Never Underestimate Radical Vision

I was trying to deploy my maven plug-in to the internal repository and was having a little bit of trouble. I could not get my plug-in to deploy properly because of ‘Permission denied" errors. This was easily solved by deploying to the file path of the repo server instead of the http path of the web repo. For example, when deploying to a repo http://myrepo/maven2 that is stored on the local file system at /repo/maven/maven2 you need your scp:// statement to use the file system path so it shows up correctly in the http path. For example:

<distributionManagement>
  <repository>
    <id>internal-repo</id>
    <name>Internal repository for Maven</name>
    <url>scp://myrepo/repo/maven/maven2</url>
  </repository>
</distributionManagement>

Also, you can configure the authentication to the server in your Maven configuration file at MAVEN_HOME/conf/settings.xml. You need to add the following configuration under the <servers> element:

<server>
  <id>{unique repo id}</id>
  <username>{server username}</username>
  <password>{server password}</password>
</server>

For example:

<server>
  <id>internal-repo</id>
  <username>joeuser</username>
  <password>P@ssw0rd</password>
</server>

The id would be the same id you use in the deployment element in the pom.xml file.

"It’s a formidable scent… It stings the nostrils. In a good way."

—

I recently had issues setting a dependency to Ant 1.7.0 for a project I was developing. The default local repository for Maven 2 is located at ~/.m2/repository. This resolves in Windows  to C:\Document and Settings\{username}\.m2\repository.  When setting up a dependency in a project to Ant 1.7.0 the build would fail trying to grab Ant because of a illegal character in the path. It looks like Maven or something doesn’t escape the path properly and the spaces were causing the build problems. The fix was to point Maven to a new local repository path that had no spaces.

To do change your local repository:

1. Navigate to MAVEN_HOME/conf/
2. Edit the settings.xml file
3. Under the <settings> element add an element called <localRepository> and enter your new path there.

For example, <localRepository>/.m2/respository</localRepository>

Your maven builds will take a little longer the first time you run them again because it fills the repository fresh. You could also just cut and paste your older repository contents and put them in the new place to minimize re-download.

I love Mozilla Firefox. I think it is the best browser available. It has great plug-ins and themes. It also has this really cool keyword creation utility. Basically I use this for quick searching on sites I go to a lot like Google or Wikipedia. What you can go is setup a keyword that can be used as a shortcut on the URL address bar. For example, I use git:, short for "Google It", for quick searching Google. Say for instance you want to search Google for books, I would type in the url address bar git: books and hit enter. The browser would then use Google to search for books. I also have one for Wikipedia where I could search for books by typing in the URL address bar wiki: books. Following are the steps to set this up:

First, go to your favorite search site and enter something to search and grab the URL from the address bar after the serach. For instance if you search Google for books you get an URL of:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=books&btnG=Google+Search

If you notice in the URL the q=books area. This is where any search phrase goes for searching Google.

Second, you need copy this URL and go create and new blank bookmark. Bookmarks->Organize Bookmarks…, this will launch the Bookmarks Manager and click the New Bookmark button. You should see the following screen:

Next you enter a new for the key word search like "Google Search"

You need to now paste the copied URL into the Location: area

You need to find the q=books in the URL and replace it with a %s which is built in as a variable to basically mean any text you type after the keyword

to:

Finally add a meaningful keyword to the bookmark that you want to use for searching this site

Click the "OK" button and close the Bookmarks Manager. You can now clear the URL address bar in Firefox and type "git: books and stuff" (and remember the space between the keyword and the search phrase and you do not need the quotes) and hit the Enter button on the keyboard. You should now see a Google search results page for "books and stuff".

This is really a powerful, time saving feature that I can not live without. It is hard for me to use any other browser because I rely so heavily on my keyword search. You basically can use this keyword tool for any URL that you want to dynamically replace some text in the URL with %s. This works great for sites that have searches you use a lot. I have keywords for Google, Wikipedia, Dictionary.com and Wookiepedia (I am a Star Wars fan). Create a Google bookmark and get in the habit of using it and you will never type www.google.com in the address bar again.

Let me know how this works for you. If you have any trouble I could be persuaded to post a How-To video if needed.

So it has been awhile since I last blogged. I got out of the habit and really didn’t have much to say anyway. Like was moving fast and furious and I just didn’t make the time. So that begs the question, "What has changed now?"

Those that know me know I have worked at a large corporate 500 hundred business for the last 5 1/2 years. I worked on a variety of software projects will different levels of fulfillment. I had resigned myself to  never being fulfilled in my work but doing so I enabled my family to stay here at "home." I was very important to me to be able to provide my family with a since of "home" without chasing every whim/dream I might have. So, what has changed?

Well I am proud to report that I have taken a position of Senior Consultant for a software company called Gestalt. This company is so opposite from what I had been living in I can hardly explain all of it. I have found a "home" for my profession and it is still located at "home." You can visit their sight to see what they are about but they are a software developers nirvana, well so far. I feel that this company wants the best, invests in their people and truly believe people are they key to their success. A lot of companies, including my last, may say this but so far they have lived it.

To prove so the first day on the job I had my laptop ready and prepared. I was up and running within an hour. I was given something to work on right after getting set up. I felt like I was already contributing to matter how small. A couple of fellow workers took the time to take me to lunch and give me a little history of our group. Every question I had for our group was answered without that "I am busy so go away" type of answer. Most import I just finished new employee orientation where I got to learn a lot about the company and the culture. I was asked the question, "What is your take away for NEO?" I answered by stating that we have been introduced to the company my various executive management and not once did I hear them refer to us as resources. The day you are referred to as a resource is the day you are a nameless, faceless, expendable, replaceable cog in a monstrous wheel. I cam from that and do not want to go back. If you truly value your people, you will treat them like people, with names, faces, families, unique abilities and quirks that you use to build an extraordinary business. People in my field truly want to work, do extraordinary things with software, have people truly use and love our stuff. This is not a job, this is a passion! I got the message loud and clear, I love it and I am pumped to give this company even more.

You will see more blogs from me for a couple of reasons:

1. It is practically demanded by our ScrumMaster and he has excellent reasons for it.
2. It is a great way to share knowledge throughout our company.
3. Believe it or not, it is actually encouraged.
4. I want to because I have gained my passion again.

I still may blog my rants from time to time but mostly I will be blogging about software and technology. I know most of my friends will not care for this too much but this is truly my passion and what I can talk about. I promise to still throw in the funny rant or link. Pay attention and I will blog some little tips and tricks I have picked up they may just help the nontech type.

I am back to this blogs motto, "Never Underestimate Radical Vision", and now I have a chance to prove it.