Recent Posts

5326

Living Room / Re: SEC uses JOBS Act to set up new roadblocks to crowdfunding

« Last post by 40hz on September 04, 2012, 02:53 PM »

No matter how big a scam crowdsourcing will ever pull off, it will never come close to Enron, the S&Ls, or any of a dozen other 'bailout with little or no prosecution' scams pulled by supposedly heavily regulated and monitored industries and financial institutions.

About the only time regulators ever display "excessive zeal" and preemptive actions is when they worry about some little guy doing something. When they worry about something big, they conduct "frank and earnest confidential discussions" and hold heavily choreographed hearings.

No different in a town next to mine. Get pulled over in a E-class Mercedes or a high end BMW (no matter what) and the police are as smooth as silk. You'll almost always get off with nothing other than a verbal warning. Get pulled in some low end Dodge or Ford and the ticket book comes out as they're walking toward your car. Their 'bedside manner' is completely different too.

Like I said: Maintain the status quo.

5327

Living Room / Re: Apple Patents Shutting Down Phones and Functions

« Last post by 40hz on September 04, 2012, 12:17 PM »

Hmm...now that "smartphones have replaced rifles" I guess they need to ensure we won't ever have a Russian or Arab Spring here, huh? 

5328

Living Room / Re: SEC uses JOBS Act to set up new roadblocks to crowdfunding

« Last post by 40hz on September 04, 2012, 12:12 PM »

Maintain the status quo and carry on!

Just remember: the SEC is part of the US government, which is the finest government money can buy.  

5329

General Software Discussion / Re: instant linux on winxp

« Last post by 40hz on September 03, 2012, 05:09 PM »

I downloaded the VMWare Player (free)
what do I do next to have an ubuntu (preferably xfce)?

-kalos (September 03, 2012, 04:24 PM)

Download the Xubuntu CD, create a virtual machine and install it on that. Or easier, download an Xubuntu virtual appliance and simply run that.

There's tons of how-tos and videos that a quick Google search will spot for you. Most are for Ubuntu proper, but the procedure for installing and running under VMware is the same for all Ubuntu versions.

Example here:

Luck!

5330

Living Room / Re: It's about ... oldish films

« Last post by 40hz on September 03, 2012, 04:15 PM »

^My pleasure.

5331

General Software Discussion / Re: instant linux on winxp

« Last post by 40hz on September 03, 2012, 12:53 PM »

Thanks for the clarification.  I think then that Wubi may not fit:

I want to have a linux OS on my winxp, without a boot live cd or something, just as I run a portable app or it would still be ok if I have to install it

Or may be I'm missing something.

-ewemoa (September 03, 2012, 05:13 AM)

Guess I misunderstood the request.

Ok...if you want simultaneous OS instances (one being Windows, the other Linux) then the only way to do it AFAIK is by using some species of virtual machine.

There is a Linux variant called Cooperative Linux that incorporates an unusual flavor of VM into the distro itself to make this happen. Cooperative Linux has spawned a few remixes, the most well known being andLinux..

andLinux is a complete Ubuntu Linux system running seamlessly in Windows 2000 based systems (2000, XP, 2003, Vista, 7; 32-bit versions only). This project was started for Dynamism for the GP2X community, but its userbase far exceeds its original design. andLinux is free and will remain so, but donations are greatly needed.

andLinux uses coLinux as its core which is confusing for many people. coLinux is a port of the Linux kernel to Windows. Although this technology is a bit like running Linux in a virtual machine, coLinux differs itself by being more of a merger of Windows and the Linux kernel and not an emulated PC, making it more efficient. Xming is used as X server and PulseAudio as sound server.

andLinux is not just for development and runs almost all Linux applications without modification.

The Cooperative Linux website can be found here. Latest version was released late December of last year.

The andLinux website can be found here.

Can't vouch for how well these work since I'm already quite happy using VMware for this sort of thing so I've never personally tried either. But if you want side-by-side Linux and Windows, and you're feeling adventurous, one of these might be the  ticket.
 

5332

Living Room / Re: It's about ... oldish films

« Last post by 40hz on September 03, 2012, 07:54 AM »

I'm going to hire a personal assistant one day soon.  Her only job will be to take all the information in 40hz posts, print out the relevant wikipedia references and other interesting related articles, get me the movies queued up on Netflix, have it ready for me on my desk when I come home.  

-superboyac (September 03, 2012, 12:44 AM)

Check out the OpenCulture website.   That should keep you occupied until then.

OC is one of the best curated cultural news/collection sites out there.

