Rantings of a Redneck Geek
All work and no play make Jack a dull boy
Dec 30th
I just read “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” on a friends status. It’s a line in a Casting Crowns song, American Dream. The basic premise is that Jack doesn’t have time for his kids because he’s chasing the American Dream–of having too much stuff.
It’s made me think about this past year and how much, or more aptly, how little, I play with my kids. Now I need to figure out how to be less dull…
Exchange 2010
Dec 28th
I’ve spent the last 9 years administering email systems. I’ve had the privilege of working with a wide variety of system from HP OpenMail to Exchange to Lotus Notes/Domino. Not to mention the many open source apps like Cyrus, Courier, Sendmail, Postfix, etc.
The past few weeks have been somewhat frustrating implementing Exchange 2010. I need to configure some high availability aspects and they just don’t have an all-round elegant solution, specifically on the Client Access and Hub Transport side of the application. MS has done some good work on the Mailbox side with DAGs. They really need to work on the multi-site failover concept. I’ve got to give credit to MS for the client side with Outlook–the auto-configuring client really is nice, especially when doing testing.
I long for the simple, but extremely effective, Lotus Domino clustering. Server failover and load-balancing is relatively simple without the limitation of specific roles being in the same site. I know most people cringe at the thought of Lotus Notes, but from an admin standpoint, it really is an awesome system. The client side has finally been getting the attention it deserves, but its only effective if people actually upgrade the templates…
Just some semi-random thoughts as I wait for some load tests to complete…
Reflections on the 2009 Deer Season
Dec 21st
So far, I’d have to say hunting this year has been decent, at least for PA. I harvested a doe during the rifle season and I’ve seen more deer this year than in previous ones–not massive numbers by any means, but seeing 20 deer in a season is unheard of for me. I just don’t seem to have the same skills as others to pick out the movement. Despite that, I really enjoy the peacefulness of sitting in the woods. It seems to be the only time I can sit and not have a million things running through my head. A time when I can converse with God and thank Him for his blessings, and his creation.
I still have another month of hunting in the Pittsburgh area and I’m hoping to get another doe to fill the freezer. And now that we have some snow, maybe, just maybe I’ll see the deer now…
-Geek