I just took delivery of my new work/personal laptop this past week and spent a few days getting it setup just right.  For some background and for those of you who think I am crazy here were my requirements:

1. Must be a laptop, need to travel and for school
2. I like to develop, needs to be fast
3. I like to be creative, needs some graphics and CPU power
4. I like to play with new software and server stuff, needs a Hypervisor
5. I like docking stations too!

So with all of that said I bought a Dell M6500, you can take a look at the base specs at the Dell site, but trust me, don’t buy this monster without working with a Business Sales Rep!

I ended up getting the following:

1. Intel i7 890xm CPU
2. 12GB 1333 GHz RAM
3. nVidia 3800m (1GB Ded)
4. Dual 500GB HDD in RAID0
5. Docking Station of course!
6. The others goodies Dell has to offer

I had a copy of Windows Server 2008 R2 laying around and that is how this post starts…

If you read the comments about the 6500 many people complain about attempting to convert the laptop into a server and run into problems when running Hyper-V on the laptop.  Dell obviously does not support running a server OS on a laptop but there are lots of resources out there.

When I first went away to college I did run Windows Server 2003 on my desktop because I wanted to learn more about IIS6 at the time as well as beginning my foray into ASP development at the time.  Back then getting a server OS running as a workstation was HARD to say the least.  It never worked quite right and programs always picked up on it being a server and not a client so needless to say I eventually moved back to XP at the time.

I had faith in Microsoft and thought I would give 2008 R2 a chance, surely they had made some improvements.

I was right! I was able to setup 2008 R2 and so far everything has worked great.  I have the desktop experience features installed which makes working with the OS a little nicer.  There are a few gotchas but I managed to find a great website complete with automated installers to help out with a lot of the problems.  You can find it here.

So far the experience has been great and I have been lucky enough not to run into the problem many users have talked about where the laptop will lock up when the Hypervisor is running.  No BSODs here!

Feel free to post questions or comments, I’ll try to answer back as quickly as possible.

-Brent

One thing that is often a bit scary is traveling for business for the first time.  I don’t mean driving to a customer in town but rather flying to someplace outside of your comfort zone with people you don’t know and meeting people who you surely don’t know.  Hopefully this post will provide some help and advice on how to keep it all together and what to expect on your journey the first time around.

1.  Planning for your trip is very important.  Spending the time ensuring your reservations are all ready or working with your office designated travel person to work it all out is the first important thing you should do at least two weeks out.  If something goes wrong or comes up it could take two weeks to straighten it all out.  Of course there will always be last minute travels but getting into a routine when traveling can help you when time is not on your side.

2.  Packing, if you leave in the morning make sure everything is packed the night before, nothing hurts more than trying to get stuff ready in the morning when you are still waking up.  Just stay up an hour later and you will be ready to roll out of bed and into the airport.  Make sure you bring a copy of every reservation and confirmation printed out with you.  If something goes wrong anywhere along the line you have the documentation you might need to prove your point.

3.  Be a Frequent Flyer, this doesn’t mean you need to fly all of the time but make sure you get enrolled in the most used airline at your company or the one you fly with most, then make sure you enroll with the rental car company and the hotel.  Most hotels and rental car companies can transfer points/nights to your airline to help you build up miles faster.  From my experience getting elite or whatever status with an airline has far more benefits than status with hotels or rental car companies.  It helps you earn free trips later, free upgrades, etc.

4.  Be Comfortable.  If you are lucky enough to fly out the night before you start working wear comfortable clothes.  This is great for longer flights and when going through airport security and you have to practically undress.

5.  Know the Rules.  Be a good citizen, when you get to the airport know the rules of the road.  If you are doing an overnight make sure your overnight bag has everything packed according to TSA specs, if staying longer, why not check? (More on that later)  Remember a few simple rules:

• Jackets, Coats, etc. all go through the scanner, put them in a bucket on their own.
• Take your shoes off, put them in a bucket or send them through on their own, its ok!
• Your big bags and backpacks don’t need a bucket it takes way too long!
• Your laptop has to go through on its own take it out and put it in its own bucket.
• I usually put my wallet, cell phone, watch, coins, etc. in my backpack before I send it through the scanner.  That way its secure in my bag and its easy to deal with later.

