Neat little C++, templatized command line parser

I’m writing some toy apps that integrate with our libraries, and so I was looking for a good, Windows-compliant version of GNU Getopt. Cygwin has a version, but that ties me to the cygwin installation (I think…) Anyway, Getopt is straight POSIX C, and googling around I found this C++ .h called TCLAP it’s well documented and implemented as inlines in the tclap/CmdLine.h. Seems very similar to the ruby ‘optparse’ module in spirit and implementation.

2007-08-21 · 1 min · Harold Combs

Neat little C++, templatized command line parser (Comments)

hello my name is harold and i like to spend my tim… Whitney - Aug 2, 2007 hello my name is harold and i like to spend my time inventing my own language and pretending other ppl know what I’m talking about…. No! I don’t want to go on the cart! Bring out yer dead lollercart ...

2007-08-21 · 1 min · Harold Combs

Transporter 2

Ah, Luc Besson (The man who wrote The Fifth Element) brings us another gem of style-over-substance. If you could epitomize Eurotrash in a movie, this is it. But, God, such fun! Nothing like a man barrel-rolling a W-12 powered Audi A8 to remove a bomb attached to its undercarriage. Frank (Jason Statham), is a very, very bad man, but his schtick great–Always wearing a crisp suit, always in a clean car, always in control. ...

2007-08-17 · 1 min · Harold Combs

Getting up-to-speed in the new reality...

Ah, so two weeks have elapsed of my new job, two weeks that skated between elation, boredom, fear, and frustration. It’s a whole different world over here. Some people like it, some people don’t. Me? I’m withholding judgment for now. I do like my team–they seem like quiet, competent, hardworking folks. They’ve been helpful to a total outsider in all senses of the word–an old unix + java wonk who’s now playing in the world of C/C++ and Windows. ...

2007-08-17 · 2 min · Harold Combs

Quote of the Day

(Scene: Inside a meeting room with my new department, going over survey results) S: “Well, the results indicate I’m not doing too well with y’allz careers on and individual level. So let me know if you’re aching to do something different..or if you’re bored with what you’ve been doing for 6 years.” B: “Like…Harold was.” Yep

2007-08-15 · 1 min · Harold Combs

Quote of the Day (Comments)

:-) I’m pretty content with what I’m doing,… Jeff Roberts - Aug 3, 2007 :-) I’m pretty content with what I’m doing, although I just started ramping up for this iteration and found that all 3 of the things on my list are gated until NK does some work. Oh, well, another day or so to tie up loose ends before they turn into PTRs. ...

2007-08-15 · 1 min · Harold Combs

Win32 in a nutshell

Link So, basically: Create a struct to hold your class. Create a Window struct. Enter your event loop and process events That’s kinda it…The rest is a bunch of nasty #define’s and macros Windows has built-up.

2007-08-13 · 1 min · Harold Combs

Cups...er, I mean XPS

So, I’m reading through the documentation on Windows printing, trying to learn what this is all about. My team writes stuff that sits between the Windows Spooler (spoolsrv.exe) and the Kernel-model communications pieces. Anyway, so I come to a great fork in the road: GDI and XPS. GDI (Graphical Device Interface) is the way that earlier windows programs (Win32) talk to the display and printing subsystem. Essentially, everything in GDI is a bitmap. This is “the old way of doing things”. ...

2007-08-11 · 2 min · Harold Combs

Black Friday?

Hrm…let’s see. Yesterday: - A French Bank closed 3 subprime hedge funds because there’s not enough liquidity to value them. I don’t know what that means exactly, but it sounds bad. - The S&P dropped 3% yesterday. - The subprime mortgage fiasco is turning into a vortex. I yanked my 401(k) back into a money market. I’m NOT looking forward to a repeat of the bath I took on my Roth in 2001.

2007-08-10 · 1 min · Harold Combs

Black Friday? (Comments)

not enough liquidity to value them….the mtg co’s… Whitney - Aug 5, 2007 not enough liquidity to value them….the mtg co’s are so far upside down on their lending that it’s not even worth the analysts’ time? well, the hedge funds were invested in the subprime mortgages and mortgage brokers themselves. I used to be invested in Harbor Fund’s Harbor Bond fund and it had a great run investing in mortgages, but it scared me so I got out before 2005. ...

