Archive for the 'Uncategorized' Category

ERROR 2013 (HY000): Lost connection to MySQL server during query

Published by Steve Daniels on January 21, 2010 in Infrastructure and Uncategorized. 2 Comments Tags: linux, mysql, mysqld.

If you’ve just set up a new mysqld service and your getting the above error when trying to connect over TCP (even when tunnelling in over SSH), don’t fret. The answer lies in /etc/hosts.allow. You need to add in a line similar to this:
mysqld: 192.168.0.123

This foxed me a while ago and I didn’t get round to fixing it as it wasn’t yet mission critical, however it also stopped us dead in our tracks yesterday. Thank fully to Neil in Core Services who had a moment of clarity we’re now back in business.

UPDATE:

Now I know the problem, a little more simpler Google querying led me here a 2004 post on MySQL’s access denied troubleshooting page which mentions that the cause of this is mysqld being compiled with tcp-wrapper support.

New Homepages for 2010

Published by Sam Trafford on December 23, 2009 in Design and Uncategorized. 1 Comment Tags: 125, 25 days, Design, homepage.

We’ve recently used heatmap software to get an impression of the way people use our homepage; disappointingly, the central area, which we use to promote university achievements, major news and events, is often bypassed. This indifference is largely down to everyday visitors using the homepage as an entry point to the GO portal, but we are concerned that major announcements are going unnoticed.

We’ve had some strong homepages over the past year, as yesterday’s blog post attests; but we seemed to have got stuck in a rut by using the same three story template time and time again. It is clear that the single story homepages with the dedicated background images have far more visual impact, and are harder to ignore as a consequence.

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The obvious step was to add some interaction, so that we can navigate between stories, therefore individual stories can fill the whole area making a greater impression. Also by adding a random element we can ensure some freshness for each visit.

newGraduation

Typography

We’ve been using uppercase Futura Bold for our homepage headlines since the 2008 redesign; the justification for this was simple, that I felt it had more impact. Over time I’ve noticed that the blocks of text have a solidity, that consumes too much of the negative space around the letters; as a consequence the headlines are less readable.

futuraBold

So I’ve opted for lowercase Futura Book instead, as it seems to create more breathing space, but still has enough oomph for a headline.

futuraBook

Navigation

The coloured bar on the right will be used to flip between screens, there will be a colour association based on tints in the image itself, or as a direct contrast to the background colour; and this will also be used as the highlight colour in the headlines.

There will be sub navigation across the bottom where applicable: the links will have titles if the sections are different, or can be generic circles if you are flipping through a gallery.

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The new homepage style will make its debut for Edge Hill’s 125th anniversary celebrations, which begin in January 2010.

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Electronic Waste or e-waste

Published by Elaine Beesley on December 20, 2009 in Uncategorized. 1 Comment Tags: 25 days, christmas, environment, recycling.

Day 20 “Electronic waste” can be defined as all secondary computers, electronics, mobile phones, and other items such as television sets and refrigerators, whether sold, donated, or no longer wanted by their original owners.

E-waste is one of the fastest growing types of waste, much of it ends up dumped in Africa and Asia. Take a look at Greenpeace’s electronic waste trail map.

The United Nations tells us some, 20-50 million tonnes of electronic waste – or e-waste – is produced every year. The recycling of electronic waste in developing countries such as India causes serious health and pollution problems because electronic equipment contains some very serious contaminants such as lead, cadmium, beryllium and brominated flame retardants. Exposure to these dangerous chemicals is rewarded with as little as $3 per day, picking through these parts leaves people, many of them children, with constant cuts, scrapes, watering eyes and headaches.

Even in developed countries like our own, recycling and disposal of e-waste involves significant risk to workers and communities and great care must be taken to avoid unsafe exposure in recycling operations and leaching of material such as heavy metals from landfills and incinerator ashes.

We all want to be part of developing technology so we owe it to ourselves and our planet to recycle responsibly. Manga-Fu and PDC are two companies within the UK that can help you recycle that unwanted IT and Electrical equipment. So if you get a new mobile or computer for Christmas, think twice about what you will do with the old one!

Making the best use of the Information Screens

Published by Janeth Howarth on December 17, 2009 in Marketing, Uncategorized and Web Services. 0 Comments Tags: 25 days, Digital Signage.

IT Services Information Screens (Digital Signage) are located in some of the most vibrant areas of Edge Hill’s campus. These screens are able to display announcements as well as play video clips such as the recruiting TV advertisement for the University.

These signs improve communication as well as provide an important and compelling information resource, a real opportunity to capture the imagination of viewers.

What Can Be Displayed?

The screens can be used for advertising events, displaying University information such as: Conferences, Seminars, Awards, Special Events, Faculty recognition, Community information i.e. Rose Theatre, Sporting Edge and much more.

The information on the Digital Screens differs from other communication mediums such as websites, (newspapers), posters, circulars, TV and other types of advertising, as each medium is unique in what a viewer is typically doing when they see messages. Web users interact with the information by clicking, TV viewers are sitting and flicking within the channels, (newspaper) readers are flipping pages, etc.

DS viewers are typically on the move from one place to another or involved on some other activities such as eating, studying or resting. Therefore they will only see your message for a few seconds as they won’t stand in front of the screen waiting to read all the information on them.

The content is most effective when it is clear; fewer words are better combined with a clear headline and/or an eye-catching graphic. The best messages present basic information and ask for action in a succinct and direct manner. The duration (i.e. length) of a message should be in the context of the viewing time and the overall playloop time.

“Content” messages are composed according to a style guide that assures that branding and messaging are suitable and the presentation through fonts and colours are “professional” looking and compelling.

Communications objectives are achieved based on information presented along with a “Call to Action” implicitly or explicitly directing a viewer to do something such as “plan to attend”, “visit the site,” “remember”, “take note”, register, visit, dial, etc…

For more information please contact: webteam@edgehill.ac.uk. Web services will initially request 2 weeks notice where possible and may not be able to accommodate a late submission so please plan accordingly. Events must be advertise at least 4 weeks before they are taking place.

Xmas Digital Art Wallpapers

Published by Janeth Howarth on December 3, 2009 in Blogs, Design, Just for fun and Uncategorized. 2 Comments Tags: 25 days, advent, christmas.

We are very close to the Christmas holidays again and I thought it’s about time to decorate my desktop while counting down the days. I’ve been browsing the web to see what is available and I found some awesome designs from VLADSTUDIO, which offers the usual kind of digital art given away as desktop decorations. Just to keep you and I on the Christmas spirit.

Download instructions are pretty obvious, and there are plenty of resolutions to choose from. The low quality wallpapers are free to download, the quality is good enough, but if you prefer the high quality you will need to register on their site. Unregistered users can download several different resolutions – 800×480, 800×600, 1024×600, 1024×768, 1152×864, 1280×1024, 1600×1200px.

These are for personal use on your desktop only! Do not use for anything else without the authors permission!

Snegovick