Messages

126

Living Room / Re: Do we have any musical people on DC?

« on: April 21, 2016, 01:37 PM »

A bad year for music.  First Bowie, and now Prince.  Two innovators in music in the same year.   

-wraith808 (April 21, 2016, 12:26 PM)

So it goes.…

And for some odd reason, I get the feeling that the bad news for 'this year in music' isn't over yet.

Hope I'm wrong about that.

127

Living Room / Re: Do we have any musical people on DC?

« on: April 20, 2016, 03:13 PM »

This is a little specialized and directed at bass players, modders and builders.

A gentleman in Germany who goes by the name of Cadfael has published in PDF format (and free of charge), a labor of what can only be described as love. He modestly calls it his Small Collection of Schematics for Passive Electric Basses.

I'm not sure what's small about it. It contains over 350 different wiring diagrams and schematics (historic and modded) for wiring, repairing, or rewiring an electric bass guitar. And it runs to 487 pages in its current (and probably last) incarnation.

This is a truly valuable resource and is very professionally done. Nothing like the usual half-assed and frequently inaccurate diagrams you'll find in most guitar wiring collections. The text is in German. But it's easy enough to follow. And where it isn't, a quick and dirty translation via Google or another online translation site will do ya. There's not a lot that needs be said most times since wiring diagrams and schematics are fairly standardized worldwide.

Here's a sample of what you can expect at 50% actual size:



To visit his English page (download link for PDF is at the bottom of the page) look here.

128

Announce Your Software/Service/Product / Re: Brainstorm Pro Thesaurus Software With Multi Language & Research Tools

« on: April 11, 2016, 11:59 AM »

If you ever do a version that runs natively under Linux and works with Libre Writer or Softmaker Office, I'm your customer. 

129

Living Room / Re: Twist Tie alternative?

« on: April 07, 2016, 12:15 PM »

I use a small square of heavy illustration board like Bainbridge. I punch a hole and cut a slit on each end, stick one end of of the wire in the notch, then wrap, and hook the other end in the other notch. Since I make them individually I can size them for a perfect fit every time. And since I'm using scrap board, they cost me nothing to make or replace once they get worn out.

130

General Software Discussion / Re: Cookies click driving me crazy

« on: April 05, 2016, 02:44 PM »

What weirds me out is how the most popular Javascript cookie consent plugins on GitHub all use the phrase "Got It!" instead of "OK!" 

-Edvard (April 05, 2016, 10:37 AM)

I agree. I think they should standardize on using m'kay? instead.

131

General Software Discussion / Re: YNAB moving to a subscription model

« on: April 04, 2016, 05:43 PM »

I'm still dragging my feet on this one... As I'm not interested in a subscription-based model, I feel reluctant to invest time, money and effort into YNAB Classic at this point, considering that it's only supported until the end of 2016. I know it's likely to work for a while beyond that, but then if the iOS and Android apps would stop connecting one day, it would become frustrating.

So, I have started looking for alternatives. Has anyone here tried Moneydance? Is it a reasonable alternative to YNAB?

The other ones rated highly in the UK are AceMoney, BankTree, and Home Accountz.

P.S. Oh, I see Moneydance came up earlier in this thread. I guess I'll just have to go ahead and trial it. But any feedback on experience with Moneydance would be welcome.

-dr_andus (April 04, 2016, 10:58 AM)

I'm partial to GnuCash for standard home and very small business finances. I like it as much for what it doesn't try to do as what it actually does. It's not a budgeting method like YNAB is. It's more along the lines of Quicken Home and Business. But without a pile of "features" I don't need. I'm more of a minimalist when it comes to business software however. I like most financial programs to do one thing - but do it extremely well rather than try to be a Swiss Army knife. And because I have a background in finance and accounting I don't need (or want) much in the way of hand holding. So take the above for what it's worth because my criteria is probably different than that of the average user.

I used Money Dance for awhile. It did the job very nicely. Decent budget tracking capabilities. They'll give you a 100 transaction trial to see if it's for you. You could do a lot worse for $49. (Like buy Quicken.)

132

Living Room / Re: What Killed the Middle Class?

« on: April 02, 2016, 11:27 AM »

Why do I hear the sound of the door to The Basement slowly starting to creak open and Mouser coming down the hall with broom in hand? 

133

Living Room / Re: What Killed the Middle Class?

