Some people online are expressing outrage that PayPal has banned Wikileaks from receiving donations through the service. I say BFD. F wikileaks. They're putting people's lives at risk, and damaging diplomatic relations around the world.
Julian Assange is being praised as some sort of hero. He's not.
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Thursday, December 2, 2010
AVG Update causes Reboot Loop
I had a client call me and describe a situation in which AVG said it needed to reboot in order to install an update. He allowed it, and it continued to request a reboot. Endlessly. I walked him through system restore, and it seemed to work - then happened again about 20 minutes later. I told him I'd have to come out and look at it.
So I was about to go to sleep, and I hopped to my main computer to synchronize my Outlook with MobileMe one last time for the day. I wiggle the mouse and login, and the first thing I saw was an AVG prompt requesting a restart. I allowed it, and sat there waiting for the system to start up again.
Instead of my desktop, I was greeted with a "Startup Repair" window. :( I tried to use System Restore, and for whatever reason, IT CRASHED. This was not good.
I went over to one of my other machines, and discovered that other people have experienced the same issue. After some digging, I found this method to repair the problem:
1. Using Startup Repair, invoke a Command Prompt.
2. Navigate to "C:\Program Files (X86)\AVG\AVG10"
3. Type "rename *.exe *.bak" and hit ENTER
4. Type exit
5. Exit Startup Repair
6. Windows will begin rebooting, and eventually present a screen offering two choices - "Startup Repair" or "Start Normally". Choose START NORMALLY.
7. Windows *should* boot normally, with one important difference. AVG isn't running.
8. Go to the control panel and uninstall AVG.
9. Once AVG is uninstalled, the system will need to reboot again.
10. As Windows starts up, AVG will launch a browser window requesting a short survey as to why you uninstalled it. Let them know what happened.
11. You can either reinstall AVG Free (it looks like the offending update has been pulled) or use another program, such as Microsoft Security Essentials.
12. I'm going to reinstall AVG free, as it's been a fine program for years. Every Anti-Virus program has had occasional problems with false positives, etc. I'll give them another chance. I ended up going with Microsoft Security Essentials, which to date has been great.
NO RESPONSIBILITY CAN BE ASSUMED IF THE ABOVE METHOD DOES NOT WORK FOR YOU, IF IT BORKS YOUR COMPUTER, OR IF YOU SUDDENLY HAVE OTHER PROBLEMS. GOOD LUCK
So I was about to go to sleep, and I hopped to my main computer to synchronize my Outlook with MobileMe one last time for the day. I wiggle the mouse and login, and the first thing I saw was an AVG prompt requesting a restart. I allowed it, and sat there waiting for the system to start up again.
Instead of my desktop, I was greeted with a "Startup Repair" window. :( I tried to use System Restore, and for whatever reason, IT CRASHED. This was not good.
I went over to one of my other machines, and discovered that other people have experienced the same issue. After some digging, I found this method to repair the problem:
1. Using Startup Repair, invoke a Command Prompt.
2. Navigate to "C:\Program Files (X86)\AVG\AVG10"
3. Type "rename *.exe *.bak" and hit ENTER
4. Type exit
5. Exit Startup Repair
6. Windows will begin rebooting, and eventually present a screen offering two choices - "Startup Repair" or "Start Normally". Choose START NORMALLY.
7. Windows *should* boot normally, with one important difference. AVG isn't running.
8. Go to the control panel and uninstall AVG.
9. Once AVG is uninstalled, the system will need to reboot again.
10. As Windows starts up, AVG will launch a browser window requesting a short survey as to why you uninstalled it. Let them know what happened.
11. You can either reinstall AVG Free (it looks like the offending update has been pulled) or use another program, such as Microsoft Security Essentials.
12.
NO RESPONSIBILITY CAN BE ASSUMED IF THE ABOVE METHOD DOES NOT WORK FOR YOU, IF IT BORKS YOUR COMPUTER, OR IF YOU SUDDENLY HAVE OTHER PROBLEMS. GOOD LUCK
Sunday, November 21, 2010
My Review - FLYNN'S ARCADE T-Shirt
Cool shirt - GLOWS IN THE DARK!
By badtzmartin from Burbank, CA on 11/21/2010
Fit: Feels true to sizeLength: Feels true to length
Pros: Stylish
Describe Yourself: Casual
I've seen knockoffs of this design. This is NOT a knockoff. It's officially licensed and great!
(legalese)
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Dukes of Hazzard filming locations, then & now
Some people like to find the real-life locations where their favorite Movies & TV Shows were filmed.
This guy makes an art form of it:
http://users.telenet.be/roadmaster/dukesofhazzard_locations.htm
This guy makes an art form of it:
http://users.telenet.be/roadmaster/dukesofhazzard_locations.htm
Friday, October 22, 2010
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Friday, October 15, 2010
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Friday, September 24, 2010
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Monday, September 6, 2010
iTunes Ping - Review
Apple recently released a new music-centric social networking service called "Ping". At the moment, it looks half-baked at best, useless at worst.
Here's some of the things I think are wrong or missing as of now:
1. Another "walled garden" that's separate from other social networks, especially facebook. I think this is the biggest failing - searching for friends who participate in the service by their names or email addresses one-by-one SUCKS. Period.
2. The artists that are participating are relatively sparse at this point, and I suspect Apple recruited those who are there. Also, independent artists can't setup an "Artist" profile on their own - currently they've got to setup a personal account profile.
3. The "following" of specific artists isn't integrated properly with their iTunes store listing. If a particular artist is for sale on the iTunes, you should be able to follow them from there, regardless of whether they have setup an artist profile in Ping.