2007-08-10 · 1 min · Harold Combs

Why it's imperative to read your mortagage agreement...

link The final type is known simply as the demand clause, and this means that the lender can demand repayment of the loan in full at any time for any reason. This clause gives the lender the same powers as the acceleration and due on sale clauses, but also allows the lender to raise interest rates even if you aren’t selling your property. Yikes…

2007-08-07 · 1 min · Harold Combs

Why it's imperative to read your mortagage agreement... (Comments)

Yeah but that’s typically included in ANY loan ya … Whitney - Aug 2, 2007 Yeah but that’s typically included in ANY loan ya get. The lender USUALLY reserves the right to demand payment in full at any time for any reason…..every loan I ever did had that as part as the standard loanliner - at both bank and CU.

2007-08-07 · 1 min · Harold Combs

First Blog from my new office

The good: I have an office (yes, my own!) and it’s really sweet–near the door, the printing area, the break area, and the AA desk. I got all my stuff over here in 1 load, and everyone’s been really nice so far. The bad: I don’t have a power cord for my phone yet. If you want to contact me, better try email, IM, or cell. Think I’ll break for lunch and hit some yummy leftovers.

2007-08-06 · 1 min · Harold Combs

First Blog from my new office (Comments)

Sounds cool! I keep talking to the empty side of … Jeff Roberts - Aug 1, 2007 Sounds cool! I keep talking to the empty side of your old office but no one answers :-)

2007-08-06 · 1 min · Harold Combs

I HATED "THE SIMPSONS MOVIE"

So, I took one 2 hr block to myself. I grabbed my once-a-month blow fund and headed out after a rather trying Saturday of watching the kids, and said, “Damn it, I’m going to see something for me.” Something with nary a trace of romantic comedy, meaningful plotline, or maybe even sense. I went to watch “The Simpsons Movie”. Let’s cut to the chase. You get to see Bart’s penis, Homer flips-off the residents of Springfield, Otto hits a bong, and Marge says ‘Goddamn’. That’s why this movie is PG-13. ...

2007-08-04 · 1 min · Harold Combs

Holden Beach Sunrise

.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: left; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; } Holden Beach Sunrise, originally uploaded by miniharryc. (Trying out a post from Flickr, so forgive me if this is weird…) Rest of the set

2007-08-02 · 1 min · Harold Combs

Holden Beach Sunrise (Comments)

Nice pics! Jeff Roberts - Aug 5, 2007 Nice pics!

2007-08-02 · 1 min · Harold Combs

Great, funny read

Why I hate frameworks Put in my context: “Here’s a 150MB download with a Java Virtual Machines, a Tomcat webserver, the entire Spring framework, extensions to the spring framework, a firebird database, and two Windows Services you must install.” “What’s it do?” “It gets 5 pieces of data from a fleet of widgets. But it’s really fast.” “How long did it take to develop?” “2 years” ::sigh:: I also believe a 747 can be used to squash a flea, but YIKES…

2007-08-01 · 1 min · Harold Combs

Quote for the day (yesterday)

“Do you go a day without self-reflection?” “Yes” (narrowed eyes) “Do you go TWO days without it?” (long pause) “Yes. To answer your next question: Three days is pushing it.”

2007-08-01 · 1 min · Harold Combs

...and now, I'm a real homeowner. (Part 687)

Returning from our jaunt around Georgetown last night around 8, Joey and I entered a house that couldn’t be more tranquil: A load of laundry swished in the washer, the dishwasher was humming, and the pleasant smell of the new Airwick was in the air. Joey went up to shower, and I sat down to veg-out. A few minutes later, feeling peaked, I went to the fridge for a cheese stick. As I closed the door, processed cheese in hand I felt something hit my foot. Then I looked up to see A STREAM OF WATER GUSHING FROM THE LIGHT FIXTURE. ...

2007-07-31 · 2 min · Harold Combs