One of the tools I’ve been using lately is Packer, a machine building tool. It builds machine images for VirtualBox, VMWare Fusion, OpenStack, AWS, DigitalOcean, Docker, and more,

It can bootstrap from an ISO or an existing image (for some cloud providers and from desktop virtual machine images). You can use shell scripts, Chef, Puppet and other provisioning tools.

Images seem like old school. Afterall, everything is being Dockerized. Containerized applications are pretty amazing and Docker is pretty good in concept. Like git, the raw speed and workflow make it leap over virtual machines. Performance (whether that be the raw processing power or the quickness of the workflow) enables faster feedback which developers always crave. DockerHub is also important.

While Docker is hyped, “raw” machine images are still important. You still need to bootstrap your infrastructure’s base machines. I can have a machine image that runs Docker but there’s still many things that need to be setup on the Docker host. Firewall rules, service discovery, monitoring tools, and so forth are still required outside a container on the host machine.

Building raw images using Packer makes the process repeatable while also making the image available on different possible platforms. There may be a few minor tweaks that need to be made for each platform but in general, I’ve been able to get a single Packer config working on multiple platforms.

I recommend all your software’s system requirements, caching systems, system updates, Docker, etc. to be setup using Packer. Packer allows you to control which version of the system requirements you really want to use.

Once you have Packer build your image, then you can use Vagrant, Terraform, or other infrastructure provisioning tools to do “the final provisioning leg”. The final leg would involve deploying the actual code and doing the final configurations for your services on that machine.

Whether it be building “simpler” and more straightforward images for demos/tests in a CICD process or creating the building blocks of a multi-node infrastructure, Packer is a good tool for repeatable machine image builds.

I got an Apple Watch on Monday. Having it for roughly 48 hours, I had a couple of quick impressions. Overall, it’s a first-generation product but is more useful than the first-generation iPad I got.

What Makes It Valuable

It’s a Watch!

While I used my iPhone to lookup the time, having a watch is actually convenient. The little complications are also fun.

Activity Tracking

The Activity and Workout app are unique Watch features that are not on the iPhone/iPad. The gamification with the Activity rings is motiviating. Instead of just numbers, the activity rings look like achievable goals every day. We’ll see how long I keep it up.

Notifications

My iPhone 6 Plus is kept on silent during most work hours. However, I leave the vibration on. Unfortunately, if I leave the phone on a table, it vibrates fairly loudly.

With the Watch, I only get the haptic feedback which is nice. I like the idea of long glances where only a general summary shows up first for a notification, and if you leave your wrist raised, you get the actual notification.

I already limited my iPhone’s notifications (mostly communication and financial apps) to being able to make sounds/vibrations. Other apps might be able to leave a notification in the notification center, and a few are only allowed to show a banner (e.g. time-sensitive notifications that don’t really matter if I miss them). Since I limited the notifications, I think I’m not overwhelmed with them on the Watch.

Needs Improvement

Setting up the App Layout

The App Layout on the iPhone is kind of annoying because it shuffles and auto-rebalances the icon layout.

A Bit Heavy

While the bands are obviously lightweight, the 42mm watch is heavy enough to be noticable, especially since I haven’t worn a watch for a while.

Synchronization Issues

The synchronization has some issues. There can be a delay in synchroinizing the Activity data between the watch and my phone. Also, Exchange meetings are not kept entirely in sync. Apparently, there is a bug where a meeting accepted in OS X Mail does not make it all the way to the Watch calendar (the meeting does show up on the iPhone). If the meeting is accepted on your iPhone or Apple Watch, the meeting shows up correctly.

Also, sometimes the notifications are delayed or non-existent. For instance, the actual text of iMessages sent to my phone number don’t show up sometimes on the Watch but they do on the phone.

Third-Party Apps are Slow

The apps are slow to launch but hopefully that will improve with a native SDK.

Hard to Read/Touch

The display is not large so expecting to read email or other long messages is difficult. Also, on several third-party apps, the touch targets do not seem large enough. Sometimes though even the Apple “back” upper left navigation is not easy to touch quickly.

Haptic Feedback is Not Always Noticable

The haptic feedback is great but sometimes when you’re busy, the feedback can be ignored. So sometimes, I find notifications on the Watch that I don’t recall being notified by touch. Even with the prominent haptic feedback feature enabled.

