Week of 6th March, 2006

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Monday, 6th March

I worked on Simon's new computer today. It's a Dell 5150, with 512MB of memory, a 160GB SATA HD, combo DVD/CD Writer, and a very nice Dell-branded 17 inch analogue LCD which runs at 1280x1024 natively. Nice machine.

It woke straight up when I plugged it all together, and started configuring. But then I hit a few knots...

First, McAffee Security Suite. Which I managed to uninstall (and it really didn't want to go. I had to stop all it's functions individually, before the uninstaller would work) before replacing it with AVG Free for anti-virus. Removing McAffee restarted the Windows Firewall, so that's good. Then I added AdAware, and did scans - completely clean, as expected. So I added MS Office 2000, with no problem.

Then there were Corel Paint Shop Pro X, and Corel Photo Album, both trial versions. What is the point of a 3 month trial? So I removed them. And, after a reboot Sonic Update Manager popped up, wanting to repair a damaged installation. Of course, it couldn't - no install CD. And it wouldn't cancel - I had to use task manager. There was no way I could find to get that fixed, so I wiped the machine and restored it to factory original. I wasn't sure exactly what software was under Sonic management - it eventually turned out to be the Corel apps. But I only found that out after the second uninstall round. Restore points didn't work either - there was always a file missing.

So, after another factory restore, I had to fight McAffee again. But I left the Corel apps. in situ, although I removed the desktop shortcuts. Then I noticed that Roxio Creator, the CD burning software, is branded as a division of Sonic. I'm almost tempted to remove all of their software and install something like Nero - provided I can be sure Nero supports the CD writer. BTW, Simon didn't want the optional DVD writer

All that ate most of the afternoon and early evening. So I boxed the machine up, and took it back to Simon. We got his ADSL upgrade started, 1Mbit/sec downlink rate, for UKP14.99 a month, with a 2GB/month download cap. But he's not like me, so 2GB a month should be enough. The Dell has no modem, so it'll remain boxed up until the ADSL goes through. I'll go over again at the weekend, and get his machines networked, so that we can recover all the files from the old Packard Bell desktop, before probably scrapping it. By then, I should have the new Netgear PoE switch installed here, freeing an ordinary FS108 10/100 switch for Simon's use. If not, there's always a 10Mbit hub as a temporary kluge.

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Tuesday, 7th March

Yesterday, I 'phoned Galleon Systems about one of their MSF receivers. The web site doesn't quote prices for anything - you have to contact them via 'phone or e-mail. The salesman said, "We don't sell the Active Antenna any more," and didn't know of a replacement. But one of his technical colleagues is supposed to call me. It is now nearly 6 p.m. No call. Evidently they don't want my business. But no-one else does an equivalent.

For the NTP server, I'm now looking at an Acme Fox from www.acmesystems.it, which is a very small embedded computer built round an Axis LX-100 multi-chip module. They also do a custom case for the board, in the shape of Tux the penguin, which, although twee, is not on my radar. The board seems adequately powerful for the task I'm proposing, and it's cheaper than the Technologic Systems TS-7200. It'll also be easier to add an MSF receiver at a later date, if I want to experiment with that.

The second of our four endowment policies pays out at the beginning of May. This is the first one we took out, back in 1981, and it's paid off handsomely - about a third more than it was taken out to give. This is, of course, good - but we don't need it, since what mortgage we have is run on a pure repayment basis. So the funds will probably be invested. Oh, and before anyone thinks about e-mailing us with "investment opportunities" - don't. Any such missives will be sent direct to /dev/null, and their senders blacklisted.

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Wednesday, 8th March

The new Netgear switch - the FS108P PoE-capable one - arrived this morning. I had a look in the box, and it has a table-top power brick, with CEE22 mains connector, which is good. But... the DC lead has a right-angle connector on it, and a moulded-on ferrite interference suppressor - both of which are too big for the hole in the wall that I'll have to thread the cable through. So I'll have to thread an extension cable through the wall, which I should have done last time I upgraded the stairwell hub/switch. I don't have a suitable cable to hand - it needs to be 5.5/2.1mm coaxial plug to socket - but I think Maplin do them. I'll pick one up Friday and wire it in.

And Sarah's car is booked for it's yearly roadworthiness test (the MoT) on Friday.

