WordPress write functions resulting to a 404 (page not found) error

Mar 16

ErinFLOSS, Technology , 4 Comments

This week I encountered an error when writing the wget post since saving or publishing it causes a page not found (or 404 in techie parlance) error. I found this thread in the wordpress support forum and tested the “limit” scenarios which did not fully apply in my case. Posting a short test message works but somehow even one paragraph from my wget post causes the 404 message.

Later on the support thread I read a mod_security issue that causes in the post with the word curl in the post. That hit me, curl is a download utility similar to wget!!! Just like in the post, I just enclosed wget in span element and voila, problem solved!

+1 karma for internet support groups!

Using wget

Mar 13

ErinFLOSS, Technology 1 Comment

I use wget from time to time (via cygwin when I am in the office) but the most I have used on its parameter is the -c option. This post is a reminder of the options and tips that I could use and have used for the wget utility. Why not just consult the manpage? It is because it is easier to put it here for further reference. There are a thousand wget tutorial sites out there, so why waste space here? The answer to that is because I can. 😛

Usage: wget [options] URL

  • Instead of specifying the proxy using the environment variable http_proxy, consider putting it in /etc/wgetrc instead. Not advisable if you dont have a consistent single source of connection (e.g. prepaid cards,etc)
  • -c – continue the file being downloaded. nifty if you are downloading a big file although it requires the download site to support resuming.
  • –user-agent=”UA_STRING” – based on a tip from the PLUG list. Spoofs the user agent to look like the download request is from a browser. This is good for sites that disallow dowloads from download managers. Example would be -user-agent="Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 5.0b1; Windows NT 5.1*) "
  • –limit-rate=[number] – limits the download rate so wget does not hog all the bandwidth. Appending a k at the end of the number signifies kilobytes per second.

More updates as I use more options. 🙂

Commuting peeves

Mar 09

ErinGarbage No Comments

Just listing down my pet peeves when it comes to public commuting in the Philippines:

  • Jeepney amputees – people who for the life of me cannot extend their help in getting the fares to reach the driver. Can’t they see that the people who are handing the fares are already reaching out beyond the normal physical limitations of their limbs? Are these people scared of the germs that are going to be transferred via the paper notes and coins? These people should not be riding the jeepneys, they should be taking taxicabs.
  • “Healthy people” – I am not against people with a “healthy” body since I am almost past the medium built. However I am against “healthy” people that do not accept the fact that they have body builds that are enough for two persons. It really gets on my nerves when they try to squeeze to the space for a single person and fail miserably. I know the commuter fares today are very expensive but lets get a hold on reality, shall we? Occupying spaces good for one and a half people still counts for you paying the fare for two people. The fare is not for each head but for the space that is occupied by your ass.
  • Mucus marauders – these are the people who find it very entertaining to spray their colognes/perfumes inside contained spaces (e.g. confines of FX or van,etc.). Why cant they apply these strong smelling concoctions when they have alighted the vehicle is beyond me. Strong smells elicit a strong reaction to my body, my mucus membranes shift to overdrive which leaves me gasping for breath.
  • Mobile boomboxes – or vehicles that have sound systems that compete with jet engines when it comes to a decibel pissing match. Most of these vehicles are open but even then I can feel the bass make my heart vibrate like it is suffering from an epileptic seizure or something. Usually the bass settings are so loud that I can’t even understand what kind of music being played. And please, trim down on the mixes. Adding bass and drum rolls to any music does not make it sound cool.
  • Sardines conductor – these are the bus conductors that will put the sardine factories to shame. They keep on piling the people up the buses even if the people are standing up. More passengers means more income for them but please we are also paying the same amount as the one who got lucky with a seat. Dont treat passengers like sardines because we appreciate some degree of personal space even when using public transportation.
  • Sidewalk moppers – bus drivers who developed an affinity for the sidewalk. It seems to me that they could not drive unless the side of their bus is no more than two feet away from the sidewalk. They even engage in a long mooching match with certain sidewalks that they ignore the honking of the vehicles behind them.

I know there are more but I need to get back to work… 🙂

ciao!