Category: Technology

Fracking Is Alive and Well

Big hat tip to Wall Street Journal’s energy reporter Erin Ailworth, from whose article I borrowed heavily to write this post. She is based in Houston, and her full article can be viewed on the link below.
Fracking 2.0: Shale Drillers Pioneer New Ways to … – Wall Street Journal

A few years ago, when the global market on oil prices started to head south from over a $100 a barrel, the administrator, Sir James Quinn (who received his knighthood from the Irish owner of a pub in Wildwood NJ, heh) of this distinguished site and I got into an animated discussion about fracking for oil and natural gas. It was fun, mainly because I beat on him like a rented mule while arguing that fracking was good for America’s independence from foreign sources of oil, and Sir James argued that market forces on the decreasing price of oil would eventually destroy those energy industries heavily involved and heavily indebted in fracking for oil in America. Our discussion occurred when I believe oil had tanked to around $60 a barrel.

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Innerspace (NMF part 5)

With the interior skeleton largely in place it is time to turn my attention to putting some skin on these bones–the inside bones anyway.

So to begin, first we have to ensure that there is a layer of dampening material between each layer of the structure.  In this case I’m using an underlayment foam.  It is relatively inexpensive, easy to come by (the flooring isle), and effective in covering a large surface area.  This is partly to dampen the wall surface and partly to help create another layer to seal one side from the other.  It isn’t much of a barrier to sound, but it does help.

Beginning with the roll foam:

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GHOSTERY IS TOAST

I’m running Firefox (+Windows7) and noticed that beginning with release 50.1.0, the browser and browser navigation slowed considerably. I started digging around looking for the cause and discovered that Ghostery had been disabled on my browser. Digging further I learned that Ghostery had been bought out by a German ad agency. Reading recent user comments indicated that the buyout coincided with the browser slowdown.

A few of the comments indicated that Ghostery is now being used to spy on you. I didn’t dig any further, opting to uninstall Ghostery instead. While I cannot confirm that Ghostery was the cause of my browser slowdown or that they are spying on users, I re-booted the computer after this and Firefox is back to its usual snappy self with no sluggishness.

Perhaps admins ad revenue will increase a bit now that Ghostery has been assimilated by the DarkSide and people stop using it? If anyone knows of a good add-on similar to Ghostery for Firefox please share in the comments below.


A Fine Errection (NMF part 4)

https://www.theburningplatform.com/2017/02/17/its-not-my-fault-part-3/

The title of this section was carefully designed to get Stucky to at least open this post.  He may not read it, but while NickelthroweR inspired me to get started, Stucky’s equally amazing DIY narratives encouraged me nearly as much.

So here begins the part where it gets really hard…really.

Just not this way:  (Stucky at home reading TBP)

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It’s not my fault…. (Part 3)

Laying the Foundation

For the backstory see:

https://www.theburningplatform.com/2017/02/12/its-not-my-fault-part-1/

https://www.theburningplatform.com/2017/02/17/its-not-my-fault-part-2/

As with nearly any building project, big or small, you build the base and work up from there.  This project is no different; however, we want our base to have a few interesting and unusual properties.  In this case we want our base to provide access for ducting, we want it to be as isolated as we can make it, and we want it to be easily portable.  Easily portable?  That is absolutely essential.

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It’s Not My Fault…(Part 2)

Note this won’t make much sense to you if you haven’t seen part 1…

https://www.theburningplatform.com/2017/02/12/its-not-my-fault-part-1/

First of all let me make it plain that I’ve never done this before.  I’ve built various things like a storage shed, framed a wall or two, made some book cases, trimmed in with various moldings, and generally know my way around a compound miter saw.  Most of this has been learned by trial and error, looking over the shoulder of other trades on our project job-sites, the occasional youtube video, and a small library of books I keep about on innumerable topics.  Suffice to say I’m pretty handy with tools, but very inexperienced with this particular brand of work.  There are certainly a host of ways I could have done this easier, but I’ll describe what I did.  If there are things I discovered along the way to make an improvement I’ll note that as I go.

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Stereotyping Millennials

Stereotyping Millennials {unfairly?}

I, like many other people – have been known to “label” the millennial generation.

While it is an accurate label (a group of people generally born in the early 80’s to the early 2000’s), many of the points are worth discussing at least for a few minutes.

Many articles we’ve read – typically identify Millennials as being liberal, or at the very least being “left-leaning.” And that may be true (not sure what the exact percentage is – but I’m guessing it’s at least over 70% – maybe even more in big cities – especially on the coasts).

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It’s not my fault… (Part 1)

When it comes blogging, at least when I’ve thought of blogging myself, I ranked my desire as on par with posting my latest meal on Facebook or tweeting the status of my toenails. To say it hasn’t been a high priority is not really capturing my deep and abiding lack of interest.

That began to change when I read a post on TheBurningPlatform.com. A post by a guy named “NickelthroweR” (outlining how he had built a hand wired amplifier, preamplifier, or maybe a processor of some sort) caught my attention. You see I build audio systems too. I don’t build the components; I use the components to create systems that range from tiny to large. I specialize in systems for churches, stadiums, and arenas, and while the particulars of what I do don’t matter much in this context, a detailed outline of hand building an esoteric audio device is something that catches my attention.

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SSS Clears the Air on Hacking

“SSS, what is your opinion on Russian Hackers and this entire “act of war” with the election?”
—-card802

Glad you asked, and I’m putting on full body armor to prepare for the idiotic responses from the conspiracy idiots present on this site. My answer to card802’s inquiry is four words. Totally absurd false narrative.

