5onRandom Geekery https://randomgeekery.org/note/2002/05/ Recent contentin5 on Random Geekery Hugo -- gohugo.io en-us Wed, 29 May 2002 00:00:00 +0000 Note: 2002-05-29 https://randomgeekery.org/note/2002/05/2002-05-29/ Wed, 29 May 2002 00:00:00 +0000 https://randomgeekery.org/note/2002/05/2002-05-29/ <h2 id="perl-section">Perl section</h2> <p>It just occurred to me that COOLNAMEHERE had no <a href="https://randomgeekery.org/page/perl/">Perl</a> section. Considering that I’ve used the language nearly every day for the last 4 years, this is a gross oversight on my part. Well, the oversight has been fixed, more or less.</p> note Perl section

It just occurred to me that COOLNAMEHERE had no Perl section. Considering that I’ve used the language nearly every day for the last 4 years, this is a gross oversight on my part. Well, the oversight has been fixed, more or less.

]]> Note: 2002-05-25 https://randomgeekery.org/note/2002/05/2002-05-25/ Sat, 25 May 2002 00:00:00 +0000 https://randomgeekery.org/note/2002/05/2002-05-25/ <h2 id="bleagh">Bleagh</h2> <p>My current contract is filling up a lot of my time. That’s okay, though - money is always a nice thing. It means that I don’t have as much time to monkey with the gallery, though. Oh well. I found the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20050206183943/http://plig.net/~ture/rubyphoto/">RubyPhoto</a> package, though, and it does exactly what I want. Once I figure out how to use it and fit it into the formatting of the rest of the site, expect <em>lots</em> of pictures to go back up.</p> note Bleagh

My current contract is filling up a lot of my time. That’s okay, though - money is always a nice thing. It means that I don’t have as much time to monkey with the gallery, though. Oh well. I found the RubyPhoto package, though, and it does exactly what I want. Once I figure out how to use it and fit it into the formatting of the rest of the site, expect lots of pictures to go back up.

Oh, and I think I figured out what was missing from the Site Map page. Just a little Renderer class, no big deal. I only missed it because it was merely obvious. Something has to be blindingly obvious before it catches my eye.

]]> Note: 2002-05-10 https://randomgeekery.org/note/2002/05/2002-05-10/ Fri, 10 May 2002 00:00:00 +0000 https://randomgeekery.org/note/2002/05/2002-05-10/ <h2 id="pagetemplate-010-release">PageTemplate 0.1.0 release</h2> <p>My hands are shaking. Maybe that’s just the coffee working through my veins. Anyhow, I’ve released the first version of my Ruby package <a href="https://randomgeekery.org/page/pagetemplate/">PageTemplate</a> , and announced it to the world (or at least the part of it that’s subscribed to the Ruby mailing list). Now let’s see what everybody thinks of it!</p> note PageTemplate 0.1.0 release

My hands are shaking. Maybe that’s just the coffee working through my veins. Anyhow, I’ve released the first version of my Ruby package PageTemplate , and announced it to the world (or at least the part of it that’s subscribed to the Ruby mailing list). Now let’s see what everybody thinks of it!

]]> Note: 2002-05-08 https://randomgeekery.org/note/2002/05/2002-05-08/ Wed, 08 May 2002 00:00:00 +0000 https://randomgeekery.org/note/2002/05/2002-05-08/ <h2 id="im-not-dead-yet">I’m not dead yet</h2> <article class="admonition note"> <header> ℹ️ Note </header> <p><a href="https://randomgeekery.org/note/2025/10/2025-10-05/">2025-10-05</a>: a recurring theme, where I feel bad about not being visibly active on the site at all times; still an issue, but much less so these days</p> </article> <p>Okay. You can’t tell from the site, but I have been very busy. That Ruby Templating thing is ready for use. Now, I just have to figure out how CGI works under Ruby! <em>…sigh…</em></p> <p>Instead of the now hopelessly damaged <code>template.py</code> script, you might want to look at the Ruby Template demo page to get an idea of the basic progress of the templating engine.</p> note I’m not dead yet
ℹ️ Note

2025-10-05: a recurring theme, where I feel bad about not being visibly active on the site at all times; still an issue, but much less so these days

Okay. You can’t tell from the site, but I have been very busy. That Ruby Templating thing is ready for use. Now, I just have to figure out how CGI works under Ruby! …sigh…

Instead of the now hopelessly damaged template.py script, you might want to look at the Ruby Template demo page to get an idea of the basic progress of the templating engine.

