I recently let a domain name expire, bytemason.org, and it was scooped up by some domain-squatting outfit out of Illinois, DotaCom something-or-other. It really stinks, because it took me a long time to come up with the idea of byte masonry as my personal metaphor for coding as craft. I actually like that name better than the name/domain under which I incorporated.

What I really liked about bytemason was the mason part; I am fascinated by the work of brick masons. To me, there are strong analogies between brick masonry and quality coding. Both require discipline to do many small things right while never losing sight of the big picture. These two elements must be held in dynamic tension and balance; otherwise the end product will be unsound.

I was never crazy about the byte part, but it was the best available thing I could come up with at the time. These days, bytes are certainly a more common reference than bits, unless you work in embedded systems or hardware engineering, I guess.

After wheedling around GoDaddy for over an hour, a new domain name finally came to me. I now own codecelt.org. I like both components of this name. I have long been fascinated with the arts of the Celts. The intricacy and the symmetry of their metalwork and stone sculpture mesmerizes me. I also like code as opposed to byte, because it more closely ties to the general product of programming as opposed to a discreet unit of code’s composition.

I had also toyed with “The Artful Coder”, a takeoff from the notorious Oliver Twist character The Artful Dodger. However, since his primary skill was avoiding arrest and it serves as a term to infer someone is generally skilled in avoiding responsibility, that was a glaring mismatch. It’s a shame; it sounds quite catchy. I mean heck, Jack Dawkins, Barry Hawkins — it’s almost destiny. I guess if you camp out on that whole “lazy programmer” mantra that might fit. If so, all the domains for it are available; go snatch ‘em up.

Oh yeah, and codecelt.org is one character shorter. \o/ Woohoo! I’m hopeless.

The review of O’Reilly’s Head Rush Ajax hit Slashdot today. The topic of Ajax and the content of my review was very effective troll bait. Because I was at home sick, I read more of the comments than I usually do. Apparently the fact that I liked the book makes me a schill for O’Reilly. Sigh…

I recently started syndicating the IT Conversations RSS thread on my site and saw that an mp3 of Bruce Sterling speaking at O’Reilly’s Emerging Technology Conference was available. It’s an interesting listen; if you’re a cyberpunk fan at all, then it’s even more interesting.