randomice.net » Not Nice Stuff

global warming bug tracker

Enrico Schnepel — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 07:00:57 +0000

Alexander found a BBC news about how bad skilled programmers can cause global warming. Obviously we need a global warming bug tracker!

Causality

Enrico Schnepel — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 07:40:13 +0000

In software an action results in most cases in a reaction. You don’t get a reaction on silent failing, silent success or just not implemented stub functions. If you get an reaction often you could guess the kind action you submitted from the reaction. To be concrete – this should be the case for error messages – but it isn’t always. As you may guess the following error message has nothing to do with a buggy JavaScript function:
Error: uncaught exception: [Exception... "Component returned failure code: 0x80004005 (NS_ERROR_FAILURE) [nsIDOMLocation.href]" nsresult: "0x80004005 (NS_ERROR_FAILURE)" location: "JS frame :: http://gengmf.randomice.net/wp-content/plugins/cryptx/js/cryptx.js :: DeCryptMail :: line 37" data: no]
In fact it was the mail protocol handler application setting. The automatic detection (which is the default and it was my setting) found – as expected – the kmail program. I needed to manual set the path to “/usr/bin/kmail” to make everything work.

Many thanks to charms who had the same problem.

ripcord

Enrico Schnepel — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 20:46:31 +0000

After one and a half day of a training about “SQL Server Analysis Services” (SSAS) which should have lasted for three days we (a group of five attendees) pulled the ripcord. The trainer did not seem to have a glimpse of didactic at all. He did not seem to have a glimpse about the course subject either. This was not only my impression – it were all of us. After we had a small chat with the chief about our displeasure, he offered us to get the training with an other trainer 5 weeks later – for free. So we canceled our hotel and made the tour back. HE (the trainer) has wasted a lot of our time. Never ever again!

Update: The second trainer was classes better than the first one, but still left some room for improvement.

scandalized

Enrico Schnepel — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 20:25:49 +0000

Some days ago I went to my dentist for the regular check up. They wanted me to sign a form about the transferability of claims to the mediserv GmbH and about inquiries about my credit score to rating agents. I declined my signature and put the blank form on the counter commenting that I will sign it on demand. They looked at me like I am the only one who cares about the wording in a contract. Maybe John Doe will sign it but that’s not my name…

communication vs. reality

Enrico Schnepel — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 16:58:25 +0000

I don’t have a working telephone since last Sunday.

I’ve called my telephone provider to make it work on Tuesday. They answered that they created a service ticket and will call me back later.

Nothing happened.

I’ve called again on Wednesday. They wanted to call me at least the next day.

Nothing happened.

I’ve called again on Friday morning. They wanted to call me back.

Nothing happened.

I’ve called again on Friday evening. (As a remember – I am waiting since Tuesday for a call). They wanted to call me back. While answering I may have spoken a bit to tartly, but…

I’ve got a call within two minutes.

In this call I’ve heard, that there is no ticket, so they made one (guaranteed). It is unlikely that I will be called back before the weekend, but…

About one week later I’ve got a call on my mobile phone. Everything did worked except that the calls didn’t come through. There was a bug in a dumb telephony socket (not really – but it just did not work)…

platform-independent

Enrico Schnepel — Wed, 16 May 2007 16:00:05 +0000

What I have learned today:

“platform-independent” is when two computers behave completely different using the same program.

C-Plus-Plus

Enrico Schnepel — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 06:01:44 +0000

It is amaising what horrorable error messages g++ is able to generate…
error: could not convert ‘((Parser*)this)->Parser::words. std::map<_Key, _Tp, _Compare, _Alloc>::find [with _Key = std::basic_string, std::allocator >, _Tp = Word*, _Compare = std::less, std::allocator > >, _Alloc = std::allocator, std::allocator >, Word*> >](((const std::basic_string, std::allocator >&)((const std::basic_string, std::allocator >*)(& sval))))’ to ‘bool’
The code to reproduce it looks like
if (words.find(sval)) {...}
where words is a std::map.

The correct code is:
if (words.find(sval) == words.end()) {...}

“seperated hands” or “un-success story”

Enrico Schnepel — Thu, 07 Sep 2006 08:46:20 +0000

It’s about one month ago since I’ve read a flyer on the pinwall in the entrance of our house saying that the cable tv provider will change on the 10th of August. They made also an offer to use a telephone line and internet over this cable. After my Holiday (which was very nice (except for the loss of my jacket from my bycycle carrier)) I’ve made a contract to switch to the new provider with a seemless switch for the telephone line. Some days later was another flyer on the pinwall telling me that the provider switch will happen on the 31th August. Oh what a Happening – a service techniker told me that they need more than a week to switch. In the meantime my previos telephone provider just cut of my telephone line. I will get my telephone back when a new “multimedia plug” gets installed in my flat on the 13th of September – hopefully.

The early bird catched the duck

Enrico Schnepel — Sat, 26 Nov 2005 19:29:23 +0000

After preparing a duck on Thursday for eating this evening – I found the tinfoil packet completely frazzled and “distributed” on our balcony. We have put it outside because our fridge is to small and it’s cold enough there. The picture shows what was left…

And the Winner is…

Enrico Schnepel — Thu, 10 Nov 2005 09:38:07 +0000

The Big Brother Awards are regularly awarded to persons or organisations massively disturbing the rights of every citizen.

For the year 2005 the winners are:

I wish a happy spying…