Sometimes when you visit the site, it will return you a blank page or give you a null response back, for example:

$ curl –head lesterchan.net
curl: (52) Empty reply from server

I have still yet to figure out the problem yet. But it seems a simple Apache restart does solve the problem. I have about 2GB of RAM on this VPS server and I don’t think it is out of memory because I did check the RAM when this happens and it seems I still have more than 1GB available. Apache processes appears to be running as well. The last thing I installed on this server is XCache 1.3.1, I wonder if it has anything to do with it.

But anyway, I have been using Pingdom for a couple of years and it has a nice iPhone App that alerts you via Push Notification if your server is down. I have it check my site every 5 minutes.

I recently tried out WatchMouse as recommended by colleagues and it seems much better than Pingdom in terms of features and node locations. But it is a little expensive (cheapest is USD$35 per month), considering I don’t earn anything from this site. There is a free account on it though, I just have to put up a small banner on my site (which I did on the right menu). The free account is good enough for me, they check this site once every 20 minutes for the free account.

The feature I like most about WatchMouse is the Public Website Health Status Page and it is available on the free account as well, check out, http://status.lesterchan.net/ (yeap, they even allow you to have CNAME). I have also set up a new Twitter account, @lcstatus which basically adds like a RSS feed for http://status.lesterchan.net/ (announcements section).

A WatchMouse Public Status Page enables your organisation to display information about the availability and performance of your critical services. You can post announcements, annotate current issues, and optionally set up a special host name (CNAME) so people can access the status page using your domain name, e.g. status.yourdomain.com. It is an easy control channel through which you can transparently inform visitors about the status of your sites and web services.

All WatchMouse Public Status Pages are hosted on Amazon’s Cloud infrastructure so they are available even if your site or service is not.

View: http://status.lesterchan.net/

When I first receive the LG Monitor W2486L with the box, the first impression it give me was it was very slim and light. The whole package including the box weights 6.6kg. When I unboxed the package and weight the monitor with its base, it weights only 4.6kg. I think my Dell 2408WFP weights twice of that and look at the size of the box compared to the W2486L’s box.

The attributes of it being slim and light is greatly due to the LED Technology that lights up the screen which gives it an excellent 2,000,000:1 Dynamic Digital Fine Contrast Ratio. Speaking of the screen display, the auto brightness control will automatic adjusting your screen brightness to match your surrounding room’s lightings.

It’s 2ms response time ensure that you can play FPS games with no ghosting effect, tried and tested when I played Left For Dead 2 with it.

The LG Monitor W2486L retails for SGD$498, just 2 years ago, I bought my Dell’s 2408WFP for SGD$900+, literally twice the price!

Box

Monitor Front

Monitor Back

Thin Box

Monitor Side

Features

• 16:9 Aspect Ratio
• Full HD (1920×1080)
• HDMI Connector
• 2ms Response Time
• Photo Effect
• 4:3 In Wide
• LED 2,000,000:1 Dynamic Digital Fine Contrast Ratio
• Slim with Passionate Crystal Design
• Eco with green technology

Read More (313 More Words, 11 More Images)

Got the Logitech Notebook Riser N110 from Challenger VivoCity for SGD$37 for my office use. It is to raise my MacBook Pro so that the screen can be placed beside my future monitor for dual screen purposes. In the mean time, it gives me a good elevated viewing angle.

Box Front

Box Back

Front

Back

Side

With MacBook Pro

Introduction
“The Samsung LD190G wide screen monitors deliver enhanced productivity and expanded entertainment. Designed to fit perfectly with Laptop PCs, they offer USB access to multi-tasking on the move.”

Samsung sent me the Samsung Lapfit LD190G for review. Thank you Daniel =D

Box

There are currently 2 models/sizes available, the LD190G (RRP: SGD$239) and LD220G (RRP: SGD$339). The sizes are 18.5″ wide and 21.5″ wide respectively. For the LD220G model you are able to connect to multiple Lapfit monitors or any USB devices through the 2 extra USB ports at the back. You can connect up to a maximum of 4 monitors at a same time with a serial USB connection and 6 monitors with a parallel USB connection.

In the user manual provided, they recommend using USB cable to connect to the monitor if you need more than 1 display or multiple monitors in Plug & Play mode. On the other hand, they recommend using the VGA (D-SUB) cable if you are using a single display, playing 3D games or watching HD videos.

LD190G Specifications

• Screen Size: 18.5″ Wide
• Resolution: 1,360 x 768
• Brightness: 250cd/m²
• Contrast Ratio: DC 20,000:1 (1,000:1) (Typ.)
• Response time: 5ms
• Viewing Angle (Horizontal/Vertical): 170˚/160˚ (CR>10)
• Signal Input Connector: D-Sub / USB
• Sync. Signal: Separate H/V, Composite, SOG
• Video Signal: Analog RGB, USB
• Power Power Consumption: 20.0W (TYP); 22.0W (MAX)
• Stand By Power (DPMS): ≤ 1W
• Features Plug & Play: DDC 2B
• Multimedia Speakers: No
• Optional Accessories: No
• Special Features: Magic Clear (Glare) Easy Connection (UbiSync) Image Size Touch Button Windows Vista Basic
• Dimension Product Dimension (With stand, WxHxD): 450.2 x 295.8 x 72.0mm
• Weight Product Weight: 3.6kg
• Stand Function: Tilt

Read More (1,183 More Words, 15 More Images)

Just thought of blogging this last night before I went to bed.

Did you all actually count how many monitors, televisions and computers are there in your household?

Here is a breakdown of mine for a family of 4 living in a HDB 4-room flat.

My Room:

• 1x LCD Television
• 2x LCD Computer Monitors
• 1x Desktop Computer
• 1x Laptop Computer

Brother’s Room:

• 1x CRT Television
• 2x LCD Computer Monitors
• 1x Desktop Computer
• 1x Laptop Computer

Parents’ Room:

• N/A

Living Room:

• 1x LCD Television
• 1x LCD Computer Monitor
• 1x CRT Computer Monitor
• 2x Desktop Computers
• 1x Laptop Computer

Kitchen:

• 1x CRT Television

Total:

• 2x LCD Televisions
• 2x CRT Televisions
• 5x LCD Computer Monitors
• 1x CRT Computer Monitor
• 4x Desktop Computers
• 3x Laptop Computers