how anyone can code without the help of the internet is something i don't understand. whenever i get stuck with a programming problem, i google it. sure, having a code guru who can just tell me the answer would be the easiest approach, but this way works as well. although i may not always find exactly what i want (most times i don't), i usually can pick up enough hints to point me in the right direction. sometimes success is more dependent on being able to articulate the right search phrase: "NetStatusEvent FLVPlayback" was one such search today. it led me to half a dozen related pages before i finally managed to piece together a solution (this page was especially helpful).
i subscribe to the theory that the best way to learn something is to do it. i could read all the coding books i want, but without some actual in-field experience, everything is just theories. the great thing about this particular project was i learned so much actionscript 3.0 while coding it. it beats taking a course in flash programming and the best part is i get paid in the process. this was also a great beginner's project because the client provided a previous build along with the source codes. true, it was written in the outdated actionscript 2.0, but it gave me a framework to work off of, so i wasn't entirely in the dark. that, combined with my already extensive history in coding interactives (in director lingo, flash's distant relative), allowed me to get this done.
speaking of which, i sent off a finished version of the project around 1:00. i felt this wave of relief wash over me. i couldn't completely celebrate just yet because if past experiences have taught me anything is that things always come back. the client might find some bugs and i'll need to fix them before sending off another version. so i was on standby mode.
nevertheless, until i heard back from the client with their decision, i was momentarily free to do whatever i wanted. first i made myself a plain turkey sandwich for lunch. we were supposed to get thunderstorms today but the doppler radar showed that the clouds had already left the area. i wanted to get out of the house so i took a short trip to the library to get a book on peonies1. if i really am free tomorrow, i feel like a trip into boston to get my civic on.
the longer i don't hear back from the client, the more i'm inclined it's good news. not unless the program is so buggy that they're compiling an extensive list of fixes, but that's never happened. no news is good news is my code delivery mantra.
i finally got word by 4:00 that everything was okay. by then it was too late to go out and do anything, but it immediately cleared up my schedule until next week.
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my plants are getting too big for my grow closet. they're starting to bump up against the fluorescent lights and i can't raise the lamps any higher. this weekend i'm going to start the process of hardening them off.
1 why peonies? it's not so much the flowers i find attractive but rather their unique growing requirement of a long winter chill into order to induce springtime blooming. the best peonies are found in cold climates, and one of the rare plants that doesn't do well in warmer locations. they're also long-living (100+ years!), and peonies have been known to be passed down through the generations. on their recent trip to china my parents brought back some peony seeds. it takes at the minimum 2-3 years before they'll bloom, assuming that they'll even germinate out of season.