Back when the tarmac delay rule went into effect I predicted that this rule would fall victim to the Law of Unintended Consequences and that airlines will do the only thing they can do, they'll cancel flights earlier or more often (that copied and pasted from an April 2010 blog post).

And so I was not in the least bit surprised to see the report from the US Government Accountability Office proclaim that our analysis has shown that the rule appears to be associated with an increased number of cancellations for thousands of additional passengers - far more than DOT initially predicted - including some who might not have experienced a tarmac delay.

I know I shouldn't say "I told you so", but ...

My home network had a bad week last week. One of my 24 port hubs is dead (well, it powers up and passes POST, but not a single data LED lights up). The WAN port on my SonicWALL firewall is fried (fortunately I had an unused port and was able to change the configuration to get back online). My Roku box no longer works on wired Ethernet (although it does work on Wi-Fi). I lost one port on my PBX. A VGA over Cat5 extender lost all 4 of its ports. The integrated Ethernet port on one of my computers is dead. It could have been much worse. I have lots of connected equipment and the vast majority of it is fine (the pattern around what was fried and what not is intriguing to say the least). Still, as I said, a bad week.

The culprit? A massive lightning storm in the area. We never lost power, but apparently the lightning must have caused a significant surge and fried lots of equipment connected to the phone lines (several POTS voice lines and a U-verse data line). Interestingly, all of the damaged equipment still works, I just lost lots and lots of ports, almost all on my LAN, and one on a PBX daughterboard.

I have significant power surge protection. But, obviously, none for the phone and data lines that come into my house. And while I know that this was a freak occurrence, it's still been frustrating and expensive enough that I've been looking into the options for protecting phone and data. And the information out there is rather ambiguous, ranging from inline solutions with mixed reviews, to comments about the impact on performance, and more.

So, I'd like your input. If you have any experience with this type of surge protection, please share - the good, the bad, and the ugly is all appreciated. Thanks!

.net Magazine is running their annual .net Awards, and our own Matt Gifford is the only ColdFusion developer up for a .net Awards 2011. Feel free to help him out, go vote (category 16, at the bottom).

The BrowserLab team has announced that version 1.6.1 is now live, and includes support for newer versions of Chrome (although not the newest yet).

I use Virtual PC extensively, and have lots of virtual machines that I fire up as needed to run specific software. (Charlie Arehart gets the credit for getting me hooked on virtual computers many years ago). Virtual computers use virtual hard drives, essentially a complete hard drive in a single file, a .vhd file. When a virtual hard drive is created you specify a maximum size, and the drive can either grow to that size as needed (dynamic drive) or start off as the specified size (fixed drive).

But what if you need to expand a drive beyond that initially designated size? There is a great little free utility named VHD Resizer, which, as its name suggests, resizes VHD (virtual hard drive) files. It can convert between dynamic and fixed sized virtual drives, and can change the drive size, too. Simple, right? Well, not quite.

Here's the problem. Expanding the size of virtual drive is simple enough, but expanding the size will not automatically resize partitions on the drive. So, if for example you expanded a 4GB virtual drive to 8GB, your C: drive on the virtual drive will still be 4GB in size, and the extra space will be unassigned waiting for you to create a new drive (perhaps drive D:). Which is great, unless you really do need to expand drive C:, as I just did.

Windows includes a command line utility named diskpart which can extend partitions, but diskpart cannot be used for system or boot volumes, and so if you boot from drive C: (usually the case) you'll not be able to extend it. There are 3rd party tools which can indeed manipulate partitions, including extending system partitions. But (at 36,000 feet somewhere over CO) I found a workaround.

WARNING: What follows is NOT recommended by Microsoft. It worked for me, but no promises. In other words, if you're going to attempt this, make sure you've backed up your .vhd file. And if it doesn't work, well, I don't want to know! ;-)

Ok, so here's what I did:

1. You'll need two virtual computers, let's call the one whose drive you want expanded A, and the second B
2. Make sure virtual computers A and B are not running
3. Open the settings for virtual computer B, you'll likely see a virtual hard drive listed as Hard Disk 1, and Hard Disk 2 through 4 will be empty
4. Set Hard Disk 2 to point to the .vhd file used by virtual computer A
5. Save settings and fire up virtual computer B
6. Once virtual computer B is running you'll see its own virtual hard drive as drive C:, and virtual computer A's hard drive as another letter (next available letter)
7. On virtual computer B, open a command prompt and run diskpart, selecting the volume that is computer A's virtual hard drive, and extend it (this will be allowed as diskpart won't recognize it as a system partition as you didn't actually boot virtual computer B from it)
8. Shut down virtual computer B, and remove the added hard drive from its settings
9. Now fire up virtual computer A
10. With any luck you'll now have an expanded system volume

This is NOT supposed to work safely. But, I just did it, and it worked perfectly. Great little workaround, but, caveat emptor.

