I had the pleasure of speaking at the inaugural 360intersect, but even better I got the opportunity to attend this new, unique conference. As one attendee said to me - and I’m paraphrasing here - tech conferences are usually about professional development, but this event was more about personal development. And this was indeed the case. The speakers shared personal stories that were inspirational and highlighted the diversity of the tech community.

On Day 1, Victor Agreda, Jr, talked about his love for magic. Robi Ganguly talked about going from being told throughout his childhood that he cannot run to becoming an avid runner who has completed a marathon. I spoke about my Long Trail hike from last fall. And Michelle Yaiser talked about being an amateur race car driver, a musician, and dancer.

On Day 2, Doug McCune talked about using his love for maps and data to create art in the physical world. Jon Carroll shared stories about his love for video games, farts, and augmented reality. Josh Michaels talked about his long journey to blend his love for art and photography into a career as an app developer. And the day wrapped up with an emotional talk by Mike Lee as his reflected on his life over the past year.

What made all these talks great wasn’t just hearing the personal stories, but seeing how each speaker blends their various loves into what they do for a living. For instance, Robi’s talk illustrated how preparing for the marathon also prepared him to be CEO and vice versa. Michelle related race car driving to how one should to approach work and focus. Josh said don’t wait, pursue your dreams now. And I said don’t work so hard.

The turnout for this first 360intersect was small, but that was expected. Personally I think the size was perfect because it gave everyone an opportunity to meet and chat with one another. And it made it possible to have group activities such as the duck boat tour of Seattle, the Saturday night dinner at Pike Brewing Company, and the straggler’s dinner at Mama’s on Sunday.

I thoroughly enjoyed the outstanding talks, the cool venture, seeing old friend, and making new ones. And I’m already looking forward to the next 360intersect. Big thanks goes out to John and Nicole for putting on this great event.

It’s a brand new year, and as the saying goes, out with the old and in with the new.

I mentioned in my 2012 Year in Review post that I’m re-focusing my intention on White Peak Software this year. In some was this re-focus is like a re-boot for WPS. This means exciting new things for the company going forward, but it also means it’s time to good bye a couple of products.

The first product retiring is SMTP Diagnostics. SMTP Diagnostics was White Peak Software’s very first product. I honestly did not know if the app would sell or not, nor did I care. I released it because, at the time, it was an app I needed and used regularly. The release of SMTP Diagnostics also gave me the opportunity to learn how to sell software online. Without SMTP Diagnostics, I would not have been as prepared for the other White Peak Software apps.

The second product retiring today is Hey Peanut. Hey Peanut was written for my son Rowan, who was only one and a half at the time. I had high hopes for Hey Peanut. My son loved the app, and I thought other kids would enjoy it as well. I invested time and money into the app, but unfortunately I missed the mark with it. All is not lost though. I learned a lot from the mistakes I made with Hey Peanut that will help me going forward.

It saddens me to see these two apps removed from the White Peak Software home page. Both are very special to me in their own ways. But it is a new year, so out with the old and in with the new.

Three years ago I wrote my first, and last, year in review for White Peak Software. I had hoped I would continue doing a year in review each year, but life, and the book, got in the way. A lot has happened in the last three years, but I want to focus on this last year, 2012.

I’ve been disappointed throughout most of 2012, but looking back, I’m not sure why. Overall it’s been a good year, and I realized I have accomplished quite a bit in very little time. But since starting on the book back in mid-2010, I have felt like I can’t deliver, missing one milestone after another after another. And this is why I have felt disappointed throughout 2012.

A Quick Look Back

I started writing Learning iPad Programming in May 2010. My original goal was to have the manuscript complete by November 2010, a lofty goal for a first time writer. The manuscript, which was more than 700 pages, was completed in September 2011, nearly a year late. I sunk into a depression over the delays in finishing the book, which of course led to more delays. I stopped work on all other projects so I could focus on the book, but it didn’t really help. If not for Tom Harrington, who agreed to co-author the book with me in June 2011, I don’t think I would have ever finished the book.