I’ve got bad news for Senator John McCain and his warmongering ilk. The only reason for the VERY EXISTENCE of every foreign intelligence service on the entire planet is to commit espionage. Let me put it into layman’s terms that even McLame can understand. THEY ARE THERE TO STEAL THE OTHER GUY’S SECRETS. And in doing so, those intelligence services are breaking the law because every country on Earth, no exceptions, has a law against espionage. In essence, all foreign intelligence services are criminal organizations, vis a vis espionage laws, and funded by their host governments and manned by their citizens.

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SR-71 Blackbird Pilot Trolls Arrogant Fighter Pilot with Ground Speed Check.

SR-71 Blackbird Pilot Trolls Arrogant Fighter Pilot with Ground Speed Check.

By Tribunist Staff

http://tribunist.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/SR71-640x336.jpg

This may be the single greatest aviation story ever told, it’s about the iconic SR-71 Blackbird whose full operating specs are still classified to this day. The story, from the now out-of-print book Sled Driver by former SR-71 jockey Brian Shul (available used on Amazon for just $700). Here’s the ultimate aviation troll:

Screen Shot 2016-07-18 at 4.51.23 PM

There were a lot of things we couldn’t do in an SR-71, but we were the fastest guys on the block and loved reminding our fellow aviators of this fact. People often asked us if, because of this fact, it was fun to fly the jet. Fun would not be the first word I would use to describe flying this plane. Intense, maybe. Even cerebral. But there was one day in our Sled experience when we would have to say that it was pure fun to be the fastest guys out there, at least for a moment.

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Something is changing…

Anyone notice anything different as of late?

I am sensing something happening in the information sphere called the interwebs recently.

But first a quick reference. I recall something in some middle-eastern religious book that talked about infiltrating a society (acclimating, appearing benign) – then “waiting until the right moment” to pounce. I’m sure you know what I’m talking about.

Also along the lines of a “wolf in sheep’s clothing.”

This isn’t about that group of people.

It’s about the “thing” stupidly labeled as the “Alt-Right.”

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Never pay full price for anything!

Why should you? Never pay full price!

With the exception of either “emergency” things like repairs, or “bare essentials” like fuel or commodities like perishable food – there is no reason to pay more than you should. Never pay full price for anything!

Always shop sales, clearances or end of season events

When you look at many of these stupid holiday season sales events – it should open the eyes of EVERYONE who has paid more for said products in the past.

Everyone should be asking – “wait a minute – maybe I should always wait for these blockbuster events to buy anything like this!”

Why don’t all of us do that? To postpone a purchase until a known “mega sale” comes?

Is it urgency? Hardly ever.

Is it instant gratification? Sometimes.

Is it marketing manipulation? Usually.

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Who Will Watch the Watchers?

by Uncola for TheBurningPlatform.com

On December 15th, 2016 Facebook announced a series of measures designed to address what they have termed the “issue of fake news and hoaxes”.  The assault on fake news by Facebook will consist of four initiatives including:  Easier reporting by readers, flagging stories as disputed, informed sharing and disrupting financial incentives for spammers.

If Facebook readers, in their infinite wisdom, decide a certain shared story is a hoax, they can simply click the right hand corner of the post.  This is great.  Why, it might even make the Facebook community a last line of defense in the online information war.  I don’t know about you, but I, for one, am going to sleep much better knowing this.  What could go wrong?

Next, in order to flag any story as fake news, Facebook has started a program working with third-party fact checking organizations that are “signatories of Poynter’s International Fact Checking Code of Principles”.

Thirdly, “Informed Sharing” is explained by Facebook in this way:

We’re always looking to improve News Feed by listening to what the community is telling us. We’ve found that if reading an article makes people significantly less likely to share it, that may be a sign that a story has misled people in some way. We’re going to test incorporating this signal into ranking, specifically for articles that are outliers, where people who read the article are significantly less likely to share it.

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PURCHASING A HIGH SECURITY HOME SAFE

PURCHASING A HIGH SECURITY HOME SAFE

A person could be forgiven for thinking that the purchase of a high security home safe is simple and straightforward. As with many things in life, such a purchase requires a little more than listening to the sales pitch and selecting a color and size.

I don’t yet own a safe myself but earlier this year I completed my due diligence in anticipation of purchasing one. Actually I do own a safe but it’s a decoy or sacrificial safe that I hope satisfies any thieves who will clearly be desperate breaking into my humble home. What prompted this article was a comment posted by a more recent regular here on TBP and my own knowledge of the misconceptions people have about safes.

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Dyson Pure Hot + Cool Link {review}

A review of the Dyson Pure Hot + Cool Link air purifier

We got a Dyson Pure Hot + Cool Link air purifier a few weeks ago, and we’d like to share our experiences from the latest new device from the company that revolutionized the common home vacuum back in the late 1990’s / early 2000’s.

And since their vacuums literally disrupted the market, they’ve released many other innovative products, including Hand Dryers (best I’ve ever tried), Hair Care (blow dryers), high-end LED Lighting, “Air Treatment” (i.e., fans and purifiers), and more.

We reviewed one of the early Dyson Air Multipliers over six years ago – with mixed results. You sort of had to “re-think” the status quo to understand what it was all about.

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TBPoogle – the best search engine yet?

IDEA – TBPoogle instead of using “mainstream” search engine

I’ve seen many great ideas shared here on TBP. From Stucky’s DIY projects, and more. Some overall good advice – to excellent advice. Amongst some of the mud-slinging. But that’s free entertainment – not liberal trolling.

Back in the day – people either experimented themselves – or had conversations with real people. Some would often chime in with REAL WORLD EXPERIENCE and advice.

Today – most of us head to a search engine skewed results “algorithm” seeking something either to confirm our bias – or send us in a particular direction in a quest for “answers.”

Can we go back to the old way?

That is why I am suggesting “TBPoogle.”

TBPoogle search engine Continue reading “TBPoogle – the best search engine yet?”