Start an embedded YouTube video at a certain timestamp

Updated May 2014
You can add a start parameter to the embed code that YouTube generates for you.

<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Iq0XJCJ1Srw?rel=0&amp;start=56" width="560"></iframe>

Updated Apr 2013
https://yousufrafi.wordpress.com/2012/08/24/start-a-youtube-video-at-a-certain-timestamp/



From 2011
From https://www.mattcutts.com/blog/start-youtube-video-minutes-seconds/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tMuSVVljg8#t=17m08s

The “#t=17m08s” takes you to 17 minutes and 8 seconds in a video.

Embedded code.

<object height="385" width="640"><param name="movie" value="https://www.youtube.com/v/8tMuSVVljg8&hl=en_US&start=1028"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="https://www.youtube.com/v/8tMuSVVljg8&hl=en_US&start=1028" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" width="640" height="385"></embed></object>

See here for the example working.

This guide gives some other good pointers, "The default (and recommended) embed size is 480x385 for a 4:3 video and 640x385 for 16:9 content."

Here is an example of using 640x385 for 4:3 video.

Easy and Free Screen Sharing

I have used other screen sharing software before.  Join.Me is easy and secure.

Who ever wants to share their screen goes to Join.Me and clicks share.  A program is downloaded.  I don't think it requires admin permission to install.  A little window at the top appears with three numbers separated by dashes.

To view the screen the sharer tells the viewer these numbers.  The viewer types it into the join box and you are done.

Key words: remote screen sharing

Reducing Sleeping Dragons

A few weeks ago I added a column to a SQL table DateCreated.  I wanted to track when the records were getting created.  I provided a value for the existing columns and then made it not nullable and provided getdate() as its default.  I have done this quite often in the past and in the other frameworks I was in it never was a problem.

This time it was.  I had made other changes to the database the project used.  I updated the edmx file for the data access layer so it would refresh my object model for my code.  I did not pay close enough attention to the fact that it now added code to account for the new DateCreated column.

Yesterday we got an error.  When looking at the SQL trace I saw that Entity Framework was passing in a '0001-01-01 00:00:00' for the date value because the code giving the values was not providing it a value.  I was counting on the app (including the data layer) to not provide a value.  The database definition would provide getdate().

Entity Framework did only half the job that needed doing.  The presentation layer, or service layer or business layer should have been updated to provide a value if the data layer gets updated with the DateCreated column.


I am glad that we are getting away from using ORM solutions.  We are instead relying on lightweight utilities to create a data layer using only ADO.NET.  My colleague, Sam started this with LOEF.  He is now developing NOEF (No Entity Framwork perhaps with a better name).  This will reduce the sleeping dragons we have to deal with.