1. Cause his server to explode over the weekend.
2. Have the server hard drive die in a fit of pique.
3. Configure the backup software, by default, to compare backup contents with what exists on your hard drive, then show only the files that can be updated. This is a very small list when the backup is opened on a different computer. This will cause much self-loathing when Andrew thinks he has messed up the backup system.
4. Have all data recovery utilities display a happy list of all files that can be recovered from the hard drive. Ensure that the HD is so very screwed that said programs generate errors on half of the files, and produce corrupted versions of the rest.
5. All of Andrew’s parents’ company emails, data, documents, accounts and payroll information would seem to have been lost. Andrew will now contemplate methods of suicide.

Thankfully, I eventually discovered my mistake regarding number three. A brief stomach-pump later and I’m restoring a backup from Saturday night. Any emails downloaded on Sunday are likely to be gone for good, though, so if you sent anything important please do re-transmit. I’m pretty sure that both the PSU and HD are down for the count; I haven’t had a good play with the motherboard yet.

I’m still trying to fix the server here, and it’s going from bad to worse. Testing last night produced no response from the power supply, so I swapped in a spare. It was of a much lower wattage than the previous one, but I figured it’d be ok. I’m wondering if that was a mistake, though. The server eventually booted up so everybody could check their emails, but it was running very slowly. I decided to go with it until I could get hold of a new PSU, so shut the PC down to tidy up cabling etc. And it hasn’t worked since. On restart, the computer didn’t complete the POST. In fact it got nowhere near; it displayed the bios name and stopped.

I gave up at this point last night as I was as likely to plug myself into the mains as fix any problems. This morning I transferred the hard drive to my computer, so that Mum and Dad could access all their data. And the hard drive has also failed. Well, there’s no file system on there and even the-always-wonderful Restorer 2000 is having terrible trouble extracting any data.

At the moment I really don’t know what’s happened. I’ve run an Athlon XP from the low-wattage PSU before, but what would happen if the computer needed more power than it could provide? Could that kill components? Or, could the old PSU have died spectacularly, sending a power spike into all attached components and somehow letting them run one last time?

And now my carefully configured backup system is claiming not to have archived an important directory.

I should have stayed in Paris

I just came downstairs to find that local magician Matheson Taylor died in a fall last week. I’ll write something later as I’m currently trying to sort through all the memories I have. He was a truly wonderful man and it’s so very sad that this has happened. He ran the British Magical Society Junior Section, of which I was a member for years. This has really knocked me for six.

Phew. I’m back after a weekend that could charitably be described as breakneck. Twas fun though - I shall write it up soonish. I’m glad my flickrblog pictures came though ok too. I took an entire memory card’s worth of photos with my real camera (despite having a compactflash card die on me on Saturday afternoon) so they’ll be flickrified before too long.

As ever when I leave the house for more than ten minutes at a time, our server’s died. So I can’t check emails yet. It looks like another power supply has blown up (tripping the downstairs power in the process), but it’s too early to say for sure. Just fixing up the really quite gross porn spam over on the Joinee Wiki, then I’ll be onto the server. Then I may write something up, but more likely I’ll crawl upstairs and sleep for a day or two.

…and, many steps later, the view from the top

The Eiffel Tower from the bottom…

Ah, Paris.

I’m looking forward to seeing Trigger and Champion and Red Rum…

Update: Yup, I did indeed spell ‘queuing’ wrongly on the original post. Bad Andrew.

The roundabout that surrounds the Arc de Triomphe is completely and totally demented. Drivers on the roundabout have to give right of way to those entering. There are no lane markings and nobody slows down when heading on either. It’s insane.

Hopefully you can make out the smart-car. We’re currently wandering around the back streets of Paris trying to find the hotel

We walked out of the metro on the way to the hotel…And saw this

Phew. I’m pretty much packed and ready to go now. With a full 30mins to go, no less. We’re still unsure of the whole passport situation so you may yet end up with the pleasure of my company over the weekend. I’m rooting for you, though. One rucksack for three days is pushing it rather, but I’ve just managed it.

Time remaining until we need to be at the airport: 16 hours
Time remaining until we arrive in Paris: 19 hours
Time remaining until Andrew’s passport expires: 10 days

Oops The Passport Agency travel website suggests that some countries require a minimum amount of time remaining on a passport to allow entry (South Africa, incidentally, has started turning people back if they don’t have two blank pages in their passport) and they recommend checking each country’s advice page for specifics. The Foreign Office page on France simply says that a valid passport is all that is required. Hope so!

I’m going to Paris tomorrow! It was a big birthday for Dad yesterday (15th prime + 3) so we’re going away from tomorrow evening until late Monday. Speaking entirely selfishly, I could do with a break before the exams begin in late May, so this is ideal for me I’ve never been before and am quite excited. We’re going to do the standard touristy things like the Louvre and the Eiffel tower (the ascent of which has been on my things-to-do-before-dying list for years) and generally take in as much as possible. I intend to take many many photographs which will be uploaded to my flickr gallery as soon as I’m back.

The only worry I have is Paris’ reputation for being so very smoking-friendly; I don’t do at all well in smoky areas so we’ll have to see how it goes. There’s also the fact that I speak no french whatsoever. Well, that’s not quite true. I can say ‘je suis un poisson’ and ‘voulez-vous un pantalon?’. So I should get by.

Update @ 2200: If anyone has any suggestions as to interesting places to visit / eat / jump around on, please do leave them in the comments (’Holiday: You Call The Shots’ stylee) - I’d appreciate any advice. Thanks!

Beginning mind-dump now.

• Mandrake has gone. I am now sad. He grew to full size in front of me and has now flown the web. I feel so paternal.
• Coronation St is pushing things a little, isn’t it? An entire family is being dismantled, so far by means of one murder, one suicide and an imprisonment. It’s not the most cheerful show to be watching at the moment. It’s perhaps more depressing when the advert breaks are crammed full of plugs for Hell’s Kitchen and Celebrity Wrestling, mind. Is it me, or are ITV completely losing the plot?
• All my eBay items sold! I’m now officially into profit. Woo.
• Bloglines is now picking up the BBC newsfeed fine, but there’re still no LiveJournal updates
• There are a couple of new additions to the blog, most notably gravatars on comments. What do you think of them? I don’t know whether the default monkey will stay - I may alter it to only display images for people who have them.
• Off dancing tonight where we’ll hopefully get more information on the promised dancing weekend, which sounds very interesting.