Tuesday, January 31, 2006

Computer Worm Threatens Major Destruction Friday

FOXNews.com - Technology News - Computer Worm Threatens Major Destruction Friday: Friday may be D-day, as in 'destruction day,' for millions of Windows computer users.

That's the day a notably pesky e-mail worm, variously called 'Nyxem.E,' 'CME-24,' 'BlackWorm,' 'Mywife.E,' 'KamaSutra' and 'VB.bi,' among other names, is set to detonate its deadly payload.

Once activated, the worm will corrupt all documents on a infected machine with the following file extensions: .dmp, .doc, .mdb, .mde, .pdf, .psd, .ppt, .pps, .rar, .xls and .zip.

That means almost all files created using Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel or Microsoft PowerPoint could be lost forever, as well as 'raw' Adobe Photoshop files, PDF files used by Adobe Acrobat and competing PDF readers, and several kinds of database and compression files.

Hundreds of thousands of Windows machines are believed to have already been infected, mostly in India, Peru, Turkey and Italy, said Mikko Hypponen, chief research officer for Finnish security company F-Secure Corp."

Click Here For Removal Tool:
http://www.f-secure.com/tools/f-force.zip
UnZip this one into a Temp directory.

And The Database File:
http://www.f-secure.com/download-purchase/latest.zip
Save this as is (Do Not UnZip) into the Temp directory you created above.

Double Click on f-force.exe in the temp directory to start the scan.

Yes you need both!

Monday, January 30, 2006

Your Sexual Type?

Personality Quiz fun test site - Sexual type: "The clothes you wear, your home furnishings and the car you drive all give clues to your sexual personality. The key is the colors you select for most of your possessions. Most people claim they haven't a favorite color & go on to claim it's Black. But look around you, and you'll notice a pattern, especially in your clothing and home decor. The predominant color for you is the one that appears most frequently - it's the one that mirrors the sexual you. This test is the simplified form of a test used by psychologists. It explains the association between color and sexual patterns."

Breath Capture?

"Everyone is born with it. A desire to be near the ones we care about most. And we find ways to remember them when they're away. A lock of hair. Letters. An old photo. And now there's Breath Capture™. Capture the breath of a loved one or friend and keep them close. Forever."

Don't forget to click on the 'Not Sure About Breath Capture?' button, found on the lower left side of the site.

Sunday, January 29, 2006

I'm Sick Of The Rain!

Are You?

Bach Wine Glass Music

I can play 'Happy Birthday' with my hand and armpit!

Invasion!

This short by Neill Blomkamp depicts a fictional world where extraterrestrials have become refugees in South Africa. Producers: Neill Blomkamp, Simon Hansen, Sharlto Copley, Shannon Worley.

Very well done, makes you think.

13 Things That Do Not Make Sense

New Scientist SPACE - Features - 13 things that do not make sense

Things that make you go Hmmmmm?

Local Earthquake

"Magnitude 2.8 - PORTLAND URBAN AREA, OREGON January 29, 2006"

Check out the 'Did You Feel It?' link. pretty interesting.

In-N-Out 100X100 Burger Please!

These guys go to a burger joint and ask for a burger with 2 buns and 100 patties with cheese in between! Yikes!

Fear Of Girls...

A short film of two guys who are really in to D&D ! Quite funny.

Saturday, January 28, 2006

Tee Shirt Folding Machine For Pennies!

I'm making one of these!



Note: The site is in French, but watching the movie is all you need, to be able to make one of these little gems.

Thursday, January 26, 2006

Wow, Bad Day For This Guy...

Flatulence Filter Seat Cushions by GasBGon

Flatulence Filter Seat Cushions by GasBGon: "You no longer have to be embarrassed by the untimely passing of intestinal gas among your friends or family. GasBGon has been designed and tested to absorb the odor and sound of flatulence. Malodorous gas is a naturally occurring event, obviously affecting some people more than others. Yet, clinical studies show that the average person produces one to three pints of gas and passes gas 14 times a day."

I could not have made this up if I tried!

THE "BRIEF SAFE"

THE "BRIEF SAFE" - Shomer-Tec Inc.: "The 'Brief Safe' is an innovative diversion safe that can secure your cash, documents, and other small valuables from inquisitive eyes and thieving hands, both at home and when you're traveling. Items can be hidden right under their noses with these specially-designed briefs which contain a fly-accessed 4' x 10' secret compartment with Velcro closure and 'special markings' on the lower rear portion."

Scientists develop bird flu vaccine

Scientists develop bird flu vaccine: "University of Pittsburgh scientists say they've genetically engineered an avian flu vaccine that has proven 100 percent effective in mice and chickens."

