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#1
General Discussion / Re: Creating a Christmas Linux...
Last post by buster - Today at 11:30:40 AM
Chapter 7: A Surprise Gift from Ms Hui Yin Tao

The day after Boxing Day, while I was spreading peanut butter on my toast, Marilyn's voice came from the living room. "There's a brown truck in front of our driveway."

Together we looked for awhile through the front window at nothing happening. It reminded me of a meeting I had been sent to while still a teacher, and the unwise presenter had stopped the film to emphasize for some reason a beautiful flower. Nothing else was going on as we looked. I don't remember the purpose of the meeting, or what he said about the flower. It seemed nothing memorable was taking place. I do remember the very best part of his presentation though. The audience came alive when the projector's hot light burned a hole in the film, and on the screen we saw the flower catch fire and disappear. It was awesome.

The UPS sign was clear, but the knowledge that the original English family in Seattle who had started the now massive company over a hundred years ago had children named Ursula, Penelope and Severus has faded with time. The connection to the company name is obvious, though after I explained this, Marilyn made a derogatory noise sort of like a snort. I was somewhat offended. I do think my story is better than the real one. I am finding more and more that my family doesn't believe me as much as they used to. Strangers do. A friend of mine in Port Hope, a friend who doesn't get taken in, told me once I should take advantage of this skill. He said I could have made a lot of money as a pastor.

Finally a man wearing lots of clothes got out of the truck with a package and walked through the dusting of snow from overnight. I opened the front door and the hall temperature dropped to killing levels. He handed me a package a little larger than a shoe box and said 'here', turned quickly and scooted back to the truck which I assumed was warm.

Brilliant repartee this morning with Marilyn's snort and the deliver man's 'here'.

The package had a return address on it. I thought I knew from the text who the sender was, but written in the corner was the name that confirmed it. Hui Yin Tao. This was my Christmas present. And she had put a return address on the front so we now knew where she was living, which we had never known before. This was a surprise for both of us. I couldn't believe how close she was. Why Peterborough? And the address was so easy to remember.

I opened it quickly and found a lovely blue box. Inside was a gorgeous glass flower vase of swirling mixed greens and thin strands of dark blue. It was very beautiful and I would guess very expensive. I grinned, which was a mistake.

"Why are you grinning, and who is it from?"

Remembering the text I confidently said, "It's from your friend Ms Tao."

"My friend?" And she looked at me. "Then why why wasn't my name on the gift box?"

I knew how to handle this. "You know how the people from the far east are mysterious. It's hard to unravel why her affection for you would result in a present for me. We Westerners just don't understand their subtleties." I smiled innocently.

"But being the Westerner that I am, I do recognize, with my life experiences, and my clever mind, I do easily recognize sentences that are obviously horse-poop when I hear them. Is that the best you can do?"

I gave her the vase and said, "Here, I'm sure this is for you. Why would she send me a flower vase?"

Why indeed. I should have examined the vase more carefully before handing it over. And maybe I should have accidentally let it slip and smash on the floor. Built right into the glass was a plaque that said 'For flowers to honour happy memories of repairing old computer together'. 

This refers to the time Ms Tao found an old style hard drive in my junk room. (That was described in Adventures with a 10 Year Old Desktop Trilogy - Book Three). And ever since she has believed that the two of us contributed equally to the improvement of that resurrected machine. But that's not the important part. Marilyn's knowledge of that togetherness in the junk room was not something I had shared. But I understood instantly that Ms Tao had shared, probably on one of those sunny summer days when the two of them had chatted endlessly on the front deck. And a side effect of the presence of the gorgeous Ms Tao on our deck was that our status increased immensely on the street. Many people walked over ostensibly to talk, but mostly to see this exotic creature up close. (The men walking dogs were the most comical, according to Marilyn. They didn't know how to start a conversation, and Ms Tao didn't choose to start anything, letting them stumble and suffer until they went away.)

"Was that the time Ms Tao said to you 'You sometimes very simple, for old person' because you... Just a minute. I wrote something else down. It should be on my dresser."

So I had to face the fact that Ms Tao had told her!

Marilyn came back reading and laughing. "I knew I'd kept it. Here's what she wrote:

"I see Buster in coffee shop when good son buy laptop. He very old and hairy."

Marilyn's mood darkened suddenly. Her eyebrows migrated skyward so high she was in danger of pulling the rest of her face off its moorings. "She was here with you and you never said anything?"

