tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22244280430811423262024-03-13T06:06:32.394-07:00Paralipsisparalipsis: suggesting by deliberately concise treatment that much of significance is omittedUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger176125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-6581456020238824302021-06-03T12:59:00.002-07:002021-06-03T12:59:33.724-07:00Font Scaling in QT5 and OBS<p> If you like to use OBS and have high resolution displays (4k, 8k, etc.) you may run into known silliness with poor EDID support in X and in the monitors themselves with regard to size and DPI. If you find yourself getting teeny tiny fonts in the obs UI (or any other QT app) the fix is easy. Just add the following to your <span style="font-family: courier;">~/.profile</span>.</p><p><br /></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">export QT_AUTO_SCREEN_SCALE_FACTOR=0</span></p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0 0 0 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: courier;">export QT_FONT_DPI=80</span></p></blockquote><div>That's it.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-89472873368325210652021-05-23T19:17:00.002-07:002021-05-23T19:18:18.421-07:00External USB Hard Drives<p style="text-align: justify;"> So I decided to have a look at taking external hard drives apart. Something the data storage community (e.g. /r/datahoarders) call "shucking". You buy external drives, open them up like a clam, and take out the meaty goodness.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">For various reasons hard drive manufacturers have wildly different pricing and channels designed for intended "use cases". In general much of this is cosmetic and if you aren't paying attention you can spend 2-5x the price of a plain old hard drive for no good reason.</p><p style="text-align: justify;">Therefore I bought two USB powered external miniature drives and opened them up. One by Seagate and the other by Western Digital. Both claimed to be USB 3.0 drives with 5TB of capacity. However they were two very different kinds of drives.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t9vZUXHcLXQ/YKsJqvcYEWI/AAAAAAAA7N8/Q1XKrnYIKIEMhJ4x-LOwtiQ84zHQBK18wCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210517_070643513.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t9vZUXHcLXQ/YKsJqvcYEWI/AAAAAAAA7N8/Q1XKrnYIKIEMhJ4x-LOwtiQ84zHQBK18wCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210517_070643513.jpg" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K69MnQqZXPk/YKsJqvFQUqI/AAAAAAAA7N8/dNJwq-kNCFsaAWJA74HZeUnmRk2rtNQnQCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210517_070448022.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K69MnQqZXPk/YKsJqvFQUqI/AAAAAAAA7N8/dNJwq-kNCFsaAWJA74HZeUnmRk2rtNQnQCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210517_070448022.jpg" /></a></div><p style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">First off, the connection to the computer came up as usb-storage for one and uas for the other. For those that don't know, the simple difference is "uas" is better than "usb-storage". The former allows for advanced SATA features such as command queueing and letting the drive optimize access. The latter is a bit dumber.</p><h1 style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Western Digital (usb-storage) 5TB $99/Amazon</h1><p style="text-align: justify;">The western digital was fairly easy to pry apart, though not without marring the case. Inside we see what at first looks like an ordinary hard drive.</p><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tqUxewQjZwg/YKsJqkjIfMI/AAAAAAAA7N8/sMw49sJEOSADsdCZSqSIcfLMUY95W0WfwCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210517_070507297.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tqUxewQjZwg/YKsJqkjIfMI/AAAAAAAA7N8/sMw49sJEOSADsdCZSqSIcfLMUY95W0WfwCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210517_070507297.jpg" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8DsrestIFxE/YKsJqlsHT1I/AAAAAAAA7N8/20lBVBc2TjoVT5SWeLphrRCm1AnWD-VowCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210517_070514938.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8DsrestIFxE/YKsJqlsHT1I/AAAAAAAA7N8/20lBVBc2TjoVT5SWeLphrRCm1AnWD-VowCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210517_070514938.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Closer inspection, however reveals that the controller board has the USB port directly built into it. These drives are unusable as anything other than a USB attached drive.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hHaEZq30jbU/YKsJqugve6I/AAAAAAAA7N8/hCRIxEa1uxwAohflFFOXkLldAD093HM3gCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210517_070542896.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hHaEZq30jbU/YKsJqugve6I/AAAAAAAA7N8/hCRIxEa1uxwAohflFFOXkLldAD093HM3gCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210517_070542896.jpg" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-07NUFfiqsxY/YKsJqg60sCI/AAAAAAAA7N8/qsDxU3miWjUHwDdddUGDR93LKslGvq88ACPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210517_070533189.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-07NUFfiqsxY/YKsJqg60sCI/AAAAAAAA7N8/qsDxU3miWjUHwDdddUGDR93LKslGvq88ACPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210517_070533189.jpg" /></a></div></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div><br /></div><h1>Seagate (uas) 5TB $109.99/Amazon</h1><p>The Seagate on the other hand reveals a nice surprise.</p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tLXgzeHcrQg/YKsJqkRk4-I/AAAAAAAA7N8/qrDrzrUjLQ49yCpraahpNLAAJiCfDHizgCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210517_070704617.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tLXgzeHcrQg/YKsJqkRk4-I/AAAAAAAA7N8/qrDrzrUjLQ49yCpraahpNLAAJiCfDHizgCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210517_070704617.jpg" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PiS8xW83pOg/YKsJqrqOxZI/AAAAAAAA7N8/51_5aw8no9wL7U1TVeIrpBYi6rSKTF3lQCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210517_070649385.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PiS8xW83pOg/YKsJqrqOxZI/AAAAAAAA7N8/51_5aw8no9wL7U1TVeIrpBYi6rSKTF3lQCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210517_070649385.jpg" /></a></div><p style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">What's under the foil you ask? Well let's have a look.</p></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><p style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fkgd5AH1kWA/YKsJqi4BdgI/AAAAAAAA7N8/rZ99c7zJfyESxmNVUi5joKWNYkufzhgJwCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210517_070659576.jpg" /><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_4Qeo70_B5w/YKsJqlwNd_I/AAAAAAAA7N8/OwXt_HKIT7Yr7Hqel0XmO97uFCD7aAtlACPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210517_070732402.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_4Qeo70_B5w/YKsJqlwNd_I/AAAAAAAA7N8/OwXt_HKIT7Yr7Hqel0XmO97uFCD7aAtlACPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210517_070732402.jpg" /></a></p></div></blockquote><p style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">That's a nice little accessory card that incorporates a USB3.0 to SATA connector. It's like getting two toys for the price of one.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PGrYeNz-Gao/YKsJqs24hhI/AAAAAAAA7N8/c9wXzbSoPYQ5se-YYPd-joohItx_zb0qwCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210517_070745878.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PGrYeNz-Gao/YKsJqs24hhI/AAAAAAAA7N8/c9wXzbSoPYQ5se-YYPd-joohItx_zb0qwCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210517_070745878.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PGrYeNz-Gao/YKsJqs24hhI/AAAAAAAA7N8/c9wXzbSoPYQ5se-YYPd-joohItx_zb0qwCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210517_070745878.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Sadly, however, these drives are quantity restricted due to the massive demand causing storage prices to spike. The cryptocurrency madness of CHIA has ruined the HDD market just as Ethereum ruined the video game market.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-45319152894416405852013-02-12T13:43:00.000-08:002013-02-12T13:43:51.713-08:00Adventures in wobbly cartesian robots, v.1This is v.1 of the mill. It's very wobbly, cuts at a slant but kind-of worked. What did I learn from it?
