This afternoon an interesting problem came to my attention. This problem is the result of PHP and mod_perl being used together on Apache server. The full details of the problem can be found [url=http://www.phpbuilder.com/lists/php-install/2003092/0018.php]here[/url]. The quick summary is that if PHP code uses putenv() function it will conflict with mod_perl and cause frequent crashes. The suggested solution is to use the Apache's apache_setenv() function. However, as I found out this does not always work. In my case I need to set the TZ environment variable that allows me to change the timezone. The tricky thing about timezone changes is that after TZ is changed, a libc function tzset() needs to be called to activate the change. PHP's own putenv() calls this function if it detects that the TZ environment variable is being changed, Apache SAPI function apache_setenv() does not. This means that the environment var change does not accomplish the desired goal. Even if I were to modify (tried doing this) the P...

It would seem that good things come in two, this was proven yet again by the Postman who had delivered my two latest toys. These are the IDE to USB 2.0 adapter and my USB 2.0 laptop hard-drive case These Hong-Kong arrivals allow me to safely transport my 80 gig laptop drive, which has been "creatively" dubbed as the "Movie Drive". I am especially happy about this case as it does not require any external power, instead leeching off the needed power from my USB port which makes that much practical to use when I am on the road. The IDE to USB is a welcome arrival as well, as it will finally let me make use (I don't know what for yet, but that does not matter :-) ) the various IDE drives I got lying around the house/office.

I am happy to announce the immediate availability of FUDforum 2.6.8 on which I have been hard at work for the past month or so. This release introduces several improvements that range from nested categories, IF/ELSE logic support in the templating system and a variety of speed enchantments. All users of FUDforum are encouraged to upgrade to this release. The new release can be downloaded from here: FUDforum Download

It seems like the winter in Canada is going for an early start, this morning while enjoying my mandatory cup of coffee ;-) I've was a witness to the 1st Canadian snow fall of the year (in the Toronto area). It lasted only for a few minutes and within a few moments all evidence of this event melted, but non the less it was yet another reminder that the days of good weather are numbered :-(.

While a RC, this non the less is a noteworthy release as it finally introduces the concept of conditional expressions via the IF ELSE END syntax inside the templating language. This means that designers gain greater control over the output logic rather then they did before. It also allowed me to remove many temporary variables that had to store intermediate values of various conditional expression inside the "code" component of the page. Further details of this release can be found [url=http://fudforum.org/forum/index.php?t=msg&goto=20999]here[/url].