Posted by Tom Moertel
Thu, 01 Dec 2005 03:09:00 GMT
From why the lucky stiff comes Try Ruby, an interactive online Ruby tutorial that connects your web browser to a live Ruby (irb) session. As the tutorial leads you to Rubyriffic delights, you follow along via the live command line – complete with a history and support for editing keys.
It’s slick. And because it’s an honest-to-goodness interactive Ruby session, you don’t need to stick to the script. If you want to play with continuations, for example, go for it:
>> i, c = 0; puts callcc { |c| c[] }; i += 1
=> 1
>> c["hello"]
hello
=> 2
>> c["world"]
world
=> 3
>>
Do check it out: Try Ruby.
Posted in ruby
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Posted by Tom Moertel
Mon, 28 Nov 2005 23:14:00 GMT
While traveling in unfamiliar territory over the Thanksgiving holiday, I needed coffee. Bad. So I fired up my mobile phone’s web browser and surfed to Google Mobile. Just as I was about to submit a search to the Google Local web form, I noticed a link to something intriguing: Google Local for mobile devices (GLM).
Curious, I checked it out. I discovered that GLM is a Java applet that runs on your cell phone to provide a phone-optimized interface to Google Local’s servers. After a quick over-the-air download, I was ready to try it out.
I fired up the GLM applet and entered my query: “coffee elkin,nc.” In a few seconds, I had a clean, crisp map that showed a number of coffee shops. Pressing 1, 2, 3, and so on, I got the details for the various shops. When I found one I liked, I selected “Directions to here” from the details menu. Then I used my phone’s cursor keys to select a spot on the map that approximated my current location. After a few seconds of “Routing…” the map updated and plotted a path to coffee salvation. In a few minutes, I had a coffee in my hand and was back on the road.
The process was fast and painless. It just plain worked. I knew then and there that Google Local for mobile devices is good stuff.
Right now GLM is only available on Cingular and Sprint networks, and even then only for more-recent Java-based phones. [Update: In a comment, Mark points out that GLM works on some T-Mobile phones, too.] If my phone or network didn’t support GLM, I would seriously consider switching to a phone-network combo that did. GLM is that cool.
In any case, when your cell-phone contract is up, you ought to factor GLM into your renewal/switch plans. A cell phone with GLM is a heck of a lot more useful than one without it.
Posted in good stuff
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Posted by Tom Moertel
Mon, 28 Nov 2005 19:01:00 GMT
Via Bruce Schneier, I learned about Chris Hoofnagle’s Consumer Privacy Top 10. It’s a top-ten list of easy ways to protect your privacy. Check it out.
You may be surprised by what you learn. Did you know that your phone company may sell your telephone calling records or that your bank may sell your account information, including balance? That kind of sharing makes me uncomfortable, which is why I am glad I have Hoofnagle’s list.
Posted in privacy
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Posted by Tom Moertel
Tue, 22 Nov 2005 22:26:00 GMT
As seen in Haskell Weekly
News, Mon Hon Cheong
announced Frag, a first-person
shooter written in – wait for it – Haskell. It uses
HOpenGL for its OpenGL binding
and Yampa for reactive game
elements.
Cool!
Posted in functional programming, haskell
Tags frag, haskell, opengl, yampa
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Posted by Tom Moertel
Tue, 15 Nov 2005 19:23:00 GMT
Recently I had Verizon’s fiber-optic service “FiOS” installed
at my home. The installation process took about a half day
and involved placing the following boxes around my house:
- optical network terminal (ONT, installed outside of house)
- battery backup unit (BBU, installed in basement)
- power adapter (plugged into household electrical outlet)
The ONT was installed next to my old POTS
junction box:
The ONT acts like a miniature central office. To my house it provides
four POTS lines for voice service and one 10/100 Mbps Ethernet port for
data service. The ONT accepts a single fiber-optic cable that
connects all of these services back to Verizon’s central office.
As part of the installation process, Verizon moved my POTS lines from
copper over to the ONT’s POTS interfaces. Verizon wanted to remove my
copper-based service altogether, but I forbade them from doing so
because I have non-Verizon business lines that I want to keep on
copper, which competitive carriers can use to offer me service.
(Verizon is not required to share its fiber cables with competitive
carriers.)
If you look closely at the ONT, you’ll see that it also is capable of
handling video service:
(At present Pennsylvania’s cable-franchise laws prevent Verizon
from offering video service, but I’m sure Verizon’s lobbyists are
working to change that situation.)
Unlike copper wires, fiber-optic cables do not carry power. The ONT,
therefore, must be powered from my home’s electrical service. If the
power goes out, the battery backup unit (BBU) will supply power for
the ONT’s voice services for about four hours.
VoIP users beware: When the household power fails, the ONT’s data
services will be dropped immediately in order to conserve the BBU’s
battery. This seems pretty lame to me, but Verizon confirmed this
behavior when I called them to ask about it. If you need data service
during a power failure, make sure your ONT is powered via a UPS
under your control.
To provide data service to my house, the installer ran a CAT-5 cable
from the ONT’s 10/100 Ethernet port into my house, where it plugs into
a D-Link 4-port “Ethernet Broadband Router,” provided by Verizon for
free. Although the provided router has NAT and firewall features, I
placed a Linux-based firewall between it and the rest of my home
network as an added precaution.
I have been using the service for several days now, and here is my
verdict:
It’s just broadband.
