Hide that bottle Daisy, he's found the keys!

It is New Year's Eve day. If you are going to party and use alcohol in excess tonight please make prior arrangements that will keep you away from the steering wheel of an automobile. Nothing in this world is more stupid than an intelligent human being taking my life in their hands through drinking and driving. If you hit me while driving drunk, you better hope it kills you as well because I will haunt your ass with a vengance if you survive. The Good Lord knows that my shenanigans of the far past qualify me to make such statements. Deal with it. Be a grown up. Be responsible. Drive sober.

Here's an interesting article about New Year's celebrating -> The Loneliest Night of the Year. Sad, so very sad. Being happily single for a long time it must be said that this article has been read with some amazement. My traditional New Year's eve celebration consists of turning in early with a good book and hoping the fireworks don't awaken me. Hopefully, no one will get 'black cord fever' and call at midnight in a drunken stupor to sing Auld Lang Syne. It is the end of the month and I need rest after the holidays. Next year will be different. BTW, am looking for a nice cave to rent. Need to book it 12/24/2005 thru 01/02/2006.

"If you drink don't drive. Don't even putt."
-Dean Martin

Browsing and phone calls

Interesting article about the browser war can be found at the Seattle Times. Will Internet Explorer 7.0 resolve all the security leaks? Will Firefox/Mozilla/Netscape start advertising or charging for their product? Don't let that opensource moniker mislead you. Trust NOTHING that comes out of the AOL/Netscape arena.

Wired News has a post about Xcelis. Don't know about Xcelis or Pantheon? Does $10.00 per month for unlimited calling to anywhere from your cell phone or landline phone interest you? I thought so. Check out Cheap Cell Calls Have a Price. Love this idea. You can dial within your existing provider and obtain this new service. Related observation -> Cingular sucks. Worst customer support on the planet...well...there is Dell, which is a major problem for the English speaking people of the world.

"This 'telephone' has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication. The device is inherently of no value to us."
-Western Union memo, 1876

AVG 7.0 & biz

With the advent of AVG 7.0 several people have emailed and wanted to know the 'ins and outs' of installing and setting up this great antivirus program. There's also been several requests to update the 8 simple rules of computing (see archive August 4, 2004) since rule number 1 is about AVG 6.0 and other anti-virus programs. It's all in the mill.

Several projects are overwhelming at this time -> upgrading a network, resolving an issue concerning AVG 7.0 antivirus and proprietary software (believe me, the proprietary software sucks!), repairing a very very sticky problem with a laptop that requires delicate soldering, finding a decent generator for the backup system, aligning all the hardware for the backup system, installing my brand new dual layer DVD burner (thanks MJ & CO!!), finding the right STK chips to correct a convergence problem in a Pioneer rear projector TV, repairing PCs and doing service calls. So please bear with me. A slip on the ice during the holidays has me running in low gear as well. Problems? Yep, n glad to have MOST them!

Here are some reviews of AVG 7.0:

Virus Bulletin

Southernphried, 11/19/2004 post by Grasshoppa

CNET User Opinions

Must Have Software

"If you don't want to work you have to work to earn enough money so that you won't have to work."
-Ogden Nash

New site and trip report

Got a new site for you. It's Cleansoftware.org. Overall concept? "CleanSoftware.org is a resource to help Windows users find the best free daily-use software, free from nasties: adware, spyware, harmful/intrusive components, and threats to privacy." The FAQ is a very good primer on staving off malware in general. Neat, clean interface that is easily navigated. Look forward to added content and improvement. Nice to know there are good guys.

Trip to Walls, MS was great! Good to see the family and catch up on what is happening with them. We even watched old home movies; glimpses of childhood. Yes, they did make movie cameras back in the day. No, there are no dinosaurs lurking in the background. A chance to eat at Mom's is well worth such a trip and the ritual exchange of gifts was fun. Uncle Snake drove there and back. Everybody smiled. Nice. Need more of the same type input. Happy Birthday Verdana!

"The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other's life."
-Bach

Nice Boxing Day

Christmas at the Beach House happened last night. Turkey was moist, dressing had just enough sage, the Purple Giraffe was all smiles and DVD Trivial Pursuit rocks! The board was not even used, we just pulled up questions on the TV and had a blast answering them. Finally fell asleep and was delighted when I awoke because someone had done the dishes!

Destination of the day is Walls, MS, to visit family and further partake in the holiday ritual of exchanging gifts. Verdana and Uncle Snake are driving. This will be a nice time to reflect and rest. Upon returning there are machines ready for healing. My neighbors are watching the house closely due to a current rash of theft in the area. Has to be some fool outsider. Everyone here knows our Police Force has excellent marksmen that WILL shoot.

Today is a great day to upgrade your AVG from version 6.0 to version 7.0. Remember to update immediately.

"Few men have virtue to withstand the highest bidder."
-George Washington

Google versus Microsoft?

It's no secret that I like Google. If you are using a search engine other than Google all I can do is wish you luck. Charles Ferguson has a very informative article at Technology Review titled What's Next for Google. The author owns stock in Microsoft and this article is about the Google vs. Microsoft war that is welling up. All in all, it's a middle of the road look at what possibly will happen over the next few years. If you're a weak geak (sic), don't bother. It's nine pages long. Even though Mr. Ferguson has a financial interest in Microsoft he admits that most things touched by Google seem to improve. I agree. Look at Blogger and Picasa for example. Check it out and see why so many laud and applaud the Googlemeisters.

"Quality is not expensive, it's priceless."
-Greg O'Guinn

Merry Christmas, thanks Google for the anti-Incredifind, & Excalibur rocks

As usual, the guy in the red suit has passed by. He did stop at the purple giraffe's house so everything is casual on this beautiful and chilly Christmas morning. Goals of the day are to not answer the phone, have no conversations and get some work done on the PCs that have to be returned after this wonderful holiday to various networks and individuals. Guess I'll have to speak to someone when I return the movies rented. This should be a nice, easy day spent alone with my machines. Christmas with my family begins Monday so it's not too dreary to have a deserved day of solitude at the beach house.

