Greetings.

I skipped out on last week's update, due in large part to one of the absolutely most busy holiday seasons I've ever had. But even with the stress it introduced, putting those couple weeks behind me brings a certain...zeal, very similar to that brought on after an epic movie, for example.

Much to my surprise, I've finally managed to convince my parents to dump Windows for Linux. Granted, I had to put in an extraordinary amount of effort to make the transition go smoothly for them (being long-time Microsoft followers and all), but I feel pretty good about making converts out of them.

The catalyst for this joyous cross-over was the failure (surprise, surprise) of Windows XP Professional 64-Bit Edition to properly support the majority of their peripherals, i.e. a pair of older (but not obsolete) printers, an older digital camera, a brand-new digital camera and webcam, and a middle-aged scanner. After a number of ugly hacks and fruitless driver hunts, I installed 64-bit Linux, and lo and behold, most of those items worked straight away.

Maybe it's not fair of me to blame Windows for all of it. After all, the hardware companies are responsible for developing drivers for their products. Still, the fact that Linux recognized and on most counts gave full functionality where Windows couldn't even recognize the stuff leaves me with a raised eyebrow and the extension of a certain centrally-located digit towards Microsoft.

So, if we could get back to more...productive endeavors...

Phase III of Project Omega has kicked off with the completion of Week I. I now have a solid outline of objectives for the next three months, as well as some decent direction on how to proceed. Designing the interface and front-end will tax all of my moderate graphic design skills, but after this, it's on to my strength...the coding.

Oh, and before I forget...a very happy Winter-een-mas to all of you!

Mr. Bond, signing off.