Introducing Docker to a Java developer

You might have noticed we are currently experiencing a Docker frenzy. Every day there is a new framework or service popping up that is based on Docker. A lot of people have been asking what this Docker thing is all about. I’m going to try to explain what Docker is and see how it it fits into a Java developers ecosystem.

What is Docker

Docker is an open platform for developers and sysadmins to build, ship, and run applications. It basically allows you to create a container for your service with all its required components. Every application needs quite a few things to run correctly, which can all vary from one system to another, just think about it: the Operating System and related libraries, JDK 1.x, application server and so on.
If you have ever promoted an application between different development, testing and production environments, you know it is very hard to make sure that all environments are exactly a like and don’t have different versions of all your needed dependencies. This is an issue that will be resolved when using Docker. You get an very easy way to put all these dependencies into a container and shipping it between environments as a package. These different environments could be a developers laptop up to a production server.
To improve the quality of your release process, you should only be building your application once and passing the result binary of that build process to each of your environments instead of rebuild it each time for each specific environment. This is one of the important treats of a successful Continuous Delivery process. Now we want to take it one step further, instead of building your application once, we’ll take your application together with its required building blocks and build that once into a so called Docker container. You don’t have to worry if patch x.y of the OS is installed or patch Z of the application server is already installed on the test environment or the production environment. These patches would be put into your packaged together into your container, so each environment that is running the latest version of your container would in fact have the necessary patches. Every environment comes closed to being identical to each other.

Docker vs Virtual Machines

Now you might think, wait a minute we can already do this with Virtual Machines, and you’re right. Yet Docker takes containerization to the next level. Instead of virtualising the entire environment and running a hypervisor, a guest operating system and so on which take a lot of resources, Docker uses your system resources and operating system directly which minimizes the overhead.

Minimizing the overhead with Containers

If you are an experienced unix veteran, you might know the pieces that Docker is using under the hood. Docker is using namespaces to create an isolated workspace for each container. Containers are constraint to its host systems resources by using cgroups. This makes it easy to share resources with several containers but also make sure limits can be imposed to a specific container. Union file system is used to create to build several layers on top of each other so layers can be reused by other containers which saves a lot of disk space. All these technologies aren’t particularly new, but Docker does a great job of combining them all and giving the user a clean interface on top of it.

Docker Hub and the community

The Docker Hub is an amazing registry where you can store and find public images of all sorts of services and applications. You can compare this GitHub, where people can make and share their source code. In this case, the Docker Hub lets you make and share Docker images in a very user friendly way. When you’ve build a Docker image, you can push it to the Docker Hub and other people can download it to get started with it.
There currently are already more than 45.000 public images in the registry, so almost any application you can think of will probably be already be in there for your to (re)use if wanted. There are also a lot of official images, these are images which are verified by Docker, like for CentOS, Debian, MySQL, Java, Jenkins and so on.
You can also upload private images to the Docker Hub, you can get one private repository and if you want more you’ll have to pay. If you decide to use Docker, you should really think about hosting your own Docker registry. This is a trivial task since you can download and run a Docker Registry as… a docker image!

How do I get started

First you’ll have to install Docker. Docker currently only works directly on Linux systems, but for Windows and OSX users there is a wrapper boot2docker that installs a mini Linux Virtual Machine which doesn’t give too much overhead.

Building your own Docker image

Now you’ve seen how to get images from the Docker Hub, what about if you want to build your own image. Everything starts with a Dockerfile, a simple text based file you will create which describe what you want your environment will look like. Let’s take the Linkshortener REST API we build last time, which was a executable jar file that launches its own Tomcat server and put it inside a Docker container.
To get started by adding a file called Dockerfile into the root of our maven project. This will be the only file we need to maintain to instruct Docker how to build and run our application. This file will contain a set of simple commands to construct an environment with our application.
I have chosen to base my image on the public dockerfile/java which has several versions, called tags, available. The tag we will be using has the Oracle JDK 8 installed in a Ubuntu environment. This is done by using the the FROM keyword and refering to the Docker image name:tag we want to use. The tag version is optional, but if you don’t specify it will just take the latest available version which can lead to an unreproducible build.
Dockerfile

FROM dockerfile/java:oracle-java8   MAINTAINER  Driss Amri   ADD target/linkshortener-1.0.0-SNAPSHOT.jar /app/linkshortener.jar   CMD ["java", "-jar", "/app/linkshortener.jar"]

This Dockerfile does not contain much logic, since setting up the environment is already done in the image we are building upon. The only thing we are doing is added our linkshortener-1.0.0-SNAPSHOT.jar from our host machine, which is created by running a maven build (mvn package), and copy it to inside our Docker environment. This is done by using the ADD keyword.
The final part is defining the command that has to be executed when we run this image. We can do this by using the CMD keyword, which can be defined as an array. The first parameter is the program we want to executed, followed by all the arguments we want to pass to it.
There is also an entry MAINTAINER to define some metadata about the docker file, about who is the maintaining the file, this is completely optional of course.
This is all we need to do to define the container for our application. From this Dockerfile we have to build an actual Docker image that can be run and transferred between our different environments (development, test, production). This is done by executing the following command:

docker build -t drissamri/linkshortener:1.0 .

We are telling docker we want to build an image called drissamri/linkshortener, which is the recommended approach of naming your Docker container. We are setting a prefix which can refer to a company or user name and then giving a name for the actual application. We are giving a specific tag name to this build, which is version 1.0. As a last step, we are telling Docker where it can find its Dockerfile by passing it the current directory using the . notation.
When you are executing this command for the first time, it will take some time since it has to build all layers defined in the Dockerfile, but also the ones we are building upon by basing it on the dockerfile/java:oracle-java8 Docker image. Next time we execute this command, it will be much faster since it is caching all its intermediate layers and only rebuilding the ones that actually changed since the last build.

bash-3.2$ docker build -t drissamri/linkshortener:1.0 . Sending build context to Docker daemon 27.66 MB Sending build context to Docker daemon Step 0 : FROM dockerfile/java:oracle-java8  ---> 3cd60ec40fa7 Step 1 : MAINTAINER Driss Amri  ---> Using cache  ---> f5b8523f06af Step 2 : ADD target/linkshortener-1.0.0-SNAPSHOT.jar /app/linkshortener.jar  ---> Using cache  ---> ce29c01e1764 Step 3 : CMD java -jar /app/linkshortener.jar  ---> Using cache  ---> 9298fee10e4e Successfully built 9298fee10e4e

Once this is done, we have a local Docker image with the specified name. We could upload this image to the Docker Hub or another Docker repository to share it with other people. We won’t do that today, but it’s nice to know that this process is very easy. Now we have our container, let’s actually start up the web application.

docker run -p 8080:8080 drissamri/linkshortener:1.0

This is all you have to to start up your own container and expose port 8080 from the docker container and map it to port 8080 of your host. If you are running Docker on Linux you can access the application http://localhost:8080/links. If you are using boot2docker you’ll have to check what IP it is using, you can find it out by running boot2docker ip . In my case I’m able to access the application by going to http://192.168.59.103:8080/links.
This is one way to get your application up and running inside a Docker container.

