Category: Linkfests

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Here’s the Attitude We Need in Our Politicians

If I could find this attitude in but one politician, I’d vote for him for emperor.

Let the righteous strike me;
It shall be a kindness.
And let him rebuke me;
It shall be as excellent oil;
Let my head not refuse it.
–Psalm 141:5

Fat chance finding a politician *spit* with that kind of genuine humility. They used to call such persons “statesmen” until the breed became extinct.

(BTW, our political leaders could all benefit from a culling of the herd by means similar to the voice “juries” I experienced as a youthful voice student. Insightful criticism by folks who know what they’re talking about and whose critique cannot be gainsayed. But who among the foxes could we select to guard against the foxes ruling the hen house? Perhaps once upon a time, in some halcyon age of yore, citizens performed such a function upon our chosen representatives, but now, since most voters are culturally, historically and even functionally illiterate, greedy, lazy bums, what we get are culturally, historically and even functionally illiterate, greedy, and stupidly crooked–are you listening, Tom Daschle? Of course not–representatives of the electorate to serve as foxes in the hen house.)

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Groundhog Day

While the Emperor tries on yet another set of new clothes today, the Repugnican’ts, who’ve, among other recent egregious sins, proffered their own approval of a fox to rule the henhouse to please His Royal Haughtiness, look ready to continue to bend over backwards while straddling a fence , the Earth mocks The Goracle while seemingly readying for Fimbulwinter1 and the Little Foxes2 lay their plans to spoil the vinyard.

Can it be that the groundhog won’t even emerge to view its shadow today? If he’s half as smart as a head of cabbage, Mr. Groundhog will curl up in his den and dream of being the Rip Van Winkle of the animal kingdom.

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Shadetree Tech: Dreadlock Wigs and Chicken Bone Rattles

“Make the world go away… ” Thanks Eddie Arnold (and Hank Cochran) for that thought. In that spirit, no politics, social commentary or whatever from the “news” here, just play time for (low) techies.

Think back to “shadetree mechanics” and… begin.

Some of the fun of playing around with computers is attempting to use them–and “(in)appropriate” peripherals–for purposes they weren’t originally intended for. Now, we’ve all done that with computers from time to time: made them into hardware firewalls/routers, print servers, doorstops, boat anchors, shelving supports and more–or at least I assume we’ve all done so. *heh*

Ran across a neat lil peripheral recently as the result of some printing woes here at twc central. Background: because I’m a cheap, tightwad of a curmudgeon, I decreed some time ago that we all simply share one printer on the network (nice to be the potentate ruling my own domain *heh*). Currently, that printer is a nice HP AIO with memory card reader that’ll catch the memory cards from any (digital) camera in the house, scan, copy, print, etc. Then, along came my (completely unnecessary) upgrade of Ubuntu from 8.04 to 8.10. Since the printer at issue is connected to this computer (I have the largest desk, so by default EVERYTHING gravitates to it), naturally sharing ANYTHING–not just the printer–died with the upgrade.

*sigh* I fixed network shares pretty easily, except for the printer. Went right down the line by “the book”–no joy. Went off book with a vengeance. No joy. Hassled with the thing off and on for a couple of days and gave in and bought the HP Wireless Printing Upgrade Kit. Got my confirmation email from amazon.com that it had been shipped.

Shazam!! Printer magically appeared on other computers as shared.

Isn’t that the way it always works? Better than wearing a dreadlock wig and shaking a chicken bone rattle while mumbling arcana and dancing around, perhaps shrieking like a bansidhe* to boot. Just buy something to fix a problem and the problem disappears. *heh*

So, now I have the HP Wireless Printing Upgrade Kit and no need for it. What to do? Go ahead and screw up the working network printing by installing the kit and then spending days getting IT working? (Altogether too likely *heh*) I don’t think so. So, what else is the thing good for?

Looked at the thing. Can’t tell anything from the outside, so just thought over what topology the kit would have to introduce/fit into to work as advertised. Checked out the “advanced” setup mini-micro-nano-information on the CD concerning using the thing on an existing wireless network. *heh* “Looks like it’s just an access point and a wireless adapter the software configures for the printer use,” me thought. Plugged the part that looks like a thumb drive or wireless network adapter for a n otebook into this computer, enabled wireless networking, entered the network key and… bob’s your uncle. (Of course, enabling wireless networking has meant the wireless connection has usurped my network connection from my wired ethernet, but since the MIMO capabilities on my Netgear WPN824 seem to be used by the lil wireless adapter, I’m getting very nearly the same throughput I do with wired ethernet.)

Next up: installing the unit designed for (USB) attachment to the printer to the network elsewhere (say, an old XBox, using an already adapted XBox cable–a simple hardware hack) and see if it’ll act as the wireless access point it would seem it is. Heck, I might get more use out of this for entertainment value than by using it for its intended purpose. And, if networked printing goes south on me again, I can always pop this lil puppy out and install it for its intended purpose, eh?

