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WWDC 2003: Day 3
by Jeff Szuhay
<jeff@szuhay.org>
Wednesday, June 25, 2003
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Quick table of contents |
Frank's Hot Sauce
Today is laundry day. So the first thing to do is put a load in the washer and go to breakfast.
One of the things I like about having WWDC in San Francisco is all the great restaurants around, even the little diners. I've been going to one around the corner from my hotel -- Steve's Cafe -- and it has great breakfasts and great service. They even remember that I like hot sauce (cayenne pepper) and bring it with my plate without even asking.
The problem is Tabasco Sauce has too much vinegar; most of the hot sauces do. All except for Frank's Hot Sauce. The main ingredient here is aged cayenne pepper, not vinegar, and so it adds much more zest instead of hotness to foods. This was a major topic at breakfast this morning.
Jay Walking
So I finish up the laundry and get off to the conference. Once again, I wish that it would start just one hour later so there is more time to get the "necessary stuff" out of the way. Anyway, it's a simply beautiful day in San Francisco -- sunny, warm, fresh. The walk to the convention center is glorious.
But I need to remind myself that this is not Pittsburgh, where jaywalking is almost mandatory. Not here; I believe it is a $300 fine for jaywalking. I don't know how this happened but somehow California has usurped thousands of years of nautical law and does not hold the captain of the ship (car) responsible for their actions. Instead, they fine the victim. So, you can get into a 1 1/2 ton vehicle and have more rights than a pedestrian. Go figure. I was reminded of this of the news of the "Windshield Death" trial where a man was struck by a car and died from bleeding while stuck in its windshield (the driver, for whatever reason, appears to have refused to get help or give basic first aid). So: when in California, don't friggin' walk until the light says so. Okay?
Did I mention what a splendid walk it was to the convention?
Morning Sessions
This morning I attended a QuickTime session and a Cocoa Update session. By this point in the conference, we're really getting into nitty-gritty details, so there's not too much to say about them in a small space as this.
I'm feeling a bit more sociable today which is good -- actually meeting people, talking to people (actually the other way around usually) is what this conference is all about. A week here can often save a developer or a team of developers months of work simply by talking to other developers who may have similar experiences or experts who can give relevant advice.
Lunch
At the ethernet table where I file my reports, the table banter is freely flowing and very friendly. I sat next to a couple of guys from Eskape (the TV and VHS capture guys); I got a chance to let them know how I appreciate their products. Also, Marshall from MacHack was there. I learned that my good friend, Jon Gotow and son, won the MacHack award this year with a cool progress bar Aqua effect. Jon is the author of Default Folder. I also learned that there were some very useful papers presented at MacHack this so a visit to the MacHack website to purchase the CD is in order.
Lunch was again of the bag-type but very tasty. I sat at table with Sam Levin, a software marketer, and some of his clients. Discussion was varied but the topic of Notebook app came up. I was a beta-tester for Notebook app so I was interested to learn that Notetaker and Notebook come from exactly the same code base. Hmm... where's Jayson Adams? Haven't met him yet.
As I was wondering around I overheard that the movie tonight would be "Finding Nemo." Darn... before coming to WWDC, I took my family to see this wonderful movie. While I think its worth a repeat view, I'm more interested in seeing "The Matrix Reloaded" on Sony's Imax screen nearby.
I also happened to catch a Runtime Revolutions demo where the guy created a simple app from start to finish for _four_ platforms while holding his breath (!). Actually, his nose was clipped and masking tape was over his mouth. Yikes. But he did it in just under 2 minutes; impressive. At this booth, I hooked up with Greg again and we talked a bit about database experiences as we walked to the afternoon sessions. Shortly after we parted, I ran into Mark Lilback, whom I was telling Greg about, but couldn't get them together. Oh, well. I got Mark's card for next time I see Greg.
Afternoon Sessions
The focus of these sessions for me were Cocoa oriented. I found them all useful as overviews even though there's a lot of details in them. The "Cocoa User Interface Programming" is especially useful, precisely because of the new controller layer "glue code" now being generated by Interface Builder. We were treated to the premier performance of John Dempsey's "Model View Controller" song (yes, he sang it--it was quite entertaining) soon to be coming to the iTunes Music Store near you.
Between sessions I happened to talk to a couple of guys from Oracle Corp, each from a different part of the country. One of them showed his pictures of Oracle headquarters between here and San Jose.
Movie Night
Before the movie is a WWDC tradition: "Stump the Experts." This is always a fun, even if totally useless, activity.
On the way in, I happened to _finally_ meet Jayson Adams. So got to thank him for this app and we talked a bit about some new features. This is one of the coolest features of WWDC -- being able to 'attach' a face to a name, especially when you've been conversing with the person via email for quite some time. Hmm... certainly iChatAV and iSight will begin to change all that.
So I enjoy the "Stump the Experts" but didn't have any bizarrely trivial question to ask. After this event, I went over to the Sony Metreon to get a ticket for "The Matrix Reloaded." It didn't start until much later so I went back to the convention hall to relax, do some networking, and just chat until 'my" movie time. When I got to the Imax theater, it was full of WWDC'ers who'd apparently been sitting there for quite some time, chatting casually. This was my second viewing of the movie, and I found that while the sound system of the Imax was excellent, the larger screen didn't really add anything. I focused more on the mysteries behind the movie; so I'm looking forward to the next version in December.
Have a question or comment? I appreciate your feedback
Published by Doug B. Landry and contributing staff. Trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc., and others reserved. ©2003 Delta Design. Publishing headquarters is located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Index version 1.1.2