Practically speaking, I can’t tell any difference between FiOS and my
Adelphia cable-modem service. I ordered 5-Mbps service from both
providers, and both services provide about 5 Mbps down, which is
faster than fast enough for me. The FiOS service has slightly lower latency – I
can ping www.google.com in about 9 ms – and that’s a nice plus.
The big benefit of FiOS is competition: Verizon’s price is about $10/month
less than Adelphia’s. When I called Adelphia to cancel my service,
their representative attempted to change my mind by offering me a
3-month promotional discount and trying to sell me extra television
channels.
I passed.
Posted in reviews, hardware, networking
Tags fios, networking
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Posted by Tom Moertel
Sat, 12 Nov 2005 02:42:00 GMT
The main network switch in my home office is an HP ProCurve
4000m, which
has been running non-stop for over half a decade. It is a great
switch, and even though it is getting old, it is still dependable.
A while ago I noticed that the 4000m’s fault indicator was
lit. So I logged into the switch and checked the log: fan
1 was dead. The switch has built-in redundancy (three fans),
and so I didn’t worry about it, but I did call HP ProCurve
tech support.
The woman I spoke with was friendly and helpful. I told her what was
wrong, and she said a new fan array would
be on my doorstep within 48 hours. No charge. (I guess the
ProCurve warranty really is worth something.)
Today, I installed the array. This meant opening up the switch,
which is a fun thing to do. If you are curious about what is inside
of a 4000m, I took photos of the operation.
During the process, I recalled why I love old-style HP engineering:
- The replacement parts came with clear instructions
that showed me how to remove the old array and install the new one.
They were easy to follow and didn’t leave anything to guess.
- The 4000m is solid – inside and out.
- The electrical components are top quality.
- The industrial engineering is superb. For example, all of the user-removable
screws have non-stripping torx heads and are designed not to fall
out and get lost; instead they remain attached to the module or
panel you are removing. (See this photo of removed modules
to see how the screws stay in place.)
Everything about the process made me think, wow, this is really well engineered.
The thing is, I know, as I sit here and watch the blinking LEDs on my
now-restored 4000m, that my next network switch will probably be a
Dell.
As much as I love the ProCurve engineering, the Dell price is
compelling. Even if I expect the Dells to fail twice as often (and
the Dell warranties are comparatively lame), I can buy twice as
many Dells and keep spares on the shelf – and still save money
compared to the equivalent ProCurve equipment.
I find the situation somewhat sad. I am an engineering guy to the
core. So when I go for the cheaper product because it is so darn cheap,
I know that much of the market will do likewise. That bodes ill
for HP. Like HP’s calculators, the ProCurves too may pass into
history.
Posted in photography, hardware, engineering
Tags 4000m, engineering, hardware, hp, networking, photos, switch
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Posted by Tom Moertel
Thu, 10 Nov 2005 19:22:00 GMT
I have some good news and some bad news. First …
The bad news
Today I discovered that funding for one of my projects
has dried up – at least for now. My client for the project is an
academic institution and subject to the fickleness of grants. I knew
this going in, and so I’m not shocked at the prospect of having
to freeze the project. It has happened before.
The project is very cool and just now approaching the fun stage where
people begin to benefit from it. I hope that the funding to thaw the project
out and resume work will be quick in coming. The reality, however, is
that project will likely be frozen for several months.
The good news
With the project on hold, I now have a chunk of spare time to work on
my neglected open source projects!
Things to do:
- Write something about
Test::LectroTest for
perl.com and the forthcoming Perl Hacks book.
- Create a movie showing Test::LectroTest in action. (As the
movies for Ruby on Rails demonstrate,
video is a great way to communicate complex ideas.)
- Prepare a talk or two for the fabulous Pittsburgh Perl Mongers.
- Hack with other folks:
- Catch up on my reading:
- Chat more on #haskell.
- Drink more espresso.
Anything else I ought to have on the list?
Posted in work
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Posted by Tom Moertel
Wed, 02 Nov 2005 16:50:00 GMT
Sam Ruby writes about his overall experience with Ubuntu Linux in contrast
with Microsoft Windows in
It Just Works:
Convenience. Security. Predictability. More options.
Less hassle. I like that.
That’s exactly why I switched to Linux, too.
In April 2004, my main Win2k workstation’s hard drive failed. When the replacement hard drive arrived, I tried to reinstall Win2k from the original installation CD. I failed. The CD, from 1999, contained an out-of-date version of Win2k that no longer could recognize my computer’s hardware. But, because of Microsoft’s licensing terms, I was required to reinstall from that CD (the one tied to my CD Key and Certificate of Authenticity).
I kept a log of the re-installation process, and it’s not pretty. I wasted five hours trying to re-install Win2k before giving up.
Then I installed Fedora Core Linux. It took about thirty minutes, was painless, and mostly occurred automatically – while I was walking my dog. It just worked.
Today, I am writing this post on the very same workstation, happily running Fedora Core Linux 4. It just works. And I love it.
I don’t miss Windows. And I certainly don’t miss having to jump through licensing-scheme hoops. Instead, I can focus on getting my work done.
It’s a great feeling, being able to do my work on my own terms. I don’t think I’ll ever go back.
Posted in linux
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Posted by Tom Moertel
Tue, 01 Nov 2005 19:41:00 GMT
Over the weekend I attended Damian
Conway’s talk on Sufficiently Advanced
Technologies,
hosted by the Pittsburgh Perl Mongers and
presented at CMU.
Read more...
Posted in programming, perl
Tags conway, damian, perl, talks
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