Hosting options

I find that I am growing weary of maintaining my own servers at home, but I’m still way too independent to turn control of my domains over to a “web hosting” service. So, I am starting to look at some of the “virtual server” hosting options. These are services that you pay something like $20-40 a month and you get a “virtual” server (it runs linux, so you can run mysql, mud/mush, procmail, spamassassin, apache, php, gallery, and all the fun stuff you would run at home without having a space-heater in your spare room 24x7. It’s not a “real” server in the sense of dedicated hardware, it’s really a virtual machine running on a larger, beefier machine and capped to a small slice of cpu and memory. ...

June 10, 2006 · 2 min · gconnor

Items looking for a home

We need to find homes for some items. Please let me know if you’re interested in any of these. (email addr on my profile works best). Queen size futon bed frame: This is a bed frame designed for a queen-sized futon (no mattress included, just the frame). It does not fold up into a couch; it is a full-time bed with headboard and footboard. Light maple in color. Might work with a normal mattress but results may be a little weird… you could try it with mattress and box spring but it would be pretty tall. Bolts are missing so you will need to go to the hardware store to get some parts. Stereo components: Amplifier/tuner, subwoofer, speakers. These are probably 6-8 years old but should work fine. They support 5+1 surround. There is an “optical digital” input but it might be for an old standard or might not work at all, but if your tv/dvd/dvr has 6 rca sound outputs it should work fine. In good condition at last use but has been sitting in the garage for over a year. Has been claimed. Desk: Standard computer desk including hutch. Made of oak, not pressboard. In good condition except for where the front molding strip has started to come off, so we put in two large wood screws on each side. TV stand: Looks like it’s made of pressboard or MDF, laminated with a faux-maple finish. In good condition. Exercise bike: Has given good service to us, and to the previous owner, but frankly we didn’t use it as much as we should. It is a pretty standard exercise bike, variable resistance, tracks time/distance/calories and takes your pulse, electronic features are powered by pedaling. (We are looking to get an elliptical machine instead). 400 cd player/jukebox: Loads up to 400 CDs, plays them by programming a track list, or you can arrange them into groups and choose shuffle on the groups. In good condition at last use but has been sitting in the garage for over a year. (Note: I’m ready to part with this item but my weety may not be, so she will have the final say in whether it stays or goes.) Has been claimed. The rules: I would like to give these items away to a friend. I will take requests on a first-come first-served basis from among my friends list, and if nobody on my friends list wants it, I’ll consider any requests from others (friends of friends, etc). You must be willing to come take the items away from my house (in the 95132 area). ...

June 4, 2006 · 3 min · gconnor

Sophie, Killer of Socks

This is Sophie, Killer of Socks. She has just bravely killed not one, not two, but four pairs of socks. Not only did she kill them, but she dragged them out of the basket, from the nightstand to the bed, down to the floor, then down the hall to the top of the stairs, where she did the low “mroouw?” that says “I’ve killed something, come and see!!!1” ...

June 1, 2006 · 2 min · gconnor

Exercise log for June

Exercise log for June Thu 6/1: Fri 6/2: Sat 6/3: Sun 6/4: Mon 6/5: Tue 6/6: Wed 6/7: Thu 6/8: Fri 6/9: Sat 6/10: Sun 6/11: Mon 6/12: Tue 6/13: Wed 6/14: Thu 6/15: Fri 6/16: Sat 6/17: Sun 6/18: Mon 6/19: exercise bike 30 min. doctor visit. wt 282 (yow) Tue 6/20: exercise bike 30 min. Wed 6/21: exercise bike 30 min. wt. 278.4 Thu 6/22: none Fri 6/23: exercise bike 30 min. Sat 6/24: exercise bike 30 min. Sun 6/25: exercise bike 30 min Mon 6/26: none Tue 6/27: none Wed 6/28: exercise bike 30 min, evening wt 280.4 Thu 6/29: morning wt. 278.6 Fri 6/30: none

June 1, 2006 · 1 min · gconnor

Empathy 101

I was talking with a friend recently about empathy. I think a lot of people are “naturally” empathic, but I also think it’s a learned response, meaning that it’s a skill one can improve with thought and practice. Before talking about practice, let me share my theory of how empathy works. Sometimes, clues can be obvious and you can pick up how someone else feels by watching body language, tone of voice, facial expression, etc. But, other times you may not consciously be aware of the clues, and your mind may pick up on them subconsciously anyway. In that case, you may not be aware of *how* the feelings are being “broadcast” at you or around you, but usually you can pick up on them anyway.

May 28, 2006 · 5 min · gconnor

Kitchen saga update, and call for advice

Around the first of the year, we had some work done in the kitchen. Now, I have to get a permit from the city to authorize that work. So far the efforts to get a permit on my own have been daunting. I have been to the city three times and been told three different things. First it was that I needed more details about the joists above and below. Next it was that I need just a little more detail on the plans, but it should be OK. Finally, the third day, the result was confusing, but the best I could understand was that the most qualified people available at the city building dept at the time *could not tell* if what I was trying to do was legal per the code or not, and that I would need to retain an engineer to at least review the plans and stamp them, if not rewrite them. At first the story was that I would really only need an engineer if I’m asking for an exception to the codes or an alternate material or plan… but now it seems that the city by itself can’t actually tell what’s legal/code and what’s not… or even what’s structurally OK or what’s not, and thus I have to seek a third party. (Possibly if it was a detached house they would have let me go ahead, but I think they are being a bit more paranoid since it is an attached townhouse.) ...

May 25, 2006 · 6 min · gconnor

Liberty vs. Safety

I believe that one of the things that makes the USA great is the Bill of Rights. More to the point, I think the Bill of Rights is one of a very few things that makes the United States *worth* protecting. Freedom from unreasonable search (4th amendment) is one of those rights which I consider important. I believe that finding and catching terrorists is important, but not as important as preserving the fundamental character of our nation. I agree with Ben Franklin: They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ...

May 13, 2006 · 1 min · gconnor

Cool link: “Evolution of Dance” Yes, it’s a guy dancing for 6 minutes, and it’s very cool :)

May 11, 2006 · 1 min · gconnor

Exercise log for May

Exercise log for May Mon 5/1: none Tue 5/2: none Wed 5/3: none Thu 5/4: none Fri 5/5: none Sat 5/6: Exercise bike, 40 min Sun 5/7: Exercise bike, 20 min Mon 5/8: Tue 5/9: Wed 5/10: Thu 5/11: Fri 5/12: Sat 5/13: Sun 5/14: Mon 5/15: Tue 5/16: Wed 5/17: Thu 5/18: Fri 5/19: Sat 5/20: Sun 5/21: Mon 5/22: Tue 5/23: Wed 5/24: Thu 5/25: Fri 5/26: Sat 5/27: Sun 5/28: Mon 5/29: Tue 5/30: Wed 5/31:

May 1, 2006 · 1 min · gconnor

Does "evil" really exist

As I posted recently, bradhicks has some wonderful, thought-provoking material that makes us think about why we have political disagreements, and why reasonable people can sincerely come to wildly different conclusions and beliefs. I have a fundamental belief that people are basically good and that people don’t do harm to others on purpose. I’m often proved wrong, but not often enough to make me distrust random strangers that come into my life. ...

April 30, 2006 · 2 min · gconnor