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Monday Random Stuff…

August 27, 2018, 15:28(EDT) By Eric (a.k.a. TweakHound)

Stuff I bookmarked recently. Some off topic, some not:

RIP John McCain
Thank you for your service.
His final message to the country is here.

Not your father’s Microsoft? Damn straight it isn’t
Paul (Don’t call me bro) Thurrott goes after the press fawning over Microsoft. Microsoft is a shadow of its former self and the blame lies at the leadership level. IMHO, in the not to distant future Microsoft may be irrelevant.

Tarboro child punished for calling teacher ‘ma’am’
Though I don’t always succeed I strive to be a Southern Gentleman. I say “ma’am” to every woman regardless of age. In the South that’s how we roll. My mother taught me to treat every woman as a lady until they prove otherwise. This woman is clearly not lady and is unworthy of respect. IMHO she has no business in a classroom.

Don’t Get It Twisted: ‘We’re Not Gonna Take It’ Can Be Anyone’s Protest Song
“I wanted to write an anthem,” the now 63-year-old Snider says. “I’m from the Alice Cooper school of ‘School’s Out,’ ‘I’m Eighteen,’ you know? And Alice was very big on these anthemic songs. So I wanted to write an anthem for the audience to raise their fists in the air in righteous anger.”
♫ You’re all worthless and weak ♫

What Are Kissing Bugs? Chagas Disease-Causing Insects Infected 300,000 In US
“The bug gets its name because it typically bites human beings on their faces. It then proceeds to defecate on the open wound, releasing the harmful parasites along with it. When a person scratches at the open wound afterward, he or she unknowingly pushes the parasites into the open wound and eventually into the body.”
Naaaaassss-Tee

No healthy level of alcohol consumption, says major study
Best quote of the article:
“Given the pleasure presumably associated with moderate drinking, claiming there is no ‘safe’ level does not seem an argument for abstention,” he said. “There is no safe level of driving, but government do not recommend that people avoid driving. Come to think of it, there is no safe level of living, but nobody would recommend abstention.”
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m gonna crack open a cold one.

The Creepy Line Trailer
“An eye-opening documentary, The Creepy Line reveals the stunning degree to which society is manipulated by Google and Facebook and blows the lid off the remarkably subtle – hence powerful – manner in which they do it.”

Tagged With: Computer News

Thursday Random Stuff…

August 23, 2018, 14:21(EDT) By Eric (a.k.a. TweakHound)

intellogo

Stuff I bookmarked recently. Some off topic, some not:

Intel ‘gags’ Linux distros from revealing performance hit from Spectre patches
Nothing Intel does shocks me anymore. I hope the class-action suit I am involved in hits them hard but I’m not banking on it.
Thanks to Dan for the heads up!

Windows 95 is now an app you can download and install on macOS, Windows, and Linux
coollinks

You can opt out of Netflix’s new ads. Here’s how
That crap seriously puts a damper on binge watching. I got rid og it thanks to this article.

Fire dept. rejects Verizon’s “customer support mistake” excuse for throttling
“A fire department whose data was throttled by Verizon Wireless while it was fighting California’s largest-ever wildfire has rejected Verizon’s claim that the throttling was just a customer service error and “has nothing to do with net neutrality.” The throttling “has everything to do with net neutrality,” a Santa Clara County official said.”

“Top Gun” sequel filming aboard Norfolk-based aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln
I head down towards Virginia Beach a few times a year. On the way there you cross the Hampton Roads Bridge–Tunnel and you can see the big ships parked at Naval Station Norfolk. They still awe me.

‘The Big Bang Theory’ to End With Season 12
Apparently Jim Parsons wanted out. I used to love the show but it should have ended 2 years ago.