Continuous Delivery

If you are already doing Continuous Integration, you could easily plug Docker in to that process. Your Jenkins, Bamboo or whatever you are using is building an executable .jar or .war file. The next step would be to build a Docker image based on your application deployable. When you’ve created the Docker image you could then upload this to the Docker Hub or your private Docker repository. Its good to know that Artifactory already supports storing Docker images.
Your deployment plans for each environments can simply download the Docker image and transfer it to the target environment and start the image. The environment specific configuration like database URL and credentials could be passed a startup arguments.

Conclusion

This post was a simple introduction to Docker and to show you how you can run Java application into a Docker image. In this example I’m using Spring Boot and an executable jar file, but if you are using an application server not much changes, only will need base your Dockerfile on another image that already has your server installed or you would need to set it up yourself, which is not a hard thing to do. In future posts I’ll expand more on Docker use and also on cloud deployment options, like deploying your containers to IBM BlueMix.
I hope this has shed a light on the whole Docker hype since it doesn’t look like its going away any time soon.
You can find the source for the Linkshortener application and the Dockerfile on GitHub. 

20 Toughest Job Interview Questions Asked This Year

There's nothing worse than being caught off guard during a job interview.

You can experience the strangest possible interview questions of the last year - all from the safety of your chair.This year's weirdest questions come courtesy of Apple, Twitter, Goldman Sachs, Google, Amazon, and a few others.

Trust us, none of these questions would be a breeze to answer.

1.Job: Google Administrative Assistant

 

Question: If you were given a box of pencils, list 10 things you could do with them that are not their traditional use.

2.Job: Senior Recruiting Manager at Amazon

 

Question: How would you solve problems if you were from Mars?

3.Job: Apple Intern

 

Question: What's the most creative way you can break a clock?

4.Job: Sales Associate at Pacific Sunwear

 

Question: If you were a street sign, what would you be?

5.Job: Software Development Engineer at Microsoft

 

Question: A disc is spinning on a spindle, and you don't know which way. You are given a set of pins. Describe how you would use them to determine which way the disc is spinning.

6.Job: Technology Analyst at Goldman Sachs

 

Question: There are infinite black and white dots on a plane. Prove that the distance between one black dot and one white dot is one unit.

7.Job: Business Operations Intern at Facebook 

 

Question: You have a bag of with 'N' number of strings. At random, you pull out a string's end.You pull out another string end and you tie the two together. You repeat this until there are no loose ends left to pull out of the bag. 

What is the expected number of loops?

8.Job: Summer Marketing Analyst at JP Morgan Chase

 

Question: Think of a product or service that no one has ever thought of before, one that you think would be revolutionary for your university. How would you market it?

You want to design a phone for deaf people — how do you do it?

9.Job: Recruiter at Twitter

 

Question: Why should we not hire you?

10. Job: Product manager at Google

 

Question: You want to design a phone for deaf people â how do you do it?

11.Job: Intern at Microsoft

 

Question: How would you design an elevator?

12.Job: QA Automation Engineer at BitTorrent

 

Question: A dwarf-killing giant lines up 10 dwarfs from shortest to tallest.Each dwarf can see all the shortest dwarfs in front of him, but cannot see the dwarfs behind himself. 

The giant randomly puts a white or black hat on each dwarf. No dwarf can see their own hat. The giant tells all the dwarfs that he will ask each dwarf, starting with the tallest, for the color of his hat. 

If the dwarf answers incorrectly, the giant will kill the dwarf. Each dwarf can hear the previous answers, but cannot hear when a dwarf is killed. The dwarves are given an opportunity to collude before the hats are distributed. 

What strategy should be used to kill the fewest dwarfs, and what is the minimum number of dwarfs that can be saved with this strategy?

13.Job: Associate Consultant at Microsoft

 

Question: Name as many Microsoft products as you can.

14.Job: Senior Software Engineer at Twitter

 

Question: Is this binary tree a mirror of itself?

15.Job: Investment Intern at AIG

 

Question: How do you cut a circular cake into eight equal pieces?

16.Job: Operations Analyst at Goldman Sachs

 

Question: How much does a Boeing 707 weigh?

17.Job: Engineering Technician at Tesla Motors

 

Question: How would you describe a dynamometer to an 8-year-old child?

18.Job: Merchandiser at PepsiCo

 

Question: Do you believe in a higher power?

19.Job: Senior Software Engineer at Electronic Arts

 

Question: How do you compute the collision of two moving spheres? 

Give me both the mathematical equations for the solution as well as an algorithmic implementation.

20.Job: Product Tester at MTD Products

 

Question: How do you feel about working in extreme weather conditions all year round?

The Best Programming Languages Every Beginner Should Learn

Computer science is a booming industry in the US - and it pays extremely well. There's always demand for sharp, talented engineers, which is why learning how to code can seem like an attractive option.

But, as is the case with any new skill, it can be difficult to know where to start. Here are a few steps you should take early on and programming languages that are best-suited for beginners.

Before you learn a language, start with 'drag and drop' programming.

"Drag and drop" programming is a basic technique that allows you to build code by dragging and dropping blocks or some other visual cue rather than manually writing text-based code.
It makes it easy to understand the basics of programming without getting caught up in meticulous character placement, according to Hadi Partovi, co-founder of a website that offers online coding courses called Code.org.
"Once you've learned the basic concepts using drag and drop, you'll immediately want to learn [how to] do the real thing," Partovi said to Business Insider.
There are plenty of programs out there that can help you get started with drag and drop programming, including MIT Scratch and Code.org's Code Studio, and Google Blocky.

Python is one of the easiest languages to start with.

Python is an easy language for beginners, according to Partovi, because there's less of an emphasis on syntax. So, if you forget your parentheses or misplace a few semicolons, it shouldn't trip you up as much as it might if you were coding in a different language.

But Javascript is one of the most useful languages to know as a developer.

Javascript isn't as easy as Python, but it runs on every single platform out there - Mac, Windows, iOS, and Android among others. Every single Web browser, and even new types of devices like smartwatches use Javascript at some capacity, Partovi said.
"Once you reach that level of critical mass, it's not going away," Partovi said.

Once you have the hang of Javascript, try playing with Ruby and Ruby on Rails.

Ruby on Rails is a great tool that can help you with the backend aspect of your programming. Although Ruby and Ruby on Rails have similar names, there's actually an important difference. Ruby is a scripting language, just like Python, but Ruby on Rails is a Web app framework built on Ruby. In other words, Ruby is the language, while Ruby on Rails is a tool that makes it easy to use the Ruby language to build websites.
What makes Ruby and Ruby on Rails so attractive, according to Partovi, is that there's very little prototyping involved. This means that once you have the code written, it's pretty easy to get the final product up and running.