« on: April 01, 2016, 08:10 PM »

@40hz:

...There's an awful lot to unpack and think about in that post of yours before I could hope to offer anything intelligent or considered in response. ...
__________________________

-40hz (March 30, 2016, 06:04 PM)

Sorry, I  didn't mean to do a "core dump" on it, it's just that my mind can't abide some kinds of puzzles without seemingly being compelled to try and solve them, and reading what I did helped to make bits of a jigsaw fall into place, in my mind - things that "didn't make sense" before now had a workable theory to describe under what conditions they could make sense.
That was what led to my making the post in this thread, anyway, as I thought that others might find the theory and ideas generated interesting and worth exploring.

-IainB (March 31, 2016, 03:52 PM)

No apologies needed. It's good to get something big and solid to chew on for a change. 

134

Living Room / Re: What Killed the Middle Class?

« on: March 30, 2016, 06:04 PM »

Wow IainB! There's an awful lot to unpack and think about in that post of yours before I could hope to offer anything intelligent or considered in response.

One inherent danger in losing the middle class in the United States is that it has always been a safety valve for domestic unrest. I'm not sure who said it, but they pointed out that Americans have traditionally been willing to accept a fairly large amount of unfairness in their economic system and government institutions as long as it was felt that their own relative position in the pecking order was not permanently fixed.

Now that it's become increasingly difficult for many Americans to escape from poverty through no fault of their own or from lack of trying, the way things are being done is now coming under increasing fire. And the 'haves' appear to be gearing up to deal with that threat. (Nobody seriously believed that the militarization of US police forces - and the increasingly broad and effectively unregulated surveillance state that's emerging along with it - is being created solely to deal with international terrorist threats do you? Does anybody remember how abruptly and totally the economically motivated "occupy" actions across the nation were cleared out during an obviously well-coordinated sweep in several US cities besides New York? According to official statements, the fact it all happened on the same day - and with minimal news coverage - was "purely coincidental.")

But anyway - Thx! I needed a little intellectual stimulation today. 

135

Living Room / Re: Do we have any musical people on DC?

« on: March 30, 2016, 05:37 PM »

@wraith - I'm not big on most travel type guitars or basses, but for a super small form factor guitar, I really like the G Sharp Instruments G# Guitar.

It's a tiny guitar that's a legit instrument in it's own right rather than just a hack to keep it small. Got a chance to try one out and it's definitely worth getting IMO. $375 USD delivered.

Get a set of headphones and one of these and you can rock out anywhere. 

136

Living Room / Re: Do we have any musical people on DC?

« on: March 30, 2016, 12:54 PM »

So I have a question that I've not really found a reliable answer to.

First, I was using a Korg GA-40 for a tuner.

I moved on from that to a TMR50BK, mostly for the dual use of recording and a metronome.

As of late, I've switched to a Snark SN-5 after seeing it in use in one of my local shops.

I just saw a GoGo Pedal Tuner on massdrop.  The lowest drop price is 39.99, and I'm thinking about joining.

Is there any real discernible functional difference between different tuners that any of you have noticed?  The Snark is convenient, and doesn't actually plug in, but I don't hear any difference between that and a plug-in tuner.  I can hear the difference on lower end tuners for sure.  But once you get past a certain price point, it doesn't seem that the difference is anything but form.

Thoughts?

-wraith808 (March 26, 2016, 08:58 AM)

Personally, I wouldn't want to be without a pedal tuner. At the very least I'd want something I can plug into. Fortunately, a friend (with more money than sense) gave me a Pitchblack+ he decided he didn't like, but I don't recommend that for you, or most people in fact. I'm damn happy to have it, but I certainly wouldn't pay $150 for it.

You want something that's accurate to +/-1 cent, which the more recent models of clip-ons from Snark and TC also are, if I'm not mistaken. The Monoprice knockoff of the regular Pitchblack is supposed to be quite nice, and only costs $20. Some people claim it's the actual Pitchblack, which it might be, but I've never seen any proof of that. In any case it's supposed to be an excellent pedal.

The Pitchblack+ is accurate to 0.1 cents, which mostly just makes it suitable for setting intonation. In my case, it also has a couple additional benefits. Unlike most people, my perception is a lot more accurate than +/-1 cent, and I have perfect pitch. Even in a mix, extremely small intonation issues can bug me.

-Vurbal (March 30, 2016, 09:04 AM)

Agree 100% about the pedal tuner. If you're a bass player, a bombproof professional pedal tuner should be the first electronic accessory you buy. A stage-worthy tuner and a really good amp are all you'll really ever need to work in a band or studio environment. I tell anybody who asks: get yourself (in the following order): a good instrument, a tuner, and a really good amp before you even think of buying anything else. Once t hat's squared away, let your common sense and your wallet be your guide. And when in doubt about buying another pedal - try waiting a week and practicing a little more before you reach for your plastic. 

