Microsoft means well, and updates are good, but I want to be in control of when my computer reboots, dammit. Not in the middle of a VoIP call, or me watching a movie. Steps to put a stop to this forced reboot countdown craziness: 1. Press Control + Escape 2. Type “cmd” 3. Right click “cmd.exe” icon 4. Click the run as Administrator choice at the… Read More »
In an article from The Atlantic; Miles Kimbal and Noah Smith expound on the subject of basic math skills. (and the myth of inborn math ability): Basic ability in the subject isn’t the product of good genes, but hard work. Quartz: “There’s one key difference between those who excel at math and those who don’t” The authors discuss that the idea that math ability is mostly genetic is a single… Read More »
In a USA Today article, we learn that on Friday: the Illinois Supreme Court has thrown out a law which taxes certain internet sales. According to the court: the “Amazon tax” violated the federal ban against unequal taxes on digital transactions. The first time a court has overturned an ‘Amazon’ internet sales tax law. The Illinois department of revenue is considering taking the matter to the U.S. Supreme court.… Read More »
In a discussion some time ago, I had, the question was raised “In a small business setup one server, lets say Server 2008 and anywhere from 4-12 client computers.”; How many computers before you really need to fork over the cash, for a dedicated firewall appliance? It seems to be commonly assumed that a dedicated firewall only provides enough benefits for a large network, and that it is difficult… Read More »
Gray, Louisiana An 15 year old young man has been arrested for using a smartphone app called the real strike app to “shoot” classmates at H. L. Bourgeois High School. The app places a virtual gun and user interface over a real background seen through the phone’s camera: in the style of a first person shooter game. A student tested out this application, and then regretably posted a video of it… Read More »
Sleep boosts brain cell numbers In today’s BBC Health news: there was a great article about new research, describing how sleep helps the brain. The research suggests that ‘Sleep boosts brain cell numbers‘. Getting enough sleep may have benefits: beyond what was previously thought. When sleep boosts your brain cell numbers, you might live longer. You might avoid disease, or other problems. This research provides yet another… Read More »
Computerphile recently did a cool video on the art of abstraction; a fundamental concept required in the development and understanding of computation: