Last week, I had to get my laptop re-imaged. I had fouled up either my hive, or the install of Windows, so it had become incredibly unstable. Probably my fault. (ok, almost certainly my fault). It has taken a week to get back to functional. All the key software is installed. The settings are back to where I like them (for power options etc), and I got all the essential drivers sorted (you really...
After being in Chandler for a year, I do have some things that I miss from Tucson. The weather – The predictable, and at times wild summer Monsoons. The smells of the desert after a storm is intoxicating. The critters – The den of gila monsters near our house, the snakes (gopher and diamond back rattlesnakes). The Colorful banded lizards, the cotton tail rabbits, the javelinas, the...
About 8 months ago, on a whim I bought a Nexus 7. Really to be used for testing websites I work on for how they look on that size screen, a few months ago I decided to give Android a fair shake. Caveat: I have been an Apple person since 2002 or so, and have been with iOS since the original iPhone, so I am clearly a biased opinion. The fair shake involved me using the Nexus 7 for all my media...
I have long been a James Bond fan. Started in the Roger Moore era, then the Pierce Brosnan era, and the single Timothy Dalton episode. Then I detoured though the Sean Connery set of masterpieces. Loved them all. But the new ones, with Daniel Craig as Bond are the best. Yes, the effects are amazing, but they always were the best that their time had to offer. The stories are better. They are more...
Thinking back to 2007, and the launch of the original iPhone, I remember the outcry over the fact that the iPhone didn’t render Adobe Flash content. Lots of predictions of doom and gloom for the device (although no cellphones at the time really supported it). As a Mac person, I have long loathed Flash. The implementation on the Mac was buggy and a huge resource hog. I would have to run a...
Last weekend, I posted about the demise of my faithful Swing-a-way can opener. I had that opener for probably 20 years. It had been a good kitchen tool, but it was finally wearing out. The parent company, Amco, still sells the Swing-a-way opener, and I was going to go that route, but the reviews on Amazon were pretty negative. In a familiar story, Amco closed up their US operation, moved the...
Microsoft, Apple, Thunderbird (indeed, all MUA’s): It is time to remove the “reply all” option. I know that there are valid use cases for it, but alas, the general population has failed to grasp the implications of this seemingly innocuous button on their email. Yes, there are times that people really really do want to spam their colleagues like it was a listserv, but this is an...
A few weeks ago, it was a madhouse at the local Fry’s supermarket. Packed to the gills, and tons of rude people. Alas, I stumbled across a woman doing extreme couponing. She had an expanding file folder that was literally stuffed with coupons, and a shopping cart full os odd items. This caused me to recall why I am not really a fan of coupons. It is an American dream to get a good deal...
I have to say goodbye to an old friend. We have been together for a long time. Probably 20 years or so, a good run. Alas, all good things must come to an end. All the cans we have opened. All the meals we shared. You have been reliable and faithful. Always there when needed. You never demanded much, but always ready for an adventure. Lately, you have been slipping your gears. No longer able to...
When I was growing up, in a suburb of Sunnyvale, the neighborhood was typical. Single family dwellings, clean yards, lots of grass, and busy professionals who worked at Lockheed or Westinghouse. There were a couple of enterprising youths who leveraged this situation by mowing lawns. $5 a week, they had their own power mower and edger, and would come and keep your lawns in good shape. Just about...