A Part of the Maine

Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree.
-Martin Luther

While checking one of my WordPress sites I noticed an update for one of my favorite plug-ins, The Events Calendar.  Everything was broken after the update so I when to the support site to get things running.  Long story short, I got the site working again based on the support recommendations they had but regardless, some functionality was still missing.  The reason for this was related to a huge shift in the underlying focus of the WordPress post design.

the issue you state about other plugins integrating has more to do with WordPress being in a period of flux between having everything be either posts or in its own table and authors fully adopting custom post types. The core WordPress team is placing a heavy emphasis on CPTs and most major plugin authors are moving over… As more and more plugins make the move, the integration you want to see will return in a much more powerful and controlled manner.
–Shane Pearlman

The Events Calendar has converted over to a new design method called Custom Post Types (CPT) whereby individual modules can define their own post “types” instead of adding functionality to default post type already available in WordPress.

This drew my attention because the new version of The Event Calendar provides a “Professional” version, with more functionality, that can be purchased. I haven’t actually seen much software in the WordPress universe that followed this model (and I don’t believe The Event Calendar did until this new update occurred.)

My concerns were confirmed with some web searching:

Custom post types aren’t really meant for that use [¦] Custom post types are great for things that are more or less catalogued: products (in an e-commerce site), listings for a real estate site, etc. For regular content creation as described [by Chris], you can already do [that] by using custom taxonomies and/or stylesheets to make post templates.

Some part of the WordPress team has been pushing these these CPT’s and it looks like they have been doing it primarily to capitalize on the success of a Free Software program. I suspect that most developers who are interested in focusing on this kind of feature set are probably not Free Software developers but are, instead, quasi-open source developers running Macs who would be making iPhone apps if they knew something more useful than PHP.

This kind of monetizing has become massively popular with the success of Apple’s App Store and Google’s Market. A significant number of developers who have built very popular software stacks on top of Open Source applications are looking for ways to turn that work into cash flow, and I don’t blame them. That said…

…I really don’t like something about it. Maybe it is because I left a “free” blog application because it stopped being free (I learned a valuable lesson between Free Software and free software and I still have a bad taste in my mouth about it.) Maybe it is because I have actually contributed work to a number of WordPress plug-ins and would NOT have done so if I had known my efforts were going to help someone else make money. Maybe it is because the new version of The Events Calendar actually broke a lot of functionality in the name of changing their platform model to a for-profit design and now I have to use an unsupported version of the software until I find another or I write one myself.

Whatever the reason, Open Source software is loosing something of itself if this is actually the intent of their focus, and we are all the less because of it.

If you can prove you don’t need it

For years, I have watched the number of technology companies that operate without debt.  The trend has always been popular among IT/IS companies because of the fundamental instability of intellectual property over hard assets.  The logic is hard to argue with.  If everything you “own” of value only has value as a direct cause of its perceived importance, then a shift of public perception doesn’t just hurt your brand, but fundamentally devalues your property.

Think of it this way; if tomorrow everyone stopped trusting Google for their search results (say, you know, someone found out their code sent all our personal information to the Chinese) then overnight they could loose 95% of their US market share.  How much is Google’s code-base worth at that point?  Currently Google is trading at 183 billion so a 95% loss in usage would probably translate to a market value somewhere south of 3-5 billion.

Physical assets don’t behave the same way.  1,000,000 lbs of steal doesn’t just loose 98% of its value overnight.  Even in heavily over-inflated markets things like… I don’t know… homes, don’t loose 98% of their value.  People may be upset that their 350,000 home is now worth 260,000 but just image if one NIGHT your $350,000 home was worth $7,000.  THAT is the danger for companies whose primary assets are intellectual property.

I will give you another concrete example.  Once upon a time there was a company who made A LOT of money in the energy trading business.  Basically the company had sold off almost ALL its physical assets because they made so much money acting as a broker for energy trading.  Think of them as the stock market (or eBay) for energy.  The only problem was that their principal value lay in the fact that people trusted them, trusted their market, trusted their systems, and trusted their software.  Then one day  it was demonstrated that this company lied, cheated, and stole in almost every way you could imagine.  Enron’s stock dropped from $90 to just under $1 in a matter of weeks.  Basically, Enron’s major asset was trust, which it lost, and the company disintegrated overnight.

