Do What You Love, Because What You Love Needs You

Posted by on November 10, 2015 No comments

In my line of work, which is software development, there are two distinct types of people.  There are programmers and there are people who “do programming”.  You can probably relate that to your job, too, especially if you are in the former group for your field.  Some people are the field, and others are in the field.

If you define yourself by what you do, meaning you take pride in your work, you constantly learn the latest of what is going on in your profession, and you strive to push your profession further and be –if not notable – at least respected in your field, than you are your field.  That means you say “I am an X.” 

If you go to work to accomplish your tasks and mentally clock out at the end of the day to live your life, if you don’t have any interest in learning or studying what you do at work outside of work, then you are simply in your field.  Then you would say “I do X.”  Even if you work late or come in on weekends.  That just means you’re a good employee.  Then you would say, “I work at X doing Y.”

The people that “do” and not “are” should be reconsidering what they do.  Not only are they doing themselves a disservice because they lack the passion for their activity, but they are doing a disservice to the profession they are occupying.

In my line of work, there are plenty of people who are mediocre programmers.  And they get paid quite well and can do some good things for a company.  But they can’t do great things for the company.  And sometimes they can do bad things by not doing great things.  Think of security.  If you have a good programmer at a company and a great hacker who wants to attack that company, well, you know how that’s going to end up.

In any profession, do the people in the field bring down or hold back the ones who are the field?  Imagine going to the hospital and being worked on by not “a doctor” but instead someone who “does surgery.”  And what about those people who actually identify themselves this way unknowingly?  “I do house painting” vs. “I am a house painter.”  “This is what I do” vs. “This is what I am.”  It’s a big difference.

I feel I need to point out that skill and competency don’t play into this at all.  There’s the sarcastic, mocking statement, “I’m an artist!”, but despite skill level, the person that makes a statement like that has passion and will do the best that they currently can.  More importantly, they will constantly try to get better.  They push forward out of desire where others get pulled forward out of necessity.

There’s an endless number of professions out there and the one that you really want to do really wants you to do it.  They don’t want the clock-in/clock-out workers.  They want champions and leaders.  If everyone did what they loved, everyone would benefit.

Door-To-Door Windshield Replacement

Posted by on November 5, 2015 No comments

Yup, that’s right.  I had two people in my neighborhood going door to door telling people they would replace their windshield for free by submitting claims to their insurance.  Oh, this is right up my alley.  First, a story from my past.

Somewhere around 5 years ago, when I had my Acura, I had a small crack develop on my windshield.  Here where I live, there’s some deal that insurance companies have to fix cracked windshields for free.  So, I call my insurance company and say I need my windshield fixed because there is a crack.  They say no problem and send a company out for the repair.

The repair company looks at my car and calls me outside.  They say I need to replace my windshield.  The Acura is at least 8 years old and has like 150k miles on it.  I say, you can patch that, the technology will handle this.  They say they’ll check it again and I go back inside.  They call me back and say that I need my windshield replaced.  I tell them I want a second opinion and I’ll call my insurance company again.  They weren’t happy, but what could they do?

I call the insurance company and explain to them that I felt they were being ripped off by the company they sent first and I wanted someone who would come out and patch my windshield.  They obliged me and when I went out to meet the new repair people, I went to show them the small crack I wanted patched.  The crack wasn’t small anymore.  The previous company had pressed on the crack and expanded it before I dismissed them.  I was furious.

Despite that, the new company was able to patch the larger crack and it never grew for as long as I had the car.  So you can say I am a fan of patching whenever possible.

Jump forward to today and I have this hyper dude telling me that yeah, I have some chips in my windshield and they can replace it for free just by getting my insurance information.  I start my objection by saying I am a fan of patching, not replacing.  He makes some claim that if you have more than 6 chips (and he’s sure there’s at least that many), your insurance will recommend you replace.  I think that’s bullshit, so I just say that replacement is unnecessary.

He says that I don’t pay for anything.  The insurance company pays for it.  I hold up my finger like the educated man I am and reply, “Ah, but I do.  The cost of replacements is reflected in everyone’s insurance cost.”  Deftly countering that argument he says, “You realize you’ve paid for this many times over already, right?”  So I don’t have to pay for this but I’ve already paid for it many times over.  This guy is an uber-salesman.  I just shrug and say, “Hey, I’m just doing my part to keep costs down for everyone.”

