Category Archives: Java/Java EE

OCP Book Now Available!

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OCP: Oracle Certified Professional Java SE 8 Programmer II Study Guide: Exam 1Z1-809

Jeanne and I are thrilled to announce that the Kindle version of our second book, OCP: Oracle Certified Professional Java SE 8 Programmer II Study Guide: Exam 1Z0-809, is now available for purchase on Amazon! The OCP paperback edition, available for pre-order, is currently printing and will be shipping in the next month.

This book, which is nearly twice the size of our previous OCA Study Guide, is chock full of information on topics ranging from design patterns, to concurrency and NIO.2, to JDBC. Unlike many other older study guides, we have written our material centered entirely around Java 8, with an emphasis on lambda expressions and streams.

While some experienced developers can pass Oracle’s OCA exam with limited amount of studying, the same cannot be said for the OCP exam. Besides the large-scale inclusion of lambda expressions and streams, the exam covers includes much broader topics that seasoned developers may not be readily familiar with.

For example, you might have been using JDBC for years, but can you list the differences between obtaining a connection using the 3.0 and 4.0 versions of the drivers? You may have also been reading and writing files with java.io streams for years, but we bet many of you haven’t ever used the mark(), reset(), or skip() methods. It is for reasons like these that we strongly recommend you study carefully for the exam using our book or an equivalent study guide, avoiding the pitfalls (mentally and financially) of having to pay to take the exam multiple times.

Our book covers all 3 variations of the OCP exam, including a dedicated Appendix for those taking the Java 6 or earlier version of the OCP 8 upgrade exam, as it contains material not found in the other two versions of the exams.

We hope you enjoy reading this book as much as we enjoyed writing it!

cropping video fast for dummies on a mac (updated for 2015)

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I don’t edit video often, which means it feels different each time I try. I last wrote about cropping on a Mac in 2012. It felt different (but easier) this time.

Downloading the file from youtube

I entered the original youtube URL into http://en.savefrom.net. Then I downloaded the mp4 file.

Opening the video in iMovie

  1. Open iMovie
  2. New Project
  3. No theme
  4. Name project
  5. Import Media > navigate to the mp4

Crop the video

  1. In the thumbnails view, select the beginning of where you wan the video to start.
  2. Drag to where you want the video to end.
  3. Adjust as needed
  4. Play the video in the preview to ensure it is right.

Export the video

  1. File
  2. Share > File
  3. Next
  4. Save to location
  5. Wait until Mac pops up message that export was successful

the new two factor authentication for apple

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I upgraded the OS on my iPad and MacBook Pro today. I also set up the “new” two factor system. I hadn’t set it up with the old system when I set up two factor on many other accounts.

Setup was easy as described here. I added both my home and cell numbers. I like that you can choose whether to receive a text or phone call with the code. A code was sent to or called on each phone to verify. Since I set this up from my Mac, it became a trusted device. My iPad is recognized as logged in, but not trusted so the code only appears on my Mac.

I then signed in to my apple account in Safari to try to set it up as trusted. On my Mac, the six digit verification code automatically popped up. Minor bug, it was a window that went to the background when I tabbed away and I couldn’t find it when command+tab to switched. I had to drag my browser window out of the way to get it back. When I went to look at iCloud > username > devices on my iPad, I again got the location/verification code pop up on my computer. More convenient this time since it was a different device. I like that it shows the location of the device that wants the code.

I also got an email saying I turned on two factor and that I can opt out by clicking the link for a limited time. I like that the link expires to reduce the attack surface. Of course, I can always opt out through actually logging into my account.

The only problem is that I can’t figure out how to make my iOS 9.1 iPad a trusted device. The option just isn’t there under iCloud > username > password and security.