So how does a company protect itself from such quick devaluation?  The same way you and I protect ourselves from economic turbulence; a big savings account and as little debt as possible.   Microsoft, for example, is famous for “saving” close to a billion dollars a month… yes, a MONTH!  At the same time, Microsoft doesn’t borrow money.  I have been told, by people I put NO trust in to know this information, that they don’t even lease the copiers.  Competitors who want to beat Microsoft can certainly do so, but it will not be an easy fight.  That kind of financial position means that competitors must beat them dollar for dollar, customer for customer, year in and year out… for YEARS!

So who else do you know that doesn’t use debt?  Here are are couple names both in IT and outside of it.  Accenture, Activision Blizzard, Apple, Bed Bath & Beyond, Broadcom , Citrix Systems, eBay, Gap, Google, Infosys Technologies, Juniper Networks, Marvel Technology Group, Qualcomm, Research In Motion, Stryker, Texas Instruments, and Yahoo.  Want to see something more amazing?  Check out those companies 1, 3, and 5 year average returns compared to the market average!

I think it was Warren Buffett who said, “Leverage [i.e. debt] is a funny thing, people who don’t understand it shouldn’t use it; and those who do, don’t.”

A Thousand Furlongs of Sea

We must learn not to disassociate the airy flower from the earthy root, for the flower that is cut off from its root fades, and its seeds are barren, whereas the root, secure in mother earth, can produce flower after flower and bring their fruit to maturity.
–Kabbalah

Generally speaking I work behind a desk eight hours a day (OK, more like 12) but once in a great while I will get to go out with a field crew to do actual physical work.  While physical labor is generally pretty scary stuff; I love getting out-of-doors.  My most recent excursion was to the western side of Oklahoma on a GIS mapping project.

I have driven through the panhandle a couple time previously but really didn’t spend any time there.  It is absolutely BEAUTIFUL.  For someone who is used to the lush green of the Ozark mountains; the naked beauty of the gypsum hills and high plains was like landing on another planet.  This trip was actually months ago, but I forgot I had taken pictures until today. You can check out the photo gallery by clicking the link below.

Oklahoma Gypsum Hills and Eastern Panhandle

13 Deadly Sins

The “Deadly Sins” from P. J. Brown’sWriting Interactive Compilers and Interpreters Wiley 1979.

–to code before you think.
–to assume the user has all the knowledge the compiler writer has.
–to not write proper documentation.
–to ignore language standards.
–to treat error diagnosis as an afterthought.
–to equate the unlikely with the impossible.
–to make the encoding of the compiler dependent on its data formats.
–to use numbers for objects that are not numbers.
–to pretend you are catering to everyone at the same time.
–to have no strategy for processing break-ins.
–(A break-in is when you interrupt an interactive compiler, and then possibly continue it later. This is meaningful in an environment in which the compiler is run dynamically, such as many LISP and some BASIC environments. It is not meaningful for typical uses of C/C++ (although there was at least one interactive C environment according to Chris Lattner).)
–to rate the beauty of mathematics above the usability of your compiler.
–to let any error go undetected.
–to leave users to find the errors in your compiler.

This entry comes to us from the GCC Wiki.

Some of My Favorite Rules

The website 1001 rules for my unborn son got me thinking about some of the rules I have for my life. Thought I would put down my own and list some of my favorite from 1001.

  • There is always time for a lemonade stand.
  • Perfect at least one recipe, steak doesn’t count.
  • Obstacles are ways of demonstrating our dedication.
  • Don’t complain, just work harder.
  • Take the new guy out to lunch.
  • Never swing at the first pitch.
  • Carry a pocket knife.
  • Learn from criticism.
  • X never, ever, ever makes the spot.
  • When excusing yourself from the table, you need not give a reason.
  • Stand up to bullies. You’ll only have to do it once.
  • Become an expert in something.
  • Never turn down a girl’s invitation to dance.
  • Order the local specialty.
  • Learn to drive a stick shift.
  • Never side against your brother in a fight.
  • Memorize the Bill of Rights and your favorite poem.
  • Keep your eye on the ball and follow through. In sports and in life.

189. Learn to drive a stick shift.

One Notebook to Rule them all

One of the rules of my organizational methodology is that everything that I write on paper goes into a single notebook. I keep a single notebook and each and every page is titled, numbered, and dated. Each notebook is numbered and range dated when finally filled. This means that I carry a notebook with me most of the time and, therefore, the quality of the notebook means a great deal to me.

