Publications

Several months ago I wrote an article for a Helium Marketplace publisher.  My submission was not selected, but I find that it is one of my more popular articles on Helium (definitely in the top 3), so I thought I’d share it here.  Please read How to find out what’s running on your PC (and why this is important).  Let me know how you like it.

Imagine planting a pine tree, a small seedling, using a spade shovel. Not too difficult, right? Now imagine doing that 1000 times. Repeat every spring for 14 years. That’s exactly what Bob Zirnhelt did on 11 acres where he and his wife live in Davison, Michigan.

Beginning in 1991, Bob began buying young trees from the Genesee County Conservation District. Every spring he would buy 1000 seedlings and plant them around his home. “It’s one of the best ways to enhance the beauty and improve the value of your home,” he says. Bob is a code enforcer for the city of Burton, and knows a thing or two about home values.

Read Full “Zirnhelt’s Trail” Story on NewsFlavor.

I recently started writing articles for a publisher who puts out several newspapers local to our surrounding communities. The Davison Messenger, The Tri-County News, The Burton Banner, etc. Some of them were existing publications which he purchased, some are new startups. All are collectively published under the name of his company, ‘Flint Area Media’ (FAM).
Production problems and slow sales have caused some delays in getting the papers out regularly, but I have hopes that these glitches are temporary. The organization is currently moving into a newer, larger building, and I take that as a good sign.

Of course, I expect to be paid for the articles I write, but I’m also doing it for the excitement of seeing my byline in print. Plus, although FAM eventually expects to make all their articles and stories available on-line, they are not ready yet for that. In the mean-time, Mike (the publisher) has given me permission to post them on the 3 sites I write for (Associated Content, Helium, and Triond). I’ll place links in future postings.

A while back I wrote a story entitled ‘The Great Rodeo Trainers’, which was sold to a Helium Marketplace publisher with exclusive (I thought) rights. Now I see the story has reappeared on Helium’s website, so I’m thinking it was only sold with first publication rights rather than exclusive. I could never find it on-line, so I’m glad it’s back on Helium because it’s one of my favorite stories. Read The Great Rodeo Trainers and let me know what you think.

This article was originally published by Triond on their web site ComputerSight. I thought it was time to reprint it here, so it appears below in its entirety.

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Configuration Management (’CM’ hereafter) means a lot of different things to different people. Weighty tomes have been written describing the goals, policies, procedures, benefits, pitfalls, and a variety of definitions of CM. One recent CM plan I worked on is a 20-something page document attempting to detail this information and how it relates to the client’s projects.Most of the information available can be boiled down into 4 key concepts, or what can be called the 4 cornerstones of great CM. These concepts represent ideals. The challenge is in the implementation, so that the policies, procedures, and utilities developed support these ideals, or at least the intent behind them.

1. Version Control : Everything is maintained in a Version Control tool like Serena’s. Some agreed set of items (Configuration Items, or CI’s for short) stored within the tool represent baselines. In other words, they are the set of revisions currently in production. They are not necessarily the most recent revisions.Builds intended for deployment to any post-development environment (QA, Test, Prod, whatever) are always pulled from Version Control, and never copied directly from a development environment.
2. Separation of Duties and Least Privilege : Actually, these are two principles lumped together because Least Privilege is not possible without Separation of Duties, and Separation of Duties is pointless without Least Privilege. The former simply means that no single person has independent responsibility over more than one area of a system.For example, developers change code, perform unit test, etc., but do not deploy or promote such code to any non-development environment. CM people promote code, but do not develop applications, nor do they approve code changes made by developers (although they may participate in code reviews).
   DBAs have database privileges, but don’t develop application code nor act as system admins. And so on. The Least Privilege principle simply states that no person or running process has more access or system privilege than they need to perform their normal duties or functions at any point in time.Access or privilege for either people or processes can temporarily be increased during the performance of some activity as necessary, then immediately restricted again. Policies implementing these controls make allowances in both these principles for emergency situations.
3. Auditing : CM personnel periodically conduct audits of applications, systems, and procedures. Any updated application software or configurable item should be traceable to an approved change request, as well as through the entire set of existing quality control, tech review, and change control procedures.This includes not only application executables but database configurations as well. All items are compared with their baseline counterparts in the Version Control repository (ie; the revisions marked as ‘Production’). Discrepancies are reported as non-compliance issues and investigated, and will generally lead to procedural changes designed to eliminate future non-compliance.
4. Automate, Automate, Automate : This one is an over-riding theme for how we accomplish all this with limited resources. Checking items out of and into Version Control should be quick and painless, and integrated into development IDEs (Interactive Development Environments) if possible. Code promotions are scripted. Database changes are scripted. Auditing utilities are scripted.These scripts themselves are subject to review and kept in version control. Tying it all together gives us reliable, secure systems built with verifiable, repeatable and efficient processes.

