The WordCampEd Vancouver 2009 website was just moved from a PBWiki site to a shiny new WordPress site. It was odd not using WordPress to power the website for a WordPress-related event, but initially I thought it made more sense to just use a free, low-friction service like PBWiki.
But, now we’ve got a WordPress site, configured to behave kinda wiki-like. Anyone can login (either by creating an account or by using OpenID). Once logged in, you can edit any of the pages, including Sessions, Attendees, Logistics, etc… You can also create new pages (although new pages may need to be “approved” before going live).
The evil spammers have websites listing blogs that are ripe targets for their filthy spam, so it’s only fair that we also share ways to successfully beat them back into submission. I’ve been using Akismet pretty much exclusively on my blog since switching back to WordPress. It’s been pretty good, but sometimes goes into “large-bore sieve mode” and lets in gobs of nastiness. I’d tried Mollom, and while it’s interesting, it didn’t have much luck against the particular flavours of spiced ham that get thrown at my blog.
I’m working on my third year in a photo-a-day photography project, and there are days when it’s pretty near impossible to think of something to shoot. On days like that, you need an assignment - someone to give you a topic or subject, and you go hunting for (or staging) a photo to meet the assignment.
I thought it would be prudent to test the plugins, mu-plugins and themes I run at ucalgaryblogs.ca on the latest prerelease snapshot of WordPress Multiuser 2.7, to check for any incompatibilities or strangenesses. I grabbed the .zip archive from the SVN repository, dropped it onto my desktop, and installed a new site. I then grabbed the contents of my mu-plugins and plugins directories, and a subset of the themes that are used. After farting around repairing some file permission errors (caused by FTPing the files from the server to my desktop under a different user than apache runs under…) it looks like everything Just Works™.
A few times on Twitter, I’ve mentioned how “easy” it is to move stuff between servers using the rsync shell command. It’s actually an extremely powerful program for synchronizing two directories - even if they’re not on the same volume, or even on the same computer. To do this, you’ll need to login to one of the servers via SSH. Once there, invoke the geeky incantation:
What that basically says is, “run rsync, and tell it to recursively copy all directories, preserving file creation and modification times, maintaining proper symlinks (for aliases and stuff like that), compress the files as they’re being copied in order to save bandwidth, and provide verbose updates as you’re doing it. Use SSH as the protocol, to securely transfer stuff from the current directory to the server ‘hostname’ using the username ‘username’. On that destination server, stuff the files and directories into ‘/path/to/directory’”
Best $50 I’ve spent in a long, long time. My music library is not pretty much DRM-free. What was that about the evil Apple lockin again?
Update: doh. looks like the process has a glitch or two. I’m sure that’ll get worked out really quickly though. This is what I get when I click the “Buy” button shown above:
Update 2: GAH! I tried to post a question on the Apple Support site to see wtf, but can’t seem to find the button to do that. No email link. No support available. My only option is to wait a day or so and try again. Fail.
click the image above, or, if you don’t want the embedded QuickTime version, there’s the slideshow on Flickr.
The 2008 366photos photo a day project wrapped up last night. I don’t have anything deep or profound to say about it, other than I’m really glad Alan talked me into doing a second year (after doing 2007/365 the year before). I didn’t think I’d be able to do it, but it’s been fun. It’s been hard - I knew it would be, but there were a few times where I almost dropped the project. It’s been surprisingly rewarding. And it’s been inspiring, watching the other people who have taken on the project for the year.
I mean, of course, if money is no object, get the most pimp-daddiest MacBook Pro with gills of RAM and stuff. But… Will the new solid aluminum case MacBooks do the trick? (and, yeah, if money truly was no object, I KNOW I’d rather get a fully maxed out Mac Pro with dual 30" displays and terabytes of storage…)
I need to replace my antique home system, and need something that can run Aperture well (not necessarily pro speed, but well enough that I don’t want to throw the fracking thing across the room while waiting for it to catch up…). I’d initially planned on getting a 20" iMac, but think it’ll be better to maintain mobility.
I didn’t really have a distance target for bike riding this year. I did 3160km in 2007, and thought I might be able to hit 3500km without much trouble. But this summer, I realized that at the pace I was keeping, there was a chance to hit 4500km or even 5000km by the end of 2008. I kept riding, and almost fanned on it due to weather and vacation. But I got back on the bike for a ride along the Bow River this morning, rolling the odometer over 5000km. It was a really great day for a ride. There was a lot of snow and ice, but the path along the river is well groomed so the ride was pretty easy. It was only about -12ËšC out, and I was dressed for much colder, so it was definitely fun. I wound up riding from Edworthy Park, along the path beside Memorial Drive, and past downtown to the Zoo before turning around. Not many other bikes out, but I wasn’t the only one…
Photography literally means “the process of drawing with light” - it’s not “taking pictures of people or things,” it’s all about playing with light. If the light isn’t there, there’s no photograph. If the light is boring, the photograph is boring. But, if the light is right, even the most boring subject is transformed into something magical.
Much of the time, when I jump to grab my camera, it’s because the light has caught my eye. Warm light coming through a window. Light refracting through glass. Reflecting off of a surface. Sometimes it’s just a property of the light that catches my attention - warmth, softness, darkness, harshness.
I have found myself drawn to channels that are best described as “alternate” - outside the traditional scope of the Institution. I publish, but on my own blog. I provide support and services, but for software and tools that are not blessed by the University. I share everything I do under a simple Creative Commons license, without worrying about control or ownership. I exist, from some perspectives, outside of the Institution.
