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GRAFFITI -- August 04 thru August 10, 2003>> Link to the Current Week <<Last Week << Mon Tues Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun >> Next Week Welcome to Orb Graffiti, a place for me to write daily about life and computers. Contrary to popular belief, the two are not interchangeable. About eMail - I publish email sometimes. If you send me an email and you want privacy or anonymity, please say so clearly at the beginning of your message.. |
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August 04, 2003 - Updates at 0656 EST
Good morning. Thanks for dropping by. I know that between the assorted ill and ailling people and dogs around this joint, and the busy (welcome, to be sure) times at work, I've been less than productive around this place and around LinuxMuse of late. I've got an email server setup project half written up and hanging around waiting for me to make one key decision and continue working. There's a bunch of updates to apply to the new version of the ETS website, just as soon as a couple of key decisions are made by the players back there, then I'll have a whole new passel of work in my basket. And there still won't be any more time in the day. So I thank you for your patience and your patronage - I do try to be moderately interesting from time to time.
Christine Axson-Flynn. Have you heard that name? Her "plight" was featured on Dateline briefly last night. This young woman is an acting student who wants to learn how to act without swearing. She claims that the University of Utah's Acting Program told her she had to curse, to take the Lord's name in vain and to use the 'F' word, or she would be dismissed. The University's stance is that she requested that they change their curriculum to accomodate her religious beliefs, and withdrew when the school declined to do so.
Hmmm. I want to go to Cal Tech to learn Geology, but please don't teach me plate techtonics, because it conflicts with the Bible. Let me attend UC Santa Cruz for Astronomy, but nothing about cosmology please, as it might upset the elders. I want a degree in English Literature from Harvard, but don't tell me about sarcasm, because I might use it, otherwise. Bah! If you want to learn how to act in a school that teaches using influential plays by important playwrites, plays that include language that you find reprehensible, then say "No." Don't go there, go do something else with your life. Or go to BYU, where they can pick plays that don't have words in them that you can't say. I am guessing that the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals is approaching a decision in their review of the District Court's ruling against Axson-Flynn (filed last November), but I can't even find this story on the Dateline site (so I won't link it).
Brian Lane (site here) reminded me via a post to LinuxMuse of Eric Raymond's nearly published The Art Of Unix Programming. Is that enough linkage for just one sentence? I thought so, too. ESR has a breadth of knowledge combined with a marvelous writing style that really appeals to me. His topics on his blog site, Armed and Dangerous are generally thoughtful, balanced and informative. Sure he has an agenda, don't we all? But Eric's advantage is that he knows more than most any other 10 people I know. Okay, so I know some really smart people, and he's not ten of THEM, but any ten average folk, like myself. Anyway, back to the subject... TAOUP is a history, philosophy and culture guide to the world of Unix - that's what he promises, and what the first two chapters deliver. I have to assume that the balance of the book continues in the same tenor. Reading from the online version took up my short leisure time yesterday in between errands, chores and work. Recommended reading, both now in pre-release form, and buy the dead tree book to meditate upon, when it's available. I imagine that filling the blanks in my knowledge by reading through the bibliography should keep me busy for the next two or three years.
Did you catch yesterday's pictures of Sally and garden? If not, why not? Now, that's enough grist for a Monday mill. I've got lots to do today, and on goes the game, whether or not I'm paying attention. I do the important things first, and then keep up with the rest, best as I can. So have a great day. See ya!
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August 05, 2003 - Updates at 0917
Good morning. I'm at the office, rather, at the client site office, rethinking yesterday's rethinking of the network configuration that we planned out because a couple of items have been pre-staged and put in operation up at the new facility. The problem is one of subnets. If I don't readdress these devices, then access to the machines that need to stay here in the old facility will be on a different subnet than the main infrastructure servers in the new building. We were trying to avoid that, because it makes our router the single point of failure, rather than a switch. It's generally accepted that a Linux box acting as a router has more moving parts and more annual downtime than a switch, even a Dell gigabit switch. So I'm going to do a new alternate picture of the proposed network, and float it.