After checking the Google links to Cybersouth - from the Saltillo Beach House it is apparent the Incredifind nasties planted there by the dungware creeps have been removed. Thanks Google. If the spyware idiots follow their normal mode of operation this will not be the last attack. Merijn.org experienced some of the same problems and then they bombed his email. The Incredifind fools are pathetic; a disease that is forever trying to grow and devour innocent, unaware people.

While a good movie well worth watching King Arthur is a little unsettling to someone that has grown up with visions of Camelot and Merlin the Mage. The special effects and cinematography are awesome. The new slant to "humanize" this tale of wizards, magical swords and a holy goblet is just not my cup of tea. Malory and Tennyson are probably rolling in their graves. Maybe the next attempt will lean more towards telling the tale with magical beings and carrying-ons. The concept of Arthur being half-Italian and not a true Britainer just doesn't work. Still, this is a good movie and I highly recommend it. Sure beats that silly thing that Connery and Gere did a few years ago. It didn't even include Merlin as a character.

"The tale of King Arthur without Merlin is like making ice cream without cream."
-Billy Wobblynife

Quote the Yahoo? Nevermore!

Search engine? Instant Messenger? Portal? Webmail? Yahoo has all of these implements. Yahoo also supplies Gator, Claria, Gain, CMESII, Whatever They Are Called Today with 31% of their market!!!!! This is not rocket science. Don't want adware/spyware? Stop using Yahoo. Am I getting through to you? No? Well, let me ask you this; how are the rest of the ostriches?

I know how hard it is to shake off Yahooitis. Still residing on my machine is their instant messenger service. If a suitable alternative can be found then the beach house will de-Yahooize immediately. After the first of the new year it looks like I'll switch to that horrible Microsoft IM if no alternative is found. At least there is no adware/spyware involved.

My ability to communicate will be lessened with some folks, but the peace of mind knowing I do not support a site that blatantly uses spyware will be enhanced. Yahoo even has the nerve to promote an anti-adware/spyware program that forgives the Gator/Weatherbug/scope-whatever people!

Get your head out of the sand and go read these links:

eWeek Yahoo Plays Favorites with Some Adware

PCPitStop Yahoo and Claria

SpywareInfo Yahoo playing both sides of the spyware issue

SearchEngine Forums Does Yahoo support thiefware?

It will be hard for some folks to accept the fact that Yahoo is promoting bad juju. They've been around a long time and this is not the first time they've danced with the devil. Being old as dirt helps me recall this problem in the ancient past of the 1990s. Anyway, come January 1, 2005, Yahoo IM will be dropped and some other IM will be used. Just can't support a site that embeds spyware/adware/thiefware/malware/dungware in their site.

"Integrity can be neither lost nor concealed nor faked nor quenched nor artificially come by nor outlived, nor, I believe, in the long run, denied."
-Eudora Welty

Laptop under $500.00 and spyware still sucks

Are you believing a new laptop for under $500.00? Check it out at Walmart.com. Beware. Evil children reside in the aisles. Interesting that this device is running Linux, oops meant Lindows, uh , uh, no it's Linspire - that's the ticket. This does include a Microsoft Office file-compatible office suite. First they pressure the music mobsters to come down in price on CDs and now a Linux based laptop for this price? What gives? Next thing you know they'll throw out the evil children and their evil parents for not having manners! Sheesh, never thought I'd be a big Whalemart supporter. Status is; watching.

On my bench there sits a record breaking PC. It's a P4 Hewlett Packard XP Home machine that has survived a spyware infection of 3701 instances. Yes, that's right, 3701. 106 Trojan horses and virii were also removed. The home page was hijacked in a major way. This is absolutely mind boggling. Wish I could get my hands on the horses' asses that write this garbage and literally kick their butts around a small island before throwing them into a live volcano. Homesearch is part of the horrible filthy coolwwwsearch BS. These jerks pose as spyware removers, but they are actually generating the spyware!! They also hijack your homepage. What foolish weak people are these that plague the innocent with such garbage. Do you have any idea as to how hard it is to remove malware? Take a look at this super site -> Silentrunners.

"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines."
-Emerson, Self-Reliance

Fading quickly into the evening

It's been a long day and many stops were made along the way. Still have work to do, but I've got to rest for a few hours. When Christmas rolls around in 2005 and if God allows me to exist at that time, things will be different. Amazes me how people do not keep their word anymore and that intentionally perverting the truth is acceptable. Think I like my old world better. We were a far more polite society. K, going back to the NOVA special on string theories to learn or sleep. Peace out.

"Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocrities. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence."
-Einstein

Please read Satuday's post first

Things became extremely busy yesterday and since the post Saturday about Incredifind was important, it seemed befitting to let it head the list for another day. My research into this Intermix Media, eUniverse, Keenvalue, Incredifind, etc., trash is overwhelming. These people blatantly endorse their activities on their website. It is frightening that this company even exists. On top of all this they pay some stooge to scout around and mess with simple sites like this blog. Why would ANYONE do business with these creeps? There's more coming; you can bank that.

Gotta run. Pre holiday traumas are prevelant. Today is a good day to check your Spybot S & D and Ad-aware programs for updates. Be sure to immunize in Spybot. A prayer of gratitude for these programmers might be nice.

"You can fool all the people all the time if the advertising is right and the budget is big enough."
-Joseph E. Levine

Incredifind circus is a dung exposition

Every week or so Google and several other search engines are used to find links to this site. Nice to see who is talking about the beach house. Well, my efforts to have all the spyware people destroyed seems to be working. Incredifind has dropped several links about Cybersouth - from the Saltillo Beach House onto the Google search engine that make you link to their nasty, smelly dungware site. All I can say is HA! HA! HA!

Since they are being such bastards and bitches I'll try to mention them and their ugly families more often. My ever building list of Incredifind removal tools shall keep growing. The creeps know their days are numbered. Thieves are never welcome in a decent society. Again, HA! HA! HA! A pox on these dungware fools!

It's just so sad that duelling has been outlawed.

