links for 2007-01-19
Small drives cross performance threshold | CNET News.com 15K 2.5″ disks? It was just a matter of time.
Bob Plankers
VMware VirtualCenter 2 and Windows Vista
If you want to install the VMware VirtualCenter client on Vista you need to install the .NET Framework 1.1 and SP1. – .NET Framework 1.1 – .NET Framework 1.1 SP1
Disable Temporary IPv6 IPs in Windows Vista
Annoyed that Windows XP and Vista get a temporary IPv6 address, in addition to the autoconfigured one, and anything you’ve set manually? I was, until I figured out how to shut it off: netsh interface ipv6 set privacy state=disable This way you can assign a static IP if you like, or at least use the less random one assigned with autoconfiguration.
In-Place Upgrades Suck
As time goes to infinity the stability of a computer system goes to zero. I don’t know if anybody else has said that, but it’s a law in my life as a system administrator. As you install and remove software you change systems in subtle ways. These changes aren’t reproducible, they’re undocumented, and they are unpredictable. At the very least you end up with extra files littering your systems. At the worst your system becomes less stable. Now imagine what happens when you install a new operating system, the biggest of applications, over the top of an old one? This leads me to a corollary: Do not upgrade systems in place. Always rebuild them. Upgrading a system just lets the …
links for 2007-01-18
Everyday Wonderland » 5 Ideas for Stressful Living Creating Passionate Users: Who’d you make smile today?
Elmer's Glue Slime
A favorite concoction of mine, since fifth grade. I just found the recipe again and I thought I’d share. Ingredients: – Borax powder – 4 ounce bottle of white glue (not school glue) – Water (preferably distilled) – Food coloring (optional) Materials: – Teaspoon – Big jar or 1-quart measuring cup – 2-quart bowl – Measuring cup Procedure: Squeeze the glue into the jar. Fill the empty glue bottle with water and add it to the jar. Add food coloring, if desired. Stir. In the 2-quart bowl mix 1 cup water with 1 teaspoon Borax powder. Stir well. Slowly add the glue mixture to the Borax mixture, stirring as you do so. Although there will be excess water in the …
inittab is so 1980s
“Hey Bob, what do you know about Fedora?” “Plenty. It’s basically just like the Red Hat we use. What can I help you with?” “My PC won’t boot anymore. I upgraded to Fedora Core 5 and then I did some cleanup. Now it’s messed up. Before I rebooted I couldn’t run anything but FTP.” Ah yes, “cleanup.” There are too many files in /etc, I’ll just delete some. Oh, and why would you upgrade to Fedora Core 5, when 6 is available? “Tell me about this cleanup.” “I used RPM to do it. This is what I removed.” He hands me eight printed pages of package names. “Um, dude, why did you remove things like SysVinit, bash, and the kernel? …
links for 2007-01-17
A DO-IT-YOURSELF GUIDE TO HOME SEALING EFI’s Online Store for Green Mountain Energy Company | Touch ‘n Seal Low Expansion Foam Cylinder
links for 2007-01-16
Ordering Silicone Bouncing Putty How to bulk order Silly Putty and other variants. Sony BRAVIA – The Advert Still my favorite TV commercial ever — the super ball bouncy one in San Francisco.
Now What?
This year I am celebrating Martin Luther King, Jr. Day with some ritual appliance repair. I just pulled the Shards of Narsil from the pump intake on my dishwasher. Or at least it seemed that way. Two big hunks of glass that I don’t recognize from anything, and some chunks of plastic. They may have been in there since I’ve owned the place. Mad props to the Samurai Appliance Repair Man over at applianceguru.com. Without the forum posts and the photos there I would have had to call someone. A repair call for my KitchenAid dish washer would have been what, $100 for the trip fee, another $100 for an hour of repair? It wouldn’t have taken four hours, but …