Netbeans : Show JavaDoc aka API

Been a while since I have fiddled with Netbeans and recently found it amusing forgetting how to show "javadoc" details.... After a little while of fiddling here is how.

Show Javadoc aka API details

1. Put the text cursor to some highlighted text like "javax.swing" or JTabbedPane variable.
2. [shift+f1] Shows javadoc

Hopefully you will see a new window showing the API

Oh to add the javadoc

1. Visit Java Download
2. Under the heading "Additional Resources" Click "download for Java SE 6 Documentation" (Or what ever latested version and leave it zipped.
3. Click "Tools->Java Platforms"
4. Select the "Javadoc" tab
5. Click "Add ZIP/Folder..."
6. Browse to the zipped file you recent downloaded and then click ok :)

Valve's Time : Development Time

Yes, even I can relate to some of them would you believe.

Valve's Time

Howto: AVI to DVD

How to Burn AVI to DVD discs....Using Open source software!!!!! ..... In 5 steps!!!! well maybe one more :/ When I find a better way, I will update this article :)

DeVeDe is another package that I tried and saves some steps :), yet it crapped out on me so I thought I'd try this SLOW way. Yet I am sure if I tried again, it probably would of worked.

I needed to learn how to encode from AVI to DVD format for proper burning to DVD discs. This is my findings so far....

STEPS

1. Install wine,K3b, tovid, tovidgui software. Found using "synaptic package manager"
2. Ran "Applications-Sound & Video->tovid GUI" and ran through Layout, Encode and then Burn (Buggy burning part that)
   Layout : Add a menu then add your videos
   Encode : Just click start at the bottom (TAKES an age!!!)
   Burn : Completed but failed to burn as my DVD was single layered format (Takes a while but less than encoding). Ignore the errors if you did tick "Burn to DVD"
   
3. Copy the contents of the completed work made by "tovid GUI" to another area
   Normally stored in /tmp/someproject -> [another place for backup]. This is so it doesn't get lost.
4. Using Wine install DVD Shrink (google it and find the download link) and Run it on the folder (So it changes the format from dual layered to single layered)
   Click "open files..." (Browse to projectfolder a and then "Backup"
   
5. Ran "Applications-Sound & Video->K3B" and created a "New Video DVD project". Then dragged the finaly video_ts folder over to it :) Just click that button "Burn" now :)

Finished.

My Final Thoughts
This probably would work for other video formats also like (mpg etc... possibly, providing you have installed teh correct "restricted codec formats package" from the restricted repositories).

I decided to install all the "to?????" packages (tovidgui,tovid,todraw,todiscgui) as I thought they may of inter-twined with each other....I now believe they don't now.

I feel K3B is far more matured CD/DVD burning software than Brasero. Yet I do use them both, only I trust K3B for burning video projects for now.

Wished DeVeDe didn't crapped out on me :/

Stop Motion Animation

With some inspiration from a close friend who is encouraging me into "stop motion animation".

I am very slowly drafting up a technical guide on how to go about doing this.

Animation Guide
[pending]

Vmware vs Virtual Box

I have decided to try out Virtualbox as I keep hearing about better performance and stability. I am also hoping it will be a lot smoother with installation,updates and transporting between different platforms.

I will update this article on my findings.

My Vmware Experiences
I have 2 virtual machines and they are used for testing and distribution purposes.

• Everytime there is a kernel update, I have to re-compile it.
• Bit trivial with upgrading for people who are not used to the terminal
  
• When transporting a virtual image file to be used in Windows, I have to convert some configs (Think this is common thing).
• When changing test environments I have to change network settings.
• Feels like a power hog, can cause some bizarre effect once in a while.

