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"Murphy was an optimist!"

Programming self into corner July 28, 2008 10:52 pm

Posted by Doug McCaughan in : CSS, Programming, Technology
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With programming, over thinking a problem is a common pitfall. Sleeping on a problem often results in a quick solution for the mere fact that you quit thinking about the issue long enough to see the simpler solution. As we contrive our Rube Goldberg devices to solving programming challenges, we become like plumbers simply adding more pipes to divert the water to the end result. Quickly we paint ourselves into a corner and waste valuable time. I am there right now on what should be some simple css.

If I have a <tr> that has a class <tr class="foo"> and the <td> within the tr has an <a href> how do I style the anchor?

Before anyone jumps on the "Don’t use tables" bandwagon, this is semantically correct because the output is tabular data.

The solution should be tr.foo td a { }. But nothing changes. CSS is not magic; not spooky. CSS is relatively simple, and fun! But hiccups like this drive me to the brink!

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State of Me July 28, 2008 4:24 pm

Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life
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I’m a little shaken. I’m very angry. I can’t think straight. I’m going to see if I can build a penny stove (see also and also) in 20 minutes to demonstrate to the scouts tonight. Then I am back to coding. Must deliver a feature by midnight tonight or my head is going to crack open.

Update: Fail. Back to code. Skipped scouts.

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The ever shrinking room July 28, 2008 11:21 am

Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life
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We’ve hit that time of the Monday where the walls begin to close in. This is the moment that I feel I need to continue programming to hit a milestone, simultaneously I need to be on the phone doing unpleasant bureaucratic things, and I also have a load of paperwork which demands I not ignore it a single more day. All the while I feel like I’m walking in glue. Since the world has gone micro, I think I’ll go have a micro-breakdown. Back in 15 minutes.

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From the mouths of babes July 28, 2008 10:54 am

Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Evan, Family, From the mouths of babes, Of Being Dad
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Dad:"Give me that bop please."
Evan, 3 years old handing over pacifier:"Here go."
Dad:"Thank you."
Evan:"Welcome."
Dad:"You’re a good boy."
Evan:"Yeah Dad dy."

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