I think augmented reality could work well in cases like these. Inobtrusive, low/little light pollution compared to 3-5" screens, and not distracting the user from still taking in the sights before them. Sure, it's not traditional, but if done in such a way that it doesn't spoil the experience for others (in particular) and adds something for those visiting.. more power to them.
You do not need a graphical desktop environment on the server; you only need the X11 libraries and basic utilities. On Debian, that means x11-common and x11-utils with their dependencies.
There's no xterm, xclock, etc, let alone a a window manager like xfce or worse yet a full blown environment like GNOME or KDE.
The actual DBA should connect in, run the utilities, and then be done with it. They can use whatever gui and whatever X11 server they want. The bulk of the load is on their desktop, not the server.
I found the Ergon 3 to be a *much* more comfortable chair, especially if you're a bigger person. I bought mine while working on a long-standing consulting job. It made finishing that job so much easier... Well worth the money. (~$800)
A car's crumple zones *should* absorb a great amount of that impact, and there are better in-cabin protections for the bouncing about in the car. This contrasted to the tall, roll-prone bolt-on truck. (I read in a different article that much heavier standards are levied against cars/crossovers than SUVs on truck chassis.)
So, who comes out ahead is only clear if you limit it to physics. When you bring vehicle design and crash dynamics in, I don't think it can be easily dismissed. !absurd.
Gotta love it. "Fighting congestion" not actually reducing the congestion at all, but in fact doubling the amount of data being pushed around the internet.... Bleh....
I lived in Buffalo Grove where I used Comcast for 1.5 years in '04 and '05. I paid $60/month for their premium service + modem rental, which was 6000/768 and cost $10 more than their 4000/384. This was back when Insight in Springfield was still 4000/256 (or was it 128 up still) and they only offered a faster service for something like $30 more. So, I had no problems with their prices.. which didn't change at all while I had them.
The only ports they filtered were netbios/samba ones, which IIRC Insight does also. They never complained or filtered my SSH, SMTP+submission, port 80 WWW, DNS, CVS, nor dovecot SSL IMAP services. I could max my connection with linux distro torrents.
I moved back to Springfield in Oct. '05 just a month or three before they rolled out the 10/1 service, which has been great, and has seemed as free as the Comcast connection I had up north. Hopefully things haven't changed drastically since then... but we can only wait and see. Mostly what I'm concerned about is my insightbb.com email address.. I've had that account since they went to insightbb.com from @Home (still active on my parents' account) and I can't imagine how many things point to that email address currently...
Firefox 3 under Windows requires Win2K, XP or Vista. Under OSX it supports MacOSX 10.3+ only.
Thankfully, the number of users affected is low, and those older systems (especially the Win98/ME users..) have their own problems that go beyond browsers.
However, I mostly agree with your sentiment. Supporting just the current and maybe the prior major release should be sufficient.. especially if you're coding for standards, in which case you don't have much to worry about.
Well, to extend the corrected analogy... it'd be like the technician going to the guy and saying that "hey, some people with this car install aftermarket chips and our equipment may not be compatible... you sure you want us to try? no guarantees if you've modified it.." and the owner saying, "yeah sure, hook it up."
iPhone owners didn't have to update their firmware. They took their fate into their own hands when they unlocked/tweaked their phones. Honestly, had I purchased an iPhone for $600, I can tell you that modifying it would've been the last thing I would've done...
Not really. If you have some killers on your team who can hack out a nice generalized engine which takes care of validation, checking, storage, processing, whatever. Then you can have a lot of nublets coding against the engine via an API and using tidy metadata, never to see some of the tricky stuff in the back-end. Something like 2 or 3 people maintaining the engine, and 10 - 15 people coding against a standard interface, only having to write specific application code for the nuances of a given task.
Compare that to 15 n00bites coding out the same busy work.. writing very specific checking, processing, etc code in each program. Then you're at the mercy of the skills of your individual coders. Some may be good.. others, not so much. Either way, there's a lot of wasted overlapping effort.