I explained to him my glass has already been replaced once and I like the one I have because it’s a little more tinted than the factory glass.  Somehow he still thinks he has a sale, so he says he can put a tint strip along the top.  That’s fucking ugly.  He throws out another option.  No.  Not interested.  So that starts a whole new argument about how this isn’t the right windshield for my car.  What?  Then he says the manufacturer of my glass isn’t that good of quality.  He will guarantee his glass with a lifetime warranty.  Eye-roll.

So I educate him that the car is 5 years old, has been through a flood, is on its second engine, has 190k miles, and just got repaired from a rear-end accident.  The windshield is really the least of my concerns.  At this point he is laughing at me.  Not the kind of laugh that I’m out-arguing him, but more of a mocking laugh.  Fuck this guy.

He shakes my hand and thanks me for my time.  I decided to give him an honest offer that I would call them if I did choose to have my windshield replaced.  I asked for a business card.

“I don’t have any cards.  All I have are invoices.  Invoices for people who are getting windshield replacements.”  Well then.  You can go fuck yourself and your fly-by-night scam business.  Boy, I wish I paid more attention when he talked about his company so I could report them for fraud.

30 Days of Gratitude For Being Awesome

Posted by on November 2, 2015 No comments

Thanks to Thanksgiving and thanks to social media, we have a ritual each year where everyone tries to show off to all their friends how grateful they are for what they have in their life.  I can’t help but think this supposed show of humility is nothing more than a mask for narcissism.  To that end, I decided to list a bunch of things I’m grateful for.  Things that show I’m better than you, more fortunate than you, more deserving than you, and yet, more thankful than you.  Let’s start.