Now I can already hear people screaming “MOLESKIN” to me; but the problem with Moleskin is that they are pretty darn expensive (remember everything I don’t type on the computer goes into this notebook… it can fill up VERY quickly) and they are generally quality overkill for something that basically holds todo lists and diagrams. Finally, Moleskins are really more about brand than need.

So my notebooks need to stand-up to punishment, not be too expensive, and have a useful layout that doesn’t make me feel like a third grader. The Foray Project Planner Notebook is EASILY my favorite. So for future reference (like when I need to order new ones:)

Where to buy: Office Depot

Description: These refillable notebooks feature smooth, white, premium bond paper and distinctive foil-stamped linen covers with high-quality double-wire binding. Each notebook contains perforated pages for easy removal as well as a date box on every page to keep you on track. There are 80 faint-ruled pages of 18-lb paper in each refillable notebook.

Item # 766134
Manufacturer # 99326FY
sheet size 8 3/5″ x 11″
number of pages per book 160
binding type wirebound
cover color Black
cover material 22 pt. linen 924 grain embossed
opening position right side
number of holes punched 0
paper ruling faint ruled
paper color white
paper weight 18 lb
acid free no
brand name Foray

Never Forget Today

Human pain does not let go of its grip at one point in time. Rather, it works its way out of our consciousness over time. There is a season of sadness. A season of anger. A season of tranquility. A season of hope.

–Robert Veninga

I was on my way to work when I heard about the first plane.  I remember thinking it was probably an accident, like the plane impact on the Empire State building.  I passed by Tinker Air Force Base on the way; it was guarded but nothing too crazy.  The second  plan crashed into the second building and I remember thinking that we would be going to war with someone.  I called my wife and told her not to leave home.  Being a state employee they told us to go home ourselves.  Passed by Tinker again… there was a tank, several 50mm Brownings, and lots of concrete barricades.  I almost enlisted right there but they wouldn’t let any non-military traffic into the base (my wife didn’t find out about that till a couple years later… she was not happy.)

I got home, hugged my wife and daughter, and cried…

Chaos, with better lighting

We are time travelers. Moving through the universe forced to experience it through the lenses of history. Not simply limited to our memories; our very senses can experience only what has already happen, not what is currently happening. The clock for the whole of the universe it is measured by the speed of light (299,792,458 m/s) and while trivial, on our microscopical level, it is yet undeniable. The sun we look at is 8 minutes old, the stars hundreds (or millions) of years old.

The implication of this is nothing short of awe-inspiring. If we could instantly travel 2000 light years away from our planet (and had a telescope large enough pointed back at our planet) we could see Jesus walking the earth. In this way the universe has a memory more thorough and more complete than any computer or human has ever had. Nothing is forgotten, nothing is lost, nothing is missing; it is just getting harder and harder to put the picture back together in a way we would recognize it.

Bookshelf Investing: A Drew Yates Re-post

Here is a repost of a Drew Yates article I found EXTREMELY useful. Unfortunately most of his old posts seem to be forever lost. It is an unfortunate fact that the great blog post I have read are hidden jems that must be dug for. I need to make a habit of copying them on occasion because, all to often, they disappear when their author looses interest and moves on. This is one of the useful top-10 lists I have read and I hope (that by saving it here) it will be useful for a long time to come.

On Books, Top 10 Rules For Investing In Bookshelves

Your bookshelf is like your knowledge portfolio. By investing in yourself, you can become a more interesting, intelligent, creative, and happier person while education improving your judgement and learning new skills. Here are my top ten points for managing your education by investing in your bookself.

1. Buy books for who you’d like to be, not who you are.

Why only buy books about what you already know? Don’t feel guilty about books you own that you haven’t read yet, don’t quite understand, or don’t quite fit your persona. Surround yourself with what you want to know. Achieve by osmosis.

2. You can’t know what you don’t know. Diversify!

Never underestimate the value of learning what you don’t know. Buy books in topics that have œno interest in. Maybe you are wrong. Inject some randomness in your life.

Excercise: Minute Compass

Try this: stand in the center of the bookstore with your back to the door and check your watch. Turn and face the direction your minute hand points. Buy and read one book in that direction.

