Database on Shared Bits

Emacs - I Finally Got It

Thu, 11 Mar 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Updated on 2026-08-31

I was a member of a team working on an Oracle project the last nine months of my last job. My company was the prime contractor and we didn’t have any available company staff who knew Oracle, so the Oracle work was subcontracted to an Oracle subcontractor. One of the Oracle subcontractor employees sat in a cubicle next to me and we began talking about Linux one day. As our conversation went on, he began talking about Emacs , how he loved using it, and how powerful it was. He was contemplating starting a blog about Emacs.

Logging Linux Package Activity (Installs, Removals, Upgrades)

Sat, 22 Aug 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Updated on 2026-09-04

1 - Introduction

I learned the importance of logging package activity when I began using Debian Unstable . Because you can encounter breakage or a problematic package(s) when performing package upgrades under Debian Unstable, logging package activity can prove to be useful for troubleshooting purposes. Logging package activity can be also be useful for reference and historical purposes. In this post I will share how I log package activity, specifically upgrades, for Debian and Solus , the Linux distros I currently use as my daily operating systems. While not covered in this post, I also use the same technique to record manual installs and removals; i.e. I initiate the installs and removals.

TreePad: A Free-Form Database Program

Sun, 11 Nov 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Updated on 2026-09-18

The TreePad database program is no longer available. I’m leaving this post up for informational purposes. Links have been changed to point to collected links on the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine because www.treepad.com now points to a marijuana dispensary. Thank you to a reader named Chip who brought this to my attention.

Years ago, at the nudging of a former co-worker and friend, I decided to try working in the IT field as a Lotus Notes developer. About 2 years into my IT career, I determined that I needed a way to store code snippets and tips so that I could have a handy reference that allowed easy and quick retrieval of information for use on any project on which I was working.