My mind working really frantically was interrupted by Marilyn's sudden laughter.

"Just to be clear, we are talking about the Ms Tao with the red lips you follow as she speaks, the same woman who wears unbelievable skirts that show nothing, but reveal everything as she moves, the woman who may be the most beautiful you have every seen, and you didn't tell me because..." More laughter. "Listen old and hairy man, 'for someone who has been around as long as you have, you have quite a simple mind.' Did she not write or say that?" Her comments and laughing did not make me happy, but at least Marilyn didn't throw things. Thank heaven for small mercies as my mother used to say.

Marilyn it seems is very tolerant, or convinced I couldn't charm even a woman with very bad eyes. The ability to charm seems to be one of those things that I left somewhere years ago, maybe on a park bench.

Tomorrow: Chapter 8: The Recalcitrant Bolt
#2
General Discussion / Re: Creating a Christmas Linux...
Last post by ssfc72 - Yesterday at 07:45:53 PM
The suspense is getting intense. :-)
#3
General Discussion / Re: Creating a Christmas Linux...
Last post by buster - Yesterday at 10:22:01 AM
Chapter 5: A Tiny, Tiny Lie

At lunch the main topic of conversation was promoted and extended by our son's once upon a time wife, and that topic was the silliness and rudeness of Marilyn keeping the two of us waiting and worrying.  There was no love lost between the two women, but the attack at the table was unforgivable. I admit I sometimes spice up the truth a bit to add interest, but now, in this case, I think I was justified in creating and telling a truly pants on fire lie.

"That's not how it happened," I started, getting ready to fabricate a story that would make the whole world feel sad. "I was not eager to explain the plight of Marilyn when we were late arriving for lunch." I looked at the tormentor. "When we arrived at the mall, Marilyn was so worried by our long absence she was in tears. She was worried about what had happened to us." I looked at our son who had calmly assumed an appropriate, sad demeanour. His face was a symbol of sadness. "I told Marilyn there was no reason to worry about how it might look to others, because I was going to cover up the truth. But now I don't care. When we found her she wasn't simply crying. She was crying hard, and soaked my coat when she hugged first me and then your worried husband. And that's bad enough. Don't make her feel worse by telling her she's silly." Our son reached over and gave his Mom's arm a two handed gentle squeeze. She looked at him with thanks in her eyes. Both of them could have had a career on the stage.

The table became a conversation-free zone, which was a huge improvement.

                                              *
Our son and I talked enthusiastically (at least I did)  about my plans for the motherboard, which OS I intended to use, the speakers I could connect it to, and where it would live out its life. I was a bit euphoric with the relief of the wife-hunt being successful. And I was happier when I realized that all the money I'd spent on wine was not totally lost. I'd get $2.40 back for the empties.

And before we went out the door a text came in from Ms Tao: "Happy Christmas. Have surprise to you tomorrow." I can't remember any of her surprises being pleasant. But whatever.

We would drive home with a sense of excitement that was not shared equally. I looked forward to building a new computer and Marilyn didn't get much pleasure out of me building a new computer, even when I explained in detail what I was doing. I suspect sometimes she didn't listen, which indicates intelligence on her part. We both practised the non-listening skill.

But the wine had been really, really good, the food was excellent, the laughter was refreshing, and we all had a good time. And when you age, you begin to realize that our Christmas times together ultimately will end. Enjoy them fully while you can.

Chapter 6: Leaving, Arguing and Driving in the Sun

I knew quickly it was going to be psychologically farther back to Peterborough than usual, because as we reached the highway a voice beside me said, "You two talked nothing but computers all weekend."

A lesson for the newlyweds. Do not point out that this statement isn't true and then proceed to analyze the weekend's various topics. You always say as I did, "I'm sorry dear. I got carried away. I was very excited. But I should have changed the topic." This will go a long way to making the trip back semi-civilized.

But I did add, to even the odds a bit, "And don't forget I lied through my teeth to convey the idea that you weren't a cold, selfish woman who we couldn't find because you were having important conversations with strangers in a washroom."

I may have pushed this a little too far, but I waited calmly. Much of marriage is waiting.

She simply grinned and said, "I have a movie recommendation for both of us, a book you would like, and a different book for me."

