To open source, or not to open source.

This post started very differently. I was all boisterous in my description of Open Source software and how advanced it was getting... and then my open source browser crashed and I lost everything. I don't normally swear, but 3 minutes ago I let one slip. It happens.

I guess it goes to prove what I've seen time and again. Things work marvelously, until you show someone how well they work, or until you tell someone about it in your blog. (sigh, save as draft.. continue)

I've been using Open Source software for quite a number of years now. And I've realised that the decision to use Open Source is quite an individual one, and requires thinking about your particular situation. There are times when an Open Source replacement will suffice, and other times where the added time and frustration caused by moving to Open Source/freeware is just not worth it. I remember trying to convince Wesley that Eudora was the coolest Mail Client out there. I never really succeeded in this, and more often I think I was trying to convince myself of my decision. I'm currently using Thunderbird which is not my idea of the perfect mail client either. It is an example of something that is almost but not quite there.

When I switched. Switching is a term I've learnt from the Mac users I've recently come into contact with. People who move from PC to Mac are known as switchers. I'm not applying this term to people who move across to the Open Source alternative, because, the move from the known and familiar to the unknown is a common factor. So, look into it when switching.

I've used the Open Office suite since it's inception, and used StarOffice before then. This is a product that has really come a long way and I definitely recommend it. I tried it when I decided to legitimise the software on my machine, because there are times when I refuse to shell out a few grand (in ZAR) for a piece of software. Ofcourse, some of my choices turned out to be black sheep: my constant convincing my friend Wesley (and myself in the process) that Eudora was actually cool. [cough, change topic]

So when is it better to spend money on software. In my opinion, when it greatly affects your productivity or quality of work. For me: I've been very impressed with the (Macromedia) Adobe Studio product suite. And I paid up from version MX through to Studio 8. It is good software, great value at it's cost, and I'll gladly spend what I consider to be very reasonable upgrade fees to the newer version (hoping this stays reasonable with Adobe at the help of MM). AND you get Flash! That alone is worth it.

Recently, I've changed the primary technology I use for churning out websites. My focus has moved from predominantly Adobe Coldfusion websites to ones done in PHP, the widely used Open Source web language. I've also started working on a project which uses the Symfony framework as it's core, which is also Open Source. Learning PHP and Object Orientated thinking has really been exciting and challenging, but it has included a few frustrations now and then. I have to get out of the habit of wanting to write queries which do stuff. It's quite a discipline, and I'm fortunate to have a seasoned web programmer (PHP, Java, Python, TCL/Tk, PERL) leading the project, guiding and helping me adapt. The best way is just to do a project and learn from your mistakes. Mistakes like writing 16 lines of complicated PHP code instead of 1 line which says $this->user->save(); Wow. Thats when OO really blows your socks off!

Symfony work has shown me that the common idea of "Choosing Open Source means being abandoned to figure stuff out alone" is just not true. It is so well supported, and the developer are eager to help others out. And many of them are French, which goes against another common idea about helpfulness and the people of France. Je veux dire que les francais sont formidables sur le projet symfony!

Another option for Open Source is just to play around with software that you wouldn't invest in. An example: Blender3D. I'm no 3D artist, and I certainly wouldn't spend the thousands of Rands needed to get set up with Maya just to mess around. But I have installed Blender3D and I'm having fun playing around with it. What a great product, and it is available for PC, Mac and Linux. Students with future careers in animation, wanting to dabble, take note: Open Source/ Freeware is your friend.

So, sometimes it's worth switching over. But it's always fun to check stuff out and play. Here's a nice grouping of software to get you started. Enjoy.

introducing... my mac

Could it be a definite trend happening... or is it that I'm noticing it more now that I have one: but aren't there a lot of macs around these days? I keep noticing fellow mac users all around, in coffee shops, in meetings I go to (and I don't just hang around in ad agency circles either), even the DJ at the New Years Concert at the Dome in Northgate... so what gives? Has the iPod swung the Cupertino doors open to Apple acceptance here in South Africa? It certainly seems so! I mean even my aunt got a nifty little black macbook (2nd generation, faster than mine!) I helped her set it up (not that she needed me either, it was child's play), and she loves it - she went to some free Apple training that they give to new users.

I've had my mac for a few months now and I love it. Every week or two I find some other neat little feature that I didn't know about before. That being said, it did take some adjusting from the PC I'd gotten used to. A friend sent me a link today: http://teenagefanboy.blogspot.com/2007/01/ten-things-i-wish-i-knew-before-i.html
and I found it a great read. It's a list of 10 things that can help new mac users, as some of the things are definitely very different on mac.

In fact, one of the focuses of this blog will be about Apple, Mac, iPod and all that stuff.
When I find more nifty features I'll be sure to post them here.

In the meanwhile, here's a great site I found with helpful shortcut commands. Being a developer, knowing lots of shortcuts is kind of like having experience points in the field of battle... "Oh, you fought in Korea?" - yeah, so rack these suckers up and impress your friends.

http://www.danrodney.com/mac/index.html

what it is...

Well with the start of 2007 I've decided that I need a place to blog. Not just because everyone's doing it, but because sometimes there are just things that need to be said. Unlike some other blogs I've seen, this won't have a specific focus. This will be more a philosophical sketch pad, mixed with a cool findings outlet...

I've often found that the people with the loudest voices often have very different views to mine. I have no problem with views that are different. I just want to impress that the loudest and most popular views are not always the ones that should be heeded. Not to say that my views should be heeded any more because they are different. Something should be valued by it's own substance or lack thereof, not by the volume of it's message, or it's peculiarity or popularity.

I often stumble across things which are not mainstream where I think "gee, I wish others would somehow find out about this" - So, even if only to a handful of folks: I hope to bring this out, and if thought is provoked, then there is value in this...