A big source of frustration is how makers of electronics try to get away with the damn smallest or thinnest battery they can find. Worse, is the bit with batteries you can't replace, like the iPhone. Would you buy a car with a battery you can't replace? No. So, why would you buy an expensive phone with a sealed-in battery like the iPhone?
What's really bad about smart phones is that you're lucky to get home from work with it "flying on fumes" after you left in the morning with a full charge. That is unacceptable. A lot of people buy a smart phone for the first time not knowing how bad they are on battery only to find out the hard way when it makes a noise that is the "low fuel idiot alarm". What a disappointment for the new user. Yet, people accept it. Why I find this unacceptable is that I refuse to leave a $500 phone sitting out in ANY workplace where anyone can get at it.
I once worked in a place where spiteful people messed with my stuff just out of spite. For example I would use in the break area this one large fan owned by the company. So, an idiot snipped the cord right at its engine housing to be sure I couldn't fix it. If you worked with jerks like this, would you want to leave a smart phone sitting out rigged to a charger? Where a prick could grab it, drop it on the floor, and run it over with a forklift? In short, a smart phone needs to be able to go for a FULL WEEKEND on one charge, with normal use. Yep, from a Friday morning to the following Monday evening before the "low fuel idiot alarm" goes off.
With the iPhone, this with batteries you can't replace, is completely inexcusable. Batteries wear out. Keep the same car battery aboard a car, and sooner or later, the car will fail to start. Would you buy a car with a sealed-in battery? No. It has come to my attention that the Mac Book Air, another Apple product, has a glued-in battery that has a shape that resembles a gerrymandered congressional district. And it's gerrymandered in 3-D while you're at it.
As I type this out, I'm testing out a laptop hooked to a a power supply that can run from a car battery and its input is hooked to a pair of emergency light batteries while I sit in a bar with free wifi. The idea is to get a laptop that keeps going and going and going....
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Saturday, March 9, 2013
Wanna make money? Be prepared to gamble...
As a method of making money, working is for subsistence. If you want to make BIG money, you have to gamble on Wall Street. The problem is that under normal conditions you need big bucks to start but not always. Gambling of any type is best done with money you can afford to lose. By only using money you can afford to lose, if you lose your bet it will not cause financial disruption.
There is online gambling to be found, and online trading companies, like ING's sharebuilder.com, TDAmeritrade, etc. Online stock trading is (so far) the only legal online gambling. In the case on online trading, most such sites expect you pump it up with $1,000, but ING is different. You need only $100 or even less, so if you can afford to lose $100, you can get in the game.
Remember when American Airlines filed a Chapter 11? The stock tanked, of course. On a Friday when it was 19 cent a share, I was joking that it's too bad that you can't go to a stock exchange , walk to a window like a horse race track to put a $100 bet in and buy a bunch of shares. But it's almost as good with an online trading company! Note that as you trade, there is a trading fee that is flat rate that is like a "bookie fee".
This type of gambling (betting on Chapter 11's) is a case of very high risk investing, which is why I call it a bet. It's a 50/50 as you might well lose it all, like conventional gambling. But the payout can be good. How about putting in a $76 bet on 100 shares and finding out it climbed to $3.10/share? On a 50/50 bet that is QUITE the return!
What would have been fun would be had I bought 400 shares of AMR at 19 cent a share. I'd have $1200! But quadrupling my money is pretty good on a first try.
There is online gambling to be found, and online trading companies, like ING's sharebuilder.com, TDAmeritrade, etc. Online stock trading is (so far) the only legal online gambling. In the case on online trading, most such sites expect you pump it up with $1,000, but ING is different. You need only $100 or even less, so if you can afford to lose $100, you can get in the game.
Remember when American Airlines filed a Chapter 11? The stock tanked, of course. On a Friday when it was 19 cent a share, I was joking that it's too bad that you can't go to a stock exchange , walk to a window like a horse race track to put a $100 bet in and buy a bunch of shares. But it's almost as good with an online trading company! Note that as you trade, there is a trading fee that is flat rate that is like a "bookie fee".
This type of gambling (betting on Chapter 11's) is a case of very high risk investing, which is why I call it a bet. It's a 50/50 as you might well lose it all, like conventional gambling. But the payout can be good. How about putting in a $76 bet on 100 shares and finding out it climbed to $3.10/share? On a 50/50 bet that is QUITE the return!
What would have been fun would be had I bought 400 shares of AMR at 19 cent a share. I'd have $1200! But quadrupling my money is pretty good on a first try.
