Degen.Net

As any of you have worked with me know I’m very pragmatic about operating systems, if it works for the app – good on you. Regular readers of the blog might question my OS agnostic attitude due to the frequent Vista bashing, so here is my list of favorite things about Vista. Promise, I’ll try to stay all positive; operative word here is “try.” 

            It Looks Great

 

Face it, if you can make a classic Windows productivity app like Solitaire look this good, it just makes you happy. From the new 3D effects to the simple addition of transparencies, Vista makes for a pleasant visual retouch of the windows UI. BTW, if anyone has a hack to adjust the transparency level for the contents of a CMD window, please share – I so miss that capability, visa vie KDE/Gnome.

The new user folder structure

 

 After years of conditioning us to use the infernal “C:\Documents and Settings\XXXX” directory structure for storing My Documents and other user configuration, things are now where they should have been all along – \Users\XXXX.Not only is the Unix style top level user folder the “right” place for this type of data to be located, Vista has added some useful new default sub-folders as well. The new default downloads location is a welcome addition, as is the relocation of IE Favorates.

            Un-hideable Fields

While some will find this a lazy man’s feature, the ability to see and encrypted fields contents while entering them, I will argue this is a very useful feature. I can’t tell you how many times I have made typos while entering those long 128-bit WEP keys, not once but twice!  

            Explorer Location/Browsing Trail Memory

In a world where terabyte drives are virtually common place, its easy to have dozens, or even hundreds of sub-directories in a folder; the Vista Explorer has taken this fact into consideration. Nothing is more frustrating then moving through a deep folder structure say I’m down in a folder named “Symantec”, realizing I need something back in the “System” folder, that is at the same level as the Symantec directory, I hit the back button, pleasantly I’m returned to the previous level in the “S” vicinity, in fact the Symantec folder is selected so I can even use arrow keys to move down to the System folder I want to open. This is a delightful, yet simple, addition; But I still miss the “up” folder icon.

                      Media Center and Windows Media Player 11

  

As I said back in January, shortly after CES 07’, Vista’s new incarnation and integration  of Media Center Edition (formerly XP MCE), is truly impressive, while I have not quite killed off the TiVo yet, Vista Media Center is looking better all the time.

Powering Vista Media Center is Windows Media Player 11, which is still burdened with too much DRM crap for me give it an endorsement, I have to be honest – WMP11 performance is surprisingly much better then past versions I have avoided like the plague. 

The key point I’m trying to make about Vista is; it’s not all bad. While none of the above are compelling enough reasons to upgrade to Vista, they do fall into that “pleasant addition” category. Are you running Vista? Share your favorite new features in the comments, I’d love to learn your tricks. 

 

You know what I’m talking about, because you‘ve done it too! What, blame Bill you ask? Bill, as in Gates ala Microsoft; and blame, well I think you have a good grasp on that, suffice it to say any Blue Screen of Death, or driver incompatibility, heck just anything you don’t like about Windows! The response is always the same – Screaming “{Insert explicit of your choice} Microsoft!” followed by throwing random objects at and/or kicking the computer in question.

And I have to admit, 99% of the time it’s a safe bet to blame Mr. Gates. Most of the time it does turn out that if something on a Windows computer goes aria it can be traced to a Microsoft flax-paw.  If you want to drive that percentage of dysfunction and suffering to a virtual 100% failure rate, be sure to always adopt new Microsoft patches, service packs and 1.0 releases.

It’s against this backdrop I found myself a couple weeks ago. While consulting at my favorite “Garlic Capital of the World” customer, we were building up a couple of new Windows 2003 R2 servers to host Oracle 10 databases – pretty mundane right? The build was moving forward rather uneventfully; as part of the initial setup I usually hit Windows Update and pull down any critical updates (environments where SUS is available can skip this step.) Then the horror, Windows 2003 Server SP2.

Now there are a few of you that just love to install every brand-new “fix” that vendors put out, I have learned better. So not having seen 2003 SP2 and Oracle 10.2 I advised my client we might want to hold up on the new Microsoft Service Pack. But after talking it over, we elected to roll the dice and go for it, SP2 installed smoothly and on we went.

Completing the server build with Oracle 10.2.0.3, I built some databases, loaded up the necessary business apps and started testing client connections. Nothing. No connectivity to Oracle. After running through the usual trouble-shooting steps I conclude it can be only one thing – “Fracking Bill!”, I decry, as I angrily uninstall SP2. Reboot, and WTF Oracle was still broken! After another few minutes of digging I discover the problem was actually introduced with the Oracle SP, not Microsoft.