Now I've got a mail server issue that's reared its ugly head, so I'd best get to it. Have a great day!
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August 06, 2003 - Updates at 1115
Good morning. I'm sitting on the floor at the back of a bank of racks, next to a dual path redundant self-healing fiber link that ... um, doesn't. We're working on it, and this is my post. When the time comes, I'll unplug some bits, plug in some others, and try to ping out and across the glass. In the meantime, I sit here crosslegged on the hard raised flooring, with only some of the circulation in my legs functioning. Can you say deep vein thrombosis? I knew you could.
Power outages are such a pain in the ass. Last night, from about 10 until midnight, we had a marvelous lightning storm. No problems, no issues. Then, sometime between 0300 and 0400, I awoke to the sound of complaining UPS's. The power was gone, and not just us - across the neighborhood. So I staggered about the house, tripping on the dog, the pillows to block the dog from going upstairs, and many other small things, shutting down systems and turning off UPS devices. I think we have 5 distinct UPS systems in house now. I suppose I ought to get a whole house system when we finally buy - It'd be cheaper.
Then I lay there for a longish while, and finally dropped off shortly before the alarm went off. Yeah, the clock keeps working, just shuts down the display for conservation purposes, darn it. But I stayed in bed a while longer to try to recover some of the lost hours in the middle of the night. Then the power came back on for 5 minutes or so, then it was gone again. It was still out when I left the house at 0740. The only good news was that the traffic wasn't nearly as horrid as it might have been for the hour - it took me less than an hour to get here, and that's stunning at that time.
The Kompany (link here) is promoting a new ROM image for the Zaurus. I only loaded it last night and haven't got all the apps installed yet, so a review is pending, but not yet. Both Greg and Mike think it's great. They released an image for the new 5600 just a couple of days ago, so if you've got an older or newer Zaurus, it is worth checking this one out.
The continuous ping I've got running just stopped momentarily, so I suppose I'd best be paying close attention. See you around.
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August 07, 2003 - Updates at 2054
Too busy to post today, so sad. The bedside clock was 20 minutes slow from the power outage of the previous day, and I didn't spot the discrepancy until I started brushing my teeth, at about the time I actually expected to be pulling out of the driveway. I hustled through my morning ablutions, got the trash and recycling out to the street's edge, and hared off to work, arriving just in time to pick up Larry and get us over to a new prospective client site with exactly one minute and 15 minutes to spare.
I first checked my email for the day at around noonish, and stayed busy all day rerouting and labeling console cables. We freed up one console aggregator device to move it upcounty to the new facility early next week. That plus a modicum of documentation ate my day. I stopped at the store on the way home (I don't think I've missed a night of that yet), cooked dinner, did the dishes, set coffee for tomorrow morning, and now I can wind down a bit. I think I'd best do that away from computers. Have a nice evening.
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August 08, 2003 - Updates at 2037
Good evening. All I can say is, "Ditto." Except that today started not late, but early. I beat the alarm clock out of bed by about 15 minutes, and I was on the road by 0620, at the job site by a scosh after 0700. We reviewed much of the last week's events with the supervising manager for this client, and then went up to the new facility where we brought up and tested several network segments completely. Overall, a very successful work day. I got home at around 7 this evening, a bit shagged out. This weekend is clear, and that's the good news, as next weekend is move and reconfigure for all of the servers, and bringing some very public services back online in as expeditious a manner as inhumanly possible.
I was chided today by Cheryl for not putting in anything about Marcia or Sally in last night's post: "...I must admit I just skim through all the computer stuff." Well, harumph. Marcia's doing great, actually. She's on-track with her post-surgical progress. She's talked to the doc several times and everything she's experiencing is on the good end of the recovery bell curve. Sally was removed from a number of her daily meds for the next week, while we finish out the current run of antibiotics to clear up her ear infection. Then we can get her back on the anti-inflamatories - it was just too much for her little doggy tummy all at once, and she was just having a badly upset stomach. She's mending, too. So things appear to be looking up on many fronts at the moment.
