Saturday, April 25, 2009
Limbs Across the Ocean
Andrea Wulf has a fascinating essay about the early history of American and British gardening over at the Wall Street Journal. Go check it out. Anything with Benjamin Franklin in it is well worth reading.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Tough Talk
Ann Althouse has a link to an article about Milwaukee and openly carrying a firearm. In the article is the following quote from the Milwaukee Chief of Police: "My message to my troops is if you see anybody carrying a gun on the streets of Milwaukee, we'll put them on the ground, take the gun away and then decide whether you have a right to carry it".
That statement bothers me. And the point of concern is less about gun laws, than attitude. Even if you believe that citizens should not be allowed to carry firearms, you still should be concerned about the use of the word 'troops' when discussing police.
Troops are properly cavalry soldiers, but modern usage has expanded to cover all soldiers, especially those who are in combat.
Historically, police in America have not been militarized. Other countries do have militarized police (such as the gendarmes in France). These specialized police qare employed to maintain order and to protect the current regime from rebellion. As such they enjoy a special status within the society.
In the U.S. police are regarded at law as deputized citizens. The maintenance of order is a collective responsibility, not just that of the police. More to the point, we believe that they are also to maintain a certain level of justice.
Troops have nothing to do with justice and everything to do with order. The use of military terms when referring to police implies that they are at war with the rest of society, or some element thereof, instead of being part of society at large.
I do not think I would enjoy living in Milwaukee. I really do not wish to live in a city where the police are waging war.
That statement bothers me. And the point of concern is less about gun laws, than attitude. Even if you believe that citizens should not be allowed to carry firearms, you still should be concerned about the use of the word 'troops' when discussing police.
Troops are properly cavalry soldiers, but modern usage has expanded to cover all soldiers, especially those who are in combat.
Historically, police in America have not been militarized. Other countries do have militarized police (such as the gendarmes in France). These specialized police qare employed to maintain order and to protect the current regime from rebellion. As such they enjoy a special status within the society.
In the U.S. police are regarded at law as deputized citizens. The maintenance of order is a collective responsibility, not just that of the police. More to the point, we believe that they are also to maintain a certain level of justice.
Troops have nothing to do with justice and everything to do with order. The use of military terms when referring to police implies that they are at war with the rest of society, or some element thereof, instead of being part of society at large.
I do not think I would enjoy living in Milwaukee. I really do not wish to live in a city where the police are waging war.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
They're Back!
And that is a very good thing. Chestnuts that is. With a little luck, our children or grandchildren may very well see chestnuts in the wild again.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Computer Smugness
Do you know someone who has a Mac? Are they smug when you mention a computer virus? Here's some interesting news for your Macfriend.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
He Is Risen
In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it.
His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men. And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.
He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.
And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you.And they departed quickly from the sepulchre with fear and great joy; and did run to bring his disciples word.
And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail. And they came and held him by the feet, and worshipped him.
Matthew 28:1-9
Friday, April 10, 2009
This Pretty Much Nails It
I am 48 years old. I can not recall a more disastrous start to a Presidency. Even Carter didn't start off this bad, and that is saying something.
Our Fearless Leader may as well just start wearing size 51 shoes and a red nose.
Our Fearless Leader may as well just start wearing size 51 shoes and a red nose.
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
Sunday, April 05, 2009
More Pen Nerdiness
Below is a comparison of two pens. The Pigma Micron that I had been using and my shiny new Waterford Marquis. It's moderately unfair as the Micron puts down a very fine line and the Waterford is a medium nib. But when I use a medium point on ballpoints or felt tips I'm utterly illegible.
"If there is any principle of the Constitution that more imperatively calls for attachment than any other it is the principle of free thought, not free thought for those who agree with us but freedom for the thought that we hate."
Oliver Wendell Holmes
"If there is any principle of the Constitution that more imperatively calls for attachment than any other it is the principle of free thought, not free thought for those who agree with us but freedom for the thought that we hate."
Oliver Wendell Holmes
Friday, April 03, 2009
My Total Nerdiness
I know almost no one will be interested in this, but I bought myself a new toy today. Yes, rollerballs, gels and ballpoints are tidier. But ever since I was a boy, I've been fascinated by fountain pens. The store that sells them is almost as dangerous as a bakery or an art supply emporium.
Also, very little can surpass the feel and smell of a fountain pen on good quality paper.
Addendum: Isn't the Internet grand?
Also, very little can surpass the feel and smell of a fountain pen on good quality paper.
Addendum: Isn't the Internet grand?
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
They Are Following Me
Looks very much like I picked the wrong time to migrate from Windows to Linux. Microsoft is buying Novell.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Odd Association
Amazon recommendations usually come close to hitting the mark. Part of the fun is that they give the reason why they are recommending something. Generally it will be something along the lines of "you bought this specific printer, so here's the toner that it uses."
None of which explains this recommendation. The stated reason is because I bought these. Apparently people who like nuts also like graphics?
None of which explains this recommendation. The stated reason is because I bought these. Apparently people who like nuts also like graphics?
