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  • #2183890

    Analyst Pages

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    by arsnake ·

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    • #3185619

      Blog list: Les Autres

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Les Autres

    • #3185618
    • #3185617

      CE Error: OCI Call

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I just heard from a coworker who was receiving the following message when she went to connect to return rows from an Oracle database: "Cannot connect to the server. OCI call: OCIServerAttach".

      The problem in this case is that the Oracle files (.ora) were in the wrong folder, so the report could not return rows from the database.

      Developers really need to work on the quality of their error messages…That one might as well say PC Load Letter.

    • #3185616

      BO Error BCA0017

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I received BO Error BCA0017 today. It reads "There is no Broadcast Agent administrator defined for the group(s) to which you belong. Contact your supervisor."

      Of course, it’s Monday and I was tinkering on Friday. My problem is that when I was on the login screen, I changed the Security Domain. When I put it back to what it was originally, there weren’t any more problems.

    • #3185615

      Photo Album: We Love Hubble

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      We Love Hubble


      1996-07-a-print_f

      heic0405a_f.11977

      heic0506a_f

    • #3185614

      Photo Album: Anna

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Anna


      Surprise

      anna

      Louise Ann & Anna Louise

      Mayday

    • #3185613

      Custom List: Current Readings

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Current Readings

    • #3185608

      Perfectionism

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I’ve accepted that I’m not perfect, but I still try to cultivate perfection in my life. I’ve always considered fractals to be as close as humans can get to perfection: there’s always some fatal flaw that causes them to consume themselves, but they are beautiful all the same.
       
      I want a carpet for my new place that has a fractal on it, but unfortunately, the people who make carpets aren’t into set theory or fun puzzles in mathematics. Specifically, I want a carpet that looks like a Sierpinski Carpet. So, I’ve decided that I’m just going to do it myself.
       
      Evidently, all it takes is to take the mesh / matrix thingey, and sew colorfast / stainproof wool/acrylic yarn patterns into it, leaving two inches on each of the sides during the process. After that is done, you sew the backing on, trim the edges, and sew on the borders. Of course, you have to figure out the pattern and all too, but since mine is geometric, that will be cake.
       
      And then I will  have a Sierpinski Carpet carpet.

    • #3185611

      Review: The Daughter of Time

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      The opening page of Josephine Tey‘s The Daughter of Time has the quote stating that the daughter of time is truth. Along this theme, the book presents an injured policeman bored out of his mind in a hospital, who becomes interested in a historical crime and decides to solve a murder several hundred years old.
       
      The remarkable thing about this book is that it’s actually interesting. Considering that at no point in the narrative is anyone under any risk at all of anything other than late fees from the library, there’s something to be said for the fact that it keeps you involved. The only murder in the book, other than accounts of battles during the War of the Roses, is the disappearance of two kids from a tower. There’s really not a graphic line in the entire book.
       
      For a book with no threats, no gore, and no suspense, there remains a superb storyline that captures and maintains interest in a small group of characters and a whole lot of dead royalty. The allure of the book is directly tied to a great narrative style that succeeds where so many schoolteachers fail: fleshing out hints of actual people amid the dust of the past, cultivating both an interest in the past and a healthy skepticism for anything you read about it.
       
      I really liked the way it makes you remember that it doesn’t matter how long ago event occurred: human nature really doesn’t change that much, and you can’t expect people to act in ways fundamentally contrary to the way they act now simply because it happened a long time ago.
       
      Highest marks for this book. Superb.

    • #3185610

      Understanding Assumptions

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Assumptions, like database backups, are the things you only notice when you’ve forgotten them.

      Recently, I was in a situation where I did not identify all of the assumptions. As a result, I’m in Phoenix today, rather than in Denver, where I was planning on moving.

      At least I know that I am aware of the assumptions this time. So long as I can learn from my mistakes, it’s never going to truly be a loss.

    • #3185612

      Thinking About Teams

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I was reflecting on my current team, and some of the issues that we face in terms of dynamics. Now, mind you, I’m planning on transitioning to another position within the next month, but there are still lessons that I can take with me to my next position.
      On the subject of functional teams, I found a page that lists six core values for a team: trust, independence, genuineness, empathy, risk, and success. When I look at the team, it seems as though we have room for improvement. Rather than focus on shortcomings or suggesting fixes, I’m just going to look at how each would benefit this team.
      • Trust is important anywhere, but even more so when one is dealing with sensitive corporate or governmental data that governs compliance. We have to be able to trust the quality and understanding of our teammates, as well as the judgment and competence of management. Our department would not exist if the rest of the company didn’t trust us.
      • Independence is perhaps the greatest shortcoming on my current team, as one of our managers has a call-center background and tends to respond to project delays by examining login times. As I look up additional information about micromanagement on the web, I see it clearly pointed out that in micromanagement the question is trust. This ties back to the first issue; If you keep your team on a very short leash, you are obviously not trusting them.
      • Genuineness or sincerity is also a rewrite of point #1 – trust. I have had managers in the past who would agree to anything to get you out of their office, but would refuse it later or immediately send you and email to the contrary the moment you were gone. In addition to those who avoid confrontation, there are also those visionaries who don’t trust employees with those visions. This is more of an intent problem — they tell you to do things without you ever knowing the true purpose. This is kind of unnerving, but if you trust them, you can learn to live with it. 🙂
      • Empathy – The ability to relate or at least fake it – is important to making people feel valued.
      • Risk – I think it only takes one job to realize that different people have different comfort levels as far as risk goes. While it can be fun to have an anything/everything team, there are times where you will end up in a dead panic over a deadline or a problem. At the opposite end are those so risk-averse, they keep detailed paper trails printed out in files that approve the color of their signature line.
      • Success is pretty easy. If you are on a team that consistently fails, your expectations can drop or you just become demotivated. I think this may also be related back to risk, because the biggest successes can really only come from the largest risks working out successfully. It’s much like finance in regards to this: only the big gambles have big payoffs.
      Things to think about and work on…bringing out those six core values and striving to encourage them at every opportunity.
       

    • #3185609

      To See Sandra Day

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I might take a one-credit class in Tucson at the University of Arizona. Sandra Day O’Connor agreed to teach a class last month, and I’ve been strongly considering it. Now that she’s retired, it makes me really want to go see her speak. Oh, Sandra D, we’re going to miss you so much.

      Is it crazy to commute for four hours to take a class that has nothing to do with my major or area of expertise? She’s been my only living hero since Robertson Davies died in 1995.

    • #3185607

      Loss of a Muse?

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

       
      Don’t get me wrong, I think that Waiting to Exhale had great roles for Angela Bassett and Whitney Houston, but the book was lousy and broke no new ground in terms of literature. It really reminded me of the current remake of The Honeymooners: Maybe if everyone is a different color, we can call it original!
       
      There is such a thing as literary blacksploitation. And I’m sorry, but it is absolutely ridiculous to suggest that Terry McMillan has a muse. Her novels are described as "zesty" for heaven’s sake. Take them to the pool and don’t cry when they get wet. Go get a great paperback and try finding someone with a real voice.

    • #3185606

      How to write a reporting dictionary

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      If you have a report request for a system you have never worked on, your first step is checking for a data dictionary, something that tells you what is where in the database. I think about 90% of the time, you can assume that they might not know what you are talking about, laugh about what a waste of time something like that would be, or they won’t be able to find it and you’re in for a wait of a couple months while the department contacts the vendor.
       
      Even if they have one, the fastest way to get into data is to write your own reporting dictionary. I’ve attached a screenshot of what mine look like. Once I have the data connection set up in Crystal Reports or via a database management system (DBMS), I open up a blank Excel document and do the following:
      1. List all table names in column A
      2. List all primary keys in column B
      3. List all additional keys in columns C onward
      4. Scan for most common values in keys.
      5. Start changing the font colors and backgrounds to group the keys visually.
      6. Identify the "linker" tables that span the most popular color groups. Bump their font size to 18.
       
      When you’re dealing with a big database, there are different groups of tables that represent aspects of what you are trying to record. When you make a reporting dictionary, you’re coming up with a way to see how they tie together, so you can include the right tables in your reports and make sure you can join the data from say, behavior to demographics. You only pay attention to the keys, because keys are always indexed. Because they are indexed, you want to use them as much as possible in your joins and parameters because they increase your reporting speed.
       

    • #3185605

      Getting Out of BO

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      There is a funnel icon in Business Objects that allows users to apply a filter to a selected set of values. While this is a very useful tool, this will trip you up when you move the data out of Business Objects.
       
      By default, most of us would get the data out of Business Objects by selecting Data > View Data > Export. However, using this will undo any formulas, filters, custom groups, sorts, etc. All this does is export the data as pulled from the database. If you use a filter, this will totally ignore it.
       
      In contrast, using File > Save As… will retain all formatting, but unfortunately, this will include all of the headers and footers on a page, which will break an import function if you are moving this into another database, such as Access (yes, let’s pretend it’s a real database here). In addition, your computer will hang and can at times totally crash when you are using Save As… with a large set of data.
       

    • #3185604

      Oil

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      "We have only two modes: complacency and panic." – James R. Schlesinger (first energy secretary in 1977), in regards to US energy policy.
       
      "Crude oil imports have doubled over the last three decades, and now account for nearly two-thirds of the oil Americans burn. Before the 1973 oil embargo, imports accounted for only about one-third of America’s energy consumption. In the same three-decade period, oil demand in the United States has grown by 18 percent while domestic production has continued on a slow and probably irrevocable path of decline." Jad Mouawad and Matthew L. Wald.The Oil Upraor That Isn’t. New York Times, July 12, 2005.
       
      For anyone who doesn’t understand supply and demand… 

    • #3185603

      A New Hut!!!

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Mostly so my dogs would have a big yard to run around in all day long, i decided to rent out a guest house in central Phoenix. I would say that it’s about 20′ by 10′ and includes a half bathroom, kitchen (with full fridge and oven, sink, some counter space), and then a 10×10 room for everything else. Now, mind you, my last apartment I shared with a roommate, and that was about 1200 square feet. I think I could fit my big room in that kitchen.
       
      Small spaces mean one thing: thank god for IKEA. I realized the only way that I was going to fit in this place is if i started growing up, literally. So I found a loft bed (think dorm room), which is like a bunk bed, except the first floor is a desk. I’ve started looking at the walls, thinking about doing one wall entirely in cubbyholes, as really the only way I’m going to fit four or five hundred books into that small of a space is if I just make a full wall storage unit, and intermingle books with DVDs, clothes, and anything else.
       
