Netbeans turns 10!

Netbeans (everyone's favourite Java IDE) is now 10 years old! Amazing.

(A Java IDE is an Integrated Development Environment. Basically Netbeans is the thing I use to write, test and debug Java projects.)

I started using Netbeans when I started on Maprequest (an open source project for producing georeferenced maps for Ozi Explorer from web based maps). Now I fight on with Netbeans in an Eclipse heavy environment at work.

I think one of the best things about Netbeans is its support for Maven 2 projects. In an environment where the standard build system is Maven 2 (and where the continuous integration platform uses Maven 2) it's good to be able to have real Maven running inside Netbeans. That way you know that what you have running in your IDE is the same as what your continuous integration is going to run.

I try to be polite, but it's hard not to boast about Netbeans' great svn support when talking to people struggling with Eclipse. It's great that ClearCase support is back again too!

Top Gear Australia

OK I was sceptical at first. Could SBS's Top Gear Australia possibly come close to the "real" Top Gear?

I've got to admit: tonight's was quite good. Using Holden Astras for lawn bowls was a stroke of genius. (You really need to see this to fully understand.)

Part of the problem with the show is that you can't help but compare it to the original. In fact they have used a number of elements of the original, but amazingly the show doesn't fell too much like a copy. Keep up the good work.

iPhone Left In Hot Car For Three Hours

Another great story from The Onion.

"This normally peaceful suburban town is still reeling following the news Monday that a local resident, whose name is being withheld by police pending a full investigation, left an iPhone unattended for more than three hours in a car parked in the hot sun."

Read the full story:
Police: iPhone Left In Hot Car For Three Hours