View from Suey Creek

Drove up a little road off SR166, Suey Creek. Nice drive, beautiful scenery, lots of oaks, and sometimes there are turkeys and deer near the road that you can see.

Just a test.

This is a test, this is only a test.

It still works after all these years

Just working on an old machine for a nice fellow.  He's 95, over 6 feet tall, and has hands the size of dinner plates.  He also paints.  He likes jazz music and playing Solitaire on his 1998 vintage Gateway G6-233.  It runs 98SE, 192MBs of RAM, a Quantum Fireball 4.3GB hard drive and an STB Velocity 128 3D AGP 4MB video card.  His wife was a quilter, thus the quilt wallpaper.

Here's some pictures:

Old Pictures of an older Castle - Hearst Castle, San Simeon, California

Taken during the Views and Garden Tour in 2010.  Didn't realize it had been that long ago.  Would love to go back again. Soon.

I took some pictures - 2015

There's this little valley south of San Luis.  Hidden down a narrow road or three, it's shaded by oaks and maples. I might be able to find it again next year. So quiet and calm and relaxing.

USS Gravity Falls

A Work In Progress.

USS Gravity Falls, NCC-12600, is a battlecruiser, carrying nine type 10 phasers, 4 anti-proton cannons, 2 mass accelerator cannons and two photon torpedo launchers (for the moment), in a cruiser type hull.  Engines are low slung, mounted below the primary hull and close together.  This sacrifices some warp speed maneuvering, but compensates with a slightly higher acceleration curve.  The main impulse engine is mounted at the rear of the engineering hull with auxiliary units on the primary hull to assist in increasing the turn rate.  The shuttle bay is small, carrying four to six shuttles depending on the mission.  This vessels primary duty is to defend the core worlds (Earth, Vulcan, Tellar, Andoria, Alpha Centauri, and Axanar) within 15-20 light years of Sol.

Specifications as yet undetermined.

Other ships in this class are: 

USS Hill Valley              NCC-12601

USS Cabot Cove             NCC-12602

USS Mayberry                NCC-12603

USS Sunnydale               NCC-12604

USS Avalon                    NCC-12605

USS Watership Down    NCC-12606

USS Avonlea                  NCC-12607

USS Bayport                   NCC-12608

USS Godric's Hollow     NCC-12609

USS Lake Wobegon       NCC-12610

USS Malgundi                NCC-12611

USS Hogsmeade             NCC-12612

This class is named after fictional cities of Earth.

I Bought an Amazon Fire!

:

A few thoughts on the Amazon Fire:

Hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving and recovered for the naps.

Like I needed another computing device, the night before Thanksgiving, Amazon put their Fire tablet on sale for $34.99.  So I told mom about it and she said to order her one.  I got one for myself too.  We did pay the $15 to not have ads, so Amazon got a few more bucks.  The tablets arrived yesterday.  And I was not expecting much.  How good could a computer that only costs 50 bucks (regular price) really be?

Opened the box, the Fire itself is in an orange heavy paper box that can be hung from a peg in a store.  Rip the strip off and pull out the tablet which is in a black paper holder so it all just slides out.  The tablet itself is in a clear plastic envelope and the charger (a small plug with USB cord) is below the tablet.  Right there, it's really easy to get into.

Took a (small) chance and pressed the power button, mine came with a 75% charge.  Takes a little while to boot up, and then it starts the simple setup process.  It asks if you want to setup it up for a child (in my case, no), if you want to connect it to your social media accounts (Twitter, Facebook and something I can't remember off hand...).  I skipped that too.  But I did setup my email on it.

After all that was done, it goes to a Home screen that is populated with apps for mail, browsing, the camera, and much more.  Because mine is attached to my Amazon account, it synced to my books and downloaded those for me.  No intervention on my part.  There are also sections for music, movies and more, like Netflix and YouTube.

Okay, what is it?  It's a 7 inch tablet (1024x600 resolution, but very clear) with a quad-core processor, 1GB of memory, 8GB of storage, wifi, bluetooth, 2PM front and VGA rear cameras, supports microSD cards up to 128GB (Wow!!), It also does a couple of really neat things.  First is that no matter how you hold it, the volume buttons are -always- up and down.  So even if I turn it upside down, the volume buttons orient themselves correctly.  The other thing is that it can import pictures from your digital camera.  All but the microSD card slot are on one side.

And yes, it comes with the Kindle software.

Bottom line:  If you are looking for a "first tablet," this is great.  It does everything you need.  For 50 dollars (to get rid of ads that only show on the lock screen is an extra $15), can't really go wrong with the Fire.  The processor is responsive, the sound is acceptable (it's not stereo) If you need more storage, a better camera, or a higher resolution screen, you should look elsewhere.  Tablets from other makers would be a better choice, like the Asus MeMO pad ME302, a Samsung model or even Amazon's own larger screened Fire models.