Someone posted a challenge to the writers on Associated Content to come up with humor articles to be posted on the April 1st, April Fool’s Day. Being somewhat of a fool myself, I accepted the challenge, along with a dozen or so of my fellow AC writers. The results are compiled in a Squidoo lens - I’ve included the link below. My entry is printed here for your convenience. If you like it, consider voting for it on Squidoo by following the link.

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Foolin’ With Your Kids
Not only is it our “birth”-right to play jokes on our children, it is also our sacred duty, and one that my wife and I take very seriously. After all, how else will they learn patience? How will they learn humility? How will they learn to fool and embarrass our grandchildren when the time comes?
Embarrassment
There are numerous ways to embarrass your kids. Some kids are embarrassed by the mere presence of their parents when they’re hanging out with their friends. This should be exploited whenever possible. Accentuate whatever traits you possess that your kids find embarrassing. If possible, combine these traits for maximum impact. For example, if your singing embarrasses them and they can’t stand old country music, pull up to the school to pick them up with your windows open, belting out “Lovesick Blues” at the top of your lungs. Volunteer to chaperon the high school dance, and show up wearing the same pastel-colored velvetine tuxedo you wore to your 1979 prom. While there, offer to teach your daughter, her date, and all her friends how to do the “Electric Slide.”
Embarrassing your teenage kids is almost too easy, and can be done pretty much anywhere at any time. Whip out the baby pix showing your son in the buff. Say things like “Aw, my little man is growing up. Looks like he’s finally gotten over the ‘girls have cooties’ phase.” These are especially good when your son is spending time with a new girlfriend.
Tall Tales
Getting your kids to fall for some things is a little more challenging. When my son Stan, who’s now 13, was about 5 years old, he was asking me about the various knobs and buttons on the dash of my car. I went through the radio, windshield washers, fog lights, etc. Then, adopting the soberest countenance I could muster, I pointed to the emergency flashers. “You should never, ever, push this button.”
“Why not?” he gravely asked.
“That is the ejector seat.”
“What’s a ‘jector seat?”
So I explained what an ejector seat was, and how after it was introduced to the public in the James Bond movies, people started asking for them in their own cars. Responding to this demand, the car manufacturers began making them options that anyone could get when they bought a new car.
He was nervous, but fascinated. “So what would happen if I pushed the button?”
“A secret panel in the roof would open up, and a super powerful spring would shoot you right out. The car would keep going, so you’d land in the road and probably get run over by that truck behind us.”
“Wow. Does Katie know about this?” he asked. Katie is his older sister, and I wasn’t sure whether he was worried that she might push the button on him, or excited about the possibility of pushing the button on her.
About a year later, I was again driving with my son in the car, and I had forgotten all about the ejector seat conversation. Not him! We needed milk, so I stopped at the corner store. I told him I would be right out, and to keep the doors locked and not let anyone in the car. He says, “Don’t worry, Dad! If anyone tries to get in, I’ll just slide over into your seat and push the ejector seat button! Boy, won’t they be surprised!”
“Um… yes. But keep the doors locked just in case.”
A few months later we were once again in the car together, and I needed to use the rear defroster. I accidentally hit the emergency flashers button first. They flashed a couple of times before I turned them off and turned on the defroster. My son jerked is head to look at me, eyes wide as tea saucers. I knew what he was thinking. I said, “Boy, it’s a good thing that ejector seat has a 5 second timer! I remembered to shut it off before it flashed 5 times, thank God. You were almost a goner!”
“Da-ad! Why did you do that? You almost splatted me on the road!”
“Sorry pal, I just hit the wrong button. It won’t happen again.”
My wife said that some day when he becomes the laughing stock of his driver’s education class, he’s going to come home and kick my butt. Maybe so, but I won’t be alone. Not long after this last exchange he was basically tattling to his Grandma about me almost splatting him on the road. We had to surreptitiously explain what was going on. Now she’s completely in on it with us. My daughter on the other hand tried to tell him that we were all making it up. When she wouldn’t sit in the passenger seat so he could “prove” that we weren’t (mainly because she couldn’t be bothered to move), he became more convinced than ever that she was lying to him. [click to continue...]

