Book 1: Genesis 01:001:001 In the beginning God created the heavens. God said, Let there be a firmament. And God called the firmament Heaven. 01:001:002 God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good. 01:001:003 And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven. 01:001:004 And let the lights in the firmament of heaven give light upon the earth: and it was so. 01:001:005 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. 01:001:006 God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, 01:001:007 And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. 01:001:008 And the earth was without form, and void. 01:001:009 And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so. 01:001:010 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good. 01:001:011 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life. 01:001:012 And God created fish, great whales, and every living creature that swims, which the waters brought forth abundantly: and God saw that it was good. 01:001:013 And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas. 01:001:014 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit: and it was so. 01:001:015 And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed, and the tree yielding fruit: and God saw that it was good. 01:001:016 And God said, Let the earth bring forth the moving creature that hath life, cattle and fowl that may fly above the earth: and it was so. 01:001:017 And God made the beast of the earth, cattle and every thing that walks upon the earth and every winged fowl: and God saw that it was good. 01:001:018 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.
Monday, March 12, 2018
Genesis
Rewrite the Bible
I figure the Bible is long over due for a re-write. Take out a bit of the raping and murdering and stoning, trim up some bits to better align with what we know today, and just over-all make it into a better book to be used as a life guide.
Most religious people do what they want, and then use the Bible as justification. So thinking the Bible will guide them to behaving better is thinking backwards. But at least a re-write could be less justifying?
What should it be called?
The Modern Bible?
The Ethical Bible?
The Good Bible?
Most religious people do what they want, and then use the Bible as justification. So thinking the Bible will guide them to behaving better is thinking backwards. But at least a re-write could be less justifying?
What should it be called?
The Modern Bible?
The Ethical Bible?
The Good Bible?
Tuesday, October 7, 2014
Weak Comcast XFinity Security
I am not a hacker, or even a coder. I am just a somewhat experienced computer user and a reasonably intelligent person. I have never done this before.
My friend didn't think e-mail security was anything to be concerned about, so I decided to put it to the test. I tried to hack into his e-mail.
Within 20 minutes, I had complete access to his XFinity home e-mail (and other things like DVRs and home security). Within 30 minutes, I had aquired new passwords to online vendors that he used. If he had credit card numbers on file with them, I could place orders. Here's how it went:
My friend has a comcast.net email address. I went to comcast and clicked "forgot password". The password reset function asks for answers to security questions. Each answer is like a tumbler in a lock. You have to answer all the questions correctly - at the same time - to open the lock.
In this case, comcast only asks for one answer. This is a lock with a single tumbler. That's the first security hole.
The process also asked for his zip code. Since I knew roughly where he lived, I knew his zip code from google maps.
The second security hole involved how many times you could guess. The answer: unlimited. Good systems will lock out the user after enough incorrect responses, or at least prevent any further guesses for a time period. Or change which security question is being asked.
In this case, the question was asking for a surname - the same surname - over and over an unlimited number of times. I took the 100 most common surnames and went down the list one-by-one. Number 47 opened the lock.
The enthusiasts can do their own thing, but average people who use the internet as part of their daily lives for banking and commerce come to rely on big brand names like comcast and assume that they will be taken care of. This level of lax security on such a large system is just unacceptable.
My friend didn't think e-mail security was anything to be concerned about, so I decided to put it to the test. I tried to hack into his e-mail.
Within 20 minutes, I had complete access to his XFinity home e-mail (and other things like DVRs and home security). Within 30 minutes, I had aquired new passwords to online vendors that he used. If he had credit card numbers on file with them, I could place orders. Here's how it went:
My friend has a comcast.net email address. I went to comcast and clicked "forgot password". The password reset function asks for answers to security questions. Each answer is like a tumbler in a lock. You have to answer all the questions correctly - at the same time - to open the lock.
In this case, comcast only asks for one answer. This is a lock with a single tumbler. That's the first security hole.
The process also asked for his zip code. Since I knew roughly where he lived, I knew his zip code from google maps.
The second security hole involved how many times you could guess. The answer: unlimited. Good systems will lock out the user after enough incorrect responses, or at least prevent any further guesses for a time period. Or change which security question is being asked.
