Apple has released and update for iWeb. iWeb 2.0.3 has the wordy description of: This update addresses compatibility with Mac OS X. It’s available through Apple software update and as a direct download. No reboot was required when I installed the update. Since there’s not much else to say about this update I’ll throw in a little rant. Apple released iWork updates yesterday and an iWeb update today. There’s no security implications mentioned. Couldn’t they have released them at the same time so I’d only be interrupted once? It’s not [...] Read the rest »
Apple Updates iWork ’08
Apple released updates for all three iWork apps yesterday. The updates are available through Apple’s software update or as direct downloads. Apple was typically circumspect in their description of the updates. Numbers 1.0.2 and Pages 3.0.2 are both described as: This update addresses compatibility with Mac OS X. Keynote 4.0.2 gets the relatively long description of: This update primarily addresses performance issues while playing or exporting presentations. I rarely use any iWork app but I didn’t have any problem installing the updates or opening a document in each app after [...] Read the rest »
Windows Vista SP1 RC Refresh
Microsoft released a “refresh” to the Windows Vista SP1 Release Candidate. I’ve been running the original release candidate in a VMware virtual machine on my MacBook. They released the update back on January 11th but I didn’t get around to starting the upgrade for another week. The update isn’t automatic, even with the original RC installed. The update was problem free, despite requiring several hours. The original release candidate had to be uninstalled prior to the upgrade. This was done by going through Control Panel in the Windows Update/View Installed [...] Read the rest »
Bluehost: Upgrading to PHP 5
Since development of PHP 4 ended in 2007 it’s time to finally move on to PHP 5. This website is hosted by Bluehost and they provide the PHP installation, so there’s nothing for me to actually install. Bluehost provided the ability to determine which version of PHP I want to use on my site through a Cpanel setting. All sites running under the same Cpanel account have to use the same PHP version. To pick the PHP version on Bluehost click the PHP Config icon in the Software/Services section of [...] Read the rest »
The OS Quest Trail Log #22: Abridged Edition
This week’s Quest included progress in the Ubuntu Server series with articles on setting up iptables and getting comfortable with Ubuntu. So now I’m at the point where I can start installing the server software. MySQL will be first up. I also started down the Windows Home Server path and I’ve been looking at some add-ins to move beyond the simple file sharing and PC backups. I’m starting a new day job next week so this week will be busy transitioning the old stuff and next week will be getting [...] Read the rest »
Remote Desktop Connection
While Microsoft may prefer that all Windows Home Server (WHS) administration occur through the Windows Home Server Console, there may be times where you want to be on the actual server console, as if you connected a monitor and keyboard to the server. You can use Microsoft Remote Desktop in order to do this. Microsoft Remote Desktop is already installed with Windows Vista. To run it just go to the Start -> Search box and start typing Remote Desktop. It’s also included with Windows XP where it’s in the Accessories [...] Read the rest »
Ubuntu Server Project #5: Getting Comfortable With Ubuntu
This is a bit different than the other posts as I won’t actually be installing any major software. Instead I’ll be customizing Ubuntu to make it easier for me to use and finding programs to monitor my server. System Information First I’ll want some commands that tell me about the system. Since there’s only 256MB of memory allocated to this Ubuntu Server virtual machine I’ll want to keep tabs on memory usage. I can do this with the free command and use -m to have the info displayed as easy [...] Read the rest »
Using the Airport Extreme for USB Printing
When I rearranged my office recently my printer ended up about 8 feet from my computer and the cable was only 6 feet. USB cables were too expensive locally, close to thirty bucks for one long enough. So I ended up ordering a Belkin 16′ USB Cable for less than $8. Ok, they got me to order a book from my wish list to get above $25 for the free shipping. But that was a 16 foot cable and a book I’d eventually order for less than a what a [...] Read the rest »
Ubuntu Server Project #4: Iptables Firewall
Continuing along the security theme set by the previous article I’ll configure some simple iptables firewall rules for my Ubuntu Server virtual machine. Iptables can be pretty complicated and I won’t attempt to go into great detail. Since this is a virtual machine only accessible from within my home network I have the luxury of being able to play without having to actually be concerned with security. So iptables will be set up for the experience and for future testing. Iptables is installed with every Ubuntu installation so there’s nothing [...] Read the rest »
iTunes Smart Playlists
When I bought my first iPod I was still on Windows and the software delivered with the Windows iPods (yup, Windows specific iPods back then) was a version of MusicMatch. The software was OK, but just OK. It was slow and a pain to build playlists. One of the reasons I bought the hard disk iPod over other flash MP3 players was so I could have all my music with me and not have to decide what I wanted to listed to while sitting at the computer. MusicMatch did that [...] Read the rest »