When Steve Jobs demoed the new iTunes "Ping" social networking service, it had Facebook friend finding. Apparently the feature was pulled last minute because Apple used a Facebook API without approval. Even if that feature was still there, it's not enough. The status updates, etc. should be fully integrated into Facebook. If iTunes Ping remains a separate social network, it will fail.
Here's some of the things I think are wrong or missing as of now:
1. Another "walled garden" that's separate from other social networks, especially facebook. I think this is the biggest failing - searching for friends who participate in the service by their names or email addresses one-by-one SUCKS. Period.
2. The artists that are participating are relatively sparse at this point, and I suspect Apple recruited those who are there. Also, independent artists can't setup an "Artist" profile on their own - currently they've got to setup a personal account profile.
3. The "following" of specific artists isn't integrated properly with their iTunes store listing. If a particular artist is for sale on the iTunes, you should be able to follow them from there, regardless of whether they have setup an artist profile in Ping.
When Steve Jobs demoed the new iTunes "Ping" social networking service, it had Facebook friend finding. Apparently the feature was pulled last minute because Apple used a Facebook API without approval. Even if that feature was still there, it's not enough. The status updates, etc. should be fully integrated into Facebook. If iTunes Ping remains a separate social network, it will fail.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Pedophilia in Afghanistan...
Why have I heard nothing about this before?
Apparently pedophilia is a common practice in Pashtun culture in Afghanistan.
And of all the outlets to cover it - The San Francisco Chronicle???
Full article here:
Afghanistan's dirty little secret
Apparently pedophilia is a common practice in Pashtun culture in Afghanistan.
And of all the outlets to cover it - The San Francisco Chronicle???
Full article here:
Afghanistan's dirty little secret
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Glenn Beck's "Restoring Honor" rally
Glenn Beck was the organizer of a rally on the National Mall. The stated purpose of the rally was to show support for a return to more traditional values, called "Restoring Honor". The media in general are critical of this rally on the National Mall today, with many (including Rev. Al Sharpton) suggesting that by holding the event on the National Mall on the same day MLK gave his famous "I have a dream" speech, Beck's "stepping on toes" and such. Is it because Beck is white? Perhaps. Let's see if they acknowledge the magnitude and diversity of the crowd that was there:
Yes, that's the National Mall - filled with people of all types - all there supporting traditional values.
The good Reverend held a "Reclaiming The Dream" rally nearby, but the turnout was less significant. The only picture I could find was this:
It looks like a smaller crowd, and I didn't choose to compare the old photograph with the new one. But it shows something about the size of the crowd. In the black & white MLK photo, you can see people in the crowd way back. In the Sharpton photo at right, not so much.
Also, Sharpton's event was missing someone. Alveda King, the niece of Martin Luther King, Jr. was at Beck's event, and spoke to the crowd.
The good Reverend held a "Reclaiming The Dream" rally nearby, but the turnout was less significant. The only picture I could find was this:
Also, Sharpton's event was missing someone. Alveda King, the niece of Martin Luther King, Jr. was at Beck's event, and spoke to the crowd.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Pandigital Novel - Quick Review
Just picked up a Pandigital Novel last night, partly to use as a cheap ($170) e-reader. Honestly, it was a cheap iPad alternative that I knew other people (smarter than me) had figured out how to install Android applications on. The stock "reader" app (which still works after the hack) can buy books from Barnes & Noble, just like the Nook. After hacking, I was also able to install Kindle for Android, which effectively makes this a "multi-platform" e-reader. Again, for this price it's hard to resist.
Here's what it looks like "stock". Not bad.
The real fun began when I followed a series of (relatively simple) steps I found online, and hacked it to run "regular" Android, complete with access to the "Android Market". I can even justify this as a business expense, since it's the first Android device I've spent more than 2 minutes using, and knowing my way around Android will help when a client asks me to help them setup an Android phone.
The screen is RESISTIVE, which means it requires pressure, such as the tip of your finger or a stylus. This is not a deal breaker, especially on a cheap device like this. It's actually pretty sensitive and responsive - I wish my GPS had a screen this responsive.
The iPad (and iPhone) uses a CAPACITIVE screen, which requires that a conductive "pointer" (such as your bare finger) be used. While a capacitive screen "feels" better, this screen feels good for what it is.
It has 1GB of on-board storage, but will accept SD/SDHC cards up to 32GB.
Anyway, I'm pretty pleased with it. If you don't already have an iPad, and don't want to spend $500, go to Bed Bath & Beyond right away and buy one of these.
Here's what it looks like "stock". Not bad.
The real fun began when I followed a series of (relatively simple) steps I found online, and hacked it to run "regular" Android, complete with access to the "Android Market". I can even justify this as a business expense, since it's the first Android device I've spent more than 2 minutes using, and knowing my way around Android will help when a client asks me to help them setup an Android phone.
The screen is RESISTIVE, which means it requires pressure, such as the tip of your finger or a stylus. This is not a deal breaker, especially on a cheap device like this. It's actually pretty sensitive and responsive - I wish my GPS had a screen this responsive.
The iPad (and iPhone) uses a CAPACITIVE screen, which requires that a conductive "pointer" (such as your bare finger) be used. While a capacitive screen "feels" better, this screen feels good for what it is.
It has 1GB of on-board storage, but will accept SD/SDHC cards up to 32GB.
Anyway, I'm pretty pleased with it. If you don't already have an iPad, and don't want to spend $500, go to Bed Bath & Beyond right away and buy one of these.
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