google maps adds hybrid feature

They just keep making it better. This is the end of our overlay hacks. They have a "hybrid view". Good job google. Maybe they are out of new ideas? hardly.

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Sony's PSP to browse the Web, play TV

Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI) will release a system software update for its PlayStation Portable (PSP) next week that will add several new functions to the handheld gaming device, including the ability to browse the Internet and download TV programs, the company said Thursday.

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How to pick a lock

ever wondered how to pick a lock...well now you can know. i have tried the pin column lock explanation they gave and it was open with no problem

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How To Install Windows in Ubuntu Linux

Running Linux? Want the compatability of Windows? You can now have it with this moderately easy guide.

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Why Everyone Should Mod Everything

Electrical engineer David Randolph on how and why everyone (even the biggest n00bs) can and should find the inspiration to become modders and what it really means to be a "modder".

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Run GNU/Linux from a USB pen drive

You can carry GNU/Linux in your pocket with a functional, quick, and useful USB pen drive distribution. Pen drives are faster than CDs, and the small distros that fit on them don't require huge amounts of memory for the operating system and applications.

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So much to do, So little time

I seem to have slacked off big time in my updating here.

First off, the new job is getting a bit tiresome thanks to management but I can deal. The work is still proving to be interesting though. I have been trying to keep up my skills on the side as well. I'm currently trying to up my skills in Linux by doing a Stage 1 installation of Gentoo, which is pretty much starting with very little and trying to build up a system from it. I'm currently doing this on my laptop which is not very fast, so it will probably take me a few weeks to finally get it done. Not because it's that slow but I seem to need some extra steps in between all the slow steps that are dragging things out. I have a system at work that is Gentoo so that is the main reason why I'm doing this, it doesn't work right now and I'm trying to get a better background in Gentoo to try and fix it. After Gentoo I'll probably try to get into some LiveCDs and the eventually LFS (Linux From Scratch)

To all who know me its definitely no secret that I prefer using linux over windows, but at work that's pretty much most of my job. I'm pretty much getting everything down since I really didnt have much background in administration within a windows environment, but I think I can hold my own with Exchange and Active Directory now. I'm really into the scripting now, since I know you can script just about everything I'm trying to build an admin console for myself that will house some of my most used scripts.

Idea Bin:
Net Admin LiveCD (WMI scripting, Nagios monitoring, blah blah, ...and other stuff)
Custom Linux Distro
Office solution for small/med sized businesses (Computers, Phones, Software, pretty much all the basics)

Maybe it is working

Well it appears as if this freaking thing is working, so I should now be able to better categorize my posts

this freaking thing isnt working

this isnt working

Old logo

I had first started techlife as a club on blackplanet.com, this used to be one of my logos

[::: Bad Boy of Tech ::: Black Sheep of Psych :::] Toolbars

I don't really use any of the toolbars/desktop utilities that are out
right now, I usually just google everything from the main page and all
my popups are blocked thanks to Firefox. Now with everyone fighting
for a place on your desktop and web browser with a search bar I may
just have to try them out to see if any are of any use.

Microsoft
MSN Toolbar - I'm definitely not a windows guy but I'll still try
this out to what it offers.
Microsoft Desktop - Oh wait.... that's built in, Let's see how it compares :)

Yahoo
Yahoo Toolbar - I think I've used this one before but I'll install it again
Yahoo Desktop - "Requires Windows XP or Windows 2000 SP 3+" .... yea, ok

Google
Google Toolbar - Just Google it
Google Desktop - Haven't tried this but I'll give it a shot


--
Posted by TJ to ::: Bad Boy of Tech ::: Black Sheep of Psych ::: at
2/4/2005 05:25:46 PM

I had a hell of a time getting that freakin Earthlink cable modem to work with my Redhat 8.0 box. I finally said forget it and decided to get the router up and running instead of messin with that box. I was going to run smoothwall 2.0 but due to networking issues that I had not resolved I couldnt get the .iso to the right machine. So I went with Coyote Linux, I've used it before so I pretty much knew what to expect. I used the windows disk creator and after I made the disk and brought the box up I still couldnt get a valid IP. So I tried all types of stuff to get it working... I copied all the IP information that it had when under windows and typed it into the config... that didnt work. Finally it came down to me just rebooting the modem and bam!!! its up. I have 2 other computers up and on the net as well, I even have my packet 8 phone working too.

Well here's what I learned from my first little experience with PHP & libcurl .....

base href="http://www.mctreas.org/"

// ACCESS DAYTON PUBLIC RECORDS SITE

$url = "http://www.mctreas.org/Message_IsProcessing.cfm";

$ch = curl_init();  // initialize curl handle

curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_URL,$url);

curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_FAILONERROR, 1);

curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_FOLLOWLOCATION, 1);

// allow redirects

curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, 1);

// return into a variable

curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_TIMEOUT, 3);

// times out after 4s

curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POST, 1); // set POST method

curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS,

"streetnbr=1673&streetname=

earlham%20&own1=&parid=&taxyr=2003");

// add post fields



$result = curl_exec($ch); // run the whole process

print_r(curl_getinfo($ch));

echo "\n\ncURL error number:" .curl_errno($ch);

echo "\n\ncURL error:" . curl_error($ch);



curl_close($ch);

print $result;

?>

This little code right here did a basic post to a website and printed out the results from it or really gave me the page that it redirects to. It's the first step along this road and its a very good one. Oh, and to display code in a blog just take out a "<" and replace it with & l t ; Just smush it back together when you do.

I'll try to keep my more technical posts over here on TechLife & leave Mindstates for what's going on in my head. I think the first problem I need to try and tackle is with page scraping. I need to access this public records site but I need to fill out a form first to get the information I want. I know page scraping is the way to go, I just need to learn more about it. When I get through and get it working I'll post up any working code that I have.

In providing this blog the purpose stands to be to further any knowledge of technology a person might have that visits this place. I have a deep love of technology and I would like to do my best to show people that by showing them how it can work for them.
Now after that wonderful little intro I would like to say that I spend waaay too much time online (like 40+ hours), so I think that whatever I find I need to share with other people else I'm spending too much time on here for nothing. I run into a lot of info so whatever I find I'll be sure to bring back and share with all. So I'm gonna try not to talk straight "techy" speak, I want to find things that will get regular people involved without having them say "huh?" every other word. So until I bring back some stuff...I'm out.