CFUnited Blog

State of the CF Union survey 2013

Help us find out the State of the CF Union with this survey - what versions of ColdFusion do people use, what frameworks, tools etc. We will share the summary results with everyone so that you can see how you compare with other CF developers. Thanks for your time completing this survey!

Update: we will draw one person at random from all the survey entrants to win a copy of FusionReactor 1 YR Standard license (a $249 value). (Must provide email to be entered in drawing. You can still take the survey without providing email if you prefer to contribute to the results.

We will announce the final results on the day of President Obama's State of the Union address, Feb 12th

President Obama

Survey Q and A

I got some questions after posting the survey.

  • Q: why is this survey appearing here,of all places.
  • A: The previous state of the union surveys were on CFUnited.com so I just copied and edited the blog entry on there. Didn't realize that this might be confusing to some. Also I am planning to post CF developer and upcoming developer webinar related posts on cfunited.com, so made sense to put the survey here.
  • Q: The site is still "about" CFunited even though the event has not happened in 3 years, might confuse some folks. Are you giving any thought to revising the site to remove current conference event references (like register, pricing, topics, tracks, schedule, travel)?
  • A: Great suggestion, we will remove those (might take a bit of time to redo the graphics). I want to keep all the past presos and other historical CFUnited content. And not have the site be confusing.
  • Q: Where are the results from previous years' surveys?
  • A: CF State of the Union 2010 survey results are here.
  • CF State of Hosting survey results are here.


If you have other suggestions please comment or email me.

How to get $40,000 to start a tech business in Chile

Would you like to get $40,000 and a free visa for a year to work in Chile setting up a web startup? Cool eh? I thought this might interest some of the folks on this blog or maybe you have graduating children or friends who might be. Article is from free InternationalMan newsletter

What if you were paid $40,000 to travel to another country, get a 1-year visa, and work on your technology related business? That's exactly what Start-Up Chile - an initiative started in 2010 by the Chilean government - makes possible, offering grants to small teams of entrepreneurs to come work on their ideas in Santiago. It's all part of the country's bid to become "the Silicon Valley of South America," and today we chat with Kevin Kent, a Chicago entrepreneur who recently received a grant

IM: Why Chile?

KK: Right now, the Chilean government is trying to "up the entrepreneurial bar" here - to try to turn Santiago into the "Silicon Valley" of South America. They do this with a program called Start-Up Chile - they bring in talent from around the world - people who have experience starting businesses and people from other cultures who have different levels of risk tolerance, not the same kind of blocked-off mindset that many people down here have about failure and start-ups. (Back in the States, if you give something a shot and it fails, that's just something that happens and we're proud of you for giving it a try. It's definitely not the same mentality down here.)

The program offers $40,000 grants to teams of 1-4 people to start their businesses down here in Santiago, stay for six months, and work on their businesses. Actually, it's not a grant but rather a reimbursement. So you spend $6,000 on your business and then you have a reimbursement meeting, and then (hopefully) they reimburse you. That process is getting better, but it's been very difficult. With a government agency, there's a lot of hurdles to jump through and red tape. But in the end, you're getting $40,000 for free and they don't take any ownership in your business, so it's probably still worth your time.

If you just graduated college and have a great idea, but a lot of school loans and no money in the bank, it's an unbelievable opportunity to see another continent and get some free money to work on a business. You'll meet some really cool people and make some great contacts. ...

IM: Do you get a 6-month Visa?

KK: The program is 6 months but they give us a one-year visa and residential ID cards, which are apparently tough to get if you're not in a program (e.g., if you're just an expat wanting to come down here and stay a year). It's kind of like a Social Security card mixed with a driver's license or state ID. However, if you stay past the six months you don't get all of the benefits, like access to their working space.

IM: What was the application process like and was it hard to get approved?

KK: The application process was pretty standard. "What is your product? What is your target market? How are you going to reach customers?" and so on. We had to make a short two-minute video about our product and ourselves so they could get a little taste of our personality.

