The Blog Year 2015 in Retrospective

This year

So now it's time to sum up another year. My second year blogging. What have accomplished blog-wise this year then? Well, let me start admitting that the number of blog post have gone down. In fact I just wrote 17 blog posts this year compared to the 30 of last year. That's not good. What is the reason for that then? My excuse for that poor figure is that the blog post this year on the average is longer than those of 2014. Most of the posts this year have also been either a book review or a part of the "14 Languages" series, and blog posts of both of those types take quite a long time to research. For book reviews you have to read the book (obviously ;) and for parts of the 14 Languages series you have to study the language in question in enough detail that you actually can write something about the language that is correct and doesn't sound too stupid for anyone that knows the language.

If I compare what I said that I would accomplish in 2015 in the retrospective for 2014, I've done some of the things I said I would do, but failed in doing others. I've started writing in English and added some colours to the site. That's good. I've also finished the book Seven Languages in Seven Weeks and written a blog entry about each of the languages.

I've not written a graphical Game of Life client, which I regret, but I've simply not had the time. There hasn't been much Groovy-programming done either :(

Regarding reading programming related books, I think I've done fairly well. I've read six such books. One less than last year, but I think that that is compensated by the fact that the books read this year covers a broader set of topics than the ones I read last year. This year I've read books about: general programming, Mule, Python, Erlang, networking and of course the Seven Languages-book.

The math app has also seen some progress. I've added a digital clock and exercises for that. I've also added division exercises and mixed addition/subtraction exercises.

Next year

What about 2016? What are my plans regarding the blog, the math app, reading programming books and doing other stuff that I like? I will try to focus a bit on learning Clojure better. When reading the Clojure part of Seven Languages, I felt that I enjoyed programming in it, so I've bought a book (Clojure for the Brave and True) which I will read. I'll will also a course (my 22:nd at Mittuniversitetet) in...hmmm...Java. Why Java? Haven't you coded in that language since 1998? Yes, I have, but that course was the only one that I felt like taking this coming semester. I might try to get a degree from Mittuniversistet, I thing I'm quite close, so I need to take some more classes there, and this was the only one that was even remotely interesting. And how is a course in Java related to Clojure? To make things a little more interesting, I'll try, when possible, to also code the course assignments in Clojure. That could be fun. I hope.

I plan to continue working on the math app. Alma is progressing quite rapidly through the exercises, so I need to keep adding such. More multiplication exercises and mixed multiplication/division exercises will have to be added. Perhaps I'll finally get around to make the app ready for Google Play, but to be honest I doubt that I will.

I also with to continue and, hopefully, complete the 14 Languages-series. I'm not sure that I will be able to complete it, it takes so much time, but at least I will give it a try. I feel that I learn much from reading about different languages. What languages that are included in the Seven More Languages in Seven Weeks book I don't have a clue about. That will come as a, hopefully pleasant, surprise.

That was that for this year. Have a really Happy New Year! Let's hope that 2016 will be a much better year than 2015!