Connecting Microsoft Access to MySQL
In my latest video, I demonstrate how to use Microsoft Access as a front-end for MySQL without having to create a DSN entry on the client machine. Access easily connects to MySQL through an ODBC connection but the standard practice is to create a dedicated data source under the...
Programming Conway’s Game of Life
In my latest series of YouTube videos, I demonstrate how to program Conway’s Game of Life in C#. Although I try to provide as much explanation as I can during the videos, this series is probably best for beginners who already have already gotten their feet wet with things...
Leaving Facebook
I decided to pause my use of Facebook for the month of April and see what happens. This is a little background on my decision....
The Accidental Teacher, Part II
What happens when you take a first-year teacher and put him in charge of designing a software engineering program?...
Phone Review – Samsung Galaxy A13 5G
Time for a new phone … I didn’t really want to get a new phone; specifically, I didn’t want to spend the money. I’d bought my Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime back in 2015 and it was still serving me well seven years later but the annoyances were starting to...
Filtering Combo Boxes in Microsoft Access
Combo boxes are extremely useful in Microsoft Access and other design environments. They provide a compact control from which your users can access a drop-down menu that enables them to choose from a variety of options. In my applications, combo boxes often pull their rows from lookup tables such...
5 Reasons You Should Learn SQL
Let me tell you a story … In 2002, I was interviewing for a database support position and feeling pretty good about my chances. I’d been working with Microsoft Access for a few years, everyone at the last job knew me as the expert and general tech guru and...
Cuddling up with Python
In my last post, I talked about getting started with programming and software development and I mentioned that a programming career means continually learning new languages and technologies. In that spirit, one of my goals for 2022 is to finally become proficient with the Python language which I’ve played...
“How do I become a computer programmer?”
Spend much time in beginner programming forums and you’ll see many of the same questions again and again from people trying to break into coding. For some of us who just sort of gravitated to the field, it’s a reminder that it doesn’t come as easily for everyone. Sometimes,...
So you want to be an entrepreneur?
There’s been a lot of talk about The Great Resignation in which employees are quitting their jobs left and right, sometimes to go on to other jobs, sometimes not. The common wisdom I’ve heard too often is that the government needs to stop “all these unemployment benefits” and get...