Want more? Add in TEDTalks, ArsTechnica and OSNews for tech; Groklaw and TechDirt for tech legal news and scandals; LinuxInsider, Phoronix, and Unixmen for 'NIX' stuff; QuietEarth for weird movie updates; Boing-Boing for geek potpourri, and...well it's a long list of places I hang out in. That'll get you started anyway.
 

5333

Living Room / Re: I want a Sony Xperia SX, but I think it's stupid to buy one.

« Last post by 40hz on September 02, 2012, 11:31 PM »

I'm not familiar with how mobile phone stuff works in the U.S. -- it's easy enough to bring a phone to some carrier and get them to use it?

-ewemoa (September 02, 2012, 08:11 PM)

Not always.

5334

General Software Discussion / Re: remote ubuntu

« Last post by 40hz on September 02, 2012, 11:14 PM »

Can i hide it, even from admin?

-kalos (September 02, 2012, 10:57 PM)

Why? What are you up to? 

5335

Living Room / Re: It's about ... oldish films

« Last post by 40hz on September 02, 2012, 11:12 PM »

Everybody remembers Diana Rigg as Emma Peel in her trademark jumpsuits:



But she was also a very good Shakespearean actress and a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. So if you get a chance, check out Peter Hail's 1968 semi-surreal film version of A Midsummer Night's Dream where Diana plays Helena. You can also see two other great British actresses: Helen Mirren (Hermia) and Judi Dench (Titania) in  the same production. Hail's version follows the original play very closely and is probably one of the best film versions out there.



Heres a clip:

 

5336

Living Room / Re: It's about ... oldish films

« Last post by 40hz on September 02, 2012, 10:47 PM »

So what do you guys think of these old movies?  have they stood the test of time?  I've been sorely disappointed by the last 3-5 years of Hollywood's movies, I was wondering how these "Golden Era" movies have stood up to those who maybe were familiar with them before we got desensitized to the sheer quantity of produced movies.

-superboyac (September 01, 2012, 11:51 PM)

I think they hold up remarkably well as entertainment. Few required deep thought or attempted to break new ground. But that wasn't what they were created to do. Movies of the 30s and the 40s were primarily examples of escapism. The US studios pretty much left 'deep & heavy' to the European filmmakers back then.

I also mostly prefer these oldies in their original B&W format. I still don't like "colorization." Fortunately, that ill-conceived vogue seems to have run its course.
 

5337

General Software Discussion / Re: remote ubuntu

« Last post by 40hz on September 02, 2012, 10:36 PM »

Ubuntu supports a Remote Desktop feature that works much like remote desktop on a Windows PC. Here's an extremely quick how-to to get you started. Google for your specific Ubuntu version.

You could also use TeamViewer which has a Linux client. That would allow you easily configurable access from any type pf PC (Win/OSX/Nix). It's free for personal use.

5338

General Software Discussion / Re: instant linux on winxp

« Last post by 40hz on September 02, 2012, 10:24 PM »

Take a look at Wubi.

No need for disks, keys. or virtual machines. Wubi installs Ubuntu inside Windows where it can run like any other app.

Get it here.

5339

Living Room / Re: Apple v Samsung Verdict is in

« Last post by 40hz on September 02, 2012, 10:44 AM »

Maybe the idea is to let Apple clear the field first? Once Apple establishes everybody infringed on Apple all LG needs to do is show Apple infringed on LG and they'd have a clean sweep with minimal legal effort since if A=B and B=C then A=C.

-40hz (September 02, 2012, 08:25 AM)

It's a sound strategy ... Low exposure/high gain, and everybody loses ... Especially us.

-Stoic Joker (September 02, 2012, 10:31 AM)

Yep. That's what's called "Business as Usual."

5340

Living Room / Re: Apple v Samsung Verdict is in

« Last post by 40hz on September 02, 2012, 08:25 AM »

Maybe the idea is to let Apple clear the field first? Once Apple establishes everybody infringed on Apple all LG needs to do is show Apple infringed on LG and they'd have a clean sweep with minimal legal effort since if A=B and B=C then A=C.

 

5341

Living Room / Re: It's about ... oldish films

« Last post by 40hz on September 02, 2012, 08:09 AM »

Note: agree w/barney - Kelly was much better than Fred. And so was Danny Kaye, who is probably the most underrated Broadway hoofer of them all. Danny could do it all - from classic ballet to soft shoe - and all points in-between.

-40hz (September 01, 2012, 10:00 PM)

+1.
Definitely concur.  Seems to me that Danny was much more accomplished than Fred, but Fred had all the attention at that time, and Danny's ventures into comedy created much more attention than his dancing.  I recall seeing him doing a couple of ballet routines ... very graceful, indeed ... and he could hold his own with Astaire & Kelly, methinks, in just about any venue.