My VirtualBox Experiences

• More user friendly to install
• Feels like a light weight
• Fast
• Virtual drives are stored straight to [home] folder
  
• Dynamically compiles the kernel module :)
• Ran my unsupported Webcam in XP very fast too :))))
  

Think I'm in love already.
{{{virtualBox}}}

Further Reading

Vs Reviews
Ubuntu Forums
virtualbox-3-0-4-vs-vmware-workstation-6-5-3/

About the Virtual Machine Software
Wikipedia : Virtualbox

My Heavy Ubuntu Desktop

I been wanting to get to know how to get into video editing in Ubuntu. This is my first attempt at adding music to a video with Kino. I also wanted to show off my desktop to my friends ;)

Obviously the quality still needs perfecting, I was just soo happy know this little new trick I just wanted to upload it :D (Strange that).

gtk-recordMyDesktop used to record Desktop :)

Mum's 49th Birthday : I made this :)

Click and then saveStory Behind the Card
My mum has drank so much cola and poorly looked after her teeth for years. She now has no teeth. Recently my Dad said he will try and pay for some new false teeth when and if he can save up for it.

I spent 3 hours making this card with a couple of hours of researching and testing. I started meddling with Blender and started to create some false teeth, then I got put off with the idea. Then meddled with Inkscape, tracing over some people smiling with their perfect teeth, then I got put off with that idea. I was reminded that i, 'it's words that count'. So I went to "Keep it Simple Stupid" mode.

Kate + Konqueror : Tieing the Knot

File Transfering Made Easy :)

I have grown to love a good FTP client that blends really well with the text editor. The only known set up that I knew at the time was, Mac's combo of

Interarchy + BBEdit

I was determined to find a similar feel of "Double clicking files editing them in BBEdit" and then when saving in the editor, it uploads it with out asking..."File has changed, do you want to upload this file?".

After many trials with various FTP and Text editor combos, I finally chose these and feel so relaxed with them now :)

Kate + Konqueror sitting in the tree K.I.S.S.I.N.G :P

Tie the Knot
The following steps allows for "Web development", further customizing can help you edit any other file.

Prep Your OS
1) Install Konqueror + Kate (If you have gnome and not KDE)
2)Open Konqueror

Prep Konqueror
3) Set the view of the Konqueror to be slim looking and with folder tree view.
4) Save the View as a profile (Settings -> Save View Profile), I called mine "Web Development" (OR you can save over the default "Web Browsing".
5)Click Settings -> Configure Konqueror -> File Management -> File Associations

Prep Kate
6) Now search for the following file formats (php,ini,phtml,js,html,txt,css,tmx) all have "Kate" as the TOP "Application Preference Order", if Kate does not exist you have to add it.

Use the command "kate -u %U"

The -u is important so you don't have multiple instanses of kate loading. The %U makes sure the file cache is stored in your home area and not anywhere else. Also make sure in "Advanced Options->DBUS Registration" is set to NONE (IMPORTANT or you may get KDEInit could not launch XXXX).

Below is the "Advanced Options" from above image

Finally

The very first screen shot in this article is what your Kate and Konqueror should look like. And yes that is my Desktop :D

Background : Windows 7 Update, broken glass that needs a patch
Appearance Theme : New Wave
Ciro Dock Theme : Tux_n_tosh

Enjoy :)

First IT Room Reboot

This past few months I have been extremely busy volunteering, rebooting an IT suite at Reading Resource which is managed by "Together". The IT Suite now provides open source and commercial solutions so the members have a choice of which way to learn. They had to cut back on various areas due to the recession particularly in the IT area. So they are extremely thankful and chuffed with me at the moment. Also gives me a chance to craft some of dream into play :)

Servers
Originally the members logged into Windows2000pro server and took an awful long time to log in.

Now the members are now split from the server and now all the members now log into an Ubuntu server. Which has boosted security and increased speed of logging into machines.

Malware and Bad Sites
Each machine had "Cyber Patrol" installed to prevent users from going to bad sites. Also They utilized Symantec Anti-virus.

All machines web browser software are configured to point to a proxy server (powered by squid). They are also locked so cannot change them. Speed increased by removing "Cyber Patrol" from each of the machines. And a Freeware anti-virus solution is playing a part to help combat virus for free.

