Evaluating Continuous Integration: Itself

I am not writing about how to evaluate a CI Server, if one needs to evaluate them the best resource I can suggest is CI Feature Matrix just list out your requirements before going to this page, and see which one is the best fit for you. Just for the idea of current state of CIS see What Continuous Integration Server are you using in 2008?.

Evaluating CI Server is not the important part: Once we have decided that we will have a CI server in-place, personally I don't think evaluating the CI server is the important part , I have played with quite a few continues integration servers (just to name a few: cruise control, continum, luntbuild, Hudson and Bamboo), while playing with them I realize that every single one of them dose the same basic thing really well. All of them will check out source from a Source Control Management system, will build the code in one or another way and will run/publish results of your tests. ITs what you want to do with the CI server.

The Important Part, Evaluating Continuous Integration: Yeah we need to Evaluate Continuous Integration Itself. Continuous Integration is not just an activity or state but a Philosophy, a culture which is foster by agile methodology, to integrate and test the code more frequently to find out bugs when it’s less expensive to fix them. Are you and your team comfortable with it? Have you spend enough time with the team to let them know the importance and advantages of it? have you trained them how will they carry out there work from now onwards? are you keeping an eye on the state of builds? are people writing Unit Tests at the very first place? and so on.. make your self comfortable with Continuous Integration.

Open Source To rescue: Don't invest on any commercial tool straight away just because you think it will be cool, its not a tool you are looking for its the process. Use open source tools to introduce CI, to prepare your team for CI (you might like the open source alternatives so much that you might stick to them) make CI a part of development cycle and "Evaluate CI for your team and your team for CI". This will help you to refine requirements but more importantly you will know who needs the Improvement they way CI is being conducted or your team. This Evaluating CI can be done in two possible ways: 1. By using complete open source solution: (e.g Hudson with code analysis tools like cobertura, PMD and FindBugs) 2. By using Evolutionary copy of a commercial CI Server: (e.g Bamboo with code analysis tools like clover/ cobertura, PMD and FindBugs)

What are your waiting for Start Evaluating...

Need to know about Continuous Integration go to Martin Fowler Continuous Integration or buy Continuous Integration: Improving Software Quality and Reducing Risk (Addison-Wesley Signature Series)

GotConnected Compiz fusion no my 6720s

I have just got a 512 kbs DSL connection thanks to my elder brother Muddassir, I was anxiously waiting for this and Ubuntu 8.04 LTS HardyHeron.
I have just isntalled it on my HP 6720s notebook with compiz-fusion and AWN. Its SWeeeet, I am so very happy with all of this.
Have a look.

Sync reminder Fox toDos and Reminders between thunderbird and firefox

Yeap we all wants to have one todo list, I always put my todos and
reminders in thunderbird but certainly wants to see them in fire fox,
this thing is inbuilt in reminderfox :-)
just change the default file location of firefox's reminder fox with
thunderbirds file.
default file location

Thunderbird's reminder fox file is placed at:
/root/.thunderbird/x6rjxwwf.default/reminderfox/reminderfox.ics

Thunderbird's file location

thats it, now I can add from any of the two and can see them in both apps
this is great!!

Use Time Stamp to Create Files or Folder Using Ant

Every now and then we come across a situation where we are in a need of creating folder with the name of time stamp so that we can keep record of every execution, don't we ;-) ?
Its fairly easy to accomplish this in Ant
use tstamp task.
This is how a set a property "START_TIME" and use it to create that file/folder.
<tstamp>
<format property="START_TIME" pattern="dd_MMM_yy_HH_mm_ss"/>
</tstamp>

Like
<property name="testresults-folder" value="${START_TIME}_TestResults"/>
and create a folder by this property
<mkdir dir="${testresults-folder}"/>

'Testers Are Idiots'

Testers are Idiots
It starts by saing: That’s right: "Testers are idiots. The practice of testing offers no innovation. Testing is boring, manual and repetitive. It’s not a career. Testers aren’t as smart as developers. They’re nit-picky, pencil-pushing quality/process geeks. They’re beside the point and are easily replaced. Testing is not a career; it’s a necessary evil between application users and the brilliance of developers."
These statements are from an audience of testers..

Surprised??
Not really !!

Changing the Default editor for your terminal

You can change the default editor by setting the EDITOR environment variable. In BASH. This default editor is most of the time invoked by -e switch.
To see what is the current EDITOR.

# set | grep EDITOR EDITOR=/bin/nano # which vi (shows the full path of (shell) command vi ) /usr/bin/vi # export EDITOR=/usr/bin/vi verify the current EDITOR # set | grep EDITOR EDITOR=/usr/bin/vi  

--  Regards,  Mubbashir  

WiPeer Create peer-to-peer ad-hoc wireless network

Last weekend My brother and I were trying to create a peer-to-peer ad-hoc wireless network but the experience wasn't turned out successful. wiipeer guys have make it so very easy. Thanks guys!!
wiipeer