Shockingly I found the 1% of the time it actually wasn’t Bill’s fault!?!? So I’m stunned, but I guess it serves me right. And heck, I should look at it this way, if it’s not Bill, at least I can blame Larry. So take comfort Larry, in your efforts to be just like Bill you are now mimicking Microsoft service packs breaking stuff, way to go Oracle.

Ah, I’m going to keep blaming Bill, old habits are hard to break!

As many of you know I actually reloaded Vista on my day to day notebook – thanks to a most inopportune hard drive crash (When Disk Failures Attack!), and the lack of a bootable XP disk.

But I figured, “Hey, I’ll make the most of this and force myself to use Vista.”Arrg! Vista, you continue to curse me!

Today’s vignette of pain stars, yet again, the loathsome and talent-less Vista User Access Control or UAC. Regular readers of the blog will recall my first bout with the UAC from Vista UAC – this is “trustworthy computing?” – And since turning off the UAC is the first order of business on any Vista build I do, you can imagine my surprise when I encountered the following error while attempting to install Adobe Acrobat 8.

Regardless of whether you’re installing the full version or just the reader, if you have turned UAC off, you get this dialog “The Temp folder is on a drive that is full or is inaccessible. Free up space on the drive or verify that you have write permission on the Temp folder.”

Now wait a minute… If I have turned off UAC, why on earth should I get a permission error – that’s what I discarded UAC for in the first place! It seams this is part of the new Vista UAC pseudo-privilege elevation strategy. It turns out that you must re-enable UAC, reboot and then install Acrobat in order to be successful.

 

I found a good source of information about this phenomena at Scott Hanselman’s site, click here for a direct link. Great post, and work arounds, just a damn shame this UAC thing keeps driving me to the brink of insanity and then some.

Sources at Blizzard confirmed today that the US Army would begin combat training operations inside World of Warcraft, effective immediately. “The Army needs to train its soldiers on how to handle complex tasks amid a chaotic atmosphere.  We can think of no environment more akin to the crisis in Iraq then a typical session of WOW”, said Blizzard company spokesmen at a joint press conference with Army and Air Force representatives Friday.

“It’s totally awesome”, Corporal I. M. Uber continued, “Before I was in the Army I would just lay around on the coach P0WNing N00bz in WOW – I had no idea that would qualify me to face random IEDs and the other horrors I’ll see every day in Iraq.”  Corporal Uber and his squad where among the first soldiers to spend time on the simulators at the Army’s new Cyber training center. While its location is top secret the center’s commander, Major Ed Leet, was enthusiastic about the new facility, “We are very encouraged! Not only is the WOW Combat simulator, helping prepare our troops, but its bringing in many new recruits as well.”    

     

But not everyone is as supportive of the new training curriculum. Anti-military/war groups were quick to condemn the new simulator. Ned Ludd, denounced the move as “a first step to creating cyber-soldiers addicted to direct neural stimulation”, though he later acknowledged he really had no idea how any of this “computer stuff” worked anyhow.

Anonymous protesters at a recent anti-war march lead by Cindy Sheehan, commented that all forms of violence should be ended whether they are simulations or not. But when pressed further, most had mixed feelings about the ethics of killing a level 80 Hoard Blood Elf.  The Elf Defamation League had no comment on the matter, but did state it was keeping all legal options open, and would continue to monitor for Elven rights violations.

When pressed for a response to the critics, Major Leet emphatically defended the program, “We are simply using the best tools that are available to us.” As a veteran of Vietnam, Leet’s seen his share of horrors in combat. He added, ”I’ve seen chaos on the battle field, the fog of war, and other atrocities too tragic to describe; but let me tell you, a few million screaming 14 year olds savagely attaching you on the Plaguelands of Lordaeron – that, that is terror! WOW is preparing our soldiers for the harshness of today’s real world warfare, one flame war at a time!”

Blizzard officials have nothing but positive to say about the project’s future. “Frankly we have not seen this kind of server load and new user creation since the South Park WOW episode”, Blizzard company spokesman said. And with over 8 million users before the US Army deal, you can see why the company is all smiles.

I guess you can now find World of Warcraft, at Best Buy and your local Army Recruiter! Happy April Fools!  

There have been many great advances in desktop computing over the years; and some truly great ones, that fail miserably. The Apple Newton, IBM PC Jr, RAMBUS Memory, 64-bit implementations of software on desktop PCs come to mind – OK well, maybe not the PC Jr., but back on point. 64-bit processors, their respective OSes and more specifically the applications that are available for them, continue to make one ponder, “When will 64-bit computing become a reality?”

