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Some quick news and views I was completely taken back by the promotion by Tech Beacon: 39 Java experts that you should follow on Twitter. I have found in this industry especially that credit is rarely given, and if you luckily enough to be at the stage of life that someone else awards you with […]

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As a professional software engineer, you probably have encountered an architectural stumbling block known as a MONOLITH#1. A monolith is essentially a single tier application in enterprise architecture. Forget about the traditional break-down of Java EE application, where they break down an Uber-WAR file into presentation, business-logic and database tiers. That is just gloss over […]

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5 minutes

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I replied to Paul Krill for his recent news article on Infoworld. This is my exact verbatim reply to his questions: Paul:     Are you satisfied with this plan? Me:     Well the simple answer is no. Paul:     Any criticism? Me:     It is not much of a plan, because […]

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I recommend experienced contractors avoid software engineering testing platforms especially when the client requests you complete a test before a telephone or face-to-face interview. In other word, avoid TEST-FIRST. Of course, you might exactly know what you are getting into, conduct research and seeing it for yourself. Just know the consequences. I took a Hacker […]

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Based the last blog entries: Part 1 and Part 2. This is tongue-in-check, however please read it and the last paragraph. Today, 19th July, I saw somebody had tweeted about Head Coach job specification for Belgium. Discover the desired profile of the new Belgian Red Devils’ head coach. – Experience and results in the currently […]

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9 minutes

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Why aren’t you getting the best contractors and what can you do about it In Part 1, we look into the question of why companies suck at finding great contractors. We covered reviewing the genuine opportunity. We touched on why demand for great contractors outstrips the supply. We saw why TEST-FIRST recruitment is an abject […]

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Why aren’t you getting the best contractors and what can you do about it Part 1 If you are reading this article, the chances are you are a technical leader, a team manager or service delivery manager, and there is a probability that you are making mistakes finding the best contractors. The end result is […]

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An Introduction to Software Standards What are technology standards? Essentially, a technology standard is a common agreement on the application programming interface (API) and / or communication protocol in a vertical sector. Standards can be big or small. They have a profound affect on the choices of the software developer community. When technical leaders have […]

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2 minutes

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Recently, I posted an blog article about the current crisis around Java EE. You might also be interested in an interview that I had with JAXenter (Java EE Guardians speak bluntly: “Java EE cannot be run exclusively by the community”). Adam Bien, a fellow Java Champion, also had his say on the current status of […]

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This is my position statement on Java EE: “We are in crisis”. Anything outside of this statement is denial. At the time of writing, we do not know the exact delivery status of Java EE 8, because it is no longer on track. The release date is in the first half of 2017 according to […]

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Fake Jobs Fake jobs gives a bad name for the information technology contracting industry. It is just a scam to scavenge and harvest CVs from hapless developers, designers and architects and then to source the leads (human network communication) for recruitment agents. It starts for me, at least, with the recruiter refusing to give the […]

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Several people have wondered about workshop / training course on Java EE 7 development with a modern web architectural focus, in particularly, I know some people have asked for information on building sustainable and adaptive software digitally. I am announcing a two day training course in London on Monday 6th and Tuesday 7th June 2016 […]