My Computers

Well I thought I ought to be the proper spod and write about my computers like any other normal spod. This doesn't mean, of course that I admit to being a spod but I don't really know if I can deny it given I've been writing this all morning rather than doing other things. Anyway, I have three computers now, called hiccup, tigger and fossil. I also have a habit of hijacking other people's computers if I'm in their room since I like running lots of things I can get to remotely (like email and IRC).

Tigger

Tigger was the first computer I could call mine and was brought for me for when I went to university. It's been used a *lot* since it was brought but as yet I haven't upgraded it or anything (in fact all I've brought for it is a new keyboard (red wine got the last one) and CPU fan). Anyway, it's still a (I think) K233 with 64Meg of RAM and a 4.3Gig hard disk. This of course is split into windows95 and Redhat linux. It tends to be living in linux nowadays and I cope most of the time doing things. Given I hadn't even heard of linux before I went to uni, and had only been using Windows for a couple of years, I have had a lot to learn but there are lots of people to shout at if I get stuck and I'm getting used to it now. It isn't really the most up-to-date computer though and it has some very wierd quirks ("goes with it's owner" I hear you say).

Anyway, when it's in college it is connected to the LAN. It used to be connected directly but after getting hiccup and sorting it out it connects through that. The only problem with this is that others can't get to it and hiccup needs a new kernel before it can run cipe. At the moment it is connected to the flat's network (yes, I guess I ought to say it seems to be a spoddy flat (Ian's fault!)) and is doing odd things by loosing network cards when in linux. This of course makes a change from Windows which refused to accept that I have a second network card in the first place.

Well, what else can I say? The Windows install is a fairly standard one and (as usual) has run out of room (not that it was given much in the first place since it isn't used that much). The Redhat install is, at the moment, a fairly standard 6.1 install and I really ought to get round to fixing some of the problems with it.

I think that's enough stuff about tigger (well, 'cept it has tiggers on the monitor and it's linux colours are orange writing on a back screen as default) so go and find out all about hiccup.

Hiccup

Hiccup is a computer I got given for my 20th birthday from my brother. "Generous brother" I hear you say. Well it's a 486 and at the time had no hard disk and was basically just the very basic machine left over from all my brother's upgrading to a better computer. It has all of 8 (I think, possibly only 4) Megs of RAM and my brother was trying to run Windows95 on it! Well once I brought it a hard drive (only 200ish Meg but enough and the only money I've spent on it) and persuaded my brother to let me "borrow" one of his BNC and AUI network cards, I got Ian to help me install Debian on it. This included great fun of trying to get it to install on tigger and move it across since it wasn't networked (this was done over Easter) and the BIOS can't cope with the idea of a CD Drive!. Anyway, now it runs debian but is in dire need of updating since it is a very old kernel and doesn't run cipe. I'll do that one of these weekends though thanks to NTL dialup in the flat.

I don't know what else there is to say about hiccup really other than the name is one suggested by Glis for the kitchen computer for ARCO next year (it's ended up being called cooker and is one of Ian's computers) and I thought it was a sweet name. Never, when I was naming it, did I think it would want to live up to it's name and stop working lots. I've sorted this out now and it had 100 days uptime til someone shutdown the wrong computer. It's also fairly good and quiet compared to lots of the computers I've been introduced to recently.

Fossil

Fossil is my (and Ian's) newest and also probably oldest computer (as is apparent from its name). I "rescued" it from comlab when people said they were throwing it out and did anyone want it. One of my main reasons for doing so was so that there would be two screens in my room so Ian and I can spod together. More interesting things for the spods would be things like specs (erm, I have to remember them now). It's a SparcStationIPX with 64MB ram and 1Gb Hard Disk as well as a colour monitor. It's a bit noisy though so probably won't stay on. I'm not going to complain though since it's got a good monitor and lots of disk space (something I'm starting to get good at filling) and was free. It came preinstalled with RedHat but soon gained Debian due to Ian prefering that and it not having anything useful and networky. Ian decided to get some of the first things on there using a perl script he'd written since he thought it would be the only way (scary!). I ought to sort it out properly more at some point but I never seem to have time. Can't think what else to say about it at the moment so I'll stop.

Other useful links to computery things

I thought I'd put this here more for my benefit than for others since it's one thing I'm not very good at remembering. It'll also something that will grow as I find more useful places.

Linuxy things

Web Designing things

I've found a lot of these things out from working at Domino so I thought I'd put the links here so I can find them again. They don't really go with the linux bits since they're fairly non-lynx orientated but this website has to be useful for me as well as a load of gibberish (or possibly that ought to say informative to other people). Anyway, it's certainly given me the confidence to go off and write this by hand.

Quick note for my own benifit. SQLnotes.txt and sql_small.txt