Re: WordPress moving away from PHP to JavaScript
Can’t tell you. I think it’s optimized for Chromium. The only browser I’ve had any trouble with is Safari. -David Schwartz > On Aug 1, 2024, at 3:02 PM, techli...@phpcoderusa.com wrote: > > On 2024-08-01 14:34, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss wrote: >> Javascript is morphing into a universal assembly language / portable >> intermediate language for web-based needs. It’s also used on an increasing >> number of back-end services. It’s not exclusively for Ajax any more. >> I use something called TMS WEB Core that uses the pas2js transpiler to >> compile Delphi/Object Pascal into js that lets you build web apps within the >> Delphi IDE written in Object Pascal, and it runs inside the web browser. >> They had to add some (very welcome) tweaks to the OP language to deal with >> async issues, but it’s really cool and very easy to work with. I can’t say >> if Delphi itself is growing, but it works with FreePascal and Lazarus as >> well. >> They have a new feature in beta that provides a full live HTML editor within >> the Delph IDE that will make it a LOT easier to do fully responsive UI >> design using HTML4 and CSS. >> -David Schwartz > > > How does Delphi, and others, deal with the quirkiness of JS - each browser > interprets JS just a little different? > > > >>> On Aug 1, 2024, at 1:43 PM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss >>> wrote: >>> Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss said on Wed, 31 Jul 2024 08:31:09 -0700 >>>> Hi, >>>> I read that WordPress is on a 10 year plan to move away from PHP and >>>> become all JavaScript. >>>> Anyone aware of this? >>> 1. I wasn't aware of it. >>> 2. Why >>> 3. If it will take 10 years, is it really worth it? And 10 years from >>> now, might Javascript be considered old and not so good? I know a >>> lot of people who don't like Javascript, some people disable >>> Javascript, and some people use browsers that don't do Javascript. >> --- >> PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org >> <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> >> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: >> https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss >> <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: WordPress moving away from PHP to JavaScript
Javascript is morphing into a universal assembly language / portable intermediate language for web-based needs. It’s also used on an increasing number of back-end services. It’s not exclusively for Ajax any more. I use something called TMS WEB Core that uses the pas2js transpiler to compile Delphi/Object Pascal into js that lets you build web apps within the Delphi IDE written in Object Pascal, and it runs inside the web browser. They had to add some (very welcome) tweaks to the OP language to deal with async issues, but it’s really cool and very easy to work with. I can’t say if Delphi itself is growing, but it works with FreePascal and Lazarus as well. They have a new feature in beta that provides a full live HTML editor within the Delph IDE that will make it a LOT easier to do fully responsive UI design using HTML4 and CSS. -David Schwartz > On Aug 1, 2024, at 1:43 PM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss said on Wed, 31 Jul 2024 08:31:09 -0700 > >> Hi, >> >> I read that WordPress is on a 10 year plan to move away from PHP and >> become all JavaScript. >> >> Anyone aware of this? > > 1. I wasn't aware of it. > 2. Why > 3. If it will take 10 years, is it really worth it? And 10 years from > now, might Javascript be considered old and not so good? I know a > lot of people who don't like Javascript, some people disable > Javascript, and some people use browsers that don't do Javascript. > > --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: WordPress moving away from PHP to JavaScript
I suspect it means that WP will be turned into a gigantic back-end SaaS server and the pages will contain dozens of small js code snippets that issue requests to the back-end. That suggests the entire Admin portal will be quite transformed (it should be anyway, as it depends on so many screen reloads to update stuff). I’m not sure how the public view of the sites it generates would be affected, but take a look at other dynamic sites that are using lots of js to create what the user ultimately sees. In particular, run a Google query and then look at the page source and consider how you might parse it to pick out the various screen elements. They used to spit out a very nicely structured HTML page. Now it’s a horrible mess because Google has bent over backwards to make the content generation as hard to scrape as possible. I don’t know if WP would do that, but some users might want to make it hard for bots to scrape their sites, so why not? -David Schwartz > On Jul 31, 2024, at 4:20 PM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > > As for JS I assume that mean most of the processing has to be done in the > browser which means everything needs to travel from the server to the browser? > > Am I right on this? If I am that does not sound good. > > Keith --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: HTML, CSS and PHP
Yes. stdout for PHP goes to Apache, the same way perl CGI scripts do it. On the other end, the web browser is usually the recipient, and you use HTML and CSS to format the results for the viewer. -David Schwartz > On Jul 2, 2024, at 6:56 PM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Phil Waclawski via PLUG-discuss said on Tue, 2 Jul 2024 21:23:16 -0400 > >> I would agree. PHP basically prints to an HTML environment. So having a >> basic understanding of how the different parts interact can be of great >> help. > > Thanks Phil, > > I don't know what you mean by "prints to an HTML environment". Did you > mean it the same as Perl CGI scripts print actual HTML, or did you mean > something different? > > Thanks, > > SteveT > > Steve Litt > > http://444domains.com > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: HTML, CSS and PHP
Technically speaking, they’re not related. It’s kind of like asking how SQL and PHP are related — HTML, CSS, and SQL are all declarative languages that are frequently used by many different programmers and platofrms including PHP, python, javascript and C, which are all imperative languages. I worked with C and C++ for years, and then picked up PHP and javascript very easily because they were both closely inspired by C. They’ve all diverged somewhat since then, but if you know one, you can pick up the others fairly easily, as oppsoed to python, dbase, or APL. I’ve been working with Delphi / Object Pascal for years now, and am building web apps using TMS WEB Core, which uses a transpiler (pas2js) to convert Object Pascal code into javascript. Delphi, however, is rooted in a UI library called VCL (Visual Control Library). For web apps in WEB Core, you get to leverage all of your non-visual programming knowledge of Delphi, but using VCL concepts to implement web UIs has its limitations. They’ve added ways to decorate controls at design time with HTML and CSS snippets that get injected into the code, but if you don’t know much about CSS (like me) then it’s a PITA to build responsive forms. I wouldn’t fare any better if I was using PHP or Python either. However, I have something called AppGini that’s a mostly no-code approach to writing DB-driven apps. It generates PHP code along with HTML and some CSS. It offers some “hooks” to customize the heck out of your forms (very simlar to “event handlers” in Delphi and C#), but you have to know HTML and CSS pretty well to get anywhere with them. Back in 2015 I took on a little project using AppGini where I was shown a bunch of screens and told they were static. It was pretty easy to duplicate until the client said, “Oops, I probably should have brought that site up and shown it to you live.” I was like, “Huh?” It turned out that all of the comboboxes were populated dynamically based on other selections, and after digging a little deeper I discovered the site was built entirely in C#/.NET. At the time, AppGini couldn’t create comboboxes filled dynamically with data when another control was clicked. Since then, that feature has been added, although it requires a screen refresh. So I’d say that in the context of WEB PROGRAMMING, you need to use SOME imperative language to spit out the HTML and CSS needed to create the UI features you want. PHP is one of many languages traditionally used for that purpose. When I first learned web programming, the thing that got me the most confused was the fact that web servers like Apache spit out whatever you hand them, but what the user is dealing with is completely stateless. That was quite a radical shift from all other sorts of programming used at the time to interact with users via a display device like a CRT, as opposed to embedded systems that had no generic display. PHP may have been modeled on C, but its initial divergence had it take on features to help manage this lack of statefulness in web apps. Web servers like Apache added additional features to help, and newer languages followed suit. Javascript really broke down that barrier with the introduction of libraries that let you trigger browser-side JS functions in reaction to UI input that could issue requests to the server and get responses back without having to reload / refresh the web page. The things that responded to those asynch requests might have been implemented in PHP, Python, or something else, but it wasn’t likely to be JS — although today it could be. -David Schwartz > On Jul 2, 2024, at 2:12 PM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Hi all, > > This is a question for our resident PHP expert Keith Smith, but others > please feel free to chime in... > > In what ways, if any, is knowledge of HTML and CSS valuable to a PHP > programmer? > > Thanks, > > SteveT > > Steve Litt > http://444domains.com > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: DNS Records
If I understand you correctly, you are looking for a simple way to host a static web page somewhere. I think you can do that on Dropbox. You can certainly do it with Amazon S3 very cheaply; configuring it can be a bit challenging, but I’ve seen several videos on YT that explain how to do it. (On S3 you’re mainly charged for download bandwidth and a tiny bit for storage. A simple static web page with a few images would cost you less than one cup of coffee per year.) Otherwise, you need Apache or something similar running somewhere that can respond to https requests sent to yourdomain.com:80 Most registrars these days offer really cheap web hosting for $2-$3 per month paid on an annual basis that provide you with all of the basic services. For $25-$30 / year, I’d rather get a full suite of services on a reliable host that’s not likely to disappear because people are hosting all sorts of crap sites that attract DDOS attacks for spamming. This would include mail hosting. I’ve used NameSilo’s hosting and it’s pretty decent. Note that while I prefer cPanel, they charge a lot to hosting vendors, so that hosting is always going to be a little more expensive than something that uses a different control panel, but there are some really good alternatives these days that are designed to mimic cPanel fairly closely. IMHO, you get what you pay for, and if your time is worth anything, then pay a few bucks for a reliable host. -David Schwartz > On Jun 25, 2024, at 11:08 AM, AZ Pete via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > All, > I currently have my own domain and am using Proton mail as my mail provider > using this domain. As such, my DNS MX records point to their mail servers, as > well as several TXT records for domain validation (i.e. spf, dmarc, etc). I > currently have a single page static website for the domain hosted at another > provider and the DNS A record points to that server (Proton Mail is not a > hosting provider). However, this server will be decommissioned in a few weeks > and I would prefer not to have to pay for a separate hosting plan just host a > simple static web site. > > The main purpose of this domain is for email use, but it would be nice to > have the domain resolve to an actual website, if someone were to go there > with a browser. Does anyone have any ideas on where I can point my DNS A > records to for a simple static website, ideally for free? I don't want to > poke holes through my router and host it at home. > > Thanks! > Peter > > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: AZ Developer Wages, per Feds
I’ve worked at plenty of places that are more like what you’re saying about FB, but they weren’t working on ISO 900x and CMMI certifications. I was simply reflecting on the fact that we’ve got a lot of national Headquarters for companies here in the Phoenix area that ARE working on these certifications, and this has a certain depressing effect on wages when their goal is to make people in the same roles interchangeable. That’s what these efforts are all about — minimizing risk and reducing costs. They’re turning programming into a far less creative endeavor. That requires a more mechanized approach and less variability among workers. Maintenance programmers are simply required to take a bug ticket submitted with a documented way to reproduce the error and fix it without altering any other code. -David Schwartz > On Apr 25, 2024, at 1:51 PM, Ryan Petris wrote: > > I can't say I've worked anywhere as strict as that, however I'll say that > like any other career field, there are good and bad work places. Places that > like to overly restrict things are going to lose good developers, and likely > don't pay well to begin with. > > I worked for Meta/Facebook for a year before I got laid off last year, and > I'll say that it was very much not like this. While you had regular projects > and whatnot going on, you were free to make changes you thought were > necessary or good changes to make. Now I didn't work on anything public > facing, as I'm certain there are certain controls on making changes to what > users can see, but otherwise any change just required approval from any other > developer, and it would make it into production 6 hours or so later. > --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: AZ Developer Wages, per Feds
> On Apr 25, 2024, at 11:49 AM, trent shipley via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > I think we're seeing the effect of Arizona being a provincial, 3rd world > location for headquarters and software development options. > I don’t think this is the case. Anybody who’s ever worked for a company committed to getting ISO 900x and CMMI certificated knows these programs are designed to remove variability and unpredictability from the workforce. That’s fine for manufacturing, but CMMI in particular strives to make programmers at all levels fungible — that is, easily replaceable. We do have a lot of big companies with their SW Dev HQs here, and they are very committed to meeting these “standards”. I worked at a place a while back that was working on getting CMMI Level 3, and they started pushing all sorts of ridiculous policies on us that were all outgrowths of CMMI mandates. One was that every line of code changed in the source had to tie back to a specific change request, and be commented as such. Thus, general refactoring on-the-fly was no longer allowed. During this time, I found evidence of over 100 bugs based on visual code inspections and tried mightily to get them fixed. Their policies said that only the client can submit bugs and they must be accompanied by documentation that showed exactly how to reproduce said bugs in order for us to fix them. Even though the Dev Team supposedly “owned” the backlog (under general Agile practices), we had no access to it or the ability to add to it. Most of these bugs were data-dependent and would be impossible to reproduce. To make matters worse, the errors they generated were all downstream and it was impossible to tie those errors back to the code errors I discovered. Moving up CMMI’s ladder requires a company to remove variations between individual developers and ensure that anybody with the requisite skills can be put into a job role and accomplish the same work as the previous person without any variations. This is where a lot of big corporations are moving towards, and this will have the net effect of turning most of us into robots — and probably being easily replaced by AI bots. When you write a software app, there’s a period of time when the code is being constantly revised and optimized. At some point, someone waves a magic wand and declares it’s “stable enough” for a release, and that code becomes instantly calcified under CMMI rules. From that point on, it cannot be touched without specific directives, either from the customer(s) or someone in charge of that stuff. There are growing numbers of SW Dev Managers who are opposed to unfettered code refactoring and “bug fixes” done by programmers because they believe their code changes create as many bugs, if not more, than they fix. Of course, regular code reviews would fix that, but I’ve never worked in a place that did code reviews, even though they touted them as a supposed “regular (best) practice”. Programmer time is expensive, and they don’t like wasting it. CMMI’s approach meets two goals: (1) reduces risk; (2) lowers costs. --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: AZ Developer Wages, per Feds
This appears to be simply a statistical distribution of wages in the state for this particular SIC code. Arizona has never been much of a leader when it comes to wages paid for tech workers, unless it’s a job with lots of competition. I assure you, people are not moving to AZ chasing after our amazing pay scale! It would be interesting to see a more detailed breakdown based on how many years in the field as well as specialties, like DBA, embedded systems, web dev, and so on. -David Schwartz > On Apr 25, 2024, at 9:07 AM, trent shipley via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > https://www.onetonline.org/link/localwages/15-1251.00?st=AZ > <https://www.onetonline.org/link/localwages/15-1251.00?st=AZ> > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: WordPress moving away from PHP to JavaScript
Thanks, but I’ve never used Lazarus. It would probably take several hours to get familiar enough with it to do a presentation. Surely there must be someone in Phoenix who can give a live presentation of Lazarus (or anywhere for a virtual presentation). There are plenty of videos on YT and various other sites that show off Delphi’s features. Lazarus is a homegrown IDE that’s very similar to Delphi’s IDE, and it uses Free Pascal (FPC) as the compiler. Some vendors offer support for Lazarus — TMS has it for several of their products. I’ve just never used it. Besides, programming is more of the “mechanical side” of software deveopment to me. I’m far more interested in the architecture and design aspects — coming up with unique solutions to complex or novel problems. I do have a presentation I made a few years back that I’ve updated recently that looks at problems that arise when outsourcing software. These are generic problems that apply to most non-trivial software projects, but are magnified when people think all you need to do is hire a “coder” on some job site to build your custom software. If there’s enough interest, I’d love to do that, get feedack on it, and see what kinds of questions and comments come up. -David Schwartz > On Apr 21, 2024, at 2:16 AM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss said on Sat, 20 Apr 2024 13:43:39 -0700 > > >> So I turned back to Delphi and didn’t look back. > > Hi David, > > Would you like to give a Lazarus demo/presentation at a future online > GoLUG meeting? > > Thanks, > > SteveT > > Steve Litt --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: WordPress moving away from PHP to JavaScript
I started learning Delphi (originally called TurboPascal 8) when it was first released in 1995. In 2000 I spent most of the year building a web-based app using PHP, HTML, JS, and MySQL, a project I later abandoned b/c after digging around in some open-source code I found things there that would allow anybody to build my magical thing simply by uncommenting some compiler options that prevented some existing code from working. That was quite depressing. So I turned back to Delphi and didn’t look back. There was a huge growth in Delphi’s use over the next 8-10 years in the adoption of Delphi for corporate software. It was eventually eclipsed by C#/.NET, and today the majority of jobs for Delphi programmers (in America, anyway) are maintenance positions keeping these legacy systems working. Delphi was originally owned by Borland, who renamed itself Inprise, then split off their languages into CodeGear, which was finally sold to a private equity group named Embarcadero. Embarcadero itself has been bought and absorbed into a couple more companies, but they still keep cranking out new versions of Delphi annually. One thing they have NOT done is enhance the language much (probably b/c they dumped their dev team several years ago and are mostly just a marketing company now). They keep adding stuff to the periphery that targets the more premium-priced versions of the product (through product acquisitions), and keep steadily raising the price. Consequently, most of their revenues now coms from non-US sources, including Brazil, Columbia, and several European countries. Delphi’s main target platform is still Windows, although it also supports MacOS, iOS, Android, and Linux. The world has been moving towards a situation where more and more logic is being pushed into the browser, and Delphi’s owner has done nothing to help with that. But a 3rd-party Delphi component/library vendor, TMS Software, has been working on something called TMS WEB Core that lets you write code within the Delphi IDE in Object Pascal and generate javascript apps that run in most any web browser. They’re basically using a transpiler to compile Delphi’s Object Pascal into javascript, and they’re into their fourth year of development of that technology. It’s an awesome platform. The transpiler itself, pas2js, is an open-source project, but the supporting infrastructure they use is proprietary. Thankfully, they’ve made some small enhancements to Delphi’s language to make it much easier to deal with the async nature of web programming. The thing is, Embarcadero acts as if all of this is irrelevant. They just keep plodding forward making trivial enhancements to the language and piling on more and more Windows-specific additions to the platform the same way they’ve always done. The work TMS has done is slowly gaining traction, but since the vast majority of Delphi work is simply keeping a bunch of apps written between 2004 and 2009 alive, we’re not seeing much growth in new dev work. For a little while there were some components that let you integrate php with Delphi apps, but they fizzled out pretty quickly due to lack of interest. Today there’s a lot more interest in some components that allow you to ingegrate Python scripts into Delphi. But by far the most interest is in leveraging javascript (mostly via WEB Core) to support the client-side UI aspects of your project without having to know a lick of js. Sadly, Delphi’s owners aren’t as insightful as Wordpress’ owners. My biggest complaint is that memory management that web browsers employ for js apps is horrible. It consumes system memory and loses track of it to the point where the machine (my Macs, anyway) eventually just choke and spontaneously reboot for lack of available memory. I hope Matt helps fix this problem because it impacts everybody who is using js inside of web browsers to build increasingly complex client-side apps. -David Schwartz > On Apr 20, 2024, at 7:32 AM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Hi, > > This article says WordPress is moving away from PHP to JavaScript. I think > WordPress is shooting itself in the foot. My main question has to do with > resources given the shift from server side processing to browser based > processing. > > https://thenewstack.io/why-php-usage-has-declined-by-40-in-just-over-2-years/ > > Your thoughts are much appreciated. > > Keith > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: facebook
Last week my content on FB started being displayed in some things like Spanish or Portuguese. I poked around to change the language and it said it was English, but it didn’t change. So I logged-out and logged back in and that fixed things. -David Schwartz > On Mar 4, 2024, at 6:49 AM, Michael via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > I was wondering my facebook spell-check language got changed to spanish. > Was I hacked? > > > -- > :-)~MIKE~(-: > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: new computer
Check out the latest batch of Intel-based N100 Mini PCs. They’re smaller than MacMinis. I’d say a minimal configuration would be 32GB of RAM and 1TB (or 2TB) of SSD. I’d say an N100 is minimal CPU. Some with AMD CPUs are cheaper as well. Here’s a search on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3woboP0 <https://amzn.to/3woboP0> They don’t sort very well; here’s the cheapest Linux box I found. There are cheaper ones with Windows that you can delete. https://amzn.to/48wM5rv <https://amzn.to/48wM5rv> I’ve got a 2014 MacMini, a 2014 MBP, and a 2018 MacMini and they’re still going strong. You can find late-model used Intel MacMinis for a few hundred bucks that work great. Way back in the day, the all-in-one boxes used to have problems with a serial port or the video going out and the whole thing would be dead. But that doesn’t seem to happen much any more. I use my MacMinis daily and the newer one runs the fan a lot when I’m watching videos, but other than that, they’re still humming right along. I had one of the first gen iMacs and the video card in it died shortly after the AppleCare expired. I ended up selling it for $375 anyway. Today you can buy USB-3 and USB-C expansion ports with one or more HDMI interfaces on them if the on-board video dies. Unless you need a super-high-power over-clocked water-cooled screaming machine for gaming or bitcoin mining, I cannot see the value in building a machine from scratch unless you’re trying to do it on the cheap using recycled components. What’s the point? -David Schwartz > On Feb 23, 2024, at 6:46 PM, Michael via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > I want a guy I know to put a computer together for me. I'm thinking a single > core (I don't think I need more processing power than that) with 8 gig of > ram. I'm wanting to spend $3-$400. I'm an older guy now and won't use it for > much more than web and email. What should I tell him to put in it? > > -- > :-)~MIKE~(-: > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Can someone explain this to me about impending email changes?
Apparently, Google and Microsoft (?) are implementing a change that’s going to batten down the hatches on delivering email from non-verfied sources. That requires you to get two or three fields from your SMTP host — SPF, DKIM, and DMARC — and put them into the DNS Zone records for each domain you want recognized as a FROM address. That’s fine if you have a form on your website that you want users to be able to send to you, since you can use one of your own domains as the FROM email addy, right? But here’s the rub: the user is asked to provide these fields: * Name * EMail * message So what if a site visitor enters a gmail addy like: tomsmith1...@gmail.com into the EMail field? A lot of people are stuffing that EMail right into the FROM field in the outgoing message so when it arrives, the admin can simply click Reply and it goes back to the user who provided it. But if you don’t own gmail.com, there’s no frigging way for you to generate those three fields and THEN add them to the Zone records for gmail.com ... right? If your SMTP host (relay) will only forward emails with a validated domain name in the FROM field that you told them about, then there’s no way in hell anything from anybody with, say, a gmail.com addy is going to get their email forwarded to you via your own SMTP host. I’m using MailJet as my SMTP Host, and when this site I’m using tries sending me emails where they’re putting the visitor’s email address into the FROM field of the outgoing messages, I’m getting messages like this: = We are contacting you as you (or one of your team members) tried to send an email with sender address: tomsmith1...@gmail.com. But this sender address has not been validated yet on your account: = It’s complaing about gmail.com not being validated — that is, it cannot find the correct SPF, DKIM, and/or DMARC fields in that domain’s DNS Zone records. If you’re collecting a message on YOUR SITE and simply stuffing the visitor’s email addy into the FROM header field and sending it out, how is that ever going to work if you cannot validate that visitor’s domain name? This is going to break millions of websites that send out simple email messages that way! Am I missing something? I’d think that the visitor’s email should be put into the REPLY-TO field and YOUR OWN email should go into the FROM field. Or is there some other way to make this work? -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Looking for opinions on email providers
One more thing: don’t confuse email and web hosting. I highly recommend using a 3rd-party SMTP host for all outgoing email needs. You set them up with one account, and then you can add additional domains to it. You set up SPF, DKIM, and the other stuff for each domain separately. I just set something up on MailJet. It’s not the simplest, but it’s a LOT simpler than SendGrid. They have a free account with something like 200 emails per day and 6000 per month before you have to pay for anything. There are tons of these services around, and most have a free tier that’s fine for most personal needs as long as you’re not sending out a newsletter. Now, every *nix web host already has an STMP host built-in because as I understand things, Linux won’t work without an MTA since it uses it to send stuff between different parts of itself. Sendmail, mailman, and exit are three commonly used MTAs. If you want to set up an externally accessible email, they have support for POP3 and IMAP/MAPI. You can access your email via a web mail service on the host, or run an email client on any other computer that can reach the server. Outlook is popular, along with Thunderbird which is free. I run Macs, and I have one machine that runs their Mail client that I’m using now. It’s configured to send out mails via my MailJet SMTP host. If you use Wordpress, or by extension, PHP, it uses the local SMTP host by default for outgoing emails. It’s easy to reconfigure it to use another SMTP host. The point is, if you have a domain hosted on a *nix server, then you’ve got all you need. The email is built-in; you can use a remote SMTP host that your email client and hosted apps use to sent out email; and your mail client can poll the built-in mailboxes using either POP3 or IMAP/MAPI from any other computer you might have. Since most hackers are mainly interested in hijacking your SMTP Relay to send out bulk emails, it’s far better to use an external SMTP host and throttle-down your SMTP host and shut off the Relay if you can (but I’m not sure it’s possible). By not configuring your SPF, DKIM, etc, there, it will be useless for anybody to use it. FWIW, the IP will be that of the SMTP host itself, not the machine where the messages are submitted from. -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Looking for opinions on email providers
I’d suggest getting a domain from somewhere and adding-on a cheap hosting plan like cPanel that includes email for as many mailboxes as you’ll need. Or if you have a spare domain you want to use that’s already hosted, that might do the trick. If you look around for just email hosting, you’re probably going to find it’s the same price as a cheap hosting plan because as far as the server is concerned, the email plumbing is already there. You cannot install Linux without email, but you don’t need to set up Apache if you don’t want to host a website. Personally speaking, I think this is a great opportunity to finally free yourself of a branded email host like Cox or Yahoo. They’re not your domain names, so why are you promoting them? “They’re free”. Yeah, and it makes you look cheap. Not to mention the Terms of Service you sign for a “free" account means you’re paying SOMEHOW — including possibly allowing them to scan your emails and stuffing CPA ads into your outgoing emails. When you pay for your own hosting, nobody is touching your stuff. Heck, I’ve been getting some emails from a jerk trying to con me into sending him bitcoins, and my hosting provider refuses to even look into it! Their terms prohibit it, they say. Free ain’t free. You’re gonna pay one way or another. -David Schwartz > On Jan 28, 2024, at 10:14 PM, Steven via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Apparently I am late to hearing this, but in the near future Cox will have > Yahoo take over handling all "cox.net" email accounts. I've occasionally in > the past looked at email providers but never felt much need to move. But as > long as this is going to be happening anyway I figure it's time to look > again. Does anyone have a preferred email provider? I made use of Cox > formerly offering up to six email accounts on a single residential plan to > set up an account for my sister, this account, and a couple others. Are there > reasonably trustworthy providers that don't scan all your emails in order to > push ads on you and that don't don't cost an arm and a leg? > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Forbes : 10 Highest-Paying Tech Jobs In The U.S.
ike, push a button, and it generates a personalized eBook, meditation, video, or whatever you want, tailored just for you. It’s a one-off thing and yours to do what you want with it. Why not clothing? Or blog entries? People keep speaking of this in terms of ways to replace what people are already doing. But these approaches are limited by our current abilities and resources. That’s not very useful and it’s not where AI is going to really shine. Why use AI to create more of the same garbage that nobody can find? Google has lost its ability to find stuff, and has turned into a way of generating money simply from people searching for stuff that’s getting harder and harder to find, making their search sessions longer and hence generating more profits for Google. At some point, people will realize it’s a huge waste of time! What people are missing about the value of AI is that it’s going to allow the large-scale creation of PERSONALIZED CONTENT. This is the beginning of mass customization and personalization of virtually everything! The digital world will be first, and before long it will lead to using 3D printing to create personalized physical stuff as well. For example, I have arthritis in my thumbs, and it makes it hard to pick up normal drinking glasses. I prefer those with a handle, but I like one that’s big enough to fit my four fingers in so I don’t need to use my thumb for leverage. Lots of mugs have small handles on them that are hard to get even two fingers into. Some are larger, and some handle shapes work better than others. However, consumers are stuck buying things that the manufacturers have decided to make based on a lot of criteria that have nothing to do with you or me. But we might want a specific configuration. So why not be able to order glasses and mugs with a specific design, including a handle that fits what fits us best? Or no handle at all? See how this starts to shift the whole world of mass marketing to personalized made-on-demand goods and services? AI will help with some of it, and isn’t needed for a lot either. But given our current ways of doing things in the world, it’s impossible — so nobody is doing it. No jobs will be “lost” with this new approach to personalized stuff. In fact, lots of new jobs will be created. In the broader scheme of things, think of the publishing biz as a way to create personalized “fantasy novels” or even movies that cater to an individual's quirks. Who’s doing this now? NOBODY! Entirely new jobs will be created! This is basically why Blockbuster went bust — because their business model was to set up big warehouses in different places around town and people would go in and browse for what they wanted. Netflix came along and let you browse on the web from home or the office, and they delivered your order to your door — a more personalized offering. Now you can browse and click a button and start watching what you want instantly. Netflix still exists, but they don’t ship out disks in the mail any more. From another angle, consider something where you take a test on some topic and then you’re given a lesson (or series of them) designed to not just reinforce what you already know, but with additional material that you’re weak in or is the “next step” in your training. If you have consistent trouble with particular topics, it will give you more exercises in those areas and provide additional help where it’s needed. It would work more like a personal tutor than a teacher presenting material based on a one-size-fits-all classroom setting. This is creating a totally new realm that is far too inefficient and expensive for any individual to do. No jobs will be lost because nobody is doing it now, nor can anybody do it on any sort of scale. The jobs that will be lost are the ones that are doing repetative jobs making or doing the same things over and over again — jobs that do not lend themselves to personalized or customized products. Sure, there are lots of jobs like that, but so what? Automation is already eliminating a lot of them, not AI. And there will always be a market for "jellybeans”. Consider a future where most of what you can buy online is personalized to your specific needs. Not like ordering a pair of shoes or clothing from a preset list of sizing options, but where you enter your physical measurements and other details and get something that fits like a glove made just for you. Now extend this to most other things you consume or use regularly, especially those that “don’t quite fit”. -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: cheap co-lo in Phx area?
