Welcome!

This blog is a vehicle for recording and explaining programming and IT-related techniques I encounter in a plain, no-frills way. As a software developer, I am frequently assigned tasks in domains that are outside my circle of experience. I enjoy new challenges – they are part and parcel of an engineer’s job. But I also feel that the literature on technical subjects is often incomplete, unclear or impenetrable to the intelligent layperson.

Let’s face it, many techies cannot communicate. For the most part, this is not through any unwillingness to share know-how, or spite, but a tendency to assume others also have the knowledge that they have. When seeking help from online forum (say), answers to problems seem tanalizingly close – yet remain elusive. Or sometimes downright condescending (“you should be posting on that thread, not this thread!”). It’s not through want of trying that the reader remains frustrated and none the wiser. In most cases what the reader would really like are some simple instructions or an example to get them going, not a load of technical jargon. 

This is where I hope that this blog will be of benefit.

New stuff I encounter gets added to this blog as I go along, either by way of code samples, sometimes complemented with a downloadable, and a bit of text in (I hope) plain English and to the point. If you’re like me you probably dislike excessively wordy posts.

My postings have been donated to the public domain, including any new posts I write, so they’re not copyrighted. You’re welcome to republish, use, or share them in any way you desire. There’s no need to ask permission in advance.

Personally, some of my older postings are already proving useful in ‘how did I do that 6 months ago?’ -type situations where I prefer not to have to consult books or re-invent the wheel.  The comments I have received from readers have so far been encouraging. Any feedback and suggestions on how I may improve this site are much appreciated.

Andy