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426
Living Room / In search of ... "Why is it" Websites/services
« Last post by barney on September 27, 2012, 12:59 PM »
In the dim past, when I was in high school, I had a trio of books
  • Why do they call it ... ?
  • Why did they name it ... ?
  • What's in a name?
(I don't recall now if the titles really included the ellipsis, but I think they did.  I'm also uncertain as to that third title.)

These books answered questions like
  • Who/What are the Masons?
  • If Christians mark time as periods before and after the birth of Christ, why is the time after his birth Anno Domini (AD, Latin for after) but the time before his birth Before Christ (BC, English for before - from a time when England/English did not exist)?
  • Why are reporters and journalists said to be members of the Fourth Estate?  What is an Estate  What is the Fourth Estate?  What are the other three (3) Estates?  Are there more than four (4) Estates?
  • Why do they call it tin?
  • What's the difference between dynamite and nitro glycerin?
  • What are rare metals and why are they rare?

I'm looking for Websites and services that do that.  Not certain how to class them.  They'd be part lexicon, part philology, part lexicology, part ... ?

Thought I remembered a thread here about that, but cannot locate one (1).

I'd like to create a reference list of URLs, and I've run across a number of them over the years, but there's not not enough consistency in the naming or descriptions for a definitive search.

But I figured an erudite - and quirky! :-* :P - bunch like this would probably have a number of such URLs already bookmarked.  Gimme 'em .
427
Living Room / Re: Udacity - free online education for real
« Last post by barney on September 26, 2012, 12:33 AM »
... a full degree in itself is not a hobby - education is education. It's no fault of the student who did his part.
-TaoPhoenix (June 20, 2012, 06:32 AM)

Well, in point of fact, education is not always education.  And ofttimes, a [higher] degree does become a hobby for those with the wherewithal.  Several unwarranted assumptions there.  And are you talking about the student who learned, but did not pass [questionable] tests?  Did not pass university muster?  Or are you talking about the student who knew how to pass tests even though that student couldn't put a round peg in a round (and bigger) hole?  Which did not do their part?  And which did?  There are dichotomies in that concept.

Bottom line - if there is one - is who can best perform in the real world.  Experience tells me that most university graduates are not nearly so successful as trade school alumni, on average.  Knowledge, despite the old adage, is not always power.
428
Living Room / Re: It's about ... oldish films
« Last post by barney on September 25, 2012, 10:54 PM »
At the moment, watching an old Frank Sinatra/Jimmy Durante/Peter Lawford black-&-white.  Been a long time since I've see Durante in anything.  Kathryn Grayson as the female lead.  It's basically a romance, but Jimmy makes it a lot more.  I really miss movies like this.  Lots of trauma, lots of music, lots of chutzpah (is that the right term?).  There's some meat to it, light as it may be.
429
General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... RAMdisk opinions
« Last post by barney on September 25, 2012, 09:30 PM »
If nothing else, you'll learn what not to do - and also how to recover a borked system.  8) :Thmbsup
-40hz (September 25, 2012, 07:58 PM)

Hee, hee.  Been doin' that for the last twenty (20) or thirty (30) years  ;).  What can I say, I'm a slow learner  :P.
430
General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... RAMdisk opinions
« Last post by barney on September 25, 2012, 06:29 PM »
I really don't see why anybody in their right mind
-f0dder (September 25, 2012, 10:19 AM)
Hey!  You leave my mind out of this! It's already unstable enough as it is  :P!

Rationale is as follows:
  • I've had the pagefile run away with me on some systems, not always identifiable as to why.
  • I always limit the size of the pagefile ... call it quirky, but I do.
  • Mindful of SSD stuff I've read recently, a RAMdisk pagefile reduces writes, although 'twould seem the jury is still out on that one.
  • I've had the pagefile on a USB stick - not fast, but no noticeable deterioration in performance.  This is just another test.
  • Finally, I won't know for certain until I try it myself, in real life, regardless the mentors that exist here.

If I'm even possibly likely to help someone else with this, I kinda need to understand the workings from experience, not just conversation no matter how erudite and knowledgeable the contributors to the conversation might be.

