This is funny, but also speaks to whether Google is respectful of our personal
privacy.
It seems that an Aussie gent lost his bloke. To commemorate his mate's death,
the 36-year-old Bill got snockered and passed out in front of his house, just
in time for a camera-laden Google van to drive by. The photos were posted
on the 'Net, much to Bill's chagrin.
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Posted by Doug Barney on August 13, 20080 comments
The opening ceremonies of the 2008 Summer Olympics were driven by over a hundred
media servers...one of which apparently failed. Thanks to some good eyesight,
IT savvy and the miracle of digital video recorders, we now have a
recording
of a Blue Screen of Death
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Posted by Doug Barney on August 12, 20080 comments
If the numbers from Janco Associates are real -- and I have my doubts -- Internet
Explorer's market share has
dropped
to 58 percent
, with Firefox picking up 19 percent.
That leaves 23 percent for "other" browsers. Others like what? Safari
is on 4 to 5 percent of machines, but most Mac people I know (like my two sons
Nick and David) use Firefox.
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Posted by Doug Barney on August 12, 20080 comments
Readers chime in on the
RTM
of SQL Server 2008
...and why, exactly, it's taking so long to get to customers:
It might be taking so long because it relies on VS 2008 SP1.
-Daniel
You can download from MSDN five different versions of SQL 2008 RTM which
I think are pre-pidded to be non-eval/dev type installations (or you can choose
the eval install which expires after 180 days, I think). This download typically
attract developers first wanting to test things out. However, if you try to
install this on a box that already has Visual Studio 2008 installed you can
run into some problems until they release Visual Studio 2008 SP1 (the current
beta SP1 doesn't seem to help avoid the problem that prevents installation).
In my book, this is not ready for primetime, since you have to wait several
days to get a patch. I would have wanted MS to delay the SQL 2008 release
until VS 2008 SP1 is ready to help me avoid all the installation issues it
presents. Hopefully, SQL 2008 + VS 2008 SP1 patch in a few days will help
restore my confidence.
-Robert
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Posted by Doug Barney on August 12, 20080 comments
Visual Studio 2008 has been out for less than a year (I'm good enough at math
to at least know that one), but it's already getting its first refresh. A
new
service pack
for Visual Studio and .NET Framework 3.5 is done and is now
in the hands of those that actually manufacture this stuff.
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Posted by Doug Barney on August 12, 20080 comments
Last week, after word came out that IBM was
working
to build Linux-only PCs
, Doug asked readers whether they'd find room for
these things in their own shops. Here are some of your responses:
You asked, why would you use Linux in your shop? Cost. It has crossed
my mind for the purpose of thin-clients doing basically nothing but booting
into Linux and loading RDC software to connect to a Windows Terminal Server.
No need to pay for big, beefy machines and Windows client licenses if the
employee is mostly remote, but needs a workstation when they come to the office,
and would use their remote desktop anyway because that is where all their
files are and it is configured to their liking.
-Timothy
If the environment I am in changes, yes. Vista is already banned from
the network. We run Solaris, Linux, 2000, XP and 2003 server with some 2000
servers still around, and at least one Mac OS X. A Linux desktop (if we can
buy it from Dell as it is a state requirement all hardware must be bought
from Dell) yes, but no Notes. It would need to conform to the Oracle, Outlook,
Office standard. There were several Red Hat Linux desktops in use fairly recently.
I need to run a program that is only written for Windows, but I can connect
to another machine or virtualize it to get around that. When I need to connect
from home, I use OS X and VPN in with a remote client.
-Stewart
Not today. And not from IBM. I was an IT professional before the IBM
PC was released. I know the stories. IBM would love not to have to sell Windows
to its loyal customers who want personal workstations for their non-technical
workforce, but that will not happen until someone invests some serious money
to position Linux for the non-technical desktop. Make Linux truly plug-n-play
(as Windows is on most any OEM system) and IBM might stand a chance, but the
costs far exceed the return IBM is ever going to get to provide its customers
with commodity desktops. Unlike most Linux vendors, IBM has the resources
to do this but they just don't have the stomach for it.
Could I be wrong? Sure, I could! Would I switch to Linux? Sure, if I
was convinced that it would meet my needs better than Windows -- but that
selling job is up to IBM and its partners. They talk a good story but I doubt
they will come through.
-Marc
There are too many wild Linux horses in the race to pick one of the winners.
The only common Linux direction is "anything but Microsoft or Sun."
Anarchy may work to bring down the "ruling class," but it doesn't
work when you need to assemble a system to bring order to the Linux chaos.
It will take an IBM or HP or someone else to bring the Linux chaos to an end
and give it a directon and a future. I fear the disarray that stalled Unix
is awaiting Linux.
You may have the kid down the street mow your lawn rather than a landscaping
company to save a few bucks, but when you make a business investment, you
invest based on a clearly defined investment strategy with established history,
focused strategy direction and an ultimate goal. If you want to gamble, there
is always horse racing or today's Linux.
-Dan
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Posted by Doug Barney on August 11, 20080 comments
After tomorrow, your Microsoft software is going to look like the tires on
the Three Stooges' car -- full of patches!
Microsoft is releasing a full
dozen patches tomorrow, covering everything from Office to Access and nearly
all current versions of Windows (for some reason, Windows Me and DOS 6.0 don't
get any fixes).
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Posted by Doug Barney on August 11, 20080 comments
Microsoft has been making some decent efforts in the area of green computing.
A nearly free hypervisor is one great move.
Now Microsoft is touting the benefits of System
Center Configuration Manager, which is Energy Star-compliant by virtue of
its ability to configure hardware to hibernate, sleep and shut down when not
in use.
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Posted by Doug Barney on August 11, 20080 comments
Microsoft may come clean on its security flaws each and every month, but for
Google it seems to take an outsider to point out weaknesses.
That's just what happened at the recent Black Hat conference, where security
maven Tom Stracener from Cenzic Inc. showed
how Google Gadgets can be hacked to steal passwords and personal information,
and perhaps ultimately pilfer transaction data.
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Posted by Doug Barney on August 11, 20080 comments
The second Tuesday of every month, Microsoft releases and publicizes a series
of patches. It also gives a basic severity level, such as low to critical. Starting
in October, Microsoft will
give
far more information
about the actual threat these vulnerabilities pose,
helping IT figure out which patches have to be done pronto and which can wait
a bit.
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Posted by Doug Barney on August 07, 20080 comments
Are you an experienced server manager who cares about usability, have two hours
to spare for a "study session" and, lastly, can make it up to Redmond
to meet with Microsoft? If so, Microsoft wants you to
help
test out a new product
.
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Posted by Doug Barney on August 07, 20080 comments
I'm not exactly sure how Microsoft ships products. This week, Microsoft announced
that SQL Server 2008 is
released
to manufacturing
. This is such an exciting event that it comes with its
own acronym, RTM. That's TWU, or Totally Weird and Unnecessary.
So it's Aug. 7, 2008, and SQL Server code has been sent to the manufacturers,
who'll get it in your hands by the middle of next month, more than a month later.
What exactly is the manufacturer doing? It could be making boxes and burning
CDs, but that's SOS (So Old-School). But these days, it's all about the download.
So what's taking so long? Maybe you can tell me at [email protected].
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Posted by Doug Barney on August 07, 20080 comments