Euchre

Finally, a worthy successor to my post... They weren't beans, and it wasn't an abacus, but... (No, sadly that isn't my personal 128 bytes of core memory.)

OK kids, your 'old RAM' isn't that old. Here's a 72 pin EDO SIMM, 32 megabytes. Well, this one is down to 24, as 2 of the chips have popped off from the keys and keyring pushing on them. Bonus punch down tool for ethernet connectors. I save a few dead sticks to use for this, and this is my second one - the first one, half the chips popped off and I tossed it. I figure this keychain means I won't forget where my keys are. ?

I'm coming at it from the perspective that we the tech savvy are the ones who get asked about these things, often too late, by those 'masses' of non-tech savvy people - so if we had a good way to respond to it, and ways to help those that we deal with, it would be great. I've felt sad and angry at the same time toward people who I know are being scammed, but won't listen, and since I am either not targeted or don't listen to a scammer long enough to find out what their game is, I don't know how to counter the things the scammers are literally saying into the target's ear, until it is too late and I'm hearing about the latest scam after many, many victims have fallen for it.

If it is going to be just a single thread, which subforum would it be in, and can it be pinned by the mods? I would love to see discussion not only of tactics, including new ones and new premises used, but also ways to convince people not to fall for the scams, and how to get them to accept and admit when they have, and get them to report them. One huge reason scams persist is the people that fall for them either don't believe (or want to believe) they've been scammed, or that they're too ashamed to admit it and get help. Working retail, I'm on the front line trying to stop people from falling for scams, and it is often sadly not easy. Had a lady trying to buy hundreds of dollars in Apple iTunes cards, because she believed the government had money she was owed, and that she was going to pay a 'fee' using those cards to get thousands of dollars. It took 2 levels of refusals to sell her the cards to get her to admit she could really use the money so she wanted to believe it was real.

This is the info we didn't get that is completely critical. If 'dad' just wants to log into his Gmail and check Facebook, all he really needs is a Chromebook. If his idea of 'games' is solitaire or other super simple, lightweight stuff, a streambook with Windows could easily suffice.

I just watched the 11-13 episode of Techlinked, and that is not really a 'slow paced' video. I then restarted watching it at 1.5x speed, and it essentially cuts the 'lag' out, potentially killing some dramatic pauses, but helping keep the pace fast for those just wanting to ingest the content faster and move on. At 1.75x, it starts to be hard to follow, especially because the speech becomes chattery. At 2x, it is pretty much a joke. Now, this was on an informational video done with some sense of aesthetic of fun. If you were watching a dramatic presentation with nuances of expression, it would probably ruin it. If you are just watching something dialog driven, especially with expository dialog, 1.5x probably wouldn't hurt much - you'd still know that Bob slept with Alice while Jack was in Mexico doing some cocaine mule runs. So, speeding stuff up really depends a lot on the nature of content.

Wow, that resolution... All the width of a 1080p display, with just a bit more height than an old 640x480 4:3 CRT. Not exactly an ideal display for gaming. Probably would be nice for video or audio editing if you could move the timeline display onto it as a discreet thing.

Is there a sticker with manufacturer info on the back of that? Might help in finding out what the actual native resolution of it is, which will matter a lot in how you can send a signal to it. The DVI connector is digital (no pins around the spade), and is dual link, so you might not support the display properly if your video card only does DVI single link (not meaning 2 connectors mind you, but difference in pin array in the DVI connector).

The adapters will tell you right on them the voltage range they are rated for, albeit in very tiny print. Many are 'global' and will work 100-220v AC. Those marked as such will just need a physical adapter to plug in to your local socket. Of course, the part of the charger that plugs into the wall, in (at least) the case of an iPhone with a factory charger, is completely moot - because it is a separate 'brick' and cord. The cord is just a USB A to Lightning cord, so you can just use a local power compatible brick from wall socket power to USB A, since USB A will be a standard voltage globally. Be sure the amperage/wattage rating is at least as much as the factory charger. One shows amps vs the other showing watts? Here: https://www.rapidtables.com/calc/electric/Amp_to_Watt_Calculator.html https://www.rapidtables.com/calc/electric/Watt_to_Amp_Calculator.html I did say 'at least' BTW, because many if not most cell phones come with such 2 piece chargers. Reason for this is the 'brick' is the only item that needs to be different in phones packaged for any given location in the world.