I'm alternating between a TC Electronics PolyTune-2 and a Korg Pitchblack. For the record - I prefer the Korg because it's a rock solid and no-frills stage tuner that handles a low-B string just fine. And the $80 it goes for won't break the bank. I don't use any of the bells & whistles the PolyTune brings to the party. That said, the Poly is also quite nice. But it's definitely geared more towards guitarists and their needs. I keep mine as a backup.

137

Living Room / Re: Do we have any musical people on DC?

« on: March 30, 2016, 12:46 PM »

Didn't know if anyone was looking for some good, reasonably priced, effects pedals.

An assortment of valeton pedals are on massdrop.  3 days left on the drop.

-wraith808 (March 26, 2016, 10:45 PM)

Nice! Didn't know about those. Another good inexpensive line of effects (especially the tiny Nano Legacy series) are the Hotone pedals and mini amps. The mini amp heads in particular are pretty impressive. Priced nicely too.

138

Living Room / Re: Do we have any musical people on DC?

« on: March 30, 2016, 12:01 PM »

I like Korg tuners, and I bought the CA-40 (actually I have a couple of them) because it goes low enough to tune my low B on the five-string bass.

I can imagine it would be that much worse with perfect pitch.

-wraith808 (March 30, 2016, 10:38 AM)

I wonder how "you people" deal with off-of-440 pitch situations? I regularly play with a pipe organ which is at A4=439Hz. Does that drive you nuts or do you adjust?

-ayryq (March 30, 2016, 10:47 AM)

I don't have absolute pitch - but I do have excellent relative pitch. So once I hear a few notes of anything, my brain just locks into the first few intervals for reference and I'm perfectly fine. You wouldn't want to tune an orchestra just to me. But I'm never playing out of tune - no matter what the standard for being "in tune" is.

I prefer the sound of A=432 as it was during the Baroque period. (Actually A=438 is my own personal favorite.) But that's me. I don't buy into any of the metaphysical discussion surrounding the whys or wherefores, nor get into the political discussion of the "Nazi origins" surrounding A=440. I just like the way the lower A standard sounds. Modern tuning always sounds a little sharp to me. Especially that all important B tone - which always sounds 'out' to my ears - no matter what the tuner (even a Peterson strobe unit) says.

If you haven't heard much with A=432 (or possibly didn't know when you were - because many bands (like some of mine) will routinely drop their A down a few cents even though they don't feel the need to make a big deal or wave a flag around about it. This guy did up some comparison listening clips. Give a listen below:

139

Living Room / Re: Wireless mice are hackable up to a city block away

« on: March 29, 2016, 08:23 AM »

According to the article, once you get a toe in the door...a foot follows..

-Stoic Joker (March 29, 2016, 06:31 AM)

More like the possibility of a foot following it in, but yeah...once you've found an opening, the possibilities multiply significantly. Install a keylogger and a zombie script to dump a log file back to a server somewhere; slip in some ransomware or a bot...the possibilities are limited only by your skill set and your imagination. Or (more often) those of the people you have working for you.

140

Living Room / Re: Do we have any musical people on DC?

« on: March 28, 2016, 01:37 PM »

...

Now I'm married with a steady job, so I no longer have the time nor inclination to blast some chords on the road with some long-haired metal freaks, but I still play a bit here and there, and I still lust after that Ovation.  Eastman Guitars put out their loving tribute to the Breadwinner in 2009, and my heart leapt at the possibilities. However, at $800+ it was still out of my reach, and I my big fingers wanted a Fender-scale neck anyway, so... I went to work.  A few restless nights with a CAD program and some photos and tracings of the gem in question, and I finally have my dream in reach.  It may have to be built with pine or plywood, but so be it.
Ladies and Gents, in humble tribute to the Ovation Breadwinner, but adapted for a longer neck scale, I give to you...

The Loaf Champion:

In the zip, I have included DXF and DWG files, openable by any capable CAD program, and a Readme file explaining what's going on with the layers.  I use QCad, so they will definitely work in that, and have used DoubleCAD 5 successfully in the past.
For those who are experienced builders, please advise where I might have gone wrong on this, and for those so inclined to actually build the thing before I do, I require a surcharge payable in build pictures. 

-Edvard (March 26, 2016, 01:43 AM)

Now that is a labor of love if I ever saw one!

