Not surprised.
How White and Nerdy Are You?
Monday, October 30, 2006
Halloween Party
Stardate 60103.0
We had a Halloween Party last Saturday. Rachel and Patrick got to invite friends from school. Thomas had one friend over. It was strange because after sending out the invitations, everyone wanted to know if it was a birthday party. Most of the people invited had been to our kids parties before, and they know we don't have anyone born in October. It seems to be a weird idea to have a party just to have a party.
There were 26 kids altogether. It was out on the back patio. We had a mumy race, where teams of two wrapped each other in toilet paper and tried to run to a finish line. We went to the cornmaze in Syracuse, and let them run around for about an hour and a half. I found out Friday night that the Ticonderoga was going there as well, but we did not see them. After that, we came back to the house and ate. I had made some mummy dogs (hog dogs wrapped in pastry dough) which disappeared in minutes. We also had chili and bread shaped like a pumpkin. Then there was a candy relay. It was between the fifth and third graders. I think the fifth won. They dropped quite a bit on the lawn, much the the delight of Leonardo the dog. I know the stuff is not good for him, but he can find it better and faster than I can. Then it was a free for all. Most of the kids were gone by 8, and April went to an adult party with a friend. She went as Captain Hook, and her friend went as Tiger Lily (you need to watch Disney's Peter Pan for the reference).
Thanks to Jennifer, Mary, and Elaine for helping with transport.
There were five soccer games on Saturday as well. Thomas and Rachel had one, and Patrick had three; an AYSO double header and an indoor game. The cub scouts had a trip to Fort Beunaventura planned, although the times kept changing, so we were never sure when it was. Patrick played well, although he lost to games. The first at 9 AM he scored three goals in quick sucession. The combination of Josh, Tommy, and Patrick as forwards is pretty potent. The last game you could tell they were getting tired (all three had three games).
Thomas's team played ok. Last week they were on fire, and we actually won. This week they played as before. Phillip has come a long way from the whining child to a good goalie and fair forward. Chandler, having missed much of the games, started getting into it. Hunter tried, but he really didn't get into the games. Riley did very well in practice, but seems lost during the games. Sam, urged on by his father, had some good games and was another good goalie. Luke is a natural player, if a bit too agressive. Cooper did well, just a little issue with always having to play with Luke. Thomas kicks well, but has a tendency to run to the goal instead of at the ball. A good team, if they can concentrate on the game. That was the last game for the fall.
End of Entry
We had a Halloween Party last Saturday. Rachel and Patrick got to invite friends from school. Thomas had one friend over. It was strange because after sending out the invitations, everyone wanted to know if it was a birthday party. Most of the people invited had been to our kids parties before, and they know we don't have anyone born in October. It seems to be a weird idea to have a party just to have a party.
There were 26 kids altogether. It was out on the back patio. We had a mumy race, where teams of two wrapped each other in toilet paper and tried to run to a finish line. We went to the cornmaze in Syracuse, and let them run around for about an hour and a half. I found out Friday night that the Ticonderoga was going there as well, but we did not see them. After that, we came back to the house and ate. I had made some mummy dogs (hog dogs wrapped in pastry dough) which disappeared in minutes. We also had chili and bread shaped like a pumpkin. Then there was a candy relay. It was between the fifth and third graders. I think the fifth won. They dropped quite a bit on the lawn, much the the delight of Leonardo the dog. I know the stuff is not good for him, but he can find it better and faster than I can. Then it was a free for all. Most of the kids were gone by 8, and April went to an adult party with a friend. She went as Captain Hook, and her friend went as Tiger Lily (you need to watch Disney's Peter Pan for the reference).
Thanks to Jennifer, Mary, and Elaine for helping with transport.
There were five soccer games on Saturday as well. Thomas and Rachel had one, and Patrick had three; an AYSO double header and an indoor game. The cub scouts had a trip to Fort Beunaventura planned, although the times kept changing, so we were never sure when it was. Patrick played well, although he lost to games. The first at 9 AM he scored three goals in quick sucession. The combination of Josh, Tommy, and Patrick as forwards is pretty potent. The last game you could tell they were getting tired (all three had three games).
Thomas's team played ok. Last week they were on fire, and we actually won. This week they played as before. Phillip has come a long way from the whining child to a good goalie and fair forward. Chandler, having missed much of the games, started getting into it. Hunter tried, but he really didn't get into the games. Riley did very well in practice, but seems lost during the games. Sam, urged on by his father, had some good games and was another good goalie. Luke is a natural player, if a bit too agressive. Cooper did well, just a little issue with always having to play with Luke. Thomas kicks well, but has a tendency to run to the goal instead of at the ball. A good team, if they can concentrate on the game. That was the last game for the fall.
End of Entry
Friday, October 27, 2006
Everything Must Go!
Stardate 60102.7
Often, I drive by the Shag-Rug-La store on 35th South and Bangerter. They are or already have moved, and there is a sign that says "Moving, Everything Must Go!". My brain latches on to that for some reason. I know it means they want as much sold as possible before they move. But a voice in my head insists that's not what it says. So this list of possible meanings runs through my head.
1. They are moving everything, and asking for help.
2. Everything is moving, and therefore it has to go.
3. Alternate meaning for go: They have to use the bathroom before moving.
4. They are in motion, and everthing is on the go.
Then I wonder if this thought process is a result of my profession (software development), or my profession is a result of my having thought processes like this.
I know, strange.
End of Entry
Often, I drive by the Shag-Rug-La store on 35th South and Bangerter. They are or already have moved, and there is a sign that says "Moving, Everything Must Go!". My brain latches on to that for some reason. I know it means they want as much sold as possible before they move. But a voice in my head insists that's not what it says. So this list of possible meanings runs through my head.
1. They are moving everything, and asking for help.
2. Everything is moving, and therefore it has to go.
3. Alternate meaning for go: They have to use the bathroom before moving.
4. They are in motion, and everthing is on the go.
Then I wonder if this thought process is a result of my profession (software development), or my profession is a result of my having thought processes like this.
I know, strange.
Computer programs do what they are told to do, not what they are supposed to do or what you want them to do.
End of Entry
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Politics
Stardate 60102.6
Carl wrote about politics. One of two topics you are forbidden to discuss at FreeMason activities because it is so derisive. I've looked at the Constitution party www.cputah.org, and I found pretty much the same thing. No to this and no to that.
