Black Box Debugging

Black Box debugging - finding a bug when you have no visibility into the source code.  Identifying what's going wrong by the outputs of the system when presented with various inputs.  Love it.  Most of the time you don't have access to the source code; either it's long since gone, or it's in the hands of a different team.  So - you provide a variety of inputs in a variety of patterns and observe.

From there, you take your observations and either work out a linear process of what's happening or if you are an intuitive thinker, you'll 'see' the inner workings of the code and what it's doing right - or wrong.

Screenshots are good. Even if it's just the console.

Even for the intuitive thinker, you'll need to double down and create a linear description of the issue, in each case you can create the issue, ideally with screenshots or console dumps, to provide to the developers to resolve.  That's the hard bit, at least for me.

And that was my 'Now' moment for today.  Friday, 2PM, black box debug a set of Javascript calls on a website.  No, I don't know Javascript beyond how to spell it.  No, I've never seen this website before; at least not this new section of it.  No, I didn't have access to the source code.  Nor did I have access to a developer, only a developer liaison who could give occasional garbled tips through his Apple Airpods.

(Side note - Apple Airpods do not work well with computer-based phone/video calls. Get a Plantronics UC earpiece or a Jabra 75 Headset).

Was I successful?  Yes. And an improved version of a website was made available to the customers, making wireless suck just that much less.

How was your Friday?

Your Humble Scribe,

Will England

A discussion on CPNI

A coworker and I were chatting over Skype last night about the billing account number and if it is considered 'CPNI'.

So what is CPNI, and is the billing account number CPNI?

CPNI is calling usage for marketing purposes essentially.


An FCC request for comments regarding broadband CPNI , if you like reading these kind of things:


https://apps.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-16-39A1.pdf?platform=hootsuite


Summary:
"we consider the following types of information to constitute CPNI in the broadband context: (1) service plan information, including type of service (e.g., cable, fiber, or mobile), service tier (e.g., speed), pricing, and capacity (e.g., information pertaining to data caps); (2) geo-location; (3) media access control (MAC) addresses and other device identifiers; (4) source and destination Internet Protocol (IP) addresses and domain name information; and (5) traffic statistics. "


Or in more customer friendly terms more specific to VOIP / Switched Calling:



"Customer proprietary network information (CPNI) is information related to the quantity, technical configuration, type, destination, location, and the amount of telecommunications a customer uses that [provider] has access to by virtue of the customer-provider relationship. CPNI does not include the Customer name, address and telephone number, nor does it include Internet access services."

However, the BAN appears to be PII as it is the 'financial account number' of the customer.

http://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/Legacy/SP/nistspecialpublication800-122.pdf

California, which is often more strict the the Feds, does not consider the BAN alone PII unless linked with the password  or PIN that would allow access to the customer account (SB1368, section 2.e.3):

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/01-02/bill/sen/sb_1351-1400/sb_1386_bill_20020926_chaptered.html

Ad Blocking - it's the users way of saying enough is enough!

I've been running ad blocking software since, well, it first came out on Firefox.  Then Chrome and now it's available on iOS handsets now.  Why?  This snippet from the Adobe Digital Marketing blog sums it up quite well for me: 

Users are fed up with bad advertising experiences. Every install of an ad blocker is a statement against annoying ads, security risks, slow browsing, and ads’ consumption of computing resources. With ad blockers, users have taken back control of their browsing experience. Now, it’s up to publishers to adjust.

Exactly.  The ads are annoying - slow - and stop me from seeing the content I want to see.  By using the ad blocker, I can see the content without the overlays, popups and junk.  I want to support the publishers, but the content people and publishers are going to have to make some changes.  Again, suggested changes from the Adobe Digital Marketing Blog:

How publishers can adjust
If bad ad experiences are causing users to flee to ad blocking, good ad experiences can help decelerate this trend. Here are nine ways to ensure a good ad experience:

1. Make sure the ad load to content load is fair to the user.
2. Match audio and video ad experiences to user expectations. In-stream ads can automatically play video since the users expects this. In contrast, in-banner ads shouldn’t automatically play audio or video because it interrupts an otherwise quiet browsing experience.
3. Prevent ads from obstructing content.
4. Screen ads for security risks.
5. Optimize ads for speed.
6. Optimize ads to consume the least amount of computing resources possible.
7. Seek out deals with advertisers or intermediaries that have a vision for well-designed, useful ads.
8. Ask users for feedback on your ad experiences. Look for insights in the feedback that can make the ad experience better.
9. Apply the “does this work for me” test. Give your audience the experience that you would enjoy yourself.

