Messages

76

Living Room / Re: Our experiences with LED light bulb replacements

« on: May 16, 2014, 07:39 PM »

Haven't encountered those.  Looks intriguing.

77

Living Room / Re: Our experiences with LED light bulb replacements

« on: May 16, 2014, 03:13 PM »

Been using CF and LED bulbs for ~two (2) years.  Garage light is a CF equivalent to a 200W incandescent, but uses between 1/3-1/2 the power.  Several desk lamps with multiple small LEDs, usually ~thirty-six (36) have been working just fine to illuminate various keyboards and desktops.  Not super bright, but adequate.  Have a couple of torchiere floor lamps with variable controls for light levels.  Cannot get super dim, but dim enough, I suppose.  Significant power bill reductions, although I cannot quote values, as this has been happening over time.  Now looking for 100W ceiling fan replacement lights with variable capability.  Also looking for 40W equivalent bulbs for a spider light with five (5) elements and variable lighting, but I suspect that may take a while.  Biggest gripe I have is converting watts to lumens  .

Considering that I'm pretty much planning on dying here, the costs are not significant, since I'll prolly never have to replace a bulb - except for experimental purposes, of course.  Only other LED I need to find is a weather-proof variant for the front porch.  Not difficult to find, but too many choices, so the choices can get confusing pretty quickly.

I wish now that I had kept better track of power and billing as the project grew, but that didn't seem significant at the time  , as that was not a major purpose - I just got tired of replacing incandescents  .

78

General Software Discussion / In search of ... functional software kvm

« on: April 19, 2014, 07:53 PM »

Folk,

I'm pretty much stymied.  There were previous threads on this topic, but kinda old.

I've been using Input Director for quite a while, three (3) or four (4) years, I'd guess, maybe longer.  However, it has lately become very unreliable, and 'twould appear 'tis no longer supported by the developer.  

Recently bought Multiplicity, but after installation - apparently successful - it gives errors and quits.  The error messages flash so briefly that I cannot read them.  Product support seems non-existent, pretty shabby for a $40.00 product, methinks.

Synchronicity has never worked for me.

Windows without Borders seems questionable, from what I've read, too questionable to purchase a license for multiple machines.

Has anyone knowledge of a functional alternative?  I don't mind paying for it, but after being burned by Multiplicity, I'm loathe to buy a pig in a poke again.

I'm looking at three (3) laptops, each with a 2nd monitor attached.  Input Director worked well until about six (6) months ago, but has been losing connectivity more and more often.  Currently, two (2) boxes are Win7 Ultimate and one (1) is Win8.1.  (The problem existed prior to the Win8.1 box.)

Any recommendations?

79

Living Room / Re: Anyone here using a standing desk?

« on: April 10, 2014, 08:31 PM »

I suspect these things depend on your posture and, if relevant, your reason for having back pain in the first place. I'd imagine that standing could help correct, or exacerbate a back problem, depending on what it is.

-tomos (April 10, 2014, 05:50 PM)

Imagine no more  .  As an old cripple, I have a fused hip.  It's fused fifteen (15) degrees forward and ten (10) degrees to the side.  As a result, I neither sit nor stand comfortably.  Drives me crazy when I read about proper posture anent discussions about sitting or standing while at a desk  .  I've been able to use a slant board in the past for extended coding/reading sessions, but that's not a currently viable option  .  And sitting or standing for more than about twenty (20) minutes at a time aggravates lower spine (degenerative disk disease, lower five (5) vertebrae).

Not bitching about it, and this thread has been quite entertaining - almost comical at moments - but I stand/sit as a tribute to the phrase that not all things fit all people  .  (You should see my reaction(s) to most exercise commercials  .)

80

Living Room / Re: silly humor - post 'em here! [warning some NSFW and adult content]

« on: March 29, 2014, 11:56 PM »

Heh that's funny Iain, but where is that picture originally fun? (Or Photoshopped?)

-TaoPhoenix (March 29, 2014, 11:19 AM)

Look at the wing[lessne]s of the approaching aircraft  .

81

Living Room / Re: silly humor - post 'em here! [warning some NSFW and adult content]

« on: March 27, 2014, 10:40 PM »

this might strike a chord with a some here...

-Target (March 27, 2014, 09:05 PM)

Reminiscent of corporate meetings attended in a previous life  .

82

Living Room / Re: silly humor - post 'em here! [warning some NSFW and adult content]

« on: March 21, 2014, 10:17 AM »

... the "three old men joke" dates at least to the 1980's.

-TaoPhoenix (March 21, 2014, 09:57 AM)

Make that fifties, and it was old then.

83

Living Room / Re: Against TED talks

« on: March 17, 2014, 10:49 AM »

God stated it already some 3.000 years ago in Job's Book in the Bible;
if the heart of a story is a lie, then all of the story is a lie.

-Curt (March 17, 2014, 09:18 AM)

To my mind, TED is many stories.  One (1) of them being a lie does not make every other one (1) a lie.  And, since lie is often a matter of perception, what seems a lie to me may not seem so to you or others.

84

Living Room / Re: Against TED talks

« on: March 17, 2014, 02:15 AM »

It's much more fun being the abattoir in the middle of the town square.

-Renegade (March 17, 2014, 01:59 AM)

Hm-m-m.

A bit of selft-flattery there? 
While I don't disagree with some of your points, you seem inclined to throw the baby out with the bath. 
Not overly fond of TED, nor many of the sponsors, but that does not invalidate all the content.

85

Living Room / Re: silly humor - post 'em here! [warning some NSFW and adult content]

« on: March 12, 2014, 08:08 PM »

"the glint in your father's eye"

-IainB (March 12, 2014, 04:17 PM)

Or mother's  .

86

Living Room / Re: Peer Review and the Scientific Process

« on: March 05, 2014, 12:16 AM »

... the more you publish, the more we'll pay you, regardless of the quality.

-IainB (March 04, 2014, 11:46 PM)

Well, haven't we all - or at least most of us - been subjected to the same thing?

When management - any management, including our so-called peers - demands quantity, performance and quality degrade.  Not so certain that could not be called a force of nature.  When position becomes more important than performance, those in position punish those who do not perform to the satisfaction and gratification and reputation of those in position, no?  The powers that be, in most any venue, want accolades, rather than performance.  Recognition for private/personal performance is seldom rendered unless that recognition benefits those other than the performer.  My mind is awash with similes, but none compare with the reality of illusions fostered by governing bodies.

87

Living Room / Re: Against TED talks

« on: February 26, 2014, 04:00 AM »

(perhaps it's a bit like the apple thing...)

-Target (February 26, 2014, 12:26 AM)

Which one?  Steve Jobs', or Eve's?

88

Living Room / Re: Against TED talks

« on: February 25, 2014, 02:10 AM »

Hm-m-m-m ...

I had only to see one (1) TED to realize/recognize the [effrontery|apostasy|call it what you will] and have not viewed any since.  My apologies to those folk, but there are better usages of my time.  If I need farce, I can always go to YouTube.  Reminds me of a college instructor once proving that 1+1=10 without specifying the base.

89

Living Room / Re: silly humor - post 'em here! [warning some NSFW and adult content]

« on: February 20, 2014, 03:40 AM »

Right on top, with masking tape and a Sharpie, of course! 

-app103 (February 20, 2014, 03:36 AM)

And why the masking tape  ?  Sounds temporary  .

90

Living Room / Re: silly humor - post 'em here! [warning some NSFW and adult content]

« on: February 14, 2014, 03:39 AM »

Ya even many other countries have employed tax for using solar energy.. It is wrong as it will discourage people from using solar power.

-ElliottMallet (February 14, 2014, 03:23 AM)

Dunno that it's funny, but it is definitely silly humour  .

91

Living Room / Re: Programmers: What size monitors do you guys prefer?

« on: February 04, 2014, 11:25 PM »

Had a rotating monitor for several years.  It was great for reading texts and tutorials in portrait mode, but lousy for coding unless I moved it back to landscape.  And since most video players are designed to be landscape, it didn't work for video, either, in portrait mode.

92

Living Room / Re: Programmers: What size monitors do you guys prefer?

« on: February 04, 2014, 12:11 PM »

Have three (3) 24" monitors connected to three (3) 17" laptops, one (1) Win 8.1 and two (2) Win7 Ultimate.  All connected by Input Director (only got Synergy to work one (1) time <sigh \>).  Use one (1) satellite system for entertainment, e.g.. TV schedule, videos, and the like.  The other satellite system is for documentation - nice to be able to open three (3) or four (4) reference docs and be able to read all of them w/o alt-tabbing.  Main system is used for Web stuff and what little coding I do these days.  I settled on the 24" monitors because anything any bigger than that needs too much head swiveling to be comfortable, at least for me.  I believe all the monitors are matte, but never really paid any attention to that aspect.  All the monitors and the main box are at [corner] desk level, with two (2) of the slave boxes on a shelf above the monitors, so the arrangement is reasonably compact, and since I don't run anything full screen, it's easy to have multiple windows open such that each is completely visible w/o horizontal scrolling required.

<addendum>
This system has grown over multiple years - doing it all at once would be way too expen$ive  .
</addendum>

93

Living Room / Re: silly humor - post 'em here! [warning some NSFW and adult content]

« on: January 23, 2014, 04:34 AM »

^Uh-h-h ... how would ya know?  Taste test?????

94

Living Room / Re: Does anyone here use Bitcoins?

« on: January 20, 2014, 09:34 PM »

Reality trumps paranoid delusions.

-Renegade (January 20, 2014, 02:23 PM)

Ya might wanna rethink that statement  .  Money laundering, crime, tax evasion, et al., have been around - i.e., reality - a lot longer than even the concept of bitcoin and other cyber currencies.  Evil or good is not the realm of any currency medium, just the uses to which it is applied.  To paraphrase an old saying, "What Man can create, Man can pervert." 

95

Living Room / Re: silly humor - post 'em here! [warning some NSFW and adult content]

« on: January 19, 2014, 02:05 AM »

Ah, but the fashion-wise (and cheese connoisseurs) know that when it gets old enough, it will turn bleu.

-Deozaan (January 19, 2014, 01:58 AM)

So?  What do you have against bleu cheese?  Kinda like it, myself, although that looked a lot like Velveeta slices  .

96

Living Room / Re: silly humor - post 'em here! [warning some NSFW and adult content]

« on: January 17, 2014, 08:31 PM »

(see attachment in previous post)
What does your handwriting say about your personality?

-Arizona Hot (January 17, 2014, 08:06 PM)

Hey!  They omitted arthritis, amongst other physicals  .  That infographic reminds me of a Freudian statement on smoking:  if you smoke, you were weaned too early  ; if you don't smoke, you were weaned too late  .  Seemingly no one was ever weaned at the right time  .

97

General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... assistance with a tenacious BHO ...

« on: January 06, 2014, 12:00 AM »

I'd also be curious what version of Windows was infected and what level to which you had UAC set.

-Innuendo (January 05, 2014, 10:40 PM)

Sorry, thought (erroneously) that was known.  Win7 Ultimate, UAC maxed - inconvenient, but seems to be worth the inconvenience.

Agnitum is not something I've tried (that I recall, anyway) - way too many offerings - but I'll check it out.

Actually, I'm pretty miffed at most of the security software I've experienced.  Most are all past tense, in that they work against known malware, but don't provide much protection against anything new.  MalwareBytes seems to obviate that condition, at least so far, and a properly configured firewall helps.  Right now I'm working with Comodo's product, but I'll change in a heartbeat if something better comes along.

Used to use Norton's products - actually had a few conversations with him on CompuServe - but stopped that when Symantec stepped in and bloated it.  Also knew/conversed with Ron McAfee at the same time, but eschewed his product because of his attitude.  I'd love to find some equivalent to the old Norton Utilities toolkit, but that seems unlikely.

All told, I'm pretty much a belt-and-suspenders type when it comes to security.  My basic security mantra is that you never know how good your security is until it fails and you know that it failed!

98

General Software Discussion / It's about ... Vagrant (VM Web server)

« on: January 04, 2014, 09:13 PM »

Just ran across this.  Seems a bit complex from the initial read, but there do seem to be a few advantages.  Anyone here aware of or familiar with it?  Maybe used it?  (I hate pioneering  .)  Just wondering if it'd be a waste of time to peruse the documents, as the setup seems to be a bit complex, e.g., no adult beverage(s) during such perusal  .

99

General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... reasonable backup software

« on: January 04, 2014, 09:01 PM »

Note:[/b] "PCMCIA" also apparently stands for "People Can't Memorise Computer Industry Acronyms").

-IainB (January 03, 2014, 04:09 AM)

And "USB"? 
 

-cranioscopical (January 03, 2014, 05:14 PM)

Sorry, but as liberal as DC is  , that language cannot be used here  .

100

General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... assistance with a tenacious BHO ...

« on: January 04, 2014, 03:33 PM »

Well, since this wasn't technically a virus, not certain any AV solution would have caught it.  Using Comodo firewall and Malwarebytes (paid version).  However, I suspect this was crapware attached to another install that did not mention it was to be installed.  I watch that pretty closely, but not all install systems announce themselves.  And there is a possibility that I didn't install it, a neighbor did.  I'm doing some Web work for her and her family, but some of what they want is on Facebook, so she has logged in several times to grab some photos she wants.  I suspect she may have installed a Firefox extension to assist her  .

The thing that aroused my curiosity initially was the discovery of a recent temp directory on the root of C:\ with only two (2) files in it.  When I searched on the files, I discovered - and eradicated - part of the problem.  Just couldn't get rid of the whole famned damily, as it were.

As to the recovery aspect, one (1) of the onsite drives I was using for recovery purposes failed physically.  So the inability to recover was due, in part, to mechanical failure.  Appears that I'll have to - again! - rethink my storage/recovery scenario.  Lost my off-site storage - she got married and moved away  - and don't have anything to replace that as yet.

So, a significant part of this was happenstance and timing, you might say Chance - with a capital SEE?.

Been trying out Sterjo NetStalker lately.  It provides alerts for every outbound communication attempt, but only on the first try unless you deny permission.  And it doesn't seem to work for subcommunications, e.g., once ya give Firefox outbound permission, anything under Firefox inherits that permission.  So, even it it were a standalone program, since it was communicating via browser, it was using that browser's permissions and was not detected.