Sometimes Christmas is much hustle and bustle, but it is also an opportunity to express our love and affection for all those we care about.
Here is wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas.
Tuesday, December 25, 2018
Saturday, December 15, 2018
My old neighborhood : Teen shot, 1 in custody in officer-involved shooting in Whiteland
Begin forwarded message:
From: Albert Nelms
Date: December 15, 2018 at 7:42:22 AM EST
To: John Coffey
Subject: Teen shot, 1 in custody in officer-involved shooting in Whiteland
Date: December 15, 2018 at 7:42:22 AM EST
To: John Coffey
Subject: Teen shot, 1 in custody in officer-involved shooting in Whiteland
Glad you "escaped" the violence in your old subdivision. 17 yr old teen shot multiple times by police at Harvest Meadow Way last night (?). The story is making headlines today.
Saturday, November 24, 2018
Artists Of Then, Now & Forever - Forever Country
I saw this on Facebook. I think that it is pretty awesome.
Friday, November 23, 2018
Corporations
I have worked for a few companies, and what I have noticed is that they often have relatively small teams working on projects of significant financial impact to the company. For example, 4 or 5 people might work on a project that would bring in a million dollars, or multiple millions of dollars of income to the company. This can vary depending upon the workload and the size of the project.
What this means is that the people doing the work have a heavy responsibility. If the project were to fail to meet expectations, it could cause significant financial damage to the company, and most likely end careers. One person falling down on the job could be disastrous.
Of course, management has a role too, because they have to negotiate contracts and make available the resources needed.
When I see something like a new iPhone come out, my first reaction is to think that maybe hundreds of people developed this product. However, my experience tells me that it probably was a small group of talented and dedicated people. iPhones might be a little different because the product has tens of billions in sales, so Apple probably devotes many resources to its development. I have heard rumors that some companies will have different teams of people compete with each other, which is something you only can afford to do if you are the richest company in the world.
Completely different from this, however, are the credits for major motion pictures. I watched the credits for "The Last Jedi", and at least 900 names scrolled by. It could have easily been over a thousand. Apparently, it takes a great many people to make a movie.
Thursday, November 8, 2018
Flash drives
Around 14 years ago 1GB flash drives were at least $90, and I felt especially privileged when my company gave me one. At the time that seemed like a lot of storage.
Now you can't even buy them. I just saw 128GB for $30.
Wednesday, October 31, 2018
Fleet of Worlds
Finishing "Fleet of Worlds" on audiobook for the second time. The last time I listened to it was a few years ago.
This is a pretty awesome science fiction novel. It is a prequel to the award winning 1970 novel Ringworld. I am surprised to learn that there are three other prequels that follow "Fleet of Worlds." Time for me to renew my audiobook membership.
Thursday, October 4, 2018
Thursday, September 27, 2018
Apple says that they charge so much because they make the best phone.
Apple wants to make the best so that they can have the most margin. It probably costs around $350 to make this phone, and maybe $400 for the maxed out models, but Apple screws the customer on price anyway. They could charge $750 to $800 for any of these phones and be doing well.
This is deliberate. Apple will continue to do this only as long as people are willing to throw their money away. If nobody bought the XS Max, with the ironic name, Apple would be forced to offer discounts and be more reasonable in their pricing structure.
I am still happy with my iPhone 6+, but these prices are so insane that I will not buy the latest models. I could be just as happy with a cheaper 1 to 2 year or model, or a different brand. There are $500 phones that people can be just as happy with.
A dollar per day will not pay for this phone in two years. Maybe three years, but some models would take four years.
Wednesday, September 26, 2018
Friday, September 21, 2018
This is what I saw on May 7nth, 2015.
This is what I saw on May 7nth, 2015. Just reminiscing. After a long trip, seeing this sign got me excited.
This is on I-74 next to the Illinois border.
Tuesday, September 18, 2018
Googol
Searching for the word "google" on Google did not give me the definition that I was looking for. It turns out the word I wanted was "googol". I assumed that they mean the same thing, but they do not.
Re: My day.
Facebook posts from yesterday:
Still trying to wrap my brain around the move. I'm not fully settled in yet. Still unpacking and dealing with a few issues. I'm not yet adjusted to my new surroundings.
Having to take a longer drive today to the Greenwood Chess Club, which is a club that I started, felt perfectly natural. I'm already used to driving between New Whiteland and Columbus at least once a week. I traded a 15 minute drive to the Greenwood Club for a 37 minute drive, but I save more than that by being very close to the Columbus Chess Club and being closer to my mother.
However, I did not return straight home. I went from the Greenwood Chess Club to my old house in New Whiteland just as I always have in the past. I needed to do a couple of things at the house and pick up a few items that didn't make it during the move. This very familiar drive back to my old house felt weird because I knew that I don't live there anymore. So did being in the mostly empty home.
Once again this describes my life:
Long John Silvers
On Tuesdays Long John Silvers has some pretty good fish tacos for just a dollar. One of these restaurants is about a mile from my old house and only half a mile from my new house, so today I ordered five of these things. However, I only eat one or two of the tacos a day.
--
My day.
A couple of Facebook posts I made:
I now have hot water.
I noticed that my water wasn't very hot, and in fact it wasn't hot at all. It was just that the water heater is in the garage where it is at least a hundred degrees, so I was able to take a shower with lukewarm water. Therefore I assumed that the water heater was working, but not very well and that it needed replacing. However, this morning my shower was pretty cold so I did some investigating.
I discovered that the pilot light on the water heater was not lit, so I read the instructions on how to light it. My first three attempts were not successful. The way this works is overly complicated, but after turning a couple of knobs the correct way you are suppose to press a button several times activating a piezoelectric crystal that sends a small electric spark to the pilot light. On my last attempt I pressed the button about ten times mostly out of frustration, and then I heard the thing light up.
My favorite Walmart is in Franklin mostly because it is not too big, nor is it too small. Also the parking lot is fairly straightforward and easy to get in and out of.
Compare this to the Walmart in Columbus off of tenth street, where the parking lot is more complicated with lanes going at weird angles. The same thing can be said of the Walmart in Greenwood, and it is even worse at the Walmart in Southport off of highway 31. When I lived in New Whiteland I didn't like going to either one of these Walmarts and would drive to Franklin instead.
The Walmart in Columbus is so large that it feels more like a chore to shop there. I traversed the length of the store both ways at least three times because I kept remembering things that I needed. If I want to do this efficiently, I need to plan better.
I ordered so many times from the deli at the Franklin Walmart that they know me by name there.
Wednesday, August 29, 2018
Moving to Columbus
FYI.
---------- Forwarded message ---------
Just curious, what made you decide to move to Columbus? Will you still be able keep running your club in Greenwood?
All the Best,
Al
There is an issue with
therailroad behind my house. The traffic is going to go from 8 trains per day to 22 and they will be twice as long. I've know about this for awhile, but
Ionly heard rumors, so I assumed incorrectly that I would have more time. I did some research and found out that it may be October.
I'm trading a drive to Columbus every week for an equal drive to Greenwood. But it already takes me 15 minutes to
get toGreenwood. Now it will be 36
minutes. I'll be a mile south of the Columbus Chess Club, and I
willsave 30 minutes to my mother's place.
Best wishes,
John Coffey
I see what you mean. I knew about the tracks near your subdivision, but I didn't know the trains were that active. Well, your decision to move makes sense now. I'm relieved to hear it's not something personal or tragic necessitating the move. If I could pick one small town to live in, away from Indianapolis, it would be Columbus.
From: John Coffey <john2001plus@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Aug 29, 2018 at 3:56 PM
Subject: Re: Moving to Columbus
To: Al Nelms <>
Date: Wed, Aug 29, 2018 at 3:56 PM
Subject: Re: Moving to Columbus
To: Al Nelms <>
The train tracks wrap around Mill Race Park in downtown Columbus. Because of a sharp bend, the trains will only be able to go 20 MPH through there. There is much concern about the trains blocking traffic, especially on the west side of town where the tracks cross highway 46, which is the main entrance into the town. This is thought to have such an impact on the city that they are going to build a 30 million dollar overpass there.
See the link: https://columbusrailroadproject.org/
Wednesday, August 8, 2018
A Scientist Spilled 2 Drops Organic Mercury On Her Hand. This Is What Happened To Her Brain.