It is hard to say he shouldn't do more like it, because I laughed so damn hard at that video. One of few of his I've watched more than once.

You could use an SSD via the conventional SATA headers, too. The system basically doesn't care if you use all SSDs via all possible interfaces.

I see on the choice of mobo there's an mSATA slot. Not exactly an SSD, but if you get a smaller capacity that is big enough for at least installing Windows, it'll help in performance, vs having it all depend on a conventional hard drive. A $50 price point can get you 32-64gb of mSATA storage.

I think the big issue people have is that this hasn't been transparent, and that they are not just actively buoying up certain channels, the process also actively suppresses others. I've always wondered why Kimmel was being shoved in my face, and now I know. I basically never watch late night talk shows, nor clips from them. I can watch tech channels like LTT, and yet it is rare if ever YouTube suggests many truly similar interest channels, like Gamer's Nexus. It took a lot for YouTube to suggest a lot of the retro gaming and tech channels that I've found, even after I had to find them organically. Most ironically to me is that YouTube originally represented a great opportunity for everything from broad to niche appeal to have truly equal access to a facility of distribution. Now, they're pushing the most shallow stuff that probably doesn't need help, while actively suppressing the offbeat or unique stuff. Turns out advertisers are the real customer, and the viewers are the product.

When I've heard the 3-2-1 standard, the 2 was not 2 copies, but 2 formats, and one of them usually meant to be very durable, like DVDs or conventional hard drives. The simpler and more inert, the better, hence why a DVD backup is still kind for ultra durable backups. If the content is meant to be permanent copy, it should be on archival quality media. If it is content that will be completely superseded on the next backup, you don't need that more expensive quality of media. This also can mean your offsite can be offline - like a safety deposit box in a bank vault. A hard drive or DVD stored in such a place is unlikely to be threatened by anything other than a seriously catastrophic incident. Geography matters too - your offsite should be far enough away to not be impacted by the same events as your original copies. Consider the wildfires in California; if your neighbor or even your local bank branch is your offsite, and they both burn, better hope their fire protection where it is stored is better than your own. In Florida I used to point out that hurricanes could wipe out things across half the state, so sending your backup to your relatives in the next town was no guarantee of safety.

This does a few possible things, actually... If they were attempting to reset the password to any account, and it asks for a mobile number to send the reset code to, you just allowed them to use YOUR phone to reset the password. Now YOU look like the person that stole said account. Also, the link sent could allow them to install malware to continue using your mobile number to do resets or any number of other things. I doubt your phone provider will even notice any changes right away. Also, they may not care, as you are liable for charges made to your number, even if you're a prepaid customer - and if you use autopay, your instruments of payment will be charged, and good luck getting it back. It would help to know the actual number or short code the 'special code' you got came from, instead of that 'QP PROMOT' that shows as the source. You'd have to read or show the raw source of the text message. At the very least, you confirmed your mobile number for a flood of spam, which may include scams, and the people that talked to you may be getting paid per number captured to get verified numbers. One way or another this was definitely a scam. Never, ever give some random person your number, but especially do NOT give them a code you receive as a result. You could be helping to steal an account, and you could have to prove you weren't the one doing it.

Gee, Google is buying all of the connected device companies, so they can own the 'internet of things'. Imagine that, Google wants to own 'the internet of things'.

You're able to collect data in the future? Man, we gotta talk about some lottery numbers!

As for the first part, please tell me you clicked the link, and got the reference. The second part? You forgot to add "while digging deeply into their pockets to find out how much they screwed over the franchise."

Glad to see people saying 'both', and even the Babylon 5 reference - I was thinking "Dune?", or that a Firefly faithful would appear. There's a lot more to sci-fi/fantasy, space based, high tech fiction than just the 'Stars'. As for all the discussion of what went wrong with Star Wars, the real cause is basically the same as the problems with Star Trek - they did not follow a proper continuity. Canon only matters much if it can properly flow from one part of the franchise universe to another, and that's what you call continuity. The 'reboot' trend is wrecking a LOT of franchises. With Star Wars, it all started with Lucas making 2 moves that started stumbling the whole deal. One was his own artistic obsession, trying to constantly refine things that were already established - can we say "Han shot first"? He almost didn't give us the prequels, because he was so caught up in his own revisionist thinking about the original trilogy. Shortly after the prequels, he said he'd hung it up again and wouldn't make the sequels. Only the purchase by Disney made them truly possible. All the open criticisms you see from Lucas now about where Star Wars has gone is largely based on his own torments over trying to refine and revise his art to the never achievable perfection. Lucas' second mistake was getting a bit too loose with fan expansion acceptance. When he basically said just about anything fans (and licensed writers, for that matter) made was pretty much canon, he lost control of much of the universe. Now you've got people complaining about 'canon' that he never created nor controlled being 'violated'. Huge, huge mistake. This is why Disney has Kevin Feige curating the whole of the MCU - nobody is going to screw up the continuity there, if he can prevent it. Star Trek fell victim to expansion, which led to too many directors and producers wanting their own special interpretations and twists on the franchise, and inevitably led to failures in continuity. Retcon as hard as you can, some things you can't fix. JJ Abrams can be a brilliant director, but good lord can he also take a franchise someone else created and send it totally off the rails.