Isn't there a clause in the Constitution that says any powers not specfically outlined here are the domain of the states? They kind of go overboard with the pro-life stuff, and I have problems with parties that refer to the evil New World Order (with the capitals). I will agree with Carl that the Constitution is a living document, and it was intended to be changed. Changing it is not easy, and this was also intended. I also love the way they trot out the "Founding Fathers". The ideas of these gentlemen were all over the place, and rarely did they agree on anything. Edmund Randolph, the man who proposed the plan that was to become the Constitution (Madison is generally believed to be the author, but Randolph introduced it), refused to sign or endorse the final document. Patrick Henry ("Give me liberty or give me death") believed it was evil. They wish to abolish the FDA, to which the drug Thalidomide comes to mind. Labeling of ingredients. At least they don't want healthcare run by the government. I'd like to see universal coverage, but if the government does it then that's one more they can hold over the heads of voters.
There are a ton of topics: Energy, Copyright, Economy, Education, Environment, Privacy, Technology, Social Security, Taxation. I've already spent too much time revising and trying to sort out my opinions, all to no avail. Maybe I should take one topic at a time.
End of Entry
Carl wrote about politics. One of two topics you are forbidden to discuss at FreeMason activities because it is so derisive. I've looked at the Constitution party www.cputah.org, and I found pretty much the same thing. No to this and no to that.
Isn't there a clause in the Constitution that says any powers not specfically outlined here are the domain of the states? They kind of go overboard with the pro-life stuff, and I have problems with parties that refer to the evil New World Order (with the capitals). I will agree with Carl that the Constitution is a living document, and it was intended to be changed. Changing it is not easy, and this was also intended. I also love the way they trot out the "Founding Fathers". The ideas of these gentlemen were all over the place, and rarely did they agree on anything. Edmund Randolph, the man who proposed the plan that was to become the Constitution (Madison is generally believed to be the author, but Randolph introduced it), refused to sign or endorse the final document. Patrick Henry ("Give me liberty or give me death") believed it was evil. They wish to abolish the FDA, to which the drug Thalidomide comes to mind. Labeling of ingredients. At least they don't want healthcare run by the government. I'd like to see universal coverage, but if the government does it then that's one more they can hold over the heads of voters.
There are a ton of topics: Energy, Copyright, Economy, Education, Environment, Privacy, Technology, Social Security, Taxation. I've already spent too much time revising and trying to sort out my opinions, all to no avail. Maybe I should take one topic at a time.
End of Entry
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Auto replies
Stardate 60101.9
I found these on a Monster blog. Their source is a podcast, so I can't exactly credit it. I'd love to use them at least once for my out of office auto replies.
* I am currently out a job interview and will reply to you if I fail to get the position. Be prepared for my mood.
* You're receiving this automatic notification, because I'm out of the office. If I were in, chances are you wouldn't have received anything at all.
* I will be unable to delete all the unread worthless emails you sent me until I return from holiday on the 4th of April. Please be patient, and your mail will be deleted in the order it was received.
* Thank you for your email. Your credit card has been charged $4 for the first 10 words and $1.95 for each additional word in your message.
* Thank you for your message, which has been added to a queuing system. Your email is important to me, and you're currently in 352nd place. You can expect to receive a reply in approximately 19 weeks.
End of Entry
I found these on a Monster blog. Their source is a podcast, so I can't exactly credit it. I'd love to use them at least once for my out of office auto replies.
* I am currently out a job interview and will reply to you if I fail to get the position. Be prepared for my mood.
* You're receiving this automatic notification, because I'm out of the office. If I were in, chances are you wouldn't have received anything at all.
* I will be unable to delete all the unread worthless emails you sent me until I return from holiday on the 4th of April. Please be patient, and your mail will be deleted in the order it was received.
* Thank you for your email. Your credit card has been charged $4 for the first 10 words and $1.95 for each additional word in your message.
* Thank you for your message, which has been added to a queuing system. Your email is important to me, and you're currently in 352nd place. You can expect to receive a reply in approximately 19 weeks.
End of Entry
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Indoor Soccer
Stardate 60101.7
Patrick is on an indoor soccer team. I was going to coach a team if there were no other volunteers, but the St. Joes PE teacher set up a team. It's a little more money, but I think he's beyond amateur coaching, which is all I can provide. The team will go competitive in the spring.
The try-outs were last Saturday. Apparently they were just short enough players that everyone got in. I think he would have made it anyway. It'll be interesting to see where this goes.
End of Entry
Patrick is on an indoor soccer team. I was going to coach a team if there were no other volunteers, but the St. Joes PE teacher set up a team. It's a little more money, but I think he's beyond amateur coaching, which is all I can provide. The team will go competitive in the spring.
The try-outs were last Saturday. Apparently they were just short enough players that everyone got in. I think he would have made it anyway. It'll be interesting to see where this goes.
End of Entry
Monday, October 16, 2006
Gospel according to Star Trek
Stardate 60101.6
Futurama had a fourth season episode called “Where No Fan Has Gone Before”. This has to be my favorite Star Trek and Star Trek Fan parody. In it, Star Trek became a religion, and was banned after the Star Trek Wars (not to be confused with the fan pilgrimage known as the Star Wars Trek). Some seem to want TV to be reality.
'STAR TREK GOSPELS' REACH OUT TO WORLD
You can read about the church here. And before any asks, no, I am not converting.
End of Entry
Futurama had a fourth season episode called “Where No Fan Has Gone Before”. This has to be my favorite Star Trek and Star Trek Fan parody. In it, Star Trek became a religion, and was banned after the Star Trek Wars (not to be confused with the fan pilgrimage known as the Star Wars Trek). Some seem to want TV to be reality.
'STAR TREK GOSPELS' REACH OUT TO WORLD
You can read about the church here. And before any asks, no, I am not converting.
End of Entry
Friday, October 13, 2006
Kid's Rooms
Stardate 60101.3
Thomas had his new bed installed yesterday. He slept there last night. Now all the kids have their own rooms. We have gone from a purple room to green, and from blue to olive green. The bunk bed went to Patrick’s room. His room is smaller than the one he shared with Thomas, but the shear fact he doesn’t need to share it makes up for it.
Rachel is complaining that she has to go upstairs to use the bathroom. We warned her about it, but at the time she was too excited about a new room to care. It won’t change, so she needs to accept it.
