Jeff Atwood has posted some interesting thoughts on software development based on O’Reilly’s History of Programming Poster.

Read it here.

[tags]software development, programming, software, O’Reilly[/tags]

I’m working my way through Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen. It’s a quick and easy read. I’m attempting to implement the type of system that Allen recommends. There is plenty of info available on the Web about GTD if you’re unfamiliar with it. A good starting place is Getting Started with “Getting Things Done” at 43folders.com.

[tags]productivity, GTD, David Allen, reading[/tags]

Have you ever fired up the old laptop in the middle of a class or meeting and treated everyone else in the room to that annoying sound Windows XP plays when you logon? I got tired of trying to remember to mute the volume on my laptop before heading off to class so I simply turned the logon or “Welcome” sound off. It’s quite simple to do. In Windows XP go to the Start menu then Control Panel. In Control Panel go to Sounds and Audio Devices. Select the “Sounds” tab. In the “Windows” category of sounds you can set the sounds for ”Exit Windows”, “Start Windows”, “Windows Logoff”, and “Windows Logon” to “(None)” using the dropdown menu at the bottom of the window.

[tags]Windows, Windows tips, computers[/tags]

If you run Windows XP you’ve probably encountered the long wait for your computer shutdown. A few weeks ago my computer was taking several minutes to shutdown. Since I own Image for Windows I restored an image of my system from a previous date before all of the software bloat and registry clutter occurred. However, the tool below may help with XP shutdown problems.

User Profile Hive Cleanup Service is a program released by Microsoft to help with “slow log off and unreconciled profile problems”. IntelliAdmin has some more info if you’re interested. [HT: Paul Stamatiou]

[tags]Windows, Microsoft, tools, software[/tags]

Well, technically this post should be titled “What I’m About to Read”. Last week I received The Hidden Power of Electronic Culture: How Media Shapes Faith, the Gospel, and Church by Shane Hipps. I plan to begin reading it tomorrow. At approximately 160 pages it should be a quick read. I will post some of my thoughts on it after I finish (or maybe along the way if it takes me longer to finish than I anticipate).

From the back cover:

It has been said, “the future is now.” From cell phones to mp3 players to the Internet, no previous age has seen such profound change manifested so quickly. But these thrilling, dizzying transformations are forcing the church to decide where it fits in all this progress. Shane Hipps presents the promise and peril of the emerging culture and its relationship to the emerging church. Looking beyond the details of what’s happening in communities of faith, Hipps analyzes the broader impact of technology and media on the church while engaging readers with questions such as:
• Is media/technology value-neutral?
• How has technology changed the way we think about Scripture, community, and worship?
• What cultural opportunities has the church missed?
• How should the church position itself to take advantage of coming cultural trends?

More information about the author can be found at www.shanehipps.com.

[tags]books, reading, culture, media, technology, faith, Gospel, church, Shane Hipps[/tags]