MacGuyver Again

My daughter Amy, is away at college. She got to be a pretty good file-seeker and downloader over the last couple of years. In all honesty, I happen to know that she does the same thing I do. She listens to the music on her MP3 player, and if something is worth buying, she will buy it. She's even learned quite a bit of self-support just by watching me. I watched her kill and relaunch Explorer.exe from the task manager recently to get around a lockup.

Anyway... Her college blocks file sharing (and they're GOOD at it). This precipitated the following setup. This could be used for any number of situations where you don't want to run P2P software (school, work, etc..).

I set up an old PC, with a 300 gig drive, and a stripped-down copy of XP (Tiny XP in this case)

I created a Hamachi network. Hamachi (now from LogMeIn) is a zero-config VPN client that uses a third party server to route your traffic (much like GoToMyPC, or LogMeIn but for networking)
I installed UTorrent, Tight VNC Server, and a neat little Http File Server called HFS. HFS integrates right into the context menus, so once you set up preferences and security, you just right-click the folder you want to share and select "add to HFS".


I set up three links on her computer. One to the VNC remote web page, giving her full remote control using Java in a browser. A second to the HFS file server, to download the completed files. And a third to the remote GUI for UTorrent, so she can check the status without having to open a remote session. All she has to do is turn on the Hamachi service to connect. No opening ports in firewalls, or any other network trickery. Transfer speeds from the server to her are not too bad, but the server is on a residential FIOS connection, which I'm sure helps that a bit.

I had considered creating a shared drive on her computer that the server could write to directly and choose that location as the download directory for the P2P software. Then I got to thinking: What happens if the download speed exceeds the speed of the Hamachi connection? I'll have to try it just to see how windows deals with that, but for now, I just wanted it to work.

I guess the only issue the college may have is with Hamachi. Some IT security folks don't appreciate such things, but so far so good.

I am not a number... I am a polite (mostly) commuter!

I have spoken many times of the state of mind that employees get to when they may have been at a job for too long. Rule-mongers. When the rules become more important than the clients/customers, it's time to take a break.

In retail years ago, I would pull an employee off the floor after witnessing them argue with a customer over a small item. "But he doesn't have a receipt" they would say. If the customer doesn't back down right away, or approaches you NICELY, and POLITELY, and it was a relatively small request, just go ahead and do it. In the case of the belligerent customer, it's just not worth your time, blood pressure, and stomach lining.

The other night while riding the LIRR, a rider got on with a bike somewhere after Penn Station. Now, I learned two important things about this: 1. You are not allowed to have a bike on a PEAK train, and 2. This makes perfect sense. Especially if you've ever witnessed how crowded these trains get.

The rider was told by the conductor that he needed to get off at the next stop. Then the rider apologized, and said that he didn't realize it was a problem, and only needed to go one more stop to be home. The conductor said "No. You have to get off at the next stop and wait for the next off-peak train." "But, my stop is only a few minutes past this stop." "I'm sorry sir. Those are the R U L E S."

There's that word. Now, I would have cut the conductor some slack if the presence of the bike was causing an issue, but about two-thirds of the train had already emptied out. What difference to the conductor would it have made if he let the rider stay for another few minutes? None, and he would have left an impression on the rider that someone recognizes that he's more than a ticket holder. He's a person.

I voiced this to the conductor, and tried to remind him that we aren't cattle being herded. I found myself getting far more upset than I should have. Oh, well.... I sign of MY AGE I guess. I told the conductor he was being a jerk, and the rider thanked me for trying. I would guess by the conductor's appearance and manner, that he had been doing this for MANY years. Time to take a break my friend. Maybe you can retire on that bogus disability plan that so many LIRR employees take advantage of.

Now get out of my way before I hit you with my umbrella!

Lights...are on!

I am very fond of Jamaica Estates, where I park the car frequently. Not so fond though, that I enjoyed coming back to my car at 9:45 PM to find I had left my lights on. I guess I shouldn't complain at all. This could have been a potentially awful situation.

I first tried to push the car northbound on Dalny. This proved futile, as I really couldn't get enough speed to pop-start it. I then managed to push the car through a 3 point turn in the middle of Dalny. I knew the Dalny intersected Hillside at the bottom of a small hill. My thinking was that if the pop-start idea still failed, I was in a better spot to get jump-started, or have someone find me. I called Pedro, and Abdul (who both live in Queens) to see if either were available for help, and got voicemail. So, I pushed towards Hillside.

By the time I reached the start of the hill I was almost running, and had to maneuver myself into the drivers seat, step on the clutch, put the car in third gear, and release the clutch with the ignition on. All without running myself over and sending the Fox, unmanned, into the middle of Hillside Ave. I succeeded in getting in the car, but the battery was so dead, I would have needed MUCH more speed to accomplish a successful pop-start. The car came to rest along the curb, about 15 feet from the corner.

