Matt's Digital Discourses

Build a More Powerful Home NAS Server for Less

Matt Bailey — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 22:13:43 +0000

The consumer NAS (Network Attached Storage) market is flooded with high margin devices that deliver mediocre performance. Typical diskless NAS devices with 4 to 6 drive slots cost $300 to $1100, but then you must purchase the drives to complete your NAS system. There are also NAS solutions on the market complete with drives, but again, they cost about the same and require you to purchase proprietary replacement drives and parts, which increase your cost over time.

While I believe most consumers don’t mind paying a small premium for a pre-assembled and easy to use out of box experience, I also believe there are many who would like to save some money and gain performance, too. Moreover, many of the less expensive NAS devices aren’t network storage – they’re USB, firewire or eSATA devices. I’ve been building custom computers for many years, and building a custom NAS is just as simple. If you’ve never built a custom computer and would like to learn, you can watch this video and follow these easy instructions.

You can build your own 8TB NAS server about $400-$600 cheaper than the proprietary 8TB equivalent and gain lots of performance. Here is a list of hardware I recommend:

TOTAL = $843.92

Leading complete 8TB NAS = $1200.00

Here’s what this system will look like:

Some key features you’re looking for when building a NAS are:

SATA RAID capability (not needed with FreeNAS 8.0 with ZFS filesystem).
At least 1 (one) gigabit Ethernet port (1000 Mbps; preferably 2 for load balancing).
Quiet and efficient power supply and CPU fan.
Hot swappable SATA hard drive backplane.

Once you have built your more powerful and cost effective NAS system, you’ll then need an operating system to take advantage of and manage your NAS. I recommend either Openfiler or FreeNAS. Both are free NAS operating systems that give you control over Windows (CIFS), Linux (NFS) and Mac (AFP) file systems through very nicely designed web based management interfaces. If strictly a home media server is more useful to you, then you have a very nice solution with Ubuntu and Boxee, however Openfiler and FreeNAS will allow you to do double duty as a NAS and Media Center PC.

With the more powerful processor and RAM available in your custom NAS, you should see about double the megabytes per second over an average commercial NAS device. If you’re using a router or switch, then make certain they’re gigabit Ethernet as well or you’ll decrease your power to their lower standards.

If you’ve been searching for a solution of this nature, I hope you find this helpful. If you’ve never thought about it but recognize the benefits of such a device in your home, then I’m ecstatic to be able to share my extreme geekyness with you! Please feel free to comment if you have any suggestions that would make this an even better solution.

Teasing and the Christian: Just Joking?

Matt Bailey — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 20:35:36 +0000

English author Owen Feltham once wrote, “Laughter should dimple the cheek, not furrow the brow. A jest should be such that all shall be able to join in the laugh which it occasions; but if it bears hard upon one of the company, like the crack of a string, it makes a stop in the music.”

When is teasing fun, friendly and bonding between people? When it’s reciprocal between peers, mutually agreeable as to the tone and content of the teasing and when there’s no direct or indirect hostile undertone. Familiar friends or couples can set up these playful and positive interactions without confusion or harm, and as they become structured and ritualized, retorts are expected and the laughing is lighthearted. Spontaneous teasing, however, is more dangerous to relationships than scripted comments because irritation toward the other person creeps into the teasing turning affection into personal put-downs and belittling becomes masked as humor. The laughing is now at one person’s expense. You may have been at a party where one person seems intent on teasing another. Though it’s supposedly lighthearted teasing for entertainment purposes, the words have hidden venom, and the victim is compromised and made to look stupid in front of everyone. Teasing, jabbing humor and sarcasm are all too often insults poorly disguised as humor.

As Christians, we must be very careful how we use this form of joking so as not to tear people down and be discouraging. The Apostle Paul said, “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear (Eph. 4:29). The word for “corrupting” literally means, “worn out and unfit for use; worthless.” This is contrasted with “good” suggesting something that is “profitless, of no good to anyone.” Instead of tearing people down and corrupting the unity that Christians ought to have with one another, the Ephesians were encouraged to speak words that were uplifting and edifying according to the need of the moment. Each Christian is to do his part in edifying or building up the church (cf. Eph. 4:12, 16). The only way to build one another up is to always speak words that encourage others.

So, before speaking to or about a person, let’s T.H.I.N.K.

Is it True?
Is it Helpful?
Is it Inspiring?
Is it Necessary?
Is it Kind?

