Step 1.  In Facebook, click the News Feed link, which is usually on the top-left corner of the window:

Step 2.  Scroll the window down to the bottom of the webpage.  Click the Edit Options link:

Step 3.  The “Hidden from News Feed” window will appear.  Click the Add to News Feed button to the right of the Facebook Friend you want to unhide:

More PC & Web Tips

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2. Do Your Facebook Friends Really Care That You’re Heading to Bed?
3. Bill Gates’ Facebook Page

Although computer programmers are an intelligent bunch, our higher technical capabilities often translate into lower social and people skills.  Plus we are constantly seeking to improve our technical knowledge by learning new tricks and tools.  Therefore, programmers can benefit from New Years Resolutions as much as anyone.

Following is a list of 15 suggested New Years Resolutions for Computer Programmers.  These are not my personal resolutions, which are specific to my current projects and therefore likely boring to you.  Rather, these are resolutions that may apply to any programmer.

New Years Resolutions for Computer Programmers

1. Realize that design patterns are a guide, not a religion.
    
2. Don’t use the term “alpha,” when what I really mean is “buggy, untested, crap-tastic” software.
    
3. Increase my text editor font size by one point — my eyes are one year older.
    
4. Get a job :(
    
5. Read a new book each quarter.
    
6. Re-read some of the time-tested books for developers like Code Complete and Pragmatic Programmer.
    
7. Learn a functional programming language.
    
8. Deliver a software project on time, for once.
    
9. Be nice to the people who pay me.
    
10. Don’t get involved in any more open source projects until I finish the projects I’m currently working on.
     
11. Make an encrypted Emergency Getaway Drive with my important data.
     
12. Understand UNICODE and incorporate it in my applications.
     
13. Get a girlfriend (a real one this time).
     
14. Finally donate to those groups/people whose applications, code and blogs I use on a daily basis.
     
15. Get away from the computer.
     

More Programmer Resolutions

Source: Some resolutions are original, others are collected or adapted from resolutions on the Web:

• C Programming
• Derkeiler
• Freelance Switch
• Scott Hanselman
• Stack Overflow
• Web Biz
• Wired

Related posts:

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2. 10 Commandments for Programmers
3. Best Computer Programming Videos

To view the application event log:

• Click the Windows Start button.

• In Windows Vista, type Event Viewer in the Start Search field.  In Windows XP, click All Programs, click Administrative Tools, and then click Event Viewer.

• The Event Viewer window appears.  In the tree pane on the left, double-click Windows Logs, then click Application to see the list of application events.

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3. How to Install and Setup Windows Live Writer

Following are 13 tips on how to comment your source code so that it is easier to understand and maintain over time.

1. Comment each level

Comment each code block, using a uniform approach for each level.  For example:

• For each class, include a brief description, author and date of last modification
• For each method, include a description of its purpose, functions, parameters and results

Adopting comment standards is important when working with a team.  Of course, it is acceptable and even advisable to use comment conventions and tools (such as XML in C# or Javadoc for Java) to facilitate this task.

2. Use paragraph comments

Break code blocks into multiple “paragraphs” that each perform a single task, then add a comment at the beginning of each block to instruct the reader on what is about to happen.

// Check that all data records
// are correct
foreach (Record record in records)
{
    if (rec.checkStatus()==Status.OK)
    {
        . . .
    }
}
// Now we begin to perform
// transactions
Context ctx = new ApplicationContext();
ctx.BeginTransaction();
. . .

3. Align comments in consecutive lines

For multiple lines of code with trailing comments, align the comments so they will be easy to read.

const MAX_ITEMS = 10; // maximum number of packets
const MASK = 0x1F;    // mask bit TCP

Some developers use tabs to align comments, while others use spaces.  Because tab stops can vary among editors and IDEs, the best approach is to use spaces.

4. Don’t insult the reader’s intelligence

Avoid obvious comments such as:

if (a == 5)      // if a equals 5
    counter = 0; // set the counter to zero

This wastes your time writing needless comments and distracts the reader with details that can be easily deduced from the code.

5. Be polite

Avoid rude comments like, “Notice the stupid user has entered a negative number,” or “This fixes the side effect produced by the pathetically inept implementation of the initial developer.”  Such comments do not reflect well upon their author, and you never know who may read these comments in the future: your boss, a customer, or the pathetically inept developer you just insulted.

6. Get to the point

Don’t write more in comments than is needed to convey the idea.  Avoid ASCII art, jokes, poetry and hyperverbosity.  In short, keep the comments simple and direct.

7. Use a consistent style

Some people believe that comments should be written so that non-programmers can understand them.  Others believe that comments should be directed at developers only.  In any event, as stated in Successful Strategies for Commenting Code, what matters is that comments are consistent and always targeted to the same audience.  Personally, I doubt many non-developers will be reading code, so comments should target other developers.