Marijuana, alcohol abuse accelerate brain aging: study
The researchers found that several brain disorders and behaviors predicted accelerated aging, especially:
Schizophrenia, which showed an average of 4 years of premature aging;
Cannabis abuse (2.8 years);
Bipolar disorder (1.6 years);
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (1.4 years); and
Alcohol abuse (0.6 years

Stretching
I usually don’t post memes or TwitMyFaceTagram screenshots but I couldn’t pass this up:

Tagged With: Computer News

How To – Linux Mint Virtual Machine

August 23, 2018, 08:45(EDT) By Eric (a.k.a. TweakHound)

How to install Linux Mint as a virtual machine.
I do my day-to-day web activities is a Linux Mint virtual machine. This means web surfing, downloading, YouTube watching, etc. This is a quick guide on how I install and setup Linux Mint.
FYI – one of the great things about VMs is you can copy them to other computers. After setup I will copy my Linux Mint VM to my laptop for use one the road.

The steps:
– Download and install VMWare Player
– Download Linux Mint
– Create a new folder on a fast partition
– Create your new VM
– Install Linux Mint
– Configure power options
– Install VMware Tools
– Update
– Install extra software
– Anti-virus
– Configure Linux Mint
– Backup
(click for full-size)

[Read more…] about How To – Linux Mint Virtual Machine

Tagged With: How-To's, Linux, This Site

Tuesday Random Stuff…

August 21, 2018, 15:34(EDT) By Eric (a.k.a. TweakHound)

Gmail for Android can now undo sent emails
Android Police has the info and a how-to.

Acronis True Image 2019 Released
Posted for you guys still using Acronis Products.

Logitech’s new Pro Wireless mouse is already an Overwatch League champion
Probably the ultimate wireless gaming mouse. You can preorder it here.
For a great all-around mouse try:
Logitech MX Anywhere 2S Wireless Mouse with FLOW Cross-Computer Control and File Sharing

Facebook has TRUST ratings for users – but it won’t tell you your score
that is the same thing that China is doing:
Big data meets Big Brother as China moves to rate its citizens
#DeleteFacebook

‘Harry Potter’ Readers Make Better Romantic Partners, Study Finds
Hell yeah we are!

Shorts Science: The Formula for the Perfect Length Shorts
I was looking for basic gym shorts under $10 (yes, I’m that cheap). The last pair I bought was the Hanes Men’s Jersey Shorts for $7.00. This article actually has a scale as to what inseam you should get. Thankfully it does not mention the baggy, down past your knees, show your undies garbage. Nor does it mention the 70s ball-hugging shorty shorts either (though a 5″ inseam may be close).
“Not sure if you’re a 5-inch, 7-inch, or 9-inch inseam kind of guy? We—and math—have your back.”
They call it a “Leg Love Quotient” which is a rather…odd name. Anywho, my quotient came out to a 7″ inseam. The last shorts I bought had a 7.5″ inseam so it sounds about right.

Beating King of Pop, The Eagles have No.1 album of all-time
Not a big Michael Jackson fan but comparing a greatest hits album to a standard release seems a bit unfair.
The only MJ songs I really like are Rockin’ Robin (with the Jackson 5), and Rock With You.

Tagged With: Computer News

New Nvida Video Card Line

August 20, 2018, 15:47(EDT) By Eric (a.k.a. TweakHound)

nvidia

Nvidia just unveiled the RTX 2000 line.
“At Nvidia’s event, the company is unveiling the RTX 2070, RTX 2080, and RTX 2080 Ti. Nvidia is promising “up to 6X the performance of previous-generation graphics cards,” and real-time ray-tracing for these cards.”
The RTX 2000’s are priced from $600-$1,200.

Tagged With: Computer Hardware

It Was 1986

August 19, 2018, 09:25(EDT) By Eric (a.k.a. TweakHound)

It was 1986. August 31st. That’s the day I first saw her.
[Read more…] about It Was 1986

Tagged With: Off Topic

Thursday Random Stuff…

August 16, 2018, 15:59(EDT) By Eric (a.k.a. TweakHound)

Company Claims To Produce China’s First Web Browser System, But It’s Actually A Chrome Shell
“Even if you want to deceive the government and obtain subsidies, please do at least some basic work to have the appearance of producing something different. The browser is exactly like Chrome with every detail just the same,” one Chinese netizen commented on social media.”
Alexa, define karma.

