This is from 1953 which explains why they don’t mention nuclear waste. More information on коли под наемA is for Atom. Part 2 below the fold…
Ethanol from Corn in the real world
And doing it correctly! PhD. professors who most likely have little or no farm experience, calculate the cost of corn ethanol assuming the corn is only used for ethanol. From that wrong assumption, they jump to the conclusion that corn ethanol is responsible for higher food costs. This should be exhibit A as proof that there are educated idiots. Just in case you didn’t already know this was possible.
Site Updated to 2.6
Spent several hours updating this blog today. Database would not import correctly so had to go back to the old configuration and export the data base in wordpress. Then upgrade and delete all categories and posts then import the file from the old data base using wordpress to import it. Seem to be ok now but I haven’t completely tested it so email me if you find a problem
Why is anyone surprised?
From the Washington Post Mon. 9 June 2008:
Year after year, decade upon decade, the U.S. Senate’s network of restaurants has lost staggering amounts of money — more than $18 million since 1993, according to one report, and an estimated $2 million this year alone, according to another.
Not ready for prime time…
The CFL light bulb - better to wait for version 2.0.
Someone called this the best five minutes of the House of Representatives for 2008. Notice Tom Tancredo in the background. Even he realizes this may be the best fisking of the legislature evar… Another good title would be “Speaking Truth to Power”.
Reaching Tool
I have bought several of these for my mother over the years. But the last one I bought for myself - the 32″ model so I could pick up sticks on mom’s lawn. Worked great!
I bought the last one at the medical supply store in Worthington located east of Wal-Mart for $23.20 (32″). But if you can’t find it locally, you can order it from Allegro Medical based in Tempe, AZ. Their pricing is good and shipping should be about $9.
Always thinking…
If Minnie Driver…
Married Jean-Claude Van Damme…
And she then choose to use a hyphenated name, she would be…
Minnie Van Damme - Driver!
Farmers planting corn instead of wheat
This post is for journalists in general but specifically for Ali Velshi. Ali Velshi is CNN’s senior business correspondent. He and most media reports continue to make the claim that framers are planting corn instead of wheat because of corn ethanol. He repeats this again for his 3/21 Podcast. For any farm boy, or anyone knowledgeable about agriculture, this seems a bit odd because little of the US acreage for these two crops overlap.
An Inconvenient Truth - Climate Facts
This scientific data will slowly make it to the major media outlets but only after they get their talking points and spin focus group tested. So far, it seems the folks down under broke the story first (article 3/22/08 - ABC on 3/17/08).
Last Monday - on ABC Radio National, of all places - there was a tipping point of a different kind in the debate on climate change. It was a remarkable interview involving the co-host of Counterpoint, Michael Duffy and Jennifer Marohasy, a biologist and senior fellow of Melbourne-based think tank the Institute of Public Affairs. Anyone in public life who takes a position on the greenhouse gas hypothesis will ignore it at their peril.
Cancel your TV service - Watch your computer instead!
Turn your monitor into a TV screen.
I downloaded and installed this months ago and just recently fired it up. Boy did it download a bunch of crap! Not spam type junk, just channels that I had looked at before but must have hit the subscribe button. There are a number of excellent channels however.
Clueless Guys Can’t Read Women
Someone got paid for this study but any woman could have told them the same thing! Well any woman after a certain age and experience. Still, there is some merit for both sexes to read the article.
More often than not, guys interpret even friendly cues, such as a subtle smile from a gal, as a sexual come-on, and a new study discovers why: Guys are clueless.
But I’m not so sure it isn’t due to inherit differences.
More precisely, they are somewhat oblivious to the emotional subtleties of non-verbal cues, according to a new study of college students.
Like I said, ask any woman! But it is part of the “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus” story.
European Football
The rest of the world calls it football but to us folks in the US, it is soccer. But we can still appreciate physical skills. Start with this urban French “Footballer”.
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Network Solutions Using Questionable Tactic
I have never cared for Network Solutions much. First they had a monopoly and they charged $35 / year for domain names. Finally ICANN was forced to allow other providers. But even with competition offering the same service at half to one third the rate, they stuck with their price 18. of $35 for domain name registration for a very long time. They are now down to $14.99 per year - sort of. But this tactic is just plain stupid! It certainly is unethical.
And the lists keep coming…
#1 Java is becoming the new Cobol - Well those Cobol programmers needed something for the next generation!
2007’s most underreported tech stories
The 8 Hottest Skills for ‘08
Hey, I’m still number one except that I don’t do any of those type of apps. Some study may be required… There is also a link to the top dead (or dying) skills. Cobol is again #1. I think it has been for at least twenty years now! Many other links on the first page. Well it is that time of the year.
28 Things that Didn’t Happen In 2007
What? Only 28?
