Adobe® Flash® is a cross-platform browser-based application runtime that delivers uncompromised viewing of expressive applications, content, and videos across screens and browsers. Flash Player is optimized for high performance on mobile screens and designed to take advantage of native device capabilities, enabling richer and more immersive user experiences. – Adobe

How annoying are flash ads? How hard does Flash hit your CPU, fans, and RAM? If you are using a desktop, chances are you don’t have to worry about overheating and jet-turbine fans. However, if you are running Flash on a laptop, you may notice your lap getting a bit hotter, your fans getting a bit louder, and your system overall acting a bit more sluggish than normal. This is Flash.

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It’s easy these days for anyone to start a website… sometimes a bit too easy. But a little forethought before you jump in can help you down the road when you want to make a change in web services.

I’m going to briefly visit each area of concern as it pertains to starting your own website. I’m assuming you will not be hosting your own web server and will be using shared hosting, which is the most common method of hosting.

The Host

The first thing you should do is find a good web host. Ask around, do a Google search. Now, this can be subjective, with people even using the same web host offering differing opinions on service. But usually, the brand names and the big companies are the most reputable. They may not be the most cost effective for your needs, but you can be rest assured that your site isn’t hosted by a fly-by-night company and that you won’t wake up in the morning with your site offline and gone for good– along with all of your data.

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I’m not talking about the Ken Kesey variety, but the web standards test that grades web browsers based on HTML, CSS, and JavaScript compatibility. This test is called The Acid3 Test and you can try to pass it if you dare.

From the Acid3 website:

To pass the test, a browser must use its default settings, the animation has to be smooth, the score has to end on 100/100, and the final page has to look exactly, pixel for pixel, like this reference rendering.

I’ve taken the time to test some of the modern, popular web browsers. Some scores may or may not surprise you. If you have any doubt, take the test yourself.

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always liked Yahoo’s way of letting you e-mail the URL of web pages to other people. However, it seems now you have to login to do it, which is annoying. However, the latest version of Apple’s Safari web browser has this feature built-in.

To add this feature to your toolbar, simply right-click anywhere within the toolbar area and choose “Customize Toolbar.” Then just drag the “Mail” icon to the toolbar. That’s it.

Now when you visit a web page that you want to share with others, press the “Mail” button and your mail client will open with a new message which contains the link and the page title as the subject.

That was easy!

The WiFi signal I’m “borrowing” has gone silent for the last couple days. I’m getting around by using my iPhone’s Edge connection. This is dial-up speed. It’s horrible. I kinda wish I had a 3G at the moment…

I may have to spring for internet access when I get back home.

I’ve been selling some stuff on eBay, most notably my old 17″ MacBook Pro. I needed a new computer but I didn’t want to pay anything out of pocket. Pre-tax, my new MacBook Pro 15″ cost $1,699.00. I was hoping the stuff I sold on eBay would at least amount to that price. With two auctions left, I’m just $47.00 short of my goal. With any luck, I’ll end up a bit over $1,700.00 in sales. That means I really only had to pay the 7% Rhode Island sales tax for my new Mac. Not bad.

I’m again under warranty, and I’ll get the AppleCare plan at the end of the year, giving me an additional two years of coverage.

Update (06.25.09): This MacBook Pro will be traveling to Afghanistan. A serviceman purchased it and is taking it with him when he is deployed next week. Let’s hope it tracks Bin Laden and “fires” the drone that takes the bastard out.

Update (06.25.09): The final sales figure was $1,676.08. Just shy of my $1,699.00 goal. But I’ll take it.

Update (06.24.09): With one last item selling, total sales are up to $1,673.02.

You can now follow the Scripted Lizard on twitter. When I add new posts, you can be instantly alerted. View my twitter page to follow me.

I’m so tired right now. After endless hours with iDisk, and all its timeout issues, I’ve decided to go back to Carbonite, even with the current issues. That is all. I’m out. Note to Apple… work on iDisk. What a Mobile Mess. Thanks to some online person for the Mobile Mess line. Nice.

Listening to Poker Face by Lady GaGa

After much thought and some help from the folks at Carbonite, I have decided not to pay for the Carbonite service. I decided to use the best FTP application on the planet, Transmit, and tap into the disk space that I already have purchased with Apple’s Mobile Me subscription.

It was kind of sad to uninstall Carbonite as I had high hopes for the application, but the CPU issues were too much for me to make a commitment at the moment. Maybe in the future the service may solve my issues. I’ll check back again.

Now, on to the solution. I already had all the pieces, it was just a matter of putting them together to make a beautiful picture. The three pieces were iDisk, Transmit, and Automator. Once fit together, these three pieces do everything I need, including keeping a 1:1 backup of my data off-site, and automatically uploading new changes every night. By scheduling, I save CPU resources by constantly having software checking and uploading files all day. I rather have this done at night when I’m sleeping.

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The moment of truth is now upon us. If you need the backstory, you can read my original post. You’ll be able to pick up the essence of my story without reading it however, but it is interesting.

So today was the day for the clean install of my Mac OS and my re-test of the Carbonite backup service. And day is a good description, as it took about 8 hours to get everything setup and back to where I left off before I wiped the drive. I do have about 40 programs installed, so that took the bulk of the time in re-downloading them. Luckily, I had all the preferences backed up to my Mobile Me account!

A Good Start

I started off by re-partitioning the disk to one GUID partition. I did have a Boot Camp Windows partition, but I’ll worry about that later. I hardly use it anyway. After that, I proceeded to install the bare minimum, which was 5.9 GB. No extras, no printer drivers, just the OS.

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