3. Understand your investment profile

A book you bought but didn’t read is $20 lost. A book you read but didn’t like or learn from is $20 and maybe a few hours lost. A book you read and learned from is priceless. So: a calculated risk of $20, or never learning anything new? You can’t even begin to understand what you’re missing when you don’t know what you don’t know.

It’s much easier to start reading a book you have than a book you don’t have.

Unless you have urgent expenses, invest generously. This is true for all investments.

4. Give your favorite books away.

Ideas are like currency. They only have value when shared.

Real power today lies at society’s œinformation hubs. What better to demonstrate your informational worth than to give books? You can alway rebuy books if you need them. Don’t bother asking people to return your books. That’s tacky. Let them keep it as a token of your thoughtfulness, advice, and generosity. Maybe they will pass that book along to their friends with a shining review, too! That’s the ulitmate compliment.

Not: Used books are NOT GIFTS. Gifting something you are œdone with as is fantastically tacky and cheap. Besides, traditional gifts are more tokens of sacrifice and obligation than tokens of good-will and thoughtfulness. How else could you explain all those $10 gift certificates from your extended family and coworkers?

5. Buy books cheap, but don’t be cheap.

Investing in books are one of those rare opportunities where it pays to be a spontanious shopper. If you suddenly have the motivation to learn, don’t squander it to save five dollars! Naturally, don’t spend more than you have to. But like the morons who drive around town for the cheapest gas, it doesn’t pay to waste time to save a couple dollars. Well, actually it pays a couple dollars. Unless you’re 11, you probably could spend your time better.

Also, most good technical books can usually only be found new. Good technical books are kept as references, and people resell back books they don’t think they’ll use again. Also, most technical books have a shelf-life of only a few years. The only technical books at a value book store will probably be outdated and mediocre.

Cheap, readily available books, like classical literature, are usually at the library or internet for free, anyways.

6. Be Wary of Textbooks. Many Textbooks Suck.

Be suspecious of any book that marketed to undergraduates. If the publisher doesn’t take pride in their work and churns frivolous editions, why should you take pride in owning a copy? In my experience, most required engineering books are terrible. If you’re a computer science student, forget buying the textbook, just use the Internet.

Note: this varies per university. If you are savvy enough to judge books, you can often judge the quality of a university department by the quality of the required reading. Andrew in the comments also noted that many very specialized texts can only be found at universities.

7. Ask Bookstore Employees for Advice

Most bookstore employees like books. Unfortunately, they are usually stuck playing the Warehouse Index game for impatient customers. Make your bookstore employees happy. Ask for their advice. They will know which books are well-liked and which are trash, and they might know which publishers print the best quality books. Ask employees which books they like. And then buy what they like. You might even make some interesting friends this way.

Side note: never harass retail employees. Be nice. Really, whatever your problem is, it’s almost guarunteed not be the fault of anyone around you can talk to. Worse, have you ever known an employee to make exceptions for a jerk? Rarely. If you have a problem with a store, complain with your wallet (or your blog ;) ), never to employees.

8. Throw away bad books.

You probably own some books that were disappointing or technical books that are outdated. Throw them away. There’s nothing to be learned by hording trash knowledge. In fact, make trashing books symbolic of your intellectual health. You can’t fill a full cup.

9. Non-fiction is usually a better investment

Non-fiction has an obligation (you hope) to be true. Most fiction, like movies, only mean to be entertaining, not to make you think. If you want to read fiction, avoid books you would expect to find at your grocery store. Also, most science fiction and fantasy books are rarely good œinvestments. Watch Star Wars, read Lord of the Rings, and be done with it.

10. If somebody recommends a book, STOP, note the title, and buy it immediately

Your investment will stagnate if you don’t do this. Make this a habit. Don’t try and rationalize this away. Shut up and do it. Somebody you respect has chosen to share very valuable knowledge with you and you have an obligation to due diligance. Even if you don’t like their recommendation, you have learned something important about the person who recommended it. To not do this, I think, is crude and insulting.

In fact, you should take notes whenever anyone is describing something they care about, whether it’s people they think you should know, books that they enjoy, or places they enjoy visiting. Not only is this flattering, but it’s honest and smart. What better way to prove your legitimate interest in somebody’s opinion than writing them down¦ and then backing your word with your wallet? Not even $20 in beer could be as well spent.

Note: don’t be obnoxious about taking notes. Just write down the author and title. People don’t want to feel like professors in casual conversation.