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Thursday, 9th March

The usual middle shift line feed madness these 2 days, with a frankly ridiculous number of feeds of single promos. We are going to suggest that each country has a "promo hour" every day - all promos from that country to be fed during that time, and "if it ain't fed, it ain't aired." I suspect nothing will come of that suggestion, but we can hope...

And the freelance man who should have been covering the middle shift tomorrow has called in sick, so I got the offer. Yes, thanks, although getting to Maplin's will be a bit more difficult now...

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Friday, 10th March

And all worked out well. Maplin didn't have the pre-made lead, but I bought the discrete bits to build it, Sarah's car got it's test certificate, and my overtime worked out as expected. And I've booked Ally in to have his new thermostat fitted - that'll be Wednesday morning, while-I-wait.

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Saturday, 11th March

To replace the Netgear switch in the stairwell requires disconnecting the network cable that runs through the same hole as the power lead, and pulling both cables out separately. I then pulled in the bare-wire end of the new power cable, and tried to solder it to the appropriate socket - after I'd found my soldering iron, which in itself was a saga.

And, of course, these sockets aren't easy to solder, especially when you're kneeling on the floor, without a "third hand" to hold the connector, while you wield soldering iron in your left hand, solder in your right hand, and the cable you are trying to terminate in your third hand.

This is a nonsense. So I bodged a little - I soldered a couple of short wires to the loose socket, downstairs, where I could see, and then brought the assembly up and soldered the loose ends together. There are, of course, two ways to do this - one will reverse the polarity, the other one won't - and, for a miracle, I got it right first time. Testing showed 12 volts present at the loose plug in the stairwell, of the same polarity as the power brick was emitting. Which is a (minor) result.

Then I could take down the old switch, and plug up the new, once I found a suitable CEE22 extension cable. And it worked - no smoke, just green LEDs where there should be LEDs. Result. I haven't heard from Jenny, who gets her Internet via that switch, so I assume all is OK. Now I can move the Netgear WAP into the stairwell, where I hope it will give improved coverage.

Our first group of students have left, and we await the second group, who arrive tomorrow morning. Of course, cleaning, hoovering, washing of bedlinen and such things will happen in the interim.

And the piano tuner will attend next Wednesday, to keep the piano tuned up.

Oh yes - I discovered that I may not have invoiced all of last year's feelance work, which will be a nice piece of change, if so be as I'm right, and these invoices haven't been sent. Now to check - but that's on Optimum, not the Acer, which is where I'm typing this.

Later: As you were - that's Celery, not Optimum. And Celery is shut down and disconnected. But his backup is on Emperor, so I looked there, and discovered 3 shifts that I hadn't invoiced. Not as many as I'd thought, but even so, 3 shifts are 3 shifts, and worth money.

And Simon missed me, so we rebooked for early tomorrow afternoon, when I will attempt to install his network. And maybe the ADSL will have been turned up, as well.

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Sunday, 12th March

Right - Simon's router is installed, and works. Internally, that is. Once I'd got everything plumbed in (and there are cable monsters behind that dsk!) the new Dell machine fired up and worked. A small reconfiguration later, and Simon's data files could be moved over the network. Including Ale's degree dissertation, which was otherwise unbackedup. At least there is now a safety copy.

Having done that, I turned to the router. Simon had e-mail from his ISP (Freeserve, now owned by the French company Wanadoo - hence my referring to them as Le Freeswerve, a Register-ism that appeals to my warped sense of humour) so I typed the details into the router's config pages, but since there was no ADSL bitstream, nothing happened. We discussed configurations for a while, and I undertook (as a birthday present) to provide a print server, so that Simon and Luke will be able to print.

Then I noticed that the bitstream light on the router wasn't flashing any more - it was on, solid. Oooh - let's see. Will it work? And it did - for a while. Until bitstream went away. Evidently BT haven't yet finished the commissioning. But it looks hopeful. Certainly the login details work, as does the new router, so I don't have to fight RMA-ing. So we left it at that - the old machine will still dial-up, so Simon has access just like before. Soon, all will be sweetness. 1 Mbit download rate - nice.

Later: Simon's print server will be a D-Link DP-300u, with 2 parallel ports and a USB port. He'll need a parallel port for his old Canon, and the HP Deskjet photo printer will live on the USB port. Now to source it. And while I'm at it I want to find a way of doing lpr printing from Win98.

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