Both may be scaled using warm bodies. However, one will lead to a very consistent system, with very rapid development, centralized maintainability, and with a low cost of entry for new coders. (Get them to an average proficiency with your language, get them up to speed on your internal APIs, then assign them to a small team for 6 months to make sure they can be integrated.) In the other situation, you're scaling, sure, but the cost of entry is higher. Each programmer would have to be much more proficient when dealing with the manual process. Designs would be rather inconsistent for important things. Maintainability? Not centralized, for sure.
This post is getting long-winded. To conclude, I agree that it's generally fine to prefer junior programmers, but you must not discount what someone who knows their stuff may bring to the table. These people, when engaged properly, can turn a herd of junior devs into a force to be reckoned with. Then we can talk about significant cost savings.:-)
It absolutely is a security-conscious thing to do. It's called Operational Security.
Sure, on a 'properly-run' site, that shouldn't be a problem. But can you always guarantee that sensitive or private materials won't be loaded to that site? It is a risk.
Obviously it applies less to very personal 'who cares' kinds of sites, but pretty much everything else should be data driven with deeper access controls, and maybe only enabling directory indexing explicitly on a location-by-location basis, or for certain IP ranges.
I do not know for a fact. Apple has been silent on this. AT&T's plans don't seem to suggest it (comparing smartphone to pda plans' prices). Most of the fanatical macrumors community doesn't seem to think so. And without proof, I don't assume they do, either. That's why I'll be going in to ask Friday assuming its not been confirmed by that point. If its included, or an available option, that's excellent, and I'll buy an 8G iPhone and sign a contract.
Otherwise, I already know where I'm looking next.
Anyway, I agree, that I'd really like to see the bluetooth advertised device services for the iPhone. Maybe I'll take my powerbook and scan bluetooth in the parking lot before I go in... see if they list dialup networking and serial ports before I go in.:)
Tethering is the one feature missing which will likely be the dealbreaker for me. I'll certainly be at the store Friday to ask them about it, and I'd pay extra for it, even if that means the $40 PDA plan on top of the $40 voice package. Without that capability, though, the I dare say the iPhone isn't the internet in my pocket, but merely a looking-glass through which I may observe only a priviledged few ports, even if in splendor. The iPhone is still tempting, though. Mail.app, iCal and Addressbook are apps I use often and love. Also, a widescreen iPod.. it would certainly be a step up from my 5GB 1st gen... and the price is great.
Aside from the iPhone, I've been shopping lately, and my other options are the AT&T 8525 ($40 voice + $40 pda personal max) or through T-Mobile the WM6 Wing with 600/unlim $40 + $30 total inet + $5 400 SMS/MMS. All phones support wifi. I know the 8525 and Wing can be tethered. The 8525 comes with WM5, but can be upgraded in Q3 2007.
I looked at Sprint with the Treo 755p ($350) with a $65 total plan, but I've heard bad things about Sprint PCS harassment, support, and poor coverage. I also looked into Verizon, but they seemed to be either Q or Blackberry, which uncompetitive pricing.
I have the 450/5000 voice-only plan for my SE T616, with pay-per-use net, which costs $10.24 per MiB. I called them once maybe a year ago and asked about my options for data. Their answer was something like $10 for 5M, $30 for 20, or $45 for unlimited.
So, the new plans are definitely a bit better. It's still not as inexpensive as Sprint or T-Mobile, but at least it's competitive. It also includes free mobile to mobile which my current phone doesn't. So, $20 more for unlimited data and free in-network? It's a deal.
The only question I have left is whether or not the iPhone will work in a tethered mode..
Way to read the post, chief.
If you're already online, the competition is hugely not in favor of CDs. You can just go buy the tracks you like a la carte off iTunes or eMusic. The album could be downloaded via P2P. Or, yeah, they could buy a CD (and if its used, the record companies still don't see any money.)
Buying music without being able to sample each track is a hard sell these days. People are now used to being able to take an albeit brief listen to nearly every track on a CD before making a decision to buy. You can do that of course on either online CD purchase sites like Amazon, or iTunes. One of those will give you the music immediately, and generally for less than a new CD.
Buying music at a Brick & Mortar is buying blind. Usually they only have a small selection available on preview machines.. if they have one. "Gee, I hope the other tracks on this thing don't suck," is not a good thing to have going through customers' heads when they're shopping.
The last time I bought music CD at a store was fathers day, when I just wanted to get my dad some CDs that I knew were really good compilations. That's about the only use I have for B&M.
FWIW, I generally buy my music using amazon's marketplace. Better quality, I can rip my purchase legally to my specification, and it's dirt cheap.
I agree that dramatizations are more effective when it comes to impact. However, its the sensationalism and deceit (where was the mention of dramatization with the gun sequence? it was delivered as truth) that really rub me wrong. There were many more ways he could've truthfully, effectively, and entertainingly gotten the point of prevalence of guns and even their political acceptance across.
Is Michael Moore a muckraker? I disagree. I think he's a yellow journalist.
Wikipedia defines yellow journalism as "... a pejorative reference to journalism that features scandal-mongering, sensationalism, jingoism or other unethical or unprofessional practices by news media organizations or individual journalists. It has been loosely defined as "not quite libel"." Under see also, it directs readers to articles about Parachute journalism, Supermarket tabloid, Culture of Fear, Moral Panic, James Creelman. It also likens yellow journalism to corporate media.
However, the one thing that stands out.. and the main reason I also watch Michael Moore's films (ever so cautiously) is that his works tend to favor the people. They aren't written to protect the institutions of government and business. So, perhaps he acts as a mirror to the rest of the corporate world. That I think is a somewhat fair assessment.
So, while I don't agree with Moore's methods, I can at least respect his tenacity, and respect that he puts people in the center, and brings this kind've scrutiny to topics that are deserving of public attention. Also, I'm *right there with you* regarding reasoning and logic in public education. It's sorely needed. It would be so much more worthwhile than cramming facts into kids' heads for them to regurgitate onto a test and then forget. Teach people how to think, FFS! Seems like a no-brainer, eh?
... Michael Moore has shown on several occasions his willingness to blatantly distort information to prove his point. This is beyond mere interpretive bias.
Moore seems to thrive on controversy and the influence he's gained by being in the spotlight several times. However, his misrepresentation of truths has done a great disservice to himself by sullying his credibility. He does often have interesting views on social issues. Really, it's a damned shame. Also, I really dislike calling his films documentaries. Docudramas, or mockumentary is about as far as I'd go. And its not just drama or bias, again. (eg, in BfC, making it appear as if he got the gun directly at the bank immediately after opening an account. more examples from BfC here: http://www.spinsanity.org/post.html?2002_11_24_arc hive.html )
What is more important in documentary filmmaking as well as other documentary enterprises is the ability for the viewer/reader to be able to identify probable biases.
I propose instead:
It is important that the consumer of any information be able to skeptically approach and critically analyze said information, especially when its aim is to influence opinion and belief.
You're correct about that case, regarding 11 usable bays instead of 12. The Lian Li cases are also quite nice.
You touched on an important topic. Heat dissipation. I'm not sure the efficiency of the cooling on a 5:3 rig, but I imagine the cooling provided by said cage is absolutely essential, even if used in an otherwise well-cooled case. In the end it's a judgment call to be made by the system builder. I suppose with the right precautions (drives with accurate sensors, sensor monitoring cron jobs, proper case airflow) and the right environment, high density would be acceptable. I'm not sure how well that would work in a home office.
Your preferred setup is extreme. It is somewhat surprising to me that you would opt for a system setup with no redundancy at all, but then have massive redundancy on the RAID. I guess it depends on the purpose of the box, but I'd probably use mirroring for two of the drives, and then leave the last as a hot spare. Talk about redundancy.:-)
With proper planning and the right skills, its not hard to build a RAID5 system that can grow with you. This solution is Linux based, but can be applied on any system that has a flexible abstracted filesystem support. The tricks: 1, a big case, 2, Linux w/ LVM.
It's huge. 12 5.25" slots. Supports dual power supplies. And you can get modules with fans that hold 4 3.5" drives in 3 5.25" slots. That's up to 4x4 drives, (or more realistically 3x4 drives, since you have controller units and presumably an optical drive.)
Anyway, you could start with 4x750. RAID5, LVM on top. Later, say you fill it. You could then buy 4x1.25TB (or whatever the latest size is). RAID5 those new discs, and then put an LVM pv on the RAID, and join it to the first RAID's logical volume group. Extend your FS, and there you go. Also, you can now have up to two drives fail at the same time (so long as its just one dead per RAID5) and not lose data.
Say you want to upgrade again? Do the same thing. And keep in mind, so long as the space is there, you could work LVM and filesystem resize magic to remove the oldest set of 4 drives from the logical volume group and replace them with newer drives.
Takes a little linux skill, but its extensible. Also, flexible. You of course don't have to go 4x at a time. I just chose that since the drive cages support 4 drives apiece.
Anyway, though. Start with the largest drives you can afford starting off, otherwise you'll be getting back into administrivia earlier than you'd probably prefer. I don't know your storage needs or finances, but most geeks should be able to swing 500GB drives (or 250, if one must.)
PS - Don't forget to have at least one spare drive on hand in case one dies. Remember, it has to be the same size, or larger, than the drives in the RAID. This is especially advisable if all your drives are about the same age.
Slashdot Mirror
I think augmented reality could work well in cases like these. Inobtrusive, low/little light pollution compared to 3-5" screens, and not distracting the user from still taking in the sights before them. Sure, it's not traditional, but if done in such a way that it doesn't spoil the experience for others (in particular) and adds something for those visiting.. more power to them.
You do not need a graphical desktop environment on the server; you only need the X11 libraries and basic utilities. On Debian, that means x11-common and x11-utils with their dependencies. There's no xterm, xclock, etc, let alone a a window manager like xfce or worse yet a full blown environment like GNOME or KDE. The actual DBA should connect in, run the utilities, and then be done with it. They can use whatever gui and whatever X11 server they want. The bulk of the load is on their desktop, not the server.
I found the Ergon 3 to be a *much* more comfortable chair, especially if you're a bigger person. I bought mine while working on a long-standing consulting job. It made finishing that job so much easier... Well worth the money. (~$800)
A car's crumple zones *should* absorb a great amount of that impact, and there are better in-cabin protections for the bouncing about in the car. This contrasted to the tall, roll-prone bolt-on truck. (I read in a different article that much heavier standards are levied against cars/crossovers than SUVs on truck chassis.)
So, who comes out ahead is only clear if you limit it to physics. When you bring vehicle design and crash dynamics in, I don't think it can be easily dismissed. !absurd.
Set a master password. Then you'll have to authenticate before you can see those or use them to log in to sites.
Gotta love it. "Fighting congestion" not actually reducing the congestion at all, but in fact doubling the amount of data being pushed around the internet.... Bleh....
I lived in Buffalo Grove where I used Comcast for 1.5 years in '04 and '05. I paid $60/month for their premium service + modem rental, which was 6000/768 and cost $10 more than their 4000/384. This was back when Insight in Springfield was still 4000/256 (or was it 128 up still) and they only offered a faster service for something like $30 more. So, I had no problems with their prices.. which didn't change at all while I had them.
The only ports they filtered were netbios/samba ones, which IIRC Insight does also. They never complained or filtered my SSH, SMTP+submission, port 80 WWW, DNS, CVS, nor dovecot SSL IMAP services. I could max my connection with linux distro torrents.
I moved back to Springfield in Oct. '05 just a month or three before they rolled out the 10/1 service, which has been great, and has seemed as free as the Comcast connection I had up north. Hopefully things haven't changed drastically since then... but we can only wait and see. Mostly what I'm concerned about is my insightbb.com email address.. I've had that account since they went to insightbb.com from @Home (still active on my parents' account) and I can't imagine how many things point to that email address currently...
Yeah -- I don't think it's a Firefox thing, per se. I think it has to do with Gecko 1.9.
Either way, supporting OS's from 2000 is quite reasonable.. and Firefox 2 is still a very modern browser.
Firefox 3 under Windows requires Win2K, XP or Vista. Under OSX it supports MacOSX 10.3+ only.
Thankfully, the number of users affected is low, and those older systems (especially the Win98/ME users..) have their own problems that go beyond browsers.
However, I mostly agree with your sentiment. Supporting just the current and maybe the prior major release should be sufficient.. especially if you're coding for standards, in which case you don't have much to worry about.
Heh.
Well, to extend the corrected analogy... it'd be like the technician going to the guy and saying that "hey, some people with this car install aftermarket chips and our equipment may not be compatible... you sure you want us to try? no guarantees if you've modified it.." and the owner saying, "yeah sure, hook it up."
iPhone owners didn't have to update their firmware. They took their fate into their own hands when they unlocked/tweaked their phones. Honestly, had I purchased an iPhone for $600, I can tell you that modifying it would've been the last thing I would've done...
Not really. If you have some killers on your team who can hack out a nice generalized engine which takes care of validation, checking, storage, processing, whatever. Then you can have a lot of nublets coding against the engine via an API and using tidy metadata, never to see some of the tricky stuff in the back-end. Something like 2 or 3 people maintaining the engine, and 10 - 15 people coding against a standard interface, only having to write specific application code for the nuances of a given task.
:-)
Compare that to 15 n00bites coding out the same busy work.. writing very specific checking, processing, etc code in each program. Then you're at the mercy of the skills of your individual coders. Some may be good.. others, not so much. Either way, there's a lot of wasted overlapping effort.
Both may be scaled using warm bodies. However, one will lead to a very consistent system, with very rapid development, centralized maintainability, and with a low cost of entry for new coders. (Get them to an average proficiency with your language, get them up to speed on your internal APIs, then assign them to a small team for 6 months to make sure they can be integrated.) In the other situation, you're scaling, sure, but the cost of entry is higher. Each programmer would have to be much more proficient when dealing with the manual process. Designs would be rather inconsistent for important things. Maintainability? Not centralized, for sure.
This post is getting long-winded. To conclude, I agree that it's generally fine to prefer junior programmers, but you must not discount what someone who knows their stuff may bring to the table. These people, when engaged properly, can turn a herd of junior devs into a force to be reckoned with. Then we can talk about significant cost savings.
'cause my linux box doesn't care.
Sayeth teh Stallman.... GNU's Not UNIX... bITCH!
It absolutely is a security-conscious thing to do. It's called Operational Security.
Sure, on a 'properly-run' site, that shouldn't be a problem. But can you always guarantee that sensitive or private materials won't be loaded to that site? It is a risk.
Obviously it applies less to very personal 'who cares' kinds of sites, but pretty much everything else should be data driven with deeper access controls, and maybe only enabling directory indexing explicitly on a location-by-location basis, or for certain IP ranges.
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
Think of the squirrels... you insensitive clod!
I do not know for a fact. Apple has been silent on this. AT&T's plans don't seem to suggest it (comparing smartphone to pda plans' prices). Most of the fanatical macrumors community doesn't seem to think so. And without proof, I don't assume they do, either. That's why I'll be going in to ask Friday assuming its not been confirmed by that point. If its included, or an available option, that's excellent, and I'll buy an 8G iPhone and sign a contract.
:)
Otherwise, I already know where I'm looking next.
Anyway, I agree, that I'd really like to see the bluetooth advertised device services for the iPhone. Maybe I'll take my powerbook and scan bluetooth in the parking lot before I go in... see if they list dialup networking and serial ports before I go in.
Tethering is the one feature missing which will likely be the dealbreaker for me. I'll certainly be at the store Friday to ask them about it, and I'd pay extra for it, even if that means the $40 PDA plan on top of the $40 voice package. Without that capability, though, the I dare say the iPhone isn't the internet in my pocket, but merely a looking-glass through which I may observe only a priviledged few ports, even if in splendor. The iPhone is still tempting, though. Mail.app, iCal and Addressbook are apps I use often and love. Also, a widescreen iPod.. it would certainly be a step up from my 5GB 1st gen... and the price is great.
Aside from the iPhone, I've been shopping lately, and my other options are the AT&T 8525 ($40 voice + $40 pda personal max) or through T-Mobile the WM6 Wing with 600/unlim $40 + $30 total inet + $5 400 SMS/MMS. All phones support wifi. I know the 8525 and Wing can be tethered. The 8525 comes with WM5, but can be upgraded in Q3 2007.
I looked at Sprint with the Treo 755p ($350) with a $65 total plan, but I've heard bad things about Sprint PCS harassment, support, and poor coverage. I also looked into Verizon, but they seemed to be either Q or Blackberry, which uncompetitive pricing.
So, that's where I am. Choices...
Wake me up when they've released the galaxy class system. Binary is so passe. All the cool kids use trinary systems. Viva la trek!
I have the 450/5000 voice-only plan for my SE T616, with pay-per-use net, which costs $10.24 per MiB. I called them once maybe a year ago and asked about my options for data. Their answer was something like $10 for 5M, $30 for 20, or $45 for unlimited.
So, the new plans are definitely a bit better. It's still not as inexpensive as Sprint or T-Mobile, but at least it's competitive. It also includes free mobile to mobile which my current phone doesn't. So, $20 more for unlimited data and free in-network? It's a deal.
The only question I have left is whether or not the iPhone will work in a tethered mode..
Way to read the post, chief. If you're already online, the competition is hugely not in favor of CDs. You can just go buy the tracks you like a la carte off iTunes or eMusic. The album could be downloaded via P2P. Or, yeah, they could buy a CD (and if its used, the record companies still don't see any money.)
Buying music without being able to sample each track is a hard sell these days. People are now used to being able to take an albeit brief listen to nearly every track on a CD before making a decision to buy. You can do that of course on either online CD purchase sites like Amazon, or iTunes. One of those will give you the music immediately, and generally for less than a new CD.
Buying music at a Brick & Mortar is buying blind. Usually they only have a small selection available on preview machines.. if they have one. "Gee, I hope the other tracks on this thing don't suck," is not a good thing to have going through customers' heads when they're shopping.
The last time I bought music CD at a store was fathers day, when I just wanted to get my dad some CDs that I knew were really good compilations. That's about the only use I have for B&M.
FWIW, I generally buy my music using amazon's marketplace. Better quality, I can rip my purchase legally to my specification, and it's dirt cheap.
I agree that dramatizations are more effective when it comes to impact. However, its the sensationalism and deceit (where was the mention of dramatization with the gun sequence? it was delivered as truth) that really rub me wrong. There were many more ways he could've truthfully, effectively, and entertainingly gotten the point of prevalence of guns and even their political acceptance across.
Is Michael Moore a muckraker? I disagree. I think he's a yellow journalist.
Wikipedia defines yellow journalism as "... a pejorative reference to journalism that features scandal-mongering, sensationalism, jingoism or other unethical or unprofessional practices by news media organizations or individual journalists. It has been loosely defined as "not quite libel"." Under see also, it directs readers to articles about Parachute journalism, Supermarket tabloid, Culture of Fear, Moral Panic, James Creelman. It also likens yellow journalism to corporate media.
However, the one thing that stands out.. and the main reason I also watch Michael Moore's films (ever so cautiously) is that his works tend to favor the people. They aren't written to protect the institutions of government and business. So, perhaps he acts as a mirror to the rest of the corporate world. That I think is a somewhat fair assessment.
