Meet the team
November 3, 2009 at 22:09 | In Ones and Zeros | Leave a CommentTags: arduino, Blogroll, Go Clock, home automation, home easy, homecamp, hursley, IBM, mdm, mdm-workbench, scalextric, uig, User Interface Generator, user modeling, wordle
It looks 2009 is the year for people I work with to start blogging, and they’re all on Twitter… coincidence? So if you’re looking for a good read, you might like to check them out. Starting with the newest blog…
October 2009
Ed’s World (@ejellard) Off to a flying start with some great home automation with arduino, Home Easy, MQTT and a helping of hackery.
Limboworld’s blog (@jaylimburn) Conducting a scientific experiment in to the value of blogging, so make sure you get as many people to read it as possible! Some good DIY posts to kick things off. (There would have been a few DIY posts here if I’d started this blog before fitting the kitchen!)
September 2009
The World Of Gavin (@gavinwillingham) Definite technology slant with an enjoyable hint of grumpy old man which I’m definitely hoping will continue!
April 2009
Cobweb (@techcobweb)
Some really varied arduino projects in addition to home automation and tweeting cats. While the only circuit I’ve cobbled together recently is sitting in an ice cream tub in the porch, Mike is a master at packaging projects- his scalextric race timer is a work of art!
May 2006 (so blogging way longer than the rest of us!)
Not as easy to sum up given the number of posts but a distinct focus on technology of various kinds. Probably need to run it through wordle to get a better idea!
The trouble with making lists like this is that I am bound to have missed a few! I’ll just sneakily add more if I have… which reminds me, I was going to make more of an effort with a blogroll at some point soon.
MDM Workbench white paper
May 27, 2009 at 17:20 | In Ones and Zeros | 1 CommentTags: developerWorks, IBM, information management, infosphere, mdm, mdm-server, mdm-workbench, mdmserver
If you’ve read my Setting up an MDM Server development environment post in the past, there is now a new white paper on the MDM Workbench developerWorks forum which I would definitely recommend taking a look at.
The White paper on using the MDM Workbench has updated information on setting up a development environment, with screen shots of the wizard used. It then takes you through subsequent tasks to create a working extension to the MDM Server, with essential information about working on the code in a team environment.
The information should provide a quick start for anyone new to the MDM Workbench. Please provide any feedback on the white paper in the forum thread.
Getting 5.7GB of disk space back!
May 11, 2009 at 15:23 | In Ones and Zeros | Leave a CommentTags: files, IBM, installation-manager, preferences, rational, rollback
I discovered some very handy preferences in the IBM Installation Manager today…
I think that pretty much explains it! I deleted 4.3 GB of saved files before applying the last update and if I don’t hit any bog problems after the update, I’ll be deleting another 1.4GB. My disk space pie chart is looking much better!
MDM Workbench developerWorks forum
February 11, 2009 at 21:41 | In Ones and Zeros | 1 CommentTags: developerWorks, IBM, information management, infosphere, mdm-server, mdm-workbench
This is just a quick plug for the new MDM Workbench forum on developerWorks, which is worth following if you’ve read any of the MDM Workbench related posts below. I’ll still be writing about my own views of MDM and the workbench here, but for a larger audience of people who know the MDM Workbench, the new forum is the place to go.
- Creating user interfaces another way
- Setting up an MDM Server development environment
- Running MDM transactions in a development environment
- Another way to run MDM transactions in a development environment
And there’s more: for any MDM Server runtime specific discussions there is a well established InfoSphere Master Data Management Server forum, also on developerWorks.
Get your lovely fresh user interface generator here
December 16, 2008 at 19:29 | In Ones and Zeros | 1 CommentTags: IBM, mdm, mdm-server, uig, UML, User Interface Generator
IBM InfoSphere Master Data Management Server V8.5 has just been announced! I don’t usually get excited by IBM product announcements but the new version of MDM Server comes with the User Interface Generator, which is is what I actually work on in my day job. We get this description in the announcement letter:
A new sophisticated user interface generator for simplified user interface creation, customization, and use. This model-driven, role-based generator allows for the automatic generation and regeneration of comprehensive user interfaces and supports integration with nongenerated user interface screens.
If you’re as excited as I am, and who wouldn’t be, there’s a series of articles about the user modeling used to generate user interfaces from on developerWorks. Now it’s been shipped, I’ll probably be posting a bit more about what the user interface generator can do, plus I hope to have an update to the Setting up an MDM Server development environment post for version 8.5 soon.
MDM-in-a-Box
October 17, 2008 at 16:48 | In Ones and Zeros | Leave a CommentTags: Cognizant, IBM, mdm, mdm-server
I’ve been busily clearing up the disaster area that’s my in-box after another trip to Helsinki and it was good to find some news of Cognizant’s MDM-in-a-Box.
There are more articles around as well if you’re interested, although I’m looking forward to finding a bit more detail about what’s in the box!