BONUS: Get familiar with HTML...you're going to need it if you want to build a website.

While HTML isn't a programming language in the sense that Python, Ruby, and Javascript are, you still need it to build a website. HTML is used to describe how your website looks, while other languages like Javascript power the interactive components, such as what happens when you clock a button on the site. 

Developers, designers and data: The hottest tech jobs of 2015

If you added 'find a new job' to your list of New Year's resolutions, we're here to help. We talked hiring trends with Scott Dobroski, a career trends analyst at Glassdoor to help identify the hottest jobs in tech.
We looked at data provided by the site, which aggregates reviews of jobs and companies, that ranks tech jobs according to how many employees thought business was improving in 2014 to explore which could be next year's best bets. According to Dobroski, big data, mobile and privacy are going to be "very hot and very popular" in 2015.

Data science is hot because it spans industries. "What data scientists really love about their jobs right now is that they get to build a roadmap within their organizations," and answer questions that have never been asked before, Dobroski says.
Privacy breaches at companies like AT&T, Michaels and Home Depot rattled consumers in 2014. With customer confidence of premium value to big companies in an insecure online world, hiring privacy experts could be a wise investment.
Mobile usage soared in 2014. CNN reported in February that for the first time, more people were accessing the Internet on their smartphones than on their computers and companies will likely be looking to hire talent to meet that demand.
The mobile trend extends to the job hunting process. Dobroski says nine out of 10 jobseekers are looking for positions on their mobile devices, a 7% growth from last year. More than half of those job candidates say it's difficult to apply over mobile. By optimizing their application process for mobile, companies can reach more applicants.
The past year also saw a renewed focus on workplace diversity in tech. Twitter, Google, Apple, LinkedIn and Facebook released their demographic data, which mostly showed an overwhelmingly white and male workforce.
So it's no surprise that Dobroski says hiring with diversity in mind will be another big trend in 2015. He predicts that companies' demographic data could be a lot more balanced by the end of the year.
Check out our gallery, below, of the jobs in which people express the most optimism about their future. If you're inspired, then take a look at the digital and tech jobs for hire on the Mashable Job Board. Happy hunting.

• 

  Data scientist

  According to Glassdoor, Data scientists earn an average base pay of $118,000 a year, and they're the most optimistic -- 77% believe business is getting better. One Facebook data scientist commented on Glassdoor that the "mission of connecting people," was one of his favorite parts.

  
  

• 

  Java developer

  Java developers use the Java programming language to build the apps you use every day. And according to Glassdoor, they have the second-highest satisfaction rating of the tech jobs on the site.

• 

  UX designer

  One user experience designers told Glassdoor they most valued "the opportunity to really make an impact on people's day to day lives."

  
  

• 

  Android developer

  Android phones dominate 85% of the global smartphone market, making Android developer another hot job.

  
  

• 

  Scrum master

  A Scrum Master leads a team in developing a software product using the non-hierarchical, iterative Scrum method. Salesforce and IBM have both had success with the non-hierarchical and client-centered technique. Scrum masters tend to be team players dedicated to increasing productivity.

  
  

• 

  Front end developer

  A full 50% of front end developers believe business is getting better. If we made an average of $100,000 designing beautiful, functional websites, we'd probably say the same.

• 

  Quality assurance engineer

  QA engineers keep everything running smoothly behind the scenes, so they're in high demand.

  
  

• 

  PHP developer

  Building websites and business applications with the PHP language is challenging, but developers rate their job highly.

  
  

5 Incredible Features in the Visual Studio 2015 Preview

The Visual Studio 2015 Preview included many new features that enhanced the way developers work with everything from the web and desktop to mobile apps. Several features have had the spotlight, such as gesture support in the editor, Cordova tooling, C++ enhancements and the new Android emulator. But there are several other, less talked about features that I feel every developer that uses Visual Studio 2015 will benefit from. With that said, lets jump straight in!

1. Custom Windows Layouts

This feature comes in handy if you develop on multiple devices. Say for example that you use a Surface Pro to develop on your train ride home and a 23″ monitor during the day. You can quickly switch between devices by going to Window -> Apply Window Layout and selecting one that you created earlier. They also have support for keyboard shortcuts so that you can quickly navigate to your favorite layout and the profile roams with you as long as you are signed into Visual Studio 2015.
Below is an example of switching between my Surface device and my Desktop Monitor. You will notice that with the Surface, I want to only show the XAML file whereas, with my large monitor, I want to see everything.

2. Better Code Editor

The code editor has been replaced with “Roslyn” to give you a new and improved code editing experience. Light bulbs are shown when you need to include fixes to your code or refactor it. Whenever you see a light bulb appear, then click it and it will give you suggestions based upon the code it has analyzed.
In this sample, it has determined that we included unnecessary “using” statements and helps remove them. Before doing so, you can generate a preview and have the changes affect the whole document, project or solution. While these features have appeared in JustCode and earlier versions of Visual Studio for years, we will be releasing a new version of JustCode for Visual Studio 2015 that will take advantage of Rosyln for enhanced productivity tools.

3. Shared Project – “All the Things!”

How many times have you wanted to use a Shared Project outside of a Windows Universal App? Now you can! After you open Visual Studio 2015 and search for “shared” then you will see the following:

Go ahead and select the Visual C# Shared Project and create a class named Person.cs and add the following code:

class Person
{
    public string FirstName { get; set; }
    public Person()
    {
        FirstName = "Michael";
    }
}

Create a new Console application and reference the Shared Project that we just created. Now you can write code such as :

var person = new Person();
Console.WriteLine(person.FirstName);
Console.ReadLine();

If you run the console app, you will see it retrieved the FirstName from our Shared Project. Go ahead and add a WPF or Windows Form application and access the Person class like you normally would. This also works for class libraries as well. After I’ve added several projects, my solution explorer looks like the following:

Notice that the only thing I had to do was reference the Shared Project.

4. IntelliSense for Bower and NPM

If you create a new ASP.NET 5 Web Project, you will notice several things that the new project template loads as shown below.

Besides a updated file structure, you now have a folder called Dependencies that contains Bower and NPM. Generally speaking, you can think of Bower for client-side packages (such as jQuery and Angular) and NPM for developer tools (such as Grunt and Gulp). Both of these package managers are controlled by JSON files found in the solution.

• bower.json for Bower
• config.json for NPM

If we wanted to add a library using Bower, we would simply open the bower.json file and add the package that we want. In this case, I want to add the latest version of Angular without having to go to the Angular site and manually download it and add it to my project.

Once added, you will see that we have the option to install/update or delete the package or view the homepage from the drop-down menu. This will come in handy as you are working with web projects.

