In this blog post I'll give a quick introduction to what genetic algorithms are and what they can be used for. We'll implement a genetic algorithm that attempts to guess an RGB color by evolving upon a random set of initial guesses, until it at some point evolves into the correct RGB value. What are genetic algorithms? Contrary to other types of algorithms, genetic algorithms do not have a clear path of improvement for solution candidiates, and it's not an exhaustive search. A genetic algorithm requires a few base components: A representation of a...

Yesterday I presented on how to use Transactional NTFS (TxF) in .NET, at the Copenhagen .NET User Group. Downloads Slides: TxF.pptxMaterials: TxFMaterials.zip

I am hastily nearing my third year blogging at improve.dk. Before reinventing my blog, I wrote articles and tutorials at the same address, though in Danish. When I rebooted my blog I completely ditched my old material and started blogging in English. After discussing the concept of blogging a lot recently, I've gathered up my thoughts on the subject. Why blog? I generally recommend starting a blog to all of my peers. But why do it? There's no single answer, as it's very much a subjective matter resulting in different goals. I recently had a discussion with...

The session list for devLink 2009 has been announced. I'm delighted to announce that one of my abstracts was chosen - I will be speaking at devLink 2009 in Nashville, TN. I am presenting a session called "Using Network Load Balancing for Availability & Scalability" - I know, original naming is not really part of my skillset. During the session, I will be introducing NLB and demoing how to set it up using a multitude of VMs (might have to get an extra 4 gigs of memory in my laptop). I will also cover some of the...

Learn what causes a SQL Server deadlock and how to solve it using locking hints and isolation modes. We'll be looking at the updlock hint as well as the serializable isolation mode.