Refurbishing our Laptop - pt 2

As I was saying in my previous post, I thought I was really fortunate to find System Mechanic.  Not only could is clean up the registry but it also had at least a dozen other utilities necessary to "tune up" a computer.  Many other companies have these programs also but they want to change  you another fee for them.  On the other hand, having so many tools meant that I could now use them to continue improving the status of the laptop.

However, as I began using all these tools I found that many of them seem to be more smoke and mirrors or simply duplicates of what is in Windows.

An example of the latter: disk inspection and fix.  Not only does this procedure take a horribly long time but the report results looks a little familiar. After running it several times, it hit  me.  It was the old DOS program CHKDSK.  This is the program we used to use in DOS when it looked like the hard drive was beginning to act flaky.  It could be run in a test only mode or a test and automatically fix mode.  And it has been included in Windows Vista under Computer>C:>Properties>General Tools.  Defragmentation is there also.  Of course one of the advantages of a program like System Mechanic is that it gives you another way to access these programs since Windows can be a bit obscure.

Speaking of dis defragmentation, I think this is an example of smoke and mirrors.


When you begin the defrag process you see a display of both the "entropy" (bar chart on the left) and the fragmentation (stadium chart on the right) of the disk.  I've never seen such pretty defrag charts although I'm not sure what they really represent and whether they are meaningful or not.

I do know that after six hours there was a significant change in both charts.  And according to the legend, the changes indicated progress.

After another six hours there was still more evidence of change but it seemed like we were getting increasing less progress per unit of time.  And what was worse was that when I restarted the process, the entropy graph reverted back to almost the first graph in this series.  The entropy, however, they've defined it, does not appear stable.






Of course, the computer itself may not be stable.  One day it goes into so many infinite loops that we're ready to trash it and the next day it works perfectly - still slow but not dead.

Refurbishing our Laptop - pt 1

This week and part of last I probably spent close to 30 hours trying to make our laptop computer perform the way it used to, the way it did when we brought it home from the store.  Of course I'm scared to do what Friend of the family Eric Bushman would do: rebuild the system from scratch.  Come to think of it, our two youngest kids would probably do that as well, and it wouldn't take 30 hours to do it.

No, I picked the approach that someone out there has faced (and solved) the same problem and would love to share their solution with the world.  What I have found is more like the old adage of "garbage in, garbage out".

A thorough survey of the internet using Google to search for "speed up your computer", "fix that slow computer", "tired of waiting for your computer to start". etc. gave me a list of approximately 50 programs, almost all of which can be loosely classified as "registry cleaners". (A survey of late evening TV advertisements came up with a half dozen of the same solutions.)

Quick lesson on the registry:  This is a super-humongous file that Windows uses to store indices, parameters, default values, keys, file names, passwords, ... that Windows will ever need to interact with other programs and various parts of Windows.  

Now since Windows created the registry one might think they would feel some responsibility for keeping it cleaned up and updated.  "Not our problem," says Windows as the registry grow and grows, getting bloated and unruly while your computer does indeed slow down.  And cleaning your registry can indeed speed things up.

The problem is that registry bloat is just one of many problems that can cause your computer to slow down.  In our case it actually had more to do with a faulty disk drive.  But it could have been poor memory allocation, badly fragmented disk files, or outdated hardware drivers.   Or a dozen other conditions.  In which case a registry cleaner is just a waste of time and money.

Fortunately, I happened upon System Mechanic, a truly wonderful collection of utilities put together in a package that helps you to use them and understand what you're doing in the process.  If I had gotten this tool at the beginning of the 30 hours perhaps I would have only spent 15 hours.  System Mechanic doesn't eliminate the need for lengthy disk testing and repairing but it does help you know what to do.

(to be continued)

Random questionable ideas

This semester I'm attending a seminar on "Our Amazing Brain".  So far I've been less than impressed by some of the ideas put forth by our class coordinator.   I hope I just misheard or misunderstood what he was trying to say.

1.  There is a facial recognition portion of our brain.  It is located close to the area responsible for recognizing color.  This has the effect of making it more difficult for white people to differentiate and recognize people of of color .  The reverse is also true.

