Just Trying To Help
Today is one of only twelve each year where there's no confusion whether the date is in mm/dd or dd/mm format. Any other day it can be really confusing. Unless of course it's 21/03, when it's fairly obvious it's not the 3rd day of the 21st month.
Anyway, I published an article on Friday about date formats. It's the first time I'd had to cater for the situation where date display formats were configured by the client for each copy of a template. Hence it's quite a specialised topic and probably of no use to a lot of you. It's still an interesting problem though. Another requirement was that each instance of the template should be able to time-shift all dates. If the site is hosted in America (CET let's say) and the customer is using it in London (GMT) then all times should be adjusted by +6 hours.
Whether or not you can see any use in this code, please refrain from slating it too much. Something I've noticed as this site gets older is that the expectation of the quality of content increases. It's almost as if there's a "Let's prove Jake wrong" mentality to a lot of the site's feedback. While I'm the first to admit I'm often (very) wrong I also get quite defensive when I feel I'm being questioned on everything I say and do. Sure, suggest alternatives, but just remember I'm only one of you. I'm not Bill Gates and I'm certainly not a guru-coder god. There's no need to berate me for trying to make your life easier.
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Jake
I agree - we should *thank* you for your efforts - not pick you up on any oversights or things others may have discovered.
Having said that, you mean you don't have 21 months in your working year? How do you get everything done ;-)
Surprisingly, this type of code is more than useful to anyone having to "sniff" log files from servers, and/or decode dates from user-generated documents.
Dont worry about the quality - I'm sure we all just appreciate the fact that your addressing stuff that other folks cant address.. Publish and be dammed.
---* Bill
Hey Jake,
You do a top job on this site of yours.
I wouldn't be half the webbie that I am if was not for your effort and insight and that you are the most rare of techies....you don't speak in binary!
Keep up the good work.
Regards
Big Al.
You mean you've been distributing imperfect code? I want my money back! Oh, that's right -- I haven't actually paid for any of this, have I?
The first good idea is rarely the best possible way to do anything. Your failing, Jake, is that you've been the first off the mark with a lot of this stuff. Stop innovating and people will leave you alone.
Big thanks from my end too! Keep up the good work...
Stan said it right, you are often one of the first out of the gate on some of these projects. I have to agree that when a problem is found, one should try to find a solution before posting back.
Jake,
I have been told by many developers. There are many ways to accomplish the same thing in Lotus Notes/Domino. So if someone can improve your code, then cool. Share with the rest of us. Just remember we are only human.
I thank you for thinking outside of the box and giving us a lot of good code for free over the years.
E
You are wrong again.
You rock.
.::AleX::.
Wait... NOT a coder guru god?! I'm... shattered... my whole universe is in turmoil, everything I believed was true... is suddenly not true...
*shrug* Ah well, that's life. Tea anyone?
;-)
Still thankful for you constantly raising the bar. I would not have challenged myself if not for your publishing efforts, and would be much worse off had you not. Rock on, Seer Jake.
Jake,
As already mentioned you are an innovator. One of the great things I love about your site is that it is credible, and so all of the other gurus visit here too, and if your posts don't have exactly the right information then generally the comments do. You start it all off though (and more often than not you finish it too!).
Greg (another codestore disciple)
Anywhere where a number of developers come to read and argue about ways to do stuff is bound to generate healthy debate.
The fact that so many developers come to your site, Jake, and do this is an indication they all believe this site is a valuable resource in which to contribute and spend time.
You should take that a compliment!
If everyone thought you were a fool, they'd just tell you to piss off and not bother even coming here!
Reminds of a chap at the VIEW conference last year in London, There was a Speaker giving us valuble information about Web Development and here was this guy questioning his methods, Almost as though he had all the answers.
Which makes me think if you think your too good to listen dont listen at all, We all make mistakes and we all do things differently.
Keep it up Jake, and maybe include some more stuff about you, like you used too, always a good read.
Aden
It's all been said above -- but I'll say it again.
I may not need your article now, but there's a good chance I might six months down the line.
Jake, you do a great job. You also have a great audience.
This site is a great source of ideas and debate.
I am (and I'm sure we all are) very grateful.
Jake
to paraphrase :
Q:how many coders does it take to build a good Domino based website
A: one - if the have access to codestore.net
Thanks guys. This wasn't the response I was after in writing this entry. Honest. It was just something that was on my mind. As an email I received today put it - "It's kind of negative effect of being famous". There's truth in this.
What I'm worried about now is having put people off from ever arguing with me. I welcome feedback, alternatives and suggestions. It's just sometimes I feel as if people are picking on me for the sake of it. This is only a small precentage though. Apart from that it's all good...
Well, we _can_ pick on you for the sake of it if you're ever feeling artificially "safe" and need a bringing-down. Just let us know.
Hey I just realised, Jake, you're talking about me! I was the first of only a few to comment on that article.
I wasn't slating your code at all, just trying to add another suggestion!
Don't forget you can't read tone of voice from twebpage text very well. So when I say you might be able to do away with WQS/O agents it wasn't said with a scoffing high & mighty tone of voice but with an implied shrug as in "you might be able to do away with them, but I've not really looked at it closely"
Hope that clears it up.
It wasn't you Andrew. I wouldn't single out any one person as a culprit. It's just a general feeling I get sometimes.
I'd hate to start singleing readers out as they'd soon start dropping like flies and I'd end up talking to myself.
Jake, I echo Blop. I've forgotten the number of times I've found an article I needed that you wrote 6 months (or even 2 years) ago. That's why codestore is my first port of call when I need some info.