The Whiteboard

Jimmy Hoffa

12:06 AM

@WorldEngineer what was the presentation?

user20683

@JimmyHoffa describing work done so far on my OS project

user20683

which I discussed with ya earlier

gnat

7:17 AM

I am going to be offline next 2-3 weeks. Take care guys

gnat

7:33 AM

13 hours ago, by GlenH7

I wonder how easy it will be to game the quality score. Crap questions could / would potentially still get there if the txtspk and poor grammar are fixed. OTOH, at least I'll be able to clearly see that it's a crap question. And I may be presuming too much of those-who-ask-crap-questions.

looks like it's very easy. Repeating same sentence 3 times seems to do the trick...

-6

Q: Need a script Add Products with images using cron job in Magento 1.7

This is a cron job scripts which works fine.I need to have a script to add product.What can be best possible way to add and update product using cronjob This is a cron job scripts which works fine.I need to have a script to add product.What can be best possible way to add and update product...

compressing the question title and text (without code) and estimation of compression ratio would likely catch tricks like that but oh well

at least blatant text repetition makes it easier for reviewers to catch the crap

maple_shaft

1:46 PM

public synchronized Usercredential getUserCredential(long uid, long hid, long cid) throws VSException {
ArrayList<Usercredential> userCredentials = UserCredentialHelper.getInstance().getUserCredentialForUser( uid );
Usercredential userCredential = null;

for (Usercredential cred : userCredentials) {
if (cred.getHealthsystem().getHealthsystemid() == hid &&
cred.getCredential().getCredentialid() == cid) {
userCredential = cred;
break;
}
}
return userCredential;
}

maple_shaft

I hate crap like this

user55340

the break and the return?

user55340

Why not just return out of the loop...

maple_shaft

They write a method that queries for an enormous list of objects from the ORM

user55340

But just want one.

maple_shaft

1:48 PM

then they filter it down to one in application code

query can fetch more efficiently

user55340

And less painful to the network.

maple_shaft

At first glance you look at this and think Ahh... easily refactorable!

but wait

synchronized

O_o wtf?

user55340

btw, you do know about the fixed font trick for chat?

maple_shaft

that implies to me that somewhere in the dank cesspool that is this codebase is some potentially unsafe multi-threaded code

meaning, f___, I can't refactor this now, don't have enough time to assure I didn't break anything

@MichaelT Teach me oh wise sage

user55340

Simple cut and paste...

user55340

1:52 PM

int foo() {
bar;
qux;
}

user55340

But right next to the 'upload...' button appears a fixed font button...

user55340

int foo() {
    bar;
    qux;
}

user55340

Same indenting thing for code on the main site - a couple of spaces. But its easier to use when doing cut and paste than adding the spaces manually.

maple_shaft

	public synchronized Usercredential getUserCredential(long uid, long hid, long cid) throws VSException {
		ArrayList<Usercredential> userCredentials = UserCredentialHelper.getInstance().getUserCredentialForUser( uid );
		Usercredential userCredential = null;

		for (Usercredential cred : userCredentials) {
			if (cred.getHealthsystem().getHealthsystemid() == hid &&
					cred.getCredential().getCredentialid() == cid) {
				userCredential = cred;
				break;
			}
		}
		return userCredential;
	}

sweet

@MichaelT I never noticed that before

ty

user55340

No problem.. I've been reading up on various other SE hidden tricks... like clicking the time next to last updated in a question (upper right side) links to the spot in the page that was updated.

user55340

1:55 PM

I often have to sort things by activity to see the new answers in the big question... don't need to anymore.

maple_shaft

Anyway look how quickly and efficiently and easily I rewrote this

	public Usercredential getUserCredentialForUserHealthSystemAndCredential(
			long userId, long healthSystemId, long credentialId) throws VSException {
		Usercredential retValue = null;
		Session session = null;
		try {
			session = HibernateUtil.getSessionFactory().getCurrentSession();
			session.beginTransaction();
			String qry = "from Usercredential as uc inner join uc.healthsystem as h inner join " +
					"uc.users as u inner join uc.credential as c where h.healthsystemid = :healthSystemId " +

This is about as clean as the code gets with this legacy app

user55340

clean legacy code tends to be an oxymoron. Or at least, you never hear about it because people don't complain about it.

maple_shaft

@MichaelT I try

As much as I complain about maintaining crap code... I kinda like it

When I work on a clean well maintained code base I get bored. Its like playing a video game on Easy mode