By following this simple guideline, we will create a much more encouraging fellowship with one another.

Fort Worth Transportation Authority Advertising for Atheists

Matt Bailey — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 04:26:58 +0000

The Fort Worth Transportation Authority is going to be advertising for the Dallas-Fort Worth Coalition of Reason, an organization trying to raise awareness that many people don’t believe in God. In fact, their billboard advertisements will be displayed on four T buses and will overly an image of the American Flag saying, “Millions of Americans are Good Without God”. The problem with this, as I see it, is threefold.

First, it’s an obvious attack against Christianity during a major religious holiday season. The coordinator behind the billboards, Terry McDonald said, “There’s so much religion in this area, and it’s so visible, we’re just trying to let people who are not believers know that there’s a lot of people like them.” The fact is that about 7% of the American population is atheist, and a small minority of them have chosen an insensitive time to release their ad campaign. If they were simply trying to make atheists aware of their existence, and not trying to agitate Christians, then why choose such a religiously specific season for their campaign?

Second, the implication within their organization’s name is that theists aren’t as reasonable as atheists. The atheist argues that Christians rely upon blind faith and have no proof for what they believe, and I believe that accusation is advanced by their organization’s name. It’s my conviction that atheists actually have to muster a lot more faith than the Christian. The less evidence you have for your position the more faith you need to believe it (and vice versa). In fact, the empirical, forensic and philosophical evidence strongly supports conclusions consistent with Christianity and inconsistent with atheism. I believe that Christianity is more reasonable; allow me to briefly explain:

Scientific evidence confirms that the universe exploded into being out of nothing. There are only two options in which to believe – either someone created something from nothing (the Christian view), or no one created something from nothing (the atheistic view). Which is more reasonable? The Christian view. Which requires more faith? The atheistic view.
The simplest life form, the cell, contains the equivalent information of 1,000 encyclopedias. Christians believe that only an intelligent being can create such a life form. Atheists believe that non-intelligent natural forces can do it. Christians have ample evidence to support their conclusion, but since atheists don’t have any such evidence, their conclusion requires a lot more faith.

You see, every world view - including atheism – requires some degree of faith, and I’m convinced that Christians aren’t as unreasonable as atheists accuse them of being.

Third, there are many local groups of atheists within the Dallas-Fort Worth Coalition of Reason that actively campaign against separation of church and state. The Fort Worth Transportation Authority is a federally funded, public transportation project. In short, it’s subsidized with our tax dollars. This seems to be a major conflict of interest for those advocating separation of church and state to use a taxpayer funded project in which to tout their faith.

Here are the two local newspaper articles for your convenience:

http://blogs.star-telegram.com/honkin_mad/2010/11/godless-ads-to-run-on-fort-worth-buses.html

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/DN-billboards_01met.ART0.State.Edition1.4a59352.html

How to Choose a Safe Reusable Water Bottle

Matt Bailey — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 03:22:09 +0000

You’ve seen the news reports and have read the articles – plastic water bottles can be harmful to your health. Obviously, the best solution is to drink water at home from a freshly washed glass, but there are times we would like to carry water along with us while we’re away from home. The question becomes, “How do I know which types of water bottles to avoid?” From the cheap throw away bottles we often purchase by the case to aluminum or stainless steel bottles, making the right choice is important to your health.

The absolute worst type of water bottles are the polyethylene terephthalate (PET or PETE) bottles most commonly found in grocery stores and are used for water, soda, juice, mouthwash, peanut butter, salad dressing, detergent and cleaner containers, etc. This type of plastic has been proven to leach Di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) – or butyl benzyl phthalate (BPA) depending on which is used as the plasticizer or softener – with repeated use. DEHP and BPA are endocrine disruptors mimicking the female hormone estrogen; have been strongly linked to asthma and allergic symptoms in children; may cause certain types of cancer; linked to negative effects on the liver, kidney, spleen, bone formation and body weight. In Europe, DEHP and BBzP and other dangerous phthalates have been banned from use in plastic toys for children under three since 1999. Not so elsewhere, including Canada and the United States.

The second most common plastic bottles are most often used by exercise buffs and campers and are made from thermoplastic polymers called polycarbonate. Water bottles aren’t the only products made out of polycarbonates – CD’s, cell phones, iPods, sunglasses and computer cases are also made of this material. You may be more familiar with the trademark name of polycarbonate, Lexan. Thankfully, though, we don’t normally chew on our cell phones or computers because polycarbonates have also been proven to leach butyl benzyl phthalate (BPA). Even scarier is the fact that most baby bottles are made of polycarbonate that leaches BPA at a higher rate than normal every time milk is heated in them.

A much better option would be an aluminum bottle. However, many aluminum bottles have liners containing BPA, and aluminum has been linked to certain health risks. While aluminum has never been proven to cause these health risks, it’s still questionable, so the BPA liners are a greater concern for now.

So, in my opinion, stainless steel water bottles are the ideal way to drink your daily 64 ounces of water on the go because they seem to exhibit the least amount of health concerns out of all the choices. While I don’t advocate green living 100%, cutting down on waste seems to be a good idea, as well. GoodLife is a large manufacturer of this kind of water bottle, and you can get them from GoodLife Bottles. They’re made entirely of stainless steel, which doesn’t leach, is resistant to cracking and keeps your water relatively cold. An added benefit is that they can be used over and over again without degradation and do not need to be recycled. And, since more than 40% of bottled water is simply filtered tap water, you can save more than just the health risk – you can save your wallet by not wasting money on something you already have at home.

Easily Secure Your Internet For FREE

Matt Bailey — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 01:58:12 +0000

If you’re like me, you’re tired of the viruses, malware, spyware, adware and phishing attacks, but these aren’t the only nuisances plaguing our computers – you also have to protect your family against pornography. Our computers are highly susceptible to many attacks, and the common software packages sold to filter this stuff are simply not doing their jobs. When we consider protecting our children and teens, however, we encounter a problem – our children’s gaming devices that connect through our home routers such as the iPod Touch, Sony PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, Sony PSP Handheld and the Nintendo DSi Handheld are all capable of viewing pornography! So, any filter we may install on our computers doesn’t filter these devices. This is why I highly recommend a free product called OpenDNS.

OpenDNS is not software – it’s a filtered Domain Name Server, or DNS server, through which your router accesses the Internet. When you type an Internet address into your web browser’s address bar, such as matthewlbailey.com, the computer doesn’t know where matthewlbailey.com points and will therefore ask the DNS server. The DNS server’s job is to translate the human-readable web address into a computer-readable web address like 66.96.147.106, which is called an Internet protocol (IP) address. Once your computer knows the IP address of a web domain name, it opens the website in your web browser.

So, in order to filter all the above attacks from all the devices within your home that access the Internet, you must set your router to use the OpenDNS servers. Since most of us have dynamic IP addresses, meaning that our IP addresses change from time to time, you’ll have to download a small program that monitors your IP address and keeps OpenDNS updated. The installation of this program is only necessary on one computer. Please keep in mind that your more computer savvy teens may be able to access your router’s settings and/or log into your OpenDNS account and undo any filtering you may have set up. Make sure that you come up with a new username and password for logging into your router and OpenDNS account that your teens won’t be able to figure out. You’ll also want to make sure that your web browser isn’t set to remember the username and password for your router settings page or OpenDNS account.

There are paid versions of OpenDNS, but OpenDNS Basic is free and should be more than sufficient for the home user. Keep in mind that, while OpenDNS is an enterprise class web filter, it doesn’t provide the capability of setting time limits for your children and/or teens. Though every solution has its pros and cons, I recommend OpenDNS to everyone who wants to protect their family from inappropriate material on the Internet as well as guard against computer viruses, malware and phishing attacks. While it’s not a complete, full-featured solution, it wasn’t mean’t to be! It’s a great method of filtering both computers and non-PC devices simply and cheaply.

So, how are you protecting your family?

Romans 14: Acceptance Without Compromise

Matt Bailey — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 04:53:57 +0000

People in the church have always had disagreements, and they always will because Christians are thrust together from all races, cultures and backgrounds. This diverse nature of The Church often causes conflict between brethren and creates disunity. For that reason, the Apostle Paul calls for acceptance of one another in spite of strong differences among brethren.

Some of these disagreements are doctrinal in nature, which prompted Jude to write, “Contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3). However, most disagreements among congregations are over matters of opinion. In Romans 14, Paul explains how Christians are to act when they disagree over issues that are not matters of doctrine. As brothers and sisters in Christ, we can learn to accept one another’s differences of opinion without compromising sound doctrine. How, then, do we maintain unity even though we may disagree?

