Cloud computing user group

I attended a meeting of a the Capitol Area Cloud Computing user group. The presentation was on salesforce.com, a platform for building cloud-based apps.

I was impressed with the product. It's more than a sales or CRM tool; it is an application platform that can be used for a number of things.

I was also impressed with the enthusiasm of the attendees. They were much more "into it" than last night's audience for the Windows Phone 7 meeting. They salesforce.com crowd was also more diverse, with recruiters, newbies, and experienced developers. (The Windows Phone 7 meeting had only experienced developers.)

This is a likable group, and I plan to attend future meetings. Next month will have a presentation on Amazon.com's cloud offerings.

Microsoft User Group

I attended the BaltoMSDN user group meeting tonight. BaltoMSDN is a local group interested in all things Microsoft, and mostly the developer tools such as Visual Studio and .NET technologies.

Tonight's meeting morphed from a .NET meeting into a Windows Phone 7 meeting. The conversations were interesting, but as I am not a Windows Phone developer, not particularly pertinent to my work.

The meeting was held at the Baltimore Emerging Technology Center, which was part of the appeal of the meeting. They have had meetings outside of Baltimore, and I find it easier to attend meetings in the city. And the ETC is a nice space.

I had some good conversations with the folks at the meeting.

Linux is not Windows

I attended the BaltoLUG Linux User Group meeting tonight. They had no speaker, but an open discussion about Linux distributions and the features that people liked or wanted in distros. It was a lively discussion with various tangent ramblings.

One idea that came out of the meeting was: Linux is not Windows. More specifically, lots of corporate support sites know how to fix problems with Windows installations and only Windows installations. They are set up with prepared scripts and Windows-specific training; they cannot handle problems for Linux systems, or Mac systems.

Using Linux, as a person, means that you are a pioneer. Linux requires a sense of rugged self-sufficiency, where you can handle just about any problem. Some corporations can handle Linux and Mac issues, but many cannot. (And expecting them to handle Linux is unrealistic, given the demographics of the market.)

Not a happy thought, but a realistic one.

Networking and co-working facility in Baltimore

Today is Veteran's Day, or as some call it, Armistice Day. A holiday for the federal government, and therefore a free day for me. I did what I could with it.

I lunched with former co-workers today. Yummy burgers! And speculation on the future of tech. We all agree that Java needs a "2.0" version, something that moves Java up from its current level to compete with .NET. We consider the current Java (and its JVM and libraries) as "Java 1.0". It showed that the virtual processor was feasible, and usable, and even profitable. Microsoft .NET is a competent product and Sun (now Oracle) must step up and improve Java to match .NET.

I also visited the Baltimore Beehive, a co-working location. For a modest fee, one gains access to the facility, which is a large room with tables, chairs, monitors, power, and network access. I see several advantages to working in the Beehive over working at home: fewer distractions, better furniture, a collection of books, and interaction with other folks at the facility.

Stevens in Washington DC

I attended a gathering at Stevens tonight. Not in Hoboken, but in Washington.

The gathering was to recognize the role Stevens has played and continues to play in educating and supporting veterans. The crowd was a good size, with perhaps 30 alumni attending (and possibly that many staff).

Stevens in Washington is not a full stand-alone campus. It is space in the Ronald Reagan building. They have one classroom and some offices. This is the new "urban school" model, which uses office space but doesn't require the acres of greensward for frisbee games. For graduate programs, I think this model makes sense.

I chatted with a bunch of folks, including my old class-mate Bill Accardi.

An orchestra in a box, and smart people

I attended a meeting at Loyola College this evening. I had heard about it through a random e-mail, and had it scheduled on my calendar.

The presentation was on "Simfonia", a PC-based music synthesizer. It's an impressive package, given the challenges of creating music that sounds real. It can synthesize music for many different instruments, and the authors are working on the problem of "liveness" to music. (They know the desired effect and the problems, but the solutions are difficult.)

The meeting was a pleasant experience. The folks were *smart*. Within five minutes, we talked about synthesizing music, the Turing Test, and rounding issues. It's nice to chat with knowledgeable people!

Professional meeting, Microsoft, and networking

I attended the CMAP meeting last night. I chatted with some folks before the meeting started, and listened to the presentation on Microsoft's "Entity Framework 4". (The previous version was Entity Framework 1"; Microsoft changed to version 4 to match the version number of C# and .NET Framework.

The presentation went at a slow pace, and gave me some time to think about the Baltimore Beehive, the local co-working location. If I get the opportunity to work there (say, one day every other week) I would need a PC. My trusty IBM ThinkPad just died, so it won't be that one. I could replace is, or I could use the Apple MacBook. Or, I could get a tablet, although I think a computer with a keyboard would be better for coding.

A day at the Beehive would also give me the opportunity to network with other folks, perhaps at lunchtime meetings.