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Automating Soggy Jobs: My First Baby Steps

Posted by MichaelDavidCrawford on Monday May 28 2018, @12:13PM (#3263)
15 Comments
Code

Before you howl with too much laughter, please understand that I feel far more comfortable writing device drivers than web applications.

I just now finished listing all ninety locations for Synopsis:

The first thing I want to do to automate this is to list a company on
just one page, with a form for all of its locations, then have a
computer program propagate those listings to all the local pages.

This has the complication that many of those local pages won't exit
yet; for example I created the page for Enschede as I was working on
Synopsis' listings in Holland.

But a good start would be to only propagate the listings to pages that
already exist, with manual work required to create the new local
pages.

This because I have to look up the state or province and possibly the
county for almost all over the new localities. I also have to create
folders for them. From time to time I even list an entirely new
country.

While I do plan to use some manner of database by the time I'm done, I don't plan on specifying its schema myself - I'd hire a DBA to do that. I've never really understood why so many people are so into SQL. If I did use SQL I would use PostgrSQL but most likely I won't use SQL.

I'm going to do all the automation in Python, for the simple reason
that I'm already good at coding Python. There are many web
application technologies, each with their own strengths and
weaknesses. I'm not religious about them.

First, The Good News

Posted by MichaelDavidCrawford on Monday May 28 2018, @05:47AM (#3262)
5 Comments
Career & Education

I now have lots of free time to devote to The Global Computer Industry Index.

My friend Stefan Youngs asked me to volunteer for Aircrew Remembered but I've never really had the headspace for it until just tonight.

I'll tell you the bad news right after I hurl my thousand-dollar iPhone 7 in the Columbia River.

I'm Going To Report A Large CP Site To The FBI Tomorrow

Posted by MichaelDavidCrawford on Saturday May 26 2018, @08:52AM (#3258)
20 Comments
Code

Internet Crime Complaint Center.

When I report the CP to anyone - not just the FBI but also deputies from Clark County in Washington and Multnomah County in Oregon - I use my real name, my real home address, my real phone number and my real email.

Both of the deputies were dismayed at what I reported but as we parted they both said "Keep up the good work". I expect lots of others do this kind of "Free Agent" work but I expect most others do so anonymously.

I need to get some ZZZzzzs to have any hope of writing coherently.

It's a dot-com. If nothing else the FBI could seize their domain. But I expect they'd let it continue to operate while they spend some time tracing it to its origins.

It's a large still photo site. Most of the photos are thumbnails from videos, others are "magazine covers" for bundles of sets. Typically each issue has 3000 photos.

Each image is a link to a page that enables one to "join". The actual videos and full issues are available only to members.

I've never registered as a member anywhere, nor have I ever paid for access.

Three or so years ago I reported a .com and a .org domain to the Internet Crime Complaint Center. From time to time I checked them then was dismayed that the sites were still operating. But I checked again just recently. The original sites were gone to be replaced by garden-variety nutritional supplement vendors.

Join me in Nashville on May 29!

Posted by realDonaldTrump on Wednesday May 23 2018, @10:47PM (#3254)
6 Comments
Nexuses

Folks, I'm having a very special fundraiser for Marsha Blackburn. Next Tuesday in Nashville. And it's going to be a tremendous rally, tremendous crowd. RSVP now, before tickets run out!!!! donaldjtrump.com/rallies/nashville-tn-may-2018

By entering your mobile number you are agreeing to receive periodic text messages from Donald J. Trump for President, Inc. Message data rates may apply. Text "STOP" to opt-out. T&C/Privacy Policy: sms-terms.com/88022

The Skills Gap

Posted by The Mighty Buzzard on Wednesday May 23 2018, @11:19AM (#3252)
37 Comments
Science

So, I was out smoking and getting my first cup of coffee down this morning when the solution to the skills gap in the U.S. hit me out of the blue.

You know how your ears, nose, and feet keep slowly growing all your life, right? What we need is some lab coat wearing sons of bitches to figure out the mechanism that causes this. Then we need them to figure out a treatment that will cause the same in the penis. Enough guys should then spend what would otherwise go to a degree to pay for the treatment and force them to take up a skilled trade if they want to make a good living.