When I was young there were plastic maze toys with a drop of mercury inside.
Years ago I had an environmental activist knock my door. His agenda was that his organization wanted tighter government controls on mercury emissions. I wasn't particularly interested at the time.
When it comes to poisons, concentration is everything. What could be deadly in one dose could also be harmless in trace amounts. Chemical structure is also important.
https://youtu.be/NJ7M01jV058
Years ago I had an environmental activist knock my door. His agenda was that his organization wanted tighter government controls on mercury emissions. I wasn't particularly interested at the time.
When it comes to poisons, concentration is everything. What could be deadly in one dose could also be harmless in trace amounts. Chemical structure is also important.
https://youtu.be/NJ7M01jV058
Tuesday, July 31, 2018
My Facebook Post from 2 years ago.
The first two rounds of the U.S. Open Chess Championship have not gone as I expected. For a big open tournament with hundreds of players I expected initially to alternate between opponents who were too easy and too tough. Then the later rounds would be closer.
After winning a hard fought first round against a class C player, I expected to play someone tougher. I wanted to play someone tougher, but my pairing showed that I was playing a Class D player. My friend Al teased me about that by saying, "Maybe you have a chance."
At the US Open they are running some national scholastic tournaments concurrently with the main event. Some kids are playing in both tournaments. The person who showed up at my table looked like he is nine or ten, and he was carrying a trophy almost as tall as he was that said "Elementary Championship First Place."
The problem with playing kids in a tournament is that you don't know what kind of opponent you are really facing. The low rating might not mean anything because kids often improve very rapidly. He could be taking lessons from a Grandmaster. He could be the next Bobby Fischer. Utah produced a number of child prodigies who used to beat me regularly. I have lost to enough children to know that you can't take them for granted.
So I was curious as to why I was playing this kid after winning my first round. I figured that the kid must scored an upset in the first round, so I checked the wall chart and I was right. He beat a 1984 player in the first round. Someone I know. Someone rated barely below me. At this point I was thinking "Holy crap. I've got a tiger by the tail." He really could be the next Bobby Fischer.
The bottom line is that he played very well but not well enough. I won. For a young kid he showed intense concentration, which is how most prodigies play.
Best wishes,
John Coffey
After winning a hard fought first round against a class C player, I expected to play someone tougher. I wanted to play someone tougher, but my pairing showed that I was playing a Class D player. My friend Al teased me about that by saying, "Maybe you have a chance."
At the US Open they are running some national scholastic tournaments concurrently with the main event. Some kids are playing in both tournaments. The person who showed up at my table looked like he is nine or ten, and he was carrying a trophy almost as tall as he was that said "Elementary Championship First Place."
The problem with playing kids in a tournament is that you don't know what kind of opponent you are really facing. The low rating might not mean anything because kids often improve very rapidly. He could be taking lessons from a Grandmaster. He could be the next Bobby Fischer. Utah produced a number of child prodigies who used to beat me regularly. I have lost to enough children to know that you can't take them for granted.
So I was curious as to why I was playing this kid after winning my first round. I figured that the kid must scored an upset in the first round, so I checked the wall chart and I was right. He beat a 1984 player in the first round. Someone I know. Someone rated barely below me. At this point I was thinking "Holy crap. I've got a tiger by the tail." He really could be the next Bobby Fischer.
The bottom line is that he played very well but not well enough. I won. For a young kid he showed intense concentration, which is how most prodigies play.
Best wishes,
John Coffey
Tuesday, July 17, 2018
Greenwood Chess Club
We had 15 to 17 players show up last night. I lost count.
Normally I try to "direct traffic" a little at the chess club. For example, if I see a couple of people standing around, I likely will suggest that they play each other. Sometimes people don't play because they are not aware that there is a chess set available. Likewise, I might suggest that two similarly strength players start a game.
However, there seems to a be a magic number, which is around 12 players, where things suddenly become chaotic and I lose any sense of control. That's not a problem, but things happen more organically, which is to say randomly. I don't even know for sure how many we had last night, because people were coming and going at all times
For example, I try to speak with new players and get contact information for them. However, we had three new players last night, and I only had a chance to speak to two of them.