"Be careful out there. There are things that go bump in the night. Actually, there are things that go 'Give me your wallet or I'll kill you' in the night."
- John Larroquette

New virus threat

Channel Times reports that the ZAFI-D Virus poses as a Norton's update file. This one is a nasty. Isn't hanging too fast a death for the creeps that write this stuff? I still think the spyware people are worse.

Microsoft has acquired a spyware removal company. This news is all over the net, but BBC Technology News has a most insightful article. Sorry Windows 98 users, this is for Windows 2000 and XP only. The beach house will keep running Ad-aware and Spybot S & D. These sights are in the links list and there are buttons below the list for each program. Both are free for personal use although Ad-aware does have an upgrade and Spybot will accept donations.

Anyone had any luck running XP Pro on a 466 Celeron with 64 megs o' SDRAM? Methinks 'tis time for more RAM. Thank goodness the people still have a copy of Windows 2000. Formatting will also rid this poor machine of the spyware infections that have made a simple first child window opening something like a 5 minute task.

Have a casual Friday. Update your spyware protection programs today.


"Don't compromise yourself. It's all you've got."
-Janis Joplin

dot gov in Charlotte

Thinking about hacking some company? Planning a little war driving soon? You might want to take a look at the article over at ABC News. Nine years is a long time to spend in jail thinking about stupidity. Of course nine years is NOT enough time for the malware people. People that are involved with spyware at any level should be sent to Antartica for life -> wearing beach attire.

"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe."
-Albert Einstein

It's cold

Viewing the meteor showers has not been uber fun. Did see a few on Monday night, but when the alarm went off last night the temperature was noted and the bedcover went back in place. In the words of W.C. Fields, "Weather's not fit for man nor beast."

Speaking of beasts, news is slow when a Florida man biting his dog is receiving headlines. See The Ledger. Let's see, does he put up fences to mark his territory?

Thank goodness today will be busy. It is such a pleasure to get up, have great coffee, check the weather and plan an eventful day. There is an article in the making about the new free version of AVG antivirus. Soon...

"Blow, blow, thou winter wind
Thou art not so unkind,
As man's ingratitude."
-Shakespeare

The medicine chest of the soul (inscription at the Library of Thebes)

Have you heard the talk about Google digitizing the Harvard library? It's not just Harvard. Also included are Oxford University in England, Stanford University, University of Michigan and the New York Public Library. Read Fred "zAmboni" Locklear's report over at ArsTechnica. Interesting about the time involved. Big project doesn't even begin to describe this grand idea.

While on the subject, have you been to your local library lately? We are proud to have a really forward thinking, progressive library system here in northeast Mississippi. Lee-Itawamba Library System has a wonderful site and great facilities. Computers exist for patrons to use and their IT/IS department is top notch. Visit a nice informative site, put it in your favorites or bookmarks, then go by and take a look. Get in touch with your Mississippi Senator or Representative and tell them about these neat fountains of knowledge.

"Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read."
-Groucho Marx

Searching, cleaning and star gazing

Margaret emailed and wants to know about desktop search. This is a relatively new tool that comes to us from the folks at Google that enables one to search their PC with the Google search engine. Why? It's quicker. Is it used at the beach house? Not yet. Security issues are always mentioned when talking about desktop search and this is a "test" version. Since Google took the lead and this has been downloaded by the masses now the competitors want in on the deal. Read more about it at PCWorld. Hope this helps, Margaret from Mississippi.

Now I must go vacuum before starting my rounds. Have a safe day.

"Nature abhors a vacuum. And so do I."
-Anne Gibbons

Edit: Don't forget the Geminid Meteor Shower. Best viewing for this area is around 1-2am, but it can be seen all night. Look above and to the left of Orion. Tonight and tomorrow night are peak viewing times. Find me in the hammock - with a warm beverage.

Saturday morning geek observations

Interesting that Linus Torvalds, the father of Linux, received more votes than anyone in the Top 20 software people in the world poll at JDJ. This article is for the serious geek or geek wannabe; it's 41 pages long. Thanks Slashdot for the heads up on a very interesting article.

Cringely has a different slant on the IBM/Lenovo transaction that still lingers in the news. Check out his view of this merger/sale/venture/world domination move by reading The China Syndrome. Written for the bizgeek AND consuming public at large.

Keeping up with the latest shenanigans of the present Hitler and Nazi incarnates? Read about the RIAA and company over at File Sharing Goes to High Court. These scumbags are almost as low as the spyware jerks. At the very least sterilize them so they cannot procreate. So simple; sell music online at a fair price and quit favoring Darth Jobs and iTunes.

Now is the time for all good hair dryers to come to the aid of their computers. The flood last week has had a lingering effect.

"Save quickly, save many."
Billy Wobblynife (and anyone else that uses Word Perfect)

Reading for power

Tis the season to be jolly and avoid the evil children that live at Wal-mart. Hopefully, my shopping this weekend will include the purchase of two books; Jolly Mon and Trouble Dolls. Also on the agenda is a Parakeet Album purchase. Yes, this is breaking my ban on purchasing prerecorded music that has been tainted by the RIAA, but I know a purple giraffe that will absolutely love these items. And purple giraffes are special, deserving better than average treatment. Nothing like the band of evil children that live at Wal-mart.

Another book purchase will be Mind Hacks. Need a copy for the Saltillo Beach House Library and this may end up a popular gift item. Any exercises to improve the use of one's mind are desirable. Mine needs an anchor to stop the drift away syndrome. This is an O'Reilly publication and that is a plus.

Must go deal with the aftermath of flooding in this area. Please remember, a wet computer is a dangerous computer.

"Properly, we should read for power. Man reading should be man intensely alive. The book should be a ball of light in one's hand."
-Ezra Pound

Geeks hanging their stockings

Trying to find gifts for the geeks and geekettes in your life? Arstechnica has a really nice guide that is several pages deep and gives many neat links and descriptions. Prices vary from a few dollars to mega bucks. Nice roundup and they have some things that are NOT game related.

PC Magazine has a thorough roundup on various techno gifts. Just remember they are influenced by their advertising clients. This is still a nice site that will help guide you in purchasing just the right gadget for your geekster. My personal favorite is (click here).

