Posts by Gary Lee53

slycrane94 said:It’s the same deal when people ask if you even run Windows as a server—they don't even specify what kind of server we're talking about. Most folks use Windows servers simply because they’re already using Windows on their desktops and for those non-critical edge applications. That’s a far cry from claiming that Microsoft dominates the high-end server market.

Take this for example:
A company runs two servers; one handles Microsoft Exchange, while the other hosts a database and an information system based on a J2EE solution running on Linux.

I mean, really, try comparing the two. Running a clunky Exchange setup versus an Informix database paired with an IS just isn't an apples-to-apples comparison.

Generally speaking, the issue is that Exchange is such a resource hog that it eats up 1GB of virtual memory, leaves leaks everywhere it goes, and then some. You need a machine with at least 1GB of physical RAM just to cope, and you practically have to reboot it every month just to clear out all the junk it leaves behind in memory. And yet, Exchange itself is performing a task that is X times smaller than whatever is running on that second server. Since there's zero room left on that second machine for anything else, it’s pretty obvious that if you wanted to run any other Microsoft product, you'd be forced to buy another server entirely.

So, I have to ask: how can anyone claim Microsoft rules the top-tier server segment when even their most basic tools, like Exchange, don't even function properly? On the flip side, you take the exact same server—hardware-wise, mind you—which actually has less memory available, throw Informix and a BES on it, and everything runs perfectly fine for about 50 users.

We all know why that specific solution was chosen. It was because it was available. Not too long ago, they were doing some reorganization in that office and needed to separate the servers, and the admin just looks at this Linux server and says, "Man, I haven't even turned this thing off or restarted it in two years; hold on, let me find the root password, I think I've already forgotten it..."

Heh, our resident egoist Daniel Fowler9 has latched onto the one thing he can actually claim a win on... performance... Not that anyone ever really disputed that .NET outpaces Java.

But let’s be real, you're still just spinning your wheels in a Windows environment. Sorry baby, looks like you lost again.

Sometimes I get the feeling you're practically on the Microsoft payroll. Only their corporate shills hunt for straw man arguments quite like you do. That "you won't find it online" line is especially suspicious; it sounds like something straight out of a Microsoft brochure titled "How to Combat Linux." 🙂

It's like looking at the tip of an iceberg and failing to realize there's a whole mountain of ice sitting right beneath the surface...

I’ve spent nearly two years now working on developing online banking systems, and honestly, the technology behind it all is incredibly secure. Still, as a regular guy just trying to manage his money, I find myself much more impressed by hardware tokens than those old-school smart cards...

Chase is fantastic. It’s truly a cut above the rest. I actually made the switch to them for that exact reason!

Michelle Doyle55 said:Well, if I’m sitting here listening to Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos one day and then switching over to Pixies the next, people would probably just assume I’ve completely lost my mind....😁

Oh, please. I can spend an entire afternoon vibing to Pearl Jam and then flip right over to some Jazz the very next morning... what are you gonna do, call a doctor??? 😁

I guess I still care about what someone listens to, mostly because I’m pretty damn picky when it comes to my own playlist.

Though, honestly, I rarely find myself asking people, "So, what kind of music are you into?" It feels a bit cliché and lazy, doesn't it? Like I don't have anything more interesting to talk about.

I know for a fact I could never make it work with a woman who only listened to country music. We would have reached a breaking point so fast. 😁 🙄

Andrew Martinez11 said:WRITE MY NAME IN ALL CAPS!!!!

Look, that isn't even your real name, it's just a screen name, and besides, how am I supposed to type it in all caps when you went ahead and wrote the whole thing in lowercase yourself? 😲 👎 🙂

I used to lean pretty heavily toward the classics, though I guess nowadays you have to wonder how much even counts as a classic anymore:
The Doors, Rolling Stones, Yardbirds, Cream, The Moody Blues, Mike Oldfield, Iron Maiden, Motörhead, U2, R.E.M., Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Allman Brothers Band, Jimi Hendrix, Deep Purple, Anthrax, Saxon, Led Zeppelin, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Judas Priest
...and so on and so forth... nothing particularly cutting-edge or modern, really. Back in high school, all the kids in my class were obsessed with what they called "alternative," and honestly, I could never quite wrap my head around what that was supposed to mean... 🙄 😁

And how on earth would you even go about translating that!? 🙄

Here’s how you do it, step by step:
1. First, just load up your image.
2. Go ahead and hit Object -> Create -> From Background.
3. Then, grab the Transparency Tool from the toolbar on the left side.
4. You'll notice a Combo Box pops up on one of the top toolbars showing different types of transparency masks—just pick whichever one fits your vibe. Personally, I went with the Radial option.
5. Once you do that, a mask appears on your object, complete with two points and an arrow. That arrow usually points toward where you want things to end up. If you click on one of those points, you'll see a trackbar right there on the same toolbar where you picked the mask type; this lets you dial in the opacity level for that specific point (so, 0 for fully opaque, 100 for totally transparent). In my little demo here, the starting point is dead center at 0, and the end point is the outer circle set at 100.
6. There’s also this extra little dot sitting on the line with the arrow that you can slide back and forth between the start and end points, which basically lets you control the gradient flow—how fast or slow the transparency fades out from the center.
7. Finally, you just Save as, export it, or maybe just merge it within CorelDRAW like I did in my example, and you're all set!

I know, I know, I probably rambled on a bit too much with all these details, but if anything is still fuzzy, feel free to shoot me a private message!

The example isn't anything fancy, but it should get the job done, and once you start playing around with it, you won't be limited by the same hurdles I ran into...