Linux – Blinding Find

A little understanding of how find expressions work makes it easy to filter its output to exclude certain files and directories. Continue reading

Linux – Counting code lines with the Unix find command

Here we use the Unix find command in conjunction with cat and wc to get a picture of the number of code lines in a directory hierarchy. Continue reading

Linux – Finding distinct file types with the find command

An example of using the Unix find command to quickly check out the number of different file extensions in a directory tree. Continue reading

Python – Building on OS X

Since OS X comes with Python, if you need to build a specific version on your Mac the required bits are likely to be there already. Running “make test” might reveal a few unnoticed absences though. Continue reading

JUnit – Skipping tests with unavailable resources

If your unit tests depend on external resources they’re going to fail from time-to-time when those resources aren’t available. Here we look at a few options for preventing your build from breaking. Continue reading

OS X – Building GNU readline

A number of open source packages depend on the GNU readline library. Here are a couple of easy ways to install it on OS X. Continue reading

Python – Building Python 3.3 with LZMA on Linux and OS X

Python 3.3 supports LZMA compression, though you’ll need an LZMA implementation installed in order to use it. Continue reading

TinyMCE – iOS Elephantiasis

TinyMCE likes to spread itself out on the iPad and iPhone. Here’s one way to satisfy its appetite for space. Continue reading

Java – Simple Server Stubbing

When a Java Class Under Test makes HTTP calls that are tricky to mock, the Simple framework offers a neat alternative for a self-contained stub. Continue reading

Photoshop – Fade to white (redux)

A few simple steps to add a soft border to an image, this time using Adobe Photoshop Elements 11. Continue reading