Re: [CGUYS] Verizon Done with FIOS?
That is disturbing to me - I am in a copper only DSL area of Verizon's service. I was hoping to eventually get FIOS, as no cable vendor serves my area. Now I guess I will have to hope that LTE comes to my DirectTV eventually or that a cable company decides to serve this area. I am beginning to wonder exactly what business Verizon is in - they want to get out of copper and are abandoning FIOS, so the only consumer product left is their Wireless cellphone business. We've had connection issues with our DSL service for over two months. It disconnects at the same time almost every day for 5-90 minutes. Verizon is working on it. When the tech came to check wiring, switch, etc., he told me that the trunk line from town is fiber even though the neighborhood isn't connected, so we can't get FIOS. He told me that it's the same where he lives--fiber to the area, but neighborhoods not connected. He has DSL and DirecTV, just like we do. Verizon may be finished with the main FIOS installation, but they're not doing the last mile or so. Do neighborhoods and small towns have to get their own connections through cooperation of all the residents? Ha! Fat chance! Betty *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
Re: [CGUYS] welcome to thunderbird
On Aug 25, 2011, at 12:00 AM, b_s-wilk b1sun...@yahoo.es wrote: These examples are the best reasons to NEVER buy software at an app store where it's automatically installed, overwriting the last version. The worst bugs are always in the automatic installs, and they're harder to clean up, too. Even most non-App Store apps don't automatically update themselves. For the most part, they tell me that an update is available and give me the option of upgrading immediately or postponing the update. I think that the point was that the app store automatically INSTALLED the update, thereby overwriting the version being updated, not that the app store automatically UPDATED the application without input from the end user. I absolutely prefer to download an updated version of any application and install it alongside the older version. That allows me to test the new version to ensure it works properly before I consider deleting the older one. That approach has saved me considerable grief and a lot of time on a number of occasions. Steve I want to have a backup of the INSTALLER, not the backup of the program. Without the installer, vital files could be missing. The online installer will overwrite what I have without giving me the choice not to do that -- Apple has done this for years, BUT they used to give a choice of downloading an installer instead of online only. I don't want to waste time digging through a series of backups, delving into the invisible system files to find all the pieces to recover, when a decent company would simply provide an installer for their software. I can even download Android and Symbian software without having it installed automatically, overwriting my files. At least Mozilla gives us software installers--and Bugzilla. What's wrong with Apple? Steve Jobs should have retired a long time ago and taken his sadistic narrow micromanagement style with him. Without the software installer, we're also at the whim of our ISP which hasn't treated us very well lately; connection has the hiccups, and calling them doesn't do any good. They blame it on our computers, even though the odds that all of our many computers will have exactly the same glitch at the same time are almost nil. Will call them and try again. Internet providers' flaky service can make a horrible product [Mac App Store online installations] even worse. Such is the pleasure of country living! Betty *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
Re: [CGUYS] welcome to thunderbird
What's wrong with Apple? Steve Jobs should have retired a long time ago and taken his sadistic narrow micromanagement style with him. It is my thought that Apple wants to go with program installations on-line as opposed to having the user employ a downloaded installer because Apple has decided to design their devices to satisfy the needs of the lowest common denominator as far as users of their devices is concerned. Apple thinks that their users are, to a great degree it seems, a bunch of dumb asses in terms of relating to digital devices. Apple could well be correct in that assessment, at least as far as iOS device users go. It seems to me as though Apple is headed in the direction of making most of their devices suitable for easy use and equally attractive for anyone from toddlers up to the elderly. Apple is also making their devices much less attractive for professionals who make a living with their computers and peripheral devices. It started with sealed computers, iPods and phones. What has always been a relatively simple process to change a battery or swap out a drive has become complicated to the point that we need special proprietary tools to open our devices to perform basic upgrades and repairs. We work on our own computers. We don't have time to send them out or wait for a tech to arrive. We have deadlines. The last straws are twofold. First, they broke Final Cut Pro, a very expensive downgrade/upgrade. Now they insist on installing the OS instead of permitting the user to do a very basic function. Was it REALLY necessary to discontinue Rosetta? When I finally downgrade to OS 10.7, it will cost me well over $1000 to upgrade all the important software that the new OS breaks, and more money to replace hardware that stops working--like my printer and scanner, perhaps even the interface with my camera. I like the OS, except 10.7, but the company is getting worse by the minute. The least that Apple can do is to admit that there are pros and basic consumers, and to treat them differently, treat them with respect. Have you ever tried to unlock a version 1, 2, or 3 iPhone? Apple refuses to do what every other phone manufacturers does routinely. Have you seen the odd screws they use on iPhone 4 and their notebooks? Why is my iPod touch glued together??? Apple doesn't respect its customers, no matter their levels of expertise. Betty *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
Re: [CGUYS] welcome to thunderbird
On 08/12/2011 09:47 AM, gerald wrote: vista, firefox, tbird, big computer with lots of free space. once every couple weeks i get a tbird upgrade. seems even more agressive than MS improvements. i get to the computer in the morning, and it's there. a couple weeks ago, i got a sidebar calendar from them. did not have much use for it, but really did not know how to completely delete it. about tues or wed, got another UG. few minutes later, got an email that wanted display on firefox. attemped display crashed the computer, pretty hard. after 3 hours of mucking around, and probably doing no good at all, i was able to get firefox back up. could not open tbird. went to the thunderbird site to look for reported problems. saw none. google post mentions the calender sidebar causes some problems. while at the tbird site, i downloaded and then ran the latest tbird. all works. there is no sidebar calender at the moment. When I update a program, I put the original in a separate folder, naming it something like Thunduhboid or Tbird ƒ, so the new one doesn't overwrite it. I just got TBird 5.0 and I hate it. It doesn't even have an easy keyboard command to get mail, so I have to mouse around. That's a loser. I could rewrite the preferences to add a command, but went back to v.3.1.12 and it does everything I need, plus it has current security updates. I installed Mac OS 10.6 on my MacBook and discovered that things that were easy before take more steps now--and for no good reason either, only to be different so we feel like we got what we paid for. Glad I didn't install it on my iMac, except that I like QuickTime Pro being built-in instead of extra. Yesterday, I downloaded Firefox 6.0. It's buggier than 5.x. Not sure if I like it. Might try one of the nightly builds or a beta to see if new bugs are going away. Save 5.x just in case I want to go back. These examples are the best reasons to NEVER buy software at an app store where it's automatically installed, overwriting the last version. The worst bugs are always in the automatic installs, and they're harder to clean up, too. I look at the AOL list from time to time. The main list is at Yahoo now, but as long as Tom is absent, nobody is blocking spammers. OTOH, the AOL list owner is Ray Everett Church. Haven't seen him post to any list since 2007. He's a very busy lawyer, but I'm sure he'd answer an email or two about resurrecting the AOL list. AOL is much better about keeping spammers away than Yahoo anyway. [http://www.mail-archive.com/computerguys-l@listserv.aol.com/maillist.html] Betty *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
Re: [CGUYS] COMPUTERGUYS-L Digest - 28 May 2011 to 29 May 2011 (#2011-38)
Henry - I saved these instructions from the old list, just for you! --and everyone else who needs it. The new list is at Yahoo. See details at the end of each message on the old list. Send your SIGNOFF COMPUTERGUYS-L message to lists...@listserv.aol.com. Don't bother to tell Tom. He created the new Yahoo list. Easy. See below: HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE: *** Allcommands mustbesent tothe LISTSERVaddress, lists...@listserv.aol.com. It is very important to understand the difference between the two, but fortunately it is not complicated. ||| HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM COMPUTERGUYS-L ||| Had enough? You may leave the list at any time by sending a SIGNOFF COMPUTERGUYS-L command to lists...@listserv.aol.com. (It would also be nice to send a short note to t...@tjpa.com telling him why you're leaving.) snip Betty *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
Re: [CGUYS] COMPUTERGUYS-L Digest - 22 May 2011 to 23 May 2011 (#2011-33)
Henry Why don't you get a new email address? It's easy--lots of choices. Then unsubscribe your hotmail.com address and rejoin the group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ComputerGuys-L. Betty My email contacts file has been captured by a hacker sometime in the past. The problematic emails are not being sent from my computer. The only option for receivers of these emails is to be suspicious - or to not allow emails from hmbr...@hotmail.com to be accepted. You may block them or filter them out. Sorry for the problem Henry Bruhl *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
[CGUYS] The Next Brick to Decorate Your Wall: iOS 3.x Devices
This is an iPhone story, but could be the same issue for other devices and systems. Be careful when installing new software on old devices--important for those who plan to keep them for a long time. Don't you hate it when your phone/computer/device works perfectly until you install an upgrade? IOW, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. http://www.osnews.com/story/24428/The_Next_Brick_to_Decorate_Your_Wall_iOS_3_x_Devices Betty *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
[CGUYS] Odd email server messages
Got this from a friend early this morning. He checks his email online, using Firefox. FWIW, SBC/ATT uses Yahoo for email. Bored tech, playing with server messages or something else? --- Here's a weird one. I woke up at 3:15 am and decided to check my mail. Suddenly started getting this series of pop-ups, that repeated: ...he attached screen shots with dialog boxes like these below... ___ |_att.net Mail (***@sbcglobal.net)_ | |The page at http://us.mg201.mail.yahoo.com says: | |hi |___ ___ |_att.net Mail (***@sbcglobal.net)_ | |The page at http://us.mg201.mail.yahoo.com says: | |hi |___ ___ |_att.net Mail (***@sbcglobal.net)_ | |The page at http://us.mg201.mail.yahoo.com says: | |41782903 |___ ___ |_att.net Mail (***@sbcglobal.net)_ | |The page at http://us.mg201.mail.yahoo.com says: | |1 |___ Betty 1252 *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
Re: [CGUYS] A**hole + iPad = trouble, leads to censorship and idiocracy
phartz...@gmail.com phartz...@gmail.com wrote: My best friend says that she just endured the worst short airplane flight in her life. She was seated next to some jerk of a guy who wanted to play motion sensor games on his iPad the whole way from Charlotte to Dulles. He kept jamming and poking his elbow into her side and making all manner of guttural noises as he manipulated his iPad back and forth and to and fro. She kept complaining and trying to move away, and he would be more careful for about two minutes until he once again began to go out of control, under that 'magical' spell. She was close to calling upon the flight attendant when she realized that there was only about 15 minutes to go, so she bit her tongue and a couple of minutes later the guy finally put his little toy away in preparation for the landing. She says that the next time someone she is seated next to on a flight pulls an iPad out she is going to warn the person off the bat to be careful by retelling her tale of misery. I belong to a computer user group with a Yahoo group list; been a member long before the list moved to Yahoo. The present owner of the list is also the jerk who plays kiddie games [not even challenging or exciting games] on his iPad during our meetings, giggling, with his tongue out [age 46 going on 7]. All he and a few others wants to discuss on the list is iPads and iPhones, not computers, not even iPod Touch. He moderated [censored] me, and one other member last week, blocking our emails when she posted links to contribute aid to victims of the Japanese tsunami and I agreed it was a good idea to provide links. He said it was off-topic [it was labeled off-topic], three others wrote in to complain and start an argument. We were both censored even though neither of us started an argument, and off-topic subjects were never an issue before--they were common. This is what happens when a fanboi zombie gets to control things: Censorship and Stupidity. Will fix him on Tuesday, then may leave the group. It sucks when a few of jerks ruin a group for everybody. Idiot fanboi didn't notice that there's a link in red on Yahoo Groups pages for Japan Relief. If he did, he'd probably complain, but we'd be lucky if he left. A**holes abound. Betty p.s. Have I flamed anybody on either CGuys list lately who didn't deserve it? :-D *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
Re: [CGUYS] EXT :Re: [CGUYS] Question re External HDD
Any Windows drive can be read-write on a Mac, including the invisible NTFS drives, using MacFuse and NTFS-3G utilities, available from http://code.google.com/p/macfuse/ and http://www.tuxera.com/community/ntfs-3g-download/. Betty I would win that bet quickly, Mike - as long as the drive format is compatible with Windows, I can connect it to either pc or Mac. Thank you, Mark Snyder In my own experience, it is that simple. All my machines are Windowz based, If you are moving between Mac and Win machines, all bets are off. Mike *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
Re: [CGUYS] Question re External HDD
Hi...I have a large external HDD connected to my desktop computer by a USB cable. I would like to use some of the data on the HDD on my Laptop. Can it be as simple as moving the USB cable from one machine to the other or am I missing something major here? If it works that easily, I can envision storing my photos and music on the HDD for use on both of my computers. As always, thanks in advance! Gail Miller Gail Although it's simple to move the USB drive from one computer to another, it's generally not a good idea to do that too frequently. Ports don't last forever, and ports on laptops aren't easy to replace. Yes, you can share the drive among many computers as long as it's formatted as FAT32 [also FAT 16?]. For Macs, sharing works with Samba [smb://--insert path or IP here-- ]. Other solutions are to leave the drive plugged into the desktop PC or hub and share it wirelessly with the laptop. Desktop must be running to share a drive. Better solution is to have a network drive, easy to access with its own IP address from both computers. Problem with using one drive to hold iTunes library for both computers is that the library will be missing when the drive is missing, so you'll have to create two versions of the library on each computer--one with the external drive, one without. Does your broadband modem have a USB port where the drive can be shared? Otherwise you'll need to put a bare drive into a NAS case and share it through a router/modem/switch. Next solution and cheaper than the NAS, could be best choice: get another drive, an extra 2.5-inch notebook drive. I picked up a WD 'My Passport' 500GB drive for $56 in November--it's very good, so far. For around the same price you can get a full-size external 3.5 1TB drive. You can sync both drives, or portions of each, wirelessly. Last solution only works if you have an old iPod. I have a 40GB Toshiba iPod hard drive in a very tiny USB enclosure. Fits in my pocket and is smaller than the Classic iPod. External cases for the 1.8-inch drives are hard to find. Saw some at Amazon a few weeks ago for $12. Can't help with that though. I got mine at w00t.com on a lucky day--drive and enclosure, $25. Betty *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
Re: [CGUYS] Wanted: reliable corded ear piece for cell phone
Seems like a minor thing but the corded ear pieces I keep buying for the cell phone keep going bad. Sick of being frustrated, so can anyone recommend a got one that might last a few months or at least a place to buy one? Also, speaking of frustration, any places to buy low-cost batteries for cordless phones that will last awhile? Or do you get what you pay for, basically? Have had hit or miss - mostly miss - on Ebay. Thanks Randall Which phone? Does it have a standard 3mm plug? 2mm? micro-USB? claw?? I have a device from Nokia that I really like. It has an On/Off button, mic, volume control, clip, but no headphones. You plug ANY headphones into it. I like my Sennheiser and Koss headphones. There are copies that may work OK. Mine is OEM and works well. I got it from DealExtreme. Headphones could be better, but mic is good. Works well when walking or running. This setup works well with phones that also have music so you can listen to your music with good stereo headphones and still be able to answer the phone. There are also short adapter cables you can buy for phones that have different ports. http://www.dealextreme.com/p/genuine-nokia-n95-stereo-headset-with-microphone-and-volume-control-24661 Buy two, just in case... All Nokia phones have a place at the bottom where you can attach a removable handstrap or lanyard. When driving alone, I usually wear my lovely red phone around my neck. The phone rings--I answer it and turn the loudspeaker on. Since the mic is at the bottom of the phone, the phone is upside down, and the stereo speakers on on the side, I can easily talk and listen completely 'hands-free'. Can you wear your phone? Doesn't have to a red phone. --- For batteries [mostly iPod], we've been using eforcity.com. They're an Amazon store and have different merchandise at Amazon and at their own site. Quality is OK. Sometimes cordless phone batteries don't recharge well if they're not placed exactly right on the cradle. Having to find specialty batteries for multiple phones led us to buy a set of four Panasonic DECT6 cordless phones that use standard AAA batteries, AND have good reception. I put Duracell 900 mAh batteries in the phones so they hold a charge almost twice as long as the OEM 550 mAh Panasonic batteries. Phone is 2005 version of this phone, http://is.gd/BoFbSp- [Amazon], which cost less! Betty *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
Re: [CGUYS] think i've been taken: replacement laptop keys
Judy Contact an electronics recycler. They get all kinds of computers and peripherals. When they can, they fix them, otherwise they sell parts, or or dismantle and recycle the parts into base components and elements. I just found a video card for one of our older computers for about 25% of the price for used ones online. I've found Wifi cards, optical drives, almost new mice, projectors. Call a few recycling companies. Maybe they have the full keyboard for the price of a few keys. Doesn't hurt to ask. Betty *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
Re: [CGUYS] Unsubscribe
On 11/23/10 12:00 AM, COMPUTERGUYS-L automatic digest system escribió: Subject: Unsubscribe From: Bernie Hylton hylto...@mac.com Date: Mon, 22 Nov 2010 07:33:45 -0500 ||| HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE FROM COMPUTERGUYS-L ||| Had enough? You may leave the list at any time by sending a SIGNOFF COMPUTERGUYS-L command to lists...@listserv.aol.com. + This message used to be at the bottom of each email: * == QUICK LIST-COMMAND REFERENCE - Put the following commands in == * == the body of an email send 'em to: lists...@listserv.aol.com == * Too much mail? Try Daily Digests command: SET COMPUTERGUYS-L DIGEST * Tired of the List? Unsubscribe command: SIGNOFF COMPUTERGUYS-L * New email? From OLD address send: CHANGE COMPUTERGUYS-L YourNewAddress * Need more help? Send mail to: computerguys-l-requ...@listserv.aol.com Join us at Yahoo Groups: *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *** CU Betty *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
Re: [CGUYS] Re: Understanding the iPad
When a major change in computing is before us and all you geezers can do is whine about the good old days, I see nothing wrong with mocking you. In fact, it is my duty to do so. You have missed the boat. The train left the station. This parrot is no more. The iPad isn't a major change in computing hardware. It's old technology and very limited, almost crippled. The major change is that the system and device are closed, the store is censored, and the iPad is designed to suck money out of your wallet [according to Goldman Sachs] and make you fat. The train has left the station and the doors and windows are bolted and chained shut with the glass obscured and mirrored from the inside. Bye bye. Have a nice ride! See you when the next fad comes along. *** ** THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO YAHOO** ** PLEASE JOIN THE DISCUSSION THERE ** ** Info at http://www.cguys.org/ ** ***
Re: [CGUYS] Thoughts on Flash
On May 4, 2010, at 2:16 AM, mike wrote: A false argument, Apple supports all kinds of 'old technology', why does Apple still put USB on their systems? If you don't know that Apple is consistently the first to drop obsolete technologies you haven't been paying attention. You haven't even been reading the howls here about Apple dropping USB. Apple drops USB App syncing for iPhones, not desktops/notebooks, except for its giant iPod. Since you can get your apps directly from the App Store on your iPhone, this is no big deal. Did they announce they're dropping USB completely? No. Regarding Flash, Adobe has a knack for buying good programs and breaking, discontinuing, or overpricing them. Have they created any of their own products lately [in the past 15 years]? Apple didn't entirely ban Flash anyway. They require that apps for touch screens be developed using the Apple SDK. Adobe refused to use the SDK or to make Flash more open--it's totally proprietary. There's no guarantee that Flash will work properly without interfering with the underlying system. I don't like Flash. It's overused unnecessarily. It doesn't belong on most web pages where simpler nonproprietary code works better and faster--contributes too much to the World Wide Wait and crashes. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Some of you will find this tragic
I transferred data from all of my floppy disks to Zips, then CDs over a dozen years ago, then to DVD, gave most of them away, but still have a few to use with my ancient computers. Problem is that my Mac SE has a broken floppy drive--only works on a network; makes a better museum piece. I went to Ollie's www.olliesbargainoutlet.com/ yesterday to see if they had any good DVD-RW disks left [they didn't], but they had several cases of floppy disks--CHEAP. Floppies have been effectively obsolete for over 15 years. My 1GB flash drive is obsolete. I bought a Toshiba 40GB 1.8 microdrive for $25 last week--and it's obsolete, otherwise it wouldn't be so cheap! How many floppy disks do you need to hold one commercial movie? Betty * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
[CGUYS] How to Opt Out of Facebook’s Instant Person alization | Electronic Frontier Foundation
Facebook needs to make money. Is Instant Persalization a good way? EFF doesn't like it. Friday morning Facebook changed its privacy settings layout, making it a bit more challenging to opt out completely. As before, unchecking the Allow box is not sufficient because you need to block each Instant Personalization website to fully opt out. However, the previous path (via Learn More) to the necessary Block Application buttons was removed, with Facebook suggesting instead you first go to the sites (at which point your information is disclosed)... http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/04/how-opt-out-facebook-s-instant-personalization * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
[CGUYS] Free advertising [was: [CGUYS] illegal search warrant?]
I doubt Steve would agree with you. but Powell is arguably the more aggrieved party. The entire iPhone prototype adventure--Lost--can't be too serious to Apple. Otherwise they would have fired the guy who lost it. Just like the TV show, there's lots of confusing twists, and both versions will end soon. The product isn't scheduled for release yet. On CGUYS list alone this thread has now over 60 comments--at no cost to Apple Inc--with many more on other sites/lists. Any noise is good noise. FWIW, iPhone OS 4 will be released in early summer. ATT Wireless store employees were told not to plan any vacations in June, supposedly in anticipation of new products. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Free advertising [was: [CGUYS] illegal search warrant?]
The thing is, Apple has never liked this kind of noise. They like noise they control. And at this point, if this guy gets fired it would make the evening news. Any noise is free publicity. Controlled noise is better. Have you ever done marketing or advertising? There are many ways to keep potential customers excited about a new product that don't involve direct advertising or product placement. Accidental releases happen frequently. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] fios renewal was:Digital TV [Was: Broadband Speeds Map]
Too true you could stream quite a few car-b-ques on that fast network. Haven't ever heard of 30,000 cars getting torched in LA or Miami or The Bronx... Mike You probably weren't around when DC, Philly, Newark, Detroit, LA were burning during the riots of the 60s and 70s. But if you were, and filmed it, you could broadcast those today very cheaply, on fast broadband, but not so cheaply on overpriced US networks. Burning cars in rough neighborhoods has nothing to do with FIOS or broadband or digital TV, anyway. What's your point in foolishly trashing Europeans? Don't you know that NATO [Europeans, mostly French] gave the east coast of the US protection with air support after 9/11, until March 2002? It's another distraction that you and too many other Americans fall for, like the unnecessarily fearful people in Arizona. Get back to the broadband/TV topic. Betty * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] fios renewal was:Digital TV [Was: Broadband Speeds Map]
my promo fios ran its' course. so, since i had a really lot of time to waste, i tried to renew online. i cannot renew on line, as i am an existing customer. all packages on line are promo packages and are for new customers. for the triple play(tv,computer, telephone), the telephone person gave me 3 options . lo,mid,hi:$120,130, and 145. two year package, with a $360 pro rated early cancellation penalty. i had a $110 cost for the middle package. the mid pack is 5/20 up/down. the hi pack was 30/30. big push (lots of sales ups) to get me to get that wonderful speed. after starting on acoustical modems, 5/20 seems pretty fast to me. If there are two people at the address, you can cancel one and re-up new in the other name. Then you can get the promo overcharge instead of the existing customer overcharge. You're lucky. We can't get FIOS. Nobody lives in this county. Move to France and get TV, phone, Internet, cellular for $33/mo total. But you can't have that in the US. Too bad. Your elected representatives think they're supposed to represent the telcos instead of the customers. Betty * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] illegal search warrant?
Scott Adams Blog: That Lost 4G Phone 04/26/2010 according to Wally... http://dilbert.com/blog/entry/thatlost4gphone/ * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
[CGUYS] Is Apple Readying for a Rematch With Microsoft in Personal Computing? - NYTimes.com
By SAAD FAZIL of VentureBeat Published: April 16, 2010 Pundits are declaring mobile the new PC. The number of mobile phones far outstrips the number of desktops. Mobile phones are available to people in the developing world who never had an opportunity to buy or even use a PC. With phones becoming smarter, there will be even less need for people to own PCs. Microsoft has dominated the PC-based world ever since it drove Apple close to extinction in the mid ’90s. But with Apple’s strong footing in mobile, its recent release of a larger, tablet form factor, iPad, also based on its mobile iPhone OS, and more form factors likely on the way to challenge the traditional PC, we may be in for a rematch... ...Imagine a stronger and slightly bigger iPad (with perhaps even a keyboard) with multi-tasking capability among features that are lacking in today’s iPad*...the threat to Apple’s mobile dominance won’t come from another platform (like Windows or Blackberry) but from web apps and cloud computing.** http://www.nytimes.com/external/venturebeat/2010/04/16/16venturebeat-is-apple-readying-for-a-rematch-with-microso-22806.html -- *A bigger iPad, with a keyboard? Sounds like a notebook. FWIW. I used an iPad on Tuesday. It's heavy, slippery, can be easily dropped. Keyboard is not much better than my iPod keyboard. The curves may be beautiful, but not for holding securely. Combined with the $69 iPad keyboard dock, together they weigh more and are less portable than small notebook. Apple--get back to RD. I'll take a mini-notebook or 13 MacBook Pro, and keep my iPod Touch, thank you. **Our broadband went out yesterday, all day, didn't come back until this afternoon. And it's slow, but faster is too expensive. Glad we don't store important things in the so-called cloud or use only the simplest web apps, otherwise we'd be SOL. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Need Internet Radio Recommendations
On Thu, 15 Apr 2010 18:45:21 -0700 Ellen Rains Harris escribió: I have two of the Grace Digitals, and I love them. They do internet, Sirius and Pandora. At home I still use an FM transmitter connected to my iMac. It's a stereo transmitter for cars that I plugged into a DC/AC adapter. It transmits in stereo to any FM radio within around 150 feet. The sound is as good as the radio that receives the transmission. Only downside is that I have to go back to my computer to change stations. I have dozens of my favorite stations' streams bookmarked, and also use streaming services for multiple stations. For travel, I have a battery charged Arkon Soundfeeder to broadcast stations in stereo from my iPod Touch which also has several apps that play Internet radio stations. When the tabletop Internet radios are more affordable, I may consider one, but the iPod [and iMac or MacBook] does a good job for some of my favorite stations, using FM transmitters instead of dedicated radios. There are even some streams that can run in a browser on the iPod, with links at http://www.tuned.mobi/. Might reconsider when Internet radio is standard equipment in my next MINI. Betty * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Digital TV [Was: Broadband Speeds Map]
t.piwowar escribió: On Apr 14, 2010, at 12:52 PM, b_s-wilk wrote: Useless! My thoughts exactly. Only the object of our frustration differs. Do you have a source for data comparison of device tuners for current TVs, converters, DVD recorders, comparing them for consumers to decide which one to purchase? The report doesn't direct us to that kind of information. We need to have good data on the boxes. I can compare headphones--all that information is in the specs. I can compare cars, radios/receivers, linens, but not TV tuners. Specs for tuners tell us about product dimensions, channel range and which cables can be connected, but nothing about how well the tuner picks up local and distant stations. The report tells us in 200 pages how last year's converter boxes fared. We're still waiting for comparison data in plain English to help us choose the device with the best range, reception, reliability, etc., on a few easy to read pages. And you're frustrated about... * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Digital TV [Was: Broadband Speeds Map]
Perhaps Mr. Parish is going to bop you in the nose for such a response. The report is rich with useful information, but you have to read it. What a hardship! Useless! I looked through the report, DTV Converter Box Test Program--Results and Lessons Learned. Aside from bad puctuation, yes, the report is rich with information. After you read it your brain will be filled with lots of information, but useful? Maybe for the researchers, but not to consumers. Does it really matter how well any of the converter boxes performed in the Threshold of Visibility (TOV) and Reacquisition, single-static-echo, RF emissions tests or any other test? No, it doesn't. Why? None of the converter boxes I've seen, nor new digital TVs, nor DVD recorders have any of this information on the box or in the description. Few have any technical info on their web sites. Disclaimer: I haven't looked at specs for ALL devices, only ones we considered buying. Specs for my converter, from the manual [less info on the box]: - Product Name - Digital TV converter - Power Supply Input Voltage 100-240 50/60 Hz Power consumption : Maximum 8W, standby 1W - Decoder Video Format: Standard definition VCBS Audio Format: Dolby Digital audio - Signal Input/Output ATSC Antenna/Cable RF IN: F-Connector RF Loop through or NTSC Ch 3/4 out: F-Connector Antenna Impedance: 75 Ohms Channels: VHF 2-13, UHF 14-69 SmartAntenna interface - Video Outputs Composite Video Output for standard analog sets: RCA Connector - Audio Outputs Analog Audio Outputs (L/R): RCA Connectors - Service Software upgrade through RS-232 port: 9 pin D-Sub type - [box also lists dimensions, remote that includes batteries, cables] Is there any useful data from the report to tell me how well this converter box will perform? No. Is there any data from the report to guide consumers to the better devices based on test results? No. Lots of geeky data that Tom or Steve or Roger or I may understand is no help when the manufacturers don't provide any of it in the device specs. How many people/consumers checked with these sites while searching for the right converter or TV: https://www.ntiadtv.gov/cecb_list.cfm - maybe [when it was available] http://datasheets.maxim-ic.com http://www.haluyatech.com http://www.compendiumarcana.com/ http://mail.ing-steen.se [full links and additional links are in report] Betty * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] NEF plugin for Irfanview
Lastly, all digital images share the post processing characteristic of film images in darkroom. Snapshot or not. Finishing the image is something photographers have done since the 1820's. But dibble-dabble with archaic file formats in post-production is time lost. If you must have capacious and lossless files, get an FX sensor camera that captures to a universal format, such as .tif. Heavy-up your storage, and clear your calendar. (btw, those juicy iPad images for Apple? 8x10 transparency film; further example of how digital continues sold to the public in advertising via film image) Mr Turk, Ms Wilk, I'd sure like to hear you weigh in... You gets what you pays for. Why use an ever-changing format when you can use a reliable universal standard like TIFF or the largest JPEG. With basic SLR and darkroom, and scanner, or digital camera and Photoshop, I can get whatever kind of image I want and not have to worry that my file won't open in the near future. Can't afford Photoshop? Photoshop Elements has some good features, so does GraphicConverter. I haven't tried Irfanview, but it seems to have a variety of translators you can download. It makes more sense to set your camera to save in a standard lossless format or the largest lossy format. That way you won't be concerned with finding plugins. Or take your pix to a friend with a program that can convert your pix to TIFF or JPEG [at the same resolution]. Then set your camera to something more standard. RAW is nice when it's universal. It's not. What formats can you save on/from your camera? Does Nikon have a converter you can download or use on their web site? Friends are good. Chad - do you have a link about the 8 x 10 iPad images? Betty * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] NEF plugin for Irfanview
This is a problem, but for those who want the very best image it is a problem that is worth tolerating. The reason to capture the image in RAW format is that it is the only version of the data that is exactly what the camera captured. A TIFF or JPEG file is obtained by processing what the camera captured. This processing is performed by the puny computer inside the camera and in a context where speed is of the essence. Hence the algorithms employed are designed for speed, not to produce the best quality. Capturing RAW postpones the processing for later and moves the processing to a powerful desktop computer and a context where speed is not as important. The conversion from RAW to TIFF or JEPG can be performed using algorithms that emphasize quality. I know the problem with RAW files. Format is camera dependent. Is there a standard yet? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Recommendation for MIDI to USB cable
Any MIDI knowledgeable users in the group? Just got a keyboard and would like to connect to my laptop. Looking for a good MIDI to USB cable. See some very cheap (like $6); any good? Also any concern about the cable vis-a-vis drivers for Win 7 64-bit? Don't want to go further with MIDI help in this group, so can anyone point me to a good group for MIDI education and support (like software, synthesizers, editors, recorders etc.). The cheap cable looks cheap, but cheap enough to give it a chance. Looks similar to eMedia one at guitarcenter.com. Try Hosa USB to MIDI at provantage.com for better quality and good price. My brother is a musician but can't recommend a group [he retired his synthesizer a few years ago]. Good luck. Does it have any other output? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Making my website compatible with Internet Explorer 8
When I launch Internet Explorer on my Windows XP computer, opening my website, www.intensivecarecom.com, locks up the computer. Task Manager CPU Usage goes to 100%. I had already followed Microsoft's page, Display Web sites in Compatibility View (http://support.microsoft.com/gp/pc_ie_methodb2000), and another website that had hung up my computer (CPU Usage, 100%) no longer did so. I can readily view my website in Mozilla Firefox ver 3.6.3. Don't let Microsoft's programming quirks lead you to imagine that a well coded web site should be different in different browsers. Make your site browser neutral and it should display properly in all browsers. Follow W3C guidelines. Complain loudly to/about Microsoft if their browser is the only one that's broken [if it is]. Is Microsoft still trying to code their software to restrict browsing, just like they did in 1997??? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] cell phone recommendations
Any recommendations for a new cell? Requirements are: att service and free. From the customer reviews on their website they all sound like crap. But I guess poor sound quality is endemic to the industry. With thanks ... Get one with a low SAR rating. Which would mean not getting a smart phone. For whatever reason, smart phones radiate much more RF than do non-smart phones. Free phones aren't free. Their cost is included in your monthly fee. If you don't plan to use your phone a lot, buy a phone outright and use PAYGO, maybe ATT network [ATT is expensive], but with another provider like O2, or use T-Mobile network [best deal]. My dad [now over 90 yrs. old] recently got a cheap Nokia 2600--speaker phone, puny camera, bluetooth, excellent reception, cost $30. He likes it, it's easy, but we did have to do the text for inserting address book entries. Speaker is clear, reception awesome. Buy either an unlocked phone or ATT phone. Unlocked is best, so you can choose network instead of being stuck with one. Nokia phones have best reception. My husband is still using [infrequently] my old Nokia 6010. I got rid of Samsung, Moto, and S-E phones because their reception quality is awful, Moto sounds terrible. Some newer Samsung phones and HTC phones are better than older ones. Consider a gently used unlocked phone. I bought my last one on eBay and saved around $300. When my new Nokia 3220 was stolen, I bought another one, barely used, online for less than half the retail price. You'll probably want a speakerphone, maybe bluetooth and a low-res camera. Betty * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
[CGUYS] Download US podcasts while traveling
I'm considering subscribing to a paid podcast, but the site only posts two weeks of podcasts at a time. I often travel for a month or more. Will I be able to download the podcast while overseas? Doesn't Apple restrict iTunes connections to US IP addresses--or did they change that? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FYI: News Alert: Court Rules Against F.C.C. in 'Net Neutrality' Case
A federal appeals court has ruled that the Federal Communications Commission lacks the authority to require broadband providers to give equal treatment to all Internet traffic flowing over their networks. I heard the tail end of this story on Market Place this afternoon. Then they said that Comcast's stock went *down*. What's up with that? Comcast's win isn't exactly a success. The FCC is an independent Federal agency that makes many of its own rules. The Bush administration's anti-government appointees effectively eviscerated the FCC by not enforcing existing rules and making new consumer-hostile rules that prevent protection of consumer privacy, truth in billing, and competition. It's possible for the FCC to rewrite its rules to return the regulations that were removed by the previous administration's appointees. In the long run, this could be a boost to 'net neutrality--if the current commissioner has the guts to do it: reinstate consumer protection, promote competition, and require Internet Neutrality. While the FCC is doing its job, enforcing consumer-friendly rules--unlike in the past administration where they didn't do much of anything and let the broadband companies write the rules--Congress can try to pass legislation to protect consumers and ensure 'net neutrality. If this doesn't happen, the United States, which was first in Internet penetration, then fourth, now twenty-second, will continue to fall behind other industrial countries in broadband penetration, speed and affordability. Let the party of NO have a real filibuster on the floor of the Senate, reading the phone book and Finnegan's Wake or whatever. Then when that one senator can't stand up and talk any more, the Senate can vote on something good for the people. How about requiring a capella singing filibusters? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] workaround for safari blocking popups
Mother Geek escribió: Do any of you know these sites: PithHelmet Privoxy as possibilities for blocking some popups and allowing others in Safari? I know there is the pulldown that one can toggle between off and on, but it does not always work. I am wondering if there is something else any of you are using? Or if the above are worthwhile? Pop-ups don't bother me now that I've set my browsers to do pop-unders. I can't see them, so I don't care. One of my browsers is set to open pop-ups in an adjacent tab. Can't see them, don't care. Problem with blocking all pop-ups is that there are sites you may need that don't work without them. Try the above settings. It's easier than allowing pop-ups one at a time. Betty * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FYI: News Alert: Court Rules Against F.C.C. in 'Net Neutrality' Case
I thought the court's ruling stated that Congress authorized the FCC to regulate only Telecommunications. If Congress wishes for the FCC to regulate Broadband, then it should do so. Hence Comcast, not a Telecommunications company, but a Broadband company does not fall under the juristicion of the FCC. Am I wrong? Isn't Comcast's VOIP telecommunication? They promote it heavily as part of their double and triple play packages. Paid VOIP is telephony, only over broadband. What's the difference between that and landline and mobile communication [except that the latter work when the power's out]? Is Comcast exempted from FCC telecommunications regulations whereas Verizon or ATT DSL aren't exempted because they uses the same lines as landline telephones? Why? This is screaming for an update of the definition of telecommunications. With more people using VOIP and cellular services, of course telecommunications include cable services. It needs to be revised in the FCC's code. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] ipad/iphone/ipod touch and the lack of multitasking explained
Nice article, but I don't entirely buy it. First, just because the iPad has plenty of processing power and battery capacity and Apple may add more multitasking in a future OS release, this doesn't make a straw man out of Apple's argument that third party multitasking is a hamper to stability and a drain on the battery. An app that repeatedly crashes and restarts is obviously unstable and will certainly drain the battery faster, for example. Also, the OS was initially designed for iPhones, which do have some battery issues, and while the iPad does have a honking big battery, you still want it to last as long as possible(especially since it is going to be compared to the Kindle and Nook). The only app that crashes consistently on my iPod Touch is Safari. One other app crashed twice, iTunes crashed, but that's nothing compared to Safari. If Apple can't get its own apps to run, no wonder they're paranoid about third party developers. When iPad gets beyond 1.0 it might be more compelling, but I have enough tech toys and low-tech methods that work better for me. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] My download speed
Eric S. Sande esa...@verizon.net escribió: On the downlink. On the uplink the speed is typically 1/10 of that as the providers have found yet another excuse for charging their customers extra if they want symmetric service. Not really. Most of the traffic is server to client, not vice-versa. It's a well accepted transport architecture. France Telecom/Orange is widely regarded as being one of the highest market penetration providers in Europe, yet they are mostly ADSL. Asymmetric, in other words, not SDSL. http://www.orange.com/en_EN/group/ Thanks for the link Eric. Proves my points completely. Only difference is that the monthly charge for broadband is less than half as much as it was when I looked a year ago. Orange UK charges £9.00 per month for 20Mbps service [plus around and extra £9-10 line rental]. Consider that the UK pound is the equivalent currency to Brits as the US dollar is to us. In many cases the US dollar can buy more in the US than the UK pound can buy in the UK. Electronic communication services however--cellular and broadband--are at least 5X more costly here than in the UK. Why? They have regulation and competition. We don't. We have barely regulated monopolies. I'd be thrilled to pay £9.00 for month for 20Mbps broadband, even if I'd have to pay it in US dollars. Today's rate: 9.00 GBP = 13.7698 USD. I'll pay twice that at $27.54! YES! We need Orange US! * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Broadband Speeds Map
phartz...@gmail.com escribió: It was a long and arduous search that I had to undertake in order to find a digital TV that had a highly sensitive tuner. I rely upon over-the-air TV, and there is virtually no information whatsoever from any TV maker regarding tuner specifications. I really do not know how a consumer can differentiate one tuner from another in a technical sense since there does not appear to be any standards that are set for TV tuners... We read lots of reviews and comments, also visited what's left of the electronics stores within about 60 miles. I spent a lot of time adjusting and readjusting the in-store settings to see how 'normal' settings look. I took a couple of DVDs--one movie, another with movies compressed for iPod--to see how they looked. We even carried a home made antenna to a few stores. It was pretty much the same as when I was looking for a portable shortwave. My test was whether I could get distant stations like BBC or Havana or Berlin or Beijing inside the store. With TVs, getting any decent signal inside a store without using the cable is a sign that things will be much better at home. We were looking for a good 24 monitor, and ended up with a very good TV instead--AOC 24 HDTV 1080p for under $200 at Staples. What are the numbers to look for in a good TV? It's easy to figure out high def, brightness, contrast, colors, connections--but tuners? I dunno. Seems like a secret or not so secret plan to get you to pay $$$ for cable/FIOS/satellite. The antenna is in the attic. Our roof is scary, steep, high. Attic is high enough for signal. There must be some listings for signal strength and sensitivity like SNR and RF. When you get home you can do tests, but they should be in the literature for the TV before you spend your money. Are they? The specs on our TV say nothing about tuner sensitivity, http://us.aoc.com/support/documents/pdf/documents/106, except that it's a Clear QAM tuner. Steve, did you find out additional useful tuner specs? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] My download speed
Rev. Stewart Marshall escribió: Multiplier is 1.52 I'd be thrilled to pay £9.00 for month for 20Mbps broadband, even if I'd have to pay it in US dollars. Today's rate: 9.00 GBP = 13.7698 USD. I'll pay twice that at $27.54! YES! We need Orange US! That's great. The dollar has gone up since this morning. 1.5299 in the a.m., 1.52565 in the p.m. Maybe I'll connect in London this year. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Broadband Speeds Map
WOW! That is so absurdly expensive. The US is failing us. Broadband monopolies better be regulated soon, otherwise we're going to sink lower and lower. In many places you can get 1Mbps for 1 euro. Here it's insanely higher, and not available many places, especially nowhere like here. BUMMER. Does that include any Video, TV, phone? 25 Mbps is $69 per month, with 125 Gb of download included and a surcharge per Gb after that. 50 Mbps is, I think $99 per month, with a limit of $175 G downloaded and a (smaller) per Gb surcharge afer that. In both cases the surcharges for extra downloads are capped to a maximum of $50, so you could literally have truly unlimited for a max $119 and $149 per month respectively. A lot of $$$, but the service has been pretty reliable for me, and is blazingly fast for a home service. But cable service here is essentially a monopoly. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] ipad/iphone/ipod touch and the lack of multitasking explained
Gotta have that social networking thing, you know, not to mention the games. Dunno if Apple planned it that way, but if such a scenario transpires, what a way to inculcate flocks of youngsters into the Apple World... iPhones, iPods, iPads, and who knows what will be next. Maybe, slim chance, but just maybe youngsters will actually use the devices intelligently. When the 3G version comes out, it could change the entire mobile phone pricing system. Whether the iPad is successful or not, being able to get cheaper data plans independent of cellular contracts is definitely a big plus. T-Mobile increased the number of minutes for voice service by 40% but they have data-only plans on one device, just as ATT has its new data plans for iPad only. It would be better if we could get any plan we want instead of plans being device-specific. Can the new SIM card fit in other current mobile phones? What is ATT doing, other than using a different SIM card, to prevent getting the iPad SIM and using it in an unlocked cell phone [especially one that multitasks]? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] My download speed
And in markets where Verizon's Fios service has been around the longest, insiders report penetration rates have exceeded 50 percent for Fios high-speed Internet and are approaching 50 percent for Fios TV. And do a little math (scary, I know). . .let's see, ($750+$600)*2(half the potentials taking)=$2700. Now, I don't know what the service is going for, but if it's anything like Concast, er, Xfinity, It'll be more than $100/month. That's 27 months to break-even. Pure profit after that. That doesn't sound so bad. Betty and Stewart will be waiting for Pedro, Jorge, and their amigos to come along and dig up their neighborhoods. Ain't gonna happen. Verizon just told the city of Wilmington, Delaware to forget FIOS. They're not going to get it. Gosh. Thanks Verizon. Wilmington has people living there, unlike Cecil County, Maryland where nobody lives [according to Verizon]. Guess nobody lives in Wilmington either. http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20100404/BUSINESS/4040353 Not enough competition. Not enough regulation. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Broadband Speeds Map
I am flummoxed. First they promote the over the air digital TV signal and make you go out and get converters so you don't hafta buy a new TV ...then you find out you only get 2 channels where you live (I have a 30' tower with uhf/vhf antenna 1h road south of Philadelphia ...no mountains here). The converters sit on a shelf... Yup. Consumers be damned. They'll pay whatever sky-high price the broadband companies charge because there's no competition, no regulation, no accountability. Corporate government will sell--not lease--the publicly owned airwaves then make us pay big bucks to buy all new equipment so we can watch the commercial TV that we've been watching for years with our old TVs and tuners. We did find out something to improve the over the air signal--a cheap $29 DVD recorder with an amazing tuner from Big Lots. Better than the two converter boxes we tried, plus DVD! With a cheap home-made antenna, http://www.tvantennaplans.com/, pictures are good to very good, around 20 stations, maybe more--and remember, we live even more nowhere than you do in NJ. Good luck with WYBE [ch.35?]. Somehow it only comes in when the Korean programs are on, then it disappears. Sure would be nice to have affordable high-speed broadband and the cable/satellite/FIOS channels too, without being gouged for it. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Broadband Speeds Map
Can't speak for others, but I am on an account with Rogers Cable Systems in Ontario that gets me consistently up to 25 Mbps speed. And there is an account type that is one higher than that which tops out at 50. Mind you it doesn't;t come cheap but there it is. How much does Rogers Cable charge or 25 and 50 Mbps service? In Canadian dollars? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Cellphone choices [WAS It's an app world...]
I read this, but again it is a faint rumor. NO one has verified it, and these have been going for a bout a year. A CDMA iPhone makes a lot of sense, but not necessarily because of Verizon. Both Japan and Korea also have CDMA service. The CDMA iPhone might appear in Japan first. However, since young Japanese tech consumers have short attention spans [they like the newest, latest, greatest] and aren't particularly loyal to one mfg., Japan could be a test market before Verizon gets an Apple product. Or not... New product or April fools? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
[CGUYS] Wow, Apple is kicking Flash off the Web
...and is not wasting any time about it. http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/10/04/01/apple_highlights_ipad_ready_adobe_flash_free_web_sites.html Since most Flash on websites is superfluous and annoying, in addition to being slow and a memory hog, I welcome the change. Few things are more annoying on web sites than web links that don't work the way I want them to--ex: I like to open links in a new tab or window while preserving the original page. Can't do that in Flash. Can't extract web links from Flash pages either. Good riddance. Why isn't Adobe rewriting Flash to be more web and user friendly? Don't they want to preserve their market share? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] DVD recorder - .VRO file
I'm so glad I'm done trying to get self recorded dvds to play in my DVD player, buying blanks, worrying about if they will be good a year from now. 1.5 TB's in an inexpensive system behind my tv running free media center software with an ipod touch for a remote is the bomb. I don't often try to save the things I put on the DVD-RWs. This month is an exception. There's a series on Smithsonian Channel called Street Monkeys, about troops of vervet monkeys that live in and around a golf course community in South Africa. It's my cats' favorite program. They will sit still watching the TV for almost the entire show, sometimes leaping up to paw the screen. Then they'll look out the window for squirrels [that's when I toss them out]. Street Monkeys is an excellent series--I like it too; great soap opera, better than human soap operas. Main problem is that the series from National Geographic in South Africa isn't for sale in the US [or anywhere I can find], otherwise I'd buy it. So I save it to DVD. The DVD recorder's instructions for making copies at 2 a.m. are confusing at best. Now that I've saved three episodes, I'll have to wait until next year to get the first two episodes, or buy it. But, really, will the cats know which episode they're watching? or missing? At least I'm figuring out how to use the recorder. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] DVD recorder - .VRO file
I recorded a TV show with a Samsung DVD recorder. The file is VR_MOVIE.VRO located inside a DVD_RTAV folder. How do I convert it on my Mac or on a PC so that it can play on a regular DVD player or a computer? It refuses to even copy to the Finder Wow. Something I might actually be able to help with. I also have one of them Samsungs with the stupid-ass .VRO files. First you have to close the disc in the Samsung. Otherwise it ain't gonna go. Then you should be able to copy the VR_MOVIE file to your drive. I've done it, so I know it *should* work. VLC *will* play the file as is. You'll probably have to drag it to the (already open) VLC player to make it go. That's what I have to do. I closed the file. That wasn't the problem. It was a bad disk, wrong format, and most of all, terrible instructions. DVD-RWs get scratchy and unusable after a year or two. DVD+RW doesn't work, only DVD-RW. Maybe my haphazard experience can be useful for you. The DVD recorder is Samsung dvd-r135. It's excellent for its generation, but the manual leaves a lot to be desired. Default for recording is DVD_VR which is used for editing on the recorder, but is a pain to use on a computer. Instead, you have to first initialize it as DVD_VR, then go to the menu and change the recording format choice to DVD Video or DVD_V. When you make a recording and close the file, it creates a Video_TS folder instead. Did they translate the manual directly from poorly written Korean? Betty * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] what DVD-R to buy
For single-layer DVDs, I recommend the Taiyo Yuden brand. For dual-layer DVDs, Verbatim has done well for me. I usually buy from http://www.meritline.com/ but there are a lot of listings on eBay. Taiyo Yuden brand are usually very good, but there are 2 or 3 different levels of quality. http://www.supermediastore.com/ has a variety of Taiyo Yuden disks, but not rewritable. Verbatim DVD-R are also excellent and easy to find. Your own DVDs should burn as region-free. For rewritable disks, we've been using Maxell DVD-RW for a few years--the same 15 disks. There are about 7 or 8 that are still usable. The disk I used last week turned out to be bad, in addition to using the wrong format. Supermediastore has Philips DVD-RW that are OK, not great. The Verbatim DVD-RW at Meritline are excellent, not DVD+RW--many DVD recorders don't like DVD+RW disks, only DVD-RW. When you buy in stores, look for the disks that are made in Japan [some Fuji, Taiyo Yuden], then Taiwan. Avoid disks from India. I don't like lightscribe except for disks going to clients. Makes them happy. I use Staedtler Lumocolor pens for my disks and print labels for jewel cases instead of burning labels onto disks. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
[CGUYS] DVD recorder - .VRO file
I recorded a TV show with a Samsung DVD recorder. The file is VR_MOVIE.VRO located inside a DVD_RTAV folder. How do I convert it on my Mac or on a PC so that it can play on a regular DVD player or a computer? It refuses to even copy to the Finder. It crashes Toast. It just sits there doing nothing in FFMPEG then gives these errors: [mpeg2video @ 0x54340c]ac-tex damaged at 37 10 [mpeg2video @ 0x54340c]Warning MVs not available [mpeg2video @ 0x54340c]concealing 900 DC, 900 AC, 900 MV errors video:870kB audio:62kB global headers:0kB muxing overhead 3.692377% * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Wing Nuts Oppose Better Broadband
rleesimon escribió: PROBLEM is there have emerged competitors to nationalized TV,phone,net service (Belgacom) but not available for all 3 outside population areas ...still stuck with Belgacom ...wifi 3g also only in population areas or else I would gladly dispense with cable internet and use wifi ...too bad. All their internet options are volume limited. There is a big stink in Belgium over the high price of internet of all flavors. One thing though...cellular phone service is available pegged 5 bars 2g or 3g every square inch of that country ...even in the woods!! Belgium is three countries with people that don't get along, much like Switzerland, Spain, France, Germany. Main difference is that the hostilities make Belgians so angry that many hardly want to talk to each other. It's also difficult with multiple languages in a small country. That may be the reason why they can't build out beyond cities and why prices are so much higher there. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] LCD HDTV
Who is he ordering from? One of the big online vendors. Don't recall which one. What idiot company is delivering? Fed Ex - not an idiot company. The big flat TVs are too big to take all the tumbling they get in regular delivery vans, even when they are packed well. FWIW, I bought my LCD iMac online from Apple and it was also delivered to my door. However, the larger TVs aren't packed as well as Apple's computers. They can't be unless a 46 TV is packed in a solid 50 foam cube. Granted I have picked up all my flat screen TV's. So did we. It was fun juggling all of the extra insulation and bungies in the back of my truck to get the TVs home in one piece. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] LCD HDTV
We have two Philips HDTVs -- one 37 LCD [1080p] and one 42 plasma [1080i], both 4 years old and are excellent. We bought them before prices crashed, so we had to look hard for a decent price. The huge TVs, bigger than 46 are good if you have no life because they dominate the room and are distracting, IMHO. Everything is cheaper now. As I've said before, I'd avoid Sony--they're beautiful, and they'll break [your heart]. Samsung TVs are excellent. They used to call Vizio TVs Buzzio but they've improved significantly, so I hear. One thing to consider, no matter whose label is on the TV, there are only a few flat panel manufacturers. Philips is one, Samsung is another, there are a few others. Also there's no such thing as a consumer LED TV on the market yet. The ones that advertise LED are LCD panels with LED backlight, which reduces power consumption, a good thing. Both Philips TVs have HDMI, composite, component, S-video, USB, stereo speakers, etc. Buy locally, even from a big box store. Costco is OK; Sears has good sales; Beast Buy sometimes has good sales; Fry's too; avoid Walmart. DON'T BUY ONLINE OR HAVE IT SHIPPED!! That is unless you can be home to accept it AND have the delivery truck wait while you open and test your TV. When the TV arrives broken it's yours if you didn't examine it on arrival. Search for horror stories about delivery nightmares, especially with Amazon. You'll be mesmerized. Buy two. Sun, 21 Mar 2010 10:28:36 -0700 http://www.amazon.com/Philips-42PFL3704D-F7-42-Inch-1080p/dp/B001LP6LPG Something like that appears to be a good deal...under six bills at a local dealer. On Sun, Mar 21, 2010 at 10:12 AM, mike xha...@gmail.com wrote: We may be on the cusp of a breakthrough ladies and gentlemen. I may be in the market for an HDTV. Any thoughts will be considered...who to stay away from, brand and or seller..who to go to first. We are looking for something LCD in type, not LED...42 or perhaps 46 inches. We are budget conscious...read CHEAP. I've heard things like...vizio is a solid inexpensive brand and others say stay far away. I'm neither an audiophile or videophile, I'm just looking for something solid and reliable. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Cybercrooks take shine to Apple lineup
The claim is that the iPad will soon be pwned. Time for WFBs to put up or shut up. Let's see what happens. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/19/AR2010031905613.html The iPad is expected to be a target for credit-card thieves and online scammers of all types. The article doesn't say that the iPad will be cracked. It says that stolen credit cards will be used to purchase/steal them for resale in countries where Apple products are more expensive. The PICNIC model is their weapon. Crooks depend on users falling for their phishing emails. Yesterday, I got at least a dozen emails with attachments telling me that the attachment contained my new Facebook password. I got at least as many for PayPal. Somebody must be making the phishing crooks very happy. Few people notice the tiny purchases that they didn't make when they look at their credit card bills. Lots don't even look at the bills. Too many have automatic payment--that's begging for trouble! * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Apple security and Charlie Miller
This looks more like he took advantage of a badly written browser, not the OS--and it's been fixed since then. That was over two years ago. Nothing happened. No serious exploits of OS X since then. I think there were a few problems with Windows, though. What's your point? Mike, you use Macs. Has your Mac been cracked? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] LCD HDTV
My friend, Kurt, has one of those Samsung TVs. It's LCD with LED backlight. It's beautiful. It's ridiculously thin. I think it's 46. I want one. He bought it online and made sure that he was home for delivery. First TV had broken screen; second TV was also damaged; third is fine. He's lucky that he could arrange his job so that he could be home. You may not be so fortunate when you're not home to receive and inspect a delivery. Cost is much higher also. On Sun, Mar 21, 2010 at 12:14 PM, gerald slawecki ger...@slawecki.comwrote: why you want an lcd instead of an led. the samsung(the only one i follow) led has about a 10x superior brightness or contrast ratio. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Wing Nuts Oppose Better Broadband
rleesimon rleesi...@gmail.com escribió: Cellular internet in Belgium is around $90/mo and only around major cities do you get 3g ...the land line internet is around $60/mo with basic TV (around 50 channels) and is DSL speed ...not that fast ...it is transited over the phone lines ...now they are saying it is bumped to 4down1up for only $2 more a month ...we'll see... I can get a prepaid SIM card for 3G data from Vodafone in Spain, 250 MB, 29 euros; 400 MB, 49 euros. Fits in phone or PC card adapter for notebooks. Good for basic surfing while traveling. For phones with WiFi, the basic 3G service is all you need. Haven't been in Belgium since before mobiles. Home broadband is cheaper in France. Cellular internet in many countries is with prepaid cards, not monthly plans, and is often cheaper that way. Home service is usually cheaper by the month, depending on the country. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
[CGUYS] FreeHand [Was: Apple to charge $107 for iPad...]
Steve phartz...@gmail.com escribió: My G3 Mac desktop still runs great, and most importantly to me, it runs Freehand, an application that I just cannot really do without unless I want to spend a lot of money. Obsolete? Definitely. Useful? Absolutely. I think? I think I share your affinity for Freehand. I like FreeHand. I used Illustrator on and off since Illustrator 88. I hate it. It appears to be written by coders who know nothing about illustration or drawing. FreeHand [Altsys, Aldus] used so many of the metaphors that those of us who actually draw for a living can relate to and use without a steep learning process. I used it for regular drawing and for basic mechanical drawing--very intuitive. I only like the Mac version of FreeHand. When I worked at that unnamed Swiss company, only the top brass had their Macs, and a dedicated tech support person with very little to do. The rest of us were stuck with Windows, which is not artist friendly. FreeHand came out for Windows. I bought it for my PC. It was awful--almost unusable. Too many things that took one step in the Mac version, took 3 or 4 steps to get the same result in the Windows version for the supposedly identical program. I regularly took work home to do on my Mac, and made friends with one of the VPs who let me borrow his Mac at work. Macromedia made FH for Mac worse for a few years, but FreeHand has always been a more versatile, user-friendly program than Illustrator. Adobe killed it because it competed with their inferior Illustrator. I have FH 10. It doesn't work well with Leopard. My experience only--from working on tight deadlines in the dead of night, after working all day. So much great dead software replaced by L.C.D. software. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Apple to charge $107 for iPad battery replacement EarthLink - Technology News
On Wed, Mar 17, 2010 at 8:59 PM, CITY BOY t...@tjpa.com wrote: On Mar 16, 2010, at 6:33 PM, phartz...@gmail.com wrote: Quite possibly. What, may I ask, is the difference between the life of a product as opposed to the useful life of a product? The internet has made it a lot shorter. Today it is hard to compute in isolation. Say what? It's better to compute in relative isolation--and have a life. The Internet has made computing much harder because it's not there when you need it, and when it is, it's unreliable. Remote storage in the cloud is almost as good as lost. Remote storage elsewhere, where instant retrieval is possible is much better. There are some new applications that are simply trash with flash [or maybe Flash]--redundant, and no more useful that what we already have, unless it's the shiny new object or toy factor that attracts you. Get a life. Or give me the new toys--no charge. [not you Steve] * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
[CGUYS] Apple's Code Names
On Wed, Mar 17, 2010 at 10:36 PM, Rev. Stewart Marshall popoz...@earthlink.net wrote: I have noticed that Mac owners refer to their Mac's by certain names, Lombards, Wallstreet, G3, G4, etc. Is there someplace where a neophyte can look these evolutions up? Look here, Stewart: http://www.everymac.com/ Macs have code names. So do Apple's peripherals and software. This is an old site that I really like [hasn't been updated since 2002]. Has code names through G5, http://www.mackido.com/CodeNames/index.html The Easter Egg section is especially fun: iguana iguana powersurgius! Betty * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] noPad4me
On Mon, Mar 15, 2010 at 9:05 PM, mike xha...@gmail.com wrote: When do these new batteries get into laptops? Is it only rumor that the newest MacBook Pro computers contain batteries that are not serviceable by the user? Steve Batteries have been nonreplaceable in iPods since 1st gen. We've replaced batteries in 3 iPods: two 20GB 4th gen, and one 60 GB 5th gen iPod. MacBook Air has replaceable nonreplaceable battery. Unibody MacBooks and MacBook Pros also have these batteries [since 2009]. How to open the MB/MBP to replace these batteries: - Apple manual [see chapter 3], http://manuals.info.apple.com/en_US/MacBook_Pro_13inch_Mid2009.pdf - ifixit.com teardown, http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/MacBook-Pro-13-Inch-Unibody/814/1 * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] noPad4me
I'm talking about the new tech batteries Tom mentioned. So am I. The unibody MacBooks and MacBook Pros have used the new tech batteries--much longer life, holds charge longer, no mercury--since the early 2009 versions. Most likely mfg. to put these in a PC? Your guess. MSI, Sony [but it will break], Toshiba, Lenovo... * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] noPad4me
I spent $52 today on weekly food shopping, after $18 in coupons. My point is that the savings from changing the battery yourself vs. paying much more to have the shop do the same thing is like finding free money. You can do weekly shopping with it or you can splurge or you can save/invest it. I used to keep track of refund/coupon savings on a calendar when it was around $3000 a year. We save a lot more by doing simple tech jobs ourselves. After fixing the hardware yourself, you might need the drink. You go to good restaurants. Battery prices will be all over the place. Price is not always an indicator of quality, manufacturer is. Much like designer clothes. Very often made in the same factory to the same specs and a similar shirt, but with two wildly varying price tags. That leaves you with $52 for a nice dinner and a bottle of wine. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Apple to charge $107 for iPad battery replacement EarthLink - Technology News
This is a non-issue. These batteries typically last longer that the useful life of the product. Quite possibly. What, may I ask, is the difference between the life of a product as opposed to the useful life of a product? Steve My Mac SE [1987] still works. It runs PageMaker 2, maybe FreeHand, Illustrator, MacDraw, MacWrite, a few games; has a 20 MB HD, 4 MB RAM. Still works, not useful. My mobile phone is smarter. All 6 of our old Macs work, but none earlier than G4s are useful on a regular basis. The Intel iMac [2007] runs Final Cut, Adobe/Macromedia suites, MS office, browsers, etc.--all at the same time. Has a 320 GB HD, 4 GB RAM. Very useful, but could use more memory. I expect it to be useful for another 3 or 4 years. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Your house is a dump!
IS NOT!! This site links to Google Maps, http://maps.google.com/, and does a poor job of showing your house. I'm not sure whether Google deliberately points to the house/building/lot next door to whatever you seek. I checked an old address in Philly and the marker points to our former neighbor across the street on the north side, the one who said that we lived in a row house in South Philly and they lived in a townhouse in Center City. Current map points to my next door neighbor's house. Google is doing us a favor for when someone sends out a hitman--he goes to the wrong house. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Wing Nuts Oppose Better Broadband
Considering how frequently unintended consequences of regulation (when we have yet to see any true problems with the current internet system) wreak havoc on things I don't see the rush to go into giving FCC the power over the internet. It is non-centralized at the core, and we should keep it that way. There are obvious problems with the present setup. Lots of folks for example lack access to the internet at home in any meaningful fashion... The US disdain for government provided services has a cost in the real world. The stupidest and one of the most dangerous comments by any recent president was by Ronnie Raygun when he said, The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help.' It was a culmination of the corporate propaganda machine that wanted people to distrust/hate 'gummint', thus increasing corporate power while limiting citizen power. The wingnuts who want gummint out of the Internet forget that the Internet was an entirely government funded project, and remains partially funded through federal funds. The Internet is mostly non-centralized, however ISP's gateways are not. There are now a relatively small number of large corporations controlling the gateways, trying to tell who is allowed to have service, and what service you're allowed to have. This opposition to universal broadband is simply bullsh*t. This propaganda is supported by the same nuts who are yelling Get the government out of my Medicare! The government isn't the problem, except when it's run by corporations and wingnuts, as it has been mostly since Reagan was [s]elected. Better thank Al Gore for sponsoring the bills that gave government funding to expand [ARPANET] the Internet. Thank Eisenhower for the warnings--too bad not enough Americans listened or understood. What about the completely intended consequences of deregulating financial markets that let to crashing the economy? Regulation is good. How about the states that regulate the rates that insurance companies are allowed to charge customers? Regulation is good. How about regulations that reduce pollution? Regulation is good. How about speed limits? Good, except for speed traps. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Wing Nuts Oppose Better Broadband
This implies there is no cost of government provided services in the real world. No. That's a big DUH! Of course there are costs to government services, but consider this. How much of your income is disposable income? In countries with free democratic socialist governments like Sweden or Germany, taxes may by 40-50% of their income. However that means that they have fully paid health insurance, long vacations, child care, sick leave, pensions, with 50-60% of their income remaining as disposable income. They also have almost universal inexpensive broadband in most of western Europe. In the UK, you get FREE broadband as part of your mobile phone contract! Does ATT or Verizon do this? For under $50/mo including 600 min? That's more services than we have in the United States--for less. Here you gets what you pay for. That means that the anti-gummint sentiment means much lower taxes, with much higher costs for broadband, health insurance, child care, etc., etc. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] noPad4me
This is easy. The iPad is a giant iPod Touch. We can open up the Touch to change the battery. Why not the iPad? The biggest problem is finding a source for the right battery, instead of a cheap copy. The battery could cost $50 [the $5 one is worth 90% less], spudger is less than $5, and you save the rest by doing it yourself, just like any other computer repair. We'll have to see who has OEM batteries. That leaves you with $52 for a nice dinner and a bottle of wine. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] TinyURLs [Was: Re: [CGUYS] FCC wants to measure]
With all the protections I have these days (UAC, Spybot immunize, safe browsing warnings, etc), I don't feel the need for this, but if you must you can see where these shortened links go before you click on them. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/8636 . Equivalents available in other browsers too. TinyURLs always give me the heebies. You can *claim* it's for Something Wonderful when the TinyURL actually points to something nefarious. You need an add-on for this? As Art said, for tinyurl.com, you add preview for preview.tinyurl.com. Or go to http://untiny.me/ and insert the shortened URL. I use http://is.gd which needs only an ending hypen to get a preview, as in http://is.gd/amyeC- . Is.gd is easy to remember and easy to type too Thank goodness for tiny countries like Grenada and Tuvalu to give us these domains--can they profit from this?. BTW, Art's URL example, http://tinyurl.com/X gets you to a real site for unicycling. Are shortened URLs really that scary??? BOOO! What's the real risk that Something Wonderful turns out to be not so wonderful? Close the window. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
[CGUYS] Are Macs Really Cheaper To Manage Than PCs? - CIO.com
Does I'm a Mac mean I'm less expensive to manage? An Enterprise Desktop Alliance survey says Macs cost a lot less than PCs to manage -- yet Macs come with special challenges for enterprise IT admins. By Tom Kaneshige March 08, 2010 — CIO — Macs in the enterprise aren't just cheaper to manage—they're a lot cheaper, according to a new survey released today by the Enterprise Desktop Alliance. Keep in mind that Enterprise Desktop Alliance is a group of software developers who've bandied together to deploy and manage Macs in the enterprise. The group surveyed 260 IT administrators in large U.S. companies with both Macs and PCs who are involved in some degree with IT cost calculations. Enterprise Desktop Alliance members include Centrify, Absolute Software, Group Logic, Web Help Desk, and most recently IBM. [ Another Enterprise Desktop Alliance survey shows two out of three companies buying Macs this year, which will bring integration challenges for IT admins, CIO.com reports. ] The survey found that Macs were cheaper in six of seven computer management categories: troubleshooting, help desk calls, system configuration, user training and supporting infrastructure (servers, networks and printer). Nearly half of the respondents cited software licensing fees as roughly the same for both platforms. A whopping 65 percent of respondents said it costs less to troubleshoot Macs than PCs, 19 percent said they spent the same on both computers, and only 16 percent said they spent less to manage PCs than Macs... http://www.cio.com/article/569163/Are_Macs_Really_Cheaper_To_Manage_Than_PCs_ * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] TinyURLs [Was: Re: [CGUYS] FCC wants to measure]
Please define burned. What happened? Did your hard drive melt? How is this burned experience different from the supposedly innocent URL you sent this week, http://tinyurl.com/X ? No, they don't, in fact many wrap at 72 characters. Actually tinyurls and similar services can be safer with preview features than a supposed safe looking URL with a hidden link. Of course the safest approach is not to click on links from folks you do not know. I suggest that few have gotten burned either with a tinyurl or the entire link on this list regardless of how adversarial things become. Besides once someone on this list does burn others, that individual's reputation is shot, so if for example I use some browser like links or turn off script running... * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Twist in school spying scandal
Trouble is from what was said they knew who had it. Nope, they knew after they had pictures from the webcam, not before. Suspecting someone has something and having proof that same individual has it are two different things and usually two different sets of circumstances too. It should be noted that the parents filed this suit after they too had been informed of the possible drug usage and the record of the possible drug usage wasn't removed from the student's record. Of course the school knew who had the computers. This assertion that they didn't is insulting to schools and to teachers. When any kind of electronics are borrowed from schools by teachers or students there are records of who has the equipment. Lower Merion is a wealthy district and they have a lot of equipment, but that doesn't mean that they simply hand it out to anyone without a record of who borrowed it. The case of Lower Merion is more like a public library that often requires some kind of collateral to borrow some equipment. Or for those instances that don't require collateral [like cash or your driver's license] they still know who has the material/equipment. The IT creeps who spied on the students had to know who they were watching [MAC address, installed software, etc]. Since the administration also knew who had the computers, it was their responsibility to contact the parents, as it was also the parents' responsibility to pay the insurance fee--if they could afford it. There are areas with low-income families in the district [Ardmore, Narberth], as well as students who are bused into the schools--no excuse, but not everyone in the district is upper middle class. Perhaps the issue isn't the method for distributing computers and the accompanying fees, along with the spying. The real issue is that the computers are required at all, and students are required to have them, take them home, use them for school work, especially since there is very little evidence that using the computers aids students in learning more/better/faster. The convenience is more for the schools than for the students. Betty * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
[CGUYS] combining PDFs
I have 11 1-page pdfs that I'd like to combine into one file. I'm tired. I know I can do this with simple tools, but don't remember which ones. I don't have Adobe Acrobat that runs in OS X. I do have InDesign and a collection of freeware and shareware. [Mac OS X v.10.5.8] * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Evil people
That's not true. The sweetheart deal wasn't one, and never happened. It's not in the bill. Ideas are discussed as part of the process of writing legislation. Many of those never make it to law. The Republican Supreme Court decided that lobbying by huge corporations is great, and just made it easier. That's not good for small businesses or individuals. Bet you're glad you voted for corporate excesses to be enhanced. Give a real example, not a fantasy. How about the health care bill? Unions got a sweetheart deal to be free from the higher taxes of the more expensive health plans thus screwing would be smaller businesses wanting to give their employees good plans. In general, do you really think all the lobbying by multinational/multibillion dollar corporations helps them or helps small business? On Sun, Feb 28, 2010 at 11:23 PM, b_s-wilk b1sun...@yahoo.es wrote: Examples please. Except sometimes the regulation is used to do the screwing. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability
mike escribió: And the Constitution is a specific lack of regulation. Madison didn't even want a bill of rights for fear it would weaken the individual by enumerating specific rights, thus perhaps conversely weakening the power of citizens by the absence of other rights. Hardly. The existence of a Constitution, is the existence of regulation. The Constitution defines the legal structure of our government, with guidelines defining the kinds of laws that enforce restrictions and regulations. What you're defining is anarchy. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability
The genius of the Ten Commandments--whether intentional or not--is that there are ten proscriptions, and everything else is OK. The Bill of Rights is similar, providing protections, but needed elaboration, hence the current number of Constitutional Amendments to protect the rights of individuals and minorities. For those who aren't familiar with the rest of the commandments, there were actually over 600. We're lucky that K.I.S.S. weeded out most of the noxious ones, mostly from Leviticus. Or Moses got tired of chiseling into stone when he got to ten. Rev. Stewart Marshall escribió: Only if you look at it that way It was also proscriptive. So regulation is both a good thing and a bad thing depending on how it is done. Lest we forget, the Ten Commandments is regulation. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Evil people [Was: Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability]
Fred Holmes escribió: And I'm sure you're not one of those uneducated who will bring up the lack of tort reform as a reason for high insurance costs. So how much does liability insurance / damage claims add to the cost of healthcare? As a percentage of overall costs? The main problem with high insurance costs for consumers is that medical practitioners are not policing themselves, and states don't police them either until too many patients are harmed. In too many cases, incompetent doctors who maim or kill patients, and bad hospitals, are still in business when they should be shut down and have medical licenses taken away. That could reduce insurance costs for everybody. However, when Republicans talk about tort reform, they want to limit the ability of patients who have been injured due to medical incompetence to have their cases ineligible for hearings or trials. This injures more patients without solving the problem, while also hurting the lawyers who file legitimate cases, in effect, further denying coverage in multiple ways. Tort reform in the US is a euphemism for keeping Democratic lawyers from helping injured patients, solely because they're not Republican. The liability and damage claims as a percentage of overall costs is less than 5%. The biggest health insurance cost to consumers from private for-profit companies is overhead--which is about 2-3% for Medicare, around 10% for private non-profits, and 20-30% for the for-profit companies. The for-profit companies made bad investments and raised premiums to make up for that, too. So tort reform makes minimal difference when compared to having nonprofit health insurance. After all, it's immoral to profit from others' illnesses and misfortunes, so why do many health health insurance executives have multi-million dollar salaries and benefits, and insurance companies have billion dollar profits? That's what causes high premiums, not a trumped up need for tort reform. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Evil people
Fred Holmes escribió: The law that was cited by the guy that drove his airplane into the IRS building in Austin, Texas. The guy was a tax evader. The law he objected to is in common use around the country. If you contract for only one company, you're a de facto employee and subject to withholding. Stack not only objected to withholding, he didn't pay his taxes. He also didn't like the tax exemptions for churches. I don't either, but I don't kill people to make a point. It seems that he hated the Catholic church, but didn't direct his hatred toward other wealthy churches either. Do you have a real example or another nut case like Stack? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Apple Co(r)p...
On Feb 28, 2010, at 2:17 PM, phartz...@gmail.com wrote: Why doesn't Apple Corp. develop a means of either preventing or making it difficult for users of their computers to be able to access or use overtly sexual material or applications? Because Apple has customers around the world who aren't as sexually repressed as people in the US. It's refreshing to find that there are naturist beaches in Miami Beach and on Assateague Island, some more in California. Thank goodness for European tourists--topless sunning is here! Yet there are insane people in Colorado who censor puppets--and beach towns in the South where women can be arrested for wearing thong bikinis. Bodies are natural. Sex is natural. The more you obsess about how normal things are perverted, the more your children will obsess. When my son was ten, we visited some friends in Zurich, and in Munich. In the Englischer Garten in Munich, people sunbathe nude--no big deal; he found some kids to play soccer instead of gawking. We went to the beach in Nice. He looked around and said, The women aren't wearing their swimsuit tops. Then he went swimming and mostly ignored them. That prepared him five years later when traveling with his soccer team in Sweden and the girls' teams were topless in the swimming pool. His teammates gawked from their balconies, and he calmly spent the afternoon chatting and swimming with the girls, and Euro guys. What's pornographic other than violence? If violent video games are perfectly legal, why censor the human body? You're the one who has to explain this to your children and to guide them. Then don't worry so much about them seeing nudes and sex. They'll be fine as long as you can be honest with them and explain that when sex involves violence it's bad, and when it's too casual it might cause emotional problems [or not]. What's so difficult about that? Enjoy the scenery, http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010_swimsuit/painting/, http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009_swimsuit/painting/. Would you hide this from children? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Apple Co(r)p...
Apple isn't ensnared, they are doing this themselves. Apple is bar far the most controlling tech company out there, controlling their customers, controlling themselves.. That's silly. Ridiculous. Apple doesn't control their customers. They provide products that people like, and if there's something else customers want, they can go to third parties. Or they can go into the OS and make changes themselves, like I do. Or upgrade hardware. Or use a different OS--on their Macs, or jailbreak iPhones. The main thing that Apple controls is leaks by employees that could reveal new product ideas to competitors. Any good company does that. Why do you think that Apple is so controlling? They don't make users' computers phone the Mother Ship to rat on users like M$ does. Does the App Store delete purchases from iPhones like Amazon did with the Kindle? What Apple is doing with the iTunes App Store is selling what they want in their own store. If you want something else, go to Cydia. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Evil people
Examples please. Except sometimes the regulation is used to do the screwing. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Evil people [Was: Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls...]
OK I come from this on both sides. As a theologian I view mankind through both eyes. He is basically good, but there is a corrupt part of him that will screw you whenever he gets a chance. Sorry Stewart, I know you're in the business of thinking people are good, but these two statements are contradictory. If people were basically good they wouldn't be trying to screw you at every opportunity (and *wouldn't* need regulating). Even in dangerous places, even with language barriers, my experience has been that individuals are generally good--often exceptionally generous beyond expectation. However we need regulation because people tend to do stupid things in groups that they wouldn't do alone. The bigger and more powerful the group, the greater tendency to be irresponsible or evil, as in corporations. Hence the need for regulation. Stewart is right. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Time for a Nation Defense Internet Infrastructure Project?
Sounds lIke a case could be made not to implement any expansion of internet access, and even to curtail, limit or eliminate a lot of what already exists. I'd have to think that were any evidence to come to light that a cyber attack was occurring, that internet access would be shut down for all but necessary systems. Sound's like today's conservative mantra: don't fix healthcare, dismantle it. So I suppose a true conservative would eschew TCP/IP for good old reliable smoke signals. Why shut it down? Ramping up is better. Can you really shut down everything without something drastic and stupid like an EMP? And that wouldn't shut down those who are secure and off grid. There are too many short cuts and back doors. Expand everything. Are you likely to be attacked? Who would attack and how? What software and hardware would be shut down by a cyber attack anyway? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability
chad evans wyatt escribió: Exactly, Betty. Why can't they get together? We have propensity to deploy, with faux-entrepreneurial ideal, the same multiple-gauge railroads that bedeviled 19th century US commercial activity; that is our model, until it no longer can be driven forward. We have what? 4, or is it 5 wireless systems here? Each requiring its own tortured buildout (see Mr Sande's bill of particulars). Imagine putting all of that investment into one system. Oh, it's not hard, after all: the rest of the world is GSM, I heard yesterday that the new commuter rail lines in the Baltimore [Red line light rail] - Washington [Purple line heavy rail] area use different technology for trains but the same kind of rails, which could make change in the style of transport less difficult. Most of the world is exclusively GSM, with some CDMA holdouts in eastern Europe, east Asia, Africa, some Latin America, [only 500 million CDMA users worldwide vs over 2.5 billion with GSM]. There are multiple technology phones for those who use both networks. Most GSM smart[-er] phones also use the newer WCDMA/UMTS for data. Without using the same telephone lines, MCI-WorldCom wouldn't have been able to slam us--twice. However without using the same infrastucture we wouldn't be able to switch services quickly either. The problem with the lonely corporate business plan is that each company blindly does its own network without considering existing [but competing] infrastructure or the economy of shared networks. What a lonely way to waste both companies' and customers' money. Does it really make any sense at all for there to be several mostly identical broadband networks anywhere when all that's needed is one good one? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability
Basically yes. If you want a chicken in every pot. Every local switch and tandem switch has to be equipped. Every mile has to be rebuilt. It might be twice my estimate. Or even 6 times as much. After you get done, and the cable companies run their system, then Google comes in behind all of you to run theirs. I don't understand why everybody needs to roll their own fiber. I don't have three sets of power lines coming to my house. Why can't the information providers get together and run one system that they can all share at a fair price? *Before* the Feds regulate that you have to. Sure makes a lot of sense. That's the way they do it in some other countries where service is much cheaper than it is here. Both broadband and mobile service networks can be shared by multiple companies. Electric companies already share networks. Why can't they get together? Why can't they share? Because the Feds didn't regulate that they have to, so they don't. Because even though it will be cheaper in the long run, it's more complicated to cooperate than to go it alone. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Creepy or what?
What in the Apple OS allows for this? I'd love it. I have 4 Apple laptops with built in web cams. Also have 2 iMacs with the same. I'd love to be able to take a picture of whoever stole one of them...I guess really I'd love the satisfaction of just nailing anyone who happened to steal my computer. MobileMe: Back to My Mac http://www.apple.com/mobileme/features/mac.html Orbicle: Undercover http://www.orbicule.com/undercover/mac/ bak2u mobile security http://www.bak2u.com/products.php etc... Prepare for a stolen notebook. You can set a firmware password, http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1352, and FileVault encryption to protect your data. Know your MAC address. Set the WiFi card to be turned on all the time. Set up a VPN so you can control your camera remotely. Disable automatic login. Lock your System Preferences. Whatever. Don't you want a new notebook anyway? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability
You should look around your neighborhoods, DC is the epitome of badly run Dem stronghold. Face it, government doesn't do much of anything right..or left. The larger the government, the smaller the citizen. If you're talking about Washington, DC, the city, you're mistaken. The city can't do hardly anything without the permission of Congress. That means Congresscritters like Richard Shelby can vote to deny the city just about everything it needs, while holding up important appointments in an effort to get $billions for his home state to give to foreign companies. If you're talking about Congress, then it's about time for everyone to work together instead of Democrats doing most of the work and Republicans voting against everything, including bills that they themselves introduce and sponsor, then taking credit for the success of Democratic programs that Republicans voted against. Is that the problem? If you're talking about government being too big, then you didn't like Reagan, Bush I or Bush II, and liked Clinton, because under the former three, the size of government, and debt, increased a lot, and under the latter, the size of government and deficits decreased. So what are you talking about? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Password Keeper == Login King -- thoughts?
