Pem’s Tech Blog

Pem’s Tech Blog was an excuse to play a little with another set of web tools (ie, WordPress blogs).  I had lots more ideas of things I’d ramble (or rant) about here…  Such as more Magic:TCG vocab, Philosophy related, computers and STEM related, and other random stuff.

Without even spending that much time on this, I got an idea of how huge a time sink maintaining a blog and writing entries can be.  Doing your own WordPress setup via shared web hosting adds to that time consumption – though obviously not as bad as if I ran my own dedicated server’s OS, PHP, SQL, etc.

I also got some more exposure to a particular kind of writing.  For the type of writing I do in these posts and in emails…  I think it’s different than the kind of writing they like to see for Liberal Arts classes or GRE essays.  Ie, proper grammar and full sentences and eloquent verbose writing styles are bad, or at least less important.  The important thing is efficient meaningful concise useful communication.  A good engineer type email likes to be concise and contain a high information content per word count.  At least for the intro paragraph.  Then you can attach or append something more verbose, or imply to discuss further in person or if they ask for more detail via email.  That’s the type of efficient concise communication I’d like to focus on with emails and blogs.  At least for the initial intro paragraphs, or for quick reference info posts.

I might still put some occasional rambling here…  But I think a more productive thing would be that if I do any more blog posts, they should be stuff like notes related to Programming.  Ie, a work project, a side project, or a study/learning aside.  For this purpose, I am creating a separate Pem’s Code Blog, see ../pemcode

Pem (Admin) :: 2011/10/23 (Sunday, October 23, 2011) :: Blogging, Computers / Tech :: No Comments »

Sometimes the ability to copy/paste between my local computer and remote computer breaks when I use Windows Remote Desktop Connection.  The simple fix is:

1) on the remote computer, use Task Manager to kill rdclip.exe
2) close your RDC session
3) re-open your RDC session

The reason apparently has something to do with certain applications not passing the clipboard messages around the way Windows requires (do an internet search if you want to know more).

I ran into a similar issue when with TightVNC on Windows to a Linux vncserver.  I was able to connect, but the clipboard didn’t work.  After I ran “vncconfig”, the clipboard worked.

Pem (Admin) :: 2011/07/26 (Tuesday, July 26, 2011) :: Linux, Windows OS :: No Comments »

I recently built a desktop computer (from parts).  Warning, it’s been up and running for at least a few weeks, so some of the parts may already be outdated.  The most obvious change is that AMD will soon be releasing Bulldozer CPU’s.  However, there’s always better hardware coming out…  And I didn’t want to put it off any longer (my old computer was really falling apart, and becoming a distraction / liability).

Parts:
* HAF 932 AMD Edition (AMD Fusion dragon computer case), $160
* Corsair AX1200, $280 minus $10 mail-in rebate
* Asus Crosshair IV Formula, $215 on newegg.com
* CPU cooler, Thermalright Silver Arrow, $90, amazon.com
* CPU, AMD Phenom II X6, Socket AM3, $200 for 3.2 ghz, minus $50 rebate
* GPU, Asus DirectCU II Radeon HD 6970, oversized and overpriced, but less loud than other 6970’s, $400 minus $60 rebate
* DDR3 memory x 16 GB (4 GB x 4 slots) ($300, overpriced)
* Optical Drive with Blu-ray, $110 on newegg.com
* HDD, WD Caviar Black, $170 on newegg.com

Total: 160 + 270 + 215 + 170 + 90 + 150 + 340 + 300 + 110 = $1805

Extras (which put it over $2000):
* air filters to reduce dust
* extra case fan, reversed 3 of 4 fans to create negative air pressure
* extra hdd’s, including a very expensive and very fast SSD, 240 GB OCZ Vertex 3

Reuse: I reused my KVM, keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers, furniture. I got a new mouse pad shortly about a month after the computer was setup (Razor Ironclad), b/c the paint on my desk (which is made of particle board) is bumpy and erratic.  If I get anything else for the computer in the next year (12 months or so), it probably won’t be anything expensive.

Goals affecting hardware choices – high performance & stability, less noise
I didn’t get workstation hardware (you could easily spend over $5,000), and I got an AMD CPU (at the time of writing, the Phenom II X6 costs significantly less than an equivalent Intel Core i7).  But other than that, cost was not a significant factor.  In case it’s not obvious, this is very much an AMD computer (AMD CPU, AMD GPU, and AMD chipsets on the motherboard).