We drove peacefully home, stopping only for coffee and muffins at a Tim Horton's in Port Perry. We selected a table in the sun, and managed to strike up a conversation, free of computer talk, with a young couple at the next table who were looking for nearby places to put a canoe in the water in the late spring. They had an ultra-lite canoe on order and were already planning day-trips. Our canoe had been heavy. We envied them. The stop for coffee was a good addition to the drive, and took much longer than we expected, but it didn't really matter. It added something else special to the day.

Just one more comment here. Marilyn is surprisingly clever at manipulating me, especially being a woman no longer in the first blush of womanhood.

                                          *
We were a bit tired when we got home and had finally gotten our luggage and gifts into some sort of order when the door opened and in came E&E.

"You're a bit late," said Emmie, who liked the world to be orderly.

"Do you have any food out?" asked Eddie, who was always hungry. I estimated the age of the twins to be somewhere between eight and ten. But I'm not very good at guessing this sort of thing.

"Doesn't your mom feed you?"

"She said I've had enough to eat. That I'm eating her out of house and home. And then she said 'Go and visit your aunt and uncle. Aunt Mar always has food.' "

Marilyn and I looked at each other. The twins from across the street spent a lot of time at our place. Maybe we should move.

Tomorrow: Chapter 7: A Surprise Gift from Ms Hui Yin Tao
#4
General Discussion / Re: Creating a Christmas Linux...
Last post by buster - March 26, 2024, 10:32:30 AM
Chapter 3: Step one in Losing a Wife

Dropping off Marilyn, buying half a Terabyte SSD (Kingston), a big glass sided computer case, and then losing my wife was not what I planned. The SSD and the case - yes. That was planned. But I had no intention of misplacing my wife, at least not consciously. Very few times in my long life had I misplaced her, but there's always a fourth time I suppose.

I drove first to the shoe store and dropped Marilyn off. We made plans on where I would find her when we returned, and this was narrowed down to a pair of stores that were about a block apart in the busy mall. Then Eric and I took a long drive to a different, much less prosperous neighbourhood in Newmarket. And the problem probably started there.

 Because of the crowd the customers had to be lined up outside the door to limit numbers inside. And it was cold, but still people talked and seemed both happy and excited. Time passed. Too much time. I had a picture in my mind of how Marilyn's eyes would be narrowing as she grew annoyed. The more annoyed, the narrower the eyes. She could never wait patiently.

When inside finally, I went immediately to the checkout, stepped through the waiting line and asked, because there were only a limited number of Kingston SSDs, if I could have one set aside til I had selected my other purchase. He was happy to do this, pulled one out and put a sticker on it that said Buster. You were not allowed even to touch the SSD package until it was paid for. So now on to the computer case. So far perfect.

"Over here Dad. This section has good prices and pretty good quality. I was in here two weeks ago. I've actually worked with some of these cases. Good stuff. And the prices are even better."

We looked at a number of different styles and price ranges. Some cases on sale were very large. Maybe that's why they were on sale for such a good price.

"The large cases are good for old people. Easier for senior citizens to handle. Be good for you dad."

"Eric, when do you start collecting your old age pension?"

The answer to that question as I write this is under seven years. Now, in under two years he will cross that threshold that cannot be uncrossed. He will step over the line that says 'sixty years years old' and when that happens, everyone will know that he is old. I'll have to find out what the name is for someone who has crossed the sixty line but has not graduated yet to geezer-land.

These cases, besides being roomy, had a glass side so you can look at the wiring and parts, and see a little light that shines when the computer is on. I suppose that was the trend back then but I'm not sure why the glass was popular. Then again, after I have finished using it for a computer, it would make a good hamster cage. And it did have screening to let the heat out on the top and front. Perfect for small creatures. The brand name is DeepCool, which seems appropriate. One feature I did like is a bevelled top front on the case with 3 USB slots, as well as connectors for microphone and sound. And there's more stuff like that at the back. I also bought it because it would be easy to work with on account of its geezer-friendly size, and the price was a very important factor.

So we got into the long line which led ultimately to three registers, and I could feel my wife's annoyance even this far from her. I was aware of time passing. The line we stood in was setting a Canadian record for slowness. I imagined she could hardly see out of her extreme squint.

Chapter 4: Looking for Love in all the Wrong Places.

