On The Margins

Thursday May 08, 2008

[ Sun Microsystems Inc. ] Who Dons the Java DB T-Shirt

Giuseppe Maxia took this picture at JavaOne, 2008, just a couple of days ago. It shows Marten Mickos (MySQL) donning the Java DB T-Shirt and giving a friendly hug to PostgreSQL evangelist Josh Berkus. That's how the story of the three open-source databases from Sun will keep unfolding. Many observers have noted that customers and developers will have great choices to work with: the premier open-source DB for web applications, the premier open-source DB for demanding enterprise and reporting applications, and the premier open-source DB for embedding in Java applications. All from the same company. Sun!

2008-05-08 23:41:34.0 -- Comments [0] ; Permalink ; Trackback.
databases javadb javaone mysql postgresql sun

Wednesday May 07, 2008

[ Networks ] The Self-Ordering Chaos of Communities

In the chaos of their buzz and movement, bees build amazingly ordered nests for their young.  So do many communities of practice.

2008-05-07 23:30:42.0 -- Comments [2] ; Permalink ; Trackback.
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Tuesday May 06, 2008

[ Media ] Connecting News Sources

As I was driving back from Java One in San Francisco Monday evening, I listened to the BBC report on KQED.

The BBC carried a 5-minute-long report on Iraq, describing the "conflict" there and the immense rise in poverty and lack of basic services, without once managing to mention that taboo word: "occupation".

In the morning, Financial Times carried a picture on the front page describing how sophisticated military equipment was being used to create an exclusion zone around the oil terminals in southern Iraq, from whence 1.5  million barrels of oil were carried away every day on British, Australian and American ships.

For how long can a country be dispossessed of its resources, supply the world with vast quantities of oil and live under military occupation by foreign powers, with vast parts of its population reduced to abject poverty with every passing day?

2008-05-06 22:20:27.0 -- Comments [0] ; Permalink ; Trackback.
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Monday May 05, 2008

[ Java ] JavaOne 2008

I will be at JavaOne 2008 for most of this week.

2008-05-05 08:05:21.0 -- Comments [2] ; Permalink ; Trackback.
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[ Technology ] PG on Mac

The PostgreSQL 7.3 installation instructions for Mac OS-X also work well for installing PostreSQL 8.3. The changes you need to make to these instructions should be obvious. On Tiger, building PostgreSQL from source will require XCode 2.5 Developer Tools from Apple, which is a free download for members of ADC.

(By the way, if you're using PostgreSQL on Solaris and need support, you can purchase it directly from Sun.)

2008-05-05 00:39:46.0 -- Comments [0] ; Permalink ; Trackback.
mac postgresql

Saturday May 03, 2008

[ Persian (فارسی) ] Lunch with Great Grandma

Lunch with Great Grandma, Tehran, Iran (July 2006)
Originally uploaded by M.Mortazavi

My younger daughter, when 8, prepared these side dishes and salads for a lunch with her great grandmother.

The photo, two years old, fills the space with freshness.

When I was a child, my grandmother used to take me shopping for these types of ingredients.

The baskets would get full, and I would insist on carrying some of them.

2008-05-03 23:30:59.0 -- Comments [0] ; Permalink ; Trackback.
family food persia travel

Monday April 28, 2008

[ Technology ] Java DB 10.4.1

The 10.4.1 version of Java DB, the world's most advanced Java database, has some really cool features -- asynchronous replication, table functions and JMX capabilities.

Sun engineers worked within the Apache/Derby community to develop these features: A great team. A great product. A great community! 

If you're a serious user of Java DB (and/or of Apache Derby) and plan to use this product in your business, you should consider the multi-platform, software support services for Java DB -- Sun's distribution of Apache Derby -- available at some amazing bargain prices at various service plan levels.

Sun provides support service plans for Java DB, which is, for all practical purposes, identical to Apache Derby.

2008-04-28 18:05:26.0 -- Comments [3] ; Permalink ; Trackback.
databases java services software support technology

Friday April 25, 2008

[ Technology ] Tolven Health PostgreSQL Benchmark

Tolven Health has published a benchmarking study with PostgreSQL on Solaris. The purpose of the study was to "to assess the scalability and performance characteristics of the Tolven open source healthcare information technology solution and to provide guidance for customers with regards to hardware requirements for enterprise, state, regional, and country wide deployments."

2008-04-25 16:38:35.0 -- ; Permalink ; Trackback.
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Wednesday April 16, 2008

[ Technology ] Skype and Sun

Skype and Sun have much in common—including not only their leveraging of the Internet but also their support for PostgreSQL!

They are both Gold Sponsors of PGCon 2008. 

2008-04-16 00:45:23.0 -- Comments [1] ; Permalink ; Trackback.
community opensource technology

[ Technology ] It Runs Your Company

Monty's T-Shirt says it all.

2008-04-16 00:37:12.0 -- ; Permalink ; Trackback.
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Sunday April 13, 2008

[ Technology ] Community Dinner

Giuseppe Maxia blogs about the MySQL community dinner with some special guests in attendance.

2008-04-13 23:59:39.0 -- ; Permalink ; Trackback.
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[ Society ] The Real News

In modern times, distribution has become the bottleneck or the "filter" for ideas.