6.  Be Polite.  Delays happen all the time in air travel, many because of weather but regardless you are most likely to sit in the airport on the way out or back home.  Being angry and upset does not help the situation.  The gate agents are already frustrated because of the overload and having another angry passenger doesn’t help.  In fact if you are in need of help its easier to get that help if you are polite and understanding.  Tell the agent to take their time even if you don’t have time they will end up working faster if they feel relaxed.  Your politeness should extend until you return home, be nice to the flight attendants and always thank the cabin crew when you disembark, its just the right thing to do.  After all they did get you home safely.

7.  Get Sleep!  When you travel, especially when meeting with customers being fresh and ready to go is important.  Even though anyone under 25 may still remember the days of partying all night long you simply won’t last doing it here.  Make sure you get enough sleep, get up early enough for at least a light breakfast and then head off to work.

8.  Rental Cars.  This is usually a big problem for anyone under 25.  Every car company will charge you a fee for driving under that age.  It has to do with the fact that most people in that age group are much more prone to having an accident.  When you get to the car counter act professional and the staff will think you are.  It all goes back to number six above.  Make sure you have a credit card to use for the car, make sure you keep your proof of insurance for your regular car with you as most extend to rental cars for a few days.  If you are in a big city like New York or Los Angeles always ask for the GPS option, it will save you in certain situations.  Also ask for EZPass or the electronic toll plate system in the area if they have them, it saves a lot of time and traffic in some situations.  Find a gas place close to the return location or within a certain distance because you will be expected to return a full tank.  Overall treat the car just like your own, that would be a heck of a bill to walk away with if you damaged the car.

9.  Phone Home.  Make sure you call home when you get back to the hotel at night.  By doing so you tell your girlfriend/wife/parents that you are still alive and safe at the hotel.  Plus since you may be all by yourself in the room some human interaction is always a good thing.

10.  After your home.  When you get home the first thing you should do is handle the paperwork your little excursion has generated.  File your expenses as soon as all of the bills are available.  Some companies will not reimburse after a certain time period.  Also make sure if the company paid for the car, hotel or airfare you get them the receipts.  You don’t want to be on the bad side of the people who helped setup and plan your trip as they may not be so willing to help next time.

Note on checked bags:

Historically checking your bag has not been a good thing as bags are lost, damaged, etc.  However as some may know checked bags are now charged an additional fee which has some inclined to take giant bags through security.  The lines to check bags are relatively short and since there are less bags being checked theoretically your odds of loosing your bag are actually higher.  However, from my experience two things happen.  First checking your bag is not a big deal unless you are connecting somewhere for another flight, especially if that connection is missed or delayed, so plan for that.  However if you are flying directly or have a connection with a big layover checking a bag seems to work pretty well and gives you one less thing to have to worry about.  Plus with the airline status you will be earning some bag fees are waived at certain levels.  In addition the line has become huge in the jet way where everyone who decided to bring their bag in the cabin is waiting because there is physically not enough room in the overhead bins for all of the giant roller bags, so instead they are gate checked where there is absolutely no identification placed on the bag other than what you put on it.  At least with a checked bag the durable airline tags are applied with lots of identifiable information.

So there it is my top ten things to keep in mind while traveling.  Please send in any comments or disagreements.  Just remember this post is focused for those new to the work force who will be lucky enough to travel at an early age.

See you at Terminal 1 in RDU!

-Brent

I have decided to change the direction of this blog so that I might update it more often.  With everything that is going on now a days I want to make sure I start to record two types of things:

1. Technology Stuff across the board
2. Business Stuff

I am really kind of excited about doing the second part because I honestly have to say I got lucky when I started working in a “real job” because it was a start-up company with lots of learning opportunities.  I have continued to work in companies with lots of learning and life experiences available for the taking.  I hope I can share some of them as well as put out some of my opinions about how to be successful as someone who is new to the business world or for those who have been around for a while but want a fresh look at things, hopefully I can do that.