[Sidebar]
After I eliminated the pagefile, my memory usage decreased by seven (7) to ten (10) percent.  Not certain just what that implies, but I wouldn't have know w/o the experimentation.
[/Sidebar]

[Addendum]
If that memory is not otherwise being used, why not put it to use?
[/Addendum]
431
General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... RAMdisk opinions
« Last post by barney on September 24, 2012, 08:23 PM »
Do note that you shouldn't disable the pagefile unless you always have enough free physical memory, even under high load, or you at least know the implications of what turning off the pagefile means. Windows doesn't really like running out of memory (but at least it doesn't go about OOM-killing processes like Linux does by default).
-f0dder (September 24, 2012, 05:02 PM)

Well, I just disabled - I thimk - the pagefile.  Don't see any significant RAM usage above and beyond the norm.  But, then, I'm just doing forum posts at the moment.  However, I normally have a bunch of stuff loaded at boot, so the actual program load is pretty hefty.  Barring major malfunctions, I'll try this for a week or two (2), then reactivate the pagefile on a RAMdisk, see if there's a performance hit - or any other significant difference for that matter.

However, my system(s) be head-and-shoulders above what most of my compatriots use, so I still won't know whether it would make a difference to them.
432
General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... RAMdisk opinions
« Last post by barney on September 24, 2012, 08:14 PM »
LOL! I see you've dealt with MS Exchange backups too! 8) :Thmbsup
-40hz (September 24, 2012, 06:01 PM)

Oh, hell no!  This started way before Exchange was a gleam in some developer's eye.  MS-DOS v2.1, I thimk, introduced me to the concept of PC backups [conceptually deficient - backup worked, restore didn't] ... I've distrusted 'em ever since  ;D.  Granted, MS Exchange, if it doesn't take top spot, at least ranks in the top three (3) damnittohell recovery scenarios, but I've given up on backups, for the most part.  The backup takes time, and recovery is always questionable, no matter the source or methodology.

I've had better luck with disk images, but even there the results can be erratic.

MS Exchange is a latecomer to this party  :P.
433
General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... RAMdisk opinions
« Last post by barney on September 24, 2012, 04:38 PM »
Sure thing, I'm all for that - and doing it myself. Just don't put the pagefile on ramdisk, as mentioned previously - it's better disabling it altogether if you got that kind of memory.
-f0dder (September 24, 2012, 04:29 PM)

OK, that's been expressed a few times now, but I do not see the difference between running the pagefile in memory or on a RAMdisk.  Only difference I discern is the operating software for the RAMdisk.  Is there something else that makes this untenable?
434
General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... RAMdisk opinions
« Last post by barney on September 24, 2012, 04:28 PM »
P.S. If I had a dollar each time a critical backup (made using standard "enterprise grade" backup software) ended up being corrupted (and sometimes not recoverable) I'd have enough money to take a not overly modest vacation on the Continent.
-40hz (September 24, 2012, 03:39 PM)

Yea, verily!  Religiously backing up in obeisance to a god that we later discover does not exist or was naught but a false prophet.
435
General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... RAMdisk opinions
« Last post by barney on September 24, 2012, 04:13 PM »
And in the situation where you have >4GB ram installed in a machine - why the heck aren't you running a 64bit OS then? :-)
-f0dder (September 24, 2012, 03:32 PM)
I am  :P.
Using a RAMdisk for swap has one acceptable use case: a system with >4GB RAM running a 32bit version of windows, where windows itself cannot access the >4GB ram. Otherwise, it's plain idiotic - the RAM you're swapping to would have been better spent serving memory requests instead of swap. Better get enough RAM and disable the pagefile altogether.
-f0dder (September 24, 2012, 03:32 PM)
Wrong  :down:.  Well, presumptive.  

I know a bunch of folk still on 32-bit systems, several still on Win98  :huh:, one (1) old geezer still running Win3.1  :o.  (They did upgrade hardware, to some extent, just not software.)  For these folk, the RAMdisk question can be important.  They don't want to upgrade the OS - they're comfortable with what they have and have no desire to lean a new OS - but they do want to maximize wherever possible.  These are not the cognoscenti, just average folk who have other things to do than live in our hardware/software world, and they have other priorities than getting the latest, greatest hardware/software.  But they do want performance when they're here. 