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Monday, March 23, 2009
Saturday, March 21, 2009
What I'm Up To
Last Thursday my primary computer came down with a virus (the Alureon trojan, to be exact). I still have no idea how in heck it contracted the bug.
At the time, my home network consisted of two desktop computers, one running windows xp home and the other running windows xp pro, and two laptops that connected to the internet via an access point on my main computer (the one that got sick). I was using AVG for computer security. All of this was hidden behind a home brewed router.
I have been using computers since I was a high school freshman in Chatham, NJ. Of course, back then it was all punch cards, paper tapes and mainframes. The very first PC I had was a dual floppy drive Zenith. I was an early installer of Windows and OS/2. I remember when Apples were cool, then when they were not and their rebirth as MacIntosh. I remember the Internet before AOL invaded. I am an oldskool computer geek.
Until recently, I've never fiddled much with desktop Linux. I had some minor familiarity with the server/networking side of the software, and I knew a little about firewalls and Linux. A while ago, I downloaded the 8.04 version of Ubuntu Linux, burnt it to a CD and watched it generate endless screens of garbage on the main PC for an hour or so.
Fiddling with hardware is usually fun, but really only when it is on my terms. Frantically trying to fix something when you need your computer to meet a deadline is unfun.
I spent most of Friday disinfecting my main computer. Because of the way my home network was set up, the virus did not spread beyond the one computer. It did successfully reinfect the main computer early Saturday morning. Never, ever remove a virus manually, then repair Windows. It never really turns out well.
Saturday I deleted Windows and reinstalled it. I disinfected all of the drives and my main computer was virus free. Of course, I then I had to reinstall a whole mess of software, which I did.
Since then, I've also installed Ubuntu 8.10, which is a distro of Linux. This time, I took the time to RTFM and the associated support documents. I signed up at the community forums and googled potential issues. And the install went very smoothly. The one real install issue I had, I finessed by buying a SATA Bluray/DVD/CD drive. (The issue was that my DVD burner was IDE off a Micron controller, whilst my hard drive was a Terabyte WD SATA drive off the Intel controller. Putting both drives on the same controller with updated drivers and running AHCI cured all ills.(That's what I get for having a really flexible motherboard))
I like Ubuntu, a lot. It is very different from Windows. The development team has worked wonders to get the typical user up and running as painlessly as possible. They have also done an excellent job at nurturing a support community.
The OS is rock solid and very stable. Locating appropriate software is also handled well. The default look is pretty nifty. Customizing it is simple. Total basic install time took me around an hour, at the end of which I had music, office software, printing, network and Internet.
Since the basic install, I've mostly fiddled and tweaked. Not out of any real necessity, but because that's what I do for fun.
Why the switch?
As I wrote above, I've been using Windows for a very long time. I still have installation media for Windows 3.11, Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows ME, Windows 2000, Windows XP (Home and Pro) and I have Windows Vista on my laptop.
Recently Steve Ballmer asked why Apple was worth a $500 premium. I started asking why Windows was worth a $200 premium.
The advantages of Windows are:
Most software is written for it. There is a huge install base of users, so that if you have a particular problem, the odds are great that someone else has had that problem as well. They may have, also, solved that problem.
Almost all PC games are written for Windows.
It comes installed on most computers. Therefore, our two laptops run different flavours of Windows.
Why then, the switch?
Ubuntu boots almost as fast as XP. My main computer runs programs faster on Ubuntu.
Linux is massively more secure than Windows. Part of this is due to tighter code writing. A good bit of it has to do with the lack of available targets for Linux malware. The dominance and ubiquity of Windows makes it a target rich environment.
I am bitterly tired of funding internet security companies. AVG, Norton, McAfee, Trend, Kaspersky, and Grisoft, I have tried them all. Because of how Linux handles users, even if my computer gets infected, I will be able to remove it fairly painlessly. Further, because valuable system overhead is not consumed by registry dead ends, security overhead and other effluvia my computer runs more quickly than under the old regime.
As for productivity software, I switched to Open Office three years ago. Open Office runs on Linux just fine, thank you very much. I mostly use web-based email these days, so losing Outlook distressed me not at all.
As for gaming, most of my computer gaming has been playing solitaire (number one game in the world for two decades), mah jongg and free cell. All of which are readily available in Windows, Linux or even on Macs. Sally plays Bejeweled, but that's a browser based game, so switching ruffled no feathers in that direction.
My browser has been Firefox for years now. Firefox is fully implemented on Linux.
Another part of it is that I wanted and needed a challenge. Admittedly, it's been less of a challenge than I thought previously, but the very flexibility of Linux means that I can continue to learn new things for quite some time.
In fact, the main problem I have had with the switch is that my documents print slower in Linux. Other people have the same issue, so it's apparently just one of those things. And I can live with that.
I'm keeping this computer on a dual boot setup with Windows XP and Ubuntu for now. But unless something untoward happens the day is fast approaching when I will jettison Windows completely.
