by RustedBucket on May 30, 2010
Exciting things are happening in the WordPress world. The official release candidate for WordPress 3.0 has been released which means a final release is not too far away. While this release isn’t an entirely new animal it does make some astounding strides at integrating the currently split world of WordPress and WordPress Mu (Multi-User). The long touted merge of WordPress and WordPress-MU appears really seems more like a cleaned up version of MU. Having used WPMU for time, I can’t openly see a lot of major differences, on the surface. There are a few, the most notable being plugins. Gone is mu-plugins directory and the annoyance of not being able to see what “global” plugins are installed. Instead, the traditional plugins screen adds a “Network” category, where all plugins can be displayed but those that are considered “global” or “Netowrk Active” can be seen along with other plugins. I’ve tested a number of MU plugins on WP3 and so far haven’t found any that require much effort to get to work. In some cases WPMU plugins call core WPMU named functions which have now been worked into WP named functions, but these are easy to remedy. Even most of the Premium WordPress MU Developer plugins work without a hitch.
For those that have no reason to run WordPress 3 in multi-user mode, don’t worry. The default configuration is single-user mode and you have to activate multi-user in order to get the additional benefits.
This blog is running the current WordPress 3.0 RC and to me it seems pretty stable and for the most part nothing seems to amiss. I am pleased with how well this release seems to work as I’ve not ran into any core issues that caused me problems as yet. I’m sure I’ll find some eventually but for now, the stability of WordPress 3.0 seems to be rock solid.
Just a side note. Two things I haven’t tried yet are upgrading a single user blog and a WPMU installation to WordPress 3.0. I can’t foresee many issues with a single-user site upgrade, except maybe for some very old plugin incompatibilities or theme issues that may crop up, but these I think are to be expected in the normal course of WordPress’s evolution. WPMU on the other hand, could present all kinds of difficulties but from looking at the code itself, it shouldn’t…. in theory. The issue with WPMU I think is going to be handling the numerous mu-plugins as I assume they will all have to be moved to the normal plugins directory and reactivated (haven’t tested this).
For now, if you haven’t looked at the latest release of WordPress 3.0, I suggest you give it a glance (download WordPress 3.0 RC1 here). It’s pretty slick and continues to show why WordPress is the best blogging software out there.
by RustedBucket on May 30, 2010
So I’ve probably confused a number of you who’ve been following along as I’ve been back and forth about whether or not I’m moving to this domain. The short answer is YES I am, or have. Mostly because I’ve had this domain for a pretty good while and it offers a bit more latitude in content than just my personal mildly insane rantings. Plus I have other ideas that I’m hoping to implement and I felt that a personal domain just didn’t fit as well. Basically that’s it, I hope you continue following along, I hope to be posting more often, especially on things I’m working on relating to WordPress 3.0. Thanks again for stopping by: James (aka: RustedBucket).
by RustedBucket on May 4, 2010
So I’ve been playing with the pennies for about a week and I’ve learned a couple of things right off the bat. First, I need to learn to read charts. While I understand an active or realtime chart, understanding how to analyze a historical chart is a key element to making successful plays. So that’s on the to do list. Another thing I’ve figured out is that if you chase a rising stock, you’re probably going to get stuck with, so don’t bother. Sometimes pennies can benefit a long position but from what I’m learning, that is not hardly the norm. Here’s some of the advice I’ve received.
“Buy low, Sell High” – well duh to that one.
“Don’t be greedy.. you will always lose if you are” – oh how true is this.
“Protect your profits” – Amen! Again, don’t be greedy.
So far my problem has been picking an appropriate entry point. I’ve chased several stocks that started out running but didn’t get in until they were starting to peak. I’ve only been buying about $100 worth of shares but I did manage to make $15 on GOIG and $60 on EVXA but turned around and lost that $60 again on EVXA the next day. Oh well. All three time, I got in at too high a price and instead of looking at what the stocks had done in past after a good day, I assumed that momentum could be maintained. NOT!
Good picks seems to be fueled mostly on some type of news released by the company which sends the stock upwards but rarely keeps it there. Something to keep in mind is most news seems to be fluff so before you jump on the latest hot pick, make sure you check it out first.