Favorite Music at the moment: “Wheel of Fortune” – Hans Zimmer, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest Soundtrack
End of Entry
Thomas had his new bed installed yesterday. He slept there last night. Now all the kids have their own rooms. We have gone from a purple room to green, and from blue to olive green. The bunk bed went to Patrick’s room. His room is smaller than the one he shared with Thomas, but the shear fact he doesn’t need to share it makes up for it.
Rachel is complaining that she has to go upstairs to use the bathroom. We warned her about it, but at the time she was too excited about a new room to care. It won’t change, so she needs to accept it.
Favorite Music at the moment: “Wheel of Fortune” – Hans Zimmer, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest Soundtrack
End of Entry
Thursday, October 12, 2006
SQL Joins
Stardate 60101.2
Got a phone interview on Tuesday night. I really prefer face to face, and that I know ahead of time. This one also came in the middle of getting the boys ready for scouts. Needless to say, I didn’t do well. But I did get a succinct definition of the difference between an inner and outer join. An inner join is the standard
SELECT TABLE_A.COLUMN1, TABLE_A.COLUMN2, TABLE_B.COLUMN3
FROM TABLE_A, TABLE_B
WHERE TABLE_A.COLUMN1 = TABLE_B.COLUMN1
This will only return rows where COLUMN1 matches in TABLE_A and TABLE_B. If there are entries in TABLE_A that do not have a match in TABLE_B, these rows are not returned. This is where an outer join comes in.
(ORACLE Syntax)
SELECT TABLE_A.COLUMN1, TABLEA.COLUMN2, TABLEB.COLUMN3
FROM TABLE_A, TABLE_B
WHERE TABLE_A.COLUMN1 = TABLE_B.COLUMN1(+)
This will return COLUMN1 and COLUMN2 in all rows from TABLE_A, and any matches from TABLE_B COLUMN3.
So an inner join only gets rows where the tables have matches, and the outer join will return rows from TABLE_A whether a match exists with TABLE_B or not. I know it, but this is a nice, simple explanation. I gotta remember it.
End of Entry
Got a phone interview on Tuesday night. I really prefer face to face, and that I know ahead of time. This one also came in the middle of getting the boys ready for scouts. Needless to say, I didn’t do well. But I did get a succinct definition of the difference between an inner and outer join. An inner join is the standard
SELECT TABLE_A.COLUMN1, TABLE_A.COLUMN2, TABLE_B.COLUMN3
FROM TABLE_A, TABLE_B
WHERE TABLE_A.COLUMN1 = TABLE_B.COLUMN1
This will only return rows where COLUMN1 matches in TABLE_A and TABLE_B. If there are entries in TABLE_A that do not have a match in TABLE_B, these rows are not returned. This is where an outer join comes in.
(ORACLE Syntax)
SELECT TABLE_A.COLUMN1, TABLEA.COLUMN2, TABLEB.COLUMN3
FROM TABLE_A, TABLE_B
WHERE TABLE_A.COLUMN1 = TABLE_B.COLUMN1(+)
This will return COLUMN1 and COLUMN2 in all rows from TABLE_A, and any matches from TABLE_B COLUMN3.
So an inner join only gets rows where the tables have matches, and the outer join will return rows from TABLE_A whether a match exists with TABLE_B or not. I know it, but this is a nice, simple explanation. I gotta remember it.
End of Entry
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
IIS Problems
Stardate 60092.7
Warning!!! Technical entry. I am keeping a note about this here because I can't think of a better place for it.
I got my new laptop, and installed Internet Information Services on it. I then installed Visual Studio 2005. I ran a simple web page, and got a Server Application error, please check the event log for more details. The application event log recorded the message “the sever failed to load application ‘/LM/W3SVC – The specified metadata was not found.’ The event id was 36. Lots of stuff on the web about this; apparently it’s a common error. It took a while to find the specific fix, and I am not sure how some of the steps were done.
The first problem was that the Distributed Transaction Coordinator was not running, and was not even listed in the Service Control Manager. I tried uninstalling and reinstalling IIS, which was a mistake. This is where I am not sure. I mucked around with msdtc.exe on the command line, and after a while it showed up in services, although it was not running. I set it to start automatically. Tried again, got the same page error, but the event log showed ‘/LM/W3SVC – Class not registered.” I went to the Component Manager and per another web page deleted IIS In-Process Applications, IIS Out-of-Process Pooled Applications, and IIS Utilities. I needed to shutdown IIS before I did this, but I could not remember the shell command. Another Google search reminded me it was IISRESET. I tried IISRESET STOP, and was greeted by ‘The RPC server is unavailable.’ It took another hour before I discovered the command was IISRESET /STOP. Then I went to %windir%\system32\inetsrv, and typed:
rundll32 wamreg.dll,CreateIISPackage
Then
regsvr32 asptxn.dll
I tried the web page again. This time I got an ‘XML Parsing Error: Not well-formed’ on the first line of the page. Another quick search revealed my problem, I had uninstalled IIS, and it no longer knew about ASP.NET. I ran the Visual Studio command prompt (the same as the normal command prompt, except it adds a few more directories to the PATH), and typed:
aspnet_regiis –i
I tried the page again, and again, the same error. Further down the same Google search was a question about running under Firefox, and how it caches the page. I did a Ctrl-F5, and lo, it worked. And there was much rejoicing.
End of Entry
Warning!!! Technical entry. I am keeping a note about this here because I can't think of a better place for it.
I got my new laptop, and installed Internet Information Services on it. I then installed Visual Studio 2005. I ran a simple web page, and got a Server Application error, please check the event log for more details. The application event log recorded the message “the sever failed to load application ‘/LM/W3SVC – The specified metadata was not found.’ The event id was 36. Lots of stuff on the web about this; apparently it’s a common error. It took a while to find the specific fix, and I am not sure how some of the steps were done.