It’s bedtime now, but I had to get another simple example done. Check out this very … chunky … guestbook, written in Ruby and taking advantage of my PageTemplate package.

So what’s my plan now? I’m going to write up some documentation. You know, tutorials, API guidelines, stuff like that. Nothing fancy, but I want people to be able to use it as soon as they download it. That’s just the kinda guy I am.

]]> Note: 2002-05-04 https://randomgeekery.org/note/2002/05/2002-05-04/ Sat, 04 May 2002 00:00:00 +0000 https://randomgeekery.org/note/2002/05/2002-05-04/ <h2 id="just-a-little-update">Just a little update</h2> <p>I began the process of migrating my <a href="https://randomgeekery.org/page/vim/">Vim</a> pages to a more sensible location within the site. Go to <code>www.coolnamehere.com/geekery/vim/doc</code> to find the newest docs for VIM. You’ll still find the old pages for a while, but the new section has the docs for version 6.1! How can you possibly resist?</p> <p>One other thing: The Nifty Python Templating Thingy is most definitely going to be a Ruby Text Templating Idea. I want some more practice writing real code before I go and muck things up in anyone else’s Ruby projects. The good news there is that I am already about 1/3 done with the test cases, with each test already passing merrily along. I think that’s good. I plan to keep the pace up through the weekend.</p> note Just a little update

I began the process of migrating my Vim pages to a more sensible location within the site. Go to www.coolnamehere.com/geekery/vim/doc to find the newest docs for VIM. You’ll still find the old pages for a while, but the new section has the docs for version 6.1! How can you possibly resist?

One other thing: The Nifty Python Templating Thingy is most definitely going to be a Ruby Text Templating Idea. I want some more practice writing real code before I go and muck things up in anyone else’s Ruby projects. The good news there is that I am already about 1/3 done with the test cases, with each test already passing merrily along. I think that’s good. I plan to keep the pace up through the weekend.

]]> Note: 2002-05-02 https://randomgeekery.org/note/2002/05/2002-05-02/ Thu, 02 May 2002 00:00:00 +0000 https://randomgeekery.org/note/2002/05/2002-05-02/ <h2 id="massive-geek-attack">Massive geek attack</h2> <p>That <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20050206183943/http://www.zenspider.com/seattle.rb">Seattle.rb</a> meeting got me to thinking. Unit testing is a big part of software development, but I know very little about it. It seems to me that my cute little <a href="https://randomgeekery.org/page/pagetemplate/">PageTemplate</a> project presents a perfect opportunity to learn. It’s a small project, so I can keep most of it in my head. It’s not so small that unit testing would be overkill - “killing a fly with a bazooka”. I was bothered by some of the robustness of the code anyways.</p> note Massive geek attack

That Seattle.rb meeting got me to thinking. Unit testing is a big part of software development, but I know very little about it. It seems to me that my cute little PageTemplate project presents a perfect opportunity to learn. It’s a small project, so I can keep most of it in my head. It’s not so small that unit testing would be overkill - “killing a fly with a bazooka”. I was bothered by some of the robustness of the code anyways.

Why has the code been on my mind? I’ve been reading The Practice of Programming, by Kernighan and Pike. This book is a broad strokes overview of how to be a good developer. It covers design, algorithms, testing, and quite a bit more, in a thin volume. Good stuff. If you already have a good idea how to write code, but want to be an actual programmer, I highly recommend this book.

Enough with the sales pitch. The book helped me understand several data structures: what they are, how to use them, and most importantly, when you could use them. I’ve had several “a-ha” moments reading TPOP, and one of them involved a complete rewrite of the PageTemplate engine using much cleaner data structures.

That’s my new plan. Write some test cases, write the code, release when everything is okay, and then do whatever my heart desires.

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