Martin A. Schwartz:

"... it hit me. Science makes me feel stupid too. It's just that I've gotten used to it. So used to it, in fact, that I actively seek out new opportunities to feel stupid. I wouldn't know what to do without that feeling. I even think it's supposed to be this way. " 

I read this today and realized that this is the exact same conclusion that I've reached over the last couple years.

Unknowns are good, and we ought to pursue them harder than we currently do — especially in the sciences.  Yes, it's a little bewildering to be set in the midst of so much that could go wrong, but even if you uncover one grain of truth, that's something that perhaps no-one has even seen before.

Coming from the perspective of a web developer and having to give up access to HTML, Javascript, DOM, and CSS is difficult. I spent the time to learn how Javascript works and the intricacies of CSS. And even supposing there is a benefit to GWT's compiled Javascript, I would need to learn a ton to make use of it. (I'll bypass the fact that a developer can't be ignorant of what's happening behind the scenes)

But now, what if we flipped the idea on it's head and offered a full web application stack, built from the ground up on javascript? Both the client and server sides share the same code-base, Javascript interpreter and DOM; and can (conceivably) render portions of a web app on either side. Consider it, because it's almost here.

Dav Glass presenting on YUI used sever-side on NodeJS (link: quicktime movie - 36 minutes )

Dav Glass presents a compelling argument for a server-side DOM. I really suggest you check it out if you have the time.

By having a DOM on the server-side, you can use the same Javascript code to manipulate elements and update the DOM with new information. You can create the html for a tabview on the server and then attach events on the client-end for interactive use... or just leave it server-only and let progressive fallback provide links to the alternate states of the tabs. Only one set of code is needed for both types of operation.

We can see the gains to be made from this kind of technology, but certainly it can't be for everybody. The web projects that, even now, work best with a clear separation of roles (i.e. PHP always equals server-side code, JS always equals client-side code). People get a nice sense of safety out of believing that one type of code should remain separate from another. And this is not for those people.

In fact, what we might see is less of a clear separation of domains and more of a spectrum of domains. Conceivably we could even have a slider that would adjust between being all static and all dynamic (supposing, of course, that we could tie those values to different functionality being turned on and of.)

I get passionate about this issue because, really, it's such an simple thing to change. Reordering a few words, pulling a few out, and generally saying less can have a profound impact—but then, why is it so hard?

Because it's hard to be honest, and it's hard to hear honesty.

I'm a perfect example of this.

I make elaborate fabrications to sound well-informed when, really, I don't have a clue what's going on. It would be better to admit I'm clueless and move on. But, I could lose my contract, or my credibility! Who would want to work with me!? Well, personally, I would rather work with someone like that . And I can't be the only one.

I get defensive. I don't like being put on the spot, I'm sure you can relate. And I'll come up with some fancy excuse for why I "can't hang out", "can't meet my deadline", or "won't share my source code." This might work for a short while, but I always have the sneaking suspicion that it will catch up to me.

I water down. Do you ever say something and then instantly regret it? I do this all the time. And then in order to cover it up you say all kinds of clever stuff to try and paint it in nicer light. Not cool. Stop it.

Yes, it's hard to say what you actually mean. But it's really the only option. The time lost while confusing people is expensive. During a booming economy, that might be overlooked. During an recession, watch out.

Programming is a complicated job. Many people see it as a craft, and as craftsmen, programmers must spend countless hours honing their skills and improving their expertise to reach a level to compete at the level they desire to be at. For example:

• If I want to build web pages at an amateur level, I simply need to know HTML, some CSS, and maybe some jQuery. For every question that might come up, there is usually a hundred answers on Google.
• If I want to do the same thing at an expert level, I must know about usability, cross-browser compatibility, form validation, race-condition debugging, and a host of other things—most importantly, however, I should be able to find answers to problems that are not Google-able.

So if you’re shooting for your “A” game, you need to practice, right?.

But there’s a problem too. If anyone has an issue with repetitiveness, it must be programmers. We have actually been taught that the sole purpose for our job is to reduce repetitiveness. So where does that leave practice and doing things multiple times?

