CFUnited Blog - topic interview http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm This is the development blog. en-us Tue, 19 Mar 2024 05:41:49 -0500 Mon, 03 Aug 2009 14:45:00 -0500 BlogCFC http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss michael@teratech.com michael@teratech.com michael@teratech.com no Speaker Spotlight: Oguz Demirkapi http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/8/3/Speaker-Spotlight-Oguz-Demirkapi <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//oguz_demirkapi.jpg"> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/speakers#speaker-212 ">Oguz Demirkapi </a> - Code poet and lover of all things related to intelligent web technologies. He started developing CGI web applications in 1994 and has developed cutting edge ColdFusion applications since 1997. Serving as Chief Technological Officer or Senior Developer for many well known commercial and Blue Chip companies in Turkey, Germany and the U.S., O?uz has been a fixture in the ever evolving realm of computer science and a selfless mentor to aspiring developers. He remains active in various user groups such as Linux, ColdFusion, Flex etc. and was the founder and leader of CFTR - ColdFusion Turkey User Group, an emerging hub of ColdFusion development. <br/> <b>CFUnited sessions:</b> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-240 ">Building Scalable Web Applications with ColdFusion </a>, <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-241 ">Geolocation with ColdFusion </a> <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Have you spoken at CFUnited in the past?</font> Yes, I have spoken on i18N (Internationalization) on ColdFusion which was probably one of the first talks given on this topic in the US. CFUnited is the premier ColdFusion conference that every CFML developer should experience in order to feel the power and excitement of such a vibrant community. I used to work for TeraTech at two consecutive CFUnited events (2006, 2007) and as an insider I consider it to be the most enjoyable and beneficial part of my time in the D.C. area. My simple advice, just go for it! <font size="2" color="green">2. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> I will be covering 2 different topics this year. The first topic will cover some of the aspects of creating scalable CFML applications. Having worked on and architected many diverse projects, from simple to complex, across various platforms including Perl, C/C++, and PHP, I'd like to synthesize these perspectives in order to bring solutions to the CFML platform. Currently we are rewriting our main application and my daily routine revolves around thinking about and implementing powerful, scalable, and maintainable applications/platforms. The second topic, geolocation, is not so well known in the ColdFusion community. I'd like to showcase the beauty of some of the new application ideas to geolocation. This should be a lot of fun and perhaps in return, will inspire new visions for your own applications. <font size="2" color="green">3. Do you have any projects in the works that you will be revealing at CFUnited?</font> I look forward to sharing with the CFUnited community, the i18N translation manager tool I've developed. What this tool provides is a management platform for multilingual application implementation that you can embed to your admin or just use as a standalone application to manage your translation needs with versioning and import/export features for ColdFusion or Flex properties files. <font size="2" color="green">4. Besides your topic, what other sessions are you looking forward to?</font> I really would like to see topics discussing cloud computing power, CFML & Flex & BlazeDS integrations and of course Railo and open source world opportunities. I think the most important step will be the new ColdBox version which introduces many new features. <font size="2" color="green">5. What are some of the hot topics you'd like to see at RoundTable discussions?</font> I think new opportunities with the open source Railo platform will be the most interesting talk. Questions such as the future of the ColdFusion and OOP implementations in CFML world will still be the popular topics. <font size="2" color="green">6. Where can people find you at CFUnited?</font> I will be everywhere. If you see somebody taking strange photos in strange locations, that's me! :) <font size="2" color="green">7. What's the latest news with you? Has anything changed since last CFUnited?</font> I've moved to California just after the last CFUnited. I came to CA by way of a week long, adventurous cross country drive. It was an interesting experience for me and my family. We are now in sunny southern California; one of the best locations in the U.S.--Orange County. I have also created a new user group in my area and I am the founder/manager for OCDev - Orange County Adobe Developers User Group (http://ocdev.org) <font size="2" color="green">8. What is unique about CFUnited?</font> CFUnited is a focal point and unifying presence in the ColdFusion world. ColdFusion developers, Unite! :) <font size="2" color="green">9. What do you like to do in your free time?</font> Mainly I play chess and Go. For sporting activities, I enjoy table tennis and surfing. Reading/writing on philosophy and especially epistemology have been long time interests. Life is good! Interviews speakers topic interview Mon, 03 Aug 2009 14:45:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/8/3/Speaker-Spotlight-Oguz-Demirkapi CFUnited Class: jQuery and ColdFusion - Jeff Peters http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/7/22/CFUnited-Class-jQuery-and-ColdFusion--Jeff-Peters <a href="ttp://cfunited.com/2009/classes#class-CU248"> Jeff Peters</a> <b>CFUnited Class:</b> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/classes#class-CU248"> CU248 - jQuery and ColdFusion </a> August 11, 2009 9:00am - 5:30pm <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Why did you create this class?</font> Well, I started out teaching jQuery as a separate class about a year ago. It was a fun class, but I met an increasing number of CF developers who hadn't investigated jQuery because they felt that it just duplicates features that are available in ColdFusion, especially CF8. While it's true that many of the tasks that jQuery handles well are also addressed by features in CF, I find that it's very beneficial to be able to take advantage of both technologies. <font size="2" color="green">2. Are you going to cover jQuery first, or ColdFusion?</font> The focus of the class is really on how jQuery and ColdFusion can work and play well together. We'll spend a bit of time discussing each side of the house, but most of the time will be spent on combining the two. <font size="2" color="green">3. Aren't jQuery and ColdFusion mutually exclusive?