Thursday, February 27, 2003
Lately I have started feeling the byte of the development bug. It's been a while since I wrote any real code and the update to this site has got me wanting to do more. So to help get started and to fix the work into my job, I decided to write some true interop examples between J2EE and .NET. Today was all about installing the environment.
I created a new Windows 2000 Advance Server VM under VMWare, installed J2SE, Apache, TomCat, Axis, Xerces, and IBM's Web Services ToolKit (WSTK). The combination took longer than installing Visual Studio.NET. Still, I was happy with the amount of online documentation and the ease of use of the various installation programs. I now have a clean environment ready for me to destroy. Only regret was that I did not use Windows .NET Server 2003. Including UDDI Services in my demo code would have been great.
Wednesday, February 26, 2003
I checked weather.com this morning to see the weekend forecast in the Killington area. The report is based on Rutland, VT, which had a chilly, current temp of -8 and windchill of -26. Burrrrrr...
posted by Kirby Turner | February 26 07:59 AM | comments (0)Tuesday, February 25, 2003
How to be a Programmer...I've not read the artcle but it sounds interesting.
posted by Kirby Turner | February 25 06:38 PM | comments (0)I re-discovered VMWare today and I have to say the latest version totally kicks butt! I'm finally sportin' a new laptop with lots of RAM and tons of hard drive space so I thought it was time to look at VMWare again. The latest workstation release, version 3.2, was very easy to install. And setting up a new virtual machine has never been easier. I had Windows 2000 Advance Server up and running in a VM session in under 45 minutes. No re-partitioning of the hard drive is required. All VM sessions are stored in a collection of files. Best of all, I can archive a clean install and restore it later after I have totally screwed up the environment. My next step is to setup an environment running Java, Apache, etc so I can demo .NET/J2EE interop. All developers should have the freedom of VMWare on their workstation.
posted by Kirby Turner | February 25 06:27 PM | comments (0)Sunday, February 23, 2003
Earlier today I called the Xbox support number and talked with a woman about my options for repair of my Xbox. The cost was $99, which included shipping. As a matter of fact, she told me they would send me a box to ship my Xbox back to the service center. Not sure if I wanted to repair or replace, she said I could call back and give my ticket number to complete the repair request.
So I thought about it a bit and even talked to Melanie to get her opinion. I decided that spending $100 dollars was better than $200, so I call the support number back. This time though I was told a different story. First, it is going to cost $99 plus tax plus shipping bringing my total to $145. Then to top that, the guy said for another $50 I could buy an extended warranty for my already defective Xbox. And I have to wait to get my Xbox back should I go with a repair.
EBGames sells factory reconditioned Xbox for $150. So now the question is do I pay $145 to have my Xbox repaired or $150 to get a reconditioned one, which mine will be after the repair. If I buy the reconditioned one, I can have it by Tuesday. If I repair my Xbox, I have to wait at least two weeks. And let's not forget I can pay $200 to repair my console and get an extended warranty, or I can pay $200 for a new Xbox with two Sega games.
I'm starting to think repairing my Xbox is a scam, especially now that I am being told that I have to pay for shipping. Guess if I had told the first person that I wanted to repair the unit I would not have to pay for shipping, but since I waited 2 hours, now I have to pay. I don't get it. Maybe I will go back to playing my Playstation/2.
My Xbox died a couple of weeks ago on my trip to Whistler. Melanie is working this weekend and I have to say I am missing the game play. So I finally called the Xbox support number to find out my opinions. The console I have needs repair work which costs $100, shipping included. A new Xbox will cost $200. The difference is I can pick up a new Xbox today but it will be a few weeks before my get back my repaired Xbox.
A part of me wants to repair the box I have mainly because I am close to finishing Transworld Snowboarding. It's the only game I have that does not let me copy my saved games to a memory card. So if I want to continue the game, I have to repair the box. But I am jonzen to play. And starting over is not really a big deal either.
So what should I do? Should I repair or replace my Xbox? What would you do?