5. Debug Lambdas

Yes, the time has finally come where we can debug lambda expressions. Let’s take a look at the following code:

List<int> elements = new List<int>() { 10, 20, 31, 40 };
// ... Find index of first odd element.
int oddIndex = elements.FindIndex(x => x % 2 != 0);
Console.WriteLine(oddIndex);

The console will return the value of 2. But what if we wanted to add a watch and perform additional analysis of the expression as shown below.

In this sample, we added a watch on the breakpoint and added the following code:

elements.Where(v => (int)v > 11).ToArray()

As expected, it returned 3 items that were greater than 11. This will be a lot of help as you can use this in the immediate, and other debugger windows as well. It is also supported in both C# and Visual Basic.

BONUS TIP!!! Blend for Visual Studio 2015 Actually Rocks

Blend comes with several enhancements but, by far, the one that was needed the most is the overhaul of the UI as shown below. You will quickly find that Blend includes most of the functionality that we have grown to love in Visual Studio.

Some of the notible features are :

• Basic Debugging Support
• Peek in XAML
• Custom Windows Layouts as shown in feature #1
• Source Control
• NuGet
• and finally…

XAML IntelliSense!

Just after a few minutes of playing with the new Blend, I can tell Microsoft is committed to making the Blend experience similar to the Visual Studio one.

12 Things Best Employees Do Before Noon

In order to be a top notch employee, there are some habits you should adopt before you have your midday break. Here are the tasks high-functioning, productive, and more awake employees have completed before lunch:

1. THEY MAKE A WORK TO-DO LIST THE DAY BEFORE.

Many swear by having a written to-do list, and most make that to-do schedule the night before.

2. THEY GET A FULL NIGHT’S REST.

Lack of sleep affects your concentration level. Most health experts advise getting a minimum eight hours of shut-eye each night. Whatever your gold standard is for a “good night’s rest,” strive to meet it every work night.

3. THEY AVOID HITTING SNOOZE.

According to the report, “Anyone can make morning their most productive time. It could be that for the entire week, you set your alarm clock a little bit earlier, and you get out of bed on the first alarm. It may be a pain at first, but eventually you’ll get to the point where you’re getting your seven to eight hours of sleep at night, you’re waking up with all your energy, and accomplishing the things around the house you need to before going to the office.”

4. THEY EXERCISE.

Employees who’ve exercised before work or during the work day have better time-management skills, an improved mental sharpness, and are more patient with their peers.”

5. THEY PRACTICE A MORNING RITUAL.

Adopt a morning ritual. Whether you opt to meditate, read the newspaper, or surf the Web, it’s important to have that solo quiet time.

6. THEY EAT BREAKFAST.

Food provides the fuel you’ll need to concentrate, and breakfast is particularly important since it recharges you after you’ve fasted all night.

7. THEY ARRIVE AT THE OFFICE ON TIME.

Allot a safe amount of time to make it to work on schedule.

8. THEY CHECK IN WITH THEIR BOSS AND/OR EMPLOYEES.

Good workers set priorities that align with their company’s goals, and they’re transparent about their progress.

9. THEY TACKLE THE BIG PROJECTS FIRST.

You can dive right into work upon arriving in the office, since you made your to-do list the night before.

10. THEY AVOID MORNING MEETINGS.

If you have any say on meeting times, schedule them in the afternoon. The exception to this is if your meeting is the most important task of the day.

11. THEY ALLOT TIME FOR FOLLOWING UP ON MESSAGES.

Set a schedule to check and respond to email in increments.

12. THEY TAKE A MID-MORNING BREAK.

Get up and stretch your legs. Or stay seated and indulge in a little Internet surfing. According to the research:

“It’s actually good to zone out on Facebook and Twitter or send a personal text message or two. You should take 10-minute breaks occasionally. Companies that ban any kind of Facebook, texting, or personal calls can find it will be detrimental. Those practices increase employee satisfaction.”

25 Websites That Will Make You Smarter

Rather than waste your life on Facebook and Instagram, put your daily interneting to good use.

 

Here's a list of websites that will actually make you smarter:

1. CodeAcademy

Learn programming languages like HTML, CSS, and Javascript with this free, interactive resource.

2. Coursera

With more than 800 free courses on topics that range from internet history to financial engineering, the education platform helps you deepen your knowledge across a range of subjects.

3. Digital Photography School

Read through this goldmine of articles to improve your photography skills; they're helpful even if you're a complete beginner. There's also an active forum where you can find a community of other photographers to connect with.

4. Duolingo

Sharpen your language skills with this fun, addictive game. It's a college-quality education without the price tag. If you're looking for more free language-learning materials, you can also try BBC Languages.

5. edX

From classes like The Science of Happiness to Responsible Innovation, edX offers tons of MOOCs from many of the world's top universities.

6. Factsie

Did you know the horned lizard can shoot blood out of its tear ducts? Keep clicking through this site to find unusual historical and scientific facts, along with links to sources. Another great site for fun facts is Today I Found Out.

7. Fast Company's 30-Second MBA

In short video clips from from accomplished corporate executives, you'll learn great business advice and life lessons, really fast.

8. Freerice

Expand your vocabulary while feeding the hungry. It's the best way to feel good about yourself and learn words you can use for the rest of your life.

9. Gibbon

This is the ultimate playlist for learning. Users collect articles and videos to help you learn things from iOS programming to effective storytelling.

10. Instructables

Through fun videos and simple instructions, you can learn how to make anything from a tennis ball launcher to a backyard fort. You can also submit your own creations and share what you make with the rest of the world. Still wanting to learn more? You can visit eHow and gain a wide range of skills, such as how to cook, decorate, fix, plan, garden, or even make a budget.

11. Investopedia

Learn everything you need to know about the world of investing, markets, and personal finance.

12. Khan Academy

Not only will you learn a wide variety of subjects through immensely helpful videos, but you'll get a chance to practice them and keep track of your learning statistics, too. It's a great way to further your understanding of subjects you've already taken or to learn something new.

13. LearnVest

The personal finance site offers news, classes, and resources to help you learn the basics of managing your money.

14. Lifehacker

On this highly useful site, you'll find an assortment of tips, tricks, and downloads for getting things done.

15. Lumosity

Train your brain with these fun, scientifically designed games. You can build your own Personalized Training Program to improve your memory and attention and track your progress.

16. MIT Open Courseware

Want to be as smart as an MIT student? Check out classes and course materials from the institute here.

17. Powersearching with Google

Learn how to find anything you ever wanted by mastering your Google search skills. Also, read this article on 100 Google tricks that will save you time in school.

18. Quora

Get your questions answered by other smart people, or read through the questions other people have asked. You can learn anything from productivity hacks to the best foods of all time.

19. Recipe Puppy

Enter in all the ingredients you can find in your kitchen, and this wonderful search engine will give you a list of all the recipes you can make with what you have. It's a great way to learn how to cook without the hassle of buying everything beforehand. For a more extensive list of recipes, try AllRecipes.

