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WPF and My New "Get Stuff Done" Schedule
Chris Missal, December 08, 2008
I have had the discussion several times. How does a person keep up with new technologies, read new books, blog about technical topics, contribute to open source, work full-time AND have a social life? Well that's easy, I don't have a social life! :)
Of that list I would say I do a little of each of them. I like to be busy and I think the last time I was bored was some time before August. Tonight I got my first taste of WPF and now that will be added to my plate of new "yum-yums" to digest over the next couple of weeks. Yes, I know it's not new and I'm way behind the times. Stop picking on me. I'm a web guy.
Mike Benkovich presented WPF Demystified tonight at the CRIneta user group meeting held at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Mike did a great job of explaining how to create a WPF application and even touched base on getting into some complex data fetching/binding. It looks like WPF can be used to quickly create simple applications, but loans itself well to following principles like SoC (Seperation of Concerns) with its use of XAML to create the varying views. Also, let us not forget all the other cool stuff you can do, like Kevin's WPF Bag-o-Tricks.
My hunger to learn more about WPF won't help my schedule by any means. This will only detract from the other stuff that I want to do, that I am already behind. I came up with a schedule that I'm going to try to stick to through the end of the year. Basically I'll free time from 6pm to 11:30pm if I want to get a decent nights of sleep. I can afford to spend 10 minutes on each of the following:
- 10 minutes to get and check the mail
- 10 minutes for dishes
- 10 minutes to play Left 4 Dead
- 10 minutes to check email
- 10 minutes to start a load of laundry
- 10 minutes to prepare a meal
- 10 minutes for blogging on DumpsterDoggy
- 10 minutes for technical blog reading
- 10 minutes to work out (it's all the longer I can manage)
- 10 minutes to grab anything I need at the store on the corner
- 10 minutes to eat
- 10 minutes take out any trash
- 10 minutes to talk to a family member on the phone
- 10 minutes debating whether Scarlett Johansson or Adriana Lima get's control over my desktop background
- 10 minutes to check web site analytics
- 10 minutes to catch up on current events
- 10 minutes for downloading any movies and music I want to see/hear
- 10 minutes to talk to friends on Facebook
- 10 minutes for reading personal blogs
- 10 minutes to relax
- 10 minutes to take clothes out of washer
- 10 minutes for watching Rob Base music videos on YouTube
- 10 minutes to put clothes in the dryer
- 10 minutes to play Halo 3
- 10 minutes for more eating
- 10 minutes to clean up the computer room
- 10 minutes check email again
- 10 minutes total bathroom time
- 10 minutes for reading Head First OOA&D
- 10 minutes to clean the bathroom
- 10 minutes for kitchen cleaning
- 10 minutes take clothes out of dryer and hang up
- 10 minutes to hop into bed and fall asleep
If you actually read through all those, thanks, I enjoyed writing them! :)
Filed Under: Messing Around Rants WPF