Killington Snow Report: Bear Mountain, also known as Beer Mountain, is closed today due to ice. Fear not. Forecasters are calling for more snow this afternoon and tomorrow, and a chance for another snow storm later in the week!
posted by Kirby Turner | February 23 11:02 AM | comments (0)12:27 am Sunday morning waiting for the number 6 downtown. The uptown 4 speeds by on the express line and I realize I am living a surreal moment in New York. The greatest city in the world, Saturday night, and my evening includes tea and a poetry reading on Bowery, Xbox and Budweiser, caso dip and conversations about how hard it is dating in New York. This is my night. Uptown number 6 stops and people get off. Couples holding hands. Guys with their umbrellas. It must still be raining outside.
Finally the downtown number 6 arrives. I board the train and find a seat. She's cute but not my Melanie. A legless man is making his way down the car on his fist with a coffee can of coins. Hand outs please. I wonder how he got down into the subway, and I wonder how he will leave.
My stop...Lafayette and Bleecker St. It's raining. Crack! Thunder and lightening in February...how weird. Great the rain is coming down harder. Just my luck. "There goes my hair," says a bridge and tunnel ho. Many more looking for shelter from the rain. What losers! Just walk in it; you won't melt. And if you do, who cares.
A surreal night in New York City. The words sounded better in my head 30 minutes ago. Unfortunately for you, this is what you get.
Friday, February 21, 2003
I did a much needed update to the site software today, and the gallery is back online with pictures from the blizzard that hit New York earlier in the week. Enjoy.
posted by Kirby Turner | February 21 02:29 PM | comments (2)Thursday, February 20, 2003
As I am sitting on the plane heading to Dallas, I thought it would be fun to share my day with others. Consider it as a day in the life of a consultant.
4:15 am: Wake up, shower, and pack a change of clothes and my laptop.
5:15 am: Kiss Melanie goodbye, head out the door and hail a cab.
5:45 am: Pickup the car from Avis.
6:00 am: Leaving the Holland Tunnel and looking for the New Jersey Turnpike.
8:00 am: Arrive in Malvern PA right outside of Philly.
8:15 am: Driving around looking for food. I'm straving.
8:20 am: Stop at a Circle K for breakfast...mmmm, powder doughnuts.
8:30 am: Arrive at Microsoft's Philly office.
9:00 am: Meet with customer. Discuss fun, geeky stuff.
11:50 am: Call Melanie to say hi.
3:30 pm: Leave meeting. Was told it will take 1.5 hours to get to the airport.
3:40 pm: Call Melanie again.
4:30 pm: Return car to Avis.
4:45 pm: Arrive at the airport with time to spare.
5:50 pm: Call Melanie one last time. She is flying out to Paris tonight.
6:00 pm: Take off to Dallas.
10:00 pm: Arrive in Dallas and take taxi to the hotel.
10:25 pm: Call the hotel. The cabbie is lost.
10:40 pm: Check into the hotel.
10:50 pm: Order pizza and make a few phone calls.
11:00 pm: Check e-mail.
12:00 am: Finally, the pizza is here.
12:20 am: Tummy is full. Time for bed.
12:30 am: Fall asleep.
That was my day. And it all starts all over again at 6:00 am.
Monday, February 17, 2003
Melanie and I decided to enjoy the snow from today's blizzard with a walk through Central Park. The park was full of people enjoying the weather; from snowboarders riding the short hills to cross country skiers out for a bit of exercise to kids riding sleds, we saw it all. Hopefully I will get some pictures posted very soon.
After two weeks of no new snow in Whistler, I return home just in time for a big dump in New York City. Looks like over a foot of snow so far and it's still coming down. I love it but I wish this had happened in Whistler. And I wish I had a car because I would definitely be heading up to Catkills to snowboard.
Sunday, February 16, 2003
A couple of guys decided to create Craig Kelly is My Copilot bumper stickers for the X-Games. Even Shawn White was sporting one during the game, and now you too can own on for only a dollar. Visit www.craigkellyismycopilot.com to learn more and give respect to this legendary shedder.
posted by Kirby Turner | February 16 11:23 AM | comments (0)Over the last two weeks, I have been replicating my blog posting to thecave.com and wastedboarding.com. WASTED II is now over so I will return to only posting to appropriate site, which will be primarily this site cocked full with my rumblings. And I will start the rumble with a comment about my iPod.
The iPod kicks! I love this puppy. All day travel yesterday was made much more enjoyable with my iPod in pocket. Random play on 10 gigs of music for over 10 hours and still plenty of battery life left. It's the only way to travel.
