If you are closely tuned in to the web world as I am, you may have heard that Google may include “web page load time” as one of their ranking factors in 2010. I heard about this, saw a few videos about this and read about this. Apparently, when Google talks about changing what makes people’s websites rank differently, people listen…and then talk about it themselves.
I run a bunch of different websites. Some of them have rather large page sizes. The reason they are so large is because of additional files beyond simple HTML that each page pulls in to make the web page behave correctly. These files, such as .js and .css files can get kind of big. Over the years, I didn’t really dig too deeply into the page size issue because the sites get fairly good traffic. I just let things ride.
A few days ago, I came across a post on a forum that talked about mod_gzip or otherwise known as GZIP. This is software that you can install on your web server that compresses your web pages up to 70%. Google recommends that webmasters use GZIP to speed up their websites. Google likes to present its visitors with nice speedy pages in their search results.
I read that it’s pretty easy to deploy GZIP and that it really shouldn’t take more than a few minutes (if it’s already installed on your server). I decided to give it a try. So I did. It didn’t work. Hmmm.
I called my web host and started asking questions. I was like, YO B%^&*, what up with my GZIP??? No really, I was polite. I asked about why GZIP wasn’t giving me any compression results and they told me that I was running Apache2 and that mod_deflate was already installed, not mod_gzip. All I needed to do was to deploy it. I kind of like the name “GZIP” better than “DEFLATE” but who am I to argue?
By the way, here are some good resources on using GZIP and DEFLATE:
First, I asked the web host to deploy mod_deflate on only one domain. I wanted to gauge the results and also take a night to see if anything got screwed up from it. They were agreeable and did the following:
At your request I enabled mod_deflate for one domain on server 123456:
I checked out some stuff overnight and since everything looked fine in the morning, I gave the web host a call back and asked them to undo what they did to that individual domain and set it up server-wide. They put the server back the way it was and set up mod_deflate to compress all the websites on the server by doing this:
Created a file /my/path/mod_deflate.conf with the following line:
That was about it. Since Apache2 comes with mod_deflate installed already, all we had to do was to deploy it. We did this both for an individual domain and server-wide.
I bet you want to know about the results, right? Okay. Well, I can tell you that I had some web pages that were over 400kb. They are now running at about 165kb. I also had some web pages that were about 445kb. They are now running at about 45kb. That’s about 10% of what it was. Is that crazy? Yes, it’s nuts.
Next week, I am going to deploy mod_deflate on my other web server. That should really make some positive changes.
There are a few things you should know. The first thing is that if you decide to do this and have a cable internet connection where you are connected to the internet, you most likely won’t notice much of a change. I read that this has something to do with packets. I am not that smart, so I just took this statement as face value. Although, I run cable and didn’t really notice much of a change. People who use DSL and dial up will definitely see some speed improvements from the smaller web page sizes.
Also, if you are running a website and are using a shared server, you may not be able to use mod_gzip or mod_deflate. Since both of these modules use an increased amount of processing power, many web hosts won’t allow its use. If you aren’t aware, some of these web hosts pack like 10 billion websites on each server. Any increase in CPU demand is going to cause problems. Still, you should give them a call to see what they say. You might get lucky.
I read somewhere a few days ago that pictures and video on the internet don’t do the Motorola Droid justice. Boy, they were right about that. In person, this thing is phenomenal.
After Jiu Jitsu practice this afternoon, I somehow ended up in the Verizon Wireless store in Glastonbury. Don’t ask me how I got there, it was a blur. All I know is that I wanted this new PDA because the screen is much larger than my current Blackberry Curve screen and I can see the browser 100% better. Also, HTML emails show up as HTML, not text with code all over the place. It’s a superb business tool.
I am going to keep this post short because the Motorola Droid has been plastered all over the internet and television for that past few weeks. I am not going to go over all that again, but I will throw a nice little video in this post for you. Let me say this…the phone is awesome. Gmail, Google Calendar and Contacts are seamless. Apps are just a few clicks away. The operating system is extremely intuitive. At first glance, I thought I would actually need the manual to learn how things work. About 15 minutes of playing with the phone gave me a good working knowledge of how to use just about everything.
