third world county – Page 354 – "In a democracy (‘rule by mob’), those who refuse to learn from history will be the majority and will dictate that everyone else suffer for their ignorance."

February 9, 2008

Macs are sooooo easy! (Not)

Page on down on this post at Chaos Manor (View) for the rest of the comments excerpted below:

I am beginning to hate Macs. I cannot empty the trash. I get a message saying that “Send to” is blocked. To empty everything in the trash including locked items press the option key while selecting Empty Trash. Needless to say I have pressed the option key until I am blue in the face. It won’t empty the trash…

…NOW I CANNOT MOVE SOME OF THE ITEMS from the trash to the foo folder. I do not have sufficient privileges!!! The MAC is protecting me from deleting old Windows backup files. I don’t have sufficient privileges. This may be the stupidest operating system yet with the possible exception of Vista.

Ye gods!!!

After consulting with 6 Unix gurus, active Mac users, he finally ended up with…

Plugging back in the external hard drive I was informed that it is unreadable, and disk utility opened. It offers to reformat…

…Macs are great if you’re me, with access to lots of advisors. I am not so sure about Aunt Minnie.

Macs are “intuitive” and “easy to use” if you already think like an Apple programmer (and sometimes that’s not even sufficient *heh*). If not, they can be terribly frustrating machines, largely because with a Mac it’s “The Apple way or the highway, bud,” and that’s that.

Once again, may I offer PCBSD, which has essentially the same (BSD) Unix underpinnings as Mac OSX without the quirky Mac straightjacket?

At least it’s not Mac OSX…

*heh*

Trackposted to The Midnight Sun, The Random Yak, A Blog For All, Shadowscope, The Pink Flamingo, Big Dog’s Weblog, Wake Up America, A Newt One, Dumb Ox Daily News, Adeline and Hazel, Right Voices, and The Yankee Sailor, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

February 8, 2008

Hobson’s Choice

“A Hobson’s choice is a free choice in which only one option is offered, and one may refuse to take that option. The choice is therefore between taking the option or not taking it. The phrase is said to originate from Thomas Hobson (1544–1630), a livery stable owner at Cambridge, England who, in order to rotate the use of his horses, offered customers the choice of either taking the horse in the stall nearest the door—or taking none at all. It is analagous to the expression ‘my way or the highway’.”¹

Well, the presidential field is narrowed even further, it seems. Now, we have a choice between candidates who want to drive the country off a cliff to its doom at 120mph and candidates who want to drive the country off a cliff at a sedate 75mph…

Not really much of a choice.

Makes the case for striving to see congresscritters, state and local pols elected who give a damn about more than just their own personal power and their “Surrender, America!” ideologies. (And if you think for one minute Juan McCain’s “surrender America’s sovereignty at the borders” position isn’t fundamentally the same as the other candidates’ “Surrender America” positions then you are sadly deluded.)

Look closely at candidates for Congress, for state and local offices. Vote “Hell no!” against those whose positions fail to defend the U.S., your State or locality against the evils of alien invasion and… invasive government. Vote for people with the [intestinal fortitude] to tell “Surrender America!” judges, executives and bureaucrats to take a quick ride on the express train to hell.

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February 6, 2008

More from the illiterate alien invaders…

On May 1, 2006, I posted “The Proper Display of the Mexican Flag on American Soil” in partial response to alien invaders disrespecting the American flag and displaying the Mexican flag above it… on American soil. I have left comments open for that and for another post in response to the alien invaders partially because I enjoy gleaning dumbass reactions like the one above (from a computer logged on via the Tallahassee, Florida, Broward County Public Schools… of course *heh*)

Victoria Garcia | www.teardrop_13_SG@hotmail.com | IP: 169.139.119.16

All american are some stupid a** who think that you belong here. First of all we were here before you all so if you think that we should go back to our country we R already here. WHITE poeple should hop back on to the MayFlower & go back to BRITIN!
OH AND WE R MEXICAN 4 LIFE NOT LATINOS, LATINOS R RICANS

Feb 6, 11:33 AM

The illiterate boob styling herself (?) “Victoria Garcia” fisks herself; I need make no further comment… but I will, of course.