Wednesday, July 11, 2018
I have a deep interest in physics
I watched this video twice to try to understand it. I will probably watch it a third time. The math is way beyond my level. If I were to work hard enough, maybe I could learn the mathematics, but it wouldn't be worth the effort.
Since I like physics so much, maybe I should have made that my profession. However, I think that I like computer programming even more. In the very early days of micro-computers, back in the 1970's, I seemed to have a talent for programming in the same way I had a talent for chess.
I think that my interest in physics comes from wanting to understand how the universe works. However, there are subtleties in the physical universe that are too deep for anybody but a physicist to understand.
Saturday, July 7, 2018
John Coffey
A long time ago some coworkers told me about this guy named John Coffey. The story I heard is that he woke up drunk one morning and didn't make the trip on the Titanic. Somebody asked me if he is an an ancestor of mine, but it is impossible since his lifespan overlaps the life of my grandfather. You probably would have to go back many generations to find a connection, if any exists.
Saturday, June 23, 2018
Comparing AMD CPU's (corrected)
Much attention has been made in the press over the new AMD Threadripper CPU. With 16 cores and 32 threads, this thing is a monster. But it debuted at $1,000 just for the CPU, and I saw that some computer builds were costing like $4,000. It seems that buying the most expensive CPU also means that the parts to make it work are also just as pricey.
But if we look at its benchmark, https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Ryzen+Threadripper+1950X&id=3058, compared with the next lower chip, which has half as many cores and less than half the cost, https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Ryzen+7+2700X&id=3238, there is not enough difference between them that would justify the extra cost.
When I bought my Core-i7 iMac in 2010 it was close to top of the line, https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i7-860+%40+2.80GHz&id=6, but now it is more like average at best. After eight years I am wanting more power. I am also wanting more graphics power, because what little graphics power that came with my late 2009 iMac is pretty terrible, and these all-in-one computers are not upgradable.
If someone wants to do gaming on budget, there are videos on youtube telling you how to build a gaming PC for around $500, using the Ryzen 3 2200G https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Ryzen+3+2200G&id=3186. This and the 2400G have gotten much attention because they are 'APU's', that have some limited graphics capability built into the processor. Because of the low cost of the 2200G, it has gotten the most attention, but the 2400G seems like a big step up at just $70 more in cost. https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Ryzen+5+2400G&id=3183 Since the processor is only a small part of the overall cost, it seems to me like it would be worth it to spend marginally more to get a more powerful system.
Likewise AMD has some older slightly slower processors that are lower in cost, but considered a good value. However, I don't see the value in settling for slightly less power to just save a few bucks on the processor.
If you want more power than what the 2200G and 2400g can deliver, then you have to give up the built in graphics and buy a seperate video card, for which you can expect to spend $300 to $500, or more, just for the card. That is the problem. People are claiming that graphics cards are coming down in price, but we are not really seeing it yet. Graphics cards have been very expensive because people have been buying them for cryptocurrency mining.
So I would like to build a Ryzen APU based computer for relatively low cost. My current computer occasionally shuts down for no apparent reason, but after I cleaned the dusty vents it seems to be doing better. I figure that eventually I will have to repair it or replace it. I would rather replace it.
According to AMD, they are coming out with new APU's in both 2019 and 2020. Newer probably means more power, which is what I want. I should try to hold out until at least 2019 to see what they come out with.
I want to do much more with a computer than just play games, but if that is all you want then the Microsoft XBox One X is graphically pretty powerful for its $500 price tag. An equivalent computer might cost $1,000. The XBOX One X also uses a custom AMD APU, but you can't buy that processor; It is only available on the XBOX One X.
Comparing AMD CPU's
Much attention has been made in the press over the new AMD Threadripper CPU. With 16 cores and 32 threads, this thing is a monster. But it debuted at $1,000 just for the CPU, and I saw that some computer builds were costing like $4,000 to $5,000. It seems that buying the most expensive CPU also means that the parts to make it work are also just as pricey.
But if we look at its benchmark, https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Ryzen+Threadripper+1950X&id=3058, compared with the next lower chip, which has half as many cores and costs half as much or less, https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Ryzen+7+2700X&id=3238, there is not enough difference between them that would justify the extra cost.
