Michael Hradek

First a quick lesson in Java (for myself). This was a half day lesson that I feel sheepish to admit but I figure hey, let me share! Below I will create an ArrayList which will contain a bunch of like objects. They could be strings – it doesn’t matter. Then we will add those lists to some other objects or consume them in some fashion.

public void mySuperExample() {
    // A generic list
    ArrayList<SomeObj> someObjList = new ArrayList<SomeObj>();

    // Start off by creating or using generic objs
    SomeObj obj1 = SomeObj.createMe();
    obj1.setSomeAttribute("My super object");
    obj1.setAnotherAttribute(3);

    SomeObj obj2 = SomeObj.createMe();
    obj2.setSomeAttribute("My other super object");
    obj2.setAnotherAttribute(2);

    // Add the objects to the list
    someObjList.add(obj1);
    someObjList.add(obj2);

    // A couple different objects use a copy of the list
    ConsumingObj.useMe(someObjList);
    AnotherConsumer.useMe(someObjList);
}

Now, this looks perfectly fine for ConsumingObj and AnotherConsumer are both unique as are both instances on someObjList. Oh, here is where it gets good. The members of each of the instances of someObjList are identical! The toString() methods have been wonderful to figure this out but basically each of these items were referenced by the parents which ultimately meant that when I thought I had different sets of identical items I had different sets referencing the same items. Anyway, now that that’s over I can move on. It was interesting. This and recently having learned about creating callbacks/event handlers. I love programming and learning!

Moving on, we are pretty much settled at our new house. I road the SoundRunner on Monday which was free (for the inaugural day) and it was quite convenient. My commute wasn’t much shorter than it was in Fife and I think it costs about the same maybe a dollar or two more. But the important part was that there exists a passenger boat straight to Kingston. There is also the Bainbridge Island and Kingston regular ferries so there are like 3 different ways to get to Seattle and back using public transportation.

Although I love the house and location I do lament a little the fact that it is much harder to do some of the shopping I like to do. There is no Nordstrom (or Rack), European butchers, and general conveniences of having everything close by. It’s okay because we never went to those places on a daily basis and they are accessible if I want to go to Seattle. I will take this over urban living any day. The main detractor is being away from my mom and dad and other folks that would visit more frequently. Out here, apart from Crystal’s mom who lives close by, no one has come out to see us. I suspect it will stay that way.

I’ve had enjoyment out of getting acquainted with living in more space and having to do things like monitor gas usage, yard work (what little there is), cooking on gas, playing music loud, and sleeping in complete silence. Today a heavy fog filled the Sound around our area and I heard the rhythmic announcement from the fog horn. Sound of music compared to what we heard in Fife.

I am currently trying to acquire something to reduce the heat on gas stoves. There are these iron plates you can find about eight inches in diameter. With such a huge kitchen the desire to cook is stronger then ever before. I am checking into making cheese and smoking some meats. Soon enough! I got a shelf for the garage to help stow some extra supplies and foods. We’re hoping that when a need arises we’re never caught without a way to take care of ourselves.

Our business is coming along nicely in that we’re generating some income but more importantly we’re solid at work. I am working from home most of the week and my partner John is also doing huge work. We’re trying to make steady improvements to released software and create new stuff. I am working on a game right now. John’s working on an aggregation software. We also did some work to shore up our website and the various places we get found on the Internet.

I’ve been playing World of Tanks here and there. I finally earned enough points to purchase a Panther tank so it’s been super exciting to play that. I really enjoy the aspect to playing history. I think the game is pretty shallow and although the developers say they will be adding more stuff I am going to wait and see. Interestingly a lot of MMORPGs have been going free. After Final Fantasy XIV bombed (they got a 4 out of 10 rating on some sites) I gave up on the MMO scene. Everquest II and Lord of the Rings Online are now free to play minus a few features. Amazing actually. “Freemium” seems to be the next direction MMOs are taking. I think I remember someone at ArenaNet saying that the money earned seems to be about the same as paid subscription. We’ll see. Speaking of ArenaNet, the media blitz in anticipation of Guild Wars 2 is growing but I admit I am still tired of the graphics and play style the studio puts out. Whether I worked for them or not, I always felt that something was off playing the games they made.