Some time back I wrote an article about Charity Music, a great non-profit organization that provides musical instruments (and sometimes instruction) to students, soldiers, and senior citizens who desire to play but can’t afford to buy or rent them. The article was originally published on Associated Content, but as reported at the time, I planned to also post it on Helium. The great thing about the article appearing on Helium is the fact that I could donate all advertising revenue (my share at least) to the charity itself! So if you missed the article the first time around, read all about Charity Music on Helium, and remember - just by reading it you’ll be helping out a fantastic cause.

Pub Crawl!

I thought this would be a good opportunity to let you know about a recent development at Charity Music. They are organizing what they hope will be the biggest Pub Crawl in history, and they hope to get listed in the Guinness World Book of Records in the process. The goal is to have up to 100 clubs and bars from every state participating. If you own a bar and would like to get in on this, it might be a good way to get some great publicity, and in any case you would be helping out the cause. More information is available at the Pub Crawl Registration site.

A Helium Marketplace publisher recently asked for an article entitled ‘Quick Tips for Inner Peace’, with a 700 word maximum. I condense religion, psychology, and meditation and attempt to answer the call. Let me know how you think I did.

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Inner peace is a state of mind in which one is free from conflict in mind and spirit. This is not to say that there is no conflict in one’s life, simply that there is harmony between one’s mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects. Without such harmony, the flow of creativity slows or stops, physical and emotional ailments do not heal as quickly and may worsen, and progress toward ones goals in life is impeded. To remove these blockages one must restore harmony and return to a state of inner peace. Understanding is the first key to unlocking the door.

Let Go of the Past
Often attaining inner peace is not so much acquiring something as it is letting things go. The past is immutable, so holding on to regrets is counter-productive. Understand that mistakes are part of our humanity, and that sometimes it is the lessons learned the hard way that enable us to mature and progress. Realizing that just as much of our wisdom comes from error as from trial, one begins to accept that our mistakes play an indispensable role in our development.

Guilt is a large source of internal conflict, and must be expunged. The quickest way to reduce guilt is to apologize to those whom you’ve wronged. It is not essential that they actually forgive you, but it is essential that your apology is sincere. You have to actually mean it when you express your remorse. In this way, guilt fades to regret, which can then be dealt with accordingly. Examine the bad decisions and lapses in judgment, figure out where you went wrong and how you could have handled the situations differently, then move on.

Read the Rest of the Article >>

The Field Car was a beater. It was a 1971 Maverick, which I bought in 1980 while in college. It wasn’t really a beater then, but it didn’t take me long to turn it into one. With dedication and determination, any car can be turned into a beater in a matter of months.

The transformation on the Maverick began when my room mate Tim came home with me for the weekend, and I had to repair the fences around the horse pasture. My parents left for the day, and we didn’t want to carry fence wire, tools, and extra posts around a 200 acre pasture, so we put it all in my car and headed out. All was well for the most part, until we got bored and decided to see how well the Maverick would take the hills. The educational opportunities in this type of exercise cannot be overstated. Not only did we get most of the fences fixed that weekend, but we learned how to replace shock absorbers, too! We could have learned to do some body and paint work as well, but we decided that the little scratches and dings just added character to the car. Tim dubbed it the “Field Car,” a name that has stuck with the Maverick ever since.

Beatership wasn’t bestowed upon the Field Car all at once. Sometimes days or even weeks would go by without it acquiring a single new distinguishing feature. Then just when it seemed like progress had stalled, an opportunity for further customization would present itself, although I seldom recognized it as such until after the fact. The distinctive markings on the roof of the car for example came about when Tim and I were on our way to meet some friends and didn’t want to wait for a train. When we saw the lights start flashing at a crossing up ahead, we were sure we could safely beat the on-coming train. Indeed, we beat the train with a hundred yards to spare. It was the descending barrier that proved to be the real challenge. We actually did beat it… mostly.

Read the Rest of the Story >>>

I first wrote this article as a submission to Helium’s Marketplace. It was not chosen, so my loss is your gain, as I’m posting it here in it’s entirety. Note that I received no compensation for this article, but since I was hoping WinRAR would choose to publish it, I can’t say it is completely unbiased. That being said, every point in the article is absolutely true, and the benchmarks referenced are available for anyone to view.

