In the middle of yet another Net Neutrality crisis, I find myself wondering yet again if there isn't a way to just take our ball and go home. So to speak. We, in the open source community, have been great at spinning off new tech in order to build doors in the walls that others erect to keep us out. Why, I wonder, can't we do that with the Internet.

-1507 A.D. -

There was a time when somebody might have observed that a stay at home mom didn't work. As a stay at home dad, I have first hand experience regarding with this concept. You do a lot, but you don't get paid for it. It's the job that's not really a job. That's not what this is about.

Way back a million years ago, there was a small Canadian computer company called "Commodore Business Machines" that changed the way people viewed, saw, and used computers. In 1981, they released a computer for the masses, the Commodore VIC20 and everything changed (as another computer company likes to say).

Every once in a while, some joker calls, claiming to be from Microsoft (or Windows). They explain that they've detected malware of some sort on your computer and now they are here to help you fix it. I've known more than one person who fell for this helpful scam, and even if I didn't, I have no love for these people.

If you've ever dreamed of bringing even part of the Android experience to your desktop, say a business application or . . . oh, who am I kidding . . . a game you particularly like, then this is the video you've been looking for. On today's episode, I'm going to show you how to install and run a full Android machine right on your Linux desktop.

My 9 year old son told me that EVERYBODY is playing Minecraft on the PC now, as opposed to the tablet or console versions. What he was really saying was that he wanted me to build him a Minecraft PC server so that he could play with his friends on their own private server.

Hawkular is an open source data monitoring tool designed with large amounts of data in mind. Using a Cassandra database cluster, can store vast amounts of information, generate graphical reports, and perform actions (e.g. SMS, emails) based on defined system events. This video is an introduction to setting up both Cassandra and Hawkular.

I'm proud to announce that my latest research paper, "Deconstructing Consistent Hashing With Yaws", has finally been published. Here's a snap of the front page, with the names of my co-auteurs clearly visible and attributed.

Over on yon Facebook, I was taking part in a discussion about ripping DVDs to video files on your computer using Linux. My friend, being a command line guy, explained how he did it. I countered that, while I was also a command line guy, I do my DVD ripping with HandBrake. He then accused me of really being a desktop guy. Well . . . maybe I am.