Well, I’m at the airport heading home after CTIA 2010. Herewith are my final thoughts…

Last night was a bit of a bummer, as we were not chosen as finalists for the AT&T developer contest. We had a good application, but the judges told us over drinks at the award ceremony that size of the company does play a big role in the contest. I can’t really fault that logic, as Adobe probably doesn’t need the 10k prize as much as a small 2 person shop might. We’re just thankful for the opportunity to get on AT&T’s radar with our enterprise mobile initiatives and hopefully set the stage for future talks. I must say, however, that AT&T’s awards event at the Venetian was very nice, good wine and great food!

The bulk of the show on Day 2 was much the same as Day 1. I soaked up a whole lot about the industry, but I think for mobile application developers other conferences such as RIM’s may make more sense.

Oh, and I got a picture of Shaun White. I have no idea what a pro snowboarder has to do with Wireless…but Marvell certainly managed to attract attention to themselves!

My impressions of Day 1 of the International CTIA Wireless 2010 Show

Technically, this is day 2 of the International CTIA Wireless Conference, here in Las Vegas, Nevada… but day 1 was “pre-conference” training type of stuff, so let’s just call today “Day 1″

My goals for this trip are somewhat modest, really. A main reason for coming is an AT&T sponsored event tomorrow where we get to present one of our mobile applications, LiveCycle Workspace Mobile (Blackberry edition) as part of a contest for Enterprise applications. We were chosen to advance to round 2. The other goals I have are:

• Gain a better understanding of the mobile ecosystem. Writing apps in a vacuum without understanding the underlying flow of the industry is probably a bad idea, and to tell the truth, I am fairly new at the mobile game. I just kinda became the enterprise mobile guru one day at work (well, I chased after the opportunity actually).
• Platforms Platforms Platforms. What are we missing? Do we need an Android port? A Windows Phone 7 port? Should we be targeting some functionality to “feature phones” and other phones not in the “smartphone” category?
• Network. Well, maybe I run into some people that we could explore partnerships with or at least are on our same wavelength.

So far, well, I am learning quite a bit about infrastructure. I always knew the world of “broadband spectrum” and LTE and component manufacturers existed, but being the typical software guy… well… I just counted on all that stuff being there. Well, now I know that software (in the “app” sense) is a small part of all of this. American carriers are spending $45bn, yes, BILLION in 2010 on network bandwidth buildout. It just amazes me how these guys are putting their money where their mouths are. This morning during the keynotes by Ralph de la Vega, Randall Stephenson and Iñaki Urdangarín, the impression I got was that the growth of Mobile is relentless, and the bulk of the work right now is in just changing government policy around wireless, acquiring more spectrum and building the most network capacity possible. I often think that Software is the end and the means to everything… but it really isn’t. The software — the applications in addition to the insatiable need of human beings to network, connect and be free is what is pushing this industry to do do what has to be done: extend the network to underserved areas, remove bandwidth barriers and reduce cost.

Anyway, my thinking on the whole wireless industry…which I think is actually a bit different than what I refer to as the “mobile industry” is changing now for the better. This is about freedom and universal reach to me now, instead of simply “extending functionality to new platforms” or “driving sales”. Those goals are very important, but I think we need to pay attention to the overarching vision of limitless bandwidth and network availability…because when we have that, well, the applications my companies build can ultimately reach more people and improve their lives immeasurably while still turning an amazing profit.

Platforms/Phones/Operating Systems… I’ve come up short on this topic thus far. The focus here is very much on infrastructure, and the infrastructure folks are most concerned with bandwidth, # of connected clients, etc. I went looking to see what MSFT had in Windows Phone 7, and I was very impressed with the UI… MSFT may just have gotten something right with all of its “7″ products. I was, however, very disappointed that there was no partner hardware available for me to handle running the OS. Lots of fancy demos…talking heads and booth people, but in terms of showing me the goods… MSFT gets a fail. RIM has a big display area, but most of it is taken up by its app dev partners. Its nice to see that kind of marketing, but I don’t really go to a conference to get a demo of Twitter on Blackberry (for example — not picking on that app by any means ). I’d hoped to see some prototypes, etc.

