Monthly Archives: September 2016

Never ever rush … software installation

Posted on September 30, 2016 by DocDock

I should have known better but how hard could the task really be?  Download some free or open source software from the internet, configure it, and presto I then have all of the tools necessary for my “homework” assignment. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Soapbox | Tagged , | Comments Off on Never ever rush … software installation

just making it – a 4x4x4 led cube

Posted on September 24, 2016 by DocDock

Some time back, I had a fair amount lot of free time and did watch things on you tube.  A friend of mine showed a number of cool LED cubes that were trending at that time. It seemed so cool … Continue reading →

Posted in programming, Setup From Scratch | Tagged , | Comments Off on just making it – a 4x4x4 led cube

getting the most out of your computer – threading

Posted on September 19, 2016 by DocDock

Flashback to 2002 Technology is amazing.  Pretty much since personal computers were created the speed of their processors have been increasing at almost a linear rate of doubling in speed every two years.  This is awesome but it is also … Continue reading →

Posted in programming | Tagged , , | Comments Off on getting the most out of your computer – threading

computer programs in the 21st century

Posted on September 16, 2016 by DocDock

The app I downloaded just doesn’t work.  I am missing a lot of the photos that I took. Great!  I am at home and it looks like work has somehow followed me. That great application that my wife was bragging … Continue reading →

Posted in Soapbox | Tagged | 1 Comment

“lp” and the automation of printing PDF’s

Posted on September 13, 2016 by DocDock

Apache FOP is actually really neat.  With a few jar files, an xslt file and a xml file it is possible to create PDF file which can then be viewed or printed on any PC without any loss of formatting.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Command line | Tagged | Comments Off on “lp” and the automation of printing PDF’s

Security through obscurity – pdf removing passwords

Posted on September 7, 2016 by DocDock

Initially I was not planning on writing about how to crack pdf passwords.  After all, that would be irresponsible much in the way giving a knife to a small child is irresponsible – right? Well, simply typing in the following … Continue reading →

Posted in Command line, security, Setup From Scratch | Comments Off on Security through obscurity – pdf removing passwords

better logging than printf – using log4j – part III

Posted on September 4, 2016 by DocDock

Log4j is a very convenient tool to have in your programming arsenal.  This is true even if only the very basic functionality is being used.    The basic functionality of log4j2 was covered in my previous example. To be honest, … Continue reading →

Posted in programming | Tagged , , | Comments Off on better logging than printf – using log4j – part III

better logging than printf – using log4j – part II

Posted on September 1, 2016 by DocDock

However, Just like with computers, cars and women there is always a faster, bigger, or better model on the horizon. Version 1.2 of log4j has reached its end of life on August 5th 2015 but there is a version 2 … Continue reading →

Posted in programming | Tagged , , | Comments Off on better logging than printf – using log4j – part II