Great Moments in Computer Programming

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

When windows 10 really really wants you to upgrade to 11 and one of the engineers clicks the: 'yes, Ok, just leave me alone, I'm busy' button, and then after the upgrade SolidWorks won't run because it's Windows11. The whole point of having the machine is to use SolidWorks. Now the de facto IT guy has to do a registry hack to all the 10 machines to keep then from upgrading.

This is the kind of stuff that happens when Microsoft's marketing department has their inane change (not upgrade) screens and buttons and anti-patterns.

"Oh just have a backup hard drive cloned with what you want and ready and and and" ... anything but maybe Microsoft doesn't act like slime.

Ricky Roma says in Glengarry Glenn Ross that Kevin Spacey's character is supposed to "help us... not fuck us up." That's Microsoft.

[Casual Observer]

When windows 10 really really wants you to upgrade to 11 and one of the engineers clicks the: 'yes, Ok, just leave me alone, I'm busy' button, and then after the upgrade SolidWorks won't run because it's Windows11. The whole point of having the machine is to use SolidWorks. Now the de facto IT guy has to do a registry hack to all the 10 machines to keep then from upgrading.

This is the kind of stuff that happens when Microsoft's marketing department has their inane change (not upgrade) screens and buttons and anti-patterns.

"Oh just have a backup hard drive cloned with what you want and ready and and and" ... anything but maybe Microsoft doesn't act like slime.

Ricky Roma says in Glengarry Glenn Ross that Kevin Spacey's character is supposed to "help us... not fuck us up." That's Microsoft.

Awesome! I think that's the first quote of Glengarry Glenn Ross that I've read in an internet forum.

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

The lack of features with LinkedIn is crazy to me.

I saw this post on Twitter for a software engineering position with Internet Archive. I love the Internet Archive! I'd like to pass this on to my contacts on LinkedIn who are looking for jobs.

The listing:
https://jobs.ffwd.org/companies/interne ... ces-remote

Looks like Python is a requirement. This is when it hits me that I have no way to filter my connections on LinkedIn who are looking for work, and who know Python. LinkedIn is worthless here.

I dunno man. I am sure it provides value to some, but this is a site that has no features that are useful for job seekers and people trying to help one another.

[Da King]

I got a really good deal on a new Apple Watch. SCORE. Had it delivered to Shawn at school in NH, because it wasnt going to ship until we were going to be up here anyways, and it got me out of paying sales tax on it. SCORE.

Got it tonight and brought it back to the hotel room to set up. I go to set up the watch, and it tells me it needs a software update. OK, whatevs. I click all the buttons, but it wont start. After some research.... I find out that the phone and watch both need to be on a wifi network. Unfortunately, the wifi is out in my room (the building I'm in had a tree fall on a line or something, getting fixed tomorrow, so no wifi, normally not a problem I can just use cell data, but NO, THE EFFING WATCH NEEDS WIFI TO APPLY A SOFTWARE UPDATE!!!!)

So I've been sitting in the basement of another building on the property for the last 2 hours, downloading a 2.2G update over insanely slow internet. If, somehow, Apple engineers could figure out how to let me download data over a CELLULAR connection, I could have been done forever ago.

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

A 2.2GB update for a watch is unacceptable. God, they'll do anything but maybe cut down on the sheer overheard their software requires.

This website was making the rounds of social media this week: https://www.mcmaster.com/ it is SO QUICK. I am just going to go ahead and blame JavaScript and the node infrastructure out of intellectual laziness and a lack of desire to look anything up to know for sure.

In another great moment: so we pay for two ISPs. Starlink ($120/month), which is fast but has micro-outages, and another satellite one which is slower, but stable ($91 a month). They are digging trenches for fiber right now, which will be faster than both and more stable than both for $80 a month. I decided to just live with the micro outages and went to cancel the non-Starlink service. Greedily, I want to keep Starlink until fiber is up and running because the Starlink download speeds are so quick.

Well, the other ISP isn't open on the weekends and they have no way to cancel service via the Internet. I'm not that mad but come on.

[AArdvark]

Why was McMaster Carr making the rounds on social media?

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

Oh sorry! Someone posted it as an example of a website that instantly loads and transitions through screens and links and such.

I think the discussion was: look at how fast the "old" web was, with HTML. Look at it. LOOK AT IT. It could always be like this without the garbage infrastructure coming along for the ride. Okay, maybe it is not all garbage, but some of it, like with tracking, is.

[AArdvark]

We use McM all the time at work. I never realized how quick it really is.

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

I should actually do some research to ensure that site is what I think it is. Don't mind me.

[Da King]

They are digging trenches for fiber right now

While I have not yet been to the new digs, I picture you living as an almost recluse, alone on a mountain. (I know it's not QUITE that bad, but I'm picturing it close). How the hell are you getting them to dig out fiber lines? Thats awesome.

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

American Express offered me an "upgrade!!!!!" for a card with a $95 a year fee. (My current card has an annual fee of 0, and I have never paid interest on it.)

One of us does not know what the word "upgrade" means!!!!!!!!

