tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52009318715496853052024-08-30T03:24:29.687-07:00Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.comBlogger140125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-69842002080704567472014-03-16T08:16:00.000-07:002014-03-16T08:16:21.214-07:00

Outside of leaves turning, I haven't lived close enough to nature to see much of the change that comes with seasons. We often walk past the Humber River, which the weather managed to turn into chaos toward the end of February. I had never seen anything like it. Three weeks later, it started to look more like a river. These images left me thinking about how much timing matters. If you had

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.38318429999998243.285985999999994 -80.028631299999986 44.020466 -78.737737299999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-42052942306769242632014-02-23T19:31:00.000-08:002014-02-23T19:31:22.346-08:00

I bought a FitBit three months ago. If you haven't heard of it, it's a lot like a pedometer with some important improvements: It tracks the quality of your sleep It pulls together your activity on a timeline It lets you cheer and taunt friends I haven't been doing all that well with my goal of 10,000 steps so far. In fact, I had only hit it once through yesterday. I'm chalking that up to some

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.38318429999998243.285985999999994 -80.028631299999986 44.020466 -78.737737299999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-28587727378679154282014-01-12T13:51:00.001-08:002014-01-12T13:51:37.895-08:00

I seem to have an endless supply of energy for shows about fixer uppers, moving to Hawaii, and deciding to love it or list it. Every now and then, particularly when the weather is why-did-I-ever-leave-San-Francisco bad, we load up Zillow and begin peering at houses around various cities. One lesson I've learned over and over again is that one person's bad commute is another person's normal

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.38318429999998243.285985999999994 -80.028631299999986 44.020466 -78.737737299999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-36989448336058132572013-12-19T17:19:00.001-08:002013-12-19T17:19:09.484-08:00

Stop It, a photo by sghill on Flickr.Today we built a snowman!It had been a long, long time since I last built a snowman. Balki fought us every step of the way, but we were able to distract him just enough to get it finished. Happy holidays!

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-1270775864528334442013-11-05T18:41:00.001-08:002013-11-05T18:41:52.488-08:00

Last year I was working at a large enterprise. Over the summer we had an intern join us, who I couldn't help but show the ropes. We managed to cover several rules of software development in just a few months. After the internship wrapped up, he was nice enough to forward the notes he took while on our team: 1. Follow your heart 2. Never volunteer for meetings, because then you become "The

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-45585046841387731982013-09-08T17:18:00.000-07:002013-09-08T17:18:08.278-07:00

After shipping GiftIdea! on the Play Store last week, we were excited. For good reason too; without any prompting, we've received three 5-star reviews from our nine users. I'm optimistic, especially considering we're only available to about 2/3 of the Androids out there. A number of folks asked if this would run on the iPhone or if an iPhone version is coming. There aren't currently plans for

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-20176444093777658862013-09-01T07:02:00.000-07:002013-09-01T07:02:00.827-07:00

Yesterday, I released a simple app called GiftIdea! to Google Play for Android 4.0+ phones. This is a lot more monumental than it might seem, because the vague goal of "releasing an app" has been on my radar for a while now. For about five years I've had the goal of getting an app into the App Store. Originally that was for the iPhone, but for one reason or another, I never could actually get

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-30891674731289643092013-08-26T15:21:00.000-07:002013-08-26T15:21:00.372-07:00

My dad cared about maintenance. Not just of his car, but just about every car he could keep tabs on. I'm the same way, and thinking about making a simple tool to make this easier. A rough prototype of the 4 pages is below (or at gomockingbird). Any feedback is welcome, either in the comments or by email. Landing Page The landing page should answer the questions "Why?" and "How much?" as well

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.38318429999998243.285985999999994 -80.028631299999986 44.020466 -78.737737299999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-17653339691826687832013-08-20T09:29:00.000-07:002013-08-20T09:29:02.282-07:00

When signing up for a service with startups, you have to decide if the risk they'll be around in a year is worth it. With MegaCorps, you have to decide if the risk they'll cost you several hours a month on the phone is worth it. I'm on hold with Bell Canada as I write this. Fed up with the way Rogers Cable Internet seems to go out for hours a week during prime Netflix time, I walked down the