Anyone that has good shopping sites please comment or email. That dude in the sleigh is almost ready to crank up those 8 reindeer. Shop smart and shop safe.

"What do you call people who are afraid of Santa Claus? Claustrophobic."
-H.D. Murphy

Big Blue changing colors

It's official. The Chinese now own IBM's PC Group division. Read about it at Cnet news. If they maintain the quality product standard that IBM has obtained over the past years and ask reasonable prices success should happen. China has not been all embracing of technology. Recently, it was discovered that the Chinese government censures Google, editing out things they think unfit for their citizens. Big Oriental Brother? Wonder if this merger is a world domination ploy or just 'bidness' as usual? We'll see, we'll see...

"Computers are magnificent tools for the realization of our dreams, but no machine can replace the human spark of spirit, compassion, love, and understanding."
- Louis Gerstner, CEO, IBM

You backup? Yes? No? Maybe?

Something that has always fascinated me is how people don't backup their valuable data and then become upset with the computer techs because the techs didn't stand over them 24-7 like nazis, assuring this procedure happened. What gives with that? Most newer PCs now have CDR/CDRW recording devices and blank CDRs are very inexpensive. CD burning software is manufactured by many companies and easy to use. You select the files, put them in the burn list, make sure you are slightly under 700megs (that's almost 3/4 of a gig!) and hit record. Walk away and a few minutes later the disk is done. Not enough room? Do it again. Simple, easy. Don't have a CDR/CDRW recording device? Nice low cost Christmas present. Hey, ask Santa for one.

The University of Alabama has an excellent tutorial on CD burning.

"Those parts of the computer that you can hit with a ball-peen hammer are called hardware; the program instructions that you can only cuss are called software."
-Billy Wobblynife

T-Bone, Arlen and Bubba weather tunes

It's raining. Still, the day has to be embraced with the gusto of a hounddawg and, umbrella in hand, it's almost time to flee out that front door. Aaron Thibeaux Walker penned a song titled Stormy Monday. Ella, Billie, Frank and many more recorded Stormy Weather. Tunes that reflect the sorrow of a loved one being gone and the loneliness that ensues. Hey if you're a depression 'wallower', don't even try to Google for the lyrics or find an audio snippet.

Yes, tech news is slow today. Get out your raincoat, put up the umbrella, avoid the deep end and don't wear sandals.


"We can go hiking on Tuesday,
With you I'd walk anywhere."
-Jimmy Buffett, Come Monday

Contemplating life, the universe and boxcars

While looking out the window it comes to me not to dread the forecast rain. Need to put my sorry butt in church this morning, but probably won't make it. Now the train is rolling by and they always bless us with extra pulls on the horn when the sun is not up.

Saltillo has to be an important rail hub because every train that comes through either stops or slows down with the whistles blowing in the background. Or foreground. Well, they shake the ground. Funny, this is apparent when computing, but it never wakes me. Talk about mental rejection....

Time to go to church, get busy or take a short nap. Options are nice.

"Oh, East is East and West is West, and never the twain shall meet, Till Earth and Sky stand presently at God’s great Judgment Seat."
-Rudyard Kipling

Indy 4 is a go and IBM is bowing out

All the Indiana Jones fans get ready, Episode IV will be made according to Harrison Ford. Harrison said, "Lucas is happy with the script." Of course this is Mr. George Lucas of Star Wars fame. Read the article over at The Indy Experience. You gotta love some geek movies!

IBM fans may be in for a rude awakening. The company is thinking about getting out of the computer business. Even though my field PC is a newer Toshiba, my old ThinkPad laptop is a cherished relic that's still fun to use. Back in the day when IBM still made hard drives, these units were the only storage devices permitted in my PCs, IDE or SCSI. Almost bulletproof. Eric Bangeman has great post -> arstechnica. Also, read more info at CNET News. This may be a bit scary for American capitalists.

Had an early morning bout with a SCSI Linux PC and actually laid down and returned to the arms of Morpheus for a bit. After such a refreshing nap and some awesome Odyssey coffee (see the link on this page) it's time to "turn to" and swab the decks. Arrgghhh, matey!

"Yes I am a pirate, two hundred years too late
The cannons don't thunder, there's nothin' to plunder
I'm an over-forty victim of fate"
-Jimmy Buffett, A Pirate Looks at Forty

That dirty old snake tempted Eve with an apple

Thinking about a new MP3 portable? Taken by the cool styling of the Apple iPod? Don't spend those bucks with Darth Jobs too quickly. PCWorld just reviewed the IRiver H320 and Archos Gmini XS200. Both are great alternatives. Remember, Apple sealed the batteries in the first iPods and then charged 100 bucks for replacements. You had to send the device to them too. Don't know if they changed this policy, but my Creative Zen Extra even has a button that makes battery swap easy as pie.

The Creative Nomad Zen Xtra greatest fault is having a long name. There's a review at Dukebox.com. Yes, prejudice here. I've been using this device for many months now and it has performed flawlessly. The 30 gig version holds an enormous amount and they offer a 60 gig as well. Everyone that has listened to this device loves the sound and people that have listened to both say it sounds better than an iPod. It does. Also, it's not fussy about what you put on it. I've carried many large data files on it as well as music. It's the same size as a standard iPod and they do make smaller versions with less capacity in the Zen Xtra line. Highly recommended. Click on the links. Use Google and research. Don't be taken in by Apple's marketing tactics. Too expensive for a mid-fi product. And they beat you up when it comes to repairs.

"What would you do if I sang out of key, would you stand up and walk out on me? Lend me your ears and I'll sing you a song, and I'll try not to sing out of key."
-John Lennon and Paul McCartney

News media dance from afar

Recently, VistaIIIMedia added several channels to their line up. Thank you! One channel of note is WMCT-TV, Channel 5, out of Memphis, TN. This is one of the oldest NBC affiliates in the South. I would like to thank the news department of this channel for helping with a decision. Their constant ranting and raving about all the crime in the Memphis area has impact. There will be no Saltillo Beach House Christmas shopping in Memphis. As a matter of fact, I hope to never go to Memphis again. They won't miss me.