Web Portal
Each machine points to a simple web portal show simply what is happening at Resource.

The Learn section shows off free learning material to various "open source" solutions :) This is what the portal looks like so far, still a work in progress yet it is a start. It also serves the purpose of keeping all the members updated more quickly.


Future Plans
After I have finished with making the web portal easily maintainable and the user friendly documentation for maintaining the IT suite has been finalized. I will hand over my responsibilities to them.

I will move on to some part-time work that I so dearly need to get back into. Yet Ideally I am hoping to set up some sort of job solution for myself here with all this new experience...Here's hoping :)

Computing Numbers

A friend wanted help to understand how to convert Octal and Hexadecimal numbers into binary. May not look amazing yet I created this nice little cheat sheet using "Inkscape". I'm sure am not the only one who has done this, but if you like it, take it :)

Click on the image for a larger view and then you can save it.

An embarrassing error glitch discovered by a Redditor :)

Sharedcookbook : Update : 10th Sept 2009

Making the site more user friendly with little time to spare I decided to provide "mini updates". So my changes will be extremely small....What else is new?

Changes

+Added "About" and "Helpful Notes" sections to main features of the site.

Sharedcookbook : Update : 3rd Sept 2009

Yup feel more happy with the "Guest System" now.

I must admit I kinda rushed the guest system programming as I was really motivated and happy and wanted to see the system in action ASAP. Yet I knew there was a couple of bugs to fix, so I spent this past couple of days testing on my development server to really be sure I have ironed them out. Thankfully ironed out the important ones, like deleting the guest accounts that have expired.

When I last looked there was 119 accounts out of the 19 more official users, so hopefully the expired accounts would have been deleted along with all the gear like, ingriedients, recipes, menus etc.

Changes
-Fixed bug in 'Guest Account System', expired accounts now get purged from database.
-Fixed the loggedAs helper to show language bar again.

Enjoy freely having fun with "Shared Cookbook". The guest accounts expire after 8 hours, or create an account to save your recipes.

Future Improvement Thoughts
Thanks to Redditor's comments and a recent chat to a friend, I have strong belief that these two are a must important.

1. Friendly Interface, the site still looks rough and needs more friendly feel.
   
2. Mobility support, by providing HTML widgets and provide downloadable applications for various mobile phones to get your favourite menu shopping lists saved for offline/online purposes.

Sharedcookbook : Update : 2nd Sept 2009

After some interesting comments from Reddit, I decided to action one of them and see what happens.

You can freely start using "sharedcookbook" for as much as you like for up to 8 hours at a time. Also if you choose, you can even save your newly created recipes into a proper account.

This feature will trial for a few days and hopefully everything will be OK :)

Changes
+Added Guest Account Ability

Technical Issues
If you have problems, empty your cookies :)

Sharedcookbook shown on Reddit

Having the site been on for almost a year now with little feedback, I turned a little desperate for some. So I posted it on Reddit you can see that post here. I was amazed with the first comment boosting my motivation to keep it live and to carry on improving it.

Redditor's have shown me the light to make "Shared Cookbook" even better, will show a little credit to usernames who influenced what feature some where, as similar to the current credits already in place.

Thank you Reddit.

BurdFrame2 : Minorly Previewed

BurdFrame2 is powering, 'Community Recycling' web application.

The Pickup System is a module and can be re-used for other purposes. It also boasts my first experience coding a drag and drop interface for ease of use.

The technology originally spawned from Sharedcookbook code and was being developed to help an organization create a private social website for their clients. It didn't start maturing until a major tune up of the then code and was AGAIN forked off to create "Community Recycling" project. I then decided to call my technology that I seem to keep reusing, "BurdFrame2".

So now I have the power to make various other fun web services/applications on the fly with not much fuss for myself.

Previewed Features
User Management
Backup System
Module System

Woohoo!