Clonezilla 2.5.6-21 Released
“Clonezilla is a partition and disk imaging/cloning program similar to True Image®. It saves and restores only used blocks in hard drive. Two types of Clonezilla are available, Clonezilla live and Clonezilla SE (Server Edition).”
Download

Stuff I bookmarked recently. Some off topic, some not:

More Strikeouts Than Hits? Welcome to Baseball’s Latest Crisis
1 – More pitchers are throwing harder.
2 – Nearly every batter is swinging for the fence.
3 – The Shift.

– – –

Chick-fil-A fans are getting fired up over new spicy chicken strips
Love me some Chick-fil-A Spicy Chicken Sandwich and a Diet Lemonade. Bring on the strips!

Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies Are Coming to a Girl Scout Troop Near You
I hereby formerly accuse the Girls Scouts of America of trying to make me fat. I already can’t stop eating Thin Mints and now this!

This spaghetti-breaking problem stumped physicist Richard Feynman. Two MIT students have now solved it.
If you are breaking spaghetti you are doing it wrong. You don’t break it, you don’t cut it.
Where did I learn that? My Grandma on my mothers’s side was Anna Favara (Favara like the town in Sicily). Her parents were Dominic Favara and Euphemia Trentacoste Favara. They married in in 1913 in Brooklyn, NY, then moved to Saginaw, Michigan. Her parents were Antonio and Maria Trentacoste, both of Sicily. So…
You use a fork and twirl it, period, the end.
The spoon question, or how to eat pasta like an expert.
Video – How To Eat Spaghetti | Fine Dining Lovers by S.Pellegrino & Acqua Panna

– – –

The proper way to use the Can Opener! You have been using the can opener all wrong

We I’ll be a suck-egg mule! I went looking for a manual can opener in my house. We don’t have one. I do however have several P-38s. They were what the U.S. military gave out with canned rations. Here is one still attached to my old dog tags:

edit – You can pick these up at Amazon (FYI a P-51 is a larger version of a P-38):
P-38 Can Opener and P-51 Can Opener 1 each for $4.29
or
GI P-38 Can Opener (5-pack) for $5.48
or
U.S. MADE P-51 & P-38 Can Opener 20 Pack- 10 of each for $12.19 (for the money I would go with this and hand them out to friends/family.

Tagged With: Computer News

Wednesday Random Stuff…

August 15, 2018, 15:28(EDT) By Eric (a.k.a. TweakHound)

www_news

Virtual Machine Host Software Updated
VMware Workstation Player 14.1.3 – 1 bugfix, OpenSSL update, Sprectre/Meltdown patch
VirtualBox 5.2.18 – a few bugfixes
Speaking of VMs. Many of you know I do most of my day-to-day web activity in a Linux VM. In the past I’ve used openSUSE. I have switched to Linux Mint 19 “Tara” Cinnamon. About the only thing I had to add after standard install was Chromium, Tor Browser, and HPLIP (HP printer drivers).

Foreshadow
Great. Just fracking great. Another Spectre type CPU vulnerability.
“Foreshadow is a speculative execution attack on Intel processors which allows an attacker to steal sensitive information stored inside personal computers or third party clouds. Foreshadow has two versions, the original attack designed to extract data from SGX enclaves and a Next-Generation version which affects Virtual Machines (VMs), hypervisors (VMM), operating system (OS) kernel memory, and System Management Mode (SMM) memory.”
Wired has a good breakdown.

The Guardian – How to turn off Google’s location tracking
After Monday’s news, I was gonna write up something on this and saw this article. It is well done.

Stuff I bookmarked recently. Some off topic, some not:

Ajit Pai grilled by lawmakers on why FCC spread “myth” of DDoS attack
“An FCC Inspector General (IG) investigation found that the FCC lied to members of Congress multiple times in letters that answered questions about DDoS attacks that never happened. Pai’s FCC claimed for more than a year that a May 2017 outage in the public comments system was caused by multiple DDoS attacks. In reality, the FCC system crashed because it was unable to handle an influx of comments triggered by comedian John Oliver asking viewers of his program Last Week Tonight to oppose Pai’s net neutrality repeal.”

