How to Ask IT For Something
Have you ever wondered how to ask the IT department for something? Maybe you want to switch from ASP.NET to Python, or you want to ditch your RDMS (such as MS SQL Server) and go with NoSQL for an upcoming project. Maybe it's something as simple as wanting software installed but you don't have admin privileges on your work machine. Whatever the situation, you just know that you need the new widget or technology to do your job. What's even worse is that you must go through the company's IT gatekeeper who only has two sentences in their vocabulary: "What do you want?" and "No." This person could be at the IT help desk, a DBA, a SAN admin, etc., but I'm pretty sure at least one of these people exists in every company.
The Cost of Automation
I love automating things. It's one reason I fell in love with programming even, because if you can write better programs you can automate more things. But there are many costs to automation that people don't always understand, or care to admit. Have you ever spent 25 hours automating something that won't take 25 hours of your time over the next year? Then after all your hard work the process changes and your shiny program now needs another 25 hours to make it work again.
It can be hard to decide when to automate, or when to just leave something alone. The available choices and the impact from decisions will vary greatly from organization to organization. If you're in a highly technical organization the impact can be much lower and automation can easily take over more. But, if you're in a more typical, non-IT driven company that still has IT needs, the decision of what to automate can be tricky and you should proceed carefully. Note: I didn't say avoid automation, nor will I ever. I am simply saying "Choose wisely!"
The Server Migration Continues
This blog is no longer hosted on a shared server account! Woo hoo!! Yesterday I configured a shiny new VPS (shininess not guaranteed...) to be our new web server for most of our systems, both current and upcoming. If you haven't gone through a process like this,you might be wondering what all is involved. Well, let me tell you.... a lot!
Improved RustProof Labs -- Coming Soon
Another month has gone by without any new posts, and for that I apologize. There is, however, a reason for the silence! I have been working on a number of projects with the largest being reorganizing the RustProof Labs website.
Learning: Music and the Mind
This blog post is completely different than my usual; I'm bringing back a paper I wrote during my junior year of high school. I remember when I was researching for this paper I had a hard time finding credible sources because so little research had been done. Over a decade later there has been very little new research done, and budgets to support music in public school are being cut drastically. (Disclaimer: I did not edit the typos I now see, so don't be a hater)
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