*** Original Article Below ***

Two of the most popular file compression programs on the market today are WinZIP and WinRAR. The question that inevitably arises is, which is a better buy? The answer can be found by comparing the performance, price, and features of each.

Compression - the whole purpose behind using compression software is to shrink the size of files for more efficient storage and faster transmission over a network. Thus, how well a utility compresses files should be of primary concern to those needing to choose one. Many independent sites on the Internet consistently show that WinRAR compresses files more than WinZIP. There are a few exceptions with specific file types, particularly those that are already compressed in their native format, like mp3 files. These do not compress very much in any case by either WinRAR or WinZIP. WinRAR comes out the clear winner among most other, highly compressible file types, and the aggregate or overall measures generally show WinRAR on top. Supporting data can be found on wikipedia (Comparison_of_file_archivers), techarp.com (Compression Comparison Guide Rev. 2.0), and maximumcompression.com. [click to continue...]

As a Configuration Manager, I’m always looking for ways to improve the automation of the builds and deployments of my company’s applications. We use scripts to compile the apps, replace certain token strings with environment-specific values, and copy the new executable code out to the production servers. Ideally, we should not have to use seperate scripts when deploying to different run-time environments (development, integration test, production, etc.). We want instead to pass the target environment into these scripts, and use logic to determine environment-specific values. So I set out to create a Lookup Table to set the values according to the target environment.

I wanted to keep it simple so maintenance would be easy. I wanted it to run in a basic command shell (I use ‘bash’, but most other shells would work as well). UNIX and linux utilities like ’sed’ and ‘awk,’ and xml parsers would have done the job, but they added complexity so I stayed away from them (although I do use ‘grep’). The listing below is a simplified version of what I came up with. It takes one parameter representing the target environment, and sets 3 variables: the target server, the target database, and a process user ID. It then prints the new values to the screen for verification (an optional step). The script we actually use at work also sets target directories, service names, and website urls, but this is enough to give you the idea:

Listing 1

#!/bin/bash

# Sets environment variables based on lookup string

# Environments: DEV = Development, QA = Quality Assurance,

# UAT = User Acceptance Test, PROD = Production

ENVIRONMENT=$1

# Set server addresses, database names, and user IDs.

line=`grep ^$ENVIRONMENT <<EOF

Env Server Database User ID

— ———————— ——— ———-

DEV dev.myapp.mybusiness.com myappdev devappuser

QA qa.myapp.mybusiness.com myappqa qaappuser

UAT uat.myapp.mybusiness.com myappuat uatappuser

PROD prod.myapp.mybusiness.com myappprod prodappuser

EOF`

set — $line

export AppServer=$2

export DataBase=$3

export UserID=$4

#

# Show environment settings:

echo “AppServer = $AppServer”

echo “DataBase = $DataBase”

echo “UserID = $UserID”

Sample run:

$ ./Lookup.sh DEV

AppServer = dev.myapp.mybusiness.com

DataBase = myappdev

UserID = devappuser

$

Using the Technique

Knowing how this script works is not essential to using the technique, as long as you realize that you can expand it by adding more values to the ends of the input lines, and creating enough values with the ‘export’ statements to accomodate the new values.

>>Read explanation and rest of article >>

Helium has a great feature for writers wanting to compete for some extra money. It’s called their Marketplace. Outside publishers ask for specific articles, and offer specific amounts of money for each one. Anyone can write and submit their best article for each requested title. Once the deadline has passed, the publisher will review all the submissions and choose one or more of the best ones for publication on their own website, or even in print. Each selected article will earn the author the amount specified in the original Marketplace request. Most of the publishers utilizing Helium’s Marketplace to solicit articles operate under a pseudonym for various reasons.

As a recent example, a publisher recently requested 4 titles, all related to PC optimization. Each article will pay the selected author $75.00. You can see my submissions, as well as those of the other writers competing for these titles, by following these links:

• How to accelerate the speed of your PC
• How to prevent your PC from being infected with spyware
• How to find out what’s running on your PC (and why this is important)
• Computer performance: Why a paid-for registry cleaner is better than a free one

Recommended: to keep your PC running like it did when it was new, try Diskeeper 10.