In our particular group, they let in 150 teams out of, I think, 600-700 applications - so we were pleased about that. In the following round, two people we knew who had very solid ideas didn't get in, so the difficulty to get in is growing as the program gets more popular.

IM: Are they mostly looking for young start-ups in the technology field?

KK: We're actually a hardware start-up and definitely not the norm. The vast majority are web apps or web start-ups. I think it's just much easier to use that $40,000 doing a web application. In six months with that kind of capital, you can develop a lot of different ideas and business models. It's much more difficult to do with a hardware start-up.

....

IM: Anything else you want to add?

KK: Problems aside, I want to say that Chile is beautiful. We went to a couple towns that were 8- to 10-hour bus rides away that were just gorgeous. In one place we went on a "night star" tour where we went horseback riding for an hour and a guy gave you a tour of the stars, which was just unbelievable. We also went to Buenos Aires for a couple days, so there's a lot of stuff you can see within a very short flight from Santiago, which is great.

Read more here

 

CFUN spring cleaning sale - classic ColdFusion t-shirts and bags

We were doing some spring cleaning and found a bunch of classic CFUN, CFunited and MAX bags and t-shirts. Perhaps you had one of these bags but it worn out. Or maybe you never had one. If you want to be the best dressed CF developer in town then check out these items on ebay.

CFUnited Reloaded

I have seen so much enthusiasm at this year's CFUnited I am sure it will be back in some format with someone other than me owning it in the future. If you have suggestions for CFUnited Reloaded let me know commenting to this post, by emailing me or by phone. Perhaps the location needs to change, or the format or something else. Or perhaps you have a suggestion of who might buy and run the event in the future. What ever your ideas I am interested in hearing them Thanks!

Michael
michael at teratech dot com
301-424-3903 x110

Thanks so much CFUnited 2010

CFUnited 2010, what can I say? My experience was awesome! My heart is filled with smiles, good times, great people, and wonderful memories. It was a bumpy road to get there but it was a labor of love. I am not a developer but "I heart CF" and I am in love with the CF community! This is an amazingly intelligent, generous, hard-working, hellafun, and genuinely NICE group of people. CFUnited leaves me this year gushing with gratitude. I will list a few of my appreciations to some key folks and if I stupidly leave anything out, please know I am still recovering from this whole thing.

Attendees: First of all your bona fide reputation proceeds you. Lansdowne staff has communicated that they think you are one of the nicest groups the have worked with and that they have truly enjoyed working with you in just about every way. I agree with them 10 fold. Every person I interacted with felt like an old dear friend, even if it was the first time we met. Every person who came by the registration desk and smiled, said "Hey, " and gave feedback was, to me, the beating heart of this event. We did this for you and you paid us back what we lacked in financial compensation in pleasantries, understanding, appreciation, and kind words. I deeply hope that you got your monies worth and then some from this year's event because our highest hope was to please you.

Advisory Board: We relied so heavily on your expertise and come to find out there was even more support available that we did know to tap in to. A ton of thanks for your work, diplomacy, and dedication. You are what has shaped and sharpened the content of this event and much of its fabulous reputation as an event of rich experience and learning is due to your input and guidance. This year, and I imagine in years past, you also felt and fielded some of the afore mentioned bumps in the road. You reacted with patience, support and assistance. You are such amazing leaders, advisors, and advocates of the community.

Speakers: You are the rock stars, you are the main event. So many quality people, who not only show up and do their thing with total finesse, generating energy and awe. People who also promote and facilitate creating a quality attendee experience before, during, and after the event. When you get them in front of their audience they never disappoint one fan and they are willing to sign every autograph, so to speak. As a teacher myself, I have immense respect for their willingness to give of themselves to light the way for others. You did so many things to make it special and to honor CFUnited as part of your presentation. I was really touched by that and I adore you for doing so. I also am really appreciative of those who stepped up to fill unexpected gaps in the schedule and those who offered to. We were not able to take on a lot of other speakers who I am sure would have done the same. All in all, speakers are the veins of that carry that carry the love out and then bring it back in.