Thanks, I’ll check some of the places on that list. The main issue is the Win VPS vendors provide no support for anything. When you get a Linux host, it’s all configured and ready to go. I configure a default index.php file in my skel folder and as soon as the domain's DNS propagates, I can get it to come up when I go to the domain. With Windows Server OS, there isn’t even a server installed, let alone configured! This was kind of a shock to me. I was a bit stunned how long it took to get my Win VPS configured to work. I still don’t have a security cert for access coming into the hosting port (so there’s no https for my service), mainly because they don’t offer FreeSSL and said I have to buy one of their overpriced certs. What good is having “root access” if you can’t install your own security certs? I guess I’m spoiled b/c over the years I’ve worked at a dozen or more places that all had IT Depts that handled that stuff for Windows. Back in the 90’s, Windows was simple enough that I understood it, but today it’s a horrible rat’s nest of crap and it’s just not something I care about. The place hosting my VPS now won’t touch it and I don’t know where to go to get help with that stuff. I don’t need a “fully managed” service; I just expected things like this to be handled already or as simple as they are on a Linux box. They do offer a “fully manged” option starting around $150/mo. I just don’t need that; what I need is a basic server configured right out of the gate. I had my own little Linux server for 8 years or so plugged into a colo place here in town (GetNet) until it was far cheaper to just get a cPanel reseller account, which is what I’ve been doing every since. I thought that if I were to get a small Windows box then I can hand it to someone and have them set it up, I can load my software onto it, then plug it into something and I’d be off and running. There are some great deals on fanless Windows “mini-PCs” on Amazon this week for under $200 that are about the size of a cell phone and twice as thick that have way more power than my current VPS. A lot of VPS options start out at 1GB of RAM, which works fine with Linux, but I’ve found that Windows is slower than crap with anything less that 4GB. Are there any outfits that just offer basic Windows IT Support by the hour / task / month? I don’t need much, but I don’t know where to turn. I had a couple of people I’d call for help periodically, and they both died of COVID (they believed the VAX was going to kill them). -David Schwartz > On Nov 20, 2023, at 12:19 PM, George Toft via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Wouldn't a Virtual Private Server (VPS) meet your needs? Lots to be had for > a few dollars/month. > > https://www.hostingadvice.com/how-to/best-hosting-with-root-access/ > > BTW - I use Hostinger (#5 on the list) for web hosting (not VPS) and I'm > happy with them. > > Regards, > > George Toft > > On 11/20/2023 5:13 AM, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss wrote: >> I’ve got a Windows VPS server somewhere but prices are rather high for a >> decently fast box, so I’m thinking of getting a little NUC box. It would be >> fine for dev purposes, but I’d like to be able to access it outside of my >> home LAN. >> >> However, I’m using T-Mobile Home Internet, and it blocks all incoming ports, >> so I’d need to set up another box (I think?) that runs ngenx or something >> else to support reverse proxies. >> >> It would be a whole lot easier to just plug it into a co-lo rack, but the >> only things I’ve found are well over $100/mo. >> >> Is there anything cheap around the Phx area that startups can use for basic >> dev work? (This has to be Windows for now.) >> >> -David Schwartz >> >> >> >> >> --- >> PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org >> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: >> https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
cheap co-lo in Phx area?
I’ve got a Windows VPS server somewhere but prices are rather high for a decently fast box, so I’m thinking of getting a little NUC box. It would be fine for dev purposes, but I’d like to be able to access it outside of my home LAN. However, I’m using T-Mobile Home Internet, and it blocks all incoming ports, so I’d need to set up another box (I think?) that runs ngenx or something else to support reverse proxies. It would be a whole lot easier to just plug it into a co-lo rack, but the only things I’ve found are well over $100/mo. Is there anything cheap around the Phx area that startups can use for basic dev work? (This has to be Windows for now.) -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: advice, please
I bought a used Dell computer at ASU Surplus many years back. The motherboard didn’t work, so it was quite cheap. I got the s/n and looked on Dell’s site to check the details on the machine. When they purchased it, they got a 3-year warranty on it, and there was still a few months left. So I contacted the ASU Purchasing Dept and had to show them the receipt that I bought the computer, and she went online with Dell and registered that it was sold to me. Then I filed a warranty claim and they replaced the motherboard for free! You might check into the warranty status before you buy these. -David Schwartz > On Sep 14, 2023, at 9:29 AM, Michael via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > I suppose a better question is how much are three of them worth ? > > > On Thu, Sep 14, 2023 at 9:48 AM Michael <mailto:bmi...@gmail.com>> wrote: > Oh. As a reminder this is for my kids computers. Will this run windows 10 or > 11? > > On Thu, Sep 14, 2023 at 9:42 AM Michael <mailto:bmi...@gmail.com>> wrote: > Well, westech 1?probably won't ship purchases to where I live (Florida) > so the university of florida auctions are > likely the best bet. HOw do these specs sound: > Brand: Dell Optiplex 7040 > Processor: i7-6700 @3.4ghz > RAM Memory:8gb > Hard Drive:500gb > CD-RW/DVD-RW Optical Drive > W23-22468 > W24-01618 > W24-02885 > (https://www.publicsurplus.com/sms/ufl,fl/auction/view?auc=3355098 > <https://www.publicsurplus.com/sms/ufl,fl/auction/view?auc=3355098>) > > What are the w23 and 24s? > I probably should pop new power supplies in them and ssds and all will be > good. > the processor is much faster than the 1.10 ghz celron they have in their > present computers. > -- > :-)~MIKE~(-: > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: interesting
AFAIK, most backup drives including USB things are formatted as something like EXT3 that can be read by pretty much any OS. The ones that say “Windows” are going to be NTFS and the Mac ones are going to be something Macs prefer. I’ve got Macs and I have to be careful when i get external drives b/c if I reformat them without scrutinizing the format, they can’t be read on Windows, and vice versa. But as long as I leave the existing formatting intact, I usually have no trouble reading and writing files between both Win and Mac, and probably Chromebooks as well (I don’t have a Chromebook, so I’m not sure). -David Schwartz > On Sep 2, 2023, at 10:20 AM, Michael via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > > Very cool. My power supply, I think, for my NUC just bit the dust and I > couldn't get my Windows box to read the back up USB drives. The cool thing is > that my little chromebook CAN read them. So I emailed the file I wanted to > work on (a libre calc file) to myself and then I opened it on the windows > box. And before anyone asks I sure thought I format the drives in an M$ > format. The windows box didn't ask if I wanted to format the drive. > -- > :-)~MIKE~(-: > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: RAM Upgrade is this the correct RAM?
It’s very likely that these motherboards are, in fact, built by Intel for Dell. Intel is the worlds largest maker of IBM-PC type motherboards from what I’ve heard. Does “building from scratch” mean you’re going to do your own PCP layout, design, and have one built-to-spec? BTW, I just saw something about a modular notebook computer that’s being released. I saw a video about it. I’m not sure it solves your problem, but it does look interesting. Also, since Apple stopped making their motherboards upgradable, their profits have jumped. The avg sales price has gone up b/c people are buying larger configurations to future-proof their machines, which is kind of dumb if you think about it. Larger memory modules are always going to be more expensive today than in 2-3 years from now for the same specs, and you don’t really need them today. Which is exactly why Apple’s profits have jumped. Just b/c the logic in the core chips can handle more RAM or SSD is no reason to allow them to take that much. They want to be sure you have a reason to upgrade the mobo in a few years rather than just more memory. FWIW, I’ve got an 8GB DIMM I took out of my Mac Mini when I replaced it with a 32GB DIMM, if it helps. These things are practically worthless on eBay. For semiconductor makers, especially where it concerns integration of a lot of components, their business models have always been some flavor of “reducing their customer’s time-to-market”. Intel sold chip sets and development systems first. Then they provided “reference designs”, then Gerber plots for PCBs, and finally just started making the motherboards themselves — but that was at a time when 90% of the computers being sold had the same physical form-factor (so-called IBM PCs). Then laptops showed up, and then notebooks. In order for Intel to keep getting their most advanced chips into so many computers, they had to make it a no-brainer to work with them to buy motherboards directly from them. That’s so when they formally announced a new chip, you could go out and buy a computer from two or three vendors THAT DAY that had that chip in them, rather than waiting most of a year for computer vendors to build their own PCBs from scratch. The switch to mobile devices that use really high integration chip sets and ARM-based CPUs has put a kink into Intel’s plans. And with Apple switching to their own CPUs across their entire product line, that has hurt them as well. That’s why they’re looking to have one of the new east-valley Fabs become an ARM foundry. -David Schwartz > On Jul 27, 2023, at 3:49 PM, Todd Cole via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > I have run into issues where cpu can handle more ram than the motherboard can > recognize. I have also had success using more than OEM specs > bios upgrade may also increase motherboard ram capacity trial and error > has and does work sometimes if you really need the extra ram. > > On Thu, Jul 27, 2023 at 3:40 PM Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > Thanks for your feedback. > > Interesting experience. > > I discovered if one is using Intel, one can look up what RAM that chip > supports. Windows reported which CPU I have. Intel on-line told me > what type of RAM and the upper limit. > > Interesting enough the CPU will handle up to 64GB of RAM, however Dell > told me the box will only use up to 32GB of RAM.*** > > My box came with DDR4-2666 and the CPU really wants DDR4-2400. > > I just ordered 32GB of DDR4-2400 from Newegg for $62 tax, title, > license, shipping, and doc fee. > > *** This is the second upgrade where I have run into Dell limiting > resources. Last time the computer would only support 1 monitor while > the CPU would run 3. BTW this box holds only one HD... I guess if I > want more I will need to add an aftermarket "cage" If the > motherboard will support a second drive... Yikes!! > > I'm at the point where I am going to start building from scratch in the > future. > > Thanks!! > Keith > --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: cringeworthy question...
@james … you said “Asure”. Did you mean “Azure”? I found out that I can re-arm their eval license and it worked. I guess it’s good for another 6 months or so. But it gives me some time to plan something else. Meanwhile, in case anybody is interested … I have T-Mobile Home Internet and they recently introduced something similar for Businesses. So I called to find out more. The price is the same at $50/mo, but you can request a static IP for $3/mo extra. It’s not discussed much. They don’t block any ports, but they do filter content — you can call and get that shut off for no cost. (They say it’s mainly for videos, whatever that means.) -David Schwartz > On Jul 11, 2023, at 7:34 PM, James Mcphee via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Just gonna toss it out there. Asure isn't a bad little hosting environment. > If you're running windows, most of the lockin discussion is already moot. > 4gb runs about $30/month. > > On Tue, Jul 11, 2023 at 4:04 PM Michael Butash via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > I can't speak to the hosting side, but why not just get a windows license to > feed the beast? > > I presume this is a windows server, if the hosting is cheap enough, might be > worth just getting the license vs moving, but someone has to pay microsoft, > and it's always going to be you one way or another. The site I usually > recommend gkeys24 has win server licenses too, so long as you're using > something new enough they have, it was cheap enough at like $30 for a server > 2022 license at least. > > Even at full cost, if that much of a dependency and pita to move, it might be > worth the cost to toss it a license and be done. > > -mb > > > On Tue, Jul 11, 2023 at 3:47 PM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > Ok, I know this is going to make y’all cringe, but ... I need to find a > reliable, ethical, and inexpensive hosting VPS for a Windows back-end service > app I’m working on. > > I’ve been hosting at a place called VirMach that has both Win and Linux, and > it turns out they’ve been laoding up TRIAL licenses on their Windows VPS > machines. Mine is now shutting down every day since the trial period expired, > and they say it’s on me to fix it. > > Right now I don’t need a lot of resources. I have a web service that I’m > working on that still needs some work completed, but I’m getting close to > hitting my first major milestone. > > Anyway, I’m just wondering if anybody can recommend where to go for a > light-duty Win VPS host. If it can scale-up later, that would be great. > > I need 4GB of RAM because I’ve found anything less that that runs horribly > slow. The bandwidth isn’t that much, and the disk space isn’t either. It’s > more of a traffic cop: I’ve got a bunch of files cached on a Linux host > elsewhere, and this thing just runs a bunch of logic, talks to 3rd-party > services, and supports a simple database to say where to find other resources. > > Thanks > > -David Schwartz > > > > > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> > > > -- > James McPhee > jmc...@gmail.com > <mailto:jmc...@gmail.com>--- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
cringeworthy question...
Ok, I know this is going to make y’all cringe, but ... I need to find a reliable, ethical, and inexpensive hosting VPS for a Windows back-end service app I’m working on. I’ve been hosting at a place called VirMach that has both Win and Linux, and it turns out they’ve been laoding up TRIAL licenses on their Windows VPS machines. Mine is now shutting down every day since the trial period expired, and they say it’s on me to fix it. Right now I don’t need a lot of resources. I have a web service that I’m working on that still needs some work completed, but I’m getting close to hitting my first major milestone. Anyway, I’m just wondering if anybody can recommend where to go for a light-duty Win VPS host. If it can scale-up later, that would be great. I need 4GB of RAM because I’ve found anything less that that runs horribly slow. The bandwidth isn’t that much, and the disk space isn’t either. It’s more of a traffic cop: I’ve got a bunch of files cached on a Linux host elsewhere, and this thing just runs a bunch of logic, talks to 3rd-party services, and supports a simple database to say where to find other resources. Thanks -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Public raspberrypi https/mail/dns... on Cox Cable
Cable modems pull the signal from a coax line and turn it into an ethernet signal that comes out of a single RJ-45 plug. I dunno squat about what goes on inside of those boxes, but routers typically have a WAN port and a bunch of “internal” ports that are all RJ-45 plugs. If you can get Cox to send traffic for a group of IPs to your modem, then they should all come out the ethernet side as well, right? Remember that their modem is NOT a “router”. You can plug a router into it, tho. -David Schwartz > On Jul 9, 2023, at 10:34 PM, Michael Butash via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > On using openwrt on legacy routers, start here, find anything that is *well* > supported and hunt on ebay, or go to a thrift shop and search this list if > you find a decent looking box. At one point years ago I'd scooped up several > decent goodwill routers for some $5-7ea and flashed to openwrt to give to > family and friends when they complained about their crappy router and wifi > not working. Probably still have one or two floating around... > > https://openwrt.org/toh/start <https://openwrt.org/toh/start> > > -mb > --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Public raspberrypi https/mail/dns... on Cox Cable
AFAIK, the Cox router can be configured to either run DHCP or as a Static IP address. Either way, it can only listen to one IP. They do run DHCP from the local hubs, but the IPs themselves rarely change, and you’re sharing them with the whole neighborhood. Most hosting providers share a single IP among multiple accounts coming into a server. There are two separate IPs for DNS hosting on a totally different server. If you want your own dedicated IP for your account, you can usually get it. But I can’t think of any that let you set up a separate IP for individual services unless they’re on separate servers in different facilities. I’ve had hosting accounts where they share a pool of IPs among hosting accounts, and I’d have up to 6 IPs, but each account only had one IP and all of the services used that one IP. The only situations I’ve heard where people are using multiple IPs is to have backup internet providers, like Cox, CenturyLink, etc, in case one of them goes down. In those cases, you need a router designed to handle multiple (usually two) WAN ports where one is primary and the other is a failover. -David Schwartz > On Jul 9, 2023, at 12:33 PM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Hi, > > Was looking at the raspberrypi this morning and it brought me to the same > place I have come to several times in the post. > > I have a business account with Cox Cable which allows me to run 1 or more > servers. Last year I used an old laptop to make a web server using Ubuntu, > Apache, MySQL, PHP, plus Postfix and dovecot, plus BIND. I'm a PHP dev so I > felt pretty good about that achievement. > > I only have 1 public IP and everything on my network has a private IP. I > used port forwarding to get the web server to work. > > Supposedly I can get multiple IPs from Cox. On several occasions I've asked > the level 1 how I would configure 1 or more servers on the public IPs they > can provide and they do not know how. > > At some point in the future I'm thinking I'd like to create a publicly facing > group of PIs to run as a web server (or maybe more)... 1 for HTTPS, 1 for > DNS, 1 for mail, and 1 for MySQL (on a private IP ?). > > I assume I would use the Cisco gizmo that has coax in and RJ45 out... the out > would go into a small switch which would route each IP to the appropriate PI > based on the BIND config. I assume I can plug my Netgear router into the > switch that currently has multiple devices connected to it on private IPs, > and which provides WIFI. > > I assume I can add a router in between the Cisco (modem?) and my Netgear and > everything would work as it does now. The added router would then be in > place to deal with any additional IP address that Cox would provide? > > Thanks in advance for any help!! > > Keith > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: windows in a virtual machine
Further exploration turned up Win 10 Home and Pro for ~$14 (1PC) and ~$24 (2PC). Bundles: Win 10 + Office 2016 @ $65 Win 10 + Office 2019 @ $71 Win Server 2019 Std @ $32 Office for Mac … not cheap at all. -David Schwartz > On Jul 6, 2023, at 3:24 AM, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > I used the Search function for “windows 10” I found a bunch of Windows and > Office stuff. Not $7, but around $50. > > Is there a separate price list with lower prices? > > -David Schwartz > > > > >> On Jul 6, 2023, at 2:40 AM, Michael via PLUG-discuss >> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> >> wrote: >> >> yes please, send me the ad. >> >> On Tue, Jul 4, 2023 at 11:07 AM Michael Butash via PLUG-discuss >> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> >> wrote: >> >> I always get keys from gkeys24.com <http://gkeys24.com/>, win10 is like $7 >> bucks for a legit key, win11 a bit more (but ew). I can forward you a >> latest ad, they tend to hide windoze licenses from the main site to avoid >> microsoft's lawyers (I assume). >> >> -mb >> >> >> >> On Tue, Jul 4, 2023 at 7:41 AM Snyder, Alexander J via PLUG-discuss >> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> >> wrote: >> Michael -- >> >> Yes, you can install Linux and then additionally install VirtualBox. From >> there you can download the Windows 10 ISO >> >> https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10ISO >> <https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10ISO> >> >> and then install it. Obviously, you'll need a valid license key to install. >> >> There was a thread here recently about cheap and reliable windows keys >> recently. >> >> -- >> Thanks, >> Alexander >> >> Sent from my Google Pixel 7 Pro >> >> On Tue, Jul 4, 2023, 04:21 Michael via PLUG-discuss >> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> >> wrote: >> My father is interested in Linux but he needs Windows. I HEARD that you can >> d/l the windows ISO to usb and that it will install to the computer if it >> originally came with windows. If that is true my question is: what about if >> I were to install linux and then put windows into a virtual machine; Could I >> do that? Where would I go to get the windows ISO? >> >> -- >> :-)~MIKE~(-: >> --- >> PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org >> <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> >> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: >> https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss >> <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> >> --- >> PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org >> <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> >> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: >> https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss >> <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> >> --- >> PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org >> <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> >> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: >> https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss >> <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> >> >> >> -- >> :-)~MIKE~(-: >> --- >> PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org >> <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> >> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: >> https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss >> <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> > > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: windows in a virtual machine
I used the Search function for “windows 10” I found a bunch of Windows and Office stuff. Not $7, but around $50. Is there a separate price list with lower prices? -David Schwartz > On Jul 6, 2023, at 2:40 AM, Michael via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > yes please, send me the ad. > > On Tue, Jul 4, 2023 at 11:07 AM Michael Butash via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > > I always get keys from gkeys24.com <http://gkeys24.com/>, win10 is like $7 > bucks for a legit key, win11 a bit more (but ew). I can forward you a latest > ad, they tend to hide windoze licenses from the main site to avoid > microsoft's lawyers (I assume). > > -mb > > > > On Tue, Jul 4, 2023 at 7:41 AM Snyder, Alexander J via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > Michael -- > > Yes, you can install Linux and then additionally install VirtualBox. From > there you can download the Windows 10 ISO > > https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10ISO > <https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10ISO> > > and then install it. Obviously, you'll need a valid license key to install. > > There was a thread here recently about cheap and reliable windows keys > recently. > > -- > Thanks, > Alexander > > Sent from my Google Pixel 7 Pro > > On Tue, Jul 4, 2023, 04:21 Michael via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > My father is interested in Linux but he needs Windows. I HEARD that you can > d/l the windows ISO to usb and that it will install to the computer if it > originally came with windows. If that is true my question is: what about if I > were to install linux and then put windows into a virtual machine; Could I do > that? Where would I go to get the windows ISO? > > -- > :-)~MIKE~(-: > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> > > > -- > :-)~MIKE~(-: > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: I'm looking for a good shared hosting web host
The vast majority of shared hosting providers will not give you access to a command-line interface. Also, most are running a control panel like cPanel. They don’t give you root access on a shared machine. Your best bet for that is a VPS where you’ll get some fraction of a physical machine’s resources. More and more folks are using proprietary control panels. I had a WHM/cPanel reseller account with Eleven2 for quite a while and liked them. But on Sept 2nd of last year, they suddenly, and without warning, switched everybody over from WHM/cPanel to some cPanel clone that had a lot of problems. I hear cPanel jacked up their costs, and I guess these guys didn’t want to keep paying them. They said it’s b/c cPanel stopped improving their platform and it was getting slow. They said this other clone had added a lot of new features that users have been demanding to see added to cPanel. Also, cPanel is written in Perl, and the clone one is in php. I paid for 12 months of cPanel hosting, and they had no right to just swap it out without any notice; after a month of headaches, I started looking around. I eventually did switch to WHW — described next. I’m currently using WebHostingWorld.net <http://webhostingworld.net/> simply because I was able to snag a great discount on Black Friday for a one-year deal on a Reseller type account (WHM/cPanel). They WILL give you rsh access on a given account if you ask. Their support is ok given how little I’ve needed it. The sites I’ve got there sometimes are slow to load, and I’m not sure why, but it’s not a big problem at the moment. They have servers in several cities and you can request a particular one, so if you get one in a place like Phoenix, you won’t have to worry about hurricanes. (Monsoon storms can be another matter, but usually they’ll fire up their standby generator to ensure there’s no power loss.) I would not go with HostGator. I used them for a long time, but when they got taken over by that big conglomerate, their support went down the tubes and they started overloading all of their servers. In general, I avoid hosts that are with the outfit that owns HG, as they route support for all of them through the same place overseas. NameCheap provides good generic cPanel hosting, although their policies are very “conservative”. They disable a lot of things that I use under the guise of “security risk” but I think it’s just to reduce support calls. I think they’re best for consumers who don’t really know what they’re doing, not devs. I felt like I was wearing a straightjacket working with them. But their hosting is fine for simple sites. I have a Windows VPS at VirMach, and discovered they’ve been having problems for a while internally. They sell cheap hosting and push upgraded support plans by stripping out commonly configured stuff and charging you to get their Support team to reactivate them. Their support system sucks — they have an FAQ for really basic issues, and if you have a question outside of that, it can be challenging to post it. Their response times aren’t very good either. I can’t recommend them. But for what I’m paying for a Win VPS, it’s tolerable. (I’m doing dev work and I wanted a basic Windows server hosted somewhere that allows me to test out my software. At some point I’ll need a dedicated host or something with a more reliable vendor, but for now this is meeting my needs, more or less. -David Schwartz > On Jul 3, 2023, at 6:09 AM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Hi all, > > For many years Troubleshooters.Com has been hosted by the spectacular > Futurequest in Orlando Florida. Sadly, because of hurricanes, the > pandemic, inflation, and insanely skyrocketing rents in Orlando, > they're going out of business within a few days, so I need a new web > host. > > What I absolutely need: > > * Reliability > * ssh access > * Already installed http, smtp, and firewall > * At least 500 MB of space > * Somewhere around 5 GB transfer per month > * A reasonably effective way to get tech support > * Ability to have Javascript in my web pages > * A way to quickly redirect my whole site, such as .htaccess. > I need this ability because I need to shut down before every > hurricane. To see an example of what I'd redirect to, see > http://troubleshooters.com/troubleshooters_during_ian.htm > > What I'd also really like: > > * A non-distopian Terms of Service > * Ability to run server side scripts (Perl etc) > * Ability to serve https > * Ability to serve multiple domain names with one contract > * Good mailing list software that doesn't throttle too much > > I prioritize the preceding over price. Price is a secondary concern. > > I used Bluehost in the past, but found them not good enough, so I'm > hoping for somebody better than Bluehos
Re: Niche Jobs
Have you looked at the latest results of the annual StackOverflow developer survey that was just released? There might be some useful insights you can gleen from it. https://survey.stackoverflow.co/2023/ <https://survey.stackoverflow.co/2023/> -David Schwartz > On Jun 19, 2023, at 3:33 PM, trent shipley via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > I was talking last week to my manager's manager about how I was staying busy > on the bench. I told him I was working on a dice roller in Python, which was > the first program I'm writing for myself, and that I was having a lot of fun > and learning new stuff. I said the other thing I was doing was working on a > Scala 3 class on Coursera, and that it was really challenging,but I enjoyed > it. Since the boss in a businessman he was interested in applications of > Scala. I told him it was used where safety was an issue, like finance and > energy trading. (Lots of Scala 2 programmers are 1. upset Scala 3 isn't 100% > backward compatible with Scala 2, that it's not as mature as Scala 2, and > *above all* they are angry that it preferentially uses syntactic white space. > I like syntactic white space. It's harder to write, but easier to read, > and when maintaining code reading is fundamental.). Scala also has some > rapidly fading application in data science, but even data science tools > written in Scala are now optimized mostly for use in Python. > > A lot of functional languages seem to come into their own when quality and > safety are important enough to justify their low market share and consequent > high cost of development. > > The manager's manager wanted to know what are some similar niche, > high-specialization--high-wage types IT jobs are out there. He's in the > contracting and consulting business, I think it's mostly just professional > curiosity, but I don't know where to start a search. > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: r u familiar with Docker?
Thanks for the pep talk, Michael. :-) I was heavily involved in networking and all that stuff back in the 80’s and so I can say that I do understand it … or at least did at one point. But for the past 20 years I’ve worked in environments where there was an IT Dept that was always there handling things — even simple things. So I’ve lost touch with all of the different layers and levels of indirection that are involved today. I built this service following a guide laid out by a guy who I assume knows what he’s talking about, but he says it just connects to either localhost or a local IP (192.168.x.y). I’ve gotten lost in situations when people show examples or create tutorials that are really only designed to run within a local environment, and when you ask about “opening them up”, you’re told, “Oh, that’s outside the scope of this material”. This guy offered to let me hire him for his “typical hourly rate” to help get the service I built — following his detailed instructions — working on a remote host. He said, “there are just too many variables involved”. In my mind, it’s a vanilla Windows Server 2016 running on a VPN hosting a service built according to his plans. How many variables can there be? -David Schwartz > On Jun 13, 2023, at 5:32 PM, Michael Butash via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > As a "network guy", i.e. someone operating at layer 1-4 mostly, I would say > you need to understand networking first. So few developers and system folk > do, and thus struggle in today's day and age around basic networking > functions in a cloud world. It's some basic tradition of "when a packet in a > pocket hits a socket" like a childhood rhyme that goes unheard, and really > should if you call yourself a self-respecting developer today or the past 20 > years. > > Understanding basic Layer 1-7 of the network OSI model is the key. > > Docker relies heavily on NAT and IP routing between systems. Even installing > a typical web/app/db stack requires local socket interaction between devices > using the same networking - perhaps start with this first and understand > local socket connections to 127.0.0.1 first. Then move into docker and > IProute2 namespace separation with Docker and like technologies. If you > understand how a firewall works, this isn't that much more complex. > > Keeping a consistent control plane between applications (again web/app/db) > and basic ip reachability isn't too hard when you understand vlans and > networking, maybe extending into overlay tech like Zerotier and Tailscale for > apps to talk to each other, securely, and across clouds/networks/domains in > general. > > I could give a whole "In the beginning.." speech, but best you simply learn > some networking first. > > -mb > > > On Tue, Jun 13, 2023 at 3:19 PM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > Right now I just want to be able to run my web app on my phone and have it > access my back-end service remotely. > > I’m just having a challenge getting that "signal chain” set up and working. I > know what it’s supposed to be in theory; it’s just not as easy as plugging a > wire between a couple of sockets. > > Docker is optional. > > How can I do something like a "signal trace” in Windows? > > -David Schwartz > > > > >> On Jun 13, 2023, at 2:19 PM, Michael Butash via PLUG-discuss >> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> >> wrote: >> >> Docker should be an inside to outside port mapping for your application. >> The outside port maps needs to reflect your firewall, load balancer, or >> whatever forwards traffic to it as the destination. >> >> [internet]-[firewall]-[host]-[docker] - you want to thread the needle of >> ports. This to That. >> >> If you don't want public facing ports for security reasons, vpn like openvpn >> or an overlay like zerotier/tailscale is recommended. >> >> -mb >> >> >> >> On Tue, Jun 13, 2023 at 2:03 PM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss >> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> >> wrote: >> I’m looking for someone familiar with Docker who can help me out a little >> bit. >> >> I’m working on an app with a REST-based web service that I’ve been building >> inside of a VM (VirtualBox) running Win 10. I’m having trouble getting the >> service part working on a remote server, and someone suggested using Docker >> to isolate it and get it running inside of the VM first, then copy it to the >> remote server. The remote server is also Windows based, obviously. >> >> I’m havin
Re: r u familiar with Docker?