Eric's new partner and my wife have both told me that our son has the same sense of humour as I do, and in fact it's a direct copy. So in theory I shouldn't have been too annoyed at what he was doing, but I was. We had made the purchases, driven back to the mall through heavy traffic, had wandered about searching the two stores Marilyn was supposed to be restricted to, and started to worry about where she was. In theory she could walk back to our son's house, but I have to emphasize the words in theory. Did you notice 'in theory' just got used three times?

I'm not sure she could have found her way if she had left to walk to Eric's house. I had mental images of the police putting out an APB for a very short grey haired lady wearing colours I couldn't remember, and going in a multitude of directions, though not all at the same time of course. Marilyn had led a hike of a few friends in the Ganaraska Forest a number of years previously, and they would still be there if a kind stranger hadn't led them back to the parking lot.

So we visited each store again, and added some others to our search, and when we couldn't find where she was our son hummed 'Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places' and once in awhile bursting out with these words, startling people around us.

'Lookin' for love in too many faces
Searchin' their eyes
Lookin' for traces of what I'm dreaming of '

It pleased me some that strangers were looking at his odd behaviour rather than at mine. Maybe I had passed the torch down to the next generation.

And there she was, in one of the selected stores, smiling her lovely smile, squint-less, and not the least concerned about our lateness. When questioned about where she had been, I found out the mall has a lovely washroom and she had met some very nice people. "We talked about movies and books."

And we went back to have lunch, and as the tension drained, the world seemed a better place.

Tomorrow: Chapter 5: A Tiny, Tiny Lie
#5
Security and Privacy / Re: Store manager admits SIM s...
Last post by ssfc72 - March 26, 2024, 04:03:12 AM
Good info Jason, thanks!
#6
General Discussion / Re: Total solar eclipse, April...
Last post by ssfc72 - March 26, 2024, 04:01:53 AM
Be careful with those solar viewers from Temu, Jason. Anything from Temu is highly suspect as being poor quality or fake.

For safe viewing of the eclipse, so you don't damage your eyesight, those cardboard solar glasses should should have an approved ISO number, which verifies they are safe to use, to view the sun.

It has been found that there a lot of those cheap cardboard solar viewers that have bogus/fake ISO numbers printed on them.

The AAS Solar Eclipse Task Force, has a list of verified suppliers of solar viewers, where the safe and genuine viewers can be purchased.

 https://eclipse.aas.org/eye-safety/viewers-filters



#7
General Discussion / Re: Creating a Christmas Linux...
Last post by ssfc72 - March 26, 2024, 03:43:52 AM
A nice start to your computer story, Buster.  Thanks for the smiles and chuckles that you gave me, while reading it. :-)
#8
Security and Privacy / Store manager admits SIM swapp...
Last post by Jason - March 25, 2024, 07:22:00 PM
SIM jacking is a common form of hacking but can be avoided as article from MalwareByes explains. It has some helpful tips on what to watch for as well as avoiding it. One of your best ways is to use another form of 2FA other than via text messages like using an authenticator app.
#9
General Discussion / Re: Total solar eclipse, April...
Last post by Jason - March 25, 2024, 03:46:21 PM
The Planetary Society, which I like to mention every time I can, had some information and other links about the upcoming eclipse here:

https://www.planetary.org/eclipse

You can get a pair of deluxe special edition pair of glasses from them although they're a bit expensive. But it helps the non-profit and they're cool. Being a poor man, I had to get a pair from Temu.

Hoping for clear skies.
#10
General Discussion / Creating a Christmas Linux Min...
Last post by buster - March 25, 2024, 11:25:10 AM
This build was done four or five years ago and unlike many of my creations, this computer hasn't died yet.

Chapter 1: Spending a Lot of Money in a Sensible Way

The old muscles in the small of my back complained as I carried the heavy box of wine up the steps. Another family Christmas gathering. It will be much easier carrying out a carton of empty bottles after the other eight people quickly drain many of the reds, whites and sparkling. Four of the people are my grand-kids who seemed to have developed, unfortunately, like our son and daughter, an unpleasant habit of drinking grandpa's expensive wines and ignoring the cheap stuff. So now I just fill the carton with expensive wines each year, serve the drinks, and cart out the empties afterwards. And sort of smile.

But the evening was really good, with noise, laughter and arguments. Our son and daughter had both their families around the huge table. The food was amazing. And then we shared a few gifts late Christmas Eve. And that's where the story began.