Wednesday, January 25, 2006

The Best Time To Buy?

The best time to buy everything: "From televisions and toys to cars and computers, how you can save big by knowing when to spend."

CD Vendors: Once burnt, twice sure

PC World CD Vendors: Once burnt, twice sure: "Don't panic - your valuable data is safe on CD after all, according to recordable disk manufacturers.

Two CD makers have hit back at recent claims by storage experts that users of recordable disks are in danger of losing their information as the disks deteriorate.

Recordable disk vendors TDK and Memorex claim their disks are a reliable archival media that will stand the test of time (See previous Blog story) Do Burned CDs Have a Short Life Span?.

TDK says its products will last 70 years if cared for properly and Memorex is releasing a new range of 24-karat gold-based media that it claims will last over a lifetime, regardless of environmental conditions."

Saturday, January 21, 2006

Always...

set your parking brake!

Fun With Thermite!

How to Get Great Sleep

Psychology Today: How to Get Great Sleep: "For many of us, bedtime can be a torment. Ironically, when it comes to sleep, we're our own worst enemy. Our efforts to get some rest often turn one fitful night into full -- blown insomnia."

Friday, January 20, 2006

The Slanket!

It's a blanket with sleeves! Oh, I do indeed need one of these!

Funny & Scary!

Thank You!

Deb & I thank everyone for their kind words, support and care during our sad times. Every day gets better, but it will indeed take some time. All of you have made this a much easier process for both of us, I am sure!

Wednesday, January 18, 2006

We'll Never Forget Her...


Sadly and suddenly our cat Urza passed away last night. She lived a great 10+ years and enriched our lives greatly. She will forever be part of our family and her memory will always live in our hearts.

Urza Whitten 1995 - 2006

3 Percent Fee On Cell Phones Started 107 Years Ago

NewsNet5.com - Money - 3 Percent Fee On Cell Phones Started 107 Years Ago: "There is a call to repeal a cell phone tax most people probably don't even know they are paying, NewsChannel5 partner ONN reported.

Anybody who has ever tried to decipher a cell phone bill knows how tough it can be. One of the charges is a 3 percent fee on every cell phone bill in America. The origin of the tax predates the invention of the cellular phone by nearly a century.

Annie Brinkman and her friend, Stacey Lemle, don't know it, but every time they use their cell phones, they are supporting the war effort -- the Spanish-American War."

Saturday, January 14, 2006

My Cat Is Watching HDTV!

My Cat Is Watching HDTV!: "My Cat Is Watching HDTV!

And she isn't alone. Many High-Definition TV owners report that their pets are having trouble distinguishing the realistic picture from reality itself. "

Thursday, January 12, 2006

My Landing At PDX

Arrived home from Bakersfield, California today... And this is how my landing felt!

Wednesday, January 11, 2006

Do Burned CDs Have a Short Life Span?

PCWorld.com - Do Burned CDs Have a Short Life Span?: "Opinions vary on how to preserve data on digital storage media, such as optical CDs and DVDs. Kurt Gerecke, a physicist and storage expert at IBM Deutschland, has his own view: If you want to avoid having to burn new CDs every few years, use magnetic tapes to store all your pictures, videos and songs for a lifetime.

'Unlike pressed original CDs, burned CDs have a relatively short life span of between two to five years, depending on the quality of the CD,' Gerecke says. 'There are a few things you can do to extend the life of a burned CD, like keeping the disc in a cool, dark space, but not a whole lot more.'"

Tuesday, January 10, 2006

The Law & Your Shower!

The Bureaucrat in Your Shower - Mises Institute: "You might have some vague memory from childhood, and perhaps it returns when visiting someone who lives in an old home. You turn on the shower and the water washes over your whole self as if you are standing under a warm-spring waterfall. It is generous and therapeutic. The spray is heavy and hard, enough even to work muscle cramps out of your back, enough to wash the conditioner out of your hair, enough to leave you feeling wholly renewed - enough to get you completely clean."

Somehow, these days, it seems nearly impossible to recreate this in your new home. You go to the hardware store to find dozens and dozens of choices of shower heads. They have 3, 5, 7, even 9 settings from spray to massage to rainfall. Some have long necks. Some you can hold in your hand. Some are huge like the lid to a pot and promise buckets of rainfall. The options seem endless.

But you buy and buy, and in the end, they disappoint. It's just water, and it never seems like enough. Why? As with most things in life that fall short of their promise, the government is involved. There are local regulations. Here is one example of a government regulation on the matter, from the Santa Cruz City Water Conservation Office: "If you purchased and installed a new showerhead in the last ten years, it will be a 2.5 gpm [gallons-per-minute] model, since all showerheads sold in California were low consumption models beginning in 1992."

