I Once Appeared in the Old New Thing
4 days ago
- #Raymond Chen
- #BitLocker
- #Windows Development
- The author was mentioned by Raymond Chen on 'The Old New Thing' blog, though not by name.
- At 23, the author worked on BitLocker for Windows 8, aiming to improve its configuration experience.
- BitLocker's error messages were vague, lacking specific details like maximum passphrase length limits.
- Microsoft's localization process required error messages to be in .mc files, separate from C++ code.
- The author sought to include specific values (e.g., '20') in error messages without hardcoding them in .mc files.
- Raymond Chen suggested using the C preprocessor to dynamically insert values into .mc files.
- Due to the complexity of Microsoft's build system, the author avoided implementing Chen's solution.
- Years later, the author reflects on the challenge as a tooling issue rather than a personal shortcoming.
- The author prefers avoiding complex build systems, focusing instead on writing and teaching effective developer communication.