Thanksgiving Proclamation

From The Heritage Foundation

Issued by President George Washington, at the request of Congress, on October 3, 1789

By the President of the United States of America, a Proclamation.

Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor; and—Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me “to recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:”

Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favor, able interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquillity, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted; for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and, in general, for all the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon us.

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations, and beseech Him to pardon our national and other trangressions; to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shown kindness to us), and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally, to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as He alone knows to be best.

Given under my hand at the City of New York the third day of October in the year of our Lord 1789.

Go. Washington

Moon Rise

Full Moon for tonight, rising over the Coast Range, southern San Luis Obispo county, CA.

How to rename files in Windows

How to rename files in Windows

You can rename files simply by right-clicking on the file and then selecting Rename.  The name of the file will be highlighted in blue and you can just typing a new file name, then press Enter to make it set.

You can also rename a file by clicking on the file, waiting a second, then clicking on the file name. (If you click on the icon of the folder or file, nothing will happen.)  The file name will then change to be highlighted in blue where you can just type the new file name and press Enter to set it.

If you pick a name that has already been used in that folder (you can have multiple files with the same name, but they have to be in different folders), Windows will warn you and offer to change the name of the new file to end in (1) or whatever number.

This same procedure can be used to rename folders.  With Vista and newer, the files and folders will automatically move to alphabetical order.  If you don’t want to lose your place, instead of pressing Enter, just click on the next file and your highlight will stay there, instead of moving with the renamed folder.

List of KB's that can be removed re: Windows 10 and data tracking

These are the ones to look out for and stop from reinstalling by ritch-clicking and hiding them.

2952664

2976978

2977759

2990214

3012973

3021917

3022345

3035583

3044374

3050265

3068707

3068708

3075249

3080149

Remember kids:  Do Your Backups, no warranty expressed or implied, Object Are Closer Than They Appear.

Windows 10 upgrade prompt and tracking removal

You can do these by hand, go to Control Panel > Programs and Features > Installed Updates. Uninstall and reboot if needed. Check for updates, right click and hide of those KB's appear again.

To get rid of the upgrade to Windows 10 Prompt: (For Win:7/8/8.1)

KB's 3012973, 3021917, 2952664, 2976978, 3035583 (these update numbers, if found, uninstall, hide)
Also Windows Tracking:
http://thehackernews.com/2015/08/windows-spying-on-you.html
http://www.wilderssecurity.com/threads/list-of-windows-7-telemetry-updates-to-avoid.379151/

KB's 3068708, 3022345, 3075249, 3080149, 3068707, 3050265, 2977759, 3044374

Use a Command Prompt in Admin mode to make quick work of these in the format of:
wusa /uninstall /kb:3068708 /quiet /norestart

Or use TomCoyote's batch file:  https://pastebin.com/fSuqyFWT win10.bat

Reboot the computer and then check for new updates, if any of the previous numbers found, you can hide them.
-----
BAT file below:

:: Name: win10.bat
:: Purpose: Remove unwanted Updates from Windows versions 7/8/8.1
:: Author: TomCoyoteWilson
:: Created: 9-2-2015
:: Warranty: None, use under your own risk
:: Place file in Root of C:
:: Right Click on the file and Choose "Run As Administrator"
::
:: remember to invoke from ELEVATED command prompt!
:: or start the batch with context menu "run as admin".
:: Credit to Peer and TheRock247UK for working on the Version Check with me
:: References: http://www.wilderssecurity.com/threads/list-of-windows-7-telemetry-updates-to-avoid.379151/
::             http://thehackernews.com/2015/08/windows-spying-on-you.html
@ECHO OFF
REM  KB3012973 - Upgrade to Windows 10 Pro
REM  KB3021917 - Update to Windows 7 SP1 for performance improvements
REM  KB3035583 - GWX Update installs Get Windows 10 app in Windows 8.1 and Windows 7 SP1
REM  KB2952664 - Compatibility update for upgrading Windows 7
REM  KB2976978 - Compatibility update for Windows 8.1 and Windows 8
REM  KB3022345 - Telemetry [Replaced by KB3068708]
REM  KB3068708 - Update for customer experience and diagnostic telemetry
REM  KB2990214 - Update that enables you to upgrade from Windows 7 to a later version of Windows
REM  KB3075249 - Update that adds telemetry points to consent.exe in Windows 8.1 and Windows 7
REM  KB3080149 - Update for customer experience and diagnostic telemetry
REM  KB 3068707 - Customer experience telemetry points
REM  KB 3050265 - Windows Update service updated to accept upgrade to W10
REM  KB 2977759 - W10 Diagnostics Compatibility telemetry
REM  KB 3044374 - W8,8.1 Nagware for W10

