14May2007
Posted by gbenedict under: uncategorized.
Yahoo has two websites for promoting green living.
First, you can register to get a free Compact Fluorescent Light bulb. You’ll also pledge to help reduce carbon emissions. It’s quick easy and free. Really, it’s not that hard!
Second, they have a site on living green. The more sites like this I read, the more compelled I feel to change.
9May2007
Posted by gbenedict under: openid.
I’ve been wanting to use OpenID for a while, but I was having problems getting it to work on Windows. I think it was a hashing issue, but I could never narrow it down. Since then, I’ve gone away from Moveable Type on Windows Server 2003, on to Mephisto on CentOS and finally to Wordpress on CentOS. Guess what? It works on linux.
The OpenID server implementation I am using is phpMyID. It very easy to implement and works great.
I looked around before hand, but I couldn’t find a Wordpress plugin to implement OpenID server. That’s why I went back to phpMyID. You unpack the zip file to a subdirectory (phpMyID), hash “username:realm:password” using openssl md5 and then add the values to the config file. The last step is to add two lines to your home page template so site know how to auth against your domain:
Like I said, it’s easy.
Now that I’m motivated, I may just have to create a Wordpress plugin…
7May2007
Posted by gbenedict under: wordpress.
I just couldn’t deal with Mephisto anymore. It isn’t ready for prime time and really needs some work before it will be. I was hoping it would be a good rails app so I could tinker, but I don’t have that much time.
Both from a blog and site standpoint, Wordpress runs circles around Mephisto. Themes, plugins, etc. So much better…
I was up in minutes. I actually think it took longer to ssh into the server than it did to install wp!
17April2007
Posted by gbenedict under: music.
I finally picked up a copy of Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot today. Over the weekend I caught the tail end of a special on them that was filmed during the making of the album. What I heard and saw were oddly interesting.
My old boss Peter McCormick, one of the co-owners of ExactTarget, was a huge Wilco fan when this dropped and raved about it on several occasions. At the time I didn’t bother to take a listen and understand why he loved it so much. I thought it was a crazy Minneapolis thing.
Frankly, I’m not sure I would have understood it. I just wasn’t ready.
Brilliant. Layered. Inspirational. 4th spin in a row. I’m hooked.
Update: I’ve since gone back and purchased A Ghost is Born and the oustanding live album Kicking Television - Live in Chicago. I can’t waiting for Sky Blue Sky to drop next week!
16April2007
Posted by gbenedict under: business.
Here’s a great little read from Freelance Switch on the different types of clients out there. I often think about the types of clients TGFI has and the balance that we keep among them. It’s good to have a bit of everything to keep you honest to the world. Trust me, we do.
http://freelanceswitch.com/clients/12-breeds-of-client-and-how-to-work-with-them/
12April2007
Posted by gbenedict under: uncategorized.
This brings back the days when we worked at Sapheo and were foos-a-holics. Jason had put Molly’s picture on the goalie.
12April2007
Posted by gbenedict under: linux.
I added the VM additions for linux to our CentOS 4.4 box today. The install was easy as the RPMs worked great. It did appear to help speed things up.
The speedy system clock was my main motivation for installing the additions, though. The system clock runs about 25% faster than it should on our server. My blog runs on Mephisto which grabs the create data from the system clock. Having to set the date from drop down menus is just a pain and I wanted it fixed (not to mention logging!).
Once I installed the additions It syncs every 1 minute to the hardware clock. In that one minute it gets off by about 15 seconds. It still doesn’t solve the problem, but it does help keep it in check.
[UPDATE: If you update your kernel, you can recompile the vm additions using the following:
cd /lib/modules/vmadd/module
make vmadd-build-module
make vmadd-install-module
depmod -a
/etc/init.d/vmadd start
/etc/init.d/vmadd-heartbeat start
/etc/init.d/vmadd-shutdown start
/etc/init.d/vmadd-timesync start
]
11April2007
Posted by gbenedict under: ruby.
I was working on a project for Nexpointe and needed to grab a random number, 1-5 to rotate between images. It was much easier than expected.
imageNum = rand(5) + 1
There’s no instantiation of objects. It doesn’t take 5 lines. It just does it.
Ruby - It’s what I always wished ASP would be.
10April2007
Posted by gbenedict under: music.
This is some unbelievable talent in the editing room. His timing is incredible.
9April2007
Posted by gbenedict under: uncategorized.
Why is it when you go to a Panera or Starbucks that you can never find a place to plug in? I’m at a rather large Panera and there are only 2 places to plug in, both of which are in the same corner of the restaraunt. One is sandwiched between a chair and a sofa, the other about 10 feet away hidden behind a chair.
Now don’t get me wrong. I love the free wifi at Panera and it’s why I come here as much as I do (I have a t-mobile wifi account for $10/mo with my phone so Starbucks is covered). However, my MacBook Pro only lasts a few hours before it dries up. If there were ample power plugs, I know myself and several others who would visit more often, and also stay much longer.
Panera and Starbucks have great food, drink and atmosphere that bring you back for more. Why not go that extra step to keep people there once they arrive?