I must also point out that our thoughts are much on our friends Bob and Barbara Thompson, and Bob's mom, Lenore. Lenore's duking it out with post-surgical stress, too, and having a considerably rougher time than Marcia is. All of us, including Sally, got to spend time with Lenore at the nursing home, last time we were down there. Neat lady, and we wish her all the best.
Now I'm going to relax for a bit. I'll try for a more timely post tomorrow, perhaps even before noon. Take it easy!
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August 09, 2003 - Updates at 1000
Good morning. I've kept that promise, and posted before noon. Of course, I just dragged out of bed a few minutes ago and I've nothing much useful to say since last night's update. I'm going to snag a cup of coffee, hop in the shower, then get the weekend's shopping done-ish. Then I want to find a couple new pair of jeans, a pair or two of tennis shoes, and get some chores done around here. That should well fill this day. Then I can give tomorrow to remote work for ETS and for a NERDS client.
So, for now, I'll amuse you with this suite of questions and appropriate answers that Jack sent to me...
Q: How many MicroSoft tech support people does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Four: One to ask "What is the registration number of the light bulb?" One to ask "Have you tried rebooting it?" Another to ask "Have you tried reinstalling it?" And the last one to say "It must be your hardware because the light bulb in our office works fine..."Q: How many MicroSoft technicians does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Three. Two to hold the ladder and one to hammer the bulb into a faucet.Q: How many MicroSoft vice presidents does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Eight. One to work the bulb, and seven to make sure that MicroSoft gets $2 for every light bulb ever changed anywhere in the world.Q: How many MicroSoft testers does it take to change a light bulb?
A: We just determine that the room is dark; we don't actually change the bulb. Since we have a dead-bulb result on file from a previous test, rest assured that Development is working on a bug fix.Q: How many MicroSoft shipping department personnel does it take to change a light bulb?
A: We can change the bulb in 7 to 10 working days. If you call before 2PM, and pay an extra $15, we can get the bulb changed overnight. Don't forget to put your name in the upper right hand corner of the light bulb box.Q: How many Windows users does it take to change a light bulb?
A: One. But he'll swear up and down that it was JUST as easy as it would be for a Mac user.Q: How many MicroSoft managers does it take to change a light bulb?
A: We've formed a task force to study the problem of why light bulbs burn out, and to determine what, exactly, we as supervisors can do to make the bulbs work smarter, not harder.Q: How many Microsoft executives does it take to change a light bulb?
A: We can see no need for uninstallation and have therefore made no provision for light bulbs to be removed.Q: How does Bill Gates change a light bulb?
A: He holds the bulb in place and lets the world revolve around him.
I may drop back in here later, primarily when I find the need to sit and rest has overpowered my sense of duty. So have a lovely Saturday, where e'er you are.
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August 10, 2003 - Updates at 0845
Good morning, for most of us, anyway. Yesterday's opening drew mail from someone who's two-week vacation started with a 6 AM emergency call from work. On a Saturday. Now that's clearly not a "good morning" in anyone's book. Hang in there, dude!
Right here and now (Wolf!!!), I'm starting my day with a mid- and hindbrain headache which is probably due to muscle tension in my neck and shoulders . Not like I have time to deal with crap like this. It was, overall, a successful day yesterday. The shopping is done, I got new shoes and jeans, made a side trip to Lowe's, edged and mowed the lawns, and did the laundry. That means that my weekend is on track to get the things done that I need to do.
It doesn't leave time for a new guest head today, so someone out there is welcome to find their own and send me the paragraph to publish. Instead, here's the latest spin on the Nigerian email scam, only this one's from Utah...