Working with Tom gave me the motivation I needed to crank out chapters from June through the beginning of September, and crank out chapters we did, writing over fifty percent of the book during that time.

The book was finally published in December 2011, and I planned to return my focus on White Peak Software. But I was once again distracted, this time by a video project related to the book.

A week before the book was available in bookstores, I went to Chicago to record the Learning iPad Programming LiveLessons, a training video based on the book. Like writing the book, this was the first time I had ever done anything like this, and I was ill prepared. I thought I would knock out the recording in a couple of days, but that didn’t happen. But unlike the book, I didn’t have months and months to record. I had to finish the project by the end of the week. This meant very little sleep for me each night as I re-thought and re-worked the topics that I planned to cover the following day. I left Chicago completely exhausted, but I was very happy with what had been accomplished.

At this point I had basically ignored White Peak Software for over a year and a half. Not good for business. Product sales had declined by nearly fifty percent, and we were cash poor (“we” being my family and me). I took on a client project in October 2011, which shipped February 2012. The project was suppose to help us with cash, but the project was for a startup that had its own cash problems. The project ended up hurt us more than helping us.

In Tough Time, Go Snowboarding

Despite the struggles, the family and I packed our bags and headed to Killington, VT, for a month. We were broke, but living the dream getting to ski and snowboard almost daily. Unfortunately it was one of the worse winter seasons in recorded history for Killington, which meant there was very little snow. On the plus side, the temperatures were warmer than expected, which was perfect for Rowan, age 3 at the time, to learn how to ski.

Returning from Killington, I took on one more book related project. As the saying goes, “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.” I guess I was in the need of more personal shame.

I needed cash, and I needed to focus on the business, but I, shamefully, decided to do one more book related project, an enhanced epub version of the book. The enhanced epub version would include audio and video to enhance the book’s content. I had produced over four and a half hours of edited video and audio by the time I finished my part of the project. Unfortunately the enhanced epub book never happened due to production problems by the publisher.

To help with cash, I took on a few short (40 hours or less) client projects. But even better was the first royalty check for the book. Turns out the book is a hit, and while I went broke writing it, I was very happy to finally see some money coming in from that effort. Granted the book hasn’t earned me a lot of money, but I have been able to pay some bills with the two royalty checks I’ve received so far. (Thank you, readers!)

This encouraged me to do a second edition of the book. Yes, fool me a fourth time. Instead of focusing on my business and getting back on track, I decided to do more writing. But first, I needed a break.

Take a Hike

I decided to take a month off from everything and attempt a thru hike of the Long Trail in Vermont. The Long Trail is a 272 mile hiking trail that starts at the Canadian border and runs the length of Vermont to the Massachusetts border. I disconnected from the world and set off on a four week journey. Unfortunately I injured my knee and had to stop after two weeks of hiking and covering nearly 100 miles.

I returned from the hike with new energy and motivation (and a lot of pain in my left knee). I also came back with a different outlook on life and business. I realized I shouldn’t be disappointed about what I perceived as a lack of accomplishment and failure. Instead I realized that despite how much it seems like I’m working and un-delivering, I’m actually enjoying life at lot more.

Accomplishments

The disappointment I felt over much of 2012, as well as in 2010 and 2011, was caused by the transition I was going through, a transition from being a workaholic to a successful slacker. I felt disappointed about the last year, feeling like I can’t deliver. But here is the list of what I’ve done since December 2011:

• Published a book (yes, the book was written before December 2011, but the fact that it was actually published and made available in bookstores across the country gave me a huge sense of accomplishment, bigger than finishing the manuscript).
• Recorded and published an 8-hour training video.
• Recorded 4.5 hours of audio and video for an enhanced epub.
• Shipped a client app.
• Completed multiple small client projects.
• Wrote an article on Xcode code snippets.
• Released two updates to Labor Mate
• Spent a month living in a ski town.
• Spent 2 weeks hiking the Long Trail, followed by two more weeks of traveling for fun.
• Completed the second edition of Learning iPad Programming
• Re-wrote PhotoWheel for iOS 6.