Saturday, March 2, 2013
The GOP's "Minority Problem"
The Republicans have a problem. It's demographics. You see, only about 1 out of 4 Hispanics vote Republican, and among African Americans, it's about 1 in 20. Obviously, people with color aren't buying their message. Why? The Republicans think they need a better messenger to deliver their message of Social Darwinism for the poor and socialism for the rich. We who have (even if only seasonally) color "get it" but whites don't.
So, a bunch of Republicans have a meetup at a golf resort that was once a plantation to brainstorm. That's right, a plantation! The dilemma is that if they make any real attempt to sucker in minorities, they alienate their white base. You can't have both.
The conclusion of the meet at the plantation is that they need to recruit minorities to run for office as Republicans. There are some, but the untapped supply is low, kind of like haystack needles. Would this work? Almost certainly not. Well, let them waste time trying it. And I have a suggestion. Can't find minorities? Easy. You MAKE them! The answer as to how is hiding in plain sight, in the form of John Boehner. John Boehner goes and plays golf for 10 days, comes back with half of Obama's color, and scolds the Senate about not working. Kind of reminds me about the pot calling the kettle black. Play enough golf and get a good curly perm, and if needed brown eye tint contact lenses. Voila! Instant minority member! Will real minorities fall for it? Not hardly. They have a few real ones that are correctly seen as the Uncle Tom type, like Clarance Thomas, Allan West, Herman Cain, and Marco Rubio, a "Tio Tomas" type. And don't forget Bobby Jindal.
Until they change their tune, they will have to resort to gerrymandering, voter suppression, election rigging, and anything else their evil hearts come up with. But homebrew minorities won't work.
So, a bunch of Republicans have a meetup at a golf resort that was once a plantation to brainstorm. That's right, a plantation! The dilemma is that if they make any real attempt to sucker in minorities, they alienate their white base. You can't have both.
The conclusion of the meet at the plantation is that they need to recruit minorities to run for office as Republicans. There are some, but the untapped supply is low, kind of like haystack needles. Would this work? Almost certainly not. Well, let them waste time trying it. And I have a suggestion. Can't find minorities? Easy. You MAKE them! The answer as to how is hiding in plain sight, in the form of John Boehner. John Boehner goes and plays golf for 10 days, comes back with half of Obama's color, and scolds the Senate about not working. Kind of reminds me about the pot calling the kettle black. Play enough golf and get a good curly perm, and if needed brown eye tint contact lenses. Voila! Instant minority member! Will real minorities fall for it? Not hardly. They have a few real ones that are correctly seen as the Uncle Tom type, like Clarance Thomas, Allan West, Herman Cain, and Marco Rubio, a "Tio Tomas" type. And don't forget Bobby Jindal.
Until they change their tune, they will have to resort to gerrymandering, voter suppression, election rigging, and anything else their evil hearts come up with. But homebrew minorities won't work.
Saturday, February 23, 2013
1,000 Watts is 1,000 Watts is 1,000 Watts...
Sun question: Which creates more heat? A 1,000 watt heater or a server with so many hard drives that it drains 1,000 watts?
The answer is that both 1,000 watt items end up giving off 1,000 watts worth of heat. It's just that the ridiculous server is more fun! Not to mention that the server is less likely to cause a fire than the heater. The trick is you get a lot of data storage and CPU speed, but as chips run and hard drives spin, the power eventually becomes heat.
What this means is that if you need an electric heater you may as well have some fun with the electricity as you make the heat. Like the crazy server above, if you take 1,000 watts worth of sodium vapor bulbs, you'll get the heat, but you first get a lot of light, including some ultraviolet light, so you too can have color if you normally don't. (assuming you do tan)
A laser printer would make for a dandy heater. These printers have an "energy saver" mode that shuts off a heating element, so if you align a print job, it takes the couple minutes to heat up, the print job ensues, and when done shuts off that heating element. But that mode can be aligned to be engaged or disengaged. All the better is if you can align it on or off remotely with your computer. If your computer has Linux, all the more fun. You can automate your dual-use heater! If you work in an office, you will want to lobby for putting that printer underneath the thermostat. What this does is fool the thermostat into thinking the room is too hot. If you are like a Matthew Henson (or polar bear) and like it cold, you can now stealthily control the room temperature to taste. And have a sodium vapor bulb in your cubicle to get your color.
The answer is that both 1,000 watt items end up giving off 1,000 watts worth of heat. It's just that the ridiculous server is more fun! Not to mention that the server is less likely to cause a fire than the heater. The trick is you get a lot of data storage and CPU speed, but as chips run and hard drives spin, the power eventually becomes heat.