One other important lesson I’ve learned. If you think you should exit a position, DO IT!!! Don’t wait to see if it’s going to uptick again. I’m holding two positions in which I’ve made that mistake 3 times now. Had I gone with my first instinct and got out, I’d be up about $500. But no, I held and each time the stock reversed quicker than I could react. Now I’m stuck holding the bag waiting/hoping it can make a play again and I can get out without a loss. Which is certainly possible but until I choose to take a loss and free up that cash or can exit the position on a positive, I’ve got money I can’t use.
by RustedBucket on May 1, 2010
I’ve funded my E*Trade account with a couple thousand to play with. I’ve decided to spend some time playing with some penny stocks. Yeah, I know, but I like to live risky..
So why penny stocks you ask? Simple, the low cost of investments provides a nice way to learn more about the art of buying and selling, plus they can be fun and exciting if you’re able to pick a real winner that balloons 300%. Look at it like this, for a $1000 you can buy about 4 shares of Apple (AAPL) stock. The same $1000 could buy 100,000 shares of a stock trading at .01 (that’s a penny). Say that stock trading at .01 goes up 100% (which isn’t uncommon in Pennyland) to .02. You just made $1000. Not bad for something you can do in your underwear.
Of course, that’s not the norm, there are certainly opportunities to make decent money with the pennies. I know some traders that make between $3k and $10k each week doing this. But they have been at it for some time and have the experience to recognize trends and read charts, which most of us don’t have.
The biggest risk I see is getting stuck with a losing position or not being able to sell a position therefore tying up that investment money. At any rate I’m giving it a shot.
Do you or have you played the pennies game? If so, leave me a comment, I’d love to hear from you.
by RustedBucket on April 30, 2010
It’s been several months since I was let go from my development job of thirteen years. I’ve spent most of that time trying to decide what I want to do now. Having taken a great deal of interest in our own personal finances and management my retirement fund after rolling my 401k into a Rollover IRA, I’ve decided to take a stab at day trading.
Having worked in the financial industry for the past 13 years with not even a “thank you” to show for it, I think it’s time to put some of that experience to use in a manner that can potentially provide an alternative to the daily grind of a “job”. Plus, who doesn’t like making money from the comfort of their own home?
I know, there’s probably easier ways to do it, like spending time at the video poker machine at the corner Gas & Go, or maybe taking a few trips to Vegas. But the way I look it luck and skill stand a better chance in the markets than on the losing side of a Blackjack table.
I’ll be chronicling this adventure here and while it will most likely be a total bust, you never know, stranger things could happen. As a disclaimer for anyone following this mis-adventure let me be clear, I am no expert. I am not an experienced trader, there are elements to this industry I do not understand but I am sure that is the case with many who partake in this journey. You have to start somewhere right? There are plenty of “Hot Stock Picks” site out there, and any number of “experts” one can turn to for money management, paper trading can only do you so much. There’s also plenty of people that will be willing to tell you “it’s too risky” and to not jeopardize your hard earned money. To them I say, you probably don’t want to read my blog then because it will be a waste of your time. For the rest of you that have the ambition and drive to pursue such avenues in order to make a profit I say, “tally ho” and “good luck”.
by RustedBucket on February 15, 2010
A few people using this plugin have reported that it doesn’t work with BuddyPress. After some investigation it appears to be because BuddyPress has it’s own registration template and doesn’t use some of the standard hooks WPMU uses during the initial signup process.
Not a big deal however in order to make this plugin work with the default BuddyPress theme you will have to make 1 manual edit to a theme file. I couldn’t find any better way to get the necessary check into their workflow but it’s a pretty simple edit.
Jump to the main plugin page WPMU Block Spam By Math, use the download link to get the updated plugin (version 1.1) and scroll down to the instructions and follow the note for BuddyPress users.
Post any issues in the main plugin post.
by RustedBucket on January 11, 2010
by RustedBucket on January 11, 2010
I mentioned back in a post about the release of vBulletin 4.0 that it was a different animal and I didn’t expect to be migrating anytime soon. So much for famous last words, after having spent the better part of last week upgrading my Carrie Underwood forums to vBulletin 4.
I did get one thing right in that post, VB4 is definitely a different animal and after working with it on the dev board the default theme has grown on me. It’s simple and after 5 years of messing with forums, I’ve come to the real conclusion that splash does nothing but get in the way when things get busy.