The first problem was that the Distributed Transaction Coordinator was not running, and was not even listed in the Service Control Manager. I tried uninstalling and reinstalling IIS, which was a mistake. This is where I am not sure. I mucked around with msdtc.exe on the command line, and after a while it showed up in services, although it was not running. I set it to start automatically. Tried again, got the same page error, but the event log showed ‘/LM/W3SVC – Class not registered.” I went to the Component Manager and per another web page deleted IIS In-Process Applications, IIS Out-of-Process Pooled Applications, and IIS Utilities. I needed to shutdown IIS before I did this, but I could not remember the shell command. Another Google search reminded me it was IISRESET. I tried IISRESET STOP, and was greeted by ‘The RPC server is unavailable.’ It took another hour before I discovered the command was IISRESET /STOP. Then I went to %windir%\system32\inetsrv, and typed:
rundll32 wamreg.dll,CreateIISPackage
Then
regsvr32 asptxn.dll
I tried the web page again. This time I got an ‘XML Parsing Error: Not well-formed’ on the first line of the page. Another quick search revealed my problem, I had uninstalled IIS, and it no longer knew about ASP.NET. I ran the Visual Studio command prompt (the same as the normal command prompt, except it adds a few more directories to the PATH), and typed:
aspnet_regiis –i
I tried the page again, and again, the same error. Further down the same Google search was a question about running under Firefox, and how it caches the page. I did a Ctrl-F5, and lo, it worked. And there was much rejoicing.
End of Entry
Monday, September 25, 2006
Updates plus M-CII
Stardate 60192.5
Mike Gibby wanna-be, that’s me. It’s been a few weeks since the last entry. Scouts, soccer, TV season, convention, and a host of other things have kept me busy.
Thomas and some of his friends are Tiger Scouts now, and Patrick is a Bear, scout that is. They are enjoying it so far. Some of the new parents are asking when the camping starts. Unless you are a Weblos, day camps are it.
Soccer is fun, although Thomas’s team is a challenge. They get distracted very easily. The second Saturday we played it rained and hailed, so the fields were a mess. They stopped in the middle of a game to pick up the hail. It was also a double-header for both Patrick and Thomas. Patrick did well, and I put him on Thomas’s team for their second game, because we were playing Patrick’s old team (he moved to an older age group), and to show Thomas and his team how to play better. The other coach was telling his kids to hold back, but I told him Patrick thinks he’s ready to turn pro, so pour it on. It didn’t help. Patrick blocked all the goal shots, even one kicked high in the air. There is also interest in doing indoor soccer again, and I told some of the parents I’d be willing to coach. That will start at the end of October.
The TV season took April and I by surprise. All of the sudden, new shows are appearing on the DVR.
Mountain-Con II was a success. Kudos to Carl, Justin, Rex, Dani, Kevin, Jani, and dozens of others for a great con. I was also pleased to see Brian and Jeremy of Done The Impossible. Yes, I will have to watch Firefly now. I have known both of them for about 20 years, and unfortunately it’s been almost that long since I saw Jeremy.
End Of Entry.
Mike Gibby wanna-be, that’s me. It’s been a few weeks since the last entry. Scouts, soccer, TV season, convention, and a host of other things have kept me busy.
Thomas and some of his friends are Tiger Scouts now, and Patrick is a Bear, scout that is. They are enjoying it so far. Some of the new parents are asking when the camping starts. Unless you are a Weblos, day camps are it.
Soccer is fun, although Thomas’s team is a challenge. They get distracted very easily. The second Saturday we played it rained and hailed, so the fields were a mess. They stopped in the middle of a game to pick up the hail. It was also a double-header for both Patrick and Thomas. Patrick did well, and I put him on Thomas’s team for their second game, because we were playing Patrick’s old team (he moved to an older age group), and to show Thomas and his team how to play better. The other coach was telling his kids to hold back, but I told him Patrick thinks he’s ready to turn pro, so pour it on. It didn’t help. Patrick blocked all the goal shots, even one kicked high in the air. There is also interest in doing indoor soccer again, and I told some of the parents I’d be willing to coach. That will start at the end of October.
The TV season took April and I by surprise. All of the sudden, new shows are appearing on the DVR.
Mountain-Con II was a success. Kudos to Carl, Justin, Rex, Dani, Kevin, Jani, and dozens of others for a great con. I was also pleased to see Brian and Jeremy of Done The Impossible. Yes, I will have to watch Firefly now. I have known both of them for about 20 years, and unfortunately it’s been almost that long since I saw Jeremy.
End Of Entry.
Thursday, September 07, 2006
The Crocodile Hunter
Stardate 60190.7
Crikey! As you have already read about, Steve Irwin, whose sobriquet is The Crocodile Hunter, was killed by a stingray last week. I think that some animal killed him is not a big shock to most people, but the circumstances were bizarre. It’s still sad to lose a famous environmentalist and entertainer.
The kids are all back in school. No problems, no kid getting lost. They don’t like the earlier bedtimes, although Rachel admits she is not as tired as she was over the summer. I thought Thomas would have a problem with Patrick now going to St. Joseph instead of St. Benedicts, but he was fine with it. One exception was the second day of school, when they needed to go to Extended Daycare Program. They need to type a number into a computer to check in and out. Patrick did this last year for both him and Thomas. Thomas started to panic because he did not know how to do this. He calmed down quickly when I told him just to ask for help if he had a problem. He knows the teachers there, so he should be comfortable with asking.
I went to the Northern Utah .Net Users Group meeting Tuesday. They demoed a JavaScript tool called Mochikit. It looks fun, but I’d still like to find a tool that I can use to draw the elements on a website. Visual Studio does that, but it wants things done with IIS. The asp.net module for Apache is no longer supported.
So Wednesday ordered a new laptop from HP. I was going to get a Gateway Tablet PC from Office Depot, but April talked me out of it. I use the computer for games and software development, so it does not make sense. Tablet does not come with IIS, and as I said, VS wants that. Office Depot’s only solution was to buy the machine, and then spend $200 extra on the XP Professional upgrade. HP has the option to customize a machine, although it’s a little off. They give you options for different processors (Celeron, Dual Core) and graphics, and then tell you it won’t work. I settled on an AMD processor and added XP professional for $50 extra. I hope the graphics will be good enough to play games with.
Speaking of games, I installed Barbarian Invasion. It’s not too different from the original. There are different factions such as Huns, Goths, Saxons, etc. There are new formations, such as spearmen can hedgehog (form a circle with spears facing out), which makes them invulnerable to cavalry but bad against archers. Mounted troops are more important now. There are only two historical battles, Teutoburg Wald and Chalons (you can look those up on Wikipedia for descriptions). I played both, lost the first (ran out of time), and won the second (although Atilla was killed). I am in the middle of a campaign now as the Vandals. The goals are to capture and hold 10 cities, and three have to be Cordova, Rome, and Carthage. The Roman Empire is divided into Western and Eastern, and the west currently holds all three cities. I sent an envoy to Constantinople to appeal for help, only to find the Huns had taken the city. The western empire has sent four large armies to stop my invasion and each was handed a decisive defeat. The computers strategy seems to be attrition. The three armies I had with over a thousand men each are down below two hundred each. My stupid spies can’t seem to determine if they have more to throw at me.
