Spending all your time doing tech support for your own work environment

This one has inflicted me a lot in the past. Since I found the solution I am no longer troubled by it. I have classified various versions of this:

Techsupportis geekae

Geeks like me are natural tinkerers. With Linux and Windows we are constantly tempted to install the latest version of software, drivers, kernels etc. (This is also known as emergitis with Gentoo fanatics).

The trouble is that it is very easy to get tempted down this path and all to often things go wrong. I have in the past lost many days of bootstrap time doing this.

My solution in the end was to buy a Powerbook. It is hard for me to bring the mac down. I’m sure if given enough free time I can do it, but I feel like I can just focus on my work. If you are a diehard linux guy Ubuntu has many of the same “It just works” features that OSX has.

Techsupportis Virii Windus

I have heard so much about how windows users spend so much time repairing damage from virus and spyware attacks.

Save your self a lot of energy and do one of the following:

• If you are a windows techie, lock the machine down once and for all
• If you are a geek linux or mac
• If you are neither of the above, just get a Mac. They aren’t as expensive as they used to be.

Summary

If you are a writer, write!. If you are a programmer, code! Do what you need to do and dont get distracted by all the technical noise that surrounds us all.

More of these here

I want to create a series of small posts describing common Anti Patterns that can cause problems with attempting to start your own micro venture. The chief observation post for these are my own mirror, although I will also mention some that I have observed repeatedly elsewhere.

My Task: Explain StakeItOut in a size suitable for a rss feed item.

Word and Excel files are just so old school. Now we share information in our blogs, wikis, backpackits and Basecamps

Startups and other projects need secure places to share their online stuff. They need their stuff to work together even thought the stuff is served from different services and vendors.

StakeItOut allows small groups to work together building and shareing their particular assets to grow and manage their goals.

It is not a project manager, for that use Basecamp. Rather it is a way of gluing it all together.

Your Task: When you are deep in something it is often difficult to explain what you are thinking and doing to people who are outside your brain. It is however important. Therefore I would like to publically edit and maintain this RSS (Elevator) pitch with your help.

Does the above pitch make any sense at all? I know that I have only let a few of you in yet. So it would be cool to build up a pitch that someone who is not I and hasn’t tried it can understand.

So please break my heart and tear it apart either in your own blog (trackback please) or in the comments. If you want to feel free to rewrite it in your own words.

I am now live with StakeItOut/Beta. Note the site is only ssl.

In the next couple of days I will explain what it actually is about.

In the first week I will only trickle in new users to make sure that the server holds up and that there aren’t any major bugs I’ve overseen.

As always send me an email at [email protected] and I will add you to the beta list.

So I did get my beta site more or less working last night. However there are still a few issues I need to iron out, before I invite the first early beta testers in.

There seem to be som differences in the way the application (which is written in Ruby on Rails) works in development and production mode. Otherwise the issues are related to the differences in Webrick and fastcgi deployment. Needs investigating in tonights session.

My wife/CFO has promised a restaurant trip tomorrow if and only if it is up and running by then, so I better figure it out by then ;-).