Nike + iPod.

Both the iPod Nano and the Nike+ kit arrived yesterday, days ahead of schedule. Rather surprising since stuff I order usually arrives days, weeks or even months after it should have.

The Nano is tiny, has a large (at least compared to the casing) screen, great sound and lots of space for tons of motivational tunes. I quickly tested the Nike+ sensor and a couple of features and everything looks as expected, but I didn’t bother to calibrate it since I can’t use the kit until Wednesday anyway.

What has not arrived yet is the information I need to connect to our new internet connection. It’s now been 14 days since someone was here and checked the connection between the apartment and the company’s network equipment. Now I need the static IP address, gateway IP and other relevant information. If that’s not happening soon I’ll just use the information my 3COM router guessed and see what happens. I have sent 5 e-mails to their support department without a reply.

Yes, of course I should call them, but I really don’t like to talk to people on the phone. I have no idea why, that’s just the way it is. It’s a good thing, then, that I have a job where I have to talk to people on the phone every day. Or maybe not. In the end I guess I have no choice, and have to call them and ask for the information. Or else we won’t have an internet connection and that would more or less be the end of the world.

What is also somewhat interesting is that the ISP hasn’t sent me any bills yet. Maybe they are out of business. That would be a bummer.

This And That.

I had two simple goals for the weekend: Get a decent haircut and set up a new LAN in our* apartment. As you know I failed miserably with the latter thanks to Linksys. My theory is that Cisco take all the hardware that fail internal testing, slap a Linksys sticker on it and sell it to the common man. If the quality of the Cisco equipment is the same as their Linksys gear I’ve been struggling with you should sell any Cisco shares you might have right now. Actually, you should sell them anyway before the American economy goes tits up, dragging the rest of us down in same black hole.

That’s my macro economy commentary.

As for the former, getting a decent haircut, I think I did OK. Not that anyone have noticed. That they haven’t is a bit strange, because I basically look like another guy when I cut my hair. Even though it seldom takes any more than ten to fifteen minutes, getting a hair cut is one of the most boring things I do. I don’t like doing things I find boring, so naturally I don’t do it too often - if I’m not mistaken I’ve had four haircuts over the last twelve months - and when I eventually get a haircut, it’s not that much hair left.

Interesting.

Now for something completely different. I’ve got 6 invites to Pownce. It’s probably one of the most useless sites I’ve ever seen, but I wouldn’t be that surprised if it gets as popular as Facebook. Is that fad over, by the way? Drop a comment if a Pownce invite will make your day.

*It struck me that I always wrote about “my network” and “my apartment” in the previous entries, but it’s strictly our network and our apartment since Gine is also living here now.

Die Linksys, Die!

Warning: Long, technical entry with frustration venting ahead.

I spent most of yesterday trying to set up the new network configuration: A wireless router in the hallway and a wireless repeater connected to a switch in the living room. First I connected my trusty 3COM wireless router to the DSL modem in the hallway and got a basic SMC switch and a Linksys WAP54G wireless access point for the living room. The idea was that the access point should be used as a repeater in the living room, a plan my local hardware pusher also supported.

Connecting the 3COM router to the DSL modem and getting a connection was a breeze. Even if I’m supposed to use a static IP (my new ISP has failed to send me the necessary information), the 3COM router connected using DHCP, got an IP address and internet access. But as soon as I touched the god damn Linksys access point, the trouble started. Continue reading "Die Linksys, Die!"

Friday Again.

Here are some random fragments from my weekend:

Yes, it’s Friday again. Yesterday I traveled with Kjetil to Stockholm to see The Police. The concert was great, so was our hotel, which was located just 50 meters from the entrance to the venue.

I’ve also been running as planned, my average heart rate is still decreasing together with the time I use on the route. I plan to run the same route for another week and then extend it with a kilometer or so.

On Tuesday I got my new internet connection hooked up. At least there was a guy in the apartment who checked that the connection with the network central worked and I got the modem by mail. I’ve not had the time to check the actual connection yet, but I assume that it’s working. By now life should have taught me that I shouldn’t assume a damn thing, but I’m a slow learner.

The new internet connection presents me with a network problem. The old connection came through the cable TV outlet in the living room. Very convenient because it’s close to my Xbox and VBOX. The new connection, however, comes through the phone outlet in the hallway. So now I need a way to get a wireless connection from the hallway to the living room. Initially I thought a wireless access point in the living room would do the trick, but it seems like most of them come without Ethernet ports or just one if you’re lucky, and I need at least two. Maybe it will solve itself if I introduce a switch.

The home network is this weekends challenge. Along with getting a decent haircut.

Internet v2.0.

My hunt for a nerd friendly ISP has paid off. I was somewhat surprised to find that quite a few Norwegian ISPs actually allow nerds to have small home servers installed on their private internet connection. A few other ISPs didn’t bother to answer my e-mail, for me that’s a good thing since I don’t have to consider them. After some consideration, I’m now leaving a large ISP who don’t like nerds in favor of a smaller one who does. That the guy who replied to my mail with questions about home servers had the quote “Sex, Drugs & Linux Rules — MaDsen Wikholm” in his e-mail signature and that says it all. They’ll even provide me with a static IP for free. Good stuff.

Small can be good, because they tend to care more about their customers, at least all up until the point where they get too many of them. I experienced just that with my first web host and they really started to suck monkey balls. According to people I know who are still with them, they have dug a support hole they can’t quite seem to crawl out of. If my new ISP does a good job, I’ll let you know and I’ll certainly let you know if they suck.

Not only am I changing ISP, I’m also changing technology. I’m moving from cable internet to ASDL2+. According to the ISP this could theoretically give me a massive 25Mbit/s downstream and up to 2Mbit/s upstream, but the problem with ADSL2+ is that the speeds are just that - theory. Everything depends on how far I’m located from the network equipment. It’s also interesting to note that according to Wikipedia, the theoretical maximum downstream is 24Mbit/s, while my new ISP is advertising 25Mbit/s. That said, I probably never would have seen that high speeds anyway, and I would never really need it, but it was a good offer.

I’m that easy to fool.