If you’ve been using VB4 them you’ll be happy to know that the forum part of the software is still rock solid as ever. There’s a few things that have been changed or removed with the new templates but most seem to be oversights and simple plugins or template mods have been released to address those issues.
One of the big pluses I found is the theme editor has some incredible potential. If you’re big into creating or manipulating your own themes then it’ll take a bit of getting used to, but I was able to do the conversion with a minimal amount of template edits which should make upgrades a good bit smoother.
The upgrade process was really smooth. I jumped from VB 3.8.1 and it went as smooth as upgrades typically do.
The major stumbling block with the forum portion of the new software is the lack of available themes. vBulletin.org has a bunch of simplistic themes that are VB4 ready, but most of them are the typical gaudy things you’d expect (honestly I’m not sure why some people think a fire engine red forum, with a red background and orange fonts looks good).
If you’re waiting for your favorite premium theme to be converted and made 4.0 ready, plan to wait a while. From what I can tell with the ones I’ve used in the past, the developers are trying to stay with the tableless concept and I think that’s going to be a futile effort for some of them. Some themes out there just have to have tables in order to function properly across all browsers and while it’s great to not have to use them, does it really matter? Probably not. So my expectation is a few will get converted to tableless version but in the end most themers will simply convert their existing skins to work with the new templating system.
Feature wise, not a great deal has changed. There’s some advancements like the ability to embed video without the need for a plugin now, but the calendar still isn’t integrated into the forums. The new class structures also means major changes for plugin developers. Very few, if any existing plugins will work in VB4 and while a fair amount have been converted, I suspect that most are either still struggling grasping the new methods or just not bothering to. So if you’re planning to upgrade, you have to consider what plugins you have, which of those have been converted and which haven’t (and may not be).
Overall though, I am pleased with forum product. I have the CMS and blogs turned off at the moment but I hope to play with them a bit this week. The reviews in that area are all over the board so I’ll just to test it and see if it’ll do things I’d like to see it do.
Incidentally, vBulletin announced they are planning a scheduled release of VB 4.0.1 sometime later today. Hopefully this will address some of the little things that I had to chase down or that got left out. We’ll see.
by RustedBucket on January 4, 2010
If you run a WordPress MU installation then you’re more than aware of the growing problem with spambots out there creating blogs to simple load links back to their spam sites. New WPMU installations can expect to be found and attacked within a few days of going live and if you have an open registration process, well, be ready to spend a lot of time weeding out the spam blogs.
My WPMU site Stampin Corner started getting hit the day it went live and I’d see between 5 an 15 new spam blogs created every day. After searching around and trying several solutions intended to stop the bots, and getting frustrated none of them really worked, I decided to just modify an existing plugin that I use on my regular WordPress installations.
It’s called WPMU Block Spam By Math. It’s based on the simple, yet highly effective plugin Block-Spam-By-Math created by Alexander Grau. Where Alexanders plugin protects your blogs registration, login and comment forms from spambots, WPMU Block Spam By Math protects your new blog creation process and the new user creation process.
It’s a simple plugin really but I find it to be highly effective at what it does. By simply adding math question to workflow (something like “what is 5+2 ?”). I won’t say it’s 100% effective but after adding this plugin to Stampin Corner two weeks ago, I’ve not had a single spam blog created (knock on wood).
Installation is simple:
- NOTE: As of version 1.2 of this plugin you must have Buddypress 1.2.3 installed. For prior versions of BP you will need an older version of the plugin.
- Download the plugin from WordPress.org.
- Copy it to the wp-content/mu-plugins directory of your blog.
That’s all there is to it. You should now start seeing a dramatic reduction in the amount of spam blogs you see created. NOTE: This does not protect against those spammer who take the time to manually create spam blogs on your site. For those I recommend barbed wire and toothpicks under the fingernails.
BuddyPress Users
If you are using BuddyPress this plugin should still work fine unless you are using the default BuddyPress theme. If you want this plugin to work with the ‘bp-default’ theme you need to make a manual edit to create a new hook location. The process is very simple.
For versions of BP prior to 1.2.2
Open your wp-content/themes/bp-sn-parent/registration/register.php file.
Locate this line of code (approx. line 215).
