Chatter Of The Squirrel

Tech: MySQL Users

The SugarCRM I set up at work stopped working. Couldn’t connect to the database.

First suspicion: someone from the website design company made some changes, and messed up my database connection. Those people are always changing system related stuff without informing me, treating our server as their personal playground. I found a copy of Hitman (the movie) on the server once. Hey, only I get to do that, see!

But when I remoted onto the server, my old password was still working. SugarCRM db settings were still correct. But I still went forward with this line of investigation and read up what I needed to know about MySQL User maintenance.

So there’s root@localhost and root@’%’.

They is different things… >.<

The root@’%’ password doesn’t match the localhost. It matches up with another db user, no idea who/what…

So I fixed up my password issue, and also changed the unknown db user password, in case it’s some kind of intrusion. But if it’s an intrusion then I probably have more things to worry about. But more likely the webdesigners. And if changing that password messes up something for them, let them come and ask me what happened and maybe next time they won’t go changing stuff behind my back again.

Movie: The Watchmen

The DVD is out!! (Well, at least the DVDrip is…)

But the Director’s Cut is coming out on the 21st. You can pre-order on Amazon. Get it now! We’re promised the death of Hollis Mason in the director’s cut.

BUYITBUYITBUYITBUYITBUYITBUYITBUYITBUYIT

I never got around to blogging about this amazing movie, which I enjoyed MOST IMMENSELY. (And which I’ll be enjoying again tonight if all downloads go well…) Watched the movie with a girl, and she didn’t fall asleep. The movie was THAT good.

I’ve only ranted about the graphic novel in passing several years ago… And I’ve reread it again since. Alan Moore pushed an entire industry into a whole new level. The graphic layer has multiple layers, and each person reads a different layer with each different reading. I’ve read it more than once, over several years, and there’s still a good chunk of it that I’ve only skimmed over and never read.

It’s a seminal work of fiction that is well remembered and homaged by many. Some ha-ha-funny. Some a I-don’t-know-if-you’re-crazy funny. Some looney-funny.

First of all, I loved the opening credits. It was brilliantly executed and gets you immediately into the feel of the story. I’ve never had a tingle like that since seeing the Shire for the first time on the silverscreen. It’s a tingle more powerful than a first kiss. The credits condensed the backstory beautifully, and the haunting lyrics of Bob Dylan immerses you into the right era to put the rest of story in context. Best. Opening credits. Ever.

The graphic novel was thought to be unfilmable. Definitely true. Not without some big cuts. But I think it turned out alright. The pirate story was omitted, but it was made separately into a cartoon (Tales of the Black Freighter) voiced by King Leonidas. The lovers’ quarrel on Mars was condensed. That was the part in the novel that really made me see Manhattan’s transcendency over time. The space-alien ending was changed from the comic, and I have no complaints about that. I think that was a good move, cos there wasn’t time to build up that conspiracy thread, and surprising viewers with a giant tentacle monster at the end will be a rude shock.

But a lot of has been very well translated over. The grittiness, the tragedy, even the comical impotence.

This is literature. It’s 10x better than the 101 iterations of Pride & Prejudice movies all put together.

Movie: Transformers 2

Major craze over this movie. Went to Cineleisure at noon, and the best seats I could get was 2nd row from the front for the 7pm show. All the good seats are gone till Sunday 10pm.

Still, worth the watch. A little conflicted about the comic relief, yet can’t ignore that there were many LOL moments. Although the leg humping decepticon chihuahua was kinda too much. Same for the S-7 jock straps. I didn’t need to see that. SRSLY!

10 stars for robot-to-robot fighting action~! Without a doubt.

9 stars for the robot-related plot. It’s got ancient robots, Energon, the Matrix of Leadership, and Optimus’ messianic death and resurrection (Optimus isn’t Aslan, but it came pretty close). The story is EPIC!

5 stars only for the meat-bag plots. Much of it was an unwelcomed distraction from the robot action. Still, it’s better than the earlier movie, which was also subtitled: The Adventures of Sam Witwicky and the Autobots.

8 stars for slow-mo running. Have to agree with my friends, Megan looks good.

China Day 13: Home

China Day 12: Back to Beijing and TianJin