Random Thoughts

The Watch is not for Apps like the iPhone

Granted there are many limitations with WatchKit and maybe that will change once a native SDK comes out, but the Apple Watch seems to be focused on non-app behavior. The Clock is the primary app. Glances are the main entrypoint into important apps. Notifications are on the watch as a quick, timely, context-aware, and informative burst of text.

Apps are a “secondary” feature. Launching the app home screen is actually an impediment to doing something quickly on the watch. And if anything, the Watch is about making more effective use of your time for quick actions.

Dictation is Improved But Not Totally, 100% Accurate

Dictation (not Siri) is improved but it is still troublesome enough that a word in every few sentences is incorrect. The issue is compounded because there is no easy way to correct the dictation.

Siri is more Useful

Easily add a reminder or ask for directions. Siri is gradually more useful and functional.

Calibrating the Watch for Workouts

I took a 30 minute walk outside with my phone. It helps calibrate the Watch, so when you don’t have your iPhone, it should estimate the distance fairly accurately. I hope this is true. Running with an iPhone 6 Plus is not appealing.

Force Touch is not Long Press

Many times, I’ve caught myself doing a long press instead of a more forceful press. Only the forceful press will result in the hidden menus in many apps. I’m not sure I like hiding functionality behind the force touch, but I’m not sure that there was a better solution.

Watch Apps I Use

Third-Party Useful Glances

• Dark Sky
• Fantastical
• OmniFocus

Other Third-Party Apps

• Swarm
• Deliveries
• 1Password

Apple Useful Apps

• Clock
• Workout
• Activity
• Remote Camera

Conclusion

Ultimately, the value for the Watch for me is two-fold.

First, it is useful for performing quick actions in response to notifications or making quick decisions based in the glances.

Second, it is valuable as an activity tracker. Anything to help my health is a good thing.

I don’t recommend most people get the first generation but there are many future applications of the Watch (as an identity, as a key to other devices/cars, as a small storage of preferences, etc.) that will be potentially compelling in the near future.

Rework is a book for entrepreneurs by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson. A noticable difference between startup businesses and established corporations is the way each type of organization gets things done.

Every organization should have meetings with a purpose (and hopefully provide decisive resolution), plan as needed (but not try to plan more than necessary), follow processes (which provide actual value), and constantly improve and be more efficient. Of course, this is easy to say and hard to execute (and under-appreciated when it is executed well).

However, it is hard to codify what the focus should be, why something should be done (or not done), and how to get something done. Large corporations have established processes and senior people who help guide others. Startups do not. Unlike large corporations, small businesses do not have many resources. There must be a maniacal focus on doing things that matter and getting things done.

Rework is collection of values and beliefs of an effective entrepreneur. Each chapter is a concise gem of knowledge. I would love to quote the entire book, but here are some select quotes which I found fun:

Workaholics

Workaholics aren’t heroes. They don’t save the day, they just use it up.
The real hero is already home because she figured out a faster way to get
things done.

– Chapter 2 - Takedowns

One of the lessons I have learned (and sometimes re-learn) is to automate as much as possible. If you always run through a series of actions, automate them. If you have to install a piece of software on a virtual machine to demo to stakeholders every week, automate the process. If you always run through a series of steps to issue a pull request, automate it. And don’t just automate it. Make it fast.

Rhythm of Making Choices

You want to get into the rhythm of making choices. When you get in that
flow of making decision after decision, you build momentum and boost morale.
Decisions are progress. Each one you make is a brick in your foundation.
You can’t build on top of “We’ll decide later,” but you can build on top of
“Done.”

– Chapter 4 - Progress

You also can’t build on top of decisions that get undone. One of the hardest things to do is to say “no” and actually leave a great sounding feature intentionally on the cutting floor.

Hire Great Writers

That’s because being a good writer is about more than writing. Clear
writing is a sign of clear thinking. Great writers know how to communicate.
They make things easy to understand. They can put themselves in someone
else’s shoes. They know what to omit. And those are qualities you want in
any candidate.

– Chapter 9 - Hiring

Impactful and concise writing is something I wish every developer would have.

I highly recommend reading the book to get an understanding of what is valuable for starting and running a profitable business.