      One thing I didn’t realize about really small spaces though…there’s not a place to put your shoes or your dirty laundry. I’m really tempted to just get some huge Rubbermaid thing and stick it out on the patio that will just hold my very modest collection of footwear. I mean, I have three pairs of hiking boots, three tennis shoes, four formal shoes, and lots of sandals. Most of the people I know travel with more than that.
       
      Mostly though, I just need lots of really cool shelves.

    • #3185602

      A Proverb

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      It is not the horse that draws the cart, but the oats.

    • #3185601

      New Nickname

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      My podmates at work just nicknamed me Willipedia.

    • #3185597

      Moving to New York

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      A friend is trying to get me to move to New York. He says:
       
      Mmm, spiritually I can see the mountain and forest thing. But a city is a concrete and steel jungle that can be even more fun. Capitalize on your knowledge. All I?m saying is that you would have the ability to experience whatever rock concert, tech expo, industry convention, speaker, parties, architecture, art piece or film your heart desired by living in a cultural haven like New York City. There?s the Metropolitan Museum of Art; Central Park, with its beautiful landscaping (designed by the father of landscape design Frederick Law Olmstead); Museum of Modern Art; Flatiron Building; Broadway shows, etc,etc. Check out The Village Voice too. And if you need to get out of the jungle, take the Metro North trains from Grand Central Station and enjoy the beaucolic [sic] nature of upstate New York.

    • #3185598

      Grownup Vacation

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I’m going on vacation from being a grownup tonight, just as soon as I’m done working out (rowing today). I’m going to eat ice cream and make a pizza, then play Tales of Phantasia (retro SNES) and stay up late drinking TexJoy coffee. And at midnight, i’m going to Bookstar to get the new Harry Potter book.
       
      Mostly it’s just a reaction…my brother moved back to Nebraska this morning, so now I’m the only one in my family in this area. I’m the western-most one. Trying to resist the "oh-my-god-I-am-on-my-own" panic that comes from being thousands of miles away from any family members.
       
      I’m still wondering what I’m doing here sometimes. Doubt is a funny thing. I saw it defined as:
      • a fluctuation of mind arising from defect of knowledge or evidence
      • uncertainty of judgment or mind
      • unsettled state of opinion
      • uncertainty of condition
      • apprehension
      That pretty much sums it up. I wish there were simple answers to complicated questions, and the older I get, the more I suspect that the really hard questions don’t have answers at all. Maybe Jane Wagner is right, and reality is just "a collective hunch." (The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe) Yup…i’ve got the mean reds.

    • #3185599

      Non-Spoiler Review: HP6

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Between 12am and 8pm on Saturday, I read the new Harry Potter book, entitled Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. There’s quite a bit to give away and I absolutely refuse to unless you ask specifically, so I’ll just stick to the standard stuff.
       
      The book is awesome. You may benefit from re-reading the second book first just for some story arc continuations, but there’s enough of a summary in the first chapter for people who aren’t that familiar with the books. The first chapter is a meeting between the real Prime Minister and the Minister of Magic, where the Minister of Magic summarizes everything that has been going on.
       
      My thoughts on this book is that it really isn’t one. Yeah, it’s great to read and there is a huge amount of plot and character development (the kids are 16/17 now), but it’s really not like the others at all. A large portion of this is back story — explaining things from the recent and distant past, as characters grapple with a vastly darker universe and the real possibility that trust has evaporated. The parallels to the post-September 11th world, and the Patriot Act, are subtle enough to be missed by a large number of readers. However, there is also a part of the storyline that seems to be addressing the issue of Guantanamo Bay, or perhaps Japanese internment during World War II. At one point, one character succinctly describes the cause of tyranny as the wizard world turns into a police state.
       
      Those things aside, this isn’t really a new Harry Potter book. This is one extended introduction to book 7, with some social commentary thrown in. I am of the opinion that this is the greatest book in the series and likely will not be eclipsed by the last for a multitude of reasons, including the social commentary, universals, hormones, and above all, her continued avoidance to pigeonhole characters or always have children being kind wonderful creatures. The fact is, there’s a new character in this one: pressure. Pressure pushes on every character in the book, squeezing them into situations and actions they never would have done before.
       
      The book is superb. The characters all grow up, all have full character, and sometimes do things that you never would expect. However, I never expect my nephew to do half of the things he’s pulled off, so I guess that’s a high compliment. I think everyone in the world who is literate has heard of Harry Potter by this point, so there is little point persuading anyone to read it. However, I will say that this book and the last have transitioned like their target audience: they’ve grown up, and the same fluffy dragons or broomstick soccer matches aren’t going to keep anyone entertained anymore. This one has werewolf and giant attacks, where an evil menace is up against a shady, distrustful government. The world of the half-blood prince is dark, dark, dark.

    • #3185600

      Perfect Health

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I was reading a comment on /. this morning, and the denizens were talking about health and fitness. The user AKAImBatman (blog) made a remarkable comment that I’m reproducing here:
      My take on it is, if you’re actually sick (i.e. Unable to operate in some way, shape, or form), then go to the doctor. He may not be very precise, but he might just save your life. If you’re not outright sick, then eat a wide variety of foods in moderate quantities and excercise[sic]. Forget about the doctors and their "fads of the week". Just do what you’re going to do and enjoy your life. In the end you’ll be far healthier just by being happy than you’ll ever be through ravaging your body by fad diets and drugs.
      I actually ranted on this last weekend to a housemate who is really into supplements, but isn’t making much progress. I had to point out my personal philosophy: never take advice from people who stand to benefit from your decision. I think the whole fitness industry is still snake oil, where we peddle compounds that have a massive benefit to muscles or metabolism, but can never really be actually used by the body in that form. The truth is, there really are no chemical shortcuts out there.
       
      I’ve been reading about health and wellness for years now. I’ve watched eggs go in and out, fat go in and out, and so on. I’ve watched the rise and fall of creatine (and the current new SUPER creatine that ACTUALLY works well, according to my roommate), seen people get obsessed with amino acids and lactic acid and pretty much anything that has a drawing of carbon chains on the front.
       
      There comes a point where you have to stop and decide if you are doing this to be healthy and feel good, or if you are doing this to look good. If you are doing this to look good, keep on with the pills and the supplements. If you are doing this to feel good, then perhaps you should think about Batman’s advice. After all, he can’t make a buck off of you.

    • #3185596

      Many Job Notes

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Based on a discussion with a friend, here are things you should know before interviewing, applying, or looking for a job:

      1. The difference between independent and W-2 contract classifications
      2. The Occupational Outlook (From the US Department of Labor)
      3. Cost of living comparison (MSN city comparison) (global cost of living survey) (wage translation by state)
      4. A good salary report accurate to zip code

      Finally, advice:

      • Have a walk-away point before you try to negotiate. For example, "I will not work overnights, weekends, and call without shift differential bonuses or at least $50,000/year".
      • Remember that negotiation is defined as "a discussion intended to produce an agreement". That agreement might be that it’s not a good job for your needs.
      • In dating, jobhunting, or science, remember that your job is to look at all of the alternatives and carefully balance them before making a decision. Always have another options to counterbalance the natural tendency to obsess.
      • You own your labor and the results. Those results are what a company is paying you for.
      • A positive and motivational attitude is worth more than perfect qualifications, and you can take that attitude to each and every interview. The only job that you’re going to be 100% perfectly qualified for is one that you create and that grows with you, changing every day. However, you already have that job, and it’s called life. So just be positive and exhibit a proactive attitude.

    • #3185595

      Fiction

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

    • #3189380

      The Iliad

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I have a life goal to finish a collection of books that I received from the estate of my grandmother. I’ve already read several of them, but I figure a direct read-through of the books is what I should shoot for. It’s called "Great Books of the Western World", and it encompasses everything from The Iliad to Freud. The goal of the series as laid out in Book 1, The Great Conversation, is to expose readers to pretty much everything that happened in the last few thousand years. It’s much more than that, but a simplified version is to say that the goal is to make you a well-rounded person and show you that all of time and history is an extended dialogue between cultures.
       
      I am still an autodidact so I am enjoying them. I’m almost done with The Iliad, which I haven’t read for at least a decade.
       
       

      ????? ????? ??? ????????? ???????
      ?????????, ? ????’ ??????? ????’ ?????,
      ?????? ?’ ???????? ????? ????? ????????
      ?????, ?????? ?? ?????? ????? ????????
      ???????? ?? ????, ???? ?’ ????????? ?????,

      (translation)

      Sing, O goddess, the anger of Achilles son of Peleus, that brought countless ills upon the Achaeans. Many a brave soul did it send hurrying down to Hades, and many a hero did it yield a prey to dogs and vultures, for so were the counsels of Jove fulfilled from the day on which the son of Atreus, king of men, and great Achilles, first fell out with one another.

    • #3189381

      Carrot Cake by Hand

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I made this last night for a friend’s 40th birthday, and it went over very well:
       
      Materials
      • 3 cups flour
      • 1.5 cups sugar
      • 1 cup brown sugar
      • Handful of raisins or small pieces of dried tropical fruit
      • 1 cup crushed pineapple
      • 1 cup walnuts
      • Cream cheese frosting (buy or make with 1/2 cp sugar + cream cheese + 1 tsp vanilla whipped)
      • 1 cup oil (I use olive, but most use vegetable)
      • 2 teaspoons vanilla
      • 1.5 teaspoons baking soda
      • 1 teaspoon salt
      • 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon

      Directions

      1. Mix the carrots with the brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, dried fruit/raisins, and walnuts. Set aside for at least 45 minutes.
      2. Preheat oven to 350 and grease cake pan of preference. I like doing 2 ten-inch cakes and layering them in the end.
      3. Whip eggs, gradually adding in the white sugar and oil. Add the salt, baking soda, and flour gradually, stirring until absorbed. Add in the carrot mixture.
      4. Estimated bake time = 45 minutes.
      5. After cooling, flip one cake upside-down, level it so that it is flat, and frost it. Put the other cake right-side up on top, and frost that too. If you grate one carrot, it should be enough to give a light layer of carrot shavings on top of the cream cheese frosting.

    • #3193675

      Pic of my Hut

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      A quick pic of me in my hut. I’m still working on the paint colors, and after that comes the floor.
       
      In the picture, my bed is above the camera (loft bed), and you can see the entertainment center on the left, and a chair and my rowing machine on the right. In the back, counter on the right, fridge and oven on the left, and then the bathroom and kitchen sink on the far wall. I think the whole thing is 10′ x 25′ or so.

