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  1. Mercutio

    question No more computers

    I assume you guys are using the Mandatory Access Protection feature that's baked in to Windows Server 2008 to do that stuff, in which case end users can get access to a provisional network with internet access to have updates and virus definitions loaded even if your VM is judged unfit for full...
  2. Mercutio

    $1200 Silverstone case

    Not enough drive bays. Also, missing the DickPort(TM) for all the sloppy BJs that I assume a $1200 computer case will offer.
  3. Mercutio

    Home NAS

    Apparently it's a Linux-based fork of FreeNAS. The administrative interface looks very similar to me, but it doesn't appear to do ZFS, which is the biggest single reason why I settled on FreeNAS in the first place. My experience with FreeNAS/ZFS is that out of the box Samba performance is...
  4. Mercutio

    question No more computers

    That sounds like a support/administration nightmare. Microsoft and Cisco both have tools for ensuring that systems have current security software and patch levels prior to negotiating a full network connection, but I can think of way too many problems with that policy to be comfortable.
  5. Mercutio

    question Which Tablets

    Considering that we're looking at devices that are sold for under US$80 retail and have several middlemen between them and their manufacturer, it in no way surprises me that $.15 for decent media player or email app is considered an extravagance. Also, I think we all know that Acer doing...
  6. Mercutio

    This is the thread for the discussion of interesting apps.

    Potentially handy thing I just ran in to: http://www.arctablet.com/blog/archos-tablet/arctools-google-apps-and-market-installer-for-archos-gen8-youtube-fixed/ArcTools, which installs Google's standard apps on many devices that for some reason do not have them. It's made for Archos devices but...
  7. Mercutio

    question Which Tablets

    This article was linked on Slashdot yesterday, but I only just got around to reading it. In essence, the author is describing the realities of cheap electronics manufacture, such that any random plant in China can gear up, build the logistics chain for supply and do a production run of complex...
  8. Mercutio

    Even better audio from a laptop v. Audio-gd NFB-15.1 + Emotiva Pro Airmotiv 4

    Mostly it's 40-year-old, 250lb. grandmothers in NASCAR-related apparel who light their next cigarette with the butt of the current one. Around here, a 40 year old with a six year old grandchild is not unusual.
  9. Mercutio

    Even better audio from a laptop v. Audio-gd NFB-15.1 + Emotiva Pro Airmotiv 4

    I'm frequently reminded that, not only do I have an office, I have the largest office. Which would probably be substantially more appealing were it not for the bare steel shelving units that hold my parts collection and all the loud server crap that's running full time, which is a big part of...
  10. Mercutio

    My Toshiba laptop's HDD Protection program keeps getting disabled

    Presumably it's the same program. There's not all that much difference between Vista, 7 and 8.
  11. Mercutio

    PC Gaming = World of Suck

    Can I play that without Steam?
  12. Mercutio

    Even better audio from a laptop v. Audio-gd NFB-15.1 + Emotiva Pro Airmotiv 4

    If it makes you feel even slightly better, I have a $1000 Onkyo receiver sitting on my desk at work and I blew about $500 on acoustic treatment stuff so I can listen to music at anything above a whisper without everyone in my office complaining they can hear it.
  13. Mercutio

    My 2nd laptop, a Lenovo Thinkpad or a Toshiba Tecra?

    How to get three hard drives in a Thinkpad: 1. Obtain an mSATA drive like an Intel 310 2. Put a drive in the regular drive bay 3. Replace the optical drive with a regular SATA drive in an ultrabay. Ta da!
  14. Mercutio

    iPhone syndrome

    Since when can we embed youtubes?
  15. Mercutio

    Something Random

    There's an online version to try as well!
  16. Mercutio

    Something Random

    This is not a computer game. This is a game played with actual people. Whom you know. Because some of you know people. It is called Cards Against Humanity. You can buy it from their web site or just abuse the printer you already have at work.
  17. Mercutio

    Windows 8

    They give you a retail key for it. I think that's because there are fewer SKUs for Server 2012 but as far as I know the only real differences are extra SMP support and licensing for Hyper-V stuff. I'm more interested in seeing what IIS and AD management are like.
  18. Mercutio

    Windows 8

    I'm going to put together a Server 2012 system tomorrow-ish for my own amusement, since it's finally up on Technet.
  19. Mercutio

    Something Random

    That's what I always say to strippers when they're down about their job, which is often. Especially on days when they don't make any money or just after some douchebag has asked them to do something incredibly inappropriate. They do all have good stories though.
  20. Mercutio

    Merc's Useful Tools of the day

    That's kind of a killer toolset for tablets, actually. You can get some pretty serious video content up and running on your 64GB device at whatever quality level is appropriate and it's all legal to grab it. I haven't found anything that does Vimeo playlists, but Vimeo is actively hostile to...
  21. Mercutio

    Merc's Useful Tools of the day

    Last night I decided I wanted to have all the episodes of "My Drunk Kitchen" on one of my tablets and available offline. So I went and looked, and sure enough, someone makes a tool for that. It's called Bytube, the Bulk Youtube Downloader. Bytube is a Firefox add-on that works with either...
  22. Mercutio

    Certifications

    I love digging up nine year old threads in which to post! An interesting thing that I just noticed is that Microsoft is going back to the MCSE/MCSA branding for Windows 8 and Server 2012. Which is really excellent, because who the hell can keep track of the current alphabet soup of its...
  23. Mercutio

    Something Random

    Shit. That's horrible, Coug. I hope things work out for you. One of the reasons I stay in the crappy job I have is that in spite of everything else, it has been stable. When I was a full time contractor I would occasionally go weeks or even months without real work. I'd get on a contract and...
  24. Mercutio

    Android Software Development

    There's also an issue with the staggering array of hardware configurations on Android, particularly for differing screen resolutions. Apparently developers are regularly surprised by tiny differences that make their software unusable on some device or other.
  25. Mercutio

    Windows 7 SP 1 is out

    I build mine through the WAIK. It's only a total pain in the ass the first time you do it. Once you have an image, you can do all kinds of things to it. I can even run an image in VirtualPC and (un)install or update an app that isn't supported for direct upgrades.
  26. Mercutio

    SSDs - State of the Product?

