So I know that if I have a deadline I’ll do better as a writer. To this end I have decided to post to this blog 3 times a week (more if I feel plucky). Monday will be helpful household software. Wednesday will be office software review (this will also be the day I post security and virus type stuff.) Friday will be free game day. I’ll be posting Reviews and links to free games on a variety of different platforms.
Family, religion, and other stuff like that will go on my other blog.

I was using an outdated WordPress back end but now I’m all up to date! No major scary stuff happened.

Off the top of my head I know that in Linux there are several that I can download and install from my repository. But he doesn’t use Linux and won’t be able to for quite some time (Vendor specific software lock-in). Sooo I did some digging and found some real gems.

The first thing I want to point out is that Wikipedia has some awesome listings for software. Some people have really spent some time researching the various pieces of software that can be had for a fee and for free. With out further ado here is their list for time tracking as a good example.

I dug into a couple of their free samplings and came out with 2 really nice programs.

The first is Kimai. It’s open source and has loads of really cool features. Here is what they say about themselves. Kimai is a free open source timetracker. It tracks work time and prints out a summary of your activities on demand. Yearly, monthly, daily, by customer, by project, by action …
It’s simplicity is its strength. Due to Kimai’s web browser based interface it runs cross-platform. Likewise you can install it as a web service or as a single-user program on your local workstation.

For someone like me it wouldn’t be any trouble setting up. The biggest problem with Kimai is that is a web app. As such it needs to be run on a webserver. While this is very doable with projects like XAMP mentioning this to basic users is like asking them to perform calculus. If you ever installed xamp I know that it’s easy and I know that copying Kimai into a folder on your hard drive is also easy but there are so many variables that can go wrong and most customers want a drop in fix.

So enter Grindstone or Griindstone 2 to be more exact. Here is what Grindstone says about itself. Grindstone greatly simplifies everything about staying on top of your time, from automatically recording it to producing useful reports based on it. Just tell Grindstone what you’re working on and it will keep tabs on your time in the background while you work. Incorporating automatic away detection, advanced task and time management functions, and customizable billing calculation, Grindstone is the most powerful personal time tracking solution, period.

It runs on Windows using .Net components so if you haven’t previously installed .Net it will ask you to do so. It looks like a great piece of software and it is something I have no problem recommending.

So I’ve been having tons of trouble with my web server lately. It was running Mandriva 2010 the spring addition and while that’s great for desktop stuff. I’m having trouble with my php and mysql scripts. So I just grabbed CentOS 5 and now I’m giving it a shot. Once I get it installed I’m going to do a proper review of the install process. So far I’m pretty impressed. I’m installing it on an old junk piece of hardware and it’s not running terribly slow.

*UPDATE

Ok my first dvd that I burned choked… apparently I did not pay attention to the burning process and it hadn’t completed. I re burnt a new disc and we’ll see what happens.

So I got a bowflex awhile back and I did the six weeks workout as prescribed recently… (I didn’t follow the eating plan exactly cuz… well…. my wife’s preggers and all). So anyways here’s my official I followed it halfway report .

Results.
Weight loss: None to very little. I had no waistline changes and no loss in weight. I’m already hovering within a few pounds of my goal weight so this didn’t bother me too terribly much. I would have liked to have seen inches lost from the waist and if anything to have gained a few pounds but alas not this go round. The lack of weight loss has probably more to do with the fact that I have a pregnant wife and that acts as a pretty bad diet saboteur in many ways.
Strength: Well this is the one area that I can say that I did see some gains… I started out on my bowflex benching 50 on each arm (Not sure what that translates to real world) and now I’m up to 4 sets of 8 at 80. I can lateral raise at 30 and started out at 10. Chest fly’s I started at 30 and can now do 4 sets at 80 as well.
I ended the 6 weeks Darden regimen last week and have now begun a more strength oriented fitness routine. My fitness goals have changed again (something everyone should do often). For now my goals are going to be oriented around these core items.
Endurance (cardio fitness, being able to actually run and not pass out, I’m a man that can’t always eat right. I don’t want to die of a heart attack or stroke when I’m 50!)
Strength (It would be nice to be able to not need help to move the light stuff that I have trouble with. Being a nerd doesn’t lend itself to much physical exertion….)
Flexibility. This is where the use it or lose it theory comes in. Stretching and yoga type junk fits in here so that in 20, 30, or even 40+ years I won’t be a stove up old man who needs a wheel chair. I realize that you can’t prevent some things but I’d be a fool to not deal with something ahead of time that I can prevent. After all I do change oil in my car every so often right?

Saying all that here follows my reprehensible explanation of why I didn’t lose any wait in the past 6 weeks.
Here is couple of things a man in can expect to hear if his wife is pregnant…..
Your getting skinnier and I’m getting fatter! (It does not help to point that she’s not getting fat but that their is in fact a whole other human growing in there, that only tends to make pregnant woman stare at you… really not helpful.)
Oh honey I’m too full to eat all this… here you eat this. At which point some incredibly unhealthy pie/cake/ice cream brownie thing comes sliding your way. Trust me shut up and eat it.
I’m sore and hurting (this is legit don’t question it men) so I can’t walk (work out) you go ahead if you want…. a few minutes later…. what ya doin? I’m lonely and want some one to talk to.
Now I mean all of this in jest (mostly) as you really can’t expect to have some incredibly time consuming, massive workout plan in place while your wife is expecting. Unless she’s either super supportive (read throws left overs away, and encourages you to go work out) or unless she’s capable of being there at least a portion of your workout your going to have to slack up a little bit. You may have to work out and eat better at different times. Use your head as man and husband and don’t sabotage your self. Support your wife and be there for her. You can work out while she’s taking a nap (something you’d be wise to encourage).

Over at zulily.com they just posted a whole mess load of really cool stuff on sale. They have Bumkins on sale and they are awesome! I guess I’ll have to wait and see if they go on sale in the future.

Aaron

I’ve been eying the approach of hurricane season with trepidation. Power is one of my primary concerns. And so far I see three choices.

We have a gas generator. This will work fine as long as we have gas on hand to run it. During a hurricane gas, water, and toilet paper are worth gold bricks to people. The gas stations can’t pump gas without generators and they may not have it or be able to get it.

The next option is a solar powered generator. Check here at http://www.mysolarbackup.com/ for an example of one. They cost about 1700 but they produce 1800 watts of power with no fumes, noise, or need for gas. The only thing you need is sun light. Which right after a hurricane we have loads of for some reason.

The last option is the generac generators. You can get these at Lowes for about $4000 and they can run your entire house (with some limitations). The disadvantage to these is that they require natural gas or propane. I live in the city and have never had my gas service fail.. but you never know.

Aaron

I love that cappuccino maker I got from Goodwill. I just made myself a big ole capp this morning. The coolest thing is if it dies I know where I can replace it for less $20!…  What am I gonna do if Goodwill ever shuts down? I guess I could start looking in garage sales as well. I’m not paying for a new one though! Oh and I just remembered there’s ebay, and craigslist, and southeasttexas.com, and ……

I found some free computer classes online. Check them out here.

Aaron