Don Vaillancourt's Blog About Everything

MVC in Java Using Spring Framework

Don — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 18:11:59 +0000

I love the MVC design pattern, it’s the easiest way to build and manage websites. I have used CakePHP and Zend Framework for PHP; both make building sites to easy. So I decided to look into something similar for Java web applications and found Spring Web Flow which seems to provide what I am looking for. I had started to work on a project in PHP using Zend Framework and through I’d move this over to Java.

Spring Web Flow seems to support Java Server Faces via Spring Faces which I like.

So I’ll be exploring this for the next little while. I usually ramp up pretty fast, so I’ll see how this works out.

Design Patterns

Don — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 17:18:50 +0000

I just did a search for design patterns and found this great website for it. I remember looking for design patterns a few years ago yielded pretty much nothing, now I found this great list. Wikipedia also has a great list of design patterns.

I know a few design patterns already, but there are a lot I still need to learn. And there are the anti-design patterns that I’m not even going to worry about for a good while.

Java Software

Don — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 17:06:37 +0000

I have a lot of weakesses when it comes to Java. The programming language itself is not one of them. What my weaknesses are include:

Design patterns – I still do not understand their purpose. I know what they are, I know what they represent, but to me, someone who knows a design pattern doesn’t mean they know how to implement them. Which is why I have been a little reluctant to learn them. But everytime I have an interview, they come up and so the obvious solution is to learn them. Hopefully the community can help me out with this.
EJB – yes, again I know what they are.
Spring Framework – Yes, this guy I need to learn.
Hibernate – This is nother guy I need to learn.
Apache Libraries – Apache has a number of platforms and libraries for Java development including Struts and Tapestry.

If there is anything else that I missed, which I’m sure I have, let me know.

Blog Changes

Don — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 16:50:16 +0000

I decided to change the focus of this blog to something a bit more generic. The reason is I need to improve a few things beyond just my photography such as my tech skills. I really want to get a job in Java and so need to improve some of my skills in respect to improve my chances of getting that special job.

I’ll still keep my other blog up, which I haven’t updated in a long while. But will probably most like update here most often to force me to learn.

As anyone in the tech industry knows, there are to many things to learn that sometimes it’s confusing what to take on.

Since I am a software architect, my first goal is to improve my knowledge of Java. After that I need to learn more about project management. The UML diagrams, and on and on. I’ll detail more later.

Shooting In Colour In Montreal

Don — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 20:38:04 +0000

Went bike riding yesterday from Ile Des Soeurs all the way to Mont Royal following the Monteal bike lanes. It was fun. Brought with me by Nikon FM10 and 5 rolls of Kodak UC400/36 film that’s about to expire next month. I’ve never kept film so long that it would expire on me.

So I shot a couple of pictures. Was kinda ok. I remember when I used to shoot with the group that it would take a few shots to warm up the eye. So Monday after work and before salsa class I’m going shooting throughout downtown Montreal. Hope to get rid of those rolls of film and get some nice shots out of it.

Fortepan Film No Longer Exists?

Don — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 03:59:49 +0000

I was going through my links from my old site and moving them over to this blog (see right panel) and discovered that Forte is no longer making film. It seems they seased all film and paper manufacturing. I read a few posts here and there that it may have been saved. If anyone has any news please letr me know.

I have used Fortepan film a number of times and loved it grainyness.

Belief

Don — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 00:53:59 +0000

This is one of the best first pictures I ever printed myself. It requires some work because the background was quite underexposed and so required a lot of burning in work. I think exposure was a full one minute including the burning. This is the statue found in front one of the churches in Toronto.

Belief

Shooting In Groups 2

Don — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 20:50:47 +0000

I was just thinking today when I used to shoot with a group of photographers there were a few of us who had connections. Or someone had a desire to shoot something that none of us had thought of. Once we got access to the Woodbine Race Track through someone. Another time I discovered an abandoned hotel in Toronto I had never heard of. Or I would never had visited the Toronto islands without them.

Everyone in a group has a different background and something different to offer. I remember Ramses Moya working for Sun Microsystems who traveled the world and took his gear with him. The pictures he shot are incredible. And John Riddel had a press pass so had access to emergency scenes to shoot pictures, most of which are breathless. There were a few other guys that were amazing at it as well that I will have to look up.

Some shot digital, some film and some slides. Ramses even shot the famous Agfa Scala black and white slide film.

So being in a group has many benefits.

Ansel Adams

Don — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:02:34 +0000

For those who shoot black and white, there is no better photographer out there than Ansel Adams(wikipedia) for a number of reasons. The foremost reason is that he knew how to shoot and compose photographs. But my best reason is that he knew how to print.

He was one of the few great photographers who knew how to manipulate a photograph at the printing stage by doing just the right amount of dodging and burning. I’m not referring to Photoshop, but using an enlarger in a darkroom.

Below is one one of his most famous images. You’ll notice that the composition causes the eye to travel along the river and to the top left portion of the photograph. The balance of the whites and blacks is wonderful to look at.

The Tetons and the Snake River

His photographs can be purchased here.

I had purchased two of his books on printing that I enjoyed very much for the film and darkroom enthusiasts and those who would like to get involved in the art of true black and white photography.

Shooting In Groups

Don — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 11:38:39 +0000

My best photography learning experience came when I joined a group of other photographers that I had met on a web site. These were down to earth Nikonians who only shot Nikon cameras. The first outing was cool, we were all using film cameras and only a couple of us actually carried tripods. This was a chance for me to show off what I could do and see what the other guys did. And I have impressed.

There were a few times when a number from the group would be shooting the same subject. One of the subjects I remember was a canoe turned upside-down and a rope running along its hull in a wavy shape. At first I dismissed the whole thing, it was just a rope after all. And they’re all shooting the same picture. But when I saw the pictures I was surprised. Everyone had shot the same subject differently. This is when I realized that this group photography thing would be good for me.

I’ve taken a number of trips with them from the Toronto Islands to the University of Toronto and other places in the GTA. One year someone in the group even got us access to the Woodbine Racetrack before the season started. I still have to develop those rolls film.