Catherine

Good for you -- may they serve you well!

New Egg is always a good resource.

Just a bit. Yes, it is hard to ensure compatibility with every possible piece of software out there -- but Office, QuickBooks, Sage, CFS Tax Tools -- the sort of software that could almost invariably be expected on the computers of a tax and accounting firm -- that should be tested. DOSbox and APL emulators? Those can be skipped with impunity on the part of CCH, and if you have trouble in your own office that's a shame but that's the way it goes sometimes.

Hi folks -- Woot is selling a new HP 21" monitor today or until gone. Since lots of folks have talked about multiple monitors I thought someone might be interested. The few things I have purchased from them (one does need to register; that is free) have been shipped speedily and are as advertised. One item the shipper sent the wrong thing (drop-ship; NOT Woot's fault), they bent over backwards to make it right. Very lame "commentary" about their various items, separate from the real information. HP Pavilion 2211x 21.5" 1080p WLED Monitor $129.99 - 35% off List Price of $199.99 Catherine http://sellout.woot.com/offers/hp-21-5-1080p-wled-monitor?utm_source=Daily+Digest&utm_campaign=a76eeaaafe-Daily+Digest+-+20130815+-+Accessories.Woot&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c5ca76da11-a76eeaaafe-291056889

Just spoke with ATX on the beta testing. They are still taking names for testers (in case anyone else is interested). Starts on 9/9 and goes for three weeks. Week #1: installation (stand alone AND network; they need both) Week #2: client letters Week #3: printing You will note there is NOTHING in all that addressing functionality, non-glacial processing speeds, or any of the other major problems we had. Just those three areas. I will still test, but it's looking more and more like Drake. Anyone here going to the Drake seminar in NJ on Nov 7&8? I may see you there.

Loved the video from KC!! How many, though, I wonder, no longer know the old term "bun in the oven"? That is going the way of the *much* older phrase, "sprained my ankle" as a euphemism.

Well, not quite a laugh -- but far too cute - if you don't at least smile at this, have someone take your pulse to make sure you're not deceased. http://www.wimp.com/bathsloths/ (Note for the link-leery; this one is safe so far as I can tell. It shows a less than two-minute video of baby sloths on bath day.)

Watt watt watt watt watt watt watt? Only 7 watts; you're not so smart! (Goon Show; British radio series) Not only did I get the joke, I *have* one of those meters downstairs and still use it. My husband has two wigglescopes down there, too (oscilloscopes; extra points to whoever gets the source of the term I used for them).

Wile E Coyote versus Acme Corporation http://boomslanger.com/CoyotevsAcme.htm

Under the heading of "can't go wrong with the classics" I present: A few minutes before the church services started, the congregation was sitting in their pews and talking. Suddenly, Satan appeared at the front of the church. Everyone started screaming and running for the back entrance, trampling each other in a frantic effort to get away from the evil incarnate. Soon the church was empty except for one elderly gentleman who sat calmly in his pew without moving, seemingly oblivious to the fact that God’s ultimate enemy was in his presence. So Satan walked up to the man and said, “Do you know who I am?” —The man replied, “Yep, sure do.” —”Aren’t you afraid of me?” Satan asked. —”Nope, sure ain’t.” said the man. —”Don’t you realize I can kill you with one word?” asked Satan. —”Don’t doubt it for a minute,” returned the old man, in an even tone. —”Did you know that I can cause you profound, horrifying AGONY for all eternity?”persisted Satan. —”Yep,” was the calm reply. —”And you ‘re still not afraid?” asked Satan. —”Nope,” said the old man. —Totally perplexed, Satan asked, “Why aren’t you afraid of me?” —The man calmly replied, “Been married to your sister for 48 years.”

Don't do this in Massachusetts! Those public fax machines store the scans internally until they are "wiped" and most store personnel don't know how to do that. Identity thieves know how to retrieve it, though. So in MA, the private information protection laws forbid leaving such info (name, address, ssn!) anywhere they could be accessed. I had a fax to send last year when my machine was on the fritz and found most alternative methods (pay-for-fax at Kinko's, some email fax services) didn't pass muster.