Of course I will push myself to keep this thing updated with all of the current technology stuff and problems I run across on a daily basis as a point for putting more content out on the interwebs for everyone’s benefit.

I also plan to refresh some of the other content pages on this thing and improving the theme a bit to match me a little better, but one baby step at a time!

That’s it for now but I plan to write the first update this weekend, so lets see where it takes us.

-Brent

I received this list from a family member and is perfect for use in any company or organization:

Randy Muller, Global Knowledge Instructor

There are many skills that IT Pros should know about in doing their day-to-day jobs. That is one of great benefits of being in the IT industry - learning new platforms and products as they are released. The following list has many of the most common ones that most IT Pros should have. While there are ten skills listed, they are not in an ordered ranking. Depending upon the size of the IT infrastructure and environment, some of these might not be applicable.

1. Troubleshooting

Is this a skill, an art, or both? If you ask any seasoned IT professionals, they will tell you that troubleshooting skills are important, very important - and not something that can be readily taught. The difficult part is that troubleshooting is a specific skill set that many corporations simply do not have the time or money to invest. Troubleshooting skills could make or break your career. Not having the required troubleshooting skills could become a RGE (resuming generating event), or it could become a career enhancer when you are able to fix a mission-critical server. All of this being said, one would think that there would be more emphasis on teaching and sharing troubleshooting skills; unfortunately, this is not the case. This is one skill that must be learned only after mastering a particular platform or program.

2. PowerShell and Scripting

No, you don't have to be a programmer to be a successful network engineer (or vice-versa for that matter), but you do have to know PowerShell. More platforms from Microsoft (Exchange 2007 and Exchange 2010 have some features that can ONLY be implemented with PowerShell) are managed through PowerShell - including the recently released SharePoint 2010. Being able to script many day-to-day tasks will make more time available for proactive tasks.

3. Networking and Interoperability

Interoperability is the key to networking. We live in a highly connected world, a world of disparate platforms. Networking is understanding how to make these platforms communicate. As an IT Pro (and this includes programmers to a certain extent), you must understand the communications protocols, OSI Model layers, and connectivity required for systems to communicate. This also includes understanding connecting and securing wireless networks. This is one skill that is common to almost all IT Pros, whether they are programmers, security personnel, auditors or the help desk personnel.

4. Virtualization

It doesn't matter which Virtualization technology you use (Microsoft's Hyper-V, VMware, or even Sun's VirtualBox), it is the use that is important. Virtualization is being adopted by companies of all sizes as a means to reduce costs through consolidation of servers and lower cooling requirements. Application Virtualization has become very popular with businesses. Having the skill set to deploy applications that connect securely through a browser is critical for companies that have numerous offices.

Virtualization can aid in near real-time response to network conditions by providing for more disaster recovery capabilities. Another interesting area of virtualization is through the use of desktop virtualization. This involved configuring and maintaining the virtual environment whereby users can connect to their own virtual desktop remotely or through the web. Another use for virtualization is for improved instruction for IT education and elsewhere, since there is no longer a need to have large numbers of computers for classrooms.

5. Wireless

As part of our highly connected world, we expect to able to connect wirelessly from almost anywhere at any time. Those IT Pros who can install, configure, and maintain secure wireless networks have a skill that is in high demand. The key word here is secure wireless network. IT Pros with this skill set are in high demand as we expect to be able to securely connect to wireless networks in almost all locations at any time. Implementing a secure wireless environment also means being able to plan and troubleshoot interferences as well. Anyone managing wireless environments must be able to handle the calls that come in from remote users who are having problems with their wireless equipment, and different operating systems capabilities and limitations.

6. Disaster Recovery

This is as much a methodology as a skill set. IT Pros must be able plan, test, and implement a disaster recovery (DR) plan. This is critical for the survivability of a data center or network. One of the hardest tasks is being able to test disaster recovery plans. There is hardly enough time available to perform the critical tasks that need to get done while adding a yearly or semi-yearly test of the DR plan. An integral part of the disaster recovery process is implementing fault-tolerant systems and providing for redundancy in your network.

