C.

Compiling Samba…

I’m working on my DNS 323 to update everything so Debian will take over all control. This includes upgrading Samba. Now installing Samba using the apt-get call to the Debian package library proved unsuccessful, not that it didn’t install it just didn’t run afterwards. The package in the Debian repository is a bit behind in revisions so I figured I’d grab the source from the Samba SVN and compile it. Well after like an hour of compiling it errors out (bah!) with an error basically indicating it can’t find the main() function in one of the script files. Guess it’ll be a work in progress for now.

T.

The mighty DNS 323

The D-Link DNS-323 network attached storage, what a fantastic device. With it’s ultra 500 Mhz ARM processor, 64 MB of memory, Gigabit Ethernet controller, and two SATA 2 3.5″ drive bays all in a little box about the size of a 360 power supply (that ugly brick) *kawaii!!*.

Any who. With a little tweaking, this little box can do so much more than just act as a: samba, ftp, iTunes, uPnP Audio/Video Server, and DHCP server. With a little effort you can go ahead and install yourself a copy of Debian on it and do… well… anything on it. But for those who aren’t as ambitious to void their warranty, you can still use a huge collection of ‘fun_plug’ programs instead.

I’m currently working with the chroot method of installing Debian, if I can avoid flashing a custom firmware and potentially having to install a serial port, both of which void your warranty, I’ll be thrilled.

I have Debian Lenny, Apache 2, and PHP5 currently installed. I’m just working on disabling a few things to get all of the above to work smoothly together.

6.

60Hz

Oh yes, 60Hz, my favorite vertical refresh rate, but why I wonder?

Well for starters it’s the best and easiest way to get a headache. I have a 52 inch Sharp LCD TV (LC52D64U) and it’s max refresh rate at 1920×1080 is 60Hz, which makes it fantastic to watch while playing anything high definition. Since I use it as a monitor, and the only way it looks decent is at 1080p, I’m currently stuck at 60Hz.

So I suppose it’s time to buy another TV… or an actual monitor for the mean time.

QQ

T.

The Indestructible M200

I’ve already written a few articles about my tablet laptop, the Toshiba M200, and I’ve been incredible impressed by it’s durability, adaptability, and overall functionality. So what have I forced it to do now? What other feat has the M200 surpassed? Two words: Windows 7. I decided to install Windows 7 RC 1 on my tablet for a few reasons, including: It’s free, … it’s free, and… I have a SSD. So far I’m quite impressed at the tablet’s ability to run Windows 7; the actions are very smooth, it’s responsive, fast in booting up and loading applications. The only thing I’ve noticed so far is that Aero doesn’t work at all, even if I try forcing it to start Aero I end up having to reboot as the screen just gets stuck in an endless flicker. But I can live with no Aero, considering it’s overall functionality is awesome.

P.

PC Woes

So conveniently on the day after I lose my phone my computer’s Hard Drive dies, there goes 130GB of personal data. Although I did make a recent backup since I had to send in my motherboard for repair which only came back to me about a week prior. At the moment I’m running my desktop computer with an old old old… old 80GB Maxtor drive which I figured I’d use to try Windows 7 RC while I wait for my hard drive to come back.

So what are my first impressions of Windows 7?

Well… it’s very… blue. I changed as much of the colors that as I could the second the install finished. But so far it seems decent, although my old HDD isn’t attributing anything good to the overall performance. What are my performance ratings?

Processor: 7.3

Memory: 7.5

Aero GFX: 6.1

Gaming GFX: 6.1

HDD: 4.3  (awww……)

Anyway I’ll see how much of it all improves when I get my other HDD back.