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bN91hCbDZqw/URoePY-hMZI/AAAAAAAALXw/5-xmlBWwRI8/s1600/IMG_20121229_151156.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bN91hCbDZqw/URoePY-hMZI/AAAAAAAALXw/5-xmlBWwRI8/s400/IMG_20121229_151156.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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In making my mill, the Z axis and its rigidity was a key concern and so the arm that goes up and down is made of boxed 3/4" MDF and a ton of barrel nuts. These nuts seemed like a good idea initially because they are simple to work with, however the high cost (about $0.50 each!) rapidly became unbearable.<br />
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I wanted more than just a few inches of Z travel and aimed for an initial 24 inch Z arm. This translated into only about ten inches of usable travel, so I'm glad I didn't skimp. However <b>MDF is really heavy</b> as a material and so the weight of the Z arm hanging off the X axis gantry has caused plenty of flexing.<br />
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I did make use of the clever (i.e., not invented by me) <b>skate-bearing based linear bearing</b> mechanism. It uses skate bearings mounted in angle aluminium to create a very stable slide, however it is time consuming to create. You have to bevel the edges of your material and then accurately drill mounting holes for the bearings.<br />
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After cutting them for the Z axis I decided to do the remaining axes using <b>specialized v-groove bearings</b> riding on the edge of angled aluminum. This had its own problems I'll talk about below.<br />
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v.1. of the mill is constructed <b>entirely</b> of rectangular pieces. This is because I was able to make quick, accurate cuts on my cheap table saw. A friend brought over his bench-top drill press and we used that to plunge most of the barrel nut holes. The rest of the holes were drilled using my cordless drill. Once assembly began, however, the relative unimportance of precise 90-degree holes for barrel became apparent and so much of the drilling from there on was done with hand drills.<br />
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If you look at the side-view below of v.1 of the mill you can see the Z axis leaning forward. Correcting that lean was a major goal of v.2 of the mill. Because the uprights were cut by hand and were rectangular, this put a large amount of weight on the 'front-top' bearing and much of the time the rear-top bearing was lifted free of the rail.<br />
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Also problematic was DUST. Dust EVERYWHERE. OMG SO MUCH DUST. Once I began running the mill the amount of dust became quite overwhelming. Therefore I moved up the priority of effective dust control on the list. Also noise. The router is very loud and so hearing protection was important just to avoid ear fatigue. Babysitting the mill was a full-time and attention activity so you couldn't go far.<br />
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I purchased quality but not-too-fancy ear muffs and took to wearing my earbud headphones under them to listen to some music while holding the vacuum hose.<br />
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Another problem was the ease with which the mill could be told to overrun its axes. On several occasions I had to hit the reset button on the grbl controller to halt the mill while it bored into the spoil board. Frustrating, but limit switches and self-homing are a future feature. Having actual blocks to stop the mill from riding off the end of the rails is a good idea. I often used clamps to hold the mill components in place and act as stops.<br />
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However I will admit that I was futzing with the mill I removed the X axis clamps then proceded to drop the Z arm off the far side. The result was a bent shaft on one of my stepper motors :-(.<br />
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Thankfully that motor is dual-shafted and I only use the mount end to drive the Z axis. All told, however, this crappy mill was able to perform basic cuts. Once I did get the grbl controller wired up to the motor controllers and a laptop using some terminal software to send Gcode to it, I was able to make cuts.<br />
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These videos show my first attempts using the cheap HSS bits that came with my router.</div>
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They sucked</div>
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They burned the wood, tore up the surface and otherwise produced crap cuts.</div>
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So I went and splurged for a $20 1/4" carbide bit.</div>
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The difference was quite remarkable.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EKa2M4nZwr0/URVygb971XI/AAAAAAAALXQ/uJML42G-qLg/s1600/IMG_20121221_170220.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EKa2M4nZwr0/URVygb971XI/AAAAAAAALXQ/uJML42G-qLg/s320/IMG_20121221_170220.jpg" width="179" /></a></div>