DEAR SIR/MADAM:
I AM MR. DARL MCBRIDE CURRENTLY SERVING AS THE PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF THE SCO GROUP, FORMERLY KNOWN AS CALDERA SYSTEMS INTERNATIONAL, IN LINDON, UTAH, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. I KNOW THIS LETTER MIGHT SURPRISE YOUR BECAUSE WE HAVE HAD NO PREVIOUS COMMUNICATIONS OR BUSINESS DEALINGS BEFORE NOW.
MY ASSOCIATES HAVE RECENTLY MADE CLAIM TO COMPUTER SOFTWARES WORTH AN ESTIMATED $1 BILLION U.S. DOLLARS. I AM WRITING TO YOU IN CONFIDENCE BECAUSE WE URGENTLY REQUIRE YOUR ASSISTANCE TO OBTAIN THESE FUNDS.
IN THE EARLY 1970S THE AMERICAN TELEPHONE AND TELEGRAPH CORPORATION DEVELOPED AT GREAT EXPENSE THE COMPUTER OPERATING SYSTEM SOFTWARE KNOWN AS UNIX. UNFORTUNATELY THE LAWS OF MY COUNTRY PROHIBITED THEM FROM SELLING THESE SOFTWARES AND SO THEIR VALUABLE SOURCE CODES REMAINED PRIVATELY HELD. UNDER A SPECIAL ARRANGMENT SOME PROGRAMMERS FROM THE CALIFORNIA UNIVERSITY OF BERKELEY DID ADD MORE CODES TO THIS OPERATING SYSTEM, INCREASING ITS VALUE, BUT NOT IN ANY WAY TO DILUTE OR DISPARAGE OUR FULL AND RIGHTFUL OWNERSHIP OF THESE CODES, DESPITE ANY AGREEMENT BETWEEN AMERICAN TELEPHONE AND TELEGRAPH AND THE CALIFORNIA UNIVERSITY OF BERKELEY, WHICH AGREEMENT WE DENY AND DISAVOW.
IN THE YEAR 1984 A CHANGE OF REGIME IN MY COUNTRY ALLOWED THE AMERICAN TELEPHONE AND TELEGRAPH CORPORATION TO MAKE PROFITS FROM THESE SOFTWARES.
IN THE YEAR 1990 OWNERSHIP OF THESE SOFTWARES WAS TRANSFERRED TO THE CORPORATION UNIX SYSTEM LABORATORIES. IN THE YEAR 1993 THIS CORPORATION WAS SOLD TO THE CORPORATION NOVELL. IN THE YEAR 1994 SOME EMPLOYEES OF
NOVELL FORMED THE CORPORATION CALDERA SYSTEMS INTERNATIONAL, WHICH
BEGAN TO DISTRIBUTE AN UPSTART OPERATING SYSTEM KNOWN AS LINUX. IN THE YEAR 1995 NOVELL SOLD THE UNIX SOFTWARE CODES TO SCO. IN THE YEAR 2001 OCCURRED A SEPARATION OF SCO, AND THE SCO BRAND NAME AND UNIX CODES WERE ACQUIRED BY THE CALDERA SYSTEMS INTERNATIONAL, AND IN THE FOLLOWING YEAR THE CALDERA SYSTEMS INTERNATIONAL WAS RENAMED SCO GROUP, OF WHICH I CURRENTLY SERVE AS CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER.
MY ASSOCIATES AND I OF THE SCO GROUP ARE THEREFORE THE FULL AND RIGHTFUL OWNERS OF THE OPERATING SYSTEM SOFTWARES KNOWN AS UNIX. OUR ENGINEERS HAVE DISCOVERED THAT NO FEWER THAN SEVENTY (70) LINES OF OUR VALUABLE AND PROPRIETARY SOURCE CODES HAVE APPEARED IN THE UPSTART OPERATING SYSTEM LINUX. AS YOU CAN PLAINLY SEE, THIS GIVES US A CLAIM ON THE MILLIONS OF LINES OF VALUABLE SOFTWARE CODES WHICH COMPRISE THIS LINUX AND WHICH HAS BEEN SOLD AT GREAT PROFIT TO VERY MANY BUSINESS ENTERPRISES. OUR LEGAL EXPERTS HAVE ADVISED US THAT OUR CONTRIBUTION TO THESE CODES IS WORTH AN ESTIMATED ONE (1) BILLION U.S. DOLLARS.
