White Wizard

What I’ve Been Doing

February 5, 2006 on 4:22 pm | In College | No Comments

So, this past semester has been busy (as you may have noticed, I didn’t post anything to my blog). I’ve been working on school projects, the Book Exchange, and also my honors portfolio and thesis write-up.

However, I’m now done with, hmmm, only one of those (doh!). (If you aren’t sure which one, it’s the honors portfolio that I’ve finished… I’m still in school and I’m still working on the Book Exchange).

Anyhow, I’m going to post to my blog more often. It’s kind of fun to do and it helps me reflect on various things that I’ve been doing.

You may be wondering what I’m doing this semester. Well, I’ll tell you. Currently I am working on a new web application (called “Book Locker”) that will allow students to find out what books they need for their classes. The Bookstore already provides this information on their website, but it isn’t linked to the university registration database. What I’m working on will bridge the university’s system and the bookstore’s database and provide students with a book list that is specific to their schedule.

Also, if I have time, I want to increase the Book Exchange’s features so that professors can list which texts they are going to be using for their courses. This would allow students to find out what books they need the day the professor lists the book (potentially 5-8 weeks in advance, depending on the professor). This portion of the exchange would give students the information they need to buy books online, if they wished.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a good name for this second web app (the professor book listing one). So, if you have any good ideas on what I should call this, please let me know. I’m open to ideas (I kind of like “crescendo”… but that word has nothing to do with the functionality I want to build).

Finally, my work is letting me borrow a mac laptop (PowerBook G4). This machine has a whopping 800 MHz! (which isn’t much). However, for those of you that know or care, it runs Eclipse 3.1.2 and Coldfusion MX 7 at the same time! (And it is still responsive!). I don’t think your 800 MHz windows box could do that .

Anyhow, I love the mac. It is cool. It is fun. It is challenging also (but I like learning new stuff). For instance, I couldn’t print to our new printer (HP LaserJet 6L). I couldn’t figure out why (Well, I could print, but it was just jibberish.). So, I went on a Max OS X driver hunt… and woo hoo! I got lucky, found a driver, managed to install it, use it, and it works! I thought that was a big accomplishment for me! (Seeing that I’d never installed a driver on a mac before in my life).

So, in the end, I think our next computer purchase is going to be a mac. I think the laptops are pricey, and even some of the desktops… so we may end up with a mac mini.