Now, how can I retask that old 2.5′ tall P-II server I had made into a router/firewall… Ahhh! Attach it to the network as a subnet and play with the lil kit items on it. Hey! Might be able to make that back into my primary router/firewall, since its firewall capabilities exceed similar functions in the Netgear router…

All kinds of fun to keep me occupied away from getting more important stuff done, if I want it to let it. 😉

(Yes, this post does indicate I’m semi-sorta-kinda “icebound” for now. Just do not want to navigate the hill out of our lil neighborhood on the sheet ice I walked earlier.)

*”Bansidhe”–Don’t complain to me about the spelling! Complain to the bansidhes, if you dare! Spell it “banshee” if you want, but don’t come running to me if you wake up with one of ’em shrieking under your window at night because of your inconsiderate spelling…

Note to any bansidhes reading this: I really, really need my sleep, and I tried to discourage folks from disrespectful spellings referencing your class, so lay off, OK? 😉

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Quick Tip

Sure, you keep all your software licenses safely filed in hardcopy in a filing cabinet or box, but if you need to reinstall software, it can be a real pain digging ’em out and typing the silly things in. At least half of the software you have that requires a typed-in license code will take it all in one text block, instead of requiring the silly and laborious type-n-tab-n-type-n… etc., that darned near every Messy$oft product now requires, so having a text file (saved on the computer AND backed up to external media) can be a real hassle reducer.

But what if it’s just a few pieces like that and you don’t want to even dig around for a text file and search through it, etc.?

I “triple up” and every time I get an email verification of software purchase (I purchase almost all software that I do buy over the internet; don’t you?), I will save that email–if it has a license code–in a folder that’s ONLY for those emails or “Edit as new” and insert any license, SAVE and then move it from Drafts to the folder designated for software licenses. That way, I don’t even have to open a file browser or browse through to my licenses folder on my hard drive with a text editor to open and view the license for a reinstallation, because my email client is ALWAYS open on one of my desktops (CTRL-ALT-ARROW KEY to proper desktop, if necessary, CLICK on licenses folder in email client, click on software license email and copy the license.) Lil bitty time saver/hassle reducer. Nothing big, but sure has been handy for me

Oh, and in case of a system crash? Have hard copy filed away and backed up text file (after all, what’s the good of being ABLE to back up all my data in case of emergency if I don’t do it? And email backups in the case of Thunderbird are muuuuch easier to do and easier to reimport on a new installthan on Outlook or Outlook Express.)

Oh, backups? I know what software I have installed (and have backups of installation files for purchased software) and reinstallation of Ubuntu and my other software is moderately fast n easy, almost trivial, so data only. Less time and media taken in backups, as safe as houses. I may move to a NAS solution to backups, soon, as Seagate terabyte drives are becoming almost commodity-priced (and Seagate’s year warranty is unsurpassed in the field) and NAS-enabled external cases are also becoming inexpensive and widely available. For around $150, a 1TB NAS? Doable. And it’d be a nice, easy way to externalize one form of backup (I’d still want optical media stored in fireproof safe and hardcopy where appropriate as well). And at least as inexpensive up front–and less expensive in power consumption–as adding a decent SATA interface to an old computer and plopping in a big drive. Besides: small case for single purpose over big case for single purpose. Almost no-brainer, eh?

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Mexico in Turmoil?

Newsmax is a sensationalist purveyor of new slanted to appeal to pseudo conservatives, but ya know, even a blind pig and all that…

U.S. Military: Mexico Could Collapse Under Drug Violence

The article’s one of Newsmax’s more balanced screeds, and if its news content is reliable (and it appears to be–moreso than usual), my response is twofold:

Well, it’s about time!

and

How the U.S. should respond.

It’s about time that the kleptocratic kakistocracy that’s ruled Mexico for years reaps the whirlwind it’s sown. (Of course, I could say the same of our own “feddle gummint” *sigh*). Mexico has long been (rightly) said to be a pauper sitting on a gold mine, oppressed by thieves. It’s about time the thieves’ chickens come home to roost.

And how should the U.S. respond?

*Build the damned fence, already!

*Station sniper posts and machine gun nests along our southern border with ROE allowing “shoot to obliterate” any incursions not at legal entry points.

*Rigidly, harshly, enforce laws penalizing employers who hire illegal aliens. Place the burden of prrof that all employees are legal residents of the U.S. squarely on emploers’ shoulders and then a boot on the necks of those who fail to comply. Force illegals out of jobs.

*Kill ALL social services (save for legitimate medical emergecies) to illegal aliens.

Bye-bye Juan y Maria (if you be illegal).

*Streamline the process for LEGAL entry into this country, so that those who seek to obey our laws and respect our customs have a MUCH easier time finding LEGAL entry into our society.

The last cannot be stressed too much. Without providing a legitimate entry point, we cannot honorably close our borders to those who seek to abuse our hospitality. As it stands now, the process for legal entry actually favors terrorists* while placing roadblocks in the way of folks who’d be a net benefit to our society.

OK, will the U.S. do these sensible things? twc’s prediction: when pigs fly, hell freezes over and voters execise some common sense–none of which I expect to see in my lifetime.

