Soooo...

[altivo]

At least it wasn't another 1000+ day. Though we did have a visit from the guy who is perpetually angry because we won't lend him anything (because he owes $90 in fines that he hasn't paid on the other stuff he borrowed and didn't return until it was over a year past due.)

New firewall unit arrived today, which means I have to get all the rules and coding transferred over from the old one and retire it. This ought to be a simple task, but it never is. The manufacturer jolly well could make it a simple task, but they never do. Instead they advise you that it's a good time to "review your security policy" and make sure that everything is still appropriate. Grrr.

Too long a day. Need to sleep...

Comments

[soanos.livejournal.com]

Heh... The angry customes rounds like he probably has got a shed full of lawnmowers and tools he has "forgotten" to return from his neigbours. :P

Let's hope the firewall will sort the problems out efficiently and is easy to configure ^^

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Heh. To get a fine up to $90, the guy had to have about 18 books out for a year past the due date. I think the only reason he returned the books is that we turned him over to a collection agency with a bill for several hundred dollars (replacement cost of the books.) By returning the books, he ended up with just the overdue fine, which tops out at $5 for each item as long it actually was returned.

As for the firewall, well, I hate the things. I'd much rather use a machine with Linux and iptables and just roll my own. But convention demands that I go along with the expectations of the rest of the world, so it comes back to a choice between Cisco and Watchguard. I don't like either of them. Cisco uses an obtuse and confounding "language" all its own, and Watchguard insists on making you use a window full of stupid graphical thingamabobs with little pop-up menus. Neither gives you a clear, easy to read hierarchy of the rules the way iptables does, so debugging a problem can be extremely nasty. We've had Watchguard all along, so I stuck with it.

[soanos.livejournal.com]

Never used either. o.O

I still hope people come to their senses and go for the simpler solution, ie. linux with IP tables. :)

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Not likely. See, Linux is free. Nothing that is free can be worth anything, right? Instead you have to pay $2000 for a special box painted red with little flashing lights on the front. And guess what's inside it? Well, in the case of Watchguard and several other dedicated firewall vendors, it's Linux.

Cisco has their own operating system software, hence the arcane control language.

[soanos.livejournal.com]

I see... So instead of making a linux system cheaply they want to but an expensive box with linux. Righto. :P

[flamekist.livejournal.com]

I have a co-worker like that. He loves to "borrow" things from the nearest desk he happens to be standing near, then when I need it I need to search for it. Unfortunately, he's this genius-level architect who's been with the company for decades and management thinks he walks on water so I'm not even allowed to think bad thoughts about him.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

*snicker*
I've had that problem at work for a long time with silly desktop tools like stapler, scissors, and pens. I really don't mind if they're borrowed, but is it so hard to put them back? My fix now is to keep my desktop so messy that people are afraid to disturb it for fear something will crawl out of it and bite them.

We have a workstation out in the middle of the staff area that is shared by everyone for the purpose of checking books in and out, processing interlibrary loans, etc. (The software limits the number of active sessions, so it isn't practical to keep it running on every machine just to be used occasionally.) Every time I go to use that, there's not a pen to be found on the desk. So I go and get two or three from the supply drawer, but when I come back a couple of hours later they are all gone again.

[flamekist.livejournal.com]

I'm waaaay too much of a neat-freak to allow my desk to get that messy! And staplers, scissors, and pens are the things that Skip takes. I've learned to simply put them into the filing cabinet at the end of my workday and lock it all up. I really wouldn't care that he used them if he could manage to at least toss it back anywhere into my cubicle.

Skip's office has grown to include two unoccupied cubicles, the entire architectural common area, and one conference room. Every few months the Facilities people will tell him to clear out the conference room because of a scheduled meeting taking place the next day. Skip manages to look genuinely confused as to why this needs to happen, as if he was just told to park in a different parking space for no reason. He honestly doesn't understand that there's a problem.

[soanos.livejournal.com]

I am very untidy myself. I feel ashamed by it but I just don't know what I can do about it. It is just draining my energy all the time.

[soanos.livejournal.com]

At least he is not accusing you of "stealing" your stuff back. :]

[cabcat.livejournal.com]

I'd take great pleasure in refusing him service due to those fines XD