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This Week's Del.icio.us bookmarksPosted on : Saturday May 10 2008 | category : linkdump
Shared bookmarks for del.icio.us user Scott Buffington.
- Request a Free OpenSolaris 2008.05 CD:
I requested my copy. Last time I tried this I was not impressed, but that was over a year ago and this is the official release.
tagged as: development, freeware, opensource, opensolaris, os, software, unix - macvim - Google Code:
VIm specifically built for the Mac.
tagged as: vim, mac, osx, editor, software, free, freeware, vi
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Must Have Mac Software II
Posted on : Wednesday May 07 2008 | category : technology
Table of Contents
This is a NEW list of software for Mac OS X that I consider "must-have". The software on this list is software that I use frequently, but the list should be considered dynamic in nature, it may change at anytime. This list is additional software that does not come with the operating system and is updated for Leopard. I had this update sitting around for a while and rather than edit the original post which was geared toward Tiger, I thought I would put up a new post.
Internet and communications
Adium X is the best multi-protocol instant messenger client, and supports the major transports, such as AIM, ICQ, MSN, Jabber, Yahoo, and more. The interface is very nice and the software is free.,
I have used Firefox, well since it was called something else. Firefox has a handful of extensions that keep me using the browser, it is a good web browser but minus the specific extensions I could happily use Safari as well. As matter of fact, I mostly use Safari.
Fugu is an open-source FTP and SFTP (SSH Secure File Transfer) client and browser. Fugu has not been updated in a while, but it does everything I need and is free to boot. Transmit is wonderful software, but paying for such an application with Fugu available just seems silly to me.
Multimedia and Graphics
VLC media player is a highly portable multimedia player for various audio and video formats (MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, DivX, mp3, ogg, ...) as well as DVDs, VCDs, and various streaming protocols. I used it on OS X and Linux and it even streamed Alex's ogg vorbis stream on the Mac when all others failed.
Audacity is a free, open source software for recording and editing sounds in Mac OS X, Linux and other operating systems. I use this application to record my side of the podcasts, which I then export to FLAC format. FLAC stands for Free Lossless Audio Codec, an audio format similar to MP3, but lossless, meaning that audio is compressed in FLAC without any loss in quality.
The Flickr Uploadr provided free from Flickr is all I need to get my photos to Flickr. I drag and drop from iPhoto to the Flickr Uploadr where I can apply tags, descriptions and even create sets or add photos to existing sets. Recent releases have improved functionality, so if you have not checked it out in a while you might want to.
GIMP is an acronym for GNU Image Manipulation Program. It is a freely distributed program for such tasks as photo retouching, image composition and image authoring. I am in no way a graphic artist, GIMP serves this amateurs needs.
Productivity
NeoOffice is a Mac-only port of OpenOffice.Org. It is a free and excellent office suite that meets all my office suite needs, and enables you to work with Microsoft generated office documents too. If you are using OpenOffice on the Mac, NeoOffice is what you should be using.
Buffsched is a command line scheduling application I wrote in shell script and is currently compatiable with Mac OS X, Linux, AIX, Solaris and HP-UX. A simple text file holds all your scheduled appointments and ignores any entries that are not in the BuffSched format. This is so you can keep a todo list, an address book and any other information you deem useful in the text file. I carry mine on a thumb drive so I can access and change my schedule at work and at home. I mostly use BuffSched on my servers as a replacement for Message of the Day and include the program in users default profile. I can easily keep users posted of scheduled maintenance with BuffSched.
MacVim is a port of the text editor Vim to Mac OS X that is meant to look better and integrate more seamlessly with the Mac than the existing Carbon port. After trying other Mac Text editors, I am back to Vim. The bottom line is that I can install Vim on all the other operating systems I use and it works the same. Being an old UNIX jockey I am familiar with vi on the command line. There can be no argument, Vim is the best!
SvnX is an open source GUI for most features of the svn client binary. SvnX allows you to browse your working copies, spot changes and operate on them. SvnX can also browse logs and revisions of your repositories. I have been working with a Subversion server hosted on AIX and svnX has worked wonderfully.
