Well I read through Chaper 1

I finished Chapter 1 the first day and haven't ready any since then, well I did read half of chapter 2, but fell asleep before I finished. I have to say I didn't learn too much I didn't already know, but there were a few small things in there that I didn't previously know, but well there are lots of things I don't know, so it isn't too much of a suprise is it?
For instance you can make any directory or directories locally or on a network share into a library for all files or any specific file type. Its actually pretty neat.
The other interesting thing is VHD boot. You can add a line to the bootload to load a VHD file as though it were a locally installed operating system. This could be useful for lab environments.
That was pretty much it for Chapter 1. I think I'll get through chapter 2 today and post what I find sometime later. So far I like this book. I just don't know if every chapter will be easy to read without yawning.

Jimmy Fallon sucks

I was watching Jimmy Fallon for the first time after Leno this Friday and I don't understand why he has a show. He sucks. Was he just having a bad night or is he normally this bad?

Folding@Home

I have decided to fold again on a small scale for 33258 Motherboards.org. It has been a while since I last did anything related to folding, but I finally have something stable to run it on. So for the forseeable future I'll be doing it again.

Windows 7 Resource Kit

For my job, I got a copy of the Windows 7 Resource Kit. I am going to start to delve into the book and get all my deployment kinks out of the way. Additionally I hope to learn more about security and power shell 2.0. I don't really know what to expect from this book. Its a Microsoft Press offering. I have read books from Microsoft Press before. Some of these books are terrible, while others are great. Of course I suppose it all depends on how technical and useable you want your books to be.

I for one am very happy with Windows 7 so far. I've been using Windows 7 since December I think. At this point I have no major complaints. Although I think the sysprep process could've been made a little easier. I mean you went from a plain text file or technically an inf file in XP to this XML monstrosity. Of course I can't complain, because now that I've been working with it I appreciate its complexity. It is extremely granular and you can almost preconfigure every system and profile setting, making it much easier to deploy systems. Of course I've only used it for 7 deployments. I have yet to pre configure a Windows Server 2008 R2 system, mostly because we have so few servers running that OS. Thus far most everything is still running various forms of Windows 2003 and unfortunately some servers are running Windows 2000. Anyway, I digress.

Back to the book. Microsoft, not including the index this thing is over 1600 pages in length. Granted its littered with illustrations, but give me a break. This could've been split into a multi volume work, or the page size could've been larger, like an 8.5" by 11". Of course thats just me griping. I am sure by the time I read through this the spine will be thoroughly cracked and there will be many dog eared pages. I am also looking forward to using the included CD. I undersstand it has example powershell scripts and even an e-book copy. Now if only I could get an e-book reader, but seriously I still prefer paper to screen.

Anyway, as I read on I might post some stuff I find useful or informative and of course any and everything I think is wrong or don't understand. Of course that may lead to way too many posts. We'll see.

My plan is to go through section 1 tonight, section 2 tomorrow, section 3 on Saturday and section 4 on Sunday. This is pretty ambitious, but I've got some free time. Of course realistically lets say I'll finish the whole thing by the end of the month. That sounds more likely. We'll see.

Personal Status Update

You know its been a long couple of weeks. This week has been good though. Got my car back, after a minor spat on the road (no one was injured, just a little shaken). All moved in to my new house. Keeping my head above water. Its all in all really good. I think for the first time in a while everything is going good and going track. Additionally the job is going well, although my shift keeps changing, not that I mind leaving early. All in all its good. Now I just need to get my second car repaired, which should be happening soon. Oscar, thats my dog, is adjusting to this really well too, although he doesn't like going in the back yard by himself so I have to walk out there with him. I think that however is a small sacrifice, over all. There is something nice about home ownership.

FYI, my wife is awesome and I am not just posting that because she wanted me to.

FW: U.S. Mint Redesigns Penny

Feed: The Consumerist
Posted on: Thursday, February 18, 2010 5:47 PM
Author: Chris Walters
Subject: U.S. Mint Redesigns Penny

Here's the new design for the back of the 2010 penny. Instead of the Lincoln Memorial there's now a shield, or maybe a tiny badge that you can flash whenever you want to announce, "I have jurisdiction over your pocket change." No, I'm pretty sure it's a shield. You might be one of those people who thinks we should do away with the penny altogether, but that would mean taking away one of the more entertaining ways to annoy a business: "8800 Penny Prank Takes Paying In Cash To Extremes" "Upset With $350 Electrical Bill, Man Pays In Pennies" "Paying With Pennies Lands Middle Schoolers In Detention" "The Lincoln One Cent Coin—2010 and Beyond" [U.S. Mint via Boingboing]

View article...

snow, shmo

Issued by The National Weather Service
Shreveport, LA
5:32 am CST, Thu., Feb. 11, 2010

... WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 2 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO 4 PM CST FRIDAY...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SHREVEPORT HAS ISSUED A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR THE ACCUMULATION OF SNOW AND SLEET... WHICH WILL BE EFFECT FROM 2 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO 4 PM CST FRIDAY.

THE WINTER STORM WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT.

LIGHT SNOW AND SLEET IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN THIS MORNING OVER THE AREA AND BY THIS AFTERNOON AND OVERNIGHT BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD AND HEAVIER AT TIMES. TEMPERATURES TODAY WILL REMAIN MAINLY IN THE 30S AND THEN DROP TO NEAR OR BELOW FREEZING OVERNIGHT. GROUND WARMTH WILL HELP MELT THE INITIAL SNOW AND SLEET... BUT AS MORE SNOW FALLS... AND READINGS DROP... ACCUMULATIONS SHOULD START TO ADD UP.

THE PRECIPITATION WILL END WEST TO EAST FRIDAY. TOTAL SNOWFALL AMOUNTS OF 2 TO 3 INCHES WILL BE COMMON. THERE MAY BE HIGHER AMOUNTS ACROSS PARTS OF NORTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL LOUISIANA.

THE MAIN ROADS ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN WET OR SLUSHY THROUGH THE EVENT... HOWEVER BRIDGES AND OVERPASSES AND RURAL AND SECONDARY ROADS THAT HAVE LESS TRAFFIC MAY BECOME SNOW COVERED LATE THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY MORNING.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY MEANS THAT PERIODS OF MAINLY SNOW... POSSIBLY MIXED WITH SLEET... WILL CAUSE TRAVEL DIFFICULTIES. BE PREPARED FOR SLIPPERY ROADS AND LIMITED VISIBILITIES... AND USE CAUTION WHILE DRIVING... ESPECIALLY ON THE BRIDGES AND OVERPASSES.

&&

More Information

.AN UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM WILL MOVE TOWARD THE FOUR STATE REGION TODAY AND THEN ACROSS AND EAST OF THE AREA TONIGHT AND FRIDAY... HELPING PRODUCE WIDESPREAD SNOW AND SLEET.