When I bought my Core-i7 iMac in 2010 it was pretty much top of the line, https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i7-860+%40+2.80GHz&id=6, but now it is more like aveage at best. After eight years I am wanting more power. I am also wanting more graphics power, because what little graphics power that came with my late 2009 iMac is pretty terrible, and these all-in-one computers are not upgradable.
If someone wants gaming on budget, there are videos on youtube telling you have to build a gaming PC for around $500, using the Ryzen 3 2200G https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Ryzen+3+2200G&id=3186. This and the 2400G have gotten much attention because they are 'APU's', that have some limited graphics capability built into the processor. Because of the low cost of the 2200G, it has gotten the most attention, but the 2400G seems like a big step up at just $70 more in cost. https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Ryzen+5+2400G&id=3183 Since the processor is only a small part of the overall cost, it seems to me like it would be worth it to spend marginally more to get a more powerful system.
Likewise AMD has some older slightly slower processors that are lower in cost but considered a good value. However, I don't see the value in settling for slightly less power to just save a few bucks on the processor.
If you want more power than what the 2200G and 2400g can deliver, then you have to give up the built in graphics and buy a seperate video card, for which you can expect to spend $300 to $500 just for the card. That is the problem. People are claiming that graphics cards are coming down in prices, but we are not really seeing it yet. Graphics cards have been very expensive because people have been buying them for cryptocurrency mining.
I would like to build a Ryzen APU computer for relatively low cost. My current computer occasionally shut downs for no apparent reason, but after I cleaned the dusty vents it seems to be doing better. I figure that eventually I will have to repair it or replace it. I would rather replace it.
According to AMD, they are coming out with new APU's in both 2019 and 2020. Newer probably means more power, which is what I want. I should try to hold out until at least 2019 to see what they come out with.
I want to do much more with a computer than just play games, but if that is all you want then the Microsoft XBox One X is graphically pretty powerful for its $500 price tag. An equivalent computer might cost $800. The XBOX One X also uses an AMD APU, but you can't buy that processor. It is only available on the XBOX One X.
Monday, June 18, 2018
Surprise!
The link below should start the video 8 minutes and 16 seconds into it. Please listen for at least 20 seconds. You might have to skip the advertisement first.
I saw this guy's email before I saw the video.
Only if you are extremely curious about what this product is, here is another video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3WoG20E37I
.
Monday, May 21, 2018
Kayden Troff
This was 10 year old Kayden Troff right after he won the Utah Blitz Championship in January 2009. I was the tournament director. In May of that year he turned 11. Five years later in May he became a Grandmaster at the age of 16. He is now 20 years old and serving on a 2 year mission for the LDS Church.
The last time I won against him was when he was 11, which was in the Utah Blitz Championship the following year. Overall my record against him is not very good, as he was already winning half the games against me around age 8. At age 9 he was winning the majority against me, and when he was 10 I lost every single tournament game I played him.
Saturday, May 12, 2018
Classic songs
Ever have a song stick with you for most of your life? My parents liked listening to older styles of music. They had a record with "The Last Farewell" which I listened to many times growing up, so the song has stuck with me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKdRpDpIR70
Another song was "El Paso" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zBzZJd-nfw
Monday, April 30, 2018
iMac
My 2009 iMac shut down for no reason. It rebooted okay. If I had to guess I would say it is a problem with the power supply, which I had to replace once before. Chances are this will get worse over time until I do something about it.
Best wishes,
John Coffey
Best wishes,
John Coffey
Sunday, April 22, 2018
Star Trek Deep Space Nine
I remember somewhat fondly the four different Star Trek Series that aired from 1987 to 2005, but especially Star Trek Deep Space Nine for its really interesting and vast assortment of colorful characters. It was the second most popular Star Trek Series of that era, behind Star Trek The Next Generation. It aired from 1993 to 1999.
Star Trek The Next Generation spent a couple of years setting up Star Trek Deep Space Nine as a spin off series. It introduced two new alien races, the Cardassians who were the oppressors of the Bajorans. When Star Trek Deep Space Nine started, Cardassia had ended its occupation of Bajor, and The Federation was helping the new Bajoran provisional government get started.