If you check the comments on that post, you’ll see a sizeable number who share the illiterate boob’s sentiments, essentially, “Gringo, go home!” Of course, that begs the question, if the gringos “go home” how long will it take for the illiterate boob alien invaders to turn America into… the country(ies) they fled? Couldn’t make a success in Mexico, so they came here where the “gringos” had built the most productive, prosperous society in history. Now they want to turn it into the economic and social failure they fled?

Dumbasses.

Be sure and send teardrop_13_SG@hotmail.com a note of thanks for the entertainment “her” idiocy brought you (and, what the heck, visit the Broward County Public Schools website and congratulate them on the fine, fine job they’re doing “edumacatin'” this alien invader… *heh*).

And while you’re at it, why not make up a bumper sticker or three reading “Surrender Our Borders: Vote for Juan “SNake” McCain”

😉

Trackposted to Outside the Beltway, The Virtuous Republic, Rosemary’s Thoughts, Allie is Wired, Woman Honor Thyself, The World According to Carl, A Newt One- BIG THURSDAY GUEST!, The Pink Flamingo, Big Dog’s Weblog, Cao’s Blog, Dumb Ox Daily News, A Newt One, Conservative Cat, Right Voices, and The Yankee Sailor, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

February 5, 2008

“Super” (disgusting) Tuesday

Well, I’ll cast my vote a little later today in my state’s participation in the “Super” (disgusting) Tuesday event. Don’t worry about my vote; I’ll find some way to cast it for “None of the above”…

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February 4, 2008

Petition: Berkeley v. Marines, an issue of free speech/association

By now, most readers of this blog have heard that

…the City Council of Berkeley has declared that United States Marine Corps recruiters are “uninvited and unwelcome intruders” within city limits and applauds those who choose to “impede” the Marines in their recruiting mission…

Take a few moments to visit

A Petition in Support of the U.S. Marine Corps Against the 29 January 2008 Resolutions of the Berkeley City Council

…and perhaps sign the petition, before forwarding the information to everyone you feel should view it.

Trackposted to Right Pundits, Rosemary’s Thoughts, Woman Honor Thyself, Right Truth, A Newt One- Shared News!, The World According to Carl, DragonLady’s World, Pirate’s Cove, The Pink Flamingo, Leaning Straight Up, Dumb Ox Daily News, and Stageleft, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

February 4, 2008February 4, 2008

“One CLICK to rule them all… “

…and in the shadows bind them…

I recently recieved feedback on an email where I’d referred the readers to a page and included download instructions (for a book on intelligence). Part of the instructions were “Right-Click on the link… ” The feedback I recieved? From a Mac user, paraphrased, “Right-click? What’s that?”

Well, obviously that was from a traditional Mac user. Contemporary Intel Macs often come with multi-button/multi-function mice that do not require keyboard-one-button mouse combos to emulate the functionality Windows and Linux users have long enjoyed. Traditional one-button Mac mice were apparently based on the Apple assumption (or perhaps it was solid research into the Mac user base) that MAc users couldn’t handle anything as complex as two-button mice, either because of the extreme mental effort required to manage such a large number (2) or because of poor physical coordination.

Regardless, it seem that in order to attract more users, Apple has had to adopt more and more features from the PC side of the divide (along with th hardware it has been adopting for years until now it simply sells PCs with the Mac OS tacked on), and true multi-function mice are now available for Mac users as well as the rest of the world, which has had them for many years.

Now, that’s “innovation” eh?