On Helium, all articles of a given title are ranked by the other members. This ranking is a bit flawed, because complete novice writers with little command of vocabulary, spelling, and grammar carry as much weight in rating as do those with more season, skill, and talent. Nevertheless, your articles will always appear with the other articles of the same title, ordered by rank. Fortunately, the Marketplace publishers do not select based on rank, but rather based on the articles that came closest to meeting their requirements and specifications.

The deadline for these four titles is Friday, the 25th. It sometimes takes several weeks before the selected articles are announced, but when they are, I’ll report my success (or lack thereof).

I have a new story published on Triond (AuthSpot), with a copy also on Helium. It’s entitled “Poor Old Charlie’s Wake,” and gives a good example of the extents to which my mom, the horse trader, would go to make a living. Here’s an excerpt:

My mother was a horse trader. Not one of those that gives horse traders the reputation for fleecing unsuspecting horse buyers (and less experienced horse traders) by representing three-legged man-hating horses as kid-safe and sound. Still, sainthood will forever elude her.

My family engaged in pretty much any horse-related activity that can turn a profit. We rented, boarded, bought, and sold horses. We supplied ponys for pony rides at parties and events, and horses for the judges at field dog trials. And for a fee, we picked up dead and injured livestock from the homes of distraught owners. Most of these were anxious to get the ordeal of a dead or terminal horse over with as quickly as possible. They were content to have us pick up their animal and leave with as little spectacle as possible. Some were not quite so accomodating.

The phone rang one morning. In a tearful voice, a woman spoke to my mother. “My name is Rebecca Rhoades, and my horse Charlie just d-died,” she sobbed. “I have no idea what to do with him now. Do you pick up d-dead horses?”

No funeral mortician who ever consoled a grieving patron could exude more sympathy and compassion than could my mother, the horse trader. “Yes, we do pick up dead horses. Judging by the pain evident in your voice, you obviously loved Charlie very much. How long did you have him?”

“I’ve had him since I was 12 years old. I grew up with him. He was 10 years old when my Dad bought him for me, but he’s 29, now. Well… I mean he was 29.”

When horse owners called and said their old horse had died, or that they had one that was terminally ill and would need to be put down (euthenized, if you prefer), they occasionally asked what we did with the body. My mother would describe our farm, and explain that we had a special section of the farm where we buried the horses. Few people ever elected to have any kind of marker or memorial. Indeed, nobody ever visited the graves of these horses. Fortunately.

Read the rest of the story >>
I was not quite as happy about this story as I’ve been with the others. It is a bit heavier, more introspective and less humorous than most of my stories. That in itself was somewhat enlightening for me. Putting this story down made me consider how my mom must have felt about some of the things she did. Please let me know what you think about it.

Use Secure Shell (SSH) to establish safe, encrypted internet connections through a firewall. With this method, you don’t have to open additional ports through your firewall in order to access external email accounts, access usenet newsgroup servers, and multimedia streams, which leaves your internal network more secure. This means you don’t have to worry about accidentally surfing to a restricted site (which raises red flags in most corporate environments), and can access sites that have been mistakenly blocked by over-zealous monitoring software. Traffic cannot be analyzed for content by sniffers or packet inspection software because of the encryption.

Access to a Server
You will need access to a server running Secure Shell on the other side of the firewall. If you are connecting from inside your company’s firewall, you could run OpenSSH (an open source SSH server) from your home computer or that of a friend. Installing and configuring an SSH server is beyond the scope of this article, but good documentation exists for OpenSSH on its home site. Just make sure that you open a port through any router or personal firewall for SSH traffic. The default is port 22, but you can use any available TCP/IP port. Alternatively, there are some sites that will give you a free shell account on their server running SSH. SilenceIsDefeat.org will give you one for $1.00 if you use paypal (and signing up is then instant), or the cost of a $0.39 stamp if you register through the mail. Finally, if you pay for a commercial web host, many of them allow SSH connections to their servers.

