The journey continues...

Brian Bilbrey September 11, 2013

Bad sysadmin, no cookie

In a fit of giggles, I did something on purpose which one normally only does by mistake. I zeroed out a boot drive on a Linux box. The system had previously been wiped with DBAN, and a test CentOS install thrown on for REASONS. Those reasons were done, and it was due for wiping again anyway, so, what the heck... dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/sda bs=4M Do NOT cut and paste that into your *NIX box as root unless you're not running Linux (in which case /dev/sda is unlikely to exist), or you want a re-install opportunity because you've got great backups…

Brian Bilbrey September 8, 2013

Launch weekend

Well, it was a launch for NASA's LADEE mission, a lunar orbiter (full name Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer"), from Wallops Island in Virginia. I headed up by the tennis courts to get a better south east view, further from the trees. Using binoculars, I was able to clearly see the ascent from about 10 seconds post-launch, through first stage separation and second stage firing, and on into the distance for a long while. Very cool. Usually the Wallops launches aren't so spectacular, and I'm usually clouded in and can't see them anyway from this distance. * * * In other…

Brian Bilbrey September 1, 2013

Travels done

And we're back! Nine days in California and in the air are done: We flew out to SFO on the 22nd, and flew back through DFW on the 30th. We visited with my folks for about three days, then headed over to SF and stayed there while I attended VMworld 2013. I attended three general sessions and 19 technical sessions in four and one-half days ... my brain nearly exploded. I watched countless demos, met many wonderful and smart people, and acquired enough t-shirts to last me until the next millennium. The weather was lovely, and Marcia split her time between…

Brian Bilbrey August 25, 2013

Virtually busy

I've been doing a lot with virtualization at work recently (using VMware), and at home too, using KVM on Scientific Linux. It's fun multiplying my hardware without spending any money (at home, grin). The garden is sad, and the heat is back. * * * Our condolences to the families, friends, and units of these fallen warriors: 1st Lt. Timothy G. Santos Jr., 29, of Helena, Alabama, died Aug. 18, in Fort Bliss, Texas, from a non-combat related illness diagnosed on March 24, in Kuwait City, Kuwait. Master Sgt. George A. Bannar Jr., 37, of Orange, Virginia, died Aug. 20,…

Brian Bilbrey August 18, 2013

Working weekend

It was a working weekend. Not as much as others in my department, but several hours yesterday, plus early morning snapshots and patching this AM. I note this not to whinge about it, but to observe how important it is for me to do things the right way, regardless of the time of day or week. Some tasks require commitments outside of business hours, and I'm happy to do that, and enjoy a job well done. "Well ... enough." anyway, as GladOS would say. I'm also caught up on the coffee roasting, did the shopping and a self-inflicted hair cut…