A primary goal was to have reasonably high cooling (and stability), but with significantly less noise than my old computer.  Bigger fans typically means less noise per airflow (CFM).  This goal influenced my choices for almost every component.

In some cases, I picked a component with lower performance, not due to the price, but due to my concerns about noise.  Example, the Asus Crosshair IV Extreme is higher end than the Asus Crosshair IV Formula, but it has an annoying tiny/loud chipset fan.  Example, the 6990 (at the time of writing) only had a reference version, which had a much louder fan.

I also decided to go with (negative air pressure) and (dust filters) to reduce dust.  The dust filters are DemciFlex, which are magnetic, and custom size/shape.  Only my case’s front fan is an exhaust fan.  The rest are intake fans.  This is to create negative air pressure (to reduce dust).

I also wanted a better (cleaner, neater, bigger) case, with better cable management and big fans (low noise but high airflow).  I decided on the AMD Edition of the HAF 932.  The standard HAF 932 has a big fan on the side, but the AMD Edition replaces the fan with a bigger window, with an AMD Fusion dragon logo on it.  I’m not sure if I would normally trade a big fan for a bigger window.  But, I do like the big window (and AMD theme).

Pem (Admin) :: 2011/05/15 (Sunday, May 15, 2011) :: Computers / Tech, Hardware :: 1 Comment »

I have some really old DDR memory from Crucial (years old).  It recently broke, and I heard Crucial has a lifetime warranty on it.  I got it directly from their website, crucial.com.  And I submit an RMA request to replace the 1 GB stick, for free, also from crucial.com.  It sent me an address label and RMA paper to print.  I put them in a regular envelope with a 42 cent USPS stamp on it, and put it in the USPS box.  They sent me the replacement, with no additional hassle.  I didn’t have to call them on the phone even once, or keep track of some years old warranty paper or number.  Pretty low hassle, especially since the broken RAM fit in an envelope.

Somewhere in the RMA papers, I think it said to put it in the original package, so I was worried they wouldn’t accept it in a plain standard envelope…  Fortunately, they sent me the replacement anyway.

I more recently got some DDR3 from newegg.com, branded G.Skill.  If it breaks, I just hope it’s as easy to RMA as that 1 GB DDR stick from crucial.com.  If not, then I’ll regret getting (G.Skill from newegg.com) rather than (Crucial from crucial.com).

Pem (Admin) :: 2011/05/01 (Sunday, May 1, 2011) :: Computers / Tech, Hardware :: No Comments »

I had a strange device driver conflict with my newer GPU (Radeon HD 4850) on Windows 7 and my old motherboard (MSI MS-7184, aka HP AmethystM-GL6E) (see here).  After recently installing the latest ATI GPU drivers, I noticed that the High Definition Audio Controller got re-enabled whenever I reboot Windows 7.  So, I investigated an automated way to disable it after the reboot.

I tried doing it with AutoHotKey, but the GUI scripting wasn’t working for Device Manager.  So instead, I looked into a command line version of Device Manager called devcon.  I had better luck with devcon.  So, I ended up putting a simple one line batch (*.bat) script in my startup folder:

devcon\amd64\devcon.exe disable find *DEV_AA30

How did I figure out the “*DEV_AA30” part?  “devcon.exe find *” listed all the devices, one of which was High Definition Audio Controller with the ID “PCI\VEN_1002&DEV_AA30&SUBSYS_AA301002&REV_00\4&3083E1D6&0&0110”.  Using that ID directly got multiple matches (something weird with the & symbols?).  But I figured out that doing “devcon find *DEV_AA30” only matched one device.

Pem (Admin) :: 2011/04/10 (Sunday, April 10, 2011) :: Windows OS :: No Comments »

I noticed this on TurboTax 2010’s web site:

[BEGIN QUOTE]
Completing your return
* Online – Step-by-step Interview questions make tax preparation simple.
* Desktop – Step-by-step Interview questions and the ability to view and complete tax forms just as they appear on paper.
http://turbotax.intuit.com/support/iq/TurboTax/Buyer-s-Guide—Should-I-use-TurboTax-Online-or-Desktop-/GEN12410.html
[END QUOTE]

In other words, the desktop version is more full-featured and lets you interact more with the actual tax forms.  I think this would make it a lot easier to understand what’s going on, such as to google IRS info (or read info at irs.gov).  Or, to do comparisons if you have different options (such as standard deduction vs. itemized, or married filing jointly vs. filing separate).

