JulianSchrader.de

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How To Disable .htaccess Authorization for Child Directories

The problem: I have a password protected WordPress install — only a limited group of users may access its content (simple .htaccess/.htpasswd). I also need to access my WordPress stylesheet (which happens to be in a child directory of the protected environment) for an unprotected homepage though.

Traversing the directory stack, we know a more specific .htaccess overrides previous instructions, so despite reading otherwise, I knew there had to be a solution.


Allow from all
Satisfy any

That’s it. Another .htaccess, put into the child directory, featuring these two lines, allows anyone to access resources further down the directory stack — which makes for an exception of the previously defined access restrictions.

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I like reading on iPad.

My iPad has been with me all the time since its debut seven weeks ago. And I have to say, I like to read on it. So do Tim Van Damme, Shawn Blanc and Mike Rohde.

I expected iPad to be a great device for casual consumption of “new media”. You don’t need a big device to listen to audio, but video podcasts and the like are an area where iPad really shines. Make yourself comfortable on a couch or in the garden and watch presentations without dragging around your fat TV or a bulky laptop that’s uncomfortable to hold lying in the grass.

iPad rocks as a video consumption device and tools like Air Video make it even more comfortable since they remove the need to sync new stuff onto the device. I’ve found myself watching and sharing more video content lately.

Reading in the ipad is a joy. Period. (@maxvoltar)

I’ve had Stieg Larsson’s Millenium Trilogy¹ in the rack next to my desk for seven or eight months now, I barely touched it. I’ve been a bookworm since I learned to decipher the first characters in primary school, but carrying around another 900 page book on campus everyday…well, my bag got too heavy.

I bought all three books in the iBook store and read one after another over the course of the last three weeks. A Joy.

Today finally brought Ashes, a companion application for Shaun Inman‘s feedreader Fever°, which runs on iPad. Though browsing the web is a great experience, using Fever° on iPad is plain impossible. I tried it once, it sucked. With Ashes, all my feed reading happens on my iPad as well. Whoops.

I like reading on iPad.

And I didn’t even start to tell you about Instapaper, a service which makes you click a bookmarklet each and everytime you want to read an article on the web. Because you actually want to read it inside of Instapaper, on your iPad.

Oh, and don’t get me started on the whole Flash discussion. I don’t miss it, it’s blocked on my Macs as well.

1) Now go buy these books, they’re amazing: Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Trilogy Bundle: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest

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Shooting Video with a DSLR

A recent shot, happened while fiddling with the camera at the coffee table.

I’m thinking about upgrading my DSLR to one capable of doing high-res video — any recommendations on that?

I absolutely love what I see people doing with Canon’s 5D Mark II for example:

Grand Central Terminal NYC: Canon 5D mark II from Mike Kobal on Vimeo.

Lowa East Side People: Canon 5D mark II from Mike Kobal on Vimeo.

I don’t think going full-pro in terms of equipment is any good since this’d be my first real step into shooting video. And I probably won’t do excessive shooting. On the other hand, I’d clearly label myself as a pro-sumer — I’m not doing this stuff professionally, but I do have professional demand.

So, what do you think? What do you recommend for my first steps into some nice filming? I love the bokeh digital SLRs create and don’t want no stinking camcorder where everything’s flat out sharp.

For more great material on DSLRs and video, check out VideoDSLR.tv

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How and Why I keep my Inbox at Zero

About 4 hours ago Tyler Galpin posted the following tweet:

I think inbox 0 is stupid, because sometimes you need to sit on an email before replying in the best manner possible. Avoid mistakes.

Absolutely true—there are many emails you shouldn’t or can’t answer right away. But I don’t think that should prevent implementing Inbox Zero.

I can work way more relaxed as long as my Inbox is indeed empty and I know that all my tasks are captured and managed by a trusted system.

Realizing that my response could easily get a little longish for twitter, I figured I’d record a quick video to explain my approach:

Inbox Zero Demonstration from Julian Schrader on Vimeo.

Inbox Zero plus Things works well for me—and this is how I’m able to succeed using this strategy without too much hassle. Feel free to try it

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Quicky: Access Control Using Your Phone

For the past two weeks I’ve used Airlock to automagically lock my Mac Pro’s and MacBook Pro’s screens as soon as I and my iPhone are not in the room anymore.

It’s a nice way of ensuring that nobody will read what’s on your screen or does stupid things using your Facebook or XMPP accounts—at the office as well as at home or on the road. A few years ago, before the iPhone, I remember I used something called “BluePhone Elite” to do the same.

Unfortunately the shortcomings of this method remain the same: While these tools always know when your phone is not found via Bluetooth and lock your screen accordingly, every now and then the lookup fails and you’re facing a locked screen after sitting down (which requires that you enter your password to disable the tool temporarily—it re-enables automatically a few seconds later, as soon as it found your phone).

I’ll keep using Airlock for now—let’s see whether it behaves. If it bugs me too much, I’ll have to make a decision against security. That’s not desirable.

