February 01, 2003
Shut up about the Shuttle already.
I'll probably piss of some folks by saying this, but that's tough. This is my blog.
Shut up about the Shuttle already.
I'm sick of everyone jumping on the tragic double standard's bandwagon. Really sick of it.
How many people die in this country EVERY DAY because of car accidents? What isn't that on the evening news, front page of the paper, and all over the blog world? Are those deaths somehow less important than those of a handfull of astronauts?
No.
So if it's not that these folks were somehow more valuable, what's behind this? The loss of the physical shuttle? I think not. We have a few more in the fleet.
Is it the surprise? I'd hope not. We've all known that spaceflight is dangerous. Heck, most of us were alive for the first shuttle accident. Some even remember the problems that the Apollo and Gemini programs encountered.
I just don't get it.
Of course I feel for the families of the crew--just like anytime I hear of an unfortunate death. But I just don't see the reason for all the publicity and coverage.
Do people really care so much about this or is the media driving this? If it is, how do we get them to stop already?
Go ahead. Flame if you must. But I'd rather you try to enlighten me a bit.
iMovie 3 and iPhoto 2 Downloads
Software Update just offered to download iMovie 3.0.1 (84.5MB) and iPhoto 2.0 (33.3MB). Wow, that's over 100MB of stuff for apps I've never tried. Are they any good?
The update info says:
Download and update to iPhoto 2 here. Or get all the iLife applications for $49 U.S. at www.apple.com/ilife or your local Apple dealer. iLife includes the latest, integrated versions of iTunes 3, iPhoto 2, iMovie 3 and iDVD 3, on CD and DVD.
So I guess that answers Derek's quest.
January 30, 2003
Derek wants and needs an iLife
It looks like he's not only realized that he needs one, he's actively complaining about Steve Jobs not giving him one.
Okay, maybe it's not that funny. Too late. I'm clicking "Publish."
Use good blog entry titles, please.
I've had little time to blog and read blogs recently. I've found myself skimming entry titles quickly and skipping past the ones that are either (1) stupid or (2) uniformative. If you're using a cute title rather than one which summarizes your post, I'm unlikely to click and read it. You probably don't care, but I wanted to mention it.
Perhaps a reading of Microcontent guidelines is in order? I could have titled this post "RSS Stuff" and it would have been on-topic. But then you wouldn't have really known what the main theme of this post really was, would you? See what I mean? You'd have to read the post to figure out if you wanted to read the post. Time wasted.
Also...
I've installed the latest NNW beta. I can make it crash by attempting to refresh my bog info in the weblog editor window. Doh! Time for a new bug report. I was really hoping to use the category selection stuff for MoveableType.
UPDATE: Obviously that advice only applies to people who are writing for an audience and care about attacting their attention. But based on the feedback I've received, some folks thought I was expecting everyone do be smart about their titles. Riiiight. I'm not that dumb.
January 29, 2003
Disk Goes Boom!
I hate it when crap like this happens.
A few months ago, I built a new server (with hardware from ASA Computers, highly recommended--I own three of their boxes) to serve as a backup/spare for family.zawodny.com (the machine that hosts my blog and about 40 domains). The new machine was called friends.zawodny.com and had similar but slightly newer hardware (1GHz CPU, 512MB RAM, 2 80GB Maxtor disks in a RAID-1 setup).
Well, yesterday things went all bad. One of the disks appears to have died (or is dying). Several services died, including SSH, so I couldn't get in. Luckily it sits in a WCNet rack.
So I called to see what they could do. Couldn't get a console login. Damn. The only other option is to reboot. So we tried that. It didn't come up.
To make a long story short, the machine has two IDE cables. Each is the primary (master) and has one of the drives on it. However, after fiddling around, we determined that it won't boot from either one. This really sucks.
With one of the drives, it does the "01 01 01 01 01 ..." at bootup. With the other, it boots to "LI" and stops.
The reason this really bothers me is that I tested all the failure modes before I shipped it off to get racked. I could have sworn that is should still be working--unless both disks happened to magically die at the same time.
Now I either need to pul the spare 30GB disk off my shelf, build an OS and ship it out. Or I need to get the whole machine shipped back here. I have time for neither right now.
Anyway, the lesson is simple. Next time around I'll just spend the extra bucks and get a 3Ware controller and be done with it.
Damn you, Murphy! This couldn't have happned to the machine that is just a few miles away from me in California? Noooo. It had to be one of the machines I have in Ohio.
BofA ATM DoS
So now I know why the ATM just sort of looked at me funny when I attempted to deposit a check from Brandt the other day.
Damn Microsoft "security."
Ugh.
January 27, 2003
KDE 3.1 is out...
January 28, 2003 (The INTERNET). The KDE Project today announced the immediate availability of KDE 3.1, a major feature upgrade to the third generation of the most advanced and powerful free desktop for Linux and other UNIXes. KDE 3.1 ships with a basic desktop, an integrated development environment and seventeen other packages (PIM, administration, network, edutainment, utilities, multimedia, games, artwork, web development and more). KDE's award-winning tools and applications are available in 47 languages.
From the WTF?! Department
Every once in a while, I run across a Perl module that scares me a little. The most recent one is X11::Protocol and friends.
That's right boys and girls! Protocl-level X11 programming in Perl.
/me smacks forehead
January 26, 2003
My Condom Horoscope
I'm not sure where she got this list, but Kasia sent me some condom horoscopes. Since I'm a Gemini, here's mine:
Geminis are known for their versatility, intellect and communications skills. Accordingly, Gemini condoms accommodate a variety of sexual positions and combinations. Gemini condoms are sold in multi-packs and come with a special audio chip. Naturally, they're available through mail order. Frequently, Gemini condoms sell two for the price of one. They always come in special pop up dispensers so that you don't have to work too hard. Gemini is the sign of the twins and Gemini condoms come in twin packs and are the preferred model for double headers. When you need to do it more than once, you need Gemini condoms.
Heh. How amusing. Perhaps I should post the whole list? Well, if she doesn't... maybe I will. Or I could just Google for the original source and link to it. But I'm feeling lazy, so I leave it as an excercise for the reader.
Amusing Record Label Warning
A friend of mine recently suggested that I might like Ani DiFranco's music. So I got a copy of her first CD, Ani DiFranco and am listening to it now. My friend was right, it's not bad. I'll probably have more to say after I've heard it a few times.
Anway, I was reading the back cover and ran across this: unauthorized duplication, while sometimes necessary, is never as good as the real thing.
Excellent. I like that attitude and the message it conveys.
On an unrelated note, I had fun flying today.