This fine article includes instructions on how to hack your shower head and bring back that refreshing shower of yester-year.

TiVo Series 3 - First Look!

Alright TiVo people, here is what is coming next. This link includes video.

Tuesday, January 03, 2006

How NOT To Top A Tree!

Windows PCs Face "Huge" Virus Threat

FT.com / By industry / IT - Windows PCs face "huge" virus threat: "Computer security experts were grappling with the threat of a new weakness in Microsoft's Windows operating system that could put hundreds of millions of PCs at risk of infection by spyware or viruses.

The news marks the latest security setback for Microsoft, the world's biggest software company, whose Windows operating system is a favourite target for hackers.

"The potential [security threat] is huge," said Mikko Hypponen, chief research officer at F-Secure, an antivirus company. "It's probably bigger than for any other vulnerability we've seen. Any version of Windows is vulnerable right now."

The flaw, which allows hackers to infect computers using programs maliciously inserted into seemingly innocuous image files, was first discovered last week. But the potential for damaging attacks increased dramatically at the weekend after a group of computer hackers published the source code they used to exploit it. Unlike most attacks, which require victims to download or execute a suspect file, the new vulnerability makes it possible for users to infect their computers with spyware or a virus simply by viewing a web page, e-mail or instant message that contains a contaminated image.

"We haven't seen anything that bad yet, but multiple individuals and groups are exploiting this vulnerability," Mr Hypponen said. He said that every Windows system shipped since 1990 contained the flaw."

Don't Drive Behind A Boeing 747!

Monday, January 02, 2006

Almost Done

Todd stopped by today and replaced the damaged roof tiles with the brand new ones. If you look up on the roof now, you would never know that 20+ feet of timber crashed down on it.

I re-screened the slider for the bedroom deck access door, removed all of the drip pans from up in the attic, and re-fluffed the insulation smashed down by my many trips back and forth to the repair area.

So, other than the patio furniture, and replacing the damaged deck railing, we are done with the whole sorted mess! Going back to work will seem like a break after all of this.

Sunday, January 01, 2006

Dead Trees Go Down!

The weather cleared, and it was time to take out the dead trees. It is hard to believe that only a week ago the tree strike saga started. The day began with plans to go down and play in the mud with the quads, but then the sun came out, and the wind stopped blowing.

I fired up the Jeep and headed down into the swamp to run a safely cable to prevent any more accidents involving the house and falling trees. I was only half way down the hill when I realized that I was just a big sled on a slide full of mud. It became obvious that the angle was wrong, the cable was too short from that side and the mud was too soft. Now, how to get the Jeep back up the hill. From the point where I came to a stop at the bottom of the hill all the way back to the top, there was not one inch of ground covered without the aid of the winch!

I finally made it back to the top and positioned myself on the on the other side of the house up on the hill and out of the mud. I ran the winch cable down the hill and used a tree strap and pulley anchored to a large (stable) tree and then ran the cable back up the hill to the intended victims.

Todd positioned the tree strap as high up the trunks as possible, to each tree and then attached the cable hook. I spooled in the winch and pulled the trees down and away from the house. Ray would then fire up his chain saw and one by one they all came crashing down as Deb snapped photos.


That is me fighting a losing battle against a blackberry vine, while hooking up the anchor point.





Yup, that is Todd up on the ladder. Trying to get the straps as high as we can.

Ray and I prepping the winch before the pulling can begin.

Todd and Ray positioning the cuts properly so the tree goes where we want it to.

Ray running the saw, like a real man!

Ray running like a little girl!

... And down it goes.

How about another one.

At the end of the day 4 dead trees down on the ground...where they can't hurt anyone!

We trimmed off the stumps as low as we could, and left the downed trees on the ground to be cut up and stacked later for fire wood. Glad to have that little chore done. Now, next time there is a wind storm I can look out the friggen window safely! My thanks goes out to all the helpers on this job, but honesty, getting to drop a big tree and hear it crash to the ground... IS A TON OF FUN!

Credit to Deb for taking all of the photos in this blog article. I am especially impressed with the action shots of the trees going down.

Oh yea, we did get some quad riding in... Don't worry!

New Yellbox!

Alright, I have heard enough! "I tried to comment, but it's too confusing." or "What are those letters I have to type in about?" So, I am testing out a new feature for 2006 that allows to you to just type your name, (or handle) and then type your message. It could not be easier! Have fun and keep it clean!

Thanks,

Management.

P.S. Remember, that everyone who visits this site will see your comments! Abusers will be banned! (Yes, I really can do that.)