Diary of a Network Geek

Soaking up the rays!

Hey, two great tastes that taste great together!
My regular readers will know that I love WiFi, even if security can be an issue, but they may not know how much I love solar power. Now, there’s a company in Florida that’s combining WiFi access points with solar power. Granted, it’s to overcome some limitations in their copper cable network, but, still, I think it’s a totally cool idea.

Oh, where was this when I needed it!?

Okay, it doesn’t do all the work for you, but the WordPress Plugin Generator pumps out the basic framework of a WordPress plugin in short order. It sure would have been nice to know about this when I was doing my little plugins, the MoonPhase Plugin and the Dale Reckoning (aka Forgotten Realms Calendar) Plugin.

Or, the lack thereof.

Okay, so, those of you who know me and my professional career know that security is near and dear to my heart.  Now, I’m no hacker or even a full time security professional, but I’m very, very aware of security and how important it is.  In my last post, I mentioned how much I love having so much wifi connectivity and how nice it was when I was in the hospital to have that easy access.  Well, that’s still true, but I also know how open and insecure that wireless connection is.
This year at DefCon, there was a very popular demo that showed just how easy it was to get information off a wireless connection and exploit it.  In fact, some poor attendee, who should have known better, got his Gmail account hacked, in public, because he didn’t secure his connection properly.  And, earlier this year, some German security experts went on at length about how insecure the WEP protocol is and why that shouldn’t be your only line of defense on wireless networks.

Now, as much as I enjoy my wifi, I’ve also been very vocal about how insecure wifi networks are, by their very nature, for years.  In fact, I got into a rather heated “discussion” with a co-worker and our mutual manager about that at a former job.  Somehow, neither of these gentlemen quite understood how throwing packets out all over, where anyone could snoop them, was an inherently insecure system, even if you used advanced encryption.  Encryption, as the hackers say, is meant to be broken, and sooner or later, it always is.  Again, this is all just logic and reason, but, in a world where anyone who manages a website and a handfull of PCs can call himself a Director of IT, the practical application of logic and reason is a rare thing indeed.
So, enjoy those free wifi connections at your favorite coffee house, but, keep in mind how easy it is for a hacker, or even a script kiddie, to pull vital information off that wide open connection.

(And, if you’re going to DefCon, check out their “Be Prepared” guide, or the DefCon survival guide at the Register.)

Advice from your Uncle Jim:
"One day you'll love me as I have loved you. One day you'll think of me as I've thought of you. One day you'll cry for me as I've cried for you. And one day you'll want me and I won't want you."

Perhaps “reasonably priced” is more accurate.

Naturally, if you read Slashdot, you know this already, but many people don’t, so I thought I’d talk it up a bit. Fans of this blog will know that I am a big fan of Linux and, in fact, took an old laptop and loaded OpenSuSE Linux on it myself. Well, the folks at Medison have simplified this process by offering a decent enough laptop with Fedora RedHat Linux installed on it for $150. Yeah, that’s right, $150, plus shipping. When you think about it, that’s pretty incredible. For an independant writer, for instance, who doesn’t have a lot of cash to spare, or even a starving college student, that $150 laptop could make the difference between surviving and not.

Besides, it beats the “One Laptop Per Child” machine, which the manufacturers apparently plan to sell on the open market for $200. Of course, you can still use either one to browse pornography, so nothing’s perfect.

So, I’m not entirely happy with my webhost.

After bouncing around from place to place, I finally found a great webhost who had competitive prices and super-responsive support. Even when I had issues with some particularly unruly scripts, they worked with me and got everything working just right.  Granted, the company was run by the cousin of a friend of mine, but, stll… Unfortunately, they also sold the business to someone else who’s not quite as good as the folks I was with for so long.
Normally, I wouldn’t just jump ship, but I have a little project that I’ve been toying with and it would be a perfect test case for a new web provider. Naturally, I thought I’d ask you all, my faithful readers, before just closing my eyes and picking someone, if any of you had any suggestions. So, do you? Are there any of you who have had particularly good, or bad, experiences with any web hosting companies?
Inquiring minds want to know!

And, yes, this little “project” is also why I’ve been thinking about blogging software and search engine optimization.  Funny how all these things seem to tie together with me these days.

Well, everyone else seems to be talking about it this week.

No, really, it feels like everywhere I turn someone’s talking about how MoveableType is going to an Opensource version and how important that is. Now, for those of you not familiar with MoveableType, it was the first really good blogging software that was freely available. Before that, bloggers basically had to write their own HTML pages and upload them one at a time. When I first had this blog, that’s how I did it and let me tell you, it sure was a tedious proceedure to suffer through for a little search engine marketing!
In any case, it wasn’t the easiest software to use or customize, but, frankly, it was the only thing going, so pretty much everyone who had a serious blog used it. Then, blogging started to get popular and a lot of other people started making blogging software and Blogger showed up, among others, to make it easier for anyone who wanted to rant about their unfair life to set up a blog. I stuck with MoveableType because I had invested so much time and trouble into getting it just right. I even kept up with the upgrades, right up until they started wanting to charge for what had been free. And change the license agreement in ways that made me very, very uncomfortable. So, I started hunting around for a replacement.
That’s when I found WordPress. Opensource, free, easy to install and configure. It was everything I wanted in blogging software. And, it was easier to write plugins for, to boot! Well, I wasn’t alone in my migration to WordPress. Lots and lots of former MoveableType folks, as well as new bloggers, moved to WordPress. They’ve always been free, had great community support, and there don’t seem to be any plans to change.

But, still, it’s nice that the new version of MoveableType will include an Opensource version. I think it’s interesting that they’re also including features that have been in WordPress for a version or two or three now, too. Kind of seems like they missed the boat on this one, doesn’t it? I wonder how many people will move back from WordPress to the new MoveableType? I doubt too many. Frankly, we’re spoiled now. I just couldn’t go back to the hassles of developing and customizing blogs on MoveableType after having it so easy on WordPress.

But, what do I know? I’ve only been blogging for seven years or more.

Wow, it’s been a long time since I updated my blog!

So, I’m sleeping well, my appetite has almost returned to normal and I’m starting to get a little energy back.  Must mean it’s time to check into the hospital for more chemotherapy.  And, in fact, it is.  My bag is packed and I’m waiting on my ride, which will be here about noon.  I’ll be in for at least five days, during which time they’re going to put a new central line into my right arm, since I have a blood clot in my left arm still.  Not sure how long that will delay the start of my chemo, but, I’ll get about five days worth either way.
For those of you keeping track, I shaved for the first time in a month today.  Mainly out of nostalgia, but also because I felt a wee bit of stubble.  The rash is gone, but now parts of me are peeling and, still, itching a bit.  Still, at least I’m not purple, so it’s all good.

I’ll try and update this blog more often, but the chemo really takes it out of me these days.  You’d be surprised how much energy it takes to write and be creative!  But, in any case, I’ll try.  No guarantees, but I’ll try.

Okay, so my idea of fun may be changing a bit.

I’ve noticed a theme in my cancer caregivers’ rhetoric lately: clean.  Get clean, stay clean, avoid things that aren’t clean.  Wash your hands, gargle with their special solution to keep the mouth sores away, don’t eat raw foods that might have bacteria on them.  This over-riding theme of cleanliness may have had some small effect on my choice of interesting links.

First, with all the house cleaning, there was this tool to minimize, if not eliminate, dust from doing wall-board work.  Now,  that might not seem like a big thing, but, trust me, all that dust is an irritant for months to come after the work is done!  I know, having stuck my leg through a ceiling while running cable and doing the repair work myself.
Next, is a link to a toothbrush sanitizer, which has always been a thing for me.  Well, not toothbrush sanitizing, per se, but generally good oral hygine.  I’m always worried about things stuck in my teeth and bad breath and making sure my gums don’t bleed.  That’s gotten very important to me these days!  Bleeding is bad when my red and white counts are down so low!
And, this automatic soap dispenser caught my eye, since I’m washing my hands so much.  Before I even saw it, I was thinking about how the most likely point of contact for bacteria was at the soap dispenser.  An automatic soap dispenser would cure that and this shiny, chrome one would look nice on my bathroom counter!
Finally, while not a cleanliness link, this web-enabled pill box struck me as just the thing for someone having to track a bunch of medications.  Their service, which isn’t quite available yet, helps a patient keep track of all the various medications and times and frequencies they have to take.  And, at $60 a month, trust me, this would have been a Godsend this past week.  I have so many pills to take that a little extra help keeping them straight would have been a big help!

So, there you are, that’s what sounds “fun” to a cancer patient with a lot on his mind!  Kind of boring, but at least it’s something to think about over the weekend.  Enjoy your Friday!

So, I’m in MD Anderson.