And I’m a few weeks away from shipping another client app. I’ve also been hosting a monthly happy hour for Mac and iOS developers called NSHappyHour, and I co-organize the CocoaHeads Boston monthly meeting.

I look at this list, and I think, “Wow! What a great set of accomplishments.” Others have done more, a lot more, and this is where I start to feel disappointed. The workaholic in me wants to accomplishment more, but then I remind myself this one interesting little fact. I have tracked a total of 1,293.75 hours for 2012 in Harvest.

Based on a 50-work week year (giving 2 weeks off for vacation), the 1,293.75 hours comes out to a weekly average of 25.88 hours. That means I’m working just under 26 hours a week on average. Granted, that’s not what is really happening. Instead I have weeks were I work 50 hours or more, but I also have weeks where I work no hours at all. Also the list above includes the video I recorded in Chicago, but the time recording the video was not logged in 2012. The 1,293.75 hours is for time logged in 2012, but my accomplishment list covers 13 months. Still, I list it here because the video was released in February 2012.

Also, there are times when I answer support email, a minute here and there, that I don’t log to my time sheet. So maybe there is an additional 20 to 40 hours not represented in my 2012 timesheet. Still, keeping in mind the amount of hours I devoted to work related activities, which is low compared to most, I don’t feel as disappointed when I look back over the last year. I feel like I have accomplished quite a bit while only working part-time. I’m well on my way to becoming a successful slacker, as I like to call it.

What’s Next?

So this brings me to the end of 2012, a year that had me feeling disappointed through most of it only to realize I don’t have anything to be disappointed about. Well, that’s not exactly true. While I’m happy with my accomplishments over the last year, I am still disappointed that I have ignored White Peak Software for most of the year. So that’s what’s next for me…a returned focus on White Peak Software in 2013. This mean some changes to existing products - some good, some bad depending on your point of view. It also means some new products. But most importantly, it means I return to my number one passion, writing code.

I’m looking forward to seeing what I’m able to accomplish in 2013 while maintaining my status as a successful slacker.

The White Peak Software office is once again open. It’s back to business as usual.

The White Peak Software office will be closed from Wednesday, August 22, through the end of September.

I am leaving for a month long backpacking trip starting on August 22, and I plan to return by the end of September. Unfortunately I will not have Internet access during this trip, which is why the office will be closed. I apologize in advance for any inconvenience this might cause.

All support emails will be answered in the order they are received once I return.

If you have lost your license information and need it re-sent, click here and provide the email address used when the order was placed. Your license information will be retrieved and sent to you via email.

An update to this blog will be posted as soon as the White Peak Software office returned to normal operations.

For more than 10 years my primary dev machines have been laptops. The mobility provided by a laptop has changed the way, and where, I work. However, an unfortunate downside of me using a laptop as my primary machine is the number of batteries I go through. On average a laptop battery will last me about a year before I need to order a replacement. It’s common for battery life to degrade some after a year, but for me it’s common to see “Service Battery” around the 1-year mark.

Why do I burn through so many laptop batteries? It’s the way I use my laptop.

I often times treat my laptop as a desktop leaving it plugged into power for days, and sometimes even weeks at a time. But laptops are not designed for this kind of usage. The battery, like a muscle in your body, needs to be exercised. For a lithium-ion battery - found in most if not all laptops today - this means conditioning the battery.

To condition a battery, you need to regularly run your laptop on battery power using only a portion of the battery’s power, and then charge the battery as often as possible before the battery fully discharges. After about 30 charge cycles you want to do a full discharge of the battery followed by a full recharge.

