Probably one of the most basic forms of encryption is the Caesar cipher - named after of course, Julius Caesar himself!

The Caesar cipher works by substituting a character with another character.

Ex. If we want to encrypt the word "hello", we can create a substitution table like:
h-> 1
e-> %
l -> k
o-> $

So when we encrypt hello, it will look like:
1%kk$

It's that simple!

The attached java source code is a more complex encryption algorithm in which it uses a 56bit key to scramble a message. You can learn more about it here.

Ever wonder how 3D games work? This simple program uses the power of Open GL to generate a Jack in the Box picture in space. A moon orbits the Jack in the Box and that moon is orbited by a smaller moon. 

Download glut32.dll and jack.exe to your local machine - make sure you place them under the same directory - then double click on jack.exe.

Use your up, down, left, right arrows to spin Jack.

The entire code for this program is attached in GLSource.cpp - you'll need a c++ compiler to compile it into an exe.

Software development is tricky business. One second too long in your program and you can lose your user’s patience. One penny too short in your accounting software and you can lose your user’s confidence. Improving your software development process can prevent these mishaps. From my academic experience in computer science and my experience as a software developer specializing in collaboration tools, I have identified 4 simple ways to improve your software development process and make your users happy.