coding for nothing but coding
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that is poorly understood and not really used despite being very useful for what they were designed to do. 😔 I've tried to simplify my project, and simplify describing that project but it's like trying to simplify Roslyn. There's just too much there to be able to make it simple.
There's your Problem. People can't use any tool that is poorly documented. Additionally, by the time someone would figure it out, and start using it, the OS, Language, framework, and libraries will have all changed....
Get the Zarking Zark out of here! - Zaphod BeebleBrox
I've put more effort into documenting it than i have many of my other projects. Code generation tends to be complicated to begin with, and libraries to facilitate it are rarely simple. This is that. I've posted articles here explaining how to use it, and I know that at least one person is playing with it. We'll see. I've dumped all I've got in me into documenting this thing so far, and I'm burnt out on it for now.
Real programmers use butterflies
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MFW I devote a huge amount of effort to create a developer tool that is poorly understood and not really used despite being very useful for what they were designed to do. 😔 I've tried to simplify my project, and simplify describing that project but it's like trying to simplify Roslyn. There's just too much there to be able to make it simple. Oh well, I guess. I use it in my own code generation projects and it makes them heckin cool. :cool: Do you ever write non-trivial tools that you swear by, but only you will probably ever use?
Real programmers use butterflies
Yup! I wrote an amazing little tool that reads in an Excel spreadsheet specification document and generates an entire buildable C# project from it. I spent a ton of time refining it... and only used it twice. The tool was great fun to develop though!
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If you check my bio page[^], third paragraph, it clarifies you post (maybe?).
"The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein
"If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010
I like the cheap hooker analogy!
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MFW I devote a huge amount of effort to create a developer tool that is poorly understood and not really used despite being very useful for what they were designed to do. 😔 I've tried to simplify my project, and simplify describing that project but it's like trying to simplify Roslyn. There's just too much there to be able to make it simple. Oh well, I guess. I use it in my own code generation projects and it makes them heckin cool. :cool: Do you ever write non-trivial tools that you swear by, but only you will probably ever use?
Real programmers use butterflies
I have created a project that used a tool that nobody else ever used. But it only had a use in a specific area, and that was decoding a one of a kind telemetry for a one of a kind device. If you want to create a killer tool, you broaden the area of usefulness, like Wireshark. Then many will want to use your tool.
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I have created a project that used a tool that nobody else ever used. But it only had a use in a specific area, and that was decoding a one of a kind telemetry for a one of a kind device. If you want to create a killer tool, you broaden the area of usefulness, like Wireshark. Then many will want to use your tool.
Yeah part of it is the tool is necessarily niche, as it's intended for developers who are writing code generators. I've created some more popular tools and posted them here, but in one case, a 1st place CP winner, my winning tool was built using the technology provided by this tool - without which it wouldn't have been possible. :-D I'm just trying to give other people access to this tech, not so much try to make the most popular tool. It's a great tool for creating potentially popular tools is what I'd say. :laugh:
Real programmers use butterflies
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MFW I devote a huge amount of effort to create a developer tool that is poorly understood and not really used despite being very useful for what they were designed to do. 😔 I've tried to simplify my project, and simplify describing that project but it's like trying to simplify Roslyn. There's just too much there to be able to make it simple. Oh well, I guess. I use it in my own code generation projects and it makes them heckin cool. :cool: Do you ever write non-trivial tools that you swear by, but only you will probably ever use?
Real programmers use butterflies
Oh yes ... coding for no useful purpose other than coding. I'm way retired and don't code for anyone else ... and have a large library of code I love to gander at and tweak and tweak to my heart's content ... ever delving into a better abstraction or simpler way to do it with less and more precise noun, verb, and property names (lots of refactoring) ... code that no one other than myself will ever see or care about. It's kind of like being one of those monks that spend days making incredibly intricate, delicate, and beautiful graphics with tiny sand particles and then upon a final reverent moment of acknowledging the impermanent nature of the universe, blow it away or scoop it all up into a bag and go home. Perhaps this is the truth of all code ... ultimately just bits in the wind. I say you can take the programmer out of the do loop, but you can't take the do loop out of the programmer. Programming: fierce and relentless abstraction audits achieved by creating or investigating large collections of mnemonics ... way more fun than crossword puzzles or video games.
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I've put more effort into documenting it than i have many of my other projects. Code generation tends to be complicated to begin with, and libraries to facilitate it are rarely simple. This is that. I've posted articles here explaining how to use it, and I know that at least one person is playing with it. We'll see. I've dumped all I've got in me into documenting this thing so far, and I'm burnt out on it for now.
