One of requirements to be eligible for the mark is to write a feedback post about our thoughts about the course, discussed concepts ant technologies. So I would like to answer the questions lecturers asked from my perspective.

What is the added value of attending this course for you?

This course really motivated me to be more innovative and not to be so skeptical about new buzzwords and emerging technologies. Of course walking through rakes and banging my head is not the most pleasant thing in the world. But this is the career I chose and there is nothing to blame. Well I guess failures in your career may be on the things why you one day become successful and wanted.

What is the immediate benefit for you in your current professional situation?

To be honest, before attending this course I was confused and didn’t know what career path to choose. And now I know what should I do, where I should go and what qualities do I have which would be useful to my next employer. As Jelena said “Now I know what employer expects from me”.

How do you see SOA being helpful in your professional environment?

SOA concept understanding really changed the way I see things in software applications context. Concepts of web applications, websites, software applications faded away, now we call them services.

How do you see SOA in 5 years from now?

Speaking about the SOA concept, it’s for sure that it will gain some version number after some time, like “web 2.0”. Folks like to put numbers where they are not supposed to be. Later, it will be called different and maybe it will address different aspects, but its concepts certainly remain for a really long time. We should not forget that SOA represents the same ideas as CORBA did. Everything new is old forgotten.

What are the pros and cons of “totally online” computing?

That is a really odd question. What are the pros and cons of having electricity all the time? Think about not having refrigerator, TV set, computer, stereo system and even light. When you plug device into a power outlet you expect the device to work. When you turn on your computer you expect it to be online.

How would you use Web 2.0 in commercial projects?

It depends. Why shouldn’t I use google maps, flickr, youtube, AJAX, buttons with round corners and prohibit users to put valuable content on the web application? If it suits for a project and has a business value everybody would use it. I would point out that successful web application is all about the content, so data mashups and user generated content delivers it.

How would have you organized this course if given a chance? Please think both from the contents and the form perspective.

 

In some cases I would be more specific about technologies in SOA. Both lecturers pointed out that this is not the most important thing and we could find it and read in on the web. That is true. But it has bigger value for me (maybe us) than ranting about philosophy of live. Sometimes “philosophy of life” we were talking about was interesting topic but sometimes it was pushed too hard and annoyed me.

Everybody would call me crazy but I really liked the timing of lectures. I think Saturdays are great for having such free content lectures-workshops, where you can leave all work problems behind and stay fresh and focused.

Also I missed students’ activity. It is really inappropriate to interrupt and ask lecturer a question for a student (that includes me) because almost five years in university we spend sitting in our desks, listening and writing. Nobody encouraged us to interrupt a lecturer and ask questions and of course nobody wants to be the first one and look like dork. 50% percent of lectures I attended in bachelor studies – sucked. And it sucked hard. Four years you never thought about asking questions, you were just thinking how to finish it and get a passing grade.

What the lecturers did wrong?

I think that both lectures in some cases brainwashed us too much. At some level it is fun, but later it just gets boring. We are not douchebags, we know when we are being brainwashed :) .

What the lecturers were good at?

I really enjoyed Giedrius and Adomas sharing their personal experience, inviting people from industry and creating free and friendly environment to study and share experience between each other. In some way we build some kind of social network between lecturers and students (a la Education 2.0).

 

After all, we had some damn good Saturdays.