Jay's Blog

Awful Awful...

Hello,

It has been awhile since my last post.  Things are really gearing for Mac's arrival.  We are on the downwind and have the target in sight.  ETA 9/15/2007.

We had to bring our cats to a shelter today.  Health reasons and behavioral concerns forced us into that decision.  The cats have been a part of our family for five years.  I will miss them and hope they can be adopted to a good family.  I have been trying for months to give them away, but there were no takers.

Good luck guys...  I am sxorry and I feel awful about it...

Tech News:

Windows Home Server Beta 2 Evaluation Wrap-up.

WHS is a great system.  Easy to use, and set up.  Perfect for the burgeoning home network market.  I do think the minimum hardware requirements should be adjusted.  My test PC had 768MB of RAM, a 2.4GHz Celeron CPU, 250GB HDD, and it was a bit slow for my liking.  The connection software was a bit slow on connection and would often crash.  I think a faster server would have helped the matter.  Windows 2000 support would have been nice, but I understand why it is not included.  Windows XP and Vista support is right where it should be.

Windows Home Server: Two thumbs up !!

Now it's on to test Beta 3 of Windows Server 2008...

L8r!

Quick Question?

Hello,

Coming down from the weekend of house work and yard chores.  A nice relaxing day at work was the order of the day.  I got in early, so I was able to leave early.

One question regarding the attched picture...

What in the f*ck does the police department need with an AH-1 "Cobra" attack helicopter?  The greenhouse canopy gives the crew an excellent field of view, but what is with the gatling gun and TOW missile launchers.  Are criminals packing armor these days?

/N

Weekly Wrap-Up

Hi,

What a week!  It started out as a traffic nightmare with me spending four hours in the car on Monday alone.  Funny, the cause for most of these traffic accidents was commercial tractor trailer trucks.  C'mon guys and gals can we keep safe and moving?

News...

Paris Hilton in jail, out of jail, back in jail.  Thankfully, one judge said enough and sent the little welp back to jail.  She should not get special treatment because of her status. If it were you or I who committed her type of offense, we would be locked up in gen-pop at the fullest extent of the law.

Tech...

iPhone pricing finalized with AT&T and Apple.  This is a real doozie and just reflects greed and the desire to ride something for all it is worth.  An iPhone purchased from the Apple store will set you back $999.99, yup $.01 shy of a grand.  Each AT&T store will get 20 phones for the June 29 opener.  The 4GB will cost $599.99 and the 8GB will cost $699.99 and the signature of a 2 year contact with AT&T.  The carrier is being a bit cagy with the exact specs of what the iPhone can do.  Those prices do not get you GPS, a 2MP camera, and limited wireless broadband support.  Not to mention the lack of a replaceable battery and if it is anything like a current iPod, that will be an issue.  I want an iPhone really bad, but these concessions along with massive sticker shock will have me wait until all of the hype is over and we see version 2.0.

URL...

I mapped a new domain name to the blog. 

   http://www.n74jw.com

Is now the new home for Jay's blog.  Enjoy!!!

Receipts; Do We Need Them?

Hello,

I grab a cup of joe every morning on the way into the office.  It's a great ritual, really, but the one questionable part is the end result.  The paper receipt the cashier hands me for my $1.67 purchase.  It is just a tiny piece of paper, but it tends to linger unplaced in my pocket, then I have to dispose of it.  Since I am a security freak, all transactional documents that are disposable must be shredded.  Now I have to pay attention to this repeating piece of history twice.  I suppose my rant is a little much, but can we just dispose of the receipt in all transient monetary transactions?  It is not like I am going to return the coffee if I don't like it.  I know I am going to like it, they let me make it myself. 

/N

Blogged with Flock

Congrats J&J !!!

Hello,

News...

I would like to congratulate my friends, Jim and Jamie, on their new addition, a baby boy named Shane. 

My wife and I have the baby's room just about ready.  All we need to do is add furniture, then baby.

I started teaching a new MCSE class last Wednesday.  The class meets on Monday and Wednesday nights.  I am thinking of doing a companion podcast for this one.  We'll see...

Tech...

Windows Home Server (WHS) is still chugging away.  I do not use it as much as I probably should.  I run a mixed-mode environment with Windows at the tail end of things.  Not to mention, this copy is time-bombed, so that rules out placing all of my data there anyway.  Besides that WHS is a nice product.  I do wish there was stronger Windows 2000 support from WHS or Microsoft for that matter.

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

The Latest Mac...

Hello,

Last Christmas, I discovered I was going to be a father for the first time. Today,  Ifound out we are going to have a baby girl.  We intend t oname her "Mackenzie Elle".  For this Apple fan-boy, it is the latest, greatest Mac...

/F

Religious Hoodie

Hello,

This morning I was in the bank, and like most folks, standing in line.  The security guard was pulling double-duty corralling folks into a neat line as they came in the door.  Helpful as he was, he became a bit irritating in the execution of his duties.

A young woman walking in the bank shortly after I did.  She was a college-type of the urban persuasion.  Although not threatening by any measure, her attire would not be suitable in the corporate world.  The woman was wearing a hooded sweatshirt.  Not uncommon given today's weather, a blast of cold from the North produced snow flurries last night, and a thin coat of ice on the pool this morning.

Okay, big deal...  The security guard asked the woman to remove her hood, and unquestionably she complied.  The striking part about this situation is that there were people in the bank wearing hats, watch caps and one woman, a strict Islamic attire, which bore only her eyes.  I am going to guess that the guard asked the woman to uncover her head in order to make her features more-visible to the cameras, which dotted the walls.  The last time I saw Law & Order, or Cops, bank robbers did not wait their turn in line to rob the bank. 

Ironically, that bothered me.  Obviously it bothered me, I am wasting my time blogging about it here and now.  The point is conformity and acceptance to the rules, which the security guard was not observing.  Why is it alright for a woman to be completely covered, yet another woman must remove her hood to reveal the rest of her head?  In my opinion, if I am taking off my hood, so is the Muslim...

(Here come the comments and track-backs...)

I understand the religious stipulation Muslims make in their attire, and I respect their discipline.  However a rule is a rule.  How did the guard know the hooded woman was not wearing the hood out of religious preference, or to hide a potentially embarrassing physical condition?  He didn't...  Why were all of the other equally cold people not asked to remove their head gear?  A great example was made to how American society is afraid of Islam, and to how religion is go ingrained in the fabric of American culture. 

I am not a religious person, being an atheist, the thought of religious faith is backwards.  However, I do not look down on those with faith, despite numerous ignorant transgressions on their behalf.  Faith is just a channel of thought I choose not to subscribe.  I believe in science and in evolution as the source of life on Earth.  They are my thoughts and I do not expect or care if anyone else agrees.   What I am trying to say is that I think it is wrong to force on person to adhere to a rule while allowing those with a different religious faith a pass.  I will color that discrimination in it's most ignorant and ugly form...

/N