7. Security

All IT Pros must have a good understanding of both physical and electronic security. One of the most difficult tasks with IT security is educating users. Company information can be gleaned through social engineering that most companies would rather not have divulged. Training users (and IT staff) to be cognizant of and prevent social engineering is extremely difficult. IT Pros must always be aware of security issues and understand the vulnerabilities within their networks (from operating systems, servers to the lowly cable closet). This does not mean that every IT Pro must be able to perform a penetration test against his or her own network, but they must understand and prevent attacks against their network.

8. Database Administration

Corporations retain more information than ever before and are quite dependent on their databases. Regulatory compliance has had a huge impact on database management and data retention. Corporations are required to retain information for a number of years and, in some cases, emails as well. Storage space and solutions have become much cheaper, so there is more emphasis on data retention. Having the ability to create and extract information from one of these databases is critical. Many IT Projects use a SQL backend, Archiving information from Microsoft's Office Communication Server requires a SQL backend. If you are going to deploy Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS), this will require a SQL backend. IT Pros these days do not need to be DBAs, but they must be able to administer and maintain these servers. There are several database systems commonly used: SQL, Oracle, and MySQL.

9. Desktop Imaging

Imaging of desktop systems is a critical skill as companies are shifting to standardized desktops and deployments. Part of this is done to deploy a consistent and secure platform as well as to provide ease of management. There are many imaging programs available, as well as Microsoft's Windows Deployment Services and imaging utilities.

10. Helpdesk (People Skills)

One of the most critical skills that IT Pros need to learn is how to interact with non-technical people. The Help Desk is the first interaction most users have with the IT department, and it should be a positive experience. IT Pros are very good at their jobs, but sometimes lack the ability to relate to their non-tech colleagues. Users just want their computers fixed or their data recovered; they are not concerned with the processes behind our actions. IT Pros should have some experience working at the Help Desk.

These are some of the most important skills that an IT Pro should know. If you don't know some of these areas, now is the time to learn them. One thing to keep in mind is that you are your own best career manager! You are the only one who can decide where you want to head your career.

OK,

So here is the long awaited update.  We have had a few major things hit our family pretty hard right here at the end of the year and it looks like 2010 will be a long rough year as well.  I figured the best way to convey what has happened is by letting my dad tell the story which he did through an email to our close family and friends:

Beth had surgery for a subcutaneous cyst Monday before Christmas.  Late Wednesday the surgeon called and informed us it was not a cyst.  It was a B-Cell Lymphoma (http://www.lymphomainfo.net/nhl/b-cell.html).  The tumor was slightly smaller than a golf ball.

On the positive side, with Beth working on the Oncology/Orthopedics floor at Wake Med she was able to reach out to an Oncologist she is most impressed with.  They chatted Saturday morning and he said it was fine to make our trip to Baltimore to be with family.

We went to Baltimore; but by Sunday morning Beth was having extreme difficulty breathing.  We had to have EMS take her to Carroll County Hospital Center in Westminster, MD.

To make a long story short, she has blood clots in both her lungs and in her left leg (Bi-Lateral Pulmonary Embolism and a Deep Vein Thrombosis in the lower left extremity).  They are pumping her full of Heparin to dissolve the clots and thin her blood.  There are multiple possible reasons for the clots including a downstream effect from the Lymphoma.  However, no one seems sure how we got where we are and they are just trying to get her blood and pulmonary function back to a therapeutic level.  That is a good thing because she could not walk 10 feet before she was totally out of breath and her heart rate spiking.

So with that being said it is now New Years Day and she has still not been released from the hospital.  We are currently expecting her to be released sometime early next week.  Once she returns we begin to meet with oncologists and others to figure out exactly what to do next.  In the mean time we appreciate all of the thoughts, prayers and help from all of our friends and family.

-Brent

Had to get this clip from Mercy on NBC.  The best lines about beloved NJ:

Thank you Hulu!

Brent

I was watching a show sometime later this evening and the first one has hit.  Our favorite little PC girl is back and she demos the new OS in this pretty cool little video.

Cool stuff!  Oh and Windows 7 so far is most everything they claim.