  1. November 1st is a Sunday.  I don’t have to work on weekends because I have a white-collar job and get paid really well for it.  So, I’m grateful my job is awesome.
  2. Monday the 2nd.  I don’t have any kids that I have to get ready for school or deal with any of their whining or “I’m tired” bullshit.  Thank god for that.
  3. Tuesday.  Hey, Tie Tuesday!  I’ve got a great selection of ties to choose from.  I don’t have to wear the same old ties over and over.  I’m thankful I found these ties on sale, probably paying a lot less than a bunch of people did for the same tie.
  4. Wednesday.  Like just about any day, I eat out for lunch.  Most people have to bring in their lunches and usually stay in the building.  I get to leave for a while.  I am very fortunate.
  5. Thursday and the weekend is coming quickly.  Since I don’t have a lot of obligations, my weekend can be pretty much whatever I want it to be.  It’s good to have options like that.
  6. Friday now and the weekend is here.  I think I’ll give the car a wash and wax so I can turn some heads when I’m driving top-down around the beaches this weekend.  My car isn’t new anymore, but it’s still an uncommon car and gets attention.  It’s been a good car to me.
  7. On Saturday I spend some time cleaning the pool and spa.  I don’t get a lot of use out of them, but they are an attractive feature of the house when they are taken care of.
  8. Sunday again.  I think today is going to be a sleep/eat/nap/eat/sleep/eat/sleep day.  Yeah, I can do that.  Got to be thankful for days like that.
  9. Monday, back at work.  Had some code issues, but I solved them quickly because I really know what I’m doing.  I’m thankful that my mind is well-tuned to solving coding problems.
  10. Another Tuesday.  Hey, Thai Tuesday!  I have my choice of Thai places to eat at because the area I work in is great with food.  I’m fortunate for that.
  11. Wednesday, my cat greeted me at the door, like usual.  She’s a pretty cool cat, with the best qualities of a dog and yet still a cat.  I’ve always had great cats for pets.  I’m pretty lucky there.
  12. Thursday, I was at work and a got a compliment on the mouse pad I use.  Sounds odd, but the mouse pad is really nice.  Thick, stitched, oiled leather.  It wasn’t cheap, but it’s going to last forever and look great doing it.  I’m glad I found it and had the opportunity and funds to buy it.
  13. Friday.  Another weekend is here and another chance to spend time with my awesome girlfriend.  You want to talk about being grateful, you need to have a good relationship to understand it.
  14. Saturday out at the premium outlets.  It’s one thing to window shop and imagine what you would do with that kind of stuff.  It’s quite another to know you could buy it if you really wanted it.  It’s even yet another to know when the value is worth the price (it rarely is).  I’m grateful I have the knowledge of all three.
  15. Sunday at the beach.  Yeah, it’s November and I’m roasting at the beach.  10 years ago, I would not have had this opportunity.  I have to be grateful of the direction my career has taken me.
  16. Monday, I spend a bit of time reviewing my retirement accounts.  I may fret and worry that I’m not saving enough to meet my goals, but really, what are goals?  You have no idea you’ve reached them when you get there because your goals have stretched.  So I am grateful that I have anything in savings for retirement.  So many people don’t have anything and that’s sad.
  17. Another Tuesday at work and I have the opportunity to explain some interesting code with coworkers.  Being able to share knowledge and make everyone’s skill a little better is a great reward.  It’s good to have that ability.
  18. Wednesday, hump-day, a day out at lunch with co-workers commiserating and having good food.  It’s good to not be a loner all the time.
  19. Thursday is a day all to myself.  It’s good to be able to be alone when you want to be.
  20. Friday I ride my motorcycle into work.  I should be grateful I haven’t had any accidents on my bike.  And I should be grateful the bike still runs with as neglectful I am of it.
  21. Saturday, I review my upcoming bills.  Everything is well under control and can be paid.  I’m grateful I have both control of my spending and a job that affords me to spend what I want.
  22. Sunday again…  One more week of awesomeness/gratitude/narcissism.  I spend a little time playing keyboards.  I’m not a rock star, but I play good enough to please myself.  Since I write all my own stuff, that must count for something.  It’s a great talent to have.
  23. Monday at work, I’m listening to co-workers discuss the subtle nuances of the comedy of Family Guy and the skill of their Fantasy Football picks.  I’m pretty thankful I couldn’t participate in either of those discussions.
  24. Tuesday, I leave work early for an appointment.  It’s no big deal because my job doesn’t micro-manage your time.  They know it’ll come back to them some day when I have to work late to fix a critical issue.  That flexibility is pretty nice and I’m grateful for it.
  25. Wednesday, I’m making plans with the girlfriend to have a great holiday.  We’ve had a lot to be thankful for together.
  26. Thursday – Thanksgiving.  I am grateful that although my cooking is limited to soup, grilled cheese, burgers, and spaghetti, I can still crock-pot a turkey and it’s fairly edible.  And my cat is grateful for that, too.
  27. Friday (black), It’s good that I know back roads to avoid the shopping clusterfucks.  I’m not taking the day off, but a lot of people will, so it will be a very light work day.  That’s great, too.
  28. Saturday I go looking through some of my bills and I see that I have a lot of rewards racked up for my credit cards, like $300 worth.  I’ll probably let them grow because I don’t have a pressing need for them yet.  That’s something to be glad about.
  29. Sunday, chilling with the girlfriend and realizing how good life has been to me.  It’s not perfect, but the good definitely outweighs the bad.  You can do some people-watching and overhear a lot of misery in the world.
  30. Monday, Grateful this post is over and grateful I don’t have any social media that I would have to do this kind of crap for real and wonder whether I has being too vapid or too self-centered or too insulting.

Disclaimer: Some or most items may have been altered or exaggerated for effect.

I Guess It Was My Turn.

Posted by on September 15, 2015 No comments

The last couple days have been pretty hard for me.  Not difficult, just hard.  I’ve been having a hard time getting along with the human race, specifically on the roadways.  My outlook changed last Saturday when I was driving home on the interstate, cruising along with the other cars and I glance in my rear view mirror and see someone right on my ass.  I mean, right there.

“Surely they realize how close they are and how unsafe that is.  They’ll slow down now.” is the thought I had in my mind when the impact occurred.  Everything in the car went flying. drinks spilled, shifter thrown into neutral, GF screaming.  Even though we were surrounded by cars, it’s surprising how quickly openings appear when cars collide.  I was able to quickly get over to the right hand median.  But my assailant didn’t.  Nor did he have any intention of doing anything of the sort.

Still in shock, I hadn’t realized yet that the car was in neutral, so trying to take chase of the other car was delayed by a few precious seconds while I wondered why the car wouldn’t move.  Did I take so much damage that my tires were pinned?  Nope.  I got back in drive and took off in pursuit.

Unfortunately, traffic worked hard against me, blocking me in lane after lane.  And I was disadvantaged because I’m clearly not as reckless as the one who hit me.  My hopes of catching the assaulter fell quickly.  One of the cars I caught up to and tried to get around started gesturing at me.  They kept pointing to the right hand side of the road even though we were in the left lane.  Eventually, we both pulled off to the left side.