I'm So Glad We Had This Time Together: WASTED II is over and the snow has finally returned to Whistler. 10 inches of the new stuff in the last 24 hours. Just our luck. Hopefully those who decided to stay over the weekend got to ride some of the new snow. As for me, I am ready to ride the Northeast again, which is having a great season albeit a very cold one.
Thanks to everyone would joined us this year, Melanie, Joe, Therese, Justin and his crew, Karen and Charlie, Katie, Ray, Brooke and Josh, Jeff, Tom, Kate and Shawn, and lastly Dave Dot. And who knows, there just might be a WASTED III next year.
See you on the slopes.
Final Days: No Snow but Still a Great Time: The final days in Whistler brought no new snow but still lots of good times. We rode parts of the mountain that none of us had every seen before. Places like Whistler Bowl, Doom and Gloom, and others. The bumps were big, the snow was hard, and the views were spectacular. Ray took a bad fall in the park and was the only WASTED guest to visit the emergency room this year. And Melanie, in a very rare moment, decided to see if she could knock down a tree. Unfortunately for her the tree won.
Thursday, February 13, 2003
Day 9, 10, 11 and 12: Catch Up: Things have really been hopin' in the Village and I haven't taken the time to update the web site. So here is a brief recap from the last few days.
First, there are no pictures for Day 10. Sorry but some bozo (named KT) forgot to bring the CF card. Pictures for Day 9, 11 and 12 are finally online.
Kirby and Joe took a snowboard lesson on Monday, which consisted of pipe, park, and speed. Yep, but have finally been introduced to the fun of park and half pipe. Dave would be so proud.
Jeff had a fun experience on the slopes. He lost a ski in Whistler Bowl and had to hike to retrieve it. It would have been very funny to see but he was out on the slopes by himself that day.
Brooke and Josh has an incredible first day on Whistler. Josh had a grin ear to ear all day. We covered a lot of terrain and all of us at exhausted.
And finally, the Murphy's have arrived. Shawn is already trying to start the drinking games. Imagine that.
Until next time...
Sunday, February 09, 2003
Day 8: Beer, Xbox, and More Beer: Still no new snow but the apres' ski is happening. We stopped by Merlin's for a huge order of chicken nachos and more beer. Beer, beer, beer...it's the only thing still fresh on the mountain. This beer talk is making me thirsty.
posted by Kirby Turner | February 9 11:44 AM | comments (1)
Saturday, February 08, 2003
Day 7: The Brotherhood: Another day on Whistler. Another day without new snow. The high pressure system causing the dry, sunny days is expected to stay in place at least through Tuesday. So we decided to make it a short day and had lunch at the Longhorn. Little did we know people, specifically those from the National Brotherhood of Ski, would be at the Longhorn early to reserve tables for the evening party time. By 3 o'clock the line to get in was out the door but we had our table. The bids for our table were numerous and becoming interesting...like the woman who offered to buy us two rounds for rights to the table we left. But we had already promised the table to another group. Oh well. It was still a fun, unique experience at the Longhorn.
Friday, February 07, 2003
Day 6: Return to Blackcomb: Today was the return to Blackcomb. The snow was much better than the other day especially in the afternoon. Blackcomb Glacier was very nice and the views were incredible. 7th Heaven was the place to be this afternoon. The snow was soft from the warm temps and sun. But we are too exhausted to take advantage of the conditions with multiple runs.
There's nothing else new to report. Sunny, warm weather and still no new snow. Jonesboro, Arkansas has got more new snow this week than Whistler. And the forecast calls for more of the same sunny weather through at least Monday.
Thursday, February 06, 2003
Day 5: Park Fun: Today was all about the terrain park. The crew tried to lay down some sick tricks but each of us did get some air. Joe got the crash of the day with his face plant jibbin' a table top. A round of shots went out to the crew for various reason but it was all good. And hopefully we will have some new snow soon.
One of the highlights of the day was seeing Tom on the slopes. Rumors were floating around that he was never riding the sweet white stuff, but we finally saw him linking turns in Ego Bowl.
Enjoy the new pictures in the gallery.
Wednesday, February 05, 2003
Day 4: Bowl of Sweetness: Still no new snow but we had new arrivals today. Karen, Charlie, Therese, and Justin joined us on the slopes of Whistler. Today was about the bowls as we spent most of our time in them. The drop in to Low Roll was definitely the most challenge. And I will be the first to admit I slid in over the lip on my butt. Camelback and Bagel Bowl were the runs of the day where the snow was soft and bumpy.
