Month: February 2003

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Address already in use

It took me awhile but my server is finally back to normal. Since I installed the Software Update Server I have had a variety of problems besides the problem of it not working. The most persistent and annoying problem was with  the Internet Information Server and port 80. Port 80 is the normal port web traffic and it got screwed up. I think it had to do with IIS Lockdown but I am not sure. I do know that for the last two days whenever I tried to start up the default web site with port 80 it would give me the message, “address already in use”. IIS worked fine on port 81 and 82. Fport's report showed no program listening to the port. I searched the registry, the IIS metabase, and various knowlege bases on the internet for clues. Nothing worked. Late yesterday I noticed that Microsoft's Messenger could not login. This the corporate version of Messenger and it logs into Exchange 2000. I removed the lockdown settings again and still could not login. I reset the default server back to port 80 and rebooted the computer. This morning I noticed that the web server was running on port 80 and Messenger could login. I think I need to spend a lot more time with the IIS Lockdown white paper.

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Microsoft Software Update Server

Well I do know how to waste time! Yesterday I thought I would install the SP1 version of Software Update Server. The installation did not go right for reasons I am still researching and the uninstall did not go write either. The research is complicated because the install runs the IIS Lockdown wizard and I had problems configuring it to work with ISA. When I finally got it to work I realized it was going to download over 1700+ updates. Gratefully, it failed before it went too far. I guess I am surprised it did not allow me a choice of how much I wanted to download. Since I am still a dialup user this server is not a good choice for me to prototype. It might be nice for a small business with a highspeed internet connection and a server with lots of space. I guess this another Microsoft work-in-progress.

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The Noble Adventure

Space exploration captures our imagination and admiration. The shuttle trips into space inspire the average person because it makes space travel seem within reach. The loss of the shuttle yesterday is a great tragedy to many throughout the world. The loss is especially hard on the families, friends, and co-workers and my prayers go out to them. I pray they will grieve, remember these people vividly in their minds and conversation, and ultimately be at peace with themselves. The pain will go away.

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Voltaire. “If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him.” [Quotes of the Day]

I am not sure what I think about this quote. Everytime I try to ponder this quote, my mind runs off in a different direction. Is it a serious statement or just a glib comment? I can't tell. My first assumption was that this is a serious statement about man's innate need for God. At the end of the day we find our selves humbled by what we do not know. Clearly it is much easier for the average person to acknowlege that God is in control then to believe that the world we live in is the result of a massive evolutional lottery. I have several problems with evolution. One of the more amusing problems has to do with relative disparity of intelligense between the species. Why is it that humans are so smart compared to the other species? What kept all of our closest evolutionary relatives(e.g. chimps) back? Evolution explains some things neatly but not enough things to make me comfortable with the lottery. I don't like to venture into the evolutionary swamp too much so my mind runs off to the God seed issue. It is a fact that almost all societies have worshipped some God. It seems to be built into our genes.  I call it the God seed. When this seed sprouts and starts to grow, it changes people from within. When they make the personal connection between their growing spirituality and God, they want to see if other people feel the same way. As more people share and explore their beliefs, they bond and make the existance of God indisputable within their group.