Stagestudenten over hun Location Based Services project bij RealDolmen

Zoals jullie wel weten laten we hier graag wel eens anderen aan het woord die met iets interessants bezig zijn. 2 stagestudenten werken momenteel aan een project en schreven spontaan een blogpost op onze eigen interne Java Competence Center blog. Deze post wilde ik graag met jullie delen:

Als studenten professionele bachelor Toegepaste Informatica aan de Hogeschool Gent, departement Bedrijfskunde Aalst is de stage één van onze belangrijkste opleidingsonderdelen. Deze 12 weken durende periode in het echte werkleven speelt zich af binnen een bedrijf naar keuze.

Eind vorig schooljaar (2009-2010) konden we beginnen zoeken naar een stageplek. Tijdens onze zoektocht naar een geschikt stagebedrijf hielden we rekening met enkele factoren zoals uitdaging en het bijleren van nieuwe zaken. Al vrij snel kwamen we bij RealDolmen terecht, een alom bekend bedrijf dat gemotiveerde stagiairs met open armen en interessante stageopdrachten verwelkomt. Doorheen onze opleiding hadden we reeds samengewerkt aan twee vakoverschrijdende projecten. Daarom hebben we besloten om samen te solliciteren voor een stageplek bij RealDolmen en zo, indien mogelijk, samen te werken aan dezelfde stageopdracht. Na een kort gesprek werden we beiden toegelaten en kozen we voor het Location Based Services project, waar we nu samen aan werken.

De beslissing om voor het dit project te kiezen was een stap in het duister. Om te beginnen moet alles geprogrammeerd worden voor Android, het mobiele besturingssysteem. Geen van ons beiden had hier echt ervaring mee, op onze HTC-smartphones na – wat trouwens een stimulans was om voor een Android gerelateerd project te kiezen. Toch heeft dit ons niet weerhouden om deze stap te zetten, mobiele ontwikkeling is immers enorm interessant. Bovendien zit er enorm veel toekomst in en heeft het veel voordelen, denk maar aan GPS en de acceleratiemeter die mobiele toestellen bezitten.

De kern van de opdracht bestaat uit het uitwerken van een mobiele Track and Trace applicatie. Deze applicatie verwerkt de transportinformatie van pakketten. Opdat het transport in real-time gevolgd kan worden, moet een werknemer de te transporteren pakketten eerst en vooral ingeven. Dit kan gebeuren door barcodes in te scannen, maar er bestaat ook de mogelijkheid tot handmatige invoer. Eens een pakket – of meerdere – opgegeven is voor live tracking, wordt om een bepaalde tijd de huidige positie van de werknemer (koerier) doorgeven. Vervolgens worden deze positie en de vorige tussenstoppen weergegeven op een kaart. Daarenboven kan de koerier ook commentaren toevoegen. Door de real-time tracking en het toevoegen van opmerkingen, kan een klant het traject van zijn pakket bekijken en de eventuele problemen nagaan.

We zijn nu zeven weken ver in onze stage en alles verloopt zeer vlot. We hebben al heel wat werk verricht, van onderzoek en analyse tot implementatie. Gedurende de voorbije weken hebben we ook vrij veel bijgeleerd. Zaken zoals Spring, Hibernate en REST komen allemaal aan bod, wat ook goed en leerrijk is, dergelijke zaken zien we immers niet – alleszins niet uitgebreid genoeg – op de schoolbanken. De keerzijde van de medaille is uiteraard de zelfstudie die we moeten doen om alles onder de knie te krijgen. Het duurde even vooraleer alles duidelijk was, maar uiteindelijk is het toch gelukt, mede dankzij de goede begeleiding van onze stagementor David Van Droogenbroeck.

Stagiair zijn bij RealDolmen in een notendop? Uitdagend, leerrijk en een goede voorbereiding op het echte bedrijfsleven.

David Hemmerijckx en Pieter-Jan Van Robays

Professionele bachelors Toegepaste Informatica, afstudeerrichting Programmeren (Hogeschool Gent – Bedrijfskunde Aalst)

The Java Super Heroes: Presenting Java-Man

Don’t forget, RealDolmen is partner of Devoxx 2010, so all next week you can drop by our booth to meet the Java Super Heroes, test your skills against them, talk to them and also, get your free copy of the Java City map as well as some other nice surprises!

As the last in the series of interviews with the RealDolmen Java Super Heroes, we present to you Java-Man!Java-Man is one of a kind. Together with his friends Super-J, Mega-Flex and JSF-Woman he is there to build powerful and perfect-fit Java solutions.

RealDolmen: Hello Java-Man, you are probably the most experienced Super Heroe we talked to this week, is this correct?

Java-Man: Yes, I think you’re right. I’m approaching the end of my second decade in IT and I must admit that I have quite a track record! I started out as a system administrator, then I became an expert in database management such as DB2 and now I’ve been active in Java Land for more than seven years.

RealDolmen: That’s very impressive. And still, you seem like you can’t get enough of the numerous challenges that lie ahead on the Java road?

Java-Man: Oh no indeed, quite the contrary: the longer I’m active in Java Land, the more intense it gets! I just love my missions of delivering modular, scalable, sustainable and robust Java solutions that provide user friendly access to data, services and business logic.

RealDolmen: What are the special powers and strengths you have to help customers with all these challenges?

