Archive for February, 2009

Want a Media Server? Concerned of the price? How about an MVix? Affordable Media Servers – just add a hard drive.

Andy McCaskey talks with MVix about the Media Server as well as the MVix PVR.

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My brother called me today to let me know that SITEL – the place where I got my tech start – is closing the Madison office. While SITEL is not what it used to be, it still brought a lot of memories in the late 90’s for me and a lot of other techs in this area.

It wasn’t Sitel when I started there. It was called “Softmart – ETG”. They were looking for a bunch of people to work on a contract supporting an exciting new Operating System called Microsoft Windows 95. I wasn’t one of the original phone staff, but I did get in there on the next round.

This was the most memorable job I had. It was always a community atmosphere – everyone was helping everyone else out. In return, the call stats showed positive results. We hit 100% customer support for our call center. Most important, I learned a lot about computers because of this job.

We got the word that in August of 1996, Microsoft was backing out. They were winding down the initial support and consolidate offices closer to Washington. Although it was a loss, it was also quickly replaced as AT&T was ramping up their Worldnet Dial-up service. The only real issue was during this transition, Softmart was in the middle of building a new call center. We had to split up between a couple buildings as the finishing touches were being completed.

After finalization and move to the new building, we continued on with AT&T Worldnet. I worked on that contract for about 4-5 months when we were shuttled into a room one morning. We were all told that Softmart had been sold overnight to SITEL.

They said that SITEL was a call center that wanted to get into the technology support section. The running joke at the time was that since other SITEL offices took orders for the “Pocket Fisherman”, we would be doing the tech support. They said the plans were to continue on as normal – Softmart had purchased land in a developing area, so they had extra land to build a “Campus”. SITEL was going to continue this process.

The company heads also said we were the first tech office, so we would become the primary tech office. They were going to pump in a lot of training and effort for us to benefit from. It sounded like a great opportunity at the time…

Shortly after the takeover, we started to see some changes. We were all salaried employees, which was great because we could take the extra time to help people. SITEL changed us to hourly. It really took it’s toll on those who work harder just because they were thorough on their jobs.

A month later, I moved onto a new contract. Solomon software was an accounting software contract that has been with Softmart – SITEL for a few years. They went from a Dos based Solomon III to 16-bit version of Solomon IV. It was a tough contract simply because not only did I need to learn the tech side of it, I also had to learn a little bit about accounting. It also introduced me into MySQL and SQLServer, Crystal Reports and a host of other software that later became important to know. It was a tough contract, but very fulfilling.

However, SITEL wasn’t living up to their contract. Shortly after our purchase, the company acquired another tech office in VA. It seemed more and more that this office was getting the tech. Our office did get another contract – AOL was expanding, so they contracted 700 people for tech support. With the AT&T contract also in the same centre, we had rules about crossing from one area to another. The best part of the centre was AOL was technically in one building and AT&T was in another – therefore, crossover was minimal.

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As a little explanation, I specify Gnome in the title because, with other Linux desktops, there can be other file managers. They all do pretty much the same thing, but they can look different.

Fun Fact: Google runs on Linux.

If you have never used Linux, I think you will find browsing your files and home network looks a lot like what you are used to. In a Linux interface, as in Windows, there can be several ways to start a program. To keep this simple, I will show only one.

File Browsing with Nautilus:

The Gnome file manager is called “Nautilus,” I think because it goes under the surface.

To start Nautilus on Debian, go to Applications–>System Tools–>File Manager.

The File Manager will open to your home folder (a folder and a directory are the same thing. The word “folder” came into use because it described the function of a directory and was less intimidating to new users).

(The only files in my “home” folder are some screenshots I took for this series of posts.)

The home folder is similar to the C:Documents and Settings[username] folder in Windows. Unlike Windows, it does not contain pre-configured subfolders such as “My Documents,” “My Pictures,” and the like. The only pre-configured subfolder is “Desktop.” It is a blank slate for you to set up as you wish.

It also contains a number of hidden files and folders. In Linux, a file or folder is hidden by putting a period in front of the its name. “Docs” is open; “.Docs” is hidden. These folders store your preferences, menus, email database, and so on. Generally, there is a hidden folder every program you use, whether you run it from the menu or it runs automatically in the background. Hidden files perform functions like “locking” your login and user privileges.

Here’s a shot of the same folder with “Show Hidden Files” enabled under the “View” menu item:

You can

1. double-click on a folder to view its contents,
2. double-click on a file to open it in the default application, or
3. right-click on a file or folder to view a pop-up context menu.