20. Spreeder

This free, online speed-reading software will improve your reading speed and comprehension. Just paste the text you'd like to read, and it'll take care of the rest.

21. StackOverflow

It's a question and answer site for programmers - basically a coder's best friend. Other great sources to learn code are Learn X in Y Minutes and W3Schools.

22. TED-Ed

This is a new initiative launched by TED with the idea of "lessons worth sharing." It is meant to spark the curiosity of learners around the world by creating a library of award-winning, animated lessons created by expert educators, screenwriters, and animators. You can create your own customized lesson to distribute around the world by adding questions, discussion topics, and other supplementary materials to any educational video on YouTube.

23. Udemy

Feed your brain with online courses on everything from web development to playing the guitar. You can also teach your own classes through the platform.

24. Unplug The TV

A fun website that suggests informative videos for you to watch instead of TV. Topics range from space mining to "How Containerization Shaped the Modern World."

25. VSauce

This Youtube Channel provides mind-blowing facts and the best of the internet, which will make you realize how amazing our world is. What would happen if the world stopped spinning? Why do we get bored? How many things are there? Watch the videos and find out.

 

10 Professional Development Tips For Programmers

Great developers are the rock stars of the tech world: They are always in demand, they get the best perks and they work with innovative companies of all sizes. However, achieving this rock star status is a long journey. Along the way there are skills you need to add to your toolbox and habits you need to develop if you plan on moving into that corner office.

With IT unemployment at 2.6 percent, competition for development talent is fierce and opportunities abound. However, you still have to work to land top spots. Like most IT professionals, programmers have several areas they should focus on in order to keep their careers on track and their skills sharp. To identify the key areas, we asked developers and hiring experts for advice on professional development and the skills necessary to keep moving up the corporate ladder.

1. Staying Current Requires Continuous Learning

Technology is ever-changing and staying relevant means you must change and evolve with it. Self-learning through books or media, boot camps, meet-ups, conferences, internal training offered by your employer or volunteering are all viable ways to grow your skill set.

"The state of software development changes so rapidly that regardless of what technology you work with today, aspects of that technology will be different in five years, and maybe be completely gone in 10 years," says Robert Treat, a developer for more than 15 years and CEO of OmniTI. "Even if you keep your focus on a narrow tool set, there will always be new versions of software that add features and change behaviors. Because of this, you need to find a mechanism for continuously learning new technologies that may not be in use at your current day job. Side projects, open source community involvement or working in companies that work with a wide mix of technologies are good ways to overcome this."

2. Problem-Solving Skills

"Some companies put a great premium on problem-solving skills and give logic exercises or puzzles instead of a coding quiz. Their feeling is that it's not so much your ability to code in a particular language, but your ability to creatively solve problems that demonstrates whether you will be a high performer. Since many companies use a variety of languages depending on the application, they want people who can easily transition between various languages and tools," says Tracy Cashman, senior vice president and partner of Information Technology Search at WinterWyman.

3. Communication and People Skills

The days of the introverted, hidden-away IT people are gone. Make way for the IT pros who understand that different groups of people need things communicated differently. "Many [in] development roles found it perfectly acceptable to work only by yourself and grunt occasionally at a passing coworker. While those roles may still exist in certain situations, most dev roles today require a certain level of interpersonal skills, especially due to the increase in agile, team-oriented development. The most extreme form of this would be paired programming where two developers are actively working together and reviewing each other's work," says Cashman.

From inside the trenches of development, Web architect Brian Dunavant shares his perspective on communication, "As a senior developer, it's easy to become jaded and dismissive of user bug reports or junior developer issues. Force yourself to recognize this impatience and avoid it. Yes, they will probably be wrong most of the time, but this is a teaching moment, or opportunity to help your customer. And for the time they aren't wrong, you potentially solved the problem and learned something new."

4. Networking and Personal Branding

Most people find their next job opportunity via networking. That's even more so in the technology field. Branding is all about showcasing what separates you from the rest of the pack. This two-punch combination is an effective defense against reorgs, downsizings and outsourcings, but it's more than just adding connections on LinkedIn. It's about forging relationships.

"The good news is that as a developer, your skills are probably highly sought after. The bad news is that if you aren't out there actively networking, you may not even know what great opportunities are available to you. Often I find developers have the least developed LinkedIn profiles. They may be afraid of being called by recruiters, but they are also making themselves invisible to hiring managers who often do their own hunting on LinkedIn. At a minimum, any good developer should be attending meet-ups and expanding their circle. Most hires are made by referral or prior knowledge of someone's skills," says Cashman.

Treat offers this tip for developers looking to raise their visibility in their area of expertise: "When it comes to branding, nothing works better than a technical blog where you showcase things you have learned and projects you have been involved with. When potential employers go looking for experts on a topic or technology, this personal branding can help lead them to you."

5. Code Documentation and Neatness

Not many developers enjoy going through poorly formatted, undocumented code to troubleshoot, but it happens all the time. While you can't control everyone else's coding standards you can make sure your output is tidy and understandable. "The key things to focus on in these areas are the ability for people new to a project to be able to come up to speed quickly, and automating significant portions of your development process, such as syntax checking, code formatting and other similar grunt work. Clean code and clean documentation do help with these goals, but remember that they are paths to the goals, not the goals themselves," says Treat.

"My philosophy - as is the philosophy of most professional software engineers - is that you are putting your name on this work. Well-designed and well-written code shows respect for your profession as well as your clients," says George Liu, owner of Tellahilim LLC, an app development company.

6. Master Naming Functions

Developers have different opinions on naming conventions, but you probably should have a strategy to ensure your code is easy to read, follow and understand. "The key to naming conventions is consistency. As long as developers choose a linguistically meaningful pattern that would be readable by his or her successors, the actual pattern can vary. One stipulation for enforcing a particular naming convention is when the code is added to the project with a previously defined standard," says Leon Fayer, software developer, solutions architect, and vice president of OmniTI.

7. Get Familiar With Agile

"This is almost a given for most development positions these days. Even if a team uses a combination of waterfall and agile, there are usually continuous development and releases in some form. Companies want people who can be adaptable and effective at iterative development," says Cashman.

Treat agrees, but offers this warning: "The days of months and months of heads-down software development are dying, as people move to more iterative processes. It is worth every developer's time to read the agile manifesto, but beware that like all religious texts, it is often interpreted in different ways when it comes to practice. Similar techniques to be familiar with would also include reading about continuous delivery, and continuous deployment. Flexibility and regular communication are a part of all of the best software development shops now, so developers should prepare for that."

8. Get Familiar With a Native Mobile Platform

While our experts point out that this isn't necessary to be a successful developer, they also point out that this is an area with huge demand and continues to build momentum as the world becomes more mobile-driven. "Software development is a large enough field that as a developer, you can actually ignore mobile development and still have a fruitful career. That said, mobile platforms are quickly replacing desktop platforms, so it is in a developer's best interest to be familiar with the technologies involved. At a minimum, if you are doing any kind of Web development, it's important to read up on responsive design and mobile first methodologies," says Treat.