First, we must establish whether an issue is a matter of doctrine or opinion. Even if the issue is a matter of doctrine, we can use some general principles from Romans 14 that will help us when we disagree with our brethren. Christians must always do that which builds up others – not the opposite (Rom. 14:19).

Second, we must be patient and compassionate toward the spiritually weak because they may not have reached a level of knowledge that a more spiritually mature person may have reached. Therefore, the spiritually strong need to walk in love with the spiritually weak (Rom. 14:15). If we truly love our brethren, then we will respect them and avoid being judgmental of them (Rom. 14:10). We ought to interpret all they say and do in the best possible way believing that they are just as honest and sincere as we are regarding the Lord’s Will.

Third, we must always care, and have concern, for our brethren (Rom. 14:20-21) because we are not isolated individuals – what we do affects our brethren (Rom.14:7). To continue pursuing the things that that make for peace and mutual up-building, let us never be responsible for promoting division within the church or even cause the Lord’s church to be spoken of as evil (Rom. 14:16).

It is imperative that we strive to accept even our brethren who disagree with us. While we may need to “watch out” for and “avoid” those who are divisive and lead others away from sound doctrine (Rom. 16:17), we should be very reluctant to draw lines of fellowship between our brethren. If we are forced to “avoid” a brother because of some doctrinal error he has embraced, then it should only be done with great sorrow and tears.

Agree to Disagree?

Matt Bailey — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 01:00:50 +0000

The past year has brought about many political debates and discussions. This is an important part of understanding the issues at hand and taking care of them, but political discussions are often criticized for lacking substance and failing to actually engage the issues.

Many years ago, Jacques Barzun, an American historian of ideas and culture, introduced the term “thought cliché” – a widely used phrase that sounds insightful while becoming a substitute for clear thinking. Barzun warned that discussions based upon thought clichés dim and weaken our ability to understand complex matters. Today, in our confused and cynical post-modern culture, we’re in desperate need of clear thinking. We often use phrases like “Everyone is entitled to their own opinion” and “We’ll just have to agree to disagree.” These thought clichés don’t permit analysis or discussion, instead, they terminate thought and discussion. Thought clichés are by nature highly reductive, definitive sounding, easily memorized and easily expressed. They’re also completely empty because there’s no relationship between the words, their meanings or the topic at hand.

The same can be said of many religious discussions. If clarity and substance are so important for political discussions, then how much more so for discussions of God’s Word? So much religious confusion and cynicism has brought about much religious deception. So, there’s also a great need today for clear, Biblical thinking to help restore the false views of God, His Church and Christianity. If we’re not careful, our religious discussions may end like many political discussions – “agreeing to disagree”. However, within Scripture, do we ever see the prophets, apostles or even Jesus parroting thought clichés at unbelievers or entitling everyone to “their own opinion”? Absolutely not! They understood God and the Scriptures and were well equipped to share and defend The Truth. As Christians, we should operate with the same excellence and avoid thought clichés that terminate thought and discussion.

When there are facts and truth on the subject at hand, let them be the guide in your discussion – not opinion. Let us never be satisfied with disagreement, but look deeper into God’s Word for the truths that are so essential to our salvation and learn to be obedient to God regardless of our opinions.

What is Corrupting Talk?

Matt Bailey — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 22:20:55 +0000

We live in a very desensitized society. From television to shopping we’re inundated with sensual and vulgar images and speech. These are obvious things from which Christians ought to abstain. However, there are many subtle areas of desensitization in American culture of which we’re often unaware. One of these subtleties are euphemisms.

As Christians, are we really concerned about our speech and influence upon others? If we’re not, then we should be concerned because the Bible has much to say concerning our speech as being that which builds up others through edification and benefits others instead of corrupting them. In speaking to new Christians who were young in the faith, the Apostle Paul made this truth very clear when he said, “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear” (Eph. 4:29). In this context, Paul is explaining the new, transformed life these Gentile Christians were now to live, and part of this new life requires a transformation of speech from corrupt to graceful. This is the perfect example to guide our speech and communication patterns.

There are three ways we can use our speech in a corrupt way. First, we can curse someone. This is condemned by Jesus Himself in Matthew 5:22, “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire”. To curse another person or even curse God’s creation is sinning against God. Second, we can use God’s name in vain. In Exodus 20:7, God told the Israelites, “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain”. This is a timeless principle. God deserves our complete respect, and when we refer to Him in a vain or empty way we aren’t giving Him the respect he deserves. Third, we can make something God has made holy into something common. The sexual relationship is a perfect example we see used often in our society. God has set apart sexual intercourse to be only between husband and wife. Speaking lightly of this sacred relationship is to belittle it. Paul said, “But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving” (Eph. 5:3-4). All “curse words” fall into one of these three categories.

