Confirm your dns recursive resolver

I just encountered this elegant implementation for a service that confirms what dns resolver is performing your recursive queries. Just go to http://myresolver.info.

The implementation details are at http://techblog.igwan.eu/2010/02/how-to-know-what-dns-server-your.html.

VirtualBox rocks

I used VMware Server 1 for the longest time to run several Linux virts. I needed to reinstall virtualization software on a new PC, but VMware Server version 2 is horrible, just awful. So instead of reinstalling the old version 1, which is a dead end, I decided to try VirtualBox. I tried it last year, but I didn't have a good experience. This time I'm very impressed. It has exactly the right set of features to quickly and simply create virts, without extra bloatiness.

Nice work, Sun, er, Oracle.

http://www.virtualbox.org/

Windows 7 shortcut arrow is too big

The Windows 7 shortcut indicator arrow is way too big. It covers a fourth of the actual icon.

Here's a procedure that worked for me to switch to the smaller XP overlay arrow:

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/10945-shortcut-arrow-change.html

Update: 2015-01-19: The original url is obsolete.  The updated url is http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/3606-shortcut-arrow-change-remove-restore.html

iTunes auto delete won't work -- fixed

I upgraded to a new computer with Windows 7 and moved my iTunes library to it. Right away I noticed that podcast auto delete was not working, even when I right-clicked on specific podcasts and made sure that "Allow Auto Delete" was on.

The fix was to open the podcast settings dialog and change the "episodes to keep" option. The problem is that in the latest iTunes, it's not obvious where to find that dialog box. It's not in the main preferences dialog. Instead find it by going to the podcasts view. Then look at the bottom of the window. You'll find "Unsubscribe" and "Settings..." buttons. Click "Settings...", then change the "Settings for:" field to "Podcast Defaults". Set "Episodes to keep:" to "All unplayed episodes".

Fedora, Postfix, and SELinux

Getting these types of errors in /var/log/maillog?

Jun 16 09:47:14 myhostname postfix/local[25474]: C269521F8C: to=, relay=local, delay=0.07, delays=0.02/0/0/0.04, dsn=5.2.0, status=bounced (cannot update mailbox /var/mail/root for user root. unable to create lock file /var/mail/root.lock: Permission denied)

You're running into SELinux denials for local mail delivery. In Fedora, correct that with:

# togglesebool allow_postfix_local_write_mail_spool

EDIT: I just realized that togglesebool only changes the running config and does not survive reboots. The permanent fix is:

# setsebool -P allow_postfix_local_write_mail_spool 1

YM845VKM3QX

YM845VKM3QX - Serial number of my son's iPod Nano stolen from Newport High School in January 2010... :(

Ubuntu and the Windows MBR

I installed Ubuntu 9.10 on an external usb drive yesterday, with Windows XP on the primary drive. I forgot that Ubuntu decides by default to write grub to the primary drive in this situation, overwriting the Windows MBR. Ergh! Why doesn't Ubuntu warn about that first?!

In addition to overwriting the Windows MBR, this grub setup also won't boot anything without the external usb drive connected.

I wanted to simply put back the XP MBR, but in this case I don't have the XP Administrator password, so I couldn't boot into the Recovery Console. Why does XP only offer this method for fixing the MBR?!

Ubuntu and Windows are annoying me today.

Fortunately I do have a local admin account on Windows, so I was able to use the third-party mbrfix.exe to rewrite the MBR. Again, why doesn't Windows include such a utility? *sigh*

"An error occurred while querying your Garmin GPS for information. Please ensure its software is current, and retry the Setup."

I bought a map update for my Garmin StreetPilot c330 the other day. I tried multiple troubleshooting steps, but every time I ran the map update utility, the goofy thing failed with:

An error occurred while querying your Garmin GPS for information. Please ensure its software is current, and retry the Setup.

There were no good google hits for this error message. And the Garmin support website was no help either.

I eventually resigned myself to calling tech support. The first-level guy didn't have any new ideas, so he passed me on to a second-level support tech. That guy used a special utility to make sure the unlock codes were cleared, but the install still failed. He said that the unit was hosed and had to be sent in for factory repair. I was irritated and frustrated at the whole situation.

Today I called Garmin again to demand a refund for the map update. In the course of handling that, I got through to a support manager. In our conversation he mentioned that norton antivirus is known to interfere with the map update process. Sure enough, I went into symantec antivirus, chose "unload service", and then the map update succeeded.

Why didn't the 1st and 2nd level support techs know to suggest disabling the antivirus? *sigh*

Pandora

A recent IEEE article sidebar discussed pandora.com. I've been trying Pandora tonight, and I'm liking it.

Coal Creek Park

I got out for the first hike of the year today. I did a six-mile out and back that's very near the house. It's Coal Creek Park, and the interesting thing is that it used to be a major railway and mining center, but now it's pretty much returned to nature.

map

Finally got some photos posted

It's been a long time since I posted new photos at Pbase. I had a big backlog of photos, and I finally finished processing them all this weekend. So I uploaded Seattle and Northwest photos from 2007.

http://www.pbase.com/saalwaechter/cwb

http://www.pbase.com/saalwaechter/pnw07

X server problem with Debian etch in VMware

When I install Debian etch in VMware, the system comes up on first boot with:

"Failed to start the X server (your graphical user interface). It is likely that it is not set up correctly. Would you like to view the X server output to diagnose the problem."

The log contains: "(EE) No devices detected. Fatal server error: no screens found".

Fix this by editing /etc/X11/xorg.conf and change the ``Driver "apm"'' line to ``Driver "vesa"''. Here's the diff:

--- xorg.conf.orig 2008-12-05 15:10:43.000000000 -0800
+++ xorg.conf 2008-12-05 15:23:59.000000000 -0800
@@ -65,7 +65,7 @@

Section "Device"
Identifier "VMware Inc [VMware SVGA II] PCI Display Adapter"
- Driver "apm"
+ Driver "vesa"
BusID "PCI:0:15:0"
EndSection

Permanently ignore packages in Apple Software Update

An annoyance of using iTunes is the Apple Software Update. At one point it forcibly pushed Safari on users. At least now Safari is an optional package. The problem is that Safari, and other packages, are "checked" for install by default. I was constantly having to pay attention to make sure I didn't accidentally trigger Apple's relentless quest to get Safari on to my machine.

Well, there is a solution. Under the Tools pull-down menu, there is an "Ignore Selected Updates" option. So one can simply check Safari and other packages, then use "Ignore Selected Updates". From then on, Apple Software Update will behave as though those packages don't exist.