In this case, the question was asking for a surname - the same surname - over and over an unlimited number of times. I took the 100 most common surnames and went down the list one-by-one. Number 47 opened the lock.
The enthusiasts can do their own thing, but average people who use the internet as part of their daily lives for banking and commerce come to rely on big brand names like comcast and assume that they will be taken care of. This level of lax security on such a large system is just unacceptable.
Saturday, March 29, 2014
T-Mobile
They used to be the only good national carrier left. Then they screwed me and stole $28 from me. Now they suck as much as the rest.
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
What we already knew
There are varying degrees of evil. For example, Taco Bell was evil for not including enough meat in their meat for it to be legally classified as meat. But at least they are providing you cheap food when you are hungry. Then there is the level of vile sliminess that only politicians and cable TV providers ascend to.
I used to think that SOME cellular providers had not quite gotten to that point yet. But they have arrived there, moved in, and redecorated.
I'm so tired of writing about cellphones and cellular providers. They all suck. They all suck the same amount. There's really nothing to talk about.
For the first time ever, I purchased a handset directly from a carrier (T-Mobile, the way most people do.) Guess what?! It sucked! I returned it. The re-stocking fee taught me a valuable lesson to never ever ever ever do that again.
But then,,, why even have a cellphone in the first place? I would much rather not. It's been quite a long time since I've had anything other than a hotspot. It's other people that want me to have one.
I hate this crap.
I used to think that SOME cellular providers had not quite gotten to that point yet. But they have arrived there, moved in, and redecorated.
I'm so tired of writing about cellphones and cellular providers. They all suck. They all suck the same amount. There's really nothing to talk about.
For the first time ever, I purchased a handset directly from a carrier (T-Mobile, the way most people do.) Guess what?! It sucked! I returned it. The re-stocking fee taught me a valuable lesson to never ever ever ever do that again.
But then,,, why even have a cellphone in the first place? I would much rather not. It's been quite a long time since I've had anything other than a hotspot. It's other people that want me to have one.
I hate this crap.
Saturday, July 6, 2013
JavaScript Sucks. Here's Why.
I hate JavaScript. It is ruining the internet. So I keep it off. Beware if you just updated to the latest version of Mozilla... they removed the option to disable JavaScript.
JavaScript can be used to improve the user experience on a website. But it virtually never is. Instead, JavaScript is used to load advertisements, track your activity, and add useless social media integration.
Something happened in the news today so I googled it. I clicked on the first link, an article from Forbes.com. The page took FOREVER to load on a fast broadband connection. Finally I realized the reason: I had left JavaScript on.
This particular website from Forbes used JavaScript to exchange data between my computer and the following additional list of domains:
facebook.com
optimizely.com
rfihub.com
doubleclick.net
insightexpressai.com
viewablemedia.net
visiblemeasures.com
adadvisor.net
ajax.googleapis.com
questionmarket.com
content.ad
krxd.net
scorecardresearch.com
rfihub.net
simplereach.com
gigya.com
truste.com
facebook.net
media.net
servedbyopenx.com
cloudfront.net
adsafeprotected.com
forbesimg.com
mookie1.com
bizographics.com
moatads.com
exelator.com
googlesyndication.com
crowdscience.com
2mdn.net
chartbeat.com
mmismm.com
bluekai.com
atdmt.com
bkrtx.com
google-analytics.com
Thats THIRTY SIX different web domains that my web browser contacted and downloaded and/or uploaded data to, in addition to the original Forbes domain.
All of that... Just so I could read a lousy article that was barely 6 kilobytes of uncompressed text.
Sad...
The silver lining of this story: When I completely disabled javascript and re-visited that same website, the 6-kilobyte article still loaded. It loaded fast. And without JS.
Why the hell would anyboby surf with JS enabled?!?!
Too many people don't know better.
JavaScript can be used to improve the user experience on a website. But it virtually never is. Instead, JavaScript is used to load advertisements, track your activity, and add useless social media integration.
Something happened in the news today so I googled it. I clicked on the first link, an article from Forbes.com. The page took FOREVER to load on a fast broadband connection. Finally I realized the reason: I had left JavaScript on.
This particular website from Forbes used JavaScript to exchange data between my computer and the following additional list of domains:
facebook.com
optimizely.com
rfihub.com
doubleclick.net
insightexpressai.com
viewablemedia.net
visiblemeasures.com
adadvisor.net
ajax.googleapis.com
questionmarket.com
content.ad
krxd.net
scorecardresearch.com
rfihub.net
simplereach.com
gigya.com
truste.com
facebook.net
media.net
servedbyopenx.com
cloudfront.net
adsafeprotected.com
forbesimg.com
mookie1.com
bizographics.com
moatads.com
exelator.com
googlesyndication.com
crowdscience.com
2mdn.net
chartbeat.com
mmismm.com
bluekai.com
atdmt.com
bkrtx.com
google-analytics.com
Thats THIRTY SIX different web domains that my web browser contacted and downloaded and/or uploaded data to, in addition to the original Forbes domain.
All of that... Just so I could read a lousy article that was barely 6 kilobytes of uncompressed text.
Sad...
The silver lining of this story: When I completely disabled javascript and re-visited that same website, the 6-kilobyte article still loaded. It loaded fast. And without JS.
Why the hell would anyboby surf with JS enabled?!?!
Too many people don't know better.
Friday, July 5, 2013
Random stuff
Wow... 10 weeks into typing on a Dvorak and now I have serious trouble typing on a querty!
My tech predictions for the year were way off. Microsoft seems to be taking the "if we build it, they will use it" approach, and they aren't wrong. The market share for their mobile OS has gone up from 1.9% to 2.9%. Hot damn!
I have a feeling windows 7 is going to be the new windows xp. Now that I disabled the system tray and got a stable virtual machine running, I'm happy with 7. Tried 8. I don't see myself using 8 any time in the forseeable future.
My tech predictions for the year were way off. Microsoft seems to be taking the "if we build it, they will use it" approach, and they aren't wrong. The market share for their mobile OS has gone up from 1.9% to 2.9%. Hot damn!
I have a feeling windows 7 is going to be the new windows xp. Now that I disabled the system tray and got a stable virtual machine running, I'm happy with 7. Tried 8. I don't see myself using 8 any time in the forseeable future.
Bitcoin PoS
Someone needs to make a business model to manufacture and sell point-of-sale bitcoin transaction machines.
Hmmm... It seems there are android apps for this...
My country 'tis of thee
I have become involved in politics.
That is a problem. I hate politics and if the system worked I never would have needed to get involved.
But the system is broken. Congressmen no longer represent constituents... they represent dollars. And with that- the country is doomed.
Every industry is now slowly moving toward an oligopoly.
The credit card industry: VISA/Mastercard, American Express, Discover.
The wireless industry: Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint.
The airline industry: United/Continental, Delta, Southwest, and US/American.
Package delivery: FedEx, UPS, DHL, USPS
In all these industries the companies follow each other to fix prices and avoid competition. It is in their interest to keep the number of players low to keep cooperation simple. Major mergers are common and desired. Multiple brands are kept to give the public the illusion of choice. For example, VISA and MasterCard are owned by the same company. AT&T tried desperately to merge with T-Mobile after successfully merging with Cingular.
These companies have enough money to completely control congressmen and by extension, the law.
I mentioned delivery companies for a very specific reason. This is one area where a government agency - the US Postal Service - is competing directly with private industry. This situation exists because the USPS pre-dated any of the private companies. It also exists because the USPS has not (since the 1980's) accepted any tax dollars (so citizens aren't forced to pay for one service when they prefer to use another.)
There have been numerous attempts by city and local governments to establish free city-wide wireless internet networks to provide free internet to everyone. In every single case, the project is squashed by wireless companies crying foul and throwing big bags of money at congressmen. In reality, such a project would be perfectly legal and fair as long as they were not funded with mandatory taxes. If instead there was a service fee levied against users, or the service was supported by ad revenue, or had some other business model then all would be good.
But this won't happen because the people no longer have control over their government. Companies can donate unlimited amounts of money anonymously to representatives, thus buying whatever vote or legislation they want.
A new age is coming. The digital age. We have only begun to scratch the surface of what the internet can do. A new form of currency has been birthed into existence. A digital currency called bitcoin, which the banks and government do not control. Bitcoin serves a very specific purpose. Bitcoin is digital cash.