System Tools
TrueCrypt is free open-source disk encryption software for Windows, Mac OS X and Linux. I use TrueCrypt to encrypt my thumbdrives and with TrueCrypt I can access the drives from my employers Windows machine or from any of my Linux or Mac computers. I needed a solution that I could use with all the major desktop operating systems, TrueCrypt is that solution. TrueCrypt is an awesome encryption solution even if you do not use a Mac.
I purchased VMware Fusion during the beta phase. VMware Fusion runs the only Windows installation found in my home and is useful for trying different distributions of Linux. Vmware Fusion has been running Windows Vista Ultimate edition on my Macbook just fine. Though I confess that I really have not had a reason to boot my virtual Windows guest in months.
2 comments
This Week's Del.icio.us bookmarks
Posted on : Saturday May 03 2008 | category : linkdump
Shared bookmarks for del.icio.us user Scott Buffington.
- Hivelogic - Regarding Backups:
Nice backup solution ideas. The Drobo is something I linked to when it first became available. Enticing but the intial price still seems a little steep.
tagged as: backups, mac, osx, storage - Forget Brain Age - Software Proven to Make You Smarter Developed:
Simple software, although not available yet I have an idea for creating my own simple alternative. I still see a benefit to the Brain Age games.
tagged as: education, science, training - Ultimate Homebrewing Setup:
Computer controlled beer brewing rig. You have got to see this. Scroll down and watch the videos.
tagged as: beer, brewing, homebrew, homebrewing, video
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This Week's Del.icio.us bookmarks
Posted on : Saturday April 26 2008 | category : linkdump
Shared bookmarks for del.icio.us user Scott Buffington.
- Ubuntu Server Edition JeOS | Ubuntu:
Optimized for virtualization.
tagged as: linux, ubuntu, virtualization, vmware
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Hot Corner
Posted on : Monday April 21 2008 | category : sports
This past weekend the local baseball leagues officially kicked off. Beginning Friday night Jake played his first official tee-ball game. Saturday they had pictures, opening ceremonies which included three Harrisburg Senator baseball players and a game. Although they do not officially keep score, the kids are pretty aware that they are getting outs. The team looks good, several of the kids, Jake included can field and throw to first base. During his games they often get three outs before the other teams full order bats. Every kid does get to bat each inning and the games are only 4 innings. Thankfully there is no pitching, all the hitting is off the tee, this is a VERY good thing. All the kids have improved at fielding and hitting from where they started and so far his team has not hit into three outs in any inning.
I cannot say enough how much I like the way the games are played. At this age most of these kids would not hit a thrown pitch and it would only promote bad habits. All of them have improved a lot and with the game moving at a swift pace their attention is maintained. I am also thrilled that Jake enjoys the game of baseball and he is very serious about his game. When he is running the bases some of the spectators have commented on his game face. Shortstop is probably his favorite position, most of the kids do not pull the ball so a lot of hits go up the middle. He did get to play the hot corner in his first game, they play a different position each inning. Which is great because they learn how to play each of the positions and how to cover the bases. There are no psycho parents and his coaches are fantastic, all and all a great experience for his first exposure to organized sports.
All this of course takes me back to my childhood and how excited I was to just play neighborhood wiffle ball and the like when the weather warmed up. We used to play this modified baseball game with taped up wiffle ball bats and tennis balls at one of the playgrounds. At this particular park we had to use tennis balls because we routinely hit homes on the other side of the street. We called the game homerun and thankfully the home we hit most was that of one of the guys who played with us. The park was lined with massive trees that knocked down most of the balls, the challenge was catching balls while avoiding playground equipment and trees. There was some real circus catches made and I perfected my modified knuckle ball playing that game. Another advantage of tennis balls is that you could play with less than a full roster on each team, you were allowed to hit base runners with the ball to get them out. When I was a kid everyone had some modified game based on baseball with homefield rules. Jake and I have been fine tuning a game like that here at Buffington grounds, our season will start when his tee ball league ends. It is Spring folks, PLAY BALL!
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This Week's Del.icio.us bookmarks
Posted on : Saturday April 19 2008 | category : linkdump
Shared bookmarks for del.icio.us user Scott Buffington.
