Alan Kleymeyer’s Blog

Android REST client applications

The Qliq Android application uses an architecture described in this Google presentation.

A ContentProvider gives access to data retrieved via REST services and cached in a SQLite database.   It is a pretty elegant solution though at times it seems to suffer some performance issues in terms of timely screen updates.

There is a lot to learn about Android.  There is more than one way to solve a problem and the Android SDK provides many patterns and components to get the job done.  The best way to learn is to see how others have solved problems and to simply dive in and try things out.

I recently came across ORMLite as an alternative to SQLite.  Don’t know much about it. I wonder how much use it has on the Android platform.

Which iPad is better? iPad 2 or the New iPad?

The iPad 2 may be a better choice than the new iPad according to Dave Winer

The Black Donnellys

Best show on TV that got cancelled.  Watch the entire first season on Netflix!

How Target knew a High School girl was pregnant before her parents did

I read an interesting article in the NY Times Magazine.  It was about how companies try to glean shopping patterns from their customers.

This articles talks about the related privacy issues

The full article is here

Hippopotami are dangerous

In your face Cassidy and David.  I told you that my answer of “Hippotamus” was right for the Scategories category “Things you are afraid of”.

From The Straight Dope:

“The hippo, found today throughout sub-Saharan Africa, is considered by many experts, explorers and Africans to be the most dangerous animal in Africa (not counting the mosquito).  They’ve all killed way more people than Africa’s lions have. (A few rogue tigers have killed a lot of people too, but they live in India, not Africa.) The hippo is extremely aggressive, unpredictable and unafraid of humans, upsetting boats sometimes without provocation and chomping the occupants with its huge canine teeth and sharp incisors. Most human deaths occur when the victim gets between the hippo and deep water or between a mother and her calf.”

Interview Questions

I have never taken a job at a place that included tests during the interview process.  The last time I interviewed someone I did it through Skype and they shared their desktop,  brought up their development environment and explained some code they wrote.

There are only 3 true job interview questions

Why we don’t hire programmers based on puzzles, API quizzes, math riddles, or other parlor tricks

Hateful Hiring

Getting answers to questions on the Internet

I participate in a few sites that exist to help people find answers to questions.  Some software developers that I follow started a site called StackOverflow for programmers which is perhaps the #1 source of useful information for programmers.  You earn points on the site for asking good questions and providing useful answers.  People vote for questions and answers and you are awarded badges like in Call of Duty! They made the technology used on the site available for others to start their own Q&A areas for various topics.  Only those topics that can prove themselves as legit are accepted at StackExchange.

I participate in the following sites:

StackOverflow – Programming questions
AskDifferent – For Apple/Mac questions
Web Applications – Gmail, Facebook, etc
Pro Webmasters – Website managers

The awarding of badges on these sites is a great idea and one that my new company Qliq uses for their Couponing/Social Networking smartphone app.

We’re (mostly) an Android Family

Cassidy and I have been out of contract on our T-mobile phones for half a year.  We were waiting for the right time to extend our contract.  Cassidy has also been wanting an iPhone which of course T-mobile does not offer.  Earlier we were waiting to see if we could stay with T-mobile and maybe wait for AT&T to buy T-mobile and make iPhones available.

This weekend I picked up 3 new phones and extended Cassidy, David and my contract for 2 years.  The time was right because T-mobile was offering all their phones free with a 2-year committment.  T-mobile makes you jump through some hoops, however, asking for the cost of the phones up front and requiring you to send in rebate forms for each phone.  Rebates are such a cheezy business practice! Anybody that uses them I automatically think less of.  As much as Cassidy wanted an iPhone I convinced her to give the HTC Android a try. I’m hoping the speed of 4G and all the cool features of this phone will make her forget the iPhone.  She has an iPod Touch and an iPad!  And Jane has an iPhone.

We didn’t get the highest end Samsung Galaxy S II or HTC Maze 4G (normally each $230 with 2-yr) because they required the most expensive plans which we didn’t need.  We settled on the HTC Sensation (normally $199) which is a beautiful phone.

So far, we are all very pleased with the phone.

There wasn’t a specific driver to get my laptop to recognize the phone for Android development; I had to download the HTC sync software.  I got it Here

Just discovered a killer app that I’ve missed on the iPhone.  Maps street view!  It’s a free plugin on the Android!

I don’t always test my code

oDesk

I got some part time work using oDesk in 2009 and had a very good experience.

Reviews: 1 2