Mystery Russian satellite’s behaviour raises alarm in US
“Russian intentions with respect to this satellite are unclear and are obviously a very troubling development,” she added, citing recent comments made by the commander of Russia’s Space Forces, who said adopting “new prototypes of weapons” was a key objective for the force.”

Sacramento welfare investigators track drivers to find fraud. Privacy group raises red flags.
“The EFF has a more skeptical view of the data-collection practice and said it’s “disturbing” that millions of people who are not suspected of a crime can be tracked with license plate photos.”

Suns Out, Guns Out
Remember our hero JJ Watt? Dude is ripped. I’m sure he will be destroying people. Don’t know how much NFL I will be watching this year but that is a topic for another day.
The Internet Reacts To JJ Watt’s Freakishly Large Arms In Latest Instagram Post

Tagged With: Computer News

Patch Tuesday

August 14, 2018, 16:02(EDT) By Eric (a.k.a. TweakHound)

windows security

All supported Windows and Office versions have patches.
Windows 10 update history (not updated as of this writing)
Windows 7 and 8 have a few bugfixes and more Spectre/Meldown fixes.
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4343900/windows-7-update-kb4343900
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4343898/windows-81-update-kb4343898
See below for full breakdown.

Adobe Reader Updated
Download (EN-US)
All Downloads
APSB18-29 Security updates available for Adobe Acrobat and Reader

Stuff I bookmarked recently. Some off topic, some not:

In post-massacre Vegas, security policies clash with privacy values
&
Caesars Palace not-so-Praetorian guards intimidate DEF CON goers with searches [Updated]
“For safety and security, hotel team members will enter rooms and perform a standard wellness check, even if you have opted out of housekeeping services, posted a sign on your door, or otherwise refused team member entry. You may be asked to leave the hotel, if you do not comply with this company policy,”
Blog Post from Marc Rogers “who leads DEF CON’s security team”.
“I do not support or endorse these room searches or how they are executed. I sympathize with the challenge these hotels are facing but believe they need to take a harder look at the efficiency, impact and long term cost of this strategy.
We MUST NOT let our hotels become like our airports. If we do, then the terrorists win.
”
Everything you do outside your room is filmed in Vegas, I get that. But inside your room should be another story. I had money stolen out of my hotel room by the maid 20 plus years ago. I haven’t allowed housekeeping in my room since. You come in my room unannounced and we are going at it.

Blue light from phone screens accelerates blindness, study finds
“Scientists say they have found how blue light from smartphones, laptops and other digital devices damages vision and can speed up blindness. Research by the University of Toledo in the US has revealed that prolonged exposure to blue light triggers poisonous molecules to be generated in the eye’s light-sensitive cells that can cause macular degeneration – an incurable condition that affects the middle part of vision.”
My S7 has a blue light filter and I am experimenting with it. Apple calls their blue light filter Night Shift.

2019 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Driven: Longer, Lighter, More Fuel Efficient, and Extremely Refined
Base price, I repeat BASE PRICE is $30,000, for a fracking Work Truck.
“The crew cab Silverados I drove — a $50,995 LT Trail Boss and top of the line $62,535 High Country”

Back on the shelves: Samuel Adams OctoberFest
My favorite American Oktoberfest.


[Read more…] about Patch Tuesday

Tagged With: Privacy, Security

SSDs On Sale

August 14, 2018, 15:25(EDT) By Eric (a.k.a. TweakHound)

Samsung 860 EVO 1TB 2.5 Inch SATA III Internal SSD
List Price: $299.99
Price: $198.99
You Save: $101.00 (34%)
Lowest price I’ve ever seen.

Samsung 860 Evo 500GB 2.5 inch SATA III Internal SSD
List Price: $134.99
Price: $99.99
You Save: $35.00 (26%)

Tagged With: Computer Hardware

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