Liferay Portal Development Configuration

In an effort to do bug fixes and figure out certain things going wrong without our liferay install, I decided to set up liferay in such a way where I could place breakpoints and change code on the fly. This allows me to create patches in the form of updated class files and replace the class files in the final liferay release(s) to fix bugs unofficialy.

In order to set up the debugging environment the following steps should be taken.

Step 1: Install a Liferay Bundle. I would recommend installing the same version of Liferay that you are acutally using in your production environment. In my case, this is liferay version 6.1, Tomcat Bundle. The latest bundles can be downloaded here.

Step 2: download the latest Liferay IDE. This is an instance of the Eclipse IDE WTP bundled with certain plugins to give it special Liferay functionality, such as being able to start a Liferay Server instance. You may download the latest version of the Liferay IDE here.

Step 3: Install the latest SVN plugin for Eclipse. The easiest way to do this is to select (in the Liferay IDE) "help" -> "Install New Software..." -> and then select "Indigo - http://download.eclipse.org/releases/indigo" as your item in the "Work with:" field. This item may be different depending on your version of the Liferay IDE, but the name will correspond with the name of the Eclipse IDE version that the Liferay IDE is based on. Once the available categories are done loading, simply expand the collaboration section, select "Subversive SVN Team Provider" and proceed to follow the directions after selecting either "next" or "finish." You will also be prompted to install an SVN connector at some point; at this step, simply pick one connector that best matches your enviroment and proceed with the installation. After these steps are all complete and Liferay IDE has restarted, you should be able to add a new SVN server to browse the Liferay source code. You can get more information on the required URLs here. For my version the URL for Liferay's repo is http://svn.liferay.com/repos/public/ and the login credentials are:

user: guest
password:

Step 4: Check out the liferay source code into your workspace. Simply navigate the Liferay SVN server to the TAG matching your target deployment version (this should also be the same version of Liferay that you have specified as the server instance). Select the branch and check out the entire contents.

Step 5:At this time you are ready to define a new Liferay server instance within the Liferay IDE. Select "Create a new Liferay Server" from the toolbar and follow the on screen instructions. Once the server is created, open the server view and tell the server to start. After the server has started, select the option "Open Liferay Portal Home" from the server's available action list.

Now, whenever liferay throws an exception your way, you should be able to access the related code, modify the code, and create your own patches as needed.

DIY Video: Lexus RX300 AWD Rear Brake Pads & Rotors Replacement

In this video I demonstrate how to replace the rear brake pads and rotors on the 1999 Lexus RX300 AWD model. This was a fun job that proved to be fairly straight forward.

The Truth About Nissan Ester Oil

Finally, some legitimate information on Nissan Ester Oil. I've attached papers published by Nissan Engineers that demonstrate how their new techology really works so you can decide for yourself if you should go with a high quality synthetic oil like Amsoil or if you should stick with Nissan's Ester Oil Product.

http://www.sfplayers.com/blog/dlcPapers/Kano_2006_Tribology-International.pdf

http://www.sfplayers.com/blog/dlcPapers/Miyake_2004_Tribology-International.pdf

http://www.sfplayers.com/blog/dlcPapers/de-Barros'Bouchet_2005_Tribology-International.pdf

Your comments are welcome...

DIY Video: 1994 Toyota 4runner Front Brake Job incl. New Rotors & Wheel Bearings

part 1:

part 2:

part 3:

part 4:

part 5:

DIY Video: G35 Spark Plug Replacement

Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3:

See Parallel Processing In Action with Java - Part 1

Today I am going to begin my journey to convert some existing java code from whatever state it is in into a parallel state. In order for me to really be convinced that my parallelization effort has been successful, I will need to get a base measurement of cpu utilization to compare "before" and "after" program output.

I've written two classes SerialExample.java and ParallelExample.java.

source code here...

SerialExample Run:

main took 5.485s to run.
main took 5.481s to run.
main took 9.139s to run.
main took 9.143s to run.
main took a total of 29.25s to run.























As you can clearly see in the graphs above, CPU 0 was heavily underutilized, whereas CPU 1 was maxed out.

Parallel Example Run:

t4 took 7.713ms to run.
t1 took 10.354ms to run.
t2 took 11.498ms to run.
t5 took 15.008ms to run.
main took a total of 15.106s to run.























In the graphs above, both CPUs appear to be performing an equal amount of work. Additionally, the total running time of the application has been cut approximately in half.

Conclusion:

It appears that running the cpu intensive work in separate threads actually got the job done much faster. This would imply that indeed java is making full use of my dual core machine.

2010 Motobecane Fantom Team Mountain Bike: First Ride Impressions

We recieved the bike and promptly took it to our local bike store, Calmar Bicycles, for a thorough inspection and complete assembly. A day later, and his wallet $80 lighter, Rohit was ready to ride his new Motobecane, however, it wasn't until yesterday that we finally got out to Saratoga Gap to test out his new ride.

The following comments are directly from Rohit and his first experience riding on the Motobecane:

The first thing I had to do was to adjust the seat post to my desired height, but this proved to be difficult because it was not a quick-release type but a screw-on type, which can easily be remedied. After taking a small ride around the parking area, I felt confident enough to attempt the trails. I rode the bike but I wasn't used to the shifters and it was difficult for me to understand how to use them since I was used to using GripShift type shifters. By the end of the ride I would be comfortable using the shifters and they provided very smooth shifting - excellent shift quality.



The brakes on my previous bikes were not nearly as nice as these Avid Carbon Elixir brakes and by having these nice brakes it gave me much more confidence when riding down with various obstacles in the way.

The front suspension felt seemed to activate to some degree while pedaling uphill, but I did not feel it was necessary to engage the remote lockout. However, at one point I did use it and it did make a difference. The front suspension made the ride very smooth and I am fully satisfied with the front fork. The rear shock seems to have performed equally well and I am also satisfied with it. I never engaged the lockout on the rear shock and I guess that can be credited to the suspension design, although I can imagine at some point wanting to lock out the rear shock as well.



The 2.35 Kendas (I put these on instead of the 1.95 Kendas that came with the bike) served well with accurate grip and confidence inspiring handling. Overall, I am fully pleased with the bike's performance, quality, and value. Also thanks to bikesdirect.com for offering such a great deal.

If you have any questions about this bike please post them to this blog page.