I recently started using a dark theme for Visual Studio. For those who haven’t checked out Studio Styles, it’s a fantastic site for finding great themes. I’m currently using the Son of Obsidian theme, but I also recommend checking out the Coding Instinct Theme created by my colleague Torkel.
However, I ran into an issue where the mouse pointer became almost invisible when editing text in the code editor with the dark theme. The pointer turned a dark gray, blending into the dark background, which was extremely frustrating.
After some digging, I found a solution in an old discussion. The fix involves changing the mouse pointer scheme in the Windows Control Panel. Here’s how you can do it:
- Open Control Panel
- Navigate to Appearance and Personalization
- Go to Personalization
- Click on Change Mouse Pointers
This will open the Mouse Properties window:
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BDD on .NET Framework and Where I Learned About It
I recently received an insightful email from Jose Samonte asking for resources on Behavior-Driven Development (BDD) and where to start learning about it. Given the depth of my own journey with BDD, I thought I’d share my experiences and recommendations publicly.
Start Here
My introduction to BDD began with a blog post by Dan North: Introducing BDD. This post provides a solid foundation on the origins and principles of BDD. For further reading, Dan’s article “What’s in a Story” is also highly recommended as it delves into the concept of user stories in BDD.
Learn from Others
Much of the early work in BDD was done on platforms other than .NET, particularly in the Ruby and Java communities. Here are some key resources that have been instrumental in my understanding:
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Theory of Constraints and Specification by Example Part II
Following up on my previous post about Specification by Example and Theory of Constraints, I’ve received insightful feedback from colleagues, particularly Håkan Forss, whom I greatly respect.
The Five Focusing Steps
Håkan pointed out some valuable perspectives on the Theory of Constraints’ five focusing steps:
- Identify the Constraint
- Decide How to Exploit the Constraint
- Subordinate All Other Processes to the Above Decision
- Elevate the Constraint
- If the Constraint Moves, Return to Step 1
Assuming the Goal of the Organization
The first step is to articulate the goal. In system development, this might be phrased as:
Develop a system that meets the needs of the users
Understanding the goal of your project can help direct the focus of improvement efforts and influence how trade-offs are managed throughout the process.
Identify the Constraint
In physical systems, identifying constraints is often straightforward—like observing...
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