Home Of Serendipity

For those that haven’t noticed, this blog is using Wordpress. This is freely available for download from their website. If like me your using it on a Macintosh server and want to use a feature like Permalink, you may be having problems. The Wordpress documentation describes these as:

Permalinks are the permanent URLs to your individual weblog posts, as well as categories and other lists of weblog postings. A permalink is what another weblogger will use to refer to your article (or section), or how you might send a link to your story in an e-mail message. Especially when they are used to link to individual postings, once a story is posted, the URL to it should be permanent, and never change. Hence.. permalink.

This is a really nice feature but the Apache server settings on the Mac are overridden. In order for Permalinks to work you need an “.htacces” file which is a “distributed configuration file”. This provides a way to make configuration changes in each directory. A file, containing one or more configuration directives, is placed in a particular document directory, and the directives apply to that directory, and all subdirectories thereof. This is needed for these fancy links to work but the Mac Server overrides them.

To fix this problem simply go to the Web option in your ServerAdmin application. Select the website that’s using Wordpress under the Sites toolbar and select Options.

Under the Apache options list, ensure that “Allow All Overrides” tick box is checked. This will allow Apache to use your “.htaccess” files and the Permalinks will run as they should.

Had a job interview today in Dublin and wanted to take my laptop with me, but, battery was dead. Decided to take it anyway, there might just be a plug socket somewhere.

On my way from Belfast to Dublin, called into Halfords to purchase a new windscreen wiper and there was the E:Can from Ring. This little wonder container is a power inverter for your car. Plug it into the power outlet of your car and anything up to 150 watt into the other end. It’s shaped, as the name suggests, like a can and fits into the drinks holder of the car. There is even a separate USB connector to charge the likes of Apples ipod.

By the time I’d reached Dublin the MacBook was charged enough for over an hour of usage. This is one great little gadget that I’ll be using quite a bit.

I work one day a week in a relatively small school in County Antrim. My job there is to help out with the computer systems, networking, etc…

Today was a Baker day. No kids, just staff. This means that its time to start cleaning the computers. I usually start of with the mice, removing the mouse ball cover and cleaning the ball and rollers. It really does surprise me how much gunk can get on those small rollers. We’ve tried many a product and all either, simply don’t do their job, or tend to make a bigger mess.

The only real solution I’ve managed to find is using you finger nail. I know, I know, it sounds gross, but it does work. After about 50 computer mouse roller later you have a nice concave section in your nail that just cleans the black tar like muck off no problem. No fuss, no mess.

If anyone comes across a cleaning product that really does “what it says on the tin” and can be used in over a hundred computers then please let me know.

A few weeks ago the company I’m involved with, infurious, suggested for me to start a blog, and get involved with the whole blog-a-sphere thing. This is my attempt at doing such a thing.

I’m still trying to figure out what sort of items to blog about, creating a few categories to get the old mind going, and plenty of coffee to help remind the old mind to blog. I think that makes sense.

Okay, keep posted.