Network World - The 15 best downloads of the year (2007)
Yet another list… Preston Gralla of PC World lists 15 downloads he thinks outclasses their peers. Some of these I use, have used, or know about. Others certainly look interesting and are worth a closer look.
Warner Bros Will Release Exclusively In Blu-Ray Format
Big boost for Blu-Ray in the high definition battle. If I were a cynic, and I’m old enough to be one, I would point out I read somewhere that the Blu-Ray format has a stronger digital rights method. I think that may well trump anything else for a studio.
Huckabee pandering in Iowa
From the New Your Times comes this exchange with a seven year old Iowa girl.
“Who is your favorite author?” Aleya Deatsch, 7, of West Des Moines asked Mr. Huckabee in one of those posing-like-a-shopping-mall-Santa moments.
Mr. Huckabee paused, then said his favorite author was Dr. Seuss.
In an interview afterward with the news media, Aleya said she was somewhat surprised. She thought the candidate would be reading at a higher level.
“My favorite author is C. S. Lewis,” she said.
Hit ‘em again
This can’t be good.
UpLevel, a Russian criminal organization, and its German affiliates are using a version of the Prg trojan to attack commercial banking clients, according to anti-virus vendor SecureWorks.
The phishing and user attacks continue to escalate and now they use what they have gotten previously to hit the victim again.
“They put a lot of work into this,” said Jackson. “They have logs on tens of thousands of victims, and send out targeted emails using information stolen in previous attacks.”
And it could get expensive.
SecureWorks estimated that the thieves have stolen more than $200,000 in the U.S. since attacks on banks began late last month, Jackson added. The two groups stole a similar total from U.K.-based accounts as well.
“We see only about 10 percent of the attacks,” said Jackson. “We expect to see more than $1.2 million in losses.”
The 15 Biggest Tech Disappointments of 2007
The end of a year means it is list time. Dan Tynan of PCWorld, creates a list of the much-ballyhooed products, sites, and services, that left much to be desired. As he states: “From last to first, here’s our list of the year’s biggest losers. Read ‘em and weep.”
#15. Amazon Unbox #14. Municipal WiMax #13. Social Networks #12. Internet Security #11. Microsoft Zune #10. Wireless Carriers #9. Office 2007 #8. Apple "Leopard" OS 10.5 #7. Voice Over IP (Vonage) #6. The Broadband Industry #5. Apple iPhone #4. Yahoo #3. Facebook Beacon #2. The High-Def Format War #1. Windows Vista
Read his scathing remarks. Of course I’m sure management still got their bonuses. Next list will be the winners - but I can’t think of any at the moment. All in all, not a very good year.
He who controls the last mile…
This is an example of why the end users should own the last mile of the Internet. Any for profit corporation can be corrupted by tempting “profit centers” that generate profit through means that have nothing to do with the service the end user needs and wants. (Referenced blog entry here - follow links to find out what the providers are doing.)
Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) can be used to improve security but it can also be used to block and redirect content. As long as the last mile is a regulated monopoly left unchecked, they will spend profit dollars for lobbyists instead of improving the local network. The only government intervention I would embrace would be to limit the last mile providers from making any deals to generate revenue from any effort other than providing their essential service.
Ideally, I think the last mile, for both the internet and communications, should be owned by the end users. Otherwise, they are not accountable to the end users.
Lists of Linux equivalents for Windows software
So you have loaded up Linux and you think it is great but you need programs to do the same things you used to do under windows. You can use VMware and actually run your Windows OS under Linux if you really need to run the Windows software. But many tasks can be run directly under Linux. Not to worry since Brad Linder over at the Download Squad bloq, has posted three lists of Windows equivalent software for Linux. They do offer this caveat.
It’s important to note that we’re using the word “equivalent” rather loosely here. For example, Audacity really isn’t a full-fledged replacement for Adobe Audition. Audacity doesn’t have all of Audition’s features, not by a longshot. But you also don’t have to pay $349 to pick up a copy of Audacity.
This is common but it is often not a big problem for most users. Commercial software has many features they you may not require. For example, I had to convert some wav files to mp3. Hello Audacity! It did everything I needed and then some.
The Switch from Windows to Ubuntu
The Switch from Windows to Ubuntu
It seems appropriate for my first blog entry to be about the computer that I program on at home. I switched my desktop OS recently.
I recently took the plunge and have been using Ubuntu 7.10 on my home desktop for the past three weeks. I was somewhat content with Windows XP. However, Windows had been behaving strangely recently. It probably wasn’t Windows itself, but a program or an update or a combination of the two which started causing me problems. I felt that the best way to fix the problem was to wipe the hard drive and re-install everything.
When the speed of light is NOT constant
I thought Einstein proved the speed of light was constant but apparently not in a BEC (Bose-Einstein condensate).