I immediately went and looked at my damaged bumper.  Honestly, it wasn’t bad.  The other people got out of their car and explained that the car I wanted just got off on the exit we just passed together.  Well, that’s lost.  But, they said they got the plate number, so hooray!  We traded info in case I needed a witness (tip: highway patrol and insurance really want a witness).

So, to speed the story up a bit, the police were unable to find a matching car with that plate number.  I have to pay my insurance deductible because no one can find the hit-and-run bastard.  But, I’m grateful things didn’t turn out much worse.  Getting hit at 75mph, I could have swerved, flipped, gotten t-boned, hit a pole, and maybe even taken out other cars (and who would then be responsible for that?!).  Things aren’t that bad.

But they are.  I had been slowly getting more and more frustrated by the behavior of other drivers on the highway.  Insanely unsafe driving with no regard for others.  I’ve recently had to keep my composure when delayed by accidents.  It takes a lot for me to not get to the accident site and yell out the window, “You motherfuckers!  Do you see what you’ve done?!”

When I see a car coming up behind me now, my first thought is, “Are you going to hit me, too?  Why don’t you?”  Every time I see someone weave through traffic, I think, “Are you going to run away?  Do you even know what risk you’re taking?  Do you even fucking care?”  I know the answer.  They don’t.  I used to not let that worry me, because these self-centered assholes never affected me.  But now they have, and I want to wage war.

Right now, I’m debating on buying a dash cam.  I feel I need to document this insanity.  I’m also giving thought to creating a website exposing these ridiculous drivers.  I will probably need to get some council to determine if such a thing is legal, and I really hope it is.  To have a searchable database of license plates with user-submitted video proof of the owner’s dangerous driving habits, that may make a difference.

And if it doesn’t, or if such a thing can’t be done, well, I guess I just have to suck it up and pay the deductible.  The assholes win again. 

The Simple Life

Posted by on August 25, 2015 No comments

Today, I got thinking about a business model that just doesn’t seem to make any sense to me.  At my workplace, once a week, we have a food truck come by.  It’s not really a food truck, it’s a hot dog stand.  You can get a couple of hot dogs, chips, and drink for $5.  Not a bad deal, but I didn’t like the flavor of their hot dogs, so I go elsewhere.

Anyway, my mind is trying to figure out how these guys survive.  My office isn’t huge; it can’t have more than 100 people in it.  And I can’t imagine that many people eat hot dogs every week.  So assuming 30 people getting food, that’s $150 a day.  That’s gross income.  Take out daily expenses like: vehicle gas, cooking gas, cooler ice, food cost, taxes, and cleaning supplies; and less frequent expenses like: insurance (doubtful), advertising/marketing, and cooking equipment, and what would you be left with?  And there’s two guys running it, so divide whatever profit is left in half.

Now assuming that maybe they can get by on whatever they are bringing in.  What’s the end game?  They can only be at place at one time, so they can’t increase sales.  The only way to do that is to go to a place that has more customers.  There’s no decent economies of scale because a second location requires double of just about everything.  Bulk purchases of supplies wouldn’t help all that much.

As far as entrepreneurial businesses go, this one is definitely in the “I love what I do” category.

And So It Grows

Posted by on August 24, 2015 No comments

Lately, I’ve been looking and dreaming about getting a true stereo audio system like what I used to have.  A bit of research showed me that dedicated stereo systems aren’t dead, they’re just brands I am unfamiliar with.  So, I’ve been spending lots of time reading and thinking and drooling over the idea of having a listening space.

And my CD purchases keep going.  Completing my collection of the MCA Master Series wasn’t the end of my music collecting.  Even though I’m not into modern music, there still remains a wealth of older music available for me to purchase.  There are benefits to this.  First, the music is cheap, because it’s old and used.  Second, there is a chance of getting a collectable for cheap.  A collectable CD?  Worth more than a drink coaster?  You’d be surprised.  Especially in the era of music I purchase, there are a couple specific things to be on the watch for in order to get a CD that has collector value. 

The thing to know is that when CDs first came out, in the mid-1980’s, the primary goal was to get as many titles available for sale as possible.  In order to do that, record companies made glass masters of CDs straight from the master tapes used to create records of that time.  Later on, when there was more available time, the record companies would remaster those original master tapes.  The remastering process would include different EQ and effects, sometimes an improvement, sometimes not, but always different than the original.