Helsinki
October 12, 2008 at 21:59 | In Life, the Universe, and Everything | 1 CommentTags: Air France, chester, commuting, Finland, GDP, Helsinki, IBM, Southampton Airport, trams, virgin, work
Last week I was sent to Helsinki at the last minute, which is becoming something of a regular occurrence after a trip to Chester a couple of weeks ago.
Helsinki was fantastic- I would definitely like to visit Finland properly at some point. I’m not really a natural city dweller. I like being close enough to visit now and then, but far enough away to escape the mad crowds. Helsinki could be an exception though: it has all the good points of a city but it was a really relaxing place to be in. As a bonus, I could use my second favourite method of commuting to get to the IBM office…
Tramtastic
That’s the number 4 tram about to pick me up outside the apartments I stayed at. Nice.
If only getting to and from Finland was as easy! Like my recent experience with Virgin trains, a late Air France flight from Southampton meant I missed my connection in Paris. Unlike the train companies, Air France didn’t charge me extra for the pleasure of spending three hours in Charles de Gaulle. Sadly my complaint and request to use their lounge and internet connection didn’t get very far. After three complaints all I got was a free sandwich. ‘Wow.’
Even though the flight back was late as well, I do like flying from Southampton. Much nicer than the chaos at Heathrow or Gatwick. Mind you, Fly Maybe were causing a few queues because some computer was broken and they were having to hand write boarding cards! Luckily the Air France computer was working and I’d checked in on line.
P.S. For anyone else on the trip, the rumoured contribution of the company to Finland’s GDP appears to have been wildly exaggerated, although 4% is still pretty impressive if you ask me.
Update: 4am start tomorrow to head back to Helsinki!! The price of a direct flight from Heathrow. (13 Oct 2008)
Justin Casey moving on
August 31, 2008 at 12:34 | In VU | 2 CommentsTags: hursley, IBM, mdm, OpenSim, secondlife
As Justin mentioned on his blog, and also reported elsewhere, he’s moving on to join the Fashion Research Institute and Friday was his last day in the Hursley Information Management team at IBM. Unfortunately, while there are many advantages to working from home, there are downsides, one of which was missing Justin’s leaving drinks at the Dolphin. I’m also going to be missing the Open-Source, Interoperable Virtual Worlds panel at the Virtual Worlds expo. Still, with the power of blogging I hope I won’t be missing out completely.
Good luck to Justin with what sounds like a tremendous opportunity.
Another way to run MDM transactions in a development environment
August 22, 2008 at 17:55 | In Ones and Zeros | 1 CommentTags: IBM, information management, infosphere, mdm, mdm-server, mdm-workbench
If you have set up an MDM Server development environment, you should have noticed that you have actually already run some MDM transactions. The Validate MDM Installation step in the MDM Development and Test Environment (DEST) wizard runs an addContract and two addPerson transactions to verify everything is configured and working. In addition to the first two options, you can actually use the DEST wizard to run your own transactions. Here’s how.
Option 3: InstallVerification Project
This is probably the simplest of all the options for testing an MDM transaction. The Validate MDM Installation step of the DEST wizard will run any transactions in the xml folder of the InstallVerification project. The results are placed in the xml/response folder in the same project but you will need to refresh the contents of the project to see the new files. Follow these steps for an easy way to try out this option:
- Copy one of the existing files in the xml folder of the InstallVerification project and give it a new name, e.g. testTCRMaddperson.xml
- Edit the new file and change some of the values. I changed the address, identification number and name for example
- Start the DEST wizard, select just the Validate MDM Installation step, click next, then finish
- Right click on the InstallVerification project and select Refresh
- Open the appropriate response file in the xml/response folder, for example ResponsetestTCRMaddPerson.xml, and check the results
Tip: don’t forget that DEST runs all the transactions in the xml folder so you may wish to clear it out now and then.
IBM Hursley Golden Anniversary
August 5, 2008 at 22:47 | In Life, the Universe, and Everything | 3 CommentsTags: 50, about, anniversary, CICS, hursley, IBM, information management, NASA, office, Spitfire, work
I’ve been reminded why I’ve worked in the same place as long as I have a few times recently. The July edition of Computer Business Review (CBR) includes a supplement on ‘50 years of Innovation at IBM Hursley’ covers the work aspect pretty well. Good to see an advert for Information Management on the inside cover even if we don’t appear in the main article- we are one of the newest teams in Hursley.
John McLean, our lab director, says, “It’s all about the people….” which is absolutely right. The people who work at Hursley are astounding, from new students to ‘heritage’ IBMers, and I get to work with them all the time.
As a bonus, the place itself makes for a pretty nice working environment. We celebrated with an open day recently, which was a great chance to bore entertain Jo and my mum with a tour of work- I don’t suppose many offices get their own air show.
It’s interesting that NASA are also celebrating 50 years. I wonder which has had the biggest impact on peoples lives over the last 50 years. I expect more people have heard of NASA but CICS alone makes it a close race.
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