php_query returns incorrect data from MySql database?

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This is one of the scariest bug I dealt with. Our app was return incorrect data for just one column in one specific row. We echoed sql and run it manually in phpmyadmin and it showed correct data.

We thought maybe our connection string is incorrect and connecting to different database but manually changing values in that column would reflect those values in our app.

It was only when the value in that specific row and column was 1 that we would get 5 instead.

Finally, we ran check, analyze, repair, and optimize commands on that table and that fixed the issue.

Moving Back to Flickr

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Loving the new Flickr layout and free plan. I used to have pro account but to save money, I started hosting my photos on my own. But looks like now I don’t have to worry about 200 photos limit anymore. Transferring my portfolio back to Flickr now.

So we’re also giving our Flickr users one terabyte of space — for free. That’s enough for a lifetime of photos — more than 500,000 original, full-resolution, pixel-perfect, brilliant photos. Flickr users will never have to worry about running out of space.

via Exclamation: Your World, in Full Resolution.

“Tiger Mom” study shows the parenting method doesn’t work. – Slate Magazine

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Kim also measured the outcomes for each of her categories. Supportive parents had the best developmental outcomes, as measured by academic achievement, educational attainment, family obligation (considered positive outcomes), academic pressure, depressive symptoms, and parent-child alienation (considered negative).Academic achievement and attainment were purely data-driven, while the latter four came from different assessments developed by academics over the years (the academic pressure rating is Kim’s own), which, while considered reliable, are inherently somewhat subjective. Children of easygoing parents were second in outcomes, while tiger moms produced kids who felt more alienated from their parents and experienced higher instances of depressive symptoms. They also had lower GPAs, despite feeling more academic pressure.

via “Tiger Mom” study shows the parenting method doesn’t work. – Slate Magazine.

Gym vs Fitness Video Games

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Last year, we decided to save cost of gym and started to workout at home using video games. At that time we had PS3, we got EA Active 2 and a few dance games. Initially, we worked out everyday and we could feel it working. It was fun watching your heart rate in EA Sports Active 2, and The Fight: Lights Out is extremely addictive and exhausting.

But then slowly we stopped using these games. We even bought Xbox 360 Kinect to add variety but that didn’t work either. Every fitness game was exciting initially but then it gets boring after a while and we end up buying something new.

This year we are back at gym. I don’t regret our experiment with fitness games. It has increased number of different ways we can workout. But IMHO there is no real substitute for gym. There are many reasons like:

  • When working out at home, it is easy to get distracted. You get an email, your dog wants to play, wife is bored etc. Once at gym, there are not many distractions.
  • Working out at home by yourself is lonely even when using video games. At gym, you feed off other people’s energy and feel more motivated. Although I rarely ever socialize in gym but being surrounded by people with same goals as me feels good.
  • There are some exercises that you just cannot do at home unless you have a full home gym. On other hand, I learned many bodyweight exercises from EA Active 2 and Nike+ Kinect Training.
  • It is way too easy to slack off at home. Feeling tired? Let’s just press power button. Once at gym, it feels a lot worse to cut your workout short than just keep going.

And yes there are some advantages of fitness video games too:

  • Tracking progress is all automated in video games. 
  • I learned many different exercises using just bodyweight like burpee.
  • Bad weather is no longer an excuse to not workout.
  • Dance games will teach skills that you can use in other areas of your life. ;)
  • There are always new video games to try when one gets boring.

It seems like video games have some advantages over gym but gym is still better way to workout, at least for me.

PHP Programming on Chromebook

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Here is my setup:

  • Secure Shell - for accessing server and commiting code,
  • ShiftEdit - probably the best and simplest web based PHP editor,
  • BitBucket – for free private repos.

I would say ShiftEdit made my life a lot easier. Before I was using vi in shell for writing code. It works but is slightly harder to use. I tried other web based PHP editors but they didn’t provide any straight forward way to setup a website based on sftp. Instead they want to use PaaS such as OpenShift or Heroku.

Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography

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I highly recommend everyone read The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. It is pretty amazing read and very inspiring. Franklin was your average guy, from an average family. I was halfway through the book but could not see how this young man will create a nation.

Perhaps he got lucky a few times, but he worked hard and made his own luck.

This book is full of great ideas and advice. My favorite is Franklin’s method of improving himself. He had a list of 13 traits or habits that he wanted to improve. So he used to track those in a grid daily. You can see examples of his charts: https://www.google.com/search.

I have created my own list and tracking it in Google Docs. Here is my list:Capture

This is just one example. There is a lot more to learn from Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography. I am sure I will be re-reading it many times.