Wednesday was another visit to the dentist. I had a few fillings done. The only problem is that as he started to drill, and I told him it hurt. He gave me another shot of anesthesia, and tried again. More anesthesia. It still hurt a little, but my jaw was numb, so I didn’t say anything more. He wants to try a different anesthesia next time.
The boys and I went to a Real game on Saturday. The boys got bored, but I had fun. Real lost, although I am not sure why. They didn’t count one goal, I guess for a penalty.
End of Entry
Crikey! As you have already read about, Steve Irwin, whose sobriquet is The Crocodile Hunter, was killed by a stingray last week. I think that some animal killed him is not a big shock to most people, but the circumstances were bizarre. It’s still sad to lose a famous environmentalist and entertainer.
The kids are all back in school. No problems, no kid getting lost. They don’t like the earlier bedtimes, although Rachel admits she is not as tired as she was over the summer. I thought Thomas would have a problem with Patrick now going to St. Joseph instead of St. Benedicts, but he was fine with it. One exception was the second day of school, when they needed to go to Extended Daycare Program. They need to type a number into a computer to check in and out. Patrick did this last year for both him and Thomas. Thomas started to panic because he did not know how to do this. He calmed down quickly when I told him just to ask for help if he had a problem. He knows the teachers there, so he should be comfortable with asking.
I went to the Northern Utah .Net Users Group meeting Tuesday. They demoed a JavaScript tool called Mochikit. It looks fun, but I’d still like to find a tool that I can use to draw the elements on a website. Visual Studio does that, but it wants things done with IIS. The asp.net module for Apache is no longer supported.
So Wednesday ordered a new laptop from HP. I was going to get a Gateway Tablet PC from Office Depot, but April talked me out of it. I use the computer for games and software development, so it does not make sense. Tablet does not come with IIS, and as I said, VS wants that. Office Depot’s only solution was to buy the machine, and then spend $200 extra on the XP Professional upgrade. HP has the option to customize a machine, although it’s a little off. They give you options for different processors (Celeron, Dual Core) and graphics, and then tell you it won’t work. I settled on an AMD processor and added XP professional for $50 extra. I hope the graphics will be good enough to play games with.
Speaking of games, I installed Barbarian Invasion. It’s not too different from the original. There are different factions such as Huns, Goths, Saxons, etc. There are new formations, such as spearmen can hedgehog (form a circle with spears facing out), which makes them invulnerable to cavalry but bad against archers. Mounted troops are more important now. There are only two historical battles, Teutoburg Wald and Chalons (you can look those up on Wikipedia for descriptions). I played both, lost the first (ran out of time), and won the second (although Atilla was killed). I am in the middle of a campaign now as the Vandals. The goals are to capture and hold 10 cities, and three have to be Cordova, Rome, and Carthage. The Roman Empire is divided into Western and Eastern, and the west currently holds all three cities. I sent an envoy to Constantinople to appeal for help, only to find the Huns had taken the city. The western empire has sent four large armies to stop my invasion and each was handed a decisive defeat. The computers strategy seems to be attrition. The three armies I had with over a thousand men each are down below two hundred each. My stupid spies can’t seem to determine if they have more to throw at me.
Wednesday was another visit to the dentist. I had a few fillings done. The only problem is that as he started to drill, and I told him it hurt. He gave me another shot of anesthesia, and tried again. More anesthesia. It still hurt a little, but my jaw was numb, so I didn’t say anything more. He wants to try a different anesthesia next time.
The boys and I went to a Real game on Saturday. The boys got bored, but I had fun. Real lost, although I am not sure why. They didn’t count one goal, I guess for a penalty.
End of Entry
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Jobs
Stardate 60090.2
It’s been a little rough this week. I got two ‘sorry, you don’t have the skills we need’ rejects from job interviews in one day, and a co-worker who has been with the company for almost as long as I have left. It’s frustrating. Years ago, I asked to be replaced on the project I was on. It took a year and a half to find someone, another year to get someone up to speed. In the meantime, a replacement is being worked on. I’ve asked to be part of it, but the answer was that I could not be spared from the other project. Now that I can, I am told the replacement is almost done and they don’t have any place for me on it.
The kids started school again. Thomas goes to one campus by himself now. I thought that would be a problem, but he seems to like it. The exception was Tuesday, when he had to go to Extended Daycare Program. The kids need to check in by typing there number in on a computer. Patrick always did that last year, so Thomas got upset because he didn’t know how. He got through it. He and Thomas aren’t happy about having to go to bed at a set time, but they have to accept that. So far, they have been getting up ok, although Thomas complained he wanted to take a nap in school.
We had the downstairs painted this week. The guy prepped on Monday, and by Wednesday he was done. It looks great, except the color we picked for the fireplace wall looks pinkish in the light of the lamps. We tried rearranging the front room, but most of the furniture needs to stay where it is.
I bought the Barbarian Invasion expansion pack for Rome: Total War. I have not installed it yet. It looks pretty cool. I’ve been playing Rome again.
End Of Entry
It’s been a little rough this week. I got two ‘sorry, you don’t have the skills we need’ rejects from job interviews in one day, and a co-worker who has been with the company for almost as long as I have left. It’s frustrating. Years ago, I asked to be replaced on the project I was on. It took a year and a half to find someone, another year to get someone up to speed. In the meantime, a replacement is being worked on. I’ve asked to be part of it, but the answer was that I could not be spared from the other project. Now that I can, I am told the replacement is almost done and they don’t have any place for me on it.
The kids started school again. Thomas goes to one campus by himself now. I thought that would be a problem, but he seems to like it. The exception was Tuesday, when he had to go to Extended Daycare Program. The kids need to check in by typing there number in on a computer. Patrick always did that last year, so Thomas got upset because he didn’t know how. He got through it. He and Thomas aren’t happy about having to go to bed at a set time, but they have to accept that. So far, they have been getting up ok, although Thomas complained he wanted to take a nap in school.