One of the dismal feature stories on WMCT-TV early this morning aside from the normal mayhem and murder mumbo-jumbo was about people stealing Christmas decorations out of yards. This is pathetic. If they would enforce laws and empower authorities to do their jobs such idiocy would stop. Also, the 911 people of this urban area would not respond to a Nashville ambulance stranded on the side of the road. They had a patient dependent on oxygen for life support and the supply was low. The local 911 lady said she couldn't respond because her job description said they couldn't help someone not in an emergency situation. What the hell do you call this lady? A stroll in the park? DON'T, I say again, DON'T take me to Memphis in an ambulance under ANY circumstances! This is beyond ridiculous, it's absurd. On Tuesday the muckity mucks of Mayor Willie Herrington's backwards sliding crew decided that paddlings in schools should cease. Instead of spending money on such stupid ideas, buy handguns for all the teachers! A Glock in every classroom might not make the lazy study, but it could help a teacher walk (or run) safely to their car.

So, while I am loyal to the local NBC affiliate for what little programming that interests me, occasionally the Memphis NBC news will be watched. I said occasionally; no one can stand that much depression.

"All who have meditated on the art of governing mankind have been convinced that the fate of empires depends on the education of youth."
-Aristotle

Favorite food? Not Spam!

Refreshing article at Reuters explaining the details of how Ohio legislators have passed a law making life miserable for spammers. Violators could face a minimum of six months in jail as well as fines of $25,000 per violation, or $2 to $8 per violating e-mail. Their computer equipment could be confiscated, and Internet providers could sue for damages. Love it! Now, Mississippi and other states should follow this example. Actually, I want the death penalty for spammers and malware/spyware people.

Interesting item over at Geek.com about Lycos battle against spammers in Europe. Be sure and read the comments. Cybersouth agrees with Christopher about spammers being bullies. Nice precise news reporting. Good site.

For all The Lord of the Rings fans go see the clip promoting the Special Extended Edition of The Return of the King . Just click on the link and if you have downloaded the free Quicktime player the video will open automatically. Over 50 minutes of footage has been added to the original. It's kewl.

It's lunchtime and work calls. Think there's a hamburger in my immediate future since turkey has been on the menu wayyyy too long. Ahhh, the art of driving and eating.

"You can find your way across this country using burger joints the way a navigator uses stars."
-Charles Kuralt

Reply to a vulgar email

Due to being on the planet for a while some things inflame me that may seem minor to others. Yes, I think EVERYONE that lives in this country should learn the English language, natives included. Children graduating high school should earn their diplomas through hard work and study. Politeness ought to be a way of life. Those living a self imposed dark age in this world of technology need to give up the cave. Someone needs to round up the evil children that "live" at Wal-Mart, find their parents and spank ALL of them. This list can go on and on. Our world is being taken over by thugs, liberals and simians. Apathy is the cause. Yesterday's post has been edited to remove profanity, but it stays up.

In the words of that great Texas philosopher Ed Coffin, "Have a better than expected day."

"A word to the wise ain't necessary, it's the stupid ones who need the advice."
-Bill Cosby

The Circus of Chaos continues...

The baboons at COMCAST that are in charge of programming over at G4TechTV, are blithering idiots. Brian Roberts, head monkey at COMCAST, you are a sick mind that needs to be locked up and forgotten. It amazes me that these BOZOS can take a perfectly good TV show, The Screensavers, that had changed down through the years for the better and ruin it completely in just a few months. Books are a much more dependable medium, well at least until Roberts and company find a way to alter them and make them worse. They've turned an informative, entertaining channel into a kiddies' game show with punk, foul mouth hosts and no one involved is intelligent enough to use sentences with more than 3 or 4 words. Seems I am being sent a message. It's time to give up the boob tube. With Kevin Rose no longer host this is a cyber debauchery. Now I am depressed and must go eat the last of the turkey and dressing.

"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson, Self-Reliance

Do Not Call list is being threatened

What in the hell are our government officials thinking?!? The following was sent to the FTC in order to protest the current proposal permitting telemarketers to harass us once again:

Telemarketers and anyone associated with this business should be locked up for life. Have you considered doing something about the people that write spyware/adware/malware? Seems they all work hand in hand to make our lives miserable. Please don't open any doors for these creeps!

Please go to the FTC site, fill in the simple form, and protest this ridiculous idea. Further info can be found at the Chicago Sun-Times. Thanks Slashdot for the heads up on something that concerns ALL of us.

"To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man."
-William Shakespeare, Hamlet

No dark sarcasm in the classroom

Saturday morning. It's raining, Pink Floyd is playing in the background, the coffee is perfecto mundo, the smell of country bacon is in the air and life is most casual. Many things on the plate and must be addressed before the weekend ends, but for now, Shine on You Crazy Diamond is chambering the Dock bullet into the Beach House magazine. Man, do I love this music or what? I asked Verdana and Beagle if they'd play the Joe Tex song Ain't Gonna' Bump no Mo' at my funeral and they were vehement in their refusal so maybe some Pink Floyd? C'mon, it'll lift everyone's spirit. There is the faction that will be happy that I'm gone, but if they attend great music will depress them so it'll all work. Uncle Snake! Hep me! Hep me! You know in your heart that Pink Floyd will help rest a weary soul!

Links to Floyd:

Pink Floyd Online, great site - check the lyrics section.

Pink Floyd & Co., kewl English site. Navigation is SUPERIOR!

PinkFloydFan.Net has mega info - read the Pink Floyd Story here.

"Tongue-tied and twisted, just an earthbound misfit, I"
-Pink Floyd, Learning to Fly

In an unfair fight my money is on the Wookie

Would you like to read a spoiler for the newest Star Wars movie, Revenge of the Sith? Don't know how official this is and it may be from the mind of a super Vader geek, but it's fun. This is supposedly a script synopsis by George Lucas, Plot Summary Starwars 3. Comes to us courtesy of SuperShadow. This is a really in depth Star Wars site full of information (plot summaries for 7,8, and 9?). All you Obiwanners and Sith wannabes! Let me know what you think - is it real or not?