</font> Not at all. As I already mentioned, this is the misconception that originally prompted me to design the class. It's important to understand that CF is a tool that generates code to run on the browser, and jQuery is code that runs on the browser as well. If we understand both technologies from the browser's context, we can make use of them together in very interesting and useful ways. <font size="2" color="green">4. Do attendees need to know jQuery and ColdFusion in order to take the class?</font> I'm expecting students to know ColdFusion, but not necessarily jQuery. This seems to be the typical scenario, especially in the context of a conference like CFUnited, where attendees are typically familiar with CF. We'll be spending some time in the first part of the class talking about the fundamentals of jQuery, so if you don't know any jQuery, you'll be raring to go by the end of the day. <font size="2" color="green">5. What will attendees know at the end of the day?</font> Beats me--I don't know if you'll pay attention. Seriously, though, the class is designed to open up a whole box of fun stuff for creating great user experiences with good ol' HTML. <font size="2" color="green">6. How will this class benefit an attendees career?</font> If your career has anything to do with building front-ends for web applications (or HTML-based desktop applications), you'll find something useful in this class. My intent is to fuel students' imaginations so that they'll feel enabled to explore their own ideas. <font size="2" color="green">7. What should attendees bring to the class?</font> The biggest thing that will help is your imagination, and perhaps some ideas for an application you're currently developing. You should bring your laptop, with CF installed. I'll provide jQuery and instructions on how to install it, use it, and extend it. Of course, if you're already tinkering with jQuery and have it, that's even better. I look forward to seeing you there! Interviews classes topic interview Wed, 22 Jul 2009 12:33:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/7/22/CFUnited-Class-jQuery-and-ColdFusion--Jeff-Peters Speaker Spotlight: Chaz Chumley http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/12/Speaker-Spotlight--Chaz-Chumley <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//chaz_chumley.jpg"> <a href="http://www.w3consultants.com ">Chaz Chumley </a> - Consultant, Instructor, Author, Husband and Father. Chaz has been specializing in web development and database design since 1995. He currently resides as CIO for w3Consultants, an Internet Application Development & Hosting company as well as an Instructor at the University of Nevada Las Vegas teaching XHTML, CSS, JavaScript, Fireworks, Photoshop and ColdFusion. Chaz is also a contributing author and partner at CommunityMX as well as a User Group Manager for the Las Vegas Adobe User Group and a guest speaker at such conferences as Todcon and CFUnited. <b>CFUnited session:</b> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-285">Building Desktop applications with Coldfusion 8 and AIR </a <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Have you spoken at CFUnited in the past?</font> I have spoken the past 3 years as well as CFUnited Europe. If you had a choice between conferences, CFUnited is defintiely the best for networking, learning and sharing information with your peers and experts in the industry. <font size="2" color="green">2. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> Web designers and developers who are interested in AIR and not the type you breath then feel free to stop by my session. We have lots of fun and being from Las Vegas, end the session rolling a little dice for prizes. <font size="2" color="green">3. Do you have any projects in the works that you will be revealing at CFUnited?</font> If having fun is a project then...YES. <font size="2" color="green">4. Besides your topic, what other sessions are you looking forward to?</font> Simon Free is always a blast to listen to. Even if you get nothing out of his sessions you will be leaving in tears. He's is so funny and a great presenter. <font size="2" color="green">5. What are some of the hot topics you'd like to see at RoundTable discussions?</font> Frameworks, Refactoring and the best one of all... How the hell do I make money doing this? <font size="2" color="green">6. Where can people find you at CFUnited?</font> All of the above... Regardless of what time it is I am always open to people dragging me out for a drink. <font size="2" color="green">7. What's the latest news with you? Has anything changed since last CFUnited?</font> What hasn't changed. I have been doing a lot of Open Source development (Drupal, PHP). Wait did I say that <font size="2" color="green">8. What is unique about CFUnited?</font> Networking. Unlike other conferences where there are too many people. CFUnited always has just the right amount and if you dont leave without having met someone new then you were sleeping the whole time. <font size="2" color="green">9. What do you like to do in your free time?</font> I coach youth sports. I am coaching my daughters fastpitch softball Allstar team and Pop Warner football. <font size="2" color="green">10. Who are the best conference organizers in the business? </font> Stellr - Liz and Nafisa and of course Elliott. Interviews speakers topic interview Fri, 12 Jun 2009 14:01:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/12/Speaker-Spotlight--Chaz-Chumley Speaker Spotlight: RJ Owen http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/10/Speaker-Spotlight-RJ-Owen <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//rj_owen.jpg"> <a href=" http://rjria.blogspot.com/">RJ Owen </a> - Senior Developer at Effective UI. RJ was the lead developer on projects for Dow Jones, Random House and the Discovery Channel and contributed to ebay Desktop and the Adobe Video Workshop. In late 2007 RJ was featured on the Scoble show discussing RIA development and is passionate about the way that software affects and can improve people's lives. He is certified as an Adobe Community expert in Flex and co-authored the O'Reilly shortcut "Flex 3 Early Evaluator." RJ runs a flex blog called A Better Experience at rjria.blogspot.com, holds a degree in Physics and Computer Science, generally does well on standardized tests, and lives in Colorado. <b>CFUnited session:</b> <a href=" http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-268"> Flex 4 Components</a <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Have you spoken at CFUnited in the past?</font> I have never, even once, spoken at CFUnited. Last year I was sworn to silence. I would tell someone, it's okay - you can get through this. <font size="2" color="green">2. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> People should attend my session if they want to learn about what's new in Flex 4, or how they can use Flex to build some sweet UI's onto the hearty back-ends they're used to building in CF. <font size="2" color="green">3. Do you have any projects in the works that you will be revealing at CFUnited?