Right now I just want to be able to run my web app on my phone and have it access my back-end service remotely. I’m just having a challenge getting that "signal chain” set up and working. I know what it’s supposed to be in theory; it’s just not as easy as plugging a wire between a couple of sockets. Docker is optional. How can I do something like a "signal trace” in Windows? -David Schwartz > On Jun 13, 2023, at 2:19 PM, Michael Butash via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Docker should be an inside to outside port mapping for your application. The > outside port maps needs to reflect your firewall, load balancer, or whatever > forwards traffic to it as the destination. > > [internet]-[firewall]-[host]-[docker] - you want to thread the needle of > ports. This to That. > > If you don't want public facing ports for security reasons, vpn like openvpn > or an overlay like zerotier/tailscale is recommended. > > -mb > > > > On Tue, Jun 13, 2023 at 2:03 PM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > I’m looking for someone familiar with Docker who can help me out a little bit. > > I’m working on an app with a REST-based web service that I’ve been building > inside of a VM (VirtualBox) running Win 10. I’m having trouble getting the > service part working on a remote server, and someone suggested using Docker > to isolate it and get it running inside of the VM first, then copy it to the > remote server. The remote server is also Windows based, obviously. > > I’m having trouble getting all of the IPs and ports and holes in the firewall > aligned so I can reach it from outside the server. > > Right now I probably don’t _need_ Docker, although it could be helpful at > some point when I’ll need to scale-up, so I’m not even really committed to > using it other than it might be easier to set it up inside of the VM and make > everything work there first. > > (As much as I’d like to build the service to run on Linux, one of the > libraries I’m using is not set up for Linux yet, so it’s not an option at > this time. The vendor says they might support Linux at some point in the > future.) > > Anyway, I’m just looking to see if anybody might be able to help me get my > service code running on a remote Windows server that’s accessible from > elsewhere. (The code itself runs on the server, I just can’t reach it from > the outside, which is the whole point of having it there.) > > > -David Schwartz > > > > > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
r u familiar with Docker?
I’m looking for someone familiar with Docker who can help me out a little bit. I’m working on an app with a REST-based web service that I’ve been building inside of a VM (VirtualBox) running Win 10. I’m having trouble getting the service part working on a remote server, and someone suggested using Docker to isolate it and get it running inside of the VM first, then copy it to the remote server. The remote server is also Windows based, obviously. I’m having trouble getting all of the IPs and ports and holes in the firewall aligned so I can reach it from outside the server. Right now I probably don’t _need_ Docker, although it could be helpful at some point when I’ll need to scale-up, so I’m not even really committed to using it other than it might be easier to set it up inside of the VM and make everything work there first. (As much as I’d like to build the service to run on Linux, one of the libraries I’m using is not set up for Linux yet, so it’s not an option at this time. The vendor says they might support Linux at some point in the future.) Anyway, I’m just looking to see if anybody might be able to help me get my service code running on a remote Windows server that’s accessible from elsewhere. (The code itself runs on the server, I just can’t reach it from the outside, which is the whole point of having it there.) -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: I read chip maker TSMC is a sweatshop
I can always tell when discussions have gone off into the weeds when the topic switches to assigning blame for things whose outcomes are entirely predictable over time. -David Schwartz > On Jun 7, 2023, at 6:42 PM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Who's to blame indeed... We are - our political class. > > > On 2023-06-07 18:25, Michael Butash via PLUG-discuss wrote: >>> QUESTION? >>> I understand TSMC produces the most chips in the world, and is >> located >>> in Taiwan . Where did they get that technology and who paid for >> that >> > technology? >> Being old enough to be there and experience the start of >> mass-production of copy/duplicate/counterfeit goods in the late 70's >> and 80's, I'd say it all started with "Made in Taiwan" goods. >> From my perspective from childhood on, it was in the form of knock-off >> toys, brand name fashions, CD's, tools, you name it, it was everywhere >> new and used, and it was all "Made in Taiwan". Not sure if it was them >> simply getting the impetus to clone our stuff, or someone >> surreptitiously asking them to do so to undercut established brands >> from here. Either way, it set off the flood into our domestic markets >> for crapgadgets. >> Taiwan goods were always just a bit crappier, sort of mislabled, would >> always break early if not out of box, would never fit quite right, but >> hey it was a fraction of the price! In my teens my focus was tools >> growing up to be a mechanic, and buying second-hand goods would always >> see a direct clone of a $100 "Snap-On" brand high-end wrench as a $5 >> "Stack-On" clone from Taiwan. Harbor Freight made a name and business >> selling knock-off American "Chicago Pneumatic" tools as "Central >> Pneumatic" (many others too), all Made in Taiwan (now China), and >> still does. >> In the 80's, US orgs began asking Taiwan to actually make these things >> for us including eventually semiconductors for us, even giving them >> the plans, when they already had the clone game down pimp tight. >> That's about the time China took over and now frowns upon mentioning >> Taiwan as anything other than China, thus generically everything is >> "Made in China" since then. >> As we sent our engineering designs there to get bargains in >> production, and taught them how to make our things including the >> machinery. Eventually those copies as part of reverse engineering >> became prototypes, continued to be made and improved on, if not in >> quality, in profit margins to make them cheaper, even eventually >> adapting into new products. As it was always explained to me, it >> starts with them making "one for me, then one for themselves", and >> later "one for me, two for themselves", ad nauseam. >> Next thing you know you have Coach purses rolling out of the same >> factory as the Couch purses that look the same sold in swap meets and >> alleyways around the world, barely indistinguishable except the >> receipt. Even worse now, you get things like selling counterfeit >> Cisco switches to everything from government to education [1] using >> modchips to bypass security on the clone [2], or buying pretty much >> anything of Amazon is likely a counterfeit clone of a clone of a >> clone. >> Who's to blame indeed... >> -mb >> On Wed, Jun 7, 2023 at 3:29 PM Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss >> wrote: >>> On 2023-06-07 13:59, James Mcphee via PLUG-discuss wrote: >>>> Generally, if I hear it from cable news, there's a good chance >>> it's >>>> just someone drumming up support for something. In this case, >>> we'll >>>> probably hear about some kind of H1B system to make sure the new >>> fabs >>>> get all the people they need, etc. Same deal as when I was >>> working at >>>> a company that got bought by Dell, and they failed to retain most >>> of >>>> the new employees because they didn't have a structure that worked >>>> with professionals. Suddenly you saw Michael Dell doing an >>> interview >>>> on CNBC about the need to extend H1B 'cause they aren't getting >>> enough >>>> workers. At the very least, there's plenty of incentive to drive >>> down >>>> labor costs. And with the halts for new housing going out, there >>> is a >>>> LOT of incentive to manipulate the market. >>>> Am I being paranoid? I
Re: General FOSS discussion, 6/7/2023
FPC is being used by TMS Software in combination with pas2js to power their WEB Core technology (which is NOT FOSS). WEB Core runs inside of the Delphi IDE (not FOSS), as well as Visual Studio Code (is FOSS), and allows you to write create some pretty stunning web-based applications that run within the web browser as client-side web apps. They’ve extended both pas2js as well as FPC to support some Object Pascal features that make a huge difference in simplifying writing code for web apps — enhancements that Embarcadero prefers to ignore adding to the Delphi platform. There are still a few features of Object Pascal that FPC does not support, including declaring var types anywhere, but that’s not much of a show-stopper. The main things added to FPC to support web apps were the [async] attribute for methods, and the await method; together, they let you wait for an asynch process to complete before continuing with the code execution instead of having to explicitly write a closure or separate call-back method to process the code you want to follow the call. Embarcadero may have these features in their queue for some unnamed release a few years down the road, but because FPC and pas2js are both FOSS, TMS was able to update the language and set it up to generate js as it’s assembly language output. Then what TMS built on top of this is even more amazing. -David Schwartz > On Jun 7, 2023, at 12:09 AM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Hi all, > > Sorry for the late notice. GoLUG's mailing list is down so I couldn't > get input on a topic earlier. > > Tonight at 7:00 Eastern Daylight time, 6/7/2023, GoLUG is having an > online discussion of anything involving Free and Open Source > Software (FOSS). The meeting location is https://meet.jit.si/golug . > This meeting is online only. > > I'll speak for 5 or 10 minutes on Free Pascal. Others are welcome and > encouraged to speak on anything relating to FOSS. > > I hope to see you at the meeting. > > SteveT > > Steve Litt > Publicity Coordinator > Greater Orlando Linux User Group (GOLUG) > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: I read chip maker TSMC is a sweatshop
TSMC’s office and Fab 21 is being built in the West Valley, between the 303 and Dove Valley Rd, at about 47th Ave. It’s a HUGE facility under construction west of the I-17 that can be seen when driving north towards Anthem. Intel bought more land in the East Valley, tho. -David Schwartz > On Jun 6, 2023, at 5:45 PM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Chip maker TSMC is moving to chandler and I have read they are a sweatshop > > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: The end of programming (not the replacement of programmers)
This is a DANGER ZONE that should be avoided right now, IMHO. Look at the world today: we have this political system that has gone haywire and media outlets that hand anybody a microphone and five minutes to spout off anything they want without fact-checking it or even taking any responsibility for its accuracy or relevance. If someone wants to talk about how they have found “reliable sources” who claim the moon is made of green cheese, there are plenty of media outlets that are happy to tive them air time, since anything controversial “sells” and boosts their ad revenues. They feel their only obligation is to give five minutes of air time to someone at NASA or some PhD at a university who might try to debunk it. But at the end of the day, they end up creating a lot of confusion because they themselves are NOT “experts” in anything they cover, and they’ve lost their journalistic compass that tells them how to deal with this stupidity. Walter Conkite is turning in his grave. AI is in no better of a position than today’s media outlets — you can ask it a question and it will offer up answers, but it has no idea if the answers it spits out are accurate or even relevant. And anybody who’s NOT a bona fide “expert” in the subject will have no frigging clue or any way to tell. Who ya gonna trust? “Hey, Fox just ran a 15-minute segment where they had someone talk about how the moon really IS made of green cheese! The two peole they interviewed were very convincing, and the guys from NASA made no sense at all. So I’m inclined to believe that it really IS made of green cheese now.” Welcome to the world of AI, where most people refuse to even question nonsense being given air time by major media outlets as if it’s real, legitimate, factual information. The sad fact of the matter is that after enough publicity promoting stories that assert the moon IS made of green cheese get published or aired (even just online), guess what will happen? ChatGPT will start generating answers supporting that totally bogus viewpoint and people will start believing it even more. If you’re not enough of an expert to know it’s giving you bogus info, then DO NOT TRUST IT! It’s that simple. Believe me when I say there WILL be folks who will start feeding these AI systems nonsense like adding arsenic to brownies just to see what happens, and it will start reporting brownie recipies that require arsenic — along with instructions on how to extract it from rat poison — and people who don’t know any better WILL TRUST IT. :-O Then Fox will do a segment where they show that ChatGPT is offering up brownie recipies that contain arsenic and warnings from a couple of doctors who say it’ll kill you. And then they’ll inteview someone who will claim that arsenic in small doses is actually an aphrodesiac and improves your mental health and let YOU decide. They call that “balanced reporting” today. -David Schwartz > On Jun 6, 2023, at 1:49 PM, James Mcphee via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > When I'm actually an expert at the thing I ask chatGPT for, yeah, like an > intern. It'll say something that will prompt me to go down some road or > other, and I ignore the obviously wrong answers. When I'm an amateur at the > thing, it sounds authoritative and I don't have the ability to know better. > But then, we're not paying for it to be RIGHT. It's still a solution we're > trying to find a problem for. --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: The end of programming (not the replacement of programmers)
My experience so far is … ChatGPT is great if treated like I’ve got access to an intern to help with grunt work. The quality is about the same, it’s a lot faster than an intern would take, and it doesn’t complain if you tell it to try a different approach. If you just hit the ‘regenerate’ button, it will usually produce different code using a different approach. It takes incremental suggestions, so you can say, “take the code from the inner loop and put it into a separate function” and it does it. I needed a bit of php code to put on my web host for something specific. I haven’t written any php code for a long time, so I told it what I wanted and it spat out some code. I nudged it in a few different directions to get closer to what I needed, then I tweaked it myself, and in less than an hour I had working code. It was faster than searching the internet for code samples, writing it from scratch and having to look up functions and stuff from the latest version of the language, and it didn’t require me to post requests here or anywhere for help. I tried getting help with another problem that needed 200-250 lines of code, and it was horrid. One thing it’s excellent for is having it write code to import and/or export data to/from another place. That’s something that’s very regular code, but it’s complicated enough that you can’t simply write a regex expression in vi to do it. The result needs to be informed by the fields, their types, and quirks on either and of the assignments. Like: Here’s an object in Python … now create the same object in php … write import and export routines in php to copy the data from the python object to the php object. You could write a macro for that in something and run it to translate any number of objects from one platform to another. THe code is really mechanical and there’s not much it can screw up. It can be a HUGE time-saver for the right kinds of things. Just think of it like an intern — you’d never give an intern a huge prolblem, right? You’d break it down into small chunks, or even ask the internt to try doing that first. It’s all in how you manage it as a resource. -David Schwartz > On Jun 6, 2023, at 2:03 AM, trent shipley via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Pointy haired manager to programmer: We are thinking of replacing > programming with AI. > > Programmer: Don't you mean you plan to replace programmers with AI. > > PHM: No, replace programming itself. > > P: How? Why? > > PHM: Well, the Big, Poorly Understood AI produces really good results > without actually writing code. > > P: Go on... > > PHM: Plus it's cheap and really, really prolific and efficient. > > P: Sure, but its quality is awful!! > > PHM: So is the quality of your software, all software, really. > > P. Yeah, but the AI's quality is MUCH worse! > > PHM: Yes, but the AI is so affordable, efficient, and prolific, that the > wrongful death lawsuits will be just a cost of doing business, and we'll > still come out ahead according to the actuaries. > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: web file caching question
Ok I got ChatGPT to provide this:
If you want your PHP script to be executed only when it is called via a web
request, then you can place it in the CGI folder of a specific domain and
configure your web server to route requests for that domain to the script.
Here's an example of how you can configure Apache to do this:
1. Create a new .htaccess file in the CGI folder of the domain that you want to
use for the script.
2. Add the following lines to the .htaccess file to configure Apache to treat
the script as a CGI program:
Options +ExecCGI
AddHandler cgi-script .php
3. Add the following line to the .htaccess file to tell Apache to route all
requests for the domain to your PHP script:
RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule ^(.*)$ /path/to/download.php [L,QSA]
Replace /path/to/download.php with the actual path to your PHP script.
The RewriteCond directives ensure that the rewrite rule is only applied if
the requested URL does not correspond to an existing file or directory.
4. Save the .htaccess file.
Now, when a request is made to the domain that you have configured, Apache will
route the request to your PHP script. You can then use the `$_POST` variable to
read the list of URLs from the request body and download the files as before.
-David Schwartz
> On May 15, 2023, at 10:14 AM, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss
> wrote:
>
> I asked ChatGPT to give me a solution in php8 for this. Here’s what it wrote:
>
>
> $log_file = '/var/log/download.log'; // change this to your desired log file
> location
> $download_folder = '/var/www/downloads'; // change this to your desired
> download folder location
>
> function log_message($message) {
> global $log_file;
> $timestamp = date('Y-m-d H:i:s');
> $log_message = $timestamp . ' - ' . $message . PHP_EOL;
> file_put_contents($log_file, $log_message, FILE_APPEND);
> }
>
> if ($_SERVER['REQUEST_METHOD'] == 'POST') {
> $urls = $_POST['urls'];
> if (is_array($urls) && count($urls) > 0) {
> foreach ($urls as $url) {
> $filename = basename($url);
> $download_path = $download_folder . '/' . $filename;
> log_message('Downloading ' . $url . ' to ' . $download_path);
> $result = file_put_contents($download_path, fopen($url, 'rb'));
>
> if ($result === false) {
> log_message('Error downloading ' . $url);
> } else {
> log_message('Successfully downloaded ' . $url . ' to ' .
> $download_path);
> }
> }
> log_message('Downloaded ' . count($urls) . ' files');
> } else {
> log_message('No valid URLs provided');
> }
> } else {
> log_message('Invalid request method');
> }
>
> ?>
>
> Does this look reasonable?
>
> I’m not sure if this can be run on a shared hosting environment, however, b/c
> it would get triggered on ALL incoming requests, which is not needed.
>
> It would need to listen on a specific port#. Is that possible without making
> it a daemon?
>
> Can it be run only by requests coming into the CGI folder on a specific
> domain? ChatGPT is sort of going in circles at this point.
>
> -David Schwartz
>
>
>
>
>> On May 15, 2023, at 9:40 AM, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss
>> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>>
>> wrote:
>>
>> Hmmm, kind of like a remote wget …
>>
>> Actually,they’d tend to be done in batches, so I’d send a list of names to
>> be copied.
>>
>> Is there a super-simple way for a php script handle one single POST request
>> that only does one thing, without a ton of overhead needed for an entire
>> REST-based service with multiple endpoints?
>>
>> Wget would probably be overkill assuming the php script can just issue an
>> HTTP file download request.
>>
>> -David Schwartz
>>
>>
>>
>>> On May 15, 2023, at 9:28 AM, Bob Elzer via PLUG-discuss
>>> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> What about setting up a CGI script on the Linux server that you pass the
>>> URL to, it could do a wget to retrieve the file to the directory you
>>> specify.
>>>
>>>
>>> On Sun, May 14, 2023, 8:50 PM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss
>>> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>>
>>> wrote:
>&
Re: web file caching question
I asked ChatGPT to give me a solution in php8 for this. Here’s what it wrote:
0) {
foreach ($urls as $url) {
$filename = basename($url);
$download_path = $download_folder . '/' . $filename;
log_message('Downloading ' . $url . ' to ' . $download_path);
$result = file_put_contents($download_path, fopen($url, 'rb'));
if ($result === false) {
log_message('Error downloading ' . $url);
} else {
log_message('Successfully downloaded ' . $url . ' to ' .
$download_path);
}
}
log_message('Downloaded ' . count($urls) . ' files');
} else {
log_message('No valid URLs provided');
}
} else {
log_message('Invalid request method');
}
?>
Does this look reasonable?
I’m not sure if this can be run on a shared hosting environment, however, b/c
it would get triggered on ALL incoming requests, which is not needed.
It would need to listen on a specific port#. Is that possible without making it
a daemon?
Can it be run only by requests coming into the CGI folder on a specific domain?
ChatGPT is sort of going in circles at this point.
-David Schwartz
> On May 15, 2023, at 9:40 AM, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss
> wrote:
>
> Hmmm, kind of like a remote wget …
>
> Actually,they’d tend to be done in batches, so I’d send a list of names to be
> copied.
>
> Is there a super-simple way for a php script handle one single POST request
> that only does one thing, without a ton of overhead needed for an entire
> REST-based service with multiple endpoints?
>
> Wget would probably be overkill assuming the php script can just issue an
> HTTP file download request.
>
> -David Schwartz
>
>
>
>> On May 15, 2023, at 9:28 AM, Bob Elzer via PLUG-discuss
>> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>>
>> wrote:
>>
>> What about setting up a CGI script on the Linux server that you pass the URL
>> to, it could do a wget to retrieve the file to the directory you specify.
>>
>>
>> On Sun, May 14, 2023, 8:50 PM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss
>> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>>
>> wrote:
>> I’m building a web app that uses a 3rd-party text-to-speech (TTS) service;
>> it's one of many things supported by a REST service I’ve created that runs
>> on a Windows host somewhere. This service sends requests to the TTS service
>> and gets back a URL to an MP3 file on their server. These files are only
>> there for about an hour before they get deleted.
>>
>> My service sends back those URLs to the client, which is typically running
>> on a mobile device. They can be consumed without any problem at the moment,
>> telling me the TTS provider has disable CORS restrictions.
>>
>> Many of the requests that will be made are unique and will never be
>> duplicated, so the fact that their vocalizations (the MP3 files) get deleted
>> after an hour is not a problem.
>>
>> However, some of them (20-30%) are very likely to be duplicated, and it’s
>> worth saving them somewhere so they can be re-used in the future. (The TTS
>> service charges based on characters sent to them, and by reusing the MP3
>> files over time, a lot of cost savings can accrue.)
>>
>> In my mind, I need to set up a way to cache these files somewhere.
>>
>> I don’t want to save them on the server that’s hosting the REST service
>> because of the bandwidth costs.
>>
>> I’ve tried a few different things and it turns out this brings up CORS
>> issues.
>>
>> I have my own web host and found out I can add a line to an htaccess file
>> that will allow the files to be accessed. I can’t do that with hosted
>> services like FileStack (which has other limitations as well).
>>
>> It looks like there’s a way to do it with Dropbox by changing the URL from
>> this form:
>>
>>
>> https://www.dropbox.com/s/x12nrtdi08ipo352/sample-abc.mp3?dl=0
>> <https://www.dropbox.com/s/x12nrtdi08ipo352/sample-abc.mp3?dl=0>
>>
>>
>> to this form:
>>
>>
>> https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/x12nrtdi08ipo352/sample-abc.mp3
>> <https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/x12nrtdi08ipo352/sample-abc.mp3>
>>
>> So, this brings up the question of HOW TO MOVE THE FILES INTO THE CACHE?
>>
>> Here’s my biggest constraint: I can access the files for up to an hour by
>> using the TTS server’s URLs. Within that time-frame, they need to have been
>> moved
Re: web file caching question
Hmmm, kind of like a remote wget … Actually,they’d tend to be done in batches, so I’d send a list of names to be copied. Is there a super-simple way for a php script handle one single POST request that only does one thing, without a ton of overhead needed for an entire REST-based service with multiple endpoints? Wget would probably be overkill assuming the php script can just issue an HTTP file download request. -David Schwartz > On May 15, 2023, at 9:28 AM, Bob Elzer via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > What about setting up a CGI script on the Linux server that you pass the URL > to, it could do a wget to retrieve the file to the directory you specify. > > > On Sun, May 14, 2023, 8:50 PM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > I’m building a web app that uses a 3rd-party text-to-speech (TTS) service; > it's one of many things supported by a REST service I’ve created that runs on > a Windows host somewhere. This service sends requests to the TTS service and > gets back a URL to an MP3 file on their server. These files are only there > for about an hour before they get deleted. > > My service sends back those URLs to the client, which is typically running on > a mobile device. They can be consumed without any problem at the moment, > telling me the TTS provider has disable CORS restrictions. > > Many of the requests that will be made are unique and will never be > duplicated, so the fact that their vocalizations (the MP3 files) get deleted > after an hour is not a problem. > > However, some of them (20-30%) are very likely to be duplicated, and it’s > worth saving them somewhere so they can be re-used in the future. (The TTS > service charges based on characters sent to them, and by reusing the MP3 > files over time, a lot of cost savings can accrue.) > > In my mind, I need to set up a way to cache these files somewhere. > > I don’t want to save them on the server that’s hosting the REST service > because of the bandwidth costs. > > I’ve tried a few different things and it turns out this brings up CORS issues. > > I have my own web host and found out I can add a line to an htaccess file > that will allow the files to be accessed. I can’t do that with hosted > services like FileStack (which has other limitations as well). > > It looks like there’s a way to do it with Dropbox by changing the URL from > this form: > > > https://www.dropbox.com/s/x12nrtdi08ipo352/sample-abc.mp3?dl=0 > <https://www.dropbox.com/s/x12nrtdi08ipo352/sample-abc.mp3?dl=0> > > > to this form: > > > https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/x12nrtdi08ipo352/sample-abc.mp3 > <https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/x12nrtdi08ipo352/sample-abc.mp3> > > So, this brings up the question of HOW TO MOVE THE FILES INTO THE CACHE? > > Here’s my biggest constraint: I can access the files for up to an hour by > using the TTS server’s URLs. Within that time-frame, they need to have been > moved over to the host that’s doing the caching. After that, the code will > quickly check to see if the requests have already been processed and are in > the cache; if so, it will return a URL to the cached file, saving a needless > encoding request. > > If I use Dropbox, I can simply set up the Dropbox app on the server hosting > my REST service, and save the files to the Dropbox file tree. They’ll be > copied into Dropbox automatically. But this means I’ll have a modest cost > associated with maintaining a Dropbox account for this specific purpose > ($130/yr). > > > Alternatively, I can copy the files from the REST server over to my own host. > > What I’d like to ask this group is … what’s the best way to accomplish that? > > My host is currently on a shared reseller hosting plan, but as this > scales-up, I’ll move it to a dedicated host. > > It’s running cPanel on a Linux server, probably running CentOS. > > I can set up cron jobs, and I’m told I can get some limited access to a shell > (rsh probably) if needed. > > This is the same host I tested with the htaccess file to allow the files to > be accessed without CORS issues. > > I’m wondering if it’s best to have the REST server copy the files from the > TTS site to the other host somehow (eg, with FTP)? > > Or use something like rsync on the host to sweep files from the TTS site into > the host, driven by a list provided by the REST service? > > Can I run rsync on a Windows host that copies files from server-A to server-B? > > Or maybe you guys have some better ideas? I’d love to hear some pros and cons > about any solutions that might
web file caching question
I’m building a web app that uses a 3rd-party text-to-speech (TTS) service; it's one of many things supported by a REST service I’ve created that runs on a Windows host somewhere. This service sends requests to the TTS service and gets back a URL to an MP3 file on their server. These files are only there for about an hour before they get deleted. My service sends back those URLs to the client, which is typically running on a mobile device. They can be consumed without any problem at the moment, telling me the TTS provider has disable CORS restrictions. Many of the requests that will be made are unique and will never be duplicated, so the fact that their vocalizations (the MP3 files) get deleted after an hour is not a problem. However, some of them (20-30%) are very likely to be duplicated, and it’s worth saving them somewhere so they can be re-used in the future. (The TTS service charges based on characters sent to them, and by reusing the MP3 files over time, a lot of cost savings can accrue.) In my mind, I need to set up a way to cache these files somewhere. I don’t want to save them on the server that’s hosting the REST service because of the bandwidth costs. I’ve tried a few different things and it turns out this brings up CORS issues. I have my own web host and found out I can add a line to an htaccess file that will allow the files to be accessed. I can’t do that with hosted services like FileStack (which has other limitations as well). It looks like there’s a way to do it with Dropbox by changing the URL from this form: https://www.dropbox.com/s/x12nrtdi08ipo352/sample-abc.mp3?dl=0 <https://www.dropbox.com/s/x12nrtdi08ipo352/sample-abc.mp3?dl=0> to this form: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/x12nrtdi08ipo352/sample-abc.mp3 <https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/x12nrtdi08ipo352/sample-abc.mp3> So, this brings up the question of HOW TO MOVE THE FILES INTO THE CACHE? Here’s my biggest constraint: I can access the files for up to an hour by using the TTS server’s URLs. Within that time-frame, they need to have been moved over to the host that’s doing the caching. After that, the code will quickly check to see if the requests have already been processed and are in the cache; if so, it will return a URL to the cached file, saving a needless encoding request. If I use Dropbox, I can simply set up the Dropbox app on the server hosting my REST service, and save the files to the Dropbox file tree. They’ll be copied into Dropbox automatically. But this means I’ll have a modest cost associated with maintaining a Dropbox account for this specific purpose ($130/yr). Alternatively, I can copy the files from the REST server over to my own host. What I’d like to ask this group is … what’s the best way to accomplish that? My host is currently on a shared reseller hosting plan, but as this scales-up, I’ll move it to a dedicated host. It’s running cPanel on a Linux server, probably running CentOS. I can set up cron jobs, and I’m told I can get some limited access to a shell (rsh probably) if needed. This is the same host I tested with the htaccess file to allow the files to be accessed without CORS issues. I’m wondering if it’s best to have the REST server copy the files from the TTS site to the other host somehow (eg, with FTP)? Or use something like rsync on the host to sweep files from the TTS site into the host, driven by a list provided by the REST service? Can I run rsync on a Windows host that copies files from server-A to server-B? Or maybe you guys have some better ideas? I’d love to hear some pros and cons about any solutions that might work. Note that I have not considered a cloud service other than FileStack (which I’ve ruled-out using). Regardless, the files will still need to be copied from the TTS provider’s site to the cache host before they get deleted. THIS process is what I’m wanting to resolve. -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Anyone Using HostGator, Bluehost, or some other cheap shared hosting provider?