Still haven't seen the trailer? It can be viewed here.

"Luke's just not a farmer, Owen. He's got too much of his father in him."
-Aunt Beru

Eat, drink and be merry

Apparently many folks arose, ate turkey, took a nap and decided to blog. It's taken so long to upload anything, I killed my simple "you go turkey day" post and changed in to whine mode. Hope they don't stay down forever; afterall, Google is the parent company. Very frustrating to try and upload in IE6, Mozilla and Firefox with nothing making the trip. So I sit typing in Wordpad awaiting the cyber vudu to take place.

The day has been awesome with only one minor glitch. Mother and I travelled down the Natchez Trace about 15 miles to the Beagle n Mudslingr abode to celebrate Thanksgiving with a large group of families and friends. The food was absolutely awesome, the fellowship grand and an extra special treat was watching the purplegiraffe open her birthday presents. This was a good day. Mother fell when getting out of the car and panic was trying to set in, but many rushed to her aid and and she is okay, thank God. Appreciate the promptness of Mudslingr's Dad and family in helping her. I had my head stuck inside the back seat and didn't even know it until they'd dashed across the yard to help! Nice to be around folks with good manners. I sat there watching, later on, and realized this was a happy time. Smiles abounded. Yep, this was a better than average gathering. Thanks y'all!

"Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works."
-Ecclesiastes 9:7
Edit: Finally launched post by changing to another PC! Blogger wuz punishing me for falling asleep at the machine I guess...

Appliances, cyber and mechanical

A recent scenario had me installing some proprietary 'vudu' software on a network. They insisted on using McAfee antivirus and it was relayed to the client that my feelings about McAfee went deeper than mild dislike. We settled on one machine per location and in just a few weeks this software was no longer needed. During the process of installing, I approached the tech on the other end about the dilemna and he said it was a bundled deal and he didn't have any input about the matter.

Folks, McAfee is worthless. Red Dragon, Ashby Rhett Culpepper III, and several other tech types have verified the same thing over and over. Ashby even upgraded McAfee, ran it, then uninstalled it. He then installed Norton's and found over 1000 infections that McAfee missed. And just click on Sunday's comments to see Red Dragon's battle.

"How about Norton's," you ask? They make a good product, but I will only endorse Norton's Antivirus. Their bundled NIS and SystemWorks have created major problems on networks. Bondo Elvis says that they've corrected their errors. Still, these full blown utilities seem to slow machines down. Anyway, Norton's Antivirus seems okay. That said, it's not used at the Beach House.

AVG is used here and has been for several years. It's light, stays in the background, runs on schedule and is easily updated in automatic mode. Great stuff. So far the only complaint with the new 7.0 version is that there is one piece of proprietary software that might have problems so far. This will be interesting because the promoters of this proprietary software are basically a bunch of crawfish living in a large Texas pond that aspire to be NASA types. So, we'll see. In the meantime the rest of the world is using AVG and loving it.

Everyone be careful around that stove tonight and tomorrow. Now, must go and finish laundry, house cleaning and then work. Mother is due this afternoon!

"After enlightenment, there's laundry."
-Zen Proverb

Pains in the back and lower

After a round of sweeping and cleaning in preparation for visitors during the near at hand holiday, I've had to take a brief rest from the world and recover from my aching back. Almost couldn't move Sunday afternoon and got through it with the help of Flexiril. This malady usually lingers for 36-48 hours depending on the amount of movement within that time. Anyway, returning to the fold after a brief and quiet interlude.

Let's see, a pro basketball dude jumped into the crowd and struck a fan this weekend and is now upset that they suspended him? What a jerk! Hell, I say ban him from the game for life!! The worms at NBC interviewed him and all he can do is plug a CD? Send this silly horse's ass to Mars. Ridiculous. Even more absurd is that the liberal news media is acting like it's some huge story. Wow, makes me want to attend a sporting event. Opinions? Use the comments.

"Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength."
-Eric Hoffer

AVG new version, etc.

My good friend Grasshoppa', over at Southernphried, recently posted about the new version of AVG Free antivirus software. Get ready, you'll have to upgrade from the well known, stable, easy to install, easy to use AVG version 6.0. The 7.0 version is new and thoroughly tested. It works. Why anyone uses any other virus scan is beyond me. Go over and take a look. Thanks for the info hoppa', and still needing help here with Linux SUSE and a SCSI CD-ROM, lol.

Today might be a great time to update Spybot S&D 1.3. Also, upgrade to Ad-aware SE 1.05; it's an even greater utility! There are links and buttons in the list for these super applications. Stay casual and enjoy Sunday. Now it's time to shower and get back to work!

"Let it be observed, that slovenliness is no part of religion, that neither this, nor any text of Scripture condemns neatness of apparel. Certainly this is a duty not a sin. Cleanliness, indeed, is next to Godliness."
-John Wesley

Easy like Saturday morning

It's foggy outside. Saturday mornings are pleasant early on because the world seems to slow down . The fog enhances this leisurely pace. Having a wonderful cup of Odyssey coffee that was delivered yesterday and reflecting on all the projects awaiting today. Consideration for the purplegiraffe's birthday gift has been on my mind. Think she might like something SpongeBob-ish? Probably.

Turkey day will be here next week so I must be diligent in finishing current work underway. Mother will be here Wednesday and we are going to the Beagle and Mudslingr hacienda to partake of Thanksgiving festivities. Taking something called colcannon which is a traditional Irish dish dating back to the 1500s. Food TV is a great place to start recipe research and has links to many sites. The coffee pot just called and I'm outta' here for a while.

"An optimist is a person who starts a new diet on Thanksgiving Day."
-Irv Kupcinet

Candy is dandy...

Just over at Slashdot and found this remarkable post. After comparing cheap vodka to a well known brand of premium booze they have determined the taste is much improved after running the lesser booze through a Brita water pitcher with filter. Funny stuff. Makes me wonder what these people do for a living and if they are locked down at night! Check it out at Oh My God It Burns!

"I like to keep a bottle of stimulant handy in case I see a snake, which I also keep handy."
-W.C. Fields

To coat or not to coat

Red Dragon sent in a GREAT link that may interest many fellow Netizens.