</font> < mysterious >If I did, I most certainly wouldn't reveal them on the internet. You'll just have to come and see for yourself.< /mysterious > <font size="2" color="green">4. Besides your topic, what other sessions are you looking forward to?</font> I'm looking forward to Jun's session and David Tucker's session. They both know a lot about a lot of things, and I like learning things from people who know them. <font size="2" color="green">5. What are some of the hot topics you'd like to see at RoundTable discussions?</font> I'd really enjoy listening to two gentlemen (or ladies) diplomatically argue the merits of the multi-party system of government favored in Europe compared to our rather intransigent tradition of only two. <font size="2" color="green">6. Where can people find you at CFUnited?</font> I will most likely be in the pool, trying to see how long I can hold my breath. <font size="2" color="green">7. What's the latest news with you? Has anything changed since last CFUnited?</font> Well, Liz, I'm glad you asked. Last week we watched our friends' dog. It's a pretty nice dog, so it went well, generally, but it yipped a lot at night, and I'm a light sleeper, so that was a little rough. You know what, why don't we just catch up at the conference? <font size="2" color="green">8. What is unique about CFUnited?</font> It's the last great bastion of hope for a dying world in need of a hero. There are a few mediocre bastions around, but you won't find any other great ones. Especially not around WADC. <font size="2" color="green">9. What do you like to do in your free time?</font> When I'm not working, I like reading, playing video games, and occasionally playing sports in my free time. When I'm working, I prefer to spend my free time playing scrabble over a nice glass of 2% milk. <font size="2" color="green">10. How do you feel about Law and Order? </font> It is my firm belief that there are too many crime dramas on evening television, but of those crime dramas, Law and Order is pretty good, I guess. Interviews speakers topic interview Wed, 10 Jun 2009 15:42:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/10/Speaker-Spotlight-RJ-Owen Speaker Spotlight: Brian Rinaldi http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/9/Speaker-Spotlight-Brian-Rinaldi <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//brian_rinaldi.jpg"> <a href="http://www.remotesynthesis.com/">Brian Rinaldi </a> - A programmer, Adobe Community Expert, manager of the Boston ColdFusion User Group and organizer of Flex Camps in Boston and Miami. Brian is most well known for his efforts promoting open-source projects in ColdFusion, especially for maintaining the ColdFusion open-source list as well as the weekly updates, both of which you can find via his web site at <a href="http://www.remotesynthesis.com">http://www.remotesynthesis.com</a>. <b>CFUnited Session: </b> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-248">A CF Developer's Guide to the Mate Flex Framework</a> <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Have you spoken at CFUnited in the past?</font> I spoke last year on RIA security, which was a tough topic. I would tell new folks that CFUnited is the biggest and most widely known ColdFusion conference, so it is the best place to network with other ColdFusion developers. The new hotel looks pretty exciting, so I think the opportunities to socialize and network will be even better this year. <font size="2" color="green">2. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> I am presenting the Mate framework for Flex this year. Whether you are an experienced Flex programmer who is familiar with Cairngorm or a new Flex developer looking to adopt a framework for your development, Mate is something you should definitely look at. I found that using it not only improved my overall application organization and cleaned up my code, but it improved my enjoyment of Flex coding since it offered tools that simplified development. Mate has been gaining a lot of steam lately and whether you choose to use it or not, its definitely something you should consider or at least be aware if you are doing Flex development. This session will introduce the core Mate concepts for anyone unfamiliar with the framework. <font size="2" color="green">3. Do you have any projects in the works that you will be revealing at CFUnited?</font> I won't make any promised but I recently set a goal to have a completely reworked Illudium PU-36 Code Generator ready for CFUnited. Its a big undertaking since much of the underlying code needs to be redone to accomplish what I want to do, but with the upcoming releases of Bolt and Centaur, its something that I think should happen. In particular, as was announced earlier today, Bolt plans to offer the ability to tie in custom code generation using CFML, so being able to tie Bolt to Illudium will be a priority. <font size="2" color="green">4. Where can people find you at CFUnited?</font> I attend conferences purely for the sessions and learning. There is no way you will find me at the bar every evening drinking beer and chatting with attendees. In fact, I promise I will not be closing down the hotel bar, and, despite what you may have heard, I have never done that at any prior conference. <font size="2" color="green">5. What's the latest news with you? Has anything changed since last CFUnited?</font> Last year I was working for Universal Mind, but was caught in the layoffs earlier this year. This year I have started with a company called Pongo Resume (<a href=?www.pongoresume.com">www.pongoresume.com</a>) building ColdFusion and Flex applications. <font size="2" color="green">6. What is unique about CFUnited?</font> CFUnited draws the widest variety of ColdFusion developers from around the country. There are sessions that cater towards relative beginners and others that are very advanced. I think the Flex/AIR track is particularly exciting this year as it has brought in well known people from the Flex community and not simple ColdFusion developers doing some Flex. I am looking forward to getting a lot out of the sessions in that track. <font size="2" color="green">7. What do you like to do in your free time?