Month: March 2005

Ohhh…this one is classic! [here]

“You can search the hard drives of other computers on your network with Google’s new desktop search. I followed the instructions on the site and I was able to search through my roommate’s computer. Quite a scary bug in one of Google’s fastest growing programs.”

YIKES!

I use a major Northeastern US bank. Today is the second day in a row that they have effectively been unreachable through their Web interface.
From the customer service rep I talked to last night, I got the feeling they lost their backend and have had to re-build it from transaction and rollback logs.
And today, their system is swamped.
Not a good scene.

As the Web moves toward the delivery of services, I have been ruminating on the continuing importance of browsers.
Scoble writes:

Oh, well, back to my RSS news aggregator. That’s where I spend 90% of my Internet time now anyway. Are you still using a Web browser? Good. I’ve been telling audiences that those of you still using Web browsers are wasting your time. I think that Opera might be more concerned by that.

I agree. I use Firefox to handle large applications, such as my employers interface, and my blog editor, but beyond that, it has become less and less important in my everyday online life.
This is the trend. HTTP and HTTPS will be the vehicles to deliver this data. Web servers will become more and more important, but as transformation and application servers for back-end data, not as presentation and image servers.
This is a long-term trend. But it also explains things like the decline of Slashdot. Although they have had an RSS feed for a long time, their bleeding-edge readers found that Slashdot was no longer bleeding-edge. Information is flowing faster and in a more personalized manner through aggregator, desktop and online.
I agree with Scoble (something that happens infrequently): the browser war may be irrelevant. The Web Application era has begun.

I am sitting here listening to Warren Zevon.
And then I remembered this gem. Hunter and Warren. Watching the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The world is a lesser place without all three things.

I like the way Hakon Wium Lie thinks. He and the Web Standards Team have come up with a browser ‘acid test’ called ACID2.
I seriously hope the the MSIE7 team takes up the challenge. No designer should have to design for a browser; they should design to the standards.
From C|Net. [here]

Jeremy Wright of Ensight, and other fine blogging sites, had a nightmare run-in with the Department of Homeland Security at a border crossing.
I have never had an encounter like the one he had, but as a Canadian living in the US for the past six years (with valid TN-1 and H1-B visaa) I still get the third, fourth and fifth degree from DHS every time I cross back into the US.
I have always expected this to happen to me. It should happen to no one.
More people who comment on this. [here and here and here and here and here and here]

The folks at Port80 Software have released Version 3.0 of httpZip, their compression and caching application for IIS servers.
Looks like thay have put a lot of time and effort into this new release, with great features such as a compression cache to prevent unecessary re-compression of frequently requested files, and better server resource controls.
Congrats!

DISCLAIMER:
I am not paid or compensated in any way to promote the products of Port80 Software.

I have decided to just retire GrabPERF. I have locked the access, and will give passwords out to anyone who requests one.
Traffic is pretty light to the site anyway. Pretty sure no one will notice.

I have reduced the number of measurements taken by the GrabPERF system down to 24 URLs every 15 minutes.
Also, I have purged the archives and data tables of all of the inactive measurements.
I feel a little sad, yet relieved that I am starting to trim this system back. I feel that unless I get some large outpouring of support, or interest, I will disable the system entirely on April 15, 2005.

The GrabPERF Measurement script is available here if you would like to take a crack at enhancing it.

For those of you who use GrabPERF, please note that I have reduced the measurement cycle to once every 15 minutes.
Currently, I am not using this system for much, and I am looking for a graceful way to retire it, or pass along the code, as I can no longer reliably host or maintain the system because:

1. I am running low on disk space that I could be using for a home file server
2. The machines can no longer effectively and efficiently maintain and process the volume of data that I have stored from my measurements
3. I have lost interest in further development

I am actively entertaining interested parties who would like to take this on and evolve it.