Introduction This post is in a series about computers, speech and language: Why are speech and language interfaces useful? What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 1: Overview What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 2: Speech What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 3: Language … Continue reading When is a speech and language interface a poor choice?
What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 3: Language
Introduction This article follows on from a few about computers, speech and language: Why are speech and language interfaces useful? What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 1: Overview What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 2: Speech What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 3: … Continue reading What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 3: Language
What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 2: Speech
Introduction This is the third in a series of articles about using speech and text to interact with computers: Why are speech or language interfaces useful? What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 1: Overview What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 2: Speech What makes speech and language … Continue reading What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 2: Speech
Surgical drapes for programmers
Introduction You’ve probably seen medical dramas on TV where someone is lying on an operating table, and medical staff with gowns and masks are operating on them. You can’t see most of the person because they’re covered in green sheets, which are called surgical drapes. There’s a gap in the sheets big enough for the … Continue reading Surgical drapes for programmers
What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 1: Overview
This article is in a series about computers, speech and language: Why are speech or language interfaces useful? What makes speech or language interfaces hard to create? Part 1: Overview What makes speech or langauge interfaces hard to create? Part 2: Speech What makes speech or language interfaces hard to create? Part 3: Language When … Continue reading What makes speech and language interfaces hard to create? Part 1: Overview
Counting – fence panels or fence posts?
Introduction This is a post about fences, but not in the good fences make good neighbours sense that you might expect. (This could be the way into lots of good things about interfaces, encapsulation and so on.) In this post I'm not interested in the things that the fence is separating, but in the fence … Continue reading Counting – fence panels or fence posts?
Why are speech or language interfaces useful?
This is the first article in a series about speech and language: Why are speech or language interfaces useful? What makes speech or language interfaces hard to create? Part 1: Overview What makes speech or langauge interfaces hard to create? Part 2: Speech What makes speech or language interfaces hard to create? Part 3: Language … Continue reading Why are speech or language interfaces useful?
Named parameters with default values can help unit tests
Introduction I find myself using default values much more in unit tests than in production code. That is, I do it more often, and use more parameters with defaults per method. This isn't because default values are bad, but they are often particularly useful when setting data up for unit tests. It makes the tests … Continue reading Named parameters with default values can help unit tests
Going a bit deeper with Don’t Repeat Yourself (DRY)
DRY, or Don't Repeat Yourself, is a principle of software engineering. It makes code quicker and easier to understand and to change. For instance, instead of having the same chunk of code typed out twice or more, you carve it out into a method and then call it each time you need it. However, I … Continue reading Going a bit deeper with Don’t Repeat Yourself (DRY)
From Excel to SSIS, Part 5: Joining streams of data
This article is part of a series: From Excel to SSIS Getting started File Save As (a kind of Hello, World! program for SSIS) Filtering rows Grouping and calculating Joining streams of data 0. Introduction This article will cover another very useful chunk of SSIS - joining streams of data together. Often the value of two bits … Continue reading From Excel to SSIS, Part 5: Joining streams of data
Random Tech Thoughts 