If I wanted to digitally transfer money to another individual, how would I do that? I would have to use a service like PayPal, or a commercial bank, which all charge service fees. I couldn't do it like a cash trade, where there is no fee.
As more and more commerce moves to digital transactions, the commercial institutions processing these digital transactions just keep making more and more money. The money itself is minted by the federal government, but the government is never going to develop and issue a form of digital cash because the credit card companies pay the government not to.
That's why it's so important for us to use bitcoin as much as possible - if money has taken over control of our government, then we need to take back control of our money!
That is a problem. I hate politics and if the system worked I never would have needed to get involved.
But the system is broken. Congressmen no longer represent constituents... they represent dollars. And with that- the country is doomed.
Every industry is now slowly moving toward an oligopoly.
The credit card industry: VISA/Mastercard, American Express, Discover.
The wireless industry: Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint.
The airline industry: United/Continental, Delta, Southwest, and US/American.
Package delivery: FedEx, UPS, DHL, USPS
In all these industries the companies follow each other to fix prices and avoid competition. It is in their interest to keep the number of players low to keep cooperation simple. Major mergers are common and desired. Multiple brands are kept to give the public the illusion of choice. For example, VISA and MasterCard are owned by the same company. AT&T tried desperately to merge with T-Mobile after successfully merging with Cingular.
These companies have enough money to completely control congressmen and by extension, the law.
I mentioned delivery companies for a very specific reason. This is one area where a government agency - the US Postal Service - is competing directly with private industry. This situation exists because the USPS pre-dated any of the private companies. It also exists because the USPS has not (since the 1980's) accepted any tax dollars (so citizens aren't forced to pay for one service when they prefer to use another.)
There have been numerous attempts by city and local governments to establish free city-wide wireless internet networks to provide free internet to everyone. In every single case, the project is squashed by wireless companies crying foul and throwing big bags of money at congressmen. In reality, such a project would be perfectly legal and fair as long as they were not funded with mandatory taxes. If instead there was a service fee levied against users, or the service was supported by ad revenue, or had some other business model then all would be good.
But this won't happen because the people no longer have control over their government. Companies can donate unlimited amounts of money anonymously to representatives, thus buying whatever vote or legislation they want.
A new age is coming. The digital age. We have only begun to scratch the surface of what the internet can do. A new form of currency has been birthed into existence. A digital currency called bitcoin, which the banks and government do not control. Bitcoin serves a very specific purpose. Bitcoin is digital cash.
If I wanted to digitally transfer money to another individual, how would I do that? I would have to use a service like PayPal, or a commercial bank, which all charge service fees. I couldn't do it like a cash trade, where there is no fee.
As more and more commerce moves to digital transactions, the commercial institutions processing these digital transactions just keep making more and more money. The money itself is minted by the federal government, but the government is never going to develop and issue a form of digital cash because the credit card companies pay the government not to.
That's why it's so important for us to use bitcoin as much as possible - if money has taken over control of our government, then we need to take back control of our money!
Why cable TV isn't worth buying
I'm in a hotel room with half a dozen 24-hour cable news networks.
They are all showing the same court case that I don't care about.
I've got TWO different CNN channels - both CNN and CNN Headline News. They are both showing the SAME FEED from the SAME CAMERA in a court case I couldn't care less about.
The only channels that are showing something OTHER than this court case are the dedicated financial news networks.
I've got an hour before work when I can have a cup of coffee and check the day's news. I do that on the internet with my laptop like a normal person.
Seriously, what's the point in paying for two different CNN's if they are both showing the same camera feed? It's not like CNN is trying to compete with CNN. The point of two CNN's was to have variety and options.
This is precisely why I cut the cord.
They are all showing the same court case that I don't care about.
I've got TWO different CNN channels - both CNN and CNN Headline News. They are both showing the SAME FEED from the SAME CAMERA in a court case I couldn't care less about.
The only channels that are showing something OTHER than this court case are the dedicated financial news networks.
I've got an hour before work when I can have a cup of coffee and check the day's news. I do that on the internet with my laptop like a normal person.
Seriously, what's the point in paying for two different CNN's if they are both showing the same camera feed? It's not like CNN is trying to compete with CNN. The point of two CNN's was to have variety and options.
This is precisely why I cut the cord.