In that question lies the problem. 64-bit environments are a reality now, and have been for over a decade; we just don’t really expect them to be, so as businesses, consumers, enthusiasts and the industry as a whole, we propagate a self fulfilling prophecy that the technology is not ready for prime time.

And before I get barraged with, “Well, Actually….” responses about how you use 64-bit Oracle or other select server applications, this diatribe is focused primarily on the desktop, though an argument can be made about the sad state of adoption on the server side as well (I’ll just save that for another time.)   

   

Dispelling Myths

Contrary to all the industry press, bloggings, and snappy AMD/Intel ads and press-releases; 64-bit platforms have been available for some time. I little history lesson is in order.

My first experience with a true 64-bit box was in the early 90’s, the DEC Alpha AXP. Ah, Digital Equipment Corporation, I get a little teary eyed at the thought. Great company, superb engineering, solid performing systems and terrible marketing – so it should be no surprise that many of you might not even recall the AXP systems.  At 150 Megahertz the AXP was blisteringly faster than the flagship Intel chip of the day, you might remember that one a little better, this new thing called “Pentium”, it topped out at 90 MHz. And for an OS, you could run Windows NT (the now defunct Alpha version), OpenVMS, or DEC’s Tru64Unix. While most of these machines are now collecting dust in IT bone yards, a few continue to find life with 64-bit Linux distros for the Alpha.

The next 64-bit offering to grace the stage, Sun Microsystems Ultra Sparc. What’s that? You don’t remember who Sun is? That’s ok they seam to have a problem with their identity too, but back in the day, the 90s, Solaris was king of the go-go Unix powered internet bubble. The Ultra line of chips was to power 64-bit Solaris running from the largest datacenter on down to the “workstation” on your desktop. Heck, there were even a few OEMs who engineered notebooks with these. Still not ringing a bell? Humm, well that explains a lot about Sun’s current dwindling market share.

So if both of these have left you scratching your head surely you will recall the first major 64-bit offering from Intel.  Merced, or it’s current brand name – Itanium. Intel started hyping the crap out of this dog before the turn of the century (oh its so weird to use that expression to describe the 1999 – 2000 – 2001 time period.)  In case you missed it, we where all going to stop buying Pentiums, as they were scheduled to be discontinued shortly after the Itaniums started shipping. After all, why would anyone want a 32-bit processor when they could have a new 64-bit one running at a slower Megahertz that was both pin and code incompatible with the x86 architecture. Not so much.

Then there was Apple. Surely Apple with all their technical prowess, engineering experience, and marketing appeal could make this 64-bit thing work! Well they did get the science part right – partly. It was the Macintosh G5, billed as the worlds fastest micro computer and 64-bit through and through. And at it’s core, the G5 chip and memory interconnects have 64-bit data paths; but OSX, while certainly capable of running in a pure 64-bit mode, opted to go with only 64-bit extensions for large memory addressing. But never mind, it turns out that the PowerPC chips that were so fast, got replaced by those 32-bit Intel chips; those ones that were sure to be phased out by 2003, what where those called… oh yea Pentium I think it was. Been so long since any of us have seen one of those.

 

Software –  cause I still haven’t found what I’m looking for..

Where are the Killer 64-bit apps? There lies the crux of the whole thing. In fact one could ask where are the sorta killer 64-bit apps, or where are the simply ok-but-working 64-bit apps.

In each of the previous 64-bit mis-steps, chronicled above, there was not the single quintessential force required to drive adoption, good software. And here is the sad part, since those ill-fated attempts of the 90’s - what has changed? Not a heck of a lot.

You think I’m exaggerating? AMD has offered its Opteron and Athlon 64-bit architectures for a couple of years now – how many of you are running the AMD64 version of World of Warcraft?  Oh that’s right, that product does not exist.

What AMD is not mainstream enough, too fringe – let’s look at Intel. Itanium, 64-Bit Xeon and Core based systems have been in production even longer, How many people do you see running Half Life 2 for XP Pro x64 version?

Frankly I don’t know what it’s going to take for 64-bit solutions to take hold! I’ve been hearing the rhetoric about how life changing the 64-bit apps are going to be, for over a decade now, and it’s just not happening. Its time the industry either gives up on 64-bit on the desktop or build something that makes users value this fancy “new” technology.

ARRRGG! Under the heading; yes it can happen to anyone – I suffered a catastrophic drive failure on my primary notebook this weekend.

Best I can tell it was from a corrupt MBR, very strange considering the system was not a multi boot or had multiple partitions. And of course it struck at the worst possible time as I’m on the road with back to back customer calls to make.