And yet, when time comes to actually vote, people overwhelmingly vote to send their particular congress-vermin BACK to DC, to wreak more havoc.

Raspberries need picking but it rained and thundered all day. Blackberries are starting to ripen. Waste of time meeting tonight; glad it's over. Have only two (of ~12) IRS letters for 2011 left to respond to; they all arrived suddenly last week sending clients into panic mode. Just about all of them were IRS errors (well, one was a MassDOR error), and one was a small error on my part now all fixed. Have been practicing my fiddle tunes for the NHHG competition come September. Got a new type of rosin to try and it seems to be better for this real humid weather we've been having. Have only been on my bike once or twice - it's either raining or obscenely hot.

Why the Services Can't Work Together From a military buddy (active duty Air Force). - - - One reason the Services have trouble operating jointly is that they don't speak the same language. For example, if you told Navy personnel to "secure a building," they would turn off the lights and lock the doors. Army personnel would occupy the building so no one could enter. Marines would assault the building, capture it, and defend it with suppressive fire and close combat. The Air Force, on the other hand, would take out a three-year lease with an option to buy. (Insert MAS' drum roll here...) - See more at: http://www.jumbojoke.com/why_the_services_cant_work_together.html#sthash.6ID0uAuy.dpuf

I don't bother with tomatoes anymore, but I made raspberry jam yesterday (about 7 half-pints, but froze them after instead of BWB canning) and saw, out picking, that the blackberries are starting to ripen up. They'll be next to get jammed and canned! The neighbors cut back their pear tree last year so much that I only have about a half-dozen myself; there was no cross-pollination. May have to buy myself another pear so I get that in the future. Meanwhile I can eat up the last few years' worth of canned pears. My girls are usually not home to help these days but the folks next door (other next door; not the tree-pruners, lol) have three kids who all want to learn to can. Years of help on the hoof!

Jokes for Geeks (once again from our friends at Jumbo Joke; see link below) A friend sent me 21 jokes "only geeks will understand". I have to admit I "got" all of them. But not all of them were good! Here are the Top 10: A Roman Centurion walks into a bar and asks for a martinus. "You mean a martini?" the bartender replies. The Centurion says, "If I had wanted a double, I would have asked for it!" Q: Why do engineers confuse Halloween and Christmas? A: Because Oct 31=Dec 25. A logician's wife has a baby. The doctor hands the newly born kid to his father. "Well?" the wife demands. "Is it a boy or a girl?" The logician replies (completely correctly!) "Yes." Two scientists walk into a bar. The first one says, "I'll have some H2O." The second scientist says "I'll have some H2O too." After taking a drink, the second scientist dies. There are only two hard things in Computer Science: cache invalidation, naming things, and off-by-one errors. Three logicians walk into a bar. The bartender asks, "Would all of you like a drink?" The first logician says, "I don't know." The second logician says, "I don't know." And the third logician says, "Yes!" Helium walks into a bar and orders a beer. The bartender says, "Sorry: we don't serve noble gases here." He doesn't react. Did you hear about the man who got cooled to absolute zero? He's 0K now. Jean-Paul Sartre is sitting in a French cafe and tells the waitress, "I'd like a cup of coffee, please, with no cream." The waitress says, "I'm sorry, but we're out of cream. Would you like that with no milk?" Q: How do you tell the difference between a chemist and a plumber? A: Ask them to pronounce "unionized". - - - And an oldie bonus: There are 10 kinds of people: those who understand binary, and those who don't. - See more at: http://www.jumbojoke.com/jokes_for_geeks.html#sthash.qfijXxg7.dpuf

What you say about Mr. Gomez -- who was and is a supporter of Obama and Governor Patrick, ideologically and monetarily -- proves my point exactly. He ran as a Republican, but he is not one. But as long as he has the "R" next to his name, folks like you will vote against him, even against Mickey Mouse. Gomez would have pushed all the D positions as well -- and at least have been a resident of the district. But he ran under R, not D, and was against an incumbent -- and that is more than enough for those who refuse to think.

