General

  • May 12, 2015

    It’s Official! WordCamp Scranton is July 18th!

    I wrote this on the WordCamp Scranton blog originally. I am so excited to be organizing this event. The team and I are bound to make sure it’s a great event!

    After a few months of initial planning and venue hunting, we are happy announce that WordCamp is coming to Scranton, PA on July 18th! It will be held at Johnson College and we could not be more excited!

    What is WordCamp?

    WordCamp is a conference that focuses on everything WordPress.

    WordCamps are informal, community-organized events that are put together by WordPress users like you. Everyone from casual users to core developers participate, share ideas, and get to know each other. (src).

    We will have WordPress-focused talks, sponsors, networking events, swag, and an after party! It’s going to be a great weekend!

    We Need You!

    Right now, we are getting all of our ducks in a row regarding this website and the important details, and we need your help! We are currently looking for people to fill three very important roles:

    • Sponsors: Sponsors will donate money or in-kind services to the event. We are working on a Sponsor slide deck now to get you the important details regarding audience and reach. Please get in touch if you’re interested! As an added bonus, WordCamps are run by the WordPress Foundation, a non-profit organization 🙂
    • Speakers: Interested in sharing what you know? We are looking for talks that range from beginner (how to set up a WordPress site) to advanced (You, Me, and the WordPress API make Three). If you’re interested, apply here.
    • Volunteers: Not sure about speaking or sponsoring, but still want to help out? No problem! We need volunteers to help get the word out as well as help run the event the day of. Sign up here!

    If any of these interest you, get in touch. We will have official calls for all of these in the coming days but hey, the sooner the better, right?

    Thank You!

    Thanks for reading! We are really excited to bring Scranton its first WordCamp. We hope you can make it to the event. Registration will be opening soon, but in the mean time, you can check the website or follow @WCScranton on Twitter.

  • January 31, 2015

    I’m Having a Fire Sale!

    …or I’m just selling some things. I have a propensity for collecting tech and other things or wanting new tech, so I’ve decided to get rid of some things in order to clean out my apartment, and get funds for new toys (or a wedding that I’m saving for, I suppose). Some of the things I’m selling include a new Moto X, Google Glass, Xbox 360, and PS3. Go to my For Sale page or the gallery after the jump to check out the goods! If you see anything you like, get in touch.

    (more…)

  • June 28, 2012

    Building WordPress Themes from Scratch FAQs

    How do I access the files from the book?

    If you go to Page 140 in the book, you’ll see a section called  “Your Download Links” with a link generated for you! Just click on that link (or type it into your browser if you got the print copy) and the accompany files will be downloaded to your computer. To make things easier, you can also click this link, which will take you to Github 🙂

    Do Lifetime Updates also come with the print version?

    Do they ever! When you buy the paperback version of the book, all you have to do is send a copy of your Amazon purchase receipt to upgrade@rockablepress.com and they’ll send you all 3 digital version of the book as well (PDF, ePub and Kindle). Once you have these three digital versions, we’ll send you the updated versions of the ebooks* when we we launch a revised edition of the book.

    *This does not include an updated version of the print book.

    Do you cover Responsive Web Design in your book?

    Unfortunately I do not. I really wanted to focus on WordPress theming and tapping into the API. I do cover it in my new book, Responsive Design with WordPress, out now!

    Is the book be available on Tuts+ Premium?

    It is! You can also buy it on Amazon again. Oh happy day!

    I found an error! How can I report it?

    Bummer! If you found an error, fill out the contact form and include the page number and what the error is. If you’d be so kind, make the Subject, “Errata.”

    Have other questions?

    Shoot me an email through the contact form on my main site and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.

  • May 9, 2009

    On the Personal Side of Things

    It’s been a while since I’ve posted on here or on Freelancing the Net. In my defense I’ve been extremely busy, but that is all coming to a head on Wednesday. This semester, my final collegiate semester, has been by far the most challenging. All 9 of my credits have challenged me; my thesis by far the biggest challenge. I will come up with a post on that as well as post my final presentation, which explains what I did. However, I’ve done/am still doing significant things in my other two classes, and may post on them too.

    Then there is the business plan competition. A couple of friends and I entered this contest in hopes of winning funding to start a business and we took 3rd place. We are incredibly excited and have already begun work on setting up the business, our new office space, and are courting clients. There’s a good chance this blog will change speeds after I graduate to talk about what I am going through in relation to that.

    So there is a quick update. Keep your eyes open for a post on my thesis, coming hopefully soon.

  • October 22, 2008

    Updated: What Android Means for the iPhone

    Android Logo

    I could go on to talk about all of the nuances in Android, what I have seen and why I think it’s better than the iPhone, but I feel that would be an exercise in futility. Those in the iPhone camp will think what they want about the user interface (UI) and features no matter what. That goes the same for people in the Android camp. However, there is one very important thing Google did that Apple did not. They made Android completely and unconditionally Open Source (OS). What does this mean for the consumer? Well before I get to that, I want to talk about what it means for the developer.

