2011 Year In Review

By Josh Highland in Josh's Rambling

 

For the last few year I list the goals that I would like to achieve for the year (2011, 2010, 2009). With this post I’d like to take some time and see how many of my 2011 goals I managed to achieve.

  • Speak at more tech conferences and user groups

I only managed to speak at 1 tech conference this year, OC WordCamp. I tried to get on the speaking list for BlogWorld Expo, but my topic, “Optimizing  the performance of WordPress” was too awesome for them, so it was rejected. Their Loss. I love public speaking, so I imagine this will continue to be one of my goals in the future. Since I only spoke once this year, I’m going to give myself a #FAIL

  • Travel more, possible out of the country

Well, I managed to spend a week in Kentucky camping with my friends. It was an amazing time. I had plans to visit @JasonXKeller in Prague, in the Czech Republic, but he moved back to America before I made my trip. At least I have my passport now, and I’m glad I get to hang out with him on the reg. #FAIL

  • Rehab my leg back to 100% strength
  • Work out more, get into awesome shape

I grouped these two goals together because they are very closely related. A bit of a back story in case you are new to following me… in January 2008 I destroyed my left knee and had to have major surgery.  The Doctor and physical therapist told me that the only way to get back to 100% strength was to hit the gym really hard for the next 2 years due to the massive damage and muscle atrophy that happened to my leg.

One thing I can say is that 2011 has been the year of #getBig. I hit the gym 2 hours a day, 5 days a week. I’ve also gotten really into sport nutrition and bodybuilding. My brother is my lifting partner and we push each other. Having a vegan diet has made weight lifting an extra challenge, but I love it. My leg still has a ways to go, but I have been able to stack on an insane amount  of muscle. I’m finally starting to develop a body builder physique. 17 inch arms… #EpicWIN

  • Develop more iPhone apps

This is a simple answer, I was able to release 4 iPhone apps this year. That’s a #WIN

  • Get an android phone to test / develop with

Nope, didn’t happen, but I’m ok with that. #noCareEver

  • Do more community service

This year I hooked up with a great group of guys from South Orange County called WSB (We Still Believe). I helped out a few times cooking and distributing food to the homeless. WSB also organized a few food drives and concerts that raised money for homeless shelters in the Inland Empire. It’s super rewarding and something I want to continue with. #WIN

  • Pay off more of my debt

Well, I’m not 100% debt free, but I’m closer then I ever have been before, so yeah thats a #WIN. It’s a good goal for us all to have.

  • Automate more of my income

This year, I was able to increase my automated income through iPhone app sales, Google Adsense, and Shopify referrals. It’s a far cry from being able to live off it, but its a start and its inspiring to see what I was able to accomplish. I’m giving myself the #WIN for this, but I’m going to be working on this moving forward.

  • Get more tattoos

I got two new tattoos this year, both from my buddy Marc Jackson at Tattoo Revolution in Redlands Ca. Bonus points for you if you understand why I got the first tattoo on St. Patrick’s day. If you don’t know, watch this video. Marc Jackson and I actually got matching “Leprechaun” tattoos. The second tattoos is my 5th Straight Edge tattoo, and reads “Cradle To The Grave”, and is based on lyrics from “Path of Resistance”. It was featured in a tattoo book, “With the light of Truth“. So yeah, an internet meme tattoo, and a straight edge tattoo, total #WIN

Non-abstract method Foo::bar() must contain body

By Josh Highland in php

I was working on one of my PHP based projects, and I was getting the following error:

Non-abstract method Foo::bar() must contain body in Foo.php on line 10

The problem was that I had accidentally put a semicolon at the end of the first line of the function:

WRONG WAY:

  
class Foo 
{ 
    function bar(); // extra semicolon! 
    { 
        // stuff 
    } 
}

RIGHT WAY:

  
class Foo 
{ 
    function bar()    // no semicolon, yay 
    { 
        // stuff 
    } 
}

Dennis Ritchie: Forgotten Tech Legend

By Josh Highland in Josh's Rambling

This year we lost two great tech founders, Steve Jobs and Dennis Ritchie.

Steve Jobs death was plastered all over the news and media, and it should be. Steve Jobs was a great visionary who changed the world. I’m typing this on my MacBook Pro with my iPhone sitting right next to me. I love Apple.

Dennie Ritchie was also a great man of technology. He was less public than Jobs, but in my opinion more influential than Steve Jobs. Dennis Ritchie created the programming language C, which is foundational to almost all modern programming languages, including Objective-C, the language that all iPhone apps are written in. Ritchie is also the father of Unix, the operating system that powers most of the internet, and all Mac computers. Macs are known for their stability. That stability comes from it’s operating system, a modified version of Unix. Without Ritchie, Apple wouldn’t exist. Despite how influential Dennie Ritchie was, I didn’t see a single news story on his death.

I respect both of these men and honor the things they created. Without them my life would be much different. In a perfect world the people behind the scenes, like Dennis Ritchie, would get true attention and notoriety they truly deserve.

 

Why I’m pre-ordering the iPhone 4S

By Josh Highland in iPhone, Josh's Rambling, Tech

Am I ordering the new iPhone 4S? As my tattoo says, “oh hellz yeah!”

I’m excited about the iPhone 4S and I’m going to pre-order it. I’ve heard a lot of people complain about the 4s, about how “It’s nothing new”, and “It’s basically the same as the iPhone 4”.

Here are the things that make the iPhone 4S different from the iPhone 4

  • 2x the data speed
  • 2x the CPU (A5 processor)
  • 7x the graphics speed
  • 8mp camera
  • 5 element lens
  • Larger camera CMOS
  • 1080p HD video with image stabilization
  • Longer batter life
  • Bluetooth 4.0
  • Supports GSM & CDMA (Use it on ANY carrier)
  • Siri voice control
  • Improved antennas

So yeah I guess besides those things, the iPhone 4s is just like the iPhone 4…

I love my iPhone, ive loved them all. I’ve owned every generation produced. With each release, the iPhone gets better, and becomes a larger part of my life. I use my phone a lot. It’s a mobile computer thats always with me. As an app developer, I can basically do anything I want with it.

When I ask people who are disapointed in the 4s, what they were hoping to see, the most common responce I get it, “I wanted it to be shaped different.” Shaped different! What? OK, I agree it would be cool to have a different sized iPhone, or a slightly different shape, but if I had to choose between better speed and an updated look, I’m going to pick the improved speed 10 times out of 10… I actally USE my phone.

I think more people would have been excited about the iPhone 4s if it looked noticabley different from an iPhone 4. I really think that most people care more about the status of the iPhone and the look of it rather then the utility and freedom it provides. If the iPhone 4S had a different style back, like metal instead of glass, I feel that more people would be impressed with it. There is nothing stylish about owning an iPhone 4S. The 4S update is about the “S”, speed.

Personally, I like to think that the 4S means “For Steve Jobs”. The world has lost a great visionary. Without him we wouldnt be arguing about iPhones. RIP.