"As the world becomes more mobile-device driven, so too does the development world. Companies are actively developing their products for mobile platforms, recognizing that is the way many customers want to do business, whether it's on their Android or iPad. Those who haven't worked with mobile technology may find themselves dated when it comes time to find a new position," says Cashman.

9. Project Management Skills

If you plan on moving up in your career, project management skills are a smart place to invest your time and resources. "I always encourage developers to become familiar with secondary skills and roles that have a heavy impact on the work they do, and project management is no different. Developers who can't participate in managing projects will have a diminished level of influence over the projects they work on. Even if only for personal reasons, it's a good idea to have some methodology for ensuring the process you are using for development makes sense," says Treat.

10. JavaScript, CSS and HTML5 Skills

In smaller and medium-size companies a lot of dev pros pull double-duty and are asked to handle these types of jobs. This is another area that isn't a necessity, but when it comes to job searching it's something that could sway a potential hiring manager. "Having Web/UI skills makes you that much more of a well-rounded candidate. Developers are often asked to wear multiple hats. While bigger teams may have the luxury of having a strong front-end developer who can focus more on the look and feel of the application, there are many times when hard-core developers are asked to handle this work as well," says Cashman.

10 Things Every Learner Needs to Know

Will the effective skills your participants are learning about in the classroom translate to what they do in the workplace? As someone who cares deeply about this question (someone who has devoted the past 42 years of her life helping people learn), I’m going to make two bold statements, and then make a recommendation. 

1. Without a basic understanding of how learning happens, which is outlined in the rest of this article, there is very little chance that program participants will actually implement what they learned.
2. Very likely, no one has ever attended a training program with this perspective. 

It’s important to give your learners a clear understanding of the kind of follow-through they’ll need to perform to ingrain new work habits. I strongly recommend that you reproduce the following information, give it to every learner, and have them read it (and, ideally, discuss it) at the beginning of every program.
1. KNOWING what to do isn’t the same as DOING it.
You can learn what to do through classroom instruction, books, videos, and articles. But this aspect of learning is only the beginning. Acquiring knowledge doesn’t guarantee that you’ll apply it when you need to. As Morpheus told Neo in the sci-fi movie, Matrix, “There’s a difference between knowing the path and walking the path.” Behavior is what counts. And most behavior in a busy workplace is a result of habit, not conscious decisions.
2. Skills, habits, and routines are hard-wired in the brain.
You need to appreciate what’s really going on when you master a new skill. When you repeat a behavior, the brain cells involved in the behavior are stimulated to connect with each other. With enough repetition, physical circuits form that enable you to repeat the behavior easily and quickly. This is true whether it’s your golf swing or the way you deal with other people. This means that the way you do things now is already hard-wired in your brain. It also means that to improve a skill or work habit, you need to rewire your brain.
3. The brain will wire itself for both good and bad habits if you repeat the behavior often enough.
Your brain doesn't distinguish between effective and ineffective patterns. It will never say, "Wait a minute, I can't program that for you because it will cause you problems.” No, it will simply start connecting the brain cells for the behavior each time you repeat it. This is why you could end up interrupting people when they’re talking. Or yelling at them when you get upset. Or procrastinating when faced with a difficult decision.
4. Most adults have wired a lot of bad habits over the years.
During your life so far, you’ve developed “your way” of doing lots of things. And your way of interacting with others probably includes a few behavior patterns that cause problems. This is because practically nobody was taught the best practices when they were young. You picked up ways of dealing with family, friends, co-workers and others “on the street,” so to speak. And some of these patterns may not work well when dealing with managers, team members, and customers.
So, when you attend a training course to learn better ways of dealing with people, you don’t walk in with a blank slate. You have your own familiar, comfortable ways of handling things. Your challenge will be to do the work after instruction in order to rewire your brain.
5. Take responsibility for your own learning.
A trainer can show you how to improve. Your boss can encourage you to change, but only you can make this happen. Only you can do the work to rewire your brain for a new skill or work habit.
6. Rewiring for a new skill will take a lot of repetitions.
What happens in the classroom is a great start, but it’s just the beginning. Most of the effort of learning has to happen after instruction. Back on the job, you’ll need to use what you learned. Like mastering a sport skill, it will take practice, practice and more practice before the brain cells involved will physically interconnect into a circuit that makes the skill feel natural. So you must do the reps, or you’ll eventually go back to your old way of doing things.
7. Accept that at first you’ll have failures and setbacks, and don’t give up.
Even if you value what you learned and fully intend to implement it, at first you may forget to do so. Or if you make a conscious effort, the skill may feel awkward and ineffective. Almost everyone experiences this kind of frustration initially. The habits you already have get in the way of the new habits you’re trying to adopt. You’ll be tempted to give up trying. You may think, “This doesn’t feel right. I don’t think this is going to work for me.”
The key is to persist past this “crunch point.” If you keep trying, you’ll forget less often. Your efforts will start to achieve results. Keep trying and your “failure rate” will eventually approach zero. The new habit will become dominant. You’ll find yourself performing the new, improved skill without consciously deciding to do it.
8. Focus on one skill or work habit at a time.
If you’re an ambitious individual, you may want to correct several behavior patterns all at once. This would be a mistake. In a busy workplace, you’ll find that it’s hard enough to apply one new skill repeatedly. Trying to work on several skills simultaneously will water down your efforts. You won’t get enough reps to improve any of them.
So focus on one area until it starts to feel natural and you’re having success. Doing so will be an outstanding personal achievement. Then you can focus on improving something else.
9. Learn from your mistakes.
Your early efforts may be discouraging, but you can use these experiences to improve. Ask yourself: What happened? What did it happen that way? What should I consider doing differently to get better results? There are lessons to be learned from every experience, if you take time to reflect on it.
10. Get help.

Ask people who care about your development—your boss, co-workers, other training participants—to help you stay focused, encourage you and hold you accountable. This kind of support coaching can accelerate your learning. Ask for their input, ideas and feedback. Ask them whether they’ve noticed improvement, and get their suggestions for how you can perform better.

The Most Important Skill for Software Architects

I trust anyone reading this post title most probably is expecting to see something like UML Design, OOP Design, writing code, etc. I would not consider these in required skills list, these are I would say, mandatory skills for a Software Architect. In my opinion, the most important skills for Software Architects are the communication skills.

