Of course I disable the comments. You're the only person who ever reads this stuff anyway.

-Adam

Got everything done in the basement that we wanted to get done - no molding or carpet, but we're using the basement so much more than we used to. It now has a TV, VCR, my workroom (from where I can watch TV while I work), and the TV room has enough toys and stuff to keep the kids busy.

Yes sir, I'm am glad we finished it. I am so glad we're all done.

On another note, I just found out I've posted 200 comments to slashdot. That's interesting to me (perhaps not to you), but it makes me wonder if many of them have been all that useful. Obviously I'm at the karma cap, but that really doesn't tell one the real quality of my contribution to slashdot. I wonder whether I should spend less time on /. and more time developing my own website... I get an average of 2,2000 hits a day (about 100 hits per hour), so I know it's used, but most of the content is an archive of someone else's material that they gave to me (since they no longer had time to maintain it).

Trying to figure out how to add value to it is the real problem. Looking over the stats as well I find that 2000 people per month from Italy visit my site, second after the 50k who visit from the US. If I ever get into serious content mode, I'll have to look at translations and multiple languages... It's amazing, just amazing.

-Adam

We passed both the electrical and mechanical (heating) inspections, and now have the drywall on the ceilings and some walls.

It is hoped that we'll have it taped and mudded this weekend, and painted this next week.

Looks like nearly all beta testers will be getting winxp, up to five licenses. Apparently there was a lot of concern over who was considered an "active" tester or not, so they opened it to a wider range of testers. Which means I'm getting it.. ! Yay!!
 
-Adam

Just got the message in the beta newsgroups - just before 3pm MS put build 2600, the RTM version, of WinXP on the beta download server. Second later it was rejecting connections... Sadly I didn't make it yet. I should have it tonight, though... It's a time limited version, and I hope that they send out full versions to testers, but if not you know this is going to be on my christmas wishlist (about the time it'll expire... ;-)

-Adam

The WinXP beta newsgroups are all abuzz about the RTM this afternoon. Half the messages are asking "When can we download?" a quarter asking, "Are we getting free copies?" , an 8th are speculating on the build number for the RTM (I'm running RC2, 2505, the latest intermediate build available for D/L was 2542), and the last 8th are screaming, "Stop asking for free product! Stop asking for the RTM! Stop saying goodbye! etc..."

I've enjoyed the beta immensely. I've NEVER had a more stable windows than what I've been running since March. MS has put a ton of effort into it, and they deserve all the good press they are getting. They deserve the bad press too, but there really isn't that much bad about XP other than the authentication. And I can't disagree with it. I can see problems with it, but, hey, they own the code, they could require a dongle for every copy and we'd have to accept it. (in fact, I'll bet if they sold a dongled version, then it would sell. Turn off your computer, take your dongle to your laptop, turn it on, etc. Smacks of one person, one license system, which, IMO is better than one computer one license. Think of all the computers running right now that are doing nothing.)

The basement is coming along. We have 1/2 the furring strips up agains the one wall that is getting them. I was surprised at how easy it is to handle the powder nail gun against the wall, I thought I'd have trouble. The only trouble I'm having is that the nails still aren't penetrating a full inch even with the yellow (strongest) powder charges. But they don't stick out more than 3/8 of an inch, so the drywall will hide the heads. Hoping we'll get all the exterior done tonight, and maybe two interior doors, then I can convince Raelyn to let me put the other materials on credit so I can finish the interior walls and doors tomorrow. Then comes the wiring, which can be done in a few nights. Yay!!

I finally got some major work done on the basement refinishing project. We determined not to go with 2x2s nailed to the walls, as I was having much trouble nailing them to the concrete. I eventually determined that since the concrete nails needed to penetrate at least 1", and my powder actuated nail gun only handled 2 1/2" nails, and the boards needed shimming (2x2 boards are 1 1/2" wide), then the nails wouldn't go in far enough.

So we returned the wood, and got metal studs (which were the same cost), which are 2 1/2", so the rooms are 1" smaller, but wow does it go fast. We have all of the track (top and botton metal track that holds the metal studs in) in, and about 2/5 of the studs done, all today. I did find out our concrete is HARD . Normally they suggest a level 3 powder to shoot 1" nails into concrete, but they were just bending out of the way. I tried level four (the highest level available at local hardware stores), and most of them go in now, but not all the way all the time. Enough to keep the walls up, though.

We've got to finish this phase of the project

Exterior studs

before moving onto the next 3 phases, which I hope to complete before school starts after labor day.

Interior studs and doors

Wiring (electrical, 2 cat5, cable)

Drywall and finishing

I'd like to do a ceiling as well, but the wife is hesitant, having had a bad experience with drywalling above her head...

-Adam

Note to self: knee pads. Please. I'm begging you.