So, there's one of those "don't pull the thread" kind of stories.

• I used to have Ubuntu, then they went all UNITY/GNOME3 on me. So when I got a new system, I installed flat Debian.
  
• But I installed Debian Squeeze (Stable) for amd64. It lived up to its name, it was stable.
  
• Except when I had to install Nvidia proprietary drivers. The Nvidia ( Read more... )

This was such a pain in the ass, I wanted to save it for later ( Read more... )

So, the other day, I am responding to this post on a forum about why people who work in computers always get asked to fix something, like it's all related. I say it's our unique troubleshooting ability. Jeff Goldblum demonstrated how, using only a Mac laptop and some software, we could infiltrate an alien ship and plant a virus somehow. That ( Read more... )

I had a classmate who had this opinion on Star Wars back in the 1980s ( Read more... )

My dad had an unusual gift of making people feel stupid. While discussing this with someone who had similar problems as a child, we tried to diagram how these conversations would go. What resulted was a string of IMs about techniques so evil and horrible, that I am scared to post them lest it give some evil person ideas. I think I may someday ( Read more... )

In 1977, I was a book nerd who signed up for the Scholastic Book thing... many of you remember it back in US grammar school. There was an onionskin paper catalog that had mostly reprints of popular kids books, with some posters, calendars, and sometimes toys tossed in. My mother made sure I got a lot of books, and I was the ONLY kid I knew who ( Read more... )

Years ago, I worked at Chesapeake Knife and Tool. We sold many "manly" things besides knives and tools, like Zippo lighters and straight razors. I learned a lot about people who shaved with straight razors. First, they were usually among the fringes of educational society. It took a strange person who, in an era of disposable razors, would ( Read more... )

As some of you know, I work among the highest management in an anime convention as a co-chair, which is kind of like claiming your were president of the college chess club on your resume; it may impress some hard core nerds but most people don't care and may actually be annoyed if you bring it up too much. But for the small core of you who knows ( Read more... )

(Summary at bottom of post)

@Wilw recently Tweeted

Panhandler did not appreciate my thoughtful critique of his angle. My advice was EASILY worth more than a dollar, ya lousy bum.
I wrote this journal entry so Wil wouldn't have to. He's got better stuff to do. He has a wife, a son, friends, a career, role playing gaming, a podcast, a toaster, and ( Read more... )

I am a little stressed. For once it's not about money as much. Thankfully, takayla's full time job has saved our skins and plateaued us to the road to recovery. At this rate, it will take 5-7 years to fully recover from what was a slow drain since 2001 to a calamity in 2009. But things are looking up ( Read more... )