</font> I own every game system in existence (Xbox 360, Wii, Playstation 3, PSP, DS) but I rarely get to play them much unless its with my 6 year old son. Essentially, I own the systems to keep up a charade that I am an avid gamer...which I once was. I also am a big fan of sports, particularly college sports. While I am a University of Miami grad and Hurricane fan, I have season tickets to Boston College football which is walking distance from my home. I also attend many of the local college basketball and hockey games with an occassional professional game of the Celtics or Red Sox when I can afford it. Interviews speakers topic interview Tue, 09 Jun 2009 14:58:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/9/Speaker-Spotlight-Brian-Rinaldi Speaker Spotlight: Andrew Schwabe http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/8/Speaker-Spotlight-Andrew-Schwabe <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//andrew_schwab2.jpg"> <a href="http://blog.schwabe.net">Andrew Schwabe</a> - President of IEXP Software, LLC and is a veteran CFML developer since 1998. Prior to working with IEXP, Andrew worked for 10 years as the President and Chairman of the Board of Internet Expressions, Inc. He has been the forerunner in developing numerous applications ranging from the free - CFX_RawSocket (a Java Custom Tag for ColdFusion) - to FusionDox (enterprise-level document management). Andrew has been deeply involved in developing many of these applications from the ground up, enhancing and using the ColdFusion platform to its fullest potential. In addition to his extensive ColdFusion experience, Andrew has been recognized in the business community, receiving the coveted Dale Carnegie Highest Achievement Award. <b>CFUnited session:</b> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-294">Flex and Google App Engine</a <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Have you spoken at CFUnited in the past?</font> Yup. I've been speaking at CF United events for the last 4-5 years or so. Lost count. CFUN is cool because you get to hang out with all the movers and shakers in the industry. <font size="2" color="green">2. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> Why not? I'll be showing an example of using Flex to talk to Google App Engine (GAE), so its just pretty darn cool. <font size="2" color="green">3. Do you have any projects in the works that you will be revealing at CFUnited?</font> I'm hoping to have a brand new product ready to demo called FusionDox Access, which is a way cool easy way to share large files with people, and easily integrates into your web projects. All build in Flex of course :) <font size="2" color="green">4. Besides your topic, what other sessions are you looking forward to?</font> Flexy goodness, especially looking forward to Flex 4 graphics enhancements. <font size="2" color="green">5. What are some of the hot topics you'd like to see at RoundTable discussions?</font> How to beat down the industry's impression that ColdFusion is dying. <font size="2" color="green">6. Where can people find you at CFUnited? (At the bar, networking, working, in your room, etc.) </font> Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes. Also email me. aschwabe(at)gmail(dot)com. <font size="2" color="green">7. What's the latest news with you? Has anything changed since last CFUnited?</font> New version of FusionDox is coming out. See <a href="http://www.fusiondox.com/blog/">http://www.fusiondox.com/blog/</a> <font size="2" color="green">8. What is unique about CFUnited?</font> Everything is approachable at CFUN. Talk to whoever, everybody is sincere about wanting to transfer knowledge so that everybody grows. <font size="2" color="green">9. What do you like to do in your free time?</font> Playing guitar, riding my motorcycle (bmw k100), going to the shooting range with the family, travel, eat, drink, being merry. Interviews speakers topic interview Mon, 08 Jun 2009 16:41:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/8/Speaker-Spotlight-Andrew-Schwabe Speaker Spotlight: Barney Boisvert http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/5/Speaker-Spotlight-Barney-Boisvert <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//barney_boisvert.jpg"> <a href="http://www.barneyb.com/barneyblog/">Barney Boisvert </a> - Sr. Application Developer at Mentor Graphics primarily using ColdFusion, Groovy, JavaScript, along with a smattering of Java and Flex. He is the author of the CFGroovy and FB3Lite frameworks, was a core contributor to Fusebox 4, and has provided accepted patches to Fusebox 5, Prototype, Groovy, Hibernate and ColdSpring, in addition to building several micro-frameworks from the ground up. He is also an active member in local and online CF, Flex, and Java communities and occasionally speaks at user groups and conferences. <b>CFUnited session:</b> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-291">CFGroovy - Groovy for the CFML Developer </a <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Have you spoken at CFUnited in the past?</font> Nope, sure haven't. <font size="2" color="green">2. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> CFML is a great templating language, but it falls rather short in other areas (verbosity, java integration, collections, etc.). Groovy has the "inverse" feature set (concise, tight with java, rich APIs, but bad at templating). Leveraging Groovy within your CFML applications can provide a significant reduction in complexity and verbosity, and it's ridiculously simple to do. <font size="2" color="green">3. Do you have any projects in the works that you will be revealing at CFUnited?</font> CFGroovy will have a couple releases this summer. Not sure if they will coincide with CFUnited or not. <font size="2" color="green">4. What are some of the hot topics you'd like to see at RoundTable discussions?</font> Multiple CFML runtimes, Java library integration <font size="2" color="green">5. Where can people find you at CFUnited?</font> In the common area(s), chatting with whomever. <font size="2" color="green">6. What do you like to do in your free time?</font> Ride my bicycle and my motorcycle, cook (and eat), play with new technologies and methodologies. Interviews speakers topic interview Fri, 05 Jun 2009 15:12:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/5/Speaker-Spotlight-Barney-Boisvert Speaker Spotlight: Doug Hughes http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/3/Speaker-Spotlight-Doug-Hughes <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//doug_hughes.jpg"> <a href="http://www.doughughes.net.">Doug Hughes </a> - Doug Hughes is a veteran programmer and the president of Alagad Inc (http://www.alagad.com), a successful small business specializing in web and application development, services and consulting. Doug also publishes a popular blog covering ColdFusion and other technical topics at http://www.doughughes.net. <b>CFUnited session:</b> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-281">Using Ant to Deploy ColdFusion Application</a <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> I'm talking about Ant this year and how it can be used to deploy ColdFusion projects. As a part of that, I plan to cover a little project I've been working on currently called CFant. I may also sneak in some discussion about other related technologies such as Maven. In my opinion, this is an important topic. No application is ever used without being deployed. Furthermore, most non-trivial application tend to require configuration changes, server settings to be set, files to put somewhere, and much, much more. Performing this by hand can be tedious and error prone. Instead, I recommend using Ant to automate as much of this process as possible. Here at Alagad we use Ant for this purpose. A typical build will usually check the latest code out of subversion, update various XML configuration files, put the files where they belong on the server, insure the datasource exists, insure mappings for frameworks exists, clear the template cache, insure trusted cache is enabled, and reload the application. Because our builds are automated we can insure they happen exactly as we need them to. <font size="2" color="green">2. Do you have any projects in the works that you will be revealing at CFUnited?