Do you block ads when you are browsing the web?  On your phone?  What's been your experience as a consumer, and as a publisher of content?

What are the best jobs for work life balance?

Balancing your career and your home life seems simple when you're young - work all the time, play later!  But as life and a family come along - or you realize you may want to do something more than your paying job - work life balance starts to become important.

Do you have a job with a good work-life balance?  What make that important to you? 

Glassdoor took their survey data and compiled a list of the top 25 job titles for work-life balance, along with their availabilty and salary data:

1. Data Scientist

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 4.2
• Salary: $114,808
• Number of Job Openings: 1,315

2. SEO Manager

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 4.1
• Salary: $45,720
• Number of Job Openings: 338

3. Talent Acquisition Specialist

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 4.0
• Salary: $63,504
• Number of Job Openings: 1,171

4. Social Media Manager

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 4.0
• Salary: $40,000
• Number of Job Openings: 661

5. Substitute Teacher

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.9
• Salary: $24,380
• Number of Job Openings: 590

6. Recruiting Coordinator

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.9
• Salary: $44,700
• Number of Job Openings: 446

7. UX Designer

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.9
• Salary: $91,440
• Number of Job Openings: 338

8. Digital Marketing Manager

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.9
• Salary: $70,052
• Number of Job Openings: 640

9. Marketing Assistant

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
• Salary: $32,512
• Number of Job Openings: 384

10. Web Developer

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
• Salary: $66,040
• Number of Job Openings: 2,117

11. Risk Analyst

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
• Salary: $69,088
• Number of Job Openings: 208

12. Civil Engineer

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
• Salary: $65,532
• Number of Job Openings: 809

13. Client Manager

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
• Salary: $71,120
• Number of Job Openings: 503

14. Instructional Designer

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
• Salary: $66,040
• Number of Job Openings: 782

15. Marketing Analyst

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
• Salary: $60,000
• Number of Job Openings: 341

16. Software QA Engineer

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
• Salary: $91,440
• Number of Job Openings: 457

17. Web Designer

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
• Salary: $53,848
• Number of Job Openings: 500

18. Research Technician

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.8
• Salary: $36,525
• Number of Job Openings: 299

19. Program Analyst

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
• Salary: $71,120
• Number of Job Openings: 524

20. Data Analyst

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
• Salary: $58,928
• Number of Job Openings: 1,954

21. Content Manager

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
• Salary: $60,960
• Number of Job Openings: 409

22. Solutions Engineer

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
• Salary: $92,456
• Number of Job Openings: 652

23. Lab Assistant

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
• Salary: $27,550
• Number of Job Openings: 779

24. Software Developer

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
• Salary: $80,000
• Number of Job Openings: 3,330

25. Front End Developer

• Work-Life Balance Rating: 3.7
• Salary: $75,000
• Number of Job Openings: 1337

$5 Cell Phone. For life.

Sprint just dropped a "Go Big or Go Home" offer - three rewards for existing customers including unlimited voice minutes on your current plan, a $5 a month phone lease and a free year of service for new lines activated on your account.  Pretty cool - but when you dig into the FAQ you find the real bomb - that $5 phone lease is good forever.  You'll get a $15/month credit toward your lease payment as long as you keep leasing a phone from Sprint on a qualifying plan.  No more $200 biannual replacement costs.  Just drop the phone off at the Sprint store, pick up a new latest model phone, and it's still just $5 a month.

What happens to my $15 Loyalty Service Credit at the end of 24 months?As long as you have an active lease and remain on a qualifying plan, you will continue receive your Loyalty Service Credit.

$5 / month handset cost.  For life.  Someone just changed the game.  And listened to our current customers who've been begging for some rewards for staying with Sprint.  Now you're getting the best deal in the game.

Appears to apply to the hottest two phones - the iPhone 6 and the Samsung Galaxy S5 and S5 Sport.  I'd imagine it will expand to other 'iconic' devices in the future.


ObDisclaimer - I'm a Sprint employee, I work for them I don't speak for them.  And they didn't pay me to write this.  

Plantronics BT-300M and the Mac!