-Brent

I am sure many have seen the recent Intel ads, but out of all of them this is by far my favorite:

-Brent

So I decided that since I have now installed Windows 7 and have been very pleasantly surprised that I would share my experiences with the world in the event people are looking for something like this.  Before I jump in to the changes in the built-in calculator I would like to provide a little more information on this series so people don’t get confused.

1. I am using Windows 7 RTM (Final Release) using 64-bit hardware a big CPU and lots of RAM.
2. However I am also using Windows 7 on my old Dell Inspiron 2200 with a very old and small CPU and 512 MB of RAM and it runs fine!
3. I am testing Ultimate and Enterprise editions
4. I got them from MSDN so no, they are not yet available to the public.

So there is Part 1: Calculator.  Look for more in the coming days and weeks ahead.  So far so good!

-Brent

So, I am sure many people have seen the recent healthcare debates and differing viewpoints.  I personally have to laugh at some of the antics because they are so far out there.  Of course I don’t really care about it to much since by the time I'm in a position to need any of the services those services will be broke anyways.  So in that spirit here is the Daily Show’s take on all of this stuff.  Enjoy!

-Brent

So I finally took the plunge and setup a Twitter account.  My final reasoning for doing so was the fact that I am always on Skype and like to use the Skype Mood feature but I thought it would be a cool idea to share my status with everyone, not just my Skype buddies.  So I looked into it a bit and found that I can use Twitter as my main “status” holding system, as well as posting anything I like.  Then using a new program called “Twype” my Skype status is automatically updated based on Twitter.  I also downloaded TweetDeck so I can update both my Skype and Facebook statuses from one place.  It’s pretty nifty.  Although I must say the best one of all is the program I have on my Windows Mobile phone called PockeTwit which is simply cool.  It uses a cool UI that works great with touch screen devices.  It even understands more advanced touch screen motions like slides and flicks.  I think the coolest part though is when I post a status update using PockeTwit I can get my current position using GPS coordinates from the built-in GPS device and then post a link with my status to show my posting location on Google Maps.  That’s just pretty slick if you ask me.  So you can follow me by clicking on the link on the navigation menu.

Here are the links to the software I am using:

1. Twitter
2. TweetDeck
3. Twype
4. PockeTwit

The family and I just returned from a trip to Sunset Beach in North Carolina to relax and blow off some steam.  We took a bunch of pictures and I wanted to try creating a Photosynth out of it.  For those who don’t know Microsoft Lab’s has a new beta tool that allows you to take lots of pictures and then their system “synths” them together to create a flowing and sometimes 3D image if you took enough.  You can then explore and move into the final synth to explore it.  CNN used this technology on for the inauguration to reflect pictures taken from all over DC into one giant synth.  I didn’t take enough to make it 3D but it is still pretty cool to see it all mapped together, and automatically nonetheless.  I plan on creating more in the future because it really is pretty cool.  I included a link below to let you view my view for the past few days.  Give it a shot, it’s pretty cool!

Open Sunset Beach Photosynth

Yet again another funny professor has posted some humor over the various roles in an IT Shop… enjoy:

1. Programmer: This person holds the lowest rank in the field.  Manages no one. Answers to everyone.  Approximately 50% of the Programmer's time is scheduled for testing.  Another 50% is spent filling out time cards and progress reports.  Any time left over is spent attending classes on technologies that will never be used in the shop. The Programmer is appraised on code quality and reliability. Never has time to write any. Hopes to, someday, be promoted to Systems Analyst.
2. Systems Analyst: The Systems Analyst refuses to code anymore. Designs new systems. Writes specs for new systems.  Devises procedures and work flows for new systems but ends up training users on how to get by with the old ones.  Next in line for Team Leader position.
3. Team Leader: A Team Leader manages one project.  Doesn't know why he's not called Project Leader;  that's what he has on his resume.
4. Project Leader: Manages several projects at once.  Analyzes Gantt charts from the Team Leaders' projects.  Coordinates schedules from the Team Leaders' projects.  Monitors deliverables from the Team Leaders' projects. Has absolutely no idea what any of the Team Leaders' projects are about. Wants to be a programmer again.
5. Operator: The Operator wields powers that the Project Leader can only dream about.  Makes Programmers beg for tape drives.  Makes Analysts beg for disk space.  Makes Team Leaders beg for printouts.  Has an uncanny understanding of career potential in the data processing industry. Going to law school at night.
6. Senior Engineer: been around so long that you are one of the few people who designed the cooling systems for IBMs first mainframes.  Has had to try and keep up with emerging technologies that they are teaching kids in elementary school these days.  Has all the responsibility and no authority.  Has to beg for money for IT projects with large architectural documents and business cases only to get told when the year budget comes up that they need to justify why they needed the money that was agreed to in the first place.  Responsible for Keeping 1-10 happy and designing the magic pixy dust solution.
7. Systems Programmer: Even an Operator wants to be a Systems Programmer.  A Systems Programmer has the authority to wipe out disk packs without warning. Crash the system during user demos.  Make new releases appear, then disappear, then reappear again, especially during month-end processing.
8. DBA: No one really knows what the Database Administrator does, and no one is smart enough to know if the DBA is doing it or not. But every shop must have one DBA, because no place can afford two of them.
9. Manager: The Manager is sometimes called a Director.  Or an Assistant Vice-President.  Or an Account Manager.  Has completely lost  touch with any facsimile of technology.  Wants to finish next year's budget. Wants to finish last year's appraisals.  Wants to learn the names of some of the Programmers.  But instead, only has time to interview job applicants, especially DBAs. 
10. Design architect: A programmer that does not fit the role as a manager, but has the most knowledge of the product.  Typically takes long vacations or sabbaticals and is always given credit for the entire product.  In reality only fixes or solves a single issue.
11. Department Secretary: The Programmers have word processing.  The Managers have electronic mail.  Everyone has automatic phone messaging. This leaves the Department Secretary with all kinds of time to manipulate, control and dispense the three most basic employee needs:  paychecks, rumors, and supplies.  Can make a copier self-destruct just by going to lunch.
12. Contract Programmer: A Contract Programmer doesn't have to wear a nice suit.  Or go to meetings.  Or fill out time cards.  Or keep complaints to himself.  He can make all the mistakes he wants.  He doesn't get benefits.  He doesn't get training.  He doesn't get respect. But after years in the trenches, the Contract Programmer will finally achieve the ultimate goal in the profession. He will be able to make impossible deadlines with inadequate resources for desperate managers by putting in all kinds of extra hours... and will be paid overtime for every one of them.

-Brent

So many times the mention of a Google datacenter is met with secrecy.  If you search the web you may find some possible locations of the data centers, however finding them is not easy, and knowing anything about them is an even deeper secret.  However maybe with the whole new notion of transparency Google is jumping on board.  Google has released a video tour of one of their datacenters.  What makes this more interesting than others is that servers are inside of racks, however racks are contained in movable shipping containers.  Take a look:

-Brent

For those who do not know, Pabst Productions, Inc. uses a virtual PBX service to handle all of the phone calls that come in to our offices.  We have been using GotVmail for a few years now and are very happy with their service.  Recently they announced a change to their branding and imaging to become “grasshopper”.  As part of that change they put together a little video that I believe is a profound statement about what entrepreneurs really are.  Take a look!

NOTE: Make sure you have speakers or a headset so you can hear the music that was written just for this video.

-Brent

I came across this list a professor with the University of Phoenix posted.  Pretty cool little test for any software firm.

Recently I have become a fan of Joel Spolsky, who worked at Microsoft for several years and has created a large collection of articles and thoughts about Best Software Practices, as well as the process of programming and design.  In one of his articles, he mentions the Joel Test: 12 Steps to Better Code:

1. Do you use source control?
2. Can you make a build in one step?
3. Do you make daily builds?
4. Do you have a bug database?
5. Do you fix bugs before writing new code?
6. Do you have an up-to-date schedule?
7. Do you have a spec?
8. Do programmers have quite working conditions?
9. Do you use the best tools money can buy?
10. Do you have testers?
11. Do new candidates write code during their interview?
12. Do you do hallway usability testing?

