i.justrealized

And so… Windows 7 is the name for the new version of Windows, the successor of Windows Vista. The thing is… It actually is Windows 6.1 if you check system properties and this has been confirmed by the Windows Team Blog. I don’t think it’s that great an idea honestly. I prefer the marketing version number to coincide with the development version number.

we decided to ship the Windows 7 code as Windows 6.1

Windows 2000 code was 5.0 and then we shipped Windows XP as 5.1, even though it was a major release we didn’t’ want to change code version numbers to maximize application compatibility.

That brings us to Windows Vista, which is 6.0. So we see Windows 7 as our next logical significant release and 7th in the family of Windows releases.

We learned a lot about using 5.1 for XP and how that helped developers with version checking for API compatibility. We also had the lesson reinforced when we applied the version number in the Windows Vista code as Windows 6.0– that changing basic version numbers can cause application compatibility issues.

So we decided to ship the Windows 7 code as Windows 6.1 - which is what you will see in the actual version of the product in cmd.exe or computer properties.

There’s been some fodder about whether using 6.1 in the code is an indicator of the relevance of Windows 7. It is not. (Source: Windows Team Blog)

In the case, I think it would be better to just call Windows 6.1 Windows 7. I think it’s clearer for developers who are going to start using the Windows platform.

RFC 1178 is Choosing a Name for Your Computer. RFC stands for Request For Comment.

If you so believe a computer name ought to be perfect (or maybe even standardized within your organization), consider reading the document:

Read RFC 1178.

Status of this Memo

This FYI RFC is a republication of a Communications of the ACM article on guidelines on what to do and what not to do when naming your computer. This memo provides information for the Internet community. It does not specify any standard.

Distribution of this memo is unlimited.

Abstract

In order to easily distinguish between multiple computers, we give them names. Experience has taught us that it is as easy to choose bad names as it is to choose good ones. This essay presents guidelines for deciding what makes a name good or bad.

Keywords: domain name system, naming conventions, computer administration, computer network management

Choosing names of computers are quite important. My netbook used to be called AspireOne and every time I use the school network, there’s someone with the same name. Then there’ll be this annoying pop up box informing me someone is already using that name.

Today, my netbook’s name is “IMTHE1ANDONLY”. Don’t copy cat.

Okay, main news is that Java SE 6 Update 10 is out. I’ve been using Update 10 beta since a month ago. I got it simply to see the Java Swing menu fonts using ClearType and that’s all.

Let’s side track a little to look at how sucky a state Java download page is in.

Sun Microsystem probably has the worst marketing team. Java SE 6 Update 10 is now. Before update 10 was probably update 7. The numbers doesn’t seem to be incremental.

But that’s okay, that’s just Sun’s way of doing thing. The version after Java 1.4.2 is Java 5. Java can’t compute elementary math. Java Standard Edition 6 is also known as Java 1.6.

You go to their Java SE download page and you see:

• Java SE Runtime Environment (JRE) 6 Update 10
• Java SE Development Kit (JDK) 6 Update 10
• JDK 6 Update 10 with Java EE
• JDK 6 Update 10 with NetBeans 6.1
• JRE 6 Update 7 for Intel Itanium®
• JDK 6 Update 7 for Intel Itanium®
• JDK DST Timezone Update Tool - 1.3.9
• Java SE 6 Documentation
• Java SE 6 JDK Source Code
• and other friends like Java Cryptography Extension (JCE) Unlimited Strength Jurisdiction Policy

Usually you just need whatever’s that’s need at the top. New Java developers would no doubt get intimidated by the choices available. They should have separated the developer page from the rest of the Java site. And on the developer page, there really should just be 3 options:

• Java Standard Edition 6
• Java Enterprise Edition 6
• others…

(more…)

Ahh, no kidding? No Windows Xavier or Windows ET or Windows Zorus or whatever cool sounding name you can think of?

Windows 7?

Apparently the Windows Vista blog confirmed it. Ah, no more Windows version number jokes this year end.

To remind people that Pizza Hut also has pasta, Pizza Hut is temporarily changing its name to Pasta Hut.

Pizza Hut rebrands to Pasta Hut

Fifty-year-old restaurant chain Pizza Hut is temporarily changing its name to Pasta Hut in a radical £100m relaunch.

Although it plans to keep the same number of pizzas on the menu, from this week Pizza Hut will introduce eight pasta dishes across its 700 restaurants to support its new positioning. Nine restaurants will change their signage immediately.

Pizza Hut marketing director Claudia Nicholls-Magielsen said it was making the change because research showed that consumers wanted more variety when eating out, and that, on average, the British public ate more pasta than pizza. ‘We want to be as famous for our pastas as we are for our pizzas,’ she explained.

Nicholls-Magielsen admitted that the move was a ‘bit of a shock tactic’ designed to ‘get people to feel differently about Pizza Hut’. (Source: Brand Rebublic)

That, by the way, is the problem of choosing a name that is too specialized like Kentucky Fried Chicken or Pizza Hut (both have same management). Every one knows you make chicken, that’s great but once they feel like eating something like fish or beef, they most certainly won’t think of you. Same goes with Pizza Hut, if I am going to have pasta, I probably go to Pastamania or something. Just because they remind me of pasta. Pastamania sells pizzas too but I always forget they do.

After I drew the ER diagram on the white board in the database lesson, the lecturer commented that I am a programmer.

Lecturer: You have an Diploma in IT right?
Me: No, biotechnology.
Lecturer: I know you’re a programmer.

Yeah yeah… I hate being called a programmer. I somehow prefer to be called a developer. (By the way, I like the way Indians pronounce ‘developer’.) It’s just that programmer sounds like a menial task and developer sounds much nicer.

It’s just like lecturers preferring to be known as lecturers as opposed to being called ‘teachers’.

Just my 0.02 dollars.

Okay, I just realized Panasonic is under Matsushita. I guess the name change is good.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. discards its 90-year-old name Wednesday and recasts itself Panasonic Corp., a change that comes as the electronics giant moves to lessen its reliance on the stagnant Japanese market to focus more overseas. (Source: WSJ)

This change to Panasonic Corporation would unify the Matsushita, National and Panasonic brands under the new corporate name.

(Panasonic ideas for life.)

I have to say this - Wikipedia updates really quickly. The articles seemed to have been redirected and Matsushita related articles seem non-existent. The power of collaboration?