As I said, the TERM “reseller” is a holdover from the 90’s, and people tend to react the same way you did. It simply means you get access to the “Web Host Manager” that lets you create multiple cPanel accounts. What you do with them is entirely up to you. The biggest advantage to having a “reseller” type account is that you can quickly and easily set up a full hosting account for a new domain in about 30 seconds. The account is protected from other accounts on the same computer, and if it gets hacked then the hackers cannot exceed the resources allocated to that account — assuming you don’t just use a default Package that sets everything to “unlimited’, which a lot of people unfortunately do. If you’re looking at “cheap hosting” then you’re taking about “shared” hosting. Someone who does that expects to put 2k-3k single accounts on a modern server today, depending how many resources they offer. A lot of plans are billed as “unlimited” which is nonsense — anybody who even gets close to using 1% of ANY of the server’s resources is going to get shut down. However, when you get a typical “reseller” account — meaning you have the ability to set up 15-50 or more standalone cPanel accounts, they host them on a separate server and only allocate one-tenth as many, assuming the average account adds ten of its own accounts. A lot of cheap hosting accounts you’ll find are exactly that — someone got a reseller account along with WHMCS or some other billing package, and set it up to resell several different configurations for low monthly prices, although they mostly bill on an annual basis. I’ve only gotten “reseller” type accounts for years, and only once did I sell one to someone (a friend) who actually used it. That was a huge mistake and I’ve never done it since. Again, if you’re actually going to SELL individual cPanel hosting accounts, you’ll NEED some kind of billing platform, like WHMCS, which costs extra. All a “reseller” type account offers is the ability to create multiple independent cPanel accounts. That’s it. If it was up to me, I would not call this “reseller” hosting but “multi-user” hosting. In Linux, I think there’s an “adduser” function somewhere that lets you add additional logins, right? They get their own home directory, FTP login, mailbox, and so forth. Suppose they called that some kind of “reseller” package? It’s the same thing that WHM offers (but you get a lot more from cPanel) — it lets you set up separate accounts. That’s all. You can charge or not, but there are plenty of reasons to have it where you only use it for your own needs. If you have your own server, you can license an entire cPanel system and install it on the server. You still don’t get WHMCS or any sort of billing system, but at that point your server would be no different than folks who sell “reseller” and “shared” hosting plans. However, I’m confused … first you say “I do not want to become a reseller” then you say, “the hosting will be for others, not me”. Well, are you planning to give these “others" all the exact same logins and have them share the same hosting account? If not, then you NEED a “reseller” type account! THAT is exactly what you need to use to allow you to create independent hosting accounts on a shared host. You cannot do it from a single cPanel account. The thing is, WHM lets you set up cPanel hosting on a dedicated domain. Maybe you had in mind to use subdomains? That might well be possible with WHM, but mainly it’s to create hosting for dedicated domains. I can’t tell if you are wanting to use Linux or Windows, but WHM/cPanel is mainly used in Linux while a similar thing called Plesk is more popular on Windows. Plesk itself was bought by SWSoft, which also owned Parallels. They eventually changed their corporate name to Parallels, and were acquired by Oakley Capital in 2017. As far as VSC goes, I did a quick search on Google and found this: VSCode-SFTP enables you to add, edit or delete files within a local directory and have it sync to a remote server directory using different transfer protocols like FTP or SSH. https://pantheon.io/ <https://pantheon.io/> As an aside, there’s also Docker to consider. I’ve never actually used it yet, but it gets you something that’s sort of between a separate cPanel account and a full virtual machine. It isolates resources but lets you load up multiple instances on the same hosting account that are protected from each other. I’m sure there are people here who can chime in and tell you a lot more. it might fit your needs better. -David Schwartz > On Apr 7, 2023, at 7:39 AM, techli...@phpcoderusa.com wrote: > > Hi David, > > Thank you so much for your feedback. It is a jungle out there. > > After posting this email I realized I absolutely need SSH so I can use Visual > Studio Code to edit remotely. Visual Studio Code (VSC) opens another can of > wo
Re: Anyone Using HostGator, Bluehost, or some other cheap shared hosting provider?
get a “Managed Hosting” account. I can set you up with a managed Wordpress account and tons of premium plugins for $50/mo. I don’t have a sales page for it yet, tho. (It’s through WPMUDev.) -David Schwartz > On Apr 3, 2023, at 1:48 PM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > > > I am looking at cheap shared hosting providers. > > I found two so far... Bluehost and HostGator. > > I used Hostgator in the past and it was good and then really bad, and it has > been a while. I eventually moved on. I have not used Bluehost and the > reviews are mixed. > > I have three requirements: > > 1) must have a control panel. > 2) must have ssh access. Not sure this is really necessary because, off the > top of my head, all I need is to be able to edit the .htaccess file which I > can do local and FTP up... or the control panel might have a built in editor. > I probably need access to SSH so I can set file permissions. > 3) must be highly discounted when buying in bulk. > > Any other cheap hosting providers you would recommend? > > Your thoughts? > > Thanks!! > > Keith > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: suggestions to add REST API to MySQL / MariaDB tables
I found this doc for MySQL: https://dev.mysql.com/doc/mysql-router/8.0/en/ Has anybody worked with this? (There’s a section at the end that supports a REST router.) I also found this 3rd-party service for managing members: Memberful.com It has a REST interface that uses GraphQL and seems to do most of what I want. -David Schwartz > On Feb 24, 2023, at 1:22 PM, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > The hosting provider got back to me and said that they can set me up with a > restricted shell access on any of my accounts. > > Also, cPanel has a way to support npm built into it. > > They’re not sure if the built-in support for REST routing on MySQL is enabled > or not; they need me to be more specific. > > I’ll keep digging. > > -David Schwartz > > > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: suggestions to add REST API to MySQL / MariaDB tables
The hosting provider got back to me and said that they can set me up with a restricted shell access on any of my accounts. Also, cPanel has a way to support npm built into it. They’re not sure if the built-in support for REST routing on MySQL is enabled or not; they need me to be more specific. I’ll keep digging. -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: suggestions to add REST API to MySQL / MariaDB tables
That’s certainly the simplest way, and it’s probably fine for an intranet that’s behind a firewall, but it’s not safe for a a public-facing application, which is what this is. But thanks for the reminder. -David Schwartz > On Feb 24, 2023, at 7:34 AM, techli...@phpcoderusa.com wrote: > > David, > > Seems like what you are attempting would be routine. (remote MySql) > > I found this :: > https://stackoverflow.com/questions/27916503/lamp-setup-with-remote-mysql > > Hope it helps. > > Keith > > > On 2023-02-24 03:00, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss wrote: >> I’m building a web app that requires a membership with various levels. There >> will be a front-end (the web app) and a back-end on a Windows server. I’m >> thinking about putting the user DB on separate server. >> I have this tool that lets me build apps using php and MySQL really easily >> to handle my basic admin needs (AppGini) and I’m thinking of using that to >> create the member’s DB and maintain it. >> But if it’s on another server, then I’ll need some kind of interface to it >> so the back-end service can talk to it and do basic user-access things, like >> login/logout, change their pwd, get their basic account details, maybe deal >> with payments. >> I’ve done a bit of poking around and it seems that in a Linux server with >> Apache, you need a little “router” that takes the incoming requests and >> routes them to endpoints by calling some php methods that access the DB. Or >> maybe it implements them itself. >> It looks like there may even be something like that included in MySQL. >> I have a shared hosting account that runs cPanel and WHM, so I don’t have >> access to the shell (well, it’s an option per account in WHM, and I’ve >> asked, but generally not). >> This sort of thing is something I’ve had the dubious luxury of having >> managed everywhere I’ve worked by an IT Dept, but this is for me and I >> haven’t done this stuff in a long time. This is mainly for Dev + Test; I’ll >> set up a dedicated server when I go into production. >> So I’m curious what y’all think of this approach. >> Some may ask, “Why not some cloud service, like AWS or …?” My only answer >> is: because this is what I know right now. Convince me otherwise. >> I’d actually be open to a 3rd-party service if you know of any that’s free >> or really cheap for Devs to set up. >> -David Schwartz >> --- >> PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org >> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: >> https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
suggestions to add REST API to MySQL / MariaDB tables
I’m building a web app that requires a membership with various levels. There will be a front-end (the web app) and a back-end on a Windows server. I’m thinking about putting the user DB on separate server. I have this tool that lets me build apps using php and MySQL really easily to handle my basic admin needs (AppGini) and I’m thinking of using that to create the member’s DB and maintain it. But if it’s on another server, then I’ll need some kind of interface to it so the back-end service can talk to it and do basic user-access things, like login/logout, change their pwd, get their basic account details, maybe deal with payments. I’ve done a bit of poking around and it seems that in a Linux server with Apache, you need a little “router” that takes the incoming requests and routes them to endpoints by calling some php methods that access the DB. Or maybe it implements them itself. It looks like there may even be something like that included in MySQL. I have a shared hosting account that runs cPanel and WHM, so I don’t have access to the shell (well, it’s an option per account in WHM, and I’ve asked, but generally not). This sort of thing is something I’ve had the dubious luxury of having managed everywhere I’ve worked by an IT Dept, but this is for me and I haven’t done this stuff in a long time. This is mainly for Dev + Test; I’ll set up a dedicated server when I go into production. So I’m curious what y’all think of this approach. Some may ask, “Why not some cloud service, like AWS or …?” My only answer is: because this is what I know right now. Convince me otherwise. I’d actually be open to a 3rd-party service if you know of any that’s free or really cheap for Devs to set up. -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: pipes (a response to a VERY SMALL part of: Re: 4-year Programing and Analytics degree from Mesa CC)
Hi, Rusty. Yes, I know about tee, but those pipes really only allow one flow. I’ve used tee to save off a snapshot of the data at different points of the process, but then you have to come back later and run another pipeline to process each one separately. I learned all of this stuff at Moto working on a Unix System V Rel III port to the 68020, and I was quite amazed that all of the commands in a pipe ran in parallel. I could run the pipe in a bg process (with -Z) and then run top and see all of the commands in the pipe running simultaneously. When you do that in Windows, they’re totally synchronous: it’s like running one command after another in a batch file, saving the results of one to a temp file before passing it as input to the next command. Running ‘man tee’ in a Mac shell says you can just send the output to a file. It’s dated 1993, so clearly it hasn’t been updated in 30 years. It would be nice to be able to run a command from a tee that implements a separate pipeline, no? -David Schwartz > On Dec 25, 2022, at 1:45 PM, Rusty Carruth via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Hi, David! > > I'd like to respond to a single thought in your entire message. The message > was interesting, but I'm only going to tackle this one thing: > > On 12/25/22 00:20, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss wrote: >> We saw it first employed in Unix systems with the command shell that lets >> you create “pipes” by connecting various commands together. The command >> shell implements a fairly simple language that’s hard to say is either >> imperative or declarative. Some would argue it’s more of a functional >> language. >> >> But you can see more contemporary evolutions of this approach in Zapier and >> IFTTT. >> >> The problem with this linear “pipeline” approach is that you have to have >> some way to divert feeds off of the main data stream to drive displays, and >> that’s not something we see implemented much. Usually the end of a Zapier >> “zap” goes into some kind of rendering widget, or a spreadsheet or DB. >> >> Anybody who’s tried to use a single Unix pipe command to display multiple >> views of the data going through it knows this is one of it’s major >> weaknesses. > > Well, yes, but I've used 'tee' to great effect here to grab off parts of the > flow of a pipe for later use. So you can grab views of the data as it flows, > but yes I'll agree command pipelines don't make it trivial. > > > Well, since I'm sending a message, I'll add "Merry Christmas to all, and to > all a good night!" ;-) > > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: 4-year Programing and Analytics degree from Mesa CC
I’m not trying to turn this into a promotion for Delphi and similar tools. It’s just what I’m most familar with and what I’ve been using for a long time. Before that it was C++ for 10 years (and I mostly used Borland’s C++ products). I played with both PowerBuilder and Clarion a bit. PB was full of problems. I worked at a place that used both PB and Delphi, and I think every marketing demo I saw them do with PB blew up at least once. Big corporations seemed to prefer it over Delphi for whatever reason. Clarion looked like a really promising tool, but it just seemed to fade away. I really don’t know what happened to it. Borland was founded on Turbo Pascal, which originally sold for $50. They didn’t offer any discount to resellers, who just bought it for $50 each and resold it at the same price, hoping customers would buy something else while they were there. When Borland chucked all of their language tools into CodeGear years later and said, “We’re selling off our crown jewels so we can focus on a bunch of boat anchors!” a lot of us were totally mystified. Delphi was their cash-cow for so many years, and those funds were used to finance a bunch of nonsense that went nowhere, rather than enhancing Delphi itself. Embarcadero eventually bought CodeGear and it looked like things would get better. But then they were bought by a private equity firm that was trying to create another Computer Associates type of mega-software corp. They laid off most of the core developers and built an outsourcing team to maintain the core stuff. Very little has been added to the core language since then, although the IDE has evolved. They seem to be buying up companies and adding their tech to the Delphi Enterprise Edition to justify raising its price. But what they’ve been doing is adding all kinds of new crap at the edges while ignoring the “inner city”, which has sort of gone to crap. I mean, it’s still there, but it has hardly changed in 10 years. Meanwhile they keep raising their prices — 6% per year for people on maintenance plans, beyond the retail price of the products. And if you’re not on a maintenance plan, then upgrades are going to cost you an arm and a leg. They have a TON of corporations using apps originally written in D4-D7 that are still in operation. Those companies keep their maintenance plans active “just in case”, but many of them do not even move their code to the latest verions if there’s no particular benefit that outweighs the risks — and it's becoming harder and harder to justify the upgrades. More importantly, to your point, they COULD be using Delphi for NEW projects, but they choose not to. Mostly, they use Microsoft products. Or Linux-based stuff leveraging open-source tools — which tends to be for building web-based products. They’ve got multiple Delphi licenses already, so I don’t understand why they refuse to use it. I dropped my Delphi maintenance plan last year because I don’t seen much value in it. I’m not worried about losing anything because of that 100% backward compatibility thing they have always embraced. And besides, they haven’t added anything new to the core language in years; nobody thinks they will for quite a while, if ever. Actually, I’m more worried about MacOS — there are apps I cannnot upgrade without upgrading my OS b/c of features added to support the M1/M2 chips that need some kind of core OS support that’s only in newer versions of the OS. I don’t want to upgrade my OS b/c I’ll lose access to apps that I use periodically that will cost me quite a bit to upgrade themselves. I’m far more interested in what TMS is up to that leverages core Delphi technology than what is happening with Delphi. In fact, TMS competes with some of the extensions Embt is adding on to the Enterprise versions of Delphi, but they’re working on a “long plan” while Embt doesn’t even want to discuss theirs any more. Renewals for the TMS ALL-ACCESS pass are a little cheaper than my Delphi maintenance plan renewal, but I get WAY MORE VALUE from TMS than I get with my Delphi renewal. Delphi will keep running, and I know TMS will continue supporting my version, so I’m not worried. Most TMS stuff supports Lazarus; I think some supports FreePascal as well. I don’t really pay that much attention to either one. I’ve been working with Delphi for so long, I’m just really comfortable with my famiarity with it. If you’re curious about what TMS offers, go to their website … they’ve got a TON of stuff. Most of it lets you download trial versions that will run within the IDE (probably why they support Delphi and Lazarus, but not FP). -David Schwartz > On Dec 25, 2022, at 3:38 PM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss said on Sun, 25 Dec 2022 07:20:47 + > (UTC) > >> Steve does a nice job of defending the status quo, > > Thank you! > >> but I’m eager to >&
Re: Lazarus
> On Dec 25, 2022, at 1:28 PM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > According to https://www.lazarus-ide.org/ Lazarus is a Delphi compatible > cross-platform IDE for Rapid Application Development. It has variety of > components ready for use and a graphical form designer to easily create > complex graphical user interfaces. > There are two popular Delphi clones: Lazarus and FreePascal. I haven’t worked with either of them, but from what I can tell, Lazarus is a little closer to what Delphi is. FP implements a lot of innovative language features that a lot of us wish would be adopted in Delphi. Also, I think Lazarus includes a basic IDE, but FP is just a complier. VS Code is becoming a universal IDE for many rogue languages like these. One of the greatest features of Delphi is its backward compatibility. ou can take a program written for the earliest versions of Delphi and get it working with relatively little effort on the latest versions of Delphi. One of the greatest problems Delphi has is … it’s backward compatibility. Microsoft never paid much attention to the need for each successive version of C#, Visual Studio, or even the .NET framework to be 100% backward compatible the way Delphi is (with a few notable exceptions during Delphi's evolution). So C#, Java, and even FreePascal have lots of cool language features added to them over the years that the Delphi world is still eagerly waiting to see. Eg: case statements that use strings as the discrminant. Delphi only lets you use ordinal numbers. Most other contemporary languages let you use strings as well. Another is a simpler way of expressing closures and anonymous methods as parametrs and inline expressions. Interestingly, the TMS WebCore framework uses a slightly enhanced version of the language to help simplify the use of the asynchronous nature of web interfaces. It’s also missing some of the latest language features that have no real impact on the language (eg, inline variable declarations). TMS components and libraries do support Lazarus, and some support FreePascal. --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: dBase
> On Dec 25, 2022, at 1:59 PM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > > I think someone like David Schwartz has the ability to create a clone of > dBase III. Perhaps, but I think it’s far wiser to let sleeping dogs lie. :-/ I remember playing with some version of dBase at some point, and I as I recall, most of what it could do can be done using *nix shell scripts. -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: 4-year Programing and Analytics degree from Mesa CC
s. However, a guy named Boian Mitov implemented a Delphi IDE plugin called the OpenWire project where he published an open source definition of a GUI add-in that lets you drop high-level logic blocks onto a canvas, connect them with virtual wires, set some parameters, then hit the Run button and you can have something quite substantial running in a matter of seconds that did not take a single line of programming. Unfortunately, that didn’t gain much traction, probably because it was specifically designed to work inside of Delphi, although he extended it to C++Builder as well as Visual Studio. Boian is a hardware guy at heart, and he took that basic technology and created a standalone IDE that is language agnostic and used it to create something that lets you “design” a “control program” of sorts that employs any number of dozens if not hundreds of “components” that reflect both chips and modules built around the Arduino architecture, which is very popular in the IoT world. It’s called Visuino and you can learn more about it here: https://visuino.com <https://visuino.com/> I’d refer to this as “visual programming”, but you’re not writing code the way most “visual programming” paradigms approach it. I guess this is more of a declarative interface, similar to Zapier. This is “programming” in the more general sense — getting computers to do what you want — but not by writing code. If you look at the CAD tools that building architects, semiconductor engineers, and aircraft engineers use, you can see other examples of visual programming that allow these people to build incredibly complex models of their designs without having to write a single line of code. They can hit a button and perform stress tests using a number of different factors and simulate failure modes. I don’t know why we have not done that for our own use within the software development world, but sooner or later I believe it’s inevitable. In fact, Delphi and similar visual form-builder app tools have one really huge downfall — they make unit testing of forms extremely difficult. I’m tired of writing lines of code to describe what I want my software to do. I want somthing more visual and less prone to error, that requires less tacit knowledge of dozens of libraries and the latest functions and calling parameters, and is easier to test. I just want to be able to draw a diagram and say, “do this…” and it knows how. -David Schwartz > On Dec 24, 2022, at 4:25 PM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > > David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss said on Sat, 24 Dec 2022 17:51:44 + > (UTC) > > >> But what have we done for ourselves? We >> still use imperative languages to write code line-by-line, they are >> subject to the same types of errors, debugging works the same way >> (well, we didn’t have debuggers until the late 80’s), automated >> testing is almost non-existent. >> >> It’s just insane to me how LITTLE we’ve done to improve the ability to >> do this thing we call “programming”. Maybe it’s just … job security? :o >> >> -David Schwartz > > There's a different way to look at the phenomenon you mention. Maybe we > still use imperative languages because they've stood the test of time. > Declarative language Prolog was available since the 1980's, but it > gained no traction, perhaps because it just didn't easily do what > needed to be done. The functional languages are just now re-emerging > after decades of being ignored, perhaps because the imperative > languages did a better job in more use cases. And now Object Oriented > Programming has mostly replaced structural programming, although I'm > not sure that's a good thing in the majority of cases. > > Most modern Linux distros package Lazarus, a semi-clone of the ancient > Borland Delphi, a primarily drag-and-drop GUI/Database programming > method. For whatever reason, neither Delphi nor Lazarus ever gained > critical mass. Others in this same genre were Powerbuilder and Clarion, > both significant in the 1990's but faded into obscurity for some > reason. Meanwhile, C keeps rolling on, as does Python. They stood the > test of time. What Python can't do, C can, and what's too much work in > C, Python with its standard libraries can easily accomplish. --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: 4-year Programing and Analytics degree from Mesa CC
done virtually nothing to improve their own work. We use the same tools and processes that have been employed since the 60’s. Everything just runs faster, so we can get more done in less time. But the abstraction levels in our own field have not improved nearly as fast as in the applilcation domains we help improve. If you look at fields like construction and semiconductor design, there’s no way we could build fabs or skyscrapers or even computer chips without the amazing innovations programmers have created for those application domains. But what have we done for ourselves? We still use imperative languages to write code line-by-line, they are subject to the same types of errors, debugging works the same way (well, we didn’t have debuggers until the late 80’s), automated testing is almost non-existent. It’s just insane to me how LITTLE we’ve done to improve the ability to do this thing we call “programming”. Maybe it’s just … job security? :o -David Schwartz > On Dec 24, 2022, at 7:28 AM, techli...@phpcoderusa.com wrote: > > You make a lot of good points David. > > Can we agree there are three types of degrees? > > 1) Non technical such as English. > 2) Somewhat Technical such as MIS. > 3) Engineering/Computer Science/Math or highly technical degrees. > --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: 4-year Programing and Analytics degree from Mesa CC
rtist (graphic design) and one of whom is more of a programmer. Unfortunately that doesn’t seem to happen very often in my experience. The term “full-stack” has come to imply someone skilled in the entire gamut of skills — jack of all trades, master of none. When people programmed in VB or FoxBase or things like that, the whole magilla was built into that one tool. It wasn’t a “stack”, it was just one big dev tool or another, Today it’s like someone threw thse tools at a brick wall and they shattered into component parts. Back before we had IDEs, we had all of these tools, and you used “make” to help you build things and you just used whatever “commands” you could find to help. Today, they’re all taught as separate subjects in some schools. Back then, everybody was dealing with the same pot of stew filled with most of the same ingredients. Today, your likelihood of being hired is how many of the different ingredients you have hands-on experience working with. Companies don’t want to waste time and money with people having to learn stuff — they want people who can hit the ground running. So even saying “full stack” isn’t meaningful unless you say what each of the components of that stack are. Never mind that a lot of them at each layer are fairly equivalent. The people laying out these requirements often don’t have a very broad base of understanding themselves, so they rely on advice from whomever they can find to advise them. And sometimes it’s just left to someone in HR. Anyway, my point is that self-taught people tend to have an excellent understanding of things they’ve encountered over time. Left to their own devices, most people do not “survey the landscape” from time to time to see what else is out there, in the way a typical 4-year college degree affords students. Yes, a lot of what you’re exposed to is ultimately going to be irrelevant, but a lot of it comes into play in unexpected ways throughout your career. I’ve worked with self-taught devs who don’t know anything about regular expressions, or what lexers and parsers are, so when we’re facing a situation where we need something like that, they don’t even know what to look for. If you have no exposure at all to some topic, you don’t know any relevant terminology, or how to research it, or anything. You’re just groping around in the dark. I’ve seen this a lot, and it exists frequently because people don’t like to ask for help. I ran into that recently myself and posted an explanation of what I wanted in a group, and several people came back and explained there’s a whole “body of knowledge” with its own terminology and whatnot, stuff for me to search for on Google and dig into. As it happens, there are lots of little niches like this we’ll all encounter over time. However, most college curricula are designed to present a lot of stuff that most people in the field will enounter repeatedly over time. I think it would be possible to teach an entire CS program without the humanities and social-science aspects in half the time they take today (2 years) and that would be quite sufficient for most developers in their career, without much loss of value. But again, if you want to get into any kind of Management role, you’d be at a loss relative to others who did get this broader background in college. -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Software Portfolio
There’s something to be said for being at the right place at the right time. I worked at Intel and left for a few months. When i returned to another division, I learned that about 2 dozen people I worked with there all turned in their resignations one Monday morning shortly after I’d left, including my former boss. They went and hired on with a new startup. Among them were a bunch of guys who all graduated from a Master’s program at the same place at the same time. One of them got ostracized and was not invited to join. He got depressed. A mutual friend said he got a call from a headhunter to interview at Microsoft. This was 1981 before they had gone public. He went but wasn’t very excited about it. They apparently offerred him a huge stock option and sign-on bonus, and he finally agreed. He bacame the manager of a very high-profile team. When the two companies went public, the group of guys all became multi-millionaires overnight. The guy they didn’t invite ended up getting enough Microsoft stock that it was worth more than all of his budies combined. He eventually went off to create a little startup of his own, which you’d know if you were around back then, and he made a shit-pile more when that company was acquired by a much bigger fish. I knew these guys, and worked with them on a daily basis. They all would hang out several evenings a week playing D&D. They all left their work at the office. They made fun of me because I’d spend evenings reading computer mags like Byte and Dr. Dobb’s Journal. I also brought some parts home from work and built a little computer that was the size of a RPi that ran an 8088. That got me a job working with a group that was too cheap to buy a symbolic debugger so we had to debug all of the software looking at core dumps and assembly language generated by a C compiler. It wasn’t a lot of fun, and they kicked me out after 90 days. I probably knew more people who becamse multi-millionaires with startups in the 80’s than people from high school who were killed in Viet Nam. Fortunately or unfortunately, I wasn’t in either group. Back then, friends would get together and kick ideas around, noodle around creating stuff, and a lot of the time it led to a startup. Today, nobody really wants to hang out and talk about stuff unless you have some money to pony-up first. I guess that’s because, you know … those FOSS projects people do in their spare time are like little lottery tickets, right? -David Schwartz > On Dec 1, 2022, at 11:00 PM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss said on Thu, 01 Dec 2022 19:48:59 + > (UTC) > > >> I’ve met a few folks who like plaing with open-source projects, but >> none of them ever said they thought it made a difference in terms of >> getting a job. > > This is an anecdote, so take it for what it's worth: A friend of mine > is a developer supreme: He thoroughly understands algorithms, data > structures and protocols at a deep level. He made a free software smart > phone app and maintained it for his users. A couple years later > WhatsApp noticed it, noticed him, invited him to California, hired him, > and when Facebook bought WhatsApp he got a bonus at least if not more > than sufficient for him to buy a Tesla. > > SteveT > > Steve Litt > Autumn 2022 featured book: Thriving in Tough Times > http://www.troubleshooters.com/bookstore/thrive.htm > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Software Portfolio
Sorry, but this would prevent most people who work for big corporations from ever getting hired. It might work for smaller companies trying to sift through a bunch of applicants and they need a way to get a little more insight into their abilities. I’ve always been amazed at the off-hours interestes of other devs where I’ve worked. They seem to go in one of two directions: 1) they spend time off-hours working on stuff they enjoy that’s unrelated to their job; or 2) they leave the programming at work and prefer spending time on totally different things. I’ve met a few folks who like plaing with open-source projects, but none of them ever said they thought it made a difference in terms of getting a job. Keep in mind, these are big engineering companies, not small shops that do things like build websites. Graphic artists have “portfolios”. Programmers have “knowledge”. Code embodies knowledge, but doesn’t always reflect it. Most of what you’ll see is how the organize their code, what their coding style might be like, what they comment and don’t comment, and if you’re good enough to recognize different design patterns in the code then you can get some idea of how they think. If you run the software, maybe you can see their UI skills. However, the chances of what you’re looking at having any relevance to the job at hand is not very good, based on my experience on both sides of the hiring fence. Reading code is a slow tedious process that leaves more questions than answers. I want to know how you think and solve problems. I was working at a place as a contractor and we had to hire four more people on the team. Someone arranged for a headhunter, and he showed up one day with an 18” pile of resumes. After about the first dozen or so they all started to look the same. The two other colleagues working with me bugged off and refused to waste their time. What do you do in that case? We decided to write up a short questionaire with four questions that gave us a lot of insight into their understanding of some problems we were dealing with in our code. We had the headhunter send it out and asked them to answer to the best of their ability and return it. (Only about half did, which was really helpful.) We weren’t looking for anybody to answer all four like it was a Master’s Thesis. We just wanted to filter out those who had such a limited knowledge of what we were doing that we didn’t have to even waste our time interviewing them. From that perspective, looking at code on github is far more time-intensive than scanning a resume and four more detailed tech questions that applied very closely to our project. If someone at a prospective employer has time to waste going through my github code looking to be impressed, I don’t want to work there because their priorities are messed-up. I can get what I need just talking with you. -David Schwartz > On Dec 1, 2022, at 9:46 AM, Stephen Partington via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > I will be brutally honest. When I review what someone has done the resume is > less impressive than the work done when it comes to software. > > Anything you can opensource and share with the public do so. make a website > that is based on the same domain as the same email you submit resume's on. > link any working demos you may have. link your projects via git so they can > look at what you make. > > Keep a project journal someplace and make that available. > > You can be the best dev in the world. but unless you can show off what you do > nobody will have an idea. > > Resume's are for headhunters mostly. they look for buzzwords and consistent > work. as well as references. > > --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Software Portfolio
stuff are totally clueless about the tech side! I think anybody in this group already knows 90% of what’s involved from the tech side; the rest is to learn the specific tools. You can start with one and work your way through them. In fact, you can only market the services you want; you don’t have to do all of them, although the whole purpose of THIS offer is to give you access to EVERYTHING THEY HAVE. I don’t have the funds to commit to this right now. But if someone does, a few of us could get together and split our earnings to cover the costs. I’ve collected up a ton of credits for an online marketing / promotional service I can use to generate business. Basically, we’d be setting up an Agency that offers these solutions to local businesses, and each of us can focus on different things. With four of us, each one can handle each of the four groups of services he discusses here. At least, that’s one possibility. The point is, these are all IN-DEMAND SERVICES that ALL small biz owners need. They’re a lot easier to sell than custom programming, and no matter where you’re at on the learning curve, you’re light-years ahead of your prospective clients right now! Nobody is going to ask for a portfolio, or certifications, or anything more than, “Can you get me more business every month?” Because, at the end of the day, that’s all most small biz owners care about: getting more clients / customers / sales / revenues / profits from one month to the next. —— One of the specific “growth areas” in this whole panorama is Google Business Profiles. This is an area that is becoming more and more important to ensure your business shows up in Google for relevant searches. There are tons of tools coming to market every month that simplify it more and more, giving you a leg up on your competition while still able to generate $1500/mo per client to help them manage their GBP. Sounds crazy, but it’s true. Let me know if you (anybody) would like to know more. Anyway, the point is, there are plenty of things that someone with the skills everybody on this list already have that can generate a good, steady income without anybody asking for your “credentials” and judging you on irrelevant factors. if you can bring more value to them than it’s costing, they’ll be eternally grateful. Sadly, software development isn’t a niche that does that quickly for anybody, and it’s hard to get work. Providing the services outlined in that video can be done quickly, takes very little time per customer, and the effective hourly pay is way more than programming pays. Just something to chew on. :) -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Can anybody make a simple WP plugin for me?