    • #3193439

      The XL Cake

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Here’s the cake I made for my friend Jeff. He turned 40, so since X=10 and L=50, I made him a cake that reads "XL".
       
      The ‘X’ is made out of carrot cake, and the ‘L’ is made out of German chocolate cake.

    • #3189235

      SQL Server vs. MS Access Data Types

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Here is a comparison of MS Access data types vs. SQL Server 2000 data types.
      These are the exact matches:

      SQL Server -> MS Access

      • tinyint -> byte
      • smallint -> integer
      • int -> long integer
      • bit -> yes/no

       

    • #3185998

      Enforcing Consistency

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I’m going to standardize on this screenname across the different pages I work on. I just recreated my account on Wikipedia.
       
       
      The other big project that I haven’t mentioned before is ClimatePrediction.net where I volunteer my computer to process global warming data. I’d like to really link together all of my different usernames and pages to create an actual virtual presence (avatar).

    • #3185906

      Bulwer-Lytton Results for 2005

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      The Bulwer-Lytton contest results for 2005 are in. The Bulwer-Lytton contest is like the Ig Nobel awards for writers, where people compete to write the opening line for what would be the worst novel ever.

    • #3063778

      Custom List: Quotes

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Quotes

      • Tori Amos: Thunder wishes it could be the snow.

    • #3063777

      Photo Album: Dogs

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

    • #3059322
    • #3059321

      Custom List: Tech Readings

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Tech Readings

    • #3054576

      Blog list: My Other Parts

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      My Other Parts

    • #3054575

      Hacker Noodle Soup

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I’m home sick today and faced with the classic bind: I know I should eat chicken noodle soup to feel better, but it’s way too much effort to do the real thing. The canned variety doesn’t have the nutritional content I’m looking for, and too much sodium. So, I’m going to hack the soup — take what is there, put it on a different base, and extend the amount made, the flavor, and the medicinal value.

      Ingredients:

      • 1 cup water
      • 1 can any brand chicken noodle soup or chicken broth
      • 10 baby carrots, sliced thin
      • 2 stalks celery, sliced thin
      • 1/8 cup onion, diced
      • 1 tbsp chives
      • dash parsley
      • dash mustard seed or 1 squirt spicy brown mustard

      How to make:

      1. Over medium heat, add everything except the soup/broth. Make sure you have enough water to just barely cover the vegetables–you want it to simmer and up the flavor, not drown it.
      2. Simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until carrots soften
      3. Add the soup. If condensed, add extra water but remember to subtract however much water you used for the broth.
      4. Cook until you start getting a little yellow foam on the top of the soup.

      Yeah, it’s basic and easy, but it helps quite a bit. There’s some trivia in the added ingredients, too.

      • Chives – believed to ward off evil spirits and disease
      • Onion – shown to be partially effective against colds, contain antiinflammatory, anticholesterol, and anticancer components
      • Mustard – used medicinally by Hippocrates and inflames mucous membranes

      • #3058606

        Hacker Noodle Soup

        by dalicoder ·

        In reply to Hacker Noodle Soup

        Well I certainly hope you feel better!  I’ll have to give this recipe a try.  Please post a follow-up if we should be warned about side effects like turning green or something. 🙂

        –Dave

      • #3062527

        Hacker Noodle Soup

        by apotheon ·

        In reply to Hacker Noodle Soup

        That’s awesome. Thanks.

        I’m not a huge fan of anything onion, celery, or mustard, so before I make some I’ll probably rehack the recipe myself. I’m thinking crushed garlic instead of onion. I’ll have to consider what to use instead of mustard (seed) and celery. I’m sure I’ll come up with something.

    • #3058708

      Movie Review: The Cave

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Some background:

      1. My company has drawings to give out movie tickets for people who carpool. Mine expire at the end of the month.
      2. I have a sinus infection and am whacked out on cold meds.

      With these two things in mind, I still didn’t feel it was worth my time to see this movie. Had I actually paid, I would have wanted my money back. This was among the worst horror movies in recent memory, and even in the delusional dreamworld of advil cold and sinus, I still couldn’t get past the lousy dialogue, which will contribute new taglines to our horror movie lexicon, like, "They fly!"

      Seriously, if I’m ever suspended from a rope deep in a cave being hunted by some monsters that look like a cross between Alien but with the super creepy porcupine quills from The Village, my last words better not be, "They fly!"

      Speaking of which, that scene is great. The problem is that you have to sit through a bunch of dialogue and pseudoscience before and after. A bigger problem is that one of the first people in the party to get offed on-screen puts up more of a fight than anyone later in the movie. I was expecting some pretty cool stuff after a scene where a scantily-clad girl hanging from climbing ropes is running along the side of a cave wall shooting off a flamethrower at some newt-hamster-porcupine-bat thing.

      On the subject of natural science, I hate to give anything away, but they really should have maybe consulted a scientist or doctor or something on this whole plausibility thing. I know they had some diving experts helping them out, not sure why they couldn’t check on this whole virus subplot.

      All I know is that it must really suck to be trapped so far underground. You can tell the strain it must have on people from the way this entire movie collapses on itself in an implosion of suckage, like the house at the end of Poltergeist but without the satisfaction of a conclusion.

    • #3056990

      Tonight: Astrological Phenomenon

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      A satellite launch tonight is expected to be visible here in Arizona from 7:24 to 7:40. Information on Streak satellite launch.

    • #3057832

      Toybox

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I started a new position a little over two months ago, and am starting to work my way through some of the new tools and technologies. Many of them are new directions for me, but at least they all seriously involve my main area: data.
       
      There are two main parts to this job as it stands: what the job is, and what I bring with me. What I’m bringing with me is the database and reporting aspect.
       
      Data and Reporting Toys:
      • MS SQL Server 2000
      • MS SQL Server 2005 CTP
      • Oracle 9i
      • PL/SQL Developer
      • MySQL 4.1
      • Crystal Reports 9

      There is also the development aspect of what I do, which is looking to be heavily involved in code management and release.

      Development and Change Control Toys:

      • MS Visual Studio 2005 Beta
      • MS Visual Studio 2003
      • StarTeam 2005
      • NAnt-Gui

      There are quite a few new things I’m trying to learn as rapidly as possible. The main two are XML and Active Directory, but there is also NAnt and just getting better at using StarTeam. There’s a pretty good chance that going forward, I’ll be putting up articles more on those four subjects than on Crystal Reports and Business Objects.

    • #3057833

      Road Trip

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I know I’m crazy, but I’ve decided to take a road trip back to my hometown (OmahaNebraska) for Thanksgiving. The total driving distance is around 1500 miles, and the driving time is about 20 hours. I’m going to stay overnight in Denver on the way out and back.
       
      This would be the first road trip Mia the Kia has ever been on.
       

    • #3069856

      Home repair for dummies

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I have gotten myself in the habit of trying to do just a couple little things every day to make the world a slightly better place. Maybe it’s putting all the carts back in the grocery store parking lot or picking up loose nails or screws in the parking lot and throwing them out, but I try to always do just one little thing every day, and then one midsize project type thing on the weekends.
       
      Last weekend and last night, I was helping my friends Joey and Tim with their new house. They’ve decided to put in wood floors, which I’ve done a few times so I’ve been helping them out where I can. I went straight to their place after work and was going at full steam until about ten. I think the living room/dining room is about sixty percent done now, including all of the really hard-to-cut areas. Oh, and we had dinner for an hour and a half or so in that time frame as well.
       
      I know it’s all about helping people, but I was seriously bummed to find out how much something like that costs to have done professionally. It’s like when you find out how much a fliight attendant makes after five years and you suddenly think, "Wow, these guys have GEDs and massively out-earn me". I think if I worked on my own, I could put in three floors a year and make the same as right now.
       
      I think the dummy part of this home repair was me. Right now my side job is fixing computers for people and small businesses. I could be dwarving my salary rather than augmenting it if I started doing flooring on the weekends.
       
      Do you suppose someone will revoke your geek card if you are an IT person who moonlights as a contractor? It seems like a nurse or doctor getting a side job in adult entertainment.

    • #3069219

      Step status codes

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Better than a post-it note.
       
      Step-level status codes and their meanings:
       
      1  – Active
      3  – Complete
      7  – Aborted
      18 – Delayed
      19 – Failed

    • #3070700

      Communication Breakdowns

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      It’s really easy to miscommunicate something in technology. Just as we are having some fun with content in the office, my brother sent me a really awful PowerPoint slide from a class he’s taking on computer networking. It is supposed to illustrate VOIP. However, the image really doesn’t look much like a microphone, especially not to college students.
      So while I’m trying to do damage control or at least less damage, here’s something to remember that all meaning is constructed by the audience.

    • #3071688

      Biking

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I’ve been going nuts on the bike lately, mostly on the Phoenix Canal Trail.

      Days and Distances
      Date Miles
      10/9 20
      10/11 20
      10/12 27.7
      10/13 28

      Pictures to follow.

    • #3072292

      Photo Album: Mepics

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Mepics


      i heart research

      mom / me / sis

      grilling out

    • #3060691

      Communication breakdowns

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      It’s really easy to miscommunicate something in technology. Just as we are having some fun with content in the office, my brother sent me a really awful PowerPoint slide from a class he’s taking on computer networking. It is supposed to illustrate VOIP. However, the image really doesn’t look much like a microphone, especially not to college students.
      So while I’m trying to do damage control or at least less damage, here’s something to remember that all meaning is constructed by the audience.

    • #3060692

      Degree completion date

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      It is only a milestone on the way to bigger things, but I finish my AAGS (Associate) degree on December 12th, 2005.

    • #3045971

      My first injury

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I must be getting old. I seem to recall being able to bounce on a bicycle with a greater degree of success.

    • #3043541

      Halloween costumes for my dogs

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      You may think it’s cruelty to animals, but the fact of the matter is,
      they’re both so desperate for attention that it really is a huge joy
      for them. No matter how mad they look in their pictures.

    • #3114394

      Review: High Spirits

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I’m not a huge fan of the short story, though I grudgingly admit that there is a large amount of skill involved in the process of painting a world, creating a situation, and then resolving it in under 10 pages. For Robertson Davies, the mad alchemist author of Canada and the quintessential university professor, his current time and place provided a huge amount of pop culture fodder easy to ridicule with the more gregarious characters from the past in the book High Spirits. If you haven’t read any Davies before, be prepared for a completely non-scary, entirely unfrightening book. The closest it comes to evil are wicked insights and criticisms of everything from undergrads to social movements to critics.
      As these stories were culled from speeches, they are entirely readable with numerous obvious points for laughter and jeering, and each story flows extremely well. It is pure humor, and humor aimed at university students and faculty, so it lacks much of the elegance and insight of his numerous character study trilogies and replaces that with ironic turns and landmines of double entendres. In reading this, you really get a sense that the world lost a great author in 1995, and it is sincerely unfortunate that we do not have the author reciting these stories on tape. After reading this and thinking about Davies’ unfinished trilogy, it’s really tempting to start imagining what kind of a story you could make out of his ghost over christmas holiday in 2005, ten years after his death.

