Jay's Blog

Unnecessary un-happiness

Hello,

Phew!  I was caught, by my own fault, in the commutative mess that is the trek back from the Jersey Shore after a holiday weekend.  I do not understand the big allure to the Jersey Shore that locals keep to the area.  It's a dump!  For the time spent inching along in traffic, one could make it to Ocean City Maryland.  Had I removed my ass from bed early this morning, I could have averted the ninety minute commute.

Windows Server 2008 Beta 3:

I have been playing around with the beta 3 version of WS2008, formerly "Windows Server Codenamed Longhorn".  The platform is basically a server-version of Vista, without suitable video drivers.  400x300 out of the box...  One new feature is a core-based design, whereas components are added as features or servers.  This design makes the server install quick, but post-setup is much more involved.  "Server Core" is a version of WS2008 that is designed to be a GUI-free version of the operating system and that is where I am interested.  I normally run my Linux and BSD servers without a GUI.  Novell's NetWare ran without a GUI.  The lack of this component can scale-down the attack surface that a Windows Server can present.  I have it running on a machine that is designated "sub-standard" hardware for WS2008.  With a little research and time, I was able to configure a WS2008 file and print server and caching DNS server within an hour.  All from the Windows command prompt (cmd.exe).  Good stuff Microsoft!

/N

Happy Memorial Day!

Hi,

I would like to extend a warm and heartfelt thanks to all of America's soldiers home and abroad.  Come home safe and come home soon.  Equally sentiment to all of the allied servicemen and women in action around the world with American forces.  Be safe, and I wish you a speedy return to your families...

The opposition will never understand the sacrifices made by you and your families.  The enemy is a lead group of murderers operating under the guise of religious extremists.  Murderers are not soldiers...

Thanks to a-hole at the traffic light, who alerted me to it's change, three-tenths of a second after.  Got hurry?  Wait!

Would anyone like a cat, or three?  We have a little bugger that like to pee on everything.  It is getting pretty bad, to the point where valuable items cannot be left out for fear of urination.  The vet's only recourse is to bring all three cats in for a look.  I have no issues with that other than cost.  I do not have the three to four hundred dollars to see which cat is the pisser.  I just cannot have this, especially with the baby coming...

/N

A Rant...

Hello,

It has been awhile, but there has been lots going on round here.  I Have a few things to sound off about that I find funny and odd.

I was at a Dunkin Donuts on Friday morning for a Medium-Regular.  I pay the clerk two dollars for the one dollar and ninety two cents beverage.  The clerk, instead of giving my change, places it directly in the tip jar.  Now, I know it is only eight cents, but I am not at the financial position to start throwing away money.  Besides, is it not the customer's decision to place their change in the tip jar?  I considered saying something to the clerk, but it is only eight cents...

I do not feel bad for Lindsay Lohan.  She seems like a person with a problem.  She should also grow-up...

Gas:  Is anyone surprised?  The American public is being gouged from top to bottom by the oil companies, the government and the media.  The best thing everyone can do is not par-take in the idiocy.  My next vehicle will be a hybrid.  Even then, gas still costs the same for a Prius as it does for my F-150.  Some folks do not seem phased by the prices.  One car I did see that really interested me was a diesel-powered Jetta.  Diesel is a quarter cheaper than the regular grade gas here...

I absolutely hate the idiots on the highway whom feel the need to drive fifty five miles per hour in the passing lane.  If you want to drive the exact speed limit, or below, great, just do not hold up others...

Thanks to all of the a-holes that go out and equip their vehicles with the brightest halogen headlamps possible.  I didn't need to see at night anyway.  Street lights, they are everywhere.  There is no need to blind every driver on the road...

Virginia drivers:  What is up with the folks from Virginia?  They have to be some of the most aggressive drivers I have ever seen and those are the ones without the Confederate flag on their Honda Accord.  Well, I got you in Philly...

I understand, or think I do, the reasons why every frigging thing must be made in China.  That begs the question, actually two questions, how good is that for the US and where can I find one made in America?  I know it may cost more, but I think it is better for everyone here (In the USA).  Even my beloved MacBook Pro comes from China.  Nothing against the Chinese, but I am tired of seeing "Made in China" on everything I buy...

Have a happy and safe holiday

/N

More Tech

Hello,

I have been playing around with Windows Home Server Beta 2 (WHSB2) this week.  I have to say it is not that bad.  I am not a Microsoft pundit in any way, but this is a decent product.  WHSB2 is built on Small Business Server 2003 SP2 (Yes SP2), and is designed to work with Windows XP and Windows Vista clients only.  Bummer, I have a Windows 2000 client that has been running for years that could use this service. 

The idea is to create and market a small, easy to configure server for home use.  The average Windows user would find Windows Server 2003, Small Business Server 2003 a little too much.  Not to mention the sticker shock.  Linux, as free as it is, not for everyone.  Even Ubuntu has not reached the level of usability in the home server role.  I have been doing what Windows Home Server does with Windows' Active Directory for Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and even Novell's Netware, for years. 

WHS can be installed on a second hand computer.  The monstrous hardware requirements of Vista are not present.  The server is installed, then administered from remote.  The monitor and peripherals can be removed to make a "head-less" system.  File sharing, backups, and a basic form of network authentication are available.  The remote console installs as a service on the client computer and provides complete control a la the Windows Adminpak.msi for active directory.

And it's pretty...

/N

Tech. Lately...

Hi,

Sorry for the long time gone since my last post.  Things have been a bit busy.  It is a bit ironic, I think about blogging all of the time, but cannot.  I am not always in the position to blog or post, and when I am posting is the last thing I do. 

My wife and I are expecting our first child in September.  Last Monday, we found out that the little critter is a girl.  She will be known as "MacKenzie Elle".

Tech. News...

I have been doing a great with some of the newer products out on the computing market and about to come out on the computing market.  Last month there was the release of Ubuntu 7.04 "Feisty Fawn".  The folks at Canonical choose to give their projects wacky code names a la the folks at Debian Linux.  The revision is quite mild with very little additional features.  I upgraded to the beta version of Feisty via the "apt-get dist-upgrade" option from a running instance of Ubuntu 6.10 "Edgy Eft".  The whole process took about five hours to complete.  Since then I have been receiving numerous package updates that were included in the final release of Feisty.  Prior to the upgrade, I had a running LAMP install serving up some really basic web content.  Amazingly, the upgrade preserved my running settings without any loss of service.  I was not expecting that to happen.  So far, so good with Feisty.

Dell recently announced a possibility of selling PCs with Ubuntu pre-installed.  I guess they will have to find some new bloat-ware to pile on the HDD.  Why does Dell get together with Canonical, whom will then get together with Google, and cook up a custom distro based on Ubuntu?  We could call it "Goobuntu" or "Goodbuntu".  I bet Microsoft would love that...

/N