For me? Crank that sh__ up to Diabolical and lets crack some skulls :-)

user55340

I hope to bore many people, though given the {insert adjective here} "deadlines" and "goals", things often become too interesting when you come back later.

user55340

The interview puzzle questions where its a math problem in disguise... this was the one we migrated..

user55340

2:08 PM

0

Q: Faulty machine problem variation

I don't know if this problem is known by any other name. The classic problem is: We have 10 machines that produce balls, each weighing 10grams. One of the machines, however, produces balls weighing 9 gramms only. We are allowed only one weighing and need to determine which machine is faulty. The...

puzzle

user55340

This is what they already have on Math.SE

user55340

1

Q: Gold Coins and a Balance

Suppose we know that exactly $1$ of $n$ gold coins is counterfeit, and weighs slightly less than the rest. The maximum number of weighings on a balance needed to identify the counterfeit coin can be shown to be $f(n)=\lceil \log_3(n) \rceil.$ Now let $n\ge 3$, and suppose we don't know whether ...

recreational-mathematics puzzle

user55340

4

Q: paper punch puzzle

I was told this lovely puzzle recently which I thought people here might enjoy. Consider a paper punch that can be centered at any point of the plane and that, when operated, removes from the plane precisely those points whose distance from the center is irrational. How many punches are needed ...

puzzle

user55340

(and 447 more 'puzzle' tagged questions)...

user55340

It seems like a place where they welcome such interview question like puzzles.

maple_shaft

2:09 PM

Math is boring. Puzzles turn Math into a game. I get it

Jimmy Hoffa

@maple_shaft I have recently realized, math actually isn't boring... I've been pondering just starting to study it on my own, don't know why I always had it in my head you couldn't learn it outside of classes when I've learned no programming inside of them..

maple_shaft

@JimmyHoffa It is difficult to learn outside of a classroom because every new thing builds on the mastery of several other concepts

user55340

The "problem" with academic math especially (and this extends some into academic CS) is that it is boring. There aren't any "real" problems. Working on project Euler, I learned a fair bit of math I should have in college.

Jimmy Hoffa

@maple_shaft how is that different from programming?

maple_shaft

@JimmyHoffa Good point... you kinda just blew my mind there :-)

Goodness gracious... these Indian contractors who worked on this before me... its like they took an enormous dump into the code base

I am sure that incompetence like this can't possibly exist

Jimmy Hoffa

2:25 PM

mod powers for the win

user55340

@maple_shaft snort We had to deal with the "center of excellence"... which was anything but in this code base. Well, 'butt' maybe.

maple_shaft

this had to have been malicious revenge against my boss

Jimmy Hoffa

@maple_shaft did he deserve it? Do I even need to ask that question?

user55340

I don't completely attribute it to incompetence... though that is part of it. Its also caring about the code. If you are hired to write as much code as you can in 3 months and then you'll never ever ever see it again... why write good code?

maple_shaft

@MichaelT Because you are being paid to write good code?

thats the way I always saw it

user55340

2:27 PM

No, you are paid to write code that does what the customer asked to within the time frame asked. And you likely have LOC metrics with your company for how much you get paid.

user55340

And you'll never see it again, and whats more, you'll probably get a higher paying job when you leave this contracting company in 3 months after this contract is up.

Jimmy Hoffa

@MichaelT I recognize that nobody in the chain of command ever cares about code quality in places like that, but to answer your question "why write good code", simply because I would feel personally bad if I didn't at least try

user55340

The average Indian program contractor stays at a single company for 3 to 9 months. Then you hit the salary cap at that place (very hard to get promotions), so you leave and get a new job with a new salary cap.

maple_shaft

<!-- Gangadhar  Reports -->

garbage

<!-- End Gangadhar   Reports -->

<!-- Keerthi Kamalakay Reports -->

garbage

<!-- end keerthi reports -->

who puts their names in the friggin codebase?

user55340

@JimmyHoffa I would too... but thats not what you're paid to do. You are paid $0.25 / line of code checked in or something like that.

Jimmy Hoffa

2:29 PM

There's a lot to be said for taking pride in your work, I don't know how people stand not doing so; 33% of your waking life and you're wasting it otherwise. I'd get terribly depressed if that were the case, hell I have been from places that demanded poor quality.

@MichaelT holy crap really? Because I can write a lot of lines of code in an hour... that might be very lucrative...

user55340

That was using US wages... Indian wages are a 'bit' lower.

maple_shaft

There are places that will pay you $0.05 for writing politically biased posts in message boards

per post

Somehow that seems less damaging to society

user55340

@maple_shaft Someone who doesn't work with source code control... its 'blame' right in there.

maple_shaft

Hmmm ... is the | vertical bar character illegal in a URL?

user55340

I don't believe so...