    • #3114214

      1950’s pink nightmare

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      A friend of mine is telling me that I have to go look at a charming 2br 2ba condo from the 1950’s but this is looking a little too pink and a little too high in price.
       
      Full details here.

    • #3114213

      Let the games begin

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I’m now officially looking for a condo in central phoenix.
       
      It must be under $150,000 in central Phoenix. I’m totally fine with some light-to-medium home repair, and am hoping for two bedrooms and at least one bathroom, with a washer and dryer in the unit.
       
      I will be posting places on here for public comment. Please send me an email or comment on the postings with your views on each place…all assistance appreciated!

    • #3114131

      Perfect neighborhood here

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      This one doesn’t sound that bad. It’s under 1000 square feet, but there is a pool, AC, living room, etc. The location though is right around where I would like to be. I think I would be willing to see this one, even though it is just one bedroom.
      Mind you, the size could really be lousy. It seems odd to pay $120,000 for a one-bedroom place with no view or loft ceilings, but I guess that is just the market…

    • #3114130

      1 and 1 down the street

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I’m slightly concerned about a listing that has more stuff listing the schools than what the place has. Throw in the picture that shows a view that is no way from a place down the street from me, and you have one place that dosn’t look that great.
       

    • #3114129

      3 and 1 in the area

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I got an email from a friend with the following lead:
      "I know somebody who is selling a condo in the 40th & Indian School area. It has three bedrooms and a large living room."

      I asked for more details and will repost when I hear back!

    • #3115087

      Real estate agent suggestions, day one

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      My wonderful amazing real estate agent Kim Brock sent me a report with a bunch of places.

      I really like the first one on 36th St and Indian School, because i’m really cheap and the area is familiar to me.

      The second in Park Lauren sounds OK, but the terms seem really strange.

      The third is a little far east, but still totally do-able

      The fourth on tenth street is a little much, but I would do it 🙂

      The fifth on Bethany is ok, I would look at that.

      The sixth on, not so much a fan.

      What do you think??

    • #3115086

      *updated* 3 BR in the area

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I got an email from a friend with the following lead:
      "I know somebody who is selling a condo in the 40th & Indian School area. It has three bedrooms and a large living room."

      I asked for more details and will repost when I hear back!

      Reposting #1:
      "He’s still polishing the place, it’s not on
      the market yet, but he could give you an idea of what
      it’s all about. It has one large bedroom, one medium, one small–more
      suitable for a den. Unless it’s your den and you hope
      to contain the books you’ve read in which case you
      might want to take out a wall or something. You know
      where we ate the Italian food? move about one city
      block north of there and that’s about where it is.
      The complex has a pool and a (shudder) HOA, but the
      neighborhood is quiet and green. "

    • #3114819

      Zip code map

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

    • #3116738

      Govt grants for first-time homebuyers

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Sometimes I’m glad that I’m really poor. For example, I can qualify for a federal grant for low-income families.

    • #3116349

      Playing in the multiverse

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      A quick break from househunting to reflect on gravity. A physicist named Dr. Randall is positing an oreo-shaped dimensional reality. Also, I think this would settle the "size matters" issues for all time, because everything we see is most likely distorted beyond recognition thanks to gravitons and superstrings. Oh, and we may be next to an infinite dimension.
       
      It helps if you look at the picture.

    • #3135760

      Maybe…

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      In the midst of a condo-hunt, I think I found the perfect apartment. It’s actually cheap enough to look into further, and the area isn’t bad (10th St and Indian School). I went and looked at it yesterday as it was in one of the areas I’m interested in.
       
      The place is great. The apartment itself is a 2br/1ba with sausalito tile throughout, huge arched doorways, a really great kitchen, and has french double doors out onto a community green space. There are 9 or 10 units total, all on one floor, and I’ve already looked up crime statistics and everything looks great.
       
      I’m interested to see if that would work out for me, but it totally looks like a great deal. There’s no pool or washer/dryer, but I can deal with that.
       
      Will take and post pics if/when I put down a deposit on it.
       

    • #3135759

      More maybe’s…

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      My plans for a Thanksgiving road trip to Nebraska have been cancelled. I had the ulterior motive of giving my dogs to my brother and his wife, but they just announced that they decided against it.
       
      This also throws my plans for an apartment out the window. I’m now looking into finding a roommate to share a house with somewhere in central Phoenix. I have a couple leads…

    • #3118184

      Using Split()

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I found a new trick this week that involves a function in Crystal Reports called Split.
       
      Split accepts a string and a delimiter, and returns an array of items.
      For example
       
      Split ("tom/peter/harry/susan/michael")
      would generate an aray with the values:
       
      1 tom
      2 peter
      3 harry
      4 susan
      5 michael
       
      Oh yeah, in case you forgot from an earlier posting, Crystal arrays are 1-based. Very important here. I added a trackback to that article.
       
      Places I use this:
      I use this for converting strings to dates "mm/dd/yy" with a delimeter of "/"
      I use this to strip login names out of their full domains "domain.org\username" with a delimeter of "\"

    • #3126782

      Breaking the habit

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      What does smoking, dieting, and project management have in common? It takes three times as much work to get back on track as it does to say on track.
       
      In a perfectly functional system development environment, there are defined phases of development and deployment that are established to control the quality of the final product and keep it in line with the expectations of the final project. However, sometimes this all tends to implode and you can get trapped in a panic mode of correct-define-(release/test)-clarify-patch, which begins to consume ever-increasing amounts of energy to maintain.
       
      If I was to define my own theory of project management, it would be Murphy’s Method, where I expect everything to go wrong and we have funny ways of laughing about the truly awful situations that every developer has survived and loves to wear like a badge. Sure, the great deployments are easy and wonderful and great, but they don’t make that good of anecdotes. We talk about the ones that bomb because they are more interesting and you can grow more if you reflect on them.
       
      We almost got trapped in the above correct-test-define-release-verify-patch cycle over the last few weeks, which is what I like to call Black Hole. It means that most people think nothing will ever escape the project, but few know that it actually will in a garbled and meaningless format, like minutes from status meetings, which have a lifespan of a half hour.

    • #3126322

      AVOID EVITA

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Even getting free tickets to last night’s opening performance of Evita at Gammage seemed like I’d paid entirely too much. It was the quality of a high school production at best, and even then I’ve seen high school productions that would give this one a run for the money.
      The biggest problem was that the guy running the spotlight seemed to be having some kind of attack. I can’t even list all of the problems, but they include
      1. Failing to keep the spotlight centered at any time
      2. Changing colors multiple times during some of the numbers
      3. Failing to shine the spotlight on the singer
      4. Not following the performers when they moved

      It totally ruined the show. Just when you were getting into a number, the spotlight would glide off to the right. I really don’t know what the problem was.

      Beyond that, there were numerous problems in the cast, particularly upstaging by the narrator Che (who also gimped around the stage like a hunchback for some reason) and some really atrocious staging that destroyed the song "What’s New, Buenos Aires?" My personal favorite was the really big screen in the middle of the stage that continuously distracted the viewers from what was happening. Kind of like watching tv but with more singing.

      If someone asks you if you want to see "Evita", go check out the movie version of Evita.

    • #3124577

      MSDTC

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I’ve been hunting around the internet to find resources on an MSDTC error that is plaguing a production system over here, and thus far haven’t been able to locate many useful resources. I did find another space here on MSN that has a trackback below that discusses some of the specifics, but the best source of information so far has been a blog at Microsoft.
       
      One odd thing is that while the blog comes up in search results, the actual page doesn’t. So I found the MSDTC page at Microsoft and found this gem:

      MSDTC Log Issues

      If you suspect an issue with the MSDTC log, you can flush any existing packets in the MSDTC log by running the msdtc.exe -resetlog command.

      Warning The msdtc -resetlog command is a dangerous operation; verify that you do not have active transactions when you perform this operation.

       
      Also, there are three MSDTC registry keys:
      1. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\MSDTC
      2. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MSDTC
      3. HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CID

    • #3121018

      When worlds collide: theater in Vegas

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      It seems like a strange place to go for a theater trip, but a friend and I just got tickets to go see Avenue Q in Las Vegas in mid-January.
       
      Yesterday I got a flight on America West for $50 each way and we booked a room at the Tuscany Suites. I’ve heard that the best places to stay in Vegas are a block off the strip, and this one is right behind Bally’s on the strip. I haven’t been to Las Vegas for about a decade, so I have absolutely no idea where that is.
       
      As far as the show itself, we got tickets for Friday the 13th at 10pm. There’s a permanent show of Avenue Q at the Wynn Resort.
       
      It seems so odd to go to Las Vegas to see a musical, even if it is pretty dirty and features singing puppets. I guess with New Orleans in reconstruction, Las Vegas now has to work twice as hard as the adult playground.

    • #3082774

      Book Review: Eragon

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Honestly, I don’t have much to say about Eragon. It’s mindless fantasy drivel without any deeper meanings and painfully obvious plot twists, but it’s entertaining. This book does not have the narrative strength to make a movie out of, but I could see it as a video game.
       

    • #3094396

      Kawaii

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

       Taken from ‘The Cute Factor‘ in today’s New York Times.

      Cute cues are those that indicate extreme youth, vulnerability, harmlessness and need, scientists say, and attending to them closely makes good Darwinian sense. As a species whose youngest members are so pathetically helpless they can’t lift their heads to suckle without adult supervision, human beings must be wired to respond quickly and gamely to any and all signs of infantile desire.

      The human cuteness detector is set at such a low bar, researchers said, that it sweeps in and deems cute practically anything remotely resembling a human baby or a part thereof, and so ends up including the young of virtually every mammalian species, fuzzy-headed birds like Japanese cranes, woolly bear caterpillars, a bobbing balloon, a big round rock stacked on a smaller rock, a colon, a hyphen and a close parenthesis typed in succession.

      The greater the number of cute cues that an animal or object happens to possess, or the more exaggerated the signals may be, the louder and more italicized are the squeals provoked.