8. Use special tags for internal use

When working on code as a team, adopt a consistent set of tags to communicate among programmers.  For example, many teams use a “TODO:” tag to indicate a section of code that requires additional work:

int Estimate(int x, int y)
{
    // TODO: implement the calculations
    return 0;
}

Tag comments don’t explain code; rather they seek attention or deliver a message.  But if you use this technique, remember to follow up and actually do what the message is asking.

9. Comment code while writing it

Add comments while you write code and it’s fresh in your memory.  If you leave comments until the end, it will take you twice as long, if you do it at all.  “I have no time to comment,” “I’m in a hurry,” and “The project is delayed” are all simply excuses to avoid documenting your code.  Some developers believe you should write comments before code as a way to plan out your ultimate solution.  For example:

public void ProcessOrder() 
{
    // Make sure the products are available
    // Check that the customer is valid
    // Send the order to the store
    // Generate bill
}

10. Write comments as if they were for you (in fact, they are)

When it comes to commenting code, think not only about the developers who will maintain your code in the future, but also think about yourself.  In the words of the great Phil Haack:

“As soon as a line of code is laid on the screen, you’re in maintenance mode on that piece of code.”

As a result, we ourselves will be the first beneficiaries (or victims) of our good (or bad) comments.

11. Update comments when you update the code

There is no point in commenting correctly on code if the comments are not changed with the code.  Both code and comments must move in parallel, otherwise the comments will actually make life more difficult for developers who maintain your code.  Pay special attention to refactoring tools that automatically update code but leave comments unchanged and hence obsolete in the same instant.

12. The golden rule of comments: readable code

One of the basic principles for many developers: Let your code speak for itself.  Although one suspects this movement is led by programmers who do not like to write comments, it is true that self-explanatory code can go a long way toward making code that’s easier to understand and can even render comments unnecessary.  For example, the code in my Fluid Interfaces article shows how clear self-explanatory code can be:

Calculator calc = new Calculator();
calc.Set(0);
calc.Add(10);
calc.Multiply(2);
calc.Subtract(4);
Console.WriteLine( "Result: {0}", calc.Get() );

In this example, comments are not needed and would likely violate tip #4.  To facilitate readable code, you might consider using proper names (as described in the classic Ottinger’s Rules), ensure correct indentation, and adopt coding style guides.  Failure to comply with this tip may result in comments that seem to apologize for bad code.

13. Share these tips with your colleagues

Although tip #10 shows how we ourselves benefit immediately from good comments, these tips will benefit all developers, especially in the context of team working together.  Therefore, feel free to share these commenting tips with your colleagues to create code that is easier to understand and maintain.

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2. Code Search Engines
3. CodePaste.NET Public Code Pasting Site

Here is the world famous ASCII table:

Decimal	Hex	Char	Description
0	00	NUL	null
1	01	SOH	start of header
2	02	STX	start of text
3	03	ETX	end of text
4	04	EOT	end of transmission
5	05	ENQ	enquiry
6	06	ACK	acknowledge
7	07	BEL	bell
8	08	BS	backspace
9	09	HT	horizontal tab
10	0A	LF	line feed
11	0B	VT	vertical tab
12	0C	FF	form feed
13	0D	CR	carriage return
14	0E	SO	shift out
15	0F	SI	shift in
16	10	DLE	data link escape
17	11	DC1	device control 1
18	12	DC2	device control 2
19	13	DC3	device control 3
20	14	DC4	device control 4
21	15	NAK	negative acknowledge
22	16	SYN	synchronous idle
23	17	ETB	end of transmission block
24	18	CAN	cancel
25	19	EM	end of medium
26	1A	SUB	substitute
27	1B	ESC	escape
28	1C	FS	file separator
29	1D	GS	group separator
30	1E	RS	record separator
31	1F	US	unit separator
32	20	SPC	space
33	21	!	exclamation point
34	22	“	quotes
35	23	#	pound sign
36	24	$	dollar sign
37	25	%	percent sign
38	26	&	ampersand
39	27	‘	single quote
40	28	(	left parenthesis
41	29	)	right parenthesis
42	2A	*	asterisk
43	2B	+	plus sign
44	2C	,	comma
45	2D	-	hyphen
46	2E	.	period
47	2F	/	slash
48	30	0	zero
49	31	1	one
50	32	2	two
51	33	3	three
52	34	4	four
53	35	5	five
54	36	6	six
55	37	7	seven
56	38	8	eight
57	39	9	nine
58	3A	:	colon
59	3B	;	semi-colon
60	3C	<	less than
61	3D	=	equals
62	3E	>	greater than
63	3F	?	question mark
64	40	@	at sign
65	41	A	uppercase a
66	42	B	uppercase b
67	43	C	uppercase c
68	44	D	uppercase d
69	45	E	uppercase e
70	46	F	uppercase f
71	47	G	uppercase g
72	48	H	uppercase h
73	49	I	uppercase i
74	4A	J	uppercase j
75	4B	K	uppercase k
76	4C	L	uppercase l
77	4D	M	uppercase m
78	4E	N	uppercase n
79	4F	O	uppercase o
80	50	P	uppercase p
81	51	Q	uppercase q
82	52	R	uppercase r
83	53	S	uppercase s
84	54	T	uppercase t
85	55	U	uppercase u
86	56	V	uppercase v
87	57	W	uppercase w
88	58	X	uppercase x
89	59	Y	uppercase y
90	5A	Z	uppercase z
91	5B	[	left bracket
92	5C	\	back slash
93	5D	]	right bracket
94	5E	^	caret
95	5F	_	underscore
96	60	`	back tick
97	61	a	lowercase a
98	62	b	lowercase b
99	63	c	lowercase c
100	64	d	lowercase d
101	65	e	lowercase e
102	66	f	lowercase f
103	67	g	lowercase g
104	68	h	lowercase h
105	69	i	lowercase i
106	6A	j	lowercase j
107	6B	k	lowercase k
108	6C	l	lowercase l
109	6D	m	lowercase m
110	6E	n	lowercase n
111	6F	o	lowercase o
112	70	p	lowercase p
113	71	q	lowercase q
114	72	r	lowercase r
115	73	s	lowercase s
116	74	t	lowercase t
117	75	u	lowercase u
118	76	v	lowercase v
119	77	w	lowercase w
120	78	x	lowercase x
121	79	y	lowercase y
122	7A	z	lowercase z
123	7B	{	left brace
124	7C	|	pipe
125	7D	}	right brace
126	7E	~	tilde
127	7F	DEL	delete
128	80	€	euro sign
129	81		undefined
130	82	‚	single low-9 quote
131	83	ƒ	lowercase f hook
132	84	„	double low-9 quote
133	85	…	ellipses
134	86	†	dagger
135	87	‡	double dagger
136	88	ˆ	circumflex
137	89	‰	per mille sign
138	8A	Š	uppercase s caron
139	8B	‹	left angle quote
140	8C	Œ	uppercase ligature oe
141	8D		undefined
142	8E	Ž	uppercase z caron
143	8F		undefined
144	90		undefined
145	91	‘	left single quote
146	92	’	right single quote
147	93	“	left double quote
148	94	”	right double quote
149	95	•	bullet
150	96	–	en dash
151	97	—	em dash
152	98	˜	small tilde
153	99	™	trademark
154	9A	š	lowercase s caron
155	9B	›	right angle quote
156	9C	œ	lowercase ligature oe
157	9D		undefined
158	9E	ž	lowercase z caron
159	9F	Ÿ	uppercase y diaeresis
160	A0		no-break space
161	A1	¡	inverted exclamation point
162	A2	¢	cent sign
163	A3	£	pound sign
164	A4	¤	currency sign
165	A5	¥	yen sign
166	A6	¦	broken bar
167	A7	§	section sign
168	A8	¨	diaeresis
169	A9	©	copyright sign
170	AA	ª	feminine ordinal indicator
171	AB	«	left angle double quote
172	AC	¬	not sign
173	AD	­	soft hyphen
174	AE	®	registered sign
175	AF	¯	macron
176	B0	°	degree sign
177	B1	±	plus-minus sign
178	B2	²	superscript 2
179	B3	³	superscript 3
180	B4	´	acute accent
181	B5	µ	micro sign
182	B6	¶	paragraph sign
183	B7	·	middle dot
184	B8	¸	cedilla
185	B9	¹	superscript 1
186	BA	º	masculine ordinal indicator
187	BB	»	right angle double quote
188	BC	¼	one quarter
189	BD	½	one half
190	BE	¾	three quarters
191	BF	¿	inverted question mark
192	C0	À	uppercase a grave
193	C1	Á	uppercase a acute
194	C2	Â	uppercase a circumflex
195	C3	Ã	uppercase a tilde
196	C4	Ä	uppercase a diaeresis
197	C5	Å	uppercase a ring above
198	C6	Æ	uppercase ligature ae
199	C7	Ç	uppercase c cedilla
200	C8	È	uppercase e grave
201	C9	É	uppercase e acute
202	CA	Ê	uppercase e circumflex
203	CB	Ë	uppercase e diaeresis
204	CC	Ì	uppercase i grave
205	CD	Í	uppercase i acute
206	CE	Î	uppercase i circumflex
207	CF	Ï	uppercase i diaeresis
208	D0	Ð	uppercase eth
209	D1	Ñ	uppercase n tilde
210	D2	Ò	uppercase o grave
211	D3	Ó	uppercase o acute
212	D4	Ô	uppercase o circumflex
213	D5	Õ	uppercase o tilde
214	D6	Ö	uppercase o diaeresis
215	D7	×	multiplication sign
216	D8	Ø	uppercase o stroke
217	D9	Ù	uppercase u grave
218	DA	Ú	uppercase u acute
219	DB	Û	uppercase u circumflex
220	DC	Ü	uppercase u diaeresis
221	DD	Ý	uppercase y acute
222	DE	Þ	uppercase thorn
223	DF	ß	lowercase sharp s
224	E0	à	lowercase a grave
225	E1	á	lowercase a acute
226	E2	â	lowercase a circumflex
227	E3	ã	lowercase a tilde
228	E4	ä	lowercase a diaeresis
229	E5	å	lowercase a ring above
230	E6	æ	lowercase ligature ae
231	E7	ç	lowercase c cedilla
232	E8	è	lowercase e grave
233	E9	é	lowercase e acute
234	EA	ê	lowercase e circumflex
235	EB	ë	lowercase e diaeresis
236	EC	ì	lowercase i grave
237	ED	í	lowercase i acute
238	EE	î	lowercase i circumflex
239	EF	ï	lowercase i diaeresis
240	F0	ð	lowercase eth
241	F1	ñ	lowercase n tilde
242	F2	ò	lowercase o grave
243	F3	ó	lowercase o acute
244	F4	ô	lowercase o circumflex
245	F5	õ	lowercase o tilde
246	F6	ö	lowercase o diaeresis
247	F7	÷	division sign
248	F8	ø	lowercase o stroke
249	F9	ù	lowercase u grave
250	FA	ú	lowercase u acute
251	FB	û	lowercase u circumflex
252	FC	ü	lowercase u diaeresis
253	FD	ý	lowercase y acute
254	FE	þ	lowercase thorn
255	FF	ÿ	lowercase y diaeresis