I need a simple WP plugin created. Does anybody around here do that? -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: What is a full-stack PHP developer
That can all be done in Delphi + TMS WebCore and TMS Biz Pack without breaking a sweat. (yeah, I know … nobody wants to hear this..) So Delphi can be used, but nobody would ever say you’re a “full-stack developer”. (PHP isn’t supported, but Python is.) BTW, “SQL” is not a DB. MS SQL Server and MySQL are DBs, and they support different dialects of SQL. -David Schwartz > On Nov 25, 2022, at 10:44 PM, Stephen Partington via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > This buzzword has a definition. > > https://www.w3schools.com/whatis/whatis_fullstack.asp > <https://www.w3schools.com/whatis/whatis_fullstack.asp> > > Full Stack Web Developer > A full stack web developer is a person who can develop both client and server > software. > > In addition to mastering HTML and CSS, he/she also knows how to: > > Program a browser (like using JavaScript, jQuery, Angular, or Vue) > Program a server (like using PHP, ASP, Python, or Node) > Program a database (like using SQL, SQLite, or MongoDB) > > > On Sat, Nov 26, 2022, 12:39 AM Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss said on Fri, 25 Nov 2022 14:36:34 -0700 > > >Hi, > > > >I have read that to be qualified as a full-stack developer, one must > >know how to troubleshoot the entire stack. > > > >Where are the boundaries. > > One man's opinion: "Full-stack developer" is a buzzword with a thousand > different meanings. My advice, call yourself a "full-stack developer" > to baffle em with your buzzwords, and let anyone who disagrees try to > prove you wrong. > > SteveT > > Steve Litt > Autumn 2022 featured book: Thriving in Tough Times > http://www.troubleshooters.com/bookstore/thrive.htm > <http://www.troubleshooters.com/bookstore/thrive.htm> > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Special-Use Domain 'home.arpa.'
I looked into this topic a while back and it’s a bit of a quagmire. The general concensus I found was to use .local as your TLD as it has been reserved for that purpose. There are a few more, like .test, but .dev is a legitimate TLD run by Google. I’ve talked with several people who set up their own DNS server on their intranet to respond to their own TLD so you don’t need to use the hosts file on every machine. I think most companies with multiple layers of firewalls take that approach because it won’t resolve the URLs across the firewall — public DNS will always return an error on the lookups. -David Schwartz > On Nov 23, 2022, at 9:26 AM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > > > Hi, > > As you know I am building a "home office" lab for PHP development and > testing. I was not satisfied with the research I completed on > "non-routeable" domains for a private network made up of "non-routeable" > domains. > > In the distant past I used to use .dev for the TLD. From what I am reading > this is not a good idea. > > According to https://www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc8375.html one should use > "home.arpa.". They add a period to the end which I assume is the DNS domain > name stop character when used in zone files. Any thoughts? > > I will not be using DNS. My needs are so simple I will be adding the IP and > domain name in my host file, at least for now. > > I've read a lot about this subject. Some say to use a registered domain with > a subdomain that is on a private IP. I really do not want to commingle public > and private assets on the same domain. > > Any feedback is much appreciated!! > > Thanks!! > Keith > --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Oracle's VirtualBox RANT
I use VirtualBox on my Mac to allow me to use Delphi, a Windows-specific tool. Perhaps Crossover for Mac would work, but Delphi depends on a whole mess of Windows dependencies it has accumulated over the years, including .NET frameworks and some other crap. So it’s easier to just install Windows 10 inside of VirtualBox and then run Delphi there. From time to time, I’ve run into networking issues, but for the most part, once I’ve gotten things running, it’s actually more stable than any Windows-based hardware I’ve used. One of the things I develop in Delphi is server-side apps. They can only be targeted at Windows; the Linux support for the libraries I use isn’t fully there. I really hate dealing with remote Windows servers, so I’ve been thinking about how to host these services inside of something that runs on a common Linux hosting account, most of which run CentOS. I know VirtualBox can run under CentOS, but I’m not clear how easy or complex it is to install it. One problem is I don’t have root access. Another is it’s headless, so there’s no way to run a GUI. Any suggestions for doing what I need? Also, Keith, maybe VirtualBox is simply not the best tool for what you’re trying to do? -David Schwartz > On Nov 15, 2022, at 7:42 AM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Hi, > > As you probably know I am struggling to configure Oracle's VirtualBox for web > development testing. --- PLUG-discuss mailing list: PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: T-Mobile Home Internet followup
The UHF TV channels were hardly used, mainly for servicing rural areas. Large densely populated areas did not use them. And the FCC tended to allocate the lower-end frequencies first. So not many people got exposed to the upper-band emissions. None of this airspace was “given away” to anybody. The FCC has public auctions from time to time, and has raised several billion dollars in leases for these licenses. Each license is for a local geographic area; to get similar band frequencies in multiple areas, companies must bid on them individually. T-Mo bought Sprint in large part b/c of the big swaths of licenses they had been sitting on that complemented T-Mo’s existing infrastructure. And in the most recent auctions, hardly anybody placed any bids, so T-Mo/Sprint captured the lion’s share of the licenses being auctioned at a significant discount. T-Mo has been rolling out their Home Internet for a few years now. I’ve had it since not long after it launched on 4G and it’s the best service I’ve ever had. But its availability has been restricted until recently. In the zones where they’d offer it, it worked well. But since they opened it up to everybody, there are zones where it does not work well. A friend of mine just tried it out and it didn’t work for him, so he returned the device the next day. I had the same problem with Sprint’s phone service at one place I lived, and other carriers’ cell service elsewhere. There are lots of “blind spots” for EVERY carrier where their service doesn’t work. At least T-Mo knows this and they are really great about taking back the equipment and cancelling the service. I once got a cell phone at Costco and Sprint service, and as I said it did not work at my home. That turned into a nightmare b/c while Sprint was happy to cancel the service, the marketing company selling it at Costco refused to take the phones back and refund anything. It wasn’t either Sprint nor Costco, just some jerk-ass vendor who hada no-return / no-cancellation policy that they weren’t up-front about, and Costco didn’t seem to care at the time. But I’m very happy with my T-Mo Home Internet, mainly b/c the only other option I’ve got is Cox, and it kept going down when I had it b/c the equipment was old and they kept prioritizing newer areas to upgrade. I have been getting flyers from CenturyLink for years about how they’re installing fiber in the area, but it always stops 1/4 mile away. I guess they just don’t have enough customers in my subdivision to make it worth their while. The Good News is T-Mo installed a new 5G tower 1000 feet south of me and it beams a signal right into this neighborhood. It’s way stronger than the old 4G signal I was getting from AT&T. It’s always a crap-shoot with these folks. -David Schwartz > On Oct 31, 2022, at 11:23 AM, Jim via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > What the carriers are calling 5G is a portion of the 5G standards that don't > provide the high speed service that the mmwave tech does. For the last 40 > years, the FCC has been handing over to cell phone companies chunks of > spectrum that previously were reserved for over the air television. Until > some time in the 80s, the top tv channel was 83. Then it was reduced to 69 > with 70 - 83 given to cell phones. Later they did it again with the highest > tv channel being 51. More recently the government again gave channels 38-51 > to the cell phone carriers. Currently the top tv channel is 36. 37 is > reserved for radio astronomy. > > I laugh when I read something about these moonbats who go on about 5G signals > being hazardous to human health. They've been exposed to those frequencies > for decades when they were used for television. > > My guess is that T Mobile's service went down the crapper because people > signed up for it, they don't have the capacity to handle the demand customers > are placing on the network and either are unable to correct the problem or > unwilling to spend the money to fix it. > > on 10/30/22 16:11, Michael Butash via PLUG-discuss wrote: > >> Thanks for the feedback, though that really bites. Reminds me of Sprint >> wireless broadband circa 2001 using fixed antennas, it was great at first, >> but then only in the middle of the night, as it sucked entirely during the >> day as it couldn't deal with the capacity either. >> >> I'm not surprised, real 5g using mmwave technology is really only decent to >> around 700ft or so, as I've used a few products for fixed wireless point to >> point or multipoint as well. It's also what drives ultrawideband technology >> used by apple now pervasively, marketed as a "personal area network" for >> short range optimized use. It's simply not *good* as a wan technology. >> >&g
Re: Why is PHP not a "real" language?
My opinion might not count for much since I don’t really program with PHP, although I spent about a year with V4 in 2000. I do enjoy looking at the language updates and seeing what small steps the PHP language Gods take each time it’s updated. In contrast to C++, PHP seems to be evolving at a snail’s pace. The issues about interpreted (aka, “scripting”) languages is bogus. Python is now the #1 most popular programming language in the world, and it’s interpreted. So there goes that theory. https://skilldeck.org/learning/best-programming-language-to-learn My take on PHP is that it has been in a stuck-in-the-middle state for >20 years, between being a “structured/procedural programming” and “object-oriented” language. Kind of like C++ was before V1.1 or so was introduced. Still, while you can use both to create OO code, you can also use both to write horrid code that runs just fine and doesn’t use any of the class-related language constructs. Over the years, C++ has been embraced by the OOP community and you don’t see anybody demanding that C++ compilers be able to compile any old C code. The C standard is still evolving and it keeps taking on bits and pieces of things inspired by C++, but it’s really still not an OOP language. But I’ve heard PHP coders constantly complaining about the fact that the use of classes in PHP kills performance. Yeah, as if Python users think that’s even relevant! Python is 100% OOP right out of the gate, and they seem proud of it. Both are interpreted, and both are probably about as efficient compared with a compiled language. (Are there any performance comparisons between equivalent PHP and Python apps?) If an OOP-based interpreted language can attain the "#1 most popular language” slot and nobody cares about the little bit of overhead that the OO part imposes on the execution time, then perhaps it’s time for PHP coders to suck-it-up and learn how to REALLY code in OOP idioms! Until then, it’s the PHP programming community that’s shooting itself in the feet, not the language. Get rid of the “holes” in the language that allow it to process old code that breaks all of the encapsulation rules and make the use of classes more direct rather than forcing the use of squirrly syntax that is constantly reminding people “this isn’t really an object-oriented language … but you can use it that way … IF YOU INSIST”. This is 2022. Nobody teaches plain old structured/procedural programming any more — they don’t even say they’re teaching OOP, it’s just what all modern languages support today. Except PHP, which cannot seem to decide if it’s ever going to grow up and let go of its procedural roots. (Perhaps a big part of the problem is all of the old procedural PHP code that people are scared to refactor. So instead they just start over in Python?) -David Schwartz > On Aug 27, 2022, at 7:11 PM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > > > Just in time to add another thread that might be as intense as the sysd...etc > thread. > > For years I have heard that people say PHP is not a real language. > > One guy says interpreted languages are not real programming languages, they > are scripting languages. I guess way back when I was an xBase developer I > must have not been a real programmer. Back in the day The only compiled > xBase was Clipper Summer 87 by Nantucket Corp. I think it was possible to > compile xBase code but I never did except with Clipper Summer 87. I think > Visual Fox was compiled... > > Another says the barrier to entry makes it possible for non-professional > programmers to get hired and to mess up the code base. Isn't that a hiring > manager's issue? > > I think PHP is a great language and a lot of others must think so too. > > I really liked the decade long ride with PHP 5. I think 7 brought some good > changes in the area of speed and the removal of Register globals. > > PHP must be doing something right because it is run by upwards of 80% of the > websites on the Internet. > > I do think the PHP team is moving too fast. We now have version 8. > > So what is wrong with PHP and where are we going in such a hurry? > > And finally why does PHP have to be anything but simple stupid? > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Opportunity
> Data Analytics and Programming Is this the next iteration of Computer Science ? The other day when I posted what I thought about CS degrees, it made me realize that most of what’s taught in traditional CS programs is really rooted in the practical limitations of hardware from the 60’s and 70’s. Today, most of what’s taught really doesn’t matter since hardware and computer bandwidth are WAY beyond most of the concerns that were taught back then. If you think about it, on one hand, traditional CS training was designed to help us cram 25 pounds of stuff into a 3 pound bag within a specified time-frame, with no loss of fidelity, so to speak. It think we’ve passed a point where this has become inverted. Your average phone today has more processing power than anything used teach CS topics prior to 2000. Today phones are like 25 pound bags, and using REST-based services over omnipresent wireless connections, we can build programs that are equivalent to 150 pounds of stuff and yet they only take up 3 pounds in the bag, leaving 22 pounds of unused resources. They haven’t taught “structured programming” since "object-oriented programming" (OOP) became mainstream in the 90’s, and I’m not sure they even teach OOP today — it’s just “programming” now. Multi-threading used to be fairly arcane; today it’s a fairly common part of UI design that’s hot-wired to “live” back-end services. Multi-processing used to be something that only CS graduate students messed with. Today you can buy a Raspberry Pi Pico for $5 that’s got a 1.6 GHz CPU composed of four independent CPU cores. Meanwhile, the stripped-down Linux distro that runs on it has the smarts built-in to “load-level” the activities of your code without any specific coding practices neded on your part. Virtually every CPU made today is “multi-core” and some even have multiple GPUs on them. There are even specialized “low-energy” CPU cores for handling background tasks that don’t need as much attention (and energy) as the “main” cores. And none of it requires any specialized programming. Traditional Computer Science is obsolete. What’s needed now is a better understanding of what’s out there in terms of available services, how to best leverage them in your app, and how to keep from inadvertently scooping up 50 pounds of stuff that’s attached to your 3 pound program without being cognizant of what’s actually there. -David Schwartz > On Aug 23, 2022, at 10:33 PM, Phil Waclawski via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > As a CIS (Computer Information Systems) Faculty at Mesa Community College, I > am of course biased. I do feel that we offer a good education at an > affordable price compared to the universities. With CIS, we focus more on > actually coding/making things than theory. So, you won't build compilers, but > you will build working programs, web sites, databases etc etc. > > Education is definitely shifting, and the "taught yourself" crowd has done > well since the early days :) I tell my students that they need to work on > some projects for themselves, or work with another group on code/etc. > Employers want to see what you have done. The degree is great, but if that is > all you have, you are at a disadvantage. And learn to network if you truly > want to get a good job. > > I am looking forward to seeing how our first 4 year degree (Data Analytics > and Programming) pans out when it starts Fall 2023. > > Phil W > > On Tue, Aug 23, 2022 at 7:08 PM Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > > > Sounds like a good school. I do not think my JC experience was a s > good. > --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Opportunity
Like most folks, you were testing for the wrong skills. The last job I had was Delphi-specific, and their “coding test” was very simple: Write a program that uses a TStringlist, reads in a CSV file with 7 columns, sorts it on column 3, removes column 5, and saves the result to a file name xyz.dat. Something to that effect. It took me about 10 minutes and it was maybe 20 lines of code. Later on, after I’d been hired, the guy who interviewed me and gave me the test, said, “Oh, by the way, I just looked at the code you gave for your coding test. You passed.” I looked at him for a moment and shrugged. He said, "very few people do.” I asked “why?” He said, “Because they don’t know much about Delphi I suppose. Or maybe the power of stringlists." I initially started to solve the problem by thinking about how to solve it in general; but re-reading it, I kept notincing it said to use a TStringList. It wasn’t there by mistake. Then I remembered that you can read CSV files into them directly using default settings, something a LOT of Delphi programmers don’t realize. It all hinged around knowing the features of TStringLists — which are probably THE single most used object in Delphi’s entire library. They’re sort of the Swiss Army Knife of Delphi programming if you’re manipulating any sort of text. I probably would not have thought about using a TStringList if it had not been mentioned, but I was glad it WAS mentioned. I mean … it simply wasn’t the first solution that came to mind. Too many people want to hire for solutions in X and then ask candidates to solve an example problem that asks for solutions using Y. I’ve never understood that. When I’m screening Delphi people, I ask them questions about solving problems using Delphi. Not “theoretical” but stuff I run into all the time … things that THEY should run into all the time if they’re working with Delphi. Hardly anybody takes that approach. I don’t know why. Something like, “create a form with a DBGrid and Nav bar that displays the FishFact demo table” is like “Hello World” for database apps, and it’s amazing how many peole can’t do it! Do you know how many people I’ve interviewed over the years for Delphi roles who provided resumes with tons of Delphi experience shown, yet they couldn’t even answer basic questions about the IDE or common library functions? I don’t even look closely at their resumes any more. If they apply, I give them four questions to answer that relate to our project, from simple to hard, and see how they respond. I don’t expect them to answer all four, but some can’t even answer one adequately. None of this has anything to do with their educational level or background. Either they know what they say they know, or they don’t. And most people over-inflate their claims on the resume they turn in. People with a CS degree don’t know any more about Delphi or C# or Java than those who don’t. But if you’ve been doing original programming (ie, writing tons of code) for a few years, there’s stuff you do repeatedly. It’s like playing the same few common musical bars on a piano. If they can’t play them, then they lied about their experience. They aren’t going to work out if the job involves a lot of original coding. If it’s for a maintenance role, then I’d give them examples with subtle bugs in the code and see how many they can find. Don’t ask them to write a bubble-sort function! Ask them to refactor a chunk of code that’s buggy, adding in some exception handling, and see what they do. Having a CS degree won’t differentiate ANY of these candidates today. There used to be a time when everybody reinvented the wheel. Those were the good ‘ol days. Today people search Google and rummage through StackOverflow for ready-made solutions. Even Microsoft has integrated an AI bot into Visual Studio that lets you search for code fragments scraped from GitHub to reduce coding time. Most such examples are over-simplified and incomplete, so I’m not convinced they’d save time over using a solid component library like what TMS Software and others sell for Delphi and C#, but when you have been given no budget to spend, someone has declared that your time is easier and cheaper to come by. -David Schwartz PS: no thanks on the Lazarus presentation. I’ve never used Lazarus. I might be persuaded to demonstrate building a web app using TMS WebCore, starting in Delphi then switching to Visual Studio Code. It’s written in Delphi, but translated to js that runs inside the web browser. WebCore isn’t free, but pas2js and VSCode are. (See TMS Software to learn more about WebCore and their TNC library of cross-platform components.) > On Aug 23, 2022, at 12:46 PM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > On Tue, 2022-08-23 at 03:01 +, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss wrote: >> The question that was posed morphed into something about the value of CS >> degrees >>
Re: Opportunity
Math Theory, Data Structures, Analysis of Algorithms, and other core topics, are taught as part of every CS program in the world. NOBODY CARES ABOUT ANY OF IT TODAY! Nobody is building custom compilers or database servers or things that most CS degrees were designed to address — slow CPUs, small address spaces, small primary memory (RAM), limiited secondary memory (HDDs), slow computer-to-computer communications. NONE of it matters today! >From the 90’s until 2005 or so, “client-server architectures” were all the >rage. Today it’s REST-based micro-services being accessed by mobile apps >running on phones and tablets, and the overall latencies today even over >wireless devices to cloud-based storage than when the server was in the next >room and they were connected with ethernet cables. If you need code for something unusual today, just spend a little while searching for it online, because it’s very likely someone has already solved the problem. Who needs a CS degree to search for stuff in Google? State Farm has hired thousands of people right out of college with only one programming class under their belt, and puts them through an intensive 6-month internal Java training program. These are the people they have writing and maintaining their software today. I kept trying to get hired by them and get put through their class. They said it was only for new college grads, not “senior developers” who they expected to have at least 5 years of solid java programming under their belt already. >From what I’ve heard, they are not interested in people with CS degrees, or >even a lot of programming experience. But if you go through Woz-U or a similar >3-month “boot camp", State Farm will very likely hire YOU as an entry-level >programmer. That’s all it takes. -David Schwartz > On Aug 22, 2022, at 7:27 AM, techli...@phpcoderusa.com wrote: > > > > On 2022-08-22 00:17, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss wrote: >> Not sure what good a CS degree is these days. Seems like all anybody >> caress about today is “at least 3 years hands-on experience with xyz >> and abc” to get hired for stuff. > > I consider a CS degree as an engineer. Those who follow this path can do > things the rest of us cannot do like create parsers, compilers, and > interpreters. Am I wrong? > > I'm a programmer. I do not have the skills of a CS degree holder. You > (David) can do lots of neat things that I cannot. I think your niche is > smaller if you want to do engineering class work. > > I had a love/hate relationship with IT for a long time because I struggled to > find adequate W2 employment. I had to become a freelancer to rise to my > potential, and that could be a book. > > I bet you could spend a couple months learning Kotlin, put up a website and > do freelance Kotlin development. > > I have read articles that say freelancing will take over the world in the > future. As companies start to realize they only need a core of employees > supplemented by freelancers, then that will become the norm. > > It has been my experience that small businesses mostly hire freelancers and > have no IT staff. > --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Opportunity
BTW, I’m sure lots of people here remember when Apple announced the iOS SDK a few months after the first iPhone was released… I also remember seeing tons of ads from companies looking to hire “iOS SDK programmers with 3-5 years of iOS experience”. I could never figure out if they were just trolling for Apple employees or they honestly thought there were people outside of Apple who had been in the beta programs that long and would take a pay-cut to get a full-time job doing iOS programming somewhere. But the demand for iOS programmers is still quite strong. -David Schwartz > On Aug 22, 2022, at 12:17 AM, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Not sure what good a CS degree is these days. Seems like all anybody caress > about today is “at least 3 years hands-on experience with xyz and abc” to get > hired for stuff. > > I read an article today that was saying how Google has been working hard to > replace Java in the Android ecosystem with Kotlin. I’m sure Java will be with > us a long time, but learning Kotlin could open some doors in the > not-too-distant future. > > > Five years later, Google is still all-in on Kotlin > > https://techcrunch.com/2022/08/18/five-years-later-google-is-still-all-in-on-kotlin/ > > <https://u2206659.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=SJEG7TF39YLaAIMD0HhsfM-2BUnniUctgTPwX-2FlDxhYyeMTgN-2BdD3hvSAtgSC8-2BRfKCMc6cc2WxMRhF814RaHy3oXxHVzK1uM31jlPF7z0kpx1nMUGgIt8fUag0bximYHe52wY_o-2BjQxMsWfboH-2B-2BcY2qb3IYCoqvthnvff9ftZz0pNEJ2tF1jbVlVBtrlaPYq4av3GGnw-2BRkwuhd0Ewovym9t-2FUqnuSCdeTFXZB9VQP8tD9lzJWs62MxiJYjy68EmRCr74SD75f9JIV1Tvr-2FdK32-2F7GODHaKbFnZzPgryAof4Qy5rm-2Fb413pY-2BCrEPrleX7oa0T1uLeJXYkL945F62o84PbFqBg9yxe5l8VslRGmKTjyQ-3D> > > It’s been just over five years since Google first announced that it would > make Kotlin, the > statically typed language for the Java Virtual Machine first developed by > JetBrains, a first- > class language for writing Android apps at Google I/O 2017. Since then, > Google took this a > step further by making Kotlin its preferred language for writing Android apps > in 2019 — and > while plenty of developers still use Java, Kotlin is quickly becoming the > default way to build > apps for Google’s mobile operating system. > > > I suspect that when Google announces the first version of Android written in > Kotlin, it will open a huge demand for Kotlin programmers with even 6 months > of experience with it. > > -David Schwartz > > > > >> On Aug 21, 2022, at 7:08 AM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss >> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> >> wrote: >> >> >> >> On 2022-08-19 10:41, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss wrote: >>> On Thu, 2022-08-18 at 15:52 -0700, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss wrote: >>>> David, >>>> You provide a bunch to think about. >>>> What does this have to do with Linux? We are on a Linux list and I >>>> would guess most are not going to retool. >>>> I'm 66 and do not think I will retool, so I am looking at some simple >>>> things that might make my life better while we enter a period of chaos. >>>> I am a PHP programmer and I know less about Linux than I would like to. >>>> For me the opportunities have to be in the realm of LAMP/LEMP. >>>> PHP is so ingrained that it will be around for decades. Eventually it >>>> will go the way of COBOL... AND COBOL is still around. I think a person >>>> could make a career being a COBOL developer. >>>> So I think the question is what are the opportunities for the Linux >>>> admins and the associated technologies? >>> What I'm personally doing is developing a Troubleshooters.Com >>> <https://u2206659.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=BhNbhdbDS7xKBhDf7NQZqchNygmyB1zvx5Tv7LBq0VbOEz4w1v0JqMJ3zzedGfoqnHka_o-2BjQxMsWfboH-2B-2BcY2qb3IYCoqvthnvff9ftZz0pNEJ2tF1jbVlVBtrlaPYq4av3GGnw-2BRkwuhd0Ewovym9t-2FUnWX3xWLJ-2BNqYG6T-2B8N93M88Pr7ebIlVoylZt-2FGe30NdjNsGHG54qA-2B2cMPBb9xuP1Nehj8oKHqCJyv0VUYIRJ-2FjuC8z6XnH0koiM2GN4fYM1QEoihv4H55gB8HbENiVO3soy593HLsUcdSij85MdPc-3D> >>> HTML/CSS >>> subsite in >>> preparation to teach online HTML/CSS classes to people who: >>> 1) Understand that HTML, DOM and CSS are the basis of web >>> presentation, regardless >>> of higher layer tools used, >>> 2) Want a teacher instead of just taking a programmed online course, >>> 3) Don't want to pay the price of coming to a face to face class. >> >> Very nice!! Based on what I am reading and hearing I think there will be >>
Re: Opportunity
Not sure what good a CS degree is these days. Seems like all anybody caress about today is “at least 3 years hands-on experience with xyz and abc” to get hired for stuff. I read an article today that was saying how Google has been working hard to replace Java in the Android ecosystem with Kotlin. I’m sure Java will be with us a long time, but learning Kotlin could open some doors in the not-too-distant future. Five years later, Google is still all-in on Kotlin https://techcrunch.com/2022/08/18/five-years-later-google-is-still-all-in-on-kotlin/ It’s been just over five years since Google first announced that it would make Kotlin, the statically typed language for the Java Virtual Machine first developed by JetBrains, a first- class language for writing Android apps at Google I/O 2017. Since then, Google took this a step further by making Kotlin its preferred language for writing Android apps in 2019 — and while plenty of developers still use Java, Kotlin is quickly becoming the default way to build apps for Google’s mobile operating system. I suspect that when Google announces the first version of Android written in Kotlin, it will open a huge demand for Kotlin programmers with even 6 months of experience with it. -David Schwartz > On Aug 21, 2022, at 7:08 AM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > > > On 2022-08-19 10:41, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss wrote: >> On Thu, 2022-08-18 at 15:52 -0700, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss wrote: >>> David, >>> You provide a bunch to think about. >>> What does this have to do with Linux? We are on a Linux list and I >>> would guess most are not going to retool. >>> I'm 66 and do not think I will retool, so I am looking at some simple >>> things that might make my life better while we enter a period of chaos. >>> I am a PHP programmer and I know less about Linux than I would like to. >>> For me the opportunities have to be in the realm of LAMP/LEMP. >>> PHP is so ingrained that it will be around for decades. Eventually it >>> will go the way of COBOL... AND COBOL is still around. I think a person >>> could make a career being a COBOL developer. >>> So I think the question is what are the opportunities for the Linux >>> admins and the associated technologies? >> What I'm personally doing is developing a Troubleshooters.Com HTML/CSS >> subsite in >> preparation to teach online HTML/CSS classes to people who: >> 1) Understand that HTML, DOM and CSS are the basis of web >> presentation, regardless >> of higher layer tools used, >> 2) Want a teacher instead of just taking a programmed online course, >> 3) Don't want to pay the price of coming to a face to face class. > > Very nice!! Based on what I am reading and hearing I think there will be > continued demand for this type of learning. I think the Universities will > dry up. It might take a while. Looks like a year at ASU is almost $13,000 > https://admission.asu.edu/aid/resident-first-year > <https://admission.asu.edu/aid/resident-first-year> Who can afford that? > > I first looked at college in 1978 and that year it was $275 a semester at the > University of Arizona. I ended up going to junior college and it was $100 my > first semester the spring of 1979. > > By 1990 UofA was just over $1000 a semester. 4 times what it was just 12 > years prior. > > When I was first exposed to programming in 1983 a bachelor's degree was > required to be a programmer. I think that requirement is long gone. I think > employers are looking for just skills. > > I think self study is big today. And if the economy does crash I'm thinking > that the next generation of programmers will be self thought and might just > be more inclined to be using Linux. > > If what I am hearing and reading is that the economy is going to crash and > inflation is going to stay at 10% for the next 10 years, I think the world > will look and feel a lot different 10 or 12 years from now. > > So doing what you are doing, Steve, should pay dividends for years. --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: ot 1099
myself instead of farming it out to a specialist. You can make it so simple that you only need to file a 1040EZ for yourself at the end of the year if you want, instead of a 1040 plus one or more Schedule C’s with all the accompanying paperwork that's required. The Corp doesn’t need ANY of that, just some routine notes to justify expenses if you ever get audited. First and foremost, I’m a software developer. I get to charge a pretty penny for my skills. I believe I’d be throwing money away by thinking I can “save money” by doing something other specialists would charge far less to do much faster and more intelligently. I do not want to be a “tax expert”! And if I get audited, I don’t want to have to pay someone $200/hr to review my taxes so they can help keep me from getting reamed by the IRS by thinking I’m anywhere close to knowing as much as someone who makes a living reading weekly updates the IRS publishes about how schmucks like me tend to screw up our own taxes! To me, taxes are nothing but “background noise” and a distraction from my primary goals. I’ll never be as good dealing with them as someone who spends as much swimming around them as I spend working on software. SIMPLE saves me both time and money, and I believe maximizes my profts in the long-term. I’m not a CPA, I don’t play one on TV, and I sure as heck wouldn’t be arrogant enough to think I'm the best CPA I could hire for my own needs at my current hourly rate. I do know enough about taxes to be motivated around keeping them as simple as possible and trust those who specialize in tax laws to advise me. -David Schwartz > On Aug 21, 2022, at 7:40 AM, techli...@phpcoderusa.com wrote: > > > Good conversation. I was an LLC and paid the IRS as an S-Corp. Because the > filings where too much for me I used a payroll company. Not sure I really > saved much because it cost so much for the payroll company and for the CPA. > > After reading what David and Steve had to say I think I may never do any 1099 > work again... in the form of freelance programming. I think Steve has the > right idea. > > Both of you gave great feedback. > --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: T-Mobile Home Internet via ethernet connection tip