ECHO "This first part is for removing the dreaded Win10"
ECHO "Update Icon if you are not wanting to upgrade to 10"
echo. &::
ECHO "The second part is for removing Windows Tracking"
pause
ECHO "Checking your OS Version first..."
echo. &::
setlocal
for /f "tokens=4-5 delims=. " %%i in ('ver') do set VERSION=%%i.%%j
if "%version%" == "6.3" goto :begin
if "%version%" == "6.2" goto :begin
if "%version%" == "6.1" goto :begin
if "%version%" == "6.0" goto :begin
if "%version%" == "10.0" goto :end
echo Version identification failed, now exiting
pause
exit

:begin
if "%version%" == "6.3" echo Windows Version 6.3 (8.1)
if "%version%" == "6.2" echo Windows Version 6.2 (8.0)
if "%version%" == "6.1" echo Windows Version 6.1 (7)
if "%version%" == "6.0" echo Windows Version 6.0 (Vista)
:begin2
ECHO "This will uninstall these updates if found"
ECHO "that control the Windows10 Upgrade Icon"
ECHO "3012973, 3021917, 2952664, KB 2976978, and/or KB 3035583"
echo. &::
set /P c=Are you sure you want to continue[Y/N]?
if /I "%c%" EQU "Y" goto :upgrade
if /I "%c%" EQU "N" goto :tracking
goto :begin2

:upgrade

echo uninstalling updates ...
start "title" /b /wait wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:3012973 /quiet /norestart
echo  - done. (1/5)
start "title" /b /wait wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:3021917 /quiet /norestart
echo  - done. (2/5)
start "title" /b /wait wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:2952664 /quiet /norestart
echo  - done. (3/5)
start "title" /b /wait wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:2976978 /quiet /norestart
echo  - done. (4/5)
start "title" /b /wait wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:3035583 /quiet /norestart
echo  - done. (5/5)
echo. &::
goto :tracking

:tracking
ECHO "This will uninstall Windows Tracking updates"
ECHO "KB's 3068708, 3022345, 3075249, 3080149"
set /P c=Are you sure you want to continue[Y/N]?
if /I "%c%" EQU "Y" goto :removetrack
if /I "%c%" EQU "N" goto :end
goto :tracking

:removetrack
start "title" /b /wait wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:3068708 /quiet /norestart
echo  - done. (1/8)
start "title" /b /wait wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:3022345 /quiet /norestart
echo  - done. (2/8)
start "title" /b /wait wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:3075249 /quiet /norestart
echo  - done. (3/8)
start "title" /b /wait wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:3080149 /quiet /norestart
echo  - done. (4/8)
start "title" /b /wait wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:3068707 /quiet /norestart
echo  - done. (5/8)
start "title" /b /wait wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:3050265 /quiet /norestart
echo  - done. (6/8)
start "title" /b /wait wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:2977759 /quiet /norestart
echo  - done. (7/8)
start "title" /b /wait wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:3044374 /quiet /norestart
echo  - done. (8/8)

REM "All Done, Exiting"
goto :end2

:end
ECHO "I am here because you typed N (NO)"
pause
exit
:end2
ECHO "I am done with this batch file!"
echo ... COMPLETED (please remember to REBOOT,
echo ... Check for Updates and Hide the Following KB Updates)
echo ... 3012973 3021917 3035583 2952664 2976978 3022345
echo ... 3068708 2990214 3075249 3080149
echo ... 3068707, 3050265, 2977759, 3044374
echo  - done.
pause
exit

Job Search

My first job was working in an Orange Juice factory, but I got canned.
Couldn't concentrate .

Then I worked in the woods as a Lumberjack, but just couldn't hack it.
So they gave me the axe .  

After that, I tried being a Tailor, but wasn't suited for it.
Mainly because it was a sew-sew job.

Next, I tried working in a Muffler Factory.
But that was too exhausting.  

Then, tried being a Chef - figured it would add a little spice to my life.
Just didn't have the thyme.  

Next, I attempted being a Deli Worker.
Any way, I sliced it.... couldn't cut the mustard.  

My best job was a Musician.
Eventually found I wasn't noteworthy.

I studied a long time to become a Doctor.

Didn't have any patience.  

Next, was a job in a Shoe Factory.    

Tried hard but just didn't fit in.  

I became a Professional Fisherman,    

Discovered I couldn't live on my net income.  

Managed to get a good job working for a Pool Maintenance Company.
The work was just too draining.  

So then I got a job in a Workout Center.

They said I wasn't fit for the job.

After many years of trying to find steady work I finally got a job as a Historian.
Until I realized there was no future in it.

My last job was working in Starbucks.
Had to quit because it was the same old grind.    

SO, I TRIED   RETIREMENT    

AND I FOUND I'M PERFECT FOR THE JOB!