      Cuteness is distinct from beauty, researchers say, emphasizing rounded over sculptured, soft over refined, clumsy over quick. Beauty attracts admiration and demands a pedestal; cuteness attracts affection and demands a lap. Beauty is rare and brutal, despoiled by a single pimple. Cuteness is commonplace and generous, content on occasion to cosegregate with homeliness.

      It’s really kind of embarrassing, if you think about it. As a Pug owner, I totally realize that some people FLIP OUT when they see my dog. This includes every child, most women, and most of the guys I know. Even people like my brother, who’ve served time in the Air Force and are about as manly as one can get without injury are secretly totally in love with Pugs, even though they won’t admit it in public. However, I used to totally bust him taking a nap with Putty, all curled up and content with my strange little alien fartbag of a dog.

    • #3095619

      Arrogance and progress

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      The quote of the day today over at Google is from Stephen Jay Gould, who said:
      The most important scientific revolutions all include, as their only common feature, the dethronement of human arrogance from one pedestal after another of previous convictions about our centrality in the cosmos.
      I love this quote. That’s actually something that I always seem to come up against when I admit to people that I don’t believe in God, higher powers, organized religions, etc. The problem is that when you say something like that, they always manage to arrive at the conclusion that I must think that humans are the end all and be all of evolution and that humans and science are God.
       
      It gets infuriating…I don’t believe in religion because I think that it comes from a sense that we overestimate our importance in The Grand Scheme of Things. When people only see atheism as putting humans in the "God" cubby, they are missing the point of the argument.
       
      The best explanation I have comes from Douglas Adams.
      It takes a long time before we really get to grips with this and begin to understand it, because not only does it seem incredible and thoroughly demeaning to us, but it’s yet another shock to our system to discover that not only are we not the centre of the Universe and we’re not made of anything, but we started out as some kind of slime and got to where we are via being a monkey. It just doesn’t read well.

    • #3078892

      A triumph of mediocre

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I know it’s a pretty minor victory in the war on bad taste, but Phantom beat out Cats as the longest-running musical today.

    • #3079442

      Bad blood

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Typically when the blood drive comes around, I take a moment to reflect on how amazingly discriminatory the blood drive is. I?ve actually done quite a bit of reading on the subject and if you?ve ever read or seen And the Band Played On, there?s a great description of the meeting where all the blood bank people decided that instead of testing blood for venereal diseases, they would just bar homosexuals from giving blood.

      What happens next is that a large number of blood recipients were infected with the HIV virus and several years later, the US government went up against the blood banks again and forced them to start testing all blood for chemicals that showed the presence of HIV.

      This rule is a discriminatory throwback to the early 80s when the blood banks were more concerned with saving money than making sure that the blood supply was safe. However, they never removed it from the books after the US government forced them to test all donations for the presence of HIV antibodies.

      I just want to make sure that everyone understands exactly why I won?t be giving blood this year, or any year, and encourage everyone to send Kandi a message telling her why you won?t be giving blood, either.

      ________________________________________

      ———- Forwarded message ———-
      From: Cerqua, Kandi <kcerqua@bloodsystems.org>
      Date: Jan 11, 2006 7:49 AM
      Subject: RE: I have an eligibility question for donating blood.
      To: ufamsm
      Hi —–,
      ?
      Thank you for your interest in donating blood.
      Unfortunately, if you have had sex with another man since 1978 it is a permanent deferral.
      If you have any other questions please feel free to contact me by phone or email.
      480-675-5497 or kcerqua@bloodsystems.org

    • #3097261

      Me as a South Park character

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      A friend of mine made me as a South Park character with some help from?South Park Studio.?
      ?

    • #3098313

      I want to feel your pain harder

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      This really does explain quite a bit about dating, but men like to see cheaters suffer.
      ?
      Yet more proof of the deeper symbolism of men being from Mars.
      ?
      ?

    • #3099865

      Another one down

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      "When tradition is the guise under which prejudice or animosity hides, it is not a legitimate state interest."
      -Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Brooke Murdock

    • #3133261

      My demon in convenient dog-sized form

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      My darling Shiba Inu is a very dedicated animal. He has now decided that he objects to being left to run around the back yard and kitchen all day long, and would prefer to access the rest of the house. Yesterday, I came home to find that he had more or less attempted to burrow through the door keeping the kitchen closed, before he ended up jumping over the 4′ child safety gate at the other end of the kitchen.
      ?
      Today, I put two chairs up against the safety gate and am running through ideas for how to keep Kit from ripping the doors in half. So far, four ideas:
      • Trim his nails to the quick
      • Strap shoes on him
      • Leave him in the kennel all day
      • Shut him outside (except he would attack a different door)

      Anybody else know what to do for dogs who claw? I just found stuff about training dogs who chew.

    • #3080884

      Fortune Cookie

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      "You should be able to make money and hold on to it."
      ?
      *sigh*
      ?
      That’s a really big should…

    • #3273028

      Book Review: Eldest

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      I actually finished this book about two weeks ago but gave it some time to settle before I decided what I think about this book. On the one hand, I read it in about two days, which is typically an indication of a good book. On the other hand, this book did little or nothing to advance the storyline.
      ?
      Eragon and Eldest are really just an extremely predictable story that is narrated very well. Eldest manages several different storylines with some degree of grace, though it’s still the work of a young author and it shows in the way that even with multiple storylines, the plot still advances in a highly linear fashion, with all characters more or less always aware of what each other are doing regardless of where on the continent they may be.
      ?
      I can’t say I really recommend these books. But, I wouldn’t talk you out of buying them. Just buy them in paperback and read them around the pool, they’re great for a few hours of mild entertainment. But if you want a really good laugh, check out the author’s whiny bio page with such lines as "Writing is the heart and soul of my being" and "Editing…felt like splinters of hot bamboo being driven into my tender eyeballs."
      ?

    • #3086481

      Understanding MIIS

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      MIIS, or Microsoft Identity Integration Service, is a storage and provisioning tool that runs in a suggested environment of Windows Server 2003 and a SQL Server 2000 database.
      ?
      The core MIIS components are called the metaverse, the connector spaces, and the management agents. There is one metaverse for each instance, and multiple connector spaces and management agents. Each of these elements can have their own DLL file, but only one.
      ?
      The management agents exist as connections to and from MIIS. They store all of the connection settings and server locations, as well as specify what fields or tables should be imported [projected] or exported [flowed]. There exists the ability to programmatically modify or evaluate values using the dll file, which is properly called a rules extension.
      ?
      Rather than moving directly into the metaverse, all data coming in and out is staged in a temporary database, which is called the connector space. The connector space is set to replicate at fixed intervals, just as management agents can be, and can also rely on a rules extension for the examination and modification of data. When viewing an object that has pending changes in the MIIS metaverse, it is possible to examine the connector space and see what is going to be added or modified.
      ?
      Now for the real interesting part: MIIS loves to play favorites. This is known as attribute flow precedence. Each attribute for an object in MIIS can come from multiple sources, and the priority can be set within the metaverse designer. One example for us is email address, which can come from MS Exchange, Active Directory, or a CRM system. In the event that the primary source of data is unavailable or does not have the attribute, it will go down through the flow precedence until it can find a value.
      ?
      Data goes out the same way it comes in: it is staged on a connector space until the management agent runs to flow the values out to the destination. Again, rules extensions can be used to prep the data for the destination.
      ?
      And that’s MIIS in a nutshell.

    • #3148029

      MIIS error codes

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      This is all shamelessly appropriated from the MIIS release notes. However, I was unable to find them anywhere on the web, so I’m reposting here. All contents here are copyright Microsoft.

      Management agent run error codes

      The following tables contain error codes that might appear in the Identity Manager user interface, as well as descriptions for each of those errors.

      Connection errors

      Error Description
      failed-connection Connection to the connected directory has failed for a reason other than authentication. For example, the network is unavailable, or the target server is offline.
      dropped-connection The connection between the management agent and the connected directory no longer exists. The management agent tries to reconnect to the connected directory in many instances.
      failed-authentication Authentication is not possible using the supplied credentials.
      failed-permission Insufficient rights to access a container in the connected directory. This error is only expected for Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) management agents that search different connected directory containers.
      failed-search A container or table search failed with an unexpected error.
      warning-no-watermark The management agent can not read the watermark when doing a full import. This error is only expected for the management agent for Sun ONE Directory Server 5.1 (formerly iPlanet Directory Server) when the initial management agent configuration is completed and the connected directory has change log enabled. Later, when the connected directory change log is turned off, if the management agent configuration is not updated, this warning occurs when a full import is done.

      Discovery errors

      Error Description
      missing-change-type This error is returned during a delta import run by file-based and database management agents, as well as the management agent for Sun and Netscape directory servers, when the change type column value (add, modify, delete) is not present.
      invalid-change-type This error is returned during a delta import run by file-based and database management agents, as well as the management agent for Sun and Netscape directory servers when the change type column value does not match the list of valid change types. It is also returned from an LDAP Data Interchange Format (LDIF) full import when a change type field is present and has a value other than add.
      multi-valued-change-type This error is returned during a delta import run by file-based and Sun and Netscape directory servers management agents when more than one value for the change type is present.
      need-full-object This error is returned during a delta import run of a file-based management agent or when resuming from a file-based management agent. It indicates that the management agent has submitted a modification on an object which cannot be located in the connector space. The synchronization engine is requesting the current values of all attributes on the object. Since this is an import from a file, that information is not available. A full import should resolve this problem.
      missing-dn This error is returned for file-based management agents (that is, management agents for LDIF, DSML, or flat files with configured domain name attributes) when there is no domain name value. This is also returned in the case of a corrupted Sun ONE Directory Server change log where the domain name attribute is missing. It indicates that the management agent could read the element and parse it, but there was no domain name value for the object.
      dn-not-ldap-conformant This error is returned when a management agent for LDAP, LDIF, DSML, or a flat file with a configured domain name attribute reports a domain name value that does not conform to the LDAP specification.
      invalid-dn This error is returned when a management agent reports that a domain name does not meet a Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003 constraint, which includes:

      • One or more characters that are not allowed by Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003
      • An empty relative distinguished name (also known as RDN)
      • A relative distinguished name that exceeds the maximum for Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003
      • The number of hierarchy levels of the domain name exceeds the maximum for Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003
      missing-anchor-component This error is returned by file-based and database management agents, as well as the management agent for Sun and Netscape directory servers, when the anchor cannot be constructed because one or more anchor construction rule attributes do not have values.
      multi-valued-anchor-component This error is returned by the management agent for Sun and Netscape directory servers if they cannot construct the anchor because an anchor construction rule attribute has more than one value.
      anchor-too-long This error is returned by file-based and database management agents, as well as the management agent for Sun and Netscape directory servers, when the anchor construction produces an anchor that exceeds the maximum size limit for Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003.
      duplicate-object This error is returned on full imports by file-based and database management agents when an object with the same anchor has already been reported to the synchronization engine during this run.
      missing-object-class This error is returned by a file-based management agent (that is, a management agent for DSML, LDIF, or a flat file with a configured object class attribute), or for the management agent for Sun and Netscape directory servers, if there is a corrupted change log. This indicates that the management agent cannot read a value for the object class attribute.
      missing-object-type This error is returned when performing a resume of import from a corrupted drop file. This error should not be encountered during normal operation.
      unmappable-object-type This error is returned by a file-based management agent when it reads an object that has a set of object class values that cannot be matched to any of the prefix mappings.
      parse-error This error is returned by the management agent for Sun and Netscape directory servers in delta mode and by file-based management agents when they cannot parse an entry. The <entry-number> element (and in most cases <line-number> and <column-number>) will be present to help locate the error. The <attribute-name> element might be present. The management agent for Sun and Netscape directory servers terminates the run when this is encountered. The file-based management agents log the discovery error and continue.
      read-error This error is returned by call-based management agents when there is a generic error reading a particular object. This generally causes termination of the run. The connected data source error element is present, which you can use to troubleshoot the problem.
      staging-error This error is returned by most management agents. It indicates that the synchronization engine could not stage the delta in the connector space. The server creates an event log that provides information about the problem and that can be used for troubleshooting. Most management agents continue the import run when the error is logged, but the management agent for Sun and Netscape delta runs stops because gaps in the change log processing could be cause an inconsistent state in the connector space. This error should not be encountered during normal operation.
      invalid-modification-type This error is returned during a delta import on an LDIF management agent when an object level modification type is not one of the standard LDIF modification types or there is a non-replace modification type on the objectclass, such as add: objectclass or delete: objectclass.
      conflicting-modification-types This error is returned by the LDIF management agent indicating differing attribute level modification types were encountered in the same record (in this case the attribute name which produced the conflicting types is reported) or multiple replace LDIF deltas are seen in the same file, such as:
      replace: objectclass
      objectclass: group

      replace: objectclass
      objectclass: user

      multi-single-mismatch This error is returned by a file-based management agent when it reports more than one value add, or more than one value delete for an attribute that is defined in Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003 as being a single value attribute. This error might indicate that the connected data source schema that is stored with Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003 is incorrectly specified (file-based management agents) or out of date with the current schema. Includes an <attribute-name> element to give the context of the error.
      invalid-attribute-value This error is returned by a call-based management agent when an attribute value is read that does not conform to the attribute type declared in the schema. Includes an <attribute-name> element to give the context of the error.
      invalid-base64-value This error is returned by the management agents for LDIF, DSML and Sun and Netscape directory servers when they encounter an invalid base64 string.
      invalid-numeric-value This error is returned by file-based management agents and the management agent for LDAP when they are unable to parse a numeric value. Includes an <attribute-name> element to give the context of the error.
      invalid-boolean-value This error is returned by file-based management agents and the management agent for LDAP when they are unable to parse a Boolean value. Includes an <attribute-name> element to give the context of the error.
      reference-value-not-ldap-conformant This error is returned by management agents for LDAP, LDIF, and DSML or flat files (with configured domain name attribute) when a domain name value does not conform to the LDAP specification. This error message includes an <attribute-name> element to give the context of the error.
      invalid-reference-value This error is returned by a management agent when a domain name does not meet Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003 constraints, which include:

      • One or more characters that are not allowed by Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003
      • An empty relative distinguished name (also known as RDN)
      • A relative distinguished name that exceeds the maximum for Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003
      • The number of hierarchy levels of the domain name exceeded the maximum for Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003
      unsupported-value-type This error is returned by the DSML or LDIF management agent when the type of value given in the file is incompatible with the type of attribute, including:

      • A URI or URL value is given for a non-string attribute or for any reserved keyword such as dn, objectclass, or changetype.
      • A base64 value is given for the changetype attribute.
      • A string value containing non-ASCII characters is given for a binary attribute.

      Synchronization errors

      Error Description
      extension-dll-exception This error occurs if a rules extension causes an exception. If you encounter this error, look at the <exception-error-info> element to examine the call stack of the exception. In some cases, the <rule-error-info> is present and provides additional information about what rule was being processed when the error occurred.
      extension-dll-crash This error occurs when the process executing the rules extension unexpectedly terminated. This error can only occur when a rule extension is being executed out-of-process. A possible cause for this error value is the rules extension is calling code that causes an access violation.
      extension-dll-timeout This error occurs if the customer has configured an extension timeout and the call on a single customer extension code entry point exceeds the configured timeout. The <exception-error-info> will give contextual information about what entry point was being called when it timed out. In some cases the <rule-error-info> will be present and will provide additional information about which rule was being processed when the error occurred. Note that when you are debugging the process that is executing the extension, timeouts are not enforced.
      extension-projection-object-type-not-set This error occurs The implementation of the IMASynchronization.ShouldProjectToMV method in the rules extension does not specify the metaverse object type.
      extension-projection-invalid-object-type This error occurs when the implementation of the IMASynchronization.ShouldProjectToMV method in the rules extension sets the value of the outbound metaverse object type to a value that is not listed in Metaverse Designer of Identity Manager. Check that the method uses one of the specified object type values.
      extension-join-resolution-invalid-object-type This error occurs when the implementation of the IMASynchronization.ResolveJoinSearch method in the rules extension sets the value of the outbound metaverse object type to a value that is not listed in Metaverse Designer of Identity Manager. Check that the method sets the value of the outbound metaverse object type to one of the listed object type values.
      extension-join-resolution-index-out-of-bounds This error occurs when an implementation of the IMASynchronization.ResolveJoinSearch method in the rules extension set an index value that is either negative or greater than equal to the number of metaverse objects.
      extension-provisioning-call-limit-reached This error occurs when the IMASynchronization.Provision method is called more than 10 times during the synchronization of a single object. This method can be called more than once if the customer logic in the Provision method deprovisions an object and there is attribute recall that causes a change to the metaverse object resulting in a new call to Provision. The 10 call limit for the Provision method is set to stop possible infinite provisioning notes.
      extension-deprovisioning-invalid-result This error occurs when an implementation of the IMASynchronization.Deprovision method returns an invalid DeprovisionAction enumeration value. Verify that the method returns a valid value.
      extension-entry-point-not-implemented This error occurs when a rules extension throws an EntryPointNotImplementedException exception.
      extension-unexpected-attribute-value This error occurs when a rules extension throws an UnexpectedDataException exception.
      flow-multi-values-to-single-value This error occurs when an import or export attribute flow rule configured in Identity Manager attempts to flow an attribute with multiple values to a single-value attribute. This error is only returned for direct flow rules configured in Identity Manager. If the flow rule uses a rules extension that flows multiple values to a single-value attribute, the TooManyValuesException exception is thrown.
      cs-attribute-type-mismatch This error occurs when the type of the imported attribute does not match the attribute type specified in the management agent schema. One cause of this error could be that the stored connected data source schema has become out of date with the actual schema of the connected data source. To bring the stored connected data source schema up-to-date, refresh the schema using Identity Manager.
      join-object-id-must-be-single-valued This error occurs when the data source attribute value used to join a metaverse object through a join rule specified in the properties of a management agent in Identity Manager contains more than one value. The data source attribute value used in the join rule can only contain a single value.
      dn-index-out-of-bounds This error occurs when the distinguished name component index value used in an import attribute flow configured in the properties of a management agent in Identity Manager is larger than the number of components in the distinguished name of the source object.
      connector-filter-rule-violation This error occurs when you perform an add or rename provisioning operation or export attribute flow and when a connector object becomes a filtered disconnector object as a result of a connector-filter configuration. This value does not occur on explicit connector objects.
      unsupported-container-delete The management agent is attempting to delete a container object during deprovisioning. Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003 management agents cannot delete container objects with child objects.
      ambiguous-import-flow-from-multiple-connectors This error occurs when you have multiple connectors under the source management agent connected to the metaverse object and a declarative import attribute flow rule is defined. To import attributes through a management agent with multiple connectors to a metaverse object, use a rules extension to define the flow rules rather than configuring a direct rule in the properties of a management agent.
      ambiguous-export-flow-to-single-valued-attribute This error occurs when the export flow rule, configured in the properties for a management agent in Identity Manager, attempts to flow multiple values from a metaverse object to a single-value attribute.
      cannot-parse-object-id The string value that is used to search for a metaverse object in a join rule that is specified in the properties of a management agent in Identity Manager is not in the correct globally unique identifier (GUID) format. The GUID format is {nnnnnnnn-nnnn-nnnn-nnnn-nnnnnnnnnnnn} where n is a hexadecimal number.
      unexported-container-rename The implementation of the IMVSynchronization.Provision or IMASynchronization.Deprovision method is attempting to rename a container object with one or more unexported child objects.
      mv-constraint-violation This error occurs when direct import attribute flow occurs and the attribute value from the connector space exceeds the length restrictions of the metaverse attribute.
      locking-error-needs-retry Multiple management agents are attempting to synchronize the same connector space object. Run the management agent again.
      unique-index-violation A user is manually setting a unique index on an attribute in a metaverse table. Do not manually configure the metaverse tables.
      encryption-key-lost The encryption key sets are missing from the server that is running Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003.
      unexpected-error This error occurs when the synchronization engine tries to apply a change to the metaverse (including provisioning and export attribute flow). This error can only occur during runs which apply changes to the metaverse. Check the event log for more information.
      exported-change-not-reimported This error occurs when changes that are exported to a management agent are not reconfirmed during this import management agent run. A user or a system process operating outside of Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003 has changed the data in the connected data source in a way that indicates a configuration problem where the export attribute flow rule is trying to flow a value to a connected data source object, but the connected data source automatically resets the value to something different without reporting an error to the management agent. The <change-not-reimported> element indicates which changes were not reconfirmed.
      cannot-parse-dn-component This error is returned by any management agent that has an LDAP-style distinguished name (also known as DN) configured and synchronization from the connector space to the metaverse has failed. A distinguished name component cannot be parsed by a dn-component mapping because it is not in the correct format for the destination attribute type.