I’m going to guess not. That seems like it would be a higher-level function you’d have to do yourself using a smart router and subnets. it supports DHCP, but the lack of access to the inner logic does’t tell me much. It’s a basic “gateway appliance”. They don’t want people mucking with internal settings. (I imagine you can find some folks who have published info online about hacking into these devices. They probably use very common FOSS code inside. I mean … it’s just a router with a 5G cellular modem attached to the WAN port, right? I think I saw something that said they've got SnapDragon CPUs inside.) Can you do this with consumer-level devices from Cox or CenturyLink? -David Schwartz > On Aug 19, 2022, at 11:52 PM, der.hans wrote: > > Am 19. Aug, 2022 schwätzte David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss so: > > moin moin David, > > I forgot to ask ( but presume the answer is no ), do the t-mobile devices > support multiple vlans? > > I would like to isolate some devices and presume I would need to provide > my own devices for network segregation. > > ciao, > > der.hans > >> I dunno if anybody here has T-Mobile Home Internet, but I do and I really >> like it. I only have one beef: the spec sheet for their modem/gateway says >> it has 2x 1 gigabit ethernet ports, but they’re only 100 Megs. In case >> anybody else might want to consider them as an ISP and has a 1GB LAN to >> connect, I’ve solved the speed dilemma. >> >> First off, I’ve been round and round with their tech support folks lying >> about it for two years, and was recently told that they were going to be >> releasing a new device soon and it def. WOULD have 1 Gb ports. >> >> Well, they announced a new one (two, actually), and I got one and … once >> again the spec sheet SAYS 1 gigabit ethernet but the performance says nope — >> it’s still only 100 megs. WTF? I guess this lets them shave a couple of >> bucks off of the hardware cost. Actually, I’m not even sure why they bother >> to include the slow ethernet ports at all. >> >> (In a way this is really quite amusing, because prior to this, most >> modem/gateways have crappy WiFi and speedy ethernet — especially those from >> Cox and CenturyLink.) >> >> I don’t know how a big company like T-Mo gets away misrepresenting a product >> like this for so long. Why can’t they just SAY they’re 100 meg ethernet >> ports? >> >> Anyway, I finally got fed-up and bought a TP-Link RE550 AC1900 WAP/Range >> Extender and configured it so I can plug my local 1 GB ethernet LAN wire >> into it and connect to the T-Mo gateway via WiFi. >> >> To be sure, the T-Mo gateway’s WiFi is FAST! I’ve seen speeds up to 870 >> Mbps. The ethernet, OTOH, never exceeds 93 Mbps. >> >> With the RE550 plugged in, my Mac minis connected to the LAN now get 750 >> Mbps DL and 78 Mbps UL. WHOA! That’s 5x DL and 2x UL faster than I got via >> the wired connection. (Actually, the newer 2018 Mac Mini gets that; the >> older one from 2014 only gets 180 Mbps DL and 65 Mbps UL.) >> >> And in case anybody is wondering why I use a wired LAN, it’s so the two Mac >> Minis can talk. I have the new one configured so I can access the old one >> via Screen Sharing on a dedicated Space (virtual desktop). When I do that >> over WiFi, the connection is intolerably slow for me; but with the wired >> connection, it’s quite reasonable. >> >> BTW, I dropped Cox a couple of years back and cut my monthly TV + Internet >> bill by quite a bit by switching to T-Mo’s Home Internet ($50/mo) and a >> couple of internet channels (Discovery+ and Philo). >> >> T-Mo’s Home Internet has been far more stable, consistently faster, and has >> fewer dropouts than any other ISP I’ve ever used. I highly recommend it. >> Just … if you need to connect a wired LAN, get something like a fast >> WAP/Range Extender to act as a LAN-to-WiFi bridge. >> >> -David Schwartz >> >> >> >> >> --- >> PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org >> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: >> https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > > -- > # https://www.LuftHans.com https://www.PhxLinux.org > # "If it's not a toy you're looking at it wrong." -- der.hans --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: ot 1099
A. I have nothing for sale to folks here, as I’m semi-retired now. This is all water under the bridge to me. B. I went down the route of working as a sole proprietor for over 10 years. I nearly lost my house twice and got hosed-up in a lawsuit where I “won the battle but lost the war” mainly because of personal exposure I took on from a client (a Corp) whereas I was a sole proprietor rather than a Corp or LLC. My lawyer was new and didn’t recognize that this guy had used a very classic approach to judgement-proof himself and his business, and after “we” won what amounted to a worthless judgement, my lawyer resigned and sued me for his fees. Never mind that my “client” had actually been awarded 100% of my judgment against him from a malpractice claim, it was totally uncollectible, and my lawyer never saw it coming. C. This all cost me a LOT of money, time, stress, and aggravation, (all of those things you mentioned, and more) and ended up forcing me to cash out my retirement funds to keep from losing pretty much everything. D. I was audited by the IRS several times, although in the end I didn’t owe them anything. It’s just that as a sole proprietor there are lots of perfectly legitimate tax write-offs you can claim that raise enough flags with them that you attract audits. Audits are quite nerve-racking, take a lot of time, and can end up costing your a LOT of money. E. in 2009 I got a big contract in another state, and met with a tax advisor who basically laid out most of what I stated; he convinced me to set up a C-Corp and use a 3rd-party to process my payroll. It ended up being the easiest, simplest gig I ever had; my personal taxes were simple to file; my corp taxes were very straightforward; very little of the stuff you mentioned applied; and my CPA said it saved me money over not having the Corp. I had it for a few years and it really simplified a ton of stuff. Take what you want and leave the rest. It’s all free. -David Schwartz > On Aug 19, 2022, at 5:40 PM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > On Sat, 2022-08-20 at 00:07 +, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss wrote: >> All of that noise > > Not noise. > >> really only applies to someone who’s a glutton for punishment. > > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad_hominem > >> If you value your time, energy, and sanity, here’s what you want to do. > > A little more advice for those choosing to be tech contractors. > > You need to sell your services, so be nice. Don't call other peoples' > statements > "noise". Don't imply that they're "a glutton for punishment". And no matter > how > smart and successful you consider yourself, don't gloat over how valuable > your time, > energy and sanity are. > > I stand by what I wrote in my previous post. > > SteveT > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: ot 1099
All of that noise really only applies to someone who’s a glutton for punishment. If you value your time, energy, and sanity, here’s what you want to do. NOTE: These are general guidelines that have been around for decades. But verify your choices with a lawyer and/or CPA before finalizing anything. There are two real options. One is if you have one single client who wants to hire you on a straight 1099 basis, and you don’t really have an office, G&A overhead (other than tax prep), or anything else that makes you look any different from an employee — in that case, set up an LLC or Corp, get a company bank account, and then get an account from PayChex or some other payroll processor to handle your payroll. They withhold and process all of your tax-related stuff, their cost is a deductible business expense, and you can pay yourself as much or as little as you like. The costs of the business for most folks in engineering fields will be negligable and the reduction in risks far outweigh the costs. If you have some ideas for a long-term business building strategy, then make it a regular C-Corp or LLC taxed that way, and only take a minimal salary, leaving the rest to accrue as retained earnings. This is especially valueable if you expect to have “down time” between projects where the income stops but your expenses continue. Double-check with a CPA about the benefits for your specific situation. The IRS regs say you can retain up to $250k by default and any other amount you can reasonably justify with corporate minutes. The business pays taxes on profits, not retained earnings, and for profits under $50k/yr the corporate tax rate (last I checked) is only 15%. (Check with the latest IRS guidelines to verify current limits.) Business entities can be expensive, but if you want to keep a low profile and save a bunch of money, consider one from Wyoming. Don’t forget that you’ll need to have a real office address there as well, which isn’t very expensive. You’re going to need an EIN for the business to open a bank account. IMPORTANT: get the form from the IRS website, fill it out and file it yourself. The part where it asks for a contact person responsible for the taxes can be left blank. If you do this online, they will FORCE you to declare that info. If you read the relevant tax rules, it’s OPTIONAL. If you pay the outfit that sets up your biz entity to file this form, they will charge you $50-$75 and fill out the entire form, and you’ll need to sign it, then send it back to them to put in the mail. DO IT YOURSELF! You might want to have a friend or family member hold some stock and act as VP of something so they can respond to written inquiries about you. You want to give the appearance that you’re an employee of this company, not a sole shareholder. This is also smart in case something happens to you. As an aside, if you’re just a one-person shop renting yourself out for one project after another (none that run simultaneously) then seriously consider a regular C-Corp. That’s because a lot of places will hire you on a corp-to-corp basis, but NOT if you’re an LLC! This is due to liability reasons. (If they get sued for something their client alleges you did, they’re going to sue you. If they get a judgement, an LLC can be virtually impossible to collect from and will actually cost them money while waiting to get paid. So a lot of agencies simply will not do Corp-to-LLC. Just say’n.) Alternatively, if you have multiple clients, then it’s still a great idea to have a business entity, and it’s still a lot easier for you to use PayChex or some 3rd-party to handle your payroll. But there’s far less chance of something happening that would have the IRS come back and rule that you were actually an employee and declare your business entity as simply a tax dodge. It’s easy for them to do, and it happens. Working with a 3rd-party payroll outfit like PayChex also goes a long way towards defusing that situation as well. Even if you drive for Uber or Lyft periodically, having a second verifiable income stream besides your one client makes a big difference in whether you might be considered an “employee” or a “contractor”. -David Schwartz > On Aug 19, 2022, at 4:21 PM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > On Wed, 2019-05-29 at 06:43 -0700, Andrew McRobb wrote: >> Yes, you still have to report your earnings and pay taxes and I would >> assume the feds would get idea how much you make on your employers >> bank account statment. I wouldn't mess around not paying taxes, it could >> very much royally bite you in the butt by the IRS down the road. >> >> I suggest asking around for a good tax accountant to help you with this. > > I've been 1099 ever since 1982 and I concur with everything Andrew says, and > would > like to add more. When I say &qu
Re: T-Mobile Home Internet via ethernet connection tip
I have exactly two Mac Minis and a switch — all of which have 1 gig ethernet ports, and CAT6 cables. I also plugged my Mac Book Pro directly into the gateway with a USB3 —> 1GB ethernet adapter on a 12” CAT6 cable and it maxed-out at 92 Mbps. They ALL hit OVER 150 Mbps with the same ethernet cable plugged into the RE550 rather than the T-Mo gateway. If anything on that wire were limited to 100 megs, then there’s no way I’d get 150+ or 750+ Mbps through the RE550. FWIW, I made the mistake of ordering another device that had AC1200 WiFi but the description SAID “high-speed ethernet” but never said it was 1GB. When I got it and set it up, guess what I found? Same hardware on my end only got 92 Mbps through that device! I did some digging and found out the manufacturer makes it really hard to find out that their “high-speed ethernet” port is in fact a 100 Mbps port, NOT 1GB. (Plenty of others call their “N300” WiFi “high-speed WiFi as well”. Go figure.) I sent it back and got the RE550 because it clearly states it DOES have a 1GB ethernet port. Again, the fact that I can get OVER 150 Mbps from the ethernet wire plugged into the RE550 but only 92 Mbps with the same ethernet wire plugged into the T-Mo gateway is pretty telling. It’s NOT my hardware. -David Schwartz > On Aug 18, 2022, at 11:08 PM, Bob Elzer via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > I don't know the path you're taking to test the speed, but if one of the > devices on that path is 100. Meg and the modem is one gig. Then you only > going to get 100 Meg when you test the speed. Try doing the trace route when > you do the test so you know which cards are being used. > > On Thu, Aug 18, 2022, 9:49 PM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > I wouldn’t be getting 700 Mbps with the WAP/Range Extender then (insted of > 92), would I? > > -David Schwartz > > > > >> On Aug 18, 2022, at 9:40 PM, Bob Elzer via PLUG-discuss >> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> >> wrote: >> >> Are you sure it's not your nic or a switch on your network that's 100mb ? >> >> On Thu, Aug 18, 2022, 8:57 PM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss >> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> >> wrote: >> I dunno if anybody here has T-Mobile Home Internet, but I do and I really >> like it. I only have one beef: the spec sheet for their modem/gateway says >> it has 2x 1 gigabit ethernet ports, but they’re only 100 Megs. In case >> anybody else might want to consider them as an ISP and has a 1GB LAN to >> connect, I’ve solved the speed dilemma. >> >> First off, I’ve been round and round with their tech support folks lying >> about it for two years, and was recently told that they were going to be >> releasing a new device soon and it def. WOULD have 1 Gb ports. >> >> Well, they announced a new one (two, actually), and I got one and … once >> again the spec sheet SAYS 1 gigabit ethernet but the performance says nope — >> it’s still only 100 megs. WTF? I guess this lets them shave a couple of >> bucks off of the hardware cost. Actually, I’m not even sure why they bother >> to include the slow ethernet ports at all. >> >> (In a way this is really quite amusing, because prior to this, most >> modem/gateways have crappy WiFi and speedy ethernet — especially those from >> Cox and CenturyLink.) >> >> I don’t know how a big company like T-Mo gets away misrepresenting a product >> like this for so long. Why can’t they just SAY they’re 100 meg ethernet >> ports? >> >> Anyway, I finally got fed-up and bought a TP-Link RE550 AC1900 WAP/Range >> Extender and configured it so I can plug my local 1 GB ethernet LAN wire >> into it and connect to the T-Mo gateway via WiFi. >> >> To be sure, the T-Mo gateway’s WiFi is FAST! I’ve seen speeds up to 870 >> Mbps. The ethernet, OTOH, never exceeds 93 Mbps. >> >> With the RE550 plugged in, my Mac minis connected to the LAN now get 750 >> Mbps DL and 78 Mbps UL. WHOA! That’s 5x DL and 2x UL faster than I got via >> the wired connection. (Actually, the newer 2018 Mac Mini gets that; the >> older one from 2014 only gets 180 Mbps DL and 65 Mbps UL.) >> >> And in case anybody is wondering why I use a wired LAN, it’s so the two Mac >> Minis can talk. I have the new one configured so I can access the old one >> via Screen Sharing on a dedicated Space (virtual desktop). When I do that >> over WiFi, the connection is intolerably slow for me; but with the wired >> connection, it’s quite reasonable. >> >> BTW, I dropped Cox a couple of years back and cut my mo
Re: T-Mobile Home Internet via ethernet connection tip
I guess that I should clarify that my current device is the round Nokia device. It has 2x ethernet ports on it. I’ve had it for around 2 years now. The new one I got was their newest squarish one, the SAGEMCOM FAST 5688W 5G Gateway. It only has one ethernet port on it and I only got 93 Mbps DL from it. I sent it back because it has no way to access anything inside of it. (TBH, the Nokia isn’t much better.) T-Mo is doing all they can to make these simple appliances with “no user-serviceable features” inside. If you like tweaking stuff, their 5G gateways are NOT for you. They do have another one. Which one do you have? -David Schwartz > On Aug 18, 2022, at 10:25 PM, Daniel Stasinski via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > > The device I received from them has a single 1 gig port which I have a 16 > port gig switch plugged in and everything is connected with Cat 6. I've seen > up to 800 Mbps. > > Daniel P. Stasinski > dan...@genericinbox.com <mailto:dan...@genericinbox.com> > ✞ Jesus Is King ✞ > > > On Thu, Aug 18, 2022 at 8:57 PM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > I dunno if anybody here has T-Mobile Home Internet, but I do and I really > like it. I only have one beef: the spec sheet for their modem/gateway says it > has 2x 1 gigabit ethernet ports, but they’re only 100 Megs. In case anybody > else might want to consider them as an ISP and has a 1GB LAN to connect, I’ve > solved the speed dilemma. > > First off, I’ve been round and round with their tech support folks lying > about it for two years, and was recently told that they were going to be > releasing a new device soon and it def. WOULD have 1 Gb ports. > > Well, they announced a new one (two, actually), and I got one and … once > again the spec sheet SAYS 1 gigabit ethernet but the performance says nope — > it’s still only 100 megs. WTF? I guess this lets them shave a couple of bucks > off of the hardware cost. Actually, I’m not even sure why they bother to > include the slow ethernet ports at all. > > (In a way this is really quite amusing, because prior to this, most > modem/gateways have crappy WiFi and speedy ethernet — especially those from > Cox and CenturyLink.) > > I don’t know how a big company like T-Mo gets away misrepresenting a product > like this for so long. Why can’t they just SAY they’re 100 meg ethernet ports? > > Anyway, I finally got fed-up and bought a TP-Link RE550 AC1900 WAP/Range > Extender and configured it so I can plug my local 1 GB ethernet LAN wire into > it and connect to the T-Mo gateway via WiFi. > > To be sure, the T-Mo gateway’s WiFi is FAST! I’ve seen speeds up to 870 Mbps. > The ethernet, OTOH, never exceeds 93 Mbps. > > With the RE550 plugged in, my Mac minis connected to the LAN now get 750 Mbps > DL and 78 Mbps UL. WHOA! That’s 5x DL and 2x UL faster than I got via the > wired connection. (Actually, the newer 2018 Mac Mini gets that; the older one > from 2014 only gets 180 Mbps DL and 65 Mbps UL.) > > And in case anybody is wondering why I use a wired LAN, it’s so the two Mac > Minis can talk. I have the new one configured so I can access the old one via > Screen Sharing on a dedicated Space (virtual desktop). When I do that over > WiFi, the connection is intolerably slow for me; but with the wired > connection, it’s quite reasonable. > > BTW, I dropped Cox a couple of years back and cut my monthly TV + Internet > bill by quite a bit by switching to T-Mo’s Home Internet ($50/mo) and a > couple of internet channels (Discovery+ and Philo). > > T-Mo’s Home Internet has been far more stable, consistently faster, and has > fewer dropouts than any other ISP I’ve ever used. I highly recommend it. Just > … if you need to connect a wired LAN, get something like a fast WAP/Range > Extender to act as a LAN-to-WiFi bridge. > > -David Schwartz > > > > > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss>--- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: T-Mobile Home Internet via ethernet connection tip
I wouldn’t be getting 700 Mbps with the WAP/Range Extender then (insted of 92), would I? -David Schwartz > On Aug 18, 2022, at 9:40 PM, Bob Elzer via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Are you sure it's not your nic or a switch on your network that's 100mb ? > > On Thu, Aug 18, 2022, 8:57 PM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > I dunno if anybody here has T-Mobile Home Internet, but I do and I really > like it. I only have one beef: the spec sheet for their modem/gateway says it > has 2x 1 gigabit ethernet ports, but they’re only 100 Megs. In case anybody > else might want to consider them as an ISP and has a 1GB LAN to connect, I’ve > solved the speed dilemma. > > First off, I’ve been round and round with their tech support folks lying > about it for two years, and was recently told that they were going to be > releasing a new device soon and it def. WOULD have 1 Gb ports. > > Well, they announced a new one (two, actually), and I got one and … once > again the spec sheet SAYS 1 gigabit ethernet but the performance says nope — > it’s still only 100 megs. WTF? I guess this lets them shave a couple of bucks > off of the hardware cost. Actually, I’m not even sure why they bother to > include the slow ethernet ports at all. > > (In a way this is really quite amusing, because prior to this, most > modem/gateways have crappy WiFi and speedy ethernet — especially those from > Cox and CenturyLink.) > > I don’t know how a big company like T-Mo gets away misrepresenting a product > like this for so long. Why can’t they just SAY they’re 100 meg ethernet ports? > > Anyway, I finally got fed-up and bought a TP-Link RE550 AC1900 WAP/Range > Extender and configured it so I can plug my local 1 GB ethernet LAN wire into > it and connect to the T-Mo gateway via WiFi. > > To be sure, the T-Mo gateway’s WiFi is FAST! I’ve seen speeds up to 870 Mbps. > The ethernet, OTOH, never exceeds 93 Mbps. > > With the RE550 plugged in, my Mac minis connected to the LAN now get 750 Mbps > DL and 78 Mbps UL. WHOA! That’s 5x DL and 2x UL faster than I got via the > wired connection. (Actually, the newer 2018 Mac Mini gets that; the older one > from 2014 only gets 180 Mbps DL and 65 Mbps UL.) > > And in case anybody is wondering why I use a wired LAN, it’s so the two Mac > Minis can talk. I have the new one configured so I can access the old one via > Screen Sharing on a dedicated Space (virtual desktop). When I do that over > WiFi, the connection is intolerably slow for me; but with the wired > connection, it’s quite reasonable. > > BTW, I dropped Cox a couple of years back and cut my monthly TV + Internet > bill by quite a bit by switching to T-Mo’s Home Internet ($50/mo) and a > couple of internet channels (Discovery+ and Philo). > > T-Mo’s Home Internet has been far more stable, consistently faster, and has > fewer dropouts than any other ISP I’ve ever used. I highly recommend it. Just > … if you need to connect a wired LAN, get something like a fast WAP/Range > Extender to act as a LAN-to-WiFi bridge. > > -David Schwartz > > > > > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss>--- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
T-Mobile Home Internet via ethernet connection tip
I dunno if anybody here has T-Mobile Home Internet, but I do and I really like it. I only have one beef: the spec sheet for their modem/gateway says it has 2x 1 gigabit ethernet ports, but they’re only 100 Megs. In case anybody else might want to consider them as an ISP and has a 1GB LAN to connect, I’ve solved the speed dilemma. First off, I’ve been round and round with their tech support folks lying about it for two years, and was recently told that they were going to be releasing a new device soon and it def. WOULD have 1 Gb ports. Well, they announced a new one (two, actually), and I got one and … once again the spec sheet SAYS 1 gigabit ethernet but the performance says nope — it’s still only 100 megs. WTF? I guess this lets them shave a couple of bucks off of the hardware cost. Actually, I’m not even sure why they bother to include the slow ethernet ports at all. (In a way this is really quite amusing, because prior to this, most modem/gateways have crappy WiFi and speedy ethernet — especially those from Cox and CenturyLink.) I don’t know how a big company like T-Mo gets away misrepresenting a product like this for so long. Why can’t they just SAY they’re 100 meg ethernet ports? Anyway, I finally got fed-up and bought a TP-Link RE550 AC1900 WAP/Range Extender and configured it so I can plug my local 1 GB ethernet LAN wire into it and connect to the T-Mo gateway via WiFi. To be sure, the T-Mo gateway’s WiFi is FAST! I’ve seen speeds up to 870 Mbps. The ethernet, OTOH, never exceeds 93 Mbps. With the RE550 plugged in, my Mac minis connected to the LAN now get 750 Mbps DL and 78 Mbps UL. WHOA! That’s 5x DL and 2x UL faster than I got via the wired connection. (Actually, the newer 2018 Mac Mini gets that; the older one from 2014 only gets 180 Mbps DL and 65 Mbps UL.) And in case anybody is wondering why I use a wired LAN, it’s so the two Mac Minis can talk. I have the new one configured so I can access the old one via Screen Sharing on a dedicated Space (virtual desktop). When I do that over WiFi, the connection is intolerably slow for me; but with the wired connection, it’s quite reasonable. BTW, I dropped Cox a couple of years back and cut my monthly TV + Internet bill by quite a bit by switching to T-Mo’s Home Internet ($50/mo) and a couple of internet channels (Discovery+ and Philo). T-Mo’s Home Internet has been far more stable, consistently faster, and has fewer dropouts than any other ISP I’ve ever used. I highly recommend it. Just … if you need to connect a wired LAN, get something like a fast WAP/Range Extender to act as a LAN-to-WiFi bridge. -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Opportunity
, consider that renting cars at the airport will be starting at $150 PER DAY for most of Jan-Mar! I suggest using GetAround because those guys have done something with TECHNOLOGY that gives them a leg up on their competition: they have a dongle that plugs into the data plug inside the car and lets customers access the vehicles via an app on their phone. Someone can park the car wherever, put the keys in the glove box, exit the vehicle, lock it up and walk away. It’s ready for the next renter. That is, you don’t need someone there to collect and hand-off the keys when renters come and go. Forget the “doom and gloom” nonsense. OPPORTUNITY lies in observing TRENDS and capitalizing on them. Phoenix and Arizona are going to see a surge of nearly 500k tourists this coming winter due to the Super Bowl, and they have already set aside a LOT OF $$$ to spend while they’re here. They are going to spend those $$$ regardless of what the nightly horse-race reports might be saying at that time. The daily horse-race reports are irrelevant! If you’re watching them, then STOP! Watch the larger trends. Intel is the largest semiconductor company in the world. Apple is no longer using Intel’s chips. That leaves a big hole to fill in Intel’s sales. They’ve known about it for a while now, and they’ve been busy plugging that hole. At the same time, there’s a world-wide “chip shortage”. Seems like a PERFECT OPPROTUNITY FOR INTEL, right? The new legislation that was just passed contains a bunch of “incentives” for consumers in the form of tax credits for buying EVs. But more than that, it’s a cosmic-sized CROW-BAR being held over the heads of major corporations who have spent the past 30 years doing all they can to CUT MANUFACTURING COSTS by MOVING OFF-SHORE. These tax credits will ONLY be available to companies who MOVE THEIR PRODUCTION BACK ON-SHORE! A lot of them are going to scream and holler like stuck pigs and try everything they can to get politicians to make their lives easier. And I guarantee there are plenty of startups who are going to JUMP AT THE OPPORTUNITIES being created by this new legislation to sneak into the holes being created by these OLD-SCHOOL LAZY-ASS COMPANIES who don’t want to change. Congress has thrown down a challenge to the entire TECH community: INNOVATE OR DIE! If you’re a company that has bet your future on Li-Ion battery technology, then this certainly looks like DOOM-AND-GLOOM. If you’re a kid about to attend college and are wondering what to get into: consider BATTERY CHEMISTRY. This will be a GREAT choice for a solid 20-year career path today. And it will be there regardless of what politicians end up doing, because the big fat lazy companies with all the money have been milking Li-Ion technology and invested very little in INNOVATION. That’s the way of the world. And it creates HUGE OPPORTUNITIES in its wake. I have no idea what Linux has to do with any of this, but the subject was “OPPORTUNITY”. Seize it. -David Schwartz > On Aug 18, 2022, at 8:58 AM, techli...@phpcoderusa.com wrote: > > > > > David, > > I have always enjoyed your thoughts, even though we do not agree when it > comes to political issues. And I think your a smart guy. > > On 2022-08-17 03:25, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss wrote: > > I'll pass on this one because it could get politically charged very quickly > and my intention were to try to understand what is coming. > > I posted to this list hoping for thoughts from technical people. > >> I don’t know what you’re referring to exactly about the economy >> crashing, other than the typical doom-and-gloom nonsense that the >> right-wing propaganda machinery floods the airwaves with whenever >> Democrats are in charge of things. The truth is, things are always >> shifting, slowly but surely. > > I hope it is all doom-and-gloom. I'm not up for an economic crash. You and > I have lived though some interesting times. > > - Oil embargo, which killed the musical car era. > - 70's and 80's which kept my wages 20% behind the real cost of living. > - 30 years of perpetual wars > - The creation of the Internet and all that has come with it. > > I do not think what is currently taking place is "right-wing propaganda". > > I am hearing and reading: > > - Ukraine and Russia produce 70% of the worlds wheat which is not making it > to the market this year. > - Ukraine and Russia produce 70% of the worlds commercial fertilizer which is > not making it to the market this year. > - We are experiencing a severe drought world wide. > - Some are saying there will be famine and food shortages. I'm seeing vacant > shelves at the grocery stores. > - The dollar is losing it's place as the world's reserve currency. That means > dollars going
Re: Opportunity
I don’t know what you’re referring to exactly about the economy crashing, other than the typical doom-and-gloom nonsense that the right-wing propaganda machinery floods the airwaves with whenever Democrats are in charge of things. The truth is, things are always shifting, slowly but surely. As for technology, I’d make this simple observation: At some point, the world leader in CPU chips — Intel — was following along the same path they had been taking for years and was working on a 5 GHz CPU when they realized that as they kept trying to speed-up CPUs, the amount of effort needed to extract the heat from the chips would make the hardware far too expensive and cumbersome to remain viable. So they decided that multiple CPUs on the chip where the CPU speed was around 2-3 GHz would be better in the long-run. I’m guessing that the folks at a world leader in computer engineering — Apple Computer — also figured this out. Intel sells chips; Apple sells computer systems. Dell buys Intel chips and integrates video cards from another vendor that use Intel’s GPUs. Apple doesn’t really care who makes what; they just want to maximize their profits. Coincidentally, video cards have been hard to come by because the GPUs have been getting hijacked for use by crytocurrency miners. A large portion of these have Intel GPUs on them. Apple decided it might make more sense to simply put a bunch of CPUs and GPUs on one substrate and then tune their software to run on this sort of architecture, alleviating the dependency on separate CPU and GPU chips and cards. There’s a side-effect in that nobody is going to be hijacking their GPUs for other purposes. Intel apparently didn’t want to lose the revenues they’ve been earning from their GPU chip sales to crypto miners and, well, Apple is no longer using either Intel’s CPUs or GPUs. So while some say the economy is “crashing”, the 10 largest corporations in the world are all reporting record profits and growth. The stuff politicians are doing to continue long-term policies that enable corporations to siphon off more and more money from consumers is appalling, and may well lead to a lot more discomfort and pain for consumers, but certainly not from corporate shareholders and execs. If you want to profit from that shift, then buy stocks in these large and growing companies. Warren Buffet has large holdings in them, as well as Apple. He also owns a large utility company in Nevada. Speaking of utility companies, one thing that is surely going to help “crash” the economy (for consumers) over the coming decade is the increasing growth of EVs and their need to get their fuel from the power grid. The same power grid that’s going to be used to power computers and crypto miners. Some with politically-motivated arguments might see it as convenient that states like Arizona have passed laws that give utility companies the power to punish consumers who want to install their own renewable energy sources and batteries to become independent of the power grid. Yes, we’re talking about those folks who’d like to unhook from the inevitable increases we’re going to see in the cost of electricity, especially since the cost of fuel to power generators is also skyrocketing — and the profits from those price increases is nearly all flowing into the bank accounts of the monarchy of Saudi Arabia (with the help of elected officials in Congress, both past and present, members of both political parties). The tea leaves are pretty clear to many readers: there’s a big shift towards more and more things in our life that require electricity to run, and it’s inevitable that the cost of said power is going to go up. But the price of gas is also going up, which is contributing to the increase in power costs. Buying a bunch of old computers that consume 3x the power of the newest computers does not seem like a smart way to avoid increases in the cost of electricity. Make your home more thermally efficient so you don’t need to run your A/C as much. Replace electronic equipment with newer lower-power stuff. Reduce your overall carbon footprint by 10%. Grow your own fruits and veggies. Set up a wind turbine or solar panels to charge batteries that power your electronic equipment at home, but do not connect them to the grid. Buy an inexpensive EV to get around town, because in the long-run it’ll be far cheaper than a gas-powered vehicle. (I recommend a Bolt or a Leaf as they’re the cheapest EVs on the market today and will remain so for 2-3 years due to factors like the global chip shortage. I got a 2019 Leaf SL Plus, and I *LOVE* it! It only costs me 4¢/mile in electricity to drive.) While you’re at it, figure out how to generate $100-$200 per day online to supplement your income. -David Schwartz > On Aug 15, 2022, at 9:31 AM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Hi, > About 24 years ago I worked for a guy who used to say "
Re: A/V over ethernet?
