The computer for the rest of us Years ago, I studied at Tor Vergata, we had to do a review working group, we were 4. The job was
izing a dynamic website, which ran behind the application was made in java and should have access via JDBC to a database in MySql.
The difficulty was not the technology, was the group.
In particular, one of the members of the group was a girl, very dedicated, systematic and willing, but totally immune to the charms of computation. What's more hostile.
While I and another member of my group of friends were discussing how to proceed, she made us questions we had suggested as far from our thoughts. If we were on Mars, she had to be on earth. And there must also be some star in the middle, so the signal did not come.
I had an illuminating idea: that eluded her was the architectural diagram of web applications.
More or less this:
Or if you prefer this:
short, the usual diagram. The usual for me and my friend Absolutely not for her!
We took for granted and I could not believe that it should be necessary to speak words to be clear on something so important!
Instead it was necessary. The
drew an outline diagram on the chalkboard, and she was at least as enlightened us: "Oh that's how things are going? It is now clear! I had to say before!"
's what good software engineering! And besides, I think we got to work in teams for exactly this reason.
back a few days ago, I found myself instead of my friend. Playing with Ubuntu, I realized that I needed desperately architectural diagram per sapere come andassero le cose dietro le quinte.
E non lo avevo. Non lo ho ancora.
Pareva che a stampare da OpenOffice le stampe venissero tutte in toni di grigio. Eppure avevo scelto esplicitamente l'opzione per stampare a colori !
Guardate qua:
Naturalmente, non sapendo cosa significasser le tre opzioni disponibili, le ho provate tutte e tre.
Niente da fare.
Spulciando qua e la avevo trovato un'altro settaggio che sembrava significativo: questo
Nella prima colonna a sinistra, il primo checkbox non spuntato.
Niente.
Forse dovevo provare le tre opzioni di prima col checkbox spuntato e poi senza ?
Sono troppo vecchio per non aver intuito che avrei dovuto cercare altrove.
Ho trovato questo:
ed è comparsa questa finestra
In uno dei tab c'era un settaggio per il colore "di sistema" cioé generale e comune a più applicazioni
Ecco.
Con questo settaggio anche OpenOffice ha cominciato a stampare a colori. Tutte le altre applicazioni lo facevano anche senza di questo, ubbidendo the instructions in the windows print them.
Another glaring case is that of audio devices.
Look at the window of choice of audio devices in Skype:
Given that this thing happens on an Asus laptop that has only its built-in speakers and headphone jacks!
There are 4 (!) Device groups distinguished by the number (0, 1, 2 and 6) and in every group there are two devices, each with self-explanatory phrases:
- HDA Intel (hw: intel, 0)
- HDA Intel (plughw: Intel, 0)
for a total of eight devices, which on my Asus us sono.
Che capperi significano le sigle "hw" e "plughw" ?
Ci vorrebbe la consulenza di qualche guru del modello dei devices sotto linux, per potersi orientare !
In entrambi i casi è evidente che c'è qualcosa che accade dietro le quinte, secondo uno schema che mi sfugge; e che a nessuno è venuto in mente di esplicitare.
Perché le architetture vengono date per "assunte". Erroneamente.
Insomma ancora oggi, emerge l'assunto per cui per usare una ambiente di scrivania devi essere uno col camice bianco, uno di quelli che la sera con gli amici discute della diatriba fra kernel monolitici e modulari.
Non ho ancora capito quale sia l'assunto riguardo to the rest of us (The rest of us).
Okay, there are desktop environments, now, now lacks the mindset, and culture.
Apple has lost. Although he was right.
Meanwhile it is the new man, someone can draw a couple of architectural diagrammetti me explain what interfaces are used by applications to print and which is used by OpenOffice?
And what the heck is happening with your sound device?