Thanks for the reference about Eleanor Powell.  I remember her, I think, and remember (after being reminded) Fred's semi-tribute (I really think he was jealous/envious  ).  I'd much rather it have been Juliet Prowse, though ... had a teenage letch for her well past my teenage years   .  I remember her being praised as having the best legs in show-business, but that may just have been a Frank Sinatra quote I'm remembering  .  At any rate, Juliet Prowse, Cyd Charisse, Ginger Rogers, and Mitzi Gaynor are the female dances I recall most - and all were teenage lust objects for me  .

-barney (September 01, 2012, 11:39 PM)

No shame in lusting for Juliet Prowse. At least half the male population who were "of age" did. (And yes...her legs were awesome. Not just for their looks either. This lady knew how to use them. Easily one of the most talented dancers to ever appear on stage or screen.)

.. I was a dirty old man before my time  

Me too. I always liked the "older girls."  Still do - even if they eventually were my age - and are now mostly "younger women" to me. Even in my youth, I generally considered 23 to be the minimum age for any woman I'd be interested in.

I still thank heaven for former Shakespearian actress Diana Riggs and the Brit TV series The Avengers. Her Emma Peel character opened up my impressionable young mind to what women might be if men would just stop trying to turn them into domesticated farm animals. Mrs. Emma Peel was smart, elegant, wholesomely sexy, witty - and could kick some serious butt when she needed to. This was a woman who didn't care to lead, and definitely wouldn't follow, any man. Although (if he were lucky) she might elect to walk alongside him as an equal. Now that was definitely an idea ahead of its time when The Avengers first came out.



Ah Diana! Few ever wore the LBD with such authority...

5342

Living Room / Re: It's about ... oldish films

« Last post by 40hz on September 02, 2012, 07:41 AM »

Because I have a Katherine Hepburn jones, my all time favorite oldies are Bringing Up Baby



followed byDesk Set



followed by all the other classics in no particular order: The African Queen, Citizen Kane, It's a Wonderful Life, Casablanca....yadda-yadda...but only after I get my dose of Kate!!!


Kate - the original "Geek Goddess."

For Noir oldies...anything by Hitchcock of course, although The Third Man with the terrific city sewer chase scene and switch ending; and the eerie dreamlike cold war era Keeper of the Flame (finally out on DVD) with it's cautionary message are both well worth a watch.

5343

Living Room / Re: It's about ... oldish films

« Last post by 40hz on September 01, 2012, 10:00 PM »

Second is a rumour I've heard in the past that Fred did a movie with a female dancer who out-danced him to the point that he refused to work with her again.  If that's true, what was her name?

-barney (September 01, 2012, 07:41 PM)

I think that's a rumor that grew in the telling about Eleanor Powell, "Queen of Tap," who was the only female dancer Fred ever publicly acknowledged was better than him - although he restricted his compliment to tap dancing. Lovely girl with an adorable personality and an unbelievable tap dancer. (Note: I've heard the same story told about the stunning Juliet Prowse.)



Her performance with Fred in the Begin the Beguine number from Broadway Melody is her signature piece. Good article about her here.

P.S. You don't have to be that old. All thats needed is a mother and father who loved to dance and watch all the old musicals. I must have seen most of those movies from the 30s and 40s at least a dozen times each when I was growing up.

---------------------

Note: agree w/barney - Kelly was much better than Fred. And so was Danny Kaye, who is probably the most underrated Broadway hoofer of them all. Danny could do it all - from classic ballet to soft shoe - and all points in-between.

Addendum: Check out Danny w/Vera Ellen in this number:

 

5344

General Software Discussion / Re: Why not to bother with being "loyal" to Microsoft brands

« Last post by 40hz on September 01, 2012, 04:34 PM »

-if no other program can do all that OneNote can do, then there is no other program to export everything to, I would say. But of course I don't know.

-Curt (September 01, 2012, 03:11 PM)

Actually, that's pretty much the crux of it. Nothing else I'm aware of does work or look exactly like OneNote so Curt nailed it with that observation. The organizational structure of OneNote doesn't really have another exact equivalent. So you can export the assets but not the structure. The closest app I've seen that's similar is probably BasKet on the Linux platform. And even that isn't all that close to OneNote.

 

5345

General Software Discussion / Re: Firefox 15 less of a memory hog

« Last post by 40hz on September 01, 2012, 04:17 PM »

You're funny 40hz!  

-dantheman (September 01, 2012, 03:30 PM)

I get like that when I'm embarrassed about posting something stupid because I overlooked something obvious.

re: Tabs

Yeah...I'm amazed by the number some people keep open. Like you I seldom have more than three or four going at a time. And I close them almost as fast as I'm done with them. Still, I guess it's all how you're used to working. I use RSS feeds a lot, and I'll save stuff to either Pocket or Scrapbook so I seldom worry about missing or losing something I want to read. "Different strokes for different folks!" as the old song goes.
 