Sponsors: These folks I worked closely with to make it a worthwhile endeavor and meet their sponsorship goals. I thank you so much for investing in this event and enriching the attendee experience. To me, sponsorship says, "This is the place to be and these are the people to meet." The expo floor is where sponsors and attendees network and make connections that grow business on both sides. I enjoyed working with every sponsor and I hope they can say the same of me. I think the sponsors really bring so much to the event beyond the swag they pass out. I deeply appreciate the interest and support. You are all welcome to borrow my car.

Tara: Believe it or not she is a full-time college student. From all her help and hard work last year, to co-running this event by my side this year, you should all be as impressed as I am with this chic. What it takes to do what she did is having a highly focused, organized, serious, dedicated, and mature work ethic. And those terms only begin to humbly describe her. Then you add her alluring charisma, her tenacity, her personality and outlook, her spunk, and her energy. What you have is, by and large, the finest person I have ever worked with on anything ever! And did I mention, she is still in college? Or did I mention she has 3 other jobs (server in an upscale restaurant, B'Nai Mitzvah Party Motivator on weekends, and Brand Ambassador in tri-state area cities) but that's not all. Did I mention she is an accomplished musician who takes weekly lessons and practices regularly? Did I mention she also baby-sits for her brothers and for other youngsters, all without missing a beat on what was needed from her for this particular endeavor? I have told many people that she is a soldier and I would be on the front lines with her any day. The future for Tara is limitless and the appreciation I have for her is bigger than the sky. We will all say "We knew her when... " - just watch.

Elliott: I call him The Boy Wonder but really that's just cause of his baby face. Really if we are going to assign him to a super hero, he is Batman. This man created, nay, invented, nay, pioneered the Stellr Intranet/CFUnited site and system, the Bat-cave, if you will. Here we have another young up and comer, a professional/student who walks tall with the seasoned gurus, and makes the untouchable look pocket sized. Like Batman, Elliott is your Everyman and your Crusader, your highly regarded authority genius and your down in the trenches people person. Not bestowed with any supernatural power, just that damn good when it comes to intelligence and chivalry. Not to mention one of the most popular speakers via votes and session attendance, boo yah! Though he is significantly younger than me, I have always looked up to him. He is an amazing mentor and a dear friend who works hard to keep the city safe.

Caroline and Lansdowne: Conference Planner extraordinaire, Caroline is so fit for her job and represents the Lansdowne standard beyond perfection. She did everything for this event with such eloquence and care, she took the utmost amount of importance in every detail. I worked with her so closely and am blessed to have had such a good planner and such a good friend through this whole year. And Lansdowne staff Bree, Mark, Denise, Mike, Sheila, Bob, James, Julie, Stephan, Lisa, etc. and the numerous techs and tenders who did us so wonderfully, you are so superb. I am so impressed and I am so grateful. To do these folks justice I feel like I have to invent new words because I can find none to truly express the magnitude of my appreciation. You held our hands and you had our backs, and SO much more. All the while, you did it with style!

Michael and TeraTech: Michael founded this event and has gone out of his comfort zone on several occasions, especially this past year to preserve and maintain the culture of CFUnited. The TeraTech company has rolled up their sleeves and put in a ton of behind the scenes effort over the years, often with little recognition. The other OGs (Original Gangstas) of this phenomenon are Kim, Alison, Ajay, David, and Nii. Beyond that there is a myriad of employees and interns that had their hands in the success of this event over the years and in 2010. They deserve a medal of honor for their willingness to go above and beyond the call of duty when needed; for you and for us, for each other, for CFUnited, TeraTech, and the CF community.

