Random Thoughts on the Passing Scene #32
30 Aug
- I wish that PortableApps.com had an affiliate program, because I am rapidly becoming their biggest evangelist. I can’t stop preaching how cool it is. I just made a donation to the cause. I don’t know why I think it is so cool, but it is. I am actually seeking out opportunities to plug-in my Cruzer Titanium into other computers. I spend time looking over the list of applications, trying to talk myself into adding another one. In fact, I added this one today.
- My latest find on PortableApps? KompoZer. This is the best webpage creator/editor I’ve found so far. I knew it was good when I used it to create some red text and it used a <style> tag instead of the dreaded <font> tag. In addition, it provides nice support for CSS development as well. Recommended.
- I thought this was fascinating. (Hat tip to Larry O’Brien). I’m a pretty big ignoramous when it comes to imaging and the like — but that technology of stretching image like that seems pretty cool and really useful — sort of like flow layout for pictures.
- This is pretty cool: A grammar for Delphi.
- Can you read French? If so, you can read this interview on Delphi topics with Marco Cantù. Kind of funny to have an Italian Delphi developer interviewed in a French magazine and blogged about by an American Product Manager. It got me thinking — we have been working late, and the company usually buys dinner for us from the various restaurants here in our small but eclectic town. And we were talking about how, well, eclectic our company is. In our building here, we have native speakers of French, Japanese, Tagalog, German, Swedish, Spanish, and Portuguese. And on a regular basis, as part of my job I deal with people whose native languages are English, Japanese, German, French, Spanish, Polish, Russian, Malaysian, Italian, and even Australian!
Makes for a rather cosmopolitan day indeed.


Speaking of cool software, have you seen Hamachi (https://secure.logmein.com/products/hamachi/vpn.asp?lang=en)?
Really cool VPN freebie (or you can rent the next package up the chain) that enables you to establish VPN workgroups from within secure networks.
Makes supporting my dispersed family’s computers much easier. Now if I could only take a break from familial desktop support long enough to code that next Delphi project…
August 30th, 2007 at 10:46 amCant wait to see Delphi 2009 on the portable apps list (not for free of course)
August 30th, 2007 at 1:40 pmIn fact, you can read Marco Cantu Interview while testing Google’s Translation utility. Enjoy it!
August 30th, 2007 at 6:24 pmSpeaking on KompoZer, one problem that prohibits me from using it, is that I can’t seem to figure out how or why it destroys my pretty formatted HTML. It removed all my spaces and I can’t see how to get around that.
August 30th, 2007 at 6:42 pmFolks who don’t know what a grammar is for might want to read this article:
http://steve-yegge.blogspot.com/2007/06/rich-programmer-food.html
August 30th, 2007 at 6:47 pmJust to inform you that we decide (The delphi team of www.developpez.com French community) to put online the english version of the interview with Marco cantù.
You can found it here :
http://delphi.developpez.com/interviews/2007/marcocantu/vo/
good reading
Thierry.
September 1st, 2007 at 3:40 pm@Thierry (and the other Delphi guys at Developpez)
Over the years I have found that Developpez is a great resource of general programming info and with a good share of Delphi info. It is also a nice way to practice my French.
Bien fait, A+ RIF
September 2nd, 2007 at 9:33 am[…] talked before about how much I enjoy PortableApps and what a cool thing it is — and so I was delighted to discover that the main menu […]
February 11th, 2008 at 9:53 am