    That's a good deal right now, yes. I suspect that 'round about Xmastime, we'll be seeing 512GB drives below $300 though.
  27. Mercutio

    Something Random

    I finally caught up, having listened to every episode from #1 up to the most current one, as of a few weeks ago. I was listening to them on my walks. Now I'm using a podcast downloader to grab stuff like the Savage Lovecast and APM's Marketplace and I listen to that stuff instead.
  28. Mercutio

    Something Random

    This American Life had an awesome segment on 419 Scam baiting. Well worth the listen if you have 20 minutes.
  29. Mercutio

    My Toshiba laptop's HDD Protection program keeps getting disabled

    I think it reads from a gyroscope that's built in to the host device, not the disk drive itself.
  30. Mercutio

    My 2nd laptop, a Lenovo Thinkpad or a Toshiba Tecra?

    The T420 I have technically does not have an Ultrabay. It has a slot that's exactly the same size and shape, but lacks the release lever. I was able to install a different drive bay in mine (one that I had owned for years), but I had to take a couple screws out of the bottom of the notebook to...
  31. Mercutio

    Android Software Development

    Technically, it's not supposed to be that hard, but at the same time there really isn't anything I want to do with an Android device right now that I can't do. In the overwhelming majority of cases, I can do it for free. One of the biggest annoyances I have isn't the inability to develop...
  32. Mercutio

    My 2nd laptop, a Lenovo Thinkpad or a Toshiba Tecra?

    I believe there's something about magnesium in the chassis covers, but IIRC the structural components inside are titanium.
  33. Mercutio

    My Toshiba laptop's HDD Protection program keeps getting disabled

    Perhaps it's becoming disabled because the sensor is in some kind of error state? Do you know if the program works when it is installed?
  34. Mercutio

    My 2nd laptop, a Lenovo Thinkpad or a Toshiba Tecra?

    I've watched Thinkpads bounce off concrete floors after three foot drops and not even stop running. They have magnetic-tipped power cords to prevent a snagged cord from pulling the notebook off a desk anyway. At a time when I weighed 330lbs, I put my full weight on a (closed) T20 and did not...
  35. Mercutio

    question Which Tablets

    I'm also wondering if some of the software features being touted for the updated Fire models will be back-ported to the original.
  36. Mercutio

    question Which Tablets

    You can install Go Launcher within even having to root the device. I read the instructions for doing that and actually did it in the parking lot within 90 seconds of unboxing it. The lack of a decent keyboard option is a little bit harder to deal with, but I was able to find Aldiko, AndSMB...
  37. Mercutio

    Something Random

    Rolling it off seemed like cheating. I wanted to pry it off.
  38. Mercutio

    Something Random

    When I was a little kid, I found something the size and rough shape of a shotgun shell in my dad's office. It was some kind of rare Earth magnet. I found that out because, as I was rolling it over his wooden desk, I got a wee bit too close to a steel file cabinet and the magnet made the rest of...
  39. Mercutio

    Disk Controllers with 3TB support

    I doubt very much that it matters. Whatever you're getting will almost certainly be a reference design. If you want something that's been customized and seriously validated, you're almost certainly looking at a rebadged LSI controller at this point. Both the Dell and IBM controllers mentioned...
  40. Mercutio

    question Which Tablets

    It is just a regular old Kindle Fire, not one of the new ones. Sniff. I just got it and it's in a glossy retail box. I didn't know they could be purchased that way. BUT, Lunar, from a specs standpoint, the Fire 2 looks really interesting. They're 7" or 8.9". The larger one has a 1920x1200 16x10...
  41. Mercutio

    Disk Controllers with 3TB support

    The Marvell 9120 controller on my Asus P67whateverthehell here will at least see a 4TB drive that's plugged in to it.
  42. Mercutio

    Something Random

    This thing.
  43. Mercutio

    Something Random

    I thought it was sufficiently random.
  44. Mercutio

    Something Random

    I found a tool that lets me download tumblr sites in their entirety about a week ago. Since then I've downloaded about five and a half million pictures.
  45. Mercutio

    PC Gaming = World of Suck

    Diaspora is a Battlestar Galactica game based on the FreeSpace 2 engine. It has a pretty good Bear McCreary-esque soundtrack and honestly it looks to have a lot of potential. It's being distributed via torrent and it is free.
  46. Mercutio

    vLAN help

    You could be leaving tags on existing frames so that they can pass to another switch in that state.
  47. Mercutio

    Disk Controllers with 3TB support

    That is not outrageous, except for the part where someone can buy four M1015s for what an H700 costs. Since I almost always use SoftRAID systems and since my applications are not terribly write-intensive and since I have good UPSes, I'm more than willing to make that tradeoff.
  48. Mercutio

    vLAN help

    Well tagging and untagging is just about maintaining VLAN membership where it needs to be maintained and stripped off where it has to be stripped off (e.g. when it's headed to your ISP). So you have a default VLAN that your switch assumes you're using for everything. You've created a couple...
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