Friday, October 06, 2006
Happy Anniverary
Today is my wedding anniversary! I've been married to my wonderful wife for 16 years, and it has been wonderful. I know you're probably thinking bologney, but it has really been great. I see so many marriages that are just miserable and wonder why? I won't climb on that soap box and just leave it at, "Happy Anniversary Darrylin!" ♥♥♥♥♥♥ ∞
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Prayer Concern
My wife, Darrylin, received a phone call last night from her niece that her son Sam was hit in the head with a golf club. I guess him and his buddy were goofing around and somehow they began playing with a club. BAM, he was hit in the head. He jumped on his bike and rode home to his Dad who in turn took him to the emergency room. They thought it just going to be a stitch up job, but after some further testing the doctors found he had cracked his skull.
So if you are reading this and are so inclined, please pray for Sam. He's at Rainbow Childrens hospital now under observation and having more tests done. The outlook is bright, but your prayers are welcomed and appreciated.
So if you are reading this and are so inclined, please pray for Sam. He's at Rainbow Childrens hospital now under observation and having more tests done. The outlook is bright, but your prayers are welcomed and appreciated.
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Darrylin turns 38!
Happy Birthday Darrylin!
Born: August 12, 1968
I just wanted to post out that I love you and we will be celebrating many more birthdays together.
Sunday, July 23, 2006
I think I like Golf!
I went out with my Dad this weekend, and had a pretty good time. I'm not great yet, but I'm beginning to really like it. :-) I would have never thought I would like hitting a little white ball around a perfectly manicured yard, but I got a hold of one that went at least 290 - 300 yards! That's the shot that keeps ya comin' back for more! It was just 10 - 20 yards from the hole, but took me another 4 shots to sink it. Yes, my short game needs some SERIOUS help.
I asked Darrylin (my wife) if she wanted to go out, but she said she tried it once when she was younger and hated it. Oh well, she has her things she likes to do. I just have to try and get as many games as I can in before I go back to school. Things get quite hectic around here!
Until next time............
I asked Darrylin (my wife) if she wanted to go out, but she said she tried it once when she was younger and hated it. Oh well, she has her things she likes to do. I just have to try and get as many games as I can in before I go back to school. Things get quite hectic around here!
Until next time............
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
ASP.NET 2.0 - Lessons Learned
This is just an initial post and I'll add details when I sort everything out, but if you're having performance issues with the Personal Web Starter Kit included with Visual Studio 2005 then this might interest you.
The starter kit is a good base to get someone going and learn ASP.NET programming. I used it to revamp the Wargo Family site and it worked pretty well, except for the initial page load. (We'll talk about initial setup growing pains later!) Depending on the time of day, the initial load could take up to a minute and sometimes timeout and not load at all. It was very frustrating and Microsoft's help and Google searches didn't really touch on exact issues, but many sites made references to a possible issue with database performance dragging down the web application. Upon further investigation, I found some possible solutions. Many were very complex and required rewriting a few pages and the background VB code to display the random picture from the photo album. This randomize procedure was probably the culprit in the bogging down the page due to calling many other procedures and using multiple database calls. I began to look into this, but my lack of knowledge in the ASP.NET arena severely hindered my progress. Was there a way to alter just the MsSQL SELECT statement so it didn't load ALL of the fields to pick a random picture? Yes! (Again, details will come later once I sift it all out.)
Changing the SELECT statement in the GetPhotos stored procedure from '*' (selecting every field) to a narrowed list and not having to actually SELECT the actual picture (the JPEG sizes vary) greatly improved performance. The initial load is now consistently under 5 seconds! The pointer to the picture is randomly selected then the picture is downloaded for display. The original method would get slower and slower as the number of albums and pictures increases. Imagine having hundreds of pictures and selecting every one of them out of the database to just display one random "Picture of the Day"? I'll have to also track down the site where I saw this suggestion because I would like to give credit where credit is due. A big thanks to the currently unknown site!