Whew! That’s a lot of work to exercise a laptop battery. Well okay, it’s not a lot of work, but it does require some discipline. And history has proven I don’t have the discipline to properly condition my laptop’s battery.

So now I’m faced with a dilemma. I have a shinny, new MacBook Pro that doesn’t have a swappable battery. The battery can be replaced, but it must be replaced by Apple. I can’t simply buy a replacement battery online and pop it in when I need it. So I’m trying to change my ways to prolong the battery life for my new MacBook Pro, and I’m using FruitJuice to help me along the way.

FruitJuice is a combination Mac app and web service that helps extend the life of your laptop’s battery by guiding you through the battery conditioning steps. It works by not only reminding you to condition your battery, it steps you through the conditioning process with convention and helpful email and SMS notifications. And when you are between conditioning periods, you can use FruitJuice to see how well you are exercising your battery by alternating between running on battery power and charging the battery.

It’s this last feature that I like the most. I find myself checking my plugged in percentage a few times a day to make sure I stay in the green zone. The green zone is the ideal combination of running on battery power and plugged into a power source. Hopefully a future version of FruitJuice will notify me when I’ve been out of the green zone for too long, reminding me to unplug and run off the battery. But until such feature exists, I’ll keep an eye on my plugged in percentage.

Using FruitJuice comes with another benefit. It keeps a complete history of battery usage and conditioning. This information can be useful when it’s time to ask Apple for a replacement battery, should you need to prove you have been operating your laptop based on Apple’s own recommended usage and maintenance.

FruitJuice comes with a free 30-day trial, and cost $9.99 per year for one computer. Each additional computer costs $4.99 per year. This is cheap when you compare it to the cost of a new battery, which costs me $129 the last time I bought one for my older MacBook Pro.

So is FruitJuice saving me money? It’s too early to tell since my MacBook Pro is only a couple of weeks old. But I’m hopeful that a year from now I will not see the dreaded “Service Battery” condition that I’ve seen over and over the past few years.

Disclaimer: I was not asked or paid to do this review. I was an early beta tester for FruitJuice, and I continue to be a FruitJuice user.

In July 2007 I bought a fully loaded MacBook Pro. It was by far the best computer I have ever owned. And that isn’t just my opinion. PC World said the Apple MacBook Pro was the fastest Windows Vista notebook at the time.

My MacBook Pro was also the most expensive computer I have ever bought. The high price tag wasn’t because of the perceived “Mac tax.” The high price tag was due to hardware cost. In fact, I looked at what it would cost to buy the same set of hardware from Dell at the time, and Dell’s price was $200 more than Apple’s.

My MacBook Pro has served me well for 5 years, which is a long time especially for a laptop. But it has reached its limits. The machine, while still usable, is just too slow for the work I do daily. I might be able to squeeze out another year if I could bump up the RAM to 8 GB or even 16 GB, but sadly, that model only goes to 4 GB. (Yes, I know there is a non-Apple recommended way to bump up to 6 GB, but let’s face it. Five years is a long time for a laptop.) So nearly 5 years to the date, I got myself a new MacBook Pro. (My previous MBP arrived July 25, 2007, and my latest one arrived July 30, 3012.)

It’s too early to say if I will get 5 years of service out of this latest MBP, but I’m hopeful I will. And while my latest MBP is expensive, it still costed less than the one I bought in 2007 - by nearly $700 if I remember correctly. Though admittedly I did not get the maxed out MBP this time around. I got the 2.6 GHz Intel Core i7 with 16 GB RAM, 512 GB flash storage, and retina display.

My first impression of the new MacBook Pro: It’s a sweet machine.

It feels heavier than I expected, but it’s still lighter than my 2007 MBP. It’s super quiet especially compared to my 2007 MBP. My 2007 MBP’s fan runs non-stop when attached to the power cord. This started when I updated to Lion and has annoyed me ever since. (Thankfully my Bose noise canceling headphones drown out the fan noise from my old MBP.) And my new MBP doesn’t heat up like my old one does.