Addendum: Apparently, I'm not the only one tired of the Redmond generated bloatware. John C Dvorak is migrating to Ubuntu as well.
At the time, my home network consisted of two desktop computers, one running windows xp home and the other running windows xp pro, and two laptops that connected to the internet via an access point on my main computer (the one that got sick). I was using AVG for computer security. All of this was hidden behind a home brewed router.
I have been using computers since I was a high school freshman in Chatham, NJ. Of course, back then it was all punch cards, paper tapes and mainframes. The very first PC I had was a dual floppy drive Zenith. I was an early installer of Windows and OS/2. I remember when Apples were cool, then when they were not and their rebirth as MacIntosh. I remember the Internet before AOL invaded. I am an oldskool computer geek.
Until recently, I've never fiddled much with desktop Linux. I had some minor familiarity with the server/networking side of the software, and I knew a little about firewalls and Linux. A while ago, I downloaded the 8.04 version of Ubuntu Linux, burnt it to a CD and watched it generate endless screens of garbage on the main PC for an hour or so.
Fiddling with hardware is usually fun, but really only when it is on my terms. Frantically trying to fix something when you need your computer to meet a deadline is unfun.
I spent most of Friday disinfecting my main computer. Because of the way my home network was set up, the virus did not spread beyond the one computer. It did successfully reinfect the main computer early Saturday morning. Never, ever remove a virus manually, then repair Windows. It never really turns out well.
Saturday I deleted Windows and reinstalled it. I disinfected all of the drives and my main computer was virus free. Of course, I then I had to reinstall a whole mess of software, which I did.
Since then, I've also installed Ubuntu 8.10, which is a distro of Linux. This time, I took the time to RTFM and the associated support documents. I signed up at the community forums and googled potential issues. And the install went very smoothly. The one real install issue I had, I finessed by buying a SATA Bluray/DVD/CD drive. (The issue was that my DVD burner was IDE off a Micron controller, whilst my hard drive was a Terabyte WD SATA drive off the Intel controller. Putting both drives on the same controller with updated drivers and running AHCI cured all ills.(That's what I get for having a really flexible motherboard))
I like Ubuntu, a lot. It is very different from Windows. The development team has worked wonders to get the typical user up and running as painlessly as possible. They have also done an excellent job at nurturing a support community.
The OS is rock solid and very stable. Locating appropriate software is also handled well. The default look is pretty nifty. Customizing it is simple. Total basic install time took me around an hour, at the end of which I had music, office software, printing, network and Internet.
Since the basic install, I've mostly fiddled and tweaked. Not out of any real necessity, but because that's what I do for fun.
Why the switch?
As I wrote above, I've been using Windows for a very long time. I still have installation media for Windows 3.11, Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows ME, Windows 2000, Windows XP (Home and Pro) and I have Windows Vista on my laptop.
Recently Steve Ballmer asked why Apple was worth a $500 premium. I started asking why Windows was worth a $200 premium.
The advantages of Windows are:
Most software is written for it. There is a huge install base of users, so that if you have a particular problem, the odds are great that someone else has had that problem as well. They may have, also, solved that problem.
Almost all PC games are written for Windows.
It comes installed on most computers. Therefore, our two laptops run different flavours of Windows.
Why then, the switch?
Ubuntu boots almost as fast as XP. My main computer runs programs faster on Ubuntu.
Linux is massively more secure than Windows. Part of this is due to tighter code writing. A good bit of it has to do with the lack of available targets for Linux malware. The dominance and ubiquity of Windows makes it a target rich environment.
I am bitterly tired of funding internet security companies. AVG, Norton, McAfee, Trend, Kaspersky, and Grisoft, I have tried them all. Because of how Linux handles users, even if my computer gets infected, I will be able to remove it fairly painlessly. Further, because valuable system overhead is not consumed by registry dead ends, security overhead and other effluvia my computer runs more quickly than under the old regime.
As for productivity software, I switched to Open Office three years ago. Open Office runs on Linux just fine, thank you very much. I mostly use web-based email these days, so losing Outlook distressed me not at all.
As for gaming, most of my computer gaming has been playing solitaire (number one game in the world for two decades), mah jongg and free cell. All of which are readily available in Windows, Linux or even on Macs. Sally plays Bejeweled, but that's a browser based game, so switching ruffled no feathers in that direction.
My browser has been Firefox for years now. Firefox is fully implemented on Linux.
Another part of it is that I wanted and needed a challenge. Admittedly, it's been less of a challenge than I thought previously, but the very flexibility of Linux means that I can continue to learn new things for quite some time.
In fact, the main problem I have had with the switch is that my documents print slower in Linux. Other people have the same issue, so it's apparently just one of those things. And I can live with that.
I'm keeping this computer on a dual boot setup with Windows XP and Ubuntu for now. But unless something untoward happens the day is fast approaching when I will jettison Windows completely.
Addendum: Apparently, I'm not the only one tired of the Redmond generated bloatware. John C Dvorak is migrating to Ubuntu as well.
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