A big thank you to our talented crew of summer interns for forming an integral part of the team and providing valuable outside perspective about the company. We can’t thank you enough for the contributions you’ve made and the hours of hard work you’ve put in. Thank you for bringing your vibrant personalities, sparkling wit, intellect, and fresh insights to SoftArtisans and Riparian Data. We are going to miss you! Good luck in your studies during the Fall!
This is the third installment of our Intern Diaries series, wherein each week our lovely interns try to give you the inside scoop on what being a programming intern at a high-tech startup is really like. [For Part 1 and Part 2] This week Ingrid tackles what makes for great code. See what she’s discovered below.
I’ve been considering what defines well-designed code this summer both via literature and my own experiences. It’s a big question so I’ve been taking my time, and slowly amassing a list of the characteristics of awesome code. However, this past week, the list has become longer and clearer in my mind because of the introduction of three-person code reviews. At this point, I’ve decided that the seven characteristics of stellar code are:
I was working on some VBA code to hide all the values for a particular report filter, except for a specific one. The code looped through all the pivot items for a particular field, turned them off and then turned the one I wanted back on.
Follow
Sub SetFilter(ByVal Worksheet As String, ByVal pivotTable As String, ByVal pivotField As String, ByVal selectValue As String)
Sheets(Worksheet).Select
Dim pvtTable As pivotTable
Set pvtTable = ActiveSheet.PivotTables(pivotTable)
Dim pvtField As pivotField
Set pvtField = pvtTable.PivotFields(pivotField)
For Each filterValue In pvtField.PivotItems
filterValue.Visible = False
Next
pvtField.PivotItems(selectValue).Visible = True
End Sub
While testing the code, it worked until it hit the last filter value, at which point it would throw an exception: Continue reading Run-time error 1004 with PivotItems
SQL Server Reporting Services subscriptions are an easy way to automatically run and deliver SSRS reports. You can schedule reports to run at a regular interval and deliver to file share, e-mail, or a SharePoint document library (if you’re using SharePoint integration mode).
Here is my SSRS 2008 R2 instance, with a couple of prepared reports:
I’m going to create a subscription for SSRS_example_multivalue, which has a parameter with multiple values to select from. Continue reading Automating Reports with SSRS Subscriptions
Here’s my take on the mystery behind the magic of successful networking. Golf anyone? Yes, there is a connection, I promise. For serious golfers or enthusiasts, you want to be on par with the hole. Let’s focus on Par-3, the distance is shorter and for some, ok for me, easier. A Par-3 hole, is a hole that an expert golfer is expected to need only three strokes to complete. Planning, action, and reward are my top three steps and Par-3 for networking.
Networking is a short amount of time to make a connection and should be fun! Leave all the prepared speeches at home! Networking is about building relationships. Keep in mind these 3 easy steps and you’ll be on PAR to have a great event: Continue reading Networking on PAR: 3 Easy Steps
Once a month we get together for board games, beer, and pizza. On Wednesday, Aug 8th, we’re opening our doors to the community (yes, you!) to partake in the festivities!
Come meet the team, strategize on building the next laser-bagel-toaster-cutter, and enjoy FREE food and drinks. That’s right — free food, beer and great company. (We can arrange transportation if needed.)
The Details:
When:
Wednesday, Aug. 8th, 6 p.m.
Where:
SoftArtisans
3 Brook Street
Watertown, MA 02472
RSVP: http://boardgamesandbeer.eventbrite.com/
What’s in it for us? Continue reading Game Night at SoftArtisans
1. What do you do?
At work I wear many hats, but my primary role is as a software developer on our product OfficeWriter.
2. What are you listening to right now?
I have quite an eclectic taste, and I generally rely on Pandora to pick my music for me. However right now I am listening to- Suzy – Caravan Palace
3. If you were a beer what would you be and why?
This is the third installment of our Intern Diaries series, wherein each week our lovely interns try to give you the inside scoop on what being a programming intern at a high-tech startup is really like. [To read part 1 and part 2.] This week Shane walks you through what to look for when hunting down that perfect internship.
As I enter my final stretch (three weeks left), I’ve been trying to really internalize all of the different things I’ve learned. I learned about everything from teamwork to fooseball to the stair climbing habits of cows. I even learned a drop of computer science (shocking, I know!). So, as I prepare to go back to school and restart the whole internship search, here are the top 4 things I learned for all those other intern-hopefuls.
1. Small Companies Rock! Continue reading The Intern Diaries: Shane
Going through SPTechCon withdrawals? So are we. That’s why we’re bringing you a (relatively) quick recap from the Twittosphere. We can’t thank everyone who came out to booth #505 enough. We enjoyed meeting/tweeting all of you and learning from the SharePoint community! If you weren’t able to join in the exciting conversation or view OfficeWriter demos on how it can enhance reporting with SharePoint, fear not we have more demos online and the chance to download a free evaluation of OfficeWriter so you can take it for a test drive yourself. In the interim, take a look inside the four days of sessions, networking, and SharePoint learning.
*Cross-posted from Riparian Data, a startup incubated out of SoftArtisans.
What’s the single best part of your workday? Work night? Weekend? It’s checking your inbox, right? Oh. It’s not? But you spend 13 hours a week dealing with email! You and your ‘box should be besties by now!
Pardon? “Enemies?” Did you really say that?
Way harsh, Ty.
But, seeing as it’s your work/life and I’m just interrupting it, Imma throw you a bone. Or, rather, a Pop phone.
Here’s what you need to do to get it:
Continue reading #Undertime BostonFest Contest: Fight Email Overload, Win a POP Phone