[RealNC]

American Express offered me an "upgrade!!!!!" for a card with a $95 a year fee. (My current card has an annual fee of 0, and I have never paid interest on it.)

One of us does not know what the word "upgrade" means!!!!!!!!

But... it *is* an upgrade.

For them.

[Ice Cream Jonsey]

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

[Casual Observer]

American Express offered me an "upgrade!!!!!" for a card with a $95 a year fee. (My current card has an annual fee of 0, and I have never paid interest on it.)

One of us does not know what the word "upgrade" means!!!!!!!!

For a few years I had an AMEX Platnum Card. Its made out of metal and comes complete with a block of wood phone holder and apparently some "Awsome" member benefits. $500/year for a metal card, fuck them.

[Da King]

American Express offered me an "upgrade!!!!!" for a card with a $95 a year fee. (My current card has an annual fee of 0, and I have never paid interest on it.)

One of us does not know what the word "upgrade" means!!!!!!!!

Depends on the benefits.

My Amex gives me 6% cash back on the first $6k in groceries every year. Thats $360 cash back, on a $95 card.

After we chew thru that $6k, I just have my Leslie switch over to the Wells Fargo card that gets 2% on everything.

[Jizaboz]

lol paying for credit cards

I’ve been burning BTC on Walmart gift cards with this spike.

[Da King]

I am a technology person I have worked in IT for 34 years.
I am an investment person. I manage 401ks and IRAs for both my wife and myself. I handle 529 plans for my kids. I like to think I know what I'm doing.

I cannot, for the life of me, comprehend bitcoin. I view it as some kind of arbitrary thing that some guy made up. "Here's a random hash of numbers and OMG IF YOU FIND ONE ITS WORTH $40K or $100K or a bag of peanuts depending on the day!".

I cannot in good faith invest any significant amount of money in it. I feel like someday, the Chinese are just going to say "Meh, it's not worth anything anymore. Now we're all investing in rice!"

I do have a small portion of my IRA account in a bitcoin fund. It's up 122% since I bought it, so I'm happy.

But none if it makes any sense to me.

[Jizaboz]

Got the last piece for this over-powered monster. The one last bottle neck I never thought I would have: drive speed.

Just installed a Samsung M2 T2 Pro and whoooa dudes. Sata SSD I was using was roughly 750 MB/S transfer speed.. this new one is almost 7500/MB. Insanity lol.

Installed it and expected to see a new drive I can't do anything with. Nothing. Rebooted. I see it in BIOS!. Rebooted to Windows 11. Disk Manager. I see the disk again! Create new volume and wheww there we go. There it is.

Used the Samsung Magician software to image my old sata drive to this new one and it worked flawlessly. Rebooted, changed the boot drive in BIOS, then formatted the SATA once I was back in Windows and all is well.

C: Windows/newest games
D: "DATA" is a magnetic drive for storing old DOS games and retro pr0n.
E: "External" USB-SSD drive used for double-redundant backups.
F: "Files" ie; Unreal5 and Unity project data as well as games that don't need the newest/faster hard disk yet should be faster than magnetic.

[Da King]

I was trying a new app for my phone that supposedly uses AI to generate workouts when I go to the gyms. Changes them up regularly, works different muscle groups, etc. Awesome.

The app comes with a 7-day free trial. That is enough to get thru week 1 of a 5-week program. I have no idea how the program progresses after week 1. A 7-day free trial is worthless.

I can buy a 30-day membership for $30. Jeezus. Thats 3x what I pay for my gym membership.
Or a 90-day membership for $50. More cost effective.
Or a yearly membership for $70. Makes more sense.
Or a lifetime membership fro $120. Sweet. I'll pay more so I never have to think about it again.

So I go into the subscriptions area, and I see the monthly, quarterly, and yearly... but no lifetime. Instead, the yearly option is listed not once. Not twice. But THREE times. They list the yearly sub THREE times, but the lifetime zero.

I tried emailing the developer, and he could not be bothered to respond before my free trial expired. Great customer service.

So now I had to cancel my membership (so that it didnt auto-bill at $70 yearly tomorrow).

And now I'm trying a different app.

Pro Tip: If you are going to offer a lifetime membership, dont fuck me over and make me pay for something far more extortionist.

[Jizaboz]

Newer model NES models (1990s) are fucking bullshit. It features a more textured exterior paint than earlier models, as well as a code on the board I had not seen: "107".

Someone figured out people leave their systems on for days on end and decided to MORE copper shielding to the main PCB. The model of PCB is just as hard to work on as a Wells Gardner k4700 board due to the layers of shielding. Apply heat to component, try to suck shit away, nothing happens because surprise all yr heat is dispersed.

Older Famicom and NES models you'd just heat a pad by a leg of an old cap, gently pull and it's out. Or better yet desoldering iron (mine is not working atm) and the parts should just fall out. NOT with model 7.

I'll get this one done (It's my cousin's) but it's slow going with making sure everything is like surgical room clean rather than normally clean, adding flux (LOL usually just adding new solder suffices), gotta re-flow tomorrow before clearing holes for new caps while making sure I just don't rip the rings out the fucking via holes. Also, new tip because I ruined one with all the shit the first one picked up merely removing 3 caps.