Knowing that, when I say that there is an audience that insists on having the pure, original sound (defined as being the LP version), and that CDs that contain that sound are limited to early, early pressings, you can easily see the scarcity-to-value premise.  Yes, the original pressings of CDs are more prized by audiophiles.  That’s not to say they are always superior.  As engineers’ mastering and remastering skills became better, CDs got better sounding, with better stereo separation and more dynamic range, but the “purity” of the original sound is still prized.

There’s a couple of simple clues to finding a first-run CD, and naturally, there’s a ton of subtleties that I can’t get into.  But, if you want to get one of these CDs, you need to be looking for an album recorded pre-1990, and manufactured in either Japan or West Germany.  One sure clue that you are getting a first-run CD is that the case spine is frosted smooth, instead of ribbed.  Another sign, and one that raises the CD’s collectability, is if the CD is printed with a “target” design.  Search for Target CD if you want to know more about these.

Yesterday, The GF and I made an impromptu stop at a local CD store.  I was hoping to pick up an Ultradisc or two (Ultradiscs are gold-plattered CDs with highly-reputed remastering and are very desirable).  Not finding any, I bought a couple of CDs by The Cars.  $3 and $5 – not bad at all.

We stopped at Sonic and I took a closer look at my purchases.  One CD I was immediately disappointed in myself with.  It wasn’t a retail CD; it was a CD Club pressing.  These are easily identified and I should have passed on it.  Slightly depressed, I opened up the other CD and was shocked to see a target CD inside.  I quickly closed the case and checked the case edge.  It was frosted.  I just got a target CD for $5, which would be sold by a knowledgeable seller for $15-$20.  Mood immediately elevated.

I had discounted the thought of ever getting any rare CDs from my local CD shops, because I assumed these guys knew what they were selling.  They should have identified that disc just as I had and sold it on the Internet for 3x what they sold it to me.  But, since I had recently bought an Ultradisc for $22 (valued online at $45-$50) and now finding a target CD for $5, this gives me hope for finding other collector’s items.

A Comparison Of Credit Card Sites

Posted by on August 5, 2015 No comments

Recently, I got a call from Capital One’s Fraud Department, which I always take immediately.  They told me my card was compromised and they would be sending me a new one right away.  Then they asked a bunch of questions, and that was that.

First off, I stayed on guard the entire call.  You need to always be aware that someone could be spoofing your bank to get information from you.  However, the call was legit and the operator asked me for nothing suspicious and only asked me to confirm recent purchases.  So, I had to start using other credit cards while my primary card was being replaced.  Right now, I don’t think it was a fraud issue on my card.  I think it was an excuse for them to issue me a new card with the new embedded chip.

But anyway, the point of this post is that after using Capital One exclusively for so long, I had a chance to see how my other cards compared.  There’s nothing to the actual use of the card – they’re all the same.  The difference I was interested in was the web sites.  And there was a big difference.

I used three other cards in this time period.  The branding of the card is probably as significant as who it was issued by, since the web site contains that branding and could be completely different code bases.  So the cards I used were: Bank of America’s Elite Rewards VISA, Barclays’ Choice Privileges VISA, and Citibank’s Sears MasterCard.

The Sears MasterCard is my oldest card (from 2001) and actually was converted from my former Sears store card, which was actually my very first credit card.  It doesn’t get a whole lot of use, and they know it.  My credit line on that card has been chopped down to a pretty low limit. 

The site itself is managed by AccountOnline.com, and I have no idea how it is operated.  The transactions must be processed in batches because I checked yesterday and there was nothing.  I checked today and I have activity between 7/31/15 and 8/3/15.  There doesn’t appear to be a way to see pending transactions, which would make sense if the transactions were refreshed on a schedule.  They do provide a way to download transactions to common financial applications, but you can only download a full statement or the current activity – no date ranges.

The Sears card is a rewards card, and the site does allow you to view your rewards balance and provides a link to searschoicerewards.com where you can spend your points.  I had all of 150 points and the cheapest gift card I could get was $20 for 2,500 points.  I guess I won’t.

A good sign of a website’s age is their minimum system requirements.  In this case, you need at least IE 4.0, Firefox 1.0, Safari, the IE browser in AOL, and Chrome must fall under “Other”.  They use security questions and the password complexity is 6 chars min, including 2 numbers and 1 letter.  You can use spaces, but only one consecutively.  You can set alerts on balances and payments, but not on transactions.

