After a month of having a Divvy membership, I have been on only nine trips. A slacker, I know; but with two weeks of vacation in there, I'm averaging one trip every other day. As the weather improves, I will certainly be upping that to my goal of seven out of ten trips in a week.
But here-in lies a problem that I have discovered. The Divvy rental is for a thirty minute period, and that is terribly close to the amount of time it takes me to make the trip <a href="https://goo.gl/maps/rX8KRLvEU6U2">between LaSalle &#x26; Washington and Racine &#x26; Belmont</a>.
<a href="https://goo.gl/maps/rX8KRLvEU6U2"><img src="/images/divvy-route.png" alt="Divvy Route" title="Divvy Route"></a>
For my first three trips I averaged 27:53, which is dangerously close to the 30 minute allotment. For the next six trips, I took advantage of the "unlimited" rides feature of my pass. In order to be able to take a more leisurely ride home (and be less worried about hitting every damn stop light along the way), I have been stopping at some point along the route, docking my bike, then borrowing the same bike again.
I feel a little like an urban Pony Express rider.
For these dock-and-swap rides, I had two go over the (combined) thirty minute threshold, three below it, and one at exactly thirty combined minutes. Considering that it only takes about 15 seconds for me to dock and undock the bicycle, I think this is the best way for me to get between home and the office without having to worry about going over that magic half-hour mark.
In chatting with other people around the office, it seems that most people think that thirty minutes is just barely too short, and they have shied away from getting memberships because of this. As a comparison, NYC's Citi Bike allows 45 minutes for members, and Phoenix and St. Paul / Minneapolis give a 60 minute grace period for members (both of which are also operated by Bixi). All other cities with 1,000 or more bicycles had a thirty minute duration. These include Boston, Long Beach, Miami Beach, San Diego, and Washington, D.C.
Taking a look at time estimates from Google Maps, for a conservative rider that wants to keep their ride under an estimated 25 minutes, Divvy is basically limiting their customers to only those south of Fullerton, north of 35th St (you can maybe make it to a Sox game!), and east of Garfield Park. By my estimates, just adding 15 minutes to the allotted time will open up a much larger segment of Chicago, even if that time is only offered to members. I really wish I had much better data on population segments, household incomes, commuter routes, and wear costs per mile on the bicycles. Oh the fun I could have with all of that data.
Alternatively, they could just advertise the #PonyExpress option (I'm going to make this happen).

A Month With Divvy

The short version of the trip:
<ul>
<li>Saturday, 4/12: ORD to TU</li>
<li>Sunday: Air show at Davis-Monthan AFB, "what's in your fridge?" ad-hoc dinner</li>
<li>Monday: bums on a couch, grocery shopping, BNP&#x26;C</li>
<li>Tuesday: bums on a couch, hospital trip</li>
<li>Wednesday: bums on a couch, failed grilled chicken</li>
<li>Thursday: bums on a couch, bookstore, "gnocchi"</li>
<li>Friday: bowling, Arizona Pizza, and Jeremy's baseball game</li>
<li>Saturday: Jeremy's baseball game 2, Pima County Fair, and Wings on Broadway</li>
<li>Sunday: visit to Phoenix, Easter dinner by Alyssa</li>
<li>Monday: bums on a couch, grocery shopping, brats on the grill</li>
<li>Tuesday: Tucson Zoo, Poco &#x26; Mom's</li>
<li>Wednesday, 4/23: TUS to ORD</li>
</ul>

April 2014 Arizona Trip

In terms of reaction to a request for work, there are several responses. In order from most desirable to least desirable:
<ol>
<li>Successful action with a message of success.</li>
<li>Failed action with a message of failure.</li>
<li>Successful action without a message.</li>
<li>Successful action with a message of failure.</li>
<li>Failed action without a message.</li>
<li>Failed action with a message of success.</li>
</ol>
I ran into an issue this week where users were saying that an action they were attempt to perform was reporting success. However, the later steps in their workflow were showing that the original task had failed. This was a disaster for the user experience. I dug into the code and found the offending switch. It was an entirely acceptable failure and a very common occurrence. However, because it was reporting success, users were obviously confused and overall productivity quickly ground to a halt. When my success is determined by the productivity gains that my software provides to others, this is clearly a very serious concern of mine.
From the time the issue was first report to me to the time it was fixed was approximately four minutes. No one in the organization really gave it a second thought, and merrily they went about their day. I, however, was thoroughly distraught. How did this pass through automated tests, manual testing, and user testing, and find its way into the production environment?
Today, I finally rearranged the entire testing suite, streamlining both the ability to add a new test and to determine code coverage. In reporting back to my boss about what I did this week ("re-factored the testing procedures"), he was thoroughly confused why I spent more than twenty hours on something that was fixed in four minutes. Even the explanation of "so it won't happen again" only slightly satisfied his question. However, as soon as I took the deep breath to fully explain why I did what I did and how it will help, he just cut me off say "it won't happen again? it's fine?" and he moved onto other things. It is really comforting knowing my boss has this level of trust. That he knows that whatever I have decided to spend my time on is almost assuredly results in the best service to our organization.
Or maybe he has no trust in me, but I am reading it as a message of success.