Thanks, but this is not what I’m looking for. “A/V over ethernet” not an “HDMI extender”. Dante from Audinate makes stuff that does this, but it’s proprietary and rather expensive. https://www.audinate.com/products/manufacturer-products/dante-av-video <https://www.audinate.com/products/manufacturer-products/dante-av-video> I’m looking for a more generic solution, if one exists. A lot of security systems offer them with WiFi cameras, and some use ethernet cables instead of coax. -David Schwartz > On Nov 5, 2021, at 2:19 PM, Stephen Partington via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Here is a quick example of it. This is full hdmi. > > Cable Matters Wall Mount HDMI Extender (HDMI Over Ethernet Cable) with TCP/IP > Support for 1-to-Many Setup - Up to 300 Feet > https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OZV04BK/ref=cm_sw_r_awdo_navT_g_NCNDZY6Y7ASZQMAPFVKX > > <https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OZV04BK/ref=cm_sw_r_awdo_navT_g_NCNDZY6Y7ASZQMAPFVKX> > On Fri, Nov 5, 2021, 5:16 PM Stephen Partington <mailto:cryptwo...@gmail.com>> wrote: > This exists. I have used it before. You looking to send what kind of > signal?1080p or more? > > On Sun, Oct 31, 2021, 6:12 AM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > I’m shooting in the dark here wondering how to solve this. Looking for ideas. > > Think about multi-port USB hubs for laptops with only a few USB ports . . . > > A guy I’ve been talking with said he's looking for something like that but > plugs into the ethernet, not USB, and uses PoE for power. > > It’s basically a break-out box that uses wired ethernet to send data to some > remote spots about 100 M away through a 1GB switch. > > His requirements include: audio (mic, headphone), USB video in, USB video > out, some digital I/Os to turn lights on and off, a couple of spare USB ports > > The video is streaming 4k, probably H.264; he has the camera and a display > device, and both work via USB. (There’s a reason he has chosen USB!) > > I don’t know if there are simple chips in these sorts of USB “splitters” or > if they have a CPU like what’s in a Raspberry Pi. > > Is this something that an R-Pi can be made to support with some HATs? > > In my mind, it should be fairly simple. It’s mostly just acting like a > router, right? > > A separate audio stream on the ethernet could go to a USB port with a common > “USB Sound Card” where the mic and headphone can be connected. > > It’s just “audio over ethernet” and “video over ethernet”, no? > > What does that take? Is there hardware that already does it? > > > (Dante has a small A/V board to embed in equipment, but you need one on each > end of a one-way circuit, meaning 4x per connection, and he needs up to 8 of > these channels.) > > -David Schwartz > > > > > > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss>--- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
A/V over ethernet?
I’m shooting in the dark here wondering how to solve this. Looking for ideas. Think about multi-port USB hubs for laptops with only a few USB ports . . . A guy I’ve been talking with said he's looking for something like that but plugs into the ethernet, not USB, and uses PoE for power. It’s basically a break-out box that uses wired ethernet to send data to some remote spots about 100 M away through a 1GB switch. His requirements include: audio (mic, headphone), USB video in, USB video out, some digital I/Os to turn lights on and off, a couple of spare USB ports The video is streaming 4k, probably H.264; he has the camera and a display device, and both work via USB. (There’s a reason he has chosen USB!) I don’t know if there are simple chips in these sorts of USB “splitters” or if they have a CPU like what’s in a Raspberry Pi. Is this something that an R-Pi can be made to support with some HATs? In my mind, it should be fairly simple. It’s mostly just acting like a router, right? A separate audio stream on the ethernet could go to a USB port with a common “USB Sound Card” where the mic and headphone can be connected. It’s just “audio over ethernet” and “video over ethernet”, no? What does that take? Is there hardware that already does it? (Dante has a small A/V board to embed in equipment, but you need one on each end of a one-way circuit, meaning 4x per connection, and he needs up to 8 of these channels.) -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: krita, acer, samsung
I’m sure you’re not going to like this but … If you value your time, an iPad would be perfect. It runs a version of Unix under the hood, although it’s generally inaccessible. The apps available for use with stylii are pretty amazing. Get a used one that takes the first version of Pencil. You can also use 3rd-party stylii as well. Other than that, I’d say Samsung has been supporting a stylus in their Note line of phones for nearly a decade and they’re far more experienced with that sort of technology than Dell IMHO. But that’s mostly on Android. There was a company that made awesome pen software for Windows, but Microsoft bought them and I could never tell if they just hid them in a closet or revised their stuff to the point where it’s unrecognizable. (Whenever I hear of MS buying something, I figure it’s just a competitor they want to get out of the way and it won’t be around much longer.) As far as “how much” to get … I keep most of my machines for several years, so when I get a new one, I like to max it out because the tech curve moves fast. The upside to that is you can get a 2-yo model with decent quantities of transistors for pretty decent discounts. Probably great to use as martyrs for those drop tests. Remember when Bill Gates said somethign like, “Nobody will ever need more than 640k of RAM”? You sure wouldn’t get much out of that today, eh? :) -David Schwartz > On Oct 11, 2021, at 10:06 PM, der.hans via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > moin moin, > > I picked up an Acer 2 in 1 with touchpad for kid. We really needed to > finally replace the laptop that had been gravity tested a few times at the > beginning of the pandemic. > > First thing kidling wanted was to install Krita ( much disappointment that > it wasn't on there by default ). Many hours have now been spent > discovering how to use a stylus. > > My wife is an analog artist, but likes what she's been seeing, so now I > need two devices that can use stylii. > > I had picked up the Acer from Woot and they immediately ran some Samsungs > for less money. The Acer requires a little bit of a bios dance to get > running with debian ( and a non-free ethernet driver ), but has otherwise > been great and much better than the dell we're replacing. > > A similarly priced Samsung is similar for features, but I don't really > compare hardware specs anymore since I don't often buy hardware. > > Acer: > * 10th Gen Intel Core i5-1035G4 > * 8GB LPDDR4 > * 256GB NVMe > > Samsung: > * 8th Gen Intel Core i7-8565U > * 16GB > * 512GB SSD > > There's also a Samsung for $200 less > > 10th Generation Quad-Core i7-10510U 12GB DDR4 SDRAM > 512GB SSD > no USB C :( > > I like the idea of more RAM, but the family doesn't really need that. They > don't run containers and databases and test deployments on laptops. Seems > a waste to me :). > > They need pretty decent hardware ( we should have far less drop-testing as > that lesson has been learned ), with a decent touchscreen that will work > for a while. They do need computers they draw on rather than tablets they > compute on. They will be running debian ( or derivative if we must ). > > Links: > > https://computers.woot.com/offers/acer-spin-5-convertible-laptop-3?ref=w_cnt_wp_3_6 > > https://computers.woot.com/offers/samsung-notebook-9-pro13-3-i7-2-in-1z?ref=w_cnt_wp_5_8 > > https://computers.woot.com/offers/samsung-galaxy-book-flip-fold-laptop?ref=w_cnt_wp_5_3 > > Also, an opportunity to podcast as root: > > https://computers.woot.com/offers/sudotack-usb-streaming-podcast-pc-microphone-1?ref=w_cnt_wp_3_1 > > ciao, > > der.hans > -- > # https://www.LuftHans.com https://www.PhxLinux.org > # "Civilisation is a race between education and catastrophe" -- H.G. Wells > > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: How to make a pdf read only?
PDF files can only be edited with something like Acrobat or a tool that lets you do that. So they’re effectively “read only” by default without the right tools. Even then, when you create a PDF file, depending what you use, you can set an option that prevents or allows the text to be selected and copied to the clipboard. But just about every OCR app in existence lets you feed it PDF files and get an editable Word or text file back. Not to mention there are websites that will OCR a few pages of a PDF file for free. (At my last job, they had a client with a couple dozen offices around the country. Someone at each office would grab a stack of invoices and drop them into a scanner every night and scan them; it would save the lot to a big PDF file that they’d upload to an FTP site on our server. I wrote an app that would periodically check for new files and run them through an OCR app to extract data from each invoice and put it into a database. The previous software would scan the entire page and save the results, although we only needed a few fields. Scanning only the parts of the page with the data we were looking for sped things up quite a bit. But the point is that the PDF files their scanners created were pretty useless even with Acrobat since they were just a big batch of scanned images.) I think you’re asking the wrong question. Try stating the problem you’re actually trying to address. -David Schwartz > On Aug 10, 2021, at 12:42 PM, Shawn Badger via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > One option would be to turn it into an image which is then put into the pdf. > Not impossible to change just more work to change. > > On Fri, Aug 6, 2021 at 11:48 PM Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > joe--- via PLUG-discuss said on Fri, 06 Aug 2021 16:48:59 -0700 > > >How to make a pdf read only? > > > >I'm sure I've done this in the past, > >but can't remember how. Searched the > >net but found no solution. > > > >Do not want to convert to an image > >but just want a read-only pdf. > > I think it's impossible to make a truly read-only pdf. Somebody could > always open it in Vim and tamper with it, or use one of the several PDF > modification tools to convert it to a form that can be written to. Or > import it into Inkscape, modify it as an image, and convert back to PDF. > > If you mean make it so it's not modifyable in Acrobat, there's probably > a way to do that. > > SteveT > > Steve Litt > Spring 2021 featured book: Troubleshooting Techniques of the Successful > Technologist http://www.troubleshooters.com/techniques > <http://www.troubleshooters.com/techniques> > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss>--- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Name Cheap Registrar
I used NameCheap as my primary registrar for many years. I switched to NameSilo when they made their presence known here several years back. They’re based here in Phoenix, and they’re one of the top 15 registrars in the world. As domain registrars, they’re both great. I don’t like NameCheap’s WHM/cPanel hosting. I’ve got a basic account at NameSilo and it’s working out for what I need. My needs for this aren’t as picky as a full WHM reseller account. I actually went from NameCheap to Eleven2 for hosting. (There are several dozen default settings that the hosting provider has when installing WHM and cPanel, and for most of them, users can’t see or change them. The vendor just says, “That’s our policy” or “That’s just what the software does.” If you’ve ever had a chance to go through it on a dedicated server, you know the extent of all of the settings that are available. NameCheap selects a bunch of settings that I find interolerable. Their excuse is they’re set that way “for security reasons”, which is BS in most cases. They do it because they’re a source of excessive support time caused by dumb users.) I think I saw where NameCheap is owned by EIG, and I believe all of those stupid WHM/cPanel settings are established as a broad policy across all AIG hosting platforms as a way to reduce their already horrid support demands. The biggest things I look out for regarding registrars is this: * what’s the renewal fee during the first 30-day grace period? GoDaddy socks it to ya. Both NC and NS charge the same as a regular renewal. Also, I’ve heard people say that they missed the initial renewal deadline and GD dumped the domain into their auctions and it was gone in a matter of minutes! NC and NS wait until the 2nd 30-day period begins before they put them up for auction. I lost one at NS that I was 4 hours late on renewing within the initial 30-day grace period. * Name privacy — both NC and NS offer 100% free name privacy forever. Last I checked, GD charges $12.95/yr for it, on top of the cost of the domain. (GDPR requires it, so it’s easier to offer it for free than not. But I’m sure it’s a fine profit center for GD’s non-European (ahem — American) customers. As far as VPS goes … I’m sure I’m the odd man out here, but I despise having to deal with hackers and doing basic admin work on servers. I did it for 8+ years and it’s just not something I enjoy. I don’t need root access, so WHM is fine for my needs. I’m happy to live under the security umbrella set up by the hosting provider on the entire server. I do not want the hassle and expense of doing all of that stuff myself. If I can get everything I need for $20/mo via WHM, why spend many times more than that to quadruple my own workload just to get root access occasionally? I’ve got 3 Macs where root access on a *nix box is one mouse-click away, and I can install anything I want to play with it if needed. -David Schwartz > On Aug 4, 2021, at 7:15 AM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Hi, > > Anyone using Name Cheap to Register domains? If so would you recommend then. > > Look at their VPS pricing : https://www.namecheap.com/hosting/vps/ Anyone > using their VPS hosting? Any thoughts? > > Thanks in advance!! > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: https://www.zerohedge.com/political/59-million-americans-prohibited-buying-high-end-dell-gaming-pcs
These arguments seem as silly today as when gas cost 18 cents a gallon and people made fun of suggestions to consider making gas engines more efficient. My first car got around 8MPG. Here we are 50 years later and my car’s gas engine (a Prius hybrid) only gets 6x better mileage (48 MPG). Meanwhile, room-sized computers back then that required dedicated HVAC systems to keep them cool, have gone from hot noisy power-sucking monsters to palm-sized devices thousands of times faster that let us video-call anybody anywhere in the world any time we want, and they run for 24+ hours off of a thin battery. I suspect that if we measure net watt-hours of power consumption per million CPU cycles they provide, we’d find today’s cell phones are the most power-efficient computers we’ve ever had, and they keep getting better. Cars … not so much. Batteries have not significantly changed throughout my life, probably because nobody ever believed it would be feasible to power something like a vehicle that went 400 miles on them. Or even an aircraft for that matter. (The Wright Brother’s first powered flight stayed aloft for 12 seconds and flew 120 feet.) I like to think that Elon Musk looked at that lack of innovation and said, “How can I create sufficient demand to make the evolution of battery technology take a quantum leap?” And the answer he came up with was, electric cars and battery-packs to store power from renewable energy sources. By extension, those vehicles can also act as battery-packs, since most of them are sitting unused most of the day. He did for the transportation industry what the transportation industry refused to do for itself. Why? Gas has always been way cheaper than it actually costs due to subsidies governments around the world give to Big Oil. Anyway, it’s good that we’re having this debate. FINALLY! I have solar panels on my house and I like to watch the app that shows power generation and consumption. It updates every 15 minutes are so, and I can tell when the A/C is running more steadily. The cooler it is inside, the more the A/C runs, but the less the refridgerator runs. It bugs the crap out of me that the guy who re-habbed this house didn’t put any insulation or dry-wall on the interior side of the block walls, and they pass through so much heat in the summer time that it’s absurd. The previous owners did a bathroom addition years ago, and they didn’t put any insulation in the walls of that either. So if I close that door, in about an hour it’s as hot in there as it is outside. It’s about time people start thinking about this stuff! I’ve worked remotely for most of the past 10 years. My employers have never reimbursed me (or even offered) for the additional power it takes to cool the house and power my computer equipment while I’m home during the day. Now the recent tax law changes don’t let us deduct these expenses as “non-reimbursed work expenses” on the assumption that if our employer thought they’re worthwhile, they’d happily reimburse us for them. Yeah, right. We’re having a severe drought here in the southwest. Yet Nestle is pumping millions of gallons of water out of the ground, putting it into non-biodegradable plastic containers, and shipping it out-of-state to places where it rains a lot. Chandler has a bunch of fabs and data centers that are suddenly asking for increases to their city water allotments. Their City Council is realizing that each of these “consumers” are sucking up around one million gallons of water PER DAY, PER FACILITY, out of our water table to cool their equipment, and just releasing it into the air. They’ve been told “no more water!” and if they need more, they’re going to have to start reclaiming it from the humid air they’re releasing to the environment. Nobody seems happy about it, but it’s clear our wasteful ways are starting to negatively impact our environment. If you’re feeling oppressed in this discussion, you should review “Tragedy of the Commons”. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSuETYEgY68 -David Schwartz > On Jul 27, 2021, at 4:25 PM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > > All this stuff is funny!! My first computer was a Commodore 64. I think it > was named that because it had 64k of RAM Remember that one could be > extended with a tape drive and or flappy. I'm not sure if I had a flappy > > Around that time I went into a business that was using a Commodore 64. Maybe > that is all we needed? > > I do not recall the Gov regulating it because of all the power it had for > that period. > > The next year I bought a garage clone that had a 8088 - 8 bit CPU and 1MB of > RAM of which 640k was addressable. Yikes what a power hungry beast... > > > > > On 2021-07-27 15:04, Aaron Jones via PLUG-discuss wrote: >> Those are some dangerous statements. >> https://www.cnbc.com/amp/
Re: Electrical costs to run a home web server
If this is just for learning, do you want or need it to run 24/7/365? If not, you can shut it off when you don’t need it if you’re concerned about power. Note that a lot of old PCs have power supplies where the fans run all the time. They can end up consuming quite a bit of power. You might consider a 2012-vintage Mac Mini. It already has Unix built-in and everything you need to run as a server. They’re between $150 and $250 on eBay and sometimes as low as $100. FWIW, thru most of the 90’s I had a little box I ran as a dedicated server at a co-lo facility in town. It was a mini-ITX with a 600 MHz x86 clone chip, 256 MB of RAM, a 20GB HDD, and 10MB ethernet. I ran Debian on it. After the third HDD died, I moved to a reseller-type WHM/cPanel hosting account that was a LOT cheaper per month. (My current one is less than $20/mo.) (The co-lo facility’s biggest monthly expense was their A/C bill.) The Rasperry Pi Zero W costs $10, and has these features: • 1GHz, single-core CPU • 512MB RAM • 802.11 b/g/n wireless LAN • Bluetooth 4.1 • Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) • Mini HDMI and USB On-The-Go ports • Micro USB power • HAT-compatible 40-pin header • Composite video and reset headers • CSI camera connector It consumes 120-170 mA (but can source over 1A to USB), so can run off of a USB battery pack if needed. This puppy has more power and features than that mini-ITX machine I had! It comes with a ready-to-run Linux on an SD card and fits into a box about the size of a pack of cigarettes. No fan is needed AFAIK. You can plug nearly any size storage you want into the USB port, although the SD card can be used for additional storage. -David Schwartz > On Jul 21, 2021, at 6:50 PM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > > Hi Eric, > > I assume you live in the valley? And you use a master cool evaporative > cooler... Off topic question - Does your master cool, cool your house > reasonably in the summer and more so during the monsoons? > > > On 2021-07-21 15:50, Eric Oyen via PLUG-discuss wrote: >> Back when I ran a home server on my Athlon X2 with 1500 W supply, the >> machine never drew that much. Even with several disks spinning, 8 >> VMWare instances going and a few other goodies, that machine never >> drew more than 600w at maximum. I kept it live 24/7 for a few years >> and it added less than $120 yearly to the electrical bill. These days, >> that machine is out of service and is only good for parts. My Mac >> mini, which draws at most 100 W under full load is on 24/7 and I don’t >> even see it add that much to the electrical bill here. There are >> really only 3 high draw appliances in this house now: >> 1. The refrigerator >> 2. The stove/oven >> 3. The master cool evaporative cooler. Everything else either runs on >> wall warts or only gets used occasionally. In fact, we spend less than >> $150 a month here for electric. Now, if I put that Athlon X2 back into >> service, we might see $10 a month in extra use. I am still >> contemplating putting it back up and using it as my go to linux >> development machine. >> -Eric >> From the Central Offices of the Technomage Guild, Utilities Dept. >>> On Jul 21, 2021, at 7:33 AM, Keith Smith via PLUG-discuss >>> wrote: >>> Hi, >>> I just read this quote about the electrical costs to run a web server from >>> home: >>> Cost: While it may sound cheaper to use that computer lying around doing >>> nothing when creating your web server, when you factor in the cost of >>> powering an old computer 24 hours a day, it can get very expensive. A 250W >>> desktop computer running 24 hours per day at 12 cents per KW/h is a >>> whopping $262.00 per year! >>> --- >>> I think their math is wrong. >>> The average residential electricity rate in Chandler is 10.85¢/kWh. >>> I'm thinking a low traffic PHP web server running on an old Dell with a 400 >>> watt power supply is not using but maybe 100 watts on average. I've read >>> that the computer should use no more than half the power supply capacity. >>> Is this correct? >>> If my home web server is using 100 watts an hour that mean 100 watts * 30 >>> days * 24 hours or 72K watts. >>> I'm thinking 72 * .1085 = $7.81 a month. >>> Any thoughts are much appreciated. >>> --- >>> PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org >>> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: >>> https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss >> --
Re: looking for file system changes on a shared hosting account?
I’ll give this a try, thanks!
Does fam do anything different?
-David Schwartz
> On May 11, 2021, at 5:34 PM, Matt Graham via PLUG-discuss
> wrote:
>
> On 2021-05-11 15:08, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss wrote:
>> I notified my hosting provider and of course, they said they ran
>> a scan and found nothing.
>
> This is pretty typical for "security" people IME. Everything beyond the
> absolute minimum is more than their job's worth.
>
>> What I’d like to do is install a script or program that can scan
>> through my file tree from …/public_html/ down and look for changes in
>> the file system since the last scan, which is what tripwire does.
>
> You may be looking for fam, the File Alteration Monitor.
>
>> All it would do is something like an ‘ls -ltra ~/public_html’ with a
>> CRC or hash of the file added to the lines. (Is there a flag in ls
>> that does that?) The output would be saved to a file.
>
> #!/bin/bash
> if [ -e latestscan.txt ] ; then
> mv -f latestscan.txt oldscan.txt
> fi
> find /path/to/stuff -type f -exec md5sum {} \; | sort > latestscan.txt
> if [ -e latestscan.txt ] ; then
> diff latestscan.txt oldscan.txt > diffs.txt
> mail -s 'latest diff' someb...@example.org < diffs.txt
> fi
> # end script, execute every day via cron?
>
>> As an aside, I know that Windows has a way of setting up a callback
>> where you can get an event trigger somewhere whenever something in a
>> designated part of the file system has changed. Is this possible in
>> Linux?