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So, at this point I had a mill that could cut random bits of Gcode I sent it. That marked the finish point of v.1 of the mill. The plan at this point was to use this crappy mill to cut upgraded parts for itself. I enlisted my son to help catch dust during these cutting exercises. I try to include my kids in my maker activities. I'll talk more about that another time.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iHLNKzxH4HY/URoenyUzqAI/AAAAAAAALY8/mJxs4z-VWNU/s1600/IMG_20121231_115519.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iHLNKzxH4HY/URoenyUzqAI/AAAAAAAALY8/mJxs4z-VWNU/s320/IMG_20121231_115519.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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Here's a random pic of my cousins who were in town for two days and I put to work cutting parts for v.1:<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-57978364965093597032013-02-10T16:24:00.002-08:002013-02-12T13:44:23.593-08:00Adventures in wobbly cartesian robots, IntroductionI've always been fascinated with automatic manufacturing and have been avidly following the homebrew 3D printing for many years. I've always been daunted by the ~$1,000-2,000 cost of getting into the space, along with not having anywhere to work on such a thing. (I have five kids and until recently a very small house.)<br />
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Last summer, we expanded our home and for the first time in many years I had access to a proper garage. I therefore began a project to build a CNC router. I had considered additive processes (3d printing) and subtractive processes (machining/milling) and was conflicted for quite a while as to which would be a better place to start. After extensively reviewing the different options out there I settled on an MDF framed, router based mill as being affordable and buildable with the tools I had at my disposal.<br />
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My goals with this project have been to boostrap from highly inaccurate hand tools (power drills, a tiny cheap table saw, wrenches and the like) to a device that lets me cut with < 1mm accuracy in materials up to the hardness of aluminium.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-82344923625916916672011-06-19T12:48:00.001-07:002011-06-19T12:48:00.639-07:00Moble blogging trial<div><p>Giving the mobile blogging app a try. Seems to work and has location integration. </p>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0Eleanor J. Toll Middle School, 700 Glenwood Road, Glendale, CA, United States34.164729 -118.271187tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-45646747979366632592011-04-05T09:45:00.001-07:002011-04-05T09:45:23.157-07:00What counts as electioneering?<div><p>I went to do my civic duty at the polls and saw something that gave me pause.</p>
<p>A man was intruducing himself to the poll workers as a rep from one of the "yes-on" groups. <u>He</u> was there to check the vote lists which is proper, but he had also brought refreshments for the workers. That is where things get murky for me.</p>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-71734280762143843282011-03-21T16:27:00.000-07:002011-03-21T16:27:34.974-07:00Why Fukushima made me stop worrying and love nuclear power<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/mar/21/pro-nuclear-japan-fukushima">Why Fukushima made me stop worrying and love nuclear power | George Monbiot | Comment is free | The Guardian</a><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 18px; border-collapse: collapse; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: arial, sans-serif; "><blockquote>The damming and weiring of British rivers for watermills was small-scale, renewable, picturesque and devastating.</blockquote></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-58749560532904049882011-03-14T19:25:00.000-07:002011-03-14T19:25:52.326-07:00Pay Teachers More<div>Fuck unions pay teachers more. Scale success and invite the "less effective" 30% to move on to careers more suitable to their talents.</div><div><br /></div><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/13/opinion/13kristof.html?_r=2">Pay Teachers More - NYTimes.com</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-1524334392998109982011-03-10T19:00:00.000-08:002011-03-10T19:00:49.856-08:00Brrrr Winter in Southern California is HARD<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This whole snowpocalypse thing has been a bit out of control. I mean it was almost chilly sitting in the shade outside this past month.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-X-5a-QmdfoY/TU71ikFgODI/AAAAAAAAAek/hmQheyhNd2E/s1600/IMG_20110206_112311.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-X-5a-QmdfoY/TU71ikFgODI/AAAAAAAAAek/hmQheyhNd2E/s320/IMG_20110206_112311.