Jimmy Hoffa

2:37 PM

I'm not sure any characters are illegal in a URL...

some just have special meaning

maple_shaft

you know what I mean

lol

user55340

tools.ietf.org/html/rfc3986#section-2.2

user55340

      reserved    = gen-delims / sub-delims

      gen-delims  = ":" / "/" / "?" / "#" / "[" / "]" / "@"

      sub-delims  = "!" / "$" / "&" / "'" / "(" / ")"
                  / "*" / "+" / "," / ";" / "="

user55340

It isn't reserved.

maple_shaft

Reserved... thats the word I was looking for... my brain haz the dumbz today

Jimmy Hoffa

2:39 PM

On the bright side it won't be much longer

user55340

And then here's the bit on the query string

user55340

tools.ietf.org/html/rfc3986#section-3.4

user41796

I must have missed something; why was this question deleted? programmers.stackexchange.com/questions/195488/…

user55340

@GlenH7 dual post?

user55340

2

Q: SOA - The four tenets

I'm reading about SOA and the four tenets required to make a SOA application. I have tried different sources, but the explanations are twisting. I'm searching for something that is a bit less abstract. Is my interpretation correct? The four tenets is: Services have explicit boundaries Services...

soa

maple_shaft

2:42 PM

I was going to say... that was a great question

user41796

@MichaelT - yes, you nailed it. Moron me didn't bother to read the answer on the dual post that was migrated here.

user41796

The "migrated from SO" banner should have tipped me off

user41796

I'm offended that no-one on SO upvoted my answer though.... ;-)

user55340

Idea for next April Fools, announce a new .SE site... "LOL.SE". Only allow questions with below a score of 80 to be posted.

user41796

LOLZ.SE sounds better when you say it out loud

user55340

2:57 PM

Apparently. Math.SE isn't even put off with programming puzzles...

user55340

5

Q: Using the digits $7,7,7,7,1$ and the operators $+,-,*,/$ to make a formula which equals $100$

I know the answer is $(7+7)*(7+(1/7))$ or a more ghetto answer is $177-77$. I'm not interested in the answer, more in the problem itself. What is the name of this class of problem? Is there a repeatable process I can apply to solve it? Or is it one that requires some sort of intuition? ie. Giv...

recreational-mathematics puzzle

user55340

All of the answers are in scheme.

maple_shaft

@MichaelT Thats because 95% of all SE users across all sites are Programmers

Math for Programmers

DIY for Programmers

Wordpress for Programmers

Politics for Programmers

etc...

user55340

Ever see cooking for engineers?

maple_shaft

no

user55340

3:00 PM

cookingforengineers.com/recipe/163/Asparagus-with-Almonds

user55340

Look at how the recipe is rendered at the end.

maple_shaft

Nice

user55340

Here's a more complex one... cookingforengineers.com/recipe/33/Lemon-Bars

maple_shaft

but...

> 1 lb. asparagus, 1/4 cup

Imperial measurements? Ha

hardly for engineers

user55340

You didn't keep reading...

user55340

3:02 PM

> The only ingredients needed are: 1 lb. asparagus, 1/4 cup (30 g) chopped almonds, one tablespoon (15 g) butter, salt, and pepper (and cayenne pepper, if desired)

user55340

Ahh, the 1 lb... yea... ok.

maple_shaft

Grams should be first :-P

user55340

Alas, I don't have a gram accurate scale in my kitchen...

Jimmy Hoffa

@MichaelT I genuinely wish all recipes came with a diagram like those

that is spectacular.

maple_shaft

That diagram is really cool. I can't tell you how many times you read a recipe and wonder when you are supposed to throw this into the oven, or how often to stire Y or when to melt B

for those of us with absolutely no intuition in the kitchen

Jimmy Hoffa

3:07 PM

exactly, I'm a good cook but I can't stand following recipes because I have to look back at them every 10 seconds and read the whole thing to figure out if I'm following it right

maple_shaft

Even better would be a recipe in a Flowchart form

Jimmy Hoffa

Also, that asparagus sounds awesome. My wife and I make that with garlic and parmasan, going to have to convince her to try chopped almonds and cayenne next time instead..

