This is the second iteration of Jebersblog.com. I wasn’t updating it very often and had practically abandoned the idea of having a tech blog, partly because my blogs on social issues were becoming more popular and because, let’s be honest, there are already far too many tech blogs on the internet.

So what happened to make me redesign and relaunch jebersblog? Friendfeed.

To explain, let me go back a few years.

In the 1970s I was a member of the Army Security Agency assigned to the NSA. During my service I was able to work with what were without a doubt the most advanced computers of that time. During training our class computer was a Cray. As a part of my regular duties I used a number of specialized computers, most built in-house, a few constructed by contractors like DEC. It still amazes me to realize that the most powerful 1970s computer was less robust than many modern digital MP3 players.

After I was discharged life took me away from computers until I returned to San Diego in 1995. A coworker had a laptop and an AOL account and I constantly pestered him to show me how these new (to me) personal computers worked. He taught me enough to get me hooked, and it wasn’t long before I plunked down a couple of thousand dollars to buy a brand new, awesomely high powered Gateway PC with a 10GB hard drive, 128MB of RAM and a 500MB processor. I got an AOL account and a speedy 56k dialup connection to the internet. I knew from my classes in COBOL and FORTRAN that while I could grasp basic programming in machine languages well enough, I was lost trying to understand the languages in use in the 1990s. But the hardware I could understand. I still changed my truck’s oil and tuned the engine. Hands-on was a game I could play.

First I had to understand all I could about the operating system I was using. There were already quite a few good sites for learning how to tweak Windows 95 and I checked Alta Vista daily for new ones. One day early on I came across a website written by some guy who called himself Lockergnome. He was a geek, a generous one at that. He was freely sharing a lot of info that I’d spent a small fortune in books to learn. I began reading his site daily and soon found that he also had a forum. I enjoyed the forum, finally getting so involved that I asked to join the staff. That was when I realized I’d learned enough about Windows that I was actually giving out more info than I was taking in. A tipping point.

When Chris Pirillo, the wise little gnome in the locker, began offering email newsletters again, I was eager to get involved. Same when he began a line of Lockergnome-branded blogs. He’s a great guy on so many levels, personal and professional, has a fascinating circle of friends and has retained his innocent enjoyment of technology.

I’ve worked on help desks for Gateway Computers and D-Link. I’ve been fortunate to learn a lot about hardware, networking and Windows (using XP and Vista) from some of the real gurus on the net. I finally managed to get comfortable enough with Linux to be able to use it daily as well, but I find I’m less inclined to offer advice on it since my understanding is just barely above clueless. I know how to fix a few problems, but more importantly, I’ve learned where to go to find solid and reliable info.

That’s why this blog will offer resources as well as information.

This last year I discovered Twitter and Friendfeed. The majority of those I listen to are wise and willing to share. There was an election going on, and I began to pay more attention to my social issues blogs. For the last five years I’ve been working on the fringes of the tech world, where new information is more scarce. I haven’t built a computer in a while. Last week I realized I was losing it, my interest in technology had been neglected and I missed having a reason to keep up with that world.

One last note: the feed from Tumblr on the right shows what has been my tech blog for a while now. I like having it there, looking like a sub-blog, which indeed it is. I rarely comment on anything I post to Tumblr, so if I want to make a comment on a post, I’ll have to blog it. Tumblr is like a barebones blog, a Twitterfied blogging platform.