Plutor

There are a lot of questions about this, but very few adequate answers available on Google. Solaris has a feature called “lofs” that allows you to mount some directory (say /bigvolume/foo) somewhere else (say /bar). The quick response is “duh, symlinks”, but if you want /bar to be read-only, or noexec, or nosuid, or some other uber-secure setting, this allows you to do it. Also, since chroot() breaks symlinks that point outside the new root, this can be used to simplify setting up chroot jails.

Since kernel 2.4, Linux has had support for mount binds (synonymous to Solaris' lofs), and here’s how to do it.

Command to mount /bigvolume/foo under bar:

# mount –bind /bigvolume/foo /bar

If there are other filesystems mounted under /bigvolume/foo, they’ll be ignored. To get them bound also, you’ll need to use –rbind instead of –bind. You can add -o and any options (like noexec, etc.) to the command.

To make this bind occur automagically on reboot, add the following to /etc/fstab:

/bigvolume/foo /bar none bind 0 0

Add any options after “bind” and a comma as you would normally.

New York City has chosen new street lights. I like them.

I’ve mentioned them before, but after Waxy Links mentioned another recent conquest, I’ve been revisiting the Improv Everywhere website. Seriously, some of the things they’ve done are brilliant. My favorites so far: the Moebius and synchronized swimming.

Gamestop has stopped taking pre-orders for the Nintendo DS because they won’t have enough units at launch. EBGames is warning that they will likely have to do the same thing. A launch of 300,000 units doesn’t seem like a lot, but 4 million in four months will roughly match the GBA and GBA SP sales.

It’s easy to think of the country in Red states and Blue states, especially for those of us who are a little bitter about the results of the election. But the truth of the matter is that it’s really not that clear-cut.

Update 11-05: Someone made a county-by-county version of the map , too.

Looking for a new cellphone, with lots of extra features and huge nerd cred? Don’t want to spend a lot of money? Well, if you buy a T-Mobile Sidekick II from Amazon before Nov 17 and sign up for a $40-a-month plan, it’ll be free, even including shipping. I kinda wish work didn’t give me a phone.

This post is a test of easy Amazon links and my new Amazon Associates account.

American paper sizes, like all other Imperial forms of measurement, are so arbitrary. It’s quite a breath of fresh air – a veritable gale of freshness, in fact – to read about the mathematically sound basis of the rest of the world’s paper sizes. Bone up on your geometric averages and square roots, and jump into the wonderful world of the international standard paper sizes.

Another thing that might be happening on November 16: Ken Jennings' Jeopardy loss. The rumor is that he lost on day 75, and unless they show another week of special episodes or something, that’ll be when it’s aired. I’ll have to tear myself away from Half-Life 2 for a half an hour, I guess.

Scoffing at Dangerfield, an interesting story about dear ol' Rodney judging a contest for people to make up jokes in his own style. You can listen to the phonecall yourself. Wait for the twist ending!

Red Sox World Series victories predict incumbent presidential defeat with 100% accuracy!

Grand Theftendo, a Nintendo Entertainment System fan port of Grant Theft Auto. It’ll be available for free download when it’s done!

With a 225 million dollar haul, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas has reportedly broken the opening weekend for sales of any entertainment anything. Ever. Spider-man 2 only made $192M. With GTA:SA, Half-Life 2, Halo 2, the Nintendo DS, and the Sony PSP, this is shaping up to be a huge season for video games, perhaps even bigger than the fall of 2001 (when PS2, X-Box, and Gamecube were all released).

Also: Read Wil Wheaton’s story on how he ended up doing a bit voice-acting part in San Andreas.

Seven days to go. “You know what they call a candidate who’s counting on a lot of new voters? A loser.” – James Carville

The Gimli Glider: how a talented airline pilot saved hundreds of lives when coincidences converged and his 767 ran out of fuel. This should be made into a movie.

Free graph paper PDFs. Now if only I needed to graph something..

Blu-Ray? HD DVD? Confused by the tech? Unsure why you should even care yet? Gizmodo presents a good overview called Blu-Ray Has Already Won.

As of roughly 15:30 this afternoon, I am no longer a programmer. I am a Unix System Administrator. Go, me. As my first Unix Admin-related post, I’d like to announce that the Sun v20z is a clean, precise, fast-as-all-hell piece of genius.

I'd say more, but it's Friday evening, and I'm feeling terse.

There will be a total lunar eclipse next Wednesday, October 27 starting at 20:05 EDT. Totality will last between 22:23 and 23:44. (These times are for Naugatuck, CT. Use the lunar eclipse computer to calculate for your location).

Chris, I’m depending on you to get some good photos.

SPOnG.com has a long story up about their recent hands-on demo of GTA: San Andreas. This game sounds totally fucking gonzo. You need to eat? You need to exercise? (Oh, the irony of gamers working out at a gym in-game). Swimming! Cars that disappear when you walk off for too long can be retrieved (read: re-stolen) from the SAPD impound lot. And there are far more interesting features hinted at and detailed.

I’m definitely looking forward to this game, although I’ll have to wait a while, since I’m not really willing to buy a PS2 for it.

Regret The Error, a blog that follows major newspapers' corrections. Interesting, sometimes funny, marginally socio-political, with a touch of Schadenfreude.

Between both cellphones and M’s Palm, we’ve got three things on my bureau charging every night. Woe is me, if only there was a simpler solution! There is: Splashpower. That is so damn cool.

Update 10-22: You know, this would be even cooler if there was a module for rechargable alkaline (or NiCD or NiMH) AA batteries. Then my GPS, GBA (non-SP), and even my Gamecube controllers could all recharge on a single mat.

I’m normally pretty ambivalent about baseball. I enjoy watching the game, sure, but I’m not really a fan of any specific team. But I have to say that when a sports juggernaut goes up against a perennial fumbler, I have to root for the underdog. That’s why I’m a bit excited that Boston has done what no other team has ever done before: come from a 3-0 deficit in a League Championship and force a game seven. In celebration, here’s a fun post about the antics last night, from a Boston fan.

In fact, read through most of the recent entries at baseballblogs.org. Most of them are about last night or tonight, and all of them are emotional. I can hardly imagine being that wrapped up in baseball.

A zero-score Boggle board is possible. A chance to run to the bathroom for those who are addicted.

For the time being, let’s ignore the environmental implications of mass-marketed self-destructing DVDs. Let’s also ignore the fact that this is starting with some low-budget indie movies. Those things ignored, I think the business plan is a remarkably good idea.

Tell me, if you could get a 48-hour DVD of something like The Incredibles the day it comes out and watch it at home, would you do that instead of going to the movie theater? Call it hyperbole if you must, but I think this could revolutionize movie marketing.

On the other hand, piracy? Selling one DVD at $5 (or even at $10 or 20) instead of several nine-dollar tickets? The loss of snack bar profits for the theaters? If this ever happens on a wide scale, it won’t be for a long while.

How to make your own photo mosaics, courtesy of Engadget.