Non-specific error messages without a recourse are the bane of my existence. I need something I can do. An action i can take to fix the issue. In my professional life, my job is to fix it, so a vague meaningless error message means hours of trying things. Depending on impact, this might sit broken…
I learned electronics as a kid by messing around with old radios that were easy to tamper with because they were designed to be fixed. Lee Felsesnsteinin The Innovators: How a Group of Inventors, Hackers, Geniuses, and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution by Walter Isaacson The story I tell about how I ended up working in information…
As an information technology professional, when a web site has performance problems, I sigh, gnash my teeth, and gripe just like everyone else. However, twenty minutes later I realize I have been there and feel bad for those having to deal with the mess. Also, should I feel hurt that I am not among the…
Abraham Maslow proposed a theory in A Theory of Human Motivation, Psychological Review, motivation works to fulfill baser needs before addressing loftier needs. In a discussion the other day, I mentioned we have to have a rock solid infrastructure and stability of services to the point they are a utility and no users think about them causing…
Isaac Asimov has an interesting pre-World-Wide Web quote, “The advance of civilization is nothing but an exercise in the limiting of privacy.” Janov Pelorat in Foundation’s Edge (1982). Think about the word “civilization”. The root, civil, means to treat others well. In one ideal world, everyone would treat everyone else well for no reason. In hunter-gather…
A friend of mine who I used to work with once remarked (2007-ish) the University System of Georgia does not really work like a system so much as a loose confederation fighting over money. Given I have no access to budgets, I would not know. GeorgiaVIEW works remarkably well given there are only a few…
12 IT skills that employers can’t say no to: [T]he market for IT talent is hot, but only if you have the right skills. If you want to be part of the wave, take a look at what eight experts — including recruiters, curriculum developers, computer science professors and other industry observers — say are…