The Motorola Droid is the best PDA device I have ever touched…hands down.
When I read that line, I stopped cold for a second or two. I started thinking and asking myself silly questions, like, “Gee, I’m working on Vista right now. What’s wrong with it?” and “Why is it that when ever I read something about Windows Vista, it’s negative?” and “Why do I feel like every computer I go near that has Vista installed on it is going to blow up like a giant stink bomb?” Seriously, I am typing on a machine running Windows Vista right this very moment and the world is okay.
I am not simply sticking up for Microsoft, although I was just saying a few days ago that it wouldn’t really matter what position someone takes, I am bound to take the opposite one. I am a debater by nature and right now Vista is the underdog. So there you are.
I will tell you this, I absolutely hate Internet Explorer. It doesn’t matter what version comes out, it pains me to open the program. Maybe it’s because it is excruciatingly slow. It’s not only slow to browse web pages, it’s also slow to just open and run. I read a comparison between the latest versions of IE, Firefox and Chrome the other day. They said that speed was generally the same among all three applications. My eyes nearly fell out of my head. I was like, “What planet are you from?” I only use IE for one thing now and I don’t look forward to it.
I also hate ActiveSync. I used to use it to sync my Treo with Outlook. It was such a waste of time. How many times can a person sever and restore the relationship between the phone and the computer? My fingers used to hurt from crossing them so much.
This brings me to the last thing (I think) I don’t like from Microsoft…and that is Windows Mobile. When I was using Windows Mobile on that Treo, I must have given that phone a hard reboot hundreds of times. It pushed me into the arms of Blackberry, where I have been warmly embraced ever since. I have had my Blackberry for about two years now. Do you know how many times I had to reboot the phone? Once. That’s right. I had to reboot the phone once since I got it and that was just last week and the problem wasn’t even with the phone. It had to do with a Google app that had a bug. Now that’s good.
So, back to my original question. What in the world is wrong with Vista? It is just that there were some compatibility issues when it first came out? Does it have to do with usability issues? Do people dislike the little box that pops up when they have to install or uninstall software?
Since I really don’t know the answer and really have only had a few problems with Vista, I decided to do a little Google search. Here are some sites that offered me some answers:
I guess there are some legitimate reasons why people are a little ticked off. Especially when the company that made the software admits it didn’t work out. I seem to think they are just pumping up Windows 7 though. You know, if you say your previous product (which is naturally dying off soon anyway) was so bad, it makes people want your new product that much more. “Gee, this new Windows 7 must be really GREAT!!!” Honestly, if you want to beat up on a version of Windows, you should have beat up on Windows 98. I am still having shivers from that one. Want to talk about blue screen?
I gotta tell you something. Maybe a lot of the people who are complaining about Vista are open source users. Over the last year, I have actually transitioned myself to use more open source programs than traditional ones. Maybe that’s an exaggeration. I use a few though. I really like what I use. Most of them are smooth, lightweight, fast and have frequent updates. I can’t wait for the day that I have the guts to actually switch to an open source operating system. That probably won’t happen for some time because I am not one to sit and struggle with configurations or trying to see what works with what. I am impatient. If it doesn’t work quickly, it gets uninstalled.
Here’s a question – What has Vista done to you? I would like to hear from real people with real problems. I’m sick of the biased bloggers out there who now have a venue to talk smack. I don’t believe any of them. The problem is, many people do. So, let’s have it.
I just heard of this thing called Google Wave. Now, I use a lot of tools on the web and many of them are offered by Google, but when it comes to sheer continuity, this tops the cake. Google Wave basically merges many functions of GMail, orkut, Friend Connect, Picasa, Docs, Chat and probably many more. It’s pretty incredible.
For a while now, I have been wondering where some of these tools were headed. I mean, the last time I heard of orkut was a few years ago. I had no idea that there was a buzz about it and development of it behind the scenes.
