Upgrading Proxmox VE kernel

By , 2009-08-31 16:19

I currently am running this blog from an OpenVZ server managed via Proxmox VE. One issue I had with this setup is that the Proxmox 1.3 installer by default comes with a relatively old kernel (2.6.24), and I want a newer kernel (>=2.6.26, so that I can use my cx18-based TV tuner). Fortunately, Proxmox is just a customized version of Debian Lenny, so I just installed the linux-image-2.6.26-2-openvz-amd64 package from apt, then ran update-initramfs -u and update-grub.

After updating the kernel, however, I was unable to start any of my virtual machines from the Proxmox Web UI. Looking at the system log showed a message about vzctl being 32-bit; problem solved by updating vzctl via apt.

Now I’m attempting to compile v4l-dvb…. fingers crossed!

hg clone http://linuxtv.org/hg/v4l-dvb

Door-to-door water heater scam

By , 2009-08-27 19:54

Have you been visited by a National Home Services salesman lately? These people come to your door and try to get you to sign a contract for a long-term water heater rental. You then get stuck in a 15-year contract with a high cancellation penalty. To make matters worse, these salespeople lie through their teeth. Some say water heaters last only 2-5 years, others say Direct Energy doesn’t rent water heaters… My advice is don’t buy anything sold door-to-door, unless it’s a kid selling chocolate or cookies.

Further reading: http://www.thestar.com/article/463378

A stormy day off work

By , 2009-08-21 01:44

So I was off work today… It was a pretty good day, just generally relaxed. Spent the day at home, then out for tea and a movie with old high school friends. I left home at around 6pm and it had just started pouring rain, with a few fantastic bolts of lightning. I walked in to the coffee shop and while i was waiting for everyone to show up, I noticed that the TV in the corner was showing CP24 news. Apparently there had been a tornado in the area of Vaughan Mills shopping centre. While we didn’t experience much more than a severe thunderstorm (and some flooding, it seems Silver City was closed), the whole experience was somewhat surreal: friends together around a coffee shop table watching news reports and amateur video footage, while fire trucks passed by outside… It was quite nice though, we talked about all kinds of things, joked about horoscopes, discussed storms…

After we had chatted for a while, we decided to go watch District 9. It was a decent movie, quite entertaining, and I thought it was pretty cool that it was set in South Africa, instead of the USA.

A few videos and pictures from the storm (not mine, unfortunately):

“Take Immediate Precautions” … lol

http://www.blogto.com/city/2009/08/massive_storm_hits_toronto_tornados_reported_across_gta/

Aaand I suppose that’s all for now.

Because this might be forgotten in a few years….

By , 2009-08-17 13:13

The latest Canadian Internet star!

Crasher Squirrel from National Geographic

"Crasher Squirrel" from National Geographic

Bell setting download limits on resellers

By , 2009-08-17 12:40

Looks like unlimited Internet access no longer exists for Canadians (or at least Ontarians, at any rate). The CRTC has approved a petition by Bell to charge small ISPs (TekSavvy, Velcom, Acanac) for the bandwidth they use. These small companies are currently the only way for most residential customers to get true unlimited Internet access at home. The large Canadian ISPs such as Rogers, Bell Sympatico and Videotron all limit their customers’ download traffic, forcing those who need more to upgrade to more expensive service plans. This is absolutely ridiculous. In an age of digital media, where high-bitrate HD content and streaming video are becoming more and more commonplace, along with steadily increasing Internet connection speeds, this is a big step backwards for Canadians. Furthermore, the small ISPs are now at risk of going bankrupt, since their major selling point is their unlimited or high traffic allowance.

Seems the CRTC has failed Canadians once again. Now that I’ve had my little rant, the question is, what can be done to reverse the decision, or to prevent anything worse from happening?

Concurrent Remote Desktop sessions in Windows 7 RTM

By , 2009-08-13 10:00

Now that Windows 7 RTM has been distributed to Microsoft Software Assurance customers, I have legally installed it on my work desktop. I used to run Windows Server 2003, so the Windows 7 eye candy and more desktop-oriented features are a nice change. However one thing I missed is the ability to have multiple RDP connections to my PC. Fortunately, ShadyMG over at Missing Remote has got it all figured out:

http://www.missingremote.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3692&Itemid=232

The linked file is mirrored here.

Update: It seems there is a more refined version of this patch, which also works to enable RDP server on the Home Premium version. http://thegreenbutton.com/forums/t/79427.aspx
File mirrored here: Concurrent_RDP_Win7_RTM_patcher_v1.1

Speed

By , 2009-08-04 10:56

Internet connection speed today. If only it were this fast every day.

Mac OS X install on ASUS P5W DH Deluxe

By , 2009-08-02 14:58

Here’s the install procedure I used to get Mac OS X 10.5.7 running on my P5W DH:

  1. Bios settings: JMicron and Intel controllers in AHCI mode, Memory Remap enabled, Hyper path 3 disabled, CPU NX enabled
  2. Boot from generic grub/boot-132 iso.
  3. Hit Esc at boot prompt, swap disc for Mac OS X 10.5.4 DVD and press enter
  4. install Mas OS, format partition if necessary.
  5. After the install is complete, boot from boot-132 cd again. hit esc, type 80 then hit Enter.
  6. should boot into leopard, at 1024*768 resolution.
  7. Install bootloader: first PC_EFI 9 from bootloader.pkg, then Chameleon 2.0 RC2, with graphics detect option.
  8. go to /Extra/Extensions, add AppleDecrypt, AppleVIAATA (for SiI3112 PCI SATA, Disabler (AppleUpstreamUserClient Version), remove A HCIPort Injector,
  9. Install alc882 AppleHDA anrd ALCinject, pkg doesnt work, use kext helper.
  10. update to 10.5.7 using comboupdate.
  11. reinstall AppleHDA.kext

Nostalgia

By , 2009-08-01 17:11

Visited my old elementary school today. Strange sense of nostalgia, remembering the days of lining up for class, going out for recess, snacktime, playing all kinds of games in the forest and the playground, messing around with old PowerMacs, asking permission to use the washroom, “roofing” basketballs and tennis balls, building snow forts, waiting for the bus number to be called…

Custom theme by me. Based on Panorama by Themocracy