What's magento?

maple_shaft

One place I worked, one of the engineers put a flowchart up in the break room that showed how to get coffee, make it if it is empty, get a mug from the cabinet, return the dirty mug to the washing machine, and if the washing machine is full then how to put it away

Jimmy Hoffa

other than an improperly spelled color

maple_shaft

it was pretty epic

People got the clue and dishes stopped piling up in the sink

Jimmy Hoffa

3:12 PM

@maple_shaft At philips because they're ISO9001 they had all of these "trainings" we had to re-read every year that were basically general engineering and development process workflow stuff "Spec A should be completed and reviewed by bla and bla. The spec must be agreed upon and the review minutes must be signed and filed by participants bla bla bla", someone wrote an entire one for the making coffee as a joke

and because a lot of people wouldn't make the pot when they emptied it

user55340

6:16 PM

 * Apache Portable Runtime Utility (APU) development headers... not found

Some required software is not installed.
But don't worry, this installer will tell you how to install them.

user20683

6:41 PM

I went and ponied up 85 bucks for a new Macbook charger. This fixed all the problems.

user20683

@JimmyHoffa Magento is an e-commerce web app

user20683

it's owned by the ebay

Jimmy Hoffa

6:54 PM

Right, The Ebay, as opposed to an Ebay

psr

@MichaelT - The user name Shibboleet is still not taken.

Jimmy Hoffa

@psr This is great news.

user55340

@psr I'm not taking it... I don't want to have to answer everyone's support calls.

Jimmy Hoffa

@MichaelT you don't, all you do is route them to Jon Skeet, or Eric Lippert depending on the problem

user55340

What if its php?

Jimmy Hoffa

7:05 PM

@MichaelT Jon Skeet; he'll correct their ways. Or Scott Hanselman

Though I don't know if I'v ever seen hanselman post on SO

user55340

I'm just waiting for Knuth to post an answer that includes an invoice to be drawn against the bank of San Serif for answering the question.

Shawn Eary

@Anyone - Would it be ethical to publish a personal MS-PL licensed website to CodePlex instead of the free TFS found here tfs.visualstudio.com/en-us/pricing/information ? The code would be published warts and all. Most people wouldn't care about the website, but it might be a way for me to throw some of my highly scarce code out into the world. I apologize in advance in case this question is vague or offensive.

Jimmy Hoffa

I would love to see Knuth go on a binge on algorithm and have 300k SO rep at age 75

@ShawnEary I don't know why it wouldn't be ethical? You own the license? You wrote it on your own time for yourself, not a company?

user20683

@JimmyHoffa Knuth doesn't have an email address

user20683

or was it a phone, I forget

Jimmy Hoffa

7:12 PM

@WorldEngineer you've been stalking Knuth? Bit strange, don't ya think?

user20683

@JimmyHoffa he has a website

gnat

12

Q: Was the algorithm for the "Hot" tab changed?

Recently I have seen a lot of older high view count questions on the Hot tab. Was the algorithm recently changed? Before I used to see questions that had a lot of activity (many updates to Q's or A's) but may not have had a high view count. Now the list just seems to be dominated by the "super q...

bug all-sites hot-questions

this seems to bring us new "gems"...

-1

A: What is the Best way to keep remembering Java codes and methods?

try to rember the logic behind every code. dont just try to memorize it. if u try to memorize ur surely going to forget it within few days.

user20683

www-cs-faculty.stanford.edu/~uno/index.html

gnat

wonder how did this answer pass the "tightened" quality filter

Jimmy Hoffa

@gnat No one proved a change to the quality filter to make it tighter would continue to filter the exact same set of posts that the previous filter settings would... :)

user20683

7:18 PM

allstonpudding.bandcamp.com/album/…

user20683

Boston Relief - 130 songs for $1+

gnat

7:33 PM

@JimmyHoffa getting a different kind of crap would be fun

@Shog9 does the filter apply to answers? Wonder what would be score for "try to rember the logic behind every code. dont just try to memorize it. if u try to memorize ur surely going to forget it within few days." — gnat 1 min ago

Jimmy Hoffa

7:53 PM

I almost labelled this question

36

Q: Which applications are best developed in C++ over C# in today's business?

I'm only curious. I have already developed microcontroller software in C and Assembly. So, I can see an application for these languages. As for today, I'm specialized in information and process systems and even though C++ is object-oriented and offers powerful development capabilities, we mostl...

c# programming-languages c++ applications

in a dupe reference from

-2

Q: Programmer's career and Call of C++

I'm a .Net developer, mostly in C#. Now I'm working on enterprise solutions in a company and can be counted as respected. But the problem is that isn't enough for me. I'm not good in computer science and only now, when I've turned 24, begin to read SICP and other fundamental works. So, I'm reall...