Connection Settings
You also need to know a little about how you connect to the internet from within the firewall. Most companies allow web traffic through a proxy server so they can monitor the content employees are viewing, and can restrict access to sites with objectionable content. You can examine the internet connection settings for your browser. If you are set for “Direct Connection to the Internet” (Firefox), or no proxy or configuration script is set up (IE), then you probably have unfettered (but not necessarily unmonitored) access to the internet, and would only need to use SSH for privacy. You can skip down to SSH Client. If proxy access is set up in a straightforward configuration, then the proxy settings will be displayed right there. Make a note of the address and port of any HTTP or Socks proxies defined. Some companies use an Automatic Proxy Configuration Script, which makes retrieving the proxy settings a little more difficult. If you’ve already noted your proxy settings, you can skip down to SSH Client. Otherwise, here’s some help retrieving your proxy settings from an automatic script. Copy the following lines into a new blank text file and store it on your hard drive:

<HTML>
<HEAD>
<TITLE>Download a file instead of rendering it</TITLE>
<BODY>
<A xhref=”http://URL.OF.SCRIPT” mce_href=”http://URL.OF.SCRIPT” >Right-Click here and select Save As</A>
</BODY>
</HTML>

Edit this file and replace URL.OF.SCRIPT with the address of the automatic configuration script as defined in your connection settings. Save the file as dl.html. . In your browser, use File->Open to open this file. You should see a single link saying to “Right-Click here and Select Save.” Right click on the link select “save link as” or “save target as” (depending on your browser), and save the file locally. You now have a copy of the Automatic Configuration Script which you can peruse in any editor, looking for proxy information. Often a company will use a number of different proxies for different purposes - you’re mainly looking for Socks and HTTP proxies. Note the address and port of any you find. If you think you’ve found an HTTP proxy, you can test it by changing your connection settings and telling your browser to use that server and port explicitly instead of using the Automatic Configuration Script, and connecting to the internet. Just remember to restore the settings afterward.

SSH Client
The last piece you need is a Secure Shell client. This is just a program that opens and manages an encrypted connection to a server. Normally, you would use this combination to log on to, administer, and exchange data between a remote computer (the server) and your local computer (the client). We’re going to be using a more advanced feature of SSH known as “port forwarding”, which lets you direct other network traffic through such a connection. A good choice for Windows users is PuTTY, which can be downloaded freely from the Download Site. Macs and linux users will almost certainly have a good SSH client installed. I’ll be using PuTTY in the examples in the remainder of this tutorial, but the principles will be the same in any SSH client.

PuTTY Configuration
The PuTTY documentation does a good job covering configuration, so I’m just going to focus on the essentials for port forwarding. Basically, you enter the IP address or DNS name of the host to which you’ll be connecting, the port it uses, and a descriptive name in the ‘Saved Sessions’ field. If your browser uses a proxy server to access the internet, then you will configure PuTTY to use the same one(s). In PuTTY’s ‘Category’ tree (left portion of window), click the ‘+’ sign next to ‘Connection’ and click on ‘Proxy.’ If the browser had a Socks proxy configured, select that type in PuTTY. If not, but it had an HTTP proxy configured, then select that type. Enter the Proxy hostname and port that you previously noted. When this is done (or if you didn’t have to add proxy configuration), click back up on the ‘Session’ category and click the [Save] button. Then click the [Open] button. If everything is correct, you should get a new window with a login prompt from the remote system. You’re ready for the last step - actually forwarding a port or two.

There are two methods of forwarding ports through an SSH connection. “Dynamic” forwarding is easier to configure and more flexbile, but can only be used by applications that support a Socks proxy. This includes most modern web browsers, so we’ll start with setting up secure, encrypted web browsing. If you actually logged in, type ‘exit’ and press the key. Otherwise, just close the window. Bring up Putty again, select the ‘Saved Session’ you stored earlier and click the [Load] button. In the ‘Category’ tree, expand ‘Connection’, ‘SSH’, and select ‘Tunnels.’ In the ‘Source port’ field, enter 8081. This can actually be any number higher than 1024, I’m just using 8081 as an example. Select the ‘Dynamic’ radio button, then click the [Add] button. ‘D8081′ will appear in the ‘Forwarded ports’ field. Under Categories, select ‘Session’ (you may have to scroll up to see it), and click the [Save] button again. Click [Open] and log in to the remote server. In your browser, you’ll need to change your proxy settings. Make sure to write down the current settings, so you can restore them later. You are going to set the browser to use a Socks proxy (which dynamic forwarding creates for you). In IE under Lan connection settings you have to select the [Advanced] button to see the proxy configuration fields. In Firefox, they’re visible in the Network ‘Settings’ panel. Add the word localhost as the proxy host or proxy server address, and 8081 as the port. Click [OK] until you are out of the configuration screens. If you can now browse the web, then congratulations, you’re doing so in a secure, encrypted tunnel. Nobody can see what sites you visit unless they watch over your shoulder. Note: examination of your computer’s cache, log files, history, and other forensic evidence will still yield information on your surfing habits. A secure tunnel only protects the data in transit.