Weatherbug/Weatherscope is one of the most horrible applications ever to exist. The people that produce it over at Claria/Gator/GAIN//whatever their name is today, all belong in the Rocky Horror Picture Show. No, that's being cruel to the movie. Good idea for weather watching people, but full of hideous stuff.

Well, Mr. Dragon has found a most suitable option to this adware/malware infection. It's called Weather Watcher. I've used it for a few days and it runs in the background using very little resource. Normally system tray items (bottom right corner of screen) don't find favor with me. This one works and has presented no problems. Be sure and look at the options section. If this works for ya', send a donation to Mike Singer - creator of this neat application. Thanks Red Dragon!

"The coldest winter I ever spent wuz late autumn in Iuka."
-Billy Wobblynife

Extensions for a feeble brain; I own two

While PalmSource is busy trying to sell us everything a great place to look for freeware/shareware PDA software is ZDNet. Thinking about buying one of these pocket PCs? Take a look at what is available as far as applications. These small devices can be super tools. My interest is sparked by the need to remember times, dates, who to invoice, when to invoice, who to pay, when to pay, where to go, how to get there, etc. Sticky notes have eliminated carrying a scratch pad.

Long day spent fighting the spyware war. Came in, started eating and fell asleep watching the boob tube with a glass of iced tea in my hand. Somehow it stayed upright. Ahhh life's good. Now I must go contemplate the forecast of rain for 6 days in a row.

"Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadows."
-Helen Keller

Attention ALL XP users, attention ALL XP users!

Please stop what you are doing and and go to the article called IT: The Verdict on WinXP SP2. The location is Slashdot. Actually, don't even bother with the article - just read the comments on the Slashdot page under this post . I say again - forget the article READ THE COMMENTS! When you are through click the "X" box in the top right corner of the Slashdot window. This will close Slashdot bringing you back here.

While the article says basically nothing, the people commenting are up in arms about the woes and difficulties of this "uber" patch. There is an occasional person that has installed it with no problems. The overwhelming majority is still beleaguered with problems created by SP2. Now, please click on the word Comments following this post and let us know your opinion. You don't have to use your name, but remember to scroll down and hit the OK button to launch your comment.

Almighty and eternal God,
who created us in Thy image
and bade us to seek after all that is good, true and beautiful,
especially in the divine person
of Thy only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ,
grant we beseech Thee that,
through the intercession of Saint Isidore, bishop and doctor,
during our journeys through the internet
we will direct our hands and eyes
only to that which is pleasing to Thee
and treat with charity and patience
all those souls whom we encounter.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
From http://www.catholic.org
For my Roman Catholic friends (United Methodist here)

Google is in the house and an 'about' the house

Obvious that a search engine for the site is now present? LOL! Hopefully, this will make surfing Beach House activities, recommendations, links , etc. easier. Is the position okay? Putting it at the top seems logical. Let me know.

My location is oftened questioned. No, there is no ocean front property within 325.75 miles. Saltillo is a small town just 8 miles north of Tupelo, MS; about 90 miles southeast of Memphis, TN, and 150 miles northwest of Birmingham, AL. Why the name Saltillo Beach House? If you glimpse at the picture located up there by the title it helps explain to some degree. Being a parrothead, fisherman, sailor-son of a sailor, an ex-US Navy person, and a lover of anything waterwise combine to "make" the beach house scenario and this is promoted by interior and exterior decor.

Lake Lamar Bruce is nearby as is Elvis Presley Lake. Did I mention Elvis was born in Tupelo? Anyway, having two life-saver rings adorning the veranda by the door is a dead giveaway. People that visit gravitate toward the parrothead couch (one of two in existence), the swing on the veranda and the hammock on the patio just behind the beautiful PARROTHEAD AVE. sign. These are good places to nap. So the general feeling here? Casual and laid back. I must go rest now...

"I'm a big fan of dreams. Unfortunately, dreams are our first casualty in life -- people seem to give them up, quicker than anything, for a 'reality.'"
-Kevin Costner

For children young and old

After much surfing and searching, a way has been found to watch the movie trailer for Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. DON'T go to the Yahoo site unless you want spyware. They have you install what looks like a harmless plug in and it is malware. Yahoo sucks. So sad to see a site that offers some good content ruin a Net experience by being in bed with the thiefware thugs. To make it worse they are responsible for 31% of Claria/Gator/GAIN/whatever their name is this hour income!!! So if you Yahoo, I say BOOHOO.

This trailer really isn't much of a spoiler. Nice graphics, but it has no screen shots, etc. Try H2G2 the Movie for all that. Nice site full of information, very fast and easy to navigate. If a superfan be sure and check out the Vogon Version. Not an initiate in this crazy world of scifi and great humor? Try DouglasAdams.com. These strange, wonderful downright whacky books are found in most geek libraries around the world. Funny stuff. On the jackets of books 4 and 5 Mr. Adams wrote 'they are the fourth and fifth books in the trilogy'. LOL! That cracks me up.

Another movie that will play soon is yet another remake of the C.S. Lewis first book of the Narnia Chronicles, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. There's plans to make all the Narnia books into movies. Being filmed in New Zealand this is a GREAT and WONDERFUL tale written by a respected Christian theologian. I hope the film folks do it justice. So far the other versions have been weak. The director has said he will stick to the proper story line. Can't wait to see my first movie with the purplegiraffe and this may be perfect. Great literature that teaches good moral values. And hey, it's not just for kids.

"When you read a book as a child, it becomes a part of your identity in a way that no other reading in your whole life does."
Kathleen Kelly, from You've Got Mail

BTW: Happy birthday "Daddy Dan" West!!! Be sure and check your email!

Arstechnica nails the spyware thugs

Adam Baratz and Charles Mclaughlin have written a great article concerning malware over at arstechnica. Malware: what it is and how to prevent it goes into detail about many of these cyberjerks and even has screen shots. This is superb journalism and if I am elected Emporer of the Known Universe this will become mandatory reading for all. However, they do not mention that the Yahoo Toolbar is spyware. What's up with that? Still, this is well written and full of pertinent info. Check it out.