For each correct answer you get one point, most software companies, and development groups score between 2-4. His claim was that Microsoft's score was in the 10-12 range, and that it was one of the reasons MS is successful.

-Brent

1. Never give me work in the morning.   Always wait until 4:00 and then bring it to me.  The challenge of a deadline is refreshing.
2. If it's really a rush job, run in and interrupt me every 10 minutes to inquire how it's going.  That helps.  Or even better, hover behind me, advising me at every keystroke.
3. Always leave without telling anyone where you're going.  It gives me a chance to be creative when someone asks where you are.
4. If my arms are full of papers, boxes, books, or supplies, don't open the door for me.  I need to learn how to function as a paraplegic and opening doors with no arms is good training in case I should ever be injured and lose all use of my limbs.
5. If you give me more than one job to do, don't tell me which is priority.  I am psychic.
6. Do your best to keep me late.  I adore this office and really have nowhere to go or anything to do.  I have no life beyond work.
7. If a job I do pleases you, keep it a secret.  If that gets out, it could mean a promotion.
8. If you don't like my work, tell everyone.  I like my name to be popular in conversations.  I was born to be whipped.
9. If you have special instructions for a job, don't write them down. In fact, save them until the job is almost done.  No use confusing me with useful information.
10. Never introduce me to the people you're with.  I have no right to know anything.  In the corporate food chain, I am plankton.  When you refer to them later, my shrewd deductions will identify them.
11. Be nice to me only when the job I'm doing for you could really change your life and send you straight to managers' hell.
12. Tell me all your little problems.   No one else has any and it's nice to know someone is less fortunate.  I especially like the story about having to pay so much taxes on the bonus check you received for being such a good manager.
13. Wait until my yearly review and THEN tell me what my goals SHOULD have been. Give me a mediocre performance rating   with a cost of living increase. I'm not here for the money anyway.

It's been over a year and a lot of things have been going on.  I finally got a chance to update all of my "personal" pages including my about me and resume page.

Enjoy!

So as the previous post details… old faithful bit the bucket. So in her stead I have found another mode of transportation… Maggie May, or at least that is the name my sister and I came up with driving around.

I took the plunge and purchased a 2004 Ford F-150 Crew Cab. I have always wanted a truck, more specifically a big truck, that I could use to haul people and some stuff if need be. I purchased from Carmax in Raleigh. If you need a used car see Jackson… he's the man. It is in pretty decent shape with only scratches and dings in the bed. But, for 35K miles at a little over 15K it was a good deal. If you're really curious you can check out the photo album on Facebook… http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2057291&id=44101425. If you're not my friend well then you will just have to add me!

I am sure a lot of you are thinking… he's crazy with the price of gas… maybe, but maybe, just maybe it won't matter for long? Either way I will not be the only person paying a LOT of money at the pump.

So here she is:

So my car of 4 years now had died.  We bought it used and it managed to carry me to all kinds of places.  It was less than 9,000 miles from hitting the 300K mark.  A big accomplishment for any car let alone a 92' Ford Taurus.

Turns out the Frame Bushings had rusted (much like the rest of the car) and it was possible for them to break causing a loss in steering and braking.  Total cost to fix that and some other stuff was 1.3K.  Since the car probably is not worth more than $200 even with the custom sound system it is just not worth it.

Therefore, I retired the car.  I am currently looking for a replacement vehicle, probably a truck, to replace Old Faithful.

If anyone is interested in a USED 92' FORD Taurus 4D Sedan let me know!  It is currently not in a drivable state, however it would be great for a rebuild project.  It also get's good gas mileage, which is really important these days.  Just post a comment or send me an e-mail.

Ok, so I wanted to officially "build" my first real PC. Being into video and audio as well as just software development I wanted something with some power. I also wanted to be able to have a system that I could play a couple of games on. Of course my 360 is near and dear to my heart but they just don't make Flight Simulator for the Xbox.

