This has got to be one of the most frustrating experiences of my life. I am working on a project that requires the use of ImageMagick and I am implementing the business layer of the application in Java. JMagick is a thin JNI wrapper for ImageMagick that whilst a little limited, will perform a good bulk of what can be achieved by using system calls to the ImageMagick commands. I had been using system calls with Runtime.getRuntime().exec() which isn’t ideal (but for some of the more complex ImageMagick work like fine tuning compositions is still required). I first of all decided to go down the easy road (or what I thought was easy) and install all the pre-built libraries and binaries and hopefully it would all just work. I was wrong.
Author Archive for D. Shanley
I understand this post will only appeal to a very small group of developers, however I find it useful. Hibernate is a ORM service for Java. ORM stands for Object/Relational Mapping, meaning you can map your plain old Java objects (POJO) directly to your chosen database tables and columns with ease. Hibernate will even build your Java classes as database tables and columns for you! One of the biggest performance issues for newer developers working with databases is managing connections. Continue reading ‘Connection Pooling in Hibernate using C3PO.’
Sorry about the really shameful plug, but I have to tell you about Zip My URL. It’s a little micro service thats very similar to TinyURL.com but with more style and is Web 2.0 enabled allowing you to publish your Zipped URL’s straight to Twitter & Del.icio.us. I developed it in my spare time and I am trying to drum up a little help testing it out. Continue reading ‘Shameful Plug time… ZipMyURL.com’
I heard about a searching service recently that promises to "give more specific and relevant results". ChaCha.com attempts to give the web a personal shopper when looking for results. I always hit Google - never once in my life have I not been able to find what I need when using Google, but I like to test the waters with new web technologies so I thought I would give it a go.
Continue reading ‘ChaCha.com - Here comes 1999 all over again.’
<<< DISCLAIMER >>> Please note that I have not written this article to enable people to steal music from MySpace artists - This is a ‘proof of concept‘ article. Please, do not steal music! If you are going to steal it then please do so knowing you are committing a crime and myself and theReformed have nothing to do with it.
Continue reading ‘Snatching Protected MySpace Music Using Safari’
Every day I spent my time researching new ways to do things I have done for years, for example this weekend I spent 27 hours researching a new way to present Java EE HTTP uploads using AJAX, Servlets and EJB's. Yeah I know - blah blah, "we all do that kind of thing, who cares". But AH! I have been doing the same thing for something we are all familiar with. MySpace! Yes its rubbish, yes its been hacked together from ColdFusion and ASP .NET elements and YES it always seems to be broken, BUT there seems to be a massive market out there for people who want to make a quick buck from generating MySpace friend adders, or mass commenter's. They charge a fortune to download these applications to spam other MySpace users, why can't I make a free one? screw those guys… lets open source it! So I thought - How hard can it be? so I started to investigate and I was quite excited as to what I found. Continue reading ‘Hacking MySpace - The Basics - P1′
This post is something I have been meaning to write about for ages. We all use wireless network connections all the time, At work, home - on the move. For most of us pro's wireless networking has become the norm, so much so that if you get to an airport or train-station that doesn't offer some kind of wireless access you feel like you're sitting in a backwards ultra low tech bumpkinesque farm. Continue reading ‘Cracking WEP. Watch me hack you.’
09
Oct
Blank Paper Syndrome?
We have all been there, a big job to start - a bespoke system to develop or build or integrate or what ever it is that you do. You know what has to be done but where do you start? That blasted blank whiteboard in front of you, mountains of notes and sketch UML diagrams. Putting a pen to paper for the first time on a large project can be so looming, making that first jump into building what seems like a skyscraper of technology can be so off-putting that you procrastinate and digress until you are dangerously running late into the project and have to start hacking to make things work properly instead of building them right from the start. Continue reading ‘Blank Paper Syndrome?’
As most professional developers are fully aware, when you start out building that exciting application for Joe Bloggs Inc, your intentions are always so honourable. You have your UML Diagrams, you have all your classes and libraries planned out and then you start writing. As you churn out your pre-defiened pattern that you lovingly spent hours drafting the client calls you "oh can we change this, and add in that?". The looming prospect of a 'hack' is on the way. Continue reading ‘A hack a day - Is it worth it?’
Native compiled applications are what we all use every day, that word processor, this web browser. But just what is the difference between all the other systems used that are interpreted (this web blog, all those networking myspace-esque sites) even that poker game on your cellphone. What are the benefits of these different types of applciation structure? Continue reading ‘Native or interpreted, which will survive?’