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*Am I saying that easing requirements for visas for Saudis favors terrorists? Damn skippy I am! Iran and Saudi Arabia: the two biggest funders of international terrorism. Until the governments of those places SHUT DOWN the funding avenues for terrorism, they are both terrorist governments, AFAIAC. And I do NOT accept the Saudis’ disingenuous protestations of compliance. *feh* As long as the Saudis allow the proclamation of violent jihad and citizens who actively engage in funding terrorists aren’t put to death there, I throw the bullshit flag on them all. The Saudis should have been the FIRST to experience the “shock and awe” of the full force of American military might. Period.

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The Road Ahead, 1.5

In line with the other “Road Ahead, volume 1” posts, here’s a suggestion: you have (or have access to) a computer or you’d not be reading this. If you’re not already using some sort of personal finance software to budget and plan for the future, get off your a$$… ets and Just Do It. Here are three tightwad-satisfying, cross-platform suggestions (there are certainly others, but these have strong followings):

Buddi

Gnu Cash

Home Bank

Free software to manage your personal finances. Words to warm the cockles of any tightwad’s heart.

(Addendum: For those who may read this but who have only access to someone else’s computer, not one of their own, Gnu Cash is available in a portable version one can carry on a USB flash drive and use on almost any computer that has available USB ports. Two other portable money management softwares are available at the linked site as well.)

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The Fifth Labor of Hercules

–the Augean Stables. Hercules was a piker.

My office is worse. Again. If I seem absent for the next few days, maybe that’s the reason.

🙂

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The Joys of eBooks

I could list a tons of benefits eBooks offer, from cost (zero for Gutenberg.org and other PD sites’ eBooks to very modest for a book still under copyright) to readability (yes, readability: I read almost all the eBooks I download in my web browser, often at 200%-300% magnification, nice for older eyes), but one benefit stands out: Googling (or other search engine use).

Example:

Actually, it was a spread spectrum signal that worked a lot like 802.11b wireless data transmission protocol, only it was centered somewhere around 1.42 gigahertz. Roger could not place it but that particular radio frequency meant something to him.

[Edit] OK, what happened to the whole paragraphs following the blockquote? I dunno… Should have said something like,

1.42 gigahertz? Sounded familiar to me, too, so… highlight, right-click, choose my search engine and… SETI. Of course.

Now, how easy would that have been were I reading a dead tree book? Not very.

Fun stuff.

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Beer, good; TV, bad

I halfway kinda wanted to see the weird cop show, “Life,” last night, but only halfway, kinda. Instead, I spent the hour bottling a little over three gallons of Georgy Porgy Molasses Beer using about half and half screwtop 12oz bottles and 12oz bottles capped with my shiny new bottle capper.

Yeh, yeh, I know: recycling screwtop bottle caps on screwtop bottles is supposed to be a no-no, but I’ve had no problem even with the over-carbonated hard apple cider bottles, so I figured, why not? Admittedly, new bottle caps on non-screwtop bottles is faster, slicker, but since I have about a peck of reusable screwtop bottle caps and BOXES of the bottles to go with ’em, why not?

Still, I have to admit, the Sam Adams and New Belgium bottles are much nicer than the Red Killian (and other) screwtop bottles. But I also hope to be turning some of those into glasses in coming months.

Oh, I did bottle 51+oz in two sparkling grape (non-alcoholic) bottles left over from my Wonder Woman’s holiday sipping (yes, she shared). I’ll have to pour those in two glasses apiece, but Son&Heir will help out there, I’m sure.

Tomorrow evening, I need to bottle a couple of gallons of “Canadian Draft” brew. That I’ll bottle in some empty Grolsch swingtops, 16oz per bottle. I’ve found those seal well enough that I can drink ’em in two separate 8oz glasses, with some hours between, if I desire, with no loss of flavor or carbonation I can detect.

Next? Some lager, some more W(h)ine (still have about half a gallon of the last batch left) and another couple of batches of molasses or other beers. Maybe some strawberry w(h)ine or something even weirder. I won’t run out of bottles, because between Son&Heir and I, we manage about 28oz-32oz per day of the beers, less of the cider and w(h)ine. *huh*? Yep. Don’t drink much. Sometimes it’s less, cos he doesn’t have a beer every day (wise, Grasshopper, wise), and I only have one to two per day max. Of course, sometimes that’s one 16oz beer or two 12oz beers OR one 12oz cider (the cider seesm to be about 2X the alcohol content, on average, of the beers, measured by taste and effect on me–I don’t have a hydrometer that’s calibrated to measure alcohol content… yet).

All-in-all, a fun and tasty (and cheap) amusement that adds some health benefits to my daily diet.

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41-39-51321

There’s more to a number than meets the eye. See the kerfuffle over The Obamassiah’s supposed selctive service registration over at Debbie Schlussel’s.

*whew!* The guy can’t even prove he was born, let alone where. Claims multiple dates for draft registration, none of which seem to match up with the documentation made availabe through a FOIA request. Secretive about his academic record. Can’t recollect long, intimate working relationships with unrepentant terrorists. Denies saying things he’s on video saying, etc.

Hmmm, sounds like a 21st century politician *spit* all right.

(And yes, there more to the number that is this post’s title than meets the eye… )

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