New: All Things O'Reilly

C# 4.0 in a Nutshell: Rough Cuts Version

O'Reilly Media, Inc. — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 23:59:46 PST

When you need to look up the essentials of C# 4.0 language syntax and usage, or locate key information in the .NET base class libraries, this concise reference helps you find it quickly. C# 4.0 in a Nutshell thoroughly covers C# 4.0 programming as implemented in Microsoft's Visual Studio 2010, including new CLR 4.0 features such as dynamic typing and the PLINQ/TPL threading libraries.

Windows 7 Annoyances: Rough Cuts Version

O'Reilly Media, Inc. — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:00:46 PST

Windows 7 is much faster and more stable than Windows Vista, but that doesn't mean it's free of irritating glitches. With Windows 7 Annoyances, you'll learn how to deal with a wide range of nagging problems before they deal with you. Annoyances.org founder David Karp offers you the tools to fix all sorts of Windows 7 issues, along with along with solutions, hacks, and timesaving tips to make the most of your PC.

Today in O'Reilly Answers - The Droid, Tip-of-the-Tongue Effect, Technology for Political Candidates, and more

O'Reilly Media — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:05:32 PST

Should I Dump My iPhone for an Android? If the Droid's "unlimited" data plan from Verizon is only 5 GB a month, how much data do people usually use? How to Overcome the Tip-of-the-Tongue Effect I'm a Political Candidate. What Technology Do I Need for My Campaign? Share knowledge, ask questions on O'Reilly Answers today.

5 Tips For Flash Unit Testing

Jesse Freeman — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:07:25 PST

Advanced Flash Tactics or AFTs are techniques that come from deep within the Flash Art Of War, the oldest Flash military treatise in the world. In this AFT I will go over 5 Tips for Unit Testing. Unit Testing and Test Driven Development are a hot topics in the Flash community lately, especially on Twitter. A few weeks ago, after realizing how complex my F*CSS library was getting, I decided to go back and write FlexUnit test for the library in a hope to use TDD moving forward.

The Minds Behind Some of the Most Addictive Games Around - If you've wasted half your life playing Peggle, Bejeweled, Zuma or Plants vs. Zombies, blame these guys!

James Turner — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:08:25 PST

The gaming industry tends to focus on the high end products, first person shooters that crank out a bazillion polygons a seconds and RPGs which spend more time developing the plot in cut scenes than in actual gameplay. But for every person playing Borderlands, there are scores playing casual games like Bejeweled and Zuma. PopCap Games has been at the forefront of casual game development, with a catalog that includes bestselling titles like Peggle and Plants vs Zombies, in addition to the two previously mentioned. I recently had a chance to talk to Jason Kapalka, one of the founders and the creative director of PopCap. We discussed the evolution of PopCap, how the casual gaming industry differs from mainstream gaming, and the challenges of creating games that can be engaging, without being frustrating.

Four short links: 9 November 2009 - Moth Mind Readers, Shiny UI Futures, Usable Newspapers, Hardware Testing

Nat Torkington — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:09:25 PST

New Microsoft Interface Technology -- videos from Craig Mundie (Chief Research and Strategy Officer) on the MS Campus Tour talking about the future of UI using a sexy glass prototype that features tablet PC, gesture, speech recognition, and even eye tracking. Lustable. This and more in today's Four Short Links.

Unlikely Group Working Happily Together To Solve Patent Problem

Carl Malamud — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:10:25 PST

People following the issue of open sourcing the U.S. Patent Database might have been surprised to read an announcement in the official business opportunities web site of the U.S. Government: Synopsis for Public Data Dissemination Sole Source Contract to Google, Inc. While the first reaction of many might be "OMG, WTF, how could they," this is actually good news, with an unlikely cast of characters working together including Google, Intellectual Ventures, and the Internet Archive.

E-Readers Up Close: Getting to know the Sony Readers, Part 1

William Stanek — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:11:25 PST

William Stanek here, taking an up close look at e-readers. First up, the Sony e-readers. Sony unveiled its first reader device in January 2006 and the device became available in early 2007. The Sony Reader, like all currently available e-readers, has a black-and-white active matrix EPD display. As with other devices and E Ink itself, the Sony Reader has evolved through several generations of products.

Three Paradoxes of the Internet Age - Part Three

Joshua-Michle Ross — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:12:25 PST

As we move from the "web of information" to the "web of people" (aka the Social Web) the output of all of this social participation is massive dossiers on individual behavior (your social network profiles, photos, location, status updates, searches etc.) and social activity. This loss of control over personal information is on a collision course with the law of unintended consequences Amidst this barrage of good news for how much power we wield in the transaction of commerce one has to wonder if we are giving away something quite precious in the bargain.

Debug It!

Paul Butcher — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:08:33 PST

Some developers thrash around aimlessly looking for a bug without concrete results. Others have the knack of unerringly zeroing in on the root cause of a bug. Are they geniuses? Just lucky? No, they've learned the secrets of professional debugging. This book will equip you with the tools, techniques and approaches-proven in the crucible of professional software development-to ensure that you can tackle any bug with confidence.