2.  People who write left-handed have more difficulty writing continuous, coherent sentences because their writing hand obscures what has just been written.  This prevents the brain from coordinating the new thoughts being written down with what is already on the page.  Of course, this is all now meaningless since no one writes with pen or pencil anymore.

3.  Several important civilizations chose to write from left to right because it was easier to read what was written as it was being written.  Among these forward thinking civilizations was ancient Greece who made the change in two steps.

Comments, anyone?  I haven't been able to find a shred of evidence for such ideas.

Little Things

Sometimes its the little things that make a great difference.  In this case it was a couple of piece of hardware that have made a big difference in my negotiating our back door.

The door leading from our house to our garage has spring-loaded hinges which usually ensures that the door is closed and we don't get the hot air, cold air, or bugs from the outside into our house.  However, when someone has one or both hands full, such as carrying in groceries or pushing a walker, the spring hinge really gets in the way.  Ever since we've lived here we've had a door prop.  (It worked better before we got ceramic tile.)  It kept the door 90% open.  That's good enough for carrying in pages but got in the way of my walker.

Ta Daa!  If the floor was causing the  problem, avoid the floor.  A magnetic door catch with a spring damper has replaced the prop.  The door opens wide and stays open without sliding on the tile.

Another small improvement was the aluminum ramp.  Not only do I no longer need to lift my walker into the house, but I can also easily bring my power chair into the house.

Taylor's sweet corn days

There's really something special about Small Town, USA, especially if they have an active chamber of commerce, interfaith committee, or some other mechanism for people to get together and have fun.

The 50th Wedding Anniversary we attended recently happened to occur on the same weekend as the town's "Sweet Corn Festival". For those who haven't ever thought abaout the term, sweet corn is the kind that we eat on the cob and from a can.  Field corn, on the other hand, is the kind that you feed to cattle or use for making fuel alcohol.  And Taylor, Arizona is one of those small towns that can get together and have fun. In fact they're known for their July 4th Rodeo.

The Sweet Corn Festival started with a half marathon which we somehow couldn't get up early enough to enjoy.  Next came the parade - a collection of 20 floats, "royalty" cars, and a band.  I think this is the first time I've seen a float with live sheep, pigs, and hens aboard.

o what a t-shirt can do!

a horse with pink polka-dots

the livestock float

High School band

50th Anniversary couple & SOME of their descendents

The action then shifted to the rodeo grounds where a craft fair was underway.  They also had barbecue, Hawaiian barbecue, Navajo fry bread, and, of course, sweet corn. .

The festivities continues through the afternoon with a farm rodeo and into the evening with a dance and, in our case, the 50th wedding celebration.

Forty Four Years and Still in Love

What more can I say?  I'm blessed with the most amazing wife in the world.

Music Circus: Miss Saigon

If it were phrased as a qquestion "Miss Saigon?" I would have to answer "Yes, thank God.  I did!" or "No, I really don't."  You see, I missed going to Vietnam courtesy of Uncle Sam by the very skin of my teeth.  So I did, in fact, miss Saigon.  But I don't regret missing out.

Watching the Music Center's performance of Miss Saigon didn't bring back any false pleasant memories, or any memories for that matter.  More of an opereta than a musical, the libretto of Miss Saigon was difficult for me to  understand even though I had read the plot summary.  None of the songs were "hummable" and the ending is just plain tragic.

Technically, the play was over-the-top from the opening dirty disco routine to the helecopter flying the last American't to safety.  It wasn't so easy to pick out the good and bad guys so the political side of the war didn't play prominently in the production.  Pretty, listenable music, just not singable or memorable.

A Special Needs Traveler

I didn't know if retirement would bring more or less travel opportunities.  I suspected that the 1 to 2 times a month that I used to fly for work would be more than made up by trips related to our family.  Then when Carolyn retired, we would even travel more as seeing the world is on her bucket list.

Developing a disability that affects your walking is a life changing event.  But that isn't the same as a life ending event.  I really thought that my Parkinsons Disease would permanently prevent my traveling - at least by airplane.  Well, Carolyn has convinced me otherwise.  In fact, I can enjoy traveling more now than ever before.   The secret is time and assistants.

