Sep 15
Understanding Ruby Singleton Classes
If you learned object oriented programming from one of the more static languages such as C++ or Java, the dynamic nature of Ruby may seem magical and elusive. After running into the syntax dedicated to meta-programming, you may have been left scratching your head, or at least wondering what's happening behind the scenes. Singleton classes, not to be confused with the singleton design pattern, can easily be placed into this head scratching category.
The name itself is confusing, leading people to create alternative names such as: object-specific classes, anonymous classes, and virtual classes. Anonymous classes is one of the better names, but since the source code to the Ruby interpreter uses the term singleton, that's what I'm going to stick with.
Aug 7
Converting SVA Subversion Projects to Git
If you've been using my Subversion Automation tool (SVA) to manage your Subversion repositories, and you're also thinking about moving to Git, I've got good news.
As long as you have git-svn installed, I have a script and some notes that make it very easy to convert your project from Subversion to a Git repository, with full history, experimental branches, and release tags included.
Jul 24
Behind the Code: Project Planning
In this new series of articles, Behind the Code, I'll be looking at the tools and processes that I've put into place to make me a more efficient and effective developer. I'm hoping to share my experiences, and while doing that, refine the way I work using your feedback.
Today, I'll be talking about project planning, the process of breaking a project into tasks, and estimating the effort to complete those tasks. The artifacts generated during this process can then be used to create a proposal for a client, cost estimations for your boss, or even the start of your project documentation.