If the desktop version has more functionality, then this is really not surprising, because with the online version, they let you answer their tax questions before you pay.  So if they showed you the 1040 etc docs that it creates before you paid, then it would be very convenient to use the software without paying for it.

Also, as a general rule, web apps are inherently limited compared to native apps.  Web apps run on a generic platform that works inside a web browser.  Native apps are integrated into the OS and the OS GUI.  This is basically the same argument that Apple uses for not allowing Adobe Flash on iOS – because they want to encourage the development of more native apps.  Even if an app uses the cloud, a native app typically has more potential for power, higher performance, OS integration (including OS GUI integration).

Of course the downside is that you don’t get automatic cloud storage and convenient access from anywhere.  This is why many cloud services offer both.  For example, access to email (or cloud services, such as EverNote) via web pages, desktop apps, and mobile apps.  Maybe TurboTax 2010 should offer this.  Then, again, it’s just a *.tax2010 file that you could backup however you want.

The other thing about TurboTax 2010 desktop is that it’s priced differently.  For the online version they sell you the efile.  For the desktop version, they sell you the software (with up to 5 free files).  If you’re only doing one efile, then it costs more:

TurboTax 2010 desktop editions pricing: 1040EZ is free.  Deluxe says "own a home, made donations or have medical expenses" and costs $60.  Premier says "own stocks, bonds, mutual funds or rental properties" and costs $90.  officemax.com currently sells them in a box on CD for $10 off.

I just installed TurboTax 2010 on a Windows 7 (AMD64 / x64) computer, and here’s my first impressions.  The first thing that killed me is that you can’t press Alt+F to go to the file menu (or Alt+E for Edit, etc).  This is a very basic violation of Windows HIG (btw, it’s called mnemonics).  This is a very minor thing, but I’m kind a nut about standardized shortcuts and good HIG-based OS GUI integration, so a detail like this does really bothers me.  It would be such a tiny GUI code fix.  I had a similar reaction when I first tried p4v.exe (Perfoce’s GUI) on Win7, and noticed that it didn’t use the taskbar jump lists (instead, I wrote cmd.exe batch files, and put those on a jump list, which is kludge).

On the other hand, I was at least glad to see the box that toggles between Step-by-Step and Forms view.  Unfortunately, it takes a few seconds to switch between them, which really doesn’t make sense, but I guess that’s not a big deal.  And I guess a performance bug in the GUI is not a big deal as long as all the actual functionality (ie, does taxes) is good.

Other than those comments, my overall initial impression is very positive.  But keep in mind, I’m writing this post before I’ve actually started using it.

I’ll close with a brief (and btw, uneducated) initial impression of H&R Block vs. TurboTax.  Intuit is a financial and tax software company (products include TurboTax, Quicken / Mint.com, QuickBooks, Billing Manager, Intuit Eclipse), so you might expect their software to be good.  H&R Block is a tax preparation company, so you might expect them to know about taxes.  Of course there are some others, such as TaxACT, which sounds similar but costs less.

Update 2011/02/12: A link from Bank of America also gives you a 35% discount, such as TurboTax 2010 Deluxe desktop edition discounted from $59.95 to $44.96.

Pem (Admin) :: 2011/02/11 (Friday, February 11, 2011) :: Financial :: No Comments »

For a period of time, I had begun to feel like mobile AMD CPU’s were having trouble competing with mobile Intel CPU’s (I’m specifically talking about mobile, not desktop, not server / workstation).  For example, I had some worries about if there might be a higher likelihood of heat problems (and battery life).  However, the Fusion APU’s completely change that.  laptopmag.com gave the HP Pavilian dm1z with Fusion APU an editor’s choice, and said, “Despite its small size, the dm1z is one of the coolest notebooks we’ve yet tested” and “blows past Atom-based netbooks while providing enough endurance to see you through the day”.  As mobile x86 CPUs and APUs allow smaller devices with low heat and all day battery life…  It might turn out that eventually the ARM tablets (iPad etc) turn out to be a fad.