Monday, July 1, 2013
Problems With Clear
Chat Transcript
Hello Mathew. Please wait while we find a CLEAR specialist to help you.
Your question is: Tell me why my service has been suspended.
You have been connected to Raselle S.
Raselle S: Thank you for contacting Clear, my name is Raselle. So I can help, may I please have your last name?
Mathew: ####
Raselle S: Thanks, Mathew. How may I help you today?
Mathew: Tell me why my service has been suspended.
Raselle S: I understand that you want to know why your account has been suspended.
Mathew: Yes.
Raselle S: I'm sorry that you have to chat us with this concern but don't worry I'll be more than happy to assist you okay.
Raselle S: Just to confirm, is ########## a good callback number in case we need to contact you?
Mathew: yep
Raselle S: I would be happy to help you further. Would you please verify the account by telling me, in what city you were born?
Mathew: ########
Raselle S: Thank you very much for helping me verify your account. The exact answer on file ########. It is case sensitive.
Mathew: oh ok, thanks
Raselle S: By the way, is the e-mail address ############### your updated email address?
Mathew: yes
Raselle S: Thank you for the confirmation.
Raselle S: Our record shows you have one active home service plan and one suspended mobile plan due to non payment.
Raselle S: And I am seeing $52.04 credit balance on your account.
Raselle S: Would you like to restore the service by applying the $52.04 credit balance on your account?
Mathew: Yes please
Raselle S: Okay great! Please hold while I reactivate your mobile plan.
Raselle S: There you go! I was able to apply the charge and reactivate the account.
Mathew: thank you
Raselle S: The first time you log on, you will get the terms and conditions page that you should read through before accepting them. Once you've accepted them, you'll be able to access the internet.
Raselle S: You're most welcome, Mathew.
Raselle S: Just to let you know, CLEAR My Account (www.clear.com) is an online account management resource to help customers answer basic billing questions and troubleshoot common service issues.
Raselle S: Is there anything else I can help you with?
Mathew: Yes, you have not answered my question
Raselle S: Oops sorry about that.
Mathew: Why was my acount suspended for non-payment when I had sent payment before the bill was due?
Raselle S: Please hold.
Raselle S: If we will add the device on your account, you will be charge lease fee.
Raselle S: Is that okay with you?
Raselle S: Oops please disregard that.
Raselle S: It shows that there was an advanced payment posted on your account for your June 5 renewal date however your payment method on file is cash in which the system will not immediately recognize the payment posted. However rest assured that the payment you made was successfully applied to your June 5 monthly fee and both services are active.
Raselle S: Everything is all set now.
Raselle S: I really apologize for the inconvinience this has caused you.
Raselle S: Meantime, are there other issues I can help you with?
Mathew: If it's just once, thats ok. But I have to go through this process every month.
Raselle S: Mathew, keeping a credit/debit card on file makes it convenient for you to pay for your services automatically each month. You may want to add a card on file to prevent this from happening.
Raselle S: Or pay your bill before your renewal date.
Mathew: I removed my card from being on file because I was being over-charged.
Raselle S: Your mobile plan renewal date is every 5th of the month. I suggest that you pay every 4th of the month-1 day before renewal date to avoid service interruption.
Mathew: Your records will show where I was credited for the amount I was overcharged.
Mathew: I did that this time.
Mathew: AND I contacted "Karen L" on the 4th to explain that my service would be suspended and she assured me that it would not be, but it was.
Raselle S: Sorry but your payment method on file is cash in which the system will not immediately recognize the payment posted.
Raselle S: This is due to system error and I personally apologize for the inconvenience.
Mathew: I agree it is a system error. I'd like to get it fixed so I don't have to go through this every month.
Mathew: Unless this system error is intentional to punish people like me for not keeping a credit card on file.
Raselle S: Sorry but this not intentional.
Raselle S: I'll be sending a report on this for escalation.
Raselle S: Thanks for bringing this on our attention.
Mathew: How can I follow the escalation of this problem?
Raselle S: Just visit us again here in chat to follow up.
Raselle S: Incident Number: 363936085
Mathew: What is the case number associated with the report?
Mathew: Thank you
Mathew: I appreciate it. I really like your service.
Raselle S: Case 08098361.
Raselle S: You are most welcome, Mathew.
