Today was spent developing a couple of web pages on Spring MVC Controller technology.
I find it difficult to know what logic to put in the remote EJB’s, what to put in the controller, what to put in the service layers and then what to put in the JSP. This is how I broke it down:
- HIbernate DAOs : data access
- Remote EJBs : business logic
- Service Layer : no logic - just wiring
- Controller : control logic, permissions, filtering of authorized data sets
- JSP : presentation logic
- CSS : styling and positioning
After resolving the usual lapse of missing an entry in the application-service.xml file it all seems to work okay, if a little slowly.
Anyway, the day job is over, now back to preparation for the Credit Crunch website for installing some social networking tools:
Today I spent about 12 hours getting to grips with a number of technologies:
The outcome is that the main site has a ‘home’ and an ‘about the author’ page and a section that takes a RSS feed from the blog and displays the two most recent posts.
Over the weekend the focus will be on adding wordpress plugins, setting up Google Analytics, plus adding another half a dozen pages to the site.
Welcome all to 2009!
Today, I started on a new venture: a website and an ebook on the credit crunch and how to survive it.
The site is www.creditlust.com/blog .
Today, I
- bought the domain from http://joker.com
- set up the DNS to host the site at http://rackspace.com
- downloaded the blog software from http://www.wordpress.org
- created the database from http://www.mysql.com
- styled the blog using a theme created using http://www.artisteer.com
- built the home page using http://www.codeigniter.com
- wrote my first blog post
June 29th, 2008
7:18 pm
Sport
Finally, I get back to blogging. 3 weeks ago I endured the weekend of death. Saturday 7th June was my six hour, ever so difficult, CFA exam in London, and Sunday 8th June., on the hottest day of year so far in Devon, was the Ruby Run. I marginally underachieved in both. The CFA results are in the lap of the Gods and my time of 2 hours 3 minutes for the half marathon was 200 seconds slower than planned. Check out my pain as I mount Hatherleigh hight street at http://www.freebird-photography.com/rubyrun/ (picture Ruby Run 2008 636.jpg). Still it was 2 minutes faster than last time so maybe some time next decade I will beat 2 hours.
Today I ran again for the first time since the “race” (I use the term very loosely). Six miles along the Tarka Trail in a cool breeze (well it is the first week on Wimbledon so for a dry day I should be grateful). This evening I will watch the Spain versus Germany Euro Championship Final. Given my two flatmates in London are German and Spanish, I am glad to be able to take a position and support Spain. My prediction is Spain 3-1 Germany.
So, with some amazement, I find London has elected Boris Johnson as its mayor. I had taken him for a bumbling idiot but maybe I should suspend judgment. His first steps look promising. He appoints Ray Lewis, ex prison governor, to target youth crime. Maybe, with a good team around him, Boris can be successful. He is making a good start, but then so did Gordon Brown.
The Labour Party now must look at itself and its leader and make change. Gordon Brown, who started well last year as PM, seems overwhelmed by the role. His inability to delegate leaves him tired, overworked, and prone to errors of judgment. Now, Sarkozy has withdrawn his support from Tony Blair maybe Gordon should give his old mate, Tony a bell and ask him if he wants his old job back. A few muttered apologies about Iraq, and the Labour Party would have him back as leader with open arms. An election contest of Blair versus Blair-lite(blue) would be winnable for Labour. However, I can’t see Tony making that apology so Milliband is Labour’s best hope.
The Democratic Party should be luxuriating in its choice of candidate. Both excellent, minimal differences in policy, both capable of leading the world’s (current) greatest nation.
So how to choose between them? The one most likely to beat McCain? Charisma? Or on policy?
Here is how the policies differences break down:
Foreign Policy
Iran: Obama negotiates, Clinton sanctions.
Iraq: Obama advisors anti-war; Clinton advisers pro-war.
Cuba : Obama to talk without preconditions, Clinton imposes pre-conditions.
Economic Policy
Sub-prime mortgage crisis - Clinton more interventionist, Obama more towards consumer protection.
Immigration - No meaningful differences.
Social Policy
Medicare - Obama support universal provision; Clinton supports universe mandate
Civil Rights, Abortion, Gun Control, Stem Cell Research, Death Penalty, Gay Rights - no real differences
Summary
Obama will engage with the outside world more, spend less of defence as USA will less antagnostic to its enemies.
