OK, wow, that was quick

I got a notice in my email that yesterday was the 10th anniversary of moving my blog to WordPress from MySpace, more than 12 years since I started doing my old blog on an adult web site because all the other blogging sites I tried crashed the browser that came with the Linspire OS né Lindows, computer I was using way back then. That was so many computers ago I can’t even remember how many. According to the records on the dashboard page this is the 3131st post not counting the 9 pages also on this blog, linked under the title bar. That works out to almost a post every day for 10 years or a post every 1.1664 days, or 0.857 posts per day. Or from another point of view I skipped and was lazy for 521 days in the last 10 years. So there is room for improvement in my productivity. Basically I took a year and a half off from blogging in the 10 years I have worked at this URL.

In some ways it doesn’t feel like any time at all until I remember how many computers that either aged out and couldn’t run the browsers needed to create posts, or just flat wore out and had to be replaced from mechanical failure of parts too old to be replaced. And when you consider the last computer basically ran for 5 years and replaced a computer that was too old to run the browser needed to post on this site, which replaced the other computer that was too old to run the browser… Well then it starts looking a lot more like 10 years since I posted the first time here.

I don’t want to think of the pain and suffering linked here back when I was tracking wrecks and how to prevent them (ban cars). Seriously those years ended up being Not Good for my mental health after a while, but were something I needed to do after the wreck, Because Reasons. I’m still personally pissed off at the driver of the murder weapon, but I have moved on to the point that the wreck no longer dominates my life like it used to. The Sprint-T has taken that job over. 😁

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Laptop was down

And I was annoyed, mainly because I used to be a Windows help desk operator and I had no idea of how to fix it, my training and experience ending with the introduction of XP, back in 2002, following hard on the heels of the disaster of ME and totally disrupting all the diagnostic and repair tools that had been in use since 98. So there I was a trained computer expert with years of experience and I am no better off than your garden variety N00B since my computer came minus documentation. I had no idea of how to get to Safe Mode, or if Safe Mode was still a thing in 10.

Basically what happened was while I was working and reading e-mail the bottom shelf disappeared, and when I ended the web browser I had a blank screen where the desktop should be. And when I restarted the computer I had a blank screen after the log-in screen. And since keyboard shortcuts I learned are not valid with 10 I couldn’t get anything running, or maybe they are valid but that was something else that wasn’t working. And because I don’t have any documentation I have no way of knowing if keyboard shortcuts are a thing anymore.

Anywho, as you can probably tell, I got the laptop fixed, but dang if I know how. The only thing I could find said to hold the shift key down to activate “sticky keys” and then hold F8 and reboot. After the third (or so) try I had a normal reboot and all my icons back. So here I am.

Other news, Clyde has learned to knock to be let in, we think. Story short, I heard what sounded like knocking at the front door a few minutes after I went to bed this morning, but when I got up to check there was nobody there, except Clyde sitting on the window AC unit. Clyde is not the kind of cat to hang around when people come to the door, even people he knows, so by process or elimination Clyde managed to knock on the window to get let in, or Clyde banged against the window whilst scratching an itch and got let in anyway. And as you might have guessed I didn’t win the $1 billion jackpot, but I’m buying a ticket for the $1.6 billion jackpot. Because, how can I not risk $2 for a chance at a billion dollars after taxes? The cash option is almost a billion tonight ($904 million) and will probably bust a billion by the draw on Tuesday. Not that I’m going for the cash option, I want every cent I can get because I could do so much good with that much money. And going by last week’s sales, we could see a $2 billion jackpot by the draw date. Even at 304 million to one odds I can’t pass that up. I mean look at what I have already lived through that I shouldn’t have, I must have some luck left over to win a little money, right?

Not feeling good today

I did several days in a row with 2-3 miles walked with allergies and now my back is complaining, not loudly, but making its presence known. This is my notice to take a break and not overdo things. Also after several days of good behavior the “m” key on the keyboard is acting cranky again, and Google keeps sending me notices that my OS is no longer supported.

Now this can be dealt with in many ways. I can buy a new computer (ha, ha), I can get the keyboard fixed and install Linux, I can install Linux on my Dad’s old computer after I drag it out of the box it has been stuck in since 2012. And one of my friends might have an old laptop they can give me. First I need to call and find out how much getting the keyboard fixed will cost, then work from there.

On the Sprint-T I have been contemplating a frame revision that would add maybe 40 pounds but provide a major increase in torsional stiffness. It isn’t as pretty now, but it will be much more tunable for handling. Basically what I did was make sure all the possible load paths were continuous and triangulated in all 3 dimensions and clear the body. It was that last requirement that has been the monkey wrench in the works, as the body is 34″ wide underneath and 45″ wide at the top and there has to be a structural member to meet the mounts underneath or the body would have not crashworthiness. That’s not the problem by itself, the problem is the diagonal from the top of the rear roll hoop to the bottom of the front roll hoop. Now I thought I had this solved a while back, but when I traced the load paths I found it went all wonky at the front roll hoop. The loads went from in line to bending around the front hoop because of having to have a member under the body and the diagonal snake around the bowed-out sides because there is no straight line from the top of the rear hoop to the bottom of the rear hoop. Interestingly enough, there is straight line access from the top of the rear hoop to the middle of the front hoop, and back to the bottom of the rear hoop, but that places bending loads on the front hoop unless there is a corresponding member from the front suspension support to the front hoop. And that is what increases the weight so much, about 8 additional members about 50″ long each weigh 30 pounds total plus the gussets at each intersection add about 8-9 ounces each end. If I could reduce the size of the structural members any more without worry about damage from people leaning or climbing on the car I could make it lighter, but I have to use the frame as a ladder to get in through the top of the cage.

While I have been writing about fixing the mistakes in my frame I had a show about engineering mistakes and fixing them on the Science Channel on the Tee Vee. Some of those mistakes cost hundreds of millions of dollars to fix, some couldn’t be fixed for any amount of money. I’m just glad I’m finding my mistakes before I spend money building unusable junk.

My body is weird

As if it wasn’t obvious from previous events, I have a strange body. I’m currently sitting in my office where the thermometer reads 64°F wearing spandex shorts and a pair of ankle socks and a cat in my lap. And I’m not uncomfortable, except for when the cat starts to slide off the spandex and digs in his claws. Then I feel pain. But I’m not feeling cold right now. I have slightly stiff fingers but otherwise I’m not feeling the cold.

Still trying to either replace or repair the Chromebook. Amazon has been showing me high-end versions that run $900, I’m looking for something a lot less. Something in the $199 range, like the one I have now that I bought in 2013. Well, there are some. On the first page of the Amazon search the price range is $150 to $485. New ranges from $185 to the $485, the lower cost are refurbished (used) units. I haven’t been able to check the costs of cleaning and repair of my existing laptop yet.

And I really want to get Something done on the Sprint-T. Something beyond moving virtual boxes around on a laptop screen Something. Actual tubes welded together Something. But things are a bit busy right now.