In the 90's I really loved this show. So much so I still remember most of the individual episodes. I found myself feeling nostalgic for the show, missing how much I enjoyed watching it. So I made an attempt to watch it again on Netflix Streaming.
The problem with watching this show again is that nobody cares about Bajor anymore. We were only introduced to Bajor as a plot device for this series. We will probably never hear of Bajor again, because it is not part of the current Star Trek universe in films and TV shows. Most of the shows are episodic where they don't deal with a grand story arc, but instead focus on some sort of political strife on Bajor. I chose to not rewatch many of these episodes because they don't seem as interesting as they were when the show was new.
Instead I chose to mostly rewatch the episodes that dealt with a larger story arc, which was introduced at the end of the first season. A new enemy is introduced, The Dominion, which is run by The Founders, who are intent on conquest. We get a big surprise when we learn that The Founders are the same alien race as one of the main characters on Deep Space Nine. The bad news is that the next four seasons would only barely touch this grand story arc, just three or four times per season. However, in the last couple of seasons the show hit high gear with an all out war between The Federation and The Dominion.
What makes the show great is the characters. It has a variety of alien humanoids who are interesting and endearing. Many of the main characters are in one way or another outcasts from their respective societies. They develop relationships and mutual dependencies with the other characters, making the show very much a space opera, and a good one at that.
After rewatching the series, I am impressed with the way it ended, and overall I am very pleased with the show because it has many layers in its storytelling. It weaves together many complex storylines over its seven year period.
John Coffey
Thursday, April 19, 2018
Retro arcade
Please give this a couple of minutes.
I'm one of those guys in his 50's (57) who likes retro games. Star Wars The Arcade Game was my favorite arcade game.
Wednesday, April 18, 2018
Sunday, April 15, 2018
Sunday, April 1, 2018
Columbus Chess Club new location and meeting times.
Effective this Thursday, 2018-04-05, The Columbus Chess Club will be meeting at the Lewellen Chapel on 2580 Grissom Street, Columbus, Indiana, 47203. This is close to the airport.
The hours will be from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM. Games will continue to be 10 minutes in length. Boards, pieces, and clocks will be furnished.
Open to all players. Children under age 16 must be accompanied by a parent or an adult.
It is not expected that you come and stay the whole time, although you are more than welcome to do so.
There is ample parking just west of the Chapel. Please enter on the north side of the building.
For additional information, please call 812-603-3893, or see http://columbuschessclub.blogspot.com/p/about-columbus-chess-club.html
Tuesday, March 13, 2018
Pocket knives
When I was a little kid, pocket knives were fairly common. So were Swiss Army Knives. Before the age of technology, people thought that Swiss Army Knives were cool.
So when I was little, my father gave me a small pocket knife that was also a bottle opener. It was fairly harmless. I kept it with me for about a decade until I broke it trying to fix a loose chain on my bicycle.
I don't think that there was any problem taking something like this to school. It was a different era. Today it would be considered a weapon.
Best wishes,
John Coffey
Sunday, March 11, 2018
Beware of Phishing scams
In the last month I have been getting a large number of scam text messages telling me that there is a problem with my craigslist account, or my bank account, or that I have a text telling me that I have a message on Facebook, with a link that looks like Facebook, but isn't. The link looks like:
This scam is trying to get me me to give away my login name and password. The way you know it is a scam is to look at the domain name, which is the part before the ".com" or ".net" or ".info", which shows that the link is not from Facebook, or your bank, or whatever.
I can't think of a reason why anyone would need to click on a link in a text message. If your bank has a problem with your account, chances are they will send you an email. However, these kinds of phishing scams happen in emails too, and sometimes they are harder to spot in emails. What I do with an email is look at the who the sender is, which should be the same as the service, like "facebook.com". Even with these you have to be careful that it doesn't say something like "facebook.com.scammer.com".
I remember around 2004 I feel for a scam in an email, which was ransomware. I should have known better, but it is easy to slip up. It locked up my computer and then offered to sell me a "virus checker" to fix the problem. I took my computer to a repair shop instead.
Sunday, February 25, 2018
Burger King
I get coupons in the mail from Burger King. This included 3 coupons for a killer deal, which is for two croissant sandwiches, small hash browns, and a small coffee for just $4. Although I don't normally eat breakfast, I have gone a couple of Sundays in a row to get this deal, and it makes for a most satisfying breakfast at not much cost.
