Gigabyte offers cheap SATA solid-state storage

Extreme concurrency database transactions tend to be disk limited. To solve this, we've been using solid state SCSI drives for years though they're incredibly expensive. There's finally a cheaper but still reliable choice, a SATA solid-state drive from Gigabyte, a leading motherboard manufacturer.

Even PHP needs coding standards

As a software development manager, I've always felt source code could use a bit more of standards. That was with professionally trained C++ programmers. Then we began helping customers migrate home brew sites written in open source languages like PHP and I realized most of our time was spent just sorting out how to read what had been done before.

Did you get the XHTML and CSS2 memo?

There's been a sea change in web design since 2004, but most people haven't even noticed. From personal blogs to major portals, web designers have been getting the memo, and putting in a huge amount of work to upgrade their HTML behind the scenes.

Transcoding vinyls

Ever wondered what to do with that old record collection? Sure, you could find a turntable, buy a $500 needle, record into your Mac, and clean up the crackles and pops with software. Or you could just slap the things on your scanner.

The Duomo in your dining room

Standing in a good transept or dome will give most tourists chills. Every schoolkid can remember a field trip to the domed capitol building of one jurisdiction or another, listening to the tour guide explain how standing just here you can hear someone whisper just there.

Mad as hell, switching to Mac

Winn Schwartau, a self styled die-hard PC bigot, who also happens to be a security columnist for Network World, got so fed up with WinTel he switched to a Mac, and blogged about it. I've been on both sides of this switch throughout the past 20 years, and to be honest, I'm not sure these days it's any more important than switching from Ford to VW. Here's a little history...