<?php if ( 'completed-confirmation' == bp_get_current_signup_step() ) : ?>
BELOW this add this line of code:
<?php do_action( 'bp_before_current_signup_step' ) ?>
For versions of BP 1.2.2 and newer (tested on 1.2.3)
- Simply install/upgrade the plugin
I completely skipped 1.2.2 but since it was reported the plugin wasn’t working correctly on that version I’m going to assume the problem was the same. If you are on 1.2.2 and still have problems upgrade to at least 1.2.3.
It appears BP is now able to bundle their default theme within the plugin directory and in doing so added a new hook which I had to manually add in previous versions. This update applies to an unaltered install of BP 1.2.3, if you have the older BP default theme in your wp-content/themes directory you should be able to delete it then activate the new default theme which resides in wp-content/plugins/buddypress/bp-themes/bp-default. (NOTE: This plugin will no longer work properly using the older default theme if you’ve upgraded BuddyPress).
There are NO manual edits for this version of BP just be sure you have downloaded and installed version 1.2 of the WPMU-Block-Spam-By-Math plugin. It should as simple as auto updating Buddypress and updating WPMU-Block-Spam-By-Math to the latest version (download from Codex or use link above) then switching your theme to the new Buddypress default theme.
FAQ
- Does this plugin work with the regular Block spam By Math plugin?
Yes, you can run both. I use the regular WordPress plugin on my WPMU site as well to allow individual site owners the option to add the protection at the blog level.
- Does this plugin work on regular WordPress?
No. This is only targeting the WPMU new blog signup and new user signup functions. If you need WP registration, login and comment protection I recommend you get the Block Spam By Math plugin.
- Change I change the math questions?
Yes, just edit the two rand functions in the plugin file to generate whatever type of numbers you want.
- Does this plugin work with BuddyPress?
Yes. See the Buddypress note above under installation. You have to perform a manual edit in order for it to work with the default Buddypress theme.
Support
If you like this plugin and want to support me, leave a comment or check out my donations and support page!
by RustedBucket on January 1, 2010
Just got back a little while ago from seeing the James Cameron’s epic Avatar. In a word, the movie was BRILLIANT! Yes, that’s right, it was that good. I seriously think I’m ranking it #2 right underneath the Lord of the Rings Trilogy on my all time favorites list. It’s great when directors are allowed to take their time and and just create. Cameron doesn’t disappoint. So what was so great about it?
Well to start with the imagery is absolutely amazing. A gorgeous visual masterpiece that is both stunning and breathtaking. It’s certainly all about special effects and they are impeccably accomplished, never once did I feel like something was faked (remember Anakin slicing the apple in Attack of the Clones). The detail spent in building the Pandoran world alone is worth sitting through the 160 minutes. Another plus was that not once was any one thing in Cameron’s world made to call attention to itself. Everything fit, it all flowed seamlessly and the actors did incredible jobs inferring raw emotion into their Avatar characters.
There’s three versions of this movie, a regular cinematic version, a cinematic 3D (or what they call REAL D 3D and an IMAX 3D version. We saw the cinematic 3D version and for the most part it was excellent. I’ll be going back to see it again in IMAX because the sensory immersion should be well worth it. People say 3D and just roll their eyes, remember Jaws 3D or any of your favorite horror movies that were done in 3D. It always seemed cheap and gimmicky right? Not this movie. Sure you can tell it’s not true 3D but it’s very minimal and after the first few minutes you hardly notice it. Even the subtitled translations of the Na’vi native language seems completely natural. If I have one complaint about the 3D it’s the peripheral field of view, that’s where I noticed the typical 3D glimmer but it was minimal. I also think the IMAX version will compensate for that, we’ll see.
Something else about the 3D effect is how Cameron expertly weaves it into the movie. Rarely is it “in your face” and those moments were suttle, perfectly executed where a raindrop might slash off to the side or a leave floating in the wind. No rockets shooting “at” you or flying monster trying to eat you.
Pandora itself is a spectacular visualization of the imagination. You’ll want to go there, probably move there. Everything about it is in a nutshell “perfect”.
Ok so you get the picture, visually the movie is beyond excellent. So what about the story itself? There’s been a lot of hype about the underlying themes the story implies. It’s all true, everything you’ve heard. Every tree hugger story, liberal, white man conquered the Indians story is absolutely true. At least from a moralistic viewpoint. Avatar is every movie you’ve ever seen. It’s absolutely Dances with Wolves, it’s every video game storyline, every novel and every big budget movie plot line. Whatever your moralistic and/or political viewpoints are, this movie has it. However, none of it matters.