</font> I've been working on creating some Maven archetypes for ColdFusion development. I'm not sure what the status of this will be by CFUnited, but I'm hopeful to have some fun stuff to demonstrate. As a part of this, I also plan to make some important changes to how CFant works and that will be released somewhere around the time of CFUnited. <font size="2" color="green">3. Besides your topic, what other sessions are you looking forward to?</font> These days I'm really interested in management-focused topics. I plan to see what people have to say about managing teams and projects. Furthermore, I plan to check out anything that relates to new and advanced ways of developing ColdFusion, Flex and Air applications. <font size="2" color="green">4. Where can people find you at CFUnited?</font> During the day I expect I could be found networking. I want to try to find as many people to talk to as I can. I want to hear what people are up to at their companies and I'd hope to find ways that Alagad can work with them. In fact, as a part of that, Alagad will be holding a raffle to give away a Mac Mini, a Wii, an iPod Touch, and several Amazon.com gift certificates. See this link for more information on this: <a href=ýhttp://alagad.com/go//find-alagad-at-cf-objective--or-cfunited-and-win-bigý>http://alagad.com/go//find-alagad-at-cf-objective--or-cfunited-and-win-big</a>. During the evenings I'm often found at the bar ensconced in conversation with other members of the community. <font size="2" color="green">5. What's the latest news with you? Has anything changed since last CFUnited?</font> Over the past year, I've been working very hard to grow Alagad. In fact, we grew more than 300% last year and we've been very strong. Since the beginning of the year we've hired several developers including Brian Kotek, formerly of Broadchoice fame. We now have a terrific team of at five Adobe Aces, several promenent members of the ColdFusion and Flex community, and more. We continue to be focused on helping our clients build enterprise-class ColdFusion, Flex and Air applications. Recently we've also been experimenting with Groovy, Spring and Hibernate for our application models. This has been very interesting and we're looking forward to sharing more about that as the time is right. As always, we're looking for more great clients with interesting or particularily chalenging projects we could help out. If you're moving into OO with ColdFusion or Flex contact us to see how we can help you out. Interviews speakers topic interview Wed, 03 Jun 2009 14:45:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/3/Speaker-Spotlight-Doug-Hughes Speaker Spotlight: Raymond Camden http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/1/Speaker-Spotlight-Raymond-Camden <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//raymond_camden.jpg"> <a href="http://www.coldfusionjedi.com/">Raymond Camden </a> - A long time ColdFusion user, Raymond has worked on numerous ColdFusion books including the ColdFusion Web Application Construction Kit and has contributed to the Fusion Authority Quarterly Update and the ColdFusion Developers Journal. He also presents at conferences and contributes to online webzines. He founded many community web sites including CFLib.org, ColdFusionPortal.org, ColdFusionCookbook.org and is the author of open source applications, including the popular <a href="www.blogcfc.com">BlogCFC</a> blogging application. <b>CFUnited sessions:</b> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-230">Ajax/ColdFusion 911</a>, <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-282">Charting and ColdFusion</a>, <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-229">Introduction to jQuery with ColdFusion</a>, <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-324">SciFi BOF</a> <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Have you spoken at CFUnited in the past?</font> Yes, many times. I'd tell people that CFUnited is a great conference for people of all skill levels. From beginners to advanced developers. <font size="2" color="green">2. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> I think I have some great sessions this year, and all of them are brand new! <font size="2" color="green">3. Do you have any projects in the works that you will be revealing at CFUnited?</font> Nope. Sorry to disappoint. :) <font size="2" color="green">4. Besides your topic, what other sessions are you looking forward to?</font> I'm curious to see what Adobe shows off in regards to ColdFusion 9. <font size="2" color="green">5. What are some of the hot topics you'd like to see at RoundTable discussions?</font> I'd like to hear some discussion about frameworks. I'm kinda focused on Model-Glue, so I wouldn't mind hearing wha'ts up with the other frameworks. <font size="2" color="green">6. Where can people find you at CFUnited?</font> Most likely all over the place. :) <font size="2" color="green">7. What's the latest news with you? Has anything changed since last CFUnited?</font> I'm now an independent contractor, which is new, and not so great, but, change happens. :) <font size="2" color="green">8. What do you like to do in your free time?</font> Video games and reading. Oh, and writing code for fun. :) <font size="2" color="green">9. Which was the best Star Wars film?</font> Empire Strikes Back. Interviews speakers topic interview BOF Mon, 01 Jun 2009 15:40:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/6/1/Speaker-Spotlight-Raymond-Camden Speaker spotlight: Lawrence Cramer http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/5/26/Speaker-spotlight-Lawrence-Cramer <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//lawrence_cramer.jpg"> <a href="http://blog.cartweaver.com/ "> Lawrence Cramer </a> - Over 25 years of experience in marketing, advertising, and design. For the last decade he has focused on the web, his key interests being dynamic web design, development, and e-commerce. He has written numerous articles on these subjects for regional business publications and for the Adobe Developer Center. He speaks at web development conferences and teaches college courses on several Adobe products, and is a trainer for Lynda.com. Lawrence is an Adobe Community Expert, the CEO of Application Dynamics Inc., and the founder of Cartweaver.com. When he's not in front of a computer screen, you'll find him and his wife of 30-plus years behind the handlebars of a sport touring motorcycle seeing the sights of the Pacific Northwest. <b>CFUnited session:</b> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-232">Real world ecommerce with ColdFusion</a <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Have you spoken at CFUnited in the past?