Cheap paint brushes, cotton swabs, canned air, and an air compressor, depending on what parts are being cleaned. Some things to be cautious about, mostly revolving around static charge and moisture: Before using paint brushes, try brushing them against a large piece of plastic like your TV's housing, then brush it against a grounded object like plumbing pipe. If you get a static discharge, use a different brush. Natural fiber brushes are less likely to do this. Do not hold canned air upside down when cleaning parts. Also, don't try 'supercooling' a component with them this way, unless you are willing to destroy the IC by cracking or shattering it. When using an air compressor, be sure the tank has been drained of condensation first. If you don't know how to drain it, or when it was last drained, don't use it. You can spray a fine mist of moisture deep into your system and components. If you plan to use your compressor for such cleaning regularly, get a line dryer. The more humid it is, the faster your compressor will accumulate moisture. If it is especially dry, static discharge can happen from sustained application of air. If you use a vacuum, the same danger of static discharge applies as for using a compressor in dry conditions. I use swabs to get into fans and heatsinks without having to remove them. A damp paper towel is what I use on fans or heatsinks that are completely removed from the hardware.

So instead of giving you something like a J series Samsung, he gives you a phone that costs 1.5-2.5x as much.

Analog or digital, I suspect the real issue is the native resolution of the displays being different. If they aren't both 1080p, sending identical signals is going to make one of them look bad. I suspect the VGA connected display is actually lower resolution than 1080p, which will actually result in an image that looks like mud. I once tried connecting a TV using S-video output from a PC, which was simultaneously connected to a VGA monitor. The monitor's native resolution was 1024x768, and the TV's was 854x480 (480p 16:9 'widescreen'). The TV's image looked like a muddy version of the monitor's image. The video output was just using the same higher res on both. If I turned the res down, the TV looked OK - but you know how chunky and small a 480p desktop is? So, what are the native resolutions of both displays?

I'd like to ask why you changed platform? If you don't generally see the similarities between how the various platforms work, it is usually best to stay on the one you've found easiest to learn and are then accustomed to.

I expect the cops aren't going to get anywhere with this, because a similar concept - the flashing of headlights - has repeatedly been upheld as First Amendment protected free speech in the US courts. This is pretty much the same idea. You can't really tell people they can't publicly speak about having seen a cop sitting in wait trying to catch 'speeders'. As for 'why not just not speed', that's not all the cops in a 'trap' are really looking for. They will look for someone who is breaking any law that is a 'primary cause' for a stop, which in some states includes seatbelt use and cell phone use. It could also include a headlight out, even if it is a DRL in broad daylight. Most true 'traps' are set up to leverage obscure changes in speed limits or geography that favors slight violations from otherwise honest people. A lot of speed traps are set up around writing lots of small speed margin tickets, on the expectation nobody will fight them, and generate lots of easy revenue. So, not everyone is some sinister death on wheels plague that get snared in a speed trap. In the end, speed trap warnings are likely to slow down people who want to be compliant with the law, and otherwise travel safely. Believe it or not, that's the main point of even pulling anyone over - getting drivers to slow down, including those merely passing the cop with someone pulled over. On my last road trip, we were using Google Maps Navigation in a rental car connected by Android Auto, and it alerted to speed traps. I'd not had that before, and what it mostly did was make me aware that those without the app in use would be jamming on the brakes soon as they caught sight of the cop. It actually made things safer for me, and I could tell which other drivers were using it or Waze, and the effect was that most traffic was slowing down. Sounds like the 'warning' actually enhances safety, and if anything is bothering the cops, it is the interruption in revenue generation.