The Elite Rewards VISA (since 2009) is a newer card, so it would make sense that it has a newer website.  It also has the same style of transaction downloading as Sears, where you can download current activity or a past statement’s worth.  BoA doesn’t support downloading in Money OFX format, so you have to use Quicken.  I don’t see any obvious display of pending transactions, but I think they do display them.  BoA has a nice clear link to notify them if you will be travelling with the card, to prevent declined transactions from suspected fraud.  Capital One has that as well, but it is tucked away off the main screen.

The site uses SiteKey, an image that supposedly ensures you are on the correct website.  They’re getting rid of that feature soon, they say.  I was never a believer in whatever security it provided; pretty sure it was just a cookie.  BoA has a two-factor authorization called SafePass for transfer transactions.  They also use security questions.  The site’s password (which they term “passcode”) has a complexity of 8-20 characters, 1 letter and 1 number, and allows some special characters.  You can set alerts on balances, payments, and transactions.  I set mine up to email me on any charges over $1.  That’s something I have set up on Capital One and one of the reasons I doubt there was fraud on my card, because I got no unexpected notifications.

Choice Privileges VISA (from 2013) is my newest card, so you’d expect it to have the newest website.  Well, as these cards get newer, the websites have more flashy features, and the Choice VISA is right there with them.  They allow downloads for Quicken and CSV only and download by date range.  Pending transactions are easily accessible on another tab in the list.

The site uses a SiteImage and security phrase like BoA.  Password complexity is 8-30 characters, must have 3 of: uppercase, lowercase, numbers, or special characters.  The last 5 passwords can’t be reused.  Security questions are also used.  BoA and Choice won’t show you what the current security questions are, which I guess is a good thing.  You can set alerts on balances, payments, and transactions.  Again, I set my transaction notifications here as well.

So in summary, my newer cards are just as good as my Capital One services.  But to Capital One’s credit, their card is my second-oldest card (2003) and yet they have continued updating their website to be just as secure and functional as my newest card, unlike my Sears Citibank card.  After the big meltdown in 2008 where card companies were closing accounts left and right, I lost a few accounts.  One was another Citi card and I seem to remember the website was more fully featured than my Sears card is.

I’m With The Band

Posted by on July 31, 2015 No comments

Today is the one-week mark of my usage of the Microsoft Band.  It has been on my wanted list for quite some time, and with the recent price drop, I made my move.  This coincides with my recent reawakening in exercise from my trip out west, climbing mountains and whatnot.  I regret I didn’t have the Band then, but you have to start somewhere.

At this point, I’ve used the majority of the Band’s features, including Sleep Tracking, Running (hiking and walking in my case), Workouts, and Guided Workouts.  Next month, I plan to buy a bike trainer stand so I can ride my bike indoors and I’ll make use of the Bike feature then.  I’m not sure if I’ll ever use the Golf feature.

To get grievances out of the way first, there’s a lot of reviews out there that say the Band is big and uncomfortable.  The biggest part for the reviewers is that it’s unfashionable.  I will agree.  However, I think the utility of the device outweighs its appearance.  As far as uncomfortable, that’s a personal thing.  To me, it’s noticeable, but the strap is quickly adjustable for any wrist swells throughout the day.  It’s not a deal breaker.

Does it work?  Yes, and very well.  If the question is does it work for tracking activity?  Yes.  Does it work as a motivation tool? Yes, again.  Does it work as a smartwatch?  That’s difficult to answer because everyone has a different idea of what a smartwatch should do.  The Band is a capable notification center on your wrist and if using a Windows Phone, a simple response device.

The data collection abilities of the Band are impressive, but it would be all for nothing if the software displaying and analyzing the data was poor.  Fortunately, the Band’s mobile application and corresponding website are extremely impressive as well.  I hope Microsoft works with FitBit to allow their devices to log activity into the Microsoft Health dashboard because I believe the insights are great.  And, it would allow me to consider a FitBit Charge HR as a next device.  I’ll have to wait until the Band 2 comes out to see.

After only a week, I have become more aware of my activity.  The argument that the Band is noticeable on your wrist actually works in its favor here.  I am consistent in my walking on work breaks.  I’ve been very annoyed that the constant rain showers here are keeping me from the trails.  I started a Guided Workout using weights that will hopefully improve my chest definition and found the experience to be superior to any prior exercise attempts.  Having someone (or something) say, “Now do this.”  “Rest now.”  “Now do this.” is so much better than having a piece of paper and saying to yourself, “What do I do next?”  It seems like a small difference, but it isn’t.  Self-guided workouts leave you unaccountable; you can stop anytime.  Even having a device guide you is more motivating.  Obviously a personal trainer would be the epitome, but the band is less than $200.