Java-Man: Good question. Instead of immediately diving into the code, I always start out looking for those special needs and requirements that are always there, but usually not yet articulated and so lay there below the surface. If you don’t address these things early on, they become dangerous later in the project, so I find it very important to talk about these things in advance, before going into action and getting my hands dirty. This kind of interaction also helps me to better understand the world and problems of the end users and allows me to deliver only the best and most appropriate solution for them. Empathy and communication skills are essential for a Super Hero; hence I have invested a lot in improving and enriching these competencies over the years as well.

RealDolmen: It is clear that Super Heroes like you are real experts in your business. Yet, you appear to continuously look for ways to learn and improve your way of working?

Java-Man: That’s absolutely correct. I believe that Java Super Heroes have the duty to continuously invest in their own knowledge portfolio and to stimulate each other to do so as well as this will help the team to grow. Very important for the individual, the team and also our company, all operating in a world where knowledge is the key to success.

RealDolmen: So you guys do not stand alone, but work closely together, evolving and innovating?

Java-Man: Knowledge sharing, collaboration and leadership are corner stones for our Super Hero clan. These are indeed important criteria to get accepted into the team!

RealDolmen: Thank you, Java-Man for this interesting interview! Now go back in the field and act in heroic ways!

The Java Super Heroes: Presenting JSF-Woman

Although Java City sometimes can seem like it’s mainly a men’s world, there surely are also women with incredible powers.

JSF-Woman is such a female talent and young member of the Java Super Heroes clan. She only started two years ago, but her potential was soon discovered by Super-J and Mega-Flex who embraced her in the Java Super Hero team. JSF-Woman is young and ambitious. Her technical expertise in the JavaEE space are, simply put, extraordinary!

RealDolmen: Hello, JSF-Woman. You look very nice today, but looking great aside, what other powers do you possess to vanquish your enemies and help your colleagues?

JSF-Woman: Thanks, you make me blush. In fact, I prefer to put fear in the hearts of my enemies! I do that mainly using my technical expertise. Go on, you can ask me any question about JavaEE and JSF technologies including Richfaces, Spring Hibernate, and many others. I just know every tiny detail of those technologies, right down to the core.

RealDolmen: Wow that sounds very cool. What kind of challenges do you overcome with this technical expertise?

JSF-Woman: My primary mission is to deliver JavaEE projects within time and budget, according to the specifications. I always claim responsibility to make sure that the team delivers at the highest quality. I make sure that the team kills every bug that I detect and that everyone is capable of doing it independently.

RealDolmen: Does independently mean that you have to coach team members as well?

JSF-Woman: That’s exactly what I mean. Although I sometimes expect everyone else to be a Super Hero as well Unfortunately though, that’s not always the case when working with third parties.

RealDolmen: How to you tackle this problem?

JSF-Woman: It is not really a problem; that’s why we are Super heroes after all! I always make sure that we develop long-term solutions instead of quick and dirty fixes, even if the application is already in production. This way self-confidence grows within the team, but also the customer will gain confidence in the team. And when the customer is happy, he will most likely come back for other things as well!

RealDolmen: You show lots of accountability. Is that an important characteristic of being a Java Super Hero?

JSF-Woman: Absolutely! A Java Super Hero must have the talent to take ownership in order to get to perfect solutions. Also, you must have a passion to grow additional knowledge and skills well beyond your comfort zone because Java Land is continuously changing. Fact is, different customers and situations often require individual approaches. As a Super Hero, it’s very important to understand this and to be proactive in behaviour communication.

RealDolmen: Thanks for your time, JSF-Woman. Do you have one last message for our readers?

JSF-Woman: Yes, we’re still looking for other Super Heroes to strengthen our team. Those who think they are worthy should visit us at Devoxx!

The Java Super Heroes: Presenting Mega-Flex

Yesterday we talked to Super-J. Today we give you Mega-Flex!

Mega-Flex is one of the mavericks in the Java Super Hero clan. He is not only a Super Hero in Java technology, but he also has special powers when it comes to design and development of highly interactive and attractive Rich Internet Applications using Adobe Flex technology.

RealDolmen: Mega-Flex, thanks for your time. How are you?

Mega-Flex: I’m doing well, thanks. I just finished a huge Flex development project for the French Community of Belgium, and now I’m helping out another customer in Media Land.

RealDolmen: Oh, nice to hear that you are a very busy man. How do you manage to do all this?

Mega-Flex: It is my primary mission to deliver only the best to customers. Producing creative, highly interactive rich internet apps is my passion and I always aim to do this with the highest possible quality right from the start. As a Flex Hero, it’s a piece of cake to write quality code in a test-driven manner. I love refactoring now and then to improve solutions and make them more maintainable.
On the other hand I also make sure that everything is documented, because achieving transparency in projects is my second goal. I want to make sure that everybody has a clear understanding what to do, understands his or her tasks and openly communicates about progress and issues to keep projects under control.

RealDolmen: That sounds like a lot of work. Do your special powers help to achieve all this?

Mega-Flex: Besides my Java, Spring and Hibernate expertise, I’m also an expert in Flex technologies such as (Spring) ActionScript, Mate, BlazeDS, Adobe Livecycle, etc.  And, being an honest, passionate and helpful team player, I’m always capable of getting the most out of my colleagues and project teams.

RealDolmen: Yes, I can already feel your enthusiasm and must admit it is most inspiring! Would you say that passion is another important quality for a Super Hero?

Mega-Flex: It is definitely an important start, but not enough though. To be a real Super Hero, you must have good communication skills, have a solid technological knowledge and most importantly, have the strong ambition to continuously learn and stay up-to-date.

RealDolmen: Do you maybe have one last inspiring slogan for our readers?

Mega-Flex: Be FLEXible and persistent!