The web for me is a hobby where standards and best practices are daily bread. Security is a concern that everybody must be aware of its details for IT in general, and the web in particular, to be a safer place. My life, on the other hand, is that of a regular Lebanese citizen where politics and social issues are discussed on a daily basis. I hope you enjoy reading my blog and make sure to drop me a comment about any topic you find interesting.

Facebook is undergoing a lot of changes recently especially after the release of Google+. The link below provides sneak peaks about the NEW facebook profile and features that Facebook will be introducing shortly...

http://mashable.com/2011/09/21/prepare-for-the-new-facebook/

NASA has recently announced that an out-of-control, retired satellite will come crashing into the earth's surface "sometime" towards the end of September. Furthermore, the satellite, which is about the size of a school bus and weights over 6 tonnes (6.6 tons), will impact the earth in an unknown location between Canada and South America. The exact time and location will remain a mystery until two hours before the event, and that's with six thousand miles (10,000 km) of uncertainty.

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Today, I received an email message from http://www.emailintervention.com/ The message is simply asking me to switch from my "traditional" email service to the "modern and spam-free" Gmail service.

While this request may sound normal, a quick question popped into my mind.

"Why would Google build a website to ask people to join Gmail if Gmail originally started on an invitation-only basis?
More precisely, why would Google build this website now and not when it first opened Gmail for the public?"

Is Google desparate to advertise Gmail?

Is this just another indirect way of advertising Google Plus?

Is it just a sub-service provided by Google to Gmail users to allow them to invite their friends?

UPDATE
I just learned that one of our clients is also providing a copy of the official results for the Lebanese exams.
Check their website out:
http://www.sawtelfarah.com/

ORIGINAL POST

I think some of you have faced this before. You want to check your kid's results in the official exams and cannot open the website www.schoolnet.edu.lb because it is under too much pressure. The URLs below will save you from having to wait forever to reach the page where you fill in the form to get the result. Simply pick up the URL that is for you and replace the <CHILD_ID> with the number and paste it into your browser and voila.

I hope this helps.

For BREVET RESULTS:

Beirut: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/brevet.asp?idd=1&id=<CHILD_ID>
North: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/brevet.asp?idd=2&id=<CHILD_ID>
South: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/brevet.asp?idd=3&id=<CHILD_ID>
Mount Lebanon: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/brevet.asp?idd=4&id=<CHILD_ID>
Nabatieh: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/brevet.asp?idd=5&id=<CHILD_ID>
Bekaa: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/brevet.asp?idd=6&id=<CHILD_ID>

For SG RESULTS:

For SE RESULTS:

Beirut: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/se.asp?idd=1&id=<CHILD_ID>
North: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/se.asp?idd=2&id=<CHILD_ID>
South: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/se.asp?idd=3&id=<CHILD_ID>
Mount Lebanon: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/se.asp?idd=4&id=<CHILD_ID>
Nabatieh: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/se.asp?idd=5&id=<CHILD_ID>
Bekaa: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/se.asp?idd=6&id=<CHILD_ID>

For SV RESULTS:

Beirut: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/sv.asp?idd=1&id=<CHILD_ID>
North: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/sv.asp?idd=2&id=<CHILD_ID>
South: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/sv.asp?idd=3&id=<CHILD_ID>
Mount Lebanon: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/sv.asp?idd=4&id=<CHILD_ID>
Nabatieh: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/sv.asp?idd=5&id=<CHILD_ID>
Bekaa: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/sv.asp?idd=6&id=<CHILD_ID>

For LH RESULTS:

Beirut: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/lh.asp?idd=1&id=<CHILD_ID>
North: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/lh.asp?idd=2&id=<CHILD_ID>
South: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/lh.asp?idd=3&id=<CHILD_ID>
Mount Lebanon: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/lh.asp?idd=4&id=<CHILD_ID>
Nabatieh: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/lh.asp?idd=5&id=<CHILD_ID>
Bekaa: http://www.schoolnet.edu.lb/exam1/lh.asp?idd=6&id=<CHILD_ID>

I will try to add a form to simplify this but you can use the links above for now ;)

This article discusses 10 dirty littles secrets about working in IT. It was shared with me through email by my friend Dominic Halajian. I liked it, so here it is.

10.) The pay in IT is good compared to many other professions, but since they pay you well, they often think they own you

Although the pay for IT professionals is not as great as it was before the dot-com flameout and the IT backlash in 2001-2002, IT workers still make very good money compared to many other professions (at least the ones that require only an associate’s or bachelor’s degree). And there is every reason to believe that IT pros will continue to be in demand in the coming decades, as technology continues to play a growing role in business and society. However, because IT professionals can be so expensive, some companies treat IT pros like they own them. If you have to answer a tech call at 9:00 PM because someone is working late, you hear, “That’s just part of the job.” If you need to work six hours on a Saturday to deploy a software update to avoid downtime during business hours, you get, “There’s no comp time for that since you’re on salary. That’s why we pay you the big bucks!”

9.) It will be your fault when users make silly errors

Some users will angrily snap at you when they are frustrated. They will yell, “What’s wrong with this thing?” or “This computer is NOT working!” or (my personal favorite), “What did you do to the computers?” In fact, the problem is that they accidentally deleted the Internet Explorer icon from the desktop, or unplugged the mouse from the back of the computer with their foot, or spilled their coffee on the keyboard.
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