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iPad — The Executive Summary

January again had something new for us Apple addicted fanboys. There was a “Stevenote” in which Apple revealed the iPad—a touchscreen tablet device running iPhone OS.

Some call it a big brother to iPod touch and iPhone—the smartphone we ♥ so much. Taptivate, an iPhone development house, feels the need to re-define Rev⋅o⋅lu⋅tion (noun), but didn’t justify their claim yet.

Many techies knowing my deep appreciation for anything Apple approached me with laughter about that tablet PC—HP already sold similar PCs no-one wanted seven years ago. Yes, there’s nothing magical about the hardware, folks.

The iPad will sell like there’s no tomorrow. Not especially to the groups called innovators or early adopters though. The iPad will sell to people who don’t want to know about hard- and software and the inner workings of a computer, as long as it leaves them alone.

Your mom will get an iPad.

This is a bold move, I know. But iPad’s possibilities were already known to her shortly after the Apple guys stood on stage. Tired of having to fight spyware, Windows security warnings and updating anti-virus software, she’ll love to shell out 500 bucks to get this device which just lets her do what she needs to do: Internet, email, calendar, reading ebooks and consuming electronic media. And thanks to iPhones and iPod touches she’s already familiar with how to use the iPad.

But it’s not only the techies. The industry’s reaction to the iPad is nothing less than future shock—as coined by Fraser Speirs. This is the beginning of a new era of personal computing.

And to all the disappointed geeks whining about the hardware and Apple’s closed software environment:

It is focused, elegant, and simple. It’s philosophy is centered around humans, not technology. It challenges us to rethink our assumptions of what it means to use a computer and what it takes to be productive with them. → Is the iPad for Dumb People?

Seriously, think about it. I love my Macs because I don’t need to care about them and can just be productive.

Will I try the iPad? You Betcha.

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Readernaut

I was surprised to see no results show up for the term “Readernaut” when I put it into my blog’s search earlier today. I like the service a lot and couldn’t believe I hadn’t recommended it yet.

So, without further ado, here’s what it allows you to do:

Share your reading experience by writing notes, tracking progress, and meeting fellow readers.

I’m using it to keep track of my reading progress with almost every book I read (Readernaut unfortunately does not work with books not available on Amazon) and to catch a glimpse at what others are reading around me.

You have access to my profile at http://readernaut.com/schrader/ and find out that I’m currently reading David Allen’s “Making It All Work”—a successor of “Getting Things Done”, of which you’ll know by reading my blog, I’m a fan.

Share what you’re reading and follow me

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A small step to lessen fuel consumption

I spent the past week in Florida—on short notice, a client called me to come along with him to a conference in the Tampa/Clearwater area. For the rides between airport, hotel and the conference center we rented a mid-size SUV (a Jeep Patriot, to be precise). When the conference was over, we took a day off to visit Kennedy Space Center before flying home again—once we got there, we were surprised to see we almost ran out of fuel.

Then it occurred to me once again: All the different cars I drive on a regular basis are able to display their current fuel consumption on a display on the dashboard. But this data doesn’t just show up there every time you start the engine, to see it you actually have to shuffle through a menu of other items.

I’d like to have the fuel consumption displayed on the dashboard by default—instead of information like the name of the playing radio station, which is redundant anyways.

Since this would make the drivers amongst us more aware of their use of fuel, I think it could ultimately lead to more responsible driving and less fuel consumed.

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I just joined Project 52

I don’t believe in New Year’s pledges. Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice to set oneself a goal and work towards it, but most New Year’s pledges don’t work like this—in reality, they’re just the fancy topping for a New Year’s party, but worth nothing a few days into the year.

So let’s not call this a New Year’s pledge: I just joined “Project 52”, which basically is a personal challenge to write more.

The goal is to write at least 1 new article per week for 1 year. Because we all know what it‘s like to procrastinate on our content. A website is not just a fresh design that can be uploaded to the web and forgotten about!

And since the “fresh design” is also something this blog unfortunately still lacks, I have a second goal to work towards.

This year, I want to a) make blogging a habit again, and b) take the time to make this blog reflect more of what I can do visually on the web and not just some ready-made template thrown on a server somewhere.

Join the ride yourself!

If you want to join in on the fun, just head over to http://project52.info/ and sign up, there’s still some time to do so. And if you’re using Twitter, make sure to follow @project52 as well.

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Gowalla

One of the first location-based apps on my iPhone was Brightkite. I liked the idea of leaving a note at places—but Brightkite quickly got boring and I didn’t check in often.

Gowalla makes checking in everywhere and sharing places fun. It motivates its users by rewarding them with stamps on their passports and items in their packs—it transforms everyday activities into a kind of scavenger hunt, not quite like geocaching, but it’s an interactive social game you can play everywhere you go.

I used it for one day now and I really like it. Check it out and visit my profile!

Oh, and for those of you speaking or rather understanding German: Lest euch unbedingt Martins Einführung zu Gowalla im Blog auf Labuschin Webdesign durch!