BrowserLab is our online service for performing cross browser testing, and BrowserLab for Firebug is a Firefox add-on that lets you preview temporary changes you've made using. Today the BrowserLab team announced that BrowserLab for Firebug has been updated to support Firefox 4 and Firebug 1.7.

Paul Gubbay is Adobe's VP of Design and Web Engineering. You may recall that I interviewed him (and John Resig) during the MAX 2010 Day 2 keynote, and we chatted about HTML5, jQuery, and more. Well, Paul has been interviewed again, this time at FITC by fellow Adobe evangelist Serge Jespers:

I am on a Delta flight from SFO to DTW. Fortunately, the plane is equipped with Wi-Fi, so I was able to watch Space Shuttle Discovery's final landing on NASA TV. And honestly, this picture perfect farewell is stirring up a mix of emotions and reactions.

I remember as a teen back in the 80's reading up on everything I could find about the Shuttle fleet as they were being built. I still remember the reaction at seeing a picture of a Shuttle piggy-backed on a Boeing 747 for the first time. I remember exactly where I was (in a taxi in Manchester, England) back in 1986 when we heard about the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, and the exhilaration listening live to Discovery triumphantly reinvigorate the program two years later with mission STS-26. And I recall the horrible sense of déjà vu when Columbia disintegrated upon reentry in 2003, and the similar nervous tension three years later when again Discovery led the way back to space with mission STS-116. And I know I am not alone, millions have the same emotional attachment to an amazing and awe-inspiring machine.

And the emotions? Pride, exhilaration, awe ... and at the same time some real anger and disappointment. Honestly, it feels like we've lost the desire to do big bold things, we take Shuttle missions and Space Stations and frequent satellite launches for granted, we've grown jaded and uninspired. And worst of all, we've lost the healthy curiosity needed to be able to literally aim for the stars. How many kids nowadays want to grow up to be an astronaut?

Realistically, these days we'd never be able to pull off anything as grand and as ambitious as the Space Shuttle program. The public has lost interest and so there is no political will to think big. Considering the huge advances in technology since the Shuttles were conceived and built, we should be planning huge leaps forward in space exploration and associated sciences. But, no, instead we're having to fight for attention and relevance. I'm sad, disappointed, and yes, angry.

So, welcome home Discovery, farewell, and thank you for 27 inspiring years. And here's hoping that at some point in the future we'll once again find the passion, the curiosity, and the willpower to do the impossible and inspire a generation.

I'm go-presenting the Flash Israel 2011 opening keynote with Lee Brimelow tomorrow. Or rather, I'm trying to. Weather last night close to shut down DTW, so I never made my connection in JFK. I am now in Amsterdam, and have an 8 hour wait until the flight to TLV. I'll arrive in the wee hours Tuesday morning, not long before we have to present. Still, I'm really glad to be visiting Israel again, even briefly.

Somewhat related, back in April 2010 I stated that the new DOT 3 Hour Tarmac Delay Rule was a bad idea. I predicted that it would make airlines overly risk averse, pushing them to return to the gate too early, because canceling flights would be cheaper than risking huge fines. And the pilot on my DTW to JFK flight last night confirmed my fears when he announced that he'd like to wait in the queue longer, that he thought we probably could get out, but that the airline is insisting we deplane because we had just broken the 2 hour mark. Nice, thank you government, you have once again proven how utterly useless you are, and how the Law of Unintended Consequences is alive and well.

Ok, now what to do for 8 hours in Amsterdam?

It's been a while since I posted examples of TSA rules, policies, and behaviors. But, I just have to share this one:

The primary security entrance at DTW McNamara Terminal was closed the past couple of weeks while they installed a new millimeter wave scanner (whole body imaging device). Better security, yeah! Or not!

I went through the newly opened security lanes this morning. There is a single millimeter wave scanner sitting to the right of two typical metal detectors. And some passengers are being routed to the new scanner while others are being routed to the metal detectors. Random, right? Well ...

The thing is that there are two entrances to the security area, the left for most of the flying public, and the right for frequent flyers and elite members. In other words, the new scanner is in front of the frequent flyer line.

I stood and watched for a little while, just to see who was getting routed where and how random the routing really is. And sure enough, the majority of passengers directed to the new improved scanning are the ones entering security right in front of the machine. Which passengers? Elite members and frequent flyers, the passengers that the airlines and TSA know best (many of whom have been pre-screened, too)!

Wow, I feel so much safer!

Frank X. Shaw, Vice President of Corporate Communications at Microsoft, recently posted an entry entitled Microsoft by the numbers. Regardless of how you feel about Microsoft or their products, this one provides some very interesting perspective on desktops versus netbooks and tables, smartphone market share, as well as industry income.