>
> Yes, that functionality is usually provided by fam. I think it may have
> fallen out of favor or something as there has not been much activity on it
> recently.
>
> --
> Crow202 Blog: http://crow202.org/wordpress
> There is no Darkness in Eternity
> But only Light too dim for us to see.
> ---
>
---
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looking for file system changes on a shared hosting account?
I have had a shared hosting WHM (“reseller”) type account for years, and I’m constantly getting my Wordpress sites hacked. I just discovered another new WP site got hacked. I’m so sick of this. I notified my hosting provider and of course, they said they ran a scan and found nothing. It takes me just a couple of minutes to poke around using the cPanel File Manager to find litter the hacker has left. This time they added a new mailbox. I’m sick and tired of the hosting providers being so damn narrow-minded that they think scanning files looking for matching file signatures is effective. They have found exactly NONE of the files I’ve discovered over the past few years that hackers have left. NOT A SINGLE ONE! Also, as inept as they are, they do provide a lot of admin stuff I don’t want to deal with, and I do not have any interest in self-hosting on a dedicated machine (physical or virtual). It’s just a headache I don’t want to deal with. What I’d like to do is install a script or program that can scan through my file tree from …/public_html/ down and look for changes in the file system since the last scan, which is what tripwire does. Installing tripwire usually requires root access, but that’s impossible on a shared server. All it would do is something like an ‘ls -ltra ~/public_html’ with a CRC or hash of the file added to the lines. (Is there a flag in ls that does that?) The output would be saved to a file. Then you’d run a diff on that and the previous one, and send the output to an email, then delete the prvious one. Or keep them all and only compare the two latest ones. Whatever. As an aside, I know that Windows has a way of setting up a callback where you can get an event trigger somewhere whenever something in a designated part of the file system has changed. Is this possible in Linux? -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: unusual file copy problem
I found a viable solution with an FTP app for Macs called Forklift 3. It lets you set up tabs for any number of sites and either drag-n-drop or copy/paste from one to another. It does the download and then the upload, and uses FXP if it’s enabled. According to my ISP, FXP requires a port to be opened that continually listening for requests, and it’s presents a security risk from people who use port scanners to look for open ports to abuse. It made me think how many features there are on servers today that are locked away unusable because nobody has bothered to put doors on them that let you open them temporarily and shut them automatically after some amount of time. With so many places switching to 2FA, I think it’s time to start looking more closely at "timed resource access on request”. I’m getting fed up with all of the 2FA crap that only exists because of this historical belief that 100% of our resources need to be available 100% of the time. So we use 2FA and other things to keep the riff-raff out during the 99% of the time we’re not using these resources. If we started putting doors on stuff that were only open long enough for us to do what we need, these hackers and scriptk kiddies would eventually go away. Especially if we can set them up on proxies on servers in front of our real servers so as to minimize the abuse these people impart on the servers they’re trying to get into. -David Schwartz > On Nov 23, 2020, at 11:56 AM, Snyder, Alexander J > wrote: > > I recall a site to site copy functionality within WHM. Although I haven't > used WHM since I worked with SmoFaddy almost 6 years ago. > > Short of that, it seems crazy to think that they would restrict SSH. > > Let me know if you need more help, and I can try to research it more. > > -Alex > > On Mon, Nov 23, 2020, 11:27 David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > Thanks, I’ll look into FXP. > > I’m not using GD for hosting and this is not a one-time thing. I’m finding > I’m having to zip up and copy files from one site to another on a more > frequent basis, so I wanted to be able to do it more directly. > > I guess an FTP client that lets me simulate that would be almost as good — > with two windows that look at two different FTP sites, and I can simply > drag-n-drop or click to send a file from one to the other, and it handles the > DL and UL invisibly. > > All FTP clients I know of are only between another system and my local > machine. > > -David Schwartz > > > >> On Nov 23, 2020, at 9:23 AM, Thomas Scott > <mailto:mr.thomas.sc...@gmail.com>> wrote: >> >> I seem to remember running this via FTP to FTP connection, I think it was >> called FXP? That's the direction I'd start looking at - Wikipedia has a list >> of FTP clients that support FXP: Comparison of FTP client software - >> Wikipedia >> <https://u2206659.ct.sendgrid.net/ls/click?upn=SJEG7TF39YLaAIMD0HhsfJkjrxUKkKXCH0UcDCU0jN1961NtsxnPMCmJV2Ak6MPoCdMfgUZ7u2wEKFWqp4LxwT-2FLnmdYAPV-2FpStnmjQrxWtthHZzz8oEgGgTFnMYEJZs9wQ0_o-2BjQxMsWfboH-2B-2BcY2qb3IYCoqvthnvff9ftZz0pNEJ2tF1jbVlVBtrlaPYq4av3GZaCnlGKE1J2oTWGN39nBRX0zFjOHlxEVmzAwUMvPu4UQne4dd8fOT5lHKRY4G9V36uXr-2BijCQy6pbM3nYM77WYSy-2FaEbZyRrmh7m2Rz7A7b-2Bq-2B4ThgiLfNRycWsE0GyQcjf-2FAP6-2B6ZnuG-2Bd-2FQ3gxYTDXbCg1ICM3rmjy8GaJ9eM-3D> >> >> If you're using "that" hosting provider, (rhymes with SmoFaddy) I know at >> one point you could call into their AHS (Advanced Hosting Support) group and >> kindly ask them do the aforementioned transfer, but that was a 7 years and >> several re-orgs ago. >> >> - Thomas Scott | mr.thomas.sc...@gmail.com >> <mailto:mr.thomas.sc...@gmail.com> >> >> >> On Mon, Nov 23, 2020 at 2:42 AM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss >> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> >> wrote: >> Thanks for the suggestions. >> >> 1. I don’t know. >> >> 2. I don’t have root access, and am unable to run SSH/SCP. >> >> 3. This is a shared server. no console access is allowed. No SSH, no rsync, >> no nuth’n. >> >> That said, it’s a full WEB HOST. So I can upload a small php script that >> could reach out to the other account and copy the file over, maybe via an >> FTP xfer or HTTP copy. >> >> It seems like a bunch of hoops to jump thru simply because they won’t set up >> a shared folder that all of the domains in my account can access, but … what >> can I say. It’s a shared server. >> >> That does give me an idea, tho…. >> >> -David Schwartz >> >> >> >> > On Nov 22, 2020, at 11
Re: unusual file copy problem
Thanks, I’ll look into FXP. I’m not using GD for hosting and this is not a one-time thing. I’m finding I’m having to zip up and copy files from one site to another on a more frequent basis, so I wanted to be able to do it more directly. I guess an FTP client that lets me simulate that would be almost as good — with two windows that look at two different FTP sites, and I can simply drag-n-drop or click to send a file from one to the other, and it handles the DL and UL invisibly. All FTP clients I know of are only between another system and my local machine. -David Schwartz > On Nov 23, 2020, at 9:23 AM, Thomas Scott wrote: > > I seem to remember running this via FTP to FTP connection, I think it was > called FXP? That's the direction I'd start looking at - Wikipedia has a list > of FTP clients that support FXP: Comparison of FTP client software - > Wikipedia > <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_FTP_client_software#Protocol_Support> > > If you're using "that" hosting provider, (rhymes with SmoFaddy) I know at one > point you could call into their AHS (Advanced Hosting Support) group and > kindly ask them do the aforementioned transfer, but that was a 7 years and > several re-orgs ago. > > - Thomas Scott | mr.thomas.sc...@gmail.com <mailto:mr.thomas.sc...@gmail.com> > > > On Mon, Nov 23, 2020 at 2:42 AM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > Thanks for the suggestions. > > 1. I don’t know. > > 2. I don’t have root access, and am unable to run SSH/SCP. > > 3. This is a shared server. no console access is allowed. No SSH, no rsync, > no nuth’n. > > That said, it’s a full WEB HOST. So I can upload a small php script that > could reach out to the other account and copy the file over, maybe via an FTP > xfer or HTTP copy. > > It seems like a bunch of hoops to jump thru simply because they won’t set up > a shared folder that all of the domains in my account can access, but … what > can I say. It’s a shared server. > > That does give me an idea, tho…. > > -David Schwartz > > > > > On Nov 22, 2020, at 11:46 PM, Eric Oyen via PLUG-discuss > > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > > wrote: > > > > A few questions here: > > 1. Are they “running instances” of an OS? > > 2. If so, can you use SSH/SCP between them > > 3. Any other networked application (console type) like RSync or similar > > that can be used? > > > > Otherwise, unless you have root access to the original image, I am not sure > > what else you can do. > > > > -Eric > > From the Central Offices of the Technomage Guild, Tech support center. > > > > > >> On Nov 22, 2020, at 7:07 PM, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > >> mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > >> wrote: > >> > >> I have a “reseller” type shared hosting account where I have a WHM that > >> lets me create cPanel accounts. IOW, I don’t have root access. > >> > >> There’s a skel folder on the main account, and when i create a new cPanel > >> account, it copies files into the new account. Pretty standard for *nix > >> systems. > >> > >> I’m looking for a way to copy files from one of my cPanel accounts to > >> another without having to download to my local machine then upload to the > >> other account. > >> > >> They’re both accounts I have control of on the same server in the same > >> /home filetree. > >> > >> But their support says there’s no way to do that other than with skel, but > >> that’s not what I want. They’re already set up. > >> > >> Basically I simply want to copy some zip files from one account to a few > >> others as directly as possible. > >> > >> Surely there’s got to be a way to do that, maybe FTP-to-FTP, or a little > >> script I can put in each public_html folder that does a copy…. > >> > >> Puzzled minds want to know. :) > >> > >> -David Schwartz > >> > >> > >> > >> --- > >> PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > >> <mailto:PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org> > >> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > >> https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > >> <https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss> > > > > -
Re: unusual file copy problem
Thanks for the suggestions. 1. I don’t know. 2. I don’t have root access, and am unable to run SSH/SCP. 3. This is a shared server. no console access is allowed. No SSH, no rsync, no nuth’n. That said, it’s a full WEB HOST. So I can upload a small php script that could reach out to the other account and copy the file over, maybe via an FTP xfer or HTTP copy. It seems like a bunch of hoops to jump thru simply because they won’t set up a shared folder that all of the domains in my account can access, but … what can I say. It’s a shared server. That does give me an idea, tho…. -David Schwartz > On Nov 22, 2020, at 11:46 PM, Eric Oyen via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > A few questions here: > 1. Are they “running instances” of an OS? > 2. If so, can you use SSH/SCP between them > 3. Any other networked application (console type) like RSync or similar that > can be used? > > Otherwise, unless you have root access to the original image, I am not sure > what else you can do. > > -Eric > From the Central Offices of the Technomage Guild, Tech support center. > > >> On Nov 22, 2020, at 7:07 PM, David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss >> wrote: >> >> I have a “reseller” type shared hosting account where I have a WHM that lets >> me create cPanel accounts. IOW, I don’t have root access. >> >> There’s a skel folder on the main account, and when i create a new cPanel >> account, it copies files into the new account. Pretty standard for *nix >> systems. >> >> I’m looking for a way to copy files from one of my cPanel accounts to >> another without having to download to my local machine then upload to the >> other account. >> >> They’re both accounts I have control of on the same server in the same /home >> filetree. >> >> But their support says there’s no way to do that other than with skel, but >> that’s not what I want. They’re already set up. >> >> Basically I simply want to copy some zip files from one account to a few >> others as directly as possible. >> >> Surely there’s got to be a way to do that, maybe FTP-to-FTP, or a little >> script I can put in each public_html folder that does a copy…. >> >> Puzzled minds want to know. :) >> >> -David Schwartz >> >> >> >> --- >> PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org >> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: >> https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss > > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
unusual file copy problem
I have a “reseller” type shared hosting account where I have a WHM that lets me create cPanel accounts. IOW, I don’t have root access. There’s a skel folder on the main account, and when i create a new cPanel account, it copies files into the new account. Pretty standard for *nix systems. I’m looking for a way to copy files from one of my cPanel accounts to another without having to download to my local machine then upload to the other account. They’re both accounts I have control of on the same server in the same /home filetree. But their support says there’s no way to do that other than with skel, but that’s not what I want. They’re already set up. Basically I simply want to copy some zip files from one account to a few others as directly as possible. Surely there’s got to be a way to do that, maybe FTP-to-FTP, or a little script I can put in each public_html folder that does a copy…. Puzzled minds want to know. :) -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Connectivity question for the mob...
Thanks for that, Michael. The thing is, I’ll just have 2 computers, and if I stack them together and hardwire them with a short wire, then I’m thinking I don’t need to connect them via the network, right? They can both be connected to the network, but … can't I just hook them together via ethernet or Thunderbolt or USB3 and speed things up? (which would be faster if it’s hardwired? A Gigabit ethernet, Thunderbolt, or USB 3? Or doesn’t it really matter very much?) I have a 55” 4k TV that I use as my monitor. It’s equivalent to 4 x HD monitors. Works great for my needs. Which is why I only need two computers. My VMs run VirtualBox. They’re Windows machines, mostly Win 7. Right now I just run VirtualBox and start up a VM that I want to use. I usually put them to sleep when I’m done working b/c I’ve found they get trashed if the computer farts while a VM is open and the computer went to sleep. I guess I’m wondering what I’d run “locally” to access a desktop on the other machine full-screen (4k) so it looks local. With VNC or RDP, do I need something running on the other machine? (I’ve used them but never set them up.) After I my original post, I guess that to run the VMs locally, I’d connect to the machine’s file system as a shared FS, then set up VirtualBox and link it directly to the VMs in the shared volume. I’m still wondering if that would cause it to copy the file to the local machine first, or just page it out normally. An an out-of-the-box thought … would it work to set the machines up as some kind of cluster? I know that’s possible, but I’ve not looked into it ever, and I’m not sure it’s even useful in this situation. Maybe someone who knows can chime in. -David Schwartz > On Apr 13, 2020, at 7:33 PM, Michael Butash wrote: > > If you want your storage on one system, but compute on another, that's > iscsi/nfs shared with an external compute. This is more enterprise-y for > remote storage, but you can export nfs between them easy enough with how-to's > and run vm's remote, presuming your network and storage can handle the iops. > > If you want to access the virtual desktop via vnc/rdp running on another > system, you just need a server and client for either vnc, or rdp. > > You can run a vnc session per virtual desktop in virtualbox and flip between > them mostly. I tend to go for a multi-monitor giant workspace with multiple > systems/windows across them, but works well when in various systems and > workspaces in enterprises doing work. > > If your vm's run on your local system, you can attach to the desktop > framebuffer direct via vbox ui console, and across as many systems as you can > run. I usually run multiple vm systems at a time with the console, some with > desktops (tails mostly), most others not, but use vbox effectively with it, > and/or kvm on my desktop when the desktop works. If I get frisky, I spawn > multiple monitors on windoze to use like a dual or 3-monitor setup when using > visio in a large setup with vbox. Even 4k displays this has worked with > vbox, kvm not so much. > > Oracle is good for something at least with vbox being a decent product over > time, at least until they try to sue you randomly for using it > <https://www.theregister.co.uk/2019/10/04/oracle_virtualbox_merula/>. > > -mb > > > On Sun, Apr 12, 2020 at 2:28 AM David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > wrote: > Well, how would you approach what I’m asking about in your preferred *nix > platform? I’m sure there’s a very similar if not identical way to solve it in > my situation. > > -David Schwartz > > > > > On Apr 12, 2020, at 1:51 AM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > > mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> > > wrote: > > > > Wouldn't these questions be better asked in a Mac mailing list? > > > > SteveT > > > > On Sun, 12 Apr 2020 07:41:26 + (UTC) > > David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss > <mailto:plug-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org>> wrote: > > > >> I’ve got a 2014 Mac Mini with 16GB RAM and 2TB of SSD. > >> > >> I’m thinking of getting a newer one with more RAM, which can be > >> upgraded by uers. But the SSD is soldered to the board, so it’s not > >> expandable. (My 2014 unit has space for a couple of 2.5” drives I > >> guess, and it can be upgraded in the field as well, although I bought > >> this from an outfit that did the upgrade.) > >> > >> I have some VMs that take up 80-120 GB of disk space, and they eat up > >> nearly 700 GB of SSD. > >> > >> At work, we have a bunch of VMs on servers somewhere that we can > >> access via VNC
Re: Connectivity question for the mob...
Well, how would you approach what I’m asking about in your preferred *nix platform? I’m sure there’s a very similar if not identical way to solve it in my situation. -David Schwartz > On Apr 12, 2020, at 1:51 AM, Steve Litt via PLUG-discuss > wrote: > > Wouldn't these questions be better asked in a Mac mailing list? > > SteveT > > On Sun, 12 Apr 2020 07:41:26 + (UTC) > David Schwartz via PLUG-discuss wrote: > >> I’ve got a 2014 Mac Mini with 16GB RAM and 2TB of SSD. >> >> I’m thinking of getting a newer one with more RAM, which can be >> upgraded by uers. But the SSD is soldered to the board, so it’s not >> expandable. (My 2014 unit has space for a couple of 2.5” drives I >> guess, and it can be upgraded in the field as well, although I bought >> this from an outfit that did the upgrade.) >> >> I have some VMs that take up 80-120 GB of disk space, and they eat up >> nearly 700 GB of SSD. >> >> At work, we have a bunch of VMs on servers somewhere that we can >> access via VNC connections. Of course, we have to be logged in to our >> company domain using VPN. So there’s a lot of overhead in >> communicating with those VMs. >> >> As an aside, I think one of the coolest things about MacOS is it’s >> multiple desktops — I think they call them “Spaces” these days. I >> have 10 of them set up that I can access via .. . I >> use different desktops for different things, and usually keep apps >> and browser windows open for related stuff on the same desktop. >> >> Now suppose I were to get a new faster Mac Mini with more RAM and >> literally stack it on top of my existing one. I’m curious about a >> couple of things. >> >> First, what’s the best way to set things up so I could use one the >> way I currently am (eg, as my “desktop” machine), and then set up a >> VNC window (or ?) on one or more of the desktops so when I switch to >> them, it looks like I’m working on the other machine? >> >> The other thing I’m wondering is how to go about using the “desktop” >> machine (assume it’s the newer one) to run VMs or apps that reside on >> the other (headless) machine with minimal delays in data access. >> >> Like … would I stick a short ethernet cable between the two e-net >> ports? (Would it need to be wired as a null-modem / cross-over >> cable?) Or maybe a short Thunderbolt or USB3 cable between them? >> Would a hardwire connection be faster than using WiFi through my >> router? I do realize that if I got a 3rd machine, I’d probably need a >> switch. But with just two? >> >> As I said, my VMs are 80-120 GB, and since I only have 16 GB of RAM, >> clearly it’s not necessary to have the entire VM loaded to run it. >> Copying them in their entirey can take a while, so is it even >> possible to run one on my “desktop” machine even if it’s residing on >> the other machine — without copying it? >> >> (I’ve read where people used to use Apple’s OSX Server for things >> like this, but it has apparently been so dumbed-down that people say >> it’s useless today.) >> >> -David Schwartz > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Connectivity question for the mob...
I’ve got a 2014 Mac Mini with 16GB RAM and 2TB of SSD. I’m thinking of getting a newer one with more RAM, which can be upgraded by uers. But the SSD is soldered to the board, so it’s not expandable. (My 2014 unit has space for a couple of 2.5” drives I guess, and it can be upgraded in the field as well, although I bought this from an outfit that did the upgrade.) I have some VMs that take up 80-120 GB of disk space, and they eat up nearly 700 GB of SSD. At work, we have a bunch of VMs on servers somewhere that we can access via VNC connections. Of course, we have to be logged in to our company domain using VPN. So there’s a lot of overhead in communicating with those VMs. As an aside, I think one of the coolest things about MacOS is it’s multiple desktops — I think they call them “Spaces” these days. I have 10 of them set up that I can access via .. . I use different desktops for different things, and usually keep apps and browser windows open for related stuff on the same desktop. Now suppose I were to get a new faster Mac Mini with more RAM and literally stack it on top of my existing one. I’m curious about a couple of things. First, what’s the best way to set things up so I could use one the way I currently am (eg, as my “desktop” machine), and then set up a VNC window (or ?) on one or more of the desktops so when I switch to them, it looks like I’m working on the other machine? The other thing I’m wondering is how to go about using the “desktop” machine (assume it’s the newer one) to run VMs or apps that reside on the other (headless) machine with minimal delays in data access. Like … would I stick a short ethernet cable between the two e-net ports? (Would it need to be wired as a null-modem / cross-over cable?) Or maybe a short Thunderbolt or USB3 cable between them? Would a hardwire connection be faster than using WiFi through my router? I do realize that if I got a 3rd machine, I’d probably need a switch. But with just two? As I said, my VMs are 80-120 GB, and since I only have 16 GB of RAM, clearly it’s not necessary to have the entire VM loaded to run it. Copying them in their entirey can take a while, so is it even possible to run one on my “desktop” machine even if it’s residing on the other machine — without copying it? (I’ve read where people used to use Apple’s OSX Server for things like this, but it has apparently been so dumbed-down that people say it’s useless today.) -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: standalone mic
> On Mar 28, 2020, at 12:16 AM, der.hans wrote: > > Am 28. Mar, 2020 schwätzte David Schwartz so: > > moin moin David, > >> >> A lot of people get these big (4”) round things on a gooseneck that are >> suspended in front of the mic. I think they’re pretty silly unless you’re >> doing professional-level sound. They’re used as “pop filters”. A foam >> windscreen that goes over the mic is just as effective most of the time, and >> a lot cheaper. > > In today's world a big dorky spit guard sounds like a great idea :). I > might get one for wearing when going to the store! > >> Mics designed to sit on your desk typically have foam inside the mic. An >> external foam windscreen is good today because you can take it off and wash >> it. >> HAHA! It’s not so much a “spit guard” as for diffusing plosives — Ps, Ds, Ts, Ks, etc, push out a small blast of air. If you’re close enough to the mic, it creates a big “boom” of sorts. Some people think these things direct sound or do something to make you sound better. They’re just wind guards when the wind in question is coming from one direction — your mouth. I’ve seen folks set them up on mics several feet away from people, in front of mics set up to record instruments, etc. If you’re not within a couple of feet of the mic and facing it directly, then they’re useless. -David Schwartz --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: standalone mic
thing like three vendors who make A/D and D/A chips that are used by virtually everybody who makes digital audio equipment today. So the specs on most equipment are going to be nearly identical. Which means companies are finally starting to have to innovate by adding new and useful features to these devices without charging an arm-and-a-leg for them. The features you find on these two mixers at the level of sound quality they offer was unheardof 10 years ago. They are full digital recording studios in a box with a bunch of EFX and other features you usually wouldn’t find in typical mixers. And the EFX themselves are quite good quality. So most people buy a MIXER that has a bundle of features they’d want or need (even if it’s as simple as a Scarlett Solo or 2i2), and then get a couple of basic mics to use with it. The nice thing is, mics are universal things, like keyboards — they can plug into just about everything. So you don’t get “one to beat all”. Rather, you get a mixer, and then add mics that you need when you need them. -David Schwartz > On Mar 27, 2020, at 4:41 PM, der.hans wrote: > > moin moin, > > With everyone else suddenly going online I need to finally improve some of > my versatility. > > Any recommendations for microphones? > > > Needs: > > * something that does well with voice, e.g. podcasts, presentations, meetings > > * something that will work for an acoustic instrument > > * works with laptops and desktops > > * can eliminate background noises > > * works with debian/Ubuntu > > > Wants: > > * one mic to rule them all rather than needing multiple mics > > * works with cellphones > > * wired connection option > > * inexpensive > > * can be used in an open room with someone else joining the same chat room > in a different room in the house without flashback sound effects > > * can be used in an open room with someone else joining the same chat room > in a different room in the house with flashback sound effects because > kidling thinks it's hilarious :) > > > We already have that last feature with the current setup. > > For the most part, mic use can be in isolated parts of house. I might end > up needing multiple mics. If so, preferably they'd all be the same, but > that's not strictly a requirement. Most likely, I'll be buying one mic and > multiple headsets with mics. > > Preferably, I'll be buying from Newegg. > > ciao, > > der.hans > -- > # https://www.LuftHans.com https://www.PhxLinux.org > # Linux Fest Northwest cancelled, working to get presentations online > # https://www.lfnw.org/conferences/2020 > # The key to making programs fast is to make them do practically > # nothing. ;-) -- Mike Haertel, 2011Aug21 > > --- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: Why does this not work?
I’d ask them, especially if they sent you the code. In particular, I’d see if they changed their PHP recently. -David Schwartz > On Dec 29, 2019, at 5:16 PM, Joe Lowder wrote: > > For years, I have used bluemail form input for a simple > way to invite comments from visitors to my websites; > but recently discovered that this quit working: > > http://www.upquick.com/message/ > > So, I asked bluehost support for a remedy and they > sent the code sample shown below, which I uploaded > to a test site: upquick.com/message/forminput4.htm > to try to use, but it does not work. > > What do I need to change to get this to work?: > --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: SSDs versus spinning-rust drives
$100 for a 5GB drive? WTF? I sure hope that’s a typo… As someone else pointed out, SSDs are running about $100 / TB. I’d think you’d have to be almost insane to buy a 10TB SSD. Dell has a 7.68TB SSD for $25k. Intel has an 8TB SSD for $2k. Micron has a 7.68TB SSD for about $800. Samsung has 4TB SSDs for $500. Unless you’re working on large video files and you’ve got a mega-powerful machine with 65GB of high-speed RAM, I can’t really see the value of a really huge SSD like that for primary storage. Spinning HDDs are a lot cheaper. You can get an 8TB Seagate backup drive for $130 or so. That’s what I’m using for my backups right now, and it’s fine. The USB 3.1 V2 interfaces on regular HDDs are pretty damn fast, but nowhere near as fast as SSDs. And my experience is they’re very sensitive to heat, and slow way down when they’re under constant use for very long (eg., 100GB+ files). -David Schwartz > On Dec 3, 2019, at 6:15 PM, Steve Litt wrote: > > On Mon, 02 Dec 2019 12:46:27 -0700 > Ryan Petris wrote: > > >> >> If you haven't checked up on SSD prices in a while, you might want to >> check again. They've come down significantly even in the last 6 >> months. > > Looks like about $100/TB, which is nice but inconvenient if you need > 10TB. I just bought a Seagate (yeah, I know) 5GB spinner USB3 drive for > $100.00. > > SteveT > > Steve Litt > December 2019 featured book: Rapid Learning for the 21st Century > http://www.troubleshooters.com/rl21 --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
Re: SSDs versus spinning-rust drives
Not sure what you’re even talking about here. 120GB SSDs are under $20 almost everywhere, including Best Buy. And 64gB Class 10 SD cards are under $10, which are still likely to be way faster than your old “dinosaur” can saturate. Never mind that you can easily run a full-blown Linux distro from a 1 GB SD flash that will last at least as long as a spinning HDD. And with 8GB of RAM, it’ll be running almost entirely out of RAM and will thus run extremely fast b/c it won’t be reading from the “disk” hardly at all. We’re not talking MEGA-BYTES here, we’re talking GIGA-BYTES. An entire Linux distro is like around 100 MEGS or so without all of the UI bloat? The way you’re calculating what you think is risk means you should probably go back to storing your data on paper tape. Here’s something I found that talks about SSD lifetime ratings: https://www.enterprisestorageforum.com/storage-hardware/ssd-lifespan.html <https://www.enterprisestorageforum.com/storage-hardware/ssd-lifespan.html> This whole thread really makes very little sense to me. Data centers (including CDNs) have been migrating to 100% SSDs on their servers for several years now because they have a longer MTBF / GB stored, they’re WAY faster, they take less power and generate far less heat. You seem to forget … tape backup units are quite cheap and plentiful these days in case you want to save all that precious data for the inevitable “disk crash” in a few years. And if you’ve only got 10GB of stuff saved, then heck, just buy a handful of 32GB SDs ($4/ea) and you’ll have more backup storage than you’d ever need. SDs are the new Floppy disks for backup storage. -David Schwartz > On Dec 1, 2019, at 10:27 PM, Jim wrote: > > > On 12/1/19 2:57 PM, Brian Cluff wrote: >> I should add, that you can run a hybrid setup where you run your system on >> the SSD and put your home directory on an spinning drive. That's actually >> how I have most of my systems setup as I use a HUGE amount of space. That >> way all the stuff that needs to be fast is and the stuff that just needs to >> be stored is on the cheaper spinning disks. > > This is what I do because I can't afford 10 GB of SSDs for the video and > music I have stored on this dinosaur. It's my home entertainment center. > Whenever I get a music or video disc, it gets copied to spinning rust. This > saves my optical discs free from normal wear and tear. --- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: https://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss
