I’m done with browser bookmarks

I originally started writing this post in early 2018, when I came to the realization I have no need for browser bookmarks anymore. It’s 2019 now, and I’m still in the same situation: I don’t use browser bookmarks. Do I still have bookmarks in my browser? No. I waited for a year, but they didn’t vanish. This weekend I exported all bookmarks from my browsers and stashed the resulting .html file somewhere (should I ever need any of the old links), and then swiftly deleted them from my browser. Watching Marie Kondo’s show on Netflix gave me the inspiration to clean up things in my life – Facebook is one, browser bookmarks is another. Bookmarks have never sparked any joy… Read More »I’m done with browser bookmarks

Bye, Facebook (for now)

I have mixed feelings. Mostly I’m now less anxious and feel more peaceful. At the same time I feel I’m missing out on something I’m not completely sure what that is. I deactivated my Facebook account in early January. Timing wasn’t intentional, I just had enough time to reflect and consider how I want to invest my limited time and mental energy. Note, that I didn’t delete my account, but rather made the soft deletion, or deactivation. Apparently this removes me from all threads I’ve posted in. I simply disappear. The rationale behind this is to probably enforce me to feel I am missing out – all my friends now think I’ve disappeared! But why? I wish I had a super thoughtful… Read More »Bye, Facebook (for now)
Books

On writing books

I spent a few days during Christmas break to map out my 2019 – goals, dreams, hopes, ambitions and fears. I also read – a lot. Perhaps not enough to claim I’m an avid reader, but enough to make my Kindle sweat when I download more books from Amazon. I love reading ebooks, printed books as well as whitepapers that I sometimes print myself. I’m very bad with audiobooks, as I seem to like the act of reading too much. I’ve written  7, or maybe 8 books during my professional career. Admittedly, I should’ve and could’ve written thrice as many, but I was a slow starter. While I was getting my latest book ready for publishing in late 2017 I had… Read More »On writing books

Hello, iPhone! (and bye, Android)

I’ve used modern smartphones for a long time. I remember purchasing the first Nokia phone with a camera (the 7650) in mid-2002, and it was fabulous. The 0.3 megapixel images I was able to capture were grainy, but I was taking pictures with a phone, so who cared about the quality of the images! Most phones I owned between 2002 and 2010 were Nokia phones, with Symbian OS. I then spent a few years with all sorts of different Windows Phones – the Lumia 800 (in 2011), the HTC HD7 (2010), the Samsung Omnia 7 (also in 2010). It finally became evident there was no real future with the platform, as the iPhone and plethora of Android devices seemed so… Read More »Hello, iPhone! (and bye, Android)

Building a simple and secure DNS updater for Azure DNS with PowerShell

(or: making life better by fixing one small issue at a time) I love designing and building solutions for my customers. Lately they’ve been more on the Microsoft Azure side, especially with serverless and security. The problems I encounter are interesting, require me to dive deep into certain aspects of the customer’s business domain and they enforce me to become a better professional. I truly think being able to work with cloud-based architectures is the best job on the planet right now. Then there are the times when I have a small but itching problem at home, that I really hope someone else would have resolved by now. As it turns out, last Friday when I was done with mostly… Read More »Building a simple and secure DNS updater for Azure DNS with PowerShell

Managing your costs in Microsoft Azure with Sharegate’s Overcast

  • Azure
I started using Microsoft Azure in the very early days in 2008, when the whole idea with cloud computing was something very different than it is today. During recent years I’ve found myself working mostly with Azure-related architectures, deployments and governance projects as the platform has matured to fit any type of customer need. One recurring challenge I find many organizations facing is the shift from capital expenditures (CAPEX) to operational expenditures (OPEX). Traditional IT has always relied on a 12-36-month investment cycle, and one the decision for investment has been made, it’s mostly a sunken cost. Afterwards the cost is something that is rarely revisited. With Azure, and similarly with other cloud providers, the shift to operational costs brings… Read More »Managing your costs in Microsoft Azure with Sharegate’s Overcast

Thoughts on Microsoft ❤ GitHub announcement

By now, it is old news that Microsoft officially announced they will acquire GitHub for $7.5 billion. Rumors started swirling on Sunday, and as is often the case, they are more or less to the point. I’ve been following with interest the different takes on this deal. First, Slashdot. I regularly check the news on Slashdot, mostly for the commentary. Unfortunately many people still post as Anonymous Cowards, so you have to filter out a lot to get to the thought-provoking comments. There’s a petition to stop Microsoft in finalizing the deal (which presumably takes until the end of the year to finalize), with 908 supporters as of now. In some of the comments, people point out that everyone will… Read More »Thoughts on Microsoft ❤ GitHub announcement

Thoughts on Always Connected PCs from the Microsoft and Qualcomm partnership

I’m attending Microsoft Build 2018 in Seattle this week, and it’s been an eye-opening 4 days to ingest, digest and hopefully apply everything I’ve learned here. It’s more about inspiration and mental notes on what I need to look into when I get back home, but this time I also took the opportunity to visit the expo area to learn beyond the regular breakout sessions. In one of the booths they had on display Windows 10 ARM PCs, for which the marketing name is Always Connected PCs. Initially I frowned with the name, because I come from a country that has ubiquitous 4G LTE (“fast mobile data”) for reasonably cheap prices. I’ve enjoyed unlimited mobile data for more years I… Read More »Thoughts on Always Connected PCs from the Microsoft and Qualcomm partnership

I feel bad for not paying for quality software – so I made a small donation

I’ve been using computers since I was 5. I’ve worked in IT more or less full time since I was 13. For all this time, I’ve used an endless amount of software written by people I’ve never met and whom I’ve never thanked properly. Windows, Office and the typical productivity software of course gets a yearly thank you note from me and my company in the form of different sorts of payments through the Microsoft Partner Network, but everything else I use does not. I was paying some bills last weekend and I figured I had some extra money left after the mandatory payments. Not a lot, but some. I started thinking about some of the projects I’m involved in.… Read More »I feel bad for not paying for quality software – so I made a small donation

Using Logitech BRIO 4K webcam with Windows Hello

I’ve recently started working more from home. Family is keeping me quite busy, so I try to optimize the little time I can by not traveling to the office each morning. This isn’t something new for me, as I’ve had a workstation at home for about 30 years, butI’ve spent more time and energy on having a pleasant setup at home for working. The setup is something that works quite well for me: a dedicated, always-on server-grade workstation with 3 displays. I’ve tried everything from a single, very wide display all the way to 6 displays, and I’ve found that 3 displays work best for me. When I’m on the go I use my Surface Laptop, which I wrote about… Read More »Using Logitech BRIO 4K webcam with Windows Hello