So here are the lessons to learn from my misfortune:

• Always keep a current backup of anything you care about. Fortunately I had all “My Documents” form a few days before on a flashdrive.
  

• Consider a partitioned drive separating your data from the OS, this is something I had been thinking about for sometime and will go into my next build.
  

• If you are a road warrior, or find your self away form your office much, keep a copy of your OS installer and any hardware drivers with you. I did not have that special HP XP Pro recovery disk with me, so I was forced to rebuild with Vista…. Oh Vista, just when I think I’m out you Pull me back in!

• Keep a copy of Ubuntu or some other cd image bootable OS with you. Thanks to my copy of Edge Eft (Ubuntu 6.10) I was able boot the system, browse the undamaged files and copy them off to an external USB drive. Needless to say, Ubuntu’s stock went way up with me!
  

• Tools would be nice…. Before our airports went all medieval on having a screwdriver in your carry-on, I would always have at least a small Philips on me, and sometimes a Leatherman tool. After this debacle I’m seriously considering a packing a small toolkit in my checked bag, just in case.

At any rate, the mire fact that I can type up this entry today is a good sign that my system and work week are on the road to recovery.

This past week, after two months of regular use on my desktop system, I came to a conclusion regarding Vista. After endless dealings with driver and application incompatibilities, reduced overall system performance and considerable frustration with the new “more intuitive” UI, I finally found the fix for Windows Vista more usable – downgrade to Windows XP.

Any of you who have been reading the blog over the last few months know that I am not a rabid Microsoft hater, and that’s significant to consider when you weigh my assessment about Vista. I came into this evaluation very open and quite excited about the potential of Vista from the beginning. (See:  Vista + HDTV = Tivo Killer?) That anticipation, however, has been replaced with the dull aching reality that Vista simply carries too much baggage to offset any positives I’ve experienced.

What’s more, I have placed an indefinite moratorium of Vista deployment for any of our corporation’s internal systems. I’m also advising customers to do the same in their IT shops. This conclusion is in line with similar announcements from major firms and even government institutions like the DOJ and FAA – this past week these are just a few of the entities that have said “adios” to the Microsoft flagship OS.

Does this spell “Doom” for MS?

Not hardly, I’m sure the spin-masters at Redmond are working double-time on press releases and other propaganda designed to flood the market with rave reviews about Vista, ignoring the reality of its sluggish acceptance by real-world users.

The real test of success is going to be how we all feel about Vista in another year. Sure, early adopters are going to purchase and implement Vista now, and any new systems purchased are coming with it preloaded, but what will the preferred OS be in six months or a year?

Will corporations be satisfied with the time tested strategy of waiting for SP1 of any new MS operating system before wide-spread adoption? On the consumer side, will new DirectX 10 hardware and games be so compelling that users will upgrade just for specific titles? 

These are entirely possible outcomes, but so are the following:

1. Feed up with the endless Microsoft upgrade merry-go-round, corporations move past the “evaluating” Linux stage to active desktop deployment.
2. Riding the wave of consumer good will and enthusiast support, Apple, finally cracks past its single digit market penetration as OSX is perceived a better choice then Vista.
3. Windows XP, now over six years old, remains the preferred desktop OS of choice. Both in corporations that have little incentive to upgrade from a cost and training perspective, and in the home with a large install base and questionable app and driver support home users hold back.

All three of these options are viable, and deserve to be explored in more depth. To that end, check back in the coming weeks as I expand on each of these and other paths. Whoever said the OS wars were over anyway? 

While some Blogs and Podcasts are surprised that the latest version of iTunes (7.1) does not resolve lingering Vista compatibility problems, not so shocking to yours truly.

 

As you might recall from my post: iTunes Vista problems are a Microsoft “Win-Win”; whatever the reason Apple has opted not rolled out a fix, it does not seam to be in Apple’s interest to continue delaying.

Since last month’s flurry of anti-DRM press one might conclude that it’s just a matter of days and all media distributions will be going to market sans any form of Digital Rights Management.  With Steve Job’s open letter on the subject, EMI mulling over the option of going DRM free and a dizzying chorus of industry types now denouncing the evils of DRM, heck it’s going to be nothing but blue skies ahead, right? 

Not so fast…. I’m I the only sane person to stand up and say this is all just a bunch of fanciful nonsense?

Let me state clearly for the record – DRM is from the Devil, or perhaps just “is the Devil” (that’s for all you Waterboy fans out there.) I would love nothing more than to see all DRM eliminated. I do not work in the media industry, and can not agree more about what a sham copy protection and encryption techniques on everything from music to movies to software have become.