Lene Vestergaard Hau can stop a pulse of light in midflight, start it up again at 0.13 miles per hour, and then make it appear in a completely different location. “It’s like a little magic trick,” says Hau, a Harvard physicist. “Of course, in all magic tricks there’s a secret.” And her secret is a 0.1-mm lump of atoms called a Bose-Einstein condensate, cooled nearly to absolute zero (-459.67 degrees Fahrenheit) in a steel container with tiny windows. Normally — well, in a vacuum — light goes 186,282 miles per second. But things are different inside a BEC, a strange place where millions of atoms move — barely — in quantum lockstep.
Top ten worst domain names
1. A site called “Who Represents” where you can find the name of the agent that represents a celebrity. Their domain name - wait for it - is
www.whorepresents.com
2. Experts Exchange, a knowledge base where programmers can exchange advice and views at
www.expertsexchange.com
3. Looking for a pen? Look no further than Pen Island at
www.penisland.net
4. Need a therapist? Try Therapist Finder at
www.therapistfinder.com
5. Then of course, there’s the Italian Power Generator company
www.powergenitalia.com
6. And now, we have the Mole Station Native Nursery, based in New South Wales:
www.molestationnursery.com
7. If you’re looking for computer software, there’s always
www.ipanywhere.com
8. Welcome to the First Cumming Methodist Church . Their website is
www.cummingfirst.com
9. Then, of course, there’s these brainless art designers, and their whacky website:
www.speedofart.com
10. Want to holiday in Lake Tahoe ? Try their brochure website at
www.gotahoe.com
Ubuntu server momentum builds toward ‘critical mass’
At CIO.com today, Canonical CEO Mark Shuttleworth gives a nice year-ending top ten list on a topic he’s surely familiar with on the most intimate of levels: Ubuntu.
More specifically, Shuttleworth talks about the Top Ten Reasons Why Ubuntu Is Best for Enterprise Use. In the list Shuttleworth runs down the usual laundry list of pro-Linux items, including flexibility, cost, support chops and its strong security track record; and addressed a few new ones as well like application selection. “There are more than 20,000 packages immediately available to Ubuntu users. These include the largest selection of open-source tools and a growing list of proprietary applications,” he said.
Windows vs. Linux Compared With Mixed Results
Windows vs. Linux Compared With Mixed Results
(Column) - I hear this too often - Windows is easier to use than Linux. And so in light of this, being as I have used both operating systems for years, I thought I would put this to the test, the results are not going to make Windows users feel too good about this desktop choice overall, I’m afraid.
Wal-Mart Plans To Restock Hot-Selling Linux PC
The retailer says the Everex TC2502 Green gPC has been one of the best selling desktop computers on walmart.com over the last few weeks.
Wal-Mart officials said Wednesday that the retailer plans to re-stock a hot selling, Linux-based PC that is currently sold out on its Web site.
Microsoft Parallel Computing Initiative
Microsoft News
Windows 7 “top feature request list” leaked to the public - Full list here in no particular order. Here was the kicker from the article.
The Windows 7 team was directed to look at all major desktop operating systems, including the latest Linux distributions and Apple’s OS X Leopard, but this was more for general impressions than to look for specific features to implement.
Ubuntu 1, Windows 0
Frank Cohen’s Blog
linux.sys-con.com/read/458943.htm
PushToTest is setting up a new test lab to check builds of TestMaker. We bought Toshiba Satellite (A216) laptops for the lab. We tried installing Windows XP over the pre-installed Windows Vista. Toshiba does not provide XP device drivers for the laptop and they actively discouraged me in doing so in a support call.
In the end I found no way to get the network adaptor to function under Windows XP and had to reinstall Vista.
This made me wonder how much work is involved in producing XP drivers for a laptop?
I installed Ubuntu on the Toshiba laptop. Ubuntu installed in 15 minutes - 49 for Windows XP and 125 for Windows Vista. Ubuntu’s desktop came right up. I opened the pre-installed Firefox browser and found I could browse the Web immediately. Ubuntu installed a network adaptor for the Toshiba laptop.
I shake my head at this Windows foolishness!
-Frank
Hillary bad mouths Iowa and Mississippi
Hillary explains her problem in Iowa. Follow the ABC link to the Des Moines Register article.
“I was shocked when I learned Iowa and Mississippi have never elected a woman governor, senator or member of Congress. There has got to be something at work here,” she said, theorizing it may be the risk-averse nature of a state built around agriculture.
“You Sneeze, You’re Dead Man”
The sound of freedom. Nothing beats the sound of a slide closing on a pump shotgun. The bad guys know they might not die, but they are almost certainly going to take a hit!
Dell seeing a move to Linux in critical applications
Speaking at a Gartner Symposium/ITxpo in Orlando, Michael Dell says that his company is seeing Linux update on the server end a little faster than Windows. Recent software patent infringement allegations by Microsoft have not affected Linux-based hardware sales.
