Technology Posts

Recently a friend ask me if there is a way that he could host a Joomla CMS web application without having to purchase a new server. photo credit: dabidmp

He needed to run the open source CMS on a trial run just to get feedback from users before purchasing and setting up on a real production server.

I asked him if he has any existing servers in his office which isn’t loaded heavily with other apps.

He has a file server which acts as a file repository for everyone in office.

So I told him that he could consider installing a virtual machine software such as VMWare Player or VirtualBox on the file server and run a virtual appliance containing the LAMP stack so he could install Joomla CMS in it.

He then asked me for more info on how virtual machines works and what’s the cost associated to running a virtual appliance? It’s FREE, I said.

In fact he can just download the entire virtual appliance with everything already installed such as:

• Ubuntu operating system
• Apache web server
• MySQL database
• PHP language
• Joomla CMS version 1.6.x

Wow! That’s great he said. Now where’s the download link?

Simply head on over to Jumpbox! Continue Reading »
Download prebuilt virtual appliance from Jumpbox

Recently RevResponse put together a list of 8 interesting and free IT eBooks that are popular and useful for IT people.

To grab hold of a copy, all you need to do is to click on the request button and fill up some basic information about yourself.

The only problem is the eBooks are only available to users from selected countries such as USA, Canada, Mexico, Australia, Germany, France and a few others. I hope more countries will be made eligible to download the eBooks soon.

So here you go, 8 free IT related eBooks: Continue Reading »
8 interesting and free IT eBooks you’ll want to read

Since the widespread adoption of VoIP telephony began, there have been a myriad of myths and misconceptions as to its advantages and uses in both the consumer and business markets. These myths have persisted largely thanks to a disparity between common knowledge of VoIP and the rapid advancement of its related technologies that have existed under the public radar. One of the largest struggles between proponents of VoIP adoption in businesses has been the inability of IT staff and consultants to show all of the unseen advantages and tools to management in such a manner that properly illustrates their effectiveness.

All these valuable but difficult-to-explain advantages – revolutionary productivity tools, scalability, low cost of ownership, unlimited customization – can be seen clearer than ever before in the interface of the most recent iteration of the Call Manager software from leading enterprise VoIP equipment manufacturer ShoreTel. All of the luxuries of an advanced system are immediately apparent in basic use of the platform. Continue Reading »
ShoreTel’s call manager software unlocks full potential of VoIP

Over the last few years, I have tried various types of software particularly those related to business productivity. photo credit: s_w_ellis

A specific niche area which I’m not very familiar with has to do with network technology.

Whenever technical terms such as IP switching, routers and firewalls are mentioned I feel that I lack the necessary knowledge in this particular field.

At the same time, I’m aware that a network within an organization is like a backbone for a human being.

Without a healthy network, computers and servers work disparately, similar to some sort of communications breakdown.

I told myself that it’s time I get my hands dirty on some network monitoring tools and hopefully be able to learn a thing or two about what network monitoring is all about.

Previously I’ve written a list of free network monitoring tools.

From this list, I’ve decided to give GroundWork Open Source a try.

GroundWork Open Source is a system and network monitoring solution based on an open architecture aiming to help organizations maintain network visibility and control. Continue Reading »
A simple way to learn more about network monitoring