Turns out old Cletus was a bit more aggressive than we first realized.
Tuesday, I went to see my oncologist and she was a little concerned about how much Cletus was restricting my breathing, so she had me admitted on an emergency basis Tuesday night. Thankfully, I have an amazing array of friends who all jumpped in and started taking care of everything for me right away. So, my darling Hilda is being taken care of, and, in fact is probably being spoiled by someone who’s even more codependant with my dog than I am. I actually think she went and bought McDonald’s fries just because Hilda likes them.
Tomorrow, and most likely Saturday, I’ll have people all up in my house cleaning it and stocking it with food for my parents who will be arriving Tuesday evening. Someone else has already made arrangements to pick them up from the airport and help them find their way around Houston. At least, as far as getting to the medical center and back home. Naturally, they’ll be staying at my house. All that room does come in handy.

Now, I suppose you’re wondering about what kind of cancer I have and what my treatment will be. Okay, I have diffuse large B cell lymphoma, which, in case you’re wondering, is not good. On the menu of cancers, this is not one a wise person would pick. What’s more, it’s an aggresive case. On a scale of 1 to 100, Cletus rates a 90. Not the best way to be an overachiever, is it?
The concern is, however, how fast and far it’s spread. That’s the problem with lymphoma like Cletus, he tends to sleep around and spred his problems all over, real quick. So, after having had several different kinds of scans in the past two days, tomorrow, I’ll have a few more and then follow that with a couple of bone marrow biopsies, which will most likely be a pain the ass, literally. They seem to want to take samples out of my hips, by way of holes in my backside. So, we’ll see how that goes.  I haven’t started chemotherapy yet, either, but I should be starting that soon, too.  I expect that it will be as aggressive as Cletus.  Not sure if I’ll lose my hair or not, but I do rather expect this to knock me on my ass for a bit.

But, all that being said, I don’t expect to die.  I think some people who have been following this the past couple weeks might be afraid that I’m going to, but I’m not.  I don’t know quite what God has in mind for me, but I really don’t think He’s brought me through all the crap of the last five years to kill me now.  I just don’t think it’s part of His plan to kill me at 38 with so much left to do.
Rather, I think I’m meant to survive this, too, so that someone I haven’t even met yet, who will need an extra helping of hope that I’ll be able to provide after I’m well.  I feel this deep in my heart and bones.  I know that my life’s purpose has not quite been fullfilled yet, and that is why I will, why I must, make it through all this.  I don’t think it will be pleasant and I’m sure parts of it will hurt, but I don’t plan on dying any time soon.

So, keep up your prayers for me, and keep on living your lives.  I’ll be well soon and I’ll do my best to keep you all updated via the blog.
Thank you for your support.

Advice from your Uncle Jim:
"A critic is a man who knows the way but can't drive the car."
   --Kenneth Tynan

No, not that kind, you perverts!

Just a quick update.
As I head out to the office this morning, eight bags of clothes and shoes are waiting on the front porch for the Salvation Army to come pick them up.  I’m getting down the point now, where it’s just my old junk, her papers and her books to sort through to reclaim the entire first floor of my house.  The upstairs, well, that’s a horse of a different color.  My goal, though, is to get the first floor acceptable enough for a few close friends.  I might even get some advice on colors for the rooms I want to change.  Something warmer, I think.  More welcoming and less sterile than white or off-white.  Don’t know yet, but I definately need to paint a room or two and at least one ceiling.

Tonight, on the way home from work, I’ll be putting a check in the mail that hammers the last nail in the coffin of one of my four credit cards.  One down, three to go.  Sadly, it was the smallest of them to go first, but, considering that I otherwise live pretty much on a cash basis, I think I’m doing fairly well.  One of the guys at work always tells me that I should have stayed married because my debt wouldn’t be so large.  But, as I explain to him, repeatedly, the divorce actually saved me from getting deeper into debt.  My money problems are related to my former marriage, not getting out of it.  So, one by one, I clear my accounts and the books are balanced.
Proof yet again that I can survive anything, somehow.

I know this seems a rather lame post, but all the other posts I’ve started lately either got too heavy too quickly, or got a little too deep into my past.  A past that is, well, just that, past.  I don’t need to get into any details that might put off a future employer or date, especially since none of it was illegal or anything.  A bit immoral, but, hey, even the President seems to be able to slide by on shakey morals these days, no matter what party he’s from.  In any case, I might write them all up one day, but probably not for the blog.

And, now, it’s off to work!