Hence, the RAMdisk question.

On another note, the machine I'm on right now has 6G RAM.  Running Win7-64.  Intel i7.  I use a desktop gadget to watch memory and core usages.  Seldom see RAM usage above 60%, never above 75%.  So, isn't that 1.5G RAM wasted?  It's not being used by system or software.  So why not make that a RAMdisk as mentioned previously, thus decreasing writes to HDD or SSD, thus decreasing wear & tear?  Prolly not a perceived speed increase, considering the machine in use.  And, since temporary files, for the most part, don't matter, nor does the pagefile system, once you reboot, there's no harm, no foul, for a RAMdisk, is there?  Am I wrong here?  If so, show me.
436
General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... RAMdisk opinions
« Last post by barney on September 24, 2012, 03:26 PM »
Well,

The concensus - if you can get a bunch of drunks to agree on anything  :P - of our discussion was that a RAMdisk for temporary files and another for the swap file was probably the best way to go.  Nothing lost in case of a hard shutdown or system crash  :'( - assuming, of course, that work was properly saved in process  ;).
437
Living Room / Re: In search of ... a hardware donee
« Last post by barney on September 24, 2012, 03:11 PM »
So did Wraith's PM beat my Post or does "First Come First Serve" mean something new now? : )
-TaoPhoenix (September 24, 2012, 12:18 AM)

OK, maybe the phrasing was a little awkward.  His was the first post that I saw, see  :huh:?  That made him the first, not by the clock, but by perception  ;).  And that was notification by Gmail ... I saw received the PM notice before I saw received the forum notice.
438
General Software Discussion / Re: Images unexplainably changed
« Last post by barney on September 24, 2012, 02:42 PM »
There is a little new: yesterday I have seen those images just while they were changing colour.

I look at an image. It's normal. If I open other windows (for example I start 7Zip, Explorer, the window of the properties of the files etc...), within some seconds the image slowly becomes reddish. If I close those new windows, within some seconds the image slowly returns to normality.
-Giampy (September 24, 2012, 09:16 AM)

That sounds like a power/GPU issue.  Is that box on a UPS?  Reason I ask is that a couple of years back something somewhat similar where I live.  LCDs are not quite so sensitive to power fluctuations as CRTs were, but I'd see ... differences? ... nothing I could specifically identify, much less describe, but the screens changed.  Turned out to be power line fluctuations.  I got some small TrippLite UPS units.  Not much bigger than a lot of surge protectors, but they smoothed the power situation to the extent that I no longer see - or maybe just not notice? - any visible changes.

Might be worth checking out.  Borrow a recording watt meter, then see if you're getting variances.  And check that your outlet voltage is what it's supposed to be under load.  Hardware can be affected by brownout conditions in ways that are not readily obvious.
439
General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... RAMdisk opinions
« Last post by barney on September 24, 2012, 02:08 PM »
Every time is see a discussion like this I keep wishing we had a more formal tech KB at DoCo, Something along the lines of a nicely done wiki would be good. There is a deal of good information lurking down in the forum threads just waiting to be mined. 8)
-40hz (September 24, 2012, 08:05 AM)

Sure gets my vote  :Thmbsup:.  One (1) of the biggest problems I have here is finding whether a topic has already been covered  :-\.
440
Living Room / Re: In search of ... a hardware donee
« Last post by barney on September 23, 2012, 11:09 PM »
BTW, I'm still kinda iffy on the PM stuff.  I thimk I replied, wraith808, but I've been wrong before - December 31st, 1999 - thought it was January 1st, 2000.  Still using old dating system  :P :P :P.
441
Living Room / Re: In search of ... a hardware donee
« Last post by barney on September 23, 2012, 11:03 PM »
Sorry, folk  :(, for the rest of you, but wraith808 got it.  Simply a matter of timing.  Sorry to disappoint.