Those sources that have access or control of distribution shape the ideas that arrive before our eyes and ears. 

Example: I don't even remember how I ran into The Real News Network (Beta) reports, including the report embedded here, and some others, including one on Iraq.

2008-04-13 00:53:12.0 -- Comments [1] ; Permalink ; Trackback.
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Tuesday April 08, 2008

[ Business ] Open Source Databases on the Rise

Christopher Lawton of The Wall Street Journal reports on the rise of the open source databases: The potential benefits in cost and flexibility have not been lost on customers. The market for open-source databases is expected to grow 35% to $270 million this year from $200 million in 2007, according to Gartner Inc. Among the earliest adopters are midsized companies, which don't always need the high-end features of conventional databases, says Carl Olofson, analyst with IDC, a market-research firm. For example, Sun Microsystems Inc. provides supported offerings of MySQL, PostgreSQL and Java DB (Apache / Derby) to its customers. If you're interested in discussion and community around open source database technologies for Solaris, see here.

2008-04-08 19:15:34.0 -- ; Permalink ; Trackback.
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Wednesday April 02, 2008

[ Technology ] The Conference Around the Corner

For those living in the Silicon Valley and working on software for the Web, one of the best technology conferences of the year will arrive literally around the corner: MySQL Conference & Expo, April 14 to 17, 2008, here in Santa Clara California. 

2008-04-02 00:53:50.0 -- ; Permalink ; Trackback.
community databases software technology

Friday March 28, 2008

[ Culture ] Experimenting with New Ink

Once, when I was 7 or 8, I received two lessons from a master Persian calligrapher, a Mr. Foradi, in Tehran.

Mr. Foradi used to be on contract at my fathers' advertising and design firm. In the first lesson, he taught me how to hold the pen, how to ink its tip, and how to cushion the thin calligraphy paper. He then asked me to write, 100 times in a neat row: "A Man's Virtue is Far Better than His Post and Wealth"—a piece from a 1000 year old Persian poem.

  ادب مرد به ز دولت اوست. 

It is hard to find expert Persian calligraphers and the right equipment and training in the U.S. 

My father bought me the Persian calligraphy pen shown in this photo from The Persian Calligraphy Institute in Tehran, Iran, in August of 2006. 

I used the pen and the special ink, which my father had also purchased for me, to write "Traditional Music" on a piece of printer paper. (I should say here that I didn't think much of Persian traditional music when I first arrived in the U.S. as a teenager. Now, I have learned to appreciate enough of its subtleties to enjoy it.) 

Once, when I was 7 or 8, I received two lessons from a master Persian calligrapher, a Mr. Foradi, in Tehran. Mr. Foradi used to be on contract at my fathers' advertising and design firm. In the first lesson, he taught me how to hold the pen, how to cushion the paper and asked me to write, 100 times, that "A Man's Virtue is Far Better than His Post"—a piece from a 1000 year old Persian poem.

2008-03-28 22:09:31.0 -- Comments [1] ; Permalink ; Trackback.
art calligraphy culture design ink paper pen persian writing

Wednesday March 26, 2008

[ Telecommunications ] A Suggestion for Skype

Although there are scripts that can be used to have Skype call a particular number at a particular time—acting as some kind of an alarm—it would be great if Skype adds a time and alarm feature with time zone capabilities. I've personally used Skype to join global teleconferences from the U.S., India, Norway and Germany, and this feature would be very useful to me. (Perhaps, such a component already exists. If so, please leave a comment and let me know.)

2008-03-26 09:21:55.0 -- Comments [1] ; Permalink ; Trackback.
communications software technology telephony tools

Monday March 24, 2008

[ Technology ] A Solution!

Here's a "solution" from Ariel:

2008-03-24 18:11:10.0 -- ; Permalink ; Trackback.
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Thursday March 20, 2008

[ Persian (فارسی) ] Happy Persian New Year

Happy Persian New Year, 1387 A.H., 2008 A.D. Patricia Khashayar has written a pretty good report on Nowruz for Press TV. Press TV also carries a report on an underwater Haft Seen in the Persian Gulf.

2008-03-20 18:20:34.0 -- ; Permalink ; Trackback.
new persian year

[ Sun Microsystems Inc. ] OSDB Events

The best way to learn about major open source databases (e.g. MySQL, PostgreSQL, etc.) is to attend developer and user conferences. Sun Microsystems sponsors many of these conferences and events. (This April, you can catch Sun folks attending the MySQL conference in Santa Clara, and in May, you can catch them at PGCon in Ottawa.) Finally, if you're interested in Sun technologies and databases, you should become a member of the OpenSolaris Databases Community and start contributing.

2008-03-20 01:06:17.0 -- ; Permalink ; Trackback.
community databases developers opensolaris opensource software solaris sun technology

Monday March 10, 2008

[ Business ] Systems: Exploration vs. Exploitation

When it comes to learning, systems and resources, James March has summarized it all:

Maintaining an appropriate balance between exploration and exploitation is a primary factor in system survival and prosperity. 

2008-03-10 08:11:07.0 -- ; Permalink ; Trackback.
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