The importance of communication skills

In Microsoft .NET – Architecting Applications for the Enterprise (2nd Edition) book, the role of the software architect is defined as a person who ties together the requirements and specifications, and one of the most important responsibilities of the software architect is mentioned to be the acknowledgment of requirements.
This requires a lot of communication with people of different profiles and various knowledge of technical jargon (project managers, business analysts, potential users, etc.), and it is a natural expectation that Software Architect should speak the language of business rather than the other way around.
Speaking the language of business is one part of the communication. Next comes communicating that business knowledge and requirements to development team. In my experience, I have seen several situations that developers and business people were speaking about the very same solution, but the language terminology they used made everybody think that they are speaking about two different solutions.
It is the technical skills of planning, designing, development, and implementation of a software solution that qualifies one for the position of Software Architect, but in my opinion it is the soft skill of communication that is the most important skill for software architects and the skill that makes one an appropriate choice to be in that middle point of the team. As my boss says, we must talk talk talk.

What can you do to improve your communication skills?

Of course there is no silver bullet to this problem. We humans tend to be unique in our behavior and skills, and as such the recommendations can not easily be generalized. However, I have three points which I can recommend to anyone:

1. Seek for sincere advice from people around you, be it your family, your friends, or your colleagues. Generally, it is not easy to get someone to sincerely tell you what they think. People sometimes don’t like to tell what they think and sometimes they are afraid of being percepted as criticizing others, so they don’t tell you exactly how you are being percepted unless they get this freedom from you. Try to make people feel comfortable saying what they think about your communication skills and appreciate sincerely their comments.
2. Spend some time with yourself thinking about your communication with others. What did you say, what was your intention to communicate and how was it percepted? This could be very helpful to find your weak points, on which you should focus to improve.
3. Read the book How to win friends and influence people by Dale Carnegie. This is one of the best books I have read and I can confidently recommend this book to anyone. It has an immense set of advices which are very useful for improving one’s communication skills.

You can find plenty of advice from different resources on internet, from books, and from people around you about how to improve your communication skills. Pay attention to the input you get especially from people, you will appreciate it at the end.

Here's The 1 Question You Should Ask In Every Job Interview

"This question gives you 'insider information' about the position and the interviewer's perspective on the organization."Job interviews should be a two-way street where both parties - the candidate and the employer - have the same goal: to figure out if there's a fit.

The best way to do this as the interviewee is to ask questions. The right questions.
Career experts Katharine S. Brooks and Lynn Taylor say that what you ask may vary depending on the industry, company, or job you're applying for - but they agree that despite the circumstances, there's one question all job candidates should always ask, no matter what:
Who succeeds in this position?
Another way to phrase it: How would you define success for this position?
"This question gives you 'insider information' about the position and the interviewer's perspective on the organization," explains Brooks, the executive director of the Office of Personal and Career Development at Wake Forest University. "This is the type of information you can't find easily on the internet."
Taylor, a national workplace expert and the author of "Tame Your Terrible Office Tyrant: How to Manage Childish Boss Behavior and Thrive in Your Job," says as the hiring manager answers this question, they'll probably give you insight as to exactly how your career goals align with their priorities.
"Their response will likely elicit such invaluable input as specific skills they seek (you'll pick up a lot more nuances than what's included in a written job listing); the real priorities for the job (you'll know this because of emphasis and time spent on each); an inside perspective of what it takes to secure the position (they're in effect telling you specifically how to sell yourself according to their needs); and their culture, work ethic expectations, and style," she explains.

It's important to remember that you'll be spending most of your waking hours at work, so you want to help ensure that the position will be challenging, motivational, and rewarding. "Each of your questions should elicit as much information as possible, not just about the work itself, but about your prospective boss' work style and the culture," Taylor says. "Having chemistry with your potential manager and others with whom you'll work can often trump the work itself. And there are ways to ascertain that before you commit."
This question in particular will equip you with a benchmark against which to work, she adds. "If you accept the position, you'll always know whether you're following the mission."

Frontend Developer Vs Backend Developer

6 Ways to Break a Tech Addiction

Do you immediately check your phone when you’re alone or have a free moment? Do you get distracted easily at work by the web? Perhaps you’re that person with the wise idea to film a concert on your phone.
Getting stuck in a digital rut is all too common today. People have become enslaved to their devices and it’s tough for them to regain control. Breaking free means drafting a new contract with technology and setting up boundaries that work.
Here are six common habits of a tech addict and ways to resolve them.

1. Skip the morning digital check-in.

Waking up to a techie breakfast of checking your email, Facebook or Instagram likes that you scored since midnight isn’t that nourishing. It saps productivity by flooding the mind with a full plate of everything before you've had a chance to focus on the bigger picture.
Swap the mobile activity by truly becoming mobile in the morning. Do some light stretching or yoga, brush your teeth, read a newspaper or meditate for 10 minutes. Work will be waiting for you in the office.

2. Ward off Internet interference.

You’re in the zone and working on the design of a presentation for a client. Then ding! An email arrives and you’re gazing at four videos of cute kids throwing cereal. Finding your bearings and getting back into the flow of work can be a real challenge, just like trying to do so after consuming a plate of very spicy food for lunch.
Interruptions are a drag, and there are various tools to get them under control. Install a browser extension like StayFocusd and set time limits on visiting certain websites. Or turn off your Wi-Fi for an hour. Better yet, step away from the computer entirely and grab a notepad.

3. Avoid putting out the never-ending fire.

Some say, “With great power comes great responsibility.” But they might as well add, “And zero time to get it all done.”
Managers are often dragged into meetings or fire drills that require immediate attention and suck up the entire day. Mindfulness meditation is a technique that many find useful to instill a sense of presence and regain focus.
Develop a practice and make it part of your daily routine.

4. Stop always being available 24/7.

Technology lets people be reached and work no matter the place or time. With devices in the pocket, work-life fences are down and people are always set to be on. Yet taking breaks is good for the mind.
Who hasn’t had the Monday morning awakening when solutions magically appear to resolve giant problems? Getting there means being ruthless in creating space from screens. One day a week, consciously put in the effort to avoid anything digital. If you’re in need of a longer duration away from digital life, check out Digital Detox.
This Bay Area organization has hosted more than 500 individuals on mindfulness retreats, leading prominent tech companies in day camps and conversations to uncover ethics, healthy technology habits and best practices.
Founder Levi Felix, who is a friend, also runs Camp Grounded, the 100 percent off-the-grid summer camp for adults, “When we unplug for longer periods of time, we reconnect with with our own novel thoughts, our creativity heightens, blood pressure lowers and we are able to truly take stock in what's most important in life,” he tells me in an email.

5. Stop web searching for everything.

Remember exploring hiking trails without using Yelp or taking a risk to check out a pizzeria because it smelled delicious? Trust the gut more and dig inside to find the right answer. While at work, trust your intuition and surprise yourself with your own talents. People are prone to browsing the web for inspiration, but original work demands digging into a personal set of beliefs and experiences. Even if you fail, you’ll learn a ton.

6. Try shedding a phone or two for a while.

Phones can create a barrier between the holder and the subject, and in a way contaminate the purity of an experience. Life is always in high-definition. It’s important to create phone-free zones and times.
At my house, phones are banned during dinner. My friends and I play phone stack at restaurants, piling all the phones in the middle of the table. Imagine a pyramid of phones: Whoever picks up his or hers first pays the entire bill.