The second method of forwarding ports involves forwarding each port used by your network application from your local PC to the actual server running the network service you wish to access. You then configure the application to use your local machine as the server. For example, to connect to your external pop3 mail server, in PuTTY you would go back to the ‘Tunnels’ configuration screen. Add 1110 as the Source port, select the ‘Local’ radio button, enter your mail server’s address followed by ‘:110′ in the ‘Destination’ field, and click [Add]. You should see something like L1110 your.mail.server:110 appear in the ‘Forwarded Ports’ field. Once again, return to the ‘Sessions’ screen and click [Save]. Fail to do this after any changes, and you’ll lose them. Now, open your mail client. Wherever you would normally enter your pop3 server address and the port it uses, enter ‘localhost’ and 1110. In Outlook Express for example, you will find these settings in the ‘Servers’ tab and the ‘Advanced’ tab in the Account Properties screen. Once you’ve made these changes, you should be able to connect to the SSH server using your saved session in PuTTY, then retrieve and read your mail in your mail client software. Sending mail uses a different port (25),and often a different server name, so you’ll have to forward another port in a similar manner if you want to be able to send mail as well.

Pretty much any network service that uses a defined port or set of ports can be configured to work through an SSH tunnel in this manner. This includes services that your company may ordinarily block, like Instant Messaging services, Usenet Newsgroup access, streaming music sites, etc. Note that anyone with access to network sniffers or inspection software, be they crackers, hackers, or network admins, will still be able to see network traffic between your computer and the remote SSH server, they just won’t be able to tell what it is or where it goes beyond that point.

One of my best stories, “The Great Rodeo Trainers” was published on Helium, and sold on the Marketplace there. The publisher (who wishes to remain anonymous) purchased the story with exclusive rights, which means it can’t appear on any other web-sites for a while. Once they expire, it will return to Helium, and I’ll probably publish it here on the blog as well under the ‘Memoirs of a Horse Trader’s Son’ category.

Another story - one I had submitted to Maissonneuve 3 months ago but never heard back from, I’ll probably submit somewhere else. Its a humorous account of a group of ponies roaming loose, and the havoc they wreak on an upscale golf course. After 2 months I sent a follow up inquiry Maissonneuve, but still nothing. I don’t know if I should try another in-print publication or just break down and put it on-line, either Triond or Associated Content. The Wild Horse Race Story is doing pretty well there.

Finally, another story is nearing completion. I’m not sure of the title yet. It will probably either be “To Mourne a Horse”, or “Here Lies Good Ol’ Mopsie-Flopsie”, depending on the mood that the final draft instills.

I recently wrote an article on Helium, trying for a Marketplace sale. The topic was on the benefit of static landing pages for marketing web sites. I have my doubts about getting the sale, as my article is only rated 5th out of 7 right now, but you never know. In any case, here’s an excerpt:

While dynamic pages offer a number of desirable features for web site owners like design consistency and up-to-date information, in order to optimize the effectiveness of your internet marketing website you’ll want a static landing page. Static landing pages offer several advantages over dynamic pages where attracting and retaining visitors is concerned. This is of course essential to converting web site visits to sales.

First, assuming you advertise your product or service on other web sites, when users arrive at your site after clicking one of your ads, most of them will leave within a few seconds if they don’t immediately see the information that prompted them to click on it in the first place. They do not want to fill in any forms, navigate your site looking for the information, or wait while the page is generated dynamically. Having the relevant information presented in a concise, statically loaded page will capture their attention and keep them from wandering away. For best results, this page should be customized for the advertisement or ad campaign that brought the visitor in. Thus, if you have different ads for a variety of products or services, each should link to a different landing page, optimized to deliver information relevant to that product or service, with a clear indication on what the user should do next. Many on-line marketers are realizing higher Click Through Rates this way.

Second, when content is dynamically generated, it may not always present the information your visitors are looking for. Pages are generated based on data, and if the data is unavailable (if for example, a service is not responding or a database is down), the page may not contain any information useful to your visitor. It may give error messages, or it may not render at all. Nothing will turn off first time visitors faster than a web site that appears to be broken. They’ll leave and likely never return.

Actually, this article was published a few weeks ago, I just decided to mention it here while I’m working on my OpenSSH issues. It’s meant to be a light-hearted look at the scientific inaccuracies presented in the movie. Remember folks - it’s “Tongue-in-Cheek” - some people have really complained that I’m being too critical of a Kid’s movie.