Since I am really no good at tearing apart a video to regurgitate its contents, I’ll just post the video. Check it out.
This is the big news today. From what I am reading all over the web anyway. Microsoft has taken the beta version of “Microsoft Security Essentials” anti-virus software out of beta and allowing the public to download it for free.
For free? What? I did a little doubletake at this one. I have been looking for good free anti-virus software for a while. Well, ever since Norton AntiVirus started annoying me. Let me tell you why I got annoyed:
1. Every time I have to renew Norton, it seems like the price goes up. How much higher can they go?
2. Norton has this annoying feature that sets auto-renew to “on” by default. While this is good for those of us who forget to renew our anti-virus software, it can get annoying for us who can handle this chore. Personally, I like to give my options a yearly review. Good thing they send that email to warn me and to remind me to turn off auto-renew.
3. Apparently, Norton has had some issues with double-charging their customers when it comes time to renew the software. They did this to me. Hey, don’t take my word for it, just click here to see for yourself.
The reviews on Microsoft Security Essentials have been pretty good. I watched a few videos of the beta version and people seem pretty happy with what they get. Remember, this is free, but I think it only works on Windows. It’s a shame we just renewed three computers here at about $50 each. Yeah, I told you it was expensive.
Here is a video describing the free anti-virus software.
Oh yeah…if you want to download Microsoft Security Essentials, click here.
This is a project that I have been waiting all year to do. It’s called, “Overseeding the lawn” (the correct time of year).
Every time I have put down grass seed, it was during the hottest, driest time of year. The seed didn’t do much because there was nothing much to do. Eventually, I think it actually grew, but that was months later when things cooled off and the rain returned.
They say to overseed your lawn in early September. This is because, like I said above, the Summertime drought is most likely over and rain falls more frequently. Unfortunately for me, the ten day forecast shows ten perfectly orange pictures of sunshine. Only me.
The reason I did the whole lawn dethatch, aerate and overseed the day I did was because of the rain we got the previous two days. In order to properly aerate, you need moist soil. If the soil is too dry, the aerator can’t get down into the dirt deep enough and you won’t pull a substantial plug. I got plugs that were about one and a half to two inches long. I would offer a picture, but it’s been about a week since I did this job and the plugs are all dried up and not very attractive.
I thought I would breeze through this particular project. In actuality, it took longer than expected. First, I dethatched the grass. I did this by towing the dethatcher I bought at Home Depot around the yard. Since grass and thatch kept clumping up in the tines, I had to stop frequently to clean it out. After that was done, I put the bagger back on the mower and mowed the grass at a height of three inches. I know the general advice is to mow at one inch or less when overseeding, but I just didn’t have the heart to scrape the dirt when I had no guarantee of rain in the future. I am not about to water 11,000 square feet of grass either. Mother Nature is going to have to take care of this one.
After I dethatched and mowed, I pulled out the tow behind plug aerator and did my thing. I did a few passes over the lawn to make sure I roughed up the dirt enough. I did a good job, but I still think I should have done more. It’s just that while doing this kind of thing, you want to get it done. Driving around in circles isn’t all that entertaining.
Okay, so once the aerating was finished, I filled the seed spreader up with my custom mixture of Kentucky Bluegrass and Perennial Ryegrass. I chose these two types of grass because the Kentucky Bluegrass is just awesome looking and it is supposed to spread to fill in bare spots. The thing is, it takes forever to germinate. The Perennial Ryegrass is a good looking durable grass that germinates much faster and will fill things in while waiting for the Bluegrass.
As I said above, it’s been about a week with no rain and there isn’t much action out there. I have been watering certain areas with my sprinkler because I have no illusions that a huge thunderstorm isn’t going to come and wash all the seed off the front hillside. I want to get that grass sort of anchored in there before that happens. Otherwise, I will have to let nature take its course and wait for the grass to grow on it’s own. I also have some seed left over to spread out if need be.
Here are some pictures for you.
