Lucas Chan :: Weblog

For the most part I’ve found Parallels to be really stable for running my Windows XP and Linux virtual machines. However, when I upgraded to the latest version (3188) Parallels started to crash after 10-30 minutes of running Windows XP (in window mode, not coherence).

I think this has something to do with the integration with the Apple Dock. I made the following changes to my Parallels preferences and I haven’t had any crashes since:

1. Go to the Parallels Desktop menu, and choose Preferences
2. Choose the Appearance tab.
3. Un-check the following options:
   • Show applications in Dock
   • Show live screen shot in Dock

Karl’s NYC photography exhibition opens tonight at Workshop.

Get down there for mad snaps and mad tunes.

This doesn’t seem to be terribly well documented, so I thought I’d post it here for those googling for a solution.

Problem

Installing Ruby on Rails on CentOS (or Redhat), the RubyGems part of the official installation instructions (or the instructions listed in this excellent SitePoint book which I’m working through at the moment) may yield this result:

# cd /usr/local/src/rubygems-0.9.2
# ruby setup.rb

< --- lib
/usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems/remote_fetcher.rb:4:in `require': no such file to load — zlib (LoadError)
from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems/remote_fetcher.rb:4
from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems/source_index.rb:8:in `require’
from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems/source_index.rb:8
from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems.rb:501:in `require’
from /usr/local/lib/ruby/site_ruby/1.8/rubygems.rb:501
from /usr/local/src/rubygems-0.9.2/./post-install.rb:81:in `require’
from /usr/local/src/rubygems-0.9.2/./post-install.rb:81:in `install_sources’
from /usr/local/src/rubygems-0.9.2/./post-install.rb:116:in `try_run_hook’
from setup.rb:584:in `run_hook’
from setup.rb:1322:in `exec_task_traverse’
from setup.rb:1175:in `exec_install’
from setup.rb:894:in `exec_install’
from setup.rb:712:in `invoke’
from setup.rb:681:in `invoke’
from setup.rb:1359


Solution

A zlib error? Hrm. Double check zlib and zlib-devel are installed (I’m not sure if zlib-devel is needed but I installed it for good measure).

# yum install zlib zlib-devel

Then:

# cd /usr/local/src/ruby-1.8.5-p2/ext/zlib/
# ruby extconf.rb --with-zlib-include=/usr/include --with-zlib-lib=/usr/lib
# make
# make install

Next, install RubyGems. Note that running “ruby setup.rb” on it’s own doesn’t seem to work, try this:

# cd /usr/local/src/rubygems-0.9.2/
# ruby setup.rb config
# ruby setup.rb setup
# ruby setup.rb install

All’s good in the hood. Now continue with the rest of the installation.

# gem install rails --include-dependencies

Enjoy.

Looking forward to coming home now.

The airlines have been canceling flights because of the snow and ice. I’m marginally concerned that I won’t make my connecting flight in L.A. The guy at the check-in desk told me to expect delays.

(Insert coffee related grumble here)

No bike riding today. :(

On the plus side, it’s snowing! (I’ve never seen snow before)

Awesome.

(Photo by Cam)

In room 10 at SXSW. The guy sitting in front of me just leaned sideways, raised his left butt cheek a few inches off the chair and let out an extremely vigorous and loud fart.

Being in a room full of geeks is often inspiring but sometimes a little dangerous.

Edit: 2 minutes later. He just did it again. God bless America.

Re-Edit: 3rd time. Joy. I just let out a very loud “ahem” and left to find another seat. I don’t think he got it.

It will creep up on you when you least expect it. One, two… nine, ten. Before you know it your face and neck are littered with red circles and you could be mistaken for showing symptoms of a disease which could only be contracted in a part of the world far (far) more exotic than Texas; don’t get me wrong - I really like Austin.

That’s right, it’s fricken Cameron Adams. He’s armed with a short range ink-weapon and he’s coming to a SXSW party near you.

This type of behaviour is normally reserved for the poor guy that’s passed out in the corner of the room. Stamps are the new branding device, stickers and badges are so last year don’t ya know?

It’s pretty cool here. Things seem to be back on track after a major laptop death (Apple replaced the mother-board super quick, yay) and a toilet over-flow in San Fran.

Matt and I were woken up by gun-shots last night. Awesome.

It was nice meeting up with the Aussie SXSW crew tonight. Looking forward to the official kick off tomorrow.

Edit: Ben Brown is the coolest.

I always get sick at the most inopportune times. I spent all day yesterday in my hotel room. Yay.

Despite still feeling really crappy today I managed check out Haight Ashbury, Golden Gate Park, Fisherman’s Wharf and Union and Filmore Streets. Riding around San Fran is bloody hard work but heaps of fun. :)

Snoozes.

Bringing my bike here was such a good idea. If you’re comfortable with riding in traffic (and don’t mind riding on the opposite incorrect side of the road then it’s well worth the trouble - I didn’t have to pay extra for baggage, yay!). I’ve seen a lot more of the city in just one day than I did in the whole week I was here last time. Surprisingly the cars here seem a lot more considerate of cyclists than in they do in Melbourne.

The Bart cards (Metcard equivalents) are rechargeable. Melbourne really needs to do that. You could give the roaming ticket inspectors little card readers and save a fortune on ink and cardboard? Or just introduce a smart card already FFS.

A couple of bike couriers recommended I check out the bike stores on Valencia St, so I went down there this afternoon. The Mission is a pretty cool area of town; seems like a crazy mix of cultures, especially with Castro being only a few blocks away.

I stumbled across the Chrome factory/store in Soma and went inside to have a sticky-beak. The guys inside were really friendly and they happen to like breakbeat. I’m meeting up with them at a bar near my Hotel later tonight. Should be fun. :)

Track bikes are still very much a novelty in Australia but they’re a dime a dozen here. Despite this you still get the occasional knowing nod from couriers and the like.

Apparently John Digweed is in town tonight, I’ve missed his last 2 shows in Melbourne so I’m tempted to go and check him out. Hyper is also doing a show tonight, he’d probably be a bit more up my alley but I really didn’t come here to party so we’ll see.

The coffee here is terrible, kthxbye.