One of the many techno-geek religious arguments that comes up a lot is which web server has a faster response time under load, IIS 6 or Apache? I am happy to say somebody actually put this to a test using what is known as the Digg-effect, basically a constant hammering of the server to keep it under load. The results may surprise some of the zealots out there and the test might be buried because of an unpopular fact. Here is the setup from the site:

This is a page to test the effect of high reddit and digg hits on two different servers one running IIS6 and the other Apache. The purpose is to see how each handles high hit loads and is the most reliable.

By using one server to load this page (not being tested) then calling a page from a dedicated IIS6 server into an iframe and a second page from a dedicated Apache server into a second iframe. The entire process is using PHP scripting and mysql data to store the results. To eliminate cache hits on both test servers, the page being returned to the iframe is dynamically created each time from a php script.

After the pages are completely loaded, an ajax call is made to the primary server to record the times back into the sql database for statistics. All three servers are the same physically and in the same rack and network. Bandwidth is not a measurement issue, since only the execution of the php script is being measured.

I have taken the liberty of making a screen shot of the following site just in case it is taken down. The screen show is dated 2007-06-30.

I have included the results below for the same reason.

This is a very interesting study, and I am going to keep following this site for updates.

Tags: Apache, IIS, Performance, Web Servers

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I haven’t even herd of a new version of SQL Server 2008, coming out, but according to this blog the new version has some very interesting and new data types that will come in useful for geography processing.

DATE - ANSI-compliant date data type
TIME - ANSI-compliant time data type with variable precision
DATETIMEOFFSET - timezone aware/preserved datetime
DATETIME2 - like DATETIME, but with variable precision and large date range

GEOMETRY - “flat earth” spatial data type
GEOGRAPHY - “round earth” spatial data type
HIERARCHYID - represents hierarchies using path enumeration model

The first four datatypes are regular SQL datatypes but the last three datatypes are exposed as .NET system UDTs.

Tags: .Net, Microsoft, SQL Server

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Since my last article I have updated the OS on my cell phone to AKU 3 for Windows Mobile 5.0. This has been a huge productivity increase, since there is no longer a need to have a modem driver, and you can browse the internet and take calls on your cell phone at the same time.

Requirements:

1. A Windows Mobile 5.0 or 6.0 device.
2. Active Sync 4.2 or greater for Windows XP or Windows Mobile Device Center for Windows Vista.

USB Internet Sharing:

1. Open the Internet Sharing application under Programs.
2. In the PC Connection drop down select USB.
3. In the Network Connection drop down select the network connection for your cell phone provider. (i.e. Verizon Wireless)
4. Press Connect in the bottom left.
5. Plug your device in to your computer using a USB cable.
6. You will then see your Status at the top change to Connected.

Bluetooth Internet Sharing:

I am going to assume that you already have your Bluetooth device paired to your computer. If you don’t know how to do this please check the manual for your specific phone.

1. Open the Internet Sharing application under Programs.
2. In the PC Connection drop down select Bluetooth PAN.
3. In the Network Connection drop down select the network connection for your cell phone provider. (i.e. Verizon Wireless)
4. Press Connect in the bottom left.
5. Plug your device in to your computer using a USB cable.
6. Setup a PAN (Personal Area Network) on your computer, again please search the internet or look through your manual on how to do this, because it varies from cell phone to cell phone and Windows XP and Windows Vista.
7. You will then see your Status at the top change to Connected.

This is a great new feature that the Windows Mobile Team has included in the Windows Mobile OS. Not only can you now use your phone while you are browsing the web, but you don’t have to go through the hassle of trying to find a modem driver and then setting up a dial up connection and typing #777 and on and on and … you get the idea. I hope you find this useful, and as always please leave a comment telling me if this works or doesn’t for you.

Tags: Active Sync, Microsoft, Phone, Verizon, Windows Mobile, Windows Mobile Device Center, Windows Vista, Windows XP

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David Cheong, a fellow software developer, has some very good tips for how to wake up early on his blog. I personally use half of them to get my self out of bed in the morning. The most important one that I use is:

I’ve found this to be the single most important element in being an early riser. Days in which I did not crystallise the reasons for getting up were more likely to result in sleep ins. Now, I make it clear the night before what it is I want to wake up early for. Initially, I found writing things down to be helpful, but this isn’t always necessary, as long as it is clear what the reasons are.

Basically you have to enjoy what you are doing in life, and once you do that it makes waking up so much easier. Even after a long night of coding where you worked on a mind-boggling problem that kept you up till 1:00 AM. It is a very good read even if you are not a software developer.

Tags: Performance

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