Sep/091
Married, Mozilla and More
Wow, so it seems I have misplaced my blog this summer. However getting married, moving and taking an epic honeymoon can do that to blogs. It’s been a whirl wind kind of summer, full of change. It’s hard to know where to start, so I’ll start with what matters most.
Being a married man, now for over a month, I can safely say I am both lucky and very much in love. It seems all those years Tasha and I enjoyed as a couple has us well prepared for the life of husband and wife. We have fallen into a wonderfully collaborative effort of eating, cleaning and entertaining. We have both spent a great deal of time preparing our home and we are finally enjoying the fruits of our labour, and it’s fantastic!
When I last blogged my internship at Mozilla had just begun, as I write this I find it came and went too quickly. Opportunity doesn’t always come at the right moment, but you need to seize it nonetheless. I’m so happy that I took the chance to work with Mozilla this summer — even if life had me pulled in too many directions. Spending time in California meeting Stuart, Doug, Mark and others was rewarding. During these last few months I have kept my eyes and ears open and the thing I take most from the experience is how dedicated and passionate they all are. It has inspired me to find that same passion in what I choose to do from now on. I’m spending my time now to take a look at the job market to find what best suits me, my skills and my passions. My home life is already proving to be rather fulfilling and I have decided I will settle for nothing less in my professional life.
I’m choosing to leave this blog post on the shorter side, it’s impossible to catchup with everything that has happened. However, some parting notes, I plan on remaining a contributor to the Mozilla project – the experience can only be surpassed by it’s importance, these are world class developers and I still have so much to learn and contribute.
I also would like to take a moment to thank Silvana from Impulse Photography, she has a track record of producing some of the most unique and creative photography around, and our wedding was no exception. With that I leave you with moments from our big day – Thanks Silvana!
May/090
JavaScript Error Console for Fennec
JavaScript Error Console on Fennec
This week as the mobile guys finalize the alpha for Windows Mobile I have busied myself with adding the JavaScript console to Fennec. Both Mark, Doug and Brad had expressed interest in the feature and it sounded like a nice chunk of work to keep me productive while the other guys concentrated on pushing out the alpha. I have a WIP patch up. I still need to spruce up the warning and error rows to more completely represent the data, however the whole console (filter and evaluation) currently functions just like the desktop version.
It has been very interesting to move away from C++ and into XUL and JavaScript. I have enjoyed being outside my comfort zone and lucky enough to have Mark right over my shoulder to help me along the way. I plan to spend some time reading my JavaScript book and XUL tutorials on the road to LA this weekend.
The second week here at Mozilla is somehow even better then the first. I enjoyed going out with the mobile team last night to take in some dinner and movie (Star Trek), it was nerdtacular. I’m lucky to be here and I don’t plan on forgetting that anytime soon.
May/091
Viva Las Vegas
So with my first weekend in California, what did I do? Well I left California, for Nevada. Anthony, Matt and I packed ourselves into the Jetta. The drive was exciting; speed limits be dammed. Going through the twisty bits in the mountains was a real thrill; all driving should be like that. Arriving in Vegas, having never been before, I was shocked as to how large everything was, the casinos are massive; and wow were there lots of people. We were walking around at 3am and there were hordes people travelling from casino to casino and drinking — on the streets! The next morning the people were still there, but the sun was out, and boy was it hot, 103°F (40°C). We saw Penn & Teller and I had some time to win some money at the poker tables, which really only served as a recovery from the losses at the roulette table. I would definitely go back, but next time I would stay at Paris, the lunch there was phenomenal and the view of the Bellagio fountain was spectacular. Here are some pictures from our travels.
May/092
A Rare Place
To be honest, I still haven’t taken all this in yet. Being at Mozilla feels surreal still. From the moment you walk in you are greeted by a giant sectional couch and a massive screen. People just plop down and start working in different locations, what kind of office is this? Well it’s less of an office and more like a home. The people I have met so far are so welcoming and happy, it’s easy to be motivated around such amazing people. Conversations can go above my head sometimes, but its stimulating, there is so much to learn and really no better place to do it.
I have had some issues with my laptop, which have been resolved, the fourth one proves to not be kernel panic-y and has a functional disc drive!
The interns are organizing a movie night tonight and Anthony and I are putting together some plans for a trip to Las Vegas this weekend. I also want to check out LA before I leave, which we are tentatively scheduling for next weekend.
As for the reason I’m here, to work on Fennec! After spending a lot of time setting up systems that proved to be duds I managed to build Fennec on OSX and get started on some Camera work. Stuart suggested that once the Fennec Alpha for Windows Mobile clears this week that I work with Brad to get the Camera stuff spec’d out and going. I have created a stand alone app for OSX that accesses the built in iSight camera and allows you to record video. I have plans to review Brad’s work on the Camera work for Maemo more closely so that I may have some suggestions when we finally get a chance to crash on that.
I’ll try and update as often as possible, cause I know people are interested!
May/091
It’s a new Dawn, It’s a new Day, It’s a new Life
For Me.
And I’m feeling Good.
I’m reminded of this song by Nina Simone, as today Natasha and I get the keys to our new home! This brings us one step closer to marriage and serves as a precursor to the big changes to come for the both of us.
I’m also bolstered by my impending trip to Mountain View to join the ranks of Mozilla as an intern. I feel privileged to have such an amazing opportunity, due in no small part the wonderful people of Seneca. I plan to blog about my experiences in California in the coming weeks, as well as my time in the MoTo offices upon my return. Here’s to a sunny Friday morning in Toronto.