Uber USB thumbdrive power
So...We went to 12 hour shifts the other day at work and Im finding myself with more time off than I know what to do with. So I started to go through the list of geekstuff that I needed to accomplish. It was a tossup between writing an gtk app that mimic's Microsoft's 'Active Desktop' (I have it mostly finished in script form, just need to do the gui work...it takes a list of pictures from a folder and randomly displays them set for xx minutes) and finally getting around to do an auto-sync script for my USB thumbdrive. The Thumbdrive won haha.
The reason for my USB madness is that I am working at 6p-6a shift with nothing to do inbetween the times, so I tend to just whip out my USB drive and get some work done (read: SNES roms, and occationally working on powerpoint presentations for some of the classes I teach). But alas! my mail and calendar are on my computer at home, and not on my USB...oh what to do? Well, I have Mozilla Evolution w/ the Lightening Extension installed on both my USB thumbdrive and on my Ubuntu Desktop. The easy thing would have been just to run a copy between the files on the desktop to the files on the USB drive...but as anyone know's me, I like to make life a tad bit more difficult. So I read up on linux's udev and writing rules for udev, afew hours of boring, dry, material and Alas! I got it!
So, when I get up for work, and don't have time to read my mail, or double check the calendar/Todo list, I just plug my USB thumbdrive into the computer and the computer automatically runs a script based on the unique serial # of the thumbdrive (Thus when I plug my other thumbdrive in, it's not attempting to write to it) and badda bing badda boom I have all my mail and calendar on my thumbdrive, all ready for work!
Next step is to learn how to use the Unison File Sync software instead of the regular 'cp' in case I start adding things to my calendar at work. And possibly syncing my RSS feeds, eventually auto backup of my thumbdrive once a week. I have heard alot of people saying that Google's calendar/address/mail service is 100% better than relying on what I was trying to do..but I do live in Wyoming, and it can be difficult to find an internet connection (my better-half still dials up to get online!), but with my little doodad I can just plug it in, and rock and roll.
The reason for my USB madness is that I am working at 6p-6a shift with nothing to do inbetween the times, so I tend to just whip out my USB drive and get some work done (read: SNES roms, and occationally working on powerpoint presentations for some of the classes I teach). But alas! my mail and calendar are on my computer at home, and not on my USB...oh what to do? Well, I have Mozilla Evolution w/ the Lightening Extension installed on both my USB thumbdrive and on my Ubuntu Desktop. The easy thing would have been just to run a copy between the files on the desktop to the files on the USB drive...but as anyone know's me, I like to make life a tad bit more difficult. So I read up on linux's udev and writing rules for udev, afew hours of boring, dry, material and Alas! I got it!
So, when I get up for work, and don't have time to read my mail, or double check the calendar/Todo list, I just plug my USB thumbdrive into the computer and the computer automatically runs a script based on the unique serial # of the thumbdrive (Thus when I plug my other thumbdrive in, it's not attempting to write to it) and badda bing badda boom I have all my mail and calendar on my thumbdrive, all ready for work!
Next step is to learn how to use the Unison File Sync software instead of the regular 'cp' in case I start adding things to my calendar at work. And possibly syncing my RSS feeds, eventually auto backup of my thumbdrive once a week. I have heard alot of people saying that Google's calendar/address/mail service is 100% better than relying on what I was trying to do..but I do live in Wyoming, and it can be difficult to find an internet connection (my better-half still dials up to get online!), but with my little doodad I can just plug it in, and rock and roll.