Raselle S: Just to let you know, CLEAR My Account (www.clear.com) is an online account management resource to help customers answer basic billing questions and troubleshoot common service issues.
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Monday, May 13, 2013
Apple and Piracy
If you know me, you know I have always been anti-apple. But the cellphone market being the way it is (complete shit), I gave in and tried an ipod touch. How can I properly hate something if I don't know anything about it?
Apple has developed an interesting mobile OS. From the user's perspective there are no files at all. Only apps.
Picture apps contain pictures. Music apps contain music. Movie apps contain movies. If you delete the app, you also delete all the music or movies that app contained.
This is of course why the itunes software exists and is necessary. The only way to install "files" on the device like music or movies is to use the critical itunes software.
Otherwise, files cannot be shared between apps. Downloaded files cannot be viewed unless the browser is capable of viewing them.
It's a genius method for combating piracy. After all, how can end users share files with each other if they don't even know where the files are, or if there even are files, or what a file even is.
This basically takes what is essentially a computer and turns it into an appliance. A very slick, silky-smooth and snappy appliance. And most people can't tell the difference.
Appliances are closed. Appliances do only what they are designed to do, rather than what they can do. If the Apollo LEM was made by apple it would have been much better than the real LEM at landing on the moon and all the Apollo 13 astronauts would have died.
How can this disparity exist between full-fledged PCs and mobiles? Because the mobile market is so closely tied into the oligopoly of nationwide networks and because the mobile market completely crushed the UMPC market.
Nationwide networks demand draconian control over their handsets and nobody makes UMPCs without cellular radios like the Nokia N800 anymore.
As a result we have no UMPC market and a crummy mobile market just as the technology became good enough to give us awesome devices. Maybe that's the problem... all this fabulous mobile tech is still too new. It's been 5-6 years since apple and android took over the markets from nokia. I say it's time for a rebellion.
I want a UMPC, not a smartphone!
Apple has developed an interesting mobile OS. From the user's perspective there are no files at all. Only apps.
Picture apps contain pictures. Music apps contain music. Movie apps contain movies. If you delete the app, you also delete all the music or movies that app contained.
This is of course why the itunes software exists and is necessary. The only way to install "files" on the device like music or movies is to use the critical itunes software.
Otherwise, files cannot be shared between apps. Downloaded files cannot be viewed unless the browser is capable of viewing them.
It's a genius method for combating piracy. After all, how can end users share files with each other if they don't even know where the files are, or if there even are files, or what a file even is.
This basically takes what is essentially a computer and turns it into an appliance. A very slick, silky-smooth and snappy appliance. And most people can't tell the difference.
Appliances are closed. Appliances do only what they are designed to do, rather than what they can do. If the Apollo LEM was made by apple it would have been much better than the real LEM at landing on the moon and all the Apollo 13 astronauts would have died.
How can this disparity exist between full-fledged PCs and mobiles? Because the mobile market is so closely tied into the oligopoly of nationwide networks and because the mobile market completely crushed the UMPC market.
Nationwide networks demand draconian control over their handsets and nobody makes UMPCs without cellular radios like the Nokia N800 anymore.
As a result we have no UMPC market and a crummy mobile market just as the technology became good enough to give us awesome devices. Maybe that's the problem... all this fabulous mobile tech is still too new. It's been 5-6 years since apple and android took over the markets from nokia. I say it's time for a rebellion.
I want a UMPC, not a smartphone!
Friday, April 19, 2013
R.I.P. Windows System Tray
If you know me, you know I use Linux whenever possible. But I still have to keep a Windows virtual machine around to do things for work.
I can't stand when a computer slows down or freezes for a few seconds. Usually its some useless piece of software or system service running in the background. I go out of my way and use all kinds of specialized diagnostic tools to kill "features" like these.
So as you can imagine, I don't have much in the system tray. A volume icon and a network status symbol is really all I need.
What happened to the system tray? A lot of programs used to put icons there, but I never had trouble killing them. I guess some people did though because M$ made this new way to hide icons in the tray.
Go ahead. Do a google search for how to remove ANY tray icon. You'll find a thousand eager nerds explaining how to hide the icon. Screw hiding them! The point is I don't want their extra resource demands on my system. Nobody has ever thanked a forum member for telling them how to hide their icons.