False Errors Are Better Than Silent Failures

<img src="/images/data-layers.png" alt="Data Workflow" title="Data Workflow">
This should be a footnote, but I have always wanted an excuse to use the stencils from the Visio Work Flow Diagram. They just seem like a fun way to represent something.
What does it take, if almost everything is created by hand, to do something as simple as add a new field to a table in the database:
<ol>
<li>UPDATE TABLE script</li>
<li>Edit DBML xml file (let Visual Studio regenerate the designer file)</li>
<li>Edit the POCO class and any mapping methods</li>
<li>Edit the JSON serialization method</li>
<li>Edit the Knockout.js Model or ViewModel object</li>
<li>Edit the HTML template</li>
</ol>
This is just for displaying the content. Additional work is required to allow for editing values and pushing them all the way back to the database. This lead me down the road of finding how I can eliminate steps. I reasoned that there had to be solutions already created that would took care of any least one of the various steps. Thankfully, I was able to find solutions for most of it.
Entity Framework Code First (ef-cf) has been the most promising tool for me to use to cut out the step 1 and roll it into a replacement for step 2. AutoMapper took care of replacing mapping methods in step 3 (though I still have to update the POCO class). Json.Net has been my library of choice for serialization. Knockoutjs.Mapping plugin too care of Step 5.
At this point, updating the data model looks like this:
<ol>
<li>Edit EF model.</li>
<li>Edit POCO class.</li>
<li>Edit HTML template.</li>
</ol>
This is clearly more manageable. I am putting together a tutorial all about taking a project from scratch and implementing all of the pieces needed to get this configured. If I stopped having so many false starts, I am sure the post (and the project) would be finished by now.

Data Layers, and Finding Ways to Reduce Repetition

About nine months ago, <a href="http://divvybikes.com/">Divvy bike</a> sharing program went live in Chicago. I was thrilled with the concept of it from the initial launch, and was excited to see it quickly expand throughout the city*. Over the winter, I learned of the <a href="http://www.divvybikes.com/pricing/corporate-memberships">corporate memberships</a> that they offer. The simplest of which was a one-time $100 start-up fee, and all employees then received $10 off of annual memberships.
Clearly, thought I, this was an easy sell to Human Resources and a quick ten dollars saved per year. Last month, they announced that they would pay for all but $30 of the membership fee. How could I pass this up? I was one of the first to register under our plan, and this was the impetus for me to finally beg for this damn weather to be nice enough for me to comfortably ride.
Yesterday, it was over 60°F when I left the office, so I hopped on a bike, and pedaled my way home. It was delightful! The bike lanes on Dearborn through downtown provided for a safe pack of riders. A quick jaunt on Clark before taking the split to go up Lincoln, and I was at the Divvy station nearest me inside of 25 minutes. Fitbit says I burned approximately 232 calories, which is just a nice addition. It took me about as much time door-to-door as it would on a slightly slower than average day taking the L. I look forward to spending many mornings and evenings atop a bicycle in the months to come.
There are a few downsides, of course. The bikes are heavy, that is for sure. At 40 pounds, they are not easily swung around. Even <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=raBz77k4fqk#t=55">professional BMX riders</a> have trouble doing anything impressive while on the bike. The three gear settings on the bicycle do not really allow for aggressive (or even fast) speeds. With my long legs and powerful strides, I would really like there to be a fourth gear or for the third gear to be tuned up a bit. I never used the first gear, preferring to start in second, and quickly ticked up to third before even getting through an intersection. In spite of this, the gear changes were completely smooth, and I never had even a hint that I might be stressing the machine. Some people are having a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/24/divvy-bikes-lawsuit_n_3795687.html">Not In My Backyard</a> reaction to the system, but personally I think they can just get over it.
While riding the bike, I found myself thinking of a niche market of lightweight, collapsible accessories waiting to happen. Certainly a bag <a href="http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2014/03/finally-bag-fits-tiny-rack-bike-share-bikes/8665/">tailored for the front rack</a> would be useful, as would a rear rack that could snap onto the seat post. It would make it viable for simple grocery shopping.
At the end of the day, it was a great ride, and I am very glad that I have an annual membership. With any luck, I may be able to convince some of my nearby coworkers to also grab the perk, and we can ride to and from work together.
<hr>
Footnote: Chicago is a <a href="http://www.chicagonow.com/chicago-muckrakers/2012/06/segregation-in-chicago-is-a-complex-interplay-between-race-and-income-study/">very segregated city</a>; it is not something to be proud of, but it is the reality. "Throughout the city" for a white, middle-class resident pretty much just means the Loop, and all neighborhoods north of there. The west and south side just do not exist in my regular travels in the city. The city, when rolling out Divvy, <a href="http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-07-10/news/ct-met-divvy-bike-location-20130710_1_bike-sharing-program-divvy-pink-line">seemed to target these neighborhoods</a> the most. I cannot find anything that points to whether this has changed with the Phase 2 roll outs, or if the trend continues.