I feel the Band purchase was money well spent.  To be honest, I was kind of at a do-or-die point in my life and I guess I decided to give it one more try to reverse the decline I’ve been in for the last couple of years.

Windows 10 Install Party

Posted by on July 31, 2015 No comments

Party of one, your laptop is ready…  So, another Windows milestone, and I have to see how this new version is going to work out.  First up is upgrading the laptop from Win 8.1 to 10. 

First thing I notice: the upgrade install takes a long time.  Over 2 hours in my case.  Once completed, I ran through a few apps to see how they performed.  I initially had a problem with Faststone Image Viewer where the windows taskbar would still be displayed when viewing pictures in full-screen mode.  That problem went away after my AMD graphics driver applied its proper settings.

Then I tried the Edge browser.  Nothing would connect.  Odd, because Skype worked, and I could ping Yahoo, I just couldn’t browse anywhere.  I disabled my HOSTS file and rebooted.  No luck.  I had Firefox installed, so I tried that.  Websites load fine in Firefox.  So what did I have different in Edge.  It seems to be a DNS issue.

To get right to the solution, it was my fault.  At some point long since forgotten, I disabled the DNS Client service on the laptop.  This service caches DNS entries so applications don’t have to call to remote servers over and over to get IP addresses.  It’s never been required before.  Until now.  The Edge browser apparently uses the DNS Client service exclusively.  Maybe Cortana does as well.

So, that’s resolved.  All my other important applications worked as well: KeePass, Veracrypt, Zune.  I tried out the Groove Music application, since it’s the successor to Windows Media Player.  It’s not bad.  It’s close to Zune, if it only had a better Now Playing view.

Interesting quirk with Groove Music.  When I was testing Windows 10 out in beta, I wanted to see how OneDrive-integrated music would work.  So I uploaded a few albums to OneDrive and did some testing on my phone.  It didn’t seem to do what I expected, so I deleted all but one of the albums.  On my fresh install of Windows 10, some songs from a couple of those albums appeared in my library.  I couldn’t play them, couldn’t download them, and they had the message “To play, purchase a Groove Music Pass.”  I guess Groove Music has its own library that syncs?  Oh well.

Journalism Is Dead

Posted by on July 28, 2015 No comments

Every day, I read a lot of articles.  And every day, I get more and more saddened by the decline in journalistic standards.  It’s near impossible to find an article that does not clearly express the author’s biases and preferences.

The promotion or derision of any product, service, or company is done both by what is said and what is not said.  An author may compare only features or facts that are superior to competitors, or vice versa if that’s the author’s goal.  An author will state opinions as facts. as in, “no one likes or will use this feature.”  Even if an author tries to defend his or her bias with “everyone I asked agrees that…”, it is still a flawed sample, since like-minded people tend to attract each other.  This is the echo chamber where clusters of people come to believe something as truth when it is simply an exaggerated – or even made-up – opinion.

Spelling and grammar are obsolete.  The argument, “you still understood what I meant,” seems to have grown beyond common comments into the articles themselves.  Editors are either non-existent, with many articles being published by a person whose title is “Editor”, or if they are, they are ineffective.  I just finished reading an article in the Wall Street Journal (now corrected) where the editor’s review comment was left in the article body.  This is what passes for quality?

And it’s not just print media that has died.  I don’t watch TV anymore, so when I do by happenstance, I am astounded at the behavior of news anchors.  The tone and inflection in their delivery takes ordinary news to tabloid levels.  You would never see an exclamation point in a real news story, but these talking heads are trying their hardest to indicate what emotion you need to be feeling about the story at hand.

The emotional aspect comes back to the print media as well, where “news” is essentially an opinion piece with a few facts mixed in.  Product reviews are not objective, but instead are a litany of praise or condemnation as to how the product suited the reviewer’s needs.  And this is pretty much standard now.  The best way to get a review is to find a reviewer who has the same wants and needs as you do.  Reviewers don’t simply explain features, they explain how you should feel about features.  For example, “the product has a hinge that allows it to open up 45 degrees” versus “the product has a hinge that allows it to only open to 45 degrees, limiting its usefulness.”

And a rant on article comments should be forthcoming…