So look what M$ has done now. In previous versions of Office you could turn off the Outlook tray icon. But not any more. That's not even consistent. You can turn off the Onenote icon.
So the time has come. The system tray has out-lived its usefulness. Now its only a bother. I have no other choice. The best solution now is to just edit the system registry to completely disable the system tray altogether.
Bye bye system tray!
Now if I could only disable the start button like we could in XP.
-----
This blog entry typed entirely... and painfully slowly... on a dvorak.
I can't stand when a computer slows down or freezes for a few seconds. Usually its some useless piece of software or system service running in the background. I go out of my way and use all kinds of specialized diagnostic tools to kill "features" like these.
So as you can imagine, I don't have much in the system tray. A volume icon and a network status symbol is really all I need.
What happened to the system tray? A lot of programs used to put icons there, but I never had trouble killing them. I guess some people did though because M$ made this new way to hide icons in the tray.
Go ahead. Do a google search for how to remove ANY tray icon. You'll find a thousand eager nerds explaining how to hide the icon. Screw hiding them! The point is I don't want their extra resource demands on my system. Nobody has ever thanked a forum member for telling them how to hide their icons.
So look what M$ has done now. In previous versions of Office you could turn off the Outlook tray icon. But not any more. That's not even consistent. You can turn off the Onenote icon.
So the time has come. The system tray has out-lived its usefulness. Now its only a bother. I have no other choice. The best solution now is to just edit the system registry to completely disable the system tray altogether.
Bye bye system tray!
Now if I could only disable the start button like we could in XP.
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This blog entry typed entirely... and painfully slowly... on a dvorak.
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Backward Compatibility
The very first computer I ever used was a Commodore 64.
My current smartphone will run Commodore 64 programs.
The next device I got was the original Nintendo Entertainment System (NES).
My current smartphone will run NES games.
Next I got a x86-compatible PC running MS-DOS.
My current smartphone will run MS-DOS.
Then I got Windows 3.1!
My current smartphone will run Win3.11.
Then I got Windows 95!
My current smartphone will run Win95.
Then I migrated to linux on my PC.
My current smartphone will run linux programs.
Noticing a trend here? It's called backward-compatibility. If the software pre-dates the hardware, it should run on the hardware.
That's the problem with IOS and Android. They are sandboxes designed only to run software specifically designed for them. And it's bleeding over to the PC market. That's bad.
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
gpodder
I love just deleting software that used to work... but then gets "updated"... and now doesn't work for crap any more.
For the longest time I used gpodder as my podcast client. But it quit working. Just doesn't work any more. Removed and re-installed... still doesn't work.
Bam! Gone! Bye bye gpodder!
Who's next?
For the longest time I used gpodder as my podcast client. But it quit working. Just doesn't work any more. Removed and re-installed... still doesn't work.
Bam! Gone! Bye bye gpodder!
Who's next?
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
STEM
I am so frakin tired of hearing about "STEM" programs.
If you're not aware, STEM stands for "Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics." And that's all anybody cares about any more.
If you force students into STEM programs, they will never produce beautiful machines like this:
[pic]
That machine requires extensive knowledge of engineering, technology, and mathematics. But more importantly... it is a work of ART. The body styling has elegance and class. A STEM student could never design that. Marv from Sin City put it best when he said "Modern cars... they all look like electric shavers..."
[pic]
That's what you get from STEM. No thanks.
If you're not aware, STEM stands for "Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics." And that's all anybody cares about any more.
If you force students into STEM programs, they will never produce beautiful machines like this:
[pic]
That machine requires extensive knowledge of engineering, technology, and mathematics. But more importantly... it is a work of ART. The body styling has elegance and class. A STEM student could never design that. Marv from Sin City put it best when he said "Modern cars... they all look like electric shavers..."
[pic]
That's what you get from STEM. No thanks.
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
the Linux Action Show
I used to watch this program called the Linux Action Show. Right up until this week.
Here's what happened:
Last week, host Bryan Lunduke wanted to do something special for the 200th episode of the Linux Action Show (LAS). So he landed a big-name guest to come on the show: Richard Stallman. Bryan thought it would be awesome.