Networking… well, still early on that front. I’ll get to that straight away.

This is a very large, and very interesting conference, but you can tell its used by many as a convenient way to setup meetings with vendors, suppliers, etc all at one time. Its value must be immense to the hardware guys.

That said, I’d better get back to the conference soon

I just received my AeroPress, and I must say that I am very impressed with it for a couple of reasons…

AeroPress is a little expresso machine that is made by a company that seems to be popular for it’s line of frisbees. I guess they also like coffee

First off: It makes excellent coffee. Using nothing other than the standard Seattle’s Best coffee that we are stocked with here at work, I have been able to make a couple of excellent cups of Americano. When I compare the coffee it produces to the same coffee produced in our big commercial coffee brewing machine, AeroPress wins out hands down.

Secondly, It is easy to clean. When I ordered the AeroPress, I figured that it would make a decent cup of coffee, but I’d also be stuck washing it after each brew. I was wrong. Since the main cylinder features a rubber plunger, the inside of the unit is very clean, and the “puck” of grounds at the bottom just kind of ejects out into the trash. A quick rince and that’s it.

I cannot comment yet on build quality and longevity of the plunger, but I’ll be sure to write something if any components of the AeroPress fail. On first blush I definitely recommend this little coffee maker.

I ordered mine from AeroPress.ca for about $32, and had it in my office the next day.

Ever wondered what that disgusting dried cod is good for? Wonder no longer, and make these tasty fish cakes.

One of my favorite dishes to make around the holidays are Cod fish cakes. My grandmother and mother have a recipe, but I have adapted it a little bit to suit my tastes a little bit better.

For this recipe you will need:

• 1lb of russet potatoes, peeled and sliced about 3/4″ thin.
• 1lb of de-boned salt cod (also known as bacaloa).  If you can find it in small chunks, that’s best.
• 2 small yellow onions, finely diced.
• 1 rib of celery, finely diced.
• 4 cloves of pickled garlic (or fresh garlic if that’s what you have handy).
• 1tsp of dried summer savory (you could use fresh dill if you prefer…or leave it out entirely).
• 1 bay leaf
• 6 tbsp of unsalted butter.
• Flour for dusting the cakes.
• Salt & Pepper to taste.

24 hours before you are ready to assembled the dish, put the cod in a bowl and cover with cold water.  Store the bowl of cod in the refrigerator for 24 hours, changing the water 3 times.  The reason for this is that the cod is obviously very salty, and you need to draw most of the salt out.

After the cod has soaked, drain it and put it into a pot with cold water and the bay leaf.  Bring the cod to a low simmer, and simmer for about 10 minutes — basically just long enough to soften it up.

Meanwhile, make mashed potatoes.  Boil the potatoes in a pot until they are soft, drain and mash with 3tbsp of butter and pepper to taste.  DO NOT ADD SALT TO THE POTATOES AT THIS POINT.

In a frying pan, add 1tbsp of butter and sweat the onions, celery and garlic until softened, but not browned.  Put the onions, celery and garlic into the pot with the potatoes.

Drain the cod, and flake it with a fork as well as you can.  Put the flaked cod into the pot with the potatoe mixture and summer savory, and mix well.

At this point, taste the mixture to check the seasoning.  You may find that it is not salty enough or peppery enough.  Add salt & pepper to taste.

Allow the mixture to cool enough so that you can handle it, and form into balls with a diameter of about 2 inches.  Flatten into little cakes and put on a plate.  You should get about 9 cakes or maybe more out of this recipe.  If you are stacking the cakes on the plate, separate with parchment paper so they don’t stick.  Let the cakes cool, then cover with food wrap and store in the kitchen for 30 minutes to 24 hours.

