I created a dust room for shaping moulding, then I realized: I made a
kill room (à la Dexter)!

So I have finally pulled the trigger and deleted my Facebook account. After several months of not logging in to the service, and several weeks of being insistent about deleting my account, I finally did it.

But the weird thing is that I almost didn't. I was very hesitant about clicking the actual "Submit" request button, thinking that maybe I would start to use it again...  no. Click it. Do it... and done.

So I have given Facebook the Lacuna Inc. treatment. After 2 weeks, they won't even remember me. Or so they say.

I have two APC uninterruptible power supplies (UPSs), a Back-UPS ES 550 oversized-surge-protector-style power strip UPS for my laptop & external drives, and a Back-UPS HS 500 home network panel wall-mount UPS for my structured wiring panel switch / cable modem / wireless base station.

Both UPSs woke me up at 1:45, their beeping indicating that my power went out. I had no intention of shutting down my laptop (which was already asleep) nor my network equipment, since they could run for hours with their very low power draw from a 500 VA UPS. So, I set out trying to shut off the damn beeping alerts.

First, I hate you APC for not using a standard USB cable. No, instead you have to use a proprietary RJ-45 / USB cable. Of course, I only have 1 of them, stashed in my big box o' cables. Let me tell you, rifling through that box at 2 AM with one hand (the other holding a flashlight) was sure fun. I must have found 20 standard USB cables before I finally dumped the entire box to find your fucking "special" cable. I hate you.

Second, I have to carry my laptop to the HS 500 (since it's by the structured wiring panel, not at my desk). Why can't you put a damn switch on the UPS with 2 options: "Annoying as hell" and "STFU"? I mean really, how much do you hate my sleep?

Third, your freaking "PowerChute" software isn't available for Mac OS X Lion (10.7). Apparently, you gave up supporting it around Leopard (10.5). So yeah, go fuck yourself again.

I really hate you. I would dump you before the 4th beep of your goddamned annoying "hey hey, the power's out, just thought you should know. I'll let you know again in 30 seconds in case you didn't hear me just now", but unfortunately, you're probably the "best" consumer UPS out there. *Shudder*

I hate you, APC

On the way to hunting, near La Veta Pass, Colorado.

There used to be a day when Apple cared about how they treated their customers, but it appears that they're just phoning it in lately.... (The crack about Apple's customer care is a joke: this is an actual invoice for Cee Lo Green's "Fuck You!" single)

 Scott Kurtz created a comic bad guy based on my all-time favorite word: onomatopoeia. Awesome. I love how the character, in a single word, neatly summarizes his entire concept *and* just about every action scene from the Batman TV series. Correction: Scott Kurtz didn't create him. Kevin Smith and Phil Hester did. Tangential: does onomatopoeia itself exhibit onomatopoeia? And can it be spelled using "œ" (oe-ligature)? Yes it can. Update: I didn't notice it before, but if you follow the graphic link to the PvP comic, Scott Kurtz updated his comic because he unintentionally ripped off Kevin Smith's bad guy. He replaced his Onomatopoeia with Palindrome. The new baddie is still funny in the storyline and still works well, but still... anyhow, kudos to Kurtz for correcting it. See also The Webcomic Overlook's rundown of this "controversy".

XKCD's take on Premier Election Systems (formerly Diebold) screwing up the 2004 Presidential election vote counting, and subsequently blaming it on antivirus software in its machines. Really, is it that hard to build an adding machine? I've built embedded systems, I know the cost of rolling your own system is usually more expensive than going with off-the-shelf solutions... but Windows in voting machines? The first line of defense safeguarding democracy is left to Windows?

I'm trying this blog stuff again.  If past history is any indicator, I'll write 5 posts, then forget about it for another year. I'm trying to get organized, and force myself to use todo lists, calendars, whatever it takes. I also would like to be as paperless as possible, so I'm focusing on three tech tools to help me out:

• Sandy
• Jott
• Fujitsu ScanSnap S510

We'll see how well these work out.  I will say that the scanner has a voracious appetite, at 18 sheets per minute, with the ability to duplex. I have already used the hell out of it since January, and it's only just dented the stacks of paper I need to input.  But so far, it's sweet.

On many occasions, I've needed to calculate date/time math operations (such as add X days to a particular date, etc.). I always try to use Google Calculator, and every time I'm reminded that Google Calc doesn't do date math. I then always search for "date calculator", find a website or widget that performs the calculations, and then get frustrated that Google doesn't but *should* do the operation. What's more, I can't seem to find anybody else on the webs who wants this functionality. Lots of people clamored for IMAP access from GMail.  I can't be the only person who wants to find something like "6/20/2008 - 60 days", can I?