Google Custom Search replaces WordPress Search
I have replaced the internal WordPress Search functionality on this weblog with Google Custom Search. How to integrate this with your WordPress template in a nice manner, you can read in an article by Firewalker. It is a nice feature that Google offers and you can change the look and feel to your needs. However, I am not sure if I will keep it on this blog for long…
Google indexes the complete pages including sidebars and such. This may give too many search results in my opinion. The navite WordPress Search just searches through your posts - and with the right plugins through the comments. I think this may be better.
Why did I change to Google Custom Search in the first place then? Well, I like to try things. ;)
First things to install on a clean Mac OS X
So I decided to do a clean install of Mac OS X Leopard after experimenting with Yellow Dog Linux on my Apple PowerBook G4. Since OSX is not new to me, I already had in mind what 3rd party software to install immediately after the OS was up.
- Firefox 3. I do like the Safari browser that comes with Mac OS X, but I need a browser that can handle my Delicious bookmarks in an easy way. Firefox with the del.icio.us Bookmarks Extension rocks my world! ;)
- iTerm. A full featured terminal emulation program written for OS X using Cocoa. The default Terminal.app is not bad at all, but iTerm just has that extra touch. Most important feature to me: selecting means copy. :)
- Adium. This really is the very best IM (instant messaging) application for your Mac! Adium handles AIM, MSN, Jabber, Yahoo, and more.
- Growl. A notification system for Mac OS X: it allows applications that support Growl to send you notifications. HardwareGrowler is one of my favorite helper programs.
These are the applications that will definately be installed on my PowerBook after a fresh install of Mac OS X. Of course more will follow, but these ones are pretty vital to me. What are the OSX apps or tools that you cannot live without?
Yellow Dog Linux on a PowerBook G4 for a day
I have been running Mac OS X on my Apple PowerBook G4 since I bought it. However, after upgrading from Tiger (10.4) to Leopard (10.5) I was slightly disappointed at the performance. So, time for trying something else…
I remembered a Linux distribution that can run on PowerPC hardware and already exists for several years: Yellow Dog Linux (YDL) by Terra Soft. The most recent version is 6.0 which came out in the first quarter of this year. Downloading and burning the install image to DVD is as simple as always. Just be sure to download it from a local mirror. In The Netherlands, ftp.nluug.nl is very fast.
I decided to NOT install it dual boot with Mac OSX, since I wanted to reinstall a clean system anyway if I would not like YDL. Installing is a pretty simple task, especially if you have installed some Linux distro before. Put the DVD in the PowerBook and reboot it while holding the C key, so it will boot from DVD
We’re going mobile!
Do you want to check Connection Confused while you’re on the road? No problem! As of now you can also visit us on your mobile. Automatic detection of your device will show you the correct page, all thanks to MoFuse. Please let me know what you think!
The influence of Google…
How much power does Google really have?
(via)
Lightview Plus screws up in IE
Today I noticed that this site threw up errors when viewed in Internet Explorer. Since I mostly use Firefox as my browser, I had not seen the error earlier. After disabling all my plugins and reenabling them one by one, I found out that the Lightview Plus plugin - when used together with the Disqus comment system - screws things up in a way that IE does not really like.
I replaced Lightview Plus with the more common Lightbox 2 plugin. Now things seem to work ok in Internet Explorer (as far as possible with an inferior browser like that). Please people, consider using Firefox! ;)
If you should stumble onto any other problems with this site, please let me know.
Decided on the layout
Well, it took me some time, but I finally decided on the layout for Connection Confused. This Free “WP Premium” Theme seems to fit my needs. A simple and clean layout, with some nice features.
After figuring out myself how to get the “Subscribe by email” function to work with FeedBurner, I found out that someone else had already documented this on his site. My solution is slightly different, but both should work.
I’m still working on some things in the new layout, but you should get the big picture by now. Stay tuned for more updates.
Is Disqus the way to go for comments?
I have been wanting to give the Disqus comment system a good try on my other blog for some time now. But since there still is no option to import old comments into it, I have not had the chance. That is because I want to keep my comments in one system. Oh well, a new blog means new opportunities.
I did install Disqus on this weblog from the start. If I don’t like it, I hope the export function works like I hope and I go along with the standard comment system within WordPress. I really like threaded comments and the possibility to rate comments. It can be done with plugins in WordPress, but not as simple as just one plugin for Disqus.
For now I am pretty optimistic about using Disqus, but there seem to be some people having little problems. Some users seem to be experiencing login problems while commenting. Another thing is that comments might not show up as expected when you are browsing on your mobile.
One thing I think is really nice is that your commenters instantly become part of a community that is much bigger than just your blog. There are still some points to consider though. Oh well, we’ll see where it takes us. What are your experiences with Disqus?
No smoking in Dutch bars and restaurants pays off
Since the 1st of this month, it is no longer allowed in The Netherlands to smoke in bars and restaurants. I have never been doing the smoke thing, but I agree on stopping smoking in restaurants. As for bars and dancings, I don’t know…
In my home town, bars are allowed to let new customers come inside untill 1am. After that, you can only go out. With the new anti-smoking law, you have to go outside to smoke. So if you want to smoke after 1am, you can’t come back inside the bar when you’re done.
Before this month, when smoking was still allowed, my favorite bar used to be packed with people around 1:30am. Last night there just around 20 people left. The bar owner told me since the new law he makes about 2000 euro less on an average saturday night. It seems to me that this anti-smoke law is killing for the smaller pubs. I don’t care about smoking, but I do like a pretty crowded bar on a saturday night out.
How long before they come up with a law that prevents us from drinking beer in the pub?
10 Things you don’t want your bank to say to you
The financial world is undergoing dufficult times at the moment. Here are some things you probably do not want your bank to say to you:
- We used your money to redecorate our CFO’s condo.
- I’m sorry, we don’t seem to have an account with that number.
- Are you sure you have an account with our bank?
- So you want to withdraw some money… Can I write you a cheque?
- We had to cancel all savings accounts due to a reorganisation. But the money came in handy.
- You want to put money into your account? With our bank? Really?
- We have transfered the money in your accounts to our affiliate in Katmandu. Yes, you do have to show your id there in person.
- No, this isn’t a bank, this is a grocery… Always been a grocery… yep… sorry.
- You want your money in dollars? We had a good deal on Polish slottis; that’s all we have now.
- When I count to 10, will you be gone then?