</font> No. I'm very excited to be speaking this year! CFUnited is THE ColdFusion conference. It's the "must attend" best-of-breed conference because of the caliber of speakers and the no sales hype but real information focus of the event. <font size="2" color="green">2. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> Even in this down economy, one business sector is still experiencing growth... eCommerce. More and more developers are getting asked by their clients to develop eCommerce sites and they are finding it to be a more complex, specialized skill set than they expect. They are expected to not only develop sound eCommerce applications but know about many other things such as payment gateways, PCI compliance, security, merchant accounts and so on. My session will cover all these facets of eCommerce development. <font size="2" color="green">3. Do you have any projects in the works that you will be revealing at CFUnited?</font> Yes. Can't say much more than that right now. <font size="2" color="green">4. Besides your topic, what other sessions are you looking forward to?</font> I'll be like a kid in a candy store! Having difficulty narrowing down my choices so far! <font size="2" color="green">5. What are some of the hot topics you'd like to see at RoundTable discussions?</font> Anything Bolt. (the new dedicated ColdFusion Development Application) <font size="2" color="green">6. Where can people find you at CFUnited?</font> At my session, and on Twitter... I'll be tweeting a lot and will tweet meet-up plans: http://twitter.com/LawrenceCramer <font size="2" color="green">7. What's the latest news with you? Has anything changed since last CFUnited?</font> A lot! The economy has presented not only challenges but huge opportunities! Whenever you shake things up, new openings emerge. <font size="2" color="green">8. What is unique about CFUnited?</font> It's focus! It's an opportunity to learn, not be "sold". It an opportunity to learn about ColdFusion and related technologies and to meet and network with the best in the field. <font size="2" color="green">9. What do you like to do in your free time?</font> Go sport touring around the west with my wife and friends on my 2008 Kawasaki Concourse 1400, and do a little wine tasting. I'm a bit of a wine buff and Washington has a lot of great wine! <font size="2" color="green">10. Besides the sessions, what makes CFUnited worth the cost of going?</font> The networking! If you go DON'T be a wallflower! Get out there, meet and greet and make new friends and contacts. Interviews speakers topic interview Tue, 26 May 2009 15:01:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/5/26/Speaker-spotlight-Lawrence-Cramer Speaker spotlight: Sean Woods http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/5/22/Speaker-spotlight-Sean-Woods <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//sean_woods.jpg"> Sean Woods - Has been developing Oracle applications for over ten years and has been integrating ColdFusion with Oracle since the first day he laid eyes on it in 2002. He has since then developed an obsession with ColdFusion and often lies awake at night wondering why anyone would want to develop their applications with anything else. In his spare time, Sean can be found chasing his two young daughters around the lovely seaside town of Pacifica, California. <b>CFUnited session:</b> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-290">Advanced SQL for ColdFusion</a <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Have you spoken at CFUnited in the past?</font> No, I've never spoken at or been to CFUnited but I am totally stoked to be attending and speaking this year. I've been to a lot of ColdFusion conferences and met a lot of great people. It?s an privilege to be speaking at this one and I hope that I can add some value to the experience of those attending. <font size="2" color="green">2. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> You should attend my session because I will give you the tools necessary to turn your knowledge of SQL into entertaining cocktail conversation. You will be the life of the party - people will be lining up to hear you wax on about the virtues of query parametrization, database transactions, indexing strategies and more. I used to entertain people this way all the time but for some reason nobody comes to my house anymore. <font size="2" color="green">3. Besides your topic, what other sessions are you looking forward to?</font> Any session by Ray Camden, Sean Corfield or Ben Forta. <font size="2" color="green">4. Where can people find you at CFUnited?</font> You will definitely find me at the bar. And, if you say nice things in public about my session I will buy you a beer. <font size="2" color="green">5. What do you like to do in your free time?</font> I live in Pacifica, CA with my wife and two girls. Most of my free time is spent chasing my kids around but when I get a few hours to myself I usually spend it on my bike. During the summer weekends you can usually find me at a local bike race or triathlon ? I?ve been competing in both for about 10 years. I hope to one day convince my daughters that jumping in a cold lake at 8am is a good idea. Interviews speakers topic interview Fri, 22 May 2009 14:43:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/5/22/Speaker-spotlight-Sean-Woods Speaker spotlight: Jake Munson http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/5/21/Speaker-spotlight-Jake-Munson <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//jake_munson.jpg"> <a href="http://techfeed.net/blog/">Jake Munson </a> - Jake has been developing ColdFusion based applications since ColdFusion 4. He is well known for building CFQuickDocs (http://cfquickdocs.com). He has given numerous presentations to various user groups, including the popular CF Meetup group. He also presented at CFUnited 2008. Jake is very passionate about the Internet, particularly about web standards and surrounding technologies. <b>CFUnited session:</b> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-287">Spam, Bacon, Sausage and Spam</a <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Have you spoken at CFUnited in the past?</font> Yes, I spoke at CFUnited Last year. This will be my 5th CFUnited though, and every year I really enjoy it. My biggest advice would be to take advantage of the networking opportunities. There are always a lot of top notch community memebers around, both "celebrity" types as well as lesser known (but equally important) people you can network with. <font size="2" color="green">2. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> If you ever put user fillable forms on your sites, you should attend my <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics/287">session</a>. Spammers attack all online forms these days (even when it doesn't make sense), so preventing spam is very important for us developers. If you think Spam prevention just means slapping a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captcha">CAPTCHA</a> on the form, then you have a lot to learn. I hope to see you at my session. <font size="2" color="green">3. Besides your topic, what other sessions are you looking forward to?</font> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics/293">Railo Open Source</a> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics/241">Geolocation with ColdFusion</a> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics/244">Thinking Outside of the CF Box</a> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics/302">Better Development Through Open Source</a> <font size="2" color="green">4. Where can people find you at CFUnited?</font> At my session, of course! :) I am planning on attending as many sessions as possible (I always do), but outside of that I will be at all of the breakfasts/lunches, and hanging out in the common areas between sessions. In the evening I will attend the planned events, but besides that I might be hanging out in my room. I'm thinking about bringing some games with me and inviting some friends to play games one night (board games, card games, etc.) <font size="2" color="green">5. What do you like to do in your free time?</font> I am a computer geek at heart, so in my free time I spend a lot of time on computers. I read a LOT of news/blogs. I also play some online games. When not on the computer, I like to spend time with my wife, and I like watching the Cubs as well as the Discovery Channel. I am also very religious and spend a lot of time doing church related stuff. Interviews speakers topic interview Thu, 21 May 2009 15:25:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/5/21/Speaker-spotlight-Jake-Munson Speaker spotlight: Gert Franz http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/5/20/Speaker-spotlight-Gert-Franz <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//gert_franz.jpg"> <a href="http://www.getrailo.com/index.cfm/about-us/railo-team/gert-franz/">Gert Franz </a> - One of the founders of Railo Technologies GmbH and accompanied the development from when it started back in 2001. Next to the development of Railo he worked as a system engineer and database administrator, where one of his favorite web projects was and is for instance www.zinodavidoff.com. He's addicted to problem solving, performance and database tuning (especially SQL Server). Gert is a father of three and boyfriend of one. As far as he can remember, he has studied astrophysics in Munich some (many :-) years ago. <b>CFUnited session:</b> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-293">Railo Open Source </a <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Have you spoken at CFUnited in the past?</font> No I haven't. I have attended but haven't spoken yet. It is definitely theCFML conference with the most attendees and you get a chance to meet and greet the who's who in the CFML world. So just go and attend! <font size="2" color="green">2. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> Because they are learning about a CFML engine free of costs that might be the alternative in the times of the credit crunch. It's highly compatible to the current standard and allows you to take your code and execute it with almost no changes. High performance and innovative security features as well as settings that help you code more effective allow you to get the most out of your apps. <font size="2" color="green">3. Do you have any projects in the works that you will be revealing at CFUnited?</font> Yes, we are constantly working on our engine and always introduce new extensions and features. <font size="2" color="green">4. Besides your topic, what other sessions are you looking forward to?</font> I look forward to the Intergral and Blueriver sessions. Of course some ofthe sessions the Railo guys give are interesting as well. <font size="2" color="green">5. What are some of the hot topics you'd like to see at RoundTable discussions?</font> Open Source, what does the community want from the vendors, CFML Advisory Committee questions etc. <font size="2" color="green">6. Where can people find you at CFUnited?</font> Look for an orange or violet TShirt with the GotRailo Logo on it :-) I will be everywhere mentioned in this order: working - networking - at the bar - in my room <font size="2" color="green">7. What's the latest news with you? Has anything changed since last CFUnited?</font> Yes, we're open source with Railo 3.1. And we have some of the best minds in our company. <font size="2" color="green">8. What is unique about CFUnited?</font> The name :-) No... I guess the ability to meet so many different people and since all of the top speakers will attend, I am looking forward to meeting many of them! <font size="2" color="green">9. What do you like to do in your free time?</font> Walking my dog, going to the movies, spend time with friends, travel, and of course my family! <font size="2" color="green">10. What the best thing about your job? </font> Well it's my hobby! Interviews speakers topic interview Wed, 20 May 2009 13:46:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/5/20/Speaker-spotlight-Gert-Franz Speaker Spotlight: Jun Heider http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/5/18/Speaker-Spotlight-Jun-Heider <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//jun_heider.jpg"> <a href="http://www.iheartair.com/"> Jun Heider</a> - Sr. Developer and Technical Trainer with RealEyes Media, an Adobe partner company based in Denver, Colorado with a focus in Rich Internet Applications. Jun graduated from Regis University with a BS in Computer Networking and has a number of technical certifications. Jun has worked with ColdFusion since 4.5, Flex since Flex 2 beta, and AIR since it was first available in pre-release. In addition, Jun loves to speak at conferences such as Adobe MAX, 360|Flex, and Flexmaniacs. Jun also loves to write, he is an active blogger on O'Reilly Inside RIA and has written articles for Fusion Authority and Flex Authority. Jun is also co-authoring the upcoming Professional Flex 3 by Wrox. In his free time, Jun loves to play music, his Xbox 360, snowboard, and hang out with his son Kobi, daughter Mia, and wife Michelle in Colorful Colorado. <b>CFUnited session:</b> <a href=" http://cfunited.com/2009/topics/267 "> Intro to Flex Debugging and Profiling</a <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Have you spoken at CFUnited in the past?