UNFORTUNATELY WE ARE HAVING DIFFICULTY EXTRACTING OUR FUNDS FROM THESE COMPUTER SOFTWARES. TO THIS EFFECT I HAVE BEEN GIVEN THE MANDATE BY MY COLLEAGUES TO CONTACT YOU AND ASK FOR YOUR ASSISTANCE. WE ARE PREPARED TO SELL YOU A SHARE IN THIS ENTERPRISE, WHICH WILL SOON BE VERY PROFITABLE, THAT WILL GRANT YOU THE RIGHTS TO USE THESE VAULABLE SOFTWARES IN YOUR BUSINESS ENTERPRISE. UNFORTUNATELY WE ARE NOT ABLE AT THIS TIME TO SET A PRICE ON THESE RIGHTS. THEREFORE IT IS OUR RESPECTFUL SUGGESTION, THAT YOU MAY BE IMMEDIATELY A PARTY TO THIS ENTERPRISE, BEFORE OTHERS ACCEPT THESE LUCRATIVE TERMS, THAT YOU SEND US THE NUMBER OF A BANKING ACCOUNT WHERE WE CAN WITHDRAW FUNDS OF A SUITABLE AMOUNT TO GUARANTEE YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THIS ENTERPRISE. AS AN ALTERNATIVE YOU MAY SEND US THE NUMBER AND EXPIRATION DATE OF YOUR MAJOR CREDIT CARD, OR YOU MAY SEND TO US A SIGNED CHECK FROM YOUR BANKING ACCOUNT PAYABLE TO "SCO GROUP" AND WITH THE AMOUNT LEFT BLANK FOR US TO CONVENIENTLY SUPPLY.
KINDLY TREAT THIS REQUEST AS VERY IMPORTANT AND STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL. I HONESTLY ASSURE YOU THAT THIS TRANSACTION IS 100% LEGAL AND RISK-FREE.
Heh. I laughed my ass off over that one, the first time I saw it. Now for a bit of Linux fun. Let's suppose that you want to backup your whole system across the network. Nah, not just the files, let's get the disk structure and everything - a lot more like Ghost. Here's what I sent to Tom last night - a melding of things I read in Unix Power Tools and Linux Server Hacks, both from O'Reilly. First, boot into Knoppix or some other rescue disk system that allows you to setup SSH connections to another machine on your network. Here's the command to back up your first disk:
dd if=/dev/hda | gzip | ssh machine2 "cat > /mnt/backups/machine1-hda-dd.gz"
Of course this can be adapted to backup partitions rather than physical drives. But when backing up partitions, you need to make sure that you recreate your partition table and boot sector properly. These can also be backed up in a similar manner, I've seen it before and a quick Google search on "dd backup MBR" and "dd backup partition table" should yield useful results that can be adapted to the cross-network setup above.
Now I need to get some aspirin and coffee to knock down this headache, otherwise my day working on the computer is going to be miserable. Have a stunningly wonderful day, yourself!
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Visit the rest of the DAYNOTES GANG, a collection of bright minds and sharp wits. Really, I don't know why they tolerate me <grin>. My personal inspiration for these pages is Dr. Jerry Pournelle. I am also indebted to Bob Thompson and Tom Syroid for their patience, guidance and feedback. Of course, I am sustained by and beholden to my lovely wife, Marcia. You can find her online too, at http://www.dutchgirl.net/. Thanks for dropping by.
All Content Copyright © 1999-2003 Brian P. Bilbrey.