Anyway… my process was stopped about a year ago when my current PC/Server died from too much dust and overheating. The short story is this… I have actually gotten to see a Pentium 4 Chip Melted past the protective coating. Pretty cool how the sucker just started to melt away. I ended up replacing a whole bunch of components. To save on cash I used parts I intended to use for the new PC on the old one. So I only now have a Chassis and Motherboard remaining.

So to show off how big of a dork I am I wanted to post my suggested configuration for the new PC. I really just want to keep a running list of sites and parts so I don't forget them. I would welcome any comments on the parts if you have used them before or have any questions regarding my selections. Of course as I save up the cash I will buy the parts as I can. Hard Drives and Optical Drives are usually first! J

So here is the Config List:

1. ThermalTake Tsunami Chassis – Acquired
2. ThermalTake ToughPower 850W Modular PSU
   1. $239.99
   2. Priced from ZipZoomFly - http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=371371
   3. I think 850W will be enough for the entire system. I may look at 1000W units when the time comes to see what the price difference is. Currently they are $100 more
3. NVIDIA 680i SLI Motherboard - Acquired
4. Intel Core 2 Extreme Quad Core 3.0GHz CPU
   1. $1,059.99
   2. Priced it From NewEgg - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115034
   3. Want the Retail Version for the Manufacturer's Fan and Ducts
5. Corsair 1GB Dominator RAM - Acquired
6. Western Digital Caviar SE16 400GB HDD x3
   1. $284.97 ($94.99 Individually)
   2. Priced it From NewEgg - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136004
   3. The 680i Motherboard has a built in SATA RAID Controller. I want RAID-5 so Three Drive Minimum
   4. I will probably create a 20GB OS Partition and Remaining Data Partition. Of course I would have over 1TB so maybe a large OS and Program Files partition.
7. NVIDIA Quadro FX 5600 GPU
   1. $2,499.99
   2. Priced it from TigerDirect - http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3501279&CatId=320
   3. The mack-daddy of video cards. It is really made for 3D Modeling and Animation and outperforms the normal enthusiast and gamer GPUs. On-board GPU memory is 1.5GB. Most expensive part of the system but will keep me in business for many years to come!
8. LiteOn CD/DVD Burner Optical Drive - Acquired

Total System Cost is a little over 5K. I currently have over 4K of stuff to get. Not planning on finishing for a while.

Some people might be asking what about monitors? I currently have two 19" Acer LCDs. They are on an Ergotron Arm Mount. When the new system is finished the old PC will become just a server for File Sharing, Domain Controller, DNS, DHCP, and all that other networking stuff. I will probably post images of the build as it comes along. Currently the motherboard is installed in the chassis. Fairly painless install except for when I broke the top cover off of the chassis. ThermalTake replaced it for free… cool deal!

The only thing I have yet to figure out is which OS I plan to install. I have copied of everything through my MSDN subscription for development work and Action Pack subscriptions. I do not plan to install a Server OS as the compatibility gets to be a pain. Right now it looks like I might stick with Windows XP SP2, but it depends on where Microsoft is with Vista when I finish. I think Vista has a lot of possibilities, but there are also a lot of things that Microsoft needs to address before I really recommend or use Vista. Obviously with the system above performance will not be an issue, but just overall OS speed is a problem.

Ok there are some lingering things to look into as well. I did not price out an Audio Card… first because the Motherboard has onboard 24-Bit HD Audio support as well as Digital Audio Support. Also, because I probably would not install a conventional Audio Card like SoundBlaster's Audigy. I would probably look more into Industrial Sound Cards that have MIDI interface support for software programs like Adobe Audition, or Avid's ProTools. I also have to price out all of the additional editing and production tools like ProTools and decide on which video production system to go with. Adobe made lots of changes to their entire product lineup but then again so did Avid.

Ok, well that's enough for now. Hopefully I should have more soon. I will probably place the order for the optical drive and maybe even a hard drive soon.

Welcome!

I have been playing with a few different blogging systems and decided to go with dasBlog.  Pretty powerful and all around cool.  I like the choice of themes, I use the SharePoint Portal by default.  Welcome and check back soon for everything I do.

Thanks

Brent