Using rsync with an Amazon EC2 Fedora 8 image
We've recently started investigating Amazon EC2 for some of our computing needs. So far our progress has been excellent. I've been focusing on using the Amazon-supplied Fedora 8 (F8) images, in...
View Article50 Foot HDMI Cables - Do they work?
The Quick Answer A 50 foot cable is fine, but not every output device can work correctly with such a long HDMI cable. The devices that work correctly output their content over the long cable and the TV...
View ArticleVerizon FiOS disables SMTP to port 25
Today Verizon reconfigured residential FiOS in the Washington DC area to block TCP port 25 to non-Verizon servers. They claim this is for network security reasons, and I understand that this change...
View ArticleAdobe Flash Update Automatically Installs McAfee Security Scan Plus
For some reason, Adobe decided to permit McAfee to piggyback McAfee Security Scan Plus onto the most recent Flash update. Unless the user clears a checkbox during the Flash update, McAfee Security Scan...
View ArticleHow To Produce Blu Ray Discs On A Standard DVD +R Drive
I use the Adobe Creative Suite 4 Production Premium Edition software products to produce videos. My video camera is a Canon Vixia HFS100 and I incorporate various digital media from other vendors into...
View ArticleArduino rocks!
Arduino is an open source hardware and software platform, built around the Atmel AVR family of microcontrollers. These are very tiny computers by today's standards. They're only 8 bits wide, instead of...
View ArticlePython: How to tell if a format string references a given variable
Python 2.6 and greater support str.format(), also known as PEP-3101 Advanced String Formatting. A friend asked me how, given a string to be formatted, he could tell if a variable was refernced by that...
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Skype Video Conferencing Problems? Try Google Chat's Video and Voice Plug-in
Google Chat's voice and video plug-in does not have the slow video, audio dropout, and dropped call problems I have been recently experiencing with Skype. If you're encountering similar video...
View ArticleUsing KeePass to store passwords
I have at least 100 accounts in my personal and professional life. It's gotten to the point where I just can't remember them all and their associated passwords and other account information. And using...
View ArticleChunlai Yang, Ph.D., Arrested by the FBI
From the FBI Press Release: "They discovered that thousands of files had been downloaded to his computer, and some were then copied to removable storage devices, such as thumb drives." The CME Group...
View Articlexen: Running a Fedora 14 DomU under a Fedora 16 Dom0
Starting with Fedora 16, you can again use Fedora as a Dom0 environment for running virtual machines under xen.Install xenIt's fairly simple to get Fedora 16 set up as the Dom0. Just install Fedora 16...
View ArticleBacking up Windows computers with dirvish
dirvishFor many years we have used dirvish to back up our Linux servers in an efficient way. dirvish presents what appear to be full snapshot backups, but they are incremental in both time to create...
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Be Here Now - Jail Those Distracting Smart Phones
Remember when people you were casually talking with made eye contact, instead of always looking away at their cell phones? Did you ever feel like taking the offending person's cell phone away for a few...
View ArticleDIY Weather Stations
My client and I recently finished the installation of a professional weather station at his residence in East Quogue, New York. I'll write more about the installation later; for now you can access the...
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Eben Upton on the Raspberry Pi
The people at MakerBar in Hoboken, New Jersey have quite an interesting venue for making projects either alone or with others. There's a classroom and a lab for learning about new technologies, such as...
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