Divvy Is Delightful

<blockquote>
This old code? Sure, I think I can make a quick tweak to it. Let me take a look.
</blockquote>
Thus, the yak shaving begins. The code compiles just fine, the tests all pass, and I can just edit a couple of lines and be done with this. Edit, build, deploy, drink coffee.
It was nice of NuGet, though, to notify me that one of the libraries that I am using has an updated version available. Well, I think I will just click that handy Update Packages button.
Oh, there is a conflict between a file that already exists and the new version coming in - go ahead and overwrite the file. I am pretty sure it is something minor that I will easily discover; and if it does not work, then that is what source control is for.
<blockquote>
Whoa! WHOA! Slow down there, cowboy. You told me there was only one package to update, not the fourteen you just updated. Now my project no longer builds. Wait… you REMOVED A PACKAGE? Now we have a problem.
</blockquote>
At this point, I went back to TFS to figure out what package had been removed. Then I had to go research what that package used to do, find its replacement, discover how to interact with it, find that there is a better way to utilize it, rebuild the whole solution, fix a plethora of bugs this caused, and eventually get that small portion working.
One package update done; thirteen more to go. This was supposed to be a quick tweak.
Two days later, I decide that updating the packages is not worth it at this time. I document that the application needs package updates (all fourteen at this time), approximately how long I think it will take (a week), potential impact if it does not get updated (none), and what selling points for the user there are to updating (none).
Now, on to the next minor tweak that tries to convince me that library updates are smooth and painless. Also, I need more coffee.

Returning To an Old Project

<blockquote>
When you have children, you can have exactly one hobby. Anything else is an exercise in futility, self-deception, and ineffectiveness. Cooking healthy food is a hobby. Exercising is a hobby. Maintaining a website is a hobby. Writing a blog is a hobby. Bringing work home is a hobby.
</blockquote>
That is a minor paragraph in an otherwise <a href="http://dandreamsofcoding.com/2013/08/07/shutting-down-a-dream/">downer post</a> about a tech start-up shutting down, but it is entirely true and poignant to my life. Over the last two years, running has (injury dependent) been the singular hobby to which I have devoted any significant expanse of time. I have tried to engage seriously in other hobbies such as <a href="rovani.net" title="Rovani in C#">writing a blog</a>, engaging in home repair, <a href="http://darkerthanjealousy.com">creating</a> <a href="http://ckstaplesart.com">new</a> <a href="http://aerynlore.com">websites</a>, maintaining social bonds, even working on <a href="https://github.com/drovani">open-source projects</a>. However, I keep coming back to running. I am not even sure why. I really do not like running; I am constantly injured because of running; I am spending far more money than I should on running; generally, I am not entirely sure that I am happier for it all.
It has become a minor obsession, and I do not know why.
Actually, I do know why: I have a goal. It is an arbitrary, expensive, long-term goal. For some reason, I have it in my head that running all six of the World Marathon Majors is a "Good Idea". Berlin, Boston, London, New York, and Tokyo are all cities that would be fun to visit. Since I am terribly stubborn, and worse so when I have a "Good Idea", then I will find myself continuing with this arduous hobby. The next two goals along the path are to run the <a href="https://rovani.net/marathon-epilogue/" title="A Marathon in Three Parts: Epilogue">Chicago Marathon</a>, and to finish a marathon with a <a href="http://www.baa.org/races/boston-marathon/participant-information/qualifying.aspx" title="Boston Marathon: Qualifying Standards">Boston Qualifier</a>. From there, I will have to save enough money to make two different family trips to Europe and a trip to Japan. These are not cheap endeavors.
Until then, all of the other hobbies are just going to have to wait.

Rovani's Sandbox

Blog Posts - Page 13