Last Friday we got delivery of a new HP server for Geekzone. The new server is a HP DL360, based on an Intel 5400 quad-core 3GHz with 8 GB RAM, four 146GB HDD, and remote management.To power this new box we will be installing Microsoft Windows Server 2008 and Microsoft SQL Server 2008.
Because our hosting provider is just finishing up a new datacentre it will be a couple of weeks before we have it up and running. The current box, a three year old machine based on an Intel Xeon dual-core with 3 GB RAM and two 70 GB HDD will stay in service, as a development/staging server.
I can't wait to have the new server up and running...
IE7 icon missing On WinXP Desktop
My poor technician must have freaked out earlier today when his boss (me) suddenly burst into fits of hysterical laughter and couldn't stop giggling for at least 5 minutes.
The thing that provoked such mirth was a couple of lines from the Microsoft Help section. It read like a cross between Monty Pythons Cheese Skit and a programmers joke. The lines in question are bolded below.
SUMMARYTheAs a programmer I know that poor programming practice* leading to buggy functionality is often passed off on the poor unsuspecting customer as a 'feature' or an implementation 'by design'. For Microsoft to state that the ability to put the Internet Explorer icon on the desktop or Start Menu is not an issue and is by design is ludicrous. Further more for Service Pack Three to REMOVE the icon from the Start Menu or Desktop or even worse, to change the functionality of the icon to bring up Internet Properties instead of starting IE is doubly idiotic.
Internet Explorer icon might be missing after either you upgrade the
Internet Explorer version to 7, or installed through Windows updates.CAUSEThis
Back to the top
is not an issue and is by design. Unlike the previous versions of
Internet Explorer, the option to enable to Internet Explorer icon on
the Windows Desktop is not available. The behavior of Internet Explorer
7, which is bundled with Windows Vista is also the same.
[ BTW - HERE IS THE FIX FOR THIS ] -> http://support.microsoft.com/kb/555849
Some claim it is part of Microsoft's anti-trust agreement responsibilities to have the icon removed and to also remove the ability to put the icon on the desktop as part of the display properties. Personally I think that is bollocks too. How long ago were the anti-trust hearings? Years. To take this long is a mockery of anti-trust, if indeed that was the causative action.
Secondly - with the advent of service pack three, Microsoft's IE components and Internet Explorer security properties are more tightly integrated with the system than ever. As an example, to Install Mozilla Firefox version 3 requires IE 7, or at least some of its components to be present. Why? Because without them some of the dialog boxes and under laying componentry is not present causing the failure of Mozilla 3 during installation.
Further more Mozilla Firefox Three is now so affected by the internet settings in XP that in order to tighten IE 7 to stop downloading and running active X ( and other executable code ) in the Internet Zone also disables downloads in Mozilla Firefox Three (Ref 1). It is now impossible to cripple IE's active X vulnerability completely without also crippling Mozilla's ability to download programmes. While some of these problems stem from Mozilla developers tying Firefox into the Internet Security Panel (Ref 2), the rest also points to Microsoft's embedding of IE in the operating system. Again, try removing IE7 and watch how fast Mozilla Firefox, and presumably other applications, fail.
As this blog entry isn't a rant about MS or how IE is such a PITA I wont go into detail about the fact that if you start IE7, after it has upgraded itself, you have no ability to set the default page until you stop pushing cancel and start answering the damn questions about security and settings you
Did I mention that trying to tell IE7 to push off and not bother me with Live Search (AKA dead useless) as I am already using Lycos, or google, or yahoo or wiki or ....bugger!!!!! There is now only live seach - and if I click on - "Go make another search engine the default" - Mozilla pops up as the default browser so I have to enable IE7 as the default browser to get rid of live search tool bar and then re-enable Mozilla as the default browser.
No IE7 tie in to the operating system - hah - my left testicale is less tied in to me than IE is to Microsofts OS.
1 - http://voices.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2008/07/firefox_3_follows_ie7s_securit_1.html
2 - http://kb.mozillazine.org/Unable_to_save_or_download_files#Reset_system_Internet_security_settings_-_Windows
* DISCLAIMER - Not my programming practices - other peoples. I just had to explain or fix up their bollocks - honest injun - it wasn't me.
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SQL DB? No firewall? Weak admin password? That is a trojan coming your way alright
According to the Symantec Security Response Blog, a new trojan called Trojan.Eskiuel is going around infiltrating SQL servers and causing havoc:
This time we have found a new SQL threat: Trojan.Eskiuel. The main functionality of this threat is to scan the Internet to find machines with poorly configured SQL servers (i.e. with weak or non-existing passwords), gain access to them, and use their stored procedures in order to download new malware from a remote host.
Check your servers...
Beware iPhone Users
Apple fanatics have maintained that Apple's operating systems and applications are simply more secure than Microsoft's. Others (myself included) have held the theory that the software is not necessarily more...
