Took a break.

While I am happy with the progress I have made so far and the direction I am heading, I needed to take a day away from my studies to take a break as well as get some cleaning done.

Taking a break and kicking back (just a bit) along with clearing out the clutter around the house definitely helps clear out your head.

For a long time now I have known that I have way too many books on way too many subjects, so I have decided to get rid of those books I do not need, and possibly make a buck on the side while I am at it. Take a look at the Books For Sale link in my personal links section.

I don't expcet to get rich off of what I sell. I just want to clear out a lot of space, and possibly get some cash while I am at it. I am just getting started with the list, so take a peek now and then if you want some books real cheap.

Later today I plan to dive head first into the second chapter of the "Head First" book. I'll post an entry about how things went some time tonight.

Course change feels right.

I finished the first chapter of Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML, and feel pretty good about the progress. A lot of what was covered I already had a handle on it, but the style of the book helped reinforce what I knew and going through the exercises definitely reinforced my knowledge.

My "Starbuzz Coffee" pages are looking good (You'll only understand if you have read the book)

I received a good tip from one of my Linkedin connections for a new GUI Admin Tool for MySQL. You can find it here: http://www.mysql.com/products/tools/administrator/ (thanks Marko)

I think the new course is the right one, and with determination and a little luck I will be moving forward with my career and job search.

Making progress and a slight course change.

The weekend Apache/MySQL/PHP crash course is turning into a week long or longer crash course, and actually that is a good thing.

Given the issues with the book being out of date, I have decided to slow down the pace with this course of study, but keep at it. I am not moving it to the back burner, but instead turning down the heat. I have a new book on order: Head First PHP & MySQL. This book is due in mid-September, and I should have the first book done by then and what I learned will help move forward with the new book. I should have read the reviews on Amazon before diving into the first book. If I had I would have started my studies with HTML a lot sooner.

Having said that, I now plan to refocus my efforts on learning HTML, XHTML, and CSS with the Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML from O'Reilly. This is where I should have started in the first place, but as they say - "you live and learn".

I thought that diving into PHP and MySQL with a crash course book would be give me some additional momentum towards my end goal, but unfortunately there were some issues. Fortunately the issues I encountered I was able to turn into good learning experiences.

Staying with it.

I decided to take a break after the late night session on Monday night / Tuesday Morning otherwise my efforts with the crash course book may have resulted in my crashing and burning.

The one thing I have learned from the reading this book so far is always make certain that the material you are reading about is up-to-date. Having said that, I will say that I did learn from my efforts, so I am staying with it. It will just take more than a weekend to finish this book though.

helloworld.php

It may not be a major milestone for many, but it is for me!

Considering I am using a book that references older versions of Apache, PHP, and MySQL, and all the changes that have taken place, I think getting the words "hello world" to appear in my browser by way of a PHP script is pretty good progress especially since that is several chapters down the road. Yeah, I just had to stumble ahead, but it was fun.

There seems to be some issues with getting the PHP CLI to work, though I think I just need to tweak some environment variables. A major change with MySQL is that winmysqladmin.exe is no longer available, and this will require some improvsation on my part, but I will manage.

(It's really late, so please excuse any typos.)

Read the documentation Jim!

I finally was able to get PHP up and running with Apache, but the version of PHP I am using is not what the Crash Course book says to use. Instead of completing a manual installation with PHP 4.4.9, I ended up using the installer package for PHP 5.2.6

The book is based PHP 4.X.X. and Apache 2.0, and not Apache 2.2. If I had paid attention to what version of Apache I installed, and this note on the PHP site, I wouldn't have taken so much time to get PHP installed:

"Note: Apache 2.2.x Support
Users of Apache 2.2.x may use the documentation below except the appropriate DLL file is named php5apache2_2.dll and it only exists as of PHP 5.2.0. See also » http://snaps.php.net/"

Trying to install php 4.4.9 using the php4apache2.dll in the httpd.conf Apache config file, just isn't going to work.

Was this a waste of time. No! I am certain I can do a manual install of PHP 4.4.9 on another system, but I have to make sure I am using Apache 2.0.x and not Apache 2.2 I may end up doing this if I have some spare cycles later on.

Several notes to anyone else trying this.

1. Only print out the PHP installation readme if you want to kill off a forest. (35 pages!)
2. Try to have two systems running when you do this. One system to install PHP on, and the other to read the install instructions on the PHP.net site (since the book is a little out of date with regards to the latest version of Apache). This luxery may not be available to everyone, but it sure helps to be able to access PHP.net site on one monitor while you are installing on another system. This can be done with a single system single or dual monitors, but it saves time if you have reboot the system you are installing PHP on.
3. Check the errata on the book. There was also a typo regarding the php4apache2.dll. The book has phpapache2.dll not php4apache2.dll.

Well now I move on to installing MySQL. This little delay cost me some time, but it was a learning experience.

Made some progress today.

Well I downloaded PHP and MySQL and they are now ready to be installed on the server, and after I install PHP and MySQL, I have still yet to configure and secure Apache.

I also posted the Self study program and Staying positive while unemployed pages today. The links are permanently posted in the "My Links" list on the left sidebar.

(I updated this entry to correct a brain cramp on my part.)

Browser bias: Get over it!

For the longest time I was a devout Firefox follower and carried the anti-IE banner. Now that I exploring a career in web development, I realize I will need to use IE along with other browsers (Seamonkey, Safari, Opera, etc) to check my work, and I will have to be proficient in their use. Basically I have to become browser-agnostic.

