TorrentFlux and ClarkConnect

After a little trial and error, I got TorrentFlux installed on my ClarkConnect box. Awesome. Now I don't have to worry about leaving my main PC running when I want to download a torrent... you know, like maybe Fedora or something?

I really, really wanted to try Amahi, but I like having ClarkConnect as a gateway, and I'm not confident enough in my linux admin skills to turn a fedora installation into a gateway by adding a second NIC, as suggested on the amahi-users list. I'm definitely not feeling the suggestion that I go buy a wireless router, just so that I can plug it in and disable dhcp and stuff.

However, the Personal Backup Appliance, and running on a "newer" code base are still options that appeal to me. I may yet give Amahi a try. There was a recent review on Linux.com, but the reviewer didn't even have broadband internet, so I'm somewhat skeptical that it told me anything that I didn't already know from reading it.

I still haven't given in to the urge to just wipe and try Windows Home Server (which also has no official gateway mode). So, I guess that's something. Since I have a "real" web server running now, it might be time to put up that picture gallery running out of my house. Maybe that will spell the end for my sensless attatchment to flickr as well.

Regarding that HDA-ized Personal Backup Appliance, I really do need to look into automating some kind of solution with ClarkConnect, or Amahi or something. I imagine that I'll get there eventually.

The other issue is wireless support. I wouldn't mind using a wirless adapter on the server to serve up my wireless network. The only wireless clients in my house are our Windows Moblie T-Mobile Shadow phones, and the 802.11b adapter in the MythTV DVR downstairs, grabbing guide information. However, I'm serving it up now with an old D-Link DWL-900AP+ 802.11b access point. I don't think there's any wireless N adapters that work in Linux, but if there are, I need to find them, and then I'll probably update the one in the DVR, add one to my ClarkConnect box, and sing their praises.

Time to start searching google, I guess.

Rolling back to MythDora because of Charlie Brown

Vista Media Center has been great, except for some issues that don't bother others but me:
- It runs on Windows Vista
- I have to do an ugly hack to get guide information for subchannels.

More importantly, it doesn't give me the flexibility to do compression. I'm using a 120 GB drive, and OTA digital TV takes lots of space. BlueRay might be important down the line, but I'm watching on a SD television, I don't have a blue-ray drive, or any movie discs. The fact that I'm using a Media Center remote works out well too, but I think I can get by with it working. Oh, and ` GB of RAM was inadequate at times... watching that circle just go around and around got old. RAM is cheap, but I wasn't ready to get more RAM.

So, the straw that broke the camels back was my mom-in-laws request to record the "Great Pumpkin" episode of Charlie Brown. I accidentally recorded an hour of weather and news, because the guide information for the subchannel of ABC Broadcast Television was the same. (My fault, I should have checked... but I was busy... that's why I built a DVR...)

I hate to take some thing that is working well, and kill it, but hey... I wasn't a real Vista Fan anyway and I want to use this Schedules Direct subscription, and I wanted to run Linux, and Media Portal is still in their nearly-infinite 1.0 release candidate... blah blah.

I'm mostly concerned about getting an Internet connection to the TV. The supposedly-final straw that tipped me over to Vista was support for a wireless G card that I had. I'm going to stick a wireless b card in and see if that works after I install.

I sold my PowerBook

I sold my PowerBook G4. Get this. I met the guy in front of the Apple Store. Heh. So, the really funny part is... now that I am "mac-less" I don't want to use the Apple Airport Extreme. There's not much reason for me to feel this way, since I can still use it.

However, there is one fundamental flaw witht the device, which is otherwise great. I can't configure it with a web browser. I actually have to use a utility that comes with every Mac, and can be installed on Windows (thank goodness).

The device rocks, other than not having a gigabit hub built in. So, I'm torn. I love having a print server, and wireless access point, and router, and dhcp server in one device. But, I hate that I have to attach a hub to get more than one wired connection. This is fundamentally how I feel about apple devices, I love the simplicity, but I hate that I can't tinker. I guess I could just buy a gigabit hub and stop whining...

What if the revolution comes, and all my machines are running Linux? I can even use the print server in Linux, but I can't configure the router... and then there's that whole I-can't-turn-off-dhcp-without-some-hackish-trick thing. Yeah, it is silly...

I guess there's one thing keeping me on it for now. I have a Linksys wired router with a 10/100 switch built-in, but no wireless. I need wireless so that the Media Center box can access the Internet for scheduling info. I do have a wireless-B device that can be an access point or wireless adapter or bridge. It can even do DHCP as well. Hmm... I could just use that... Oh, and I have a couple of USB print servers that I could attatch too.

Clearly, the Aiport should stay, rather than hooking up three devices to replace it... or... I could just use ClarkConnect, get the print server and wireless working on it, and not be so anal. Or, I could just buy a wireless router, and then run Amahi on a spare box. Again... this is a silly choice. It works now, I shouldn't even be thinking about this.

All because I sold my PowerBook. Nice.