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Anyone remember Simply Transparent?

— Comments — code, extjs, freeware, git, javascript, life, microsoft visual studio, nostalgia, screen savers, site, tech, techtv, user interface design, web, web design — 1 min read

It was my first public offering to the world of freeware! My high school after-hours project is now on github.  I don't know why I haven't done this sooner, but I thought it would be a fun _git-_to-know git activity.

Just looking through all these files brings back memories -- my, how far I've come. My first rendition of this project mostly used the MFC classes Microsoft shipped with their Visual C++ 5/6 projects (this was before Visual Studio .NET).  I eventually released this gem as Simply Transparent 6.5, and was the version that was honored as the "Free file of the Day" on TechTV's "The Screen Savers" with Leo Laporte and Megan Morrone, post Kate Botello era.  Right around that time, I kicked MFC to the curb and rewrote the entire program with nothing but the Windows bare API at my mercy.  I had grown as a programmer and found a new love of strait-up-no-hand-holding raw C++.  Those were the days... learning something new every day, and digging for more -- constantly digging -- knowledge in software development and the art of UI design.

I find myself in the same boat I was in over 10 years ago.  Digging.  Researching and plotting the next big thing.  8-9 years ago, I began really jumping into web development and Web site design.  I had architected something that was a kind of predecessor to a 100% client-side Javascript Web site (a la ExtJS), a blog — before I knew that's what it was called -- and asynchronous data loads (before I knew what AJAX was).  I took what I learned and molded it into a CMS I called HybridEngine, eventually to be written in PHP and be the abstracted layer between my app and my filesystem/database. Oh memories. :)

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