The work laptop has been giving me fits today, so on a whim I thought I'd move the BT-300M bluetooth dongle over to my vintage 2006 Mac Book Pro.  I've got Lync 2011 installed there for teleconferences and such.

Well, much to my surprise, the BT-300M was fully recognized on the Mac, and provides full call control from the Plantronics Voyager Pro headset!  Mute, call end, call answer, everything.  Very nice news - another way to avoid using the clunky work laptop.

What have I been doing? New Plans from Sprint!

Been off the blog all summer - heads down with Scouting and Sprint!  We've been quietly developing what I feel are some of the most outstanding plans in wireless.  We're back in the game, competing to be the best third place phone company out there!

T-Mobile has been buying gross adds (new customers) by giving away the house on their plans - $100 for 5 lines, 10 GB shared data among the lines. Pretty sweet deal, no contract, etc.

Well, now we're upping the ante.  We kicked off the Family Share Plan with a splash this week, where $100 will get you up to 10 lines, 20GB shared data, 2GB per line exclusive data. Oh yeah, and unlimited talk and text.  And that's just the start.  Our creative teams, IT teams, planning, analysts, and everyone on the Digital team has been laser focused on getting this rolled out and launched.  Fascinating and fun work when we're all driving to a great customer focused goal.

Want to find out more?  New customers to Sprint get the best deal - but existing Sprint customers can still migrate their plans (up to 4 lines) and get unlimited talk and text and 20 GB (or more) data.

Plan Grid comparing Sprint to the rest.  #DoubleIsBetter

Find out more from Sprint:

• Switch to Sprint for the best deal in data
• Sprint Family Share Plan FAQ's for Existing Customers

(ObDisclaimer - I work for Sprint, I do not speak for them, nor was I compensated for this post.  Just excited about the new plans!)

Social Sharing - setting up your page

OG social sharing:
a mimeographed self-help file

Social Sharing has been going on for a long time - first, people would send around typewritten, mimeographed jokes, lists, or other neat stuff. Next came the digital world of forwarded chain emails. Then the web, where you could copy and past the URL to a site and either link to it on your home page, or send it by email. Now, social sharing has become embedded into your everyday life. Everyone has seen this:
A block of icons we all now know as 'share this page to Facebook, Twitter, email or Google Plus'. Click the button and by magic it's posted on your newsfeed or wall! But how does it work? Unlike magnets, there's no real magic there, just some basic page coding tools.

First, you need to be sure your page is ready to be read by a machine. That means you need a good title in your 'title' tag, proper HTML that mostly validates and maybe a few images on the page that can represent what you are talking about. If you want to get fancy, you can add a couple more tags to more accurately describe your page to Facebook and Google Plus. Those tags are called 'Open Graph Tags'. At the least, you can put a Title, Description and Image for your page up in the head of your page.   of your page. That's as easy as typing the 'title' tag correctly - just key in:

There are five key properties you'll enter in a 'meta' tag:

• og:type
• og:url
• og:title
• og:image and 
• og:description

Usually, you are sharing a website page, so that's the type. The url is the absolute URL to this page; useful if you use dynamic navigation or other stuff. It can be ignored though for static websites. Title is pretty self explanatory. The image is the thumbnail shown on the left of the link in the Facebook timeline or Google Plus post. If you leave out the 'description' tag, you end up with the facebook crawler picking some snippet of text from the top third of your webpage. In a lot of modern dynamic websites, that's not really what you want to display to your visitors when they see a link to your site on Facebook or Google Plus.

This is the foundation to having a good, sharable page across all modern social networks, and it sets your page up for being part of the new, wider social graph that Facebook and Google are pulling together to define the new web.

Top Ten List of Questions for a Business Analyst

A long time ago, I was asked what my 'rubric' or list of questions were for my new job as a Business Analyst. I didn't have a clear answer. "It Depends" wasn't really a good answer.

Well, I've finally found someone smarter than me that has that list of questions. Just check out:

http://www.batimes.com/articles/carls-top-ten-list-of-questioning-techniques-for-new-and-not-so-new-business-analysts.html

Excellent groundwork questions that can be used and adapted to any situation as we build and define projects and programs, starting with "Be Prepared" and continuing through leading your customer through iterative designs for how they want the solution to work. Delivering quality work depends on getting the solution well defined at the beginning. 'Misses' in requirements lead to rework, defects and less than optimal customer solutions.

Anything you'd add to the list that isn't domain specific?