We had the downstairs painted this week. The guy prepped on Monday, and by Wednesday he was done. It looks great, except the color we picked for the fireplace wall looks pinkish in the light of the lamps. We tried rearranging the front room, but most of the furniture needs to stay where it is.
I bought the Barbarian Invasion expansion pack for Rome: Total War. I have not installed it yet. It looks pretty cool. I’ve been playing Rome again.
End Of Entry
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Software Development
Stardate 60082.3
Picked this up on the web:
This statement has generated a few comments. Some say, yeah, that’s a great Idea, and others reply, no, the compartmental organization is the only way to go. Me, I can see both points of view. I’ve sometimes dreamed of being locked away from all distractions and just CODING. But there were situations where this just went overboard. One in particular was with a new client. They needed a feature, so a group was formed to write documentation on how it needed to be done. I was called to give time estimates. The feature was that when a database field was set to a value, they needed another field in the same table set to ‘Y’. Could this be done as part of the server application? I replied that yes, it could, and it would be a few hours to code and a day to test. They could have it in a couple of weeks as part of the normal development cycle. OR, a trigger could be put on the table to do the same thing. If they didn’t have the knowledge to do that, one of several database admins we had could write it and send it to them this afternoon. The group was a little shocked by the simple solution.
The organization into separate departments is ok, but not when the communication is always formal. Informal chats can sometimes reveal simple and elegant solutions.
End of Entry
Picked this up on the web:
Werner Vogels: Yep, the best way to completely automate operations is to have to developers be responsible for running the software they develop. It is painful at times, but also means considerable creativity gets applied to a very important aspect of the software stack. It also brings developers into direct contact with customers and a very effective feedback loop starts. There is no separate operations department at Amazon: you build it; you run it.
This statement has generated a few comments. Some say, yeah, that’s a great Idea, and others reply, no, the compartmental organization is the only way to go. Me, I can see both points of view. I’ve sometimes dreamed of being locked away from all distractions and just CODING. But there were situations where this just went overboard. One in particular was with a new client. They needed a feature, so a group was formed to write documentation on how it needed to be done. I was called to give time estimates. The feature was that when a database field was set to a value, they needed another field in the same table set to ‘Y’. Could this be done as part of the server application? I replied that yes, it could, and it would be a few hours to code and a day to test. They could have it in a couple of weeks as part of the normal development cycle. OR, a trigger could be put on the table to do the same thing. If they didn’t have the knowledge to do that, one of several database admins we had could write it and send it to them this afternoon. The group was a little shocked by the simple solution.
The organization into separate departments is ok, but not when the communication is always formal. Informal chats can sometimes reveal simple and elegant solutions.
End of Entry
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
Public Transit
Stardate 60082.2
I received an email last week from UTA. About six months ago I decided to submit a rideshare request, just for fun. The email told me there were no matches for my request. No big surprise there. It went on to tell me that I was spending about $500 a month in gas, and added almost a 1000 miles on the car. I read through it and though, ok, wonderful info, but what’s the solution. Taking the bus requires 3 and a half hours one way. FastTrack, the commuter rail, does not offer any resolution either. I could move closer to work, but April works up here. I’d like to do the same, but there is not much here.
Rachel sprained her wrist in Pennsylvania (or New Jersey, I’m not sure exactly where she was). April said they tried to get on TV for the Today show, but President Bush held a news conference while they were there. Everything else seems to be going fine. They fly back tonight.
The kids all start school next week. I don’t think they are too excited about it.
The swim instructor called Friday to say she had an emergency, and had to cancel. I can understand, but it seems like every time we have a lesson scheduled, she has a problem and reschedules. She wanted to reschedule for Monday at 2, but I am still at work, so we pushed it back to 4. She does good work. Patrick is swimming underwater and Thomas can now float face down. Thomas told me he thinks the water is fun now.
End of Entry
I received an email last week from UTA. About six months ago I decided to submit a rideshare request, just for fun. The email told me there were no matches for my request. No big surprise there. It went on to tell me that I was spending about $500 a month in gas, and added almost a 1000 miles on the car. I read through it and though, ok, wonderful info, but what’s the solution. Taking the bus requires 3 and a half hours one way. FastTrack, the commuter rail, does not offer any resolution either. I could move closer to work, but April works up here. I’d like to do the same, but there is not much here.
Rachel sprained her wrist in Pennsylvania (or New Jersey, I’m not sure exactly where she was). April said they tried to get on TV for the Today show, but President Bush held a news conference while they were there. Everything else seems to be going fine. They fly back tonight.
The kids all start school next week. I don’t think they are too excited about it.
The swim instructor called Friday to say she had an emergency, and had to cancel. I can understand, but it seems like every time we have a lesson scheduled, she has a problem and reschedules. She wanted to reschedule for Monday at 2, but I am still at work, so we pushed it back to 4. She does good work. Patrick is swimming underwater and Thomas can now float face down. Thomas told me he thinks the water is fun now.
End of Entry
Friday, August 18, 2006
Star Trek XI
Stardate 60081.8
Upset, I am. At least a little bit. April and Rachel are in Pennsylvania for the weekend. It’s a long flight, but it looks like they will be staying close to Trenton, where George Washington crossed the Delaware River and surprised the Hessians, and numerous other historical sites. At least I think so, I’d have to check Mapquest to Google Maps. Ah, well, the boys would hate it, so I can wait.
What has me in a tiff is a rumor going around about a source at Paramount. The source says the JJ Abrams Star Trek will be a reboot. This is in itself not bad, but the source goes on to say if long time fans are not happy, too bad. They failed to save Enterprise and Trek itself has been going downhill for the last 10 years. Another in the long list of executives blaming the fans. It’s strange. I’ve been indoctrinated in the mantra that keeping existing customers happy is far cheaper for the most part than losing the customers and trying to gain new ones. There was a big fan effort that offered to pay for a fifth season of Enterprise. They bring Manny Coto in for the fourth and best season yet, and it gets cancelled. I can’t see why the failure is with the fans.
I had an interview Monday. It was really fun, and almost across the street from where my company used to be. The ironic part is that I meet with a recruiter later that same day, and her husband worked with the same company I just interviewed with. Another long time employee quit this week, and another was let go. I despair at finding another job. I did apply at the IRS, but it will probably be months before I here anything.
End Of Entry
Upset, I am. At least a little bit. April and Rachel are in Pennsylvania for the weekend. It’s a long flight, but it looks like they will be staying close to Trenton, where George Washington crossed the Delaware River and surprised the Hessians, and numerous other historical sites. At least I think so, I’d have to check Mapquest to Google Maps. Ah, well, the boys would hate it, so I can wait.