- Mac Mini Media Centre / journal / hicksdesign:
This is something I have been considering for a while. Definitely a project I want to follow.
tagged as: apple, mac, osx, entertainment, media - 2008 the year of Linux on the Desktop:
A switch to Linux because he failed to backup his data on a Mac and now he is switching his family rather than teaching them to backup. I like Linux, I use it too but I do not get this guy's arguments. Read the comments.
tagged as: desktop, mac, linux, backups, moron - Weewar.com | online multiplayer strategy game:
Hex based Advance Wars knockoff. I enjoy Advance Wars on the DS, I have not tried this year but likely will give it a try. Looks cool.
tagged as: games, fun, strategy, online - Coffee Drinks Illustrated | Lokesh Dhakar:
Easy visual representation of the differences of various coffee drinks. I prefer the old standby, a cup of black coffee mostly. But occasionally I indulge in these "dessert" drinks. The straight expresso is for the hardcore coffee person though.
tagged as: coffee, reference, drinks - Spygate - Needs Final Chapter:
The NFL and the Patriots are hoping it just goes away. It is up to the fans and the media to make sure we get a final HONEST ending.
tagged as: NFL, cheating, Patriots - How to ... pour yourself a beer the optimal way:
(Via Phil) Fantastic article! I used to keep frosty mugs, pour down the side to prevent head. I have since learned, clean room temp glass and center pour. Enjoy your beers flavour.
tagged as: beer
2 comments
Media Consumption Update, Social Networks and Blogs
Posted on : Thursday April 17 2008 | category : ramble
Updating my search for the best way to consume the news and standard media available to me, over the past week I reviewed all my RSS feed subscriptions (via Google Reader) and I eliminated the Del.icio.us feeds I was subscribed to, except for my network of friends. For Tech news I decided to just use Slashdot, I subscribed to the RSS feed for my old hometown newspaper, I review Google News at least once a day and of course I remained subscribed to all the feeds of the personal blogs I track. Many of you out there do a nice job of filling in the news crevices I might somehow miss. I also now receive a morning newspaper which I take to work and look through during down time. In a few minutes you can literally scan the daily paper way faster than any news website, of course those that have continued doing the newspaper thing likely know this. Instead of relying on the Internet solely I have cut down on the amount of Internet media I am consuming, limiting it to what I consider quality. I do listen to several podcasts, some of which also keep me updated on technology, I will likely publish a full listing of blog and podcast subscriptions in the near future. The changes I made have drastically helped with staying informed and at the same time made me less attached to my RSS reader.
This brings me to another item I am curious to hear feedback on. Some of you I know use MySpace, Facebook and Twitter. I am signed up to all these services, I never use MySpace and I would recommend Facebook over MySpace to someone looking to use a service like this. I think Facebook looks more professional and seems slightly more interesting. That being said, I am mostly on these services for networking purposes I rarely sign into any of them. I commonly hear the self-proclaimed A-list bloggers talk about these services and how great they are. All of these folks like myself have a personal web space and are easily found. So, what are they possibly using these services for if not just doing some sort of blogging at another site further boosting their egos. I have not at all heard of a good use for Twitter yet. the A-list bloggers often say they use the services for different things in their world. What a bunch of baloney, they never say what that purpose is "in their world" and if you read their Twitter it is just micro-blogging that their plane just landed, or a link. I am open minded, all I am asking for is a legit and honest answer to the question of what possible different use do these websites have over a personal website(blog)?
Unlike most of these folks, I have real deadlines. I work a real Information Technology job, one where I need to get things done, not just talk about how many people follow my Twitter feed. If your profession is to inform me about technology and good uses for such, then please enlighten me, do not act as if you live in some mysterious world where you need to blog on five different sites because one location is not enough. That my friends defeats the purpose of technology, it does not embrace the best method. I am all ears and if the answer is that they do not provide anything different, then say so and I can accept you enjoy having imaginary Internet friends. This post likely could have been two different posts, but in a sense it all involves the use of my time, media and consumption of said media.