5346

General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... guidance on Zorin as portable

« Last post by 40hz on September 01, 2012, 04:02 PM »

However, I did commit to helping him with some aspects, and I intend to keep my word regardless what his agenda might be.  That commitment is important to me, on both a personal and a professional level.

-barney (September 01, 2012, 01:26 PM)

Understood. Word is bond. I can relate.

I'd suggest he go with a Debian-based distro using MATE or Gnome2 for the desktop manager as a general rule of thumb. If the USB keys are going to be assigned to specific machines he could always just do a regular install from a CD/DVD onto the USB key itself and then boot from that. Far easier than mucking around and remastering a live CD

To put a live distro onto a bootable USB key use UNetbootin. Period. Unless the specific distro has it's own UBB tool. It's a simple process. Just follow the guides.

For a distro targeted at Windows users I'd suggest Linux Mint. It's not a Win lookalike, nor is it intended to be. But it's what I give to my Windows users who are moving over to Linux. So far it hasn't caused much in the way of culture shock. Most people I've dropped it on take to it pretty quickly and often end up liking it.

I'd suggest looking at Linux Mint 13 (Maya) for openers and suggest trying the MATE version first. Also use the 64-bit version if you have a 64-bit chip. Mint Maya is based on Ubuntu 12.04 (Precise Pangolin) and uses most of their core and supplemental repositories. So most of what goes for Ubuntu will go for Mint. Think of it as Ubuntu sans that Fisher-Price looking Unity desktop that Canonical keeps trying to convince everybody is the way to go.

Here's what it looks like with the start menu popped up:



No big deal right? You open a menu and click on what you want to run. Home folder is the same as MyDocuments. Just like Windows up to Win7.

Let me know how you make out.

5347

Living Room / Re: 2.5 GB for Opera - It's Not Running~! =D

« Last post by 40hz on September 01, 2012, 01:08 PM »

Opera 12.02 has hit the Linux repositories. I just updated. So far, it seems to be working better than ever.

5348

General Software Discussion / Re: Firefox 15 less of a memory hog

« Last post by 40hz on September 01, 2012, 12:46 PM »

Ok...just went through my FF add-ons for this machine and disabled Stylish and Tin Eye Reverse Image Search - and now FF15 is flying. (Note: machine is Core2-Duo running @2G/800 w/4Gb RAM)

<<Foul buzzer sounds and 40hz raises his hand so they can get his number>>

Guess I'll have to retract my earlier negative comments and apologize to the FF team.

5349

Living Room / Re: Non-Douchiness From the MAFIAA? Am I High?

« Last post by 40hz on September 01, 2012, 12:32 PM »

^Ok. It seems to be ok now. But seriously, it was showing a broken link earlier.

5350

General Software Discussion / Re: In search of ... guidance on Zorin as portable

« Last post by 40hz on September 01, 2012, 12:28 PM »

Ok...a few things...

1. It's generally not a good idea to try to use Wine on a production basis for business apps. It's ok in a pinch - or for occasional use. But if you're going to be doing something like running Excel or Word or an accounting program all day you're asking for trouble. I'd keep the users on Windows if that were the case.

2. If he just needs to monitor business use of the machines, and compile stats, he'd probably be better off downloading the free edition of ManicTime and using that. It's Windows native and a whole lot easier than the science fair project you've outlined above.

Regarding this:

I think he also wants to snoop on his employees...

He might want to check up on what the legal ramifications are for that where he operates. Where I am it's a semi-gray area that poses significant legal risks for the employer. Better suggest he check with an attorney as to exactly what's allowed in his jurisdiction. One thing that does seem to be an almost universal constant is you're not allowed to monitor employees secretly. Advance and ongoing notice has to be given. And very often some form of consent needs to be gotten back from the employees as well. So: Danger Will Robinson!!!

...but that's neither here nor there  undecided Wink.

Um...yeah...well...it is for me. 

My company has turned down numerous requests from people over the years who wanted to do that. It's something we don't personally believe in or want to be a part of. So I'm afraid can't help him with that piece of the puzzle if that's where he's going with it.

3. Servers are dirt cheap for what most SMBs need. Actually...what most of them really need is centralized network data storage rather than a full server solution. In his case, it may be easier to just acquire a mini-server (HP etc.) for around $500, load it with a freebie Linux small biz server solution, and call it a day. That's a lot easier (and cheaper in the long run) than dealing with Luddite silent partners and trying to convince them to buy a server.