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February 2, 2008February 2, 2008

NASA/USAF Poo the Scrooch

*heh*

USAF/NASA Red Tape Cancels Launch of Model Rockets

“The planned launch of 50 Juno I model rockets from Cape Canaveral to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Explorer I launch has now been cancelled by the station’s wing commander. Although the CCAFS has no qua[l]ms about launching Deltas, Atlas and other massive rockets, they go into a complete tither when it comes down to launching a 12 inch long model rocket made of balsa wood and paper weighing just under 2 oz…

“…Thus, all over America on January 31, 2008 school kids and adults will celebrate the the day that the US Army launched Explorer I into space by launching model rockets. In spite of the winter conditions, the launches will take place in parks and school yards and back yards all over the United States- every place EXCEPT for Cape Canaveral.

“In 1958, the US Army restored the nation’s pride following Sputnik, but it seems that in 2008, the Air Force and NASA cannot even get out of their own red taped way to launch a simple rocket made of balsa wood and paper.”

A bit more at the link.

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February 1, 2008February 4, 2008

OK, I’m trying really hard to “get” the idea of an iMac

iMacs look cool. And they’re undoubtedly well-made. Heck, getting one with OSX “Leopard” installed is guaranteed to make a computing experience mostly pleasant, no doubt.

But. “On Sale” at MacMall:

iMac 24″ Intel Core 2 Duo 2.16 GHz
24″, 2.16GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 1GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM, 250GB SATA, DVD-R/CD-RW Super Drive 8x, 10/100/1000 BASE-T Enet, Built-in AirPort Extreme, Bluetooth 2.0, Built-in iSight, OS X 10.5 Leopard: Only ~~$1,499.00~~ $1,399.00

Let’s see: I have no use for bluetooth. I won’t be using any computer as a primary viewing device for DVDs, etc. I do NOT like having to add capabilities via a mess of USB cabling or wireless external devices strung out all over, preferring to add such things whenever possible IN the computer case–and the iMac AIO “feature” pretty much precludes such use. Oh, the “Built-in iSight”? *pfui* The things are regularly available for between $1 and $10 all over the place. I guess “built-in” (meaning non-user-configurable aiming/focusing, or at least highly limited) is soooo much better, eh?

Then there’s the wonderfully low price for the thing. *pfui* I can build a computer (including two 17″ LCD displays–better for my use than one 24″ by far) that has a faster processor (still X86, just like the iMac), has more memory, twice the hard drive space, wireless kybd/mouse, a GREAT (not “Super” *heh*) DVDRW drive, etc. for about $500 or so. (Yes, I have run the numbers, cos I’m looking at building–read “assembling”–another personal box Real Soon Now, anyway.) Plunk in PCBSD or Ubuntu and even a spare copy of WinXP, or just use WINE. (OK, if I were to have to buy another copy of WinXP Pro, it’d cost me about $90 or so.)

Heck, I’d even include a nice floppy drive for backward compatibility and not go above my $500 mark.

All with good quality components and room for expansion and adding more features in the box any time I wanted to.

I can even make the thing use a GUI with a “Mac-like” look and feel if I wish (done it, but didn’t much care for it–strictly personal taste), and with PCBSD even use the same basic UNIX Apple uses with OSX.

So, spend about three times what it should cost just to get something that looks cool but takes up no less desktop space (yeh: sit the ordinary PC “tower” on the floor where it belongs, OK?) and locks the user into the OSX straightjacket.

Sorry, I’m still not “getting it”.

/rant

But I’m sure it works really well for folks who need a hand-holding, training wheels computing experience, and that’s just fine; it’s a perfectly good option for folks who are less hands on and feel comfortable throwing money around as though it pours out of a firehose. I’m just too much of a tightwad, and I prefer having my computers do things my way.

Heck, I think that these iMacs are the ONLY thing that should be allowed in “Assisted Computing Facilities”–*LOL*

“Here, dearie, let me make that mouse click for you…”

*heh*

I’m sure Medicare or some other fedgov thingy would pay for it.