So, while I don't agree with Moore's methods, I can at least respect his tenacity, and respect that he puts people in the center, and brings this kind've scrutiny to topics that are deserving of public attention. Also, I'm *right there with you* regarding reasoning and logic in public education. It's sorely needed. It would be so much more worthwhile than cramming facts into kids' heads for them to regurgitate onto a test and then forget. Teach people how to think, FFS! Seems like a no-brainer, eh?
... Michael Moore has shown on several occasions his willingness to blatantly distort information to prove his point. This is beyond mere interpretive bias.
Moore seems to thrive on controversy and the influence he's gained by being in the spotlight several times. However, his misrepresentation of truths has done a great disservice to himself by sullying his credibility. He does often have interesting views on social issues. Really, it's a damned shame. Also, I really dislike calling his films documentaries. Docudramas, or mockumentary is about as far as I'd go. And its not just drama or bias, again. (eg, in BfC, making it appear as if he got the gun directly at the bank immediately after opening an account. more examples from BfC here: http://www.spinsanity.org/post.html?2002_11_24_arc hive.html )
What is more important in documentary filmmaking as well as other documentary enterprises is the ability for the viewer/reader to be able to identify probable biases.
I propose instead:
It is important that the consumer of any information be able to skeptically approach and critically analyze said information, especially when its aim is to influence opinion and belief.
Great reply -- very insightful.
:-)
You're correct about that case, regarding 11 usable bays instead of 12. The Lian Li cases are also quite nice.
You touched on an important topic. Heat dissipation. I'm not sure the efficiency of the cooling on a 5:3 rig, but I imagine the cooling provided by said cage is absolutely essential, even if used in an otherwise well-cooled case. In the end it's a judgment call to be made by the system builder. I suppose with the right precautions (drives with accurate sensors, sensor monitoring cron jobs, proper case airflow) and the right environment, high density would be acceptable. I'm not sure how well that would work in a home office.
Your preferred setup is extreme. It is somewhat surprising to me that you would opt for a system setup with no redundancy at all, but then have massive redundancy on the RAID. I guess it depends on the purpose of the box, but I'd probably use mirroring for two of the drives, and then leave the last as a hot spare. Talk about redundancy.
Negative, ghostrider.
b lack.html
With proper planning and the right skills, its not hard to build a RAID5 system that can grow with you. This solution is Linux based, but can be applied on any system that has a flexible abstracted filesystem support. The tricks: 1, a big case, 2, Linux w/ LVM.
For the case, check out: http://www.xoxide.com/cooler-master-stacker-case-
It's huge. 12 5.25" slots. Supports dual power supplies. And you can get modules with fans that hold 4 3.5" drives in 3 5.25" slots. That's up to 4x4 drives, (or more realistically 3x4 drives, since you have controller units and presumably an optical drive.)
Anyway, you could start with 4x750. RAID5, LVM on top. Later, say you fill it. You could then buy 4x1.25TB (or whatever the latest size is). RAID5 those new discs, and then put an LVM pv on the RAID, and join it to the first RAID's logical volume group. Extend your FS, and there you go. Also, you can now have up to two drives fail at the same time (so long as its just one dead per RAID5) and not lose data.
Say you want to upgrade again? Do the same thing. And keep in mind, so long as the space is there, you could work LVM and filesystem resize magic to remove the oldest set of 4 drives from the logical volume group and replace them with newer drives.
Takes a little linux skill, but its extensible. Also, flexible. You of course don't have to go 4x at a time. I just chose that since the drive cages support 4 drives apiece.
Anyway, though. Start with the largest drives you can afford starting off, otherwise you'll be getting back into administrivia earlier than you'd probably prefer. I don't know your storage needs or finances, but most geeks should be able to swing 500GB drives (or 250, if one must.)
PS - Don't forget to have at least one spare drive on hand in case one dies. Remember, it has to be the same size, or larger, than the drives in the RAID. This is especially advisable if all your drives are about the same age.
Ballmer will probably be lurking in the shadows, chair at the ready...