An anonymous Microsoft developer spilled some juicy opinions about why Windows kernel performance isn’t all it could be. Although he has recanted much of what he said, some of his insights make a ton of sense.
All posts tagged linux
The explanation about Windows vs. Linux kernel performance makes sense
Posted by Dave Farquhar on May 13, 2013
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2013/05/the-explanation-about-windows-vs-linux-kernel-performance-makes-sense/
Notes on the Compaq Presario SR2011WM
I’ve been working on a Presario SR2011WM. It’s a basic, low-end, single-core Celeron D system from 2006 or so. It can take up to 2 GB of RAM, runs Windows XP adequately, and has SATA ports, so you can put an SSD in it if you want. But don’t be fooled by the name–the Celeron [...]
Posted by Dave Farquhar on May 12, 2013
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2013/05/notes-on-the-compaq-presario-sr2011wm/
“Computer Maintenance Department” called me again from India
So, “Peggy” from “Computer Maintenance Department” called me again last night. This time I decided to mess with him a bit more. This is the second time. (No, “Peggy” wasn’t his real name, nor did he identify himself as “Peggy,” but that’s the name I’ll use, thanks to that old Discover commercial.)
Posted by Dave Farquhar on May 9, 2013
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2013/05/computer-maintenance-department-called-me-again-from-india/
And this is why I’ve been saying to uninstall Java, rather than disable it
Apple just uncovered and fixed a vulnerability that allowed an exploit to re-enable Java in a browser when it’s been disabled, which then of course allows a litany of exploits. There are two lessons here. Macintoshes are hackable just like any other device, and latent software can be re-enabled. If you don’t think someone’s trying [...]
Posted by Dave Farquhar on March 17, 2013
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2013/03/and-this-is-why-ive-been-saying-to-uninstall-java-rather-than-disable-it/
Here’s a nice Linux tool: checkrestart
Tom Gatermann told me about a nice tool for Debian (and presumably Ubuntu) called checkrestart. Sometimes, even though you did an apt-get update and apt-get upgrade to bring your system up to date, you can still be running the out-of-date version of something. That’s the problem checkrestart helps you solve.
Posted by Dave Farquhar on March 12, 2013
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2013/03/heres-a-nice-linux-tool-checkrestart/
Home network projects for a budding sysadmin
A very good question came in as a comment to my earlier post, the benefits of practicing IT at home. What do I mean by putting some Windows 7 machines on a domain? I mean standing up a server with centralized user accounts and shares, running on Windows Server or Samba, whichever you can afford. [...]
Posted by Dave Farquhar on February 13, 2013
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2013/02/home-network-projects-for-a-budding-sysadmin/
The benefits of doing IT at home, too
Earlier this week, The Register touted the benefits of having a home lab. That lab doesn’t necessarily have to be elaborate. But there is definitely something to be said for having some equipment that you can learn and experiment on, and that can break without the world ending.
Posted by Dave Farquhar on February 9, 2013
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2013/02/the-benefits-of-doing-it-at-home-too/
The lines between white hat/gray hat/black hat hacking and moral laws
Longtime reader/commenter Joseph asked two questions yesterday: What’s the boundary between gray and black-hat hacking, and is it moral to pick and choose between moral and immoral laws? The first question is easier than the second. So I’ll tackle that one first.
Posted by Dave Farquhar on January 26, 2013
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2013/01/the-lines-between-white-hatgray-hatblack-hat-hacking-and-moral-laws/
R.I.P.: Netbooks
The last two netbook vendors standing, Acer and Asus, have both announced they’ve produced their last netbook. So they’re joining the Playstation 2 in the land of the digital dinosaurs, though I suspect more people will miss the 12-year-old game console than the netbook. The Guardian has an analysis, but basically they blame the emergence [...]
Posted by Dave Farquhar on January 1, 2013
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2013/01/r-i-p-netbooks/
A fast way to turn a pile of images into an Adobe Acrobat PDF file
I have a collection of magazine scans that, inconveniently, came as a series of JPG images rather than as PDFs that are more conducive to reading. To make the files readable on a tablet or e-reader, I needed a way to make them into PDFs. There are any number of ways to do it, but [...]
Posted by Dave Farquhar on December 3, 2012
http://dfarq.homeip.net/2012/12/a-fast-way-to-turn-a-pile-of-images-into-an-adobe-acrobat-pdf-file/