The Volunteers and the CF Mic Up Contributors: The volunteers Anant, Lola, Vicky, and Oguz kicked ass! They were dependable, flexible, and generous. They all really shined under pressure and I am so pleased by each of them. Furthermore, the CF Mic Up was entirely planned and executed by Vicky, Charlie, Sid, Josh, Jeff, Chaz and other great folks (not us) who wanted to lend their time, talent, and equipment to making this a fun and memorable experience. They lugged their equipment on planes and toiled over plans to provide a really great experience and make the absolute most of CFUnited. I am totally tickled pink that they did! Karaoke to "Love Shack" was just what the doctor ordered for me personally that night. I am glad to have the opportunity for that and I know so many others were too. Hats off to the party people! Silver sequined hats at that.

Nafisa and Liz: It just wouldn't be right not to mention these ladies. They have been growing this event for many years and left behind enormous shoes to fill. Liz helped to grow the event from CFUN to CFUnited and was behind many of the creative ideas and branding improvements over the years. Nafisa was key in creating a game plan to keep the conference afloat in tough times. I am so glad they were part of the 2010 experience and I am honored they came to support in one way and another. Both have moved to other endeavors but remain dedicated to CFUnited. Nafisa must be recognized for her effort early in planning and her loyalty to the event thereafter and I appreciate the support she has offered along the way in true big sister style. Both ladies offered sentiments of congratulations and pride that meant so much to me.

It doesn't seem like 12 years since the first CFUN, but time can fly fast when you are having so much fun! I feel sad that this is the last year for CFUnited in it's current form and given the repeated requests from everyone for a "CF-Re-United" or perhaps "CF Reanimated" next year and interest from several people in helping create it I am hopeful that this wonder gang will be back another time. Perhaps the format will be different, perhaps a different location, but what will be the same is the love of ColdFusion and sharing information and ideas with others! Again, I sincerely hope I have not overlooked any person in this post, as I am still recovering from the whirlwind that was CFUnited 2010.

CFUnited Session and Speaker Feedback

If you went to sessions at CFUnited-10 that were amazing, or ones that sucked or anywhere in between, then let us and the speakers know with this session feedback form. You can use it several times - upto once for each session/speaker you attend. So bookmark this post for use during the rest of the week. It only takes a minute or two to complete and I know both we and our speakers read all your comments in detail to see what is going well and what can be improved.
Thanks

CF Yoga

Do you bend over your computer all day programming? Do you get stressed out, neck ache, shoulder pain, mouse wrist, back ache?

CF Yoga can help! This will be a 30 minute yoga session that you can do in a chair - so no need for fancy yoga clothes or yoga mat. And you can take these exercises back to your office to do during the day to help keep you relaxed and healthy during the rest of the year.

When: Thursday 11:45am - 12:15pm (after the day two keynote)
Where: Faulkner
(This bonus session is not on the schedule)

Kosher Lunch

If you checked off the Kosher meal when you registered you can find your lunch in room "Potomac A". We only ordered Kosher food for those who requested it, so please don't eat there if you didn't request it, so that there is enough Kosher food for those who need it. Thanks!

Sponsor topic Interview with Charlie Arehart

We wanted to get the ins and outs of our sponsor's, Intergral, topic at CFUnited! See what Charlie has to say about his session and why you should be there!

Tell us a little about yourself:

Greetings folks. I'm Charlie Arehart, independent consultant, and I'll be presenting "Continuously Improve CF code quality, Server Availability & Application Stability". This is a vendor/sponsor session that I'll be giving on behalf of Intergral, makers of FusionReactor, FusionDebug, and the new FusionAnalytics tools. While I don't work for the company, I am a long-time fan and do in fact partner with them in many ways, having written their training classes, which I also present, and also providing consulting for them for North American clients of their cfconsultant.com service.