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.38318429999998243.285985999999994 -80.028631299999986 44.020466 -78.737737299999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-21952288704816055772013-08-11T09:44:00.000-07:002013-08-11T09:44:25.741-07:00

I had never actually seen a firehose attached to a hydrant until we pulled up to the Lockport Cave in Lockport, New York. Thick black smoke filled the sky and seemed to get closer with every turn Google Maps told us to take. The smoke was coming from an old building directly across the street from the caves, but we had no trouble signing up for the last tour of the day at 4:00. 15

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.38318429999998243.285985999999994 -80.028631299999986 44.020466 -78.737737299999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-80527135170760022862013-08-07T07:29:00.000-07:002013-08-07T07:29:12.587-07:00

I moved to Toronto half a year ago. This month, I learned some important things about the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC). 1. Preorder monthly passes at a discount TTC offers a Metropass Discount Program. If you sign up for a year in advance, you can get each monthly pass mailed to your home for $117.75 per month. The pass shows up more than a week in advance and is $10.75 less than buying it

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.38318429999998243.285985999999994 -80.028631299999986 44.020466 -78.737737299999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-12377994009440066232013-08-03T18:49:00.004-07:002013-08-03T19:56:20.900-07:00

Michigan was marching toward becoming the first state with a registry of animal abusers, much like the registry of sex offenders. Those plans are now canceled, for reasons that surprise no one. the proposed registry has run into resistance from state police officials and others who fear it would be expensive and cumbersome Instead, Republican Senator Rick Jones and Democratic Senator Steve

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-45111151014001960272013-06-27T16:54:00.000-07:002013-06-27T16:54:00.199-07:00

Small, pleasant surprises are hard to come by. I think it's the small things that build loyalty. My first car was a 1995 GMC Sonoma. This was one of the first cars with factory-installed keyless entry, and my dad had to order it from the dealer to get the option. It was a nice convenience, but unless you were close enough to hear the mechanical locks move, you had no way of knowing anything

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.38318429999998243.285985999999994 -80.028631299999986 44.020466 -78.737737299999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-62944872392986258472013-06-20T20:09:00.001-07:002013-06-20T20:09:20.687-07:00

I mean, these people somehow delude themselves into thinking it might [work], but... but it might work for us. — Tobias Fünke Ilitch and the Red Wings have announced plans to build a new $650MM arena in the sports and entertainment district. Over half would be privately funded, but a staggering $283MM would come from public funds. The arguments for building the arena covered the usual

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-66055487766345013482013-06-01T13:13:00.000-07:002013-06-01T13:13:22.989-07:00

Balki is a huge fan of Winter. Two months back, we headed toward Montreal and found the last snow of the season. Recently, we've started passing the 80°F mark. This is now a common scene in the living room — That pad he's on is just-out-of-the-freezer cold1, and the fan is spinning as fast as it can. As my Grandpa says, "That dog sure knows how to live comfortable." My girlfriend

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.647509799999987 -79.4902495999999743.646791799999988 -79.491510099999971 43.648227799999987 -79.488989099999969tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-86559242793189993702013-04-22T20:24:00.001-07:002013-04-22T20:24:50.020-07:00

More than six months after our first Arduino experiment, we're back at it with a simple light and a button. The end goal of these experiments is something like a button-activated puppy feeder. Here's the setup — It's pretty simple: hit the button and the light turns on. Great! But does the button work with the puppy? This is going to be fun. Big Dome Push Button by sparkfun

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-72273800468829797082013-02-27T08:53:00.000-08:002013-02-27T08:53:48.345-08:00

It's been a busy couple of weeks for Balki. He helped us unpack into a storage unit when our first apartment fell through. He battled deep footprints in the Toronto snow. He learned how to do stairs on the most terrifying flight there is. And he was exhausted after moving into our new place. It's a shame the store didn't have any big bones. Of course there's more! .center {

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.38318429999998243.285985999999994 -80.028631299999986 44.020466 -78.737737299999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-73753264306704341942013-02-22T14:09:00.001-08:002013-02-22T14:09:12.600-08:00