That brings to mind, how come banks (now they use 2 different passwords and a pictogram for the most part) don't give you a teaser email reminding you, periodically, to change your password... that would be a nice service. I logged into a state payroll system this morning. As soon as I got into the system, it notified me that my password expired and I had to create a new one, otherwise it would lock me out, and I'd have to contact the state office which is closed until Monday. I think either HSBC or ING did the same thing. One of my corporate emails did that too, and also an online subscription to Lancet. I get lots of emails from banks and credit card companies with links to someplace in China where I can reveal my ID and password...How about you? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability
At 07:13 PM 2/20/2010, Eric S. Sande wrote: Don't kiss me now, mike, just be glad your freaking phone works. Yeah, but when they come to sell me FIOS, they will at the same time sell me VOIP, which dies four hours after the power grid goes down [frequently]. Not if you have your own larger, more efficient, solar/battery storage backup system to supplement the tiny battery backup in the installed setup. There's a battery backup system for sump pumps. A similar, but less powerful setup could easily keep your VOIP running for a few days at least. Your main problem then will be to power your desktop computer or recharge your notebook. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability
phartz...@gmail.com escribió: On Fri, Feb 19, 2010 at 2:03 AM, Eric S. Sande esa...@verizon.net wrote: That's about it for now. Good post. I think that the FCC wants industry to get with the various governmental agencies and really get this issue hashed out...finally. I see that President Obama just signed an Executive Order, making it a requirement that the two sides in our federal legislature sit down together to work out a fix for the economy. He finally had to take this draconian, some would say dictatorial step because our Congress critters were essentially refusing to move on the problem, refusing to work with one another. I think the FCC head was trying to say that the time has come for cooperation instead of opposition and to do it for the welfare of our nation. It somehow got done back in the early days of wired telephone service and telcos did not wither and die as a result and we can do it again today with this newer technology that in many ways is supplanting telephone service as being a necessity in the contemporary world. Yes, I agree with both of you, mostly. The economy can't improve enough to be competitive when the world economy improves until we ramp up our communications systems. What we need most is public-private partnerships, and a lot of cooperation instead of behaving like adversaries or worse. Of course, companies need to make a profit to exist. Telcos can't afford to create a national network on their own, plus they need incentives. They also need their networks to survive in the long term. It won't happen without partnerships, but the details need to be worked out in advance, and as the network is developed. The broadband speed must be in line with competing economies, since our competition is global. Do we really want an overpriced 3Mbps national network, when competing nations already have less expensive 20-50Mbps and working on 100Mbps up to 1Gbps? Of course not. That's the kind of lowest common denominator, lowest bid nonsense thinking that gives us bad roads, bridges that don't last, electronics and hard goods that break before warranties expire. Lowest bid is counterproductive. Best bid for best quality [and expansion] we can afford for the future is better. As Steve said, the original telco service and electrification didn't happen only through the goodness of private companies. They needed government assistance, grants, loans, prodding, sometimes with threats, and creation of public projects like REA and TVA, along with plenty of regulation to ensure universal service and prevent gouging. Eric, you know the technical and financial requirements for your network. Extrapolate for a national network. It's too much for the private sector to afford, yet it will make communication significantly better for both businesses and individuals. Public-private is win-win. BTW, I'm a fiscal conservative and socially liberal/progressive. I had to be somewhat fiscally conservative while taking risks to stay in business for a long time. I'm a capitalist and a technocrat too--started my first business when I was a sophomore in college. However, I don't have a problem with paying fair taxes for good services. Broadband is a valuable utility that's well worth our investment. Betty * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability
We, the people, are the government of the United States. Yes, that's the way it is **supposed** to be. But it isn't, really. The federal government does all sorts of extra-constitutional things, and gets away with it. Who is doing anything about it? Fred, The US Constitution gives a lot of leeway for interpretation, starting with the preamble: We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. Promoting the general welfare and securing the blessings of liberty covers much of our investment in science, RD, social programs, elaborated in Article I, Section 8, beginning with: The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States; but all duties, imposts and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States... The extra-Constitutional things that have led to the huge debt and deficits are off-budget wars, secret funds for secret programs, not the tiny fraction of our budget that goes to infrastructure like broadband and cellular communications. The government investment in infrastructure is an important part of promoting the general welfare--for both people and businesses. Crumbling infrastructure and citizens with poor health and limited means of communication leads to loss of liberty--the antithesis of promoting the general welfare. The common defense depends intrinsically on the health of the people and the infrastructure. Betty * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability
Leave the country for a while and go where people enjoy a better standard of living--and it's not the US. Why don't you leave the country and emigrate to one of the socialist countries where life is so much better? I'm doing just fine here. I never told you to emigrate. What I said is for you to look at countries that are doing better than the US both financially and socially, and you will find a balance between social good and corporate support through effective but not stifling regulation and partnerships. Instead, we're stuck with dominant corporate representation in Congress, conservative corporate media, and a general public that seems to accept that as being OK. It's not. I ask you to open your eyes and open your mind to understand what doesn't work here [corporate dominance], and what does work elsewhere [fair social programs and business encouragement/support]. Just because you can't imagine that systems like that work well--they do--doesn't mean we don't have a lot to learn. Use your imagination and get a social conscience instead of spouting corporate talking points. So, you don't want universal broadband--admit it--or you have a better idea that works. Unregulated capitalism doesn't work; never did; never will. What's your ideas for people to have affordable universal broadband? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
[CGUYS] LABS GALLERY: 25 Decade-Shaping Technologies - IT Management from eWeek
eWEEK Labs analysts picked the 25 Technologies that Changed the Decade. The products and technologies were chosen based on the impact they had not only on the decade that was but on the decade that will be. http://www.eweek.com/c/a/IT-Management/LABS-GALLERY-25-DecadeShaping-Technologies-718694/ There are so many excellent choices. I like Mac OS X and the iPod Touch, but multi-core processors, WiFi and blade servers rate at least as high. I'll even give a nod to Windows XP, even though I got a message to confirm with M$ for the first time last week on a system I've been using for 5 years--it's superior to both previous and subsequent systems, so far. The tough challenge with this list is to choose the _least_important_ technology. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability
At 10:07 AM 2/18/2010, b_s-wilk wrote: I never told you to emigrate. What I said is for you to look at countries that are doing better than the US both financially and socially, and you will find a balance between social good and corporate support through effective but not stifling regulation and partnerships. Instead, we're stuck with dominant corporate representation in Congress, conservative corporate media, and a general public that seems to accept that as being OK. It's not. But the other countries have totally different circumstances, so it's an apples/oranges situation...Other countries don't have a real military, don't have the expenses. Although the German military is fondly known as hippies with guns they have a real military, as does the UK, France, Greece, Spain, Scandinavian countries, etc., even Switzerland--have a Swiss ARMY knife?--has compulsory military service. The U.S. private military industrial complex thanks YOU for NOT paying attention. Other countries own oil that they drill for and sell. We prohibit drilling on federal lands. rant **ARE YOU KIDDING?** Where were you when Bush opened the most sensitive public land for oil and gas drilling? Where do you get your information? What about oil drilling in Alaska? Utah? Gulf coast? As of July 1, 2008, forty-four million acres of public lands were leased for oil and gas development. The US gets less for its leases because most leases are underpriced. BP [UK] is a private company, Royal Dutch Shell is a private company. Total, S.A. [France] is a private company. None of these huge companies are owned by their home countries, however their home countries charge much higher royalties for their own petroleum than the US gummint. There are lots of complaints about the socialism in other countries. *They complain about dictators who claim to be socialist but are really ruthless dictators, not democratic socialists.* If you like their socialism better than our capitalism, please emigrate. It would be a terrible world if every country were a clone of the next one, and all of the countries were perfect. We are the best country in the world in terms of ability to create wealth. Everything done to redistribute wealth seems to stifle incentive, and thereby reduce total wealth as well. Each country picks its own point on the curve. What planet do you live on? [thanks Vickie] No we're not. You're saying that it's OK to redistribute wealth from middle class people to wealthy people by lowering the top tax rates, raising lower and middle tax rates, and crashing the world economy through deregulation of fantasy products like derivatives and credit default swaps to create bankster billionaires. You think that it's OK for corporate bosses to send jobs to countries with lower labor costs and put Americans out of their jobs? That's OK? That's exactly what happened, and it's not OK. Have you ever traveled outside the US? Have you ever worked outside the US? Have you ever worked for a European company? Have you ever needed any medical help when you were outside the US? Do you have a good pension? long paid vacations? full medical coverage? job protection? inexpensive mobile and broadband service? I'm not leaving. The US has so many wonderful possibilities and wonderful people. What the US needs is our own Marshall Plan, after the 30 year war against US working people. The Marshall Plan worked quite well in much of Europe, but somehow its success has been lost to Americans, as the Texas nuts rewrite our children's textbooks. Our new Marshall Plan is vital to rebuild infrastructure and provide important services to both people and businesses. When you spend tax dollars inside the US for jobs and small businesses, the money is returned at least double to our economy when both consumers and businesses have the jobs and cash to buy products and services. sigh /rant * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability
Not a false premise at all. It's a corollary to Power corrupts . . . The power to regulate is the power to destroy. People appointed as regulators are very powerful. You're very confused. We, the people, are the government of the United States. Only when you cede power to the corporations is the power outside of the hands of the people, and that is the true corruption of power. Corporations exist primarily to make a profit by any means, not for the benefit of their employees or even their customers [if they're a utility]. We, the people, have our representatives appoint regulators to keep corporations under control. Originally, corporations had ten-year charters, to keep them from being evil, as were the corporations before the revolution. The British East India Company, along other corporations, were allowed by the King to be abusive to colonists. As a result, the founders of the US were extremely distrustful of corporations, as we should be now. The corrupting power in the US is now in the 'hands' of huge banks and multinational corporations. Regulation gives some of the power back to the people of the United States. We need business. We need people to start and run businesses. We need people to buy products and services. We don't need companies that underpay employees, force them to work overtime off the clock, fire them for wanting union protection, and without that protection, send the jobs overseas, creating high unemployment. How will people be able to afford any kind of broadband if they're underemployed or unemployed? That's what unregulated corporate power does. From your comments, that's what you want. You are either an unrepentant corporatist, or very confused. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Just what is a computer anyway?
On Thu, Feb 18, 2010 at 7:56 PM, tjpa t...@tjpa.com wrote: Perhaps they will look more like this guitar... http://www.thinkgeek.com/tshirts-apparel/interactive/c498/ That place does offer some unique items. If I am not mistaken, they are located in Fairfax County, perhaps very near the Kamp Washington area just outside of Fairfax City on Lee Highway. Steve One of these locations may be a storefront, http://is.gd/8GWjk. Will their dogs let us in the door to play with their toys before buying them? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability
I'll bet the universal broadband in other countries really doesn't cover everyone. Does it? Even those in very sparsely settled areas? The percentage in some countries is likely higher because a greater portion of the country's population lives in a high-population-density area that in the U.S. We have a huge fraction of the population that live in the country, where it is very expensive to provide broadband on a per drop basis. False! Do your homework before you start betting with my money. Tom is so right. I've been amazed at the obscure locations outside the US where I get all bars on my cell phone, even in Mexico near the Belize border, or on remote Greek islands. Similarly, broadband is so fast and pervasive [and cheap] in much of Europe, high in the Pyrenees mountains, miles from the closest small village, with WiFi on nearly empty beaches in Portugal. I wonder why it's not like that here. Oh, right, no national broadband policy with conservatives fighting against it at every turn--for no good reason, just to be against something. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] Cell phone nos.
Having sent my motorola razor through the wash and dry, I can't get it to work. Now att wants to replace my cell no. as well as the phone. what gives? They probably want to replace the SIM card in the phone or use that card in your new phone. I don't think they can legally change your phone number without your permission. ATT wants to be sure that you aren't asking for a new phone when the old one is still working. Show them the broken phone. And if you have a choice, do you really want another Razr? * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
Re: [CGUYS] FCC head calls for broadband availability
Fred Holmes f...@his.com escribió: I suspect that socialist countries simply decide (legislate) that the government will provide the infrastructure and the government goes ahead and does it. Tax rates are a whole lot higher in most other countries. In the U.S. it was legislated that everyone gets a phone at a reasonable rate. The phone company that does business in a geographic area must provide/offer phone service to everyone in that geographical area at a reasonable (price controlled) rate. We haven't yet done that with Internet access. The American fantasy promoted by corporations is that taxes are bad, and taxes are so much higher in European countries with cradle to grave popular social programs. Actually Americans pay much more in money and time for basic necessities that others elsewhere have decided that all their citizens--and guests--have a right to be covered by popular government programs. These programs aren't necessarily provided by the governments either; however things like health care are universal, with government oversight of private nonprofits more often than government-run programs. When I worked for a European company, even the youngest employees had 6 weeks vacation, higher salaries than their American counterparts, better medical coverage and better retirement benefits. That was part of the social agreement where the highest paid employee/manager made 20X that of the lowest paid employee/manager. For the top manager to get more money, the lowest paid employees got raises. When business was slow, everyone took cuts in pay and hours worked. This didn't extend to US employees, because our laws don't require treating employees well, like people, instead of interchangeable cogs in a machine. It doesn't have to be that way. Broadband Internet connections are a necessity for individuals, businesses and schools. Success in many areas depends on broadband access. The choice is broadband or national failure. Why object to a national broadband infrastructure? Corporations tell you it's bad? Well then it must be good. Fred, you are a victim of corporate propaganda that socialism is bad--it's not. Socialism is simply providing for the people first, not corporations first. Leave the country for a while and go where people enjoy a better standard of living--and it's not the US. * ** List info, subscription management, list rules, archives, privacy ** ** policy, calmness, a member map, and more at http://www.cguys.org/ ** *