With my disability, it takes longer for me to do things, from dressing to eating to packing.  By planning in this extra time, I find that I'm actually less stressed about getting to the airport on time.  Carolyn has been really good about building in this extra time.

Carolyn is the number 1, best assistant I could ever have while traveling.  It makes more sense for her to handle everything from the tickets to the boarding passes to the tips to the ground transportation.  I am put in a wheelchair as soon as we enter the airport terminal and, except for a short walk through security, stay in the wheelchair until I board the airplane.  When we land I'm put in a wheelchair as soon as I walk off the plane.  I don't have to know where I'm going or how to get there.  Carolyn and the wheelchair attendant take care of all that.  I don't worry about my luggage.  Carolyn and the wheelchair attendant take care of that.  I don't worry about tipping the attendants.  Carolyn takes care of that.  I don't worry about getting an early boarding time.  My disability takes care of that.

I do still have to worry about what's in my pockets.  At the Phoenix airport I was certain that I had emptied all my pockets.  But the walk through machine thought otherwise.  So I was intimately patted down.  The officer asked me to empty a pocket that I thought was already empty.  It contained a pop-up Frisbee I had completely forgotten about.  The world is safer now that I revealed my Frisbee to the inspector.

(12 inch diameter Frisbee unfolded and folded in a little pocket)

50th Anniversary Celebration

Married for 50 years and still have a vibrant marriage!  What a wonderful reason to celebrate.  For some people celebrating a 50th Wedding anniversary is best done with a small family party and with the couple repeating the vows that they spoke 50 years ago at the beginning of the marriage.

But in our family recently the conditions were just perfect for a celebration that could involve the close family, the extended family, and even the town where they spent most of their 50 years of married life.  Specifically, my wife's second to oldest brother Norris and his wife Fawnette shared their joy and good fortune with anyone who cared to join them.

Following is a sort of picture story of this celebration.  Please click on the picture if you'd like to see a larger version.

	The celebration day started with a parade, not for Norris and Fawnette but to celebrate Taylor Town's Sweet Corn Festival.  It was an opportunity for Norris and Fawnette to honor the town at the same time the town cheered for them.
	There wasn't a trailer big enough for the whole family but there were representatives from most branches.
	Guests coming to the party were greeted by the bride and groom - Fawnette and Norris who tried to spend time with each person attending.  They are shown here with Fawnette's wedding dress and Norris's Army uniform  - the attire they wore when they were married.
	Almost all of Norris's siblings and spouses were able to attend.  His older brother and sister-in-law had mission obligations.
	Most of the children were also able to attend.  You may notice the poodle skirts worn by the women.  They set both the theme of the party - late 50's - and the color worn by their family.  The latter was especially helpful in figuring out which little child was looking for his mother.
	Each of the children with help from their family perform something for the program.  Here, Fawne's family (note the purple theme) sang a beautiful love song in lovely harmony and a capella!

	Michelle's husband John played his guitar and led his family in another love song.
	The color coding ever showed up when a family was waiting their turn to perform.
	Before and after the program, the young men and women of the family manned the ice cream and cookie bar, providing both refreshments and reinforcement of the 50's theme.
	I think they enjoyed their assignment.
	Two quilts were made by the children and their families.  One shows various activities and interests while the other is photo oriented.  Be sure to click on the quilts to see how lovely they are.
	Norris broke into the middle of the program with a surprise solo of his own which concluded with his giving Fawnette a beautiful diamond Mother's ring.

A good time was had by all.  

Thank you Norris & Fawnette for your lives of service, for your wonderful family, and you example for us all.

Another dumb business practice

Maybe its time I made a category for this topic.

My example for today came from a headline in our local newspaper which stated that home loans could not be restructured when the payments had been regularly paid.  Implied, of course, was that loans for which payments had not been regularly paid could and would be restructured!  Talk about an incentive to do the wrong thing.  Certainly the timeliness and reliability of your payments is one measure of your financial standing but it is only  one measure and a poor one at that.  Can you imagine a loan officer saying to an applicant, "You've skipped on 3 loans and are behind on your car payment with a total delinquency ratio of 50%.  So we have approved a $100,000 loan for you of which we expect you to pay back $50,000 when you feel like it.  Here's your check.  Have a good day."

Let's reward those who pay on time not those who don't.