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2. How to Check the Application Event Log for Errors
3. Death by Delete

To place an ad after the first post in your WordPress blog main page:

1. Open the WordPress admin control panel and navigate to:
   Presentation > Theme Editor
    
2. Select the Main Index Template from the list of templates on the right.
    
3. In the Main Index Template, find the line that starts with:
   <?php if (have_posts())
    
4. Add the following line above it:
   <?php $count = 1; ?>
    
5. Next, find the line that starts with:
   <?php the_content
    
6. After the closing tag ?> for that section (it may wrap to multiple lines), add the following code:

   <?php if ($count == 1) : ?>
   – Insert your Google AdSense code here –
   <?php endif; $count++; ?>
   

7. Click Update File.

This places the ad within the first post.  If instead you want the ad to appear between the first and second post, add the code from step 6 after the closing </div> tag for the “entry” div that contains the line <?php the_content.

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2. Install WordPress on GoDaddy Shared Hosting
3. UI Displacement

A smarter approach is to separate your programs and data.  For example, I store the operating system and programs on my C: drive and all data on my D: drive. 

But simply moving your data is not enough–you need to tell applications and the operating system where to find it.

To change the default location of the “My Documents” folder:

1. Click the Windows Start button.  The “Start” menu appears.
2. Right-click on My Documents, then seelct Properties from the popup menu.
3. Ensure the Target tab is selected.
4. Click the Move button. 
5. The “Select a Destination” dialog appears.  Select the folder where you want to store your documents, then click OK.
6. The ”Move Documents” confirmation dialog appears.  Click Yes to move your documents to the new location.

IMPORTANT: If at any time during this process you decide to cancel, be sure to click the Cancel button in the “My Documents Properties” dialog as well.

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When you attempt to add a category, the error message “You do not have permission to do that” will appear in a pink box.

To solve this problem in Internet Explorer 7 (IE7):

1. Click the IE7 “Tools” button, then select the “Internet Options” menu item.
2. Go to the “Security” tab.
3. Ensure the “Internet” zone is selected.
4. Click the “Custom Level” button.  The “Security Settings – Internet Zone” dialog will appear.
5. Scroll down the options until you find the “Scripting” section.
6. Under “Active Scripting”, select the “Disable” option.
7. Click the “OK” button.  The “Security Settings – Internet Zone” dialog will close.
8. In the “Internet Options” dialog, click the “OK” button.
9. Press Ctrl+F5 to force refresh the current web page or open a new browser window.

IMPORTANT:  Remember to reset the “Active Scripting” option back to “Enable” when you are finished adding WordPress categories, otherwise you will find that many other web pages will break!

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2. Move "My Documents" Folder
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