Pem (Admin) :: 2011/01/23 (Sunday, January 23, 2011) :: Computers / Tech, Hardware, Mobility :: No Comments »

Each channel is 6 MHz.  2 says early systems 200 MHz (33 channels), now up to 550 MHz (91 channels).  But 2 seems old (maybe year 2000?), and 5 shows up to 1000 MHz bandwidth.  2 says post-1989, digital cable and mpeg compression allowed 10 TV channels on a single 6 MHz bandwidth analog channel.  Digital Cable also allowed them to use encryption (instead of just simple scrambling) (also allows more data).  Of course in 2011, we have HDTV and also better video compression.

1 says we share a single CMTS with our neighbors, possibly 4,000 to 150,000+ cable modems.  The CMTS (cable modem termination system) connects coaxial connections to the internet via ethernet interfaces, which is HFC (hybrid fiber coax).

1 claims our internet upstream is a single 2 MHz channel, and our download goes over a single 6 MHz channel…  Shared with hundreds of neighbors!  The upstream is time-shared.  While the downstream is just shared.  My interpretation is, we share a single wire with hundreds of neighbors, with a bandwidth of 0 to 1000 MHz.  Most of this wire is used to send everyone the same TV channels (ie, we get every channel, but to view it we need a TV box that decrypts the channels that we subscribe to).  We time-share (with hundreds of neighbors) a single 2 MHz band for uploads.  We use a single 6 MHz channel for download, shared with hundreds of neighbors.  So everything our neighbors download, we also download.  The only thing that stops us from seeing our neighbors’ downloads is encryption, and the fact that our cable modem filters out the packets that don’t have our cable modem’s address on it.

1 seems to be from 2000 (ie, 11 years old).  It does mention that the cable provider can decide to add a new channel for internet, and split the base of users that share that channel.  So this could mean that even if our shared wire covers 1000 people, that could be split into 100 people over 60 MHz.  So, our internet might be on the 900 MHz band, shared with 100 neighbors.  Plus, on the 906 MHz band, is another different 100 neighbors’ internet connection.  etc

Because our connection is shared with lots of neighbors, they throttle our connection based on usage, and in some locations are considering per-user bandwidth caps.

If it were up to me, I would say 1000 / 6 = 166 channels, so we should just ditch the cable TV channels, and dedicate them all to internet downloads!  However, there’s probably other factors to consider beyond my simplistic internet-greedy preferences O:-)

Economics: sending everyone the same TV channels is an efficient way to send lots of video data.  They can also keep the price of internet lower, by separately selling the cable TV bandwidth (and phone line bandwidth).

Bottleneck: There might be a bottleneck somewhere else, such as the CMTS.  I’m totally speculating on this.

Finally, keep in mind that I think the articles I read (1, 2) were from 2000, and a lot might have changed since then.  So maybe in 2011, more of the 6 MHz channels are dedicated to internet?  I’d be curious to find out more.

Links:
1. http://www.howstuffworks.com/cable-modem.htm/printable
2. http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/cable-tv.htm
3. http://www.linktionary.com/c/cabledata.html
4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cable_modem_termination_system
5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_cable_television_frequencies
6. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bandwidth_throttling
7. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bandwidth_cap
8. http://lifehacker.com/5215011/which-is-worse-bandwidth-caps-or-throttling

Pem (Admin) :: 2011/01/23 (Sunday, January 23, 2011) :: Computers / Tech, Internet / Web :: No Comments »

There’s a 40 min video of Jeff Bezos (amazon.com CEO / founder) with Charlie Rose (talk show) talking about the release of the Kindle 3.  I found the last 10 min (the part which isn’t about the Kindle 3) especially interesting:

1) Quote: We make it easy to try stuff on.  How do you make it easy to try stuff on?  By making it easy to return.  Oh, I see, yea.  And we try to make people not feel guilty about it.  You know, buy 3 pairs of jeans, and return 2 of them – it’s ok, don’t worry about it.  It’s okay with you?  Yea, it’s okay with us.  Keep the one that fits. End Quote.  So, there it is, from the horse’s mouth…  They want you to order 3 pairs of clothes, keep the one that fits, and mail the other 2 back.  Hmm, guess that attitude will keep both (mail package delivery) and (returns processing) busy <:-p

2) Talks about Bill Gates’s business vs. philanthropy theories (the basic idea is that business tends to be more productive, but philanthropy can address specific areas that the free market neglects) (and by people with excess savings).  Mentions experiment where they gave a random population of poor fruit farmers in India “the equivalent of winning the lottery” (uh, I guess $500 must have been worth a lot more in that specific part of India?), and it didn’t significantly affect their likelihood of getting out of poverty.