Anyway, even though I'm not officially in class I'm still hacking away. I think the end result looks a little more professional and polished than my straight HTML rendered page. I can see how PHP, .NET, and other server side scripting languages are gaining popularity. Data driven web sites awesome! Sometimes a feel like a crack addict - the computer is my crack! I go more than a couple of days and withdrawal symptoms set in. Stay tuned - details to come...
The starter kit is a good base to get someone going and learn ASP.NET programming. I used it to revamp the Wargo Family site and it worked pretty well, except for the initial page load. (We'll talk about initial setup growing pains later!) Depending on the time of day, the initial load could take up to a minute and sometimes timeout and not load at all. It was very frustrating and Microsoft's help and Google searches didn't really touch on exact issues, but many sites made references to a possible issue with database performance dragging down the web application. Upon further investigation, I found some possible solutions. Many were very complex and required rewriting a few pages and the background VB code to display the random picture from the photo album. This randomize procedure was probably the culprit in the bogging down the page due to calling many other procedures and using multiple database calls. I began to look into this, but my lack of knowledge in the ASP.NET arena severely hindered my progress. Was there a way to alter just the MsSQL SELECT statement so it didn't load ALL of the fields to pick a random picture? Yes! (Again, details will come later once I sift it all out.)
Changing the SELECT statement in the GetPhotos stored procedure from '*' (selecting every field) to a narrowed list and not having to actually SELECT the actual picture (the JPEG sizes vary) greatly improved performance. The initial load is now consistently under 5 seconds! The pointer to the picture is randomly selected then the picture is downloaded for display. The original method would get slower and slower as the number of albums and pictures increases. Imagine having hundreds of pictures and selecting every one of them out of the database to just display one random "Picture of the Day"? I'll have to also track down the site where I saw this suggestion because I would like to give credit where credit is due. A big thanks to the currently unknown site!
Anyway, even though I'm not officially in class I'm still hacking away. I think the end result looks a little more professional and polished than my straight HTML rendered page. I can see how PHP, .NET, and other server side scripting languages are gaining popularity. Data driven web sites awesome! Sometimes a feel like a crack addict - the computer is my crack! I go more than a couple of days and withdrawal symptoms set in. Stay tuned - details to come...
Friday, June 23, 2006
Oracle 9i is history!
Another class added to the transcipt! I think I've figured out that I really don't like database administration. I can't see myself pouring over a DB all day long. Then again, some people can't sit down and program all day long, and it doesn't seem to bother me. Oh well, to each their own.
I'm taking six weeks off to relax and catch up with my family. My wife, Darrylin, really has missed me. She's tired of watching me bang away at the keyboard when I get home. What will I do with out a class to attend?!! I know I've been putting of some sound system work at our church. I'd better finish the setup. We're basically adding a projector into the scheme of things. I'll mount it from the ceiling and integrate it into a donated computer and the existing sound system. Shouldn't be too tough. But then again, most project don't seem tough, but once you get into them........the rest is history.
Anyway, until next - God bless!
I'm taking six weeks off to relax and catch up with my family. My wife, Darrylin, really has missed me. She's tired of watching me bang away at the keyboard when I get home. What will I do with out a class to attend?!! I know I've been putting of some sound system work at our church. I'd better finish the setup. We're basically adding a projector into the scheme of things. I'll mount it from the ceiling and integrate it into a donated computer and the existing sound system. Shouldn't be too tough. But then again, most project don't seem tough, but once you get into them........the rest is history.
Anyway, until next - God bless!
Friday, May 05, 2006
I GRADUATED!
I know, it's been quite some time since I've posted. (I really don't think anyone is reading this anyway.) Since my last post, I have finally completed my Associate Degree in Computer Science. I was a little surprised when I received my diploma with a little gold label saying "Summa Cum Laude". Am I bragging a little? Yes I am! Do I know all there is to know about computers? Far from it! I understand my diploma mainly tells a potential employer that I'm trainable and have a basic understanding of computers and programming.
There's not much else going on. I've slowed down a little with my classes to spend some more time with my wife and daughter. Going to school full time really puts a damper on a social life. Until next time . . .
There's not much else going on. I've slowed down a little with my classes to spend some more time with my wife and daughter. Going to school full time really puts a damper on a social life. Until next time . . .
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