The Chicago GSB 2006 Asia Business Conference site is live!

This is a simple brochureware site with flash slide show component that loads external images. That means whoever at Chicago GSB theoritically can update the images used in the slide show by adding/removing images from the folder where the images are stored as long as she keeps the naming convention consistent.

The formatting definition for this site are all stored in a separate css file for managability reason also. By doing that, the html files are very simple and easy to edit by content editor at Chicago GSB since they need to be able to update the site frequently as new information becomes available. 

I'm currently working on a flash gallery site for a photographer. A simple project that I could create using one flash movie, but I decided to try out something different.

The original/current site is using one xml file for the content of this site and everything else reside within the swf, except for the images that are placed inside a separate image folder. 

For the new site, I'm trying to break down this site into smaller independent pieces that I can reuse for future projects.

So far the structure of this site is as follow:

1. Main SWF that contains the basic site template.
2. XML file for layout (page element name, position and name of configuration xml file) that is loaded by 1
3. Individual swf movies that function as the elements specificied in 2
4. XML file that defines the data and formatting for each element specified in 3
5. external .as files that define effects and objects that elements share (i.e. movieClipLoader)

Hopefully by doing this, I will be able to maintain the site easily (by editing xml or separate fla files for each element) and start building library of various elements to be used in future projects. 

…is to make tangible what's inside one's heart.

I used to think that I need to separate my personal from professional life, but I recently started to doubt that.

If I just want to make money so I can pay my bills, then separating the two lives works very well, but that means I won't try to excel in my work.

To have the spirit of excellence, I need to be passionate about what I do. That means good enough is not good enough. To produce something excellent, I need to take that extra step even when I know that it has exceeded everyone's expectation (including my boss' and client's).

If I don't take work personally, I won't be able to do excellent thing because it hurts me economically. The more I work (for the set amount of salary), the less I actually make. The dilemma is, if I keep that kind of thinking, it'll hurt me in the long run because I won't advance to the next level due to lack of self-growth.

Whether I see work as a mean to gain wealth so I can have a comfortable life or if  I want to make a difference (or both), I'd argue that I need to cultivate the spirit of excellence in whatever job function that I do because to advance on either/both paths, I need to grow and that growth won't happen if I don't push myself to go beyond the "good enough".

I need to take my professional life personally.