5 comments
This Week's Del.icio.us bookmarks
Posted on : Saturday April 12 2008 | category : linkdump
Shared bookmarks for del.icio.us user Scott Buffington.
- Generation MySpace Is Getting Fed Up:
How revolutionary, a guy left a social network to start his own website. Someone pointed out a while back that MySpace is the current Geocities. It sucks!
tagged as: socialnetworks, sucks - Original Schlitz to be bottled up once more:
(Via Phil) Perhaps when I lose my next cheap beer guarantee I will get some original Schlitz.
tagged as: beer, nostalgia - Sheppard-Myers Stadium: Crowd seeks answers:
I am an alumni and I vote for renovating Sheppard-Myers, that place has football ghosts. The football atmosphere in the town makes it special. Moving football out of town would be sad.
tagged as: football, Hanover, Sheppard-Myers - Hanover barber shop to close:
My old barbershop when I was a teenager. I used to get my flat tops at Huff's. I remember my friend Kurt going there also. Check out the audio and slideshow for a trip in time.
tagged as: barber, Hanover, Huff, barbershop - Ophcrack Live CD:
Small Linux Live CD I used to find Admin account on in-laws laptop that they had been locked out of. Fantastic! Password was cracked within seconds of bootup.
tagged as: opensource, windows, hacks, geek, sysadmin, tools, passwords
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Media Overload and Print Media Revisited
Posted on : Monday April 07 2008 | category : words
I noticed for quite some time that it is not uncommon for me to completely miss major news, sometimes for several days. Perhaps I am going about my every day practices in the wrong way, most certainly I am. Sure I am busy, but there are people who are much busier than I and certainly they are more informed on current events. While I enjoy technology and consider myself to be very well informed on current technology, when it comes to current events, local and worldwide I am at times very uninformed. I have come to the conclusion that XML feeds are not the answer alone to keeping me informed. How can this be?
The problem with my feed subscriptions is that I choose them, and I subscribe to more than I can ingest in any one day. Unlike some of the so called "professional" bloggers I have a family and a life and a real job. My feeds many times show me the same news 15 times over and I am cut off from other news that while I would be interested I cannot subscribe to news on every subject. I enjoy staying connected to the technology world, but in my current situation I am cut off from the rest of the world. I have to imagine others find themselves in this same situation.
What does this have to do with print media? Well, when I read the newspaper everyday and I did this in the 1980's and through much of the 1990's I was exposed to articles that if given the choice I might have left out of the newspaper. I consumed a variety of news, because it was there for me to at least glance at as I turned the pages. Using the Internet it is difficult to consume the same variety as quickly as I could with a newspaper. Does that make sense? Think about it, when you glance at a typical newspaper you commonly take in a wide variety of news and a lot at once. I do not feel I do that same thing quickly perusing Google news or any news website. I also do not watch the news on TV anymore, which I do not intend to change. I spend the majority of my day in-front of a computer screen, whatever time I eliminate from the TV I consider to be good. I still think I watch too much TV.
What about the readers, how do you keep from getting media overload and do you subscribe to print media, aka newspapers or magazines? I am going to eliminate some of my feed subscriptions and adding a newspaper subscription to my home. Do not take this wrong, I love feeds! I really do, but my method for consuming news is currently in a box that I built all wrong. Sure I will mostly still consume more technology news than other news, but perhaps I will try to stop consuming the same technology news many times over. Email and feed subscriptions are beginning to kill my free time. I would really love to hear what methods others use to stay informed without information overload.
8 comments
This Week's Del.icio.us bookmarks
Posted on : Saturday April 05 2008 | category : linkdump
Shared bookmarks for del.icio.us user Scott Buffington.
- Netflix thief gets caught:
Guy sets up video camera and nails Netflix thief.
tagged as: video, fat, kid, stealing - Mail a brick to junk mailers using paid postage - Creative tips with dealing with spammers and bulk mailers:
I am going to mail some of my heavy junk to mass mailers.
tagged as: junk, mail, humor, fun - Neal Stephenson's next release:
I have enjoyed some of Neal Stephenson's works.
tagged as: stephenson, books
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