What this means is that if you need an electric heater you may as well have some fun with the electricity as you make the heat. Like the crazy server above, if you take 1,000 watts worth of sodium vapor bulbs, you'll get the heat, but you first get a lot of light, including some ultraviolet light, so you too can have color if you normally don't. (assuming you do tan)
A laser printer would make for a dandy heater. These printers have an "energy saver" mode that shuts off a heating element, so if you align a print job, it takes the couple minutes to heat up, the print job ensues, and when done shuts off that heating element. But that mode can be aligned to be engaged or disengaged. All the better is if you can align it on or off remotely with your computer. If your computer has Linux, all the more fun. You can automate your dual-use heater! If you work in an office, you will want to lobby for putting that printer underneath the thermostat. What this does is fool the thermostat into thinking the room is too hot. If you are like a Matthew Henson (or polar bear) and like it cold, you can now stealthily control the room temperature to taste. And have a sodium vapor bulb in your cubicle to get your color.
Raise the Minimum Wage Already
Obama mentioned that we need to raise the minimum wage because at present, it's a poverty wage. Now, of course the Republicans will oppose raising it because of their utter contempt for workers. There are right wingers who think we should abolish it altogether. I guess the GOP and their rich buddies think 25 cent/hour is too much. These GOP bozos always bring out two talking points:
The Teenager talking point. In this one, the minimum wage job is an "entry level" job for teenagers. Meet reality. In the real world, good jobs disappear and minimum wage jobs are created - and adults are forced to take these worthless jobs because good jobs are not being created. Result? Teenagers are replaced by expierenced adults desperate for jobs! Why hire a teenager without any expierence when you can get an adult at the same price?
The "It's not meant to be a career" talking point. The problem is that in reality, it IS a "career" for more and more people! Anyone who has color, even if only in the summer, knows that "entry level" is exactly where you end up with that employer. "Entry level" is a synonym for minimum wage dead end. Unless you are a preferred relative of the owner, forget it. You are NEVER going to move up. Why don't white people get it?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that by Year 2020 half of all jobs will be minimum wage jobs. Want a raise? Quit voting Republican! At your next job, the only way you'll get a raise will be when the minimum wage gets raised. If you still have a good job, your next one won't be. And the Republicans will filibuster your raise to death.
The Teenager talking point. In this one, the minimum wage job is an "entry level" job for teenagers. Meet reality. In the real world, good jobs disappear and minimum wage jobs are created - and adults are forced to take these worthless jobs because good jobs are not being created. Result? Teenagers are replaced by expierenced adults desperate for jobs! Why hire a teenager without any expierence when you can get an adult at the same price?
The "It's not meant to be a career" talking point. The problem is that in reality, it IS a "career" for more and more people! Anyone who has color, even if only in the summer, knows that "entry level" is exactly where you end up with that employer. "Entry level" is a synonym for minimum wage dead end. Unless you are a preferred relative of the owner, forget it. You are NEVER going to move up. Why don't white people get it?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that by Year 2020 half of all jobs will be minimum wage jobs. Want a raise? Quit voting Republican! At your next job, the only way you'll get a raise will be when the minimum wage gets raised. If you still have a good job, your next one won't be. And the Republicans will filibuster your raise to death.
Saturday, February 16, 2013
Carnival Epic Fail: Cruise Ships' Poor Engineering Design
Congratulations for the 3000 passengers who survived the Carnival "Triumph" Debacle, about the worst cruise since the Titanic disaster. It has come to my attention that these cruise ships have a serious design flaw. First, about myself. I was in the US Navy, and worked in one of the engine rooms of a twin engine ship. That ship had two boiler rooms, and two engine rooms, so if any one of the four rooms was ruined, like by a fire, the ship could drive back to a port under its own power.
I got orders at one point to go to a single engine ship that would drive across the Atlantic, but stayed on the twin engine ship I already knew. Why? I was afraid of the single engine thing breaking down in the middle of the Atlantic! Brave is one thing, but foolhardy is another. Here's the problem with ships of all types. Unlike a car, you can't assume there will be road side assistance. Same is true of planes as they wreck. Apollo 13 is the worst case. Most people fail to realize this, as being on a ship is not an everyday thing like driving a car is.
Now, for the design flaw with an awful lot of cruise ships: Both engines are in the SAME room! That means, of course, if there's a fire in that one engine room, you lose out on BOTH engines... and you are now stuck. If the electrical system is affected, you are in a heap of trouble, as you lose A/C, sewage pumps, water pumps, and so on. The Carnival Triumph fiasco was not an isolated incident. A few years ago it happened twice where the ship got stuck dead in the water. It's like Carnival Corp takes a standard layout that's flawed and has someone design the hotel building (superstructure) on it with hardly a thought about the propulsion system.