Bare spot in lawn with hole from tow behind plug aerator
Bare spot in lawn with Kentucky Bluegrass and Perennial Ryegrass grass seed
Bag of Scotts starter fertilizer
Oh yeah, I also bought two bags of Scotts starter fertilizer. Each bag is supposed to cover 5,000 square feet. I haven’t applied this yet because the directions say to water in immediately after application. Since I can’t water the entire lawn, I am going to wait for right before the next rainfall to spread this stuff around.
If you don’t already know this about me, I’m a satellite image junkie. I used to be hooked on Google Maps and then graduated to Google Earth. One day, my mother introduced me to Live Maps and it was all over. The bird’s eye view is killer. It’s like you are sitting in a helicopter at about 1,000 feet looking around.
The reason I like these types of applications so much is that I have a horrible memory for places. I constantly think of stuff I have seen and then want to see it again. If we had transporters like they have on Star Trek, I would be everywhere all the time.
Live Maps is okay, but sometimes it runs slowly and takes a few moments for the photos to load. That bugs me. Also, the bird’s eye view isn’t available for every place I want to look. I mean, it’s really great exploring through Live Maps, but I need more.
This evening, I was thinking about various places I used to visit in Atlanta, GA. I was thinking about all the roads and different stores and restaurants. I think I have a more romantic view about what there was down there than what was reality. I went over to YouTube to see if I could find some videos of the stuff I was thinking about and only came across a few not-so-great videos. I was a little disappointed when a thought popped in my head. I said, “Hey man, why not download Google Earth again? I know they updated it and now offer Street View.” How great of an idea that was.
Well folks, I downloaded Google Earth and I have to say that my socks were knocked off. The last time I checked this program out is when they were just introducing 3D maps. Now, they have 3D, Street View and somehow, I can see what’s under the ocean water. I haven’t figured that out yet.
After playing around for a little while, I decided to give my mother a call to tell her that I was looking at her front door through Street View. I haven’t been down there in a while, but amazingly enough, all of my memories came back to me through all the photos that Google Earth offered me. It’s pretty incredible.
What’s really cool is the fact that you can use Google Earth for so many things, like checking out a neighborhood if you are interested in moving there, you can reminisce about places you used to live and you can even check stuff out while you are on the phone with people to get a better picture of what in the world they are talking about. I think I am going to use this the next time I talk to my father about where he works.
Okay, enough talk. Take a look at these videos to see what I am trying to get at. Then, go ahead and download your own copy of Google Earth and start having some fun.
I think the first thing you need to do is to recognize that your lawn has crabgrass growing in it.
Sometimes, crabgrass isn’t all that obvious. Actually, if your lawn looks great during the hot summer months but not in the spring or fall, you might have a crabgrass problem. This type of weed loves the heat. While many types of cooler grasses go dormant and turn brown during July and August, crabgrass is thriving. It makes the guy who takes care of the lawn proud…until October rolls around.
The first tell-tale sign that your lawn has crabgrass is the noticing of big brown areas come autumn. While the rest of the real grass is growing nicely, the crabgrass is dying off. The only problem is that crabgrass is an annual plant. Later on in the season, the weed produces seeds that we unknowingly mow into and spread around our regular grass. That lays the foundation for problems the next year, and the next year…you get the picture.
So, what do you do? Well, you can either get on your hands and knees and pluck out every single crabgrass weed you find all season long. That would probably do it. Or, you can apply what they call a “Pre-emergent grassy and broadleaf weed control.” This the probably the preferred route to travel down. You can buy the stuff yourself or call a service to come to your house and apply it for you.
The weed control is pretty nifty stuff. It rests on the soil of your lawn as small pellets and dissolves as it’s watered in. Somehow (and don’t ask me how), this weed control stops the weed seeds from germinating. Stopping the weeds from growing in the first place sounds a heck of a lot better than pulling them out after the fact.
It’s funny – while walking around, I like looking at the different levels of lawn care in different neighborhoods. You can actually see distinct property lines of those who take care of their lawns vs. those who don’t. One lawn is green, while the lawn right next to it is brown and full of weeds. By weeds, I mean big brown areas caused by crabgrass.