You'll learn how to handle every stage of the bug life-cycle, from constructing software that makes debugging easy, through detection, reproduction, diagnosis and rolling out your eventual fix.

iPhone Game Development

Joe Hogue, Paul Zirkle — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:09:33 PST

Developing 2D & 3D games in Objective-C

How to Make an Atlatl Throwing Spear - A Make Magazine Weekend Project

O'Reilly Media — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:46:38 PST

Practicing the Art of Less - Web 2.0 Expo Co-chairs Jennifer Pahika and Brady Forrest on Minimalism

O'Reilly Media — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:16:03 PST

The Power of Less — "Practicing the art of less, whether it's agile development, minimalist business plans or spare graphic design, has had a momentum all its own during the rise of Web 2.0," write Jennifer Pahika and Brady Forrest in new O'Reilly Insights on Forbes.com. "But the art of less got a significant boost since economic conditions deteriorated, and less became the one thing we all had plenty of. In the best case scenarios, creative "power of less" responses to dramatic budget cuts have resulted in outcomes much better than the status quo, especially when technology was leveraged," add the chairs of the upcoming Web 2.0 Expo in NYC. See if you agree. Read more.

Why Speakers Earn $30,000 an Hour - Scott Berkun's Confessions--A Sneak Peek

O'Reilly Media — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:17:03 PST

"I know I'm paid for something that, in the grand scheme, is not Work." writes Scott Berkun in his new book, Confessions of a Public Speaker. In this free excerpt, Scott discusses speakers' fees, his and others, along with what's cool or not so hot about talking for a living. Scott adds: "The unspoken risk I run is having no salary. I have no pension. I have no extended contract guaranteeing me lecture gigs forever. This book could bomb or be destroyed in reviews, and my speaking career could come to an unfortunate and immediate end, which in the grand scheme of things would be OK." Read the entire excerpt now.

Will Google Wave Reinvent the Way We Communicate or Fall Flat? - Share Your Knowledge of Google Wave

O'Reilly Media — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:18:55 PST

Today in Answers, a user wants more info and less hype on Google Wave: "What's so revolutionary about Google Wave? Can somebody break down the features and benefits of the service in such a way as to convince the average user of its ability to change the way we communicate?" Join the conversation and share your knowledge or ask a question of your own in O'Reilly Answers.

Featured Ignite Video: Visualizing the US Senate by Social Graph - Ignite Presentation by Andrew Odewahn

O'Reilly Media — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:19:55 PST

Four short links: 6 November 2009 - Barcode Scanning, Downloadable Community Book, Gov Hack Day, Android Kludges

Nat Torkington — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:20:55 PST

Red Laser -- "impossibly accurate barcode scanning". Uses Google Product Search to identify products that you scan using the camera on the phone. I remember Rael and I talking to Jeff Bezos about this years ago, before camphones had the resolution to decode barcodes. The future is here and it's $1.99 on the App Store. This and more in today's Four Short Links.

Dean Wampler at QCon San Francisco 2009 - Nov 16 2009

Dean Wampler — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:43:18 PST

Dean Wampler (Programming Scala) is teaching a full-day tutorial on Scala at QCon San Francisco.

Core Data--New from Pragmatic Bookshelf: Apple's API for Persisting Data on Mac OS X

O'Reilly Media, Inc. — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:43:48 PST

Photoshop Elements 8 for Mac: The Missing Manual New from O'Reilly

O'Reilly Media, Inc. — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:44:48 PST

Beautiful Testing--New from O'Reilly: Leading Professionals Reveal How They Improve Software

O'Reilly Media, Inc. — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:45:48 PST

Premiere Elements 8: The Missing Manual--New from O'Reilly

O'Reilly Media, Inc. — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:46:48 PST

iPod: The Missing Manual, 8th Edition--New from O'Reilly

O'Reilly Media, Inc. — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:47:48 PST

From O'Reilly Answers: Best Web Conferencing Software? - Our expert shares her experience in evaluating platforms

O'Reilly Media — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:27:16 PST

A user asks the O'Reilly Answers community for help in choosing the best hosted platform for web conferencing to provide online training. O'Reilly's Kathryn Barrett assists with a handy list of questions to ask yourself when evaluating web conference environments and urges the user to carefully examine what features he really needs. Do you have a recommendation? Share your knowledge or ask a question of your own in O'Reilly Answers.

Three Paradoxes of the Internet Age - Part Two

Joshua-Michle Ross — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:28:16 PST

This gem from Whimsley makes the point - with extensive statistical modeling supporting the argument - that our algorithm-obsessed, long tail merchants are actually depleting the overall choice pool despite the fact that as individuals we may be experiencing a sense of more choice through recommendations engines. "Online merchants such as Amazon, iTunes and Netflix may stock more items than your local book, CD, or video store, but they are no friend to "niche culture". Internet sharing mechanisms such as YouTube and Google PageRank, which distil the clicks of millions of people into recommendations, may also be promoting an online monoculture."