Latest blog posts

Adjustable "files" setting in DOSBox

In the time of DOS, the operating system severely limited how many files could be open simultaneously. The default amount was a ridiculously low of 8 open files, so most people made use of the system's ability to customise the limit by adding a setting to config.sys. A common (and sensible) value was "files=20".
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Common sense tech support

Being the most computer literate person in my extended family, I end up providing tech support for that extended family. Honestly, I don't mind. I love to help out whenever I can. Today was another good example. I got a phonecall from my dad that some error message popped up and he could no longer browse the internet. To his credit, he had written down the error message in case it would not be reproducible by the time I would have a chance to look at it. In this case, it was "Validation failed for C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\VSINIT.dll. You are probably missing a necessary root certificate."
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PHP WTF?

Many blogs and sites spring up on the web promising frequent updates. More often than not, they post a handful of articles and then fall into neglect before dying a quiet death. Here's a site that seems to have potential, so let's hope it doesn't fall victim to this pattern.
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Cool puzzle

Here's a series of cool puzzles, if you're a developer (or otherwise a [computer]geek): Toughest Developer Puzzle Ever. Despite its name, I personally didn't think it all that tough as only puzzles 25, 27 and the very last one gave me any trouble. The one is where it tells you that you've won... as you haven't quite. There's one puzzle left there, and it's a toughie.
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I am such a geek

It's rare for me to wake up and remember a dream. It's even rarer for me to remember word for word every conversation from that dream. Not to mention those conversations (and almost everything else in the dream) making sense. No purple elephants or monsters from outer space, just somebody with the social skills of a thermonuclear device.
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