"Most fools think they are only ignorant."
-Benjamin Franklin

Technology is dimensional

The electrical power company in our area is, hopefully, not typical. Since my bill has been creeping upwards the past year I've actively switched off unused devices. There's been no major appliances or new devices at the beach house in several years. Yet, they (the electric company) casually pass off my drop in usage over the past few months due to conservation and then a 200% increase in one month as nothing. "Oh well, the dude reading the meter musta made a mistake the month before. It'll all average out," the guy standing at the counter said. Right. Tell that to someone on fixed income. This is going somewhere, bear with me.

In the words of that great writer, Snoopy Brown, "It was a dark and stormy night." With rain solidly forecast and thunderstorms possible, I decided to give the computer room a rest. After carefully turning off all machines properly and in order, I unplugged the network from the phone line (DSL) and cable (cable modem) then switched off all ancillary devices. This powered down the computer room for a while giving the machines a rest so to speak. Upon returning, after a stressful day waging war with the network demons and goblins, my fat butt parked in front of the TV, ate some leftovers, and fell asleep.

Arising just a few minutes ago I came in and powered up in proper sequence all devices and discovered that my dual processor, 1 gig of memory, 10,000 spin SCSI (pronounced scuzzy) machine wouldn't quit chattering. Folks, SCSIs are fast! They have to be because the noises they make will drive one crazy. After some investigation it was a pleasant suprise to find that the beta version of AVG being tested was doing a quick check due to the 'power down' and missed scheduled daily scan! Nice.

There's great satisfaction in knowing that while an electrcial meter reader 'plays' with my burdened financial situation as though it means nothing there are computer technicians in eastern Europe (yes AVG is based there) that are working to make my life less stressful. Thank you Grisoft and AVG techs! Tombigbee Valley Electric? All I can say is, "Hey, Bill! Will you realize what a burden this bad meter reading might be to some retired couple on a tight budget? Is it too much to ask you people to be human and humane?"

Ahhhhh my friends and fellow geekmeisters, let us be thankful that tomorrow may bring sunshine! For more of Snoopy Brown's great works please check Mr. Schultz's Peanuts.

"The dog is a gentleman; I hope to go to his heaven, not man's."
-Mark Twain

Okay, so I am a little bit whiny today...(your forewarned)

Frequent visitors know that I think the CEO of COMCAST, Brian Roberts, is like unto Goofy; Mickey's buddy over at the mouse house. Yet, I think their delivery system for internet connectivity via cable in this area is really awesome. But...I have one network that goes straight to cyber netherworld if they drop service. It is bossed by a NT4 Server and has only 4 workstations attached during the normal course of a day. The client is most understanding, yet puzzled about this 4 times a year fiasco.

First your have to go through several hours of trying every start up option available. After learning to speak ipconfig fluently you must rest and take calming medication to recover. The next day you get to phone dance with the swamp rats in the ""technical"" help department of COMCAST which is apparently located on a hostile, remote island in the south Atlantic Ocean. All they know how to say is 'I can see you on my machine here' with noises of an angry native uprising in the background.

Granted, they do have a few people that are savvy, have ability and manners. Now that this has been mentioned Brian Roberts will probably put a bounty on these people and have them hunted down and eliminated. So my love/hate relationship with COMCAST continues. They have a great service and absolutely horrible CSRs with no manners answering the phone after a 10-20 minute waltz through the voice recordings.

Today I've ordered another router and will take extra blood pressure medication then tackle this network possession again. Who ya' gonna call? Ghostbusters? Or a Priest?

Peace out, my fellow geeksters.

"He is a true fugitive who flies from reason."
-Marcus Aurelius

Major mojo failures

Upon arising, I check my favorite weather site, Intellicast, and sometimes The Weather Channel. Amazes me as to how both sites can predict the same weather for one location and vary so much. The Weather Channel is so busy trying to get people to fill out some kinda' forms it's ridiculous. This morning another alternative was tried WTVA-TV, local NBC-TV affiliate. They have YESTERDAY's weather listed. Now that's really helpful in planning TODAY's work.

If anyone has any info on how to install SP2 on a Dell or HP PC, say, built within the last 2 years, please let me in on the mojo. I am tired of hearing one or two people sing praises and 50 others screaming and yelling about this pain in the ass patch which should NOT be necessary in the first place. Up until Service Pack 2 Microsoft had issued a steady stream of patches that resolved the woes created by Satan's ilk, the virus writers, etc.

Can you believe that Microsoft is going to issue a second version of XP? Remember, Longhorn is not due out until late 2006 so they probably think the coffers need refilling. Bet XP2 will have SP2 built in and cure all the ills that accompany installing it now! I say don't buy the new version. This is akin to Apple tactics! What issue of Jaguar are they on now?

Must go now. Have an appointment with the local vudu highpriestess to see if she has any insight on SP2 or weather forecasting. She'll probably recommend FreeBSD or Linux for both.

"Do not meddle in the affairs of Wizards, for they are subtle and quick to anger."
-J.R.R. Tolkien

XP Service Pack 2 - did Steve Jobs write this piece of garbage?

I really DON'T want to hear from the Microsoft Nazis that have been lucky enough to install this horrible disease on a few machines. This joke of an upgrade has cost me more time than any virus or trojan in existence. Used to have respect and regard for the Gates Gang, but it is quickly flying out the 'window'. Enough is enough.

This thing is horrible. Do a service call, install it and two days later return to remove it. And people just won't pay for the removal service call. If fortunate, it goes away and things are okay, sorta'. Today I've another PC that will have to be formatted in order to restore system operation. Damn XP! Think I'll recommend all my clients UPGRADE to Windows 2000!!

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled."-Richard Feynman (1918 - 1988)

Light sabers and breathing apparatus

All righty now!!! I am pumped! Take a look at the new trailer for Star Wars - Revenge of the Sith. This is excellent! You need Quicktime and a fast connection to see it properly. May the port, uh, uh, force be with you!

Have a super Saturday!

"The ablilty to speak does not make you intelligent."
-Qui-Gon Jinn