Be sure to check out the latest photos in the gallery.
Tuesday, February 04, 2003
Day 3: Birthday Fondue: Today was about Melanie and Blackcomb. Why? Because it was Melanie's birthday and we spent most of our time today on Blackcomb. Snow conditions are what I would call typical East Coast without the views. Hard pack from the top of the tree line down to mid-mountain, icy and slippery from mid-mountain down. But the alpine above the tree line is nice. Less than perfect conditions or not, we are still having fun.
No "crash of the day" or "trick of the day" today. Instead the birthday girl is due a shot of her choice. Speaking of the birthday girl, the crew took Melanie out for fondue to celebrate her "26th" birthday. We rode a snowcat to 6000 feet on Blackcomb. While going back down we could see the Northern Lights in the distance.
Monday, February 03, 2003
Day 2: A hundred and ten percent: Today was the first day on the slopes and we [tried to give/] gave 110 percent. The weather is warm but the snow is still good at the alpine. Below mid-mountain is a bit slushy but that can be fun. We covered a lot of ground on Whistler...from Symphony Bowl to Little Whistler to the Saddle to Franz's Meadows..from the Peak to the base...we hit it all. The only thing disappointing today was the lack of an Xbox...although for the record, the score is 3 to 3 Joe verses Kirby.
Joe got the shot for the "trick of the day". New rules for this year. If there is no wipe out of the day that the shot award goes to the trick of the day. Joe nailed a surf move typically of Dave...riding up the bank and kicking around the tail end.
Sunday, February 02, 2003
Day 1: The Arrival: Our day started early this morning in Vancouver. We loaded the SUV with our gear and started the drive up to Whistler. With little to no traffic, we made it to Whistler within an hour and a half. We dropped off the car and headed directly to the Longhorn. 6 pitchers or so later we checked into the condo. This year's condo is really sweet with a view over the pedestrian walkway. Diner at the fav Caramba's for woodfire penne and 3-cheese macaroni. Today is all about Xbox and chillin' out before hitting the slopes tomorrow morning.
There are some fun photos of Day 1 in the gallery including my expert pass for the terrain park...highest level baby. Not that I will use it but it's cool to have.
Saturday, February 01, 2003
Day 0: The Commute Begins: It's the day before WASTED II and some of us have already made our ways to Vancouver. Melanie jumped an early flight from Salt Lake City, while Joe and I commuted from the Big Apple [different planes and times though]. And even as I type this message, Tom is still enjoying his flight from Memphis. He forgot his passport and had to take a later flight...after returning home to pick it up. [Hint, hint: Bring your passport if you are flying to Vancouver.]
Melanie and I enjoyed a nice dinner and a few beers from a local brew pub. Joe is visiting family. Or at least I am assuming he is. Tomorrow is the big day. The first day of WASTED II. Day 1! And all we can think of is returning to the Village. Well, Tom may be thinking "How am I going to get to the hotel now that I am 8 hours late."
Pictures from today are in the WASTEDBoarding Gallery. Enjoy.
As you may already know, I am heading out to Whistler for a two week vacation. I will be making daily or almost daily posting about the trip to WASTEDBoarding.com site as well as this site. Hopefully it will not be too confusing posting the same message at two sites. We'll see how it goes.
posted by Kirby Turner | February 1 01:05 AM | comments (0)I have developed a ritual for getting through airport security that includes pulling out my laptop before I get in line. But today was a little different because I am also traveling with my Xbox. Naturally I expected that I would need to pull out the Xbox from its case but no! It's not a laptop, it's a game console.
Okay, so I don't get this. Why is the Xbox treated differently at airport security than a laptop. In my opinion, the two are basically the same with regard to hardware. Both have a hard drive. Both have a CD/DVD reader. Both have an ethernet card. Both have a motherboard, built-in fan...you get the point. What is so special about a laptop that requires one to remove it from the case while an Xbox can remain in the case.
The funny part of my experience, though, was the guy reading the Xray monitor. He could not figure out what it was; the Xbox that is. I mentioned to him that it was an Xbox. He joked that they were going to confiscate it, and I joked back that I would give up the laptop before I gave up the Xbox. Now I have to tell Avanade I need a new laptop.