InfoWorld's Neil McAllister comments on Apple's HTML5 drive, and the Web standards community's displeasure with the effort blasted as being "not intellectually honest".

If I were to leave my house unlocked, I'd not expect people to enter without permission, even though they probably could do so. But if I were having a conversation, perhaps a meeting using a microphone so that everyone could hear, and I left my windows open so that passersby could hear every word, well, I'd have to expect that and be OK with it. No?

Google is in all sorts of trouble over Wi-Fi sniffing by its Street View cars. And lawyers now argue that the data was not collected accidentally as previously claimed, but that the cars were deliberately programmed to collect the data.

And many are comparing this to the unlocked house example, so evil and sinister, big bad Google silently creeping into your private property to steal from you. The thing is, that analogy is flat out inaccurate. My microphone broadcasting info up and down the street is a far more technically accurate analogy. And yes, if you yell outdoors, clearly and free for all to hear, well, then you can't complain if sometime writes it all down.

Duh!

The first playable Google Doodle, a PAC-MAN game in honor of the game's 30th birthday, created in conjunction with the game creators, is now on the Google homepage. They even changed the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button to one that says "Insert Coin" (click it to start the game). This is a whole new level of awesomeness (and I even totally forgive them for playing sound without permission). Some great details in this CNET story.

No, I am not looking for a new job. I doubt anyone would seriously believe this one, but just to be sure ...

Someone using the name Benjamin Forta has been posting a resume to job boards and groups, claiming 14 years of leadership in the ColdFusion community, and offering ColdFusion and Flex development services. The associated e-mail address is bforta@gmail.com which is not my address, and the Colorado phone number listed is not mine either.

It's been a few years since this last happened. I guess I should take it as a compliment, it's nice to know I'm still relevant. ;-)

The new tarmac delay rule goes into effect this week, and DOT Secretary Ray LaHood has promised that the rule will be strongly enforced. Some passenger advocates have hailed the new rule as a landmark breakthrough. Some have even cheered the denial of airline requested exceptions for specific airports where delays will likely be beyond the airline's control (JFK as an example). Leading the debate has been FlyersRights.org, the self-proclaimed "largest non-profit consumer organization representing airline passengers". Well, they don't represent me.

I have flown millions of miles, literally. I have flown every major airline in the world. I have flown in and out of more airports than I can recall. And yes, I have dealt with delays and cancellations and bad weather and emergency landings and long tarmac waits and mechanical problems and aborted take-offs and ... you get the idea. I also know lots of people in the airline industry. Heck, I am on a first-name basis with multiple pilots, flight attendants, and airline representatives. So I think I am more than qualified to voice an opinion on this one. And my opinion is that this rule will become the poster boy for the Law of Unintended Consequences.

I know that it's popular to bash airlines, especially with baggage fees (and hand luggage fees!) and fare increases and charging for select seats and no free food and so on. But, the reality is that airlines are still losing money. And they actually don't make much on completely full flights! There is absolutely no way airlines are going to risk fines of up to $27,500 per passenger (that's over $6,000,000 or so for a typical Boeing 757).

And so now airlines will do the only thing they can do, they'll cancel flights earlier or more often. And for those of us who live on the road, life is going to get just a bit more painful as a result.

Congress, DOT, and FlyersRights.org, thanks for nothing!

John Battelle and Tim O'Reilly, Program Chairs and founders of Web 2.0 Summit, have penned an An Open Letter to Apple Regarding The Company's Approach to Conversation with Its Peers and Its Community. The letter is indeed somewhat self-serving, and admits as such. Still, it's well worth the read.

As much as I understand the fiscal realities, these tweetpics by Japanese Astronaut Soichi Noguchi make me sad that NASA funding is being slashed. Here's hoping that some of the new programs and thinking materialize.

I mentioned the upcoming U.S. Census recently, and noted my disappointment at having to mail back forms instead of filing them electronically which would save money, encourage greater participation, ... whoops, that was the other post.

I was going to leave the topic alone, but, I can't. Last week I received a letter in the mail letting me know that the Census form would be coming. And sure enough, this week the form showed up, with a prepaid envelope to return it. Three mailings. But nope, that's not enough. I just received a postcard from the US Census Bureau reminding me of a toll free number available for help filling in the form!

Apparently, 120,000,000 letters were sent out ahead of the form to announce its pending arrival, and another 120,000,000 postcards were mailed afterward as a reminder!

The waste of $s is truly sickening, even by government standards!

I reset online passwords regularly (as should everyone). And I approve of password restrictions (minimum lengths, no reuse, at least one digit and one uppercase, etc.). But, as you can see in this validation screen, American Express apparently does not want passwords to be *too* secure! FAIL!