442
Living Room / In search of ... a hardware donee
« Last post by barney on September 23, 2012, 10:14 PM »
I have a ViDock4 Plus.  Contained therein is a Radeon Sapphire 62xx or 68xx (I don't recall, and I'm not gonna take the ViDock apart to check  ;).)  I can [probably] find the software that came with it, if there was any.  I don't remember  :-\.  The ViDock comes with two (2) power supplies, a 75 watt and a 150 watt, both of which I have.

The ViDock has a half-card interface.  I bought it for a Dell laptop that had such an interface.  The Dell died before I could ever get the ViDock installed and working.  Reason I bought it in the first place - year, year-and-a-half agone - was that I wanted three (3) or four (4) monitors available, and no software I've found to date can overcome the internal limits for a GPU. 

The Radeon Sapphire is three (3) or four (4) years old, never been used.  It wouldn't fit the desktop I had at the time because of physical placement issues.

It is highly unlikely that I'll ever have a desktop in my remaining lifetime - what can I say, I'm addicted to high-end laptops  :( ;), however, damned few of 'em have that all-important half-card slot, and my distrust of Dell has been reinforced  >:( - but if I did, 'twould be a home built system tailored to what I would then consider my specific, overweening needs at that time.

OK, that's the background/history.

I know there are a few DIY/hardware addicts here from a number of topics I've perused.

So.

The question is, does anyone want this particular beastie?  Shipping is/will be a non-issue.  I just need an address to which to ship it.  I'd hate to see this rotting away in my spare parts bin ... it cost too much to waste  :P.  International is not a problem, save for possible time/customs delays.

Given all the previous, anyone interested?  First come, first served ... reply here if you're brave  :), or PM me.  Either way, it won't cost you anything - I just don't want to see it rot on the shelf if it could help someone else.

Honest, no strings.  This would really help me (if you're so inclined).  I can clear out mucho space in my unused power supply drawer, as well as shelf space the ViDock is currently occupying.
443
General Software Discussion / In search of ... RAMdisk opinions
« Last post by barney on September 22, 2012, 11:48 PM »
Just got back from an alcohol-fueled conversation with some compatriots about RAMdisks.  There were four (4) of us, and I think there were six (6) opinions voiced (I said it was alcohol-fueled  :P).

At any rate, it got me to wondering whether a RAMdisk is really effective anymore.  Made heavy use of them back in the DOS days - TSRs and RAMdisks made things much faster and more convenient.  However, I've not used such in probably two (2) decades.

One (1) of us was a proponent of RAMdisks in Windows for the temp files that Windows uses.  Another agreed, to some extent, but thought the swap file was a better usage.  No. three (3) thought running specific apps there was a better usage.  (I didn't get to say much, 'cause I was the designated buyer  :-\, and it was a very thirsty conversation  :-*.)

Anyway, now that I'm in a thimk mode - and semi-sober - I'm wondering how the rest of you feel on the topic.  Would you use?  If so, what would be your preferred usage?  And is there a particularly good - or bad - implementation for the purpose?  (I can remember some real stinkers in my DOS days  :P.)
444
Living Room / Re: Morphing somebody's face/head over the years - how do they do that?
« Last post by barney on September 17, 2012, 11:13 PM »
Barney, thanks for your message.  I'm still wondering, though, whether you could have made "acceptable" morphs (which is how you described your results) with one of the less expensive versions of FantaMorph.  Like you, I'd love to create a morph of a family member from infancy to maturity.  I know I could do that with the Deluxe version, but couldn't I also make an "acceptable" version with, say, the Standard version? 
-cyberdiva (September 17, 2012, 06:22 PM)