Wednesday, February 21, 2018
Re: Columbus Kentucky
Steve Salo wrote the following:
I have never been there but I am quite familiar with Columbus Kentucky. It was made famous in the civil war because of it's location within Kentucky and also lying on the Mississippi river (just a little south of the confluence of the Ohio and the Mississippi rivers). Rivers were the main "interstate" means of travel back in that day, and also provided natural barriers for defense. Early in the war, Kentucky declared neutrality and prohibited any northern or southern troops to invade their state. Kentucky being a border state could easily have tipped the scales in the southern favor if they had succeeded. Lincoln's famous quote was "I would like God on our side, but we need Kentucky".
About six months after the war started. Leonidas Polk (a southern general) violated Kentucky's neutrality and set up a fort at Columbus to guard traffic on the river. His goal was to prevent union traffic from penetrating the deep south via the MS river. Since the south was first to violate neutrality, Ulysses Grant used the opportunity to fight a battle there (actually directly across the river in Belmont) and "liberate" Kentucky. The battle was a minor win, but was given much publicity in the press because the north needed a win after losing badly at Bull Run. The battle was successful, and from a political standpoint it was very successful to gain Kentucky's loyalty. It was Grant's first battle, and the important lesson he learned form it was that "the enemy is often as afraid of you, as you are of him". Throughout the remainder of the war Grant applied this principal and fought with a vigorous offense. Eventually the fort at Columbus fell, and Grant also captured two more confederate river forts (Henry and Donnelson) which opened up the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers. At fort Donnelson he captured nearly 13,000 confederate soldiers. Donnelson was an amazing victory in so many ways. That left the upper Mississippi in the hands of the Union and later Grant would seize the entire river down through New Orleans by eliminate a nearly impregnable fort at Vicksburg, MS. And fort Henry and Donnelson opened up the Cumberland and Tennessee rivers allowing union access to all of Tennessee, Northern Alabama, and Northern Mississippi. The battles in the Eastern theatre still to this day get the most publicity, however the Civil war was truly won in the western theatre.
Columbus Kentucky
I was looking at a map and I just happened to see that there is a town called Columbus in Kentucky. It is microscopic, and not near anything except the the Mississippi river. Downtown consists of a very small post office and a restaurant or bar called "Jen's Place", and that's it. Next to the river is a park and a Civil War Museum.
Sometimes, I wonder why a few towns exist at all. This is even true for some places I have lived in, like Little York, Indiana.
Sunday, February 18, 2018
Printer
I struggled to print color chess diagrams using a black and white ink cartridge on my HP F2100 printer. I had done this successfully using the same type of printer belonging to someone else. However, when I tried to print the chess diagrams, the black and white squares came out blank. So I fooled around with the print settings and nothing seemed to help. However, I kept fooling with the print settings and it suddenly worked correctly. I honestly don't know what I did different to make it work.
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Monday, February 12, 2018
iPhone battery replacement.
I'm blown away by what happened today.
I have been trying to make my 64GB iPhone 6+ that I purchased 40 months ago last as long as possible. I'm past the point where I would buy a new phone every two years, especially since modern phones are good enough that the changes from one year to the next are not as revolutionary as they used to be.
Apple received some bad press when it was revealed that they were slowing down older iPhones with worn out batteries to help preserve the battery life. Because of the bad press, Apple put their $79 battery replacement service on sale for $29. I had an appointment to get the battery replaced a month ago, but when I showed up for my appointment they didn't have any batteries available. So I waited a month to be notified that the battery had arrived and I went in today to have the service done.
I dropped off the phone at the Apple store and they told me that the repair would take an hour. So I got some lunch at the mall and wandered around to pass the time.
At this point a thought creeped into my mind, where I wondered what would happen if the repair didn't work? After all, my phone is 40 months old, so maybe something would go wrong and the phone would not work with the new battery? This might seem like an unnecessary worry, except this is actually what happened. They informed me that my iPhone did not power on with the new battery installed.