The navigation panel on the left and the arrow buttons on top allow navigation about the computer. Here’s what I saw when I clicked on “File System” on the left:

This is where even the most expert Windows user is on foreign territory. The folders and files in a Unix or Linux system are arranged in a way completely different from how they are arranged in a DOS/Windows world. I am not going into this subject now, save to mention that the only folders that a home Linux user is ever likely to have to look at, besides the home folders, are /etc, /usr, and possibly opt. (Fun fact: Folder names are preceded by a forward slash, not a backslash. This is why internet addresses start with forward slashes. The internet began as a Unix thing.)

There is a good introduction to the Linux file structure here.

Network Browsing:

Browsing the network is similar.

Remember that Debian asked me to configure my network settings at time of install, so the network connection was already configured at the time of the initial reboot. In this case, we are browsing using Samba, which enables Linux and Windows computers to talk with each other.

Start the network browser by going to Places–>Network Servers:

The Network Browser opens to a list of “servers.” You can open a “server” by double clicking it. Same for a folder that’s shared over the network and for a file.

The picture shows

1. The first network browser window, showing the list of computers available on the network.
2. The list of shared folders in server “mackeral” (this laptop I’m typing on right now).
3. The list folders and files in the “//mackeral/docs” subfolder.
4. The list of documents in the “//mackeral/docs/manuals” subfolder.

Depending on the permissions granted on the various servers, I can delete, copy, open, edit, and move files. When I finished taking the screenshots for this post, I used the Network Browser to drag them from //swordfish/home/frankbell to //Interlock-3/blah-blah-blah/pix, where I edited them, then I dragged them from Interlock-3 to my server. (You can see a slightly-outdated diagram of the network here.)

While I was editing this post, I realized that some of the screenshots and pictures needed more work (that’s a fancy way of saying I saw that I blew it), so I opened them over the network on this here laptop, recropped them or added the captions or edited them, then saved them back to the server.

Just for grins and giggles, here is the Network Browser using the list view, rather than the icon view:

And that’s a quick intro to file and network browsing with Debian Linux and Gnome.

Day 2 – We decide to take the Shuttle from the Monte Carlo to South Hall. It was a crowded ride. When we got in there, we instantly caught up with 3M and their booth. Nonetheless it was a beautiful day in Vegas and a great day to start on the main hall of CES09.

Andy McCaskey gives us some insight and you even get to see Andy the Cameraman walkin around.

Want to check the weather without having to turn on the computer or TV? How about sports scores? Think it’s impossible? Well, Ambient Devices has the answer for you.

Todd Cochrane talks with Mark about this dedicated information display. Best part is you can send a message to the display.

www.ambientdevices.com

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Surveillance is a concern we have. Sometimes we want convenience. A webcam is not going to cut it, so we look toward companies like Defender-usa. From 1 camera to 16 – all recorded on a DVR system.

Todd Cochrane and Brian from Defender go over the Sentinel series. They talk about the sentinel 10 with a monitor smaller than a toaster.

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In another country and need to translate a phrase, maybe need help or go to the bathroom? Well this little item can help you with that. Nyrius specializes in talking phrasebooks so you can find out where the lavatory is.

Andy McCaskey talks with Brody about this device.

www.nyrius.com

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Here’s a quick tour of the default Debian desktop. This is the Debian 4 v 5 desktop, but I looked at some screenshots of Debian 5, which just came out, and it doesn’t seem to have changed much.

This is not a HOWTO. It’s the highlights of WHATIS. For a detailed description of the contents of Debian, you can go here. If you have never tried Linux, what I hope you will conclude after looking at the rest of the post is, “This isn’t so different from what I’m used to after all.”

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Cables to Go is a company that does just that – get you cables. At CES, Todd Cochrane talks with Larry about a neat solution to getting started with an HD TV with the HDMI cable kit for Dummies

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I remember when I was a kid I saw a movie with a car chase on the streets of San Fransisco where the camera was mounted on the hood. I wasn’t in the car, but when i watched the action, I felt the motion. Life has gone past chair at screen. We want to see, hear and feel the action. It brought a new rush to my movie experience.

Nowadays, chair at screen is not acceptable anymore. We want to see, hear and feel the action. We want our movies, our games and our emotions to emanate through that one chair. That is where D-Box comes in.

Guy Marcoo talks with Andy McCaskey about how D-Box brings gaming, home entertainment into a new realm. From theater seats to computer ‘cockpits’.

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If there was one thing that rang true this year at CES, it was you don’t need a bulky setup to make a presentation. Data on a smartphone connected to a handheld projector could get your point across in a matter of minutes. All you need is a strong battery.

This time we talk with 3M and their work with the technology. It was the first stop in the Main hall. Todd Cochrane gets a demonstration on how 3M does PICO projectors and what is in store.

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