My friends at Scotts Lawn in Hartford stopped by today to give the grass its first application of “Early spring and spring fertilization” which adds nutrients to improve lawn color and strengthens the root system of the grass. They also put down some “Pre-emergent grassy and broadleaf weed control” which controls weed problems, such as crabgrass and other annual grasses later in the year. Okay, obviously I got those descriptions from the card they left with me.
I was really happy to see the guy stop by today, because I was getting nervous that the crabgrass seeds would start germinating. I always worry about things like this. Add that to my worry list.
The fella who stopped by today was very nice. We talked for a bit about none other than grass and its care. Believe it or not, it’s one of my favorite topics. Well, I’ll talk about anything that has to do with lawn care or landscaping. They are both interesting. We both agreed that there were some areas that had a little crabgrass problem, but nothing that couldn’t be taken care of.
I told the tech that I think the lawn is already showing nice signs of improvement from what they put down last autumn. Of what grass has already started growing, it’s really green and soft. I just hope we can keep this trend going and get the whole lawn nice and green by autumn.
I thought I would show you some pictures of the fertilizer/weed control they put down as well as some areas that have been affected by crabgrass. Enjoy, because you won’t see these problem areas for long.
Fertilizer and crabgrass control pellets
Fertilizer and crabgrass control pellets on top of problem lawn
Spring lawn greening up – showing some brown areas affected by crabgrass – photo 1
Spring lawn greening up – showing some brown areas affected by crabgrass – photo 2
Spring lawn greening up – showing some brown areas affected by crabgrass – photo 3
Spring lawn greening up – showing some brown areas affected by crabgrass – photo 4
President Barack Obama is a smart guy. Where others zig, he zags. It’s perhaps not surprising, then, that he’s been asking around about the benefits of open source, according to Sun Chairman Scott McNealy, who has been asked by President Obama to author a white paper on the benefits the U.S. government can derive from open source.
On March 4, 1901, a lone cameraman in the employ of Thomas A. Edison was dispatched to capture the swearing in of William McKinley. To posterity he delivered a total of 44 seconds of grainy footage showing a white-haired man on the Capitol steps solemnly, if indistinctly, raising his right hand.
Second semester has started and many students went back to college. If you are one of them check out this list of tools, it might help you with your studies. All applications are web based, simple to use and free.
I did the last big cleanup last week. The Oak leaves finally decided to fall so I had my work cut out for me. When the Oak leaves fall, the entire ground is basically covered. It’s much worse than when all the other leaves fall. Oak leaves are big and thick. They fill up the bagger very fast and have a tendency to clog the chute.
The way I got around the massive amounts of leaves clogging things up was to give the lawn a quick mow first. I lowered the cutting deck to 3 1/2 inches and ran over the grass a few times. This chopped up the leaves nice and fine. Then, I attached the bagger and went to town. Things still filled up fast, but I didn’t have to stop to dump nearly as often. Also, stopping the tractor to unclog the chute lessened as well.
The Scotts Lawn Service visits are over for this year as well. They came out 3 times, since I called them in October. The first time they came, they put down a slow-release fertilizer and a grub control. The second time they came out (just a few days ago), they put down a winterizer fertilizer. Yesterday, they came out and put down a dolomitic pelletized limestone. I have been waiting for this lime application because I think this is one of the major problems with the soil here. It will…
“…help balance the soil PH and contains calcium and magnesium for improved health of the grass plant.”
I got that from the invoice.
The grass actually is looking better already. I am impressed. There were a bunch of larger brown areas from all the junk grass dying from the cold, but those areas are now turning green. My little over-seeding episode that I performed a while ago helped, I’m sure. Oh yeah, I also aerated the lawn about a month ago too.
I am planning on the grass coming back with a vengeance in early Spring. The Scotts people said that I am most likely going to have to mow twice as much. That’s fine with me, now that I have the ride-on mower and the bagger. No more clumps of grass shooting out of the side making dead spots all over the place.
Ahhh, the life of a guy who thinks about grass way too much.