A lot of the programmers I know, who are really good, attribute their success to the fact that they spend hours at home every night building cool stuff or researching—I think the same could be said of artists and writers as well.

This is great, but let’s consider the following quote by Geoffrey Colvin (emphasis added).

For example: Simply hitting a bucket of balls is not deliberate practice, which is why most golfers don’t get better. Hitting an eight-iron 300 times with a goal of leaving the ball within 20 feet of the pin 80 percent of the time, continually observing results and making appropriate adjustments, and doing that for hours every day - that’s deliberate practice.

So let’s make an assumption—perhaps an incorrect one, but bear with me.

Most programmers are not deliberate about what they practice or how they grow. They do not set clear goals, they do not continually measure results, however they are spending the necessary time.

Why are we just like the golfers?—”simply hitting a bucket of balls.”

• Programmers don't get out enough. In particular with other that practice the same craft.
• It’s still a fairly new craft. Many outsiders (your family, bosses, etc.) still think that we just “know computers” and they come to us for everything relating to computers. To them cleaning viruses and building web-pages are the same thing. So, to cater to their needs, we are often forced to become jacks-of-all-trades.
• The web it too noisy. How do we judge what is important given the thousands of new articles written every day? The best thing we can do is probably unplug from the web and go for a walk.

Here are some possible solutions. Certainly not an exhaustive list, but something to get started with.

• Local user groups. These allow for interaction, they expose people to higher-level talks and foster an environment for learning beyond amateur.
• Set clear learning goals like “I want to understand exactly how Object Oriented CSS works” or “Find out mathematically if database XYZ can scale for a certain use-case”.
• Continually measure results. Progress is important and it might seem daunting that understanding CSS in 13 browsers is a huge task, but every time you check one off, you’ll feel good about it.

And although I don’t follow my own advice fully yet, I’ve determined to move forward with some of my own goals:

• Develop a system for building web UI applications that actually simplifies things.
• Start a user group to empower other developers and designers.
• Build tools that empower people.

NOISE.

There are tens-of-thousands of people posting blog posts about the same exact thing. For example, recently I needed to write a plugin that would display the results of a search on a page in the content area. I looked it up on google and found thousands of articles on "How to write a wordpress plugin". Each one describing in nearly the EXACT same words how to accomplish the very first step in writing a widget (and only a widget... certainly no-one would want to write something ELSE!) Nothing more. I was only able to get some success after reading the source code of about 15 other plugins.

While working on a different wordpress site, I was looking for some ways to save time and use a plugin I was SURE someone had made (something that could rename page titles in the menu). But again there are tens-of-thousands of people posting articles on "The top 10 plugins to save you time" and "The 20 plugins every wordpress developer should know about!" Maybe I'm being a little nieve that there are actually people who would be stupid enough to title ther articles that way and actually have USEFUL content. Silly me.

Before I accumulate too many haters though I should validate that WordPress is a good system. I like it. In fact, it seems to be the BEST platform for SEO related functionality and it fits the blog role very well. The themes are funky but there are a lot of options out there and the plugin library is vast, if misleading.

Do the community a favor next time you post an article about your favorite tool. Ask yourself this question "Is this article helpful or am I just adding to the noise?"

See also:

http://shifthappens.wikispaces.com/

The idea of random people watching what I was doing seemed weird and useless. I don't love being in the spotlight, I'm even a bit of a recluse at times. So it seemed exceptionally out of character to want to have people follow my random thoughts...

That is, until I realized what I was missing out on.

I want to grow a community. I want to contribute. I have something to bring to the table and I'm not going to wait for my opportunity to fall into my lap. Twitter is my attempt at that.

I'm not on Twitter so that I can be part of the bandwagon--really it's the opposite. I want to fight the trends in my life of being lazy and settling for what is easy to get.

Follow me: http://twitter.com/gbluma

http://www.lab11.com

Check it out!

But the easy-to-use experience ends before it really begins. The documentation for Selenium RC and Selenium Core are just terrible. It's a shame too, cuz I'm drooling over the prospect of automated usability testing. Especially the idea of writing a test that checks all my websites and sends me a text-message when something is broken.

For now I'm frustrated and want a break from it, but hopefully I'll pick this up again and make something useful.