If you can’t shed a tear for how the Na’vi are treated then there is something most definitely wrong with you. Seriously, I can’t think of another movie, aside from the three Lord of the Rings movies that even remotely compares. Braveheart and Gladiator are in my top 5 as well, yet even they don’t compare.
Avatar is worth every minute you sit there. Long yes but not drawn out with meaningless filler and you hardly notice the length. I’m sure there will be numerous folks who disagree with me but in my opinion it’s just extraordinary and I think it will break Titanic’s Oscar record as well.
So after all that, if you skipped way down here to read the last few lines the best advice I have is (as with most movies) turn your brain off before you go in, don’t worry about what the movie “might” be trying to tell you, just sit back and enjoy it.
Overall I’d have to give it 5 out of 5 stars.
WPMU Block Spam By Math
by RustedBucket on January 4, 2010
If you run a WordPress MU installation then you’re more than aware of the growing problem with spambots out there creating blogs to simple load links back to their spam sites. New WPMU installations can expect to be found and attacked within a few days of going live and if you have an open registration process, well, be ready to spend a lot of time weeding out the spam blogs.
My WPMU site Stampin Corner started getting hit the day it went live and I’d see between 5 an 15 new spam blogs created every day. After searching around and trying several solutions intended to stop the bots, and getting frustrated none of them really worked, I decided to just modify an existing plugin that I use on my regular WordPress installations.
It’s called WPMU Block Spam By Math. It’s based on the simple, yet highly effective plugin Block-Spam-By-Math created by Alexander Grau. Where Alexanders plugin protects your blogs registration, login and comment forms from spambots, WPMU Block Spam By Math protects your new blog creation process and the new user creation process.
It’s a simple plugin really but I find it to be highly effective at what it does. By simply adding math question to workflow (something like “what is 5+2 ?”). I won’t say it’s 100% effective but after adding this plugin to Stampin Corner two weeks ago, I’ve not had a single spam blog created (knock on wood).
Installation is simple:
That’s all there is to it. You should now start seeing a dramatic reduction in the amount of spam blogs you see created. NOTE: This does not protect against those spammer who take the time to manually create spam blogs on your site. For those I recommend barbed wire and toothpicks under the fingernails.
BuddyPress Users
If you are using BuddyPress this plugin should still work fine unless you are using the default BuddyPress theme. If you want this plugin to work with the ‘bp-default’ theme you need to make a manual edit to create a new hook location. The process is very simple.
For versions of BP prior to 1.2.2
Open your wp-content/themes/bp-sn-parent/registration/register.php file.
Locate this line of code (approx. line 215).
BELOW this add this line of code:
For versions of BP 1.2.2 and newer (tested on 1.2.3)
I completely skipped 1.2.2 but since it was reported the plugin wasn’t working correctly on that version I’m going to assume the problem was the same. If you are on 1.2.2 and still have problems upgrade to at least 1.2.3.
It appears BP is now able to bundle their default theme within the plugin directory and in doing so added a new hook which I had to manually add in previous versions. This update applies to an unaltered install of BP 1.2.3, if you have the older BP default theme in your wp-content/themes directory you should be able to delete it then activate the new default theme which resides in wp-content/plugins/buddypress/bp-themes/bp-default. (NOTE: This plugin will no longer work properly using the older default theme if you’ve upgraded BuddyPress).
There are NO manual edits for this version of BP just be sure you have downloaded and installed version 1.2 of the WPMU-Block-Spam-By-Math plugin. It should as simple as auto updating Buddypress and updating WPMU-Block-Spam-By-Math to the latest version (download from Codex or use link above) then switching your theme to the new Buddypress default theme.
FAQ
Yes, you can run both. I use the regular WordPress plugin on my WPMU site as well to allow individual site owners the option to add the protection at the blog level.
No. This is only targeting the WPMU new blog signup and new user signup functions. If you need WP registration, login and comment protection I recommend you get the Block Spam By Math plugin.
Yes, just edit the two rand functions in the plugin file to generate whatever type of numbers you want.
Yes. See the Buddypress note above under installation. You have to perform a manual edit in order for it to work with the default Buddypress theme.
Support
If you like this plugin and want to support me, leave a comment or check out my donations and support page!
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