Just downloaded and installed Mozilla 1.1beta - looks like they corrected a few bugs and have this browser looking really good!
posted by MikeM at 3:31 PM    

 
I now have the blog archives working - I will try to keep them up to date. The process is supposedly automated, but I had to manually make the link. I may experiment with this in the future, but it works fine for now.
posted by MikeM at 8:43 AM    

 
Yesterday evening we put our NJ relatives on the train home - we had a great time with them and hope to see them soon!
posted by MikeM at 11:40 AM    

 
I read on Brian's website that he and his family are winding up for the big move cross-country. Best wishes go to he and his, and a friendly welcome to his new home! I know he will find that Maryland is a great place! I hope that our two clans will manage to get together for dinner or something at some point in the near future!
posted by MikeM at 12:38 PM    

 
Our friend from NJ left Saturday night very late, and already we have houseguests again! Relatives from NJ are here, swimming, relaxing, and generally enjoying themselves! Patty took today and yesterday off so she could be with them, but I am working both days. I enjoy my work, actually, and I will have plenty of time with our guests this weekend.

So far our dogs are behaving, and Toby hasn't snarled or snapped at anyone, so I count it as a win so far.
posted by MikeM at 12:32 PM    

 
I got home from work yesterday to find that our dogs had flipped the trash can over and had themselves a buffet consisting of sesame chicken, cole slaw and macaroni salad (among other things) as well as an oatmeal-raisin-walnut cookie and half a peanut-butter fudge brownie. The vet says they should be fine, and we have noticed no ill effects. Looks like we need to move the trash can or find some sort of puppy-proof latch for it!
posted by MikeM at 1:49 PM    

 
The guest room is clean! I moved all of the computer equipment into a closet, all of the assorted boxes and such into other closets around the house, and the guest room actually looks like a guest room! Our friend will be arriving early Saturday morning and leaving sometime Sunday, and our relatives will be arriving Wednesday and leaving the following Sunday. Busy week!
posted by MikeM at 1:45 PM    

 
I recently re-discovered an old website I used to have online. It was an RPG page from the days before I moved to maryland, and included some of the old games I was involved in back then. Complete character descriptions and partial journals are included. I cleaned it up a little and put a link to it at the left. Enjoy!
posted by MikeM at 6:34 PM    

 
Books: Recently Completed - Mount Dragon, Currently Reading - Relic, Next in Line - Reliquary
All by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
posted by MikeM at 4:29 PM    

 
Ok - it's done. I just completely replaced my old home page with this new WebLog format, making the various pages of my old home page into regular links - see there to the left? I think this new format is fantastic, easy to read and a lot more interesting than the old one. I now have some incentive to update the site, and perhaps someone else will gain some insight or knowledge from these posts.
posted by MikeM at 7:41 PM    

 
I hoped to be able to play Mechwarrior 4 (my current favorite game) with the newly-released Inner Sphere Mech Pack - but I believe that due to Microsoft's addition of a security/anti-piracy program called C-Dilla, it is not working on my system.

Getting it to install at all was an adventure - you have to uninstall both Mechwarrior games (Mechwarrior 4 : Vengeance and MechWarrior 4 : Black Knight. You then reinstall the first game and run the latest patch - sp3 - then install the second game and install the patch for it - sp1bk. After this, the game plays fine, the patches work well, and everything is speedy.

However, once I install the Inner Sphere Mech Pack, the process of loading the game slows down by a factor of ten, and it goes away after the first play - so the second time I load the game, the IS Mech Pack materials are not available. Oh bother. And as a bonus, it still loads ten times slower than before. I think there is a problem with C-Dilla and Windows 98se, as that seems to be the only common thread among the 3-4 people I know of that have this problem.
posted by MikeM at 3:51 PM    

 
We have to do something this weekend that we have been putting off for months - clean out the guest room.

The guest room has become the place we put things we don't want to deal with putting in the attic. Like a spare table and chairs, old stereo receiver and speakers, and an entire closet-full of older computer components. (I WILL eventually finish making my linux box, really!)

We have an old friend staying over for the weekend of the 20th, and then on the 24th two relatives are coming in from out-of-state for a 5-day stay. Would be nice to have a guest room to put them in!
posted by MikeM at 2:22 PM    

 
Now then, with the VISA crisis behind me, I am making some changes to my website to add this blog - I think I may just replace my changes page altogether. This is certainly easier to use!
posted by MikeM at 6:02 PM    

 
Well. According to the Washington Post, NextCard folded back in February and all accounts were closed today. Isn't that just peachy. I wish someone had told me that NextCard was in trouble, and that this was possible. I had no idea that there was anything wrong! Five months, and they never even told the account holders that there was a problem. Nice of them.
posted by MikeM at 10:50 AM    

 
Here is the first entry in my online log - aka blog.

What is a weblog/blog?
A blog is a web page made up of usually short, frequently updated posts that are arranged chronologically - like a what's new page or a journal. The content and purposes of blogs varies greatly - from links and commentary about other web sites, to news about a company/person/idea, to diaries, photos, poetry, mini-essays, project updates, even fiction.

Blogs posts are like instant messages to the web.

Many blogs are personal, "what's on my mind" type musings. Others are collaborative efforts based on a specific topic or area of mutual interest. Some blogs are for play. Some are for work. Some are both.

Blogs are also excellent team/department/company/family communication tools. They help small groups communicate in a way that is simpler and easier to follow than email or discussion forums. Use a private blog on an intranet to allow team members to post related links, files, quotes, or commentary. Set up a family blog where relatives can share personal news. A blog can help keep everyone in the loop, promote cohesiveness and group culture, and provide an informal "voice" of a project or department to outsiders.

Look here for insights into what I think and what I do, including such diverse topics as home, pets, loved ones, computers, computer games, ebay, books, etc.
posted by MikeM at 2:46 PM