You mean to say that Carnival Corp Can't afford to add one wall in the right place? Are they THAT damn cheap? Now, they have a ship that is totalled as there is no way to get rid of the stench on the "Triumph". So, they will have to junk it and get the quarter gigabuck from their insurance. What they should do is add watertight walls (bulkheads) in the right places and rewire the electrical grids on their ships with the insurance payout. That way, they avoid this embarasment down the road. Getting their propulsion systems squared away would be money well spent. They deserve a totalled ship.
I got orders at one point to go to a single engine ship that would drive across the Atlantic, but stayed on the twin engine ship I already knew. Why? I was afraid of the single engine thing breaking down in the middle of the Atlantic! Brave is one thing, but foolhardy is another. Here's the problem with ships of all types. Unlike a car, you can't assume there will be road side assistance. Same is true of planes as they wreck. Apollo 13 is the worst case. Most people fail to realize this, as being on a ship is not an everyday thing like driving a car is.
Now, for the design flaw with an awful lot of cruise ships: Both engines are in the SAME room! That means, of course, if there's a fire in that one engine room, you lose out on BOTH engines... and you are now stuck. If the electrical system is affected, you are in a heap of trouble, as you lose A/C, sewage pumps, water pumps, and so on. The Carnival Triumph fiasco was not an isolated incident. A few years ago it happened twice where the ship got stuck dead in the water. It's like Carnival Corp takes a standard layout that's flawed and has someone design the hotel building (superstructure) on it with hardly a thought about the propulsion system.
You mean to say that Carnival Corp Can't afford to add one wall in the right place? Are they THAT damn cheap? Now, they have a ship that is totalled as there is no way to get rid of the stench on the "Triumph". So, they will have to junk it and get the quarter gigabuck from their insurance. What they should do is add watertight walls (bulkheads) in the right places and rewire the electrical grids on their ships with the insurance payout. That way, they avoid this embarasment down the road. Getting their propulsion systems squared away would be money well spent. They deserve a totalled ship.
Saturday, February 2, 2013
Immigration: Crack Down on Employers Right Now
I'm going to keep it real simple. We are exporting jobs and importing people. Does that make ANY sense? No, unless you are the employer or a politician of either party, that is!
We have a big problem. There are 11 million undocumented workers in America, and they are going nowhere. You can't deport all of them, because the logistics of that would be a nightmare. Even if we succeeded, the whole world would correctly conclude that we are some real pricks, as the logistics would resemble the Holocaust.
Now, the problem that pisses me off to no end. OK, Obama stepped up border security and border crossing has slowed down, which is good. If we give the 11 million people amnesty, guess what's going to happen when a Republican enters the White House, given their hatred of government workers. Why, of course they will defund the border patrol. And on doing that after an amnesty, you will get a TSUNAMI of immigrants crossing the border! After all, we'll end up doing a third amnesty some time down the road.
What we need is to crack down on the exploitive employers who hire these undocumented workers and THROW THE CEOS IN JAIL. Not a country club jail either, a real jail, one that also contains gang bangers. That is the only solution that is humane and is in fact feasible. NO politician will say anything like that, nor will talk radio hosts.
I guess we will be stuck hiving the present 11 million people the amnesty, but we absolutely must crack down on the emplouers who cheat by indulging their addiction to cheap labor.
We have a big problem. There are 11 million undocumented workers in America, and they are going nowhere. You can't deport all of them, because the logistics of that would be a nightmare. Even if we succeeded, the whole world would correctly conclude that we are some real pricks, as the logistics would resemble the Holocaust.
Now, the problem that pisses me off to no end. OK, Obama stepped up border security and border crossing has slowed down, which is good. If we give the 11 million people amnesty, guess what's going to happen when a Republican enters the White House, given their hatred of government workers. Why, of course they will defund the border patrol. And on doing that after an amnesty, you will get a TSUNAMI of immigrants crossing the border! After all, we'll end up doing a third amnesty some time down the road.
What we need is to crack down on the exploitive employers who hire these undocumented workers and THROW THE CEOS IN JAIL. Not a country club jail either, a real jail, one that also contains gang bangers. That is the only solution that is humane and is in fact feasible. NO politician will say anything like that, nor will talk radio hosts.
I guess we will be stuck hiving the present 11 million people the amnesty, but we absolutely must crack down on the emplouers who cheat by indulging their addiction to cheap labor.
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