Our son Eric has access to 'outdated' high tech stuff that usually gets shared by schools and charity groups. That's where the good stuff goes. But sometimes 'the stuff' isn't perfect, but needs be fixed by someone patient and knowledgeable. But it's all top line not quite perfect computer parts and it had to be powerful for the testing it had to do. So under the Christmas tree was a three or four year old Gigabyte motherboard, with ram and an Intel chip with the biggest heat sink and fan I had ever seen! And all for Buster, who quickly calculated what else was needed – I had an old ATX power supply, a very old computer case (19 years and counting), a 500 gig old style hard drive, and some ram to bring this motherboard up to 8 gig. And looking at it as an accountant would, it had only cost me say seven very expensive bottles of wine. Ah well. It had been a great Christmas Eve, and the Marilyn and I got to sleep in the biggest bed in the house, because we're very old.

Chapter 2: Half a Century of Interesting Times

The history that Eric and I share spans more than half a century, some of it wonderful, and some rather the opposite. But lately it's been good. That Christmas Day not long ago he and I were, after a small bottle of Honey Bourbon I'd brought from the south, singing Christmas carols. Just the two of us. He played guitar and I sort of improvised the voice harmony while he sang lead. A presence beside us proved to be his wife who said, not quietly nor politely, nor even with an understanding smile on her face, "Eric, everyone is in bed and would like to go to sleep!" He wisely ignored mentioning the fact that the two singers and the cat were not yet in bed and said with some sternness in his voice, "I'm not sure how many times more I'll be able to sit around with this the old geezer, and tonight is one of those times, even though his singing is atrocious". And he strummed a chord to start the next song. The 'old geezer' didn't bother me at all, but atrocious singer? Still, I was as proud of a son as any father could
be. And the following year she ran off with someone else anyways.

Which leads back to the story of this Christmas, and our usual sampling of interesting music and beverage. My wife Marilyn had gone to bed, partly to let us have our yearly late evening together, and partly because she didn't like the music playing through the speakers - Queen, some Doobie Brothers, and Steely Dan. So we had the empty main floor to ourselves.

This time our son supplied the quite expensive bottle of wine, and after we poured from the bottle of Argentinian malbec we commented very favourably on the aroma and taste, and on Steely Dan. We were as happy as a father and son can be until he said, "Let's see if the motherboard works!" My heart sank a bit. Would my favourite (and only) son give me a gift that is not usable?

He dragged up from his workroom a monitor, some cords and a heavy black box that looked like a prop from a s/f movie. It was almost scary, with countless thickly insulated black wires with connectors at the end. These black wires looked for all the world like tentacles spread out on the table top. Imagine a metal octopus, with long threatening appendages ready to grab your wrist and climb up your arm.  I definitely blame that image on the honey bourbon. I made a short-lived vow never to drink again.

"This power box is of no use for our tests anymore. It doesn't give enough juice to the new CPU's and video cards." I'm guessing gaming CPU's are maybe a wee bit more powerful than my laptop CPU. "And this is what's wrong with the Gigabyte board," he said, pointing. A small bolt and nut had got itself wedged in a hole and refused to be ejected. I was pretty sure I'd find a way to extricate it without damaging anything – an apparently easy problem to solve. Time would tell.

Watching skilled people always amazes me – the ease with which they work. This can be carpenters, comedians, or mathematicians. In what seemed like a nano second, everything was connected and ready to be turned on. When I mentioned the lack of operating system, he made a disapproving face and said, "We're only going to look at the bios."

Of course. What was this old geezer thinking of? His fingers flew over the keyboard and information started showing on the screen that I'd never seen from a bios. And the screen changed before my old brain cells could absorb anything.

"Looks good," he said, with a hint of relief showing on his face. "And you can have the power box." Affection and admiration flowed through me, though that could have been ether Steely Dan or the wine. Or the honey bourbon. Hard to say. But I do think in retrospect it was mainly affection.

"And tomorrow, while Mom is trying to buy boots, we're going to a great discount computer store to take advantage of the Boxing Day sales. SSDs and computer cases are both on sale."

After reminiscing about the previous half century together, drinking more excellent wine, and listening to music, we went to bed. Tomorrow I would add to my stash of stuff to build a great and speedy computer. That, at least, was the plan.

Tomorrow: Chapter 3: Step one in Losing a Wife