Briefly describe what the is session about:

Well, the description on the site says it as well as I could say (since I wrote it). :-) The bottom line focus is how to use their tools (all recently or just about to be updated) to solve the common problems that many CF shops struggle with, whether it's poor performance, inability for CF to stay up, a challenge understanding the root cause of problems, and so on. While there are some tools that some people use to help with these, there are many ways that the Intergral tools offer unique benefits (and can work well with those other tools). Of course many people aren't aware of any tools at all. I'll be showing people how they can stop regarding CF as a black box that's either up or down. Perhaps most compelling, I'll show how they can more effectively analyze and compare server performance information across applications and over hours, days, weeks, months, and years.

Who should attend this session?

Really, anyone with responsibility for--or simply an interest in--effective running of their CF servers (or other CFML engines, or indeed other Java EE servers). There's no particular skill level required to understand what these tools can do. Indeed, even someone with little CF skill (whether a server Admin or a newcomer to CF) can quickly use these tools to show (even a more skilled person) what's going on in their servers, which is a vital first step to resolving problems.

Why did you choose to give this topic?

Well, again, this is a vendor/sponsor topic, so naturally the intention is to make people aware of the products and services from the company. But we all know that most people don't like "sales pitches". Hopefully I've earned a reputation (as an independent consultant) for being an objective observer. Since I'm not an employee, I really am "promoting" these tools because I believe they are valuable and that more people should know about them. Intergral was happy to have me present, because like so many great IT companies, they have great engineers who are awesome at building products (and listening to customers); yet like the average person, they not exactly thrilled by the prospect of speaking before hundreds of people! :-) I love doing it and have been for over 20 years.

How will conference attendees benefit from attending this session?

The primary benefit will be that attendees will learn new tools and techniques for solving common problems that face nearly every CF shop (and those using other CFML and Java EE engines). But again the focus isn't on "features" but rather on ways that problems can be solved. The session will benefit both those who have never seen the tools before, and those who maybe have worked with or at least heard of them before. Especially for the latter audience, there will be new information as the tools have been updated (FusionDebug recently, and FusionReactor soon, and FusionAnalytics is entirely new.) For those who've never seen the tools or any like them, they'll be exposed to the amazing capabilities that they bring to solving problems. And those who may be familiar with other similar solutions (though there's none like FusionAnalytics) will learn some of the ways that the Intergral products do offer unique features/solutions.

When is the session being held?

The session is on the first day, in the first slot after the Adobe Keynote (and break), at 11 am.

Why should people attend CFUnited?

Well, I've been spreading the good news of CFUnited since its inception over 10 years ago, first in a CFDJ article in 2000, and most recently in the farewell interview I did with Michael Smith and Judith Dinowitz in FusionAuthority. As a speaker at every one of the events (along with Michael), I can say it's been a conference that people have gotten great value from every year. Just as there are many tools to solve problems, and I recommend that people make the most of each, I say the same of conferences. Sure, some have their preferences (in tools and conferences, perhaps sticking only with one), but just like a large toolset can bring value to anyone, so too can a wide-ranging conference like CFUnited bring value to everyone who attends.

Whether you're a newcomer to CF or an old hand, an expert in OO technologies or still on the fence, someone who loves to meet people or prefers to just take in the content, you will not only be at home and welcomed at the event, but you'll likely find many other "birds of a feather". Speaking of BOFs, I should add that I'll be doing one called CF911 - Server Troubleshooting, which of course will cover a wide range of tools (free and commercial), techniques (from myself and I hope others), and experiences. As I'll discuss in my keynote talk on CFCommunity, we need to stick together and learn from each other! :-) CFUnited is a great place to do that.

Doug Hughes on why CFUnited and Alagad TaskForce

Well known CF speaker Doug Hughes gives some great reasons to come to the final CFUnited including meeting feakin' smart CFers, networking, backup job hunting,recruiting and the latest news from Adobe.

While I was checking out Doug's comments I noticed that his company Alagad just announced a new service called TaskForce. TaskForce is a pre-paid on-demand elastic application development service. If you are the victim of "Drive By Programming" and recently lost a resource then this might be for you. You get a block of hours per month and there is roll over if you don't use all of them. Pretty cool.

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