Richard Bucker

Recent posts

Aug 24, 2019
Upgrading VMware ESXi Lab — Let's start with the definition of a VMWare lab. It's a non production scale system that has enough hardware and softwa...
Aug 23, 2019
Flutter, Android Studio and VMWare — I have a 4-core Intel NUC with 32GB RAM and an SSD running VMWare as the host with either Fedora 30 or Ubuntu 19 as the...
Aug 5, 2019
delete the bookmarks — I have a long list of bookmarks for hiking gear. The thing is I have more than everything I need and Frankly the Amazon...
Aug 3, 2019
more alternatives — In no particular order let's try to keep things simple.<br /><br /><a href="https://www.appscale.com/">AppScale</a> is ...
Aug 3, 2019
Hashicorp Packer; is it a waste of time and money? — I'm lazy. There, I've said it. It's that laziness that prevents me from creating "things" with layers of complexity and...
Jul 31, 2019
OMG will stupid ever end — I'm 5 minutes into my first Flutter training video and I'm hating it already. While I could go on and rant about flutte...
Jul 11, 2019
Tarp Cliff notes — I had a quick fail in the backyard as the skies opened up... Here are some quick notes for setting up a tarp:<br /><br ...
Jul 11, 2019
embrace the suck — I'm still thinking about the ground sheet challenge for this setup. Polycryo is lightweight and compact but it's that w...
Jul 11, 2019
Sea to Summit Pyramid Net Tent — STS makes 2 different models of the SOLO/SINGLE net tent. One is a nano with insect shield and the other is without. Th...
Jul 10, 2019
Volume is as important as weight — I have too much crap. I mean I have so much gear that getting onto the trail usually involves some analysis paralysis a...
Jul 9, 2019
polycryo tarp... NOT — I was thinking about using polycryo as a material to make a tarp. I'd set it up a few times for ground sleeping and it ...
Jul 8, 2019
I flopped — There is something to be said for testing your hammock before hopping in. My homemade hammock stand's anchor gave out a...
Jun 26, 2019
Day packs - what are they good for? — I started looking for a few different names for this post because I have a day pack and some very UL gear and it's stil...
Jun 24, 2019
too much stuff - what gives you joy? — I'm putting a pack together for an upcoming trip that <i>might</i>&nbsp;afford me some out of doors sleeping. When I fi...
Jun 21, 2019
I'm a hiker do I need a BOB — Hell no you do not need a BOB (Bug out bag). A BOB is also known as a "go bag"... it's a pack you grab on the way out t...
Jun 20, 2019
YTT or Hulu the breakdown — The quick answer... hulu wins but not because it's better... just less bad.<br /><br />. . .<br /><br />The life of a c...
Jun 10, 2019
How fast is fast enough? — There was a time when I would download many GB and possibly TB of videos all for the purpose of binge watching an entir...
Jun 3, 2019
Google Cloud Computing Outage — If you're complaining about the outage yesterday then you're an id10t. I just read the byline on TechCrunch and the aut...
May 30, 2019
keto chicken nuggets — not really a nugget but close.<br /><br /><b><u>Ingredients</u></b><br /><br />chicken<br />onion<br />green pepper<br ...
May 29, 2019
Bluetooth Trackbad or trackpad — It's been years since the computer mouse industry decided that wireless keyboards and mice were not good enough for gam...
May 29, 2019
what's in your wallet? — Sure I meant to be funny but "what's in your ultralight backpack" does not roll as well. While I look at my camping and...
May 29, 2019
Ultralight do over — We all like expensive things and there is no exception in the SUL and UL hiking world. Anyone who talks about going (S)...
May 24, 2019
minimalist water — I have too much junk. I mean I have too many things that I'll just never use again or maybe for the first time. Granted...
May 23, 2019
Lightest tarp tent possible — I constantly refer to <i style="font-weight: bold;">super ultralight (SUL)</i>&nbsp;as the race to the most expensive g...
May 21, 2019
container root account misconfigurations — I did not read the article titled "Root account misconfigurations found in 20% of top 1,000 Docker containers | ZDNet" ...
May 20, 2019
tarp setup - are linelocks necessary — I like tarp camping for a lot of reasons and while I've hiked only a few hundred miles total it's still something I asp...
May 20, 2019
One Stop Shopping — As I was tripping over my abundance of day packs and being frustrated that my new sleeping pad did not fit in my day pa...
May 18, 2019
words are important — Ever since Trump uttered his first words he has been a liar and ever since he took office people have been trying to te...
May 17, 2019
and the dish ran away with the spoon — The only time I ever liked a spork was when I was in high school. When I was deciding on my first utensil I decided to ...
May 17, 2019
Reading List MOVED — <div>Many of these are dead tree books that I still possess. &nbsp;The rest have been recycled and some are now digital...
May 17, 2019
pfSense vs OPNsense: a professional viewpoint — I've read the articles and I've listened to the executives and while the origin story suggests that there are more alik...
May 17, 2019
disturbing quote of the day — Kubernetes seems to be taking the intellectual lead as devs and managers search for the latest buzz word soup to sell t...