They immediately informed me that they were giving me a new 64GB iPhone 6+, and still only charging my $29. I was shocked by this, and asked if the phone was refurbished, but they told me, no, it was a new phone. So I walked into an Apple store with $29 and a 40 month old phone, and walked out with a brand new phone of the same type.
I'm impressed.
Thursday, January 25, 2018
Rian Johnson Podcast
Out of curiosity I listened to this extended interview of Rian Johnson. It is long. It is an hour and 47 minutes long.
Since The Last Jedi has plot holes you could drive a truck through, and after seeing the title, 'Rian Johnson Talks 'The Last Jedi' Criticism, Says He "Wouldn't Change a Thing"', I had to know how Rian Johnson responds to criticism about the plot holes.
Well, after listening, I conclude that Rian Johnson doesn't have a clue as to why these things are plot holes, and why those things might turn off the audience. I can only guess that he looks at the story from an artistic point of view and not a logical one. And to think that he is going to be directing the next trilogy?
Unfortunately the interview doesn't talk about Social Justice Warrior messages, which would have been a very interesting topic.
Sunday, January 21, 2018
Thursday, January 18, 2018
My trip to and from Salt Lake City.
FYI, Someone I know on Facebook was sharing this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuXvtg55E10
Although it takes place on I-80 in eastern California, it looks just like driving I-80 through the mounts of Utah. I commented that there are some really steep roads in Utah, so the person who shared the video wanted more information. So I responded ...
As you go east from Salt Lake City on I-80, you find yourself going up and down some steep grades as you travel to the Park City exit. Going uphill, my car could not go full speed, and the semi-trucks were even worse going at most 30 MPH. The return trip from Park City is even more interesting, because the first thing you do is go up a long intense slope. When I had a Toyota Tercel, it almost couldn't handle it. I went up that long hill at about 20 or 25 MPH because my feeble car couldn't go any faster.
When I first moved to Utah, I took 4 days to leisurely drive out there on a trip that can be done in 2 days. The trip from Cheyenne Wyoming to Salt Lake City Utah is particularly interesting. This takes 7 to 8 hours with stops. I drove the first hour of that trip late at night going uphill on winding roads into extremely foggy mountains until I stopped at Laramie Wyoming, which is a college town. I spent the night there. Oddly enough, when I made the return trip 22.5 years later I had the same problem with fog at night on winding roads, going downhill this time, which felt really dangerous because you could potentially drive off a cliff. In both cases the visibility was very poor. The remainder of the trip to Salt Lake City is a mixture of mountains and desolate landscapes. That winter in 1993 was pretty bad and there was some concern about the highway being passable. However, during the last part of the trip I felt like I had been driving in the mountains for hours, going around many curves and up and down hills, until finally, I went around a big curve and then magically the mountains disappeared and Salt Lake City appeared before me. Much to my surprise I found myself immediately in the city.
Thirteen years in a row I drove I-15 from Salt Lake City to Las Vegas for the National Open Chess Tournament. Crossing from Utah to Nevada involves going through 20 miles of Arizona, and it is downhill most of the way through winding mountain canyons. The red cliffs are on both sides are particularly beautiful. On the return trip, there is a place in southern Utah that that you go steeply downhill on a straight road for several miles. It is a descent of at least a few hundred feet. When you first reach the top of the hill before you go down it is quite an impressive sight, because you see a vast valley stretch out before you about as far as the eye can see. It is not quite as noticeable going the other way toward Vegas because it just feels like you are just going uphill for a few miles.
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Tuesday, January 9, 2018
The War
I binged watched the PBS Ken Burns series "The War" on Netflix streaming. I had seen it before, but it is so powerful that I felt that it was worth watching again.
Roundabouts
The first roundabout I ever saw was in my neighborhood of Sugarhouse in Salt Lake City. It was fairly small, and replaced a 4 way intersection. As you approached it there was a sign that said "Traffic Circle" which created some confusion in my mind as to whether it should be called a roundabout or a traffic circle.
It turns out the two terms are not for the same thing. Traffic Circles are larger and do no require you to yield before entering. Roundabouts are smaller, and you must yield before you enter. The traffic is slower on roundabouts than traffic circles, making them safer.
In the last decade we have seen an explosion of roundabouts and I like them. They are safer and faster than normal intersections.
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