2003 (Component Based Software Development – basically ASP.Net), and installed the software and started looking through the modules for CIS3007 (Enterprise Systems Development and Architecture – Basically J2EE development).

Today I also installed Novell Netware 6.5 on my old AMD K6-2 333MHz. This is in order to study up and take the first of the CNA exams. I have put off doing the exam for too long since the training and I have started to lose some of the information, so need to refresh myself with how the whole system works. At times like this I am annoyed I don’t have either more computers, or a powerful enough PC to virtualize server and clients.

This week I also found out that one of my colleagues has been taking an online Microsoft course for Windows 2003 Server Installation and Maintenance. I have been helping him through his online assessment components, and this has piqued my interest in completing the exam I was studying for (070-290 – Installing and Maintaining Microsoft Windows 2003 Server). I also have the Windows Small Business Server 2003 Exam to complete, as I had already attended this training last year.

Basically, things are getting busy and I find I have little time to dedicate to updating blog. There is also a lot of movement in the office, and I am under the impression that I have been given the opportunity to move into a higher position sometime in the next two weeks. This will be great news for me as I could really do with the additional financial input that the position would grant me. This is not set in stone though, and I may just be moving across at level. This is another reason why I should complete some of the above Certifications.

Moving across to this new job may provide me with an opportunity to go on CCNA training, and gain Certification for that. This would be ideal and is one of the things on my potential Goals list for 2007. My current position at work has actually got a lot more interesting of late as I have been called upon to produce more scripts and more tools. This started about 3 weeks ago when I started creating a tool to check TED distributions on multiple servers. Once I had created the scripts and the HTA application to wrap it I was asked to produce a Security Auditing tool for folders. I have created two versions of this, the second pulls the information out of a call to Rights.exe for the UNC Path, and then I use this information by connecting via LDAP to NDS to get a list of all users who have access to the folder. Upon completing this I have been required to write a tool that lists what folders a user or group has access to. This, however, requires a heavy usage of the Trustee.txt/Trustbak.txt export (Trustee.NLM nightly export) which can be quite large for a CSV, especially across the network.

Scripting more has allowed me to hone my coding skills and helped to make my position more tollerable, and has allowed me a lot more freedom and communication with the Cluster Manager. This will hopefully bode well for the position I hope to be attaining soon, or so I hope.

Cheers, Chris.

The NGDN meeting went well on Sunday and we covered a lot of business related topics about the structure and depth of our agreement. This gives us an idea of where we all stand on issues related to the business. Andrew will take this to his uncle and then we will come back with a more structured business agreement.

I have also been developing some automated systems at work to deal with Auditing Security on the Novell volumes, as well as polling Novell TED distributions on servers.  This has made work a whole lot more interesting.

Cheers, Chris.

When I first had time to continue the trench and it started raining, there was an issue with a cracked tile on the roof, so I was forced to try and fix that as best as I could in the interim to stop the rain pouring in. I have also been working on replacing all the locks, doorknobs and dead-bolts in the house to secure everything up, and replace old and worn out ones. The back-door door-knob was the first to go, as it kept “pulling out” and required a fair bit of coaxing to get back into place. My brother-in-law came over during my exam week with 3 exams to cut down some trees that are now declared pests. He has since been attempting to mulch the branches so we can take the unneeded stuff to the tip.

The fact that it is raining so much has not bothered me overly, as we are in a drought and the extra rain is going to be well appreciated by the masses. It is merely annoying that I can get almost nothing done that needs to be done considering how cold, dark and wet it is outside all of the time.

I fixed the sensor light out the front of the house by doing some rewiring back to the switch. This turned out to be a loose connection in the switch itself, which has now been remedied. The kitchen lights are still in their disfunctional state, and it appears that I need to run a fresh batch of wire from the switch to the lights.

I have bought a 4 way 75 Ω Coax Splitter for TV Arials. I intend to run the Coax to each of the bedrooms and to the laundry. Currenly there is a 2 way splitter above the corridor, which I am going to replace with the 4 ay splitter. I am then going to run two lots of 15 meter Cable (probably only 10 meters, but 15 to be safe). One will go to the ‘blue room’ in the middle of the corridor, the other will run to the two way splitter which will be above the master-bedroom/laundry area. From here I will run between 2 and 5 meters of cable down to the laundry and into the bedroom. I am also planning on doubling up the coax to the laundry/study area so I can plug in the FM and TV receiver in the computer and get better signal.

Amongst all this, I will also have to find time to start looking at next semesters uni work. I have a fair bit on in the following semester, including a Business Computing Project to manage, Enterprise System Development using Java, Web development using ASP.Net, and System Planning and Management. Three third year subjects are going to really push my time.

I have also received a job query from a friend of mine about a job doing C#/ASP.Net development for a small company in Toowoomba. This is an interesting prospect, and I will see whether I can afford to go over to that side. The do ask for an “Experienced” C#/ASP.Net developer, and currently my “experience” centers around C++, VB.Net and ASP as relevant languages. I am sure the minimal experience I have had with C#, and my current C++ and VB.Net will tie together to help me develop in C#. That is yet another chapter.

If all the above isn’t enough, it is my Birthday on Tuesday. Currently my wife is on some mission to provide a surprise or something, and as such I am going to be stuck at work until 6pm, even if I am only watching movies while I wait for her. I am not allowed to go home, and apparently I am not going to be at home for the entire weekend, which is kind of difficult for me with so much work being required at the house. I can only hope that my mood improves somewhat, as I have been in a quite foul one for some time now.

Cheers, Chris.

Virtualization provides some interesting benefits and disadvantages that I had not at first examined. I also was not aware of the many different levels of Virtualization available, from Operating Systems to Virtual Storage solutions. This has been an eye opener.

On NGDN, we have delayed some business meetings for a few weeks, but have made some progress on design elements and launch direction.  Once this business meeting has been conducted we can formalise the business in writing. When we have a formal agreement on how to structure the business we will be in a position to work on development with some confidence that the Site will not crumble due to creative difference or idea theft. So a few more weeks before we get a Lawyers eye view of the business relationship.

Cheers, Chris.

I am actually quite fascinated as to how many different technologies, or emerging technogies, there actually are. The Report covered a scope from Wireless Personal Area Networks (WPANs) up through WLAN, WMAN, and WWAN. It has been quite useful for me in understanding the differences between Wi-Fi and WiMAX, and also the potential emergence of Mobile-Fi.

Now that this assignment is done, I have to finish Business Systems Analysis, Design and Implementation Assignment 1 which is due on Thursday. This is going to be one of those sleep deprived weeks :/

Cheers, Chris.