    As a developer, I really like ease of use and writing an application for the iPhone is anything but. I have to apply to the iPhone Developer’s program. I have to download a pretty hefty program (called a Software Development Kit or SDK) in order for me to write an application. And there are limitations as to what I can access on the iPhone to write my app. Then if I want to submit it to the iTunes App Store (the only place I am allowed to distribute my app), I have to pay the iPhone Developers fee. They will also take 30% of my asking price. Oh and by the way, I can only do all of this if I have a Mac. Then I have to hope Apple lets me keep my app in the store. While this is likely, there have been a few incidences where apps have been taken out of the app store with no reason given. My point is this: Apple holds a pretty tight leash on the entire development process. This is in stark contrast to developing for Android.

    I was up and running in literally minutes with Android’s SDK. Download the fairly lightweight program, follow the direction on the Android SDK’s site, and moments later, I had the sample program running. I can write an app to do whatever I want; even replace the dial screen, address book, or anything. When the G1 debuts, developers will be able to add their app to the Android Marketplace at no cost. However, if you want to distribute your app via some other avenue, that’s fine too. The point: it’s all up to the developer. So back to the original question- what does this mean for the consumer?

    There is more incentive to release free apps. iPhone developers face a higher financial risk because it’s costing them money right off the bat. Why should they write an app for free? With Android, there is no risk. The only cost to the developer is time. Plus, there are virtually no restrictions on developing for Android. I can write an app on any computer (PC or Mac), to do whatever I want, and distribute however I want. That’s convenient for the developer and therefore convenient for the consumer.

    My bottom line is this- Android gives developers the power to do whatever it is they want to do with Android. That means the world’s first phone that can be tailored precisely to your liking. I think it was Morgan Freedman who said it best- “My my, isn’t that something?”

    *This was originally published on Oct. 2nd in my school’s student run newspaper, The Aquinas.

    Update: The G1 is out today! And, Google has released Android’s Source Code

  • September 28, 2008

    The Force Unleashed

    Yesterday I beat The Force Unleashed for Xbox 360. This was a game I had been looking forward to as a Star Wars fan and as a programmer. A few months ago I saw the type of work they were doing to make this world seem more realistic- better physics engines, smarter AI, etc.- and got pretty excited to see how well it worked. After playing the game through, I wasn’t disappointed.

    First I’d like to point out that the story line at times seemed to have better continuity than the prequels. The Force Unleashed takes place between Episodes III and IV, and is about a secret apprentice that Darth Vader takes on to kill any remaining Jedi. The story progressed in true cinematic fashion and had some pretty great twists/surprises in it. It little sappy, but the fact that you can see why some things in the original trilogy happened is really cool.

    Now, onto the game play. I’ve read and been told by a few people that they think the game gets repetitive. While that is true, I still think it is awesome. In my mind, there is nothing better than force gripping a storm trooper and throwing him into a wall or whatever fatal structures there are in the level. I held one in front of a beam and waited for it to fire, incinerating the trooper. Also, shocking a jawa is fun. It’s a little RPG-ish in the fact that you pick and choose which skills, abilities, and force powers you want to hone, and it definitely effects game play; my friend and I played it at the same time and had different trouble points due to the skills we each chose.

    The game is also a little buggy. While it did cause me to restart twice, I’m willing to overlook that due to the sheer power of the physics engine it uses. The events in this game are truly non-deterministic, meaning you can do the same thing over and over again and get completely different results based on probably hundreds of different variables. The AI in enemies is smart enough that they try and grab onto things as you throw them.

    There is very seldom a game that I will beat and then go back and play levels just for the sake of playing them and I find myself doing that with The Force Unleashed. It’s a lot of fun, well thought out, and a must for any Star Wars or gaming fan (but especially Star Wars fans).

  • August 17, 2008

    New Post Soon

    I know I’ve been slacking with posting lately; in my defense, I’ve been busy. I promise a new post is coming this week that will sum up my summer. Its been a summer for business and while I didn’t define it this way on the outset, the goal turned into increasing my revenue streams. But more to come with that later this week.

    For the time being, you can read super awesome, and new, blog Of Folly and Of Vice. Also, here is my Manga Avatar. Apparently they are all the rage:

    My Avatar

  • January 20, 2007

    MYO Silly Putty

    After viewing this YouTube video on how to make your own Silly Putty, my friends and I could resist. We went out and got the ingredients and went to town. You can see the pictures below, but the final product (mine anyway) was pretty good. It’s a little stronger than regular silly putty, but it passes my three tests: the newspaper copy, bounciness and that cool pop sound silly putty makes. An added bonus is the outside of it is not a prone to picking up any particle that happens to touch it. It did harden a little over night when I left it out, but that was nothing working with it couldn’t fix. It’s a fun (kind of messy!) project if you are looking for something to do.