Windows 8 - It's great (kind of)

After using Windows 8 for over a month now, I can honestly say it's the best OS that Microsoft has ever produced...with possibly one of the worst desktop UIs I've ever used.

The OS is simply not designed to be used on a desktop. Microsoft tried to blaze a new trail with their metro windows UI (which I very much respect) but fell flat when it came to supporting existing user input devices.

According to Microsoft, the future is a touch friendly OS...according to me, that's stupid! Let's face it, touch friendly is the future, but that doesn't mean we need to draw a hard line in the sand for the keyboard and mouse.

I have mixed feelings about this. On one hand, I'm pissed that Microsoft expects me to have touch-screen EVERYTHING, on the other, I'm really happy that I've learned about 30 new keyboard shortcuts to accomplish things that were easily clickable in Windows 7.

The real reason I feel compelled to write about Windows 8 however is it's speed an stability. I can honestly say, no version of windows I've ever used boots so fast, works so correctly, and requires as little tweaking to run programs at their optimal settings.

Playing video games with my Windows 8 box is like playing them on a brand new computer. I can watch my  required resources just fade away, while the full screen app takes center stage. It's quite an impressive thing to see.

I'm pretty convinced that all of the companies who stand to loose profits due to the impending Windows/Xbox Live store, are going to paint Windows 8 into being the worst OS this side of Vista. I'm going to go on record and say that is simply not true.

Pending you can get past the touch only friendly UI, I think Windows 8 is a great addition to the Windows family, and I can't wait to see it evolve from here.

My presentation on KnockoutJS from Go Daddy TechFest 2012

Here's my presentation from the Go Daddy TechFest 2012. I copied my format from the excellent Steve Sanderson presentation given at Mix'11 but added a bit of custom flair.

Let me know what you think.

Windows 8...

Windows 8 is probably the greatest core OS Microsoft has ever produced. From it's memory usage to ability to simply find and configure everything on your network, they really hit the ball out of the park with this one.

Sadly, the desktop user experience is equivalent to someone shitting on a silver platter. I swear...I'm trying...trying really fucking hard...but this is just awful.

The tiles should not be the focus for the desktop. I'm not saying you don't need them, but holy shit...tapping my windows key to search my PC, then loosing the entire context of what I'm doing?

Removing the ability to properly work with the windowed applications, while engaging with the tiles is a monumental fuck-up.

I don't know...I really don't want to spend thirty minutes typing a rant, but it's hard to ignore.

I'm going to keep using it and report back after a month of forcing myself to use this disaster.

The new Blogger

When I first started working with Blogger, I was quite sure that Google had the purchased/developed the ultimate website creation tool. I mean, built in hosting, customization, and nothing that specifically says you have to keep references to Google or Blogger on the site...amazing.

Flash forward to thirty minutes ago when I created this site. Anger, frustration, confusion are three words that hit me right off the bat.

I like the new UI, but I struggle to see why basic customizations no longer work. For example, custom CSS...like the demo says doesn't work.

.Header { 
   text-align: center; 
}

Then I started realizing a lot of stuff doesn't work. Like the SyntaxHighlighter you see above...that didn't work either. Let me get to the point here, it's the new "Dynamic Template." As it turns out, the new template doesn't want to work with any of the older customizations that made Blogger great. As of right now I'm reverting to something basic, but hopefully Google will work to get the new template style up to speed.

I really should be blogging

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing for a really exciting position at the big M in Seattle. As of yet, I still haven't heard anything...but the whole experience made me ask myself "what are you really doing with your career?"

I write code, but so do countless others. What about graphic design? Damn, that isn't exactly in short supply. Ass kissing? Nah, I'm terrible at that. So what really makes me special? (don't say giving blowjobs, don't say giving blowjobs, don't say giving blowjobs,) Blowjobs? DAMN!

Seriously though, after spending an entire day interviewing (and feeling like a complete idiot) I started wondering "why don't I have a blog?" Why am I not out on the internet, whoring myself all over the place like these other kids?

Between us, I do have a blog, but it's not exactly focused on me. (shameless plug for NinjaCamp.com, I own that shirt...it's great!) I need something where I can focus on the stuff I do every day.

So, all that text and we end up here. My first post for what is tentatively called "Dev Farina."

I'm going to task myself with posting something industry relevant at least once per week. I figure, it shouldn't be too hard...I mean, I learn at least one new thing per week...sometimes as many as two!

I'm not going to spooge my artistic skills all over the screen (just yet), so don't expect anything super custom. But you should expect some slightly educational content...peppered with swear words.

This will be my first time doing something on the internet that offers total transparency into who I am, and doesn't try to hide my name (Mark Farina, Jr.), or who I work for (GoDaddy.com).

I won't be promoting this blog, or even telling my friends and family about it. I'm simply going to work hard at providing content that helps you learn to code or code to live...and of course chock it full of enough pornography phrases that it turns up in every possible search.

In the end, I hope it helps me help you help me and creates a perfect Infinite Loop for all of us.