I just did a bunch of threading work for my little email application. In Java. And threading in Java is the bomb. Much easier than the Win32/linux implementations I've worked with in the past.

Just have your class extend Thread. That's freakin brilliant. Throw a few standard methods in there, and you're flying.

Good stuff.

So is Eclipse. It's one of those Open Source projects that IBM sponsors. It's a nice little Java IDE that seems almost as good as JBuilder. Main reason I've been playing with it is because I've heard that we may be standardizing on it in my new company. So I figure it's good to check out what I may have to work with.

All in all, it's not bad. It's not nearly as good as JBuilder tho. Most of what you need is pretty easy to figure out, but there's no visual designer for building frames and the like. Not that having one really helps with JBuilder. Somehow I think Borland just threw it in there because all of their other Builder family products had a nice GUI builder. But with Java it's more like you throw the components on a form, and try to get the layout manger to not screw things up too badly. Once you get the form right, it's great, but while you're building it, it can be a nightmare. Despite this, having the designer is better than not having one (it can usually get you 75% of where you need to go, and you can do the rest by hand), and eclipse loses out on that bit. I'm also not sure how well it integrates with various source control systems, but that really isn't a huge concern yet.

It does have some kick-ass features however. It pulls up Javadoc summaries of methods and the like when you're browsing thru code-insight popups. That's one thing I wish JBuilder had. It also apes the JBuilder style project setup and management system pretty well. I like being able to throw classes into folders and the like, and eclipse lets me do it. Unfortunately it has a UGLY motif interface (I know there's a GTK2 version, but it just wouldn't work on this machine). And motif is ugly and doesn't quite feel right at the best of times. This is no exception.

Maybe I'll revisit Forte sometime soon... supposed to get 6 inches of snow today, so I have a feeling I'll have some free time.

TNN recently ran their "Best of Bond" series. I was watching, because.. well.... I like Bond flicks. So I sat thru the good ones, "Dr. No" and "Goldfinger"... some of the decent ones... "Live and Let Die" and "The Spy who Loved Me"... and some which I had forgotten just how awful they were "The Man with the Golden Gun" and "Moonraker"...

But one thing jumped out at me. They had these promos going on during the commercials for the best of "Bond on Blonde" action, sponsored by Clorox. And it naturally highlighted (heh) the blonde bond girls. And very visible at the end was Maryam d'Abo. Great, I'd get to see "The Living Daylights".

But they didn't show "The Living Daylights", nor is it on their schedule. Why would they tease me with the idea that they would be showing me a Timothy Dalton bond, and then not show it. Dalton was really the ultimate bond, wasn't too over-the-top, wasn't too slick. He just played the role the way it was supposed to be played. And TNN was going to deny me.

So a quick little feedback got sent to TNN. So far, no response. But I'm hopeful. And I have "License to Kill" on DVD. If I can find "The Living Daylights" on DVD, I'll be set.

Quick note to the potential flamers, you know who you are. Brosnan is a horrible bond. He's turned the franchise into a parody of Die Hard movies (Think: Willis in a tux). Goldeneye was the exception, but think how much better it would have been with Dalton. And wasn't it written for Dalton anyhow? And don't even start about Connery. He had a few good films. Then he started wearing that horrible toupee and grew the pot belly. You Only Live Twice? Almost as bad as The Man with the Golden Gun. I feel no need to say anything about Roger Moore, because I know nobody will mention him in any potential flames.