Real programmers use butterflies
I feel your pain. Been there and didn't like it at all. To this day I struggle with documenting Support notes. Just trying to say Don't feel too bad about it. I looked at your stuff and it was way over my head. I am just an old VB6 programmer converting my code from VB6 to C# while teaching myself C# at the same time.
"What?" - Arthur Dent
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Oh yes ... coding for no useful purpose other than coding. I'm way retired and don't code for anyone else ... and have a large library of code I love to gander at and tweak and tweak to my heart's content ... ever delving into a better abstraction or simpler way to do it with less and more precise noun, verb, and property names (lots of refactoring) ... code that no one other than myself will ever see or care about. It's kind of like being one of those monks that spend days making incredibly intricate, delicate, and beautiful graphics with tiny sand particles and then upon a final reverent moment of acknowledging the impermanent nature of the universe, blow it away or scoop it all up into a bag and go home. Perhaps this is the truth of all code ... ultimately just bits in the wind. I say you can take the programmer out of the do loop, but you can't take the do loop out of the programmer. Programming: fierce and relentless abstraction audits achieved by creating or investigating large collections of mnemonics ... way more fun than crossword puzzles or video games.
ALL RELATABLE CONTENT!!! I don't code for money anymore, but it's still art and almost even spiritual for me sometimes. :) Maybe that's silly of me but I don't care.
Real programmers use butterflies
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ALL RELATABLE CONTENT!!! I don't code for money anymore, but it's still art and almost even spiritual for me sometimes. :) Maybe that's silly of me but I don't care.
Real programmers use butterflies
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MFW I devote a huge amount of effort to create a developer tool that is poorly understood and not really used despite being very useful for what they were designed to do. 😔 I've tried to simplify my project, and simplify describing that project but it's like trying to simplify Roslyn. There's just too much there to be able to make it simple. Oh well, I guess. I use it in my own code generation projects and it makes them heckin cool. :cool: Do you ever write non-trivial tools that you swear by, but only you will probably ever use?
Real programmers use butterflies
Given that I'm the DSJB (Departmental Shit-Job Boy), I write lots of utility programs for managing our source control and build servers, among them the following: Builder: A Windows service that performs our automated build process for all of our products. It runs on our three department servers, and can be commanded remotely to do product builds. Knownst to me, but ignored by my coworkers, is the fact that you can install it on your development machine and do full product builds. The only difference is that the product installs aren't published and a build archive isn't created. H***Sys Scheduler: Our corporate IT department, in their infinite capacity for stupidity, has managed to screw up Windows authentication so badly that you can't use scheduled tasks on your workstation if they require the user's login credentials. The Scheduler is a Windows service that runs under a user's login credentials and will execute anything you like at specific times or intervals. Shadow: Watches for check-ins in our source control for a specific area, updates a local copy as needed, and emails the development group. Used on our build servers to manage asset data files required for certain product installs. The one program I've written that's seen widespread use among my coworkers is called Trace Viewer. It listens for TCP/IP messages from our various software components in our products and can record them in a file. It provides a rich toolset for filtering and organizing the messages for debugging purposes. As an example, it's the tool we use to tell the Builder service when to build a product, and to watch the build as it proceeds.
Software Zen:
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MFW I devote a huge amount of effort to create a developer tool that is poorly understood and not really used despite being very useful for what they were designed to do. 😔 I've tried to simplify my project, and simplify describing that project but it's like trying to simplify Roslyn. There's just too much there to be able to make it simple. Oh well, I guess. I use it in my own code generation projects and it makes them heckin cool. :cool: Do you ever write non-trivial tools that you swear by, but only you will probably ever use?
Real programmers use butterflies
The software we were using was being rewritten and I was a bit bored. First it started out with something to fix the scans that came out of the 100 page a minute copiers. Awesome. 4 hours of work every 2 days cut in half. Ha, winning. Then I got _really_ bored. So I picked up the Acrobat PDF 1.4 Specs. That was about 10 years ago now..
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Yeah part of it is the tool is necessarily niche, as it's intended for developers who are writing code generators. I've created some more popular tools and posted them here, but in one case, a 1st place CP winner, my winning tool was built using the technology provided by this tool - without which it wouldn't have been possible. :-D I'm just trying to give other people access to this tech, not so much try to make the most popular tool. It's a great tool for creating potentially popular tools is what I'd say. :laugh:
Real programmers use butterflies
I think we programmers need marketeers and salesmen. As much as I hate them, we need them to sell our wares.
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I think we programmers need marketeers and salesmen. As much as I hate them, we need them to sell our wares.
I recognize that we need them. I think I'd just rather be able to ignore them and stick to our respective jobs. I've had too many times when sales ultimately dictated deadlines, and led to less than great deliverables.
Real programmers use butterflies
