The Problem

Using Cisco VPN in a 64-bit Windows Operating System

I recently made the switch to Windows 7 and at the same time made the jump from 32-bit to 64-bit.  So far so good, except for. . .

The Cisco VPN Client Read more…

So the nerd level of this post is slightly higher than normal, but I have recently been working on a couple of Windows Server 2008 R2 systems. The machines are running on VMWare ESX 3.5.

Randomly, and usually while browsing the Start Menu or Windows Explorer, the system would hang. It was still responsive to ping, but I could not access the system through VNC, Remote Desktop or the VMWare console. Read more…

Mike Tyson, Jack McBrayer, Lindsey Buckingham

Al Gore, Mindy Kaling, Lindsey Buckingham

Leslie Faree, James Franco, Lindsey Buckingham

About a year ago, I recommended to you, the handful of readers of Marktastic, that Lunarpages was a great place to host a website. This site was initially hosted there.

I want to apologize for any of you that took my word and went with Lunarpages. They are awful. I found quickly after this site got up and going that it would be frequently turned off by Lunarpages “Support”. Apparently, a portion of my site was pegging a the processor on my shared server. I run Wordpress with a lot of plugins, so I can see that this would be possible if I had a suspect plugin or script installed.

What was very frustrating is that there was no warning about the disabled site and no usable information was provided about which script was causing the problem, when the problem was occurring or for what duration. I would get a process listing from their server showing that index.php had gone rogue, but that was all.

I would go back and forth with their tech support and eventually they would re-enable my script, even though I wouldn’t change any part of my site. It got to be too much, too often.

I had already pre-paid for 2 years of service when I gave up and sought out a refund from Lunarpages. Well, they have a very shady policy that only offers a refund within 30 days of opening an account. If you decide to abandon them before the end of your term, you are out the money.

I searched for a new host and am currently with Dreamhost. Thus far, they have been great. My site has not been turned off and the features of the site are so much better.

Ultimately, I’ve abandoned Lunarpages and would highly discourage anyone from using their service. Because they suck.

Dear St. Louis Blues:

I love you. I really do. You’ve been my hockey team for a long time. I’ve put up with a lot of mediocrity. I’ve put up with those God awful jerseys that had way too much red in them. For a time, I bought into the notion that simply making the playoffs was a successful season; that maintaining a streak of 26 consecutive playoff appearances was a great accomplishment. After the lockout, I hoped that your streak would be broken, so that the focus of a season was not getting to the playoffs, but winning them. The new ownership groups seems committed to that end. Read more…

Sean Connery, French Stewart and Burt Reynolds

Kathie Lee, Tom Hanks, Sean Connery and Burt Reynolds

Tom Cruise, Adam Sandler and Sean Connery

Bill Cosby, Sharon Osbourne and Sean Connery

A couple of hilarious Brian Fellows clips from SNL.

I wish Hulu would post the Brian Fellow’s sketches with the porcupine and the goat.

The Spanish police should teach classes on the proper way to stop a criminal.

I love Microsoft Excel. Excel is far and away my favorite application. It has recently helped me lose over 30 pounds. Read more…

I use Excel all the time. I’ve been on the 2007 version for quite some time and I still can’t get over the ugly pastel color scheme that Microsoft provided us with for the new version.

Read more…