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-38919009413616932332011-02-23T16:27:00.000-08:002011-02-23T16:27:47.113-08:00Pascal's Wager reimagined<div>If you don't know what <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pascal's_Wager">pascal's wager</a> is, read about it, then <a href="http://www.smbc-comics.com/index.php?db=comics&id=2163#comic">read this comic</a>. You'll have a nice day.<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-80475441117053585612011-02-17T10:32:00.000-08:002011-02-17T10:32:35.798-08:00Microsoft bars any open source software in marketplace<div>The mind boggles at this so I had to download and read the microsoft marketplace agreement myself and the sections cited are indeed in there. An app can't be entirely or even partially covered by any license that requires ANY of:</div><div><br /></div><div> <li>Disclosure or redistribution in source form</li><li>Licensing for derivative works</li><li>Redistribution at no charge</li></div><div><br /></div><a href="http://jan.wildeboer.net/2011/02/microsoft-absolutely-no-free-software-for-windows-phone-and-xbox-apps/">Jan Wildeboer » Blog Archive » Microsoft: Absolutely NO (GPLv3-or-compat-licensed) Free Software for Windows Phone and Xbox Apps.</a><div><br /></div><div>I'm utterly floored by this. I can only assume it is a bit of legal and public posturing that they will back away from. Or it may just be a way of preventing any competing toolchains from being used. I'm amazed.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-85469844823483496212011-01-09T19:45:00.000-08:002011-01-09T19:45:07.781-08:00YouTube - Happiness: Got To Dance 2 Audition<div>Dancing like nobody's watching... <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vf4eOzNvOR8">YouTube - Happiness: Got To Dance 2 Audition</a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-27428710915987324802010-11-17T10:00:00.000-08:002010-11-17T10:00:00.964-08:00A human being should...<blockquote>A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects. --Robert Anson Heinlein </blockquote>True stuff. How's your score?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-56928270872694131472010-11-16T08:00:00.000-08:002010-11-16T08:00:04.055-08:00Answer to yesterday's Pop Quiz<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Source: planks of the National Socialist Party of Germany (NAZI), adopted in Munich on February 24, 1920</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Interesting, no?</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-6157562044700514052010-11-15T08:00:00.000-08:002010-11-15T08:00:10.098-08:00Pop QuizName the source:<br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic;">We ask that government undertake the obligation above all of providing citizens with adequate opportunity for employment and earning a living. The activities of the individual must not be allowed to clash with the interests of the community, but must take place within the confines and be for the good of all. Therefore, we demand: ... an end to the power of financial interest. We demand profit sharing in big business. We demand a broad extension of care for the aged. We demand ... the greatest possible consideration of small business in the purchases of the national, state, and municipal governments. In order to make possible to every capable and industrious [citizen] the attainment of higher education and thus the achievement of a post of leadership, the government must provide an all-around enlargement of our system of public education.... We demand the education at government expense of gifted children of poor parents.... The government must undertake the improvement of public health -- by protecting mother and child, by prohibiting child labor -- by the greatest possible support for all groups concerned with the physical education of youth. [W]e combat the ... materialistic spirit within and without us, and are convinced that a permanent recovery of our people can only proceed from within on the foundation of The Common Good Before the Individual Good.</span></blockquote>Answer comes tomorrow.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-68485427638604002902010-11-14T14:07:00.000-08:002010-11-14T14:24:02.623-08:00A Primer on Natural Resources and the Environment - George Reisman<div><blockquote>The notion that production and economic activity are harmful to the environment rests on the abandonment of man and his life as the source of value in the world, and its replacement by a nonhuman standard of value — i.e., the belief that nature is<i>intrinsically</i> valuable.</blockquote></div><a href="http://mises.org/daily/4834">A Primer on Natural Resources and the Environment - George Reisman - Mises Daily</a><br />
