Multiple Meteor JS apps on the same domain, under virtual directories

Posted on 21/10/2013 by Manuel Timita

This setup will work whether you want to host multiple Meteor apps on the same domain, or use a reverse proxy for multiple backends, one of which is Meteor JS.

Recently, we were looking into adding new features to illustreets, such as a content management system (preferably not one built in JavaScript… just yet). Subdomains were not an option, mostly due to users being familiar already with the app’s location, and also because we wanted to have the CMS controlling the first page, with the Meteor JS app (illustreets’ explorer) set to look like it is hosted in a subdirectory. Continue reading →

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Finding the best places to live in England

Posted on 17/09/2013 by Manuel Timita

After a few months of arduous research, design and coding, I published illustreets in beta version. You can subscribe to updates via illustreets’ profiles on Facebook and Twitter.

The application, co-authored with Kate Koval, uses a large amount of data: deprivation, house prices, local employment and crime rates, schools, public transport, and many more, to provide an overview for any address in England.

We think that it is particularly useful for people who are looking to move home, as they can easily compare amongst different locations on the fly. I dare say that it is one of the most complete property location research apps out there.

Posted in illustreets, Realities | 4 Comments

Adding a Joomla login form to the Mosets Tree error page

Posted on 03/08/2012 by Manuel Timita

Whilst working on a recent project, I had to implement a directory using the Joomla component Mosets Tree. As anyone who uses this component knows, when attempting a task which requires the user to be authenticated first (i.e. submit a listing, submit a listing review, report a listing, etc.), Mosets simply displays an error message, such as “You need to login first before you can add a listing / write a review / report a listing” without redirecting to a login / registration page. Continue reading →

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Protect Windows with pfSense and VirtualBox. Part 6: Running VirtualBox headless. VM auto save state/resume

Posted on 04/08/2011 by Manuel Timita

To operate the VM inconspicuously, obviously you don’t run the full-fledged VirtualBox GUI. VirtualBox can also be fully managed from its command-line interface, called VBoxManage (you can read the User Manual if you want to learn more about VBoxManage).

In what follows, I will discuss how you can set VirtualBox to run in headless mode, and also how to set the virtual machine running pfSense to automatically enter the ‘saved state’ mode when you shut your Windows host down, and how to make it automatically start again when you boot your host. Continue reading →

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Protect Windows with pfSense and VirtualBox. Part 5: Configuring VLANs. Removing Windows’ TCP/IP stacks

Posted on 02/08/2011 by Manuel Timita

Time to move to the next step: configuring pfSense, so we can make sure that we are going to have connectivity once we strip our physical NIC from its TCP/IPv4 and TCP/IPv6 stacks. Mind you, in this part I will discuss only the minimal configuration required in order to have Internet connectivity, as this is not a tutorial about advanced pfSense operation. You should refer to the official documentation for that. Continue reading →

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Protect Windows with pfSense and VirtualBox. Part 4: Installing and configuring pfSense on VirtualBox

Posted on 01/08/2011 by Manuel Timita

Note: if you need help with installing pfSense beyond the instructions included in this tutorial, you can always refer to the project’s official tutorials, wiki, and official forum, or even better, buy the manual available on Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk (a Kindle edition is also available on each). Buying the book also means contributing financially to this amazing Open Source project. Continue reading →

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Protect Windows with pfSense and VirtualBox. Part 3: Installing VirtualBox and creating a new VM for pfSense

Posted on 31/07/2011 by Manuel Timita

Installing VirtualBox and creating a new virtual machine should not be a big deal:

  1. Install VirtualBox with all the default options. It’s just a matter of clicking Next a few times.
  2. Login on Windows as administrator. Browse to the folder where you have downloaded the VirtualBox Extension Pack and double-click it. Click Install.
  3. Agree (you have to) with the TOS and you’re done. Continue reading →

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Protect Windows with pfSense and VirtualBox. Part 2: Installing Microsoft Loopback adapter on Windows 7

Posted on 30/07/2011 by Manuel Timita

The idea is to have the traffic ‘flowing’ through the laptop’s physical NIC to the virtual machine running pfSense, then back to the Windows host through the Loopback adapter.

In what follows, I will describe how to install the Microsoft Loopback adapter on Windows 7 (apparently it works the same for Vista). For other flavours of Windows, such as XP and 2000, 2003 Server, a very simple search will do the job. Continue reading →

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Protect Windows with pfSense and VirtualBox. Part 1: Preamble

Posted on 29/07/2011 by Manuel Timita

Recently, I have been contemplating the idea of attending the Chaos Communication Camp in Germany, in order to learn more about information security first-hand. Yet, as outlined in their survival guide, going there without considering a high level of security for your laptop and phone, whatever the flavour of your OS, is not a pretty clever idea. For good reasons.

Mind you, apart from Windows 7, I cannot have any other properly configured OS on my laptop, due to hardware peculiarities (switchable graphic cards being one of them). Consequently, no Unix-like OS with nifty security features installed ‘bare metal’. Not just yet. Continue reading →

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Julian Assange and the improbable implosion of authoritarian systems

Posted on 04/12/2010 by Manuel Timita

[UPDATE: A shortened, but still fairly accurate attempt to explain Julian Assange's attitude and mission, can be found in this comment published today, 5th of December, by Theo Brainin in The Guardian. Somehow, though, I feel that he too has read Aaron Bady's blog post.]

The vast majority of mass media and politicians has been taken by storm in the last few days; too quickly for them to start thinking clearly and coherently (no surprise here). Does the fairly similar case of entertainment industry vs. digital revolution ring a bell? Continue reading →

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