No calls back from the guys, so I started to make it look like I needed help. Hood up, and jumper cables dangling from the fender. I was quite surprised that for a period of about 20 minutes I did not see one police car. Finally a good samaritan in a Nissan truck stopped and offered to jump start me. He seemed very interested in my car (which cost me about 1/100th what his did) and how it ran, what type of gas mileage it got, etc, etc.

After a successful start, I thanked him and offered him half of my order of 16 dumplings from Vanessa's. He didn't seem interested at first until I told him they were still warm.

Amy's Drawings and Such

Amy shot her portfolio and uploaded it to Flickr. Very Impressive!!

Mobile Post #1

I decided to start writing a little more. There's certainly enough going on to comment about. I'm still employed! I guess right now that's a big plus. I keep wondering about what I can do to expand my potential income. I think that concentrating on what you do best is the way to go. I already employ my troubleshooting skills for a living so what else do people think I do well? Writing for one. I'd like to get more exposure in both technical and culinary circles. Currently, I'm waiting for spring to have more material for the food blog. On the tech side, I still love reading and listening to the industry's critics. I think it's time to become one of them. Stay tuned.

Detroit

I just cannot continue to listen to the news without commenting on the sheer stupidity of some of what I hear. The UAW seems to think that the entire country will roll over and play dead. You REFUSE to take wage cuts? Hmmm... What are the choices again? Let me see.... Wage cuts, or... UNEMPLOYMENT! Don't they get it? The reason why Toyota and Honda are kicking their asses is because they are union free, and have learned how to make cars that the public actually wants. The Aztek should have been a cry for help in my opinion, by the way. How do you produce something so completely off the mark?

I wouldn't hesitate to guess that if you asked the Toyota and Honda US factory workers how they felt about their jobs that they would probably complain a whole lot less than their UAW counterparts too. You stubborn dinosaurs need to understand: Unions made sense back when you were fighting the sweat shops and other labor atrocities. These days all you are doing is ensuring out of proportion salaries, and over the top benefits for workers that are sucking one of our great industries dry.

Shame on Detroit for not getting tough and pushing back long ago. They should have threatened to take the plants to the same states that allow the Japanese to compete so well. Shame on Detroit for being so blind about the state of the word that they continued to market gas guzzlers to the public when we need to slow down and think about what we buy. Shame on Detroit for missing the mark so many times. Saturn was a great idea until they lost their autonomy and became like every other GM division, but then again, I look at all of this and think: Those who do not learn from their mistakes are condemned to repeat them. Bye Bye folks.

The Good, The Bad, and The Just Too Big For Their Corporate Britches

I've been having issues with retailers lately. Is there a point where your company gets so big that you completely detach yourself from any sign of intelligent decisions? I'm speaking of the Arkansas Death Star of course. Our friends at WalMart managed to get me a bit upset, and a lot confused recently.

Most large retailers have a web site where you can place orders. Most of them synchronize their pricing with their websites, or at least have a large disclaimer on an item stating WEB SPECIAL ONLY. Not WalMart! They have a website, with many of the same items you will find in the store, but it seems to be run as a separate entity. There is a disclaimer about this, but you have to dig to find it.

Ashley asked me to recommend a new digital camera for her before heading back to school recently. Amy, and I looked online and chose a Canon model we liked. WalMart had the best price (or so it seemed) of all of the retailers in the area. I printed the page out, and headed off to the store with Ashley. They had them in stock, but the price was $50 higher.

When I showed the printout to the clerk, she said "we don't match online prices".

I was confused. "This is YOUR online price", I said.

"Yes, I understand that sir. WalMart dot com is a separate entity and we don't match their prices", she said.

"That's crazy! What if I ordered it on the website to pick up here?" (which is an option) I asked.

"Then they would send one here for you to pick up", she answered.

She then added something to further confuse the situation. "We will match a local retailer, but no online companies."

Ohhh kayyyy.... "So you'll match a competitor but not your own website?"

"Yes sir"

"!!!!!!"

We ended up paying full price for the camera, simply because she wanted it for a trip the next day, and by this time, all of the other stores were closed. I found the disclaimer on WalMart.com. You have to order the item to be picked up at a store, and then it tells you about pricing policy. That's just bad business. When I sent a comment in explaining that competing with yourself is a bad idea, I got a canned response which was just a re-hash of what the clerk had said. Idiots!