May 15, 2019
I see the light — Do you prefer rechargeable or one-time use batteries when hiking?<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;...
May 15, 2019
hiking gear reviews — It's interesting to see the before and after gear reviews; especially when you watch the actual hikers struggle in the ...
May 13, 2019
Day Packs — I have a number of packs that the industry refers to as <i style="font-weight: bold;">Day Packs</i>. These are seemingl...
May 11, 2019
protect your food — My hiking as been limited to the Florida trails close to my home.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;...
May 10, 2019
PWA - google said what? — I/O 2019 is going on or maybe has just closed and so the content is starting to popup on my google cards. PWA? <u>Progr...
May 2, 2019
penetration testing — I want to make sure my home network is secure from both the outside in and the inside out. Are there any trustworthy to...
May 1, 2019
Kubernetes vx Docker (FAIL) — <span style="background-color: white; color: #0a0a0a; font-family: Roboto, Noto, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-spa...
Apr 30, 2019
The best and worst programming languages of 2019 — Every few days there is a post on my Google stream that says "best programming languages for 2019"..."worst...", "top 1...
Apr 26, 2019
Blankets — Do you really need a sleeping bag when you are hiking or camping in Florida? That's a tougher question than you would t...
Apr 22, 2019
Advice for new car purchase... — If you're having trouble with a new car sale and you happen to get to the GM and he or she makes a statement like....<b...
Apr 12, 2019
ATT good news bad news — It seems that it is well documented that ATT has managed to screw up their Pace Pic model 5268AC with the firmware vers...
Apr 2, 2019
Edgerouter IPSec Split Tunneling — <b><u>Background</u></b><br /><br />You have a sever/network behind a Ubiquiti Edgerouter configured to be an IPSec ser...
Apr 1, 2019
Ubiquiti Edgerouter or Netgate pfSense — The average home user should just use the ISPs defacto services. The price is typically reasonable including warranty a...
Mar 31, 2019
networking note — Running public servers in the home network is a pain in the ass. One thing for certain is that it's best to use a comme...
Mar 25, 2019
Skype still sucks — I'm just not sure if Microsoft is doing this because they want to compete with ChromsOS. Frankly I'm trying to push my ...
Mar 22, 2019
Ubiquiti — <div style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">A few days ago I was gonna wr...
Mar 22, 2019
Netgear Prosafe where art thou — <blockquote class="tr_bq">"<span style="background-color: white; color: #7d706c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-se...
Mar 21, 2019
ATT 1Gbps says what? — I'm a professional programmer so I need a little more from my Internet connection than the average user. The average us...
Mar 19, 2019
ESXi to rule them all — QUESTION: Should there be a ESXi or ESXi-type layer between your installed OS(s) and the hardware? The reason for the q...
Mar 16, 2019
grrr hotspots — I'm trying to get some work done with my hotspot but I also connected my kids iPads and they could easily use all of th...
Mar 15, 2019
golang and fossil — Here I am tethered to my phone because my ISP has failed. The challenge I face is that all of my development hardware i...
Mar 14, 2019
TPLink - TL-SG108E — My GS108E and mt SG108E are unreliable as bandwidth goes. At one time I was able to get 1Gbps but then I replaced some ...
Mar 11, 2019
speedtest — Someone needs to explain performance robbing components in the home network! What is particularly strange is that there...
Feb 28, 2019
In a Box — Assembling a s*** ton of applications from any number of 3td party vendors into a single domain under&nbsp; single sign...
Feb 22, 2019
Klymit blanket or Sea to Summit Reactor Fleece Liner — It's an interesting choice because each has it's PROs and CONs.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; t...
Feb 20, 2019
Who's watching? — This week it was reported that @Google had manufactured a microphone in their @Nest alarm system without saying anythin...
Feb 19, 2019
big 3 under 5 pounds — <span style="background-color: white; color: #0a0a0a; font-family: Roboto, Noto, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-spa...
Feb 15, 2019
STS hammock day 2 - where did the water come from — A few weeks ago I got out of my hammock and there was a pool of water under the inflatable pad and I had no idea what t...
Feb 14, 2019
STS Hammock Tarp — The <i>Sea To Summit - 5 sided hammock tarp</i> has an 11' ridgeline. The shape of the tarp provides maximum wind prote...
Feb 14, 2019
s-biner fail — This was never meant for holding a ridgeline<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"...
Feb 14, 2019
Yama Mountain Flat Tarp — I ordered or rather I changed my order to an 8.5'x8.5' flat tarp. I never measured it until today and while I'd need to...
Feb 13, 2019
embrace the suck -- Florida rain — It was pouring this morning! What sucked is that the rain changed directions (not visible in the video)<br /><br /><div...
Feb 10, 2019
poncho tarp — To deploy a poncho tarp without a second piece of rain gear means you have to be committed to getting wet or rain is no...
Feb 8, 2019
drink up — Hikers and <i>gram counters</i> swear by Smartwater bottles. I don't think they are completely wrong because there is s...
Feb 8, 2019
what's in your ... backpack? — I'm going lighter and lighter... not by spending gobs of money just making different choices; partly based on the notio...