Problem solved.

Just One Bug Is Holding Up More Money Than G-d

Posted by MichaelDavidCrawford on Wednesday May 23 2018, @09:58AM (#3251)
6 Comments
Code

And I don't have the hardware required to reproduce it.

It's a purely cosmetic bug, and a really minor one at that. But my client's sales people feel it is crucially important for me to fix it.

Today I regressed it on a whole bunch of different macOS - the operating system formerly referred to only by Apple employees as "Mac OS Ten" - versions as well as a whole bunch of different boxes.

Late in the day I was delighted to find my email totally spammed full of me adding new regressions to RedMine:

No - 10.12.5 (NNNNN) Late 2019 Mac mini, Model Identifier Mac512k42,1984

The entire company got copied on every single regression I tried, each of which was just one line like the above.

And I can't install El Capitan on an Early 2016 MacBook because El Capitan is from 2015 and so the 2016 on up models won't boot off the installer stick.

Just as I left work I explained what was meant by Model Identifiers and how to... uh... "identify" them - use the System Report button in "About This Mac" then suggested they buy me the correct Model Identifier from Other World Computing.

With a mischevious grin I checked Other World's stock of used MacBooks to find that they had no 2015 MacBooks in stock.

But I did point out that they get new used Macs in all the time.

I'm likely to stay home today but I'll check my email regularly. Somewhere I have an email that links to a couple other reputable used Mac dealers.

Bonita and I developed a really effective budgeting template at first in Quatro Pro, then in Microsoft Office Excel, then in OpenOffice.org and now in LibreOffice but not dot org.

The result of that is that I've already spent More Money Than G-d and as well have spent another five thousand Samoleons.

Sucks To Be Michael David Crawford.

Trump Doing Same Thing He Demanded Clinton Be Locked Up For

Posted by DeathMonkey on Tuesday May 22 2018, @06:48PM (#3250)
19 Comments
News

While serving as secretary of State, Hillary Clinton disregarded an instruction from the Foreign Affairs Manual directing her to use State Department equipment for day-to-day operations. Clinton almost certainly did this for convenience — since she could not connect her smartphone to the State Department server, the directive made it harder for her to check her email on a mobile device — but the issue somehow became a first-tier national scandal. The bizarre prominence this story took on is worth revisiting given Monday night’s revelation that Donald Trump is doing essentially the same thing.

Trump continues to use personal phone because a secure phone is too inconvenient - LOCK HIM UP!

Trump’s clear double standard between Hillary Clinton’s emails and his own cell phones
Trump's Unsecured iPhones Make Clinton's Basement Server Look Like Fort Knox

"John Brennan is PANICKING."

Posted by realDonaldTrump on Monday May 21 2018, @01:39PM (#3248)
10 Comments
News

"John Brennan is panicking. He has disgraced himself, he has disgraced the Country, he has disgraced the entire Intelligence Community. He is the one man who is largely responsible for the destruction of American’s faith in the Intelligence Community and in some people at the top of the FBI. Brennan started this entire debacle about President Trump. We now know that Brennan had detailed knowledge of the [phony] Dossier. He knows about the Dossier, he denies knowledge of the Dossier, he briefs the Gang of 8 on the Hill about the Dossier, which they then used to start an investigation about Trump. It is that simple. This guy is the genesis of this whole Debacle. This was a Political hit job, this was not an Intelligence Investigation. Brennan has disgraced himself, he’s worried about staying out of Jail." Dan Bongino pic.twitter.com/dEm7g4vA8w

The Wall Street Journal asks, “WHERE IN THE WORLD WAS BARACK OBAMA?” A very good question!

Welcome back, Melanie!

Posted by realDonaldTrump on Sunday May 20 2018, @02:31PM (#3247)
2 Comments
Topics

Great to have our incredible @FLOTUS back home in the White House. Melanie is feeling and doing really well. Thank you for all of your prayers and best wishes!

Thoughts & prayers!

Posted by realDonaldTrump on Friday May 18 2018, @06:37PM (#3246)
3 Comments
News

May God be with the people of Sutherland Springs, Texas. The FBI and Law Enforcement has arrived. pic.twitter.com/LtJ0D29Hsv