As I read the specs, using multiple photos in sequence did not seem viable for the lesser versions.  That, however, may have been just my interpretation.  Might be more work, but you should easily be able to build a series of images by doing two (2) at a time, then streaming the results together.  In fact, that might be a more impressive output.  Sorry to be so late with this reply.
445
Living Room / Re: SkyDrive: Apple iCloud : Google Drive: Dropbox - comparison (FREE versions)
« Last post by barney on September 17, 2012, 11:05 PM »
Had minimal experience with Google Docs.  However, have been in love - or lust? - with Gmail's ability to allow multiple tags, as it very much simplifies finding a particular email.  Downside, of course, is inability to download/backup while maintaining those same tags.  However, considering the possible future usages of the Google Drive nee Docs, that should not be an insuperable problem.  Thanks for the insight.
446
Living Room / Re: SkyDrive: Apple iCloud : Google Drive: Dropbox - comparison (FREE versions)
« Last post by barney on September 17, 2012, 06:04 PM »
Have you actually tried the Google Drive yet?  I'm still exploring it, but kinda time-limited right now, so haven't done a lot with it yet.  Even though I'm not, to date, a strong user of Google Apps, the integration/collaboration aspect looks promising.  A friend of mine, a sailing instructor, is using Google for payment processing, so that integration could be quite convenient (since I'm currently his ad. hoc. admin  :o).
447
Living Room / Re: Morphing somebody's face/head over the years - how do they do that?
« Last post by barney on September 17, 2012, 05:42 PM »
I'm really tempted by the BdJ FantaMorph offer.  I wish I knew whether the least expensive version would do the job.  I don't really have time to try it out before the offer expires.  Anyone have experience with the least expensive version, or know why that might not be a good choice?
-cyberdiva (September 17, 2012, 04:47 PM)

Picked it up in March, I think (Curt's recommendation, the Deluxe version).  Initial tests make it pretty sharp.  It goes through a hardware/software test when you install/initiate it, determines what drivers you have -or, I think, may need -whether hardware acceleration is available ... it does check you system for compatibility, makes recommendations as needed.  I installed it on a Toshiba i7 6G RAM system, so it does not require uber-powerful system.

Played with it twice, so far.  Acceptable results both times.  I'm now trying to obtain decent shots of a sailboat which will be morphed into an English ship of the line or a China Clipper.  Discovered that it's much more challenging to change an inanimate object (A sailboat?  Inanimate?  Preposterous  :P!) into another inanimate object (see previous parenthetical expression) than to change one person into another, or to cross a human with most any animal.

Over the years - say, the last thirty (30) or forty (40) - I've tried a lot of morphing software:  FantaMorph is the best to date.  Maybe a bit pricey, even on BDJ, but well worth the cost to anyone interested in the concept.  (And creating, for instance, a granddaughter from infancy to maturity is absolutely precious  :-*.  Or grandson.  Or niece, nephew, neighbor's kid.  Anyone of whom you have a photo history.)(Or, you could turn your current boss into a fire-breathing dragon  :-\.)
448
General Software Discussion / Re: Images unexplainably changed
« Last post by barney on September 17, 2012, 04:31 PM »
Did at one (1) time have a CRT monitor that utilized channels (whatever that meant  :-\).  I'd get varying image output depending upon what else was happening - graphically, I presume, but don't know that for certain.  The monitor in question - do not recall the brand, damn it - required special/specific drivers, beyond the standard fare.  Could this be a driver conflict issue?  Don't have a clue how you'd hunt it down, though, other than trial and error.  (Note that the drivers in question were self-updating ... one of the reasons I ditched that particular monitor ... I want more control than that  :huh:.)
449
Living Room / Re: Morphing somebody's face/head over the years - how do they do that?
« Last post by barney on September 17, 2012, 04:21 PM »
^Nah - the ears are wrong  ;D.  And Al never looked that pretty  :P.
450
Living Room / Re: It's about ... oldish films
« Last post by barney on September 09, 2012, 08:50 PM »
Why is it 'old' Hollywood understood how to film a dance number, and so many of our modern directors - with all their film theory and technology - can't manage to get it together? :-\
-40hz (September 09, 2012, 03:43 PM)

One (1) of Fred's demands was that there never be a  closeup while he was dancing.  He thought, as do you (and many others, as well), the idea was to present the dance, not the person.  He was adamant about it. 

Modern directors seem more interested in showing the incipient pimple on your nose than your fancy footwork.  Sigh[n] of the times, I guess  :( >:(.
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