3) Often, people in our society love to argue about things before there is any data, or where they might be basing their ideas more on some arbitrary morality than on actual data and specific well-defined goals.

4) The internet and mass communication is shifting the amount of money that business spends to be a higher ratio of (actual value creation) vs. (excessive marketing fluff).

http://www.charlierose.com/guest/view/2618
-> It’s the 40 min video dated 2010 Jul 28

Pem (Admin) :: 2010/12/10 (Friday, December 10, 2010) :: Philosophy / Opinions :: No Comments »

I’m probably going to sound like one of these pompous self-proclaimed intellectual guys who goes around saying that Go > Chess (in fact, I can’t help but sympathize with that kind of attitude)…  So anyone who reads this, please take anything that sounds like negativity against Poker with a grain of salt.  I have nothing against Poker.  I think it can be some fun.  But I like Magic a lot better, and overall, I think Magic is by far more interesting, more intellectual, more enjoyable, and more worthy of your time (assuming you should be spending your extra time on such things at all).

Continuing from my previous post…  This dynamic nature (new sets, and the annual rotation) of the Standard Constructed format is what I love about Magic.  I am not exactly against static classic games like, for example, Poker and Chess and Go.  But I don’t find them particularly interesting, compared to other more modern games (card games, board games, video games).

The type of thinking you need for chess is better done by a computer program, than by a human.  It’s the same old thing over and over, and it has been studied to death.  To do well is simply about mindless rote training – not about strategy, thought, creativity, or innovation.  This is why I say such games should be played by computer programs – not by humans.  It’s simply less interesting, unless you’re writing AI code.  And there’s simply not any room for anything new – strategy, creativity, innovation, content, art, back story, enjoyment, design, change, etc.  Chess is just about picking the right move based on thinking enough moves ahead.

Meanwhile, besides memorizing probability and statistics, Poker is mostly just about keeping a straight face, or bluffing out your opponent.  I think Poker can be fun, but mostly just to for the math and AI code.  It’s simply less interesting than Magic.  And don’t get me started on how to make Poker entertaining to the general public, they (apparently) had to dumb it down, and mix in obscene amounts of money, sex, controversy, stress, and whatever it takes to gets attention – as long as it’s not the least bit intelligent or respectable or interesting.

I’ll end with an excerpt from an ESPN article on professional poker players who play Poker for money and Magic for fun.  I was kind of surprised that Poker appears to be the only non-physical game (ie, non-sport) that ESPN covers…  Unless it’s a first step towards covering more “brainy” (less physical) games, then this simple fact is pretty damning – I mean, Poker can’t be that “brainy” if it’s on freaking ESPN?

Don’t get me wrong…  I think Poker and Chess are great.  Just not that great.

Here’s the excerpt:

> With new cards being brought into circulation every few months, the game has stayed fresh for most of the converts. “Poker is a job, ‘Magic’ a game,” said Parker, who played “Magic” online to unwind after his long days of poker. “I never want to play poker in my free time. ‘Magic’ you can. You can’t make a living at ‘M:TG,’ but it’s just the more enjoyable game.”

> “‘Magic’ is a better-designed game, and I’d play it constantly if I didn’t have to make a living,” Williams said. “We play, relax and have a good time. It helps keep me sharp. I still play every day, either online or with the guys. If I get knocked out, I can always find a game of ‘Magic.’”

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/poker/columns/story?columnist=wise_gary&id=4259905

And here’s a neato MTG Poker deck:

See, despite my ranting, Magic and Poker can live together in harmony.  No worries…

2010/11/22: I guess being more in depth and time consuming can also be a huge drawback. With rare exceptions, you don’t want a hobby (such as getting into a game like Magic or Poker) to distract you too much from your other more serious responsibilities! Again, I like Poker too… Just not as much as I like Magic.

Pem (Admin) :: 2010/10/11 (Monday, October 11, 2010) :: Games, tcg :: No Comments »