October 2012 - Roundtable

Screen in production
by Robert Keizer 10 Oct '12

10 Oct '12

Greetings, I've been running screen for a while now - I use it day to day operations just fine, and occasionally when I'm in a pinch I use it for a serial terminal. The way you scroll up in screen ( or atleast the way that I've found that seems to be standard ) is to use ctrl + a then [. This puts you into "copy mode", and there are some nice features in there. My issue was thus: I have a production service that prints some debug to stdout. I could make it print to stderr, but it really doesn't matter in this case. I want to have some hope of if something goes wrong figuring out what did. Log files aren't really an option so I ran it in screen. Yes yes I could have made it network log to somewhere else, but again, not really an viable option in this case. Works great as the program dies and the output stops, leaving the last debug messages in the buffer of screen. Enter problem: Disconnecting from the screen ( ctrl+a ) d, leaving it in copy mode. Turns out that screen _blocks_stdout_ while it is in copy mode. Depending on what kind of program you're running in screen this could be bad. In my case it was pretty annoying because _monitoring_didn't_catch_it_ as the program was still responding to tcp connections. It was block writing to stdout. Because the blocking stdout command was in its own function and I am using an async javascript program without waiting for a callback, other parts of the system still worked. Thought I'd share. Make sure you hit esc+esc on production screen stuff.. it blocks stdout! Rob

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Blackberry 9700 ...
by Dan Keizer 10 Oct '12

10 Oct '12

Hi guys - I forgot to mention at the meeting yesterday ... I thought I'd let you guys have first dibs if you're interested. I have a spare Blackberry Bold 9700 phone I'll be looking to sell soon. It is originally on the Rogers network, but is unlocked and will take any SIM card. (I've tested it with a talk mobile SIM and a 7-11 speakout sim). It is in near-mint condition and is still actively in service. Reason I'm selling, is I'm doing some android development and want a spare android phone for testing. (I don't need 3 phones). First 120$ can take it ... contact: email me, or 204-666-1919. Thanks. Dan.

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Clay Shirky: How the Internet will (one day) transform government | Video on TED.com
by Bill Reid 09 Oct '12

09 Oct '12

This is a very interesting presentation by Shirky. He makes the case that the use of Git provides a new way of transforming the interaction between government and citizens. Is anyone aware of Git being used by governments in Manitoba? http://www.ted.com/talks/clay_shirky_how_the_internet_will_one_day_transfor… Enjoy, Bill

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MUUG Meeting, Oct 9, 7:30pm -- Arduino Microcontroller
by gedetil＠cs.umanitoba.ca 02 Oct '12

02 Oct '12

The Manitoba UNIX User Group (MUUG) will be holding its next monthly meeting on Tuesday, October 9. The meeting topic for this month is as follows: Arduino Microcontroller Sean Walberg, a local network administrator, web developer, tech writer and editor, will show us what we can do with the Arduino open-source microcontroller. To allow for a longer round-table session and break, we'll be skipping the RTFM segment of the meeting. Plus, this month's meeting is the MUUG annual general meeting, which included the election of the MUUG board of directors for the 2012-2013 year (which will be by acclamation). The group holds its general meetings at 7:30pm on the second Tuesday of every month from September to June. (There are no meetings in July and August.) Meetings are open to the general public; you don't have to be a MUUG member to attend. ********************************************************************** Please note our meeting location: The IBM offices, at 400 Ellice Ave. (between Edmonton and Kennedy). When you arrive, you will have to sign in at the reception desk, and then wait for someone to take you (in groups) to the meeting room. Please try to arrive by about 7:15pm, so the meeting can start promptly at 7:30pm. Don't be late, or you may not get in. (But don't come too early either, since security may not be there to let you in before 7:15 or so.) Non-members may be required to show photo ID at the security desk. Limited parking is available for free on the street, either on Ellice Ave. or on some of the intersecting streets. Indoor parking is also available nearby, at Portage Place, for $5.00 for the evening. Bicycle parking is available in a bike rack under video surveillance located behind the building on Webb Place. ********************************************************************** For more information about MUUG, and its monthly meetings, check out their Web server: http://www.muug.mb.ca/ Help us promote this month's meeting, by putting this poster up on your workplace bulletin board or other suitable public message board: http://www.muug.mb.ca/meetings/MUUGmeeting.pdf -- Gilbert E. Detillieux E-mail: <gedetil(a)muug.mb.ca> Manitoba UNIX User Group Web: http://www.muug.mb.ca/ PO Box 130 St-Boniface Phone: (204)474-8161 Winnipeg MB CANADA R2H 3B4 Fax: (204)474-7609

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