My new MBP is fast, really fast compared to my 2007 MBP. This is most noticeable for me when compiling projects in Xcode. A project that would take a minute and a half to do a clean compile now takes 10 seconds. And iPhoto, with my 40 GB library, is once again useable. iPhoto was so painfully slow on my other MBP that I only used it to import photos and that was it. But last night I was tagging faces, looking at photos from places, and doing some minor cropping and editing on my shinny, new MBP.

While I knew the new MBP would be faster, lighter, and better than my previous MBP, the one feature I was lukewarm on is the retina display. If the non-retina MBP supported 16 GB of RAM then I might have bought one of them instead of the retina MBP. However, after using my new MBP for a day, I so glad I went with the retina display. Text on the new retina display is crisp, clear, and much more readable than on the non-retina display. And as someone who has to stare at text all day, this was a welcome surprise for me. I was indifferent about the retina display before buying my MBP, but now, I can’t imaging buy a new MBP without the retina display.

The retina display also provides one additional benefit for me. I’m currently working on the second addition of my book Learning iPad Programming. My publisher prefers screenshots for figure images to be at 150 ppi minimum, but normal computer displays are only 72 ppi. With the new retina display, I can take screenshots that are 144 ppi. Still not quite 150 ppi, but a lot closer, which should make my publisher happier.

So after only a day of playing on the new MBP with retina display, was the purchase worth well for me? Absolutely. There’s no doubt in my mind that going with the MBP with retina display was the right choice for me. That said, if my previous MBP were only a year or so old, I might have held off on the purchase until the price drops a bit. But for me, at this time, the new MBP with retina display is the idea machine for me. The 16 GB of RAM, faster CPU and flash storage, and of course the retina display are vast improvements needed for my daily work.

I posted a new beta for Killink CSV Editor v2 today. The big feature added to version 2 is Unicode support. This means Killink CSV Editor can now read and write not only ASCII files but UTF-8 and UTF-16 files.

If you’re a Killink CSV Editor user and you want to live life on the edge, please download beta 2, give it a test drive, and send email to support at white peak software dot com if you encounter any issues. Note this build of Killink CSV Editor installs, by default, in a separate directory allowing both Version 1.14 and Version 2.0 to co-exists on the same computer.

This weekend was Voices That Matter Seattle. It was my second time attending VTM and second time speaking. I have to say this latest installment of VTM was even better than the last one in Philly.

My conference weekend kicked off on Friday with a full day workshop learning Cocos2D. This workshop was full of juicy awesome goodness, and for the first time in my career I feel like I now know how to write a game. In fact I have a new game idea brewing in my head as I type this. Rod Strougo and Ray Wenderlich did an outstanding job putting together and teaching the full day workshop.

VTM continued to impress for the next two days. Some highlights for me included:

* Mike Lee’s keynote. I was especially moved by the part where Mike talked about our wonderful iOS and Mac developer community.

* Hearing Graeme Devine talk on Game Center and the Art of Addictive Games and getting to meet him. We had some good chats. It wasn’t until later I found out who he really is.

* Meeting Kevin Callahan and getting the one-on-one demo of Accessorizer. This app is awesome and does so much to make you more productive in Xcode.

* And of course catching up with old friends and making new ones (too many to list here).

Thanks to the VTM organizers for putting on a great event, and special thanks to Chuck for getting me from and to the airport.

White Peak Software suffered a major email server outage earlier today. Server hardware at the hosting provider died a horrible death causing the outage. I believe the outage started around 10:30 am Eastern and continued until almost 8:00 pm Eastern.

After a few hours and reports of emails bouncing back with “invalid email address” errors, I decided to move the White Peak Software mail server to a new hosting provider. This meant email was once again flowing even while the original hosting provider tried to solve the hardware problems.

Email seems to be stable again. However, if you sent an email to White Peak or me any time today and I have not responded then please resend the email. It’s likely the email fell into a black hole.