The new Microsoft ads... enjoy!
Here we go, for your viewing pleasure:
I like those. Why? Because when Apple launched the "I am a Mac, I am PC" ads they decide to approach the whole game as a battle between stereotypes. They also had no moral problems in comparing the platforms directly. Which is ok, when done by a independent party - not by a company that will of course show some bias.
So the Microsoft "I am a PC" ads are not like that. They don't try to make the competition look bad. Instead they try to show you why you should care.
And yes, I do have Macs here at home too.
[Updated] Wigram, perhaps the final chapter.
I have had comment through a back-channel that this blog entry may appear to have portrayed an opinion of the organisation referred to. I would like to make it clear that this is not necessarily the case, that "All posts views held by the poster, not necessarily any person or organisation associated therewith." A disclaimer which you will note on the right of the page.
It appears that there may have been some "confusion" regarding the approval sought, and that official approval may not have been given in the first place, and that the reason for refusing access to the airfield at this time was not necessarily as inflexible as it appeared. An attempt to rectify the situation has been made and a tacit approval has been given to the organisation referred to for the holding of a flyin at Wigram in mid October.
On Sunday coming, the Canterbury Recreational Aircraft Club (of which I am a member) had planned to have a flyin to Wigram, permission was sought and thought to be obtained from Ngai Tahu, and it had also been discussed with airfield inhabitants who were supportive and looking forward to us all visiting etc. Today, the member of our club who was organising this received a call from Ngai Tahu revoking the permission.
In short, Jan Higgens, the current person in charge of Wigram Aerodrome Ltd was uncompromising and said that all 'non resident' Wigram aircraft were forbidden to land as of the 1st of September 2008 because "a lot of development is going on; restricting the landing areas".
The NOTAM I blogged about a few days ago merely indicated that permission needed to be sought, it is now clear that you can ask, but you won't get said permission. I guess they figured the media would attend the Canterbury Aero Club flyin last Sunday and so elected to let it proceed rather than get bad press.
I understand that yesterday the plan change became effective. No doubt this is not coincidental.
I can't embed this here for some reason, but it's fitting at this point: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSJamm327gE
As perhaps a final followup to the attempts to get some common sense drummed into the council, Denis Hampton, on behalf largely of Steve Campbell at the Chch Flying School had made a submission a little while ago to the Office of the Ombudsman.
The Ombudsman, for those who are not familiar with the term, is the independant office intended to provide oversight and investigation into the decisions of government, local and central.
The submission called on the Ombudsman to review the report which the council had based it's decision on and if they found as we believe the report to be fundamentally flawed in it's portrayal of Wigram as a dead airfield (the reasons for which this belief was held have been previously written in this blog, and were of course included in said submission) that they should recommend a course of action to the council which would see the whole process reviewed.
Today Denis received a reply from the Ombudsman's assistant to inform that the matter would not be investigated further as it appears the Ombudsman does not have the power to do so when the "full council" has made a decision, it can only investigate sub committees, individual members, officers and employees.
One wonders who can provide oversight to the full council when they make terrible uninformed decisions.
Large Hadron Collider, More bad news. Unlikely to Restart till March - April '09
Unfortunately, the LHC has had further delays which could cause for a longer wait to get it up and running.
This is definitely disappointing to a lot of us who were eagerly waiting to see what the results would be.
Whilst the LHC may send particles around at nearly the speed of light, unfortunately the repair crew can't work anywhere near as fast.
The LHC Webpage has some more great information, (click the image below or follow THIS link - no its not the joke page)
Radical Improvement to Telecommunications by Emerson Development ... - MarketWatch
Crowd Sourcing a new logo for Cloud Labs
I've been fascinated by the concept known as crowd sourcing for some time, so last night I decided to start an experiment. I'm engaging the techniques of crowd sourcing to obtain a logo for Cloud Labs (one of my business interests). Right now the pro... (more in the full post)
Researcher Releases Exploit for SCADA Networks
What is SCADA you ask? That is a very good question to start with in order to understand why you might care if the SCADA networks are exploited. SCADA is...
James went to Tech Ed 08
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| Tech-Ed panel discussion. Scott Hanselman on the floor. | Wider shot. Chris Auld of Intergen is facilitating this discussion. In my personal opinion, it's the best job Chris has demonstrated in all the years I've observed him on stage. |
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| Four of the eight members of the Workgroup Solutions Team were at Tech Ed this year. We are Telecom's only internally-focused .NET development team (our externally-focused team is called Gen-i). The WST belongs to Applications Development, Maintenance and Support, a part of Technology & Shared Services. | Gary Saunders, Team Leader of Wellington. |
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| David Bulog, DBA of Auckland | Norman Close, Senior Developer of Christchurch |
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