Tao of DesertWolf

Stephanie & Becky from work, who also ride, got me a little present for my bike, a Guardian bell. In case you haven’t heard of them before here is some info about them.. Guardian Bell Legend.

Well after being without a motorcycle since I moved to Arizona, I finally went and got one. I picked up a 09 Harley Sportster Custom. After adding a sissy bar, saddlebags and a windshield, I am set….

As some of you know I am heading back to school in the Spring, so in preparation, and also because my poor Mac Powerbook 12″ is over 6 years old, I made plans to buy a new system. Of course it was going to be a Mac, the question was, should I go Mac Pro, Macbook Pro, or iMac. There are advantages to each, lots of power with the Mac Pro, good power and a nice size screen with the iMac, power and portability with a Macbook Pro.

I am going back to school for web & internet design, so I wanted a good size screen, and good power, but as the course is all online, and I was planning on doing some work while sitting at my daughters cheer practice, I wanted portability. I considered getting an iMac or Mac Pro then getting an iBook to work away from home, but then I saw the new 24″ Cinema display made to work with the Macbook Pros.

This was the perfect answer to my needs, portability, power and a nice large screen, the ability to run dual screens as a matter of fact. So I did some reading up, went by the local Apple store and played with one they had setup, it was perfect for my needs. So today I went and picked it up, a 17″ Macbook Pro, 24″ Cinema Display, and an Apple keyboard. Here are some pics…..

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Well install is done, here are some more pics…

I really did not want to install VS 2005 & VS 2008 on this, the main reason I need VS2005 is because I use MSSQL Reporting Services and use VS2005 to design reports for it, as VS2008 seems to have a problem with that. tHen I remembered that the SQL install had an option for a install of the Reporting Services Dev as a stand alone. So I installed it, and then downloaded the service packs, and updates, then installed VS 2008 and updated it. So far looks good, but will find out for sure when I get to work tomorrow.

All I have to do now is get Dreamweaver, Flash and Photoshop installed, then Flex, and the MotoDev IDE for Android, Mapforce, Oxygen XML editor, and MS Office and I will be back up and running on my Dev laptop . I will have the Adobe products installed tonightand will take care of the rest tomorrow.

Upgrading my Inspiron 9400 to Windows7, originally uploaded by DesertWolf AZ.

Well I am going to take the plunge and hope this brings some power back to
my dev laptop. From what I have seen using a test laptop it should. I will
give updates as I go.

Is this a sign that MS is E_VL?, originally uploaded by DesertWolf AZ.

Doing an install of Windows 7 and noticed the EULAID code……
Really makes one wonder

Well kiddo started back to school today, which makes it a good time to up let you know I have decided to go back to school myself. I have an AAS in Computer Information Systems, and want to get my BAS.
I found an online program that ASU has that will allow me to get my BAS in Internet & Web Design. It is made for people who already have an Associates degree so it is perfect for my situation.

I did some checking and I should be able to get most of the cost covered by grants. I am planning on applying for the Spring semester. There is a lot I have to do, apply for financial aid, apply to ASU, get my transcripts set to ASU. My goal is to graduate by the time kiddo does in 2012.

Of course things will not be easy. I tried to get my FAFSA application in today, but ran into trouble because I need a federal PIN # for an electronic signature, and when I tried to get one, the system said I had one already, so I checked, and yea, I did, but it was made inactive because it was from back in 2002 when I had applied last. So I am dealing with trying to get that fixed so I can get my application in, but I figure it is going to be like this the whole way.

Well I have my Sweetcron lifestream going and a link to it in my “Other Blogs” menu in the left hand column. I am currently in the process of editing the theme match this blog, and then will be working on customizing the different feeds. Let me know what you think.

I have been wanting to make some changes to the blog, but really haven’t been sure what to do, as I am not sure where I am going with it. I do know I want to start posting more pics and vids, and want to clean it up a bit. So I am moving the twitters to a life stream along with my Flickr, Qik, 12 Seconds and things like that. Some will still make it to the blog, but I dont want to make it a dumping ground. So have added a Lifestream, to the site to collect all that. Check it out and let me know what you think.