So, that same weekend, I had received a promotional email from Big Lots for a Sunday night sale. The deal was 20% off my purchases, and they would be open until 9 PM. The exact wording stated that stores normally open till 6 on Sunday would be open to 9, and stores that were open to 7 or 8 would close at 10. I got to the Newburgh store at about 7:40 and shopped while I heard them announcing the store was closing. I went up to ask if the announcements were for everyone or were they staying open for the sale. I was told that they weren't staying open. I showed them the email flier, but I was told that their manager said they didn't have to stay. The woman behind me took it a step further by explaining that her flier had been handed to her IN THE STORE the previous weekend. Didn't matter, and they closed, and we all left.

I sent a comment in on the corporate website the same night I sent the Walmart one. The NEXT DAY, I received a call from the Northeast district manager for Big Lots. He wanted to personally apologize for the mistake, and offer me another 20% off coupon to make up for it. He said he had been on the phone all morning apologizing to people. Are you listening WalMart? are you reading this? Probably not.

On the upside, I also had a fantastic shopping experience with no reason to complain recently. The store was DSW. It's not easy for me to buy shoes, and takes awhile. The clerk, Sarah, was friendly, helpful, patient, and I love my shoes. Nice job DSW. You should open a school for the other ones.

Goodbye to a Friend

I've been putting off writing this for a few days. This past week, I said goodbye to a loyal friend. Sammi came to our family as a rescued dog, by way of the Dutchess County SPCA and Ashley's boyfriend. She was a large lab-mix who never seemed to understand that she wasn't a lap dog. Sammi showed an extreme level of affection to my family and was always protective of us. At times, her anxieties got the better of her, and she would become hard to handle, even scratching us, or once or twice, biting someone in the process. Still, she knew when she had done something wrong, and showed us how sorry she was. She always knew when I was upset and cuddled close to try to help, and did the same with the kids. As bad as she jumped on us, she never jumped on Alec when he was small, somehow knowing that he was more fragile.

We were told once by the vet that Sammi was a very visual dog. Most dogs recognize by scent first and sight last. Sammi used her sight more he had said. This became apparent about a year ago when my brother Paul came by to visit. Paul had just gone through extensive chemo-therapy, and radiation treatment. Sammi and our Cocker Spaniel, Obi, Always loved Paul, and would go wild when he came by to visit. They say that your scent changes when you go through treatments like Paul did. Obi didn't know who he was and growled at him the whole night. Sammi, however was confused for a few seconds and then recognized him. She was so happy to see him, but was also a little more gentle that night and very clingy to him, somehow knowing what he was going through I guess. She was always such a perceptive animal.

Unfortunately, her mind started to go this year. After she had bitten a pedestrian last year, we started to get a bit nervous, but got even more nervous as she started repeatedly jumping the fence in the backyard and getting loose. this led to constant chaining or leashing when outside. You could tell she hated it, but we had no choice. Then the anxieties started. She was always nervous when there were loud noises. She would pace around during thunderstorms before, but now she started to shake, and lose control. This got so bad that I was quite sure she was going to have a heart attack one night. You could see the terror in her eyes. Convulsing, and jaw chattering. I held her most of the night, trying to calm her down, but it didn't help.

Marti had told me how bad this was, but it was hard to believe until I saw it myself. Through all of this she developed other phobias. One where she started refusing to go to the bathroom outside. Something behind the garage scared her into not wanting to go back there anymore. When Obi would cough, she would get nervous. When we dropped something on the floor she would run and hide. It was getting worse.

Marti is alone during the week and can't handle an animal like this. I can't have her in Jersey City, and Ashley can't take her to college. We can't give her to anyone because I won't lie! I have to admit that she bit two people, unprovoked, and the anxiety issues have to be revealed too. There was a farm in the country that rehabilitated animals and people together, but they would not take her either. After watching her almost die from her own terror that night, we knew there was only one thing to do.

Sammi left us quietly and peacefully this past week at the vets office. Ashley held her while she slept. Stephanie and Davey were there for support. I hope Ashley never has to do that again, but I have told her that she did the right thing. I kept telling myself that there was something else we could have done, but it kept coming back to the look in her eyes the other night, and knowing that it would be the end of her.

She left with her loved ones there. Free of anxiety and pain. I will miss her. Goodbye Sammi. Please say hi to your Uncle Paul, and keep him company. I know how much you always loved him. I know he felt the same way.

Can we go a whole year without losing someone we love now? Please?

Spam Spasms

I really like a few of these. There are two trends here. One is a shocking subject line. I love they way they have two disasters, and a new Nokia phone. Is the other kind of subject I highlighted here supposed to intrigue me? NO Mr. Spammer.... I believe YOU have the stupid face. No, YOU DO! No, YOU DO!

Welcome to visitors from Slashfood

I recently became a regular contributor over at Slashfood. Feel free to go check out my posts (many of which are already here, but not all of them). This has been a great adventure. I can't wait to see where it's all going.>