I've been using credit cards in the US for almost a decade now. I'm familiar with cash back cards, mileage cards, and why some people refuse to use cards. But that's not why you rang — we're not here for the pros or cons of what amounts to a personal decision. We're here to find out how credit cards are slightly different in Canada than the US. The Smart Card Oh sure, your US-based credit

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.38318429999998243.285985999999994 -80.028631299999986 44.020466 -78.737737299999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-82392133645409241532013-02-15T14:09:00.000-08:002013-02-15T21:42:49.853-08:00

Great news! I've got a puppy. He was born on December 26th, 2012. When we got Balki a few days ago, he was almost 7 weeks old. He's a lab/shepard mix who goes by the name "Chancellor Ruffelstiltskin T. Balkonovich, Esquire" or nickname "Balki" FAQ You mean like Balki from Perfect Strangers? Yes! Do you like him? Yes! Are you and your girlfriend in some sort of Bronson Pinchot fanclub? No, but

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Mississauga, ON, Canada43.6563281 -79.60001190000002720.241668600000004 -120.90860590000003 67.0709876 -38.291417900000027tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-3441778798371890182013-02-11T19:59:00.000-08:002013-02-11T19:59:03.229-08:00

A little over a month ago, my girlfriend and I made a stop in London, Ontario. We were nearly short on the bill, but promised ourselves we'd go back and tip our excellent server. Prince Albert's Diner by Slack pics on flickr Yesterday we imported just about everything into Canada. Along the way, we made a stop at Prince Albert's Diner. I parked the U-Haul in the parking lot, walked directly into

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.38318429999998243.285996499999996 -80.028631299999986 44.0204555 -78.737737299999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-45790180675765080122013-02-03T19:05:00.001-08:002013-02-03T19:05:11.070-08:00

We can all agree balance is important, right? For the last few years I've had some pretty lousy balance. This weekend Ginger and I took a gigantic step toward regaining some of that balance by finishing a book. It's not that I haven't read in years, but finally I finished a book that was not about Java, Ruby, MongoDB, Groovy, Spring, C#, or Ruby-on-Rails...though it was about the rails of the

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.38318429999998243.285996499999996 -80.028631299999986 44.0204555 -78.737737299999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-18964889047164012592013-01-29T21:27:00.001-08:002013-01-29T21:27:41.105-08:00

This is my first week working remotely with the team in San Francisco from Toronto. The three-hour time difference presents some odd working hours -- roughly 12:45pm to 9:45pm. So far before skyping in for the morning meeting I like to think I've gotten a lot done: Met most of the folks at the Toronto office Looked at several apartments Set up a bank account with direct deposit Got my Social

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0Toronto, ON, Canada43.653226 -79.38318429999998243.285996499999996 -80.028631299999986 44.0204555 -78.737737299999978tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-54625947483382314292013-01-26T00:47:00.000-08:002013-01-26T00:47:10.129-08:00

If the social networks say it, it must be official!

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0San Francisco, CA37.795936200000007 -122.4000032000000137.69552620000001 -122.56136470000001 37.8963462 -122.23864170000002tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-74632234780668965902013-01-20T17:28:00.001-08:002013-01-20T17:28:29.117-08:00

Here's a fork in the road: You've accidentally bought whole bean coffee instead of ground coffee. You do not have a grinder, and you're moving soon so it doesn't make sense to get one now. What do you do? Some may buy the grinder anyway. Or return the coffee. Others, however, don't see their kitchen as empty of grinders, but full of possibilities. They open the bag, grab a cloth, and go to town

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0San Francisco, CA37.795936200000007 -122.4000032000000137.69552620000001 -122.56136470000001 37.8963462 -122.23864170000002tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5200931871549685305.post-88239969395504687532013-01-11T12:54:00.001-08:002013-01-11T12:54:41.437-08:00

Recently watching The Transporter 1, 2, and 3 has left me with some learnings. When outnumbered in a fight, dip your arms in oil A pipe is the perfect answer to axes and swords Never underestimate a guy with a fire hose It's important to have a French Inspector friend Always have a numbered list of rules

Steve Hillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12116456106227872199noreply@blogger.com0San Francisco, CA37.795936200000007 -122.4000032000000137.69552620000001 -122.56136470000001 37.8963462 -122.23864170000002