Everything

Storage MVP: I Feel Great!

July 2, 2008 by Stephen 2 Comments

I just got an email from Microsoft – they’ve given me the MVP award for the area of File System Storage! Great news – so how do I feel? Not quite as good as the “Steve” in this video, but pretty good… So what does this mean? Am I now a shill, beholden forever to […]

10 Key Considerations for Email Archiving

July 1, 2008 by Stephen 3 Comments

Email archiving has been a professional focus of mine for a while now, and I’ve previously written and spoken about the “eleven essential elements“. So when TechTarget asked for an article for Storage magazine, I had a good well to draw on. The latest issue of Storage magazine includes this article, titled “10 Key Considerations for […]

Upgraded! 320 GB in a MacBook Pro!

June 25, 2008 by Stephen 10 Comments

I know I’m not the first to do this, but it does make me chuckle to have upgraded a brand new machine less than a week after buying it. That’s right, my brand new MacBook Pro now has 4 GB of RAM and a massive 320 GB of disk space. If you’re thinking of upgrading your […]

How to Keep an IOGear KVM from Dimming Your Mac’s Screen

June 19, 2008 by Stephen 7 Comments

Just a quick tip tonight about something that’s been nagging me. I love my IOGear MiniView Micro GCS632U KVM, but I’ve had a weird problem since hooking it up to my new MacBook Pro. See, the IOGear uses a double press on the Scroll Lock key to switch views. But every time I type this while […]

Command and Control: The Clash of Keyboards

June 17, 2008 by Stephen 5 Comments

The lowly computer keyboard is so ubiquitous that it can seem unchanging, but nothing could be further from the truth. It is one of the most important components of any system, and has survived all assaults by new technologies from the mouse to the pen to the microphone, yet its evolution is marked by legacy […]

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GPS Time Rollover Failures Keep Happening (But They’re Almost Done)

This is week “1111111111” in the GPS system. Tomorrow morning it will roll over to week “0000000000”. How well will various systems handle this change? Not well, judging by what we’ve seen so far!

Ranting and Raving About the 2018 iPad Pro

I remain enthusiastic about the iPad Pro, despite getting a scratched screen and my concerns about durability. It’s a worthy successor to the original and offers enough improvements that I’d recommend the upgrade for just about anyone who uses their iPad for serious work. It’s still not yet a laptop replacement, but this is due more to a lack of desktop-class software for iOS than anything in Apple’s control.

Virtual Machine Mobility: Of What, and to Where and in What State?

January 16, 2012

Moving cold virtual machine images from system to system, or even across great distances, is one of the main selling points of server virtualization. But it becomes much more difficult to manage movement of virtual machines that are still running, especially outside cluster or across WAN links. When talking about virtual machine mobility, it is important to consider what is being moved, the state it is in, and where it is going.

Making a Case For (and Against) Software-Defined Storage

January 9, 2014

Everyone is talking about â€œsoftware-definedâ€ everything lately, so it was only a matter of time before industry buzz turned to software-defined storage. VMware and EMC really stoked the flames with a constant barrage of marketing directed in this direction. But how exactly do you software-define storage? And what does this mean?

Ten Terrible Apple Products

June 14, 2012

I’m often accused of being an Apple fanboy. While it’s true that I love my vast selection of fruity products from Cupertino, I’m not blind when the company makes mistakes. In fact, I think Apple’s mistakes are as enlightening as their successes: They reveal a company that is fallible, sometimes learning but often allowing the junk to rot far longer than other companies would.

It’s Fine To Mount Hard Drives On Their Side Or Even Upside-Down

August 13, 2016

Have you ever wondered if mounting a hard disk drive on its side or even upside-down affects its lifespan or reliability? According to every drive manufacturer, it’s perfectly acceptable to mount a hard disk drive in any orientation as long as it’s not tilted and has sufficient cooling.

Fasting to Mitigate Jet Lag: Surprise! It Works!

February 11, 2013

I’m a frequent traveler, and thus a frequently suffer from moderate jet lag. It’s just so hard to adjust to a new time zone! But I recently stumbled on a simple method many claim helps your internal clock re-calibrate to travel. After trying it out on my trip to Australia last week, I’m convinced it can help!

How Will Cisco Recover From The Consumer Strategy Blunder?

January 2, 2013

Cisco made a massive strategic blunder in the last decade, aggressively moving into consumer devices rather than focusing on their core enterprise and service provider markets. It seems that Cisco is now in the process of rectifying this mistake, but charting a path to growth is an entirely different matter!

Thoughts on the Modern Miracle of 3D Printing

July 28, 2015

Although I enjoy my AIO Robotics Zeus 3D printer, I’m under no illusions that it’s an economical or practical device. It’s a toy that takes me into the future, and I love being there!

My 2012 Project: Improving Energy Efficiency

January 3, 2012

I am in the process of upgrading my own home to make it more energy efficient. I do this mainly as an exercise of faith and science, since my electric and gas bills are not currently all that expensive. But I just can’t countenance burning 10 times more electricity than I need to, even if I can afford it. It’s also an exercise in geekiness, since today’s lighting alternatives and appliances have an undeniable techno-cool factor about them.