Clinton is more of a interventionist than Obama, as indicated by the individual mandate on Universal Health Care Scheme and her response to the sub-prime crisis
Overall Obama has broader appeal within the Democratic Party and within the USA as a whole so is best placed to beat McCain.
In 1971, on the demise of the gold standard, the US dollar became the currency of choice for most nations for their foreign reserves. The US Dollar was regarded in high esteem as a stable or even appreciating currency. In fact many countries actually pegged their currency to the US dollar, the most important being the Gulf States.
However, the long term future for the Dollar now looks uncertain. Kuwait bailed out of pegging to the dollar in May 2007 replacing this with a basket of currencies, and the rest of the Gulf States may follow suit in an attempt to reduce inflation which is double that in the US and Europe.
While its is true that Brazilian supermodel, Giselle Bundchen, is still taking payment in dollars that is unlikely to stop the decline. I do not believe there will be a sudden flight from the dollar, instead more of a gradual drift away, China and Russia being the most notable in starting down this route.
Furthermore China and Japan may reduce support of the dollar if the US falls into recession later this year. Why support your consumers if they have stopped buying anyway? China may want to bring its own inflation more under control by selling dollars and buying reminbi hence reducing the money supply.
That apartment in San Francisco might become affordable after all….
On Wednesday I went out with some colleagues to Betelnut This is a Asian fusion restaurant in the Marina district, a short but intersting taxi ride from downtown San Francisco. [More on this later] . The waiter was helped us order an very enjoyable selection of starters, firecracker shrimp, glazed pork short ribs with thai basil & garlic, crispy tofu cakes with doc ong’s chilli sauce, and chili crusted calamari. This was washed down with the smooth, not-too-bitter, not-too-sweet local Betelnet Honey Blonde Ale. The main courses we also shared: singapore black pepper jumbo prawns, seared tenderloin “sashimi” with “momiji,” scallions & ginger shoy, “bein pow” firecracker chicken szechuan chilis, onions & almonds, korean charbroiled pork with scallion-pepper sauce and green papaya, grapefruit, herbs & “nuoc cham” salad accompanied with some sake. Great variety!
I had two contrasting taxi rides between the hotel and the restaurant. The first taxi driver opened the conversation by asking me not to use a mobile phone during the journey. The radiation gives him a headache. He then spent the twenty minute journey making laconic comments about San Francisco and England while taking a slow but scenic route through majestic residential areas. It is was $10 fare and protocol dictated another 20%. For the return journey, around midnight, my taciturn driver sped the whole way, hitting over 75 mph through the Broadway tunnel. We overtook everything in sight, firetrucks, ambulances, low flying aircraft, and made it back downtown in under 10 minutes for a $7 fare and a $3 tip.
Last Tuesday night in SF, managed to win a pairs Pool tournament. First prize way an Apple IPOD shuffle, one of greatest achievements of the human race to date, 2cm by 3 cm and so much pleasure! I have downloaded a heavily restricted subset of my music, but hey, every track is a winner! A mere 300 songs occupy the 3 cubic centimetres of acoustic joy that are transferred to my ears. Apple rocks! I knew this but had forgotten. Iphone to follow once they get real and honest about licensing.
But back to the pool. Despite there is no incentive under American rules to hit any ball in particular, my partner Peter and I managed to defeat stronger opposition and pot the black( sorry 8 ball) in 3 consecutive matches and triumph. Just wait for the snooker rematch in England!
Even after 40 years of playing football, it took me until now to appreciate playing a ’system’. We were playing a 6-a-side match using a zonal approach. One at the back, one in the middle, one of the right, one of the left , one up front and one in goal. And woe betide anyone that strayed out of their zone! Amazingly (to me) it works!
Last week we drew a friendly 1-1 against last season’s league champions and today we won the first league match 4-1 against weaker opposition.
It is simple, do not follow the man or the ball, stay in your zone.
Number one, you last the full game and two, the opposition never has space, and hence time.
I will report back in a month on our progress.
Our manager, Tim, deserves all the credit for our victory: we have evolved from a kick-and-run rabble into an organised outfit in two weeks. Amazing!
