Perl : Programming Documentation Site

For some scripts in my work on HP Unix Pa-Risc/Itanium I’m using PERL.
It’s a very good scripting language and I have found this site to help me in script creation:

Site : http://perldoc.perl.org/index-functions.html

I recommend this site, it’s a very good resource and help for Perl programming.

To the next Post.

JGraph : beautiful choice

For a java swing management tool for my current Interconnection project I needed a java library to show a graphical representation of an internal algorithm.
So I started looking for java libraries for the simple graphical representation and found these libraries:

• Piccolo2D : http://www.piccolo2d.org/index.html
• JGraph : http://www.jgraph.com/

Really I needed a simple library to draw: links, rectangles and rhombus, common flow-chart symbols.

Best of these for my needs is JGraph , very complete and simple with a complete documentation. Respects a Piccolo2D is very complete in the linking management and layout design.

Very big problems for me were redistributing shapes and redesign all the forms and links, avoiding intersections.

In JGraph you can adopt, once created all shapes and links, a layout that redesign all shapes apply a particular representation (Tree, circular, organic, …) or you can implement generic Interface mxGraphLayout to create your own layout.

I used JGraph 6 for swing application and really recommend it.

To the next Post.

Italy vs Italy

Italy is a great country. It’s my country. It has a great history, beautiful cities, good food, beautiful women and very bad managers, I think worst in Europe and probably in the entire world.

Really there are two classes of people: honest, working and capable on one side and thieves, profiteers and incapable on the other side.
You said “This happen everywhere!!!”. It’s true, but in Italy, second class of people is Managers, Political and generally it command on the other class.

In Italy there are few cases where good and capable people in positions of responsibility, generally are people : friend of …, sons of …, nieces of … or members of powerful organizations (legal or not).

This explains the dire situation of Italian Companies (for example Telecom Italia).

This class is greedy for money and power as well as incapable and this obviously affects capable class.

In conclusion options for capable class are only three: Change to upper class, leave the country or remain.

First option it’s possible only associated some powerful organizations or serve someone.
I recommend second option more dignified and honorable.

To next post.

Italian IT : history of a chronic patient

In this post I want analyze or try to analyze, actual state of IT in Italy.
This theme is recurrent in my posts, simply because I am living a very difficult period in IT work area in my Company and in general in my country.

I know that possible cause is the global crisis, I know that Greece is at border of default, I know that Italy is better positioning than other European countries (ndr: Is it true this ?), but I am very worried about future. Why we are arrived at this point?

I worked from 1993 in IT and in these years in this sector many events have happened year after year and IT lost his importance and role.

I know it’s a global trend, as I wrote in a previous post.

But why IT is always seen as a cost to cut? First cost to cut.
I think simply because Italian management doesn’t know IT importance.
This is due essentially at three factors:

- Italy really is an old country with an average age very high then with an ancient Management.
- In Italy don’t exists a correct Technical Carrier in IT, generally a new employees graduate enter as a system analyst without having developed a single line of code, therefore haven’t knowledge of the entire IT production cycle.
- Companies not invest in training courses, fundamental in a continually evolving sector.

Another important factor to consider is the application of organizational methodologies predominantly Anglo-Saxon (Most IT companies are from USA) without changes or adjustments at reality very different both culturally and historical.
So a methodology that is successful in USA many times is a disaster in Italy or don’t reach expected results.

Current Trend of Italian Technological Company is to outsource IT Area ( I am witness of this in Telecom Italia S.p.A.) to few big IT consulting player (Accenture, Engeener, …) managing entire IT production Cycle.

This choice for a telecommunications company where IT systems strongly support core business meaning be easily blackmailed by these companies and I doubt that there are budget savings in long term (real reason of this outsourcing operation).
Moreover many times these consulting companies to economize use graduates without experience with obvious problems in implementation and service quality.

In conclusion, the situation is serious and I don’t see a short-term solution for IT in Italy, I hope that necessary measures are taken before this chronic patient dies.

To the next post.

IT in Italy

According to the report Assinform, the computer industry in 2009 decreased by 8,1%, while telecommunications recede by 2.3%.

The long wave of crisis strikes even on the shores of Information and Communication Technology.

And Italy is no exception: the first report data Assinform edited by NetConsulting pleasantries without describing the state sector in the peninsula: the ITC shall register an overall negative trend of 4.2% in 2009.
The report informs us that last year the business of the ICT market in Italy was 62 million euros.

Doubtful even software & services (-5.6%) and technical assistance (-5%). Among the programs there is no category showing no minus sign: application to -4.1%, -2% middleware, system software falling by 4.6%.
The crisis services, however, threatens several highly qualified professional, as evidenced by the numbers for the training (-8.8%) and consulting (7%).

I am a witness to the crisis, my company is cutting 2,150 professionals in the name of a false restructuring, moving into a smaller company that at best will have 3 years of life.

IT is always understood as an expense by management not as a benefit or a sector that benefits a company.

For this reason, cuts are made, badget are reduced to limit the cost, but for a Technology Company as Telecom Italia S.p.A. this will mean to go into Business failure.

To the next post.

Chrome Stop-Motion Animation

A very beautiful video about Chrome.

Never cease to amaze me the Google Creativity.

To the next post.

Leaving Italy

This morning i read a newsletter from a blog "Italiansinfuga"

In this blog there are many articles about experiences of Italians in other countries and practical advice for those who want to move to other countries.

In 4 months that i read this blog, i never read a bad experience, specially about young Italians that leave Italy after graduation, because not encounter a work.

A phrase that strikes me about all in daily post is "Italy is a country for old men", there aren't spaces for young people.

It's very sad read this, but is more sad know it is true.

But it's true, in Italy a young don't have opportunities specially after a graduation.
Scientific Research in Italy don't exist.
I have friends, very intelligent, graduates, capable but jobless or with temporary jobs underpaid.

Only way to encounter a work is if you know someone with a little recommendation regardless of ability.

So Given this situation the only solution is simply : Leave Italy, certainly is the advice that I will to my son when it's time.

To the next post.

Chrome or not Chrome ?

I state that i am a Google's big fan but Chrome is in my opinion the best browser actually. After years of Internet Explorer 5,6,7 and 8, a couple of years with Firefox, finally i discover Chrome.
First Release was a disaster, i download it but when i couldn't navigate on my gmail site. Incredible a Google browser than not permitted go on his sites !!!!! Really a big disappointment.
After a month approximatively i downloaded a more stable version, a very simple and light browser without many function but that worked fine, i was happy!
In that period i used both Chrome and Internet Explorer.
But real leap forward in my opinion was done with version 4 by introducing extensions bridging that gap that divided him from Firefox primarily.
Actually there are many extensions in https://chrome.google.com/extensions and a big developers community.

But why switching to Chrome? Simply because is light and intuitive.
Light and Intuitive, two main features that must have a browser. More is perfectly integrated with another google instruments (gmail, feed, note, buzz, ...). So my advice is to download and use it.

Actually Chrome is third Browser more used but i bet that in three years will be second or first.

In Wikipedia you find a very complete explanation and history of this beautiful browser http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Chrome

Bye to the next post.

My First Post

With this post, today, 01/April/2010 17.58, start my blog officially.
There're many things to say but write in another language is always difficult, and my English level not is so good.
Actually i am at office, bored and doing a work that not so good. I work in a big Italian Telecommunication Company
and this isn't his best period, really Italian IT are many years that is in problem.
I want speak about technical solutions, about me, about Telecommunication Sector, about my country, about all attract my attention, i will use English, Spanish and Italian for my posts.

Happy reading, hoping that my grammar errors will not come too horrified.