Nine years after the final episode of Jerry Seinfeld’s successful sitcom aired on network television, Jerry returns to the screen as writer, director and producer of an animated family film, Bee Movie. Kids will no doubt like this movie, as cartoon movies featuring insects and animals have done exceptionally well over the last several years.

With the creative force of Jerry Seinfeld as a worker bee questioning the fact that his career choices seem limited, along with an appearance by Chris Tucker as a mosquito, there’s bound to be plenty of humor geared toward adults as well.

Aside from the whole anthropomorphic concept of talking insects, here is a countdown of the top five scientific inaccuracies presented in this movie.

#5. Bees Going to College

In this movie, Barry (Jerry Seinfeld) goes to college to learn to produce honey. In real life, it is primarily instinct that drives the bees to do what they do. At best, there may be some on-the-job training.

#4. Money

Not only do the bees producing honey get paid in this movie, Barry sets out to sue the human honey producing mega-corporations for stealing honey from the bees. In reality, there is no evidence that bees use any medium of exchange other than honey itself, unless you count pollen.

#3. Nuclear Family

Barry has a Mom and a Dad, who worry about the fact that their son may not want to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a honey-stirrer. In a real hive, there is only one “Mom” - the queen. The larvae and young bees are brought up by nurse bees (much like children in Hollywood). Contrast this with movies like Happy Feet from Warner Brothers, which also had singing and dancing animals, but at least presented a somewhat accurate representation of the life cycle of the penguins. Read More>>

A list of some of the old shows being revamped for new series or movies, ala “The Bionic Woman.” For example, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is appearing as a cool superspy in the new “Get Smart!” movie. Read the article here.

The Charity Music article has been published by Associated Content here.  I’ll probably follow up by putting it on Helium, but I’ve heard that Google doesn’t like seeing identical content in multiple places, so I’ll probably re-work it a bit.  I’m told that rewording about 30% of the article is enough.  In the mean time, check it out on AC!

While waiting for Associated Content to publish the Charity Music article (something they’ve now agreed to do), I wrote a quick little overview of SSH and published it on Helium, where it’s now rated #1 of 2. What is SSH? The nice thing about Helium is that your submissions are published more or less immediately.

Well, I finished the article about Charity Music, and while it is a bit promotional in nature, it is mostly informative. Alas, Constant Content turned it down, claiming that it was a promotional article. I have submitted it to Associated Content, and will probably also try Helium. Other suggestions appreciated. The following is an excerpt from the article. Let me know what you think. I’ll post the link to the first place that accepts it for publication. If I can’t get anyone to publish it in the next week or so, I’ll post the entire article here.

Wise is the Gift of Music
Confucius said “Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without.” St. Francis of Assisi said “For it is in giving that we receive.” Combining the sage advice of these wise men helps us to understand the passion and commitment of the people behind Charity Music. Charity Music is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit public service organization whose mission is to help cultivate the next crop of upcoming artists. They do this by providing musical instruments on loan, at no charge, to individuals wishing to explore their hidden musical talents. Students, senior citizens, community groups, and military personnel have benefited from the program, receiving musical instruments they would not otherwise have been able to afford.

Advantages to Students
There is a large and growing body of research evidence which shows that students participating in musical instruction enjoy a number of advantages over their non-musical counterparts, even when overcoming social and economic obstacles. For example, they tend to perform better on standardized tests, and get better grades in reading, math, language arts, and science. They tend to be less prone to alcohol abuse and are emotionally healthier in general. And consider this - according to a study conducted by noted educational researcher Peter Wood, music majors have the highest percentage of acceptance into medical school - 50% higher than biochemistry majors for instance.

From ‘Memoirs of a Horse Trader’s Son’

The Great Rodeo Trainers

Update 10/12/2007 - this story has been selected by ‘Western Lifestyle Magazine’ for publication in an upcoming issue. I’m an actual published author - in print!

Update 12/12/2007 - OK, ‘Western Lifestyle’ was a pseudonym for someone wishing to remain anonymous, and it’s going to be published on their website, not in print.  Bummer.  At least they paid for it.

Upcoming articles include a human interest story about Charity Music, one dealing with laminitis and founder in horses, and probably one discussing non-physical self-defense. Reader preferences will be considered if you leave me a comment.

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