LightBox2 and Area Maps

Whilst developing a site using LightBox2 I bumped into a common, it cannot handle area maps by default.

Workaround is by replacing two entries in the lightbox.js. And yes that workaround blogger is also my hero too now :)

Wee Reminder : Ubuntu Fonts

Keep forgetting that clever little command to refresh the fonts with Ubuntu....

Become super user and bring up Fonts folder. Copy the nessarary files.

gksu nautilus /usr/share/fonts/truetype

Then refresh the font cache by running

sudo fc-cache -f -v

For further information, visit this link.

Sharedcookbook : Update : 17 June 2009

Conflicting Cookies
Sharedcookbook was my first social web service and having spawned other new social web service projects from this, I discovered the conflicting issues with the cookies, so I knew had to fix this for my developing comfort.

New Facts Section
The "Facts" section has a new area called "Methods of Cooking".

Sharedcookbook : Reddit Submission

I decided to post sharedcookbook url to reddit.com, here is the perm link.

I hope to start planning more improvements again some day however, I have taken up some new tasks to help improve myself and others around me.

Patience is a virtue.

Gimp : Cloning

After listening to some poetry from "John Haggot" and "Pete the Temp" at a great place called, "Moondog", believe me they are both really good. Someone kept staring at me and said you kinda look like a joker with the coffee stain on my mouth, I was amazed at someone joking about that. So just for fun, I decided to give my other side the full treatment using Gimp.

Look closely on both sides of my cheek :P They are both the same :P
How to Clone and Treat a Photo
I knew I wanted to duplicate the the "silly impression of my mouth corner", to make the impression seem more REAL as like in the film. During the hole process, I accidently horizontally flipped it and I actually felt it helped to remind me I was working duplicating the cut on the other side, here is how I did it.

1. Locked the original photo.


2. Created a new layer.


3. Clone copied the face that I wanted, made sure the brush was at the right size to just copy only the face part of the scar.


4. Once the cloned area into new layer, it will be a circled area.


5. Rotated the area using the "Rotate tool" to roughly match the other side, doesn't have to match properly.


6. Magic selected the new layer and then trimmed the edge of the circle to match my ORIGINAL edge of my face.


7. Changed the mode to "Value" and set the Opacity to 74.3 to help merge the colors to be similar.


8. Use the smudge tool with the default settings and carefully smudge the inner circle and the outside of the face smoothly match my ORIGINAL face. Don't overly smudge, only just till no outstanding edging is visible.


9. Use the brightness and contrast tool to match the lighting of the other side.
   

That is all.


Note about flipping in Gimp

There is "Image->Tranform" and "Layer->Transform" be sure to use the apporiate one, as one of them flips all layers.

Card : Wisdom Tooth Removal Thank You

I didn't want to say thanks yet till I knew I was on the mend, my mouth feels good :)

How to Publish
1) Right click and save the image.

2) Just print the image OR

Create a document in a word processor and set all margins to "zero", don't worry about any warnings or messages during the process, then print. After all it is an A4 image.

One Project at a Time

Going to share my thoughts about ethical designing here that I have to come to like....

SharedCookbook updates has been slowed down to halt for some time now, heres why.

Since moving into a flat with no Internet access and gaining a couple of volunteer opportunities that I have started to actively work on. These two projects I am working, will hopefully aid the public sector, touch wood. I won't say anymore than that.

Since there is only one of me, and I have taken on this rule when a project starts to speed up, learnt this from 'Valve Software Corporation'...

"One Project at a Time"

I don't like chopping and changing projects especially when I am on good developing speed. It's all about keeping the brain thinking on the right track and getting through a mess of tracks.

Don't Rush

I don't like to rush things either, having to rush something out and seeing it running on 3 legs is a horrific sight to witness.

If you want it to work properly and see things go smoother, 'Don't rush into things until you have planned and thought things through'. This goes for developing as well as real life situations.