Feb 4, 2019
hammock sadness — I did not get to hike this weekend but I did lighten my pack for next time.&nbsp; But now I have to choose my hammock:<...
Feb 1, 2019
umbrellas — <i>Homemade Wunderlust</i> made the recommendation that an umbrella is or can be an important piece of kit. The idea be...
Feb 1, 2019
Black tarp — I thought a black tarp was going to be a good idea when it's rainy season. This way the tarp had a better chance of dry...
Jan 31, 2019
Hummingbird hammocks — Light and strong but plenty to complain about.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center...
Jan 30, 2019
so long and thanks for the fish — Google is shutting down Google+ but as I see it there is so much wrong with what google is up to that I've stopped cari...
Jan 30, 2019
Let there be light — <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I want to call these my EDC but I'm not sure. On the one ...
Jan 29, 2019
Sea To Summit Stuff Sacks — What is with all those stuff sacks? Is this just their product packaging or is there some intent that we carry these ra...
Jan 29, 2019
Sea To Summit Gear Sling — This is how you need to respond when you're tired of dumping your pillow on the ground:<br /><br /><div class="separato...
Jan 28, 2019
Oh my VMware — For nearly two days my VMware host was pegged at 20% CPU and as a result the machine's fan kept running. On the one-han...
Jan 28, 2019
when it rains — It has been raining for nearly 2 days and nights and the backyard is swamped and the grass and sod gets squishy and mud...
Jan 28, 2019
Umbrella — Homemade Wunderlust makes a great point that warrants repeating and expanding. No need spending or holding out for one ...
Jan 26, 2019
things they never tell you about hammocking — When it's cold and rainy climbing into a hammock is like trying to right a canoe in the ocean. So let's run this by the...
Jan 25, 2019
hammock insulation — I do not care to argue the merit or folly of the underquilt but it does suggest to me that you have to fill the volume ...
Jan 25, 2019
Hammocking and Pillows — I'm getting comfortable with hammocking. Now that I have constructed a hammock stand in my backyard it's a snap to setu...
Jan 22, 2019
google is losing it's grip — For years I have been drinking from the google cool-aid machine but lately things have been going south. Systems, Servi...
Jan 21, 2019
Poncho Tarp in bad weather — Let's face it if you are hiking in bad weather and you've already accepted the fact that hiking means discomfort then u...
Jan 16, 2019
One person's bivy — I have 5 YouTube tabs open to SungPak Stratosphere Bivy demos. Faving watched the first video I have bivy envy. It only...
Jan 16, 2019
more quick packs — This G4Free pack has a frame and a bottom pocket/entry for quick access to your sleeping bag and a hidden pack cover co...
Jan 15, 2019
quick packs — I posted about my Klymit Dash packs and then quickly threw them in the trash before I had a chance to think twice. I wo...
Jan 15, 2019
Klymit Dash 18 and 30 — Being a UL hiker (SUL is stupid expensive) I tend to use smaller packs. I also tend to use fewer pockets because what I...
Jan 12, 2019
Bluetooth competition — I do not particularly like Bluetooth but it is the current standard for personal area networking (PAN). It's a problem,...
Jan 6, 2019
ASUS ZenScreen Brilliant — I bought an ASUS ZenScreen for my mobile computing kit. I had intended for it to connect to my Google Pixel Slate but t...
Jan 2, 2019
bloatware on google pixel slate — For some crazy reason Infinite Painter was auto installed on my new Pixel Slate. According to the splash screen I get 7...
Dec 30, 2018
Heavenly Lake Tahoe is a ripoff — Heavenly Lake Tahoe is a ripoff. $80 for a gondola, $39 for tubing, $28 for roller coaster or $48 for all day.<br /><br...
Dec 30, 2018
smart watch? — I'm thinking about buying a smartwatch for hiking... as I do not like wearing watches otherwise. The interesting thing ...
Dec 30, 2018
deleting NBC on Amazon Fire — I'm deleting NBC for Amazon Fire because even though they inject commercials which I cannot bypass or skip they give me...
Dec 29, 2018
Google pixel slate — I still think the platform rocks but the mere mention of dual booting with Windows makes me cringe. But still while the...
Dec 26, 2018
do what you are comfortable with — I get the strange feeling that the UL and SUL community is into pack shaming. But why? Or really? Trying to discover th...
Dec 26, 2018
Car buying season begins - short — The lease on both cars is about 4 months away and so the search continues... Yesterday we drove a Maxda CX-9.&nbsp; Maz...
Dec 24, 2018
ChromeOS or Android — ChromeOS is not Android and to get the exact definition of what they do and how they were you might need to be an exper...
Dec 21, 2018
Customer Support Disasters — Converting you phone to use Google Fi takes just a few minutes. They have great software for porting your phone number....
Dec 20, 2018
Are you at risk? — Watching a video about keto and carnivore diets the presenter made several claims. The first was that statins might not...
Dec 19, 2018
How smart is that phone really? — I'm configuring my Android phone and for the first time in a long time it's asking me for all sorts of config questions...