Steve's Seaside Life

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High hopes dashed yet again …

In a previous post I had analysed the possible reasons why I seemed to get better whilst on holiday.  I concluded the following:

1.      I did not go on holiday in the first place unless I was feeling a lot better. 

2.      I did loads of exercise whilst on holiday.

3.      When I get home I get much worse again

I looked into the exercise theory and found:

1.      if you do moderate exercise for 45 minutes or so, regularly throughout the day on an empty stomach this stimulates the stress response

2.      This results in natural Cortisol production

3.      Natural Cortisol is about 1/5 of the Steroids I am being prescribed but could account for maybe 5-10mg dose

4.      Exercising in this way is known to cause immune system suppressing effects, normally a draw back, which is what I need

So this week as my symptoms were not too bad I started so such a regime:

1.      ½ hour cycling

2.      1 hours walking

3.      ½ hour swimming

The effects were just like when I was on holiday and soon I was pretty much symptom free.  Unfortunately it …

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Don Box, like me, finally tells it like it is

It’s nice to see that even Don Box, who has grown up on Object orientation, application integration and database middleware gets it: For better or worse, a significant amount of the world’s data is stored outside of relational DBMSs, specifically in Microsoft Word and Excel files. As these files move...

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New Blackberry goes conventional

The new Blackberry 7100, goes all conventional in looks, loosing the traditional thumb friendly keyboard for predictive text input.  Reports seem positive however.  Shared Spaces has more details. Another trend towards consumerization is at work here.  What used to be a coporate essential is now going mainstream.  Soon employees will...

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Migrating from Notes to Microsoft

I am always very wary when I see anything from Microsoft about how easy or desirable it is to migrate any non trivial application from Lotus Notes to any Microsoft Technology.  This stems from my painful experiences with Microsoft’s claimed Notes killing technology WebStore, now renamed the Exchange Storage System,...

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Signing up to receive e-mail updates from a Blogware-powered blog

One of the great things about a Blogware-powered blog is that you can not only receive updates via webfeeds (RSS or ATOM), but also e-mail as well. One of the problems with a Blogware-powered blog is that the process for signing up isn’t obvious, but it is easy. What you...

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So You Think You Want a Tablet PC

Links and references to get you started with the concept: (also see Welcome! New Tablet PC User) Tablet PC Home Page @ Microsoft Tablet PC How-To Articles Microsoft Windows XP Tablet PC Edition: An Overview1 Narrated Tablet PC Presentation Resources for the Tablet PC Developer The MSDN site for Tablet...

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Staying Fit & Weight-Less While Working At Home

Home Business recently had an article on this topic and offered the following tips:

Find a professional. There are many experts that can help you plan an individualized diet and exercise program that will benefit you the most while suiting your preferences and lifestyle. Visit professional organizations’ web sites like those of the American Council on Exercise (www.acefitness.org) to search databases to locate certified personal trainers, group fitness instructors, clinical exercise specialists and lifestyle and weight management consultants, or the site of the American Dietetic Association (www.eatright.org/) to find food and nutrition professionals.

When possible, combine business and exercise. Walk to get office supplies or as you talk on your portable or cellular phone; ride a stationery bike while you read your mail; or invite another home business entrepreneur or customer for a game of tennis and afterwards have a business “power” lunch (low-cal, of course).

Plan your meals. Persons who plan their meals and snacks lose weight and eat healthier than those who just grab whatever food is nearby when they are hungry.

Make exercise a regular habit. Skip the cinnamon bun and coffee break and instead schedule short, regular exercise breaks during your work day to dance, stretch, …

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Some good news about Longhorn

In this article, InfoWorld talks to Greg Sullivan, lead product manager at Microsoft, about Longhorn and reports: Although it is too early for specifics, Sullivan said Longhorn should be a better performing, more stable, and more secure operating system because it will be based on the Windows Server 2003 SP1 (Service...

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More on the Consumerization of IT

Nic, points out in a comment on this post titled The decline of enterprise influence over IT that CSC Research Services have recently published a report on Consumerization, which I have just read and must say makes very good reading, especially the first few pages.  One of the authors is currently thinking through some of the related personal responsibility issues.  This topic has sparked my interest and I have been talking through some of the implications with network, storage and infrastructure services architects.  It took a while for them to get it until I used the Internet Access analogy which we all lived through:

1.      When the internet was first established enterprises saw individual Internet access it as an activity of little interest, undertaken by enthusiasts only, with niche needs.

2.      Then they saw it as a threat as they noticed people with networked PC’s who also had active modem connections to the internet, they started to create policies to control it

3.      Then they saw it as a need, but only to be provided to the select few and only then in very controlled conditions

4.      Then the saw it as obvious …

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In search of the bottom line

InfoWorld: In search of the bottom line: July 30, 2004: By Robert McMillan : PLATFORMS Linux on the desktop might mean freedom from software-licensing costs for some IT departments. But when it comes to evaluating desktop Linux’s TCO, it’s the human cost that is most important. According to industry research...