We just picked up a couple of Droid X phones and could not get them to sync with Zimbra 5.0.22. Every time we tried to set it up, we'd get "ERROR Could not connect to the server." no matter what we tried. We checked all the usual suspects such as DNS, internet connection, etc. Also, we tried about every combination of user ID, domain, password, etc.

We also spent a week working with Zimbra tech support trying to get the Mobile tab to show up on 5.0.22, to see if we could change some settings there, but after a week they finally figured out that we were on 5.0.22 and you have to be on 6.0.x to see the Mobile tab!

Well, I finally figured it out...

The One World Futbol Project is helping to spread joy thru soccer to communities in need around the world. (By “Futbol” they mean soccer.)

You can buy an ultra-durable soccer ball from the project and play with it anywhere. That's why it's called an all-terrain ball. It never goes flat, never needs a pump, and never gets punctured. If you try hard, you can puncture it with a knife, but the One World Futbol will still keep playing.

For every ball you buy, the Project will give away a second ball, free, to someone who can’t afford one. Neat.

If you don't need an indestructible soccer ball, you can donate to their foundation and, for every $25 you donate, they'll send a soccer ball to a community that needs it.

Check it out at http://www.oneworldfutbol.com

I ran into a problem figuring out how to set up a large, multiple terrabyte disk array that was usable by VMware ESXi.

Specifically, I'm setting up a server with 16GB of memory and a 4-core 3ghz processor to run VMware ESXi 4.0 (Update 1). This driveless Dell rack server is hooked up to an external Dell MD1200 array packed with 7.2TB of storage. I wanted to make the entire 7.2TB (less after accounting for RAID5) available to my virtual machines.

The MD1200 has the option to split into two drive arrays and be accessed by two systems. For this configuration, I'm just going to have the one server, so I set up redundant paths (2 cables) from the server to the first controller on the array.

A few of the things you need to know about installing ESXi...

After waiting over a month since I saw it announced at Google IO back in May, I finally have the final build of Froyo (Frozen Yogurt) running on my AT&T Nexus One.

It's great!

All of the promised improvements are there and it really seems faster...

"What's the difference between ignorance and apathy? I don't know and I don't care."
--Anonymous

Is it better to be efficient or effective?

Let's start with some definitions (from Webster's):

Efficient:
1 : being or involving the immediate agent in producing an effect
2 : productive of desired effects; especially : productive without waste

Effective:
1 a : producing a decided, decisive, or desired effect
1 b : impressive, striking
2 : ready for service or action
3 : actual
4 : being in effect : operative
5 : of a rate of interest equal to the rate of simple interest that yields the same amount when the interest is paid once at the end of the interest period as a quoted rate of interest does when calculated at compound interest over the same period

The FINAL, FINAL, FINAL solution. (No, we didn't switch to Exchange.)

I have several other articles on this site talking about Zimbra not working at a client's home network, but working fine at the office and other locations.

The problem was that the compressed javascript files would not download and the Advanced Web Client would not work. It stalled during download and hitting refresh multiple times MIGHT get it to almost work (the code for handling folders would almost never load). If we took the computer into the office, it worked fine. If we took it home, it worked fine. If we cleared the cache, we were back to having the problem.

Sometimes Firefox would work, but IE almost never would...

I had a client report a problem using Outlook 2007 when trying to send email to a group list. The error was "An unexpected error has occurred" (what, as opposed to an expected error?) when email was sent and Outlook wouldn't expand the list when the + was clicked in the "To:" box.

The problem turned out to be pretty simple...

cognitive dissonance: psychological conflict resulting from incongruous beliefs and attitudes held simultaneously.
--www.merriam-webster.com

If you've read my other segments "Make your mistakes faster" and "Have the Appropriate Level of Terror", you might be wondering how I could logically hold these two opposing views at the same time. Am I just suffering from cognitive dissonance or do I have a legitimate point?

The answer is pretty simple, if you dig into the meat of my arguments and look at the timing of each...

"Put it up to eleven."
--This is Spinal Tap

If you want to be successful in IT, one of the most important attributes you can maintain is to have the Appropriate Level of Terror (the acronym is ALOT).

What I mean is that there are many things you will do in IT, such as software projects, server hardware upgrades, or management presentations, that demand you feel a high degree of terror.

How can terror be good? Well, it injects your body full of handy hormones and neurotransmitters like adrenaline that will heighten your senses, improve your reactions, and even help you see things you might not otherwise see. Terror will cause you to double and triple check your work. Terror will help you come up with alternative and fall back plans. Terror keeps you focused.

Terror in some people can cause them to freeze or stiffen. Don't be one of those "fainting goats" that topple over at the slightest sound--that's not what I'm talking about...

Strange Dell-ness!

I had worked on a client's Dell Vostro tower computer and everything was fine when I dropped it off. Later, when he tried to hook it back up and getting running, all it would do is power up, turn the fan on and off, power down, and repeat.

The thing that cleared everything was to unplug everything (sometimes a system will to boot from a camera drive or the SD card on a printer, so try unplugging those, first) including the power cord. Then press and hold the power button for a full 60 seconds.

Hook up the power cord and power the system up (don't hook up anything else!). Once you see the hard drive light flashing and it appears to be booting up, go ahead and hook up the monitor cable. If that looks good, go ahead and hook everything else and you should be fine.

Weird. This tip was provided to me by Dell tech support awhile ago, but I didn't document it. Since this is the second time it's happened, I thought I better put the tip where I could find it.