Next time you feel the need to pull out your phone and capture the moment, soak it in with your eyes and appreciate it. Over time, the anxiety of not being able to snap a photo of a cool fire hydrant will fade away, and you’ll just be there. Most of IT candidates that make it to an interview are quite qualified, but the one who ultimately gets the job offer must be more than qualified. He or she will have to prove they go beyond expectations and have the right stuff to be an asset to the company. Every day I speak with IT hiring managers in a variety of industries, and regardless of the type of IT role or project, there are six traits that hiring managers routinely say make a great candidate. 1. Extremely coachable and adaptable Often a candidate's education and skillsets are just not enough. Because IT is an ever-changing environment, it's more important that candidates be coachable and adaptable. These traits are at the top of an employer's "must have" list and are equal to a candidate's ability to fit into the company's vision and culture. New hires who are coachable and adaptable are open to change, appreciate fresh perspectives, keep challenging themselves, have higher motivation, and take action to move themselves and the business forward. 2. Willing to go beyond job description Most IT departments feel that candidates who demonstrate that they're willing to go above and beyond are a rare find. The ones who are willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done always stand out. One way to determine whether a candidate is willing to give it his or her all, plus more, is to look at past behavior on a previous job and contact references. Also, when interviewing IT candidates, ask them to describe a time when they went over and above to achieve success on a project. Ask what they did in their last job that was new and put into practice by the supervisor. These types of questions are part of behavioral-based interviewing, a great way to determine behavior patterns and success in a particular job. 3. High emotional intelligence It once was thought that a college degree was the best measure of potential and a predictor of a candidate's success. Now emotional intelligence (EI), often associated with soft skills, is seen as an important factor in professional success. EI is the ability to monitor one's own and other people's emotions and use this information to guide thinking and behavior. With high EI, a candidate is more likely to learn quickly on the job, be competent, work effectively in a team setting, have problem-solving skills, negotiate effectively, and demonstrate leadership potential. More companies are putting employees through critical thinking and personality assessments to gauge EI. 4. Hybrid employee The hybrid employee is a generalist and a specialist all in one. A generalist tends to be someone who knows quite a few technologies but only at an average level. A specialist knows only one or two but at an expert level. A hybrid knows about a great many things at an advanced level and can adapt to any type of project. With a hybrid employee, you're basically getting two people in one. 5. Passionate about profession Passionate people genuinely care about the company, team, and project. They don't allow themselves to get bogged down by difficult personalities or office politics. Passionate people dig in for the long haul, even when it's incredibly challenging. They strive for continuous improvement and innovation and are up on the latest IT trends through research, training, and participation in industry associations and conferences. 6. Entrepreneurial spirit Today's younger candidates are driven by an entrepreneurial spirit that we've rarely seen before. Employers consider it a type of mindset, attitude, and approach to thinking that brings about change. It's about seeing the big picture and taking ownership and pride in projects. Once on the job, candidates with an entrepreneurial spirit tend to be self-motivated. In fact, just recently one of my clients told me that he’s looking for people who don't have to be micromanaged. His day is filled with juggling budgets, resources, and new projects. Therefore, he needs people who can work independently as well as on a team, handle multiple tasks with confidence, and thrive in a fluid IT environment. I assured him that candidates like that really do exist.

Read more at: http://www.informationweek.in/informationweek/news-analysis/298787/traits-candidate?utm_source=referrence_article

Avancer Software Solutions - Our Updated Services

5 Technology Roadblocks Costing You Great Talent

Companies put a lot into recruiting great talent -- nearly $110 billion a year, according to a 2013 study by Deloitte. In addition to the money, companies are also investing time and patience into finding and hiring great talent.
However, when it comes to technology and recruiting, how many of us are shooting ourselves in the proverbial foot without realizing it? In my opinion, there are five major technology-related roadblocks killing candidates' experience and causing companies to miss out on great talent:

1. Companies fail to re-engage candidates.

One of the biggest mistakes companies make is failing to re-engage candidates, an October 2014 CareerBuilder study found. A candidate who isn’t hired for a certain position may turn out to be a perfect fit for one that opens up later, but organizations that don’t maintain relationships with viable candidates lose them.

These candidates have already expressed interest in the organization, so companies could save time and effort by reaching out to them for future positions. However, only 38 percent of human-resource professionals re-engage candidates every six months or more, while more than a third report they have moved on to more current candidates.

2. Companies lose interested, but passive, candidates.

Just because a candidate may not apply immediately upon reading your posting doesn’t mean they aren’t interested in applying later. However, 57 percent of HR professionals don’t use any tools to capture candidates who didn’t apply to their jobs. In fact, 39 percent of job seekers feel the ability to leave their contact information with an employer and apply later is extremely or very important, according to CareerBuilder.
In addition, two in five job seekers would like to receive emails about new opportunities opening up at companies. By getting interested candidates’ information, companies can build a talent pipeline for future openings.

3. The application isn’t accessible on mobile devices.

Nine out of 10 job seekers say they will use their mobile device during a job search sometime in the next 12 months, a 2014 Glassdoor survey reports. That means if you don’t have an application that’s accessible on mobile devices, or if it doesn’t line up well with the interface, you’re missing out on a lot of potential talent.
Companies can combat this by offering an application that’s accessible on mobile devices, or through the use of mobile apps. In addition to job searching, 44 percent of job seekers expect to be able to apply for jobs from their mobile device, so not offering mobile applications costs a lot of companies great talent.

4. Using automated responses.

When companies are flooded with applications and resumes, it can be difficult to get back to each individual candidate. It’s easy to use an automated email response or generalized application service, but 39 percent of job seekers don’t feel that’s enough. They’re looking for personalization, the CareerBuilder study reports.
Sixty-two percent of job seekers are expecting more personalized communications, which could be anything from a personalized email to a phone call from a recruiter after an application has been submitted (which, in fact, 67 percent of job seekers expect!). Companies that don’t respond to each applicant may find themselves losing great talent to organizations that do.

5. The application process is too complicated.

According to CareerBuilder, 53 percent of human resources professionals think having a long application is good because it filters out candidates who aren’t truly interested.
While this may be true, making the application process too complicated also filters out potential candidates who may not have the patience for a long application. A shocking 60 percent of job seekers reported not finishing an application because it was too long.
So how long is too long? While the CareerBuilder survey found 37 percent of recruiters ask 15 or more questions on an application, job seekers say an application should have 10 questions at the most. In addition, 29 percent of job seekers believe the application process should take 10 minutes or less, with 62 percent saying it should take 20 minutes at the most.
It can be hard enough to recruit great talent without hidden roadblocks. By avoiding these technology-related mistakes, companies can widen their talent pool and find and hire the best talent for their organization.