Unless it's an emergency, like the server is down or you lost your keys.

Make Coding less of a headache and more enjoyable
Oh and here is a sneak peak of a project I am currently working on. You can see I listen to music whilst I code :P Trust me that helps quite regularly, keeps the brain churning as peacefully as possiblily during coding.

Whats New 3rd Feb 2009

I have had decided to drop the version number and keep it to date form, just to keep things more friendly looking. A couple of nice new features to improve socializing and viewing pleasure.

The printer friendly feature can been seen when viewing, recipes, profiles, and shopping Lists( via /menu->get shopping List).

Comment system now shows total number of comments to help encourage socializing.

Changes
+Added Comment Totals
+Printer Friendly View
+Added Invalid message to invalid Recipe Views

Add Household Items to Shopping List

EXPERIMENTAL IDEA : But you can try it.

How do you add "other" items to your shopping list?

If you click the screenshot on the left, you will see two "other" items. Well I have hacked about a bit and finally thought up a friendly way to do this.

Further Development Required
Ideally I will need to add a switch when creating new recipes, whether it contain a bunch of items or ingredients of edible products.

Also in the shopping list I'd change the column heading "ingredients" to "items". OR I could move the "OTHER ITEMS" away from the ingredients sections altogether and have that in a sperate list on the side possibly.

Just Household Only Shopping List
Create a new menu called, "Household" and then attach it the new housesholds to it.



WARNING:
Since it is an experimental idea and DO NOT want to give any stupid ideas of mixing recipes up with non edible items. I strongly advise that you do not fill in your method with mix instructions.

You can use the method area to explain why such items is your favourite brand possibly.

Where is this Rough Guide?
The instruction with examples are here.

Shared Cookbook : Update 1.1.2

Search engines love meta data to index, this website needed its recipes indexed there too. also implemented Sweden language support.

Changes
+Sweden language support
+Improved meta support
*View Recipe
*Main Pages

Web Environments

Database Management
http://freshmeat.net/projects/phpmyadmin/

HTML Text Editor
http://freshmeat.net/projects/fckeditor/

Project Management and Tracking
http://freshmeat.net/projects/achievo/

System Info
http://phpsysinfo.sourceforge.net/

Shared Cookbook : Update 1.1.1

I have been requested to include video embedding support, his one simple request kept nagging in my brain mentally for a while, until I eventually caved in and started coding.

Similar system to Images only it's videos now. At the moment the system only supports Youtube, an example of their video urls

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0quDfpfRUQ

Check out the results of an embedded video here.

Changes:
v1.1.1
+Implemented Videos
*Youtube only for now.

Launch Article and Features Explained

This is the launch article I made to help showcase the website, explains the reasons behind the site as well as the main features.

Read the full article here.

Shared Cookbook : Update 1.1.0

As of 1st January 2009, [Shared Cookbook] got updated!!!! Took a lot of mental pushing power on my side, setting up my a new dev environment to match with the live host, and finally did the first update. Hopefully you will notice roughly 3 things.

A major bug was discovered not too long ago, and prompted for urgent attention, have to thank the bug for giving me this, "urgent feeling" and major enhancement to my mental health, which finally prompted a quick update. Users can now set ingredients with preparations, like slicing and dicing. They can make up their own preparations up if they wish or choose from one of the many pre-configured preparations.

I apologise in advance for any inconvenience, that major bug fix has left a mark to the data already in the system. Look out for "-1", those are the ones you need to "Re-assign/re correct" yourself manually. They will be found in the recipe ingredients and menus.

Course I am one man band it here, so bare with me still if things look rough :P

Following fixes/enhancements have been made.

+ Add "Canada" to countries
+ Smaller Font size
+ Implemented Preparations
! Minor content changes
*Welcome
*About
*Credits
*Feedback
*Layout
! Added Captcha to Feedback form
! Fixed major user data look up bug:
* Preparations
* Measures
* Ingredients
* Images
* Recipes