</font> I've never spoken at CFUnited before, but the reason I decided to was because I had heard so many good things about it in the past through the ColdFusion community. I usually spend my time at Flex/AIR centric conferences, but it was good to find out that although ColdFusion is still a majority of what CFUnited is about, it definitely isn't the only thing. <font size="2" color="green">2. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> If you're getting started with Flex and pull out your hair while trying to resolve issues in your code on a frequent basis, this will be a very good session for you to attend. During the session I will be covering many aspects of debugging and profiling your Flex applications. By the end of the session you should walk away with a good idea of the tools available to you and how to get started with using them. <font size="2" color="green">3. Do you have any projects in the works that you will be revealing at CFUnited?</font> Not personally, but hopefully Flex Builder 4 beta will be out by the conference. If it is, the fancy new debugging and profiling features will definitely be covered. <font size="2" color="green">4. Besides your topic, what other sessions are you looking forward to?</font> Just to name a few: - <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-338">AIR Messaging: Integrating AIR, BlazeDS, and ColdFusion</a> - <a href"http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-243">Design Diagrams for CFC's and Databases</a> - <a href"http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-246">Subversion for Smarties - Do More With Subversion</a> - <a href"http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-247">Practical Refactoring: Making Bad Code Good</a> - <a href"http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-290">Advanced SQL for ColdFusion</a> - <a href"http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-294">Flex and Google App Engine</a> - <a href"http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-266">Using Design Patterns in Flex</a> - <a href"http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-262">How not to code flex applications</a> - <a href"http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-332">Blowing Your Mind With Merapi</a> - <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-292">Busy Programers Guide to Java part 1</a> <font size="2" color="green">5. What are some of the hot topics you'd like to see at RoundTable discussions?</font> Hmm... maybe a good talk about Battlestar or one on the latest Star Trek movie and predictions on what the next Star Trek TV series will be about. <font size="2" color="green">6. Where can people find you at CFUnited?</font> At the bar or in a session, or in a session at the bar. <font size="2" color="green">7. What's the latest news with you? Has anything changed since last CFUnited?</font> Yes, the change since the last CFUnited is that I actually get to come to CFUnited this time. :) <font size="2" color="green">8. What is unique about CFUnited?</font> I think the room names at CFUnited are really unique. I mean, a room called Galactica?? That's just rad! <font size="2" color="green">9. What do you like to do in your free time?</font> When I'm not working and/or taking care of my children I enjoy jamming and making music. I also love my Xbox 360, Fallout 3 and the combat shotgun I get to use in it at point blank during VATS, oh yeah! <font size="2" color="green">10. What's your favorite CFML tag of all time? </font> That would be < cfdump > baby ...yeah! Interviews speakers topic interview Mon, 18 May 2009 16:12:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/5/18/Speaker-Spotlight-Jun-Heider Speaker Spotlight: Lance Smith http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/5/14/Speaker-Spotlight-Lance-Smith <img src="http://cfunited.com/blog/images//lance_smith.jpg"> <a href="http://lsdigitaldesign.com/">Lance Smith</a> - Has several years of experience in IT/Web Development. He has been working with computers for over 20 years, programming for about 12, and doing Web development for 8. He is a Certified Adobe Expert (ACE) for ColdFusion 8 and senior application engineer at O'Neil & Associates, where he does Web development with Adobe ColdFusion. He is also a part-time instructor at Sinclair Community College, where he teaches Web development and design. <b>CFUnited session:</b> <a href="http://cfunited.com/2009/topics#topic-237">Handling Errors with Error Handling</a <br/> <font size="2" color="green">1. Have you spoken at CFUnited in the past?</font> I've attended for the past three years and would tell anyone who is in any way a CF developer to get themselves here! This is by far the best CF conference around. <font size="2" color="green">2. Why should people attend your session(s)?</font> Most developers understand the importance of error handling in an application, but many don't utilize it to its full potential. Error management is critical in site development and having the right information at the right time can save you and your customer a lot of headaches. <font size="2" color="green">3. Do you have any projects in the works that you will be revealing at CFUnited?</font> CFUnited? Unfortunately, all my projects are top secret. Ok--not really, but still can't show them ;-) <font size="2" color="green">4. Besides your topic, what other sessions are you looking forward to?</font> I'd like to see Ben Nadel's presentation and some of the more advanced topics as well as John Paul Ashenfelter's bleeding edge technology presentation. <font size="2" color="green">5. What are some of the hot topics you'd like to see at RoundTable discussions?</font> Nerd talk--Star Wars, Transformers, G.I. Joe/80's toys...stuff like that. <font size="2" color="green">6. Where can people find you at CFUnited?</font> I will be everywhere this year except the room! I hope to get some networking in with the greatest minds in the biz! Oh, and I'll be in that Thinkgeek room for sure... <font size="2" color="green">7. What's the latest news with you? Has anything changed since last CFUnited?</font> The biggest change since last year is that I'm now the father of twin boys! After Ray Camden, I feel like the busiest man on earth. <font size="2" color="green">8. What is unique about CFUnited?</font> I personally enjoy CFUnited more than conferences like MAX because it's a little smaller and more intimate, and you can really get to know some people here. The CF community is full of such great people--it's unlike any other dev community in my opinion. <font size="2" color="green">9. What do you like to do in your free time?</font> I enjoy spending time with my two boys, digital photography, travel, hiking and camping, general computing, and in my spare time rebuilding my collection of 80's G.I. Joe's. Interviews speakers topic interview Thu, 14 May 2009 13:38:00 -0500 http://cfunited.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/5/14/Speaker-Spotlight-Lance-Smith