The United States Census is a decennial census mandated by the United States Constitution, and is used (among other things) to determine how more than $400 billion dollars of federal funding each year is spent on infrastructure and services.

Participation is mandatory, and the US Government (including the President) are engaged in a campaign to raise awareness and drive participation. Indeed, they have a very modern looking website, a blog, and are even using Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, flickr, downloadable widgets to get the message out (see the What You Can Do) page. And I'm really impressed with this use of the Internet, social networking, and more to get the word out.

Or rather, I *WAS* impressed. Until I saw the message "We Can't Move Forward Until You Mail It Back". Mail it back? Really? We have a really nice web site in over 50 languages, social site integration, even a slick Flash powered interactive version of the form .... and then this:

Q: Can I fill out my form online?

A: No. Not at this time. We are experimenting with Internet response for the future.

The future? Really? As in the next US Census in 2020?

2000 was still early Internet days, so back then this would have been forgivable. But this is 2010, people live online, a couple of months ago online holiday shopping $s exceeded in store shopping $s, we bank online, utilities prefer to send you e-bills, and on and on and on .... But mail back your Census form, and we'll revisit in the future!

Ouch! What a failure!

I just had a most unusual experience. Unusual in a good way. I just tried a new government program and it worked perfectly!

I landed in Detroit a few hours ago. Nothing unusual about that. The was an international flight, so I had to clear customs and immigration. Again, nothing unusual about that. What was unusual was the speed at which I got through the airport. Now, to be fair, Detroit Metro is usually one of the quicker entry ports for customs and immigration clearance (so long as you don't make the mistake of checking baggage!). But still, from the time I exited the plane to the time I got in my car was under 5 minutes!

How? A few months ago I applied for membership in GOES, Department of Homeland Security's Global Online Enrollment System. I had to submit all sorts of documentation and consent to full background checks, and then after tentative approval I was interviewed, photographed, had fingerprints taken, and more. And after a few weeks wait I was informed that I had been approved and could now use the GOES kiosks upon arrival.

And today I used the system for the first time. I inserted my passport into the kiosk, verified that the system had my correct inbound flight details (it did), looked at the camera, placed my fingers on the scanner when prompted, answered a few on screen questions, and then the kiosk spat out a receipt. I did not have to talk to anyone at immigration, I just walked through the designated entrance, handed the receipt to the customs official bypassing any lines, and walked out of the airport.

It was quick, simple, and just worked exactly as it was supposed to. Very impressive. And highly recommended for any frequent international travelers.

Oh, I know I should steer clear of politics, but this one really ticks me off!

Democratic U.S. Representative Parker Griffith has announced that he plans on switching to the Republican party. And it works both ways. Earlier this year, United States Senator Arlen Specter from Pennsylvania, switched to the Democratic party after five terms in the GOP.

Party switching is nothing new, and hundreds of politicians have switched parties since the mid 1800s (although it's only happened 21 times in the U.S. Senate). But the fact that it's been going on for such a long time does not make it right. Actually, it feels really wrong, almost fraudulent. Citizens don't just vote for individuals to represent them, they also often vote based on party affiliation. Running for office as a member of a specific party, and then switching once in office, is deceitful, and is essentially depriving voters of their right to elect their own representatives in government.

Put it this way. If you hired an employee for a multi-year contract based on promises and commitments that employee made, and then found out that the employee arbitrarily changed course and directions and plans without your consent, what would you do?

Politicians have every right to switch allegiances, but they should not be allowed to do so mid-term. And if they want to do just that, then they should be forced to run a mid-term election, essentially allowing citizens to decide if they find the change acceptable and if they feel like they are still being appropriately represented.

Is is time for a 28th amendment to the U.S. Constitution?

I have no idea who's responsible for this one, really! This was brought to my attention by fellow Adobe Platform Evangelist Greg Wilson.

The Boeing Dreamliner is an astonishing piece of technology, and promises to significantly impact the future of commercial aviation. 50% of the primary structure is made from composite materials, the interior is wide and open and spacious, humidity can be maintained allowing for more comfortable flight, assembly required less than 10,000 holes in the fuselage (contrasted to over 1,000,000,000 in the 7474), it's 20% more fuel efficient than similar sized planes, and the list goes on and on.

It's been a long time since this plane, also called the 787, was announced (back on 7/8/7), and so today's planned maiden flight is an important milestone.

I do intend to fly this plane as soon as I can! My local carrier, Northwest Airlines, had announced that they would be the first US carrier to fly the Dreamliner 787. Northwest is now part of Delta, and I'm hoping that the original 787 plans are kept, although I've not found any comment on the subject to date.

Regardless, to the good people at Boeing (many of whom are loyal ColdFusion customers), congratulations on achieving this truly momentous milestone (And I'll reiterate my offer, you need beta fliers, feel free to ping me!).