Most browsers have similar behavior, and from the user's point of view are not all that different. But they do have their quirks, and I will need to learn my way around them. I just have to make sure that my geekitis doesn't flair up, and I spend too much time playing with the new toys.

(One little side note: I originally composed this entry on Seamonkey, and I noticed that the fonts and size were different than entries I created on Firefox. I believe I need to set the font and size in Seamonkey, but this is a good example of why you need to be browser-agnostic and learn the differences between your tools)

Planning your time while unemployed.

Yesterday and classic example of over planning and scheduling on my part. I had intended to do the folloing:

1. Plan out my self study program and post it on a Google Page.
2. Start up another Google Page about staying positive while unemployed.
3. Continue building my network on Linkedin.com and other sites.
4. Add another links list to the sidebar and add links to the Google Pages listed above, and pages I will most likely create later on
5. Get MySQL and PHP installed on my 2K server and get cracking.
6. Look into some online programs from a local community college.

No! I didn't waste my time watching TV or just lounging around. Some other issues popped that had a much higher priority and they needed to get done.

Rethinking my scheduling and goal setting is a must now, especially if I want to make my career transition happen.

I plan to work on that list over the weekend. I'll let you know how it goes on Monday.

Moving forward!

Yesterday I and 60-some other people got the "AX" and were laid-off from work. As I have posted elsewhere, lay-offs are a fact of life, especially in the high tech field. I am surprised as to how positive I am staying about being laid-off.

To be honest I am going to use this as a chance to retool my career and move forward with my plans to learn all I can about web development and content management.

There are several things I plan to do today. The are

1. Plan out my self study program and post it on a Google Page.
2. Start up another Google Page about staying positive while unemployed.
3. Continue building my network on Linkedin.com and other sites.
4. Add another links list to the sidebar and add links to the Google Pages listed above, and pages I will most likely create later on
5. Get MySQL and PHP installed on my 2K server and get cracking.
6. Look into some online programs from a local community college.

That's it for now. Check back later on

Getting Apache installed.

I'm running a little late tonight, but I did take a step forward with my studies and got Apache installed on a Windows 2K system. Installing Apache on is very easy, but I need to secure it before I move forward with my PHP and MySQL studies.

I'm working from the "Apache, MySQL, and PHP Weekend Crash Course" book, and while the book is fairly straight forward, given my schedule I know it will take more than just a weekend to get though it.

Next step, download PHP and MySQL and get them installed on the system.

So what to do with this blog?

This blog is just one of a number of blogs that I have, and like several others it has sat dormant for much too long.

I've decided that I will use this blog to chronicle my career goals and how I want to implement them. I know that posting about ones career goals and changes in a public blog may not be the smart thing to do, but I need to make a change and pursue what I believe to be the right choice for me, and I need a place to put my thoughts. By posting on a public blog I am hoping that along the way I may meet others who are following a similar career path and maybe we can help each other.

I have over 25 years experience in testing and repairing electronics, and while I still enjoy working with electronics, I am finding that just testing electronics does not satisfy my creative needs, I think I have found something that will satisfy those needs.

I want to start learning all that I can about web hosting, development, and management. I have briefly worked at a web hosting company and have quite a bit of experience in maintaining my own SOHO network. I have also done quite a bit of web content development for my blogs and sites using a WYSIWYG editor. Given my experience and desire I now believe it's time to move up a notch, and utilize my experience and resources to build a web server and run it internal to my own network as a tool to develop the skills I need to move forward.

I am laying out a study plan and plan to start on it shortly. If anyone who stumbles upon this blog is considering or has done something similar then feel free to comment with your suggestions.

That's it for now ~ Jim

Going gray!

I just finished updating all my Blogspot blogs, so that they all have a similar look. I think the changes work especially for both this blog and the Urbanspelunkers blog. That white text with a black background was getting a little "harsh" for me. I like the gray look of the blogs now.

The "gray look" also matches the look I am setting for my Nemo Black blogs on MySpace and Live Journal.

I know damn sure that people are going to look at all these blogs and sites of mine, and think that I am just "whacked", but I'm not. I just have a lot of interests, and I like playing with all the different stuff that's available for bloggers, so I have more toys in my internet toy box than most people.

I hope to be posting more on all the blogs as time goes on. This blog along with the MIBA51 site will be more focused on technology and such. I hope to list more about my CoCo projects in the near future, but that depends on how much time I make for those projects.

Well, that's it for now.

Well?

Well, it's been 18 months since I posted to this blog, and since then acquired a system with Windows XP and downloaded Microsoft Robotics Studio.

I really haven't done much with it, but I will in time.

I updated the layout of the blog to be easier to read, and to match the layout of the CloudyMidnights astronomy blog that I also have. To me the layout is much easier to read than the previous template I was using.

I am running out of steam right now, so I will add more later (within a day or so, and not 18 months)

-Jim

Microsoft Robotics Studio

Microsoft announced their Robotics Studio on June 20th. I've taken a quick look at it and think I'll give it a try. The one drawback for me is it runs only on XP or Server 2003, so I need to get an XP system up and running.

That's right, I am still working with Windows 2000 (and even 98 for some older applications) so this looks like a good excuse to either upgrade one of my systems, or get something a little more powerful (read >1GH speed and 256M memory) to run XP and the Robotics Studio on.

I'm looking at robotics as a way to focus my energies, interests, and skills, so I can actually move forward with a lot of things. I'm also opening up discussions on the 68332ABB list that I moderate on Yahoo, so as to encourage more robotics discussion.