      Export errors

      Error Description
      cd-missing-object This error is returned when a modify of an object is exported to the connected data source, but the object cannot be found in the connected data source. It is returned only for call-based management agents. The cause of this error is that a person or external process has deleted an object from the connected data source outside of Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003.
      cd-existing-object This error is returned when an add is exported to the connected data source, but the object is already present in the connected data source. It is returned only for call-based management agents and relational database management agents.
      duplicate-anchor This error is returned if the anchor on a newly provisioned object is not unique. It is returned only for call-based and database management agents, as well as the management agent for Sun and Netscape directory servers. If this error is encountered, check the anchor construction rules to ensure that a unique anchor value for each object has been defined.
      ambiguous-update This error is returned when the management agent cannot apply an update or delete delta because the anchor is not unique. It is returned only for the management agents for Microsoft SQL Server and Oracle Database. If this error is encountered, check the anchor construction rules to ensure that a unique anchor value for each object has been defined.
      password-policy-violation This error is returned by the management agents for Active Directory and Active Directory global address list (GAL) when the password attribute is set or changed to a value that does not meet the administrator-defined password policy of the connected data source.
      password-set-disallowed This error is returned by the management agent for Active Directory Application Mode (ADAM) when the password encryption is set to no encryption or 128-bit Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), and the administrator has not explicitly made an override to allow password sets in this scenario.
      kerberos-time-skew This error is returned by the management agents for Active Directory and Active Directory global address list (GAL) when the password attribute is being set or changed and the Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003 server machine time is more than five minutes different from the time on the domain controller.
      kerberos-no-logon-server This error is returned by the management agents for Active Directory and Active Directory global address list (GAL) when they try to set or change a password attribute and cannot resolve the server for the domain part of the logon credentials. This can be caused by an incorrect NetBIOS or DNS configuration.
      encryption-not-enabled This error is returned by the management agent for Active Directory Application Mode (ADAM) when the password attribute is set or being changed and the connection that the management agent uses to communicate to the connected data source has not been configured with an appropriate encryption mechanism (128 bit SSL or TLS). ADAM requires either 128 bit SSL or TLS configuration for setting passwords.
      invalid-dn This error is returned by the management agents for LDAP and Windows?NT 4.0 when exporting a newly provisioned object or renaming an existing object and when the distinguished name is incompatible with the connected data source naming requirements.
      schema-violation This error is returned by the management agent for LDAP when exporting an object modification and adding a attribute that is not in the connected data source schema or when removing an attribute from an object that is required by the schema. Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003 does not allow these operations to occur because its rules check the stored copy of the connected data source schema. However, this problem might occur if the Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003 schema is out of date with the connected data source schema. If you encounter this problem, refresh the management agent schema by using the user interface.
      constraint-violation This error is returned by the management agent for LDAP and database management agents when the export of an add, modify, or delete violates connected data source enforced constraints. Typical causes for the management agent for LDAP include setting multiple values for a single value attribute, exceeding field width constraints on string and binary attributes, or violating range constraints on numeric attributes. There are many possible causes for database management agents, including referential integrity, rules, and constraints that might be defined for their database.
      syntax-violation This error is returned by the management agents for LDAP and Windows?NT 4.0 when the value for an attribute violates certain value constraints. For example, when the value being exported contains an invalid character.
      modify-naming-attribute This error is returned by the management agent for LDAP when a naming attribute (such as CN for many object types) is set to a value that conflicts with the relative distinguished name (also known as RDN) value. This can happen because of a poorly defined export attribute flow rule or because an error in the script code that sets initial values on a newly provisioned object.
      insufficient-field-width This error is returned by the management agent for fixed-width text files when exporting an add or modify to an object and when the value of an attribute exceeds the width of the column.
      insufficient-columns This error is returned by the management agents for fixed-width and delimited text files when exporting an add or modify to an object and when the number of values for a multivalue attribute exceeds the number of columns configured for that attributes multiple values.
      permission-issue This error is returned by the management agents for LDAP and Windows?NT 4.0 when the export of an add, modify, or delete fails because the management agent has insufficient permissions to perform the operation against the connected data source.
      dn-attributes-failure This error is returned by the management agents for Active Directory, Active Directory global address list (GAL), and Active Directory Application Mode (ADAM) when exporting an add or modify sets a reference value for which there is no corresponding connected data source object. If you see this error, use the connector space object viewer to determine which changes to reference attributes were not successfully exported.
      non-existent-parent This error is returned by the management agent for LDAP when either the export of an add or a rename fails because the parent object does not exist in the connected data source.
      code-page-conversion This error is returned by file-based management agents when the conversion of an attribute value, which is stored in Unicode within the server running Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003, to the code page of the export file failed because of conversion errors.
      no-export-to-this-object-type This error is returned by the management agent for Windows?NT 4.0 when you try to perform provisioning operations or export attribute flow on computer objects. Export operations are not allowed on this type of object but you can perform an import on objects of this type.
      missing-provisioning-attribute This error is returned by the management agent for Lotus Notes when you are exporting a newly provisioned object and when certain attributes that are required for provisioning a new object have not been set by the rules extension.
      invalid-provisioning-attribute-value This error is returned when you are exporting a newly provisioned object and when certain attributes for provisioning set by the rules extension are invalid, for example, when they are not in a certain value range.
      provision-to-secondary-nab This error is specific to the management agent for Lotus Notes when an attempt is made to provision a person or certifier object to a secondary Lotus Notes address book. Lotus Notes only allows provisioning contacts to secondary address books.
      missing-anchor-component This error is returned when you are exporting a newly provisioned object and an anchor cannot be generated because a value required for constructing the anchor is not available. Possible causes are when an attribute is not set during provisioning (that is, in management agents for Sun or Netscape directory servers, database, and file-based management agents), or it cannot be read from the connected data source (that is, in management agents for Active Directory, Sun and Netscape directory servers, and database management agents) when the anchor is constructed from an auto-increment column.
      multi-valued-anchor-component This error is generated by the management agent for Sun and Netscape directory servers when it cannot construct the anchor for a newly provisioned object because one of the attributes that are used in constructing the anchor has multiple values. Attributes used in the anchor construction can be defined to be multivalue in the connected data source schema, but they must only have a single value on the actual objects in Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003.
      anchor-too-long This error is returned by file-based and database management agents, as well as the management agent for Sun and Netscape directory servers, when the anchor construction produces an anchor that exceeds the maximum size limit for Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003. The maximum length of anchor values for a single attribute in the connector space is 398 characters. If the anchor is constructed from multiple attributes, subtract 2 characters for each additional attribute. For example, an anchor constructed of 3 attributes (sn+location+telephoneNumber) would have a limit of 392 characters.
      invalid-attribute-value This error occurs when you try to flow out an attribute value that contains characters which are invalid for the connected data source. For example, the attribute values exported to the management agents for fixed-width text files, delimited text files, and attribute-value pair text files cannot contain CR, LF, or EOF characters.
      encryption-key-lost This error should not be encountered as part of normal operation. It indicates that Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003 is unable to decrypt the value of an encrypted attribute that is stored in the connector space when it loads the object. It might indicate that the encryption key sets used by Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003 are missing from the computer. This error can be generated by any management agent that contains a password attribute such as Active Directory, Active Directory global address list (GAL), Sun and Netscape directory servers, Lotus Notes, and Windows?NT 4.0.
      locking-error-needs-retry This error should only occur when multiple management agents have tried to synchronize the same connector space object at the same time. If this error is encountered, try running the export a second time.
      cd-error This error is returned when the connected data source has a specialized error type. This error is accompanied by the <cd-error> element, and the information contained there should aid in troubleshooting.
      unexpected-error This error is returned when a change is trying to be exported and the operation causes a malfunction. If this error is encountered, look in the event log for more information that will help troubleshoot the problem.
      no-export-to-this-object-type This error is returned by the management agent for Windows?NT 4.0 when you try to perform provisioning operations or when you export attribute flow on computer objects. The management agent for Windows?NT 4.0 does not support export operations on this type of object.
      certifier-ou-not-configured This error is returned by the management agent for Lotus Notes when you are trying to provision a new user or container and the certifier name you have specified for the _MMS_Certifier attribute is not the name of a properly configured certifier container. Each certifier container must be configured using Identity Manager before it can be used in provisioning.
      temporary-certifier-file-creation-failure This error is returned by the management agent for Lotus Notes when a new user or container is provisioned and the process of creating the certifier file fails for any reason (for example, out of disk space, permissions, and so on). The Microsoft Identity Integration Server?2003 process for creating the certifier file is to fetch the certifier information for the certifier container, specified by the _MMS_Certifier attribute, and temporarily create a certifier file in the MAData folder of the management agent for Lotus Notes for use by the Notes API.
      unexpected-provisioning-attribute This error is returned by the management agent for Lotus Notes when you are exporting a newly provisioned object and certain attributes for provisioning, set by the customer extension, should not be included because they are incompatible with the values of other provisioning attributes. For example, you might see this error when:

      • You create a contact (_MMS_IDRegType=0) and supply any one of the following attributes: _MMS_Certifier, _MMS_OU, _MMS_Password, _MMS_IDStoreType, _MMS_IDPath, or MailFile
      • You create a US user or International user but do not specify creating an ID file (_MMS_IDStoreType=0), but supply the _MMS_IDPath or MailFile attributes
      • You create an OU (certifier), and supply the _MMS_OU attribute
      • You create an O (certifier), and supply the _MMS_Certifier attribute

    • #3148018

      Quote of the day

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      "Times have not become more violent. They have just become more televised." -Marilyn Manson

    • #3148019

      Another memo

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      "The memo also shows that the president and the prime minister acknowledged that no unconventional weapons had been found inside Iraq. Faced with the possibility of not finding any before the planned invasion, Mr. Bush talked about several ways to provoke a confrontation, including a proposal to paint a United States surveillance plane in the colors of the United Nations in hopes of drawing fire, or assassinating Mr. Hussein."-NYTimes, 3/27/06. [Article link]
      ?
      Elsewhere in the article:
      "The memo indicates the two leaders envisioned a quick victory and a transition to a new Iraqi government that would be complicated, but manageable. Mr. Bush predicted that it was "unlikely there would be internecine warfare between the different religious and ethnic groups." Mr. Blair agreed with that assessment."
      ?
      Other than just feeling slightly more disappointed, I truly regret the kind of ammo this gives to?the left-wing nutters.
      ?
      Actions like using decoy planes or assassinations are shockingly unethical where not outright illegal. There really just appears to be nothing that the president won’t stoop down to. I keep lowering and lowering the bar for my expectations, and he keeps advancing to the next round of limbo.

