The Area 0

Need a reason to replace that old hunk of junk 2500 series router? Or maybe some old thinnet devices? Well here’s your solution: simply apply 120VAC to said device - oh, and not where you’d normally apply it, either.

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This week I received my new fountain pen, a Lamy 2000. I’d been wanting to buy this pen for a few months. Until now I’d been using a relatively cheap Picasso pen, which had only a steel nib. It was a cheap pen, only about $20 and it certainly did the job and kept me happy, but I was ready to move on to something nicer, with a gold nib. All I can say is, I got my Lamy 2000, and I love it! Thanks to RyanL27 on the Fountain Pen Network, I have the pen I’ve wanted for ages, and I got it for a pretty decent price too - only $75 shipped!

Buying a pen for $75 might seem absurd for most people, but it’s certainly a worthwhile investment. All the years of highschool and college where I had problems with hand cramps while writing - no longer an issue. The lack of pressure required to write with a fountain pen alleviates all pains associated with cheap pens. Having a gold nib makes writing much more smooth. Not to mention having a nice pen is just a nice feeling. I actually enjoy writing now, and my handwriting skills have improved dramatically. I highly suggest buying a fountain pen, if you’ve never tried them!

If there was ever a network tool that I feel every Cisco engineer should have at their disposal, it would be Dynamips. Dynamips is a piece of software that runs as a server on your Unix, Mac or Windows machine. You write text-based configuration files using Dynagen, and it loads up those configurations using an actual IOS image. That’s right - it runs an actual IOS binary on emulated hardware, unlike most simulators out there that only emulate IOS software.

I highly recommend visiting their website, as well as this forum which is an excellent place to get support. You can also read a tutorial for getting started with Dynamips and Dynagen here. Oh, and we’re always around on IRC. Visit #cisco on irc.freenode.net, where you will find me (IPv6Freely) as well as the creator of Dynamips, cfilliot.