When you are ready to cook, heat up the remaining butter in a nonstick frying pan at medium heat.  Dust each cake with flour and fry until they form a golden crust and are warmed through.  Since the cakes are already cooked fully, don’t overdo it.

Approving tasks just got a lot easier for Adobe LiveCycle ES2 users!

Ok, now something I am really excited about: LiveCycle Workspace ES2 for Mobile devices. I was engineering lead for this project which we began earlier this year as a special bonus to our process management customers. I’ll be posting some blogs later on about developing processes that are optimized for Mobile devices, but for now feast your eyes on the info below.

Oh, and you can get the iphone application today at http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=331646271&mt=8 , although you will need an ES2 server to connect to.

Announced today, LiveCycle® Workspace ES2 Mobile, for the iPhone®, BlackBerry® smartphones and Windows® Mobile smartphones, helps organizations save time and money with faster electronic approvals.

When approval tasks only show up in email, they tend to become a needle in a haystack depending on the amount and quality of email received. The LiveCycle mobile application provides a dedicated task list “inbox” on the device where people can easily view tasks that have been directly assigned or delegated to them. The delegation view is ideal for shared queues or providing vacation coverage.

Tasks can now be quickly found while on the go, so expenses, purchase requests, invoices, contracts, vacation requests, escalations, and other HR, IT, Legal, and Finance documents and forms can all be quickly approved using an authenticated click through electronic signature on the mobile device.

LiveCycle Process Management ES2 natively supports these new mobile clients and can significantly increase the agility of workers who already face the prospect of multiple approval processes throughout their day.*

Workers can easily see a list of tasks assigned to them…

They can also take specific actions on each task…

…contact the person who set up the request by simply tapping their name in the application…

…and even view the PDF file associated with the task**.

For more information on LiveCycle Workspace ES2 Mobile, as well as LiveCycle Process Management ES2, check out the links below.

• LiveCycle Workspace ES2 Mobile for iPhone
• LiveCycle Workspace ES2 Mobile for BlackBerry smartphones
• LiveCycle Workspace ES2 Mobile for Windows Mobile
• LiveCycle Process Management ES2
• LiveCycle ES2

*LiveCycle Process Management ES2 is required and processes must be configured to support mobile approvals.
** To view a flattened PDF of the associated form or document, the device must have PDF viewing capabilities.

My colleagues in Adobe HR have asked me to post details about two summer internship opportunities we have here at Adobe Ottawa.  Click the links below to see the full position descriptions.

• Release Development Intern
• Software Verification Intern

Adobe Ottawa is a really great place to learn and work.  If you are currently enrolled in a BA/BS in Computer Science or related technical field you need to be looking at these opportunities above.

Posted via email from matt_m’s posterous

Now this is cool.  I hope there is not a delay in it being released to Canada.

http://technoracle.blogspot.com/2009/04/i-can-finally-talk-about-my-apple.html

I wrote up a quick class that will create appropriate validators for all TextInput fields in a container (and any of its subcontainers).

Click here to launch the demo.  Right click on the demo to see/download the source.

Lately I have been spending a bunch of my free time helping my lovely fiancee, Maureen, setup a new mobile esthetics business. Maureen has been an esthetician for over 10 years, and decided that now is the time to work for herself… so www.mobicure.com was born. The business is restricted to Ottawa, ON and vicinity and provides a bunch of services including manicures, pedicures, waxing and caters to individuals, groups and has some special services in the works for seniors.

If you are in the Ottawa area and need any of the services above, check out the site. The cool thing about getting someone to come to you is that you can sit around with your friends/family while sipping on some wine while getting services performed. Going to a spa… well, you have traffic, parking hassles and often if you have a pedicure or manicure done you will mess it up on the way home.

This service could also be useful for body builders as well when it comes time for competitions and the massive amounts of hair removal that come with them.

Anyway, check it out!