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</div><div>Now I have to add this guy's book to my reading list.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-72464752359528018402010-11-05T12:37:00.000-07:002010-11-05T12:37:13.737-07:00Why do smart kids grow up to be heavier drinkers? - The Week<div></div><blockquote><div> According to two long-term studies — one American, one British — there's a correlation between smarts and a thirst for alcohol. The "more intelligent children in both studies grew up to drink alcohol more frequently and in greater quantities than less intelligent children,"</div></blockquote><div></div><div><br /></div><a href="http://theweek.com/article/index/208561/why-do-smart-kids-grow-up-to-be-heavier-drinkers">Why do smart kids grow up to be heavier drinkers? - The Week</a><div><br /></div><div>I also like the theory proposed by an associate of mine:</div><div><br /></div><div>When the lion and other predators hunt at the back of the pack, taking down the slow, sick and less-able, the overall quality of the pack improves. In the same way, alcohol's destruction of brain cells increases the overall average intelligence of what's left as it first takes down the slow and stupid ones.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-1496312637013113642010-11-05T10:16:00.000-07:002010-11-05T10:16:08.097-07:00Tipping Points and The Future of Electronics | OdNT - open.neurostechnology.com<div>An excellent article about the future of embedded systems (which pretty much means anything nowdays) and android as being the spark that could kick off another decade of western innovation like what happened with PCs in the 80's.</div><div><br /></div><a href="http://open.neurostechnology.com/content/future-hardware">Tipping Points and The Future of Electronics | OdNT - open.neurostechnology.com</a><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-80392123014270967152010-10-12T14:40:00.000-07:002010-10-12T14:40:13.884-07:00YouTube - Google Cars Drive Themselves<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bG59ULKQPYU">YouTube - Google Cars Drive Themselves</a><div><br /></div><div><br /><object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/bG59ULKQPYU?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/bG59ULKQPYU?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-74331679825332287752010-10-11T11:22:00.000-07:002010-10-11T11:22:26.984-07:00YouTube - Ultimate View of Fire and Flames on Drums<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2a497Hom8Gg">YouTube - Ultimate View of Fire and Flames on Drums</a><br /><br /><p>This guy is seriously out of control!</p><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/2a497Hom8Gg?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/2a497Hom8Gg?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-46805973877586050032010-10-11T10:52:00.000-07:002010-10-11T10:54:42.983-07:00Red Wing Shoes - Iron Ranger Boot, Amber Harness - Neiman Marcus<div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_VwbPV_rlN_U/TLNO_ttFa6I/AAAAAAAAATw/i7vRE6Yl9qY/s1600/Red-Wing-Iron-Ranger-Boots-Gear-Patrol.jpg"></a><div>I think I need a pair of these boots, if for no other reason than their awesome name:</div><a href="http://www.neimanmarcus.com/store/catalog/prod.jhtml?itemId=prod89570028&parentId=cat23080743&masterId=cat1580734&index=2&cmCat=cat000000cat000470cat000478cat1580734cat23080743">Iron Ranger Boot</a>.<div><br /></div><div>Plus, they look pretty good when worn-in.</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_VwbPV_rlN_U/TLNO_ttFa6I/AAAAAAAAATw/i7vRE6Yl9qY/s320/Red-Wing-Iron-Ranger-Boots-Gear-Patrol.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526848024221150114" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 236px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><br /></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-699621030109470752010-10-11T10:32:00.000-07:002010-10-11T10:35:22.184-07:00YouTube - Sesame Street: Smell Like A Monster<div>Sesame Street is still awesome.</div><object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/zkd5dJIVjgM?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/zkd5dJIVjgM?fs=1&hl=en_US&rel=0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-1222986911052365102010-10-10T15:48:00.000-07:002010-10-10T15:48:55.131-07:00Alligator Purse: Happy 400!<div>Yay, the wife's blog has hit 400 fascinating, scintillating entries.</div><div><br /></div><a href="http://www.alligatorpurse.org/2010/10/happy-400.html?spref=bl">Alligator Purse: Happy 400!</a>: "'Tis the season for pumpkin patches and hay rides! As we are blazing through fall once again, thanks to typical southern California weather..."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-60654475719575473472010-10-10T12:24:00.001-07:002010-10-10T12:24:24.601-07:00My Fanboy Conversion ContinuesWell, I've moved paralipsis to google-powered magic. I've become a complete Google fanboy. Having seen Google's operations from the inside, I have vastly more trust of Google than I have of any other company I can think of.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2224428043081142326.post-91125583730523740532010-05-04T03:06:00.000-07:002010-10-10T11:56:52.755-07:00Looks like 1992 is back<object width="440" height="300"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-cLXLcoGhg4&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xd0d0d0&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-cLXLcoGhg4&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xd0d0d0&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="440" height="300"></embed></object><br/><br/>Worth watching for the cameos.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1