    • #3148020

      Temptation

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Wow. Finally a Republican strategy that brings me into the big tent!

    • #3148021

      Review: A Thread of Grace

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Mary Doria Russell‘s A Thread of Grace?is one of the greatest books I’ve ever read. I just finished the last chapters last night and was on the edge of my seat for the last half of the book, taking it with me to work, they gym, in the car to work in a few pages. Rarely do books have that kind of pull on me.
      ?
      Everything I want to say about this book would take the fun away from anyone who wants to read it. For those who may be interested, this text, along with her prior work The Sparrow, are voiced confidently, well-developed, and as intricate as an old pocketwatch. The humanity of the characters is breathtaking, and likely drawns from the author’s prior career history as an anthropologist. The characters are people you know, people you’ve been, people you want to become. The ones you despise are those that share your flaws. The ones you adore have the confidence and gall you’ve always wanted.
      ?
      A Thread of Grace is a book I can’t recommend highly enough. A quick overview of the storyline: The last twenty months of WWII, Jews in Northern Italy under German occupation trying to hide into the countryside to avoid being sent on trains back to Palestine, which is what the Germans were claiming to be up to. As the refugees cross the Alps and the local Jews go into deep hiding, the central theme of the book, a fragment of which is the title, comes into play in a staggeringly powerful way without ever crossing the line into the obtuse or obvious.

    • #3148022

      Song for the new year

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Every year on my birthday, I pick a theme song for how I feel about the year to come. This year is "I Believe In Symmetry" by Bright Eyes:

      Some plans were made and rice was thrown

      A house was built, a baby born

      How time can move both fast and slow

      Amazes me

      And so I raise my glass to symmetry

      To the second hand and its accuracy

      To the actual size of everything

      The desert is the sand

      You can’t hold it in your hand

      It won’t bow to your demands

      There’s no difference you can make

      There’s no difference you can make

      And if it seems like an accident

      A collage of senselessness

      You aren’t looking hard enough

      I wasn’t looking hard enough at it

      An argument for consciousness

      The instinct of the blind insect

      Who makes love to the flower bed

      And dies in the first freeze

      Oh I want to learn such simple things

      No politics, no history

      Till what I want and what I need

      Can finally be the same

      I just got myself to blame

      Is everything up to fate

      When there’s choices I could make

      When there’s choices I could make

      Yeah, my heart needs a polygraph

      Always so eager to pack my bags

      When I really wanna stay

      When I really wanna stay

      When I wanna stay [4x]

      The arc of time, the stench of sex

      The innocence you can’t protect

      Each quarter note, each marble step

      Walk up and down that lonely treble clef

      Each wanting the next one

      Each wanting the next one to arrive

      Each wanting the next one

      Each wanting the next one to arrive

      An argument for consciousness

      The instinct of the blind insect

      Who never thinks

      Not to accept its fate, that’s faith

      There is happiness in death

      You get to the next one

      You get to the next on down the line

      You get to the next one

      You get to the next on down the line

      The levity of longing that

      Distills each dream inside my head

      By morning watered down forget

      On silver stars I wish and wish and wish

      From one to the next one

      From one to the next right down the line

      From one to the next one

      From one to the next right down the line

      You get to the next one

      You get to the next on down the line

      You get to the next one

      You get to the next on down the line

    • #3148023

      Homework 2 for cultural awareness

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Citing recent world events regarding the Danish publications of editorial cartoons involving the prophet Muhammad, Comedy Central refused to air a section of an episode of South Park on April 12th, 2006 that showed an image of the prophet. Interestingly enough, an episode several seasons ago was able to depict Muhammad in an episode entitled ?The Super Best Friends? airing on July 4th, 2001. This article is significant to me and to the class as it covers not only religious minorities, but also our own ability to discuss them and treat them all equally. South Park brilliantly suggested this at the end of their episode by showing a clip involving Jesus defecating on the American flag and President Bush, that in the episode was broadcast by Al-Qaeda in response to the showing of Muhammad.

      ??????????? Logical, mature discourse is threatened when key subjects or figures are withheld from discussion for being taboo. The censorship of South Park should be of concern to America, as it represents a step backwards in open communication. Being able to toy with the image of Jesus and not the image of Muhammad is directly supporting an inequality in the two religions and making special allowances for one religion over another. Or as one character said on the episode, ?Freedom of speech is at stake here, don?t you all see? If anything, we should all make cartoons of Muhammad and show the terrorists and the extremists that we are all united in the belief that every person has a right to say what they want.?

      ??????????? Both of my articles thus far have centered on the limits of tolerance, and where people begin exploiting sensitivity to advance their own cause.?If America?s melting pot myth has given way to a stew metaphor, these developments suggest that stew is giving way to a dangerous mixture of baking soda and vinegar.

    • #3148024

      What did I miss?

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Yesterday, my Ethics teacher said he was "shocked" that I’ve never read Stranger in a Strange Land.
      What other books out there am I missing?
      What is on your required reading list?
      ?
      ?

    • #3148025

      The Second Coming — W. B. Yeats

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Today’s a great day for some classic poetry.

      Turning and turning in the widening gyre
      The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
      Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
      Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
      The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
      The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
      The best lack all convictions, while the worst
      Are full of passionate intensity.

      Surely some revelation is at hand;
      Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
      The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out
      When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
      Troubles my sight: somewhere in sands of the desert
      A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
      A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,
      Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it
      Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds.
      The darkness drops again; but now I know
      That twenty centuries of stony sleep
      Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
      And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
      Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

    • #3148026

      Hiking AZ: Picachu Peak

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Today, I’m busy recovering from a hiking trip down to Picachu Peak State Park, which is near Casa Grande, Arizona.
      ?
      The name of the trail we were on is "Hunter Trail", which is rated as a difficult. I think it took us about an hour and a half to reach the summit, and that did involve many sections of trail where you are holding onto steel cables for dear life. Picachu Peak has a large amount of rock outcroppings, so the steel cables are set on some of the steeper sections where the smooth rock wouldn’t provide enough grips or?traction for the average hiker.
      ?
      This was a really great trail. I do not recommend it for people who have a fear of heights, as there are a couple parts where you are right up against the edge of a very large drop, with a steel cable or two between you and a very serious injury.
      ?
      Here’s a pretty good review of Hunter Trail, and another site with a list of Picachu Peak’s park features.
      Oh, and it’s only $6 per car to get in, and there is a Dairy Queen just on the other side of the interstate to keep you motivated.
      ?
      Pi…ka…chu!!!!!!

    • #3148027

      Praise from a teacher

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Wow, kinda happy to read the final feedback from my instructor in my International Business class:
      ?
      "you seem to be a very bright young man with a good
      future. While you are working toward your immediate goal of earning a
      bachelor’s degree, don’t forget that your ultimate destination lies over the
      horizon. The direction you take now will determine where you land."
      ?
      ?
      Aw…group hug…

    • #3148028

      Public speaking pitfalls

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      This short video demonstrates about every public speaking mistake you can make.

    • #3148017

      Anna turns one

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      My niece, Anna Louise, just had her first birthday. Look at all that red hair! She’s going to be a terror.
      ?

    • #3156981

      Book Review: Foucault’s Pendulum

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      After an embarrassingly long time, I finally finished Foucault’s Pendulum while I was in Portland last weekend.
      ?
      Da Vinci Code reads like the Cliff Notes for Kindergarteners version of this book. It’s dense enough to attract small objects when placed on your desk. With a scope of the entirety of human history and constant plunges into the minds and tales of Italian resistance fighters, megalomaniacs, scholars, royalty, and assassins, this is a book that covers an enormous amount of ground (namely, everything that ever happened and why) without ever feeling rushed.
      ?
      And yet, it took me a long time to finish it. The long plunges into histories of obscure cults, sects, and the main characters’ efforts to find links between them can make a chapter feel like a volume. I really do think there is more historical content in each chapter of this novel than one finds in most historical / conspiracy books. I certainly learned quite a bit, but as most of it is heavily colored by the bias of ‘the plan’, you really can’t trust a word of it. And yet…
      ?
      Basic plotline: In the not-so-distant past, two editors and a scholar start a line of books dealing with the occult and secret societies, mostly just to fleece the authors. Based on a few random events and a mysterious death, they wonder what would happen if they suspended their disbelief and looked at all of the submissions they received as pieces of a large puzzle. Randomly feeding historical and pop-culture references into a computer and randomly pulling one out when they hit a dead end, the story they concoct, or "the plan", grows increasingly plausible and real as other players in the plan begin to take note of their activities. Eventually, we are left grappling with the nature of reality, perception, and history.
      ?
      Oh, and to those of you who have an aversion to exceedingly literary literature, a whole lotta people die. Some in amazingly detailed, bizarre, and horrific ways.
      ?
      Highly recommended, but not a light read. Most chapters are really short, so great to read two or three at a time to avoid feeling like you just sat through a four hour history class taught by an obsessive-compulsive and wildly enthusiastic person with multiple PhDs and personalities.
      ?
      ?

    • #3145423

      Photo Album: My Blog Photos

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      My Blog Photos


      I’m Afraid of Americans

      Sucker

      CRError

      02-American Idiot 1024

      kal

      plante

      sq-south-park-812-cc

      zyglis

      SQLServerOR

      StatesRights

      More Photos…

    • #3142640

      Snap!

      by arsnake ·

      In reply to Analyst Pages

      Just got a collection of entertaining quotes on an email forward, some were new to me.

      ?

      ?"He has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire."
      ?– Winston Churchill
      ?
      ?"A modest little person, with much to be modest about."
      ?– Winston Churchill
      ?
      ?"I have never killed a man, but I have read many obituaries with great pleasure."
      ?– Clarence Darrow
      ?
      ?"He has never been known to use a word that might send a reader to the dictionary."
      ?– William Faulkner (about Ernest Hemingway)
      ?
      ?"He can compress the most words into the smallest idea of any man I know."
      ?– Abraham Lincoln
      ?
      ?"I’ve had a perfectly wonderful evening. But this wasn’t it."
      ?– Groucho Marx
      ?
      ?"I didn’t attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying I approved of it."
      ?– Mark Twain
      ?
      ?"He has no enemies, but is intensely disliked by his friends."
      ?– Oscar Wilde
      ?
      ?"I am enclosing two tickets to the first night of my new play, bring a friend… if you have one."
      ?– George Bernard Shaw to Winston Churchill
      ?
      ?"Cannot possibly attend first night, will attend second… if there is one."
      ?– Winston Churchill, in reply

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