The Last Word

Well this is a drink I really like that isn't in this blog, so I'm adding it.

1 part Gin
1 part Maraschino
1 part Green Chartreuse
1 part Lime Juice

Two Minute Guide to Getting Rid of a Virus on your Computer

If your computer gets a virus, it's best to stop typing in any passwords with it. If you've already typed in passwords into an infected computer, you should change them once the virus has been removed.

Before you try to get rid of the virus, make a backup of your important files. There's a chance you won't be able to remove the virus and will have to restore your computer to its factory state, so make sure you backup all of your files, like documents, photos, music and video, and databases. Make a backup by connecting an external hard drive to your computer and dragging your files onto it.

After backing up your files, download MacAfee AntiVirus Plus and run it on your system to clean it of viruses. You can download a 30-day trial version to see if it works. Other Anti-Virus programs are fine too, but I've found MacAfee to be the best. Plus it's free.

If MacAfee works and the viruses are gone, you should be all set. If MacAfee fails and the virus is still there, find the setup DVDs that came with your computer to restore it to its factory state. Once your computer has been restored, re-install your programs, and then copy your backed-up files back on to it.

To prevent viruses from getting onto your computer, the most important step you can take is to avoid Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser. Use Firefox instead. Also, be careful with installing programs from the internet. Do not allow a web page to download or install software on your computer unless you're sure it's safe.

It is important to remove viruses. Once one has infected your system, it can record every key stroke you type, including your passwords.

Silent Order

4 parts green Chartreuse, 2 parts lime juice, 1 part water, basil leaves.

The monks who make Chartreuse really are silent btw.

Non-Artisanal Cheese Plate

Photoshop

This oak is terrible

Passing Aden

Before:


After:






From Death and Company -

2 parts Batavia-Arrack
1 part Harvest Moon Tea-infused sweet vermouth
1 part demerara syrup
A cinnamon stick in the shaker
Lemon peel

Good free software to put on a new computer...

Word Processor: OpenOffice Writer
Looks just like Microsoft Word 2003, and has the same features. It saves documents in Word format, and is very fast. As good as Word 2003, and better than Word 2007.

Spreadsheet: OpenOffice Calc
Good functionality and charting and similar to Excel 2003.

Sound Editor: Audacity
A great program, which can save in MP3 format after you download the free LAME MP3 DLL.

Graphics: GIMP
The best free image editor I could find. Good for some photo editing but its selection and editing tools were hard to use. The graphics area was the only area where I couldn't find a free program good enough to mean not having to buy commercial software. Photoshop is much better than GIMP, and GIMP had the most features I could find among the free graphics software programs.

Music Player: Windows Media Player
You can change its settings to record music in MP3 format so that your music can be shared with other programs and devices.

Anti-Spyware: Windows Defender
A good anti-spyware program that notifies you when you have spyware and can sometimes get rid of it. If it can't get rid of it, try this.

The Bells! The Bells!

Prisoners of Technology radio is now playing songs with sleigh bells added. Here's Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want and Love Will Tear Us Apart.

Fidelity Media Player

Fidelity Media Player launched last week. It lets you browse all of the video and podcasts on Fidelity's web site. It includes the TKC's text search feature, which lets you fast forward a found video to a few seconds before the search text is spoken. The design was done by Lis Cugini, & I wrote it in Flex.

Blur Building

A building in Switzerland always covered in mist, by the same architects who designed Boston's ICA. Photo from Wikipedia.

Razzy's

Mike and Stefan at Razzy's. I'd always thought Dawn was the reason we win at trivia night but maybe it's intimidation.

Old Cuban

.75 oz lime juice
1 oz simple syrup
6 mint leaves
1.5 oz aged rum
2 dashes Angostura bitters
2 oz champagne

What we drank on election night.

The Federal Reserve building

The Bohemian

1oz Gin
1oz St Germain
1oz Grapefruit juice
1 dash Peychauds bitters

From the Green St Grill. I use Absinthe instead of the Peychauds as it's a really bright artificial red.

The Pain of Disco

Om Shanti Om is a great movie. The clip below is the stuffed tiger cat fight.

Calvados Cocktail

2 parts Calvados
2 parts orange juice
1 part Cointreau
A few dashes orange bitters

From Ted Haigh's Vintage Spirits and Forgotten Cocktails.

Nikko R2D2 Webcam Review

Nikko's R2D2 webcam is 8" tall and comes with a light saber to control it, which can also be used as a Skype handset. The webcam itself works well, and it's hard to go wrong with a web-viewable R2D2 webcam, but the remote control and auto-record features don't work too well.

The R2D2 unit can be remote controlled either with the light saber remote, or with its Windows software. It has a limited range of about 10 feet. The manual says 7 meters, though in my apartment I had reliable control only in the same room. You can move it around, but only in your computer room and it won't work on carpeting. The remote has to be plugged in to your computer's USB port to work, so it's not portable, and if you have to be that close to your computer anyway to use it, it's easier to just use the computer.

The webcam can be set up to take photos or movies when it hears a sound or when scheduled by its timer, but this does not work with its standby mode, which is needed if its batteries are to last longer than a few hours. Without standby mode, it will only auto record for a few hours (8 according to the manual) from when you set it, after which its 6 AA batteries run down. So if you're using it as a nanny cam, you'll need to put new batteries in every time before leaving the house.

The first R2D2 webcam I received (from eToys.com, who were helpful with the replacement) wouldn't transmit video at all, but a replacement unit did. Nikko's customer service number in the manual has been disconnected and both eToys and I couldn't find a number that worked, so I'd suggest buying this from a store that takes returns rather than eBay.


The included software looks a bit rushed and takes a while to figure out, but it works fine. The software allows you to move R2D2, record video and images, and use it as a webcam for Skype conversations. The webcam can display overlays of an X-wing or Millennium Falcon cockpit. When dialing home to view the webcam, you can leave R2D2 in standby mode and the software will wake him up.

Mint Julep

Chris McMillian's recipe.

Elitists

Like many people, I prefer JetBlue and Virgin to other airlines, even if the fare is a little more expensive, because they seem more interested in providing a good product so it's more fun to travel with them. The other airlines seem to want to provide an expected product. It feels the same with news -- Harpers, The Independent, CSPAN and shows like Bill Moyer's Journal feel like they are trying to provide a good product, while I think the Globe, New York Times, and the daily news shows (even PBS's News Hour) are trying to provide an expected product.

When I was growing up a friend of my parents said he never watched TV anymore. I was surprised that he would not want to watch even the good programs, even if he thought there were just a few. I get where he was coming from now, and wonder if the customization we now have to filter out commercials would have helped him. Tivo can be set up to only record from certain channels, so you only watch the channels and programs you like.

I recently watched ABC World News on TV for the first time in years, and noticed how crazily different it is from the news I'm used to now. I can't take it seriously. I think this means I'm elitist.

I'd like to make a news-aggregating web site to get trusted news. It wouldn't be right or left wing, conservative or liberal - it would be a platform to mix and match trusted articles and journalists from around the world, and to save one's custom newspaper under a name that others could find. You could read George Will's or George Clooney's newspaper because you trusted them, and get real news whatever your political position was.