PGP encryption also does the whole disk -- and has an email interface, as well, for those of you who use Outlook. So even if they steal the computer, without the password all they can get is gobbledygook. Other than a different (PGP instead of Windows) initial login screen, it is seamless.

I remember helping my grandmother can tomatoes in August. Zorching our hands on the blanched tomatoes to peel the skins, chopping them, fillings the jars, standing over the boiling kettle... My grandmother would have on her dress, apron, long stockings, and shoes too -- but she rolled her stockings down to the ankles on those occasions and tucked them into themselves in little knots the likes of which I never learned how to twist. It remains a mystery. Took a walk last night in the twilight and remarked for the gazillionth time that no one goes out at night. Time was, to escape the heat of the house (while it was trying to cool down will all windows and doors wide open), folks would sit on stoops and in lawn chairs, while the kids ran around playing. Neighbors would wander by, and folks would take it easy and catch up with various doings. Now we all stay in our air conditioned bubbles, hiding, and not knowing who lives next door. Love my AC but we have also lost out.

The "proof" taxed speaks about has all been refuted. The Gore movie is not allowed to shown in schools in the UK as it was proven, in court, in the UK, that the data was falsified and the conclusions NOT proven. http://youtu.be/4zOXmJ4jd-8 for those interested in fact. Lord Monckton, speaking in St Paul, gives the as-falsified data, the REAL data -- and the sources of those data. Almost all of which are publicly available if one wishes to check for oneself. Religious zealots will decry any attempt to introduce rationality into the discussion.

Excellent advice, jainen!

And the people who keep re-electing them. Problem is, folks all say, "They're all crooks!" with the un-said appendum of "except my guy." Why their guy? Because of something nice that got done (flag for a neighbor's family, help with some snafu), or some pork that they benefited from. Or sometimes, with lower-information voters, they just pick the incumbent or the familiar name. The result: the same self-serving scoundrels go back and back and back. Perfect example here: completely regardless of positions, -- we just gave a promotion to that absolute idiot Ed Markey, sending him from House to Senate. He first went to the House in 1967; two years before the first moon landing, for gosh sakes. I was still in elementary school and despairing of learning "double Dutch" in jump rope. He supposedly lives in a modest house in the town of Malden -- but public records show that his "home" there had a water bill of $11 for a *year*! That's not even a drip in the sink. Instead, he lives in a multi-million dollar mansion in Chevy Chase MD and only shows up in Mass to raise money. What on earth can he *possibly* know about the concerns of his district or state? (Unless you mean the concerns of his district in MD.) But the good little drones went wild for him and sent him back again.

I have lived in Mass all my life and well remember the summer of 1975. I was in summer school, taking a class required for MIT admission that my school did not offer. Classes were held in Back Bay (Boston) in the old brick townhouses, with NO air conditioning. My house, when I returned there, was also not air conditioned. Nor were the Green Line or Red Line subway cars. That summer the Copley Square thermometer read 103 -104F time and time again all summer. Overnight lows were plummeting to the mid-80's if we were lucky (and warmer indoors, of course). Can you say swelter? This summer is hot, definitely. But it is surely not the worst I've seen.

If it was up to me alone, I would have re-done the windows several years ago. But my husband has to "research" the right ones... sigh. And the very eastern edge of Death Valley hits the Nevada line; they call that area Sandy Valley and it is near Goodsprings and Jean. I did the field work for my earth sciences degree out there in January/February of 1980. When Gwen & I came back from fiddle camp (in CA) in 2007, we stopped in Las Vegas for a day and among other things drove through that area so I could show her. Amazing how much looked the same and how much I remembered -- and how much was different!

Any time. I double-checked TTB before posting, to be sure I remembered correctly.