/rant off

Now, what I really don’t get is those folks who buy an iMac… and then immediately install Microsoft Office on it. What’s with that? *heh*

January 31, 2008July 14, 2015

T-13; 2.03: Thirteen Health Benefits of… Coffee

Coffee, THE number one Holy Brew has a bad rap among the twittering masses. Here are a few of the many ways coffee is a blessing:

1.) Lowers risk of diabetes¹

2.) Lowers risk of Parkinson’s¹

3. Lowers risk of colon cancer¹

4.) Mood enhancer¹

5.) Headache treatment¹ (“…a single dose of pain reliever such as Anacin or Excedrin contains up to 120 milligrams” of caffeine. *heh*)

6.) Useful as a paliative in Adult ADD/ADHD² (medicating children out of their right minds is another issue entirely *sigh*).

7.) Some research indicates drinking coffee helps prevent dental caries³

8.) Helps in asthma management.¹

9.) Enhances athletic performance. ⁴ (Of course, for me that means the ability to walk briskly to the network closet to reset a router… :-))

10.) Coffee with milk daily=less childhood depression.⁴ (But of course! Who wouldn’t have (had) a better childhood with a daily dose of The Holy Brew #1? *heh*)

11.) Oops. Left out lowers risk of breast, liver and rectal cancer.⁵

12.) With over four times the active anti-oxidants found in tea, coffee is better at providing the heart-health benefits often touted for that beverage.⁶

13.) Despite what you may have heard (even from so-called medical professionals) the evidence is that coffee does NOT cause elevated blood pressure and poses no risk for those who have high blood pressure.⁵. Oh, and coffee is no more diuretic than plain old everyday water.⁶

I could go on, but I think you get the point,

O Blessed, Holy Caffeine Tree!

Midi File:

Mp3 File (Courtesy of the Morning Coffee and Afternoon Tea Singers):

Go ahead; sing along. 🙂

(This mp3 is a lower-sampling-rate version of trhe one at the Morning Coffee and Afternoon Tea link above.)

Oh, and here’s another verse, not included in the verses above:

O Blessed Holy Caffeine Tree,
In gratitude I sing of thee,
For all the ways you give life zest,
O Caffeine Tree, you are the best!

N.B.–The graphic above has a word-switch in the second verse that I need to get around to editing. First one to spot it gets two brownie points, redeemable for absolutely nothing but a pat on the back and a hearty “Attaboy/girl!”

🙂

If you wish to use this song for your personal amusement, just print it out and/or download or record the MIDI file. Do NOT remove the copyright information and do NOT reproduce multiple copies for use by a group unless

1.) You credit me and
2.) Notify me of its use in a group/choral setting and
3.) Provide me with a recording of any performance

Do NOT download or otherwise reproduce the mp3 recording Christine of Morning Coffee and Afternoon Tea made without contacting HER and asking HER permission to do so.

Do not use this material in any way to produce income or for sale or distribution without my permission. Period. Ever. Clear?

If you have any questions just email me at mnmus@thirdworldcounty.us

Noted at The Thursday Thirteen Hub and Trackposted to The Virtuous Republic, Rosemary’s Thoughts, The Random Yak, Right Truth, Shadowscope, Pirate’s Cove, Big Dog’s Weblog, Cao’s Blog, Leaning Straight Up, The Pet Haven, A Newt One, Conservative Cat, Adeline and Hazel, Right Voices, and The Yankee Sailor, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

January 30, 2008January 30, 2008

“I mock you with my monkey pants”

(Thanks for the post title, Oz)

One of my favorite times of the year is here. For the next month or so, I get to mock all the illiterati, lazy bums and idiots who can’t pronounce February correctly. Happy-happy-joy-joy for a curmudgeon! *heh* Heck, I’ve gotten an early start, as I’ve listened to professional babblers mispronounce it as Feb-YOU-ary for the last week or so. Idiots. Lazy bums. Illiterati. Happy-happy-joy-joy. 🙂

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