Well it turns out the interview didn't go the way he thought it would. And his 200th episode extravaganza was a dud. Richard and Bryan had completely opposing philosophical viewpoints, and they didn't agree on much. All that is fine. Respectable.
But Bryan was pissed.
As you can imagine, Bryan spent most of the 201st episode ripping on Stallman in his absence. That's fine too, it's his show. Whatever.
But then it turned slanderous. Bryan called Stallman a pedophile, among other things.
When Rush Limbaugh called that girl a prostitute recently, he lost most of his sponsors. LAS only has one sponsor - GoDaddy. I would not be suprised to see GoDaddy pull their funding after this week's episode.
I might watch next week's episode just to see if Bryan issues a formal apology. If not, I won't be listening to him anymore.
After all, the whole point of the show is to learn about linux. If I wanted to learn who was a pedophile I could go to the sex offenders registry.
Here's what happened:
Last week, host Bryan Lunduke wanted to do something special for the 200th episode of the Linux Action Show (LAS). So he landed a big-name guest to come on the show: Richard Stallman. Bryan thought it would be awesome.
Well it turns out the interview didn't go the way he thought it would. And his 200th episode extravaganza was a dud. Richard and Bryan had completely opposing philosophical viewpoints, and they didn't agree on much. All that is fine. Respectable.
But Bryan was pissed.
As you can imagine, Bryan spent most of the 201st episode ripping on Stallman in his absence. That's fine too, it's his show. Whatever.
But then it turned slanderous. Bryan called Stallman a pedophile, among other things.
When Rush Limbaugh called that girl a prostitute recently, he lost most of his sponsors. LAS only has one sponsor - GoDaddy. I would not be suprised to see GoDaddy pull their funding after this week's episode.
I might watch next week's episode just to see if Bryan issues a formal apology. If not, I won't be listening to him anymore.
After all, the whole point of the show is to learn about linux. If I wanted to learn who was a pedophile I could go to the sex offenders registry.
Second-System Effect
According to wikipedia:
The second-system effect refers to the tendency of small, elegant, and successful systems to have elephantine, feature-laden monstrosities as their successors.
You know... like Windows.
Or like my car. Or the space program.
People underestimate the value of cutting unnecessary things.
The second-system effect refers to the tendency of small, elegant, and successful systems to have elephantine, feature-laden monstrosities as their successors.
You know... like Windows.
Or like my car. Or the space program.
People underestimate the value of cutting unnecessary things.
Friday, March 16, 2012
Cheap Tablet How-To
Like the new iPad? Can't afford it? No problem!
If you have a laptop, you are in luck! You can turn your laptop into a tablet.
First open the program called "virtual on-screen keyboard."
Now, cover your keyboard in duct tape.
Boom! Tablet!
If you have a laptop, you are in luck! You can turn your laptop into a tablet.
First open the program called "virtual on-screen keyboard."
Now, cover your keyboard in duct tape.
Boom! Tablet!
Hand Sanitizer
Did you know....
Hand sanitizers with less than 66% alcohol content are ineffective at killing bacteria.
Water is twice as effective as hand sanitizer at removing viruses from skin.
Hand sanitizers will not kill bacteria that is mixed with oil, dirt, grease, or other foreign matter. Skin produces such oils.
Hand sanitizer is not a replacement for regular soap and water.
Hand sanitizer can contribute to a weakened immune system.
So when someone tells you "just a little squirt won't hurt," smack them.
Some bacteria are good. And even bad bacteria give your immune system exercise. Your immune system is kinda like a combine harvester --- it goes after bacteria with a vengeance. If you take all the bacteria away... your immune system will find something else to attack. Maybe YOU!
Hand sanitizers with less than 66% alcohol content are ineffective at killing bacteria.
Water is twice as effective as hand sanitizer at removing viruses from skin.
Hand sanitizers will not kill bacteria that is mixed with oil, dirt, grease, or other foreign matter. Skin produces such oils.
Hand sanitizer is not a replacement for regular soap and water.
Hand sanitizer can contribute to a weakened immune system.
So when someone tells you "just a little squirt won't hurt," smack them.
Some bacteria are good. And even bad bacteria give your immune system exercise. Your immune system is kinda like a combine harvester --- it goes after bacteria with a vengeance. If you take all the bacteria away... your immune system will find something else to attack. Maybe YOU!
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