Have you ever signed your name with a mouse? I can't speak for everybody in my generation but I was taught cursive in 3rd grade and by 7th grade all the teachers required assignments to be in print and papers to be typed up. The only thing I use cursive for any more is signing my name. Even the signature, when you think about it, is pretty laughable. Why do I have to sign … [Read more...]
New and unusual job titles to strive for during your career in tech
In the tech career, there eventually comes a fork in the road where you have to decide if becoming management or specializing in your technology skills is the path you want to continue on. If you head into management, titles like CIO or CTO might be what you end up striving for. Nowadays, you also have companies listing job openings for 'ninjas', 'rock stars', 'badass' or … [Read more...]
What does ‘five 9s’ mean?
My ISP has suffered two fiber cuts in the past month, taking out Internet access for all of their customers in a large region for hours at a time with an average repair time of 8 hours according to the company. While twiddling my thumbs waiting for the Internet to return, I began thinking of the five-nines commonly cited in high availability for systems. Is it time for ISPs to … [Read more...]
How the Illinois Nexus law chased FatWallet out of the state
The Illinois Nexus Tax or "Amazon Tax" was recently deemed unconstitutional. When it was signed into law, Amazon and other retailers immediately canceled contracts with affiliates. One company, FatWallet, would lose 30% of its revenue as a result. In order to stay in business, they moved their entire operation out of Illinois and just across the border to Wisconsin. They made a … [Read more...]
Important client versus datacenter manager
Money spent on conferences is money well spent, right? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDfLXAtRJfY Yuck! Have you ever been in that situation? … [Read more...]