So, at this point, you may be thinking to yourself, “I don’t curse, use God’s name in vain or make common what God has made holy”. However, according to Webster’s Dictionary, a euphemism is “the substitution of an agreeable or inoffensive expression for one that may offend or suggest something unpleasant”. This means that, even when I use a word that doesn’t sound as offensive as the original, the meaning remains the same. Euphemistic cursing is so common that we’re desensitized to it to the degree that we use these words without realizing what we’re really saying. We curse when we say “heck”, “darn” or “dang” because these words mean “hell” or “damn”. We use God’s name in vain when we say “gosh”, “golly” or “Gee” because they mean “God” or “Jesus”. We may even curse and use God’s name in vain all at once by saying “dog gone it”, which means “God damn it”. Then there are words that fall into the general corrupting talk category such as “shoot”, “crap”, “a-hole”, “chode”, “B.S.”, and they just keep getting worse. These euphemisms are so filthy, you may look up the definition for them yourself as it’s too uncomfortable to even list them.

We can very easily see that these and many other euphemisms fit into the category of “corrupting talk” as described by the Apostle Paul. As Christians, we desperately need to remember that we were sanctified and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God (1 Cor. 6:11). May no corrupting talk cross the lips of any Christian.

What About Your Future?

Matt Bailey — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 00:14:21 +0000

I thought you might enjoy listening to these people who tried to predict what the future held:

“That rainbow song’s no good. Take it out.” – MGM said after 1st showing of The Wizard of Oz.

1897 – “Radio has no future.” “X-rays are clearly a hoax”. “The aeroplane is scientifically impossible.”

Elvis Presley’s concert manager fired him in 1954 – “You ought to go back to driving a truck.”

A film company’s verdict on Fred Astaire’s 1928 screen test – “Can’t act. Can’t sing. Slightly bald. Can dance a little.”

U.S. Admiral William Leahy in 1945 – “The atom bomb will never go off – and I speak as an expert in explosives.”

Radio Times editor Rex Lambert, 1936 – “Television won’t matter in your lifetime or mine.”

Director of the US Patent Office, 1899 – “Everything that can be invented has been invented.”

Predicting the future is a difficult thing to do. And yet we often wonder:

What does the future hold for me?
What does God have in mind for my life?
Who will I marry?
What will happen to me when I grow old?
How can I make it through the pain or sorrow I’m experiencing right now?
Will things ever get better?

“Hear my cry, O God; Give heed to my prayer. From the end of the earth I call to You when my heart is faint; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For You have been a refuge for me, A tower of strength against the enemy” (Psalm 61:1-3).

I like this quote (author unknown): “Christians don’t know what the future holds, but we know who holds the future.” May you take comfort in that knowledge today.

Watch What You Watch

Matt Bailey — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 23:44:20 +0000

King David made an incredible resolution when he said, “I will set nothing wicked before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me” (Psalm 101:3). However, his decision to stay on the right track as king of God’s people is applicable to more than just kings. All Christians should look to this great Psalm to learn how we may also keep ourselves pure in God’s sight.

David understands that what he watches with his eyes will affect his thinking, and he determines not to allow himself to be involved in that which God views as “wicked”. There are always things in our lives that have no true, genuine value to our spirituality. Therefore, we learn from David to avoid these things completely. We do not have to allow ourselves to be in situations that place evil before us. If we do not choose carefully what we watch, we may be drawn to things that are not pleasing to God. Many sitcoms, movies, books, magazines, etc. today are simply not worthy of the attention of any Christian. If we want to be spiritual, then we will make the decision to “abstain from all appearance of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:22) and “put to death” all worldly attributes in our lives (Colossians 3:5-10).

It is the challenge of every Christian to love only that which God loves and to hate everything God hates (cf. Romans 12:9). In this beautiful Psalm, David also determines to have nothing to do with the values and lifestyles of those who are not godly. He simply states that he will not allow them to influence his life or “cling” to him and his thinking.

What specific changes will you need to make in your life to make King David’s resolution your own? Challenge yourself every day to focus your mind and thoughts on spiritual things (cf. Philippians 4:8), and do not allow any wicked thing before your eyes.