DRM wastes the time of those looking to exercise legal “fair-use” rights on the media they have purchased, punishes those who attempt to comply with the law, and does nothing to stop the dedicated/skilled pirates hacking it.

But hey all that is in the past? After all, Steve Job’s has said that he doesn’t see any need for DRM, and in fact that it’s the record labels that are forcing Apple to apply DRM and locking iTunes/iPods together. Whatever Mr. Jobs, Whatever – weren’t you the one propagating the “fact” that the IBM/Motorola PowerPC (RISC) architecture was the way of the future and so much faster than Intel X86 could ever produce? Hum.. I digress.

Even Steve Job’s well intentioned commentary aside, DRM is not going away people. It stings to even admit that, but the truth hurts and this is a cold hard truth.  Just like true campaign finance reform, the parties involved are way too deep into their own mud puddles to seriously consider that they may be getting themselves and those around them irrevocably stuck.

So instead of accepting the reality of the predicament, listening to the market, and correcting, most publishers prefer to mask the solution. After all it’s so much easier to blame the problem on insufficient technology, or a poor implementation, and promise to make the next flavor of the month “even more better!”

Look at the Microsoft “Plays for Sure” debacle. Not only is the product name a bunch crap, as the Zune (another MS DRM infested product) does not even support Plays for Sure DRM; but this is only a two year old form of DRM that is being deemed obsolete and incompatible with new products from the same company.  TWO YEARS…  The idiots who force this restrictive maniacal on consumers are not backing away from DRM, they’re busy building new, more incompatible and restrictive formats!

So perhaps I’m just too cynical, but I don’t believe you Steve Job’s. And I certainly don’t see any signs of Microsoft pushing back at the content producers, demanding they publish DRM free versions of works.

Finally to my fellow pundents and prognosticators, I’m with you – I’d like an end to DRM as much as you, but endlessly writing/talking about 2007 as the year that DRM was abolished, is simply a pipedream.  Here is a prediction I feel confident about – the same people naive enough to believe that DRM will really be abolished this year will still be talking about how 2008 (or insert the year of your choice here) is going to be the year we finally go DRM free.

With this past week’s release of the new uber violent XBOX 360 shooter game “Crackdown”, I can’t help but wonder; will all the GTA hater’s jump on the Crackdown haters bandwagon?

If you’ve missed the hype surrounding Real Time Worlds’ answer to the Grand Theft Auto genre, Crackdown is a third person, free form almost Robocop like, game where you go after the bad guys with all the ferocity of Quentin Tarantino flick. The key difference in Crackdown is that you are on the side of law enforcement, going after the guys ripping off the cars rather than being one of them.

Any of you who know me, are aware of the fact that I’m no fan of Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto franchise. That said, I simply loathe all the media, legislative and “concerned parent groups” obsessed with abolishing shooter video games in general and GTA specifically. Many of these well-meaning lemmings hail titles like GTA as the great Satan of our time.

Are many of these games suitable for minors – heck no, do I let my own teenagers play them – of course not, but should I patently blame game manufactures for increased youth violence and the general decline of western civilization, give me a break!

 

While this post could veer off into a lengthy discussion about the failings of the ESRB rating system, let’s stay focused on real issue.

Let’s be intellectually honest, it’s just too much work for most journalists, politicians and even parents to actually understand what is going on in the youth gaming culture. Instead it’s much easier to just pass blanket judgment (or legislation) against something they don’t understand. This horrifies concerned parents, frustrates legitimate industry, and doesn’t foster healthy kids who need to learn how to make sound decisions for themselves.

Speaking as a parent, If I freak out and decry GTA, yet enjoy a well played tournament match of Counter Strike (Both games share the same ESRB rating M), what lesson does that teach my teens about objectively evaluating how they are going spend their downtime and dollars?

A Few Options

I could simply ban all rated M games for kids, and then play Counter Strike myself, making me a total hypocrite, well within my right as a parent, but how effective would that be?

Watch more 20/20 style exposes about the horrors of the computer gaming culture and industry. Fear mongering TV that leaves you without any tangible solution – there’s a great idea.

We could demand that our elected officials enact even more laws and restrictions on violent or objectionable video games, or file even more lawsuits against the likes of Id software and Rockstar games. Sure, because the court system really has a grasp on technology – Microsoft antitrust case, need I say more?

The Solution

I won’t say it’s easy people, but then again it has not been easy for any of the past generations of societies before us. As individuals we need to make a judgment, “Is this game right for me?” And as a parent we need to enforce those standards with our kids.

Yes, it’s a lot easier to cast the blame on a nameless culture or focus wraith on a few companies, but as we have seen both the problem and the solution lay much closer to home.