jQuery Tools is a tiny (4k) standalone JavaScript framework that allows website developers to create common UI widgets without requiring the overhead of its larger jQuery cousin or a cluster of plugins.
I’m glad I was introduced to the jQuery Tools UI library, and I will probably use it when I build some upcoming websites. Continue reading
Are you an experienced ExtJS developer currently using version 3.x but looking to migrate your application to version 4.x? ExtJS 4 First Look will be an excellent place for you to start.
ExtJS4 First Look is an excellent book for the right audience, and I hope those people choose to read this book. I will probably recommend this book to a lot of Sencha developers! Continue reading
I’ve been a bit obsessed with Pong lately. In fact, this is the most attention I’ve given to this game since I was 5 when I owned an Atari 2600.
As I continue to work on my open source mobile Pong game, I find myself reading very detailed accounts of how the original game worked so that I can build an accurate (yet updated) replica.
The author, Steven Kent, did some serious homework for this book (which was printed in 2001). His chapters are well organized and fascinating to read – and I’m not even a hardcore gamer. Continue reading
How many of you played Pong when you were little? I’m old enough to remember playing it in the arcade and on my Atari 2600. I’m such a nerd that I decided to recreate Pong using Sencha Touch!
I did some searching on the interwebs to find the original Pong AI algorithm… but it seems like everyone and their mother has a different take on it. I’d love to hear your thoughts. How can I improve this game? Continue reading
I was nine years old when I got my first game console for Christmas: the Sega Genesis.
It was the start of many years of my life that revolved around video games. And while I never became you’re typical gamer (and my game-playing has dropped to virtually zero these days), I have a high appreciation for the game development process.
As someone who works almost exclusively in the HTML5 web application world I saw Learning HTML5 Game Programming and thought “This is going to be a really cool book!”
Continue reading
How many of you JavaScript developers out there write unit tests?
The key to unit tests is that they’re run EVERY TIME you touch your code… otherwise your tests aren’t going to do anything (obviously). If your tests don’t do anything, there’s no point in having them.
I’d like to share an example app in which I create a bash script that runs my unit tests via PhantomJS. By utilizing a Git pre-commit hook, I ensure my unit tests are run EVERY TIME I touch my code, and (best of all) it won’t allow me to commit code that doesn’t pass my tests! Continue reading
When I was in college I had the (dis)pleasure of taking a graduate-level class on algorithms. Although I loved the content, I did not have enough practical experience to make the most of the material.
That’s why I was really excited when Pearson Education offered me the chance to review Algorithms, 4th Edition. In the eight years since I took that class I’ve learned a lot about software engineering… this would be a great opportunity to see if I had learned as much as I thought! Continue reading
If you are in any way involved in web development (or follow internet-related news), you have probably heard about the GoDaddy/SOPA saga. As a longtime (now former) GoDaddy customer, I have some thoughts I’d like to share. I will try … Continue reading
It’s that time of year again… and although I probably need to lose a few pounds, I have a few other goals in mind for 2012.
Reflecting on how my professional goals have matured over the past few years, I can definitely see progress. Here’s hoping that 2012 brings more success! Continue reading
“Selection Sort” and “Insertion Sort” are two popular sorting algorithms. If they have the same Big-O notation, which is better?
The point here is that Big-O notation, although certainly helpful, doesn’t always tell us the full story. It’s great to know what the worst possible performance is for our code… but we need to know how often to expect that situation. Continue reading