What has me in a tiff is a rumor going around about a source at Paramount. The source says the JJ Abrams Star Trek will be a reboot. This is in itself not bad, but the source goes on to say if long time fans are not happy, too bad. They failed to save Enterprise and Trek itself has been going downhill for the last 10 years. Another in the long list of executives blaming the fans. It’s strange. I’ve been indoctrinated in the mantra that keeping existing customers happy is far cheaper for the most part than losing the customers and trying to gain new ones. There was a big fan effort that offered to pay for a fifth season of Enterprise. They bring Manny Coto in for the fourth and best season yet, and it gets cancelled. I can’t see why the failure is with the fans.
I had an interview Monday. It was really fun, and almost across the street from where my company used to be. The ironic part is that I meet with a recruiter later that same day, and her husband worked with the same company I just interviewed with. Another long time employee quit this week, and another was let go. I despair at finding another job. I did apply at the IRS, but it will probably be months before I here anything.
End Of Entry
Saturday, August 12, 2006
Grant Imahara
Stardate 60081.2
Grant Imahara will not be attending Mountain-Con this year. That really disappoints me, because in reading about him on the web, he sounds like a fascinating guy. He created an account on the Mountain-Con forum just to explain why he could not come. That was very nice of him.
The Mountain-Con web site has been moved, for the most part, to a new host. It was supposed to be only temporarily on my account. The message forum and registration are still located here. It was kind of fun to have hit stats so high, but resetting the access log every month to conserve space was getting to be a pain. The new host allows better access for updates.
Thomas went to a friend’s house for a play date Thursday, and came home that evening with a jar of live fish. They are small, only a quarter of an inch or so. I put them in with the toads, and they seem to be doing fine. It adds to the menagerie; dog, cat, hamster, toads, and now fish.
Patrick has been involved with a soccer tournament this last week. It’s the same team as the last tournament, and much the same results. They played one game each on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. They lost all the games, although the last one was close. Patrick managed to score a goal in that one.
I received a new copy of my book on web development in C#. It’s a study guide to help pass the Microsoft exams. I copied the ebook PDF, so I should not lose it this time. I keep expected to find the other copy now that I have a replacement, but it hasn’t turned up yet. One point that occurred to me is this is the only coding I am doing. All of my work is documentation. I don’t feel very productive that way.
John pointed out the stardate is wrong on my blog. I'd fix it, but I guess it would mess up the calendar.
End of Entry
Grant Imahara will not be attending Mountain-Con this year. That really disappoints me, because in reading about him on the web, he sounds like a fascinating guy. He created an account on the Mountain-Con forum just to explain why he could not come. That was very nice of him.
The Mountain-Con web site has been moved, for the most part, to a new host. It was supposed to be only temporarily on my account. The message forum and registration are still located here. It was kind of fun to have hit stats so high, but resetting the access log every month to conserve space was getting to be a pain. The new host allows better access for updates.
Thomas went to a friend’s house for a play date Thursday, and came home that evening with a jar of live fish. They are small, only a quarter of an inch or so. I put them in with the toads, and they seem to be doing fine. It adds to the menagerie; dog, cat, hamster, toads, and now fish.
Patrick has been involved with a soccer tournament this last week. It’s the same team as the last tournament, and much the same results. They played one game each on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. They lost all the games, although the last one was close. Patrick managed to score a goal in that one.
I received a new copy of my book on web development in C#. It’s a study guide to help pass the Microsoft exams. I copied the ebook PDF, so I should not lose it this time. I keep expected to find the other copy now that I have a replacement, but it hasn’t turned up yet. One point that occurred to me is this is the only coding I am doing. All of my work is documentation. I don’t feel very productive that way.
John pointed out the stardate is wrong on my blog. I'd fix it, but I guess it would mess up the calendar.
End of Entry
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Roman Golf
Stardate 60080.8
Romans played a game with a bent stick and a feather ball that may have been a source to the game of golf, according to the Encarta ‘Fun Fact’ feed I subscribed to a few days ago. There’s no mention of holes, sand traps, or water hazards; but I can picture Julius Caesar crossing the Rubicon because of a bad slice and creating the metaphor for passing a point of no return. You can look it up on Wikipedia. I’ve never played the game except for the mini-golf version. I’ve thought about taking it up just to smooze with execs and get corporate scuttlebutt, but I never did.
John Barnes created a new blog on Yahoo for his position as chief engineer of the Ticonderoga. I think he may be letting the power go to his head, LOL. His old blog went under the sobriquet of KlingonWriter. This prompted a bad idea. What would happen if I blogged to my Windows Live Space in Klingon? How long would it take for someone to figure it out?
April and Rachel are out of town on a Girl Scout trip. They left yesterday morning. I picked up some fried chicken for dinner last night. I took the sitter home, and after dropping him off (and admiring his brother’s new car, an Eclipse. It’s a replacement for the Altima he brought from us), I realized I had left the bag sitting on the kitchen counter. Add in a yellow Lab who can easily reach it, and you get the picture. Sure enough, there were only a few shredded remains of the bag, and the dog was trying to hide behind the couch.
Matt Smith invited me to play chess with him on ItsYourTurn.com. We are only two moves in. It’ll be interesting to see how the game progresses.
End of Entry
Romans played a game with a bent stick and a feather ball that may have been a source to the game of golf, according to the Encarta ‘Fun Fact’ feed I subscribed to a few days ago. There’s no mention of holes, sand traps, or water hazards; but I can picture Julius Caesar crossing the Rubicon because of a bad slice and creating the metaphor for passing a point of no return. You can look it up on Wikipedia. I’ve never played the game except for the mini-golf version. I’ve thought about taking it up just to smooze with execs and get corporate scuttlebutt, but I never did.
John Barnes created a new blog on Yahoo for his position as chief engineer of the Ticonderoga. I think he may be letting the power go to his head, LOL. His old blog went under the sobriquet of KlingonWriter. This prompted a bad idea. What would happen if I blogged to my Windows Live Space in Klingon? How long would it take for someone to figure it out?
April and Rachel are out of town on a Girl Scout trip. They left yesterday morning. I picked up some fried chicken for dinner last night. I took the sitter home, and after dropping him off (and admiring his brother’s new car, an Eclipse. It’s a replacement for the Altima he brought from us), I realized I had left the bag sitting on the kitchen counter. Add in a yellow Lab who can easily reach it, and you get the picture. Sure enough, there were only a few shredded remains of the bag, and the dog was trying to hide behind the couch.
Matt Smith invited me to play chess with him on ItsYourTurn.com. We are only two moves in. It’ll be interesting to see how the game progresses.
“What did the Romans ever do for us?” - Reg
“The aquaduct? The roads? Public heatlh?”
Monty Python’s Life of Brian
End of Entry
Monday, August 07, 2006
Animal groups
Stardate 60080.7
Last Tuesday I was caught in the deluge of rain. I was debating just waiting it out in my car, but I knew someone was waiting for me to get in. I get soaked on the way in, just 15 seconds. If I had an umbrella, I would have been much drier. But storms like that don’t come here often, so I end up losing the umbrellas.
Folding laundry Sunday, I turned on the radio on the clock to NPR. The IPod plugs into it, so this is the first time I used the radio. They had a story on people who dress up as animals. I was caught by the comment that sociologists, who talk about how Americans isolate themselves and don’t gather in the neighborhood anymore, don’t look at groups like this. Moreover, they don’t look at the trend of going to the net to find groups of people with similar interests. In some ways, it’s like the demise of printed technology magazines. When I got out of school, magazines such as Byte, Dr. Dobbs, CUJ, and others were a staple. All are gone now, because more information is available on the web, and it’s easier to find. It’s funny that tracking is done on society, but the trends are often missed.
End Of Entry
Last Tuesday I was caught in the deluge of rain. I was debating just waiting it out in my car, but I knew someone was waiting for me to get in. I get soaked on the way in, just 15 seconds. If I had an umbrella, I would have been much drier. But storms like that don’t come here often, so I end up losing the umbrellas.
Folding laundry Sunday, I turned on the radio on the clock to NPR. The IPod plugs into it, so this is the first time I used the radio. They had a story on people who dress up as animals. I was caught by the comment that sociologists, who talk about how Americans isolate themselves and don’t gather in the neighborhood anymore, don’t look at groups like this. Moreover, they don’t look at the trend of going to the net to find groups of people with similar interests. In some ways, it’s like the demise of printed technology magazines. When I got out of school, magazines such as Byte, Dr. Dobbs, CUJ, and others were a staple. All are gone now, because more information is available on the web, and it’s easier to find. It’s funny that tracking is done on society, but the trends are often missed.
End Of Entry
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Mike and Carrie
Stardate 60080.3
Congratulations to Mike and Carrie on their engagement. I hope they have as good a marriage as I have had, and hope to continue.
Last week we put the van in the shop to repair the damage from when I hit the deer. I got a rental, a Mitsubishi Infiniti. Nice car, but it felt like you were getting into the cockpit of a fighter plane, as in really small. I did like the way the dashboard lit up with a soft orange.
I had a phone interview Friday. It didn’t go well. The guy asked a few odd questions, such as how would I go about programming a maze, like the ones kids have to find a path through on children’s restaurant menus. I told him I’d Google for a solution. A former manager used to ask candidates how they would know if the sun in a picture of one of the conference rooms was rising or setting. He wanted to find out how they think. He was looking for something along the lines of finding out the name of the picture, which would give you the clue. This interviewer was evidently not looking for that type of answer. He also asked about arrays, linked lists, hash tables, and binary trees. I was not prepared for such a CS-101 interrogation.
I also found out I was probably a number 2 choice for another job. The deciding factor was that I did not have enough knowledge of .NET and C#. So I had the notion to hit the books again and try to get a certification. The problem is I can’t find the C# Web Applications book. It’s huge, over a thousand pages and big as a phone book. What really irritates me is that it came with a CD. The CD had a testing program, source code, and the COMPLETE contents of the book in a PDF file. I didn’t need to be lugging the tome around.
I did load Apache Tomcat on the desktop, and have been playing with Java Server Pages from a book I got at the library. I’ve got Eclipse (a Java IDE) loaded as well, and I think I’ll get JBoss going. Java positions are far more prevalent right now, and J2EE technology does have some interesting things.
MSN has launched Windows Live Spaces. I got a number of Welcome messages. I have, or had, an MSN Spaces account although I never used it. I think sometimes of integrating it to use as my blog, but I’d have to find some way of putting in 200+ past entries, and backdating them. It would give me an automatic RSS feed. It’s something to look at.
End of Entry
Congratulations to Mike and Carrie on their engagement. I hope they have as good a marriage as I have had, and hope to continue.
Last week we put the van in the shop to repair the damage from when I hit the deer. I got a rental, a Mitsubishi Infiniti. Nice car, but it felt like you were getting into the cockpit of a fighter plane, as in really small. I did like the way the dashboard lit up with a soft orange.
I had a phone interview Friday. It didn’t go well. The guy asked a few odd questions, such as how would I go about programming a maze, like the ones kids have to find a path through on children’s restaurant menus. I told him I’d Google for a solution. A former manager used to ask candidates how they would know if the sun in a picture of one of the conference rooms was rising or setting. He wanted to find out how they think. He was looking for something along the lines of finding out the name of the picture, which would give you the clue. This interviewer was evidently not looking for that type of answer. He also asked about arrays, linked lists, hash tables, and binary trees. I was not prepared for such a CS-101 interrogation.
I also found out I was probably a number 2 choice for another job. The deciding factor was that I did not have enough knowledge of .NET and C#. So I had the notion to hit the books again and try to get a certification. The problem is I can’t find the C# Web Applications book. It’s huge, over a thousand pages and big as a phone book. What really irritates me is that it came with a CD. The CD had a testing program, source code, and the COMPLETE contents of the book in a PDF file. I didn’t need to be lugging the tome around.
I did load Apache Tomcat on the desktop, and have been playing with Java Server Pages from a book I got at the library. I’ve got Eclipse (a Java IDE) loaded as well, and I think I’ll get JBoss going. Java positions are far more prevalent right now, and J2EE technology does have some interesting things.
MSN has launched Windows Live Spaces. I got a number of Welcome messages. I have, or had, an MSN Spaces account although I never used it. I think sometimes of integrating it to use as my blog, but I’d have to find some way of putting in 200+ past entries, and backdating them. It would give me an automatic RSS feed. It’s something to look at.
End of Entry
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