One suggestion. Do it as a template first. By that I mean do it to scale on a 1/2" piece of MDF before you commit to cutting expensive woods. Sometimes something that looks really good on a blueprint or drawn on paper doesn't map out quite as nicely in the real world. Having that template also lets you get really precise cuts for the body etc, because you're going to only rough cut with a saw. The final shaping is going to get done with a router. And having an accurate router guide is going to be worth its weight in gold when you reach that point in your build and you're cutting a $25 mahogany or swamp ash body blank. It's also great for pickup routes and getting the tuner and bridge positioning exactly right.

(Note: I sent you a PM)

141

Living Room / Re: Do we have any musical people on DC?

« on: March 25, 2016, 06:53 PM »

Last night a friend helped me install a preamp (Bartolini AGB 918-2) in my bass. By helped, of course, I mean I double checked which wires he was rerouting where (he's always worked on passive guitars), and set up my amp to test it out when he was done.

It sounds amazing now! Since I no longer have to roll off the bass and mids nearly all the way, while boosting the treble to about 3/4, the noise floor has dropped to near nothing. This morning I tweaked the gain trimpot on the preamp. Now I can keep the bass volume at about 80% running through my Joyo American Sound, and a little extra for bypassing it without having to adjust at the amp.

Besides the pedal, which does an amazing job of copping a Fender amp feel, I recently bought an Ampeg 210 (AV) cabinet, and I'm searching for his twin brother. Together they'll make a fantastic stage rig. For the time being, it's great by itself at surprising volumes - perfect at practice and rehearsal volume. Actually, I imagine it would carry a small bar just fine.

-Vurbal (March 25, 2016, 08:40 AM)

Sounds like a nice kit! Play it well.

I recently added an Iron Ether Nimbus Bass Reverb pedal to my collection. Amazing little boutique box that finally makes reverb workable for bass without resorting to a $500+ Eventide H9 or a $480 Strymon Big Sky pedal. Great for adding a hint of air and motion (i.e. ambience) to your mix. It also has more extreme settings if that's your thing.

142

Living Room / Re: good Videos [short films] here :)

« on: March 25, 2016, 06:41 PM »

A couple of what I thought were far better than most I've seen lately. The first deals with a "forensic accountant," reviewing some cabin cam footage of a mercenary drop assault on a space colony. The second is a police story from a future NYC where police protection is provided solely as a commercial subscription service.

143

Non-Windows Software / Re: Microsoft announces SQL Server to be made to run in Linux

« on: March 19, 2016, 11:06 PM »

And as mean and evil as Microsoft can be, they're like fluffy cuddle-rabbits compared to Oracle.

-f0dder (March 19, 2016, 06:19 PM)

That might be one of the biggest understatements ever made when it comes to enterprise technology companies. 

144

Non-Windows Software / Microsoft announces SQL Server to be made to run in Linux

« on: March 17, 2016, 09:54 AM »

This is an interesting bit of news even though the details are sketchy at this point. Microsoft will be offering a Linux version of their flagship database solution SQL Server.

From the announcement, they haven't indicated if the server will be a native port to Linux, a specialized turnkey distro with SQL Server embedded in it, or some sort of VM running under Linux as more servers increasingly are. Either way, it's pretty surprising even if I'm gonna be waiting for the other shoe to drop with this one. I seriously doubt it represents any change of heart on Microsoft's part.

Here's what Microsoft's Scott Guthrie Microsoft had to say:

Today I’m excited to announce our plans to bring SQL Server to Linux as well. This will enable SQL Server to deliver a consistent data platform across Windows Server and Linux, as well as on-premises and cloud. We are bringing the core relational database capabilities to preview today, and are targeting availability in mid-2017.

SQL Server on Linux will provide customers with even more flexibility in their data solution. One with mission-critical performance, industry-leading TCO, best-in-class security, and hybrid cloud innovations – like Stretch Database which lets customers access their data on-premises and in the cloud whenever they want at low cost – all built in.

“This is an enormously important decision for Microsoft, allowing it to offer its well-known and trusted database to an expanded set of customers”, said Al Gillen, group vice president, enterprise infrastructure, at IDC. “By taking this key product to Linux Microsoft is proving its commitment to being a cross platform solution provider. This gives customers choice and reduces the concerns for lock-in. We would expect this will also accelerate the overall adoption of SQL Server.”

“SQL Server’s proven enterprise experience and capabilities offer a valuable asset to enterprise Linux customers around the world,” said Paul Cormier, President, Products and Technologies, Red Hat. “We believe our customers will welcome this news and are happy to see Microsoft further increasing its investment in Linux. As we build upon our deep hybrid cloud partnership, spanning not only Linux, but also middleware, and PaaS, we’re excited to now extend that collaboration to SQL Server on Red Hat Enterprise Linux, bringing enterprise customers increased database choice.”

“We are delighted to be working with Microsoft as it brings SQL Server to Linux,” said Mark Shuttleworth, founder of Canonical. “Customers are already taking advantage of Azure Data Lake services on Ubuntu, and now developers will be able to build modern applications that utilize SQL Server’s enterprise capabilities.”

Bringing SQL Server to Linux is another way we are making our products and new innovations more accessible to a broader set of users and meeting them where they are. Just last week, we announced our agreement to acquire Xamarin. Recently, we also announced Microsoft R Server , our technologies based on our acquisition of Revolution Analytics, with support for Hadoop and Teradata.

The private preview of SQL Server on Linux is available starting today and we look forward to working with the community, our customers and our partners to bring it to market.

Obviously Redhat and Ubuntu, two of the biggest sellouts in the FOSS world, are anxious to get into bed with Redmond on this one.

Time will tell if this is a genuine effort to be more cross-platform on Microsoft's part; or, if it's just another example of Microsoft's now classic "Embrace, Extend, Extinguish" strategy.



Yeah right! Maybe...but I'll believe it when and if it actually turns out to be true. 

145

Non-Windows Software / Re: Dan Gilmor on moving to Linux

« on: March 08, 2016, 11:56 AM »

I surely hope they won't let you go wild here without any borders. This was a friendly community when I registered, not a "let's insult people because we are out of arguments" one.

-Tuxman (March 08, 2016, 11:28 AM)

Hard to predict. Despite numerous complaints about your comments over the years, you seem to have been allowed to continue unabated. And you're rather handy and free with insults yourself in case you haven't noticed. So your convenient indignation and sudden butt-hurt along with your self-serving comment about this being a "friendly community" is rather ironic considering your troll-like comments in many other threads on this forum. So if that's any indication of the degree of tolerance around here, I'm not the least bit worried.

Nevertheless, I'll wait to hear from the mods or Mouser regarding your complaint. It will be interesting to see what he/they have to suggest.

So this is all I'm going to say about this until I hear back. They take reports pretty seriously around here. So I'm sure neither one of us will have to wait very long to hear back from the admins. 

Bye!

146

Non-Windows Software / Re: Dan Gilmor on moving to Linux

« on: March 08, 2016, 11:26 AM »

people who have obvious psychological issues

-40hz (March 08, 2016, 11:21 AM)

Lovely attack. Reported.

-Tuxman (March 08, 2016, 11:24 AM)

Be my guest. I'll happily await the decision of the powers that be.

147

Non-Windows Software / Re: Dan Gilmor on moving to Linux

« on: March 08, 2016, 11:21 AM »

[ Invalid Attachment ]

-rgdot (March 08, 2016, 11:16 AM)

Apologies. Everybody gets tired of listening to certain people every so often. Even me. I should know better than to bandy words with people who have obvious psychological issues. So point taken. Thx rg! 

148

Non-Windows Software / Re: Dan Gilmor on moving to Linux

« on: March 08, 2016, 11:18 AM »

Yup, I totally knock myself out by stating facts that contradict your pointless babbling. 

Want some fries with that?

-Tuxman (March 08, 2016, 10:51 AM)

Dunno my friend. I happen to be pretty well liked and respected around these parts for all my "pointless babbling" as you put it. How about you?

149

Non-Windows Software / Re: Dan Gilmor on moving to Linux

« on: March 08, 2016, 10:48 AM »

Your ability to understand my comebacks is among the very few things I would never believe in.

-Tuxman (March 07, 2016, 01:53 PM)

It's not so much your comments are difficult to understand as they're easy to dismiss because they usually contain zero relevant content and contribute zip to the discussion. But if it amuses you to continue posting them, knock yourself out. Everybody should have a hobby.

150

Non-Windows Software / Re: Dan Gilmor on moving to Linux

« on: March 07, 2016, 01:51 PM »

I must have missed the memo announcing your recent elevation. My bad. 

-40hz (March 07, 2016, 01:36 PM)

As here on DC people are speaking of a homogenous "the community" instead of "individuals", I take the opportunity to speak as a part of that community too. If this feels wrong to you, I'm still the wrong addressee.

-Tuxman (March 07, 2016, 01:48 PM)

You lost me with that one. But I'm sure it was something really clever you just said. Cheers!