Faces

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Mutation

Paraplüsch

If you don’t know it yet, check out this psychiatry for soft toys: www.parapluesch.de. Great game where you have to heal animals.

Faces

Lull – Duo acoustique

Great free album by the french band Lull. Check out the song “Boy in the night”.

Thoughts on programming

Many programming techniques are quite complicated, but there are also some simple rules that might improve everybodies code:

Rule 1: Don’t copy code.

Everybody knows this, but how comes I find copied code almost everytime I review some project? One of the reason might be that not-copying code is a simple rule, but not an easy thing to do. Many technologies have been invented to help with this task, firstmost functional abstraction, and also Command Pattern, generics, frameworks, Aspect oriented programming etc. Still sometimes its hard, and in this situations I recommend: Find someone and talk about it, and find a solution. One of the biggest benefits of pair programming might be that it prevents copied code – you seldom commit crimes if someone is watching.

Rule 2: Minimize nesting

In respect to indentation, your code wants to be as left as possible.

Compare this code:

Version 1:

    if (myVariable.isValid())
    {
        doSomething();
        ...
        doSomethingMore();
    }
    else
    {
        throw new InvalidValueException();
    }

Version 2:

    if (!myVariable.isValid())
    {
        throw new InvalidValueException();
    }
    doSomething();
    ...
    doSomethingMore();

Version 2 is better IMHO. If you can get rid of e.g. an else, do it. This often leads to code that checks for errors/special conditions first, and makes a shortcut return (e.g. exception).

Rule 3: Don’t use abbreviations

While long names might be annoying, abbreviations come from hell. You want someone not familiar with your domain and code to understand it at a glance. Don’t let anyone puzzle if the “no” stood for “not” oder “number”.

Note that long names often signalizes that a class/method/variable hasn’t a clear purpose. I will prefer a long name over an abbreviation anyway.

Beatboxing

Ringelnatz – Blues

Wenn du nicht froh kannst denken,
Obwohl nichts Hartes dich bedrückt,
Sollst du ein Blümchen verschenken
Aufs Geratewohl von dir gepflückt.

Irgendein staubiger, gelber, –
Sei’s Hahnenfuß – vom Wegesrand.
Und schenke das Blümchen dir selber
Aus linker Hand an die rechte Hand.

Und mache dir eine Verbeugung
Im Spiegel und sage: “Du,
Ich bin der Überzeugung,
Dir setzt man einzig schrecklich zu.
Wie wär’s, wenn du jetzt mal sachlich
Fleißig einfach arbeiten tätst?
Später prahle nicht und jetzt lach nicht,
Daß du nicht in Übermut gerätst.”

James Joyce – Bahnhofstrasse

The eyes that mock me sign the way
Whereto I pass at eve of day.

Grey way whose violet signals are
The trysting and the twining star.

Ah star of evil! star of pain!
Highhearted youth comes not again

Nor old heart’s wisdom yet to know
The signs that mock me as I go.

The Great Park

Just received a pack of cd’s from one of my favourite singer/songwriters, The Great Park. Thanks, Stephen!